Dao of Cooking

Green light swallowed him whole. He blinked around to get a sense of his surroundings, but he couldn’t even see his own fingers, let alone the others. Everything was a mess of twisted light and blurry lines, his ears ringing with the sound of crashing stones.

“Hey!” he called out, tears running hot down his face. He searched blindly with his arms, and crawled to his feet when his fingers touched a solid wall. Slowly, painfully, he raised himself up. His vision returned in blurry pieces.

The cave was a mess.

Shattered stone and broken walls greeted him. Beyond the twisted silhouette of the old man stood a barrier of green light, wavering ominously. Snake and Stone were gone. Zhu Luli lay wheezing in the corner, one hand clasped around her heart. His brother-in-arms flailed wildly against some invisible enemy. Only Little Yao seemed awake, but even she stood staring blankly at her own clawed paws.

Lei ground his teeth as he wobbled a couple of steps, his heart pounding in his chest. Right around his stomach, under his skin, a hurricane of energy twisted his guts. It hacked and slashed at him, making him nearly belch when acid shot up his throat. He gulped the vomit back, raised his head, and peered straight into the old man’s face.

The man seemed surprised, one green eye half-closed as if confused. The diamond perched on top of his staff didn’t seem that bright anymore. It had lost its light and now resembled a simple, cracked piece of gravel.

“How?” the man muttered, his eyes darting back and forth between the staff and Lei.

How indeed, Lei thought. When that light splashed across his face, there wasn’t any doubt in his mind that it would rip him wide open. Yet even when the others groaned in pain, riddled with wounds and blood pooling under their feet, Lei stood strong.

Steel glinted close to his feet. Fatty Lou’s sword. Lei wrapped his hands around the hilt, fingers straining, back screaming in pain, and raised it high before lurching forward. The world was spinning, the ground was shaking, and yet his eyes remained nailed on that bastard’s face.

“Can’t be,” Elder Huang said, propping his rotten chin with one hand. He seemed unaware that Lei was coming at him. But then, it was small wonder why the man didn’t see him as a viable threat. He kept muttering, “Mana, in this world…”

Lei lunged forward, the sword whistling in the air as it slashed across Elder Huang’s face. For a moment, Lei thought he’d caught the man unguarded, only to reel back when that wooden staff moved with a speed he could hardly register and slapped the sword sideways before slamming into his chest.

The blow sent him crashing into the wall, where he collided with the stones. He hardly felt the pain, but his lungs were a different matter. Breath wheezed weakly in his chest, and he choked on his own spit, gurgling desperately even as he tried to flounder back to his feet.

“Let me see,” came Elder Huang’s voice. When Lei raised his head to stare at him, he saw two eyes blazing with inner light, staring deep into his soul. “Nothing. So you’re really one of them, eh? Desperately weak, though, I must admit. We’ve all heard tales of your kind. I even saw one of you back when I was a little pup trying to find my way through the Crack. I suppose I shouldn’t be too surprised. This is one of your worlds, after all, eh?”

“W-What are you saying?” Lei sputtered. He balanced himself on his feet with the tip of the sword. His fingers hurt from how hard he clenched the damned thing, but his legs couldn’t hold the weight of his body.

“Oh? Your mighty patron hadn’t bothered to tell you anything? Now that’s new,” Elder Huang said, shaking his head as he smiled slightly. “I was just about to ask whose spawn you were, but I suppose I’ve got my answer. This must be fate. Who knew? It might be the spark I needed to become a believer!”

Lei tried to shake himself awake, to focus on the energy coursing through his body, but he felt like a stranger. His body refused to listen.

Deep breaths. Take deep breaths.

“Looks like I’ve chanced upon a gold mine here at the edge of the world!” Elder Huang cackled to himself, yellow teeth clattering as pus oozed from between them. “I shall clean this mess before I get to work.”

He pointed the staff toward Zhu Luli, the diamond atop it glistening with green light. It was weaker than before, but Lei had no doubt that foul thing would be enough to seal their fate. He tried to reach for it, clenching his teeth as he raised the sword. Too heavy. His fingers were failing him.

Just then, a flash bolted off in the corner of his vision. It dashed across the distance, and when it reached the wooden staff, it climbed nimbly upon it before slashing with a clawed paw. The cracked diamond shattered with a deafening explosion, sending Little Yao flying away from it. A blinding light poured from the pieces.

“You little beast!” Elder Huang hissed, eyes burning as he stared Little Yao down with cold fury. “How dare you—”

Lei stumbled toward the man, dragging his feet as he raised the sword and jabbed with all his strength. The tip brushed vainly against Elder Huang’s robe, barely stirring the shadows. A rotten hand clawed upward to his neck, hissing with rot and pus.

Move, dammit!

Time seemed to slow to a crawl. His [Spiritual Sensitivity] skill roared in his scalp. Lei didn’t need the reminder. Once that hand grabbed him, he knew he’d be done for. He desperately called on the energy roaming inside his body. It was there. It belonged to him. He just needed to control it.

If I die, you’ll be gone with me too!

It stirred—the energy did. Like a slumbering beast suddenly poked awake, it crawled up his arms, slithering around his fingers. Lei clenched the sword with newfound vigor. His whole skin burned as if it couldn’t take it. Too much. It was too much, but it was just the thing he needed.

The hand caught him by the neck. Rot hissed against the delicate skin. Lei twisted his wrist and drove the sword into the man’s gut even as blood pooled in his mouth. The blade strained against something hard. Lei pushed it further, refusing to give up.

“Bastard!” came a voice, a furious voice from behind, before a punch crunched against the side of Elder Huang’s face, making him stumble back.

The old man dragged Lei with him as they tumbled to the ground, the tip of the sword squelching smoothly into his flesh. When the hold around his neck softened, Lei pulled himself back and rasped out a breath, staring wide-eyed to see if it worked.

Right where the sword had struck, Elder Huang’s skin started peeling off like rotten bark from a tree. It cracked and split, pus oozing from between the lines. He was still alive, trying to grasp the handle of the sword, but his fingers trembled violently.

“Little Yao!” Zhu Luli called, looking toward the wall as she wiped the blood from her face. The little squirrel nodded weakly as if to show she was still alive, still breathing. That seemed to ease Zhu Luli’s worried expression.

“Looks like he’s done,” Lei said, staring at the green barrier that blocked the passage. It wavered, light flickering dangerously around the stone walls. Snake and Stone would be there, waiting for him.

They succeeded.

“But I’m not done with him,” said Fatty Lou. He wobbled, his teeth clenched, brows knitted in fury. Once he reached Elder Huang, he pulled the sword free from the man’s rotten flesh and stabbed him once more, roaring into his face. “You rotten piece of shit!”

Elder Huang’s skin crackled and burned, the shadows surrounding his robe blowing away with the wind. Even the tip of the sword seemed corroded after Fatty Lou stabbed him a couple of times before throwing it away.

“I don’t know what that is, but it was definitely not alive,” Zhu Luli said, scowling at the sight. “Even Death Cultivators bleed. They have their own ways, but they have to keep one foot on the side of the living.”

“He’s not a cultivator,” Lei said. It was all coming back to him now. Mana. That was an odd thing to say in a world of cultivation. The man also seemed surprised and uttered a bunch of things, none of which made any sense to Lei. But one thing was clear: He didn’t belong to this world.

“Some sick beast, that’s what he is,” Fatty Lou spat, huffing tiredly as he shook his head. “Look at it. The bastard’s rotten through and through. Dark work.”

“We’ll get our boys and return to the city,” Lei said as Elder Huang’s body slowly disintegrated into black spots that fluttered away with the wind. Soon, nothing was left but that wooden staff. That, and an old tome that seemed to have burned around the edges.

Then a strange pain pulled at his mind. Lei took a step back, clutching his arm. The spot where the rot burned him was stinging. He watched as his skin stitched itself back together. Not a second later, it healed as if the whole thing was a lie.

Your [Tier] has increased by 1 level!

Your [Tier] has increased by 1 level!

…

“Huh,” he muttered when the pain wore off. “That’s odd.”

“What?” Fatty Lou asked.

Lei shook his head. “Nothing. Just feels like a bad dream, is all. I still can’t believe it.”

“A bad dream. That’s a good way to put it,” Zhu Luli said as she picked Little Yao from the ground and scratched her chin, even as the cave shook around them. “I’m afraid this world is full of bad dreams. I know I’ve seen a few.”

“Is this how it’s going to be from now on?” Fatty Lou muttered, staring deep into his own hands. “Like, we’ll come across rotten bastards and foul beasts? People trying to kidnap little children?”

“Makes you think,” Lei said, clicking his tongue. “I guess we’ve just taken a peek at the other side of the world. There’s no running from it, eh? Not if you can’t be the master of your own fate.”

“You sounded just like my father,” Zhu Luli said with a weary sigh. “Be the master of your own fate. The easiest way to do that is to reach the zenith of the Immortal Path. Become someone feared. Then nobody will bother you.”

“Easiest way?” Lei raised an eyebrow at her.

“What’s the hardest way, then?” Fatty Lou asked.

“To hole up in a corner where nobody will ever find you,” Zhu Luli said solemnly. “Hide away from the eyes, and try to make yourself believe that you’re going to be all right.”

“Does that really work?” Fatty Lou asked.

“Sometimes.” Zhu Luli shrugged. “I’ve heard a few Core Formations went hermit after they were done with the life of a cultivator. The strange thing is, this world never leaves you. It’s always there, waiting. A hundred years or a day, you’ll never know when it comes back to haunt you.”

“Isn’t that true for all mortals?” Lei said. “You can’t control the future. You just have to do your best and hope that everything will work out.”

“That’s the difference between mortals and cultivators,” Zhu Luli said, sighing out a long breath. “Cultivators think they can fight against their own fate.”

“Do they ever succeed?” Fatty Lou said.

“Succeed? I’m not sure. After all, there’s always the next mountain to climb, right?”

“Right…”

“Let’s get our boys,” Lei said, staring up at the barrier.

Finally, the lights flickered out, letting him see the other side of the passage. He paused, blinking.

“Can’t be…” Zhu Luli muttered.

Lei’s fingers trembled. There was nothing beyond the green barrier. The ceiling had crumbled down and choked the hall with man-sized rocks. One of them slid slowly down, crashed into the floor, and broke into a thousand pieces.

“Stone, Snake!” Fatty Lou called out.

But the stones remained silent.