Hu Meng bounded forward in excitement as he inspected the plain road devoid of vegetation. "Yin Xiu, now that we found the road which way do we go?" He asked with excitement. Yin Xiu smiled slightly as he replied, "We'll go to the left from here. If we follow the road that way, eventually we'll be out of the forest completely and we can head straight to Violet Mist city."
"Is that the direction you came into the forest from?" Hu Meng asked with clear anticipation. When Yin Xiu nodded affirmatively Hu Meng's excitement grew once more. "Does that mean we'll get to see your village if we go this way?"
Yin Xiu laughed and shook his head, "Not quite Hu Meng. My village is about four days East of the forest, and Violet Mist city is due South of the forest according to the map Senior Hu Fang gave us. We'll not have the chance to see it this time, but I promise I'll take you to visit in the future. I want to visit my auntie Kang, and old storyteller Ji eventually too. If they can even recognize me that is." He joked as the duo walked along the road harmoniously.
After half an hour or so of walking, Hu Meng noticed something along the side of the road. It was a string of wooden debris scattered just along the inside of the tree line. "Yin Xiu is this the wreckage of your convoy?" The purple haired youth turned his attention over and inspected it with a wistful expression. "It sure seems like it... I see a few wheels and axles scattered through there... I wonder if anyone else made it out alive." Shaking the dismal thoughts out of his head he looked at Hu Meng. "I might just be the only lucky one."
Hu Meng understanding Yin Xiu's complicated mood just patted him on the back in understanding. "Don't fret too much about it, it wasn't your fault that such a thing happened. If you're going to blame anyone then blame that cultivator from the Azure Cliff Sword Sect." Yin Xiu's expression eased momentarily before he replied "If I'm honest I really don't imagine his ending was any easier than theirs. That bear was enraged by whatever it was that he had done." Shifting away from the topic the two casually chatted as they continued to observe the wreckage as they passed by. Any supplies that had survived the attack had already been picked through by the later travelers on the road.
It wasn't until a few minutes later that Yin Xiu stopped in a daze, as he saw group of young flowers that had not yet bloomed. They gave off a soft glow in his vision while he observed the clusters of red flower buds. Hu Meng noticing his friends actions also stopped and asked curiously as he inspected the flowers. "Is there anything special about these Yin Xiu?"
Awakening from his stupor Yin Xiu answered his friend with a complex expression. "If I'm not mistaken these are spider lilies. in the stories told by old man Ji, they are the flowers of the dead, and only grow where a person has died. They are said to lead the souls of the deceased to the other shore of the river of the underworld." He took a deep breath before continuing, "Remember when I described that vision I received at the end of the test the Heavenly Dao had me undergo? I saw an image of myself after I was much stronger, and there were two flowers in my eyes. One of which is definitely a spider lily, the reason I hadn't realized it until now was the one in my eyes was burning with flames. I also genuinely had no idea that they were poisonous flowers until I saw the glow coming off of these just now, so I happened to make the connection."
Hu Meng observed the flowers much more intently as he learned of their meaning and potential connection with his friend. He even approached curiously while trying to smell them, but due to their tender age the scent wasn't particularly prominent. "Since they're poisonous are you going to take these?"
Yin Xiu immediately shook his head, "These need to bloom for my companions. I wasn't close with any of them, but they grew after their death, so they should remain here to guide their souls. I don't have the right to take them."
Yin Xiu began moving forward as he continued his reasoning to Hu Meng, "Anyways, I'm not even sure that what I saw is a definite depiction of my future anyway. If anything, I'll keep an eye out for similar legends about them in the future, and see where the road to the Dao will lead me."
Hu Meng followed behind him closely as they began walking forward in silence once more. Each with their own thoughts about the truth of Yin Xiu's vision. Eventually, the silence was broken once more my Hu Meng as he observed the sun starting to set on the horizon. "Yin Xiu should we find a place to rest for the night?" The young cultivator nodded back naturally, "From what I can tell from the map we should be extremely close to the very edge of the forest, we'll camp in the last Autumn area that we should reach in only fifteen minutes or so, and we should be able to reach the city before the end of the day tomorrow."
"Let's pick up the pace then!" Hu Meng roared in excitement before breaking out into a brisk trot while Yin Xiu followed behind with a slightly helpless expression. Upon reaching their destination they moved into the forest for a few minutes to prevent being able to be seen from the road. Just in case there were any travelers passing through the forest.
Yin Xiu made himself another makeshift bed out of leaves before laying down with contentment. The black tiger resting on a tree branch directly above him. The duo excited to continue their journey the next day each slowly drifted away into sleep.
Around an hour before sunrise, Yin Xiu was awakened by the soft sound of rain splattering against the leaves, and the cool feeling of the Autumn rain on his face quickly jolting awake his mind. Shaking the leaves out of his hair he stood up and stretched with a pensive expression on his face. He looked up at the tiger who seemed wholly unfazed by the rain, and muttered "I really hope it doesn't rain like this all day."
He looked at the nonchalant black tiger before throwing a joke his way "I thought cats hated water?" He chuckled as he watched Hu Mengs hackles raise in anger as he spat back "Do I look like a common house cat to you? This lord has the bloodline of the great White tiger!"
Hu Meng's tirade was unfortunately met with only laughter, to which his reply was naturally to tackle Yin Xiu directly to the ground. "Okay, okay, it was just a joke. Hu Meng get off of me so we can hit the road." Hu Meng huffed in response as he got off of Yin Xiu, his mood eased as his majesty had been displayed fully.
The duo continued onward, quickly reaching the end of the forest only a few minutes later. The wide open view stunning the tiger to stand in place distractedly. Yin Xiu patted his back while saying with a smile "Welcome to the wide world outside Hu Meng."
Awoken by his friend, Hu Meng let out a ferocious booming roar, sounding like the rumbling of thunder amidst the storm. Yin Xiu with ringing ears asked in confusion "What was that for?"
Hu Meng continued observing the completely different scenery and answered offhandedly "I felt the need to announce to the Heavens that I had arrived." Yin Xiu shaking his head observed the upcoming fork in the road on the map before showing it to Hu Meng, "There are three paths that branch out right up here, the left path is irrelevant to us at this point, the middle path eventually leads to my village if you follow it far enough, and the right path leads us to our goal for this excursion." They continued on after Hu Meng's brief outburst unhurriedly.
Only pausing briefly when they arrived at the fork in the road, as they both observed the middle path with lingering emotions. Yin Xiu longing for his hometown, and Hu Meng filled with curiosity about his friends original home.
Walking along the path the difference between the environment in the forest quickly struck Hu Meng. "I knew that the seasons didn't change outside the forest, but only being in a summer area for so long is rather strange to me."
Yin Xiu smiled and nodded in agreement. "I had the exact same feeling when I first entered that forest. I was mystified to experience such rapid changes like that." Pausing briefly he said "I hope when we're strong enough we can find the reason why the forest is like that. I'm sure there is a great mystery to it."
"I also want to know, but even with my mother being as strong as she is, she doesn't dare to enter too deeply. Anything that could be the origin of that forest must be of a level completely beyond our imagination." Hu Meng said in agreement.
"Well, we'll find out one day." The duo smiled at each other before returning their attention back to their journey. The man and the tiger walking calmly through the warm summer rain, each unconsciously blending into nature. Their every step not even making a splash in the puddles forming on the road.
A few hours later, the rhythmic pounding of oxen's hooves sounded as a caravan made its way through the rain. The carriage drivers cursing under their breath as they squinted into the rain. The man in charge of security was walking ahead of the wagons, his senses on high alert, as he searched closely for any threats. He stopped abruptly when he made out two blurry figures approaching on the road, he blinked as he strained his eyes to try and make them out better. When he reopened his eyes there was only one figure still in his vision. Attributing it to the rain playing tricks on his eyes he called back to the caravan. "There's someone approaching, be alert!" The guards along the sides of the caravan made their way forward uneasily as they heard their bosses words.
The wagons stopped a minute later as the originally blurry figure appeared completely in their sight. It was a young man with a truly jarring appearance. His Dark purple hair soaked down his back from the rain, and his bone white skin practically glowing in the stormy weather. When he was close enough the guard captain looked into the blood red eyes of the youth. For a split second he felt the air grow cold around him, as if he had met the eyes of a deadly predator. He nervously tightened his grasp on the handle of his axe as he debated whether he should attack, before the youth called out to him.
"This is the way to Violet Mist City correct?" The youth asked as he made a friendly gesture to display his lack of ill will.
The guard captain still maintaining his vigilance nodded back curtly. The youth then appraised them for a few seconds, his wandering red eyes once agin tensing the nerves of the guards before offering a word of caution. "If you all are planning on traversing the Forest of the Four Seasons, you need to be very careful. The spirit beasts that reside there might be a little too strong for you all."
"It's none of your business where we are headed." The guard captain spat back tensely. Shaking his head slightly the youth ignored the tense and grave expressions of the guards as he walked passed them with the same casual smile. "Just giving you a slight warning, don't read too much into it."
He continued on his way passed the caravan with steady steps, as if wholly unafraid of the weapons that they brandished in his direction as he walked away. The caravan stood still for a few minutes after the youth had faded into the distance. Ensuring that he wasn't trying to lure them into a false sense of security before making an attack.
Yin Xiu left the caravan behind for awhile before Hu Meng emerged from the nearby shadows excitedly, "So, that's what a caravan is like huh?" Yin Xiu nodded back with a smile "I was in the back of a wagon just like that when that bear attacked." He shook his head regretfully "If that caravan is truly headed towards the forest why are woefully underprepared. Their guard captain hasn't even completed his bone refinement yet, and the rest are barely in muscle refining. My caravan had two Qi refining cultivators, and they were easily torn to pieces."
"There will always be fools in this world." Was Hu Meng's only response. The two continued on their journey, throwing the fate of the caravan into the back of their minds.