After almost 36 hours of continuous running, Fan Cheng slows down and starts to search around.
Five minutes later, Fan Cheng finds a suitable cave and enters it.
After placing Fan Zhi down, who is surprisingly asleep, Fan Cheng goes out.
A few minutes later, he returns with a large boar with a hole in its forehead and enough wood for a fire to cook it floating behind him because of his wind-qi.
Fan Cheng skinned and dressed the boar within a minute using his wind-qi before skewering pieces of it to cook on the fire.
The smell of cooking meat quickly woke Fan Zhi up, his stomach rumbling with hunger.
Looking around, Fan Zhi saw his grandfather sitting down a few mel away from him, chuckling quietly.
Getting up, Fan Zhi groaned as his stiff muscles struggled to obey.
Pains due to cramps sprouted all over his body.
Eventually, the pains ceased, Fan Zhi leisurely stretching before he sat down next to Fan Cheng.
Time quickly passes with both lost in their own thoughts, before Fan Cheng breaks the silence.
"How are you? I am glad that you didn't get hit by an arrow, I doubt I would have been able to spare the qi to purify the poison on those arrows from your body. If I had to do that, we wouldn't have even gotten three quarters as far away as we have."
Grabbing a meat skewer that looked well-cooked, Fan Zhi took a bite and chewed absent-mindedly before swallowing.
Staring at the ground, he slowly finished the meat skewer as Fan Cheng patiently waited for Fan Zhi to reply.
Fan Cheng could see the turmoil that was in Fan Zhi's heart and mind by the changing facial expressions he made while eating.
Finishing the skewer, Fan Zhi casually tossed it into the fire, watching it catch fire and turn into ash.
Finally, Fan Zhi sighs loudly, contemplating how to put his emotions into meaningful words before speaking.
"I honestly don't know. I am feeling so many different emotions to really pinpoint them in the chaos of my mind and heart. If I were to truly put it into words, then I guess I would be feeling negative. I mean, it is pretty apparent that everyone who was at our clan's territory is either dead, fleeing for their life or subjugated as a slave. That makes me feel many things. Most of all, I feel regret. Regret not being able to help them; regret having to flee in the face of some backwater world's barbaric cultivators who have trouble even breaking through to the second domain. Most of all, however, I regret being so weak. I regret my inability to do anything despite the potential I seemingly have."
"You are not at fault Fan Zhi. Although I suspected something like this would happen, I didn't truly place in my eyes; expecting the fragile power balance between the three of us to be enough to prevent them from truly uniting. However, I was wrong; my Clan, my responsibility perishing as a result of my lack of foresight."
"Sigh…."
Exhaling loudly and heavily, Fan Zhi laid down with his arms propping him up.
His feet facing the fire, Fan Zhi ran a hand through his messy hair that carpeted his forehead and eyes.
Looking at Fan Cheng, Fan Zhi's eyes held so many emotions that Fan Cheng had trouble discerning them all.
"There is something you don't understand; I never told you about it. During the entire affair of being unable to cultivate, I learnt many things and experienced memories of many people. Some were like me, living in the literal shithole of this Universe; others, they were so far in the distance that I cannot comprehend their strength. The thing that remained consistent with all of them though, was the Pearl. The Pearl that still resides in my soul, the size of a pea; watching, waiting for more chances for me to become strong. The Pearl, I have my suspicions about it that I can't tell you.
One thing I can tell you though is that every single person to have received the Pearl had the potential to become the Sovereign of a Heaven at least. That was as long as they had the drive to seek strength and the destiny to survive the early phase of their growth. These memories leaked over the decade, even now are still leaking sometimes. Tell me, if you had seen what the peak looks like and knew that you had the potential to reach that peak, how would you feel seeing ignorant backwater cultivators of a degenerate world kill those you care about? Knowing that you, for all the knowledge and potential you have, could never bring them with you on your journey?"
Inhaling a breath in shock at the revelations of Fan Zhi, Fan Cheng mused upon how to approach the questions of Fan Zhi.
He was feeling pain, lamenting at his weakness and it was clear that this scar would take a long time to even begin fading.
After a minute of contemplation, Fan Cheng decided on the manner he would answer Fan Zhi's plea.
"I can't imagine how that would feel Fan Zhi. What you must remember though, is everyone is born weak. No one is born strong, no one is born with the ability to protect those they love. No one can ever gain true strength without sacrifice, whether it be loved ones, worldly objects or even their humanity."
Fan Zhi quickly replies angrily, attempting to reject Fan Cheng's words and comfort.
"No, there are those who are born strong. Just look at Divine Beasts, they are born with physical bodies that are stronger than anyone who is in this world, probably stronger than everyone on this continent combined. From birth that is."
"True, they are born strong in your perspective of strength. What about the beings surrounding them? To those beings, the Divine Beasts with fearsome physiques you speak of are like comparing me to a baby. They may be strong in our world Fan Zhi, but in their world, they are but ants."
Fan Zhi falls mute.
Fan Cheng knew that Fan Zhi wouldn't truly understand the meaning of his words for a while; not until he grows stronger than people like Viper and returns after personally experiencing the world.
Only then, would he truly understand that his personal perception of strength is meaningless.
Knowing he is almost out of time, Fan Cheng fills the cave with his words.
"Fan Zhi, you are too naïve to understand. I hope that you remember my words and think about them in a few years. They are the greatest advice I could give you before we part."
Hearing the word part, Fan Zhi's head shoots around like a bolt of lightning.
Fan Cheng smiles sadly seeing his reaction. Shaking his head, Fan Cheng answers Fan Zhi's unspoken question.
"I am about to die. I got hit with one of Viper's arrows in the shoulder. There is no way I can purify that, especially considering the bastard used the strongest poison he could mix and enhanced it with all of his poison qi. I don't have much to give you, only some more practical and immediately important advice. Travel through the forest. I brought you as deep into the forest as I could, directly into it and not through the branch that we had to go through to reach the tournament location. It will be dangerous, but on the other side of the forest is a whole new world. You think I am strong, but there I am merely quite good. You should end up being able to pass through the centre of the forest safely if you become a Sky Foundation Champion. That is without any injuries, you could probably rush through with a cultivation of the Sky Foundation Pupil or Warrior."
Listening intently, Fan Zhi made sure to memorise all of the words spoken by Fan Cheng; he even memorised the ones spoken earlier, understanding that he just lacked the experience to truly perceive their meaning.
After getting various pieces of advice from Fan Cheng, Fan Zhi was soon welcomed with a lull of peace.
Looking over, Fan Zhi saw that Fan Cheng had closed his eyes, his breathing gradually weakening.
A slight tinge of sickly green was emerging on his skin; the poison Fan Cheng had been desperately holding back for over a day while using his qi to bring Fan Zhi to safety simultaneously.
The sickly green was becoming increasingly vibrant as Fan Cheng's breath became shallow and his vital aura eventually faded.
Fan Zhi knew, Fan Cheng, his grandfather had died.
He could scarcely believe it. Fan Cheng, the ruler of the Fan Clan had fallen.
The strongest cultivator within their Clan was felled by poison; dishonourably perishing while suffering excruciating pain due to the properties of Viper's qi-enhanced poison
As Fan Zhi collapsed, laying in a foetal position, memories bombarded his mind.
These memories showed one man and his many sides.
They showed the grandfather, the warrior and the wise man; most of all, however, they showed the ruler of light and darkness.
Fan Cheng, an originally talentless youth much like Fan Zhi, had stumbled upon the grave of a legendary beast within their world.
Submerging in its blood, Fan Cheng survived its cruel baptism and gained a strong affinity to the attributes of light and dark.
This, combined with his innate born affinity to wind, had birthed the ruler of the Fan Clan.
Rising through the ranks, it took Fan Cheng a mere decade to become the Clan's next designated ruler.
The bearing of Fan Cheng, one who had suffered countless hardships was imbued with a self-confidence that only those who had risen from the dregs to the peak could truly have.
The confidence of a true warrior, something that Fan Zhi had seen in every memory of cultivators the Pearl had given its inheritance to.
Unknowingly, memories of other people important to Fan Zhi started to flash in his mind.
Fan Hui, Fan Heng, and even the wandering cultivator who bestowed him the Pearl; all of his memories with them appeared, each causing even more guilt and negativity to fuel the turmoil of his heart.
At the worst time, the true implication hit him; his parents, the Clan, everyone who resided in the Fan Clan's territory and who came along to the tournament were likely dead.
The chaos in his heart instantly strengthened, flooding his heart and mind with agony.
And Fan Zhi was helpless.
The guilt, the anger, the sadness, the loneliness; all of it started spawning from the very recesses of his heart and mind.
The emotions that he had suppressed since the minute he heard Viper's words after the first wave of arrows in that ambush all came forth.
The truth that he had denied, it all barged through the wall that sealed them away.
The seal that had become more fragile than glass.
The inner turmoil of Fan Zhi had only grown progressively more chaotic.
The flood of emotions swirled, becoming an uncontrollable whirlpool that pulled Fan Zhi's heart and mind into it without mercy.
Fan Zhi was mentally flailing, reaching for anything that he could to survive the merciless power of the negative emotions.
Fan Zhi knew that he can't fall for the negative emotions; aware that it could break him.
However, how could a boy of 15 years resist the abyss that such emotions lead to when he hasn't even truly experienced the world.
He may have a strong determination, but without the mental strength and tenacity that life experience gives to fuel that determination, it is but empty and inconsequential conviction.
As he was unwillingly drawn into the whirlpool leading to the abyss, Fan Zhi heard a voice ringing out from his soul.
"Survive young man. Prove yourself worthy of my inheritance, just like all those before you have had to."
And with those words, Fan Zhi fell into the darkness.