Why me?

Those two words were the only things that were going through my head as I approached the towering stalks of the bamboo forest. My whole life I've been trying to escape my ancestors and somehow I end up here. I guess that's the price of being a descendant in a legendary weapon hunting bloodline. I shake my head, it's stupid but I can't seem to escape it.

We reached the barricade of green and I lightly pulled on the reins of my horse Daoji causing him to slow to a stop on the dirt track. The name was a little inside joke; the real Daoji was a rebellious monk, while my horse was sometimes just a pain in the ass. Countless stable boys had struggled to keep him under when we were staying at inns.

He rumbled softly underneath me, as if he was laughing at them now. It was uncanny; it was like he could read my thoughts. Sometimes I wondered if he really could. I shook the thought away and focused on what lay in front of me.

The bamboo didn't seem to end. Either way I looked, I couldn't see an end to the endless woody stems. I guess it was a fitting place to hide the Immortal-Thrashing Whip.

I lightly tapped my heels against Daoji's flanks and we set off again, trotting along the side of the forest as I looked for a way in. I really didn't want to have to hack through the stalks of the bamboo. It would blunt my blade and I would have to sharpen it while in the forest. I'd be vulnerable, something I couldn't afford to be here. Admittedly, I had my dagger, but if something big came at me, that wouldn't be much use.

We passed a couple of openings into the forest where I could have slipped through, but they were too small for Daoji. Besides, he was carrying my weapons and armour so I couldn't afford to leave him behind. Eventually, the searching yielded a big enough pathway, cutting through the blockade and into the greenery.

I swallowed slowly. There was no turning back after this point. I probably wouldn't be able to make my way out of the forest, even if I wanted to. I took a deep breath. How did I manage to get myself dragged into something like this? Oh right, the whole bloodline thing. Lucky me.

I unconsciously glanced at the dark blue satchel on the side of Daoji. I won't have to use it, I reassured myself. Just forget about it.

It was surprisingly lush inside the forest. The leaves of the bamboo were very dense near the top, forming a canopy that felt like it sealed everything in. As soon as I stepped, inside it felt like I was entering a completely different world. It was hard to believe such a thriving ecosystem could exist somewhere so barren.

A noise distracted me from my thought process and I frantically flicked my eyes around, searching for the source between the enormous stems. I internally scolded myself for losing focus. This wasn't the place to be daydreaming.

I quietly moved my hand to the hilt of my dagger, still scanning the surrounding area for any sign of movement. The silence was deafening; it was like the forest was taunting me. A deer slowly trotted into view. My grip on my dagger loosened, and I felt myself exhale. I hadn't even been aware I was holding in a breath.

The deer seemed completely unperturbed by my presence and leant its head down to graze on the forest floor. Surprisingly, instead of two antlers on the top of its head, there were four. I recognised it instantly, a fuzhu. But they were only meant to appear in areas after they had flooded and there was no way that could happen here. Maybe they were just native to this forest?

The fuzhu had finished grazing in this particular spot and walked off looking for somewhere else suitable. If fuzhu could live here, then what else might exist in this forest? There could be countless species thought to be myths that may inhabit this place.

I shook my head. Forget that for now. I couldn't afford to be caught off guard again. I stood up in the stirrups and swung down off of Daoji quickly. It had been too long since I'd done this; I was getting sloppy.

I grabbed the pack containing my armour and weapons and opened it up. I had a leather breastplate reinforced with chain mail, as well as a pair of hardened leather bracers. It wasn't the most protection in the world, but it wasn't heavy and allowed me to maintain my speed while in combat.

For what I lacked in armour I made up for in weapons. I had two blades at my disposal as well as a collection of throwing knives which I could use for ranged encounters. I hoped my aim was still passable with them.

One of my swords was a dao, a slightly curved single-edged blade with a bamboo reinforced hilt. It wasn't my favourite of the pair because of how restricting it felt to use, mainly due to the fact you had to limit your attacks to a slash or slice.

My preferred weapon was my jian. A double-edged straight sword I had inherited from my mentor. It's the first sword I'd ever wielded, and through the hours of practice, it had practically become a part of me.

I clipped my belt of knives around my waist and slid both the blades into their respective sheaths. My eyes flicked over to the dark blue satchel again, but I swung back up onto Daoji to stop myself from opening it. If I got tempted that easily, then there wasn't any point in even trying.

We had travelled deeper into the forest when something on the ground caught my eye. A patch of brown mushrooms sprouted from the grass, slightly off from the route I had been travelling. They looked familiar, and after dismounting from Daoji and getting closer, my suspicions were confirmed. It was a patch of lingzhi mushrooms.

I couldn't help but laugh at the circumstances. Of all the places I might have found them, it had to have been here. Lingzhi mushrooms supposedly have some sort of internal healing factor, so they're really healthy to eat and luckily, they don't actually taste that bad. But after eating them for nearly every meal when I was training with my mentor, I'd come to hate them with a passion.

I picked one up, the familiar earthy smell hit me, and I smiled. For old times' sake, I think I could find a way to use them in my meal tonight. I glanced up, the last rays of sunlight were stretching across the sky as the light began to fade. I needed to find a place to settle down for the night. Roaming around in the dark was a bit risky. You never knew what spirits could be lying in wait.

Eventually I came across a suitable place I could set my camp up. The clearing was a relief to see after trekking around in the endless green for however long. It was strange to see such a perfect circle though; it was like the bamboo had all decided to stop growing in sync.

Over the right side of the clearing, there was a collection of short plinths with an array of items scattered all over them. The idols and incense sticks reminded me of the shrines I'd visited when I was younger. Maybe it was an old place of worship? Clearly no one had used it in a long time though, chips of the mossy stone that made up the pedestals had crumbled away leaving cracks and dents in the stonework. It was quite sad to see.

I decided to pitch my tent on the opposite side of the clearing to the shrine. The spot was a bit more uncomfortable, but I felt disrespectful sleeping near a shrine even if it was abandoned. I loosely tied Daoji to a nearby bamboo stalk and got to work.

It was dark once I got my cooking fire going, and I tossed the lingzhi mushrooms into the pot with some onion and diced chicken. This had been a favourite when I was training so I thought it was fitting to eat it here again. The sizzle of the meat helped set me at ease, just letting me forget everything else and focus on one thing. I lay my head back against a bamboo stalk and closed my eyes.

Where the hell am I going to find the Immortal Thrashing Whip in all of this? But I can't go back with nothing, not after one of the four auspicious beasts had approached me. It had started in a dream, the Azure Dragon telling me to head east till I found a bamboo forest.

I'd dismissed it initially, I feel like most people would have. But they kept happening and each time it was the same message. Travel east till you reach a huge bamboo forest, somewhere inside you'll find a legendary weapon guarded by a terrifying beast. Not the most helpful advice but after hearing it countless times in my dreams I decided I may as well act on it.

And here I was. I sighed and stirred my meal, ironically my ancestors would be proud. Exactly the opposite of what I've been working towards my whole life. My eyes drifted over to the blue satchel again and this time I couldn't resist. I grabbed it up off the floor and flipped it open to reveal the contents.

Inside lay an ornate mask that covered the bottom half of the face. It was mainly a deathly white colour, probably to make it look as much like a skull as possible. A wolf-like set of black teeth were the most prominent feature on the mask, making the wearer look like some sort of demon. It had come into my possession through my late father when he had died. It was actually the only thing he had left me. Maybe that's why I hadn't gotten rid of it like I should have.

Out of my peripheral vision I suddenly noticed that the pot I was using to cook my rice was boiling over. I frantically rushed over to stop it from going everywhere and quickly took it off the fire. But as I did so the boiling water splashed onto my hand and I instinctively let go of the pot.

There goes half my meal.

I dried off my hand and nursed it as I went to survey the damage. The pot had dropped onto its side causing about half of the rice to slide out onto the forest floor. As hungry as I was, I think I was going to have to pass on the floor rice.

I righted my pot and scooped the remaining contents out onto a plate alongside the lingzhi mushroom stew. Luckily I seemed to have some recollection of the correct recipe because it was edible, not perfect but edible.

My mentor would have been disgusted though, if I had cooked something like this I could only imagine how many pushups I would have to do. I smiled at the thought. As much as I had hated my upbringing, I'd come to appreciate it over my life.

I finished up my meal and made sure to check on Daoji before going to bed. I even gave him an apple for his hard day of work. In the back of my mind I had the nagging feeling that there was a lot worse to come, but I pushed it aside and settled down into my tent for the night.

~~~

I was woken up by a bright blue tinted light coming through my tent. As soon as I was awake my brain went into overdrive, running through all the possibilities of what could be happening outside. The light looked like it was coming from the opposite side of the clearing I was in so I quickly exited my tent before whatever it was came any closer.

My dagger was already in my hand as I tried to make out what the light was radiating from. Strangely, it seemed to be coming from the form of an old woman. She was facing the shrine, possibly praying, I couldn't tell from this distance. I started making my way towards her making sure to stay out of weapon distance.

"Who are you?" I called.

She turned around and smiled gently at me. She was definitely a spirit, her form was very ethereal and judging by looks she seemed to be a gui po.

"My name isn't important. You just need to know my story," she responded.

I didn't respond, I'd learnt not to trust spirits. Especially gui po, they were widely known for being able to take a bad form. She didn't seem bothered by my lack of response.

"I'm not the one you should fear in this forest," she explained.

She suddenly raised her hands and I tightened the grip on my dagger ready for something to happen. The forest around me came alive with movement as figures stepped out of the trees. The same blue light that surrounded the old woman was also present around every form that circled me.

"You don't need to be afraid. They won't hurt you, they are all yuan gui."

I was slightly taken aback. I'd never seen so many yuan gui in one area. They were spirits that had died wrongfully, so something terrible must have happened here.

The old lady was speaking again. "Chaos took them all."

"Chaos?" I replied.

"Hundun the dragon, the one who guards the Immortal-Thrashing Whip."

Hundun is here?

My mind was racing at the mention of the name. I vaguely remembered it from some folk tale, an incarnate of chaos. But I'd never thought it was actually real.

"He knows you're here now. I wish you the best of luck."

She nodded and began to fade away. All the other spirits followed suit causing darkness to close in as the blue glow disappeared.

I didn't even hesitate. I dashed back to my tent and started gathering my weapons up as fast as I could. For some reason my gut was telling me that the gui po hadn't been lying.

Just as I was strapping my throwing knives to my waist, a harsh cracking sound echoed out around the forest. I froze and tried to slow my breathing down as much as I could. My eyes frantically flicked around in the darkness searching for whatever the source was.

There was silence for a second and just as I relaxed, the forest erupted around me. The thick bamboo stems fell like straws in the wind as a terrifying beast emerged from behind them. Hundun the dragon, in all its glory.

It swung its head around to face me and I took in the rows of teeth surrounded by a huge white mane. I could see horns protruding from the back of the mane bending to come back around the face. Armoured white scales ran all the way down its body and the tips of its wings were stained black.

I bolted over to Daoji and swung up into the saddle, hooking the dark blue satchel to the side of him. I forced myself not to look back as we shot away from the clearing and into the mess of bamboo stems.

A deep rumble thundered behind me as I heard the dragon move to follow us.

Was it laughing at me?

We'd made it a short distance when I suddenly felt a presence nearby. I tensed as the ground below me exploded and I was thrown from the saddle into a nearby stream. My back smashed against a rock and I cried out from the pain and shock of the cold water.

Hundun began to climb out of the hole he had carved into the ground. His curved claws tearing up the surrounding area.

Where was Daoji? He couldn't have been thrown that far.

I caught a glimpse of him a couple metres down the stream on his side but my view was blocked by Hundun as he towered over me. His eyes were a deep orange colour with a black slit in the centre for a pupil.

I forced myself up and drew my dao as well as my dagger. The curved blade easily slid free of the sheath and I stood in a ready stance with an inverted grip on my dagger.

I'd learnt this fighting style when I ventured out into the Taihang mountains. It was aggressive and allowed you to put a lot of pressure on the opponent because of the two weapons. I don't know how effective it would be against a dragon but I would have to try.

"Did you think eating the lingzhi mushrooms would save you? I'll tear you to pieces before they can even do anything," Hundun hissed.

What was he talking about?

Now I thought about it, the fall I'd just taken should have broken my back. I definitely shouldn't be standing now.

Did the mushrooms have some special properties?

Before I had any more time to ponder the idea Hundun's claws were arcing towards me. I desperately brought my dao up to block the strike, supporting it from below with my dagger to help.

His claws bit into the blade, shearing through the steel and hitting my dagger. I grunted under the blow, I'd never felt anything like it. The sheer amount of weight bearing down on me was too much to withstand and I released both my weapons to step to the side and free myself from the position.

Hundun's claws slammed into the ground and I staggered back, reaching for my throwing daggers. I sent a volley towards his right flank, every single one connecting but falling away because of the scales.

Great. So now all I've got is my jian.

I sprinted towards Daoji splashing into the stream to try to cut towards him. Hundun's jaws lunged towards me and I barely managed to roll underneath them. I'd managed to make my way to Daoji and I frantically pushed his side to allow him to right himself.

I had no plan anymore. Hundun was a stronger foe than I'd ever faced and I needed to get out.

Before I could even attempt to mount Daoji, Hundun was swinging at me again. I managed to deflect the first slash but the power of the blow threw me off balance and left me vulnerable for the second swipe to rip into my torso.

I screamed as blood poured out from my chest and I dropped to my knees.

Was this how I died?

Everything was starting to go dark. I could see Hundun raising his claws again to finish me off but I couldn't move to prevent it. Just as the strike came racing down a brown blur dashed in front of me, stopping the attack from hitting.

It took me a second to realise it had been Daoji. Huge lacerations spanned across his whole right flank as he collapsed onto the ground next to me. I screamed, this time a mixture of anger and pain as I watched my lifelong friend bleeding out on the floor next to me. My vision blurred as my eyes flooded with tears.

No. I wouldn't let Daoji die in vain. I began crawling over to his body, my fingernails wildly scrabbling over the rocks to find his side.

"You're no different from everyone who has come before," Hundun boomed.

I ignored him and carried on searching for the satchel. I just needed to find my mask.

"Pathetic," Hundun roared and raised his arms to crush me.

My hand slid into the familiar material satchel and latched onto the mask. I yanked it out of my bag and slid it onto my face.

I felt my whole body tense as my ancestor's power surged through me.

Hundun's claws smashed down onto the ground but I was already long gone from that spot. I stood with my jian drawn, glaring up at the beast. I caught a glimpse of my reflection in the stream, my eyes were burning red making me look like a demon.

The pain in my chest was rapidly vanishing, the wounds closing up to stop the blood pouring out. Hundun swung at me again, I barely felt myself move as I stepped out of the way. Dust was flung into the air as his claws hit the ground.

I instantly took advantage of it, dashing through the cloud to close the distance. My jian was ablaze as I brought it up to strike, red flames arcing and twisting around the steel. I rammed the weapon into Hundun's side and wrenched it through his flank as hard as I could.

A huge gash was torn open as my jian came free causing blue blood to rain down on me as I jumped back. Hundun roared but I didn't give him any time to recover. My blade danced as I slashed through the scales, each blow causing the beast to get more agitated as he tried to catch me.

I could hear myself laughing from underneath the mask and I forced myself to stop. There was no way I was letting myself get consumed by my ancestors.

Hundun finally broke free from my barrage of attacks by swinging his tail around. It came hurtling towards me and I was forced to leap over it in order to stop it decapticating me.

The roles were reversed now. All my injuries had healed but blue blood was dripping from various wounds on Hundun. I couldn't help myself, another smile crept onto my face and I tensed my legs ready to charge at the dragon again.

Before I had the chance to move, Hundun started to beat his wings. Sets of dark spines were sent flying towards me. I lunged to try to get out of their path but they ripped into me and I fell to the ground.

For some reason I could still hear myself laughing as I struggled back to my feet. The same flames that had been wrapped around my blade started to swarm up my body; closing the puncture wounds and giving me a new burst of strength.

"Why won't you die?" Hundun bellowed.

My jian was now completely enveloped in flame and I swung it, sending an arc of fire towards Hundun. The dragon was unphased. Pushing through the fire and rushing towards me with his jaws ready to clamp down.

This was it.

I leapt into the air, landing roughly on Hundun's snout. He instantly went to shake me off but my hand was clamped around one of the horns on his mane. I rammed the blazing jian into the creature's eye, aiming for the dark slit in the pit of orange. As soon as I felt it connect, I yanked it up through the rest of his head.

The blade cut cleanly through and I felt Hundun go limp below me. His body crashed into the ground and I was thrown away, hitting the rocky floor and tumbling for a couple of metres.

As soon as I came to a stop I tore my mask off, if that had gone on any longer I wouldn't have been able to stop. The foul look on its face grinned back at me and I scoffed in disgust. I did it for Daoji, no one else.

I glanced back over at Hundun, he was lying motionless in the stream. His blue blood pulsing out and staining the water. I went to move towards him, just to make sure I had actually finished the job.

His body suddenly started flaking away, rapidly disintegrating into dust before my very eyes. I couldn't make anything out at first but after a couple of seconds I noticed an object in the midst of the dust, the Immortal-Thrashing Whip.

I scooped it up off of the floor and studied it. If anything, it looked very basic.

And I'd done all of this for what?

My grip tightened on the weapon. Legendary weapon or not, I'd lost my best friend today. I think I finally deserved some answers.

I paused and glanced over at Daoji's body.

I'd get to that later though. For now, I needed some time to say goodbye. 

~~~

Word count: 4118

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