In front of Xuan Luo was a gigantic stone sculpture. The stone sculpture was a carving of a tortoise. The tortoise was staring straight, and its mouth was open in a surprised way; as if he wanted to shout. When Xuan Luo looked up, he was shocked. Above the tortoise, there was a python. The python had tightly wrapped itself around the tortoise; its top part was still loose, as if squeezing the tortoise wasn’t tiring at all.
As Xuan Luo looked at the python and tortoise, he experienced a great wave of emotions. Yet, he has no idea why. When he saw the tortoise, he felt sorry for it. Looking at the python scared him, and he wanted to help the tortoise escape.
All of a sudden, he felt like he had seen the stone craving elsewhere. He knows he has never been here, yet his gut tells him otherwise (OMG HIS PENDENT!! V__V *sorry, I could not hide my feelings haha).
Xuan Luo continued to look at the sculpture in a daze. It’s as if he could experienced what he had happened then; the battle between the two creatures.
Something extraordinary was happening. The sculpture in front of him came alive. The whole battle unraveled in front of Xuan Luo’s eyes. The python continuously attacked the tortoise. The severity of the attacking was frightening. It striked again and again, not showing any sign of fatigue. The tortoise did not seem affected though; it just remained inside of its sh.e.l.l. The python realized its attack was not working, and it changed strategy. Rather than using its poisonous fangs to strike, it decided to use its body to squeeze. The tortoise realized it was in danger and out popped its head. It opened its mouth, trying to bite the snake, but it was too late. By now, the python had firmly wrapped itself around the tortoise; and it was squeezing tighter and tighter. The sh.e.l.l did not seem to be able to handle the grip, and it was slowly deforming. All of the tortoise’s legs have now struck out; its eyes are bulging.
Xuan Luo heard a big commotion and suddenly, the tai ji ba gua appeared below the tortoise and the python.
Then everything became normal again. But in Xuan Luo’s mind, there was a voice: My name is Xuan Wu. We have been brought together by fate. When you have succeeded, come back and help me break this curse..
Xuan Luo seemed to have snapped out of something. In front of him, the stone sculpture looked exactly the same. It hasn’t moved one bit. Thus, he concluded he must have hallucinated. But right away, he denied that thought. What the tortoise said “My name is Xuan Wu. We have been brought together by fate. When you have succeeded, come back, and help me break this curse.” was way too real. It was still fresh on Xuan Luo’s mind.
Xuan Luo repeated those lines once more. But he doesn’t know what succeeded meant, and he has no idea when he will come back.
What just happened gave Xuan Luo a fright. But now, everything looked like it did before. He felt uneasy and unsure. Thus, he turned to Lu Hu and asked, “Lu da ge, did you see that?”
“What?” Lu Hu has no idea what Xuan Luo was talking about.
In reality, the vision Xuan Luo experienced only lasted a couple of breaths. But everything he had seen left a strong impression in his mind. He is somewhat startled, yet excited.
“What was that? Why was I able to see such vision?” He silently thought to himself.
“This stone sculpture is amazing, huh?” Lu Hu commented as he watched Xuan Luo looking at it in awe. He a.s.sumed Xuan Luo’s reaction was due to the grandness of the sculpture. “This is Wu Dang’s protection guard! It’s called Xuan Wu. Legend has said that this mythological animal has been protecting our Eastern sky all along!”
Xuan Luo seemed to understand a bit of what Lu Hu was saying. But that incident remained rooted in his mind. It’s not going away.
“Forget it. I can’t figure it out. I’ll just give it some time before asking.” Xuan Luo thought to himself.
He continued to follow Lu Hu towards Wu Dang’s interiors. The walls were painted red, and the roof tiles were ceramic glazed. It manifested Wu Dang’s architecture.
The architecture was not exactly like what Xuan Luo had imagined, but regardless, his heart felt much calmer. It’s hard not to be relaxed around such a G.o.d-like place (he means the scenery and air).
“Lu da ge, is this where you guys live?” Xuan Luo looked around his surroundings.
Lu Hu loudly chuckled, “Xuan Luo. It wouldn’t make sense for us to live out here! We disciples live behind the mountain. Each day, many of our fellow disciples practice their gong fa and nei gong behind the mountain. We’re only at the front door!”
Xuan Luo’s face immediately flushed. He was embarra.s.sed. His expression did not seem to match his seven che height.
“Okay. I’m going to take you to the Master now!”
——-
“Xuan Luo. Wait here. I’m going to make an announcement.” Lu Hu headed inside on his own.
Xuan Luo’s eyes lit up as he looked at the Main Hall in front of him. Above, there were three words craved, “Tai He Dian” The three words looked very majestic and powerful. Looking at it, Xuan Luo could feel its strength.
“Di zi is here to formally greet you, Master! Elder!” (Chinese people really like to talk in 3rd person, it sounds so ridiculous in English). Lu Hu politely greeted the two Superiors.
“What is it?” A person slowly spoke out. Although his tone was light, it could not hide his dignified position.
“Zhang shi xiong brought a young lad to us. He wants to join our Clan. Currently he is outside waiting. What do you want to do with him, Master?”
“Haha. It seems like we haven’t had a new blood for quite some time now!?” An old man with somewhat messy hair spoke up, next to the man.
“Is it possible that shi di, you’re interested?” The other old man smiled.
“Yes. Kind of. I wonder how his natural abilities are?”
“Let’s go find out!”
“Lu Hu, bring the young lad in!”
“Yes!”
——-
Xuan Luo was extremely nervous as he watched Lu Hu coming out. He quickly rushed, “Lu da ge, what did they say?”
Lu Hu’s face looked extremly sullen. Seeing this, Xuan Luo had a very bad feeling. Right away, his mood fell.
“Lu da ge, did they say….” Xuan Luo looked as if he was about to cry.
Lu Hu smiled, “I’m kidding! Master told me to bring you in!”
Seeing Lu Hu acting this way, Xuan Luo was dumbfounded. But deep inside, he was delighted.
He followed Lu Hu and walked into the Main Hall….