"Stop!" a commanding shout was heard, a large man in thick armor was standing just inside the gate. He was looking down at a novel titled 'the worlds strongest guard' not even glancing at the group. "Only those with a permit are allowed in after dark" Feng Hao was confused, he looked up at the sun which would clearly be up for at least another hour before setting.
Wan Ya was the one the speak up "but mister, the sun is still up, how is it dark?" The guard finally looked up from his book and seemed a little surprised that the presences he had felt were 4 dirty kids. his 2nd spirit ring gave him an ability to detect life forces, although its range was limited to just a few meters it was quite a powerful ability, but since he was conscripted into the guard for two years he hadn't been able to make much use out of it other than sensing people who showed up to the gate.
The guard didn't really feel like explaining to a bunch of kids but he was is a descent mood today, "Nobody is allowed to enter two hours before dusk unless they have a permit to do so, the minister of this great city made that law so if you have a problem with it, bring it up with her
Feng Hao had been formulating plans as the guard spoke, he needed to figure out some way to get in, after all, he knew his mother, she probably hadn't left the city once he and Feng Long were taken. "I've got this" Feng Long said from the back of the group, he sauntered up to the guard, trying his best to put on a suave act. brushing a strand of peach colored hair out of his eyes, he squatted down with his legs spread, it would have been somewhat intimidating, if the guard wasn't three times his size.
Feng Long looked the guard in the eye, which forced him to look almost completely upwards. "now look here mister, we are agreeable people, we don't want nobody to get hurt, so why don't you just peacefully move aside before things get rough." a slight smirk formed on the guards lips 'these kids are ridiculous' it was obvious he was holding back a few chuckles.
Feng Hao was both surprised and disappointed, 'was he some sort of mafia boss in his last life? Even if that was the case, there's no way he would remember it, he should still be fully under the effects of the curse, although I guess it would be move of a blessing to some people, acting like a child is exhausting.'
The guard was a good man, so while many colleagues he knows may have done anything from locking them in a cell to killing them, he played along. "kid, if you're trying to be intimidating, its not going to work. This is how you intimidate someone."
The Guard took a similar position to Feng Long, jutting out his chin and raising his head so he could look down on the small boy. His spiritual energy flared out, pushing everyone back is they raised their arms in a futile attempt to cover themselves. Feng Long was effected the most as he fell over onto the muddy path, his heart pounded in his chest and his breathing became rough.
The pressure continued for a few more seconds before being cut off, "that's how you intimidate someone." Feng Long took half a minute to gather his bearings before jumping to his feet. "You cheated! You can use spiritual pressure! How am I meant to do that?"
A look of realization settled onto the guards face, "oh yeah, you're kids." he sighed once again, changing topics, "you'll still have to wait out here until morning, this law was set in place to try and lower crime and illegal dealings.
Wan Ya quickly chimed in, but was just a quickly interrupted "we're not"
"But you could be, it is not within my power to judge whether you are or are not criminals." Feng Hao sighed, 'this is going nowhere' he knew that there was almost no way to get around this, but there was one thing in his arsenal that could help. "Ming Ai" she looked at him, her pretty grey eyes meeting his dull ones, "do you think you could carry me?" she seemed to contemplate for a moment before replying with a quiet "yes."
Feng Hao felt a slight smile grow in his face, he knew what to do, although he wasn't sure if his body could take it, after all last time he used the ability he almost collapsed due to exhaustion, but it was definitely the most powerful skill he currently had. what he was about to do could be far more demanding than simply hitting a tree is the best spot, he may need to be carried by someone else because of the stamina drain. taking a deep breath, Feng Hao called out, "Brother Long, Wan Ya, Ming Ai, close your eyes" they looked at him, a little confused as to why the usually quiet Feng Hao had suddenly told them to close their eyes. Feng Hao didn't wish to have his power revealed to Ming Ai, she was a threat and he couldn't afford to be making powerful enemies right now, he asked everyone to close their eyes so that she wouldn't be suspicious, just asking her would be strange, and he could never be too careful.
Ming Ai was the first to close her eyes, the other two followed quickly afterwards. the guard glanced at what the kids were doing, he smirked a little, they were clearly going to try and break in. he sighed as they rallied around Feng Hao, he could tell that he was different from the rest, it was clear that the others respected him. 'that kid is going to be someone great in the future' his intuition had helped him many times before, he trusted it this time. a helpless smile formed as he went back to reading his book.
Feng Hao quietly muttered under his breath "Fate shall follow my plan, me and the three others I am with will be able to enter Vast Sea city without getting caught by any guards, by my words it shall be done." the chant he had done was rather excessive, but he felt that a more commending attitude would make it more effective.
[Special rank skill: fate planning has reached level 3]
[Special rank skill: fate planning has reached level 4]
A mix of blue glows emanated from Feng Hao, ranging from a cyan to a navy blue, his eyes widened as small green and blue strings formed in the air, floating around as if they were as light as air, they were turbulent, ever changing, only a few remained strait, but slowly they all seemed to line up, he could tell that most of the strings had little to no effect on what he wanted to do, but his skill still controlled them. it was the ultimate skill, taking care of everything, the few strings which were already strait confused him though, as they seemed the most closely linked to his goal. it seemed that reaching level 4 in the skill had allowed him to see the strings, he wondered what higher levels would allow him to do. Feng Hao didn't try to question the strings which were already lined up, he just watched as they last few strings straitened out, all of them were pointing in through the opened gate. every string of fate in the nearby area pointed towards him successfully infiltrating.
[Used skill fate planning, stamina - 3]
The base cost of the skill was surprisingly low, but its true cost came with the slight alterations it had to make on the fly. the blue glow surrounding Feng Hao dissipated and he yelled out, "Run!" he started sprinting inside preparing for a wave of exhaustion to hit, he was closely followed by the other three. they slowed got further into the city, Feng Hao kept an eye on his stamina at all times, but there was never a sudden drop. Feng Hao was confused, he still kept fate planning running just in case, but after a few minutes, every had to take a break, they were exhausted, tired and hungry.
Feng Hao eventually canceled the skill, he had performed well as a soldier, getting his team back inside home territory to recover. there was still a though nagging him in the back of his head 'why didn't fate planning change anything?'
Back at the gate the guard sighed once again, 'those kids were clearly starved, another night out here in the cold and one of them may have died, I cant have that on my conscience.' he felt that his heart was too soft for the job of a guard. he then felt another presence approaching, accompanied by the sound of hooves, he put on a business smile and looked up a the merchant that had just arrived.
"Stop! only those with a permit are allowed in after dark" the merchant handed him a small circular piece of metal. after quickly checking it the guard handed it back, "have a good day sir"
He then went back to reading his book.