"Shizun! Shizun!"
Liang Shufen groggily woke up. His mind muddled. He had seen them. They were in front of him, laughing and talking. They were still alive. His daughter had run up to him and given him a gift, a small red flower blooming in her hands.
'Baba.'
Her voice whispered as she held out the flower for him to grab. He reached for it.
"Shizun!"
The flower dissolved in his hands. The whips of red danced through his fingers like mist. His smile fell. Reaching out he tried to grasp onto her, but just like the flower her body morphed into mist, slipping through his hands once again. He let out a choked sob.
"Please, not again."
"Shizun!"
His eyes snapped open. He clenched his chest, trying to control his breathing. His hair was sticking to his forehead and his robes stuck to him like a second skin. Liang Shufen glanced over towards his door. His head disciples Chun Hua stood in the doorway.
Her long black hair was sloppily tied up into two braids that connected into a ponytail. She was breathing heavily, her face red and dripping with sweat.
Chun Hua had been his head disciple for as long as he could remember. She was one of his first disciples. Her strong personality and kind nature combined with her strong foundation made her the perfect candidate for his head disciple. After her first mission, where she saved not only her fellow disciples, but an entire village, he appointed her as head disciple. Since the…incident, he had found himself relying on her more and more.
After he got his breathing under control, he got up with dull eyes and pulled on his outer robes, trying his best to make himself look at least a little bit presentable in front of her.
"To what do I owe the pleasure of my head disciple visiting me at such late hours?" It was unusual for her to visit him. Only in dire situations did she dare to come to him, but to do so in the middle of the night- he sighed. He would have to remind her that she shouldn't be walking around at night.
Chun Hua fell to her knees, bowing her head deeply as she spoke, "This lowly one apologizes for interrupting Shizun's sleep, but there has been a commotion on the other side of the mountain that requires Shizun's presence." She spoke through gasps, still trying to regulate her breathing.
Liang Shufen stood up now, grabbing his sword and glanced at her, "Circulate your Qi and control your breathing. Don't forget what you have been taught." He reprimanded.
"Apologize to Shizun." Chun Hua took a moment and began to circulate her Qi.
Once he saw that she was breathing normally once more, he asked "What commotion requires this one's attention?" Liang Shufen was slightly confused on this topic. There hadn't been any commotion since…then and even that was so bizarre that it was seen as a once in a lifetime incident. An event that would never happen again. His hand tightened around his sword at the thought.
Could it happen again?
"Shizun." Chun Hua gazed up at him, her eyes slightly tinged with worry, "This one believes that demons have been spotted in the forest surrounding the Sect."
Liang Shufen's eyes widened at her words. Demons. Nasty creatures that came in all shapes and sizes, devouring anything and everything that got in their way. He hated them for what they did.
But it was strange. Demons were rare to come by. They came from the demonic realm and were unable to enter the human realm unless a demonic cultivator either summoned them or opened a rift.
If a demon was spotted on their mountain, then that meant a demonic cultivator was close by. He frowned. He would have to take care of this as soon as possible. He didn't want another war on his hands, not when it was close to everything he held dear.
Laing Shufen moved past his head disciple. "Gather all the disciples into the disciples' living courtyard. Place a barrier on each entrance. Make sure no one leaves or enters until I get back." He paused at the entrance to his house. He couldn't remember the last time he had been outside. Clenching his fist he took a step outside of his house, the leaves crunching underneath his feet.
"Yes, Shizun!" Chun Hua yelled behind him, bowing before hurrying off in a different direction than him.
Liang Shufen gripped his sword in one hand while he sprinted through his Sect, towards the forest behind one of the training halls. His Sect was surrounded by a dense forest that was filled with creatures and animals that would attack anyone they saw. It was a self defense mechanism that he had come up with years ago. Some creatures had spiritual energy, allowing him to keep track of the more dangerous ones, but none had demonic energy.
He could feel the faint pull of demonic energy at the bottom of his mountain, just entering the forest. The demonic energy split up into three different directions, but all seemed close together. He bit his lip, almost drawing blood.
Three demons.
It would be a hard fight, but he had gone against demons before. He knew their weaknesses, knew their fighting style. He just hoped that these were newer demons and not higher ranking demons.
They were moving in his direction. He glared fiercely, the hate he had towards them coming off in waves. They were headed towards his Sect. Towards his disciples. Towards his home.
Their energy was getting stronger by the second, but a sudden burst of Qi made him stop in his tracks and put up a barrier. He closed his eyes as his feet slid back. The Qi was powerful. Powerful enough that he was sure he would have felt the pretense of the cultivator, but Liang Shufen hadn't felt anything. Gritting his teeth, he pushed forward, but as sudden as the energy came it also disappeared almost like it had never been there to begin with.
He let his barrier collapse. Eyes widening as the demonic energy dissolved. With a new found wariness, he walked towards the last place he felt the demonic energy.
It was a gruesome sight. Whatever had snuffed the demons out, did not hold back. The trees were bent and broken, facing in odd angles and directions. The bodies were broken beyond recognition. Their limbs had small holes in them and if he looked closely enough, he could see that those injuries were not bleeding. Their heads were twisted around and broken, barely holding onto their necks. Their black blood laid in pools underneath them, only confirming their true nature.
Liang Shufen took a step closer. The demons didn't look right. They wore what looked like clothing and one even had a piece of jewelry hanging from what used to be its neck. Their bodies were dyed in their blood, but from the looks of it they had basic human features. This was beyond abnormal. Demons were animal-like in features, they weren't supposed to look anything like humans, and yet, there were three that resembled humans in the slightest ways.
For a moment Liang Shufen wondered if perhaps these were actually humans that were killed by three demons. It would make sense. They were heading towards the Sect and that was the safest place for a person to be. Especially if they were running from demons.
He looked on the ground for anything that resembled animal tracks, but there were none. He shook his head at his silly thoughts. These three were definitely demons. Laing Shufen glanced at the demon's bodies once more.
He used his sword to flip the bodies over. Checking to see if anything on them was recognizable. If the demons had taken on a human appearance, then they had to have gotten their clothing from somewhere. He felt sorry for the poor souls that were killed for the demon's pleasure.
The necklace, silver and shining, stood out amongst the black blood. He put the sword underneath the necklace, lifting it away from the body he ripped it off. It was a simple silver necklace with a jade pendant attached to the bottom. A small silver dragon was carved into it.
Liang Shufen sighed. He hadn't been out in a long time, but even he knew that this style of craftsmanship could only be attained by the wealthy. He looked back at the bodies. The robes were made of silk. They must have killed some traveling nobles.
Stuffing the jade necklace into his robe he turned to leave.
"Wahhhhhhh!"
Liang Shufen froze. He turned back around, searching the clearing for anything that resembled a baby. When he didn't see anything he chided himself for being so hopeful. for falling for his mind's tricks once again. It wasn't the first time his mind tried to convince him that they were still alive and waiting for him. He clenched his hands, his nails drawing blood. He didn't want to think about them anymore.
It was too painful.
"WAHHHHHWAHHHH!" The crying started up again. His heart began to beat wildly. He turned in all directions with unfocused eyes, looking for something, anything that resembled a baby's form. He placed a hand on his head, closing his eyes tight.
Was his mind playing tricks on him? Or was he actually hearing the cries of a baby?
"WAHHH!" His mind was working a mile a minute as his feet rushed towards the sound. It sounded so much like hers.
In a corner, thrown half-hazardly to the side was a mound of black and white blankets. He made quick work in maneuvering the blankets, until the face of a small baby greeted him.
Liang Shufen stared at it. His expression is unreadable. Reaching out he hesitantly touched the baby's cheek. It was soft, so soft.
The baby had stopped crying. Its eyes round and glossy with tears looked at him with an innocent gaze. It's chubby fingers that had been grasping onto the blankets reached out for his hand. Grasping tightly onto one of Liang Shufen's fingers the baby let out a small laugh.
Liang Shufen's heart softened.
He remembered all the times his daughter had cried and laughed. It was the most beautiful sound to his ears. The tears began to well up in his eyes. He desperately tried to wipe them away with his sleeve, but it was useless. With shaky hands he gently scooped up the little one into his arms. He rocked back and forth just like his wife had done with their child.
"Did the demons kill your family little one?" He asked with a soft voice, cooing at the little one as he gurgled and laughed. The little one's eyes light up at Liang Shufen's voice.
Liang Shufen smiled. The little one was too young to understand, but that was okay. It was better to forget awful memories than to keep them. They would only haunt the little one later on in life.
He caressed the little one's cheek, "That's okay. You…" his throat closed and he felt like a wave was about to be released, "You and I, we can be family now."