Chereads / The Doorway / Chapter 3 - Vail

Chapter 3 - Vail

Feng Xian woke up the next day around mid-day to a text-box in-front of him again.

[ There was a letter left on you by Commander Zhao, the system has placed it into your ring for you. ]

"A letter huh.." Feng Xian peered into his ring and grabbed the letter, on the front three words we're written.

'Letter Of Recommendation.' Inside, the letter wrote ' I General Yin of the Reaper Front-line unit recommend Feng Xian to join the Retribution Brigade.'

After reading the letter he placed it back into his ring and prepared to unhitch his tent, in the process many looked at him with mixture of both fear and awe in their eyes. After an hour or so Feng Xian finished packing his tent up, when a soldier came over and informed him that Commander Zhao wanted to see him. Feng Xian proceed to the Commander's tent and entered, "Your up, the doctor told me you should rest till we get to Vail, you should listen to him." The Commander said as he watched Feng Xian closely. "Where are from? You must be from some foreign land, no one can do what you did and come out alive. You don't need to answer me, but please if you were sent here by the gods, save us I beg of you. We used to lose land every year or so, but now we lose it weekly. The armies can't hold, the Generals are needed on front-lines when the hoards show up. The beasts are evolving while we are stuck the same." Commander Zhao pleaded to Feng Xian. "Maybe I was sent by the gods to save this world." Feng Xian thought to himself after he heard the Commander plead to him.

"I'll do my best sir." Feng Xian replied trying to reassure the Commander.

"That is all I need to hear. Thank you." Commander Zhao said gratefully "This is armor, keep it well and it won't fail you. But you're going to get a new set anyway, after you join Retribution. Good luck in there, you're going to need it. They break people to make monsters, their unit only ever has 100 people in it, but they're beasts that are worth a million soldiers." Commander Zhao explained to Feng Xian as he followed him out of his tent passing his armor to him.

" Stat window." Feng Xian thought, then the window appeared.

[ System Owner - Feng Xian

Level - 2

Skills - Phoenix Thrust

Passive Skills - Keen Sense

Wealth - 35 copper

Recipes - None

Lucky Draws - 0 ]

[ System owner has still yet to use his Profession Choice Token ]

The system announced in Feng Xian's head reminding him of it. "OK show me a list of professions I can choose from."

[ Professions -

Alchemist

Blacksmith

Runic Soldier

Mystic Tattooist

Elementalist ]

"Hmm...?" Feng Xian was clueless on what to choose. "Can you give me descriptions?" Feng Xian asked the system.

[ No ]

The one word replied "OK. Well the Blacksmith and Alchemist are obvious. But the other three intrigue me." Fang Xian thought to himself as he walked towards the carts with his tent in hand. "Stuff it, I'll choose Mystic Tattooist. Sounds interesting." Feng Xian decided upon his profession. Upon his decision a burning pain shot through his body, and his back burst into flames. "Ahhh..." Feng Xian screamed in pain as he dropped his tent kneeling on the ground in agony, everyone ran towards him in panic. The flames started to concentrate on one spot, then disappearing altogether leaving a tattoo that looks like direwolf on a hunt.

"What.. Just.. Happened?" Chi Fei asked

"I don't know. His back just burst into flame, and you all saw the rest." A soldier replied

As Feng Xian stood up, the front of his shirt fell off due to the back being burnt to ash. A huge amount of information gushed into his head leaving him dizzy.

[ System owner has acquired a direwolf as his first mystic tattoo. ]

"I see how it works." Feng Xian spoke to himself. "How what works? Boy." General Yin asked

"I'll show you it would be easier." Feng Xian replied slamming the side of his fist into his open hand.

"Come forth, direwolf!"Feng Xian yelled at the top of his lungs, with it his eyes glowed a gold colour. Bones started to form from nothing into a skeleton of a direwolf, then the muscle started to appear rapping around the bones like vines do a tree, then the fur started to grow into long and lush waves. As it opened it eye's it howled, then started to kneel in-front of Feng Xian as if it knew its place and respected that.

"..." General Yin was speechless to what he just saw happen "Shh." Feng Xian hushed the direwolf as he started to pat its hair like it was a huge husky.

Jumping onto its back "Well shall we head out?" Feng Xian asked as he looked at General Yin

"Yes we shall. Everyone on the carts we're heading to Vail on the double!"General Yin ordered the soldiers and recruits alike. Proceeding to follow orders the soldiers all hopped on their horses and the recruits in the carts. "Sir, if we follow this road we'll get to Vail right?" Feng Xian asked General Yin. "Yes boy, why do you ask?" The General asked in reply.

"I'm going to see how fast he can run!" Feng Xian replied with the biggest grin on his face, as he bent down like a jockey on their horse.

"LETS RUN!" Feng Xian commanded the direwolf, and with a flick of its tail and a kick of its back feet they darted forward and came into a run. "Hahaha....Come on you can go faster can't you." Feng Xian spoke to the direwolf while laughing his heart out. The wolf seemed to grin then lowered its head and shot out like a speeding bullet. "Yes that's it. Hahaha.." Feng Xian was full of adrenaline, "Jump into the woods." Xian ordered and the wolf dove into the woods at top speed leaping from flat ground to flat ground just as fast as it was running with nothing there. "Dive out and regroup with the others" Again Xian ordered the wolf and he followed diving back onto the path and turned around running at full speed to regroup with the others, within a matter of seconds Feng Xian had regrouped with them. A huge grin painted on his face "That was fun." Feng Xian exclaimed as came along side the carts "He's fast boy, let him serve you well." General Yin complemented the direwolf's speed.

A few hours passed, and the sun was starting to set when they saw on the horizon huge city walls, even from the distance they were at the walls looked huge, to Feng Xian the place looked like a mountain. The sun had set just behind the walls when they arrived at the east gates "General Yin with recruits." The General yelled out, as they came closer the gates started to open.

"Whoa.." Feng Xian was amazed.

The walls were 50 meters thick and and 200 meters tall, the gates were made of a pitch black metal that seemed unbreakable, the pavement was made of some kind of gem. The buildings made of stone and wood and the roofs of terracotta, they ranged from taverns filled with laughter, to shops with bargaining going on inside, and to villas and houses. The streets were busy even at this time of day, kids watching the army ride in awe and adults bowing in General Yin direction. Fear could be seen in theirs eyes as they looked towards Feng Xian upon his direwolf "Hmm... It's probably not wise to ride through the city on my direwolf. Recall." Feng Xian spoke aloud as he hopped down from the wolf, the direwolf turned into an orb of light and shot towards Feng Xian turning back into a tattoo on his still exposed back. "I should get a shirt as well. Sir..." Feng Xian turn towards the General about to ask as Reaper Yin Interrupted. "You can go, you're no longer one of my recruits anymore, just make sure you seek out Grey of the Retribution Brigade."

"Thank you sir." Feng Xian quickly bowed and walked away "OK first some clothes." Feng Xian thought to himself as he cluelessly looked around. "There's a tailor just ahead." one of the soldiers pointed towards a shop just a few buildings up. "Thank you." Feng Xian said. "No thank you, if not for you Rei would have died alone and unavenged." The soldier cuffed his hands in gratitude and continued to ride along.

Feng Xian walked into the store and called out "Hello I'm in need of some clothes, what can I for 35 copper?"

"Oh a customer." A young lady stood at the counter in a daze before she realized Feng Xian had walked in. "35 copper huh. OK this way I'll show you." The young store attendant lead Feng Xian towards a shelf that had different coloured shirts, pants, and even slippers. "You can buy a whole set of matching clothes from this shelf for 20 copper. Do you need help choosing at all?" The young lady asked Feng Xian.

"Yes please." Xian replied.

"OK. Lets see blue.. Hmm no. How about green.. Nope. How about red.. man you're hard to match with colour." The young lady kept holding different colours up against him. "Do have any white shirts?" Feng Xian asked.

"Oh yes white would suit you, and black pants. Or even gray." The young lady lead Feng Xian to the other end of the shelf and grabbed a shirt and held it up. "Its a bit big, but i take it your a soldier?" She asked. "Ah yes." Feng Xian replied earnestly. "Well then you'll grow into it when you gain some more build." She passed the shirt to him and grabbed a pair of shoes and pants also giving them to him.

"OK that will be 20 copper please." The young attendant said.

"Here you go." Feng Xian handed 20 copper to her and began putting the shirt on. "Can I use your backroom?" Feng Xian asked.

"Sure." She replied pointing towards the entrance. Feng Xian got dressed in the backroom and walked out again with his new clothes on. "Hmm.. You look good in them." The young lady complimented him.

"Thank you. I'll be going now, I'll be sure to come back when I need more." Feng Xian said as he left the store. "Now to find the Retribution Brigade."