In the dead forest, Raizel stood, his entire body shuddering from deep pain. He had tried not to think too deeply about anything since he woke up but it seemed like a dam had opened and the onslaught of emotions and memories of the past refused to be stopped.
They drifted and floated within his mind.
Six hundred years ago, the Terra World encountered a calamity. The core of the Devil World was collapsing and they needed a similar world to theirs to migrate or at least they needed the core of a world. The Terra Realm was the closest and war began.
As the Devil Realm got closer to its destruction, their attacks grew more frenzied, the battles long and desperate but it was the news that the Devil King was attempting to advance to the Dao Transcendence level that drove the cultivators to despair.
It was a matter of great importance and so the most elite cultivators had been gathered. 49 cultivators in total. They were divided into 7 teams. It had all been in vain
They had completely underestimated what it means for the core of a world to be collapsing. Within a week, only the seven captains were remaining and they lost contact with Terra.
First, it had been Alisa, Terak had gone next. Old Su went missing along with his life jade and the twins Carlos and Bree died before they reached their destination.
In the end, it was just Lucas and him. Raizel tried to suppress the heartrending pain in his chest and lungs. He had always been protecting Lucas but in the end..in the end…
__
"Raizel...Raizel, so you can look desperate as well. T...This is it, I really want to tell you something for a long time but I can't...don't want to be selfish now."
Lucas coughed, his face twisted in pain, spitting out black blood. "Poison! As expected of the last boss..really strong"
Raizel desperately tried to feed him some pills, simultaneously using his spiritual energy to scan his body but he just broke through, he did not have enough control. His eyes felt hot and stung terribly.
Lucas laughed weakly, "To think I would see Senior Martial Brother make this kind of face. What are you going to do without me?
___
After the Sect Master left, Raizel nodded to the young man and turned to leave for his room.
The youth, Lucas blocked his way and Raizel could detect flames in his red eyes. His fists were tightened and his eyes were focused on Raizel without hiding or showing any weakness.
"My name is Lucas Aldine. Senior Martial Brother's name has echoed across the Seven Seas but it has always been my dream to be the Eldest Senior Brother of White Peak Sect. In this, I hope Senior Martial Brother will not blame me."
Raizel watched the young man, Master always said he should accommodate and encourage his juniors.
"En. Work hard."
___
Raizel watched his junior brother practise the first move of the White Peak Bone Shattering Fist.
"You are doing it wrong."
"The White Peak Bone Shattering Fist is not about power. It is about vibration. You must learn to control your spiritual essence well in order to utilize the skill. Consistency. If the vibration frequency is consistent, then resonance will occur, and this vibration will be transmitted to the interior of the enemy and shatter it."
Saying these words, he bent his body and punched the dummy three times. It stood still for a moment before it shattered.
He then turned to look at his junior martial brother. There was no joy or gratitude that were in other disciples' eyes after he gave them pointers.
The youth glared at him with gritted teeth, "Senior Martial Brother, Are you looking down on me?"
Raizel was a little confused. He felt for the first time that his junior martial brother was really weird.
__
"I don't understand. We don't get along. Why would you save me? Nobody will know if you just walked away. Why?"
"I am your senior martial brother, It is my responsibility to lend a hand to my junior brothers if I can. That is what Master said."
___
Across him stood an unconvinced and dissatisfied youth cod in bloodied yellow robes. He was holding a longbow and breathing heavily.
"Why? I worked so hard. Why can't I win? "
Raizel puzzled over his question and settled for a short, honest answer, "because I am stronger."
Lucas was dumbstruck, "Senior Martial Brother, do you know how to encourage someone?"
Raizel thought for a while then said, "Skill comes from diligence. Cultivate rigorously and stop being distracted by mundane affairs."
"Senior Martial Brother.."
"Yes, junior martial brother."
"Please shut up."
____
"You saved me again." Lucas whispered as he watched the stars.
"En."
"If someone else reaches the top of the White peak and becomes our Junior Martial Brother, Would you also treat them like this?"
A little confused, Raizel asked, "Like what?"
"Idiot. Senior Martial Brother, Am I your friend?"
"Yes."
"Do you have many friends?"
"No, just five."
"Still too many. I want to be different. Senior Martial Brother, I have decided let's be best friends."
___
"Senior Martial Brother, what is this?" Lucas narrowed his eyes at the black lump roasting over the fire before picking his bow and moving deeper into the forest.
Within an hour, a beautiful chicken with a golden sheen was slowly roasting over the fire.
Raizel stopped cultivating and came closer. The youth looked at him with his chin raised high and pride in his eyes. "Hehe! Come and taste my craft."
He cut the chicken into two halves and placed them onto two plates and sprinkled some chopped scallions, minced ginger and red chilli peppers over it before he handed one plate to Raizel. "Senior Martial Brother, If I was not here, what would you eat?"
__
Raizel held the fist-size white stone. It was in a peculiar shape and was white with beautiful golden patterns on it. Raizel did not recognise the language but he felt it meant something.
"Honoured customer, I have been asked that question so many times but I've never told them. But you seem quite okay so I will tell you this." The middle-aged shopkeeper reduced his voice and came even closer.
"In all honesty, this red stone was found by me in the Deep Miasma Mountain Range. It is one of a kind. 500 Spirit Stones and it is yours."
Raizel nodded as he continued to study the stone. A youth with long black curly hair and red eyes soon stood in front of Raizel, a longbow in his hands. He glared at the seller like he would not hesitate to shoot him if he said a single word.
"What a load of rubbish! Yesterday he told Su Yi that it is a spiritual treasure from the Dragon Pearl Lake. The idiot bought it for a thousand spirit stones yet it ended up being an ordinary stone. Senior Martial Brother, don't tell me you want to buy it. It is a scam."
Raizel cocked his head a bit as he watched the red eyes burn even brighter with anger. Then he looked at the white stone, it was really beautiful. Dropping it, he said to Lucas, "Let's go."
___
"Here." Lucas handed him the first size white stone with golden patterns. "The Old man gave it to me. I wanted to throw it away but then I decided to give it to you." He avoided Raizel's gaze as he picked an arrow and played with it.
"Did you threaten the man?" Raizel asked as he looked at Lucas sceptically.
"How can you say that? Is that what you think of me?" Lucas looked at him, his red eyes a lot with anger and something else Raizel could not decipher.
He sighed and gave the stone back to Lucas, "Please return it. It would not do for this news to spread. You are the Second Senior Brother of the Sect, you should lead by example. It is your…"
Lucas snatched the stone, he was really angry and his voice was higher than it should be, "Responsibility. I know. That is all you care about, One day it will choke you to death." With that, he stormed out the door.
Raizel sighed.
____
Lucas's pulse was weakening. Raizel felt unreconciled. His junior martial brother, a famed Dao Lord. How could he die like this, in the middle of this gods forsaken land? That is all...
"It is not your fault. Don't ever think that. It's just my time. I have accepted but Raizel, I am scared. Everyone is gone, the sect, master, now me. What are you going to do? Who is going to stay by your side?"
The rims of his eyes were red and his words were forced. He was using his remaining strength to talk. Raizel wanted him to stop talking, to conserve his energy.
They stayed silently in the empty void before Lucas clenched his hand tightly, his eyes were very bright.
"I know. Raizel promise me. You will complete my to-do list. The others requests are there too. You mustn't forget. Swear it."
"En. I swear."
Lucas chuckled a bit. "Wish I... I could see your face then...Next...Next time…. I.." The red eyes dimmed completely.
Raizek picked the book, closed Lucas's eyes. His nails had deeply sunken into his palm and blood was flowing out but he was not aware at all.
With a resolute face, he walked out of the void.
___
Raizel stood for hours in the dead forest before he started to calm down. The pain in his heart was like sharp silver needles. A loneliness so deep threatened to submerge him.
In this modern world, everyone he knew was gone.
He looked to the side, a few meters from him where an old man stood waiting.
"Let's go home."
"En."