Ju Mang’s Past
Mu Yu, sitting on the branch of the linden tree’s neighbour, fixed his eyes on the linden tree, but his mind was elsewhere. Ten days ago, he barged into the water demons’ territory at Moyun Mountains and almost got into an altercation had Tree Elder not made it there in time.
Tree Elder did not want to let Tian Ran into their race’s sacred tree until Ju Mang personally demanded Tree Elder let her in. When she would wake up, though, was anyone’s guess. The only good news was that her body and soul did not sustain any damage.
“Don’t worry. I can sense the tree gradually restoring Sister Tian Ran’s vitality.”
“Mm.”
Ju Mang was the rather taciturn character since his emergence for he needed time to recuperate after breaking free of the seal. For the meantime, he and Mu Yu were two separate consciousness, though they were capable of merging their minds if Mu Yu desired so.
“Do you know why I chose to help you?” Ju Mang asked.
“… No. Either way, thank you.”
“I’m merely repaying Ku Mu for saving me from the death qi using Ultimate Concealment Bloody Guardian.”
“I apologise for wrongly assuming you’re a nefarious elemental demon.”
“Well, I didn’t want to be resigned to a kid’s body at first. I’ve changed my mind, nevertheless, for a part of you is as admirable as your shifu… Do you know what the significance of this tree is?”
“No.”
“We refer to the divine tree that’s existed from aeons ago as Vitality Tree for it possesses immeasurable vitality. Wood demons surviving up to this point in time should be attributed to its existence. Each wood spirit lord is a child of the tree.”
“I thought you’re the only wood spirit lord.”
“No. We may be immortal, but we can be killed. If you kill a Vitality Tree, another one will sprout. Did you think Sword Shadow Dust Gale confined us to Moyun Mountains to protect humans?”
“Are you telling me otherwise?”
“We did the same thing the fiends did. All those stories about us threatening humanity’s existence are myths you humans conjured up.”
“When you say you did the same thing, are you insinuating Divine Executioner also set his sights on your lives?”
“Precisely. What Sword Shadow Dust Gale told the rest of the world is but a story he came up with. I mean, he defeated us, so humans can defeat us unlike what he told you. It was nothing more than an excuse to justify sealing us in Moyun Mountains. He was protecting us.”
“Why, then, didn’t he seal you as he sealed the archfiends?”
“They’re fiends. We’re spirit lords. We possess a single element, so we’d still show up on the radar if we were sealed. The only way to hide our presence completely was to find human hosts for us. He’s worried Divine Executioner will zone in on us once we control you five. I surmise he foresaw himself lacking the power to fight off Divine Executioner again. After all, his cultivation is as good as gone.”
Mu Yu could not tell if Ju Mang was mocking someone or if he was just bitter.
“What did you do to turn yourselves into targets, declare your independence?”
“It’ll click for you once you ascend to Ascension Real and learn about nature’s laws. It’s pointless for me to explain it to you now.”
“Why did you bring it up, then?”
“To kill time; it’s been ages since I spoke. From what you’ve shown me, I’m unable to read you. I’m familiar with life, yet you don’t hold your life in the same regards as others. Is Ku Mu worth you throwing away your life for?”
“He’s worth anything. If you can’t feel human emotions, you won’t understand.”
“Zero marks for that answer. All races with intelligence have emotions. I’m just pointing out that I doubt anyone could be as selfless as you, Sword Shadow Dust Gale, Ku Mu or the girl. It’s a rare trait in any race.”
“We’re not downplaying the price of life. It’s actually the opposite. We devote our lives to what we believe is right as we value life more than others. We don’t want to see those we care about disappear because we value life.”
“I think I get it. Still, I must remind you that not even the tree can save you once you return Ku Mu’s life to him. Don’t put your faith in luck.”
“I didn’t and won’t.”
As he lied back and set his sights on the sky, Mu Yu recalled he teleported Chen Xi’s family out of Pure Peace City without thinking about how they would get by after. All he could do at this point was pray for them.
Enjoying a banana, Xiaoshuai inquired, “Mu Yu, we going to pay the old con artist a visit?”
Mu Yu looked to the linden tree. “Yeah. We don’t know when Tian Ran will come back, anyway.”
Tree elder meandered over to the tree Mu Yu was on and smiled, assuaging, “Do what you have to. She will be fine.”
Mu Yu jumped off the tree. “Thank you, Tree Elder.”
“Don’t worry about it. I have to help you when Lord Ju Mang has spoken up. Like him, I trust you. By the way, Water Reverend informed me that some water demons have offered their services to Third Heaven Palace, so be careful out there.”
“Understood. I will be back soon.” Mu Yu turned to the linden tree, promising, “Wait for me here. I’ll be back.”
Xiaoshuai jumped down onto Mu Yu’s shoulder, and the two headed to Waterstream Village, unaware a group was closing in on Moyun Mountains.
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