As the hours passed by, the surroundings grew darker and the cheerful sound of chipping birds grew fainter in the distance. Hours upon hours of walking without seeing anything left him dumbfounded as he nodded his head at the idea of stepping on some dog dirt along the way. It was as if all of nature was steering clear of him, treating him as if he was some disease.
As the last remaining wisp of light that could possibly be the sun disappeared behind the horizon, Cao Yaun decided that it would be best to find a tree and spend the night on it rather than continuing to walk through the dark forest, fireflies zooming past him.
Standing before a massive oak, or something of the like, Cao Yaun took a moment to look at the tree top to make sure the tree was free of insects and tree-dwelling beasts before attempting to climb up. It would be much safer to sleep on the tree in case something decided to come out at night.
After finding what seemed to be a safe area to climb up to, Cao Yaun climbed the large tree, gripping tightly to the rough bark and pulling himself up. Although it looked comical, the sight would have most likely caused some form of visual pollution, as he looked similar to an overfed wall gecko dragging his bloated body up a giant vertical surface.
Finding a thick branch near the very top and using the bright moonlight as a source of illumination, Dai Yaun cleared some smaller twigs and leaves on the branch so that he could lay down on it comfortably. The branch itself was a large one, about three meters wide, sloping upwards at an angle with only a couple smaller branches growing out of it. Those too were cleared away so that the branch would be smooth.
Laying down on the branch, Cao Yaun shifted his body around until he found a more comfortable position, the cool crisp night air brushing by his face as he relaxed, the silent peacefulness of the mirrored layer filling his senses. Cao Yaun closed his eyes, taking a deep breath and relaxing as his thoughts wondered.
Focusing his thoughts, Cao Yaun observed the two shamanic runes on his body. The Blackscale tiger rune and the human-faced insect rune, both on his chest area, appeared as nothing more than faint outlines beneath his skin. It had been two days since the fight with the jungle hyena, but the two runes still hadn't recovered from the massive power he had extracted from them both in the short fight.
Feeling around the runes, Cao Yaun got the impression that it might take about a week before they would be at full power again, before being able to use their powers.
In addition to that, uncertain whether it was real or just his imagination, he could vaguely make out information about the runes. It was coming to him as a flood of knowledge, though it was somewhat vague and he was unsure of what he was seeing. Cao Yaun focused his mind to get a firmer grip, but he could only get some fleeting impressions.
Realm: silver bones stage (3/4)
Stage: late minor stages (30/100)
Runes: blackscale tiger rune (??), human-faced insect rune(???)
Abilities: tiger roar, sonic scream..... etc etc
As he tried to feel the rest of the information, which was hidden amidst the unclear markings, a sudden sharp pain jolted his mind from its current state. He gave a start as he pulled his head away, feeling drained. It seems that he needed a lot of mental power to perceive the information or to at least be able to utilize it.
Dai Yaun sighed, feeling a bit annoyed at the itching and urge within him to know more. As he felt around at the current state of the two runes, he exhaled another sigh, this one a deeper and more sorrowful one. The overloading ability that they had was indeed impressive, but it was also very taxing and would be best to not use it too often so he would have it in times of true need.
As the night wore on, Cao Yaun laid on the branch of the tree, the blue glow of the moonlight casting eerie shadows around his wooden sanctuary as he stared up at the sky through the leafy gaps in the tree above him. He felt very alone, the constant adrenaline wearing off as he thought back on his journey so far, miles and miles of the dangerous forest.
His thoughts drifted back to Wang LinLin and the small circle of friends that he had left back in the Brightmoon province. Thinking about the girl's angry expressions when he had told her that he was leaving made his heart beat a little quicker. Even though they had only known each other for a short few months, the two of them had grown very close, almost as if they had been old friends.
But Cao Yaun knew that he could not stop there; his journey led on and the Brightmoon province was just a pit-stop for him on his way to bigger things. She had been angry, worried, and had even tried to convince him to take her along with him through the forbidden forest.
"Oh well. I hope she's alright and she doesn't try to cross the forest."
Thoughts of her stubbornness at that time, and how her eyes practically screamed that she would follow him to the end if he did not stay, made him feel a bit anxious for once. But having come this far, there was nothing else he could think about it other than to hope that fate would look kindly upon her and keep her away from the perils of the forbidden forest.
Sighing gentle Cao Yaun shook his head, thinking about the others his hear felt warm, at the little amount of time spent there. After all, even Granny Marita, Mr. Gao, Mr. Jin, and the people at the martial arts arena had cared for him and shown him kindness during his stay.
A small smile graced his lips, a rarity in recent times. He had been alone most of the time in the wu clan, barely interacting with anyone as those there shunned him, thinking his existence tainted. His preference for solitude and peace had grown as time had passed, making him more introverted and less caring towards others in general, except for those few in the Brightmoon province, the ones he had met when he had stopped there.
He almost regretted not spending more time there, but he forced those thoughts away. He had no time to think about staying in a certain place. He had to reach his goal, wherever it might be. His identity was a mystery that he sought to solve. Grandpa Mo was still missing, and those who had been kind to him in the past would always hold a place in his heart. Staying in the Brightmoon province would be pointless and slow down his journey.
As his mind wandered back to the events that transpired in the Blackscale forest, the events where he had suffered immensely because of the assassination teams sent after him. If it were not for the Blackscale Tiger interfering, he would have already been lying in the cold ground of the forbidden forest, wasted and used up by Zhou Chen's vicious subordinates.
"Tsk." Cao Yaun clicked his tongue in annoyance, wishing he could go back and give those people a piece of his mind, but then shook his head at his own thoughts. He had already left that behind him, and there was no reason to return to it. He only hoped that they would not cross paths with each other again, or it would be the beginning of their misery.
Although they had been stopped, the event had made him aware that he was now being hunted by someone. Thinking back, he was grateful that the assassins had failed, but wished that they would not attempt anything else. He would remember the event and hope that the assassins would learn their lesson.
As the moon continued on with its nightly work, Cao Yaun's thoughts relaxed. It was already more than two months since he had set this journey, running away from what he had considered his past to reach a higher step and learn about his origin from grandpa mo.
Although the trip had been lonely, bloody, and tiring, he clutched to the warm feeling, realizing that this journey was one that he would never regret taking. It was a journey of pain and suffering as well, but it was also a journey that had taught him that leaving the Blackscale village had been one of the best decisions of his life.
The warm breeze that gently rocked the tree leaves around him carried the cool night air as moonlight cascaded in a wisp of silver across the branch where Cao Yaun laid. It was quieter where he was, although he could hear the occasional creature below in the depths of the forest.
Cao Yaun closed his eyes, staying relatively awake. He knew that he needed the rest, but he would not let his senses completely rest in this area. It would be foolish to sleep deeply in a place that was dangerous, and especially so when he was alone.
Coming all the way from the province, the journey through the forbidden forest had been nothing but creepy spectacles as he saw more beasts than people in the lastfew weeks. Hopefully, the memories of this journey will not include more bizarre beasts.