Forgotten One

Mo Fen spoke to Lei Shu and he came and sat at the table with him.

"My prized disciple, it is time for you to leave the cave, it is time for you to leave the canyon."

Lei Shu was quite confused, "What do you mean Master?"

"My disciple, although you can become stronger in the canyon, you won't receive enough experience just fighting the monsters in this canyon. You must go through the various trials and tribulations of life and use them to grow. You've only been fighting beasts, although they are very powerful, they aren't as intelligent as humans. In fights against humans, they may use feints and they use tricks in the middle of battle."

"You've already put your life on the line before, so you've been tempered by that. Even though the cultivators beyond this canyon may have greater cultivation bases than you, they will not have a greater mindset by any means. Most of them have been pampered by their families, they had the best masters and the best medicinal ingredients and pellets. Their cultivation may be great, but their foundations won't be the most solid. If their Dao Heart isn't steady and they falter in the face of death, they will only be able to bring about 70% of their full power out. This is where you have a great advantage, also you are quite a bit stronger than cultivators in the same realm as you."

Lei Shu spoke out, "Master, can you please get straight to the point. I know this information is helpful, but the most helpful thing would be telling me what my next task actually is. If I know beforehand, I can start planning out my path and how I will approach different problems."

A sad voice rang out, "Lei Shu it is time for you to join a sect formally. Within a sect, one of the most important things is building allies. In this canyon, your only allies will be the beasts and me. If you escape and ever encounter danger, I'm afraid no one would try to help you. However, if you leave and build connections and friendsh.i.p.s then my heart will be greatly reassured."

"Master, why don't you just come along as well, maybe you can get an elder position in a sect and look after me."

Mo Fen spoke, "My disciple, as long as I live, I, Mo Fen, will never take another as a Master. My master was a great man, someone who stood atop all. He was unfettered by issues and also kind to those around him. He is the one who I've learned most from in my time on this planet called Guardian."

"Huh? I've never once heard them use "planet" to describe this place." Lei Shu was confused. He had heard of Earth as a planet, but he had never heard of Guardian.

Mo Fen gently spoke, "Yes, it is an old bright turquoise colour with storm-like clouds dancing around it, or that's how you'd see it from space. Our planet is in the middle of the universe, we are the only ones with spiritual energy as it gathers in the middle of the universe and is dispersed outwards. As you'll be leaving soon, you'll need to know the surroundings with a decent amount of detail."

"Listen closely, imagine a rectangle, now within that rectangle, I will make you a map. Basically, the planet is made up of 4 great empires. Your Shu empire is in the South in the bottom left. It has a shape similar to that of a crescent moon. In the top left of the map is the Zhou empire, its shape is that of a disfigured shoe and it is separated from the Shu empire by this canyon. The canyon is formally called The Pit, and it is called so because of the great levels of darkness. The Shu and Zhou empire rarely interact because of The Pit separating the 2. On the top right of the map is the Fen Empire, this empire is in the shape of a meteor, they are by far the strongest empire present. In the bottom right is the Ren empire, they are the weakest empire. They are weak because they have the least amount of people, also their cultivation bases aren't too high, however, they are plenty dangerous as they focus on the path of poison. Separating the Ren and Fen empire is the Elven Forest. This is where the Elves, Nymphs, and Forest Spirits stay. This place is off-limits for the humans and the only contact between them is if an Elf wishes to do so. In the center of the map are the Aegan Islands, they are small and medium-size islands that are separated by water. The top half of the Islands are called the Dark Lands. That area is infested with Corrupt and Demonic sects. The bottom half of the Islands are called the Blessed Lands. The bottom half of the Islands are occupied with the Righteous and Religious sects. The corrupt path deals with the harming of others to increase their power and they are looked down upon by the Righteous path. The Demonic path deals with Demonic teachings passed down from Devils and the Religious sects deal with teachings passed down from holy beings."

Lei Shu took a minute to think, "Which path do you belong to and which path do you believe to be right?"

Mo Fen raised his voice and spoke with confidence, "I am on the path of life, my life. I do not live for the Dao and neither does the Dao live for me. But if you ask what path my cultivation is on… then I would say I am on the path of the Dao. None of these paths are inherently wrong or right, they are all but paths to the greater Dao. They are all paths to him." Mo Fen's eyes flashed with reverence as he spoke.

"Well now you know the areas on the map, and you should know where all the important things are. Empires have various smaller cities and powerful sects remain there as well, be wary of sects in seclusion, they may have powers beyond what the current generation has. Also, there are water cultivators that reside beneath the sea, be sure not to accidentally provoke them. Their strength explosively increases in water and with water all around them they have great stamina as well. The last thing I will tell you is that when beasts reach rank 2 and beyond, they will develop special innate abilities. The Jade Tiled Snake that you met had venom laced in every attack that it dealt, the venom even covered parts of its body. The Silver Coat Gorilla could harden its fur into spikes and puncture its opponents. Be wary as you may not know what the beast's ability is. The same thing works for cultivators after they break through the Body Tempering stage, they will be able to learn spiritual techniques. Do not learn too many as your cultivation will be hindered. That is all, I will bring you to the nearest sect so that you can join and grow. Be ready to travel and leave the canyon tomorrow. There is a small desert blocking us from the nearest sect, they call it The Great Desert and they use it to remove some of the weaker people trying to join their sect."

Lei Shu bowed respectfully, "Thank you for all that you have done for me, I will make sure to visit you often Master, and when I become strong enough, we can lord over the planet together."

Lei Shu turned and left the cave, walking all the way back to his original cave. He gathered all his belongings and made sure that he wasn't missing anything, Billa was ready as well. They slept the night and killed a few rank 1 spiritual beasts on their way to Mo Fen's cave the next day. Lei Shu took a bath in Mo Fen's spring and Mo Fen gave him a new set of pitch-black robes to take on his journey. Lei Shu put them on and with the help of Mo Fen he reached the top of the canyon.

The sun was beaming down onto their faces, beads of sweat were glistening in the light.

"Master this truly does feel quite refreshing, I can't remember the last time I was in the sun. It won't be too long before I take you out of here for good." Lei Shu smiled and stretched his body to his heart's content.

"My disciple, I won't stretch out this goodbye as I know it won't be the last. Just promise me that whatever you do, you'll be happy. Whatever you do, be at the pinnacle, far above the rest, but only if it makes you happy of course." Mo Fen's eyes grew a bit misty.

Lei Shu's eyes became misty as well, "This disciple will keep this promise."

After saying their final farewells, Lei Shu turned and began to leave. Mo Fen stood there until Lei Shu's body faded completely into the distance. Only then did Mo Fen turn and go back into his cave, sitting in his rocking chair and dosing off.

Lei Shu was now all on his own and this was the first time since he fell into the canyon. He felt amiss as if something was missing. He looked forward and just saw the hazy horizon. Small sandstorms were kicking up into the air and blocking vision to a slight degree.

As they continued to walk, the sand began to take its toll, lowering their overall speed and the sun beaming down on their bodies didn't help them much either.

After a few days of walking, they found a bright blue pond. Billa went up first and started dipping her tongue in the water. After he was full, he stopped and began to walk again. Lei Shu did the same and continued to walk.

They needed something to eat but they haven't seen a single beast in the desert. They heard a few screams a bit further up. They increased their speed slightly and tried to catch up. The sand beneath their feet started getting a bit moist.

When Lei Shu looked down, he noticed that the sand was tinged with a bit of red, it seemed to be fresh blood. When he raised his head, he noticed a scorpion-like beast the size of a bus. This beast was called the 3 Point Scorpion. It was a rank 1 spiritual beast; this one was in the later stages and was obviously confident in its strength. Its body was rough and dark mahogany in colour. Its 3 points were its two fangs like protrusion coming out of its mouth and its giant stinger on its back. Its stinger curled up into the air and was ready to strike at any moment.

The man facing it was a bit injured, blood was dripping down his left arm onto the sand beneath him. However, the look in his eyes was that of a fierce eagle, eyeing its prey for the best opportunity.

The man was using weird stepping techniques, but they weren't filled with energy yet, symbolizing that he was in the Body Tempering stage. His steps weren't as profound as they could be due to the sand beneath him. He stepped at an awkward angle and the scorpion noticed. It caught him by the arms using its fangs. Bite marks littered his arms, but he showed no pain on his face. He stared directly at the scorpion while waiting. He was waiting for the third point, finally… the stinger swung out and with it came a gust of wind.

Like an eagle, this man waited for the wind and reacted almost immediately, swiftly dodging the stinger. He reached behind himself and pulled out an extremely old looking whip. The carvings on it exuded an ancient power and that man put all his trust into it. The whip had a light gold handle and a dark brown whip, the whip had countless tiny protrusions that would hack and tear at flesh, not only sting it.