Xuan awoke to the sound of soft rain tapping against a roof. He was in dimly lit room, the faint glow of a nearby candle casting flickering shadows on the walls. His body ached deeply and his stomach growled loudly, as if he hadn't eaten for days.
As Xuan groggily blinked his eyes open, he became aware of a blanket draped over him. Then the door creaked, and for a brief moment, a small figure peeked through the crack—an innocent face framed by dark hair. It was a little girl, her curious eyes wide with interest. She couldn't have been more than nine or ten. Xuan barely registered her presence before she hurried away, giggling softly, leaving only the faint sound of small feet pattering on the wooden floor.
"Dad! He's awake!" the girl's voice called out excitedly from somewhere in the house.
Blankly, Xuan tried to push himself up, his arms instinctively pressing into the bed to support his weight—but something felt off. His right arm had no resistance, no pressure against the bed.
Confusion clouded his mind as he blinked, trying to understand what was wrong. He tried again, but only his left arm responded. But before he could make sense of it, the door creaked open, and a man stepped inside.
Xuan's eyes struggled to focus, still groggy from sleep, but the figure was clear—a man in his mid-thirties, with a weathered face marked by survival in the wilderness. His short black hair, streaked with the faintest hints of gray, framed sharp, dark eyes that studied Xuan intently. He had a strong, rugged build, wearing simple hunter's clothes that were practical and well-worn.
The man approached Xuan with a smile he could only guess was supposed to be gentle, carrying a bowl of steaming broth.
"Good to see you awake, you've been unconscious for three days." the man said, his voice even, as he knelt beside the bed. "Here, eat something. You'll need to regain your strength."
Xuan, still half in a daze, instinctively reached for the bowl with both hands, as he always had. But his right arm—nothing happened. His heart dropped as he looked down at where his arm should have been. There was nothing but a bandaged stump.
The bowl slipped from his fingers, his mind frozen in disbelief.
A hand shot out, catching the bowl just before it hit the floor. "Careful," the nearby stranger said softly.
But Xuan barely registered the words. My arm... gone? The realization struck him like a physical blow, knocking the breath from his lungs. His thoughts spiraled, panic rising as he stared at the empty space where his arm should be. How? When? What happened? His heart pounded wildly in his chest, each thud a painful reminder of the loss.
His hand—the one that remained—clenched reflexively at the blanket, the texture a sharp contrast to the numbness washing over him. The world around him blurred. How could it be gone?
Time passed as Xuan did nothing but stare at the stump. His breathing came in shallow, ragged gasps, the phantom sensation of his missing arm still present but utterly hollow.
And then, the next wave hit him. Mei. Where was she?
Xuan's head jerked up, his mind shifting from his missing limb to his sister. She was with me. Where is she? Is she safe?
Finally, his gaze landed on the man in front of him. The stranger. Xuan's chest tightened, the unfamiliar face adding to the swirling panic in his mind. Who is he? Where am I?
The man seemed to read the confusion in Xuan's eyes and smiled gently, though there was a weight in his expression that made Xuan uneasy.
"My name is Jin," he said, setting the bowl aside. "I found you alone in the forest, badly hurt." He hesitated, glancing briefly at the bandaged stump where Xuan's arm used to be. "You were covered in spider webs, surrounded by spiders. It was... a strange sight. Luckily I got to you in time, and brought you back here."
Jin was exaggerating a bit, his mind racing as he studied the boy. Xuan had lost an arm and a considerable amount of blood, but somehow he hadn't been on the brink of death. The bandage around the severed arm was expertly done, woven from spider silk. But who had done it? It didn't make sense. Why bandage him and then leave him behind surrounded by spiders?
The boys veins, too were strained and inflamed, likely from overexertion of some kind, and by all logic, he should have been far worse of—perhaps even dead. Someone must have performed first aid. No, it was more than just that. It was a miracle the boy was even alive.
Suddenly, Jin seemed to remember something. "Ah, this is the Mulin Village, near the White Bamboo City."
For Xuan questions were forming faster than he could voice them. But he forced himself to speak, his voice hoarse and shaky, as he inquired about the most pressing issue. "Mei... my sister. Where is she? Is she safe?"
He now faintly remember the chaos, the attack, but everything beyond that was a blur.
Brows furrowing in confusion, Jin shook his head slowly. "I didn't see anyone else. You were the only one there." He paused, meeting Xuan's eyes. "There was no one else. Just you, left for dead."
The words hit hard, and Xuan's heart sank. "There has to be—my family... the Lin family."
At that, Jin's gaze held steady, yet his expression remained blank. "I don't know any family by that name here. This is a small village—no Lin family, no Mei."
„What?" Xuan's world tilted. How could that be? The Lin family was well-known; his father was a cultivator of immense power. And Mei… what had happened to Mei? „My father, my mother… where are they?"
Jin's expression softened with a mixture of sympathy and something Xuan couldn't quite place. "I don't know. No one has come by. It was just you alone in the forest."
Alone? Xuan's breath caught in his throat, his heart racing faster. "But… they must be searching. My father—he's Lin Tian, one of the strongest cultivators there is. He'd never leave me out there. He's probably just…" Xuan's words trailed off, his thoughts spiraling. Where are they? Where am I?
"They'll come," Xuan muttered, almost to himself. "They'll come for me. Just wait."
Jin's eyes flickered, a hint of unease crossing his face before his expression softened again. "I hope so," he said quietly. "But for now, you need to rest. You're still healing."
---
Days turned into weeks.
Xuan's body healed bit by bit, but the ache of his missing arm was constant—a phantom pain that haunted him even in sleep. But it wasn't just his arm. His veins too hurt, as if something had recklessly coursed through them. It was the aftereffect of having unleashed a bloodline ability. But even more than that the gnawing worry for his family, especially Mei, weighed on his mind.
He tried to hold onto hope, clinging to the belief that his father and mother would appear any moment. But as the days stretched on, with no sign of them, the confidence in his words began to feel hollow.
"Why haven't they come?" Xuan mumbled one morning as Jin helped him walk around the small house. His voice wavered, the uncertainty creeping in. "They're strong. They should be here by now…"
Jin paused, carefully watching Xuan as he spoke, though his expression remained neutral. "Maybe... they're still searching," Jin suggested. "The world is vast, after all."
But Xuan didn't respond, his mind spinning.
„What if something's happened to them?" Xuan whispered, his voice barely audible, as if saying it aloud would make it true. The thought gnawed at him—it was strange they hadn't come for him yet. At this point in time, his worry for them began to eclipse his own fear.
„I need a map." Frustrated and desperate to take action, Xuan asked Jin for a map, thinking he could find his way back to his family on his own. Maybe, if he could see the lay of the land, he could at least figure out where he was.
But when Jin finally handed him a small, worn-out map, Xuan's heart sank further. It was a simple map of the surrounding area, filled with nothing but forests, rivers, and a few scattered villages. One larger city sat far to the east, but none of the names were familiar to him—not the village, not the city, not even the mountains that bordered the region. There wasn't a single marker for the Lin estate or any indication of the sects he had known growing up.
"This… this can't be right," Xuan muttered, running his fingers over the faded lines of the map. "There's nothing here. No sign of the Lin estate, no sects..."
Jin shook his head, his voice calm but resigned. "This is all we have. If you're looking for a bigger map, there might be one in the city." He pointed toward the far edge of the map, where the larger city was marked. "But don't get your hopes up. And the journey there…" Jin hesitated, but his eyes were firm. "It's not safe, especially for those traveling alone. Bandits roam these roads, "
The weight of his situation pressed down on Xuan, as his heart clenched. He didn't want to just wait anymore, but he also wasn't naive enough to think he could travel to the city safely in his current condition...
---
The following days dragged by in a blur. Each morning, Xuan woke with that gnawing feeling of unease, the constant question of where are they? echoing in his thoughts. He hadn't told Jin everything—he couldn't bring himself to talk about the attack, the kun, or the horrible prospect of losing Mei.
But as Xuan's hope in his family slowly crumbled, Jin seemed almost relieved. The strained, polite smile he wore early on became more genuine, and though he didn't say it aloud, Xuan almost felt as if Jin didn't hope for his family to come.
One night, the weight of everything finally crashed down. Lying in the dark, Xuan stared up at the ceiling, his chest tight with the aching loss. He had tried to keep himself collected, tried to ignore all the bad signs, but in the end he was still a child.
"They should have come by now," Xuan whispered, his voice trembling. "Why haven't they come? What if... something happened? What if... Mei—" His breath hitched, and the fear he had been pushing away crashed over him like a wave.
But there was no answer, even with Jin sitting nearby. He was only Xuan, not interrupting him, letting him mutter to himself. Then, as if he made up his mind, he said in a calm voice. "I don't know what happened to them. But I do know that sitting here, waiting, won't help you."
„But what can I do?!" Xuan's voice rose. He wanted to do something. But he was injured, missing an arm, lost in an unfamiliar place. And the only way to get a map was to reach a city through roads teeming with bandits. How could he possibly manage that?
His voice softened, thick with grief. "But... what should I do?" His mind throbbed, reeling from the questions he couldn't answer. Where was his family? Where was he? What had actually happened that day? And, had he managed to save Mei? Or, did he fail?
Jin leaned forward, his gaze intent yet calm, offering a lifeline. "There might be something that can help," he began, his tone measured. "Remember the city on the map I gave you? In a few weeks, traders will come through our village. I can ask them to take you with them."
"The city?" Xuan echoed, blinking through the haze of his thoughts.
Jin nodded. "The map I showed you doesn't cover much, but the city is different. It's much larger than this village. You might find better maps there, or even someone who's heard of your family. It's possible you could find a way back to them."
A flicker of hope stirred within Xuan, but Jin quickly tempered that hope. "You'll need to be healthy, though. They don't take just anyone. The journey isn't easy, and if they think you're too weak, they won't risk it. You've already lost an arm. If they see you weak in spirit too, they'll leave you behind. So if you want to go with them, you need to focus on getting better. You need to show them you're strong enough for the trip. If you can do that, they should take you with them."
""Wh—" Xuan's mind raced, a spark igniting within him. Could there be a way? "When do they come?"
"In a few weeks," Jin replied. "But if you miss this group, there won't be another for a long time—maybe a year."
Xuan's breath hitched. A year. That was too long. He wanted to find his family as soon as possible.
"Then I'll get ready," Xuan said, a spark of resolve igniting. "I'll heal up, and I'll be ready when they come."
Jin's smile widened, though something unusual flickered behind his eyes. "Good," he said softly. "That's the spirit. Focus on getting better, and when the time comes, I'll vouch for you."
Xuan nodded, the weight of his grief still heavy but now accompanied by a faint glimmer of hope. He had a goal – to get to the city, to search for his family. He could hold on to that. For now, it was enough – he told himself.
But just as he was trying to hype himself up more, something flickered at the edge of his vision. His gaze slowly turned toward the nearby window, and his breath caught in his throat.
A spider.
But not like the small ones he had been seeing before. This one was larger—its dark body the size of a fist, its long legs stretched menacingly as it clung to the edge of the window frame. Its many eyes gleamed in the dim light, reflecting a faint, eerie glow.
This can't be a good sign.