"Done."
Nanming said, more to himself as he appreciated his own handiwork of small shed, not even enough to fit him, it's just there so he can store the successful mold.
"Why did you make this shed anyway?"
Yi Ling ask as she lied across the tree branch, her black hair sways like a hypnotic vine, dancing due to the wind.
"To store the fruit obviously."
Nanming respond, finding her action quite peculiar, what joy does One find lying atop a branch? The tickle of the breeze or the light warmth of sun filtered by the leaf.
"Those are moldy fruits; they rot either way even if you didn't store them."
Yi Ling words is a mere vocal, a mere soundwave interpreted in a comprehensible manner for Nanming to process and yet it managed to land such a profound, physical blow through him and pulls back all the rationality that he had abandon.
"…"
"…If ignorance were personified, it would be you. Even someone with permanent brain damage knows that rotting fruit will rot."
Yi Ling hurl of insults only serves to rub salt to the deep wound, and her entire presence is just here to further irritate Nanming than to help him overcoming whatever hurdle he is stuck in.
"All that talk about 'becoming a Human', 'Proving the Heaven wrong' and whatnot yet you waste your time dilly dallying and lollygagging."
Yi Ling words, even when it comes from genuine curiosity, feels mocking, can someone be this proficient in insult?
Nanming looked directly at her, seeing how she swung her legs around playfully as if this was a sort of game for her.
"Aren't you supposed to be my retainer? Then why won't you hel-"
"And all this stems from your nature as an Asura, if it's not for me, you'll burned everyone in every five seconds"
Yi Ling was quick to cut off Nanming words, and Nanming complies and did not complete his words to avoid being beaten by her again.
"What I mean by a 'retainer' is someone who constraint you, a leash holder"
"That's not what retainer meant"
"Who cares about your opinion, what I say is what I do"
Nanming is at a loss of words, one thing he had learnt from talking with Yi Ling is that she is as stubborn as a rock, yet as unpredictable as a leaf being blown by wind. He could never predict what she will say or what she will do.
"Why don't you go fetch me an apple or something, I'm thirsty"
Like that, who in their right mind eats an apple when they are thirsty, unless she can somehow turn a whole apple into juice.
"Nevermind, I'm not thirsty anymore"
"…"
This is the everyday for Nanming, forced to adapt to whatever Yi Ling decided to do or what she decided to say. A very exhausting and chaotic day, he feels like it'd be better if she weren't around like a few weeks ago.
It's better that way, because Nanming is already used to being lonely anyway, and if the one he is to be around with act like that…
"Hey, where is that apple?"
…It'd be better if he was alone forever.
"Let's just go… there's no longer anything I can do to help this village"
Nanming said, looking at the village which he had hoped to have driven the Yellow Blight away, and giving them some rice that might last them weeks.
Yi Ling, hearing his words, gives him a thumb up
"Good job, for someone so idiotic like you this is above average… If I'm an earthworm at least"
'What does she mean by that?'
Nanming draw a heavy sigh before he walks away from a tree that has sheltered him from this past three weeks.
Yi Ling hops down from the tree to shadow his step, playfully skip her steps along the way. Nanming ruminates about something, should he go through the village main road, or should he leave through the woods?
He chooses the latter and went down the hill before slipping away into a thick grove of bamboo, Yi Ling trails him in the back.
From a distance, the old man who tend to his broken field saw Nanming walks away with scrutiny in his eyes, shielding it from the stinging sun as he did so.
"Finally leaving… good riddance"
He said before he continues to toil away at the mushy soil with his hoe. Before he is mumbling about 'lazy young'un' and 'spoiled brat' of the village who refused to do farmwork, and in between his voiceless cursing, three young approaches, two male and one female.
"Excuse me Mr. Farmer"
"What?"
The young man polite question was met with a dry, annoyed responds by the old man who didn't even regard the young man and continues to toil the soil.
"Where is that Jianghu boy?"
Hearing the boy who the old man had just saw leaving was a surprise for sure, he clearly thoughts that anyone here would be wary of him and wouldn't actively try to seek him unless they wanted the medicine he produces.
"He left, a while ago"
The old man lies so that they young man would leave him alone.
"Damn shame…"
One of the young men said, to which the original young man responds.
"What should we do now? Buo, had any idea?"
"…"
The young man named Buo maintain silence, but he points his glances towards the old man, the young man who asked then nods his head, understanding what he meant without a word spoken.
"Mr. Farmer… when can we work again?"
"…What?"
The old man stopped his toiling, a sign of just how surprised he was hearing the young man questions, deep in his heart he asks questions like 'aren't you supposed to be a lazy bum?'
"…Grab a pair of hoe's, clean this field of any debris and rice husk"
"'aight"
Buo responded before he playfully pushed the young man towards the old man house.
"What should I do sir?"
The girl then ask, feeling left out, she wanted to do something at least.
"…When I told you, turn that crank"
The old man said as he points towards a contraption of crank embedded in the center of a wheel positioned vertically and held up by a bamboo post, along its outer rim a pair of strings with what looks like bamboo cup were attached.
"Ahh… it's the water pully thingy right?"
The girl asks before she excitedly went to the contraption.
The old man can only shake his head, witnessing the trio excitedly doing some menial labor, calling them weirdo while he continues to bring his hoe down to strike the mud.
.
.
.
Nanming and Yi Ling is lost in a forest, at first, he thought that its simply just a one-time occurrence, that he will eventually find a road or a path leading somewhere. And Yi Ling remained silent as she admires the vegetation while mumbling about food.
That means this is normal, Nanming continues walking through the forest, seeing a pitcher plant, a yellow patch of flowers and a vine curling to form an S letter.
After a while, he saw a pitcher plant, a yellow patch of flowers and a vine curling to form an S letter.
And some time later, he saw a pitcher plant… again.
"We're lost"
"Took your time huh? Fucking idiot, we're lost in the last 5 hours ago dumbshit"
Yi Ling casually informs him on how lost they are, and yet she did nothing even when she herself was as lost as him. Truly a crazy demon, crazy rabbit mask wearing demon.
"What did you call me?"
"Unhelpful"
Nanming managed to pull a last second excuse, how come can she be so insightful at times?
"You want advice? What am I your teacher?"
Yi Ling then pick Nanming up by the collar of his hanfu, lifting him off the ground like a misbehaving Raven.
"Let's make our relationship clear here, I hate you. The entire reason why I'm doing this is to make sure no one else will hate you, got it?"
"…No"
Nanming said, deciding to become honest and he got hit for it, in the back of his head by Yi Ling knuckles, it stings.
"Of course not you stupid garbage, milksop like you could never comprehend human speech. Repeat after me: A, B, C, D and E. Got it?"
Yi Ling suddenly sings a nursery rhyme as she put Nanming down before dancing in a hypnotic movement that draws Nanming gazes to observe her.
How the twirl she made her body did swings her hair and robes to form a sort of captivating spiral, a vortex, like a storm even.
"F, I, J, K, if you lost just follow the goddamn river like you did before being washed into the river fucking bastard"
"…Ahh"
A peculiar way to give advice, but the problem is…
"There is no river though…"
"Then go against an animal track, they naturally fled from human sight"
Nanming took that advice to heart as he begins scouring through the dirt to find an animal track, and he did, a small paw imprint itself into the dirt, Nanming goes against where the animal went.
It took some trial and error, but he soon got the feeling for it and before long, the volume of trees gave way to a clearing, dirt road forming a pair of track signals it being heavily used by carriage.
"Finally…"
Nanming wearily said, finally finding a sight of civilization, now the problem is where to go to arrive in Kuxin village.
He could ask Yi Ling, but she's just going to mock him, saying things like 'stupid milksop can't tell left or right, should I holler for a toddler to teach you?'
"What's wrong milksop? Can't tell left or right? Just ask some beast shit and maybe they teach you basic knowledge"
And her insults come out worse.
'I can learn a psychological attack being with her'
Nanming thought, before he decided to head right. Yi Ling didn't make any comment on his decision which is a good thing, the more he is with her the less he had a grip on his rational thought and before long, everything he did will ended up to pleased her rather than following a logical decision.
As Nanming threads the path, a noise, or a voice of a scuffle can be heard further into the road.
"Kill the bastard!"
A shout of a rough voice booms through the forest, Nanming didn't think twice before he sprints with all his might towards the source of the voice.
"…"
Yi Ling watch him go with apathy, deciding on whether she should follow him or not, and when she thought about it that milksop might kill someone and there's no way she will allow it.
Yi Ling shadowed Nanming step with the same speed as him.
"YAH!!"
KLANG
An impact between steel echoes the forest road, before a sound of flesh hitting flesh follows through. The scene when Nanming arrived in is that of a poor soul being surrounded by dozen or so bandits.
"Hup"
But the one who is supposed to be in distress managed to overwhelm the group of bandits, given how there are four bandits that had already lost their right hand.
SLASH
"Ahhh!!!!"
Make that five bandits who lost their right hand.
"S-Shit! Stop attacking him one by one! Surround him!"
The presumed smarter one among the bandits hollers a command, but none of his fellows abide by it given that they consistently try to take turn attacking him, like it was a sort of line to buy some soup.
"Come on!"
The lone man said as he brandished his cleaver, skillfully parrying a saber before counterattacking in the same movement, in an economic way of fighting as he systematically severs the bandits arm one by one.
He might not need help, but Nanming don't care and decided to unsheathe his sword, but he might accidentally kill someone, so he opted to just use the scabbard to bash a bandit face.
BRUK
The poor bandit failed to see the black scabbard before he got knocked out cold, other bandit who realized Nanming presence realized that their number advantage has been toppled against their side.
"R-Run!"
He screams before the rest of his fellow quickly follows him and scrambled away, leaving nothing but a bunch of severed arms in their wake.
"Huff…. Thanks stranger, you really saved my ass"
The man said, and as he regards Nanming, he was surprised to see a very beautiful woman.
"Woah! It really is true! In the Jianghu even women can be a badass!"
"…I'm a male"
Hearing his remarks being responded by a heavy and deep voice caused the man to become flustered, rubbing the back of his head before he apologizes.
"O-Oh? Is it? I'm so sorry! But still, if its not for you I might get overwhelmed by those bandits"
"…Is that so?"
Nanming responded, this man is either lying or didn't know his own strength. Even if Nanming didn't intervene, this man could still manage to drive the bandits off easily given how skilled he is using his cleaver.
"Yeah! Like, you're so fast I didn't even notice you were here until you bash the bastard head with your scabbard! Is that like your unique technique? Profaned Bashing?"
His enthusiasm is surely one of the most telling parts about this man, how he is filled to the brim with nothing but joy is a contrast to Yi Ling cynicism.
"I'm just afraid that I might kill them if I unsheathe it"
"Ahh… so there is someone like that in the Jianghu"
The man noted before he cleaned the cleaver and sheathed it back inside a leather scabbard, its lusters and seams suggest it is a very expensive and well-made scabbard.
Now that Nanming got a good look at him, he noticed that he is as old as Wu Lixian, but not much taller than him, either he is short or that Nanming growth has been fast lately. Other than that, he had a fair parlor, suggesting he was someone sheltered who never had to brave any weathering.
"My name is Jing-U by the way; I come from the Eastern Province to see just how vast this world can be. And I'm already blown wide open! My narrow view has been expanded!"
He said as he asked Nanming for a handshake, a gesture that means he wanted to know Nanming name as well.
"My name is Nanming of Jiangnam, I wanted to go to Kuxin village"
"Kuxin village? What a coincidence! I was about to go there myself!"
The man said, happy for the coincidence and shakes Nanming's hand excitedly, and after he released Nanming's hand, he pulled out a scroll of high-quality paper, perhaps it's a map.
"If this map is correct, then we just have to go down this road straight and ended up in Kuxin"
"In that case I don't see why not"
Nanming accepted Jing-U invitation, but he make sure to look back, see if Yi Ling were there only to find nothing but an empty road.
"Coming?"
Jing-U holler, he was already ahead. Nanming nod and following him.
The walk there, contrary to the scuffle with the bandits from before, has been very quiet all things considered.
"I've heard Kuxin is a village nested atop a waterfall, so the view there is heavenly, what is it again? 'In between the sea of tree and kingdom of beast, to where the summer wind blows and cicada cries out loud, shall a house of many, nestled atop earthly dew were, worth dancing with death alone'"
"What was that?"
"A bards songs regarding Kuxin, frankly speaking it's the only reason I'm planning to go there to begin with"
A peculiar song, one with many foreign elements attached. Nanming couldn't help but find the wording with 'kingdom of beast' to be interesting.
"The kingdom of beast the song speaks, what could it possibly infer?"
"You're not from here aren't you? It's a famed tale among westerners, the King of the Tiger was said to inhabit Gunsi. The Heaven Jumping Beast Hu Ye"
Jing-U inquires, and Nanming knows about the King of the Tiger Hu Ye, one of the twelve Beastly King, he is said to have a roar so mighty even Heaven and Hell itself quake in its ferociousness.
But hearing Hu Ye living in the west is the part that surprises him; none of the books he read ever mentions about Hu Ye being in the west.
"You heard this tale from the bards too?"
"Of course, words travel far between the bards and the beggar you know. If you wanted to know about something, I recommend hearing a bard or two, cheaper than a beggar"
Nanming couldn't really comprehend the broader world of Hazhui, he knows beggars are famed to be information gatherer specialists, but how to get them to spit out the information is not.
Once again, Mantai's teaching about simply knowing is different from doing it.
"I planned to go to the South, but folks said not to since the Demonic Sect there seems keen on invading the South Mugeon Dynasty any time soon… Oh, I shouldn't pair Mugeon and Dynasty together in the West"
Jing-U is quite the chatterbox, Nanming is only glad he isn't the type to throw insults.
"How about you Nanming, any reason why you wanted to go to Kuxin village?"
"…"
And at that Nanming pursed his lips, now that he had realized it, he was getting off tracked very frequently as of late. Mantai told him to go to Kuxin because he might learn something there, but never what he would learn.
The destination has always been obscured; he doubts if there is even a destination to begin with.
"I… don't really know."
Nanming decided to be honest and say what he thinks about all this journey, his endless wandering.
"I just went wherever the road takes me, if there is any road."
"…That's… So Cool!!"
Much to his surprise however, Jing-U responded with even more explosive enthusiasm than before.
"You sound like that wandering hero! The one who goes around wherever he pleases to help folks in trouble! That's so cool!"
"…is that so?"
Nanming wonders, was the kind thing he did ever matters? Is Hao grateful he was being saved? Was his grandmother did? How about the two women he buried, were they grateful for the kind act he is doing? And the villagers, does his meager and dubious penicillin do any good to them?
Was any of his action even matter? It looks so small compared to the world and the harm it has done.
"Well, if you think of it that way, I guess?"
"Hahaha! To think that I had met one of those wandering heroes! Damn lucky I am!"
Jing-U said as he laughs along the way, and for a second with him, Nanming forgets the memory of loneliness, to walk a road alone.