"Goodbye… little brother."
"Why?!"
"You were always the favored child, after all!"
The eight-year-old boy stared at his brother that was standing on the cliff, in dejection. He did not expect his loving brother that he looked up to, to kick from a cliff. The boy was shocked by such development, but also despondent, because he never thought that his life would end like this. The future that he wanted to build with his brother, was nothing but dreams, for the reality was nothing but his brother spitting at him after he had uttered his foul justification.
"I'll come back for you!" The boy cried out to the back of his older brother that was barely visible from his angle.
While the boy was falling, his body suddenly collided with a bird-like beast. Because the bird was at most a few times bigger than him, he rolled off the bird and continued to fall. The beast that noticed the thing that was thrown at it, searched for the one responsible for it in anger. When it was able to trace its assailant, it chased after him in anger. Because the boy fell on a few more birds that were flying to the south, the big brother ended up getting chased by a flock of different birds.
The boy, whose name was Duso Wen, managed to land safely at the water of the sea. He was able to get to shore within a cave, thanks to the waves of the sea.
Coughing some water out of his mouth, he looked around him, in search for a way out. It was impossible for him to go in the direction of the sea, because the waves were too strong, and if he ever made it outside of the cave, he'd have to be able to climb a cliff to get up.
The cave was gigantic, and the only way it got lighted, was through the sunlight that came from the entrance. Not too far from Duso Wen was a ship wreckage and four skeletons that had long knifes with them. There were some golden coins as well, but he didn't take them since it they didn't have any worth in the cave.
Eventually, he took the four rusted knifes, and tied the strings of their sheath together, before strapping it beside his waist. The cave had a lot of berries that he was able to eat, and clean water fell from the ceiling's gaps to fill small pools of drinkable water.
In the end of the cave, Duso Wen found an older skeleton that had been crushed by a few rocks. On its hand were some mining tools, which gave Duso Wen the conclusion that someone tried to mine their way out but got crushed after moving some rocks. In front of him there did seem to be a tunnel that was blocked by different sized rocks.
Duso Wen knew that he could meet the same fate as the skeleton near him, but he was determined to get out to bring justice to what his older brother did. He acknowledged that he was better than his brother already, because his brother had stooped so low to scheme against him. It was possible for him to make a living inside the cave, but his morals and future goals did not allow him to live in solitary till death.
His years were spent breaking stones and taking care of himself. There were a few times where he would get disturbed by crying spirits at night, but they weren't a problem, since they didn't do any harm. At the eastern regions near the sea, a lot of dangerous anomalies were known to roam at night, by many.
Perhaps Duso was very lucky, or maybe because anomalies couldn't handle being close to him, but it was surely a blessing for him, since he was be able to stay alive. After six years of careful mining, he was able to make a safe path for him to reach the other side.
"Who's there?!" A mature voice of a men was heard when he had removed the last obstacle to go through. The three men that were inside the room, knew that someone was trying to get in their rooms for the past six years. They didn't worry about it though, which was why they simply waited for the person to show themselves to confirm why the stranger was trying to get in.
"It's a child!" One of them shouted when Duso Wen fell to the ground out of exhaustion and ecstasy.
…
"Hello there… Child. Quite the resolute you have…"
"What's your story?"
…
Duso Wen didn't trust the man, but he didn't mind telling the three his story. After all, the three in front of him were legendary figures who would save people whenever a strong anomaly tried to cause a slaughter. The reason he recognized them were their signature attire. Their white robes that showed how clean they were, their shiny head that showed how insolated they were from others, and the warm and bright refreshing feeling that they gave someone whenever they were close to them.
…
"I can sense a great future ahead of you… Do you want to learn the secret to immortality? the secret of… Life?"
Duso Wen, who knew what opportunity awaited him, didn't hesitate to accept, and bowed down to greet his masters. The three called themselves immortal cultivators, and told him that they had been protecting the dynasty from the anomalies for some centuries.
They explained to him about spirit energy that resides within the world, and how it could be used to cultivate one's body and soul to potentially become a deity. For years more details about the mystical world were given to him, while he was required to go under extreme physical training to have a strong vessel for spirit energy. When his body was at one of a peak mortal, the elders told him the final key on how to start the road to cultivation.
"There are two ways, if our theory is correct…"
*Uh-uhm! "If you're able to understand how the world works in its basis, you might gain enlightenment and be able to cultivate like us. It might also be possible to cultivate spirit energy in your own way, if you know where to guide it and how to process it. That's why one needs enlightenment."
"If you can figure out how the structure of life is built and how it flows, you should be able to cultivate to immortality."
"I see… Thank you for your guidance, masters. I will be taking my leave to achieve enlightenment."
"Wear this with you. It can help you kill anomalies."
The oldest elder gave him a necklace that had an engraved spirit stone on it. Duso Wen thanked the elder for his generosity, and said his goodbyes to all the elders.