"Where is he from?" Lin Fan had clenched his eyes closed, awaiting his untimely demise. Yet, after a whole second, he still hadn't felt the pain of being ripped apart by razor-sharp claws. Instead, he could hear some talking in the background.
He slowly opened his eyes and looked around. There were people standing around him and through a slightly translucent forcefield, he could see the Kara looking confused.
"When did i get in? Wasn't I outside?" Before he could answer, an older man came to him. He had a well-built figure with wide shoulders and a scruffy beard. He stood at the tall height of 180cm (6 ft). He seemed to be well respected.
The man began. "Are you from Madu village?"
Lin Fan was hesitant to reveal his origins but he was not going to disrespect one of his saviours. Life had taught him to be suspicious but his mom's teachings on etiquette stayed deeply rooted in his heart.
"Oh, yes. How do you know of it?"
It was strange to know of a village practically a hundred miles away.
"Yes. You will understand in due time."
The old man raised his hand and waved towards the crowd which parted, displaying a wonderful village. Where rivers had dried up in other ruins and the rest of the wasteland, there was a stream of water flowing through the village. Even in Madu village, rain was rare and when it did, it would never rain inside the village but instead, on the outside and mostly at night. On such nights, people would get drums, tie them with ropes and place them outside the village and when a demonic beast appeared, they would pull them back in quickly. This village also had trees and way more plants.
"Follow me", the man commanded and began walking. Lin Fan rose and started to follow him. He noticed that the rest of the villagers seemed to speak a different language yet the strange man spoke the same language that he does.
"Why is it that you speak my language?" Lin Fan asked.
"Because I used to live there before."
"Then why are you here?"
"Well, I'm waiting, I guess." The man spoke grimly, a hint of nostalgia in his voice. Lin Fan felt the heavy atmosphere. He decided not to pursue further.
"Where is this place?" Lin Fan asked.
"This is Aruni village, one of the ten oases in this wasteland."
He further explained. Oases are ruins that are mystical in a way. They have trees, rivers and other rarities. They are even believed to house treasures from the ancient era.
Oases also had another strange advantage; people living in oases are always stronger than those in other ruins. Each oases is also led by a distinguished family whose members are stronger than the rest of the villagers.
As they walked, a boy with yellowish hair began walking towards him. He had grey eyes and a powerful but friendly gaze. He extended his arm.
"Hey, I'm Yan Li."
This took him by surprise. He could speak his language.
The man chimed in. "Members of the ruling family also know our language. We were taught theirs and we taught them ours."
Lin Fan looked at the boy. He seemed to be about his age.
"Hi, I'm Lin Fan."
"Lin Fan, you have the same surname as the Woodcarver Lin. Are you by chance his son?"
"Who's woodcarver Lin?"
The man pointed at himself. He gave a smirk, showing that he was proud to have his name in conversations.
"Nah, we just met. Anyway, it's impossible since my dad died over seventeen years ago at the hands of demonic beasts. I didn't even know him."
Seeing as though he had touched on a depressing subject, Yan Li reacted quickly." Oh, sorry. I didn't know. Please don't be offended."
Lin Fan waved it off. Yan Li smiled and took Lin Fan by the wrist. He was strong. That grip alone could have broken his hand had he not found the strange temple and sang the mysterious mantra.
"I'm so sure my dad would want to meet someone who survived an encounter with demonic beasts practically unscathed. He said that only martial artists can do it," Yan Li said as he began to lead Lin Fan away, leaving Woodcarver Lin standing alone.
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