Beginning Beyond The Horizon

Inside the bamboo hut, Kaizen sat cross-legged next to Budi with his eyes closed. He slowly controlled his breathing and let the mountain breeze blow past him. As he fell into deep thought, the sound of the bamboo chimes gradually faded away. Thousands of years have passed, and he has never stopped thinking about his past, even when he meditates, his heart is not calm. Old memories that he wished to erase kept popping up in his mind.

The turmoil in his heart reminded him of that moment when he was standing in front of the temple. There were many masters standing on the stairs in front of him, preventing him from entering. With his old skills, he couldn't defeat the monks, so he rushed into the temple hoping the monks will show him mercy.

"Amitabha, immortals and humans should not coexist. Please go back to where you belong," Soten said.

Kaizen pleaded with tears, "Master, I come with no harm, but after many days of searching, I know that Monk Jikai lives in this temple. Please let me see him." He knelt down and continued to beg in tears. "My friend Xian misses him very much. He hasn't eaten for days and keeps dying and resurrecting." He looked at the yellow-robed monks staring at him. "I can't continue to watch my only friend die over and over again."

Stoen looked at the little red fox standing before him. "I don't want to hurt you," Soten said. "But if you don't leave, I'll have the monk break your legs and throw you out." He sighed. "Please don't let this monk be contaminated with sin."

Kaizen slowly stood up with his seriously injured body. He turned and started walking.

"Stop!" Yuuto's voice came from above the stairwell.

Kaizen turned around and saw Yuuto and Jikai standing side by side at the top of the stairs. Kaizen said happily, "Brother Jikai, you are finally out. Xian misses you so much that he asked me to bring you back."

Yuuto looked at Jikai and said, "Jikai, do you have something to give to this red fox fairy."

Jikai put his hand into his robe, took out a finger-long piece of braided white hair, and handed it to Kaizen. He said, "Take it back to Xian. When he receives it, he won't miss me anymore."

Kaizen reached out and grabbed the braided hair. He looked at Jikai and said, "This...this is Xian's hair." He grabbed Jikai's hands. "Can you come back and see Xian one last time? He...he will not eat."

Jikai pulled back his hand and said, "You take this to Xian, and everything will go back to the way it used to be." He turned around and walked up the stairwell with Yuuto.

When Kaizen returned to Peace Valley, holding Xian's braided hair in his hand, he entered the cave and found Xian sleeping in the same place. "Xian...I'm back."

Xian turned to look at Kaizen and closed his eyes when he saw Jikai was not with Kaizen.

Kaizen said, "I found him, but he refused to come." He put Xian's braided hair on Xian's left hand. "He said give this back to you and everything will be back to how it was before."

Xian clenched his hands into a fist, opened his eyes and looked at Kaizen, saying, "Kaizen... I want to eat now."

Kaizen smiled and said, "Okay, I'll grill you a fish."

Xian smiled at Kaizen and watched Kaizen walk out of the cave happily. He stood up slowly and opened his left palm. He looked at the braided hair on his palms and said with tears of happiness, "I told you that cutting your hair is a bad omen, but you don't believe it." He stared at the braided hair on his palms, and the braided hairs suddenly engulfed in flames, and then it vanished. "Everything should be as it was before. Can a broken heart ever be restored to its original state?" Hearing Kaizen's hum coming from the cave entrance, Xian wiped his tears.

Kaizen placed the grilled fish in front of Xian. "After dinner, let's go swim in the pond," Kaizen said with a smile. When Kaizen saw Xian smiling at him, he felt even more happy. "If you don't like it, just wait until tomorrow afternoon."

Xian looked at Kaizen and said, "Kaizen, I can help you become the strongest fairy with the greatest abilities among the fairies in the world, but you must promise me one thing."

Kaizen looked at Xian and asked, "If you can help me become the strongest and most powerful fairy among the fairies in the world, I can promise you anything."

Xian said, "You must promise me that you will find Monk Jikai, protect him with your life, and obey his orders."

Kaizen looked at Xian in confusion and asked, "Why?"

Xian said, "I want to die. Living is too difficult for me. I want to choose when and how to die. I don't want to continue living as a pawn for others."

Kaizen said, "I disagree."

Xian said, "Kaizen, you are my only friend. As a friend, I ask you to do this for me. I have been a loser all my life and I want to be a winner for once." He stretched out his hand to wipe away Kaizen's tears. "I would love to go back to where I was, but I can't. My continued living will only bring harm to you and me. I will never be able to defeat this immortal curse, and the only way to break this immortal curse is to give you, my soul. As a friend, I ask you to help me achieve this goal." 

Kaizen said sadly, "Tell me what you want me to do."

Xian said, "You must consume my soul. After I die, seal my memory. If my body falls into the wrong hands, no one will follow you to steal my soul. Then, you seal this cave and go fulfill your promise to me."

Kaizen lowered his head, tears welling up in his eyes. "Okay," he said.

Xian said, "Thank you, dear friend."

Kaizen leaned forward, placed his lips on Xian's mouth, and began to suck Xian's soul out of Xian's body. Xian quickly fell on the bed. Kaizen grabbed a pillow and placed it under Xian's head.

"I'm sorry," Kaizen sobbed.

Xian smiled at Kaizen and said, "Don't blame yourself. Thank you."

"Xian..." Kaizen grabbed Xian's hand and continued to sob.

Xian closed his eyes with a smile he whispered, "You stupid goddess, I won in the end." Although he closed his eyes, Jikai's face appeared in front of him, and Jikai and his image appeared in front of him one image after another. He remembered Jikai's face. He felt Jikai's hands caressing his skin. He tasted the love Jikai gave him through Jikai's soft lips. He heard Jikai's voice whispering in his ear. He saw himself alone in this dark cave holding a token of love in his arms. He was asked to forget everything he knew he couldn't forget, so he chose not to think about it again. Tears streamed down the corners of his eyes. He smiled. "In the end, we all got what we've always wanted."

Kaizen wiped the tears from Xian's eyes. "Why him and not me?" he sobbed, holding Xian's hand. "I will never forgive him... I will never forgive him."

Kaizen stretched out his hands and stood up, imitating the movements of his hands that he had seen Xian perform countless times, but because Xian could never get out of Peace Valley, Xian will send him to look for Jikai. After Kaizen imitated Xian's hand movements, he focused his attention hard on the main entrance of the temple. Just like that, a portal opened. He walked through the portal; he looked up at the stairwell he hated most and looked angrily at the monks.

"It's you again," a monk said.

Kaizen shouted angrily, "Jikai!" He heard his powerful shout shake the ground around him.

Soten, Yuuto, Jikai, and other monks walked out of the temple. They looked down at the stairwell and saw Kaizen standing at the bottom.

Jikai said, "Why are you here again?"

Kaizen looked at Jikai and said, "Do you want to see him?"

Jikai said, "No."

Kaizen asked angrily, "I ask you again, do you want to see him?"

Jikai said, "We should never meet again."

Kaizen stared at Jikai and said through gritted teeth, "I asked you if you wanted to see him again. He couldn't forget you, so he chose not to see you again."

Jikai quickly walked down the stairs. He asked, "What do you mean? What happened to him?"

Kaizen pointed to the portal that opened behind him. He said, "If you want to see him for the last time, enter that portal with me."

"Do not let Jikai leave with the red fox!" Soten shouted when he saw Jikai walking towards the portal.

Soten and six skilled monks with high martial arts skills jumped forward, and two monks grabbed Jikai's hands and arms.

Soten said, "You are not allowed to leave this temple."

Jikai pleaded, "Master Soten, please give me a chance to explain to Xian. All I ask for is a chance to see him for the last time. Then I will come back and never leave this temple again."

Kaizen looked at Jikai who knelt down and begged and smiled. "Explain it to him..." He grabbed Jikai's collar and shouted in front of Jikai. "Why don't you explain it to him earlier!" He pushed Jikai to the ground. "It's too late now. No matter how you explain it to him now, he can't hear it, and he will not know it."

Jikai looked up at Kaizen, "What do you mean?"

Kaizen shouted angrily at Jikai, "He's dead! Dead! You hear me! Xian... is... dead."

Jikai's tears suddenly flowed down his cheeks. He stood up slowly and walked towards the open portal. The two monks rushed forward and grabbed Jikai. Jikai turned around and punched the two monks hard, causing them to crash onto the stairwell.

Jikai looked at Soten and Yuuto with tears streaming down his face. He said, "I just asked for a chance to explain to him, why must you take away that chance?"

Yuuto said, "You know why we can't let you leave. The dark energy in your body not only does not dissipate but becomes stronger day by day. You must stay here and suppress those dark energies."

Jikai looked at Yuuto and said, "When he was alive, I asked you to give me a chance to explain to him, but you deprived me of this opportunity. Now that he is dead, what's the point." He turned around and continued towards the portal.

Soten shouted, "Stop him!"

Jikai turned around, his eyes burning with fire. "I have always respected you as an elder. Because of him, I have always wanted to be a good person, but now he is dead, so... don't push me too far," Jikai said. He stared at the monks and Yuuto that stood in the stairwell. "You know what I can do." Jikai walked into the portal alone.

Kaizen stared at Jikai's back. Although he wanted to fight Jikai to the death, he promised Xian that he would take care of Jikai. Due to his hatred for Jikai, he could not find within himself to help Jikai, so he decided not to follow Jikai back to the portal.

When Jikai saw Xian lying on the stone bed, he rushed over and grabbed Xian's hand. He quickly rubbed Xian's cold hands. He blew several times, but Xian's hands were as cold as ice. He lowered his head to Xian's face and touched it with his hands, but Xian's face was still cold. He kissed Xi'an's forehead, but it was still cold.

"Xian... I'm sorry... I'm sorry," Jikai sobbed. He continued to sob until sadness turned to hatred. He grabbed the plate on the bed and threw it to the floor. The plate shattered into pieces and Jikai picked up a piece of shard, cutting his left palm. He opened Xian's mouth with his right hand, and then covered Xian's mouth with his bleeding hand. He watched blood flow into Xian's mouth. "I have the power to heal. I will bring you back to life."

Jikai waited all night until morning, and his injury had healed. The blood in Xian's mouth was already flowing down Xian's throat. Although Xian's body became warm and blood began to flow in his body, Xian did not open his eyes.

Jikai took Xian's lifeless body into his arms. He hugged Xian tightly. "You look like you fell asleep, why aren't you awake yet. The color of your body has returned to normal, why aren't you awake yet." He sobbed softly when a woman's giggle made him looked at the entrance of the cave.

"Poor you," Goddess of beauty said and walked towards Jikai from the main entrance of the cave. "Ah, a Nephilim that no one wanted, but a very rare, very special Nephilim..."

Jikai asked, "Who are you? How did you get in?"

Goddess of beauty smiled and said, "I created this valley. I am the master. Of course, I can come and go at will." She rolled her eyes at Xian. " Your blood can only preserve his body for decomposition. A body without a soul is just a body, but I can help you."

Jikai asked, "How?"

Goddess of beauty smiled and said, "In Hellfire Apex, there is a girl and a beast, who are shackles. If you successfully rescue them, they will become your most powerful allies. When you have all the power in your hands, whoever you call will come forward. There are many talented people who walks this earth, and there will always be someone who knows how to pull your lover's soul from the red fox body and implant it back in your lover's body."

Jikai asked, "Why do you want to help me?"

Goddess of beauty said, "I would rather the last descendant of my enemy suffer as a breathing person than become a motionless corpse." She looked at Jikai. "You are the true eternal flame, and the weak name Jikai does not suit you." She stared Jikai in the eyes. "Then...How about... Huoyan, the son of fire?" She smiled.