Ball of Nothing

by Stayrr

I started off as nothing, just a mass of consciousness that slowly evolved. Just your average overpowered existence hungry for a multiverse adventure. Demons? They are my friends. Monsters? They are delicacies. Heroes? Not even equal to the dirt on my boots. Royalty? Money Machi- Ahem, a pleasure doing business. Immortals and Gods? Share with me the latest gossips! With power comes

2. 65

Chapter 65: Strange Old Man

Ball of Nothing

It was almost evening when they arrived at the small house. Zero spotted something that Mii called a waterwheel and Truen knew that they must be close.

There were a few fields in the clearing filled with strange looking plants. Truen wasn't sure about their edibility but it spoke volumes about the owner of the house.

"Maybe we should stay in the lamp for tonight and search the forest for food. We don't know who lives here yet."

Zero was disappointed that they had to wait for another day to visit the owner of the house but agreed after looking at Truen's serious expression. After a satisfying meal of pig-pigeon roast over a campfire some distance away from the house, Truen excused himself. Zero nodded, thinking that Truen needed to relieve himself.

Instead of relieving himself, Truen used this opportunity to secretly scout the house and its owner after setting up some barriers around the camp area. One could never be too cautious after all.

The house was brightly lit and the elf approached stealthily. It was awfully quiet and that made Truen more alert than usual.

Inside the house was an old man with long white hair tied in a bun wrapped with a cloth tie. He had long grey beard, moustache and bushy eyebrows that hinted at his age. However, there was no signs of wrinkle on his skin which confused Truen. The man looked human but the elf could sense a strange energy being emitted by the odd old man.

The old man was reading a book and sipping on tea the whole time, seemingly unaware that someone was observing him. The house was lit by several candles and the furnishing inside was simple. The old man led a simplistic life and owned very few belongings. There was a straw mattress on the floor, a small fireplace outside the house, a wooden drawer that kept some supplies and a few sets of clothes folded neatly on top of the drawer.

Truen didn't move any closer to the house and stayed in a tree by the forest edge to observe silently.

The elf was startled badly and nearly fell out of the tree when a voice directly transmitted itself to his mind.

Advertisements

"If you are so curious, you can come in and introduce yourself."

The old man hadn't moved or shown any indication that he knew he was being watched. However, Truen knew better. He'd been compromised!

From inside the house, the old man flipped another page and took another sip of his tea leisurely. The elf chose to retreat instead of taking up the challenge.

The old man slowly raised his eyes from the book after Truen left. He looked at the previously occupied tree and chuckled airily.

Young ones were truly fun to tease.

The very next day, Truen and Zero had a major argument.

"Why? You said that we could!"

Truen inhaled deeply and closed his eyes. "Zero, it's not safe. That man is dangerous. We can't go over. Who knows what he'd do?"

Zero pouted. He didn't understand why Truen was being such a meanie today. All he wanted to do was check out the house. Yes, Zero knew that a man lived there and that he needed permission before he could intrude on somebody else's property. However, Truen was against getting that man's permission or going close to the house.

"What do you mean by dangerous? How do you know that he's dangerous?"

Truen wanted very much to scream and pull his hair out but controlled himself. He tried to be understanding but the term 'stranger danger' just didn't sit with Zero. Zero couldn't die and was a very powerful existence. He knew that in his head. Even if the old man was truly up to no good, Zero would still come out unscathed. Yet in Truen's heart, he couldn't allow such harm to befall the boy.

"Zero, not everybody you meet is nice and good in nature. There will be people who will try to harm you. There are many people who like to take advantage of someone weaker for their personal benefit. Humans are not like Gods. Look at Freya, she has her temper that can sometimes be scary. Humans are something like that but scarier. Freya wouldn't kill someone for fun but humans can. Freya wouldn't hurt someone then laugh at them and continue hurting them but some humans will."

Zero was so confused. He knew that Freya was sometimes weird but that was because that was who she was. Just like how Zeus was always loud and how Truen was always worrying, those were what made them who they were. Why did Truen have to say such mean things about an old man who lived in a small house when they haven't met him?

"You don't know if the old man in the house is dangerous or not. You've only seen him from a distance. I don't believe that an old man who cares for so many plants will be such a horrible person."

Exasperated, Truen gave Zero the ultimatum. "We are not going and this is final. If you want to go so badly, you can go by yourself."

Advertisements

Truen's eyes were cold and super serious. The traces of warmth in those green eyes that Zero grew so accustomed to were missing. The boy felt as if Truen had transformed into someone he didn't know and unconsciously took a step back.

Truen saw how Zero took a step back from him and recognized the hurt in those eyes. He knew that he'd gone too far and was about to take his words back when Zero turned around and vanished from his sight.

Truen cursed. With Zero's teleporting abilities, how will the elf catch up? Cold seeped into his heart. If anything happened to Zero, he could never forgive himself. Without hesitation, he whipped out the communicator to call for Gaia.

Ball of Nothing

Panting and in tears, Zero chose to teleport about a few hundred kilometres away from Truen. This was probably the first time he felt 'hurt' as Mii termed it. That unsettling feeling in his chest and churning in his stomach was a side effect of pain. Mii mentioned that pain comes in many forms and this was an emotional kind of pain. However, Mii couldn't explain why it exists.

"It's a human thing," she said and Zero wanted to ask Truen who was once human about it. However he quickly remembered the 'argument' they had and curled up into a small ball underneath a random tree.

Time passed very quickly and Zero's stomach growled in protest. The sun was high up in the sky indicating it was already lunchtime. Normally, Truen would gather food for them while Zero looked for wood to make a small campfire. That had been their routine for the past few days. Now that Zero had left Truen behind, the young boy frowned. He had no problem gathering food for himself with Mii's help. The strawcherry assistant was good at identifying unknown plants. However, his mind went back to Truen. Was the elf looking for him?

"Mii, do you think Truen will look for me?"

The assistant was silent. She knew that Truen was trying to chase after Zerol after she texted him Zero's coordinates. She also knew how Truen had called Gaia and received a flower fairy guide. He was flying at top speed using magic but even so, it would take at least two days before he can reach their current location.

"I don't know, Zero. Do you want him to look for you?"

The brunet plucked a purple fruit from one of the lower branches of the tree he was curled up under. Zero bit into the juicy fruit and grimaced. The fruit was edible but extremely bitter. No wonder there were so many fruits on the tree! Zero bet nobody wanted to eat it. Then again, with his protesting stomach, it wasn't time to complain about the taste.

"I don't know, Mii. While I want him to look for me, I don't want him to find me because he wouldn't allow me to check out the small house."

Mii was silent. Although she wasn't originally designed to aid Zero without orders, after her evolution and increased intelligence, she could make some smaller decisions without Zero's consent if it does not harm him.

"In that case, why don't you check out the house first before going back to find Truen?"

Advertisements

Zero thought over it for a while. One part of him didn't think it was right to do something that Truen didn't want him to do. The elf had no reason to harm him and there might be a reason why Truen acted that way. Oh yes, Zero recalled with a sigh. It was stranger danger. He still didn't understand why it was bad meeting people he didn't know. He didn't know the goddesses or Truen at first but after he did, they became really close. Going by this reason, Zero decided to support his initial decision to visit the house. However, since Truen didn't want him meeting the strange old man, Zero will visit the house without alerting the old man.

With his mind made up and belly satisfied, Zero took out his communicator and started planning.

"Ok, here's the plan," Zero told Mii in the most serious voice he could. The strawcherry assistant wanted to roll her non-existent eyes. They'd gone through at least fifty different plans by now and Zero was still far from alpha release.

"I will teleport to the house, knock on the front door and when the old man comes out, I will avoid him and run in from the window!"

Mii wanted to scream. However, Zero's hopeful eyes made her sigh. "Zero, the old man won't simply stand outside while you explore his house. He'll close it and go back in immediately."

Zero pouted. "I know… I'm just trying my luck. Why doesn't the old man leave his house? Truen will reach us very soon too!"

Although Mii knew that Truen wouldn't be reaching them any time soon, she didn't correct Zero.

"Instead of hiding from the old man, why don't you hide from Truen? If you can hide until morning, the old man will leave his house to check on the plants in his field for at least an hour. You can have all the time to explore if you teleport straight into his house."

Zero sighed. "Where will I hide? I've only ever slept in the lamp."

"Then hide in the lamp till morning!"

"How will I get out then? The bell is too high! It's always Truen who rings it. Besides, what if I oversleep? I can't tell the time from inside the lamp!"

Now that was a valid argument. "Have you tried calling Zeus or Hades? Maybe they can reposition the bell. Also, your communicator has an alarm function."

Advertisements

Zero hummed as he went though the functions of his communicator. He hasn't exactly played with the gadget much after En gave it to him. Usually, it was Truen who tinkered with it on their behalf. Now that he wasn't here, Zero realised just how much Truen was doing. When this is over, he will help out more so that Truen doesn't have to do everything. No wonder he always looked tired even after a night's rest!

After setting the alarm at six in the morning, Zero decided to give Hades a call. He was afraid of Zeus' loud greeting and avoided calling the titan as much as he could.

"Hades speaking," the call connected.

"Hades? Zero here!"

"Oh Zero! It's so nice to hear from you. How have you been doing?"

"I'm doing good. I just have a tiny issue with the bell in the lamp. Is anyway to shift the bell lower so that I can reach it?"

Hades hummed. "You can rearrange the bell's height and add or remove anything in there with a little magic. Truen should know how to do it, maybe you can ask him about it."

"Oh… I see. Thank you, I'll ask Truen…"

Disheartened, Zero ended the call. Mii who heard all that decided to remain silent while Zero launched into deep thoughts.

"The lamp is no good… I can't sleep in the forest either because Truen said there could be really scary animals who come out at night to hunt."

"Maybe you could discuss it over with Truen about the plan. I'm sure he would agree if you don't plan to meet the old man."

Zero snorted. "Truen worries too much. Even if I told him that I only wanted to sneak in and explore the house, he would not agree saying it is too dangerous and that the old man would spot us. I'm doing this myself without him."

"But you can't sleep outside or in the lamp… how will you wait until morning?"

Zero beamed. "I'll just not sleep at all! In fact, I wouldn't need the alarm if I'm not sleeping. That's right! I can hunt for those glow mushrooms in the night and maybe collect some other items to remind me of everyone else!"

Mii panicked a little. "Zero? I don't think staying up till late is good for your body. Maybe you should reconsider?"

However, Zero was stubborn as he made up his mind. Mii couldn't do anything and faded away. She only wished that Truen will come sooner rather than later. Who knows how much trouble this boy could land himself in without his guardian.

As soon as the sun disappeared, Zero busied himself with an item hunt list. Mii couldn't help but be slightly curious. This was what Zero decided.

Buddha: Lotus Flower

Freya: Fire

Zeus: Lightning Bolt

Hades: Night Shadows

Isis: Mead

Sedna: Huge Fish Scale

En: Feather Pen

Grem Lee: Measuring Rope

Jen: Green Needle

Advertisements

Jeremy Hound: White Glove

Gaia: Green Leaf (found)

While some items were possible to get, others were impossible. Mii wanted to ask how it was possible to collect Night Shadows, Lightning Bolts or Fire. It was quite the list and many of the items could not be found on Endow Hill.

Zero wasn't disheartened. He simply decided to collect whatever caught his interest. For example, the glowing mushrooms were quickly harvested and stored in his void storage. At the same time, Zero was collecting dry sticks. The darkness didn't bother Zero as he was able to make out his surroundings using other senses.

Two hours passed quickly. Zero had absorbed and harvested a great variety of things including poisoned berries of different kinds. There was a strange plant that could move and tried to eat Zero. Luckily, Hades' blessing activated and sent the attack right back at the plant. Zero absorbed that creepy vine without hesitation and gained a skill called "Grapple" with Sedna's blessing.

There were some insects too and Zero wanted to keep the lantern bugs but had no way of trapping them. Reluctantly he moved along and climbed to the top of a tall tree. At the canopy, Zero spied some glowing light from a distance and decided to check it out.

Mii advised him to scan the area with the communicator just in case there were hostile parties involved. Zero did so and on the map, three red dots appeared.

"Does it mean that they are enemies if it is red?"

Mii wasn't too sure but told Zero to approach with caution. Without Truen, she didn't want Zero going anywhere near danger but after that argument, she knew better than to try stopping him. Stubbornness was something that didn't diminish even with the loss of memories.

Zero teleported over to a nearby tree and hid in the leaves. Below him were three horned rabbits. They were eating what looked like a leg of a huge animal. Zero saw that the leg had a hoof at the end and wondered if these new people were potential friends or enemies.

The horned rabbits had three rows of sharp teeth, two on the top and one below. Two of them had two horns each but the fiercest in the group only had one on the left. They had pink fur and red eyes. Zero thought that the tiny fluff of fur they had for tails was cute. Their tails were white and often twitched. It surprised the brunet when the largest of them with one horn spoke.

"Dingo, Mingo! Good job earlier."

The horned rabbit called Dingo had two daggers sheathed at his waist. He grinned and Zero shuddered. Those teeth were scary!

"No problem Jingo! It was easy taking care of those two calves. With their mother dead, we can take our time choosing which one to roast next."

"Don't do that! We should fatten them first," Mingo scolded and tore another huge chunk of flesh off the leg before chewing noisily.

Zero watch the three horned rabbits eat and discuss the fate of the two captured calves with disgust. He decided to change his initial plan of scavenging. After all, there were two motherless calves he had to save!

It wasn't difficult to locate the two calves. Zero found them using the map and strangely, they were represented by red dots too. He didn't think too much about it. It must be the functionality of the application after all.

The calves were little girls who looked around nine or ten. They were dark skinned and yellow-eyed. The horns on their heads were tiny compared to the Ingo brothers as dubbed by the brunet. Mii told Zero that these girls were half-beasts just like the Ingo brothers. The girls looked more human with their human bodies. If one ignored the horns, tail and patch of fur growing on their chests, they could pass off as completely human, unlike the rabbits.

The moontaur sisters were huddled together. They wore nothing but leaves sewn together. Zero didn't pay any attention to it. His eyes were focussed on the rope around their hands. The sisters were tied to the base of a tree and looked very tired, possibly hungry too.

Seeing that the Ingo brothers were distracted, he snuck down quietly. If Mii was present, she would roll around in frustration at the boy's exceptional sense for trouble.

The older sister with white hair spotted Zero first. She gasped and Zero put a finger to his lips quickly. The younger sister with blonde hair looked over her shoulder and was surprised by the brunet who tip-toed over to them.

Wordlessly, Zero undid the ropes. The moment the ropes came loose, they stood up and made a run for the forest, abandoning Zero. The sudden movement threw the boy off balance and he fell onto his bottom painfully.

The commotion made Mingo come over with his daggers unsheathed. Mii was probably running in circles from worry as she urged Zero to run away quickly.

By the time Zero looked up, the daggers were already coming down.

Karma activated and sent the attack back to Mingo who howled in pain at the slash he received. However, Zero did not escape unscathed. The force of those blades was not reflected, only the injuries.

Hearing their brother's howl, Dingo and Jingo hurried over. Mingo's fur was now soaked in crimson and Zero felt like vomiting at the smell of so much blood. However, there was something more important to do so he held back the urge to puke.

Advertisements

Getting up on shaky legs, Zero turned around and teleported out of sight into the trees again. The Ingo brothers seethed at having both prey and attacker escaped. Zero watched them curse for a while before heading back to the campfire to treat Mingo's wounds.

The shockwave from the attack earlier numbed Zero's arms. They were shaking too badly to be of any use so he decided to stay put and rest in the tree, hidden within the safety of leaves. This reminded him of Gaia and Truen by extension. Zero wanted to cry now that the danger was over but knew that making a sound would compromise his hiding spot. Silently, he watched the rabbit brothers finish their meal.

It was still dark at night so it was difficult to see if the movements in the bushes were caused by the wind or by animals. However, with Zero's exceptional other senses he knew that it was neither. The moontaur sisters were back. His eyes darted over to the direction of the movement quickly and he held his breath.

What have they returned?! Zero wanted to scream at them to run away but couldn't.

Luckily, the brothers weren't aware of the sisters creeping up on them. Zero saw how they approached from two directions. The older sister was approaching from behind Jingo and the younger sister was approaching from behind Dingo. They were now within ten steps of their target and Zero wondered if they were going to attack the brothers for killing their mother.

He was half right.

In a heartbeat, the moontaur sisters pounced on the unsuspecting horned rabbits. Zero covered his mouth his shaky hands, his eyes widened in horror at the brutal attack. The older sister rammed her horns into Jingo's back. The horns grew in length with her charge and pierced through that pink fur and leather armour. The younger sister charged at Dingo who was wearing a chainmail. The horns could break through the chainmail material but the force was enough to cause some serious internal damage. Dingo spewed blood from his mouth and a metallic tang filled the crisp forest atmosphere.

Dingo picked up a huge broadsword and slashed at the blonde-haired moontaur. She swiftly dodged it by jumping into the air backwards. With no time to be amazed by her agility, Dingo slashed once more. This time, the blonde girl twisted and sprinted so she was now behind the pink rabbit.

Dingo may be strong but the golden-haired sister was fast. They were evenly matched and it turned into a battle of attrition. On the other side, the older sister had already killed Jingo with that one fatal move and was now battling Mingo. Although injured, Mingo proved to be a challenge for the snow-haired moontaur.

Zero watched as both fights progressed. His eyes lingered on the dead Jingo's body and he shuddered. Revenge was a scary thing. So were girls.

Although many things transpired during the fight like the younger sister receiving some cuts and Mingo's right arm being rendered immobile, it concluded quickly. It wasn't very surprising to Zero who the victor was. However, it was scary.

Satisfied that their plan worked out, the sisters rested for a bit to regain their energy. The campfire was still burning and Zero wondered what they would do.

To his surprise, they begin searching the dead horned rabbit brothers' bodies.

"Found it!" the younger sister shouted over her shoulder.

The older sister grinned. She looked tired but relieved at the same time. Zero didn't know what the younger moontaur was holding. The object in her hand looked like a stone. On that stone, there was a small mark that was constantly moving.

"What is that?" Zero asked Mii mentally.

Advertisements

The strawcherry assistant didn't reply immediately.

"It looks like a compass. It's the older version of the tracker in your communicator's map. I don't think it is an ordinary compass though, there is magic coming from it."

Zero didn't leave the tree. He continued to observe the moontaur sisters bury their mother's remains and cut off the rabbits' ears.

"Sister, do you think the chief will accept us back?"

The snow-haired moontaur looked dejected. "I don't know, Layla. I don't know."

The sisters left quietly and Zero decided to follow them. It was still a long time before morning and he was curious about the sisters.

On the way, Mii decided to give Zero a short lecture about Moontaurs and Horned-Rabbits.

Species: Moontaur (Half-Beast)

Appearance: Human-like. Children have horns, tail and fur on chest. Adults have hooves, horns, cow ears, fur on chest and sometimes cow noses.

History: Moontaurs are Star Guardian Taurus' descendants. They are gifted with excellent strength and agility, quick to anger and quicker to forgive. However, they are extremely conservative.

Moontaurs are a transforming kind of half-beasts. During the day, they appear like normal humans but retain their inhuman strength and speed. During the night, they change into their half-beasts form and are more prone to be overpowered by their animal instincts.

Unique Abilities:

Blood Moon - Happens when a moontaur goes on a killing rampage. The blood of at least a hundred enemies will grant them extra tough skin that cannot be pierced by normal weapons.

Rage - Is activated when a moontaur gives in to its animal instincts of anger. Will not feel tired or stop fighting until either moontaur is dead or enemy is dead.

Species: Horned-Rabbits (Half-Beast)

Advertisements

Appearance: Animal-like. Depending on the level of magical abilities, horned-rabbits will have different coloured fur. No magic talent - pink fur. Basic magic talent - blue fur. Elemental magic talent - green fur. Their special features include red eyes, horns on head, three rows of sharp teeth (2 on top, 1 below) and fluffy tails.

History: It was rumoured that the first horned-rabbits were created from chimaera cells. Not much is known about them but their appearance was first spotted about 300 years back. A famous horned-rabbit adventurer once claimed that they were a mix of shark, hare and goat. Horned-rabbits are omnivorous in nature.

Unique Abilities:

Perception - With their superior genetics, horned-rabbits are naturally gifted with better five senses than others. They can see clearly up to a hundred metres away, have low light vision, sharp hearing and echolation.

Bloodlust - A horned-rabbit is gentle by nature. However, after smelling and tasting blood for the first time, their innate hunter instincts [bloodlust] awakens. When bloodlust activates, the urge to eat fresh living things and drink blood will persist until it is satisfied. Bloodlust will activate regularly and if the horned-rabbit does not satisfy it, it will lose its mind to become a mindless slaughterer until the bloodlust is satisfied.

Overloaded with information, Zero didn't have time to fully digest it before they arrived at the village.

The village was very small, consisting of only eight small stone houses. Nobody was sleeping and it made Zero wonder if they weren't tired.

"Chief, we have returned," the older sister bowed.

The chief was an old moontaur who walked with the aid of a wooden staff. He looked at the sisters with a frown.

"Did you find the Eternal Guide?"

Layla quickly brought the strange object from before. The chief examined it and nodded.

"Does that mean we can stay?"

The chief was silent and the tension in the air increased.

"There is one last trial for you before we can accept you back. Your mother is a traitor to the tribe who stole the Eternal Guide and ran away. Without the protection of the Eternal Guide, a plague has spread throughout the village. Some elders have died from it and many children are suffering. To prove yourselves, you must go and convince the medicine man to come to our village."

Layla looked at her sister. Her expression was bleak. Everyone on Endow Hill knew that the medicine man was someone who didn't like visitors. Anyone requesting his help must go through his trials. Nobody who accepted his challenge has survived. While he was a medicine man, he had a hobby of making poisons.

"Understood, we will set off tomorrow," Layla's older sister bowed, ignoring Layla's worried glances.

The direction that the sisters were heading to surprised Zero. Could the medicine man be the same man Truen told him not to meet? It was too much of a coincidence but Zero couldn't ask the sisters. He was still secretly following them after all.

He learnt that the snow-haired older sister was called Kayla. Zero felt that it was unfair for the girls to be punished for their mother's mistake. Their mother had died and the village chief was cruel on these girls. If this medicine man was truly such a scary person, asking the sisters to look for him is the same as sending them to their deaths like their mother. It made Zero slightly angry when he thought about it. However, he knew that the sisters were strong. Regardless, Mii had forbidden him from interfering with the Moontaur Tribe's matters. After all, that species wasn't very known for their generosity.

The sisters travelled fast. Zero had to teleport to keep up. Then again, it was difficult to travel in the trees. He soon got tired and rested for a while. Once the sisters were out of sight, Zero took out the whistle that Hades and Zeus gifted him. It would be the first time summoning Pegasus and he wasn't sure if Pegasus could follow the sisters while keeping him out of their sight. Zero decided to give it a try anyway. Pegasus was a smart horse, surely he could figure out something that Zero couldn't.

A few seconds after the whistle was blown, a magical portal opened beside Zero and a beautiful horse stepped out. Pegasus was as lovely as Zero remembered. He had a beautiful silver mane and turquoise wings. Its eyes were the same shade as its wings and the horse nuzzled Zero's cheeks, tickling the child. Although the celestial horse couldn't speak, it could communicate telepathically.

As such, Pegasus immediately understood what Zero wanted. It if were any other horses, they might not be able to travel stealthily. However, Pegasus knew some magic. After Zero was safely on his back, the horse galloped into the sky and cast a spell of silence around them. This way, they were able to tail the sisters without getting spotted.

It was early in the morning about five when the girls reached the medicine man's house, tired and out of breath. Zero wasn't too surprised to know that the medicine man was the same stranger Truen didn't want him to meet. If the village chief was telling the truth, Zero would have to apologise to Truen for behaving so mean to the elf who only wanted to protect him. The moontaur sisters were going to be the evidence Zero needed to know if the old man in the tiny house was a good or bad person.

The old man must still be asleep because when the sisters knocked on the door, nobody answered. The house was dark and everything was quiet.

Left with no choice, the sisters decided to sit outside the house to wait for the old man to come out of his house. Zero thanked Pegasus and dismissed him. He sat on the tree, awaiting the first rays of sun and anxious to know what will happen next.

It wasn't often that Hua Tuo had visitors. He was initially excited when Buddha called him. He looked forward to passing on his knowledge to young ones. However, when the elven guardian heard him, he ran away. The old deity was slightly disappointed but he was good at waiting. After so many centuries of practising the art of patience, he could afford to wait a few more days before he started tracking his lost students.

He was certainly not expecting to find two moontaur girls passed out outside of his door. These girls had no affiliation with his students and Hua Tuo wondered what to do about them. He could feel that both his students were near and didn't worry too much. Perhaps they were simply nervous about greeting their teacher. Hua Tuo decided to allow them the space and time they needed to get familiar with him.

As for the moontaur sisters, Hua Tuo decided that it was best not to rouse the sleeping lions as they say it back on the first Earth. Moontaurs were known to be short-tempered and extremely unreasonable. They were violent creatures with a great physical advantage in strength and speed. Hua Tuo may be a Sage God but unlike normal Gods or Great Gods, Sage Gods are only granted immortality. They were not immune to pain or injury. If the moontaur girls decided to kill him, Hua Tuo only had his brain to rely on. There was no way he would win in a fair fight against these natives.

Hence, Hua Tuo did the only logical thing. He concocted his best poison and prepared many splash potions to disarm the moontaurs should they become hostile. After checking his supplies, Hua Tuo decided to start his day.

The air in the mountain was fresh and it was one of the reasons Hua Tuo chose to spend his time on Endow Hill cultivating his Godhood. His domain was medicine and while medicine usually came in the form of pills or something edible, it was a very vast field. Hua Tuo had absolute control over the cells in his body. By cultivating them with the magical infused air of Endow Hill, Hua Tuo was able to create the divine body of his ideal choice.

It was always about balance in medicine. To counter a heat type of illness, one uses a cooling nature to suppress it. To nourish the frail immune system after an intense battle with virus, one must consume rich food high in vitamin. To balance the power struggle between good and evil, one must understand the flow.

Advertisements

This philosophy of balance was created by many Great minds. From Confucius to Meng Zi and Lao Tzu, all the great people have discussed it. Few have attained this balance but those who understood this fragile nature of balance were all Sage Gods with a few exceptions like Steve Jobs who was given a divine soul blessing by one of the Great Gods.

Dawn was the balance between day and night. It was a crucial time where the body had to adjust between waking and sleeping. Sudden changes are not good for the mind. This has been a practice since Hua Tuo was alive. Every dawn, he would wake up like clockwork and start this strange dance routine that starts with the tiger and ends with the bird.

For a good half an hour, Hua Tuo repeated the same actions several times before changing forms. The tiger form helps to alleviate back pains, neck and shoulder stiffness. It is important to sufficiently relax the muscles and put everything back to the right place after a long night. Like spring, after the tiger comes the monkey. Agile like a monkey, this form promotes better circulation and heats the body up from the inside. Breathing deeply will allow for better respiration. Once the body is sufficiently warm and the blood is flowing, Hua Tuo moved to the bear form which represents stability. The core of the body must be firm like the bear. Doing this exercise will help to strengthen one's digestion system. Only with a good digestion system, one can proceed to have a good immune system like a bird soaring to the sky. Finally, one must remember where they come from and come back down to Earth. With a strong foundation built, one must learn to relax and be grounded like a deer.

By the time Huo Tuo was ready to tend to his fields, the sun was just beginning to cast its rays across the sleepy land. The moontaur girls were still sound asleep and from the looks of it, so was his student hidden among the trees.

Advertisements

Hua Tuo smiled. The young ones certainly have a long way to go.

It was almost noon before the moontaur sisters woke up. Zero was still sound asleep in the trees a good few hundred metres away. Hua Tuo had finished tending to his fields and was making lunch now. He'd drawn water from the well to water his plants, inspect the plot for weed and bugs, harvested some herbs and prepared them for drying, tilled the dirt to plant a new batch of seeds, cleaned the small house and hunted for pigeons while the young ones slept. It was amazing to see how an old man could manage so much in just a few hours.

On the other side of the same forest, Truen was looking ghastly. He hadn't slept at all, running through the forest with Lily urging him in the right direction. Flying at his fastest speed, Truen knew he was pushing his magical stamina too much. With some magical plants from Gaia, Truen depended on them heavily while he flew. They were magic recovering plants and the effects were extreme exhaustion.

According to Lily and Mii, Zero was already outside of the old man's house but hidden in the forest. He was more worried when Mii reported that Zero was hiding because he secretly followed two moontaur girls who were sent by their village to convince the old man to save their people who had been infected with the plague.

Nothing about the situation sounded good to Truen. He only prayed that Zero wouldn't do something as foolish as trying to save the villagers or meet the old man. Thankfully, Mii reported that Zero had fallen asleep at dawn and wasn't due to wake up any time soon. This was the best news Truen has heard ever since Zero ran away. The elf felt terrible for being so harsh on the innocent boy. He promised that he would apologise after he found the brunet and that promise alone fuelled Truen along.

"Truen slow down!" Lily wrung her hands in helplessness. The elf was acting too foolishly by abusing the number of magic recovery herbs. His body had long passed the limits and if Truen continued to exert such a high magical output, he could end up paralysed when the magic in his veins run dry. If Gaia knew that the elf was going to be so reckless, she wouldn't have given Truen the magic recovery herbs.

Stubbornly, the elf persisted. He could feel the coppery taste in his mouth, a sure indication that his body was giving up on him, but he only had Zero in his mind. He was close after all. Only two more hours and he will reach the boy.

Back at Hua Tuo's small house, Layla finally remembered why they were sleeping outside the medicine man's house. Kayla decided to try knowing on the door once more.

This time, the door opened. An old man stepped out and Kayla frowned. He appeared human but the air around him indicated otherwise. She took a cautious step backwards, pulling Layla along. The boy who saved them was weird as he didn't have any aura. However, the old man emitted an aura that created an uncomfortable pressure. It was there to intimidate and although Kayla knew it, her body wouldn't stop shaking.

It was Layla who mustered all her courage to speak first.

Advertisements

"Wise medicine man, we have come from far to ask for your help. Our village has been infected by a plague and our chief is willing to pay for your services. Please save our people!"

Advertisements

Hua Tuo took a good look at the girls and sighed. It was only a matter of time before the moontaur tribe on Endow Hill would be wiped out along with many other species who reside here. He wasn't against saving them but this was something beyond his expertise. They've come looking for the wrong person. After all, the plague wasn't a disease. It was a symptom of magic deficiency.

Something was draining magic from Endow Hill and Hua Tuo had no idea what it was. He had an inkling but was unable to confirm his suspicions when the source suddenly disappeared a few days back. While the source was gone from his radar, it didn't stop absorbing magic from the mountain.

"I'm sorry, this is beyond my expertise. I can only suggest that your tribe moves out of Endow Hill before it is too late. A major event will be happening in this mountain soon and if you don't want to be caught up in it, you should leave as soon as possible."

Crestfallen, the girls were speechless for a long time as Hua Tuo went back to finish cooking lunch.

Truen reached the vicinity of the medicine sage's house. The good news was that Zero still hasn't woken up. The bad news was the Truen was at his limits. The magic channels in his body had ruptured and almost sixty percent of his body was immobilised.

Lily saw how Truen's face morphed from worry to relief in an instant. The sight of a young boy of about twelve sleeping soundly in a tree made Truen relax. The brunet's long eyelashes cast a shadow on his youthful face with the sun in the background. Mii materialised with a poof and was surprised to see a small flower fairy beside the elf guardian.

"I made it..." Truen uttered before falling face first into the ground, startling both fairies.

"That idiot!" Mii cursed while Lily contacted Gaia. The flower fairy quickly contacted Gaia and Mii went over to inspect the fallen elf. In their flurry of activities, neither fairy noticed the old sage stepping onto a conjured cloud and floated up to the tree. Hua Tuo carried the sleeping boy in his arms and set him down on his cloud mount. Then, he moved over to the collapsed Truen and did the same.

Mii was taken aback. Wasn't this the old man Truen cautioned Zero against? What was he doing here? How did he find them? The worst part was how the strawcherry fairy was unable to protect either of them.

On the other hand, Lily was glad to see the sage. "Yes, he is here now. I will report back once they have awakened."

Mii looked at Lily who bowed at Hua Tuo.

"Thank you for reaching out so quickly. I wouldn't know what to do if it wasn't for you… Truen he… he's in a very bad shape…"

Hua Tuo measured Truen's pulse and sighed.

"Such foolish young ones. Buddha will owe me one after this. Not only has he sent me one, but two idiot students. One who doesn't treasure his life and the other who doesn't know the meaning of life."

Advertisements

Mii relaxed at that. The old man was probably an ally and she had no reasons or means to confront him about the kidnapping stunt. With that, the fairies followed behind Hua Tuo back to his tiny house without questions.

Back at the house, Hua Tuo got to work immediately, ignoring the moontaur sisters who were skulking around the magical barrier Hua Tuo set up. He got to work quickly on the elf.

"More than sixty percent of his magic channels have been corroded from overuse. He's lucky to live with Gaia's blessing. Just because he's a living wood spirit, does he think he can recover from absolutely anything? This fool!"

Hua Tuo complained loudly and Lily could only remain silent. She felt guilty as she looked at the treatment. Mii had vanished again and Lily didn't question the strawcherry assistant. Fairies were whimsical creatures and Lily had her moments too.

The treatment was intense and Lily wondered how Zero hasn't woken up despite all the lights and noises coming from beside him. Zero was sleeping on the cloud mount as Truen occupied the only bed in Hua Tuo's house. The cloud definitely looked more comfortable than the straw mattress but Lily didn't comment about it.

Hua Tuo boiled pots of medicine plants over the small stove outside and ground some dried leaves to make pills. Occasionally he would cast a healing spell over the elf. The faint tinge of blue light from the spell created a soothing atmosphere in contrast to the angry muttering of the old man.

Exhausted, Lily vanished too and left Truen to the Medicine Sage God's care.

Hua Tuo was visibly vexed. He was the Sage God of Medicine and not Magic. His knowledge about such matters was limited. The Sage God of Magic - Merlin, wasn't exactly someone he was chummy with. They tolerated each other at most out of courtesy and respect. However, their beliefs were entirely different.

Hua Tuo believed in the meridians and the 'qi' flowing through a human body. It was something that allowed a human to channel their energy in a condensed form at any point of their body. Full cell mastery came from within and anyone could achieve it with proper guidance and effort.

On the other hand, Merlin believed that magic was the ultimate evolution for humans. There those who were gifted with chakra channels and those who don't have them. Most magicians are able to manipulate the magic also known as mana in the environment to create shocking spells. These spells cannot be defended against by normal humans, including martial arts practitioners who cultivated the 'qi' according to Hua Tuo's methods.

Hence the two Sage Gods weren't exactly on the best of terms. Hua Tuo believed in the inner power every individual possessed but Merlin was more of a believer in the 'chosen one'.

Having said that, Hua Tuo was now faced with the greatest challenge of his career - treating a magical creature. That goes to say, no normal treatment methods would suffice. Without a choice, he had to seek help from his friend Buddha to look for Merlin. After all, if it wasn't for Buddha's request, he wouldn't be faced with such a predicament.

Thankfully, Buddha agreed and contacted Merlin immediately. Hua Tuo had exhausted every method of treatment he could at this point just to stabilise Truen's condition. However, even if the body recovered, the broken chakra channels cannot be fixed by any medical means.

Merlin arrived in a literal flash. A bolt of lightning came down from the sky and struck the ground behind Hua Tuo's small house. Hua Tuo internally grimaced at the deep blue wizard robe that the old Sage God of Magic wore. Magicians have the weirdest sense of fashion but the doctor wasn't going to question it this time. Merlin had once explained how the clothes gave magicians the ability to recover the mana in their body better but Hua Tuo chalked it up as hogwash. If clothes could really do that, all you had to do was strip a magician and he would be powerless as an infant.

Yet, Hua Tuo held his tongue. Merlin wasn't here to pick a fight, he was here to help.

The doctor showed the magician in and Merlin was decently surprised at the mid-level spell around Zero who was sleeping on a high-level mount. He didn't think the traditional man would be open-minded enough to learn a little about magic but he stood corrected. The respect he had for Hua Tuo increased. Maybe he should ask Hua Tuo about medicine for backaches. They'd been causing him some trouble for a while now and even if magic could ease the pain, it couldn't resolve the root of the issue.

"Where is that reckless child you spoke about?"

Advertisements

Hua Tuo sighed and pointed to the unconscious child on his straw mattress. Merlin took a brief look at the elf and clicked his tongue in disdain. Anyone who doesn't value his gift isn't worthy of receiving its power. How dare this elf overestimate his abilities?! Did he not care about his future?

Advertisements

"As you can see," Hua Tuo sighed, "he's a bit of an idiot. That child there is his world and because of a silly argument as heard from Gaia, he didn't care about his limits to find that child who ran away."

Merlin sighed. Zero was important to the Great Gods and he knew that Truen was sent as a guardian. He couldn't exactly blame the elf for acting recklessly but that didn't mean he wouldn't slap him once he fixed his channels.

"Give him a good smacking after he wakes for me. I have a feeling Freya wouldn't let him off easily either."

Hua Tuo grinned. "No sooner said than done. I intend to do it myself but since you've brought it up, I will deliver it twice as hard as I intended to."

Merlin grinned and got started on the treatment while Hua Tuo kept an eye on the girls outside. Now that Truen's matter was getting resolved, it was time to deal with the unwanted guests.

"Please! We'll do anything, please come with us to our village…"

Hua Tuo listened to the pleas of the blond-haired moontaur and shook his head.

"Please do not force my hand. The plague is caused by a disruption of the magic flow in Endow Hill. There is nothing I can do about it. Do leave, I have patients under my care."

Layla looked at her sister. Kayla shook her head and sighed. It was difficult to convince the old man as expected. The young human boy looked familiar to Kayla but she couldn't remember where she'd seen him. They came with the intention to do whatever it took to get the medicine man return to the village with them, including poison testing. However, they never expected the medicine man to turn them away so coldly without a chance. The reason he gave them was also not something that they could justify with the chief. How was it possible for so many moontaurs to die to something as silly as magic deficiency? They were half-beasts with magic flowing in their veins. They would never run out of magic!

"Let's go," Kayla pulled her sister along who looked like she wanted to protest. However, after seeing the serious look in Kayla's eyes, she followed obediently. Hua Tuo knew that the girls wouldn't give up so easily. It was a tactical retreat for now and the Sage God wouldn't put it past them to try something else.

Whatever. He was ready for anything they threw at him. Besides, Merlin was here too. What can two moontaur girls do against two Sage Gods?

"Are they gone?" Merlin asked. He was circulated his magic in the working chakra branches, trying to identify the extent of damage in Truen's body.

Hua Tuo shook his head. "For now. They'll try again."

Merlin clicked his tongue in irritation. "For such a gifted tribe, it's a pity they're going to be wiped out soon."

"Do you know what's causing the disturbance?"

Advertisements

The wizard frowned. "Well, I can guess. However, the source of it isn't on Endow Hill. The culprit for stealing away that source is within this room though. Maybe you should ask him once he wakes up."

Hua Tuo raised a brow and looked at the elf.

"No, not him. The other one. Zeus gave him something really troublesome and even I can't get to it."

Hua Tuo sighed, feeling tired. Zero was definitely a troublemaker. If only he knew what he was signing up for when Buddha told him about his new students.

"I should have requested for more than 5,000 evil-warding lotuses."

Merlin chuckled. "You should have asked him to give you a mini golden pagoda."

Hua Tuo collapsed onto the ground and shook his head. "Are they really that troublesome?"

The wizard didn't stop working. He was now running his hands over Truen's chest with a green glow coming from his hands. Beads of perspiration could be seen on his forehead. While fixing broken chakra channels weren't something difficult, it required a huge amount of energy and that was something Merlin struggled with. Unfortunately, nobody else was as capable as him when it came to fine magic control. There were millions of branches and fixing every single one of these branches wasn't something even an archmage could do.

"From what I heard, neither of them are normal. The child there has no common sense because he wasn't human. This elf here was a sinner who'd been given a second chance. He's dead set on sacrificing himself for the child there. They have no idea how to be humans is all I can say."

Advertisements

Hua Tuo groaned. "I should have asked for his magic circlet…"

Merlin laughed. "I don't think he would lend it to you, much less give it to you."

Hua Tuo sighed. "This old man can only blame his luck now. Who asked me to be friends with such a cunning person? No wonder everybody wants Buddha's face… he's a first-class conman!"

Merlin could only agree. So many Sage Gods have fallen prey to that innocent looking face. It was the face that could make one feel as if there was no malice or ill-intentions. It was the face that could make anyone trust him easily and they learnt from their mistakes. Buddha was the scariest Sage God in existence. Never anger Buddha, he will stab you from the front with the face that can speak of righteousness.

Back in heaven, Buddha sneezed. Someone was definitely talking behind his back. Sadly, he couldn't figure out who. He only hoped that Merlin and Hua Tuo were getting along.

Ball of Nothing

Night fell. Merlin was taking a break after a day of healing. Zero had woken up sometime in the afternoon and was shocked to find Truen in a bad state. He was more shocked at how he'd been found by Hua Tuo but relaxed when Buddha confirmed that Hua Tuo wasn't a suspicious person.

Merlin found the chirpy brunet interesting to talk to. While Zero had the mind of a child, he sometimes displayed great knowledge about other things and had interesting insights. The wizard thanked Hua Tuo for the delicious dinner and offered to set up a stronger magical barrier to guard against the moontaur sisters lying in the wait outside.

Hua Tuo learnt that Zero had peculiar eating habits. The boy ate like a starved man and had a bottomless void for a stomach. He devoured everything without much chewing and his stomach still growled even after five bowls of rice.

Merlin was intrigued by his appetite when Zero recounted how he met Truen at the Mega Gourmet competition.

"I see that you have quite the appetite. I understand from Isis that you have the free-to-dine voucher, shall we visit La Boutique?"

Zero appeared conflicted. He briefly glanced at Truen and the Sage Gods exchanged looks.

"I'll take care of Truen, don't worry. A growing boy like you needs to eat. I'll inform you immediately when he wakes up so don't worry."

Zero nodded before holding Merlin's outstretched hand and stepping into the portal. Hua Tuo watched them leave and waved with a gentle expression on his face. That quickly changed after the portal closed. It was finally time to get rid of the pests.

Without Merlin around to maintain the newly erected magical barrier, it collapsed. Sensing that the opportunity had presented itself, Kayla and Layla got into position quickly as planned. Hua Tuo appeared to be busy with the elf and had his back faced against the window. This was all the sisters needed to launch a sneak attack.

Their plan was simple. They would attack from two directions. One would hide beneath the window and the other would charge through the door to distract the old man. When the old man was engaged, the hidden one would grab the elf and use him as a bargaining chip.

Advertisements

Hua Tuo continued to dress Truen's wounds and check his vitals while the sisters readied their sneak attack. Unknown to Zero, the Sage Gods agreed to take care of the nuisance without Zero's knowledge. The young boy was still to green and if he knew that the sisters he saved were facing a crisis, he would try to offer them help. The Sage Gods had seen too many cases like this and knew that these girls were merely expandables. The tribe sent them here on a death mission and it was clear that short of death, nothing would stop these sisters from getting what they wanted.

Moontaurs were not creatures easy to deal with. Although there was a way for Merlin and Hua Tuo to help them, who was to say the people they saved wouldn't bite them in the back one day? Selfishness was a human trait, not even half-beasts were freed from it. There was nothing good in helping the moontaur tribe, it would only bring trouble in future. When given a foot, one would tend to ask for a mile.

Hua Tuo knew that the moontaur tribe was fated to be extinct. After the fall of Star Guardians, it was only a matter of time. Star Guardians were now considered myths by the people of this new planet. When the old Earth was destroyed, so was the galaxy and space-time construct. The new God born from human hopes could only replicate whatever he knew about humans. He didn't have the power to bring back the fallen powers of the old planet. Preserving them through diluted traces of fallen power was all he could do.

The door was kicked down and swift like the wind, Kayla attacked. Layla lay waiting for the opportunity to grab the elf but was shocked by the old man's counter.

Blood spewed everywhere when Hua Tuo slashed Kayla's neck with a scalpel in hand. The small but deadly sharp blade cut deeply and Kayla choked in blood. Her windpipe was cut but it wasn't deep enough to kill her instantly.

Seeing her sister's state, Layla flew into rage and launched herself at Hua Tuo. Sadly, she couldn't react fast enough to the cloud of poison powder thrown in her face.

With one bleeding to death and one suffocating from poison, Hua Tuo looked at the girls emotionlessly. He had nothing against them but for the greater picture, they had to be sacrificed.

Advertisements

"If you want to blame someone, please blame it on the one who created this world. Moontaurs were never supposed to exist. It is the fate for all descendants of Star Guardians to die out. Even if you moved from Endow Hill, you cannot escape the wheel of fate."

Unseeing and unhearing, the sisters departed from the world of the living.

Hua Tuo had no enmity with the moontaur tribe. However, they had gone too far when they tried to take his patient by force. A doctor's mission was to save any lives that they could. When their patient was in danger, a doctor can do anything at his disposal to ensure his patient's safety. Hua Tuo only did what was expected of him as a doctor. If the girls had chosen to kidnap him instead of taking his patient as hostage, he would've complied. Sadly, they didn't and so they had to die.

The doctor used his hand to close the eyes of the deceased. He carried the bodies one his cloud mount and decided to return them to the forest where they belonged. It didn't take long for Hua Tuo to single-handedly dig two graves with qi enforced hands. He laid the sisters to rest and marked the dirt mounds with boulders. On it, he engraved the following words, "In memory for the brave moontaur warriors who were once part of Endow Hill. May your souls rest in peace".

Standing in front of the freshly dug graves, Hua Tuo waited for roughly an hour before making his way back. It was unfortunate that they had to die but Hua Tuo wouldn't betray the vow he'd taken back when he was still a mortal. He would do anything to save his patient, even if his patient wanted him dead.

Hua Tuo returned to his house and cleaned up the evidence of the foiled attack. Merlin texted earlier with a picture of the dishes piling beside Zero. The boy had quite the appetite and they weren't returning any time soon. Hua Tuo got busy and started preparing extra beds for the guests in his house.

The straws were easily gathered but the cloth was slightly more tricky. He had to use some old clothes to make the bedding covers but he was thankful that he had just the right amount of cloth needed. Hua Tuo made a mental note of the things he needed to buy when he stopped by town in future. Although living in the mountains was a good thing, there were also many inconveniences.

Truen was pale and his fever was back. The doctor got to work immediately without showing signs of fatigue. The elf was struggling silently and Hua Tuo shook his head. For such a young being, his dedication was commendable. However, blind faith was simply foolishness. Without capability, his efforts were only as good as serving for cannon fodder in a war.

Hua Tuo may be a mere physician but he grew up during the era of the warring states. He knew a thing or two about strategy. There were many things that he needed to impart to his two foolish students but first, they had to be in top condition.

"Do you think I should teach Zero about magic? He has an aptitude for it."

Hua Tuo raised a brow at Merlin's text. Buddha did mention that the Zero was keen about learning medicine and healing magic. However, he didn't know if Zero would be keen to learn other magic. Merlin sounded enthusiastic and that could only mean that the wizard had found an unpolished gem.

"It's Zero's decision. Although I could do with a tutor for basic magic control. My healing magic isn't exactly magic after all. Buddha probably didn't explain the difference between healing magic and healing blessing."

After sending his reply, Hua Tuo sterilised the thin needles. Acupuncture was a technique not known to the people on this planet. Many relied on healing magic and potions. This was a world who relied too much on external factors rather than internal, another reason why Hua Tuo preferred to live in isolation. He simply could not adapt to the change of views.

By the time Merlin returned with Zero, it was past midnight. Truen's fever had stabilised and Hua Tuo pulled out the newly made straw beds for the brunet and Sage God. To his surprise, Zero refused and insisted on sleeping with Truen. Merlin decided to pass on the offer and went back via a portal. He did say that he would drop by again tomorrow morning to continue on Truen's treatment so Hua Tuo wasn't worried.

Zero held the elf's hand and apologised to him before falling asleep. Hua Tuo reinforced the barrier to keep the wild animals out and followed suit; the earlier events were forgotten just like a candle that's burned out.

Advertisements

Ball of Nothing

Under the watchful eye and expertise of Hua Tuo and Merlin, Truen recovered quickly. As for the mysterious source that was absorbing all the magic from Endow Hill? They found it.

"Yes, I found a huge treasure at the end of the rainbow. However, I can't get it out of the lamp without Truen's help. The bell is way too high for me to reach."

After much convincing that Merlin could help with the bell's reconstruction, the rooms and the clock, Zero finally agreed to bring the wizard into the lamp. Hua Tuo was curious about the space-distorting lamp and asked for some photographs of the place. Merlin agreed and teleported away with Zero.

In the lamp, Zero couldn't quite decide what colour he wanted the bedsheets to be and Merlin ground his teeth in exasperation. It took Zero twenty minutes to finally decide on orange.

"Is this the treasure you found?"

Zero nodded. "It moves too! Actually, I have not seen it for a while so I don't know if it still moves."

Merlin placed a hand on the 'stone' and immediately, it moved vigorously. It was about time too.

"Zero. I need to tell you something important. Stay calm and listen alright?"

The brunet nodded and Merlin pointed to the 'rock' treasure, explaining that it was actually the egg of a powerful and terrifying creature that cannot be kept as a pet.

"You can't keep it in the lamp."

Advertisements

"Is it because it will be unhappy?"

Merlin nodded. "Yes. This creature needs a large space and a lot of food to hunt. You need to let it go."

Zero frowned. He didn't want to part with his treasure but if what Merlin said was true, he would need to. For the sake of the baby inside the egg, Zero needed to let it go.

"Can I visit it after I let it go?"

Merlin thought for a while. Was it a good idea to let a child visit a baby dragon who might sneeze fireballs and kill anything within a ten-mile radius with its cry? Absolutely not. Was it a good idea to deny Zero with such a hopeful expression? Yes, it was. Can he do that? Now that's a problem.

"Under one condition," Merlin sighed. He'd compromised and fallen for the boy's charm even though he only knew him for a few days.

Zero nodded vigorously like a woodpecker.

"You can only visit it when I'm with you. If I say no, you cannot sneak off to visit it. You must follow what I say when we are there. If I say not to touch something, you do not touch it."

Zero nodded immediately. "Yes, sir!"

"Don't 'yes sir' me! It's 'yes, teacher' to you, young man."

Zero grinned and stuck out a tongue. Merlin rolled his eyes at the childish behaviour. Both Hua Tuo and him were trying to get Zero to call them 'shifu' and 'teacher' respectively to no avail. Zero continued to call them 'sir' and 'grandpa' for some reason. Truen had only regained consciousness briefly earlier today but promptly fell back to sleep so there was no one capable of controlling this cute rascal.

Other than the failure to get Zero to call them their preferred terms, the boy had been surprisingly obedient. He was a fast learner and a bright student who absorbed everything they said like a sponge. This greatly pleased the Sage Gods and they decided to impart him more knowledge.

The first day of their lesson together, Zero had shocked both Sage Gods when he was tested for magic compatibility and capacity. In a nutshell, Zero was capable of using any kind of magic and could create unique magic of his own. That level of control wasn't something that could be trained, it was innate.

As for his capacity, it was directly proportional to the food he ate. Merlin nearly cried when all the restaurants they'd been to the day before hung their 'closed for business' signs. Zero was infamous in La Boutique and many places just couldn't afford to accommodate the big eater.

The desperate wizard resorted to finding food the traditional method after all the eateries at La Boutique rejected them.

Time for dungeon hunting.

Ball of Nothing

"We're going hunting today."

Hearing the 'h' word made Zero pump his fist into the air joyfully. Treun was finally able to stay awake for half a day after the meticulous care of both Sage Gods over the past week. However, he hasn't regained his strength both physically and magically. The elf was worried but with Merlin as Zero's guardian, Truen held his tongue.

Hua Tuo handed Zero a basic first aid kit with all the medicine he would ever require. In the past week, Zero had fully mastered basic first aid and healing magic. He'd also memorised majority of the dangerous plants and creatures to avoid or deal with when he encountered them. Of course, there were more but Hua Tuo only taught Zero what he needed to know for now while he was on Endow Hill.

On the surface, Endow Hill was simply a mountain with a dragon rumoured to be guarding it. However, what many didn't know was how Endow Hill had a dungeon beneath it. The dragon was simply the dungeon's original guardian. This dungeon was a little special as it was also the portal to bridge between the dead and the living in a time-space dimension. Adventurers who died there remained as trapped souls to fuel the dungeon's magic. It had many branches linking to the outside of Endow Hill, luring unsuspecting adventures in. The dungeon was essentially alive and the only way out was to defeat the dungeon boss on each level.

"Remember, stay close behind me within five steps. Do not touch anything that I did not touch. It's not only a place filled with monsters; it is also a place full of traps."

Zero nodded with seriousness in his eyes. He hadn't learnt any form of combat apart from some basic magic spells. Merlin forbid Zero to use any offensive magic in fear of destroying the dungeon and trapping them in it. However, Zero was free to use any form of defensive magic and support magic.

As it was the brunet's first battle experience, he was excited. Mii told Zero to add Merlin to his party. The boy was clueless but after a demonstration, he invited Merlin with a smile who accepted the invitation without questions. After all, it was rather common in this world to send temporary contracts to each other for mutual benefits. Merlin wasn't bothered about sharing the rewards. They were going in the dungeon for Zero's benefit in the first place. However, the new contact on his communicator intrigued the magician.

Advertisements

"Oh, Mii is a strawcherry fairy who helps me a lot. She's very knowledgeable but grumpy sometimes. She needs 'experience' to be able to stay out longer here that's why you don't really see her."

Merlin had never heard of such a strange system. Fairies were creatures that used the magic of their contracted masters to materialise. Why was Mii such an exception? Perhaps she wasn't really Zero's contracted fairy and was simply acting so by the orders of someone else. Whichever the case, Merlin agreed to help Zero get Mii some 'experience' by completing the dungeon. It was a weird criteria for becoming stronger but Merlin wasn't going to question it. If one could become stronger in necromancy by sleeping in the graveyard, who was to say clearing dungeons weren't a legitimate method of becoming stronger?

With everything ready, Merlin opened a portal that led them straight to the entrance of Endow Hill's infamous "Sleepy Cave" dungeon. Although it was named "Sleepy Cave", the dungeon was always bustling with life. The name was only to indicate how tranquil it was to unsuspecting victims. The dungeon starts out mild but as adventurers get deeper, the dungeon will move and shift, trapping them in a maze. Monsters will start appearing in vicious waves of coordinated attacks. With each wave successfully dealt with, the next becomes stronger and smarter. Adventurers who cannot overcome this trial will die miserably, becoming a source of food for the living dungeon. Adventurers who survived the waves will be faced by a final dungeon guardian. Many falter at this stage. However, those who survive will be teleported out of the dungeon instantly with special items, usually boss monster loots, meant to discourage the adventurers from trying again.

Advertisements

Strangely, adventurers who successfully cleared the first round tend to return to the dungeon. The living dungeon, having experienced defeat the first time, would increase the difficulty of monsters, attack patterns and boss monsters. Some of these adventurers would survive the increased difficulty but many will fail. However, as the item drop from monsters in the living dungeon were rare and highly valued, many brave adventurers risk their lives doing it.

However, today would be the first time "Sleepy Cave" would be visited by a Sage God and an unknown entity. It didn't know what kind of karma it would reap and continued to plot evilly when the duo entered the maze.

If it were any other ordinary dungeon, the first monsters to appear in front of unsuspecting adventurers might be slimes or goblins. Unfortunately, not for Sleepy Cave. This cave was way too lazy to test the intruders. It wanted food and it wanted them fast.

"Did you hear that?" Zero asked Merlin who choked on his spit. Of course, he'd heard that terrifying roar.

"Yes Zero, I suggest you stand back. It doesn't sound too happy."

The creature in question with the terrifying roar was none other than a Messopotamus. The Messopotamus was a huge creature spanning over twenty feet with five huge hippopotamus heads but with the long necks of giraffes. Although clumsy, they were very powerful and often kill adventurers by sitting on them. If they weren't fast enough to crush their enemies to death, they had an awful secret attack - poisonous farts. One whiff of that and it's a one-way trip to the afterlife.

Of course, there were many ways to deal with the Messopotamus. While they were huge and powerful, their long necks were prone to tangling with each head trying to secure the first chomp. However, as a wizard, Merlin had the advantage. Messopotamuses are weak to the cold and what better way to serve the first dish than with ice?

"Have you ever eaten sashimi?"

Zero shook his head. "Is it delicious?"

Merlin shrugged. "You should ask En. But we're going to find out if Messopotamus make good sashimi. Do you still remember the plan?"

Zero grinned. He readied the scalpel that Hua Tuo included in his first aid bag. Why the doctor thought he'd needed a surgery knife was anyone's guess. However, Zero decided to dine fresh.

On the count of three, Merlin cast a huge field of ice and Zero put a slipping curse on the Messopotamus for five minutes. Unable to get up, the creatures yowled and paled as Zero approached with the tiny scalpel. Hua Tuo's knife cut through hide easily and with the medicine god's tutorial about dissecting, Zero had his very first hands-on experience without the physician by his side. He must say, he was doing a fine job dissecting the Messopotamus who was slowly losing its vigour.

Advertisements

Merlin's ice field made the creature enter forced hibernation and once Zero had skillfully dissected all the poisonous parts, it was time to dig in.

"Are you sure you don't want to try some?"

Merlin shook his head. He wasn't a fan of raw food.

Zero shrug and dug in quickly. He was starving and the creature just happened to be a convenient lunch. His previous stock of energy from Mega Gourmet was running low and Zero wondered if he should conserve magic because it wasn't easy to find food on Endow Hill.

Merlin looked a little green as Zero devoured the Messopotamus. The cycle of life was a cruel one and even though Merlin knew in his head how it was the right of the strong to live and the weak to become sustenance, he couldn't help but mumble a short prayer for the monster. Many might have fallen prey to the Messopotamus but today, it met a hungry young boy. It couldn't only blame the chefs of La Boutique for running out of supplies too quickly for its death.

In ten minutes, the twenty feet huge monster was reduced to a pile of bones. Zero smacked his lips in satisfaction. It tasted a little rubbery but it was still better than the yucky berries he'd eaten previously.

"I'm ready! What's next?"

Merlin grinned. Of course. He should have known better than to expect Zero to be sated with only one monster.

As the duo explored the cave in search of newer prey, Sleep Cave shuddered. All it wanted to do was finish chasing away the adventurers for its afternoon nap, not encourage two frightening cave raiders to plunder its monsters!

Sleepy Cave shuddered. Monsters after powerful monsters were devoured by the cheating duo. Yes, it had dubbed these two outrageous intruders as the true monsters. It didn't know that one was a Sage God and the other was an all-powerful existence but even if it did, it couldn't do anything.

Sleepy Cave had sent its strongest creations only to be met with failure. It sensed great magical power coming from the old magician and was wary of it. The cave plotted to tire the magician by sending monsters with high magic resistance. The weaknesses of magic users are their weak bodies and Sleepy Cave tried to exploit that. Unfortunately, Merlin wasn't some normal magician. He conjured magic that acted like physical attacks and blasted everything apart.

Sleepy Cave was also frustrated that they didn't leave any corpses behind for it to recycle. The small brunet trailing behind the old mage kept eating them so Sleepy Cave could not resurrect the monsters!

What a huge loss!

Desperate, Sleepy Cave called for the Shadow Ant Army's help. Surely the brunet wouldn't eat insects... the Shadow Ants were monsters known to be crafty. If their queen wasn't taken out, they would continue to attack the enemy with their never-ending numbers. Surely this time, the intruders would die.

Satisfied with its evil plan, Sleepy Cave let the Shadow Ants grow in silence. It didn't want to forcefully kick the intruders out and go into hibernation if it could. That would mean Sleepy Cave had to start all over again collecting energy and trapping souls for energy. It was a painful process and after finally devouring the dragon guarding it, Sleep Cave didn't want to return to the painful days of working for scraps.

The Shadow Ant Queen hid in the boss room chamber as she laid eggs, preparing an army for the unsuspecting intruders. Sleepy Cave distracted the duo with twisting cave mazes and never-ending passages filled with low-level evolved monsters like Carbon Monkfish Warriors only to stall for time when they progressed too quickly.

"Bind!" Zero shouted and made the three Monkfish Warriors snap together under the invisible force. Merlin finished them off with an old-fashioned lightning bolt.

Zero refused to eat the Carbon Monkfish Warriors and Merlin didn't blame him. Firstly, monkfishes didn't look appealing. Secondly, they were literally dead and rotting. It wasn't anything safe for consumption. Lastly, their carbon armour was stuck onto them like scales, impossible to pry off or salvage. Zero couldn't find any good way to eat them so he settled for simply absorbing them and converting them into energy.

Mii had levelled up a lot in various areas with Merlin in the party, much to Zero's elation. Mii's upgraded Encyclopaedia function allowed Zero to tell how strong a new species was. It had ranking and the higher it was, the stronger the monster was. Of course, Mii explained that in addition to the level indicator, it had a rarity index. Rarity index worked like this:

Advertisements

1 Star: Common Grade (aka Trash)

2 Stars: Uncommon Grade (aka Useful Item)

3 Stars: Rare Grade (aka Very Useful Item)

4 Stars: Very Rare Grade (aka Super Useful Item)

5 Stars: Special Grade (aka Unknown Potential Item)

"So anything that is labelled five stars may not always be a five star?"

Mii nodded. "It can be a seven-star or twelve-star grade but since it's a pain to classify it, anything not within one to four will be considered five until after appraisal."

"What's appraisal?"

Mii grinned at Zero. "It's a new skill that's locked for now. However, I do have another skill for party members."

Excited, Zero demanded to know. Mii pulled up a screen and Zero recognised it as a map similar to the application on his communicator.

"This is a party map. It allows any party member to see what you can see on your communicator. Green dots are party members or friendly creatures. Red dots are enemies and yellow ones are unconfirmed non-hostiles."

Merlin looked at the party map in fascination. It was his first time seeing Mii and he found it odd how the strawcherry fairy didn't emit magic. It was an unknown existence just like his student. As Mii explained the functions of the party map, Merlin observed how the number of red dots was growing around them.

"Can we identify what kind of enemies are these red dots?"

Advertisements

Mii shook her head. "Not yet. I still do not have sufficient experience points to do so."

Merlin shrugged. It wasn't important. After all, it was good enough knowing where his enemies were. He didn't need to see them to kill them.

"Are you ready, Zero? It's an all you can eat buffet from now on."

The brunet grinned and patted his stomach. "I'm always ready! Let's hope it will be something yummy."

The wizard chuckled. "One platter of roasted monsters coming right up!"

"Never again," Zero groaned.

Merlin agreed and Mii belched. The aftermath of that mass BBQ party was simply a disaster to clean after. Not only were their enemies inedible, the Queen Shadow Ant decided to cover them in acid showers. Nobody was affected when Merlin threw up an arcane shield that acted like an umbrella. However, the smell was unbearable and even Zero gave up absorbing anything. They just wanted to get out of the dungeon.

"Let's grab the loot chest and return back to Endow Hill," Mii suggested. Nobody protested.

"I want a bath when I get back," Merlin groaned as his shoes squelched against the acid ruined cave ground. Zero nodded. Bath sounded good.

The loot chest was hidden behind the huge Shadow Ant Queen's carcass and Merlin almost missed it.

"It's locked," Zero frowned. The wooden check looked like it would fall apart any moment but it had some strong magic enchantments holding it together. Zero was disappointed but Merlin pointed a finger at the lock.

A zap of light later, the check was unlocked. Zero quickly opened it and blinked in surprise at the item inside. For such a huge chest, it looked almost empty. Zero was slightly disappointed to know that there was only a single seed at the bottom of that huge chest. Merlin didn't say anything about the 'reward' but told Zero to keep it safe. Zero listened to the advice and kept it in his sling bag.

The moment he kept the seed away, Sleepy Cave decided to throw its rude cave plunderers out without consideration. It was bitter at losing so many resources trying to take down the duo. Without much energy and forced to go into hibernation, Sleepy Cave added this party to the blacklist. It was one to take from others but never one to be taken advantage of.

Once back at Endow Hill's surface, Merlin and Zero raced to the river. Mii disappeared back into the lamp while the duo rinsed the filth away.

In the lamp, the egg moved a lot and the strawcherry assistant laid her ear against the shell. She listened to the restless creature and sang a lullaby, trying to coax it back to sleep.

Advertisements

"Soon, little one. Not now. Go to sleep."

With a wave of her hand, the rumbling egg quietened down again. She needed to talk to Truen about the 'rock'. Merlin might know what was inside the egg but not how to deal with it. In fact, Endow Hill might undergo a huge transformation should the little one decides to hatch. Mii had a plan but she needed to run it through with Truen and Zero first. After all, the egg belonged to Zero.

The elf was still recuperating from his injury and exhaustion when Mii appeared. Hua Tuo was busy fixing the watermill so that gave them some privacy to talk.

"It's good to see you up again," Mii smiled before headbutting Truen's cheek. "Don't you dare do something so stupid again!"

The elf grinned. "Thanks for worrying."

Mii huffed. "For the record, I'm not worried about you or anything. I just don't want Zero to lose his guardian so quickly. Speaking of which, there is something I need to discuss with you. Remember that 'rock' in the lamp?"

Truen nodded. How could he forget about the special 'rock' that could hatch into a catastrophe?

"I was wondering what we should do about it too. It's too dangerous to leave it in the lamp."

The strawcherry fairy nodded. "Merlin wanted to let it hatch on Endow Hill but it might not be a good idea. Endow Hill's current landscape will become a memory if we let it hatch normally."

"Is it that bad?"

Mii sighed. "Dragons can get that cranky."

Truen didn't react. He'd guessed as much that it wouldn't be an ordinary mystical beast. "What do we do now?"

"Get Zero to form a contract with it. If it becomes a summon, we can hide it away and it cannot pose a threat externally."

Truen thought about it. "How will he form a contract? Also, I don't know anything about training familiars, much less Zero. What if he ends up spoiling his dragon?"

Mii grinned. "This is when you come in. You're like a parent to Zero so if you raise Zero right, he'll raise the dragon right. Besides, I don't think Zero is capable of spoiling his dragon. Dragons are rather wise creatures. They can have weird personalities but they're nothing like human offspring."

"I see. How much longer do we have before it hatches?"

"I'll estimate another two more days. The little one is restless."

Advertisements

Truen closed his eyes. "I understand. I'll talk to Zero tonight. Hopefully Merlin can help with the familiar contract too."

"I'll be counting on you then, partner."

"Same to you, partner. Thanks for watching over Zero in the dungeon earlier. I hope he had fun."

Mii chuckled. "I saved some videos you can watch once you're recovered fully. Don't forget to talk to Zero about it!"

Truen nodded and Mii vanished, finally depleting all her energy for the day.

Hua Tuo's herbal noodles were highly praised by everyone. After the dungeon raid, Merlin and Zero were happy for the reprieve. Truen looked a lot better but when the elf said that there was something serious he had to discuss, everyone stopped the friendly chatter. Zero was serious too when Truen asked if he could have the egg in the lamp brought out.

With Merlin's help, they brought the egg out of the lamp. Everyone sat around the huge egg that moved every once in a while. Nobody talked as they stared at the egg. Merlin just had the talk about keeping it with Zero this morning and even though Zero knew the time was coming where they had to part, he thought he'd have at least one more night with it.

Once everyone was listening, Truen told them about the plan Mii proposed. Hua Tuo and Merlin were silent and expressionless. However, as Truen elaborated on the plan, Zero's eyes brightened. He could keep the egg!

"If there is a way to form a familiar contract, please let Zero know."

Merlin closed his eyes and frowned. The plan was a fairly logical one without many risks. However, familiars and masters sometimes can endanger each other. Usually, a summoner will own a familiar and summons the familiar using a contract using his or her mana. For Zero who converts energy into mana, Merlin didn't know the complications it could cause. At the same time, this was a dragon. Not just anyone could become the master of a dragon. Dragons were not meant to be bound by permanent contracts, they were often offered temporary contracts due to the sheer amount of magic required simply to bind a dragon.

"Even if we could make this contract work, where will Zero get all his magic energy to support this dragon?"

Hua Tuo looked at Zero's crestfallen expression when Merlin pointed that out. The doctor wanted to help his student keep his dragon but was also troubled by the risks involved. While Zero wasn't lacking in magical talent, he had no ability to produce magic of his own, unlike most normal living things. Zero's magic came from an external source and was converted hence that meant he had literally no mana cap limit. However, being unable to produce mana on his own was troubling as it meant the source was unrenewable. The dragon familiar contract may be a one-time off thing but summoning it does require a huge source of steady mana that Zero doesn't have.

"If only there was a way for Zero to infinitely convert unneeded energy into mana from the surroundings," Merlin sighed.

"Sounds like something only a curse would do," Hua Tuo added.

There wasn't anything like that on Endow Hill that would constantly emit negative energy that required absorbing. In fact, the dragon was absorbing too much of Endow Hill's mana just to hatch, causing the environment to be unstable.

Advertisements

"In that case, why not form a contract with the dragon first and only summon it when Zero can find a way to generate mana naturally?"

Merlin looked at Zero who was hopeful. He sighed. "Only if you promise that you will not summon the dragon out."

Zero nodded quickly and agreed. Hua Tuo cleared some space for Merlin to make preparations for the contract. The familiar contract required the blood of the contractor and Zero nicked his finger with a scalpel just enough to swipe some blood on the shell of the egg.

"Ok, now all we need is for you to give him a name."

"It's a boy?" Zero asked Merlin who nodded. Truen did say that Mii could communicate with the dragon so it was definitely a boy if the strawcherry fairy confirmed so.

Zero thought long and hard.

"Chuuka?"

The egg didn't respond.

"Eggy?"

No response still and Truen wondered if Zero was going to continue until the egg moved.

"Zuper? Momon? Kendy?"

Unable to watch the dragon bear such humiliating names, Merlin suggested something grand.

"Morxvillian?"

"He's not evil," Truen reminded.

Advertisements

"How about Eskaulrd?"

The egg didn't respond. At his wit's end, Zero tried once more. "Bobbinskrier?"

The egg shook a little. Then rattled and eventually bounced. Zero grinned happily and rejoiced at the new name. "You will be called Bobbinskrier the dragon! I'll call you Bob though. Well then, it's nice to meet you, I hope we get along!"

With the name decided, the familiar contract was finalised. A bright blue flash of light later, the huge egg and magic circle was no more. However, Zero heard a new voice and smiled.

"The pleasure is mine, Bob."

Now that the immediate danger of having a dragon destroy Endow Hill was out of the way, Hua Tuo and Merlin decided to hold a serious discussion with both their students.

"It is Buddha's request that we take you in as students. However, we will not force this decision on you. Please think about it seriously if you will like to officially accept us as your teachers. Training will be harsh and it might take a few years. During this time, we will not only impart our skills and knowledge but also our experience and our blessings. Unlike what we've been doing before, apprenticeship is a magically binding contract."

Truen understood what Merlin was saying. He already had such contracts with the Great Gods and quickly agreed to the terms. Zero was confused.

"What does this apprenticeship contract do? why is there a need for a contract?"

The old physician smiled. Normally, there isn't a need for a contract to take on apprentices. However, some arts that Sage Gods knew were considered catastrophic and knowledge in the wrong hands would be disastrous. As a precaution, apprenticeship contracts were formed to ensure that the apprentices of Sage Gods will not misuse their superior knowledge or risk self-destruction.

Zero wasn't afraid of the contract. However, he was concerned about the magic training.

"How can I train in magic if I cannot recover mana?"

Merlin felt a headache when he remembered the basic problem. While Zero showed great aptitude for magic, he didn't possess any life energy. It was very odd and Merlin wanted to consult Buddha about it.

"About that, I'll need some time to understand why you're not able to regenerate mana naturally. This doesn't mean that it's impossible to learn magic, it just means it will be trickier."

Zero nodded. "Yes sir! In that case, can I learn from grandpa first? Truen can learn from you first then we'll swap about a year later."

Advertisements

Merlin didn't disagree. In fact, it was a great idea. With Zero in Hua Tuo's care, he would be able to focus better on training the elf. According to Buddha, Truen was undergoing some training with the Great Gods in the dream space. Merlin wanted to use that dream space to groom Zero's guardian without alerting the boy.

"It's settled then," Hua Tuo nodded. Secretly, the physician was happy to have someone he could impart medical knowledge of the ancients. His world might have been destroyed but with Zero, it might live on for a little longer.

"Let's see each other again in two years," Zero smiled at the elf.

Although saddened at the thought of leaving his charge, Truen nodded. Two years was a long time but it was for the best. As he was, Truen was too weak to protect Zero. He needed to become stronger. As for Zero, he wanted to start his adventure but after the encounter with the moontaur sisters and the Dingo brothers, he knew he was far from ready for the world.

As such, the brunet steeled himself to learn as much as he can with Hua Tuo and Merlin. Endow Hill was the perfect place to learn how to blend in with humans. In fact, there was still so much Zero doesn't know about the world Great One created. What he'd experienced was merely the glimpse of a very very huge mountain.

"I need to become stronger," Zero resolved. It wasn't only for his sake, it was also for Truen and the Great Gods. He couldn't always rely on others. This was his adventure, Zero was going to take control and write their story. The book that Great One provided was blank. It was up to Zero to fill in those blank pages for both their sakes.

Hopefully, there will come a time when he could tell Great One all about it when he gets his memories back, the old and the new.

-Season 1 End-

Ball of Nothing

The stars are twinkling beautifully in the night sky, lulling the world into a gentle sleep. Underneath the blanket of twinkling lights surrounded by the tranquil darkness, one young boy lay awake awaiting an opportunity.

After eating delicious food and having a wonderful nap in the afternoon, Zero was having a hard time falling asleep. Truen was exhausted and snored lightly beside him, his arm draped securely over the brunet who couldn't sleep. Zero wanted to move and explore the wonders of the night in the forest but he didn't want to disturb Truen who needed his rest. The dark elf looked terrible and Zero knew that having to stay awake while feeling sleepy could put anyone in a bad mood from personal experience. A wood elf guardian in a bad mood was not a fun friend to have around.

Zero lay on the ground with his eyes closed, simply waiting for Truen to be truly asleep. Upon the insistence of Isis and Freya, Zero was forced into his squirrel onesie pajamas instead of the tracksuit he loved. After a selfie session, Truen bade the brunet goodnight. It took about thirty long minutes of waiting before the wood elf finally drifted off.

Sparkling with delight at having his patience paid off, Zero stealthily slipped out of the hold. It was his request to sleep out under the stars for a change instead of inside the lamp. Zero wanted to know what the world looked like when it was night time. Mii shared many wonderful stories about how certain animals would come out and how some flowers only bloomed at night. Zero wanted to see the fireflies that Mii told him about. He was curious to know how they could produce light in their bodies. Did they know light magic?

After a two failed attempts, Zero finally freed himself. The air was cool but there was nothing to worry about. Grem Lee's clothes and the Great Gods' enchantments worked very well. The only thing Zero wished could be improved on was how the hood kept falling over his eyes. He had half the mind to throw the oversized cloth back completely but decided against it. Who knew what would happen if he didn't wear clothes properly. Truen was certainly not pleased when Zero wore the tracksuit pants the other way around after his bath. Humans sure have it tough.

The chill air was crisp and had a new kind of freshness to it. The forest wasn't quiet. In fact, Zero wondered who was making all the noises he heard. Some were far away while some were near. For example, he spotted a tiny tree frog making the loudest noise up in a branch. Also, Mii mentioned that there were tiny insects that sang at night. Zero wondered if the occasional strange chirping were made by them. Nevertheless, he had a mission. He was going to find those fireflies and ask them how they can light up in the night.

The first place Zero went to was by the river that they passed by earlier today. Truen caught fishes there for their dinner and Zero enjoyed every moment of it. Truen was a great cook.

The river looked very different from what it did in the day. For one, Zero had a hard time spotting fishes in the water. It was probably because they weren't there. However, upon a closer look, he found some of them hiding beneath rocks. They weren't moving and the brunet wondered if it would be easier to catch them at night instead of the day.

To his surprise, the fishes didn't move even when Zero approached them. Maybe they were sleeping like Truen? Then again, how can they sleep if they had their eyes open? The small boy's mind was full of questions. His eyes would probably hurt a lot if he kept them open while he slept. On second thoughts, maybe it was easier to sleep with open eyes under water. He'd have to try that another time.

There was a low rumble and Zero salivated. The fish was making his stomach growl. Wouldn't it be nice if he could catch a big fat fish? There was one hiding in some river grass not too far from where he was. The water was definitely colder at night but Zero was determined. He would catch a fish by himself tonight.

Advertisements

Catching a fish at night was harder than Zero thought it would be. For starters, the fish woke up and swam away. Sleep made the fish slower than what it could have been but with Zero's short arms and legs, it was difficult to keep up. If Truen was here, he might be able to catch it easily. Unfortunately for Zero, the fish was too formidable an opponent so the brunet had to give up for the night. Zero's stomach wasn't too pleased but there was hardly anything the boy could do at this moment.

As if suddenly remembering his mission, Zero decided to climb up the tallest tree in the area to spot fireflies. If Mii was correct, they tend to be near swamps. Zero wasn't sure if it was a good idea to travel to the swamps alone because Truen mentioned that several dangerous creatures lived there. The brunet was in deep thoughts for a long while before he came to the conclusion that it shouldn't be dangerous at night. Many animals were sleeping and maybe only friendly animals come out at night.

It was a long climb up the jungle tee but Zero was amazed by what he saw at the top. Although it was slightly disappointing that he couldn't find fireflies immediately, he was amazed by how many stars there were in the sky. From where they were, Zero could only see a part of the sky. Up in the tree, the wind was cooler and stronger. There were not many clouds and the sky was enormous! There was no end to what Zero could see and the brunet wondered how many there were. The young boy took some time to appreciate the beautiful creation his past self made. At the back of his mind, he wondered if he would be able to do the same. It's a shame Great One wasn't able to look at all this. Zero was determined to remember this for the both of them. Maybe someday he would find a way back to tell his past self about his adventures!

Deciding that he had enough of the stars, Zero decided to stand up for a better view of the surroundings. He could see where Truen had set up camp for the night with the campfire still burning. Zero wasn't afraid. If he got lost, he could always teleport back even though it might require energy. Mii suggested heading to the swamps to the east and Zero took that advice.

It didn't take long to reach the swamps. Zero decided to take a shortcut and teleported there with Mii's map as a guide. The swamps were very different even though they were a part of Endow Hill. For one, the trees were no longer full of leaves and green. They looked skinny and slightly scary with more branches and roots than leaves. The chirping sounds also disappeared. The swamps were more silent and Zero swallowed. Did fireflies live in such a scary place?

There was a strange hooting sound and occasionally Zero would hear something move. It sounded like wings of a huge bird and Zero didn't know if it was friendly or unfriendly. Zero decided that the frogs were definitely king in the swamps. They were everywhere and Zero didn't know if there was a place in the swamps that frogs didn't sing. They were loud and seem to be in every corner from tree to water. The swamp was a lot darker than the forest they were in previously. With so many shadows, it was difficult to know where he was going.

Still, Zero didn't give up. In such a dark place, surely fireflies would stand out.

"Mii, where do we go from here?"

The strawcherry fairy shrugged. "They could be anywhere. It's easier to see them in an open space with lots of long grass and some water. I see a clearing on the map about ten minutes from here. Would you like to try going there?"

Zero grinned, his heart raced at the thought of meeting these amazing night insects. He had so many questions and couldn't wait to know.

According to Mii, it took ten minutes to get there. However for Zero, it took a lot longer to waddle his way to the clearing in the swamplands. The ground was often soft and unstable. The brunet nearly fell into the cold water a few times as he slipped. No wonder Truen wasn't willing to travel through the marsh! Danger lurked everywhere and it wasn't even the dangers from scary animals...

Finally, he arrived and Zero was amazed by what he saw.

Underneath the sky full of stars, he saw thousands and thousands of tiny lights floating about the long grass in the field. The brunet smiled. It was worth the trouble of travelling through the hazardous land. The fireflies looked like tiny stars that he could touch.

Excited, the young boy ran over to the middle of the clearing, ignoring how the muddy ground soaked into his shoes. They auto-clean enchantment will work after a while, he had nothing to fear and Truen wouldn't even find out where he'd been.

Surrounded by thousands of tiny lights, Zero beamed as bright as the sun. "So beautiful," he breathed and held out a hand for some of the passing fireflies. He didn't know what they were all busy about but the way the flew in patterns in the air looked like a dance. Zero knew that he shouldn't disturb them but he wanted to know so badly how they could be so brilliant in the dark.

Then, one firefly took pity on the poor boy and rested on his palm for a while as if to ask Zero what he wanted from them after disturbing their dance. The brunet apologised and explained his desire to know how they could light up in the night.

Advertisements

As if indulging the brunet, the bug crawled onto his finger and turned around, letting Zero have a closer look.

"Oh my! Your butt is lit up! Does it not hurt?"

The bug fluttered its tiny wings as if to chide Zero before flying off. The brunet stood there for a long time, admiring the fireflies as the zig-zagged through the air, minding their business. The brunet didn't get an answer but he was satisfied. Those bugs at night were very busy and Zero yawned. He was getting tired too.

Waving goodbye to the fireflies, Zero teleported back to their camp spot where the fire had started to die out. He slipped back into Truen's arms and snuggled into the wood elf's chest. After a great night adventurer, the young squirrel was ready for bed.

That night, while Truen suffered in the hands of Freya, Zero dreamt about becoming a firefly with his shining butt and flying around in the air at night, greeting the other thousands of fireflies as they flew past him. What a busy night!

Ball of Nothing

Adam was a thief. No, not the kind that entered dungeons to disable traps and scout for hidden enemies. He was your ordinary run-of-the-mill lowlife who stole coin pouches, tricked old folks and snatched food from stores. He wasn't an honourable person and he wasn't proud of the life he lived. However, a man needs to do what he has to in order to survive.

That didn't mean that Adam didn't have dreams. Oh no. In fact, he had huge dreams. Dreams so huge that it was impossible to make it a reality. Hence, the thief would often indulge in them when he wasn't making a living.

It wasn't a secret that Adam loved to walk in the forest. Sometimes, he would play the honourable thief and help one or two travellers when they were lost. Other times, he would tip new adventurers about the spots to avoid when travelling. Highwaymen and mountain bandits were often not as kind as Adam and the thief didn't want anyone getting hurt if he could help it. Adam had huge dreams about becoming a hero like any other children. Unfortunately, heroes were chosen and Adam knew he was not. Still, he did what he could while getting by. He wasn't a bad person but nobody liked him. The thief was used to it.

He wandered in a deeper part of the forest as usual. Nothing was amiss. It was three in the afternoon and the sun was blazing so the thief decided to take a refreshing swim in a nearby lake. Little did he know that his decision would change his life completely.

At his lake, Adam discovered that he wasn't alone. A very good-looking male wood elf and a cute kid with big brown eyes and chocolate hair had discovered the lake earlier and were having some fun in it. Adam sighed in dismay. There goes his peaceful afternoon. It didn't appear as if the child and his guardian were going to leave any time soon so Adam took his pot in a tree not too far away to observe the strange company.

The wood elf seemed to wait on this young boy on hand and feet. Adam tried recalling if he'd ever seen those proud elves lowering their head for mere humans. Even if the boy was royalty, an elf would never submit and devote everything they had. This boy had to be different. Maybe he was secretly another species that Adam wasn't aware of. Their interactions proved that it was something deeper than a guardian and ward.

The boy's name was Zero and the wood elf was called Truen. Both were unusual names and Adam did not know if they were adventurers or merchants. He did look around for a bit trying to find any sort of weapon that the wood elf might wield but found none. Perhaps they were merely travellers?

The clothes they wore were also strange and with nothing better to do, Adam crept up to the rock that the clothes lay on. He recognised the signature light armour for archers but he didn't know what the strange red outfit was. With both strangers distracted, Adam gave in to his curiosity and stole the strange red clothes. The material felt strangely comfortable on his hands and Adam instantly recognised money when he saw it. The cloth was nothing like the crappy common clothes sold in the market. It screamed of quality and the stitch work was so masterful that Adam battled with his thoughts. He couldn't possibly steal all the clothes and leave the poor child naked, could he? He would feel terrible if the child caught a cold. Hence, Adam compromised and swiped the underwear. It was a good pair of underwear after all and might fetch a good price in the black market.

On the way back, Adam let his mind wander. He didn't notice how a group of mountain bandits were sneaking up on him and by the time he did, it was much too late to run. Outnumbered three to one without weapons and only a very expensive underwear in hand, Adam panicked. Was this how he ended?

"Hand over that!" one of them snarled.

Advertisements

Adam refused. He knew that the bandits will still kill him even if he handed it over. Hence, the thief did the only logical thing left and fought with all his might.

Kicking dirt into the first man's eye, he took down the second with a tackle. The third man who watched his comrades get taken down snarled and lunged forward with his sabre. Adam panicked and raised the stretchy fabric in front of him out of reflex. He knew he was doomed. No piece of cloth no matter how expensive can win against a sabre.

To everyone's surprise, the fabric did not suffer a single scratch. It may have stretched a little too much but it didn't give way. Adam blinked. He hadn't inspected the piece of underwear because honestly, who would? Thankfully, thieves had the appraisal skill so Adam quickly understood that he had gotten his hands on one of the most powerful equipment ever known to mankind.

Seeing the change in expression on Adam's face, the mountain bandits became wary. It was merely a piece of cloth, what could a lone thief do? Well, they were about to find out.

As the old saying went, offence was the best defence. Adam struck hard, snapping back the elastic band and letting it hit the bandits in the face. When the push came to the shove, he used it to fend against the deadly sabres. The underwear could change sizes automatically and Adam used his wit to invent a makeshift underwear slingshot. The first stone knocked the weakest mountain bandit unconscious. The leader of the trio saw that and cursed. He wasn't willing to suffer losses over one thief with a strange underwear.

"Retreat!" he yelled and they quickly vanished.

Adam's knees gave out when he realised that he found the literal jackpot. It may be an underwear but Adam was a creative man. Surely he could find uses for it.

Two months later in a faraway village near the demon territory, humans screamed in terror. Many fled their burning houses. Women took their children to flee while able-bodied farmers grabbed their hoes and pitchforks, ready to battle against the Fire Bats attacking their village.

It wasn't a fair fight as Fire Bats had both aerial advantage and strength in numbers. Just when all hopes were lost, a hero turned up.

"Fear not! I will take care of this demon!"

Instead of rejoicing, women covered their children's eyes. Men gave him look of disgust and people jeered.

Standing in all his half-naked glory, Adam wore the trusty underwear that saved his life in the forest. He'd taken on a new occupation and proclaimed himself as a philanthropic hero, saving villagers whenever there was a need. However, instead of gaining fame, the ex-thief was classed as a pervert. Nobody liked him and Adam was dubbed the Stripper for his unofficial hero title.

"Oh no! It's the Stripper... Hide your women and children!"

"Get away from here, he's going to flash!"

"I hope the Fire Bats get him! How dare he show up here indecent..."

"Oh no! Run! He's starting to take it off!"

The villagers dropped their weapons and headed for the hills, leaving Adam and his wounded pride behind. Still, the noble rookie hero gritted his teeth and persevered. Sticks and stones might break his bones but names would never hurt him. There will come a day when these people will understand, or so he consoled himself.

"Stand back, foul demons! Or be prepared to be taken down."

The Fire Bats didn't care if Adam was naked or not. In fact, they seemed to think that Adam was a better target. Humans wore too many things that their claws couldn't remove and it didn't taste good. Seeing a human void of those obstacles made them drool. How could they pass up a prey when it presented itself to them on a silver platter?

Without warning, the Fire Bats swooped down, fighting each other for dibs on the fresh meat. Adam stood his ground, readying his signature strike. Underwear in hand, the self-proclaimed hero pulled the stretchy elastic back.

"Mighty Wind Blast!" He yelled and released the hold of his hand pulling the fabric back. The gust of wind took some bats out of the sky and Adam finished them off with an axe-heel drop. His junk fluttered in the wind valiantly as if celebrating the fall of its enemies. Nobody cheered and some pitied the ex-thief. It would be a different story if he had something worth flaunting. At least he would be generously tipped.

Ignoring the humiliation, Adam quickly finished off the remaining bats and put his squeaky clean underwear back on. It remained one of the world's greatest mystery how the pervert hero's underwear stayed free of blood despite the bloody battles every single time. Nobody questioned him in fear of being associated as a fellow lunatic.

At this point, word has travelled far and wide. Truen searched high and low for Zero's missing pair of underwear. The elusive underwear thief was always leaving trails and many stories about his heroic deeds allowed Truen to finally catch up with the man.

However, the wood elf never expected to meet the man while he was in action. He felt sick watching the thief wave that underwear and exposing his privates for all to see. Truen felt as if he needed to wash his eyes out with alcohol just to feel clean again but remembered he had a far more important mission.

"Who are you?" Adam asked when the wood elf approached. The elf seemed familiar but the thief couldn't remember where he'd seen him before.

Truen wanted to vomit, he really did. However, he had enough self-dignity to push that urge down. With the coldest glare, he stretched his hand out, silently demanding Zero's sullied underwear back.

Adam didn't understand it at first but then something clicked. He remembered that wood elf and looked at his underwear. Could it be that the wood elf wanted it back? Surely he could afford to overlook this minor crime of his... after all, he'd done mostly good things with the godly underwear. Without it, Adam would never have been able to fulfil his dreams of becoming a hero.

Still, the wood elf didn't budge. Surrendering to his fate, Adam slowly pulled the underwear down, preparing to hand it over. Truen couldn't help it but lower his eyes over a certain area. He didn't expect Adam to be so obedient and return it upon confrontation. He wanted to scream at the human to stop and find something to cover his exposed bits before handing it over but as the fabric went lower and lower, Truen felt bile rise up his throat.

Advertisements

"AHHHHHHH!"

Truen snapped his eyes open and immediately retched. Whatever rations he ate was thrown up. Thankfully none of the thousands of precious books in Merlin's ancient library suffered damage.

Clammy with sweat and heart still racing, the wood elf looked pulled out his communicator. It was three in the afternoon. He must have fallen asleep after pulling three all-nighters. Sighing in relief, the wood elf thanked his foresight to ask En to place anti-theft enchantments for all of Zero's clothes. Then he tensed up. Did En place any on Zero's underwear? Then again, did the Great Gods enchant any of Zero's underwear? What about socks, ties and wigs?

Paranoid, the wood elf dialled for Gaia. Who knew if that was merely a nightmare or a prophecy? Truen wished it was only paranoia on his end but it was always better to be safe than sorry.

"Hello, Gaia? Yes, I have a favour to ask of you..."

Ball of Nothing

It was nearing that time of the year again for humans. Although the Great Gods didn't celebrate human festivals, they needed an excuse to buy things. Hence, the following heated argument was taking place at Zeus' shrine.

Team Inconspicuous: Hades, Sedna, Gaia

Team Flamboyant: Zeus, Isis, Freya

Team Practical: Buddha, En

"I say we go for dresses," Isis insisted. They could have Truen trick Zero into a secret photo shoot. The last batch of photographs sold out and they made a neat profit from that.

"He needs clothing that will help him fit in with the different civilisations once he begins his travel. None of his current clothing is suitable for keeping a low profile." Hades disagreed much to his brother's displeasure.

"Hades, Zero will attract attention anywhere he goes. If he wore the same as commoners and travellers, he would be targeted by some lowlife and be taken advantage of. Better looking clothes will keep them at arm's length," the Sky God reasoned.

"How about we go for something that Zero can use and enjoy?" Buddha asked and Freya shot him a glare.

"Are you saying that he won't enjoy our gifts?"

"Calm down, Freya. Nobody said that. I'm sure we could just ask Zero what he wants for Christmas..."

Advertisements

"Rejected!" En yelled. He didn't want to let Zero know about their plans. It was meant to be a surprise and En was most confident in his gift.

Sedna raised an eyebrow. En was definitely up to something.

"How about this," Buddha proposed. The fight was getting them nowhere. "We prepare our gifts for Zero as a team. Then, we present it to Zero on Christmas. Depending on which gift Zero likes better, the other teams will have to cover the bills for the winning team. Deal?"

Everyone looked at Buddha with suspicion. Buddha hardly did bets but when he did, he always won. Then again, everyone was confident about their gifts.

"Deal!" Zeus declared and promptly walked out of the meeting, preparing to pay a visit to Grem in La Boutique.

On the other hand, Gaia helped Hades and her sister to prepare for a trip down to Earth.

"When do we start?" En asked Buddha.

The Sage God smiled serenely. "Patience. I'm going to have a talk with Merlin and Hua Tuo. Just be sure to update me about their movements."

King Yama grinned. A gift didn't have to be an object. Those Great Gods had a long way to go.

Grem Lee sneezed. Jen looked at the tailor worriedly. He'd been sneezing a lot since the morning and she feared that he might be under the weather.

The quiet morning ended when three of their shop's VVIPs stepped in through the front door. Startled at their arrival without a call in advance, Jen led them to the inner room and excused herself to get tea while Grem attended to them.

"Great Gods and Goddesses, how may I help you?"

"We're looking for a gift for Zero," Isis explained and Grem nodded. He remembered how they pampered that strange boy with a bottomless appetite. It was quite a handsome profit he earned back then and he looked forward to another business deal.

"How can I help?"

Freya explained about their desire to present Zero with clothes for Christmas and Grem raised a bushy brow. If they were talking about Christmas, children generally liked meeting the legendary Saint who gives presents.

"Is anyone going to be playing Santa?"

Zeus cocked his head to a side. "What's a Santa?"

Neither of the Great Goddesses knew what that was and Grem had to explain in detail about the Christmas tradition while Jen brought the snacks over.

After a long question and answer session, there was a twinkle in Zeus' eye.

"Could we ask you for one more favour?"

Grem felt the chills. However, Zeus was considered a very important customer so he cautiously agreed.

"Please be our Santa and deliver the gifts on our behalf!"

Jen had to stifle a giggle at Grem's horrified expression. Isis and Freya's stares didn't allow the poor gnome to refuse so he had to agree. However, he didn't allow his assistants to go scotfree.

"Jeremy, you'll be playing Rudolf. Jen, you will be playing the worker elf!"

They looked horrified and Jen immediately protested. The look on Grem's face offered no room for negotiation so the pixie reluctantly set to designing their costumes while Grem discussed details about Zero's gifts.

It was simple. Frey and Isis wanted Zero to wear costumes for a photo shoot while Zeus wanted to gift Zero an armour that looked cool.

"For the last time, I'm a clothing designer, not a blacksmith. I can only make cloth armour and not mithril ones. Besides, the magic imbued in all of Zero's clothes are better than any tough looking armour anyone can make out there."

Zeus looked lost. "But... Zero is a man! He can't just wear dresses and wigs. Surely he would like something more masculine..."

Grem pinched the bridge of his nose. Reminding himself that Zeus was still a valuable customer, he took a deep breath and tried to explain again. "I can make clothes in a more masculine fashion. However, I CANNOT make mithril armour with fabric. I can, however, design hero costumes if you want. It is rather popular among children his age."

Zeus considered it for a while. The hero costume that Grem spoke off was meant to be pyjamas. Zeus didn't know if having a hero sleepwear was going to make the boy more masculine but it was better than nothing. Reluctantly, he agreed.

"Could you make a hero costume with a cape?"

Relieved that Zeus was finally asking for something possible, the gnome nodded. In the meantime, Isis and Freya argued over the kind of costumes best suited for Zero. Freya wanted to buy twenty costumes for the secret collection but Isis chided her, claiming that it would make a huge indent in their profits.

"We can only select one each. I'm sure Zero will model for all our gifts so it's pointless to spend a fortune on clothes he would only wear once. Although I don't agree with Sedna and Gaia, I do believe that it has to be something Zero would want to wear."

Freya looked offended. "Are you telling me that he doesn't want to wear stockings?"

Isis deadpanned. "He doesn't like silk ribbon bowties. Do you think he'll enjoy stockings? You heard Truen's report. Zero mostly wore the tracksuit."

"But a tracksuit isn't fancy!"

Isis patted Freya. "We just need to find something that is. How about a uniform? That's popular..."

Freya tried to picture Zero in a school uniform and had to promptly stop her nose from bleeding. "That's so cute! I could almost see those pure white wings and halo behind him... That's it! We're getting an angel outfit with flight abilities."

Isis pulled out a calculator while Grem watched the Great Goddesses debate. Finally, they reached a conclusion and Grem took their orders happily before seeing them out. It was a short notice but if anyone could get it done, it would be the world's best tailor.

"Jen! Jeremy, prepare for work. We're closing the shop for a few days."

Jen readied the fabric and threads. "What are we making, boss?"

The gnome grinned. "One Santa costume - gnome-size XL, one Christmas elf costume - pixie-size M, one Rudolf headband, one Elementary school uniform for boys - human-size M, one Angel Halo and Wings Set - kids size, one Hero pyjamas with cape - human-size M. Designs to be finalised by tomorrow and work to be completed in four days."

Jeremy immediately got to preparing the materials while Jen and Grem started sketching designs. They had no time to lose.

"A party?"

Buddha smiled. Zero was currently out on an errand. "Yes. I've spoken with Merlin and informed Truen about it. They will be coming for Christmas. It's a surprise party to be held at King Yama's mansion in the Purgatory. The Great Gods will be there too."

Hua Tuo hummed. They would make it back before Christmas so it wasn't too much of a worry. "How will we get there?"

"Merlin will open a gateway. Just be prepared for it. Also, the Great Gods seem to be competing about who would get Zero the best gifts. I wouldn't try to compete against them if I were you."

Hua Tuo shuddered. It wasn't rare for the Great Gods to have internal competitions but nobody liked it when that happened. For one, they weren't graceful losers. Freya lashed out and set fire to an entire planet because she lost a bet against Gaia once. Hades' depression caused a never-ending eclipse. Zeus' rage caused thunderstorms and lightning destroyed half a continent. Sedna's tears caused a huge flood. Gaia's fury caused multiple earthquakes for months and Isis' discontent made stars explode.

"Thank you, friend. I'll be sure to keep the schedule open. Are you participating in their bet?"

The Sage God of Enlightenment smiled serenely and said nothing. Hua Tuo shuddered. Buddha was up to no good and he just knew it.

"Well then, see you during the party," Hua Tuo said and hung up promptly. Never bet against Buddha. His enlightenment was a cheating device for gambling and clearly, there wasn't a rule against it.

At a local tavern, three figures in cloaks spoke in low voices.

"Did you find what you wanted?"

Gaia grinned at her sister and produced a small hunting knife. Sedna was impressed. It was well crafted and definitely imbued with enchantments. After hearing from Hua Tuo that Zero was learning how to hunt animals, Gaia had the idea to present Zero his very own hunting knife. It was a practical gift and even Hades couldn't help but approve of it.

"What about the both of you?"

Sedna grinned. She had similar ideas. However, instead of a hunting knife, she'd gotten Zero a portable pill making set. It consisted of magic enchanted mortar and pestle, a mini magical furnace and some measuring scales. Although the idea was originally provided by Hua Tuo, Sedna felt proud that she managed to get the best craftsman to make what the Sage God specified. Ancient Chinese pill making tools were not on this planet so it was difficult to buy any. Fortunately, they were not difficult to replicate.

Hades looked smug. While the Goddesses had great gifts, he had confidence that Zero would like his more.

Recently, he heard from Hua Tuo that Zero enjoyed reading. As such, God of Death went to great lengths to record stories from every library known to them and had Steve compile them into a thin magical reading device. Of course, books were constantly being written and found so it wasn't a complete collection but Hades was still proud of his achievement.

Gaia complained about Hades' gift when she heard it. That was definitely cheating. With the powers of controlling shadows, Hades could collect information at a speed nobody could imagine. The God of Death merely brushed it off and claimed that it was fair. Dinner at the tavern was full of protest from Gaia and Sedna while Hades felt proud at his accomplishments.

Finally, the day of judgement arrived. Although they were feeling confident about their gifts, nobody knew how Zero would react to it. They didn't know if Zero understood the concept of Christmas but it was too late to back out. Grem was on standby and Merlin went to fetch the guest of honour for the party. En looked bored and Buddha was smiling as usual.

When Zero arrived, the first thing he noticed was the people in the room. Sedna welcomed him with her open arms and the brunet quickly jumped into them. Gaia snatched the boy over and cooed when Zero presented her a leaf of the same green as her hair. She was touched when Zero apologised to everyone else. He didn't have gifts for them yet as they were difficult to collect but he promised to find them soon. Isis didn't mind and demanded a hug from the small boy. Freya followed and it took a while before the party could officially begin.

La Boutique worked hard providing for the feast and Zero thoroughly enjoyed every single dish, mindful to leave enough for everyone else. He was most glad to see Truen and couldn't wait to share with his friend about what he learnt.

The wood elf was great at keeping Zero distracted while everyone else readied their gifts. Santa wobbled on his reindeer and Jen had to help steady him before they made their dramatic entrance.

"HO HO HO! Merry Christmas!"

Zero was startled but started laughing when he saw Grem try to enter from the unlit fireplace. Jeremy had to help the gnome out of it when he got stuck halfway. Once Grem finished adjusting his beard, he coughed awkwardly and started to present the gifts.

Zero oohed and ahhed over every gift, trying on the costumes at Freya and Isis' urging. Nobody expected Merlin to gift Zero an amulet and the Great Gods were impressed by how fast he could finalise the magic accumulation device. Steve must have pulled many all-nighters to finish the product on time and Sedna made a mental note to bring good sushi to thank the God of Technology.

By the end of it all, everyone was dying to know which gift Zero liked the best.

It was a nerve-wracking moment when Zero couldn't decide. In the end, his answer made everyone fall over in their minds. However, nobody could hate him for it.

Advertisements

"All of it! I love everything because I love everyone! This is the best Christmas, I promise to bring presents for everybody next Christmas... thank you for this wonderful surprise. I'm so happy..."

Although nobody won, they were satisfied. Christmas was about giving and if anyone had gotten that right, it was Zero. The boy went around giving hugs to everyone, showering them in his love before he had to leave again.

"Merry Christmas!" he yelled before Merlin closed the warp gate.

The words weren't spoken but everyone knew what they would've said if the boy was still around.

Merry Christmas, Zero.

Ball of Nothing

[Author's Announcement: To celebrate the special 100th chapter of BON, I've made a short AU (alternate universe) of Zero and the Great Gods. This is in no way canon and I've received some of your suggestions. Although I'm unable to include everything, I promise that #doctorZero and #worldhoppingZero will be made canon in the coming arcs as pre-planned. With that, please enjoy this chapter.]

It was a day like any other. The sun was shining, the clouds were lazy and the class had full attendance.

Why should Zero be surprised at the shenanigans his kids could pull? The twenty-five-year-old teacher sighed. He really shouldn't be surprised after working for a good number of years in this trade. Yet, these children never failed to surprise him.

Zero had matured quite nicely. He'd gotten a job at Three Sisters Daycare straight after graduation. The owners Murvin, Law and Isaben were kind employers. However, due to their busy careers with Law as a lawyer, no pun intended, Murvin as a business owner of several other cafes and Isaben busy with the administrative matters of Three Sisters Daycare, it was up to Zero, the only teacher for the enrolled preschoolers, to take care of the daily operations.

The other teacher, Mr Zheng, taught older kids but he had a stern feature that scared the younger ones so Zero couldn't possibly ask him for help despite the chaos. Mr Zheng only stood in when Zero called in sick or had to take a day off.

The brunet sighed. With hands on his hips and the strictest expression he could manage, he looked over to the group of still squabbling children.

"Who was it this time?"

It's no surprise that young children created messes. Zero had gotten used to it. However, accidentally creating a mess and deliberately creating one were two very different things. Zero wouldn't be angry over split orange juice if a child tripped. He wouldn't even be mad if they were careless and walked around with a poorly closed bottle cap. It had happened before and Zero never once faulted them for it. However, this was too much! How could Zero ignore the scream of bright colours before him on the wall, floor, furniture and even on all the students in his class?

No, it wasn't orange juice. That would be easy to clean. In fact, it was possible. Zero didn't know if he should start scolding them or crying when he returned only to be greeted by paint on the walls. Someone had the brilliant idea to decorate the plain walls with crayon sketches and then another bright someone suggested painting it. Or that was what Zero gathered from the argument earlier. If Isaben saw this, she would probably faint. Zero didn't want to be the one to break the news to her but he knew he had to. After all, it was his fault for leaving the kids to their own devices for five minutes. He had to answer nature's call badly and trusted that these children knew better than to engage in graffiti. He was sorely mistaken. To think that he thought of them as angels for the past few days for behaving so well too! Zero felt a slap of betrayal but couldn't exactly fault the children. They were young and playful. They couldn't have known better how far their playfulness would turn into harmfulness and it was all Zero's fault. If only he didn't have the bright idea to try adding pepper to pancakes this morning!

"He started it!" a girl with red hair pointed at a bronze-skinned boy with golden hair. Zero looked at Freya's emerald eyes and blinked. He always knew that Freya and Zeus didn't get along particularly well because Zeus didn't allow her to marry his brother Hades when she grew up. They were the class's biggest troublemakers.

Advertisements

Zeus retaliated by pointing a finger back at Freya. "She suggested making the walls look pink! I only coloured them blue after she coloured them pink!"

Zero wanted to cry very badly. Indeed, pink and blue were the colours he saw covering over eighty percent of the vandalism. Knowing how bad Freya and Zeus' fights can get, Zero had to separate them and calmly asked if anyone knew anything else.

Timidly, Sedna raised her hand. Zero couldn't help but feel his anger melt away. Sedna had always been one of the quieter girls. It didn't help that she was also incredibly shy. Whenever Sedna spoke, he had to concentrate very hard to hear what she was saying. The girl had a foreign accent and sometimes it was difficult to understand what she was saying.

"..."

Zero blinked. Turning to her sister with green hair and brown skin, Zero asked Gaia to help with the translation.

"She said that she was sorry for drawing those fishes and painting the floor blue. She only wanted to help make the class prettier and hopes that Teacher Zero isn't mad..."

The twenty-five-year-old daycare teacher didn't know how to respond. On one hand, the children probably meant well and didn't mean to destroy the class. On the other hand, he had to be accountable to the damage done. No amount of denial will fix this.

Isis, a girl with sharp obsidian eyes and olive black hair stood up. Zero pegged her to be the most intelligent student in his class. Isis was always the representative of the class and nominated herself to be the teacher's helper. This time, Isis looked sheepish.

"I'm sorry, Teacher Zero. We were all at fault."

Zero looked at the six students of his class and sighed. The anger left him and now, all that remained was dread. How was he going to tell Isaben about this? It was impossible to hide such a huge incident.

Hades looked at his brother and Freya. Although they didn't show it outwardly, he knew that the two who caused the most damage were extremely remorseful of what they've done. They might argue and fight all the time but if there was a time they didn't, it was when Teacher Zero was involved. Nobody in class wanted to see Teacher Zero angry or sad. They loved seeing a happy Teacher Zero. Recently Teacher Zero seemed slightly sad so they came up with a plan to cheer him up. They wanted to draw many nice things for Teacher Zero but looking at the mess and Teacher Zero's face, they knew they've done just the opposite and made Teacher Zero's day worse.

"Let's help Teacher Zero clean up the mess, shall we?" he spoke up. Immediately, the fire returned to Zeus and Freya's eyes.

"Yes, let's clean up the mess."

For once Zeus and Freya teamed up. Before Zero could stop them, they've dashed off to find buckets and cloth. Isis took it upon herself to distribute cleaning duties to everyone.

"Hades, please check on those two to ensure they do not spill. We also need some soap to get rid of the tougher stains. Gaia, Sedna and I will clean the floor so the three of you will do the walls. Teacher Zero!"

Zero snapped out of his thoughts when he heard Isis. "Yes, Isis?"

"Can you help us with the taller parts of the wall?"

Zero blinked. He didn't know how fast Zeus and Freya were but Isis was already distributing clothes for cleaning. She held out one to him and Zero took it. With a small smile, he nodded his head.

"Sure."

Looking at how earnestly the children were working on the stains, he watched the clean buckets of water turn murky. The smile on his face grew wider. Yes, maybe it was possible after all.

Two very long hours later, Zero looked at the walls and the floor. He was surprised they managed to get rid of every single stain despite the few bucket accidents. All the kids had to shower and change into a fresh set of clothes. They were also out like a light at the moment. Zero went to grab some blankets to cover their small and tired bodies. He looked at how all six of them were huddled together and felt himself yawn too. It wasn't long before Zero joined them in dreamland.

Advertisements

That was how Isaben and Truen came to find them. The class had been unexpectedly silent and they decided to check on them when they stumbled upon the adorable sight.

Unknown to Zero, Truen took a secret photograph of Three Sisters Daycare's idol. Ever since Zero arrived, the daycare flourished. Zero wouldn't know that of course. Nobody dared to tell Zero that the daycare was saved from the verge of bankruptcy by the rich parents of these six special children who listened to nobody but Zero.

One day... maybe one day they'll tell him but for now? The duo closed the door gently and allowed Zero to sleep in a little more. After all, Zero worked hard removing the stains from those walls and floor. Isaben could simply claim the renovating fees from the children's parents but since Zero had taken matters into his own hands and taught the children a very important life lesson, she would allow Zero to sleep on the job just this once. It wasn't every day that Zero slacked on his job. In fact, Isaben thinks that he deserved a good break every once in a while.

With all that's said and done, another day came to an end at Three Sisters Daycare just like any other. No signs of destruction remained and the children left with smiles like always. Zero smiled from the bottom of his heart. Every day was like a blessing for him. He wondered what life would be if he hadn't met them.

"Oh well, I guess that's a thought for another day. Now then, what should I have for dinner? mushroom pasta with goat cheese or pizza with peppermint leaves? Decisions... decisions..."

Merlin and Hua Tuo gave their students a few days together before commencing their individual training. During this period, Merlin decided to pay Buddha a visit.

"How can I help you?" the deceptively calm Sage God greeted the Merlin.

Unimpressed with the greeting, Merlin cut to the chase. He wasn't going to take on a disciple without knowing everything he should know about them. The wood elf had traces of Gaia's magic and Merlin had some guesses. However, Zero was a completely unknown entity. Any living creature would possess some form of life in them. Even rocks and water held mana in them which is a form of life. It was close to impossible for anything to not hold life in this newly created world. Everything was dependent on mana.

"I see you've found out. Very well, I suppose it's only right for the Great Gods to explain this."

Several phone calls later, they decided to meet Buddha and Merlin in the purgatory. En was surprised when he received a phone call from his father but agreed to ready a meeting room for them.

It took several hours before everyone was gathered and Merlin felt slightly nervous. It was rare for Great Gods to gather in one place at any time and even if they did, it wasn't common knowledge. Buddha was one of the Sage Gods closer with the Great Gods and it was no secret that he had dealings with them and knew more secrets about the universe. What Merlin didn't know was how Zero got to know the Great Gods and Goddesses that many feared and revered.

Zeus was first to speak.

"Do you have what it takes to be Zero's mentor? That child is no ordinary child. One wrong move and the universe can be destroyed by him."

Merlin felt sweat drops form at the back of his neck. In the face of the titan, Merlin was like a cat in front of a tiger. He knew that Zero was not an ordinary child, at least not an ordinary human no matter how much he resembled one. His display of magic control was something unheard of. Also, Merlin had never seen anyone or anything that absorbed everything like a void. Zero didn't seem to have any limits and it worried the old wizard when Zeus mentioned that Zero was capable of destroying the universe.

"Zero's control over magic is impressive and even I am not his match. However, I sensed that he is unable to produce mana on his own and Truen is not exactly a wood elf. Gaia's magic is strong on the bodyguard but Zero is something beyond my understanding. How can any living creature or creation not possess life?"

Advertisements

Mother Nature sighed. "Zero is neither dead nor alive. He is merely a consciousness left behind by the Great One who created everything. Even we do not understand this."

Merlin was confused. Every God knew about the one and only creator - the Great One. However, it was said that the Great One went into eternal slumber in the void, never to be found again. How was Zero a consciousness formed after the Great One? It didn't make sense. Besides, how could a consciousness gain a material form? Did that mean Zero was the Great One?

Hades sensed Merlin's questions. "Zero is Great One in a way. However, he is not the same Great One who created the universe. When we first met him, he didn't remember anything about us or how the universe was created. He had no memories except for being awakened by some light. He inherited Great One's memories but he isn't the Great One we knew."

That didn't answer Merlin's questions but at least some of the doubts he had were clarified. "How is he able to use magic but not produce mana of his own?"

At that, even the stone-faced En felt uneasy. Freya once guessed it but nobody could be sure about the reason for Zero's existence. Only Isis had the courage to speak what was on everyone's minds.

"Great One was the creator of everything. We assume that Zero's existence is the exact opposite. Going by this logic, it is only natural that Zero cannot produce mana of his own, he needs to take it from something. Sedna's seed planet Amarania has been destroyed to a crucial extent when Zero first landed. Zero didn't possess a physical body so with the magic of the Great Gods, we managed to create one. Great One wished to travel and observe the beauty of his creations with his own eyes however he fell into slumber before he could manage. Zero now wishes to do the same but he is intrigued by humans. The new God birthed from humans of the old world woke Zero up. We do not know if it is a blessing or a curse. Zero possesses both the power of a destroyer and a creator. We do not know which path he would walk."

Merlin paled. His hands shook and his knees gave way. Feeling weak, he had to lean on the table for support. Buddha watched the old wizard with visible concern. Of course, they understood the pressure Merlin was feeling now that he knew the truth. Being responsible for the universe's fate wasn't something anyone could handle easily.

To lighten the weight of the truth, Sedna smiled. "Don't worry too much. Zero is good-natured at heart. If taught correctly, he would never choose the path of a destroyer. He's proven himself at La Boutique when he chose to help Truen. Zero is both a wise and naive child. He's lived longer than most of us and understand many things that we might never come to know. However, he is unfamiliar with the ways of our lives. We sent Truen to protect Zero's heart but we can't stop Zero from knowing the cruel reality of the world. If you and Hua Tuo are to become their teachers, please guide them well."

Zeus frowned. "We've spoilt Zero too much in the beginning. I'm starting to fear if that was a bad decision on our part. Please teach him all that he needs to know to be strong but kind. Don't mollycoddle them too much. A seed will never sprout without some struggles."

Freya walked over to Merlin and passed him an amulet. "We've heard about the troubles about mana recovery from Truen. It's still a prototype but it should help gather mana from the surroundings constantly as long as Zero wears it. Steve worked hard but we'll need you to test it out. I'm assuming a year is sufficient to get this device perfected?"

Merlin took the amulet and immediately felt the device draining mana from him. "It's draining my mana..."

Gaia chuckled and her hair swayed. "It's made only for Zero after all. The device, according to Steve, will absorb mana from the purest form in a ten-kilometer radius. Here in hell, there is nothing purer than the mana of the Wizard God."

Merlin didn't know if he should be flattered or insulted. Although the device was draining his mana, it wasn't fast enough to deplete his reserves. Merlin held on to the amulet and thanked the Great Gods. Before they left, En passed Merlin something that the wizard would never have expected.

"Pass this to Zero when he graduates."

Merlin looked at the ring on his palm and appraised it. It was very well made and screamed of dwarven craft with ancient elf magic. The wizard didn't know how En got this but he assured King Yama that it will be taken care of. Zero was already proficient in magic control. Merlin didn't know how much faster the young boy could cast with this magic equipment. Zero might very well surpass him and Freya with it. The ring was like a wand that aided magic practitioners to channel their mana outwards. Merlin had a wand of his own and was going to have on forged for both Truen and Zero when they graduated but with the ring, Zero wouldn't need one. Freya mentioned that Truen's bow was enchanted and didn't need one either so the wizard left it at that.

Bidding the Great Gods goodbye, Merlin and Buddha left. The God of Magic sighed. It was quite the meeting and Buddha pitied his fellow Sage God.

"How is Hua Tuo?"

"Fuming. He said he needed your magic circlet for the trouble those brats caused."

Advertisements

Buddha smiled and pretended he never heard anything. "I know that you and Hua Tuo are not on the best of terms but for Zero and Truen's sake, please avoid confrontation. Magic affects the chakra network and qi affects the meridian network. Please don't teach them anything that will block their meridian paths, I assume he would want them to learn the art of cultivating with qi."

Merlin sighed. A living wood spirit in a false elf's body and an existence related to the Great One if not the Great One with severe amnesia himself... what was he agreeing to? Merlin didn't know but he couldn't leave them in a lurch. After all, the Great Gods might not know it yet but Zero has acquired quite the troublesome pet.

"Don't worry too much," he told Buddha. "We're on a truce for now. However, I will have you know that I expect compensation for the two years I have to take off from my research! I heard that Freya is tutoring Truen in the dream dimension. If possible I would like to borrow it. Truen should travel in advance while training in his sleep. Without experience, he can't guide Zero. I'm very sure once the brat learns about adventurers he will insist on becoming one."

Buddha didn't say anything. Secretly, he was glad. Isis, Gaia and Hades had a short meeting with Truen before and Buddha was certain that if given the opportunity, the elf will take his time to establish an unshakable foundation for Zero. He didn't know the details but he knew that the wood elf had a plan. After all, sending out a recruitment post for the strongest and most influential creatures in existence using the name of the Great Gods wasn't something that could be done without careful consideration. The consequences were much too dire and failure isn't an option.

Still, he bade Merlin a silent goodbye and watched as the wizard teleported back to Hua Tuo's tiny home.

It was difficult for Truen to part with his charge and friend. Zero was teary-eyed and although he tried to put on a tough front, the cracks in his mask were very visible. It tore at the wood elf's heart but it had to be done. Truen wasn't too worried because he knew that Zero was very safe with Hua Tuo.

"Don't cry, Zero. We'll meet again in two years. I'll be a lot stronger by then so we can travel to different places. It'll be over before you know it."

The brunet sniffled and blinked those tears away. "Can I call?"

The wood elf looked at his communicator and nodded. He taught Zero how to use the communicator for emergencies. Now, Zero's communicator had new contacts including Truen's. Merlin waved his hand and opened a portal.

"It's time," he told Truen who gave Zero a hug before leaving. Truen didn't look back. He didn't want to see the tears that would probably fall as he left. Hua Tuo was there and it put the elf's mind at ease.

Once the portal disappeared, Hua Tuo allowed Zero some time alone to cry. He decided to start by preparing lunch. The physician would show his young student around his workroom later. After all, they had a year together. Training could wait for a bit.

Lunch was simple. Some fish soup, mushroom, rice, mountain vegetables and preserved fruits. Zero ate them without tasting. Mii was silent that day, leaving the poor boy alone with his thoughts. When he ran away from Truen, he didn't feel as if the elf was very far away. However, after Truen left with Merlin, the young boy couldn't help but feel a sense of emptiness inside. They still had the communicator but knowing that Truen wouldn't be with him at night made it a little harder to smile.

The solemn change didn't go unnoticed by Hua Tuo. The old doctor sighed. It certainly wasn't easy. Parting, regardless of age, is always a sad affair. For Zero who had barely 'lived' a year, having to bear two partings could leave a scar in his heart. Hua Tuo wanted to fill that void in his student's heart but he wasn't Truen or the Great Gods.

"Zero, do you want to help gather food for dinner?"

Advertisements

Hua Tuo's question effectively shifted the focus away from those sad thoughts. Seeing that it was effective to keep the boy busy, Hua Tuo began dishing out chores to be done. Zero didn't know if it counted as training but he did as he was told.

After doing the dishes and cleaning up, it was time to go foraging. Hua Tuo packed some ropes and a small knife in a hand-woven straw basket. He told Zero to follow closely as they went into the forest. The young boy was fascinated as Hua Tuo explained about some plants they passed by, tossing some of them into the huge basket. There were leaves, stems, mushrooms and fungus that Hua Tuo explained were edible. The physician even plucked a few flowers to let Zero try. It had a sweet taste and Hua Tuo explained that they could be used as medicine.

Time passed very quickly when Zero was having fun. Hua Tuo allowed Zero to climb trees and steal eggs. They were chased by bears when they tried to get some honey but Hua Tuo assured Zero that they could try again sometime in the future when the bear wasn't around. The doctor taught Zero how to differentiate the poisonous from edible mushrooms. Although the brunet didn't get everything right, he was doing quite well on the first day. Hua Tuo was pleased that he had such a bright student. When the sun was going down, they started making their way back. Zero was tired after walking for hours but the trace of sadness from the morning was nowhere to be seen.

Hua Tuo readied the bath for Zero while he prepared dinner. It was a fairly simple dinner with fried eggs, mushroom stir-fry, rice and vegetable soup. Zero loved the mushroom stir-fry and Hua Tuo promised that he could learn how to cook in due time.

When bedtime arrived, Zero was surprised that Hua Tuo wouldn't join him in the lamp. Instead, the doctor pulled out the extra straw mattress and beckoned for Zero to sleep with him. Without hesitation, Zero snuggled into the straw mattress. Although it wasn't as comfortable as the bed in the lamp, Zero didn't mind. He liked having company.

Just before he turned in, Zero called Truen. Hua Tuo made an excuse to put away some things outside, leaving Zero some privacy, not that the boy minded.

Three rings later, Truen picked up the call.

"Hello?" The wood elf greeted, sounding deflated. Zero was slightly surprised but shook it off quickly. Merlin must be a really strict teacher for Truen to sound so tired.

"It's Zero!"

Hearing the angelic voice, all the fatigue vanished. Truen smiled as Zero babbled about his day from what he ate to what he did. As Truen listened, he bandaged his arm. Merlin had returned to his lab after ditching him in a dungeon. Truen did everything he could to reach the ancient library that the wizard spoke off. In that library, many books about magic remained. All Truen needed to do was read every single tome in there. Merlin claimed that Truen was able to learn new spells as there were grimoires among those books and the wood elf didn't doubt it. He didn't point out how Merlin was ditching his responsibility as a teacher. In fact, he enjoyed the newfound freedom very much. Truen was finally able to study and develop at his own pace. The wizard merely told him to call him if there was something he didn't understand. However, nobody told Truen that the dungeon would be occupied by vicious bug-like monsters that could spew acid and poison their prey. Truen had to fight tooth and nail using everything Freya had taught him to get past them. He barely made it to the safety of the ancient library when Zero called.

"Truen?"

"Yes, Zero? I'm here."

"I miss you."

The wood elf's heart melted at that statement. Zero's honesty and purity was a combination deadly enough to kill anyone with his cuteness. Instead of brushing it off, Truen smiled.

"I miss you too. I hope you're having fun learning new things from Hua Tuo."

The brunet's enthusiastic answer was enough to put Truen's mind at ease. Then, he remembered something very important.

"Zero, answer me honestly. Have you brushed your teeth before going to bed?"

There was a long pause and Truen frowned. He knew where this was going and it was something he'd feared before leaving. He did warn Hua Tuo about Zero's tendency to squirm away from things he disliked. Truen repeatedly insisted that Hua Tuo exercise firmness when dealing with Zero's tantrums but he didn't know if the physician would actually follow through it.

"Zero," there was a hint of warning in the wood elf's voice and Zero groaned.

"I'll brush them tomorrow, promise!"

"Zero!"

Zero whined and the pseudo mother had half the mind to scour the library for a long-distance teleportation magic just to ensure that Zero brushed his teeth before bed.

"I know..." Zero conceded at last. "I'll brush them now. Hua Tuo has my toothbrush... I have to go to the river so I'll end the call now. Good night!"

Advertisements

Relieved, Truen bade the boy good night and ended the call. It appears as if the first day of separation went well. At least Zero wasn't bawling his eyes out and for that, he had Hua Tuo to thank.

Just before Truen got to reading the books, he sent Merlin a short text to inform the irresponsible magician that he'd arrived. Truen requested for some supplies while he studied from Gaia before texting Isis to put dream training on hold. Last but not least, the wood elf sent Hua Tuo a short message, thanking the doctor and warning the doctor about some of Zero's bad habits like not washing behind his ears during a bath. Satisfied, the wood elf returned to the mountainous task before him.

Standing in front of him was at least a hundred bookcases that towered above him. The wood elf estimated that there were at least fifty thousand books before him. He wondered how long it would take him to finish everything. Taking out the enchanted glasses that Merlin loaned him, Truen walked over to the nearest shelf and picked out the first book.

The journey starts with a single step and Truen started by flipping it open to the first page. The wood elf was sure he didn't know any ancient languages but with the help of Merlin's enchanted glasses, reading Dragon-tongue was no problem.

In less than fifteen minutes, the first book was completed. Although Truen had read it with the speed reading enchant, the new information took a lot longer to process. By the time Truen understood everything in the book, an hour flew past. Shaking his head, the wood elf frowned. Unlike Zero, he wasn't off to a good start. What a mess!

Zero was cranky. Hua Tuo didn't seem to know what sleep meant. The old doctor woke him up before the sun was up and made him brush his teeth again. The brunet held his complaints because he saw how serious the physician was. It made him think that their true training had begun and in a way, it might have.

After washing up, Zero found himself being led to the fields. Glancing at the sleeping crops, he wondered if they were going to learn how to farm. Instead, Hua Tuo did something completely unexpected. The old man struck a pose.

"Follow me," he urged and the young boy wondered if there was a point in dancing at the crack of dawn. Nevertheless, he didn't question it and obeyed.

The physician didn't explain what he was doing and it was slightly hard to follow Hua Tuo's strange exercise but Zero did it to the best of his ability. Hua Tuo didn't criticize the movements but instructed and corrected Zero's method of breathing throughout. This routine lasted for about an hour with the two of them moving throughout five different forms. The boy couldn't understand why they had to do it but didn't ask anything until it was over.

Breakfast tasted even better than yesterday after a tough morning and Zero savoured it humbly. Hua Tuo made rice porridge with some pickled vegetable on the side.

"What was that?" Zero finally asked after they cleared the table. He brought the dishes to the river and watched as the old doctor cleaned.

"It's called qi gong, an ancient Chinese martial art founded by me in the old world. It's meant to increase the quality of life in humans and if cultivated right, would allow humans to accomplish incredible feats."

Zero didn't quite understand it but nodded anyway. "Will we do that every morning before the sun comes up?"

Hua Tuo smiled. "Do you mind waking up early to learn?"

Again the child nodded. "It's not good to wake up so early. I'm still sleepy. Why do we have to do it before the sun comes up?"

Advertisements

Hua Tuo chuckled at the boy's response. "It's actually better to wake up early. It makes you rest early at night and gives you more daylight to work on other things. Another reason why we practice it before sun up is because that period of dawn is a perfect balance of the yin and yang. Balance is very important for cultivators."

Yin? Yang? What were those? Zero was lost but couldn't ask any more when Hua Tuo finished rinsing off the last plate. His small mind was boggled with big questions but he couldn't find the right time to ask Hua Tuo who was once again busy. He didn't understand how someone who lived in a mountain with nothing much in his possession had so much to do. Secretly, he suspected that his teacher was a workaholic.

The morning after breakfast was spent tending to the fields. As Hua Tuo made his rounds, Zero tottered behind carrying the basket while Hua Tuo harvested matured plants with a sickle or pulled them out with his bare hands. He explained each and every herb to Zero in detail with their name and their uses. Occasionally, he would test his apprentice and check if Zero understood.

"Grandpa...?"

"It's master to you, brat!"

"Why is this called milkweed? It doesn't produce milk does it?"

Hua Tuo blinked. Then, he reached out to the plant and plucked it. "Hold out your hand," he told Zero who complied.

The brunet watched as some white and sticky substance oozed from the broken stem. Zero grimaced and Hua Tuo chuckled.

"You should try it," the doctor encouraged.

Without suspecting anything, Zero tried it and immediately, Mii went into red alert. Zero was poisoned!

Shocked, Zero looked at Hua Tuo who continued to smile. Then, the brunet began to frown. What was his teacher trying to do? Although Zero couldn't die from poison, the shock of having his teacher intentionally have him eat poison left him doubtful.

"How was it?"

"You tried to poison me."

Hua Tuo was impressed. He didn't think that Zero would be able to know the effects of milkweed poisoning so soon. Besides, Zero consumed too little of it to be of any real harm. At most, the boy would experience the runs although Hua Tuo has never seen Zero use the lavatory. It's as if he didn't need it.

"Every plant here is poisonous. Did you forget?"

Zero paused. He seemed to remember Truen cautioning him against Hua Tuo and now he deeply regretted not taking his friend's advice.

The look on Zero's face made Hua Tuo chuckle. "Well, it's only poison for the people who do not know how to use it. In fact, milkweed is used to cure many problems such as asthma and constipation. Its uses are many and is a very important herb that can save lives if used right."

Zero was doubtful but as Hua Tuo explained how every plant in his field was both good and bad, he mentioned something that got Zero thinking.

"Just like my plants, every human can be both good and bad. That's why yin will always exist with yang. I believe the same goes for you. Nothing in this world is good or bad. It is the person deciding how something should be used or done that makes it good or bad."

"How does that apply to the exercise in the morning? Do we really have to wake up that early? It's not even lunch but I'm sleepy already..."

Hua Tuo shook his head. Young ones these days don't have the tenacity to tough it out. It's such a pity too.

"You'll get used to it. Also, there is more to yin and yang than medicine. I believe Merlin would call it two sides of a coin. In any case, this world is made up of balance. When there is good, there is evil. When there is madness, there is sanity. Everything is a cycle to maintain that perfect balance of harmony."

Zero hummed. He didn't understand much but Hua Tuo didn't look like he wanted to cause harm for real so Zero forgave him.

"Please tell me beforehand should you decide to poison me... Mii is running circles in my head. It's a little hard to stop her from materialising and kicking you in the face as she puts it..."

The medicine god chuckled and decided that they should head back to prepare for lunch.

After lunch, Hua Tuo took out some books and taught Zero how to read them. The brunet was amazed when Hua Tuo revealed that he was the author of such difficult books. There were several volumes and every page was filled with details about all the plants that Hua Tuo knew existed, including their pictures and description of what illness they could cure. Many of them were poisonous but Hua Tuo had written the method of preparation to extract the poison to make them life-saving medicine. It took about two hours for Zero to learn how to read and Hua Tuo never left him until Zero could read fluently and independently. The doctor then went outside to check on the herb preparations while Zero lost himself in the world of medicine.

Dinner rolled by quickly and Zero helped Hua Tuo gather ingredients in the forest. Hua Tuo was impressed with how fast Zero learnt and was amazed when the boy spotted some rare delicacy. They were going to have bird's nest soup in the near future thanks to Zero. As thanks, the doctor made a special dessert that had Zero craving for more.

"Hawthorn fruits are good for digestion. However, if you have too much of it they can upset your stomach and give you gastric."

Zero pouted but agreed that it was a long day. He yawned and pulled out the bed but Hua Tuo stopped him. The reprimanding looks made Zero smile sheepishly before he grabbed the toothbrush and hurried to the river.

Hua Tuo shook his head at the young boy's childish antics. It was too soon for him to be venturing the world and the doctor wasn't sure if Zero could manage in two years. He did intend to bring Zero out for more exposure sometime in the future. He traded once every few months in a small human village and they would be travelling in a few weeks. He only hoped that bringing Zero there would be a good opportunity to let the boy know more about what was normal and what wasn't.

Advertisements

Truen groaned. Isis was quick to provide whatever he needed for studies. However, his physical limits had become the bottleneck for his progress. He didn't know how Zero was doing because Hua Tuo sent a text saying the kid was knocked out like a light. Apparently, Zero wasn't a morning person but that was soon going to change.

The wood elf munched on the tasteless dried rations and wondered if there was a more effective way to do this. He was analysing his limits. To finish all the books in a year was impossible at his current rate of progress but Merlin wanted it to be done in half a year. Clearly, the wizard wasn't joking when he said that and it got Truen thinking. Surely eight books a day wasn't how it was meant to be. There must be some kind of secret to reading and understanding faster. Mana regeneration was not a problem; the glasses didn't consume much. However, what was a real problem was Truen's lack of ability to multitask. If only there was a way to get one part of his mind thinking and analysing what his eyes were reading and another part simply consuming information...

"That's it!" The wood elf got to his feet immediately. He whipped out the communicator and was so glad that it had a lot of functions.

Tapping on the note function, he started scanning the titles of books and recording it. There were many books and this could prove to be a very good investment of time or a very bad one. Truen was taking a gamble here but in such a vast library, it was his best bet.

Truen ate when he starved and slept when his eyes could no longer focus. Other than that, he was focussed on the task at hand: To record the title of every book.

Three days passed and the wood elf was finally beginning to see the fruit of his labour. Information was power. Without knowing what kind of books there were, Truen would be wasting a lot of time slogging over something that could be done using a shorter route. He was done with forty-odd thousand books and the wood elf came to realise something. If he prioritised the kind of magic to learn, he could exponentially increase his speed of information processing.

For instance, there was a book that taught multiple casting which is related to parallel thinking. It's a passive skill learnt by magicians for high-tier casting. Often, high-tiered magic had to be prepared beforehand in the form of sacrifice, magic circles or chanted by a group of magicians. However, few demigod magicians were able to pull off multiple casting without chants. That was due to their ability to think parallelly.

Many thought that parallel thinking was an innate ability only available to demigods. However, after scanning through the titles, Truen deduced that it wasn't true, Parallel Thinking was a skill that could be trained and cultivated to a certain extent. He took a few hours from recording titles to read the basic theories about parallel thinking for there were only a handful of books about that topic. The wood elf had an inkling that this was his key to resolving the information overload bottleneck.

Parallel Thinking can be trained to a certain extent. As explained in one of the books, the ability to think will depend on the number of limbs or body parts a creature could control at any one time. Hence, insects were usually better at it if they evolved into demons who could learn magic. The chances of that happening were rare but there were cases of Demon Lords recorded in books. They single-handedly wiped out nations and many heroes had to be sacrificed to save many species from genocide.

Having said that, humans can generally master from two to fourteen levels of Parallel Thinking. Every level requires a certain minimum level of intellect and that was the second physical limitation. In the past, mana regeneration was decided on birth. There was no way for anyone who isn't sensitive to mana to progress. However, after the Age of Magicians, many races found ways to overcome that barrier by fusing magic with technology or dark arts. The secret in acquiring more Parallel Minds lies in the progression of technology.

Alchemy was the key to that solution and it wasn't found until much later. There were cases of human minds reaching up to ten Parallel Minds with the aid of machines and equipment. Some humans were able to exceed that limit but they were rare. Arithmetic was something invented by humans to compete with the other species in terms of physical limitations. Humans had lesser limbs to control as compared to beast folks or elves. They did not have well-honed instincts to guide them into achieving a higher level of multi-levelled thinking. However, with arithmetic, alchemists were born. These magicians specialised in increasing intellect through brain exercises. After a certain level of high-speed arithmetic was attained, these alchemists found that they could access a higher level of Parallel Thinking without much effort. With gnome and dwarves coming to help them create new mana infused equipment, alchemists discovered that false limbs counted as limbs and were able to surpass the physical limits of fourteen Parallel Minds.

Truen was in a body of a wood elf but he was in actual fact a living wood spirit. Limbs didn't apply to him and he was glad that human alchemists discovered a way to overcome the natural disadvantage. His first aim was to master Parallel Thinking. If he had more Parallel Minds, he was able to free up more time to read instead of analysing. With that goal in mind, the wood elf got to work.

Before he knew it, Zero was waking up before Hua Tuo could get to him. He didn't need Mii's reminder either and it was a huge sign of improvement. The brunet got up and was becoming more familiar with the strange exercises. Hua Tuo was pleased to see his apprentice learning so quickly. He was initially worried about not being able to prepare Zero sufficiently before their travels but his worries were for nought. Hence, the teacher began correcting Zero's stances while they went through the routine.

Advertisements

It was tiring but Zero felt as if his body was becoming stronger each time he did that strange exercise. He no longer felt so fatigued and was brimming with energy throughout the day. Hua Tuo had him fetch water from the river five times in heavy buckets to tend to the fields. Zero's arm ached badly yesterday but after a good night's rest, he was back to normal.

Hua Tuo was impressed when he tested his apprentice about what he'd read and understood. The physician estimated that Zero would have completed his theory study by the next week. He was eager to start on the practical lessons but reminded himself to take things one step at a time. Zero was very new to things and the physician didn't want to overwhelm the poor kid.

On the other hand, Zero was enjoying himself. He heard from Hua Tuo that Truen was very busy and that Merlin was a very strict teacher. So instead of calling his friend, Zero learnt how to take pictures and write short messages. Often, it was about what he ate or the strange plants he read about. Occasionally, it was about what they found in the forest. Zero thought he'd seen it all when foraging in the same forest but he was amazed when they found a new kind of bird the other day. It was the first time Zero hunted anything apart from fish and he was thrilled. Hua Tuo taught him how to make a basic trap using grass, leaves, ropes and branches. It turned out to be a royal pheasant and Zero enjoyed it.

Today, they discovered that the waterwheel was broken and had to fix it. Hua Tuo wasn't good at fixing things so Zero had to call for some help. Luckily, Buddha was able to offer some advice. It took them half a day to fix it so Zero did not have much time to read.

"What's the waterwheel for?"

Hua Tuo grinned. "It serves many purposes. Firstly, it fills up this well here which we can use to fill this tank to store water for when the river dries. Secondly, it helps to make medicine powder or flour for noodles. Lastly, we can use it to grind beans and make bean curd. Of course, if Steve was here, he would set it up as a power generator but there isn't a need for it since your communicator is mana consuming."

Zero raised his brow. "So this is used for food? We spent half a day fixing this for food?"

Hua Tuo coughed and looked away. He didn't want to admit it but he was craving some noodles very badly.

"Well, I'm sure you will come to understand the importance of a waterwheel one day. How does homemade noodle sound?"

Zero drooled. Hua Tuo's food was usually simple but tasty. Homemade noodles sounded more complicated to make and he was dying to find out how they tasted.

"What do we need to do?"

Hua Tuo grinned. "Do you want to try foraging and hunting for ingredients on your own today?"

The brunet grinned. "Can I catch pheasant again?"

Hua Tuo chuckled and patted the boy fondly. "You're not tired of eating birds? There are other creatures in the forest that you can hunt. For starters, there are forest rabbits..."

Zero beamed and asked if they were delicious. Hua Tuo thought about it. Rabbit stew was always good. However, with noodles, boar sounded better. "How about hunting pygmy boars? Rabbits don't make good noodle broth."

Zero saluted. "Yes, sir!"

Before Hua Tuo could stop him, the young boy was gone. The doctor sighed. Zero was a brilliant student. He soaked up everything Hua Tuo taught like a sponge and there was nothing that Hua Tuo needed to repeat for Zero to remember. Normally, those who were good at remembering often do not understand the words they've memorised. Hua Tuo had seen his fair share of empty-headed academics while he was human. He thought Zero would turn out to be like one of them but after testing his apprentice, he found out that it wasn't the case. Zero may be inexperienced but his ability to understand how things worked quickly was astounding. It was so easy to forget that Zero was an existence even older than the Great Gods with his childishness.

With Zero gone, Hua Tuo was now free to make his report back to Sedna about his apprentice's progress. He also wanted to know how Truen was doing on Merlin's side to prepare for his next student.

"Hua Tuo?"

"Yes, Sedna. I just sent Zero out on an errand. He's a surprisingly fast learner."

The goddess laughed. "Oh, just wait till he gets comfortable enough with you. That boy is inquisitive and will stop at nothing until he got his answers. I heard that you taught him how to read and write? He never texted us without Truen around."

Hua Tuo grinned. "I'm not very good at common language but I can at least teach him the basics. I'll be counting on Freya or someone else to guide him about the etiquettes of speaking. Don't want him to end up offending royalties or something."

Sedna nodded. Indeed, Hua Tuo was not the right person to teach Zero about such things. The Sage God was a renowned hermit who hardly interacted with anyone. Zero's education could suffer without proper interaction.

"I do intend to take him with me on my trip to the village though. He should have some hands-on experience when it comes to preparing medicine and diagnosing ailments. I have not taught him first aid yet, he's still studying the theory for now."

Sedna smiled. "Don't forget to scold him when he needs it... I heard from Truen that Zero still doesn't willingly brush his teeth?"

Hua Tuo sighed. Although Zero didn't like it, he didn't cause more trouble than he could. There was always that sulky face but Zero would always brush them without fail when Hua Tuo reminded him.

"It's not that bad," the physician defended. "Then again, isn't it normal for children to dislike these things? He doesn't hate vegetables and that's a good thing. However, I find it strange that he never needs the lavatory."

"Oh, that! Yes, we figured that Zero's body doesn't function the way as normal humans although we fashioned it after one. His body absorbs what it needs and everything else is converted into mana energy. He doesn't have a mana limit so it just keeps going. It's also the reason why Zero can effortlessly use high-tier spells without limit. He just burns through the accumulated mana and it is something Merlin and Steve are working to address."

"Is it alright to teach him healing magic in this case?" Hua Tuo asked worriedly. He didn't know about Zero's special constitution and was concerned about the side effects. Zero could not naturally recover mana and healing magic was one of the most mana consuming art.

Sedna thought for a while. "Is it possible to put that on hold for now? I'll have to check if the device for mana regeneration is ready. How long do we have before you teach him healing magic?"

Advertisements

Hua Tuo mentally estimated the time required. He thought that he would start teaching Zero healing magic early because it required very fine control but after hearing from Merlin and Sedna, he could probably push the date back by a few months.

"I estimate about half a year. Can the device be ready by then? Also, is there any other way for Zero to accumulate huge reserves of mana for practice?"

Sedna sighed. "Unless we count destroying a planet as an option, I doubt it. We can take Zero to La Boutique to eat once every month so I hope that helps."

Hua Tuo nodded. "That works too. I have to get dinner ready so I'll call you again next week after he finishes his theory studies."

Sedna smiled and ended the call. Hua Tuo folded the ends of his long baggy sleeves and looked at the sack of grains. It was time to put his skills to the test. Thankfully, the waterwheel was fixed. He had a growing boy to feed and disappointing his apprentice's appetite was out of the question.

Merlin was quite proud of the wood elf for finding out his secret lesson. It turns out that Truen had a good head on his shoulder, worthy of being Merlin's apprentice.

The wizard was initially reluctant to take on an apprentice other than Zero because many magicians back when he was a human often lacked the ability to create. They were power crazy and full of snobbishness that Merlin couldn't stand. The brightest of his students back then worked for riches and fame instead of the crown and for the future generations. He was sick of that. As a Sage God, he knew just how ugly humans could be. Truen may be a living wood spirit in a wood elf's body now. However, Merlin wasn't fooled. Truen was once human and a leopard never changes its spots.

Watching his apprentice struggle day and night, trying to understand the books way beyond his intelligence was amusing. The wizard didn't think much about it, deciding that Truen would quit in a few days and beg the Great Gods for help.

Truen did ask the Great Gods for a favour but it wasn't what Merlin had anticipated it to be. Instead of feeling discouraged, Truen became twice, if not more, determined. Reading the few thousands of books in the ancient library would take many lifetimes. To understand them, it took many more. Merlin painstakingly built it up over the centuries of research. He didn't expect Truen, who was merely an ordinary existence, to find the loophole in his request.

Merlin gave him a year to finish reading everything. However, the wizard thought that it would take the wood elf at least a few good months to figure out that something wasn't right and a few good months more to understand the hidden lesson behind the impossible task. Of course, he had no intentions of teaching the wood elf more than he had to. After all, the deal was for Zero and not his ordinary bodyguard. Merlin intended to give Truen a crash course with the space-time technology before he let the wood elf go. For Truen to grasp the hidden lesson so quickly and efficiently, Merlin saw promise and his blood was set on fire once more.

Truen had a nightmare. Nobody knew what the contents were but En worried about him. Was the wood elf pushing himself too hard? He knew that Merlin was an eccentric person who was hard to get along with. His fastidious attitude and tendency to demand perfection was enough to drive anyone up the wall. Could it be that Merlin was bullying Truen? King Yama wanted very much to interfere but he had been warned by his mothers not to. Truen had to overcome this by himself and the best that En could do was provide moral support when the wood elf needed it. When the wood elf finally called his mother, En couldn't help but ask for details.

"It looks like he's had quite the nightmare, poor thing. He asked us to check if Zero's underwear had any enchantments and if they were blessed with anti-theft enchants."

En raised a brow. He remembered the horrible image Truen painted for him. King Yama had been thorough about putting anti-theft enchants to all of Zero's clothes. He was a meticulous person and not a single piece of clothing escaped him. En remembered enchanting even the socks and hat that Zero owned even if they weren't enchanted with heaven-defying powers. King Yama was known for many things and paranoid was one of them so he checked everything three times before giving the good to go.

"It's fine," he told Gaia. "I'm certain of it. I checked everything thrice before they left. So, how are they?"

The Nature Goddess hummed with a troubled look on her face. "Zero's doing rather well. However, it's Truen I worry about. That child pushes himself way too hard. I'm starting to think that we should have sent him more than just energy replenishing rations."

Advertisements

En had similar thoughts. Freya and Isis went all out, troubling the best chefs to make nutritious and long-lasting rations for Truen as he requested. However, they were beginning to think that it was a mistake. The wood elf abused it to keep himself awake for nights on end, neglecting the need to rest by forcing the regenerative abilities in Gaia's avatar to work overtime.

Truen only fell asleep in the first place was because he had exhausted all the mana in his body, forcing it into a comatose state. Neither En nor Gaia could bear to see Truen suffering but they promised not to interfere with Merlin's lessons. The wizard may be a grouch but he understood what tough love was. Mollycoddling the young ones wouldn't make them grow and he had his reasons.

"We can only continue to root for him," Gaia told her son as they continued to watch over Truen for a little longer.

"What herb can aid in fever relief?"

"Viola flower!"

"What are the uses for wolfberry?"

"Treating heart, kidneys, nervous system, immune system, improve eyesight, relieve joint pains and improve digestion!"

Hua Tuo was impressed as he put the book down. Zero was a brilliant student. After slightly over a week, Zero approached Hua Tuo after lunch claiming that he had finished reading. Zero didn't slack off and the doctor was pleased when he tested the boy's understanding. Now that his apprentice had all the theory down to a pat, it was time to start on something practical.

Hua Tuo heard from Gaia about his other disciple's progress. He didn't spoil Zero but he thought that Merlin was being much too harsh. Truen collapsed from mana exhaustion because Merlin gave him an impossible time frame to finish his first task. Hua Tuo considered himself a good judge of character and knew that Truen was a man of his words. He couldn't interfere with how the wizard treated his students but he could at least provide some aid towards Truen's progress.

"Zero, how do you feel about learning how to make medicine?"

The brunet perked up at the mention of something practical. He was sick of hunting and cooking as the only form of physical activity. Other than the morning exercise, Zero spent the rest of his day buried in books. He couldn't wait to get into something new and Hua Tuo chuckled. The boy simply couldn't wait to put his new pill making kit to use. Hua Tuo didn't blame him. It was a good pill making kit.

"Follow me," he told the boy. Zero didn't protest and hopped after the physician to his workroom.

There were many tools and herbs. In fact, Zero had a hard time telling one apart from another because they looked so different from the ones in the field. After accompanying Hua Tuo to tend the fields for a week, Zero was quite confident in his abilities to identify them. After seeing the plants in their processed form, Zero wasn't too sure about it.

"Don't worry too much about it for now. It's common for physicians to keep stock of their herbs. You'll be familiarised with this inventory very soon. The small cabinets are labelled, you can find the herbs you need there. Most of them are well stocked but if you discover any running low, let me know. I'll teach you how to prepare the herbs when it happens. For now, we're going to be making mana recovery pills."

Zero raised a brow. Hua Tuo didn't like magic so why would he decide to craft mana recovery pills of all things?

"While it doesn't work for you, this pill is helpful for many. It rejuvenates the tired organs and stimulates the meridians to absorb more energy. When that happens, the chakra pathways are free to recover mana rapidly in a short period of time."

The brunet nodded and absorbed everything that his teacher was saying. he paid close attention to every single action in detail and soon made his first batch of pills.

Hua Tuo inspected the quality of the pills Zero made and found it to be satisfactory. Although Zero's craft wasn't as good looking as his, Hua Tuo had no doubts that the hardworking boy would improve over time.

"Very good for your first try. Now, all we need to do is let them dry under the sunlight for a few days before they are ready."

Advertisements

Zero beamed. He couldn't wait to see the finished pills. It was a lot of fun today as Hua Tuo explained how pills were made and the different types they could try. The toughest part of pill making was definitely the grinding. Zero's arms hurt from rolling and pounding the herbs into a paste. He did enjoy rolling the paste into little balls together with Hua Tuo after all that sweat-inducing work. Zero tried a little of what he made and decided that the honey was a very important ingredient when it came to pill making. He couldn't imagine eating pills without the sweetness of honey because it was very bitter with a strong aftertaste lingering.

"Normally, pills without honey are made because honey is expensive. Water is commonly used as well as seed oil instead of animal fat oil. We're only using honey and animal fat oil today because we had some extras from hunting the pygmy boar. I normally use arrowroot for my pills because it has bonus health benefits but any starch can be used for pills. Corn, potato, yam, wheat and rice are some of the substitutes that can be used."

Zero noted that down in his communicator. He would definitely love to try them out in the near future if Hua Tuo allowed him to experiment.

"The pills can be roasted for faster drying if honey is not used, it's a common trick many pharmacists use when they needed pills to be mass produced. Of course, I wouldn't encourage it as the effectiveness of the herbs would be drastically reduced. However, it is sometimes required to be done especially when there is an epidemic..."

As Hua Tuo continued his lecture, Zero found himself wondering if he could become a doctor as great as Hua Tuo. The world of medicine sounded interesting and he wanted to see more new plants, meet more new people, treat more illnesses while travelling to new places.

---

Chapter 97: Training (5)

A month passed in a blink of an eye. Right now, Zero was concentrating hard. The sun was hot but he tried his best to ignore it. He had a task at hand that required everything he had.

He couldn't decide which batch of pills he made was the best. After tasting sixty-nine different batches of pills, Zero stared at almost seventy small pill bottles. They were made using different methods and ingredients but Zero only wanted the best. The honey ones were great tasting but they were not good for fast effects. The fast effects weren't long-lasting and had a quick expiry date. The long expiry-date pills lacked freshness and those that had all of the above wasn't practical to produce in quantity.

Zero only wanted the best because it was going to be a gift for his best friend who was working hard in some place far away. Zero wanted to give Truen a gift but couldn't decide which batch of pills were the best. His skills were definitely improving and his pills looked good. Zero even tried making chewable pills look like little animals. Hua Tuo was amused when Zero made a pill that resembled the Great Gods. They were too small for any details but the main characteristics were there. Sedna had a tail, Zeus was half naked, Hades wore a cloak, Freya had red hair - yes, Zero used some food colouring for it, Isis had her signature sharp eyes and Gaia looked like a tree lady. Buddha and En received some too. The Sage God was pleased to see his peaceful expression and bead-like hair. King Yama was touched even though he wasn't sure if he looked as scary as he did. Still, they enjoyed the gifts immensely.

"Why don't you make character pills for Truen as well?" Hua Tuo suggested. His apprentice had been mulling over the matter for two hours now. Normally, he wouldn't tolerate time wasting. However, today was an off-day so it was fine. Zero didn't skimp on morning exercises or tending to the fields so Hua Tuo closed one eye.

Zero sighed. "I couldn't make nice looking character pills... it's difficult to make Truen shaped pills..."

The physician had to stifle a chuckle. He'd taken a peek at Zero's work in progress. Truen pills were indeed harsher than King Yama pills. While King Yama looked like a menacing child, Truen looked like a child-eating monster. Zero was right about that but Hua Tuo couldn't blame him. After all, it was hard to replicate green eyes and elf ears with dark skin without making it look like a creature from hell.

Zero sighed once more. He didn't know what to do after exhausting all his options. He didn't want to give his best friend a failed product but at this rate, he might just have to. Over the call with Isis, the goddess let it slip that Truen was often mana exhausted. Although Zero learnt how to make different pills for various illnesses like cough, fever and digestion related issues, he felt compelled to master the art of mana replenishing pills.

Zero flopped onto the ground, not minding the heat and dirt. The pills laid spread out on a sheet under the sun, taunting Zero about his failures. The boy gave a groan and slammed his head against the rock beside him. Zero wasn't hurt by that action but Hua Tuo swore he heard the rock crack a little.

Coughing to get his apprentice's attention, Hua Tuo suggested that they try to make the pills together.

"You will help me?"

Advertisements

Hua Tuo grinned. "On one condition."

Zero immediately became wary. The physician has been pestering him about holding knives and needles but Zero refused. He didn't want to hurt innocent animals. Hua Tuo claimed that acupuncture and surgery will make them better but Zero highly doubted that. You couldn't make someone feel better by hurting them.

The doctor sighed. "You won't hurt them, I promise. I can prove that to you, I'll stick needles in my own arm."

Zero hesitated. Although he didn't want animals to get injured, it didn't mean he wanted to see Hua Tuo get hurt because of him. "No, I'll do it. You can stick needles in my arm instead. If it really is true, I'll learn how to do acupuncture and surgery."

Hua Tuo did a mental leap of victory. "Alright, let's get started then. Bring out the grinding stone."

"Yes, sir!" Zero cheered and ran to the workroom.

"I'm impressed," Merlin stroked his beard. Truen had the glasses on and was still reading a book when the wizard decided to pay his apprentice a visit.

There were piles and piles of books surrounding the wood elf stacked in a complicated fashion. To anyone else, it would appear as if the wood elf was a disorganised person. However, Merlin knew better. He was careful not to touch them as he walked over to his student.

Truen had been hard at work over the past three weeks. After training himself in high-speed arithmetic with En, Truen immersed himself into mastering basic alchemy. By the end of the second week, Truen was able to create and maintain a second Parallel Mind. With the help of supplies from Hua Tuo and Zero, Truen worked at it without sleep for yet another week. The first few days were increasing his capacity to create more Minds and Truen succeeded. He now had sixteen Minds and as he progressed in Parallel Thinking, it got more difficult to acquire additional Minds. However, having said that, the wood elf was making quick progress.

With one Mind dedicated to arithmetic training and one Mind dedicated to increasing Parallel Minds, Truen was able to use the remaining fourteen Minds effectively. One Mind was often left to read and coordinate the activities used by other Minds. It took Truen a while to figure out how to leave on Mind in the space-time dimension and that was training with any of the Great Gods at any one point of time. Information overload was no longer a problem for Truen. While he continued to read, analyse and acquire battle experience as well as learn from the Great Gods, the wood elf had reached an insane level of magic proficiency without his knowledge.

Merlin sensed it when Truen made his final breakthrough. The wood elf was now on the same level of raw potential power in terms of mana as a demigod. What Truen lacked was experience and practical knowledge. Merlin was pleased to find that over thirty percent of the books in his library had been read. The pile to Truen's right were books he had completed. The pile of books to his left were waiting to be analysed. Currently, there were about three hundred books being analysed and Merlin looked at the pile behind Truen. Those were the books Truen needed to read at the next stage.

"Arcane theories? You're progressing quite well."

"Thank you, sir."

Merlin glanced over the titles of completed books and nodded. "I assume you've found a way to finish all these books within a year?"

Truen shook his head. "At the rate that I'm progressing, I would be able to complete reading and analysing by the next two months."

Merlin chuckled. "Isis told me about your intentions to travel after half a year of training."

Truen smiled. "Yes, sir. I wish to make the necessary preparations for Zero's travels."

Advertisements

Merlin stroked his beard. "I won't stop you. However, you need to train with me in the space-time dimension for the next three months after you have completed reading. Magic is more than throwing a bunch of spells at your enemy. There are many different kinds of magic and not all of them are battle related. A true magician is one who is able to create new solutions and explore the endless number of possibilities."

The wood elf bowed slightly. "I have yet to finish reading everything there is in this library but I understand. I did not intend to limit myself to becoming a bodyguard with only battle-related spells."

Merlin nodded once more, satisfied with Truen's answer. This wood elf was worthy of becoming his apprentice. Zero showed great potential with his unusual way of thinking but Truen displayed the ability to overcome any obstacle in his way. Both were great students and Merlin was proud to have them as his apprentices.

"I shall visit again in three months. Should there be anything you do not understand, feel free to send me a message."

Truen stood up and bowed deeply this time as Merlin prepared to leave. "Thank you, master!"

Zero pulled the needle out gently and held his breath. As the needle slipped out of the balloon, he waited. If the water escaped, he would have failed. If it remained as it was, he would pass. It was coming to the end of two weeks and even Hua Tuo was nervous for the boy. This would determine if Zero could learn acupuncture and surgery.

When Hua Tuo demonstrated it, Zero was surprised to know that after the initial sting, it didn't hurt. Hua Tuo then went to explain how surgery worked and Zero tested the effects of numbing grass. He was amazed by the effects and was finally convinced about learning from Hua Tuo his special skills.

However, they soon discovered that Zero was far from ready when it came to the more advanced medical science. It was easy to forget that Zero was only a child physically. His strength and stamina were lacking. He didn't have good control over his muscles either and that was dangerous. Any tiny slip by a millimetre during a surgery could pose a serious threat to the patient's life. Although Zero would learn healing magic at a later date, the physician didn't want to take any risks. Healing magic speeds up the cell regeneration process in a body but it doesn't resolve the root of the problem. Proper medical knowledge was still required.

Zero had no difficulty in pinpointing acupoints but he wasn't able to successfully pierce through skin and reach the blood vessel without hurting the patient. Hua Tuo allowed Zero to try for the first few days, suffering bleeding and bruises when Zero failed without showing signs of progress. At one point, Zero stuck the needle too deep that it hit bone. The old physician couldn't take the silent torture any longer and bought plenty of balloons for Zero's special training.

The water balloons were specially prepared for Zero's training. One balloon was pushed into another balloon and filled with water. The other balloon on the outside was filled with a little air so that there was a gap of about three centimetres before it reached the other balloon filled with water. As Zero progressed, the distance reduced and Zero struggled to maintain that level of proficiency in his control. Hua Tuo began to worry when the boy showed no signs of improvement after the distance was less than one centimetre.

Zero didn't give up. He read everything he could about improving control and tried every exercise he could. While Hua Tuo slept, the boy stayed up to practice. However, he couldn't master it completely. There was always a fifty percent chance of failure and Zero was worried. Still, Hua Tuo continued to harbour hopes. With Zero's level of determination, surely he would be able to manage a miracle somehow.

A miracle, Zero did manage. The water balloon deflated but no water came out of it and Hua Tuo smiled. Now, they were ready. Although he couldn't impart all his knowledge to Zero just yet, he knew that Zero could be taught within the year. A good month had passed and all that's left now was for Zero to perfect the skills he learnt and bring it to a greater height. Unlike Hua Tuo, Zero was gifted in magic although more physically demanding things could prove to be a challenge as demonstrated with the water balloon casualties.

"Congratulations! I suppose you can learn acupuncture and surgery but not any time soon. Today, we will be going to La Boutique."

Zero blinked. After all that hard work, they were going to take a day off? He was looking forward to learning new things too!

"Why the long face? We need to get you stocked up on energy so that we can start your healing magic training!"

Advertisements

At the word training, Zero perked up once more. Hua Tuo found it incredibly weird to see such behaviour from a young child. Ordinary children would rejoice at the thought of having fun but Zero seemed to rejoice at the opportunity to acquire new knowledge. Boredom was the boy's worst enemy and Hua Tuo learnt that the hard way. His waterwheel had been taken apart once by Zero who was curious about how it worked.

Hua Tuo activated the magic stone Merlin sent and they stepped through the portal created. Hua Tuo hadn't been to La Boutique many times but he was slowly getting used to the crowd. Zero had already listed his favourite restaurant and was also familiar with many chefs who competed against each other in order to gain brownie points in Zero's good books.

"I see that you've reached the nascent stage of immortality," Merlin commented casually as he entered the library.

It wasn't surprising actually. Truen wasted no time and made full use of every second that he had. Although his progress has slowed, Truen diligently worked at acquiring more Parallel Minds. As of now, he had twenty-three to speak of and it got easier to manage them with higher intellect. Immortality was a side effect of learning magic. Many couldn't achieve it because they lacked the understanding of the true nature of magic. While Truen was technically immortal, immortality was more than the inability to die.

Truen bowed. With the increased speed of reading and the ability to analyse information faster, Truen was able to finish reading half the library. Although it wasn't everything, he was now able to keep up in a conversation with Merlin.

"Sir, I have a request."

Merlin was mildly surprised. Truen was such a quiet and independent person so he didn't think the wood elf would approach him with a favour in mind.

"Speak."

"I would like to commence the practical training in the space-time dimension with you as soon as possible using a Parallel Mind. Although I am still lacking in many areas, I should be able to keep up with the basic training."

Merlin was pleased. That was exactly the reason he had come for today.

"I see that great minds think alike. I too shall use a Parallel Mind for our lessons in the space-time dimension. However, do note that all Parallel Minds are linked. Are you able to keep up with the information flow over different time zones?"

Truen had his concerns initially but he was determined to make it work regardless. Merlin took a good look in those determined eyes and smirked. The wood elf was so similar to how he was when he was still a wizard apprentice.

"I see. Remember to rest well, you'll need it." With that, the Sage God left and Truen blinked. Merlin hardly offered advice so hearing one from him was like a warning.

Quickly finishing up the book in his hand, Truen put everything away as best as he could and let his Minds work while he took a long and well-deserved nap.

"Are you ready?"

Truen nodded. He didn't expect their first lesson to happen while he was physically resting. Merlin launched straight into teaching mode and dropped a pop quiz to test Truen's understanding about the basics they were going to cover.

"Not bad," Merlin mused. "You got everything right, theoretically speaking."

Truen was confused. Was there a difference between being correct and being theoretically correct?

"Ready yourself, we are going to spar. You are only allowed to use the basic forms of magic. No funny business like arcane, blood and summoning. Purely elemental, understood?"

Truen nodded and they took their respective battle stances.

"Fireball!" Truen conjured a huge sphere of orange flames and hurled it at Merlin who merely cancelled it by using a shield of water.

Merlin would rate that a seven out of ten for power but a one out of ten for creativity.

"Always assume that your opponent can get away after your first strike!"

Without warning, Merlin summoned a cyclone that shot out bolts of lightning sporadically. Truen barely dodged that calamity-level spell and gaped. When Merlin mentioned elemental magic, he did not mention fusion magic.

The shark-like grin on the Sage God's face made Truen pale. "Do your best to survive. You can't die in this dimension so don't disappoint me too quickly."

Advertisements

With that, Merlin cast another disaster level spell and Truen had to start running. How was this elemental magic?

"That's why you're not a magician yet! Mages are cowards who only have their minds as weapons. Once you close in on them, it's over! Think about how to counter this, it's basic elemental magic!"

Truen wanted to cry. How was this basic at all? Cyclones and lightning weren't elemental at all. They were nature magic so why was Merlin breaking the rules he made?

Then it hit Truen. Maybe nature magic was elemental magic. As he continued to dodge, Truen's mind started working at full speed. He knew that elemental magic was found in everything that possessed life in the most basic form. Fire, water, earth, air, light and darkness were the basics. From these basic elements, fusion magic can be created resulting in more complicated spells such as mud, wood, electricity, ice and more. However, Truen hasn't read anything about catastrophe-level spells that were considered elemental magic. How many tiers of casting was that spell? How could Merlin do it so quickly?

As yet another powerful spell came his way, this time bigger than the first few, Truen knew his days were over. Nobody could dodge that wall of magma packaged in a lightning bolt express.

Truen didn't know how long he was knocked out for in the space-time dimension but it couldn't be that long since time flowed very differently.

Merlin hovered over his unconscious apprentice and shook his head. He might have gone a little too far, pushing Truen to his limits when he was already in a bad shape. The Sage God only wished that he hadn't broken his student with the previous stunt.

When the wood elf came to, Merlin felt slightly apologetic for going too far. However, he couldn't lower his pride to apologise so he settled for giving Truen time to rest. Once the wood elf was well rested, Merlin started his lecture.

"How do you evaluate your performance earlier?"

Truen was silent. He was ashamed at how quick it ended. Merlin was probably disappointed in him and Truen had no words for it. The wood elf slowly got up and sat on his knees with his head hung low in repentance.

Merlin felt the wood elf's behaviour prodding at his conscious. He was a terrible teacher. No wonder none of his previous students turned out to be any good. Truen was a rare gem and he was wasted on Merlin. However, the wizard was determined to make up for his mistakes. He was going to share with Truen about the secrets of his research.

"Look up," he commanded. "That magic of mine is no ordinary spell. In fact, you did great in terms of raw power and control. Magic is about creativity. With greater understanding, you can come to create unique spells that only you can cast. Cyclone storm is one of the examples created by me. I won't be telling you what to create but for a month, you will experiment in this dream dimension. By the end of the month, I want you to show me your signature spells before we move from there. Any questions?"

Truen blinked. Create spells? He hasn't completed the library yet!

"Only elemental spells. The rest are slightly trickier so I'll have you wait for a moment. Surely you can manage?"

"Sorry, sir. I'm not sure what you mean. Spells can be created?"

Advertisements

Merlin blinked. Was it not covered in the books Truen read?

"Did you not read about the theory of fusion spells?"

The wood elf frowned. He was sure he read that book. However, nothing was mentioned about spell creation or how that was considered elemental magic. Truen thought that nature magic was a class of its own. Hence, the more powerful races with more magic affinities were considered superior mages.

"I did. However, it was merely a theory explanation about how the elements affected each other from an alchemist's point of view. Nothing could be ascertained because from third-tier fusion spells and up, not many could test his hypothesis to confirm that it was true. No living creature has magical affinity with all six elements. Also, the book suggested other elements that may exist but hasn't been discovered or recorded. It's a book with a lot of uncertainties and mostly, opinions by the author."

Merlin stroked his beard. He must have remembered it wrong. The book was pulled out from the ruins of an old kingdom that had fallen to ruins after the age of magicians. It was one of the books Merlin used to progress in his research. Perhaps his knowledge far surpassed that book.

"I must have been mistaken. In any case, you can disregard your first concern. It is true that magical affinity for all elements does not appear in normal people. However, you're not normal. As a living wood spirit, you are capable of controlling any elemental magic - a product of Gaia herself. As for the second hypothesis about other elements than the six discovered, I cannot say for certain that they exist. However, my research points to me that the possibility is there. I wish that you will approach this lesson with an open mind. Do not limit your abilities. As a living wood spirit, mana regeneration is not a problem for you. You can draw mana from the planet itself without going through the normal process. The dream space replicates it perfectly. However, please bear in mind that the mana you can draw is limited to the terrain you are in."

The wizard materialised a book in his hand and passed it to the wood elf who accepted it gracefully.

"This is a grimoire. It's not an original copy but it contains all the information you need to know about advanced fusion magic. What have you read about magic mediums?"

Truen thought for a while, recalling what he could.

"I've read a little from different archives. Many races who are not born gifted in magic usually use mediums to better channel their mana in the form of tools, words or even spell circles. This is to increase their maximum potential and allow them to use magic greater than their capability or save casting time during emergencies. However, none of the books I've read covered the reason for the mediums or how they were created. Someone tried to decipher them but it's still unclear to me how it was deciphered. There wasn't a distinct method of deciphering the methods used which leads me to think that the discoveries made were accidental."

Merlin chuckled. "Well, the library is very old. I guess it's high time I updated it. In any case, you're half right there. The author of that book was compiling things he heard without understanding. His conclusions were baseless and made no sense."

Mentally, Truen felt drained. How many more surprises does Merlin have for him?

"Mediums are used by those with lesser magical affinity to boost their power. Think of it as a cripple with their crutch. It allows them to move faster and more freely. However, the crutch wasn't made by these cripples. It was lent by the stronger beings who had too much magic to spare. Many of them were demons, angels, dragons and some even gods. These powerful beings collected payment from the users of their medium in the form of a sacrifice as you might have seen in books. Angels demand worship and prayers hence the chanting. Demons required enslaved souls hence the grimoire and magic circles. Dragons required carnage hence the transformed physical abilities of their mage warriors. Gods wanted different things all the time so it's not set in stone. Nevertheless, mediums can be created. The greater the sacrifice, the greater the power."

Truen looked at the fake grimoire. "Are you saying that cyclone storm was powered by a medium?"

The wizard grinned. "You pick up fast. That grimoire contains information about that spell. I'm sure you'll be able to figure out how to create something on your own. Of course, you'll first have to decide what kind of medium works best in your favour. Also, as a bonus tip, I did not make a contract with hell when I wrote that grimoire. I simply learnt from the ways of the devils and created my own."

Truen blinked. Merlin must have made a huge sacrifice in order to do that. Even in the fake grimoire, the wood elf could sense the unusual aura coming from it. What did Merlin do to become such a monster? Then again, all Gods are monsters in their own league Merlin was simply one in the field of magic.

"I understand. I will work hard to develop something I can call my own."

Satisfied, the wizard prepared to leave. However, his parting words made Truen feel pressured once more.

"I look forward to the day you can surpass me, apprentice."

"Easy now," Hua Tuo coaxed.

They were leaving for the village in two weeks and Zero was feeling the stress as he poured mana into the dead fish. The physician worked him hard and Zero felt fatigued even if he was in good physical condition.

Hua Tuo's requirement was simple. Healing magic was about pouring the magic of life into a living creature. They used mana from three parties to recover a wound. The first was from the injured party, the second from the environment and the third from the caster. In Zero's case, he could only pull on mana from the environment since he had none to speak of and his patient was dead. Hua Tuo assured him that healing magic can still be used on dead creatures as long as the spirit is still in the body but Zero didn't believe him until the doctor demonstrated. It was mana consuming but possible.

"Remember your priorities and focus! The heart is stopping again!"

When Hua Tuo snapped at him, Zero growled. Hua Tuo was a slave driver. Usually, a teacher taught their students from the basics and progressed from there gradually increasing the difficulty. Zero felt as if Hua Tuo had thrown him into a pit of wolves just when he figured out how to hold a sword. The physician was merciless!

After cramming all the knowledge about how a body worked, Hua Tuo immediately presented the task to Zero. If it was merely about healing wounds, Zero could understand. However, Hua Tuo demanded that Zero succeeded in the most difficult healing magic - revival magic. In order to succeed, Zero has to meet all three difficult requirements and the chance of his failure was almost a hundred percent.

1. The target must be revived within three minutes after death or it is impossible once the spirit leaves.

2. All body parts must be intact upon revival or the revived target will still die.

3. Only the mana of the environment can be used.

Hua Tuo caught the fishes and Zero had to revive them. The pile of separated fish heads from their bodies were beginning to make Zero sick. Although he liked eating fish, thinking about their cruel deaths and the additional pain they had to suffer when Zero failed to revive them fully made the young boy sick.

"Come on... come on! Work!"

This was the sixteenth fish that morning and Zero felt sweat fall from his brows. It was more tiring than the morning exercises.

The instructions were simple.

1. First, stimulate the flow of blood to get the heart working.

2. Next, shock the brain into awakening.

3. Aid the brain into recovering organs.

4. Lastly, put the damaged body parts together to accelerate cell regeneration.

Zero continued to fail at step three. Stimulating the flow of blood was simple water magic. Hua Tuo covered the basics for six elements and the concept of fusion magic. Zero had no troubles understanding which element should be used at which stage of recovery. However, he kept failing at the multitasking part when it came to the third step. There were several major organs that must be revived at the same time and Zero couldn't leave one when it was up to work on another. They failed shortly after working when mana wasn't supporting it. Even then, Zero didn't know how to work on all the important organs while attaching the head back to the body. If it were any other body part, Zero might be able to complete the mission. However, the head was something that couldn't wait to be attached after the organs were working. It had to be done at the same time or the fish would die immediately after reviving its body.

Hua Tuo was serious. He knew that he was pushing Zero very close to the edge but he wanted to test if his apprentice had what it took to become a doctor who could surpass him. Hua Tuo didn't travel. He'd seen too many deaths as a doctor in the past and did not have the strength to continue. He didn't want to have to choose who gets another chance at life and who had to leave the world early. It was the warring period when he travelled as a physician back in his old world. He fought for the lives of every patient only to have them sent out to the battlefield once more. Some came back but many didn't. Hua Tuo felt that he'd become a failure and was relieved when he finally died. Fate was an ironic thing. Hua Tuo expected to go to hell and be condemned for his sins. However, it did not happen, he was faced with a punishment worse than getting flayed for eternity lying over magma. He attained immortality as a Sage God in Medicine who oversaw illness and poisons.

Hua Tuo didn't like his gift. With the Medicine God's eye, he saw the numbers in every living creature. He saw how much longer they had left to live and it made him depressed. Just like the Moontaur girls he killed, he felt pity for them like how he felt pity for all other living creatures but seeing many deaths just made him numb to theirs. Strangely, his Medicine God's eye didn't apply to plants or immortals like Gods. Hence, Hua Tuo secluded himself in Endow Hill.

Maybe he was being too harsh on Zero. Subconsciously he might be aware of how he was trying to push his unfulfilled dreams as a human onto the fragile shoulders of this young boy. However, a part of him hoped that Zero could succeed and save the remains of his human soul. Becoming a God wasn't easy. They lived for a long time and loneliness became a common friend. Hua Tuo lived in seclusion, immersing himself in ignoring everything. It acted like anaesthetic for a good long while but occasionally that wore off too. The loneliness and hopelessness that came crashing down on him during those nights became unbearable but with Zero, Hua Tuo saw hope. He could now pass the torch to another person and rest.

Zero's hands were bloodied but his eyes remained as determined as ever. The basin of water with the decapitated fish needed a new change of water but Zero didn't care. His sole focus was on bringing back his soon-to-be lunch to life. Hua Tuo was secretly proud. Zero was a fast learner. It took Hua Tuo many years of trial an error to perfect revival healing magic. He failed at the third stage many times as well with no signs of progress. However, in just half a day, Zero was already able to reach the same level as what took the physician half a year to comprehend.

The concept was simple. The heart can be forced to start with moving blood that still carried air within the stilled blood. That gave energy to the organ to continue working. It was then the job of the healer to continue providing external mana to keep that energy going inside by reawakening the respiratory system to kickstart the brain. Once that is going, the digestive system comes next. Although Hua Tuo didn't tell Zero that specifically, Zero managed to figure it out. With enough energy to provide for the cells, regeneration could take place on its own. All Zero had to do was continuously supply mana to speed up that process and target the more critical areas - in this case, the head reattachment. It sounded simple but in reality, it was harder to perform. Different creatures had different systems and so far, no two fishes Hua Tuo caught were alike. Every species was different and he wanted to test Zero's ability to adapt. After all, healing magic shouldn't only work for one species if he wanted Zero to surpass him.

"Argh!" Zero cried in frustration as life faded from the fish's eyes. He was frustrated for sure but Hua Tuo worried more about Zero's morale.

Gently, the physician placed a hand over Zero's shoulder. The other reason why he asked the impossible was because Zero had never experienced the burden of responsibility or failure. Both were required to make a person grow wiser and stronger. Zero may be young and that was a good thing. That meant that time would heal his wounds faster and he was at a stage when his growth wasn't limited by his views.

"Let's stop here for now. Rest a while and wash up, I'll prepare lunch. You did enough for today."

As Hua Tuo tidied up, Zero took a look at the pile of corpses. He felt strange. Before this, he was alright with eating fish. In fact, he loved fish grilled over open fire with a sprinkle of salt. Now, he wasn't too sure about it. Eating the fishes he failed to save made Zero feel sick. How could Hua Tuo accept death so easily?

Advertisements

Zero failed them. He knew he had even if Hua Tuo praised his progress.

"No," he shook his head. "I need to become stronger faster..." he resolved.

If he was going to become a doctor, he was going to be the best. None of his patients was going to die, he wouldn't allow it. However, he knew that all living things died one day. When that time comes, Zero promised to devour them and keep them company forever, just like the fishes today.

Yes, he was someone who devoured anything and everything. Unlike others, Zero didn't have a limit. The brunet decided that he was going to put his unique skill to good use. If anyone could devour the world, it would be him. If he couldn't save them, he would absorb everything until they became one again.

Zero didn't know how true the resolution made on that day was. However, that was a story he would tell himself in the future.

"I... I did it!"

It took Zero one week to finally succeed in reviving all the fishes and maybe some birds that Hua Tuo caught. After ten successful revives, it wasn't even lunch time yet. That was a huge leap in progress and Zero wanted to cry in both joy and relief.

Hua Tuo was proud of his student. With such an astonishing rate of progress, the old physician had no doubts that his apprentice will one day surpass him. For now, it was time to celebrate a little. Lunch will be lavish and dumplings sounded great.

"You did well," Hua Tuo commended and Zero beamed.

Yesterday's failure paved the road for today's success. Zero's perseverance managed to allow him to transcend and overcome all obstacles. Although Zero didn't mention it, Hua Tuo knew that the young boy had been training secretly behind Hua Tuo's back. The doctor didn't discourage that but he didn't mention anything about it and pretended not to know. After all, Zero's method of training was truly bizarre.

Normally, students would get familiarised with the steps of healing and practice to make the flow second nature. However, Zero wasn't the same. Instead, the young boy explored different ways to save a life using healing magic. Some ended with results crueller than death but Hua Tuo was in equal parts curious and worried at Zero's unique way of thinking.

He didn't know how Zero thought about fusing two dying or dead animals to improve his success rates. The creatures lived but seeing that they were two very different species, they couldn't come to agree on which prey to hunt and that resulted in their deaths by starvation - something Zero learnt the hard way.

Hua Tuo didn't understand how Zero thought it would be a great idea to pour healing magic constantly into a dead creature for more than three minutes. The unexpected happened when the creature morphed into a zombie who came alive in the form of a spirit taking over possession of its rotting body. Even after its resurrection, Zero faithfully continued to supply it healing magic and Hua Tuo almost fainted when the creature became a zombie mutant capable of absorbing mana for its survival. Without knowing what he did, Zero left happily. Hua Tuo only knew about a massacre of a small village the day after and had to secretly end that monster's 'life'. Endow Hill's magic was strong enough to drive the weak-willed minds insane. With an indestructible body and a weak mind, it was only a matter of time before what Zero 'saved' morphed into everyone's nightmare. If not put to a stop, it could very well turn into a calamity class demon, given enough time. When Zero learnt about the monster he created from Gaia who heard it from Hua Tuo, he mourned for the deaths of those innocent villagers and promised to never do that again.

Despite all that, Zero's secret nightly experiments paid off. In less than a week, the young boy came to understand the nature of healing magic after pushing it to extents that not even Hua Tuo did. He proved to be highly intelligent when Hua Tuo was surprised with a perfected revival of the fourth fish that he caught. The first three were revived but died shortly after. The fourth fish was the mark of Zero's first successful attempt as it was set free back into the river.

Hua Tuo was impressed and amazed by Zero's ability to improve. He began to coach Zero seriously on the finer points in the art of revival magic. Zero learned fast and he perfected his revival magic on fishes. The physician took it to the next level on the sixth day of their training and introduced new species.

Advertisements

Initially, Zero couldn't perform very well with species that didn't have similar organs and system due to his lack of understanding. Hua Tuo then explained that Healing Magic was a very innate thing. The healer was merely a mediator between the magic and the patient receiving treatment. If Zero was able to sync his mind with the patient's, the magic would flow naturally and Zero would only need to follow the flow, supplying more when it is needed to places more critical as determined by the magic.

The young boy turned out to be very gifted in following his intuition, much to Hua Tuo's delight. Normal healers were unable to master this final level of healing because it required one to be in tune with soul magic - a very rare attribute. According to the legends, spirits attracted to healing magic will guide the healers with their superior knowledge in exchange for a taste of that ambrosia-like mana. In truth, those 'spirits' were often the souls of the dying, clutching onto another chance at life. With Hua Tuo's Medicine God's Eye, the doctor witnessed many souls in action after death before King Yama's escorts came for them.

Zero didn't quite understand what it was to sync his mind with his patient but with Hua Tuo's detailed explanation on how to identify the tug at his mind, the young boy mastered it within a day. Hua Tuo decided to push his schedule forward a little and taught the boy a little more in preparation for their trip to the village of half-humans. All the villagers had very different constitutions so Hua Tuo wanted to give Zero more chances to get familiar with that tug at his mind. The closer to death, the stronger the pull.

"What happens if it's a little wound or illness?"

Hua Tuo grinned. "That's when your medical knowledge comes in handy. While what I've taught you are medicine for human consumption, most work for animals as well. The village is full of half-humans and they are outcasts of the society. Healthcare isn't available there so I drop by every few months to check on them. While they are half humans, some of them are allergic to certain medicines that we normally prescribe."

"Allergic?"

Hua Tuo coughed lightly. Zero's confused expression and tilted head looked absolutely adorable and the doctor needed to resist pinching those cheeks.

"Allergy is a condition when a body rejects normal food or environmental condition. It causes the body's immune system to fail, making it vulnerable to many side effects such as respiratory malfunction, breakouts on the skin, runny nose, watery eyes and in some cases, death."

Zero swallowed. "How do I know what they are allergic to?"

Hua Tuo sighed. This was something he had problems with when he was human. He didn't know for sure what a person could be allergic to. People could be allergic to anything and so could animals. With half-humans, they number of things only increased. He had a skill after becoming a Sage God called Medicine God's Eye and it allowed him to know exactly what a person's condition was. Illnesses could be identified with it and so could allergies. However, he did not know how to explain his unique skill to Zero.

"For starters, nobody really knows what kind of allergy they have until it happens. We can only take measures after it surfaces. When symptoms start to appear, immediately cast the strongest calming magic you can. It's best if you can put the patient to sleep so that you can continue with the emergency treatment. Most times, allergies are not treated as illnesses so healing magic does not work. In fact, refrain from using healing magic because it may worsen the reaction. usually, after calming magic is cast, the body will make an auto recovery from ten minutes to half a day although some effects may take up to a week to wear off. You can help accelerate the healing process by treating the side effects instead."

Zero paid attention to every word and nodded as Hua Tuo demonstrated how to use different magic.

Magic Buff #1: Tranquil Mind

Effects: Calming

Magic Buff #2: Slumber

Effects: Sleep

Magic Buff #3: Binding

Effects: Paralysis

Magic Buff #4: Health Boost

Effects: Rejuvenate

Magic Buff #5: Warrior Spirit

Effects: Adrenaline

Hua Tuo wasn't sure about the mana to effectiveness conversion rate so Zero didn't have many chances to practice it. After all, he had to conserve his energy for the healing he needed to do next week.

"Remember the Slumber and Tranquil Mind spells. It will be used during surgery for long periods of time. Normally we will use numbing grass potions but for practice this time, you will maintain them."

Zero nodded. He was both excited and nervous about his first trip on Earth. He couldn't wait to see those half-humans!

"Using water and earth, mud is created. A higher tier spell that involves adding light magic creates wood. A combination of wood and fire gives birth to ash. Ash can be then combined with mud with high heat to form stone. Stone crushed and mixed with dirt becomes sand. Stone under intense pressure and heat becomes metal. Water and heat form steam or rain depending on the intensity. Ice is made by removing heat from water. Ice and cloud moved by air currents under high speeds cause lightning. Cyclones are formed using air currents, sped up by contrasting heat. Exactly how many tiers did Merlin use for this spell?" Truen groaned.

Advertisements

The fake grimoire was indeed helpful. However, the level of complexity was driving Truen insane. How many tiers of casting did Merlin manage to complete in such a short frame of time when he threw out those calamity-tier spells? That precise level of control required for every step was something that spoke of many years of experience. The fact that Merlin engaged in passive and active attacking made Truen feel a sense of hopelessness. It wasn't a mere cyclone storm. Merlin used the metal created to direct the lightning towards his enemies while maintaining that trajectory of the cyclone. It was an oppressive attack that forced the enemy to retreat. Truen knew that from experience. There was no way to defeat that, his only option back then was to run.

Unlike Zero who reported his success, Truen was struggling. A week had gone by since Truen's solo research and development but he still hasn't found a way to develop unique spells of his own. He'd been simply analysing Merlin's creations and that alone took everything the wood elf had. How could he chant a twenty level spell in less than a second?

Clearly, he missed something. Maybe he had to read in between the lines like before?

The wood elf was tired. Coping with two vastly different time realities took up more Parallel Minds to cope. Truen was surprised when he found six out of twenty-three Minds dedicated to supporting the Mind trapped in the dream dimension. The wood elf had lesser resources to train new Parallel Minds and his progress of devouring books slowed significantly.

Would he be able to complete his training in time?

Eating and packing were the only things Zero remembered doing for the last few days. He didn't know that travelling required so many preparations and Hua Tuo explained that logistic planning was an important skill.

"Not everybody has an endless dimensional space to store things and the ability to warp a thousand miles to grab a forgotten item so planning in advance is very important."

Zero nodded and went through their inventory list once again. Hua Tuo forbade his apprentice to store anything in his endless storage. Zero had to learn to 'carry his weight' when travelling. To make matters worse, they weren't travelling by teleporting or on Hua Tuo's cloud mount. They were walking.

"It takes exactly two weeks to get to that village on foot so you must be well prepared. Furthermore, we have to bring enough medicine for treatment. The villagers do not know a lot of magic so try to refrain from using magic other than healing."

The young boy nodded. "I think we have everything we need for tomorrow. Will we be waking up early to do the exercise?"

Hua Tuo shook his head. "No exercise and no farming."

"Won't the herbs die if we do not water them?"

At that, Hua Tuo grinned. "If it wasn't on Endow Hill, they would wither away. However, we have very reliable gardeners so leave the plants to them, alright?"

Zero wondered who they were and why he never saw them. However, he had an inkling that they were the invisible guests Hua Tuo always told him to offer food to. Every two weeks, Hua Tuo would make many honeycakes and ask Zero to deliver them to a certain place in the forest. Zero had to leave it on a particular rock and come back the next day to collect the empty basket. He didn't see anyone taking the cakes even though he tried to spy on them. The cakes simply disappeared and Zero stopped trying to catch the invisible guests in action. Not even Mii could provide him with an answer as nobody appeared on their map.

With the identity of the invisible guests still shrouded in mystery, Zero didn't know if he could trust that person to care for the plants. However, he decided to place his trust in his teacher. After all, Hua Tuo treated them with more care than Zero and the old doctor would hunt anyone to the ends of the world if they tried to harm them.

Advertisements

"Don't worry so much," Hua Tuo ruffled Zero's hair teasingly. "We should sleep early, it's going to be a long journey."

"How's the progress?"

Truen sighed. Merlin popped by in the dream dimension every few hours to check on his understanding and progress. The wood elf wished he didn't do it so often. The time difference was killing him and every few hours was really ten minutes on Earth time. The wood elf was slowly finding himself driven up a wall by Merlin's constant need for attention. He very much preferred the isolation he experienced in the first few weeks.

"I haven't made much progress," Truen admitted through gritted teeth.

Merlin took no notice of Truen's tension and peered over his shoulder. He hummed and snatched the pencil before scribbling on Truen's paper.

"You did the formula wrong in here and here. If we tweaked it a little more, the mud you're creating would be more solid."

The wood elf sighed. "I did that earlier but the mud simply cracked when it moved."

The wizard shook his head. "Did you add in gravity reinforcement?"

Truen paused. "What's gravity reinforcement?"

Merlin sighed in frustration, feeling irritated at Truen's lack of progress. "Didn't you read the tome about vortex analogy?"

Truen wanted very much to yell at Merlin but swallowed that irritation. Instead, he replied curtly, "It's only been ten minutes since you last checked on me. I'm still reading the five books you recommended."

Merlin blinked. Has it only been ten minutes? Funny how it felt like months since he last saw his student.

"I'm sorry, you should finish those five first. And then read up about vortex analogy. While you're at it, I'll recommend cosmetic magic because it would help perfect your mud dolls. If you can add one just one more book, I'll like you to read up on shadow manipulation because you could use a Parallel Mind to control them remotely. Or if you wanted to do a transfer of Parallel Minds into that particular body, you should read up on vessel souls. Actually, I recommend reading both so that you have more options. Oh wait, you don't know what vessels are yet. Why not read the entire basics about magic hosting? I'm sure it can provide a stable foundation..."

Having enough of it, Freya stepped in and smacked Merlin over the head with the handle of her whip.

"Stop it! You're suffocating the poor child!"

Merlin winced even though he felt no pain. Freya's voice was as sharp as the whip and the wizard backed off.

"Okay, I'll be back in another few hours..."

At that, the goddess' patience snapped. "You're banned from coming here until a few days are over!"

Without warning, Merlin was thrown out of the dimension, giving Truen some space to finally breathe.

"Seriously," Freya muttered and Truen silently agreed. Merlin was a passionate teacher. However, he could be an overly passionate teacher at times and Freya had to step in after Gaia noticed a huge fluctuation in Truen's state of mind from their bond.

Truen thanked Freya and quickly got back to his reading. Truen did his best to live up to Merlin's expectations. He truly did. However, even after utilising the time cheat, Truen couldn't cope with Merlin's expectations. The old magician seemed to think that everything was instantaneous and forgot how normal it was for others to need time to learn. He seemed to expect Truen to have the same amount of knowledge he had accumulated over the centuries in within a few minutes and grew frustrated when Truen didn't. Freya called it unrealistic but that didn't stop Merlin from interrupting Truen's learning process. It took getting banned for Merlin to realise his mistake but Freya doubted the old wizard would learn the meaning of patience anytime soon.

Advertisements

"Now that the pest is taken care of, what do you have difficulties with?" Freya asked.

Truen mentally cringed at the goddess' preferred term of endearment for his teacher. Merlin could be annoying at times but to call the greatest magician a pest, he felt slightly sorry for Merlin.

"I don't understand this fusion catalyst. How can I make the mud doll unaffected by the environment? I did everything as stated in the books. Merlin did mention something about gravity reinforcement but I haven't gotten to that part yet. I'm still creating the body."

Freya smiled. "Gravity reinforcement is an enchantment type of magic, not related to the creation of your mud doll. Merlin was jumping a step when he told you all that. I suggest you focus on the nature of your doll. I see that you've already decided on the base materials and the formula. Have you considered how to counter the opposing elements? Your mud doll is useless in contact with water and fire. Perhaps you would like to consider adding wood to strengthen water resistance. That way, your mud dolls can also regenerate given nature and light magic stones for the core."

Truen nodded and went back to the drawing board, sketching another design. The goddess was pleased. Under the right guidance, Truen was progressing smoothly. If it weren't for Merlin's interruption, Truen would have been done with the prototype design by now. Truly a pity.

Ball of Nothing

A few days in the dream dimension turned out to be only a few hours in real time. However, Truen felt as if he made a year's worth of progress with Freya's patient guidance and Merlin's absence. He was able to focus on gathering his Parallel Minds in the dream dimension to speed up the analysing process. This was a little trick taught by Freya and Truen took full advantage of Isis' time warp abilities to cultivate more Parallel Minds.

With ten Minds working on increasing his number of Parallel Minds, Truen knew he would be able to bridge that gap between Merlin and him sooner rather than later. He didn't know what Merlin thought about him cheating but his reputation was the least of his concern. Being able to keep up with Merlin's lessons was worth the blow to his pride.

"What are you thinking about? You're distracted."

Startled, Truen jumped a little in his seat. He didn't realise that they were still in the middle of lessons and apologised to Freya. The goddess smiled and checked the time on her communicator.

"Alright, take a break. While it is still possible to continue, the mind would need rest to stay sharp. You have four hours before that maniac comes back so I highly suggest you make full use of it."

Truen glanced at the time and noted that it was already two in the morning in dream time.

"Four hours in real time. Your body needs it too," Freya frowned and the wood elf winced. Sedna and Gaia in mother mode were considered normal. However, when Freya did it, the wood elf felt a pang of guilt. The fiery goddess only went into that mode when Truen overdid something or when Zero was put in serious harm's way. After all, it was easy to rile Freya but not worry her.

"I understand. Thank you."

Satisfied with his answer, Freya left promptly to get some well-deserved rest herself.

Truen looked at the communicator in the dream realm and set it to four dream hours before resting his Parallel Minds. The wood elf stretched in the library and looked around for a comfortable looking spot and set the alarm to wake him up after four real hours physically. Now that preparations are done, it was time for a good break.

Advertisements

"Are we there yet?"

Hua Tuo groaned. That was the most dreaded question and the doctor found it difficult to constantly give his apprentice a reply. The boy definitely needed more patience training and the Medicine God yearned for silence more than anything else at the moment.

"Zero, it takes two weeks to get there on foot. No, we are not there yet. In fact, if you turn around, we can still see the fields from here."

The master and apprentice set off on their journey about two hours ago and the sky had been dark then. The sun had only begun to peek past the mountain range but Zero had already asked that same question twenty times. Hua Tuo was considered tricking Zero into staying silent for the next hour but decided against it. Even if Zero looked like a child and often behaved like one, he wasn't young. Once Zero knew what he was trying to do, Hua Tuo will lose his apprentice's trust. That was something Hua Tuo wanted to avoid.

Then, an idea hit the old doctor and he praised himself silently.

"Zero, would you like to learn something new while we walk?"

The brunet blinked. Was it possible? Then again, he trusted Hua Tuo and anything new to Zero was something worth trying at least once.

"Of course!" he beamed and Hua Tuo gave himself a pat on the back.

"We are going to learn how to enter a meditative state. It's called the Zen mode."

Zero didn't suspect a thing and listened to Hua Tuo's lecture. It was a very short lecture about ten minutes long and Zero blinked. Was counting his breath and emptying his mind all he had to do?

It didn't take Zero very long to realise how wrong he was. Counting his breaths was easy. The hard part came when he had to empty his thoughts and maintain that state of mind for an extended period of time. The curious child often found himself wandering off to look at the more interesting plants or hop by some rocks in their path. Hua Tuo remained silent the whole time, observing Zero struggle to maintain that meditative state.

The physician thought that Zero would give up after a few hours but even when dinner time rolled by, the brunet was still trying. Hua Tuo felt bad for tricking his student into being quiet but he couldn't apologise and come clean with it. After all, Zero was trying very hard. He figured that he would remain on the watch and guide Zero if he reaches a breakthrough. It might be slightly hasty of him but a part of Hua Tuo knew that meditation was something he would have to teach Zero during their time together. Without being able to enter a state of nothingness, one cannot feel the life energy flowing through the body.

Qigong was more than just morning exercise. If practised correctly, it is one of the most powerful forms of combat skill a man can achieve in life. Ancient Chinese martial arts were unrivalled. Many masters of martial arts founded sects back then, taking in thousands of disciples and passing on their art. Not even the Emperor could interfere with the pugilist masters. However, with power comes corruption. When these masters passed, their successors began to go astray. Many unorthodox arts were developed that harmed the body in return for faster cultivation speed. Hua Tuo watched the rise and fall of these practitioners and didn't want the same to happen to Zero.

Without training the mind to be resilient, how can the body become strong? Hua Tuo understood the effects of emotion on the body. He'd written medical journals about his research and the same theory applied to martial arts.

The world co-existed on a fragile balance. There can be no light without darkness, no sound without silence, no joy without sadness. At this moment, Hua Tuo found Zero to be very off balance. While wise as an existence, Zero didn't know very normal things. He had a curious mind and Hua Tuo didn't fault that. However, Zero's tendency to do first and ask later was something Hua Tuo did not take kindly to. In some cases, the doctor would agree that asking for forgiveness was better than asking for permission. However, Zero was trying to fly without even learning how to walk so Hua Tuo had to pull the brakes on that.

Meditation will help calm the boy down and train him to focus on one task at a time. The current Zero tended to be slightly absent-minded and easily sidetracked. Hua Tuo worried for Zero when he went on his travels. Being a doctor's assistant, any distraction could prove disastrous. As a surgeon, any loss of focus could cost a patient's life. Zero wanted to be a travelling doctor so Hua Tuo had many reservations about allowing it if Zero didn't show signs of improvement.

Another thing that he worried about was Zero's instant reaction to panic when things go south. Truen was extremely cool-headed and knew how to react appropriately. Zero simply flew off the handle and wore his heart on his sleeves. When dealing with beings of higher intelligence like humans, such behaviour will only attract trouble. Unlike Zero, there are many people who have ill intentions and will not hesitate to take advantage of the weak.

No, Zero wasn't weak. Hua Tuo had to admit that. However, it didn't help that the brunet looked too defenceless. Without Truen around, Hua Tuo would bet his entire journal collection that Zero would walk into trouble on their first day in any town. The young boy just had an appearance that screamed easy target. If Zero didn't work on his demeanour in public, he would be in for a hard time.

Advertisements

Nevertheless, as Zero worked on building a fire efficiently, Hua Tuo continued to observe his charge secretly. While Zero's mental state of mind hasn't improved, he could now sense both chakra and meridian branches beginning to manifest as a proof that the special training works. The morning exercise served two purposes. Firstly, it was to strengthen Zero's artificial body and get the soul inside accustomed to it. The second was to allow it to develop natural mana and qi branches in hopes that one day, Zero could absorb them naturally without the special device. It wasn't a real body but with a little bit of innovation, magic and time, Zero could live as normally as anyone else on Earth. Hua Tuo and the Great Gods would pull no punches when it came to aiding Zero. However, they still worried about the precious child. If Zero could hold his ground, it would give them a peace of mind when he left them.

They cooked in perfect harmony without many words. Already, Hua Tuo could sense that Zero's actions were less fidgety. That was a huge improvement. Usually, Zero would hum, move around or play with the utensils while waiting for something to cook. Today, Zero didn't hum. He didn't walk around or danced randomly. There wasn't even any twirling of chopsticks or spinning them on his nose. Hua Tuo noticed how Zero eyes were trained on the flickering fire during the whole time while waiting for the soup to cook. It was slightly unnerving when Zero didn't even blink after the two-minute mark passed. Hua Tuo briefly wondered if he was looking at a doppelganger but dismissed it soon after he announced that the food was ready.

Table manners. Hua Tuo noticed how messily Zero ate even in silence. The boy had food all over his mouth. Soup dribbled from his chin and there were bits of vegetables at the side of his cheek. Hua Tuo wondered how Zero managed to get a piece of carrot on his nose. Zero's table manners included licking his fingers clean and wiping his dirtied face on the sleeve of his shirt. The doctor sighed. He'd spent too much time taking care of Zero to realise the harm he'd done.

Whatever. That was Merlin's problem now. Hua Tuo told Zero to wash up quickly and sleep. He would take the first half of the night watch and Zero will take the second. The boy didn't argue and went to sleep after texting Truen. Hua Tuo was impressed when he heard some light snoring ten minutes into his watch.

Pulling out a secret flask, he took a swig from it and sighed. He didn't think he'd need the alcohol so soon. It was only the first day of their journey but already, he was exhausted. The road ahead of them seemed very long. Very long indeed.

In the blink of an eye, a week passed by. They were making good progress and Hua Tuo noticed the significant changes in his young student.

Firstly, it was Zero's physical growth. Yes, it came as a huge surprise because the physician didn't think that Zero's body was capable of growing. The boy had been short before even though Gaia said that he was physically twelve years of human age. Zero had grown five centimetres within the week of their travels and Hua Tuo immediately reported the astonishing discovery.

At once, the Great Gods called for an emergency meeting. Many theories surfaced but nobody could confirm the reason or Zero's sudden accelerated growth. Hua Tuo also noticed how Zero's meridians and chakra channels were almost ready. In a few more days, Zero would be able to start absorbing mana from the surroundings and start learning how to cultivate the qi in him. It was both good news and bad news for the Gods - especially the Goddesses who couldn't bear to see Zero grow up.

Secondly, Hua Tuo noticed how the young boy became calmer. He was silent for longer periods of time now as compared to before. With the meditation process becoming easier, Zero often entered a strange state of trance. There was an unfocused look in his eyes whenever it happened and Hua Tuo observed how Zero was walking on autopilot. He didn't seem to breathe during his trance and sometimes things around Zero became strange.

How strange? So far, Hua Tuo had witnessed animals gathering around Zero. That happened once when Hua Tuo left the boy to meditate while he refilled their water skins. The physician came back to see birds sitting on the boy and some small squirrels curled up in his lap. They seemed reluctant to part with Zero and Hua Tuo had to chase them off before the boy became buried under the pile of cute animals.

Also, Hua Tuo noticed how Zero didn't need sleep whenever he meditated for long periods of time. In fact, Zero looked healthier. Gaia was similarly puzzled by this. They decided to continue observing Zero for further changes.

Next, whenever Zero meditated, he would speak in a strange language unknown to Hua Tuo. The old doctor recorded Zero's mumbling during the state of trance and sent it to the Great Gods for identification. Last he heard, they were still working on it. Freya thought the language sounded familiar but couldn't pinpoint where she heard it. Merlin didn't know the language much to everyone's surprise. As a wizard, he had to be the most well-read Sage God but for him to not know it... Hua Tuo didn't know what to think. Where had Zero learnt such an ancient language? Merlin knew many languages, even those of the ancients. For Zero to speak in a language that only Freya knew and could barely recall, where did he learn that from?

Lastly, the strangest of all observations... Zero's eye colour changed when he entered the trance. Yes, only a single eye. Zero's left eye would flicker a different colour during meditation sessions. Sometimes it was green, sometimes it was black. Other times, it could be icy blue or even yellow but Hua Tuo was sure there were more colours than those mentioned. Sometimes it would only be a split of a second. Other times, the change lasted for as long as hours. It didn't always happen but it occurred enough times for Hua Tuo to be concerned.

Nobody could figure out what was happening to Zero while he meditated. They were worried, puzzled and slightly frightened but Zero seemed to be happier after the sessions so Hua Tuo didn't stop the boy.

"Zero," Hua Tuo began. He wasn't sure how to phrase it but it has been bothering him for a while.

Advertisements

"Yes?"

"Why are there birds and animals following behind you?"

It was the first time that Hua Tuo had interrupted his student during a trance. Usually, Hua Tuo observed silently and waited until Zero stopped meditating to speak to him. However, he couldn't do that today.

Zero blinked. His green left eye returned to hazel and the trance broke. He looked behind him and blinked at the sight of twenty pairs of eyes looking at him.

"When did they appear?" Zero asked, much to Hua Tuo's lament. He'd been trying to understand why Zero was such an animal charmer when he meditated. However, from Zero's reaction, it looked like he had no clue how he did it either.

The animals dispersed quickly when Zero tried to touch them. They scattered so quickly that even Hua Tuo was surprised. Weren't they extremely friendly just a moment ago?

"Zero... could you tell me what you experienced when meditating?"

The brunet cocked his head to a side. "I didn't experience anything. It's just shutting down the mind to hibernate for a while, right?"

Hua Tuo frowned. Technically, that was correct. However, Zero's reactions weren't ordinary. Still, Hua Tuo kept it to himself. He would find out later. For now, it would be great to have Zero learn something more.

"That's good. We can start training at the next level now that you have mastered it."

At this, Zero perked up and Hua Tuo smiled as the energetic boy returned. The physician was secretly relieved to see the old and familiar Zero back. He'd almost forgotten the reason for introducing meditation to Zero when he saw that brilliant smile and had to reel his mind back.

"Well, you should be able to feel something different about your body now. This time, I want you to feel the changes in your body as you meditate, keeping in mind to maintain that same breathing pattern from our morning exercises."

Zero nodded and did as he was told. Initially, nothing felt different and he wondered if he was doing it correctly. Then, he felt a tug from somewhere in his stomach and the heat spiralled rapidly as he counted his breaths. Hua Tuo couldn't believe what he was seeing. Although it was incomplete, Zero was able to gather qi into his body in the first try. It wasn't weak either and the physician felt the excitement boil in his blood.

Talent in cultivation came once every few hundred years. Even so, many couldn't achieve this sort of quality. Zero was a gem, there was no doubt about it. Should he pursue the path of a pugilist, Hua Tuo would have to recommend an old friend of his to teach Zero. Unfortunately for the doctor, he only knew the basics. Qi cultivation was one thing. Combat skills were another. He could only give Zero the basics of self-defence but more than that was something beyond Hua Tuo's repertoire.

Advertisements

Zero felt something burn from inside of him. It wasn't painful but it wasn't pleasant either. The young boy didn't know what to do with the heat spreading throughout his body as he breathed. Walking became a difficult task and Zero almost broke the breathing pattern. By now, his feet were burning as if he was walking on hot stones without shoes. His lungs ached with the need for more air and sweat had drenched his entire shirt. Yet, Zero continued. Hua Tuo hasn't stopped him so Zero would persevere for as long he could.

Behind him, Hua Tuo observed nervously. What were Zero's limits? By now, Zero's display was enough to let him reach intermediate levels of cultivation. However, the young apprentice didn't seem to show any signs of slowing down. The qi was able to break out of the dantian and started circulating. That was an advanced level of cultivation that Zero broke through within minutes of his initialisation. Zero was trying to keep the qi from spiralling out of control and Hua Tuo prepared to step in anytime. This was one of the most dangerous stages of cultivation – the stage that separated masters and the truly gifted who could walk the road of immortality and the mortals with only ordinary talent.

Hua Tuo watched as his student battled against the yin and yang energy clashing violently against each other in Zero's fragile body. The meridians were not fully developed and any more clashing, Zero would probably be severely injured forever.

"Stop!" he told Zero who immediately dropped it like some overly heavy weights.

The moment Zero allowed his concentration over his control to break, all the strength left his body. Hua Tuo was just in time to catch Zero's falling figure and frowned. Zero was a really serious child. Sometimes he worried because Zero was just as reckless as Truen when it came to learning new things. The word impossible and unknown was non-existent in Zero's dictionary. He would keep trying until he found an answer or achieved the results he wanted. It could be considered both a strength and weakness. In this instance, it was a weakness. Zero ignored his physical signs and pushed his body almost to the brink of destruction. That was something Hua Tuo couldn't encourage. As a doctor, if Zero wanted to walk the path of medicine, he must always prioritise himself over others. The doctor cannot die first. It was the golden rule on any battlefield. After all, who will save the injured if the doctor is dead?

Ball of Nothing

When Zero came to, half a day had gone by. The look on Hua Tuo's face wasn't pleasant and the boy panicked. Had he done something wrong?

"Zero," Hua Tuo started, shaking Zero out of his thoughts. "Did you know what you just did?"

The brunet's memory was fuzzy at best. He remembered burning heat in his body and a power that went out of control but other than that, everything else was unclear.

"You fainted," Mii kindly supplied in his mind and Zero blinked. Why would he faint? Then, he remembered.

"I meditated..."

Hua Tuo inhaled through his nose deeply and reminded himself that Zero did not understand the consequence of his actions.

"Zero, that wasn't meditation. What you did was forceful cultivation. If I didn't tell you to stop, would you have continued despite your body's warnings about doing so?"

"Warning?"

Hua Tuo didn't know where he should start his explanation. After Zero fainted, Hua Tuo took them to a shady part by the river to tend to Zero. The brunet was sporting a terrible fever and Hua Tuo had to get to work immediately, in fear of losing his apprentice. While Zero's body could possibly be recreated, the damage done to one's cultivation could leave more than just a permanent physical mark. Zero's very soul could be affected if Hua Tuo didn't act fast enough.

Luckily for Zero, he had a very skilled doctor and teacher to rescue him from himself. Still, it didn't make Hua Tuo any happier to know that Zero didn't value the meaning of his own existence.

Advertisements

"Did you feel an excruciating pain? Didn't you feel the violent power struggles inside of you? That heat... the burning heat from within that no longer felt comfortable. The heat that caused you pain... those were all warnings from your body. There were so many warnings, why did you ignore it? Did you know what could have happened if you went on for even slightly longer? You wouldn't be able to cultivate any longer and you would have lost your body. I don't know about our existence but that could be damaged as well."

Zero didn't know what to say. It was true he'd experienced those warnings. However, he didn't think that it would be serious to ignore them. He thought that Hua Tuo would know what to do if anything happened to him and Zero placed his trust entirely on his teacher.

"But you were there so I thought..."

"You thought that I would be able to save you if something happened? Zero, as much as I would love to, there are things that even Gods cannot do. We cannot bring the dead back to the world of the living. Transferring souls is one thing. However, once the physical body passes, that cannot be brought back. Also, once the soul is lost, it can never be recovered. Zero, I was so close to losing your soul. Do you understand the seriousness of what just happened?"

Zero didn't know much. The word dying didn't mean much to him but after seeing death with his own eyes back in the forest when he ran away from Truen, he came to understand that some things can never be the same again. Death is one of those things that Zero didn't like. There was no going back when it happened and there was no way to stop it from happening either. According to Mii, all living creatures will die one day. According to En, their souls will be transferred to a new body for a new life like Truen. However, this was the first time Zero heard that death was permanent. That made Zero feel fear for the first time. A genuine fear for not only himself but those around him.

Shocked and scared at the truth, Zero cried and Hua Tuo quickly held Zero close to his chest. If he'd been any younger, he would have cried tears of relief alongside Zero. However, he was now Zero's teacher. He couldn't cry with the boy, he had to teach the boy a lesson. Death was something permanent no matter what anyone says about the cycle of souls. To Hua Tuo, the life he lived as a human and the life he lived as a Sage God were two different lives. He died once and retained those memories but it didn't change the fact that he was dead. Hua Tuo couldn't go back to becoming human and this change was permanent. Death took away things permanently and it usually hurt the people left behind. He didn't want Zero to do something this reckless again because if Zero died, Hua Tuo knew that there will be many who will cry for him now and more who will cry for him in the future. Zero had to learn how to value his existence.

Once Zero calmed down, Hua Tuo had the boy wipe his tears and wash up. The village wasn't very far from here and there will be travelling on some narrow paths from now on. Hua Tuo decided to teach Zero one last thing before they made the last lap of their journey tomorrow.

"Zero, do you know what this is?"

Zero looked up from the fire he was starting. "It's a knife?"

Puzzled, Zero frowned. The knife was the same old hunting knife that they used to scale fish and disassemble fur from small animals they caught before preparing their meals. There was nothing special about it and Zero knows what it is. So why was Hua Tuo asking him such a fundamental question?

Hua Tuo nodded in approval. Zero was thinking and that was exactly what he wanted. he meditation did some good and Zero was more mature now, taking a step further than seeing things at their face value.

"That's right, Zero. It's an ordinary knife used for hunting and cooking on the field. Do you know what it is used for?"

Zero didn't miss a beat and answered almost immediately.

"Scaling fish, disassembling fur, preparing animals for cooking..."

"That's correct. Now, what can it be used for?"

That question stumped Zero. Wasn't Hua Tuo asking the same thing?

"It can be used for the same things?"

Advertisements

Hua Tuo's eyes glinted and Zero was completely unprepared when Hua Tuo threw the knife in his direction. The knife zipped past him and grazed his ear but landed with a thunk behind him. Hua Tuo's eyes were trained on something behind Zero and the boy turned around slowly only to find a bear frozen in mid movement. The boy yelped and scrambled backwards when the huge bear came falling down in front of Zero. It was only after the bear had fallen that Zero noticed where the knife had landed.

In between the bear's eyes was the small knife that Hua Tuo threw. He glanced back at his teacher wide-eyed and confused. What was Hua Tuo trying to say?

Instead of explaining his actions, Hua Tuo calmly walked over and pulled out the knife, cleaning the blood off it before sheathing it.

"A knife has many uses, Zero. How one chooses to use it is entirely up to them. The same knife can kill and heal in the hands of different people. The same applies to everything. Meditation is good. It helps to clear the mind and allows for deeper understanding. Cultivation is good, it allows for better health and longer life. It makes one physically stronger too if practiced diligently. However, too much meditation makes the body weak and the mind lost. Too much cultivation will impede growth and in turn cause internal harm from forcing the physical limits. You may not realise this but over the past week, you've grown both mentally and physically. A knife has many uses, be careful of how you use it or it may just end up hurting you."

As they turned in for the night, Zero was left to ponder over the meaning of those words. Hua Tuo didn't comment any further and it troubled Zero. A knife had many uses, what did Zero want to use his for?

Ball of Nothing

A few days after the near self-destruction scare, Zero was skipping along the path excitedly. Hua Tuo told him that they would be arriving at the village by afternoon and Zero simply couldn't wait! He'd pestered Hua Tuo to tell him stories about the villagers during their breaks.

From what he heard, the village was a very small one with about forty people living in it. Unlike other villages, this village had no name as it was formed by outcasts. However, Hua Tuo gave it a name after he decided to become their doctor. It was now known as Half Moon Village because it usually takes Hua Tuo half a moon to travel there each time. Occasionally, some new villagers ended up joining. They were usually exiled by their original hometown for being different and stumble upon the village by chance. Zero could already see the work of fate behind the scenes for that to happen.

Hua Tuo mentioned that the village chief was a strong female warrior with the mixed heritage of elves and beastmen. Her name was Zenobia and she had white rabbit ears. Hua Tuo mentioned that Zenobia was a fierce warrior who protected the village from enemies. Hua Tuo didn't mention who the enemies were but from the stories of Zenobia's many fights, Zero figured that Half Moon village had many enemies.

Other than the village chief, Hua Tuo explained that he was making the trip this time to check on a pregnant villager by the name of Karris. Zero was excited when Hua Tuo explained to Zero about how babies grew and were delivered. Zero was also curious to find out how Karris' children would turn out. According to his teacher, Karris was human. However, she was chased out of the human village she lived in because she was impregnated by a vampire. When Zero asked what happened to the vampire, Hua Tuo simply shook his head, refusing to answer further. He only said that the child wasn't one made from love and Zero felt sad. Love was something everyone deserved but for a child to not be made out of love, Zero felt that it was a very pitiful thing.

There were children in the village too and Zero was curious to meet them. Hua Tuo told Zero that he should learn how to play like normal children and Zero couldn't agree more. Playing sounded like a wonderful thing and he was excited to make new friends too. Truen was a great friend but he never played with Zero. The brunet really wanted to know what it was like to be able to play with someone else. Would they run through the forest finding leaves and mushroom? Or would they simply throw stones into the river to try and hit a fish? Zero couldn't wait to find out.

Just before the last bend, Hua Tuo pulled Zero to a side.

"Zero, we're reaching the village soon," he began and Zero hooted in joy. The doctor had to wait for his student to calm down a little before continuing.

"Some ground rules before we enter," he said sternly.

At this point, Zero became equally serious and gave Hua Tuo his full attention.

"One, do not probe further about anyone's background if they are not comfortable sharing it. I know you are curious but many of them have difficult pasts and it would be rude to demand answers."

Advertisements

Zero nodded. Respect was important and he agreed.

"Two," Hua Tuo held up a second finger. "You must not reveal your real identity. They are usually hostile towards humans and you look very much like one. They know me as an immortal hermit living in Endow Hill and trust me as their doctor. Whatever they ask, you are to answer that you are an apprentice I picked up from Endow Hill and cannot remember much about your past."

Zero nodded again. It wasn't in his nature to lie but not omission wasn't lying. If Sedna were here, she would be shocked by Zero's way of thinking. Luckily for Zero, he didn't have to explain his sudden matured way of thinking. If it weren't for a certain someone introducing Zero to the other side of the world, he wouldn't have known that there were such convenient ways of evading questions.

"Last but not least," Hua Tuo narrowed his eyes. "You are not to go around taking things apart or touching things that do not belong to you. Any wrong move and you'll become the main course for their next feast. Understood?"

"Yes, sir!" Zero saluted. He didn't think that the villagers were capable of turning him into dinner with Hua Tuo around but he didn't want to test that theory out either. The brunet was determined to be on his best behaviour and create a good impression. After all, they would be back in a few months and Zero wanted to make new friends who would play with him when he returned. Nobody wanted to become friends with someone who made them upset. That much, Zero knew.

Seeing that Zero understood everything, Hua Tuo resumed their travels. In no time, a small village could be spotted in a distance.

Zero forgot how to breathe for a moment. The village was nothing like he'd imagined. According to the books he read on the reading device, villages usually consisted of many huts that looked similar to Hua Tuo's. Although there were other villages that were built specially, most houses were built on the ground.

This village was built into the trees. The trees were very tall and Zero didn't know how they got up there. Maybe the villagers had wings to fly up. Then again, Zenobia didn't have wings. Perhaps there was a secret passage somewhere. Zero couldn't wait to find out.

"Stop right there!" a young voice shouted and Zero froze. Hua Tuo didn't seem fazed and halted in his step.

From the branches above, a teenage boy swooped down with a spear in hand. He wasn't wearing a shirt and Zero marvelled at the feathers protruding from the boy's arms. They helped slow his fall but didn't seem to help him fly. Zero noted how the boy didn't have feet even though he had hands. In place of feet were sharp and scary-looking talons. His eyes were yellow and slit like a snake's, his teeth sharp like a tiger's.

"State your business," he growled.

"Stand down, Clowis! He is our doctor."

From behind him, a man who had similar weird feathers landed and smacked Clowis over the head with the back of his hand. The young warrior screeched in pain much to Zero's amusement.

"I apologise for my nephew's behaviour, doctor. Please, come on in."

Hua Tuo smiled and followed the man. Zero trailed behind and stayed closer to Hua Tuo when Clowis growled at him. He didn't know what he did to warrant such a hostile behaviour but he didn't want to antagonise anyone further.

"Karris has gotten quite huge and has lost a lot of weight. Living arrangements have been prepared as per your letter. However, Zenobia requests to meet your young apprentice."

Zero's eyes brightened at Zenobia's name. He became excited at having an opportunity to meet the warrior and beamed. Hua Tuo took a good look at Zero and sighed silently. Although he didn't think that Zenobia would have anything against Zero, he didn't know if he should be more worried about the warrior or his student. After all, Zenobia was known to be very fond of children and Zero was very adorable despite his sudden growth.

"Very well, his name is Zero and I'm sure he's also eager to meet Lady Zenobia after hearing stories about her heroic battles."

The man bowed and smiled at Zero. "Greeting, young Zero. I am Lowis, head warrior of Half Moon Village. Please follow me, I will lead you to see Chieftess Zenobia."

Zero beamed. "I am Zero, a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for leading the way!"

Lowis was slightly surprised by Zero's good manners in contrast to his childish behaviour but brushed the thought aside. Wordlessly, he bowed and led Zero away. Hua Tuo watched his student go and turned to the sulking Clowis.

"I see you've improved yet again. How is your sister?"

The young warrior smiled at the mention of his sister. "Amaraline is getting better. She's now able to see the shape of plants and can walk through the forest without any walking aid."

Amaraline was Clowis' blind younger sister. After an accident two years ago when some enemies who attacked the village poured acid over her eyes, the young maiden had to relearn how to see the world again. Thankfully, she was blessed with magic abilities and had a gift for fortune telling. Hua Tuo taught her how to channel magic into reading the life forces of her surroundings to 'see' again.

Her progress pleased the doctor greatly.

With Amaraline's accident, Clowis took it upon himself to train harder and become stronger. Currently, Lowis was the village's head warrior and the teenager was determined to inherit that title. Clowis wasn't a mean person but he was cautious around strangers. His earnest attitude made Hua Tuo think that he would get along very well with Zero who was equally honest in expressing himself.

"Let's check on Karris first, shall we? Also, how is everyone else doing? Is Grandma Moppo's knee still hurting?"

Clowis grinned and begin updating Hua Tuo about everyone's latest conditions while they walked over to Karris' abode.

"Chieftess, I brought the guest over!"

From inside her tree hollow home, Zenobia blinked. Hua Tuo sent a letter a few weeks back mentioning about bringing along a talented apprentice and she was eager to meet the young prodigy.

"Let him in," she ordered and put away the map swiftly.

Zero entered and bowed just like how Lowis bowed to Hua Tuo earlier. From deduction, that had to be a sign of respect and Hua Tuo did remind him to be respectful.

"Greetings, Lady Zenobia. My name is Zero and I am Hua Tuo's apprentice."

Zenobia was everything that Zero imagined. Her long white ears were fluffy and stood tall, giving her the illusion of being taller than she really was. Her legs were long and her body was toned from daily training. Zenobia was a figure who commanded respect and Zero was honoured to be able to finally meet her in person.

At the same time, Zenobia was assessing the runt before her. Hua Tuo mentioned that Zero was twelve in human age but the boy before her looked more like ten. How could such a young boy master medicine in such a short period of time? Also, Hua Tuo mentioned that Zero was gifted in magic even though he hadn't trained in it. Zenobia had reservations but because the person claiming it was Hua Tuo, she didn't question it. That didn't mean she believed it entirely. The warrior's motto had always been to see the world with her own eyes and discover all facets of the truth.

"Zero, I heard that you haven't been Hua Tuo's apprentice for long. Could you tell me how far you've progressed?"

Zero blinked. Of all the questions he expected the cautious chieftess to ask, his medical knowledge wasn't one of them.

"Apart from actual surgery and acupuncture, master has pounded all the basics of medicine making, concocting and diagnosis into my head."

Zenobia was doubtful. However, she had no real ability to verify what Zero was saying so she filed that information away for later. "You're also talented in magic? I understand that you haven't had official magic training but it should be alright for this simple test. We have a crystal here that tests a person's magic affinity and capacity. Would you like to try it out?"

Zero jumped at the opportunity immediately and thanked Zenobia. The warrior chieftess looked at the overly excited boy and mentally compared him to a dog with its tail wagging behind.

The crystal was small and Zenobia instructed Zero to channel mana into the crystal as much as he could. Zero was slightly doubtful. How will such a dull looking piece of rock determine his talent? Then again, the world was a wide place and Zero trusted Zenobia.

Closing his eyes, Zero pumped mana into the crystal and waited for the results.

Two seconds later, the crystal exploded in Zero's hands, the shards cutting deeply into his palm. Zenobia panicked and rushed over to examine the injury.

To her utter surprise, the wound was already closing at an astonishing rate and the crystal shards were being pushed out from the closing wound. Zenobia looked at Zero with both shock and amazement. Zero only blinked, unsure of what to think. He didn't mean to destroy anyone's property and didn't intend to do so. He hoped that Zenobia wouldn't decide to make him the main course for their feast.

Zero didn't have much time to think when Zenobia crushed him in her arms and squashed his face against her chest.

"Zero you're amazing! I've never seen such powerful magic. Hua Tuo was right, you're a gem. Who knew that there could be a child as cute as he was talented? Say, do you like this village? Do you want to live here with us? Forget that boring old teacher of yours, this village will treat cuties like you much better!"

Speechless, Zero could only let Zenobia chatter on. Silently, he sent a telepathic message to his teacher somewhere in the village as Zenobia dragged him further into her home to 'make him feel comfortable'.

"Please save me from Lady Zenobia... she's trying to imprison me in her room and feed me weird looking bug cakes!"

Advertisements

Hua Tuo who received the desperate plea froze. He checked on Karris earlier and was making his way around the village when he made a sharp turn.

"D-doctor?"

Hua Tuo smiled stiffly. "Sorry, Clowis. It looks like my apprentice is in need of saving from Lady Zenobia."

Clowis grimaced. It was no secret that the chieftess loved cute children and would go as far as kidnapping to pamper them. Almost every child in the village had been a victim to her 'cuteness recharging activities' at least once and the teenager pitied Zero.

"Let's go save him," Clowis agreed and led Hua Tuo through the secret maze of passages.

Ball of Nothing

By the time Hua Tuo arrive with Clowis, Zero was looking rather green. Zenobia had a wide grin on her face and Hua Tuo pitied Zero. He didn't have to eat what Zenobia was serving him and could've absorbed it to save the suffering but Hua Tuo didn't have the heart to make the boy feel any worse by telling him so. After all, many have been victims of Zenobia's 'bridal culinary training' products.

Despite her tough appearance and personality, the lady was a romantic at heart who wanted to be able to serve her future husband at home. Unfortunately, the half-elf wasn't all that talented in the kitchen as she was on the battlefield. Hua Tuo took note that she'd once again created some exotic looking desserts. Zero wasn't joking when she said bug cake. The cake baked with tree bark and caterpillar worms emitted a strange purple glow but Hua Tuo was sure that was simply a product of his imagination. The image projected certain death and the doctor thanked heavens that Zero was immortal. Besides the caterpillar cake, Hua Tuo watched how Zenobia kept urging Zero to try her freshly baked cookies decorated with mushroom caps and butterfly wings. How the lady thought it would be a great idea to create such sweets, Hua Tuo didn't know. What he did know was how Zenobia made the best dandelion tea - the only successful product of her culinary training.

"Greetings, Lady Zenobia. I see that you've taken a liking to Zero."

The chieftess paused and turned around to greet Hua Tuo.

"Greetings, doctor. We're happy to have you again. Your apprentice is most delightful! Could I offer you some snacks?"

Behind him, Clowis quickly intervened. "Chieftess, I think that is unwise. We will hold the feast soon and snacking now might tarnish our esteemed guests' appetites."

Zenobia pouted a little but agreed anyway. Then, she looked at Clowis and brightened up. "Clowis, how about you show Zero around the village? I'm sure the young apprentice would love to see the sky bridge."

Clowis smiled and agreed, quickly ushering them out before the female warrior could get other less desirable bright ideas to entertain their guests. Hua Tuo was thankful for Clowis' quick thinking.

Once they were in the clear, Zero immediately clutched his stomach. Hua Tuo got to examining his apprentice. Luckily, Zero had gained a certain resistance to poison from his pill-making training. The doctor didn't know how to face the Great Gods should anything happen to Zero under his watch.

"What did she make you eat?"

Advertisements

Zero grimaced. His stomach churned painfully at the memory. "Some of that weird bug cake and the flower tea. You came in just in time to save me from eating those cookies. I saw them! One of them had the poisonous red-hat mushroom you warned me about... She was trying to kill me!"

Clowis flinched. Surely Zenobia didn't mean to do so. She probably wasn't aware that the mushroom was poisonous. Then again, she didn't know that her culinary skill was on an unspeakable level. He couldn't fault Zero for thinking that way but didn't want him to have a bad impression of their respected leader. Zenobia was many things but a child murderer, she was not.

"Sorry, Zero. The Chieftess can be rather dense at times. Cooking is not her strongest suit but she constantly tries to improve. Those red-hat mushrooms... she probably didn't know that they were poisonous. I'm sure she didn't intend to kill you or intentionally feed you inedible creations. She meant well and was definitely fond of you even if it didn't seem like it. After all, she spent the whole of last night preparing them for your arrival today."

The brunet was glum. Clowis wasn't lying but it felt bitter not to have an outlet for the resentment he felt. Zenobia wasn't at fault but it didn't change the fact that Zero had suffered in her hands. Now he understood the meaning of 'the way to hell is paved with good intentions'. Zero didn't think that there could be too much of a good thing but now, he didn't doubt that it existed. Zenobia was a cool warrior and Zero respected that. However, if she offered cakes and cookies... Zero knew better than to accept them again, impolite or not!

"I think it would be better to let Zero rest for a bit. The village tour can happen when he is feeling better."

Clowis agreed. "I shall inform the others. Will he be well enough for the dinner feast?"

Hua Tuo looked at his apprentice. Zero, despite his discomfort, nodded.

"I need to meditate it away for a few hours. I should be able to join... just no more bug cakes and poisonous cookies please..."

At that, both men laughed. "No, Zero. We'll be sure not to include them. See you at the feast then. I have last minute preparations to attend to and cannot escort you to your rooms. I could send for someone else to show you to your rooms."

Hua Tuo waved his hand. "Do not trouble yourself, Zero and I will be fine."

Clowis bowed once more and gave Zero one more apologetic look before leaving. The doctor then turned to his apprentice who was less green than before.

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

Zero shook his head. "It's tricky to absorb something that's already inside of me but I think I can manage it. Mii is taking care of it but she says that there might be some side effects."

Hua Tuo nodded and held his hand out for Zero to take before leading them to their room.

Zero didn't have much time to marvel at the scenery on the way back. All he remembered was collapsing on a soft feather stuffed bed and falling asleep.

"Zero, the feast is about to start. Are you well enough to attend?"

The brunet was groggy at first. He was startled to find himself in an unfamiliar room until he recalled where they were. Hua Tuo was now dressed in a white robe and Zero raised a brow. Normally, the physician would wear some old and thread-worn robes with dull colours. What's with the sudden change?

"These are ceremonial clothes for the welcome feast. You have one too. It's easy to slip it over your tracksuit if you're not comfortable wearing it alone."

Zero nodded and started changing. After sleeping, he felt a lot better. Mii was a great help and Zero thanked the strawcherry summon. She assisted Zero in absorbing the 'foreign entities' in his body in less than a minute. However, the process took a lot of energy so Zero had to sleep it off.

Now that it was over, Zero felt the excitement running through his veins. The sleepiness was wearing off and Zero could already hear the faint commotion coming from where the feast was supposed to be. It didn't help that Zero smelled many delicious things in the air. It made his stomach rumble.

Hua Tuo didn't keep the boy waiting for too long. The moment Zero was done changing into the ceremonial robes, he led them to the feast. Fully awake now, Zero let his jaw fall at the magical sight. The tree apartment had a great view. Although it was slightly obscured from the outside by leaves and vines, Zero could see everything that went on outside from the window. The trapdoor that led them to the underground passageway was also something that Zero found interesting.

Footholds were carved into the tree trunk's hollowed section like steps. It was narrow for Hua Tuo but Zero had space to move around in it. The physician explained that this was just one way to get up. For some of the older villagers, a pulley system is used. They would stand on a platform and untie the rope at the bottom. The platform would carry them up and once up, they will tie the rope to a hook to prevent the platform from falling back down. Zero thought it was a very smart invention. He couldn't wait to check it out and Hua Tuo promised that they would have time to do so tomorrow.

For now, Zero noticed how there were different light emitting crystals. Hua Tuo explained that they used different light crystals to indicate a different path or location. For example, they followed a light blue crystal path to reach their tree apartment. Zero also found out that they were not the only occupants in that tree. Apparently, there were several other apartments in the same tree on different levels. That made Zero extremely interested. For now, they followed a red crystal light path to a cave where the feast would take place.

The cave was on a higher part of the hill and not easily accessible due to its rocky terrain. Most of the cave was obscured and only tiny cracks, too small for anyone to get through, were visible from outside. However, with the underground passageway, it was a breeze to enter freely. Zero couldn't wait to meet the villagers and tried to imagine what the cave would look like.

They arrived at the cave quickly and Zero blinked. The cave was very well furnished with animal skin rugs, light crystals, a huge bonfire, some firewood supplies at the side and most importantly, some barrels of alcohol. Yes, Zero knew what alcohol was because he caught Hua Tuo drinking some secretly. The physician kept his alcohol a distance away from the hut. Zero secretly followed Hua Tuo out when the doctor snuck out one night. He didn't mention this to anyone yet for he didn't want them to be alarmed. Zero tried alcohol before out of curiosity and honestly, he didn't want to do it again. The side effects were terrible and Zero preferred to stay clear of that fermented liquid.

"The doctor and his apprentice are here!" Someone announced. Immediately, the mood in the cave lit up. Zero was suddenly barraged with cheers, questions and greetings. The highly-energetic bunch scared Zero. Never had he experienced so many people swarming over him. They closed in on him so quickly and the brunet got separated with Hua Tuo at some point. Seeing so many unfamiliar people talking to him scared Zero.

Luckily for him, Zero recognised Clowis from earlier. Instinctively, he ran over to hide behind the teenager, causing the majority of the villagers to coo at his shyness.

"Aww, that's not fair! Don't hog the young doctor!"

"That's right, I called dibs! He's going to try my dish first!"

"No, we agreed to let him choose, didn't we? Now stop pressuring the young boy. The poor thing is shaking in his shoes!"

Clowis pinched the bridge of his nose. The girls gathering around them only increased and Zero clung onto his leg tighter.

"Look, give him some space to breathe and bring him something to eat. I'm sure he'll gladly answer all your questions when he's less overwhelmed. Zero, I heard that you enjoy trying new dishes. My sister, Amaraline here will take you to try some of our village's speciality. As for the rest of you, scoot! You can line up to talk to him after food. Chieftess is going to give a speech soon so go gather around the fire before I force you to."

The girls pouted but dispersed, much to Zero's relief.

"Thank you," he breathed and gave Clowis a bright smile. "You're a great person!"

Blushing at Zero's sincere compliment, the warrior looked away. He couldn't quite hide the tint of pink on his cheeks but tried to remain as nonchalant as possible while introducing his sister.

Amaraline had similar feathers protruding from her arms. The girl had beautiful brown locks and two green stripes on each cheek. However, Zero noticed how her eyes were closed while she walked and upon closer observation, noted how there was a faded white patch over her eyes. The mark scarred her beautiful face and Zero understood why Hua Tuo made the first rule. Amaraline probably had a tough and painful past. Zero felt sorry for her even though they've only met.

"Hi, Zero. I'm Amaraline and this is my older brother, Clowis. Allow me to be your guide. Is there anything you prefer to eat? We have a variety of things from mushroom salad to grilled meat. I'm proud to say that the festive stew is our village's signature dish."

Salivating at Amaraline's introduction, Zero nodded enthusiastically. "As long as it isn't caterpillar cakes or poisonous mushroom cookies, I'll eat anything!"

Amaraline giggled at Zero's tone and led the way. Zero was amazed by how the blind girl was able to manoeuvre her way around without sight. Amaraline walked with such precision and grace that Zero had a hard time believing she couldn't see at all.

The feast was filled with dance, music, food and laughter. After Zenobia's short speech to welcome their guests, Hua Tuo and Zero were invited up the small stone platform to say a few words. Hua Tuo kept his short and polite while Zero fumbled with finding his vocabulary under the pressure of many pairs of expectant eyes.

"Um... I- I'm Zero! I'm glad to be here today... the stew is great!"

Zero's speech was followed by thunderous applause and a lot of cheering. Zenobia grinned and told Zero that tonight's stew was made by a middle-aged lady called Zoe. Zero thanked her once more before walking off the platform to resume eating. The middle-aged lady went pink at the compliment but offered Zero seconds when he cleaned his bowl.

During the feast, Zero got to meet almost all the villagers. The only exceptions were Karris who wasn't feeling too well and Lowis who was patrolling the borders. He met three other children who were about his age. Their names were Jacqueline, Rima and Leon.

Jacqueline was a quarter mermaid. She had fish scales, dark vision and could breathe underwater. The gills by her neck wasn't normally visible although her skin was an intriguing shade of light blue that made her appear sickly most the time. Unlike normal mermaids, Jacqueline had no issues being out of the water. In fact, she laments how she doesn't have the siren's voice that many merfolks possessed or a tail for that matter. According to Jacqueline, she was eleven in human years and didn't know her parents. Her human grandfather brought her to this village when she was just a baby and left her in the care of the village chieftess. Zero felt slightly bad for her but Jacqueline laughed it off. According to her, living with Zoe made her happy.

Rima was a girl with cute cocoa brown pigtails. If the girl didn't introduce herself as a spirit propagator, Zero would've thought of her as a normal human. Rima was a girl around nine in human years. However, according to Jacqueline, Rima been nine-year-old as far as she remembered.

"I'm a soul container for a white antelope spirit guardian. The one I'm waiting for has yet to awaken so I cannot age."

Zero was intrigued. He didn't know such things were possible. Then again, his existence wasn't one that could easily be explained either so he simply accepted it. None of the villagers found it weird so Zero shrugged it off. Rima was also living with Zoe who seemed to be Half Moon Village's foster mother for abandoned children.

Leon was a lively boy about twelve in human age. Zero found him to be very humorous. Nobody knew exactly what Leon was but he had a tendency to spot lion parts whenever he was excited. Zero had the opportunity to pat the lion ears and stroke his tail. He was delighted to feel them twitch under his touch. The supposed werecat was easily ticklish and often became the subject of punishments in the form of tickle torture. He had rocks for brains according to Rima but was a pure and honest person. Zero decided that he liked his new friends well enough and was slightly sad when they had to part for the night.

"Come visit us tomorrow! We can play tag!"

Zero didn't know what tag was but agreed. It sounded fun.

Hua Tuo smiled when Zero chattered away about how he made new friends. He made sure to text Truen about it and sent some updates to the Great Gods. The brunet didn't stop talking about it until Hua Tuo put the lights out.

Advertisements

"Do you think I can see them again tomorrow?"

Hua Tuo chuckled. Zero fired a long message to Truen about his newly made friends and the wood elf had yet to reply, supposedly busy with his training. He must be feeling slightly insecure so Hua Tuo reassured him that they would be delighted to have him.

"They promised to play tag with you so I'm sure you will see them tomorrow. But first, get some sleep. We need to check on Karris and Granny Moppo first thing in the morning before we make our rounds. Also, if we have some spare time after lunch, you could ask Raj about the moving platform. He'll be sure to indulge you in his creations."

Smiling, Zero bid Hua Tuo good night once more before falling to sleep, already dreaming about the fun things he could do tomorrow.

What an eventful first day on the job!

Ball of Nothing

"And that's two hundred!" Zero announced happily. Hua Tuo let him sleep in today so Zero wasn't cranky in the morning.

Zero's first task as a doctor's apprentice was to prepare pills for the villagers who were still mostly sleeping. According to Hua Tuo, many of them would be suffering from something called hangover - a side effect of drinking too much alcohol. Zero nodded and followed the instructions carefully. They made two hundred pills to hand out to anyone who might need them later.

"Good. Now get washed up, we will visit Cleo for breakfast and pass the pills to her for distribution. We'll be having a busy morning so do your best to keep up."

Zero beamed and swiftly followed after Hua Tuo who disappeared down the trapdoor.

"We're following the dark blue crystals this time," Hua Tuo told his student. "Cleo lives in a tree apartment near the farms. She's the village's herbalist and shares the apartment with Lovina, the village witch and healer. Lovina makes the tastiest pancakes so we're heading over for breakfast."

Zero blinked. He didn't know what pancakes were but if Hua Tuo said that it was good, Zero can't wait to try some.

The dark blue crystal underground tunnel came to an end and Zero found them walking up a slope. He could see some light at the end of the road and wondered if that was how the exits looked like. Zero was amazed by how well hidden the exit was when they emerged from beneath some tree roots.

Zero tottered along the slightly damp grass behind Hua Tuo. He didn't know where the farm was located but he didn't think there would be one in such a dense forest. Hua Tuo proved Zero wrong when they entered a small clearing with a small clear stream running through it. Zero blinked at the dazzling sight. The farm looked similar to what Hua Tuo had in his fields outside the hut. However, Zero was interested in how such a farm did not get noticed. Half Moon Village was a very mysterious place.

"Cleo and a few others live over there, let's visit them first. You can check out the farm on another day. Harvest happens in tomorrow so there is no hurry."

The brunet agreed and skipped along the stones to cross the small stream. They reached the tree apartment and Zero looked up. The apartments were very well concealed in the tree and from the bottom, he couldn't exactly tell where they were unless he tried to sense their presence.

Advertisements

"Who else lives here?"

Hua Tuo stroked his beard and frowned. It had been some time since he last visited. "If I recall correctly, Cleo and Lovina are on the third floor. Wiser is on the topmost floor. Qin Yun is on the second, Moona and Latitia are on the first."

Zero blinked. He was expecting to see something when Hua Tuo mentioned that there were people living on the first level. However, he couldn't see anything except for a sturdy tree trunk. Could it be...?

The physician grinned. His student was learning fast. "You're right. That's Lovina's illusion."

Zero grinned. "Are we going to climb again?"

Hua Tuo mocked horror. "Are you asking this old bag of bones to climb such a horrifyingly tall tree? Of course not! Why climb when we can use this conveniently located teleporting circle?"

Zero blinked. He looked at the ring of flowers and raised a brow. That was a teleporting circle? Zero thought teleporting circles were far more complicated than some neatly grown flowers. Hua Tuo noticed the look of doubt on Zero's face and smirked. His student had much to learn, bringing him on a trip was a good idea. Normally, fairy rings were avoided as they can teleport a person to a random location that often proves dangerous. Some say that stepping into a fairy ring can bring a year's worth of bad luck. However, the truth was that fairy rings were created by fairies as a form of friendship.

Only those the fairy who created the circle consider a friend or ally may step through it safely and arrive at their homes. The circle was made by Latitia and it brought them to the 'lobby' of the tree inside. From there, they would take one of the modes of transport up to the respective occupant's apartment. For Wiser, there was the pulley. For Lovina and Cleo, there was the magic circle. For Qin Yun, they had to step into a foxfire platform which could prove to be a little scary the first few times. As for Latitia and Moona, all they had to do was knock on the door.

Without telling Zero anything, Hua Tuo walked into the fairy ring and disappeared. Zero was quick to follow, not wanting to be left behind. The brunet blinked as the surroundings changed as soon as he stepped into the fairy ring. He saw Hua Tuo standing by a magic circle and grinned. Now he understood why Hua Tuo was so sure. Two cheeky looking ladies were waiting by the circle with Hua Tuo.

The lady with copper hair, freckles on her cheeks and green eyes beckoned to him. Using Mind's Eye, Zero knew that she was Latitia. The semi-transparent lady with silver hair and silver eyes who looked more spirit than nymph was Moona. Hua Tuo waited patiently as Zero walked over and greeted the ladies. Moona smiled politely and Latitia giggled as Hua Tuo placed his hand on the magic circle.

The platform below started to bring them upwards and Zero blinked. He didn't know flying magic could be used on objects without active control. Perhaps, it was the power of the magic circle?

They arrived fairly quickly and Cleo greeted them at the door.

"Good morning everyone! Wiser is still sleeping but Lovina is already up. She's flipping pancakes as we speak."

Hua Tuo nodded in greeting and Zero examined the half Dryad. Cleo had hair similar to Gaia with vines, twigs and leaves making the majority of it. Her eyes were hazel brown and under the light sometimes appeared yellow. She had barks covering her skin at some places and Zero blinked when she made a flower bloom in her hand.

"This is for you, welcome to our tiny village, Zero!"

The brunet accepted the flower and thanked her brightly. The small crowd entered and made themselves comfortable while the smell of pancakes wafted through the air. Zero's stomach growled as if acting as a cue for Lovina to bring a stack of delicious fluffy pancakes from the kitchen. Cleo came back with plates and utensils but most importantly, she came back with honey.

"Enjoy breakfast everyone!" Lovina smiled. The side of her eyes crinkled and Zero blinked. The witch didn't look a day over twenty-five with her short stature despite her high heeled boots. She had loose curly black hair, green eyes and wore a long black robe. The only indication that she was a magician was that classic oversized pointy hat that drooped to a side.

Ignoring that, Zero dug in and was surprised to find how good they were. He cleaned the first plate quickly and so did everyone else. Lovina was already dishing out seconds and Zero wondered how anything could taste so divine.

Breakfast was a quick affair and there were no leftovers, unsurprisingly. Cleo served some herbal tea while Hua Tuo passed the herbalist the hangover pills.

"Make sure to distribute them to anyone who needs it. Lady Zenobia should need it badly. She finished an entire barrel of wine by herself last night."

Cleo chuckled. "I'll be sure to do that. Also, thank you for dropping by for breakfast. We really did want to spend some time with Zero here. Did he help to make these pills?"

Hua Tuo nodded, pride swelled up in his chest. Zero was slightly embarrassed at how everyone seemed impressed with his contribution but the warm feeling in his chest wouldn't fade away.

"As much as I would love to stay for a chat, Zero and I have to check on Karris and Grandma Moppo today. Perhaps we could stay for a little longer another time. We're staying in this village for two weeks, I'm sure there will be plenty of future opportunities to do so."

Lovina saw them out and the ladies decided that they should get going to tend to the fields. Zero waved goodbye and followed Hua Tuo back to the underground passageway.

"Let's follow the turquoise path now. I have a clinic there so we should drop by after checking on Karris and Grandma Moppo. It's been a while since I last visited so we might have to do some cleaning before we can officially say that the doctor is in," Hua Tuo warned.

Zero didn't look deterred. "What do we do at the clinic after cleaning?"

Hua Tuo grinned. "We wait for patients. You may get to witness how an actual assessment is done but not today. Everyone is too badly hung-over for any check-ups. There will be a health screening tomorrow so be ready for it."

"Yes, sir!"

Hua Tuo put on his sternest face and Zero suddenly felt nervous. "Zero, I need you to help me with healing magic when we meet Karris and Grandma Moppo. Karris is heavily pregnant and Grandma Moppo is experiencing very bad pains. Do you still remember how to cast calming and numbing buffs?"

The brunet nodded.

Advertisements

"I'll need you to hold up a calming buff while I examine Karris and pain-numbing buffs when I examine Grandma Moppo. At this point, medicine is useless for either of them and we can only rely on healing magic to ease their suffering."

Zero swallowed nervously. He had faith in his skills but practising it on a patient for the very first time felt a lot more stressful than practising it on fishes and animals that they caught. For the first time, Zero doubted himself. What if he did something wrong?

"Zero, listen to me. Even if you doubt yourself, do not doubt the training. As a future doctor, you must keep calm at all times. Your patient is as good as dead if you lose control over your rationality. Their lives are in your hands and as a doctor, you must do whatever you can to save them. Failure is not an option."

Nervous and slightly frightened but determined, Zero followed after Hua Tuo. This was his first trial and Zero made the decision to become a doctor when he finished his training. He was going to travel the world, maybe even between worlds. He was going to visit many foreign places, meet many new people and encounter many new phenomena.

Zero wasn't going to fail here. His journey had yet to begin.

Ball of Nothing

The special housing wasn't very special looking in Zero's opinion. However, he understood why it was necessary. There were only three cosy huts in the special housing zone. They were located on a small hill beside the farm and quite hidden from view with the tall river grass in front of it. Behind the special houses was a steep and rocky cliff where the feast cave was. The special housing was in a very protected area and built strategically with the topography of the forest in mind. Whoever designed it had to be a very wise person and Zero respected them.

"Karris lives in the small hut with the vegetable garden. Grandma Moppo is in the house behind with the flower beds. We will be visiting them first. I'm sure Clowis would be glad to show you around the village later. He lives in the third hut closest to the river with Amaraline."

Zero smiled. All three huts had their individual personalities and he tried to imagine how their occupants would turn out to be. He already knew Clowis and Amaraline but he was still slightly to meet Karris because she was going to be the first human he would meet. Zero did like the idea of meeting Grandma Moppo as she sounded like a warm and friendly person. The flowers in her little garden that were also well tended to spoke volumes about her nurturing nature.

Hua Tuo cautioned Zero about falling into the river as they crossed it by jumping from stone to stone. It was rather slippery with moss and Zero wondered how the less athletic occupants of the village managed to cross it. Clowis would have no problem hopping over the stones but for Karris and Grandma Moppo or even Amaraline... Zero feared for their safety.

"Don't look so worried. Grandma Moppo is a half fae. They usually travel using the fairy ring near her house. However, the ring leads to feast cave so it's easier for us to hop across the river. You can see the farm from here. This river leads to the small stream there so it is important not to contaminate the water source here."

"We're not allowed to wash anything here?"

Hua Tuo hummed. "No washing of bandages or bathing here. There is an underground well slightly further away from the huts that they use to draw water from for those purposes."

Zero grinned. "Understood! Are we seeing Karris or Grandma Moppo first?"

Hua Tuo stopped for a bit. Grandma Moppo usually eats with Karris and takes care of the pregnant lady. With any luck, they might catch both ladies at Karris' house.

"Let's try Karris' house first. Remember what I told you about babies? I need you to be on your best behaviour. They can hear us talking and can understand us."

Advertisements

Zero put a finger to his lip and nodded. The physician then walked up to the door and knocked it.

The door swung open with a creak revealing a woman with fair skin, dirty blonde hair pulled into a messy bun and pale blue eyes. She was in her early twenties but the dark circles around her eyes made her look a lot older. The tired expression changed when she saw Hua Tuo and welcomed the doctor in, only to notice a small boy behind the doctor.

"Oh my! Are you the rumoured apprentice everyone was talking about? I heard that you made quite the impact at the feast with your speech last night. Sorry that I wasn't there to hear it. Did you enjoy yourself?"

Zero blushed at the woman's compliment of sorts and decided that Karris would make a great mother. Her child would definitely be loved.

"Good morning, Ms Karris! The feast was fun last night, thank you for asking. I'm Zero, a doctor in training."

The lady blinked at the young boy's eloquent manner of speaking and smiled. "Karris is fine. Why don't you come on in and have a seat? Grandma Moppo should be arriving soon."

Hua Tuo and Zero were ushered into the living room and Zero watched as Karris waddled slowly to the kitchen to make some tea. She seemed to sigh every few minutes and rubbed her tummy. Zero also observed how her feet swelled and her back seemed to ache.

"Is that normal?" he whispered to Hua Tuo who was also observing her.

"For a pregnant human woman with a normal human baby, yes. However, there could be some other symptoms that we do not know about with a half-vampire child. Believe it or not, Karris has been pregnant for almost two years now."

Zero's jaw dropped. "But shouldn't a normal pregnancy last about nine months?"

Hua Tuo smiled. "Remember what I told you before we left? This is a village for outcasts. Their conditions can be very different. In a normal human pregnancy, it is about nine months. For a normal vampire pregnancy, it can be anything from ten years to fifty years - something that would kill a human woman to go through. For a half-vampire and half-human baby... nobody is sure. There have been a few records over the years but it varies so drastically. Not many mothers survived because their babies syphoned off all the energy from their mothers to grow. When their mothers died, they too died. Some couldn't bear the long pregnancy and committed suicide. Others didn't live long enough to give birth to their child. The few who successfully gave birth didn't live to see their children grow into adults. Vampires can live for several hundreds of years on average with some living for thousands. Humans live till eighty at most and for a vampire fledgling, they take at least two hundred years to become teenagers. Half-vampires live for a shorter period of time but even so, it takes them sixty years to finally become a teenager."

Zero did some math and cringed. He pitied Karris and her unborn child even more. It was a tragedy. The child wasn't made from love and now Karris wouldn't live to see her child grow up before she dies. That is if she makes it through the pregnancy...

There was a weak knock on the door before Zero could delve into darker thoughts. Karris seemed to liven up when she heard it and opened the door.

A very short old lady appeared. Zero didn't know that there could be adults shorter than him. The old lady stood at his chest height holding a wooden branch that acted as a walking staff. What's stranger was how the staff seemed to be sprouting leaves! Zero didn't know what to think. Grandma Moppo looked scary with her pointed pixie ears and her eyes that were black even at the sclera. She had honey-brown skin, a round face and a sturdy build, giving off the impression that she had a strong character.

"Good morning, my dear. I see that we have guests."

Her voice sounded warm and Zero relaxed a little. First impressions were usually inaccurate and Zero was glad he didn't make any assumptions about what kind of person Grandma Moppo was based on her appearance. Her eyes unnerved Zero slightly for they appeared to look right through him but her voice and bubbly personality completely won his heart over.

"Oh my, oh my... who do we have here? He's such a cutie! Is he your grandson?"

Hua Tuo smiled and looked at Zero. "Why don't you introduce yourself to Grandma Moppo?"

Zero gave the old lady a bright smile. "I'm Zero, a doctor in training! Nice to meet you. Grandma Moppo."

The fae-dwarf cooed over Zero and pinched his cheeks playfully.

"He's a cute one," she mentioned, turning to Hua Tuo as she took her usual seat.

Hua Tuo nodded. "That, he is. How have you been lately? I heard from Clowis that your knees are acting up again."

Grandma Moppo sighed and rubbed her aching knees. "Old age is taking its toll on me. Whoever said that longevity is a blessing should try experience living a few hundred years with bad knees... The medical ointment you gave me the previous time helped for a bit. I can walk to the farms now without taking a break. However, visiting the twins can still be a challenge."

Hua Tuo went over to the old lady and asked for permission before examining her knees. He pressed on a few spots and Zero observed everything silently. After a while, Hua Tuo looked at his disciple.

"What do you think Zero?"

The brunet stood up at attention and became serious. "I think it is Osteoarthritis."

Hua Tuo smiled. This was too easy for Zero. "How would you recommend treating it?"

The brunet frowned. "Medically, the liver and kidney should be nourished to boost blood production and circulation activity. Acupuncture should be administered periodically to encourage better blood circulation to reduce the pain. There is no permanent solution for it."

Hua Tuo nodded. He couldn't have said it better and Grandma Moppo smiled. She'd known long before that there wasn't a permanent cure for something that came with old age.

"However," Zero added on. "If we added healing magic to strengthen her bones and rebuild the worn out cartilage, there is a chance that it can make a complete recovery."

Grandma Moppo seemed surprised by Zero's determined answer. Hua Tuo was similarly startled by Zero's insight. He wasn't good at magic even though he knew the basics as a Sage God. He taught Zero the basics of revival magic and healing magic to encourage speeding up the body's natural healing process. However, he had never tried targeting a certain cell to regenerate in an abnormal nature. After all, that level of magic control was beyond him.

Grandma Moppo looked slightly hopeful and Hua Tuo felt troubled. He turned to Zero who looked apprehensive.

"Theoretically, it should work. However, I do not have that level of control in magic to accomplish such a thing. We will talk about this later but for now, let's help to prepare the tonic for Grandma Moppo shall we?"

Zero didn't feel dejected. In fact, he felt nervous. Did he go too far by mentioning healing using magic? Were doctors supposed to include magic in their medical skills? Worse still, if it turned out to be impossible, has he given Grandma Moppo some kind of false hope with his words?

Grandma Moppo saw the myriad of emotions flicker across Zero's face and smiled kindly. "Don't worry too much about it, child. If it works out, that's good for everyone. If it doesn't, nothing changes. I can see now why Hua Tuo has finally decided on accepting a disciple. You might be able to surpass him after all..."

Comforted by the hand on his head, Zero nodded. "I shall prepare the tonic now!"

As Zero left, Karris looked at the young apprentice and his teacher. "That child.. he's not human, is he?"

Grandma Moppo smiled and Hua Tuo shook his head. "It'll be nice if you could teach him about humans and share with him some stories. Zero's existence is quite the enigma but the closest to what he is would be a God."

Karris looked nervous and Grandma Moppo had a thoughtful expression. "Is it alright to let such a young and naive God to be travelling around without a guardian? Someone might use his powers for bad."

Hua Tuo looked at Grandma Moppo and smiled. "He has a guardian... however, they made an agreement to train and become stronger in two years before they went on their adventures. Zero doesn't have any memories of the past so everything is new to him. His way of thoughts can be slightly concerning at times but he means well. His curious nature is something I worry about so I'm hoping that he will learn a lot from this trip. There is only so much a can teach him back at the hut. He's a fast learner."

Karris giggled at the physician's tired expression. "Now I'm curious about what he did. I'm guessing there was never a boring day with him?"

Hua Tuo looked horrified. "No! Never... I wouldn't dream of a boring day with him around. If ever a day with Zero becomes boring, I shall have to worry about the safety of Endow Hill."

Grandma Moppo chuckled. "Did he set fire to the fields or something?"

Hua Tuo grimaced. "He took apart my waterwheel..."

At that, both ladies laughed and Zero wondered what they were talking about from outside. The herbs were found easily and he was currently grinding them into powder with his pill-making set. He was concentrating on making the medicine that he failed to hear silent footsteps coming closer.

"Good morning, Zero. Did you sleep well?"

The soft voice startled him badly and Zero yelled when the pestle fell onto his leg as he dropped it. It didn't hurt and his body was healing the wound rapidly. The bruise that was supposed to be there disappeared and Zero turned around to see Amaraline.

"Good morning, Amaraline. I slept well. Are you alone? Where is Clowis?"

The young fortune teller giggled. "Big brother is still in bed. He has a bad headache."

Zero blinked. "Cleo has some pills that may help with his headache. I can accompany you there, just let me finish this first. Grandma Moppo is still waiting for the medicine."

"Oh no, it's alright," Amaraline said. "I can get them myself. Big brother mentioned about giving you a village tour today. Maybe you could come and find us after you finish?"

"Sure!" Zero beamed. Amaraline waved goodbye and left swiftly. Zero then turned his attention back to the herbs he was grinding.

"I'm done," he told Hua Tuo.

The physician didn't even have to look at the work done. He knew that Zero didn't cut corners when it came to making medicine. Hua Tuo had just finished the acupressure massage treatment and was about to move to acupuncture.

"Good timing, Zero. You can place that over there. We're about to start the acupuncture treatment. Can you sterilise these needles?"

Zero obeyed quickly and returned with the sterilised needles in less than a minute. Hua Tuo blinked. Sterilising the needles required hot water and it took about ten minutes for the water to boil. How did Zero manage it so quickly?

"I cheated a little,' Zero admitted. Magic was certainly handy and Zero conjured a small flame on one of his fingertips.

Hua Tuo didn't have the heart to berate Zero's abuse of magic because it was efficient. If Hua Tuo had the gift for magic, he would've taken advantage of it too. However, Zero was going to be in charge of all sterilising work from now on. Hua Tuo refused to wait ten minutes for the water to boil each time when Zero could do it in less than a minute.

"Alright. Now watch closely, we will begin your training on this when we return."

"Yes, sir!"

Hua Tuo swiftly inserted the needles and Zero noticed how sometimes the physician would flick the needles or rock them. Some were inserted deeper than the others and Zero made sure to file the questions away for a later. He noted that some of the places Hua Tuo inserted needles into weren't in the exact position of where the pressure points were supposed to be.

"Does it not hurt?" he asked Grandma Moppo who had been silent ever since the start of the treatment.

She smiled. "No, it doesn't. Hua Tuo is a very skilful doctor although I admit that I was afraid when he did it for the first time. I've never heard of such a strange treatment method before but it certainly worked wonders when I tried."

Karris smiled. "Without Hua Tuo, many of us would have suffered greatly. I still remember the time when Lovina wasn't in village and Camie got injured while fighting off a Berserker Bear King. Roovan flew at top speed to fetch Hua Tuo within a day. Without Hua Tuo, Camie might have died."

Grandma Moppo hummed. "If I recall correctly, that happened last year. We really do have a lot to thank Hua Tuo for..."

Hua Tuo grunted. "Don't mention it. Without Coux's help to trade off some things for me, I would have to make the trip to human cities that I detest."

Karris chuckled when she heard that. It was hard to believe that anyone could hate humans so badly. Hua Tuo was a human once but his dislike for them amused her. Not to mention, there was another oddball in the village who was a human and hated his kind.

"Speaking of which, I think Wiser is curious about your apprentice. He says that Zero is the first human he doesn't feel repulsed by and wishes to meet him."

Hua Tuo raised a brow at Karris. "Zero isn't human."

His statement surprised the pregnant lady and Zero blinked. "I'm not human. Not yet at least. I still do not know many things to behave like one. Maybe you could teach me?"

Karris was surprised. "You wish to become human?"

Zero hummed. "Not really. But it would be nice if I could blend in and understand more about them. Humans are interesting. Actually, everything is interesting."

Karris beamed. "You should definitely talk to Qin Yun if you wish to know more about humans. She likes humans a lot and has lived among them before. As for Wiser... I wouldn't recommend talking to him about it. He's an odd person and even I cannot understand him despite being human like him."

Zero was intrigued. "There are many different kinds of humans I suppose?"

"Many," Karris agreed. "I can't speak for the rest but I think humans are very interesting creatures. Just when you think something is impossible, one human will find a way to make the impossible come true. As you know, humans do not have wings but yet, they've found a way to fly without magic."

"No way!"

Karris smiled. "Yes, they have. Humans have also found a way to breathe underwater for an extended period of time even though they do not have gills. They can also travel across the sea without getting wet. Some say that humans have found a way to destroy Gods in their previous world but nobody knows for sure. There are many interesting stories about them, both good and bad."

Zero was intrigued. Hua Tuo only chuckled at his apprentice's wide eyes. He had much to learn.

"Alright, I'm done with the treatment," he announced while removing the needles. "Sterilise them again and then we'll check on Karris. I can hear Clowis outside, waiting to give you a tour of the village."

Zero nodded and got to work. After Hua Tuo examined Karris' condition, Zero helped to reduce the swelling in her feet and pain in her back.

"He seems to be eager to meet his mother," Hua Tuo commented and Karris smiled.

"He does... recently I've been feeling stronger kicks. Sometimes, it hurts too."

Hua Tuo paused. "Have you counted the contractions?"

Karris shook her head. "No contractions so far. No normal signs of popping soon but he's growing bigger every day."

Hua Tuo frowned. It was worrying. "We might need to prepare you for premature delivery. At this rate, your body might not hold up."

Karris looked slightly worried and cradled her stomach. Zero saw that and held her hand reassuringly.

"Does the baby have a name?"

Karris shook her head sadly. "I don't know what name to give him."

Zero didn't say much and cast calming magic on the pregnant woman as well as pain-numbing magic for Grandma Moppo before they left.

"We'll be back in a few days, thank you for the tea."

Zero bowed and bade goodbye before they left. Outside, Clowis was pacing impatiently with the spear strapped to his back.

"There you are! Amaraline told me that you were here. Also, the pills really helped. Thank you, doctor."

Hua Tuo shook his head. "I'll be at the clinic. Come back before lunch, alright? Zoe invited us over. The children seem eager to play tag with you."

Advertisements

Clowis grinned. "I'll bring him back before lunch, sir. Zero, are you ready for the grandest tour of your life?"

Zero grinned and hopped over excitedly. "Yes! Can we see the Sky Bridge first?"

Clowis laughed. "I wouldn't have it any other way. Now hop onto my back and hold tight, we're taking a shortcut."

Zero was puzzled by what Clowis meant by a shortcut. His screams of initial terror morphed into those of exhilaration after Clowis took off. Although Clowis couldn't fly, he had very powerful legs that propelled him to great heights with every jump. Clowis could even jump in mid-air, impressing Zero.

Hua Tuo watched them leave and grow smaller in the distance. He shook his head. Clowis was going to be a bad influence on Zero by feeding his adrenaline junkie side. He wondered if Zero would ever travel normally once they returned. For now, he would return to the clinic and research in detail about Zero's suggestion to use healing magic to cure osteoarthritis.

Ball of Nothing

Zero knew that the trees were tall. He just didn't know how tall or huge they were until Clowis showed him. The warrior jumped from branch to branch with Zero behind him and they didn't seem to get any closer to the top. Yet, the ground became further and further away until all that is left was a bed of leaves.

"Are you sure this is a shortcut?"

Clowis didn't slow down. "Vertically up is still the fastest way to get to the Sky Bridge. If it weren't for the rocky hill earlier, we might have reached it already."

Zero nodded. The cliff was really steep and difficult to climb. Clowis didn't have time to take breaks while climbing up the side. His sharp talons played a huge part in their ascend. Without those strong feet, they would've fallen. Zero saw how Clowis clawed into the sides of the rock firmly, leaving cracks behind. Now he knew why the rocks on the cliff looked a little strange. One might think that climbing it and leaving cracks would make it easier for scaling up the cliff wall in future, given the many potential footholds. Zero knew better now after he saw how the cracks weakened the firm rocks. The marks left behind seemed convenient to use but it was dangerous. Any wrong weight or pressure applied to them for the second time would cause the entire rock to break from the wall. It happened a few times and Zero thought that they would fall. Thankfully, Clowis had feathers to slow their fall, giving him time to recover and climb again.

"Does the climbing of cliff walls happen often?"

Clowis grinned. "No, it's not normally done as it is dangerous. However, it is my secret training ground. In order to surpass my uncle, I've trained myself to climb the cliff several times a day."

"Several times a day... is that why the cliff side looked so defaced?"

Clowis looked proud. "That's the proof of my training. If I can climb the cliff in less than ten minutes, I will challenge my uncle for the position of the head warrior again."

"Is your uncle really strong?" Zero asked and ducked to avoid getting slapped in the face by a stray branch.

Clowis hummed. "I don't know about strong. Nobody here can win Camie in terms of strength in the village."

Advertisements

Zero blinked. "Not even Lady Zenobia? Even if she is the Chieftess?"

Clowis chuckled. "Chieftess is respected not only because she is a strong and skilful warrior. She is respected as the leader of our village because she is the only person capable of ensuring the survival of this village. Lady Zenobia has a good eye for people and a great heart. She has good foresight and is very wise."

Zero didn't quite understand what Clowis meant. He thought that Zenobia was the Chieftess due to her strength. "If that is so, how come the head warrior is your uncle and not Camie?"

Clowis hummed and landed on another branch. "Camie is strong because she is a quarter giant. However, compared to my uncle's battle experience, combat skills and the ability to lead the village in a battle, she is severely lacking. Becoming the head warrior is more than just being able to fight or being strong. If you're talking about great fighters, Gerald and Vrald can win anyone. They were ex-adventurers after all. The head warrior is an important person in the village who will bring victory in our battles and protect the villagers who cannot. Think of it this way, in case of an attack the head warrior is the first to lead the attack. He will be the first to lay his life on the battlefield."

Zero nodded. It was a noble aspiration and Zero wished Clowis all the best.

"I've been curious for a while and don't mean to be rude. What exactly are you? You have eyes like a snake and feathers on your arm with bird feet but can't fly... you're also super strong even though you are really skinny. Amaraline and Lowis are the same too but I've never seen anyone with appearances so unique. Are you like a mix of a snake and a bird?"

Clowis paused and decided to take a short break on one of the branches. Zero got down carefully and peered down. They were a long way up and now that they've stopped, he could see that the sunlight is getting through a little more. The must be close to the top.

"You're not wrong there. Legend has it that this creature was born from a snake and a bird. To be more precise, a chicken. However, it's known to be very scary and deadly. Have you heard of a cockatrice? Some people call it Basilisk but it's almost the same thing."

Zero shook his head. "What's that? Why is it deadly?"

Clowis smiled. Zero seemed different from other humans. "The Cockatrice or Basilisk is said to be born from Dragon and Phoenix blood. Snakes are considered a very distant cousin of dragons and they often do not possess magic. However, sometimes, they do. The same can be said about chickens who are distant cousins of the Phoenix. Once in a very long time when a snake with awakened Dragon blood and a chicken with awakened Phoenix blood come together to create a child, their hatchling would either become a Basilisk or a Cockatrice. Cockatrices have a chicken head and a snake tail while Basilisks have a snake's head and a bird's feet with wings. It is said that due to the strong magic in their blood, they can kill anyone by looking at them."

Zero listened with interest As Clowis continued. Apparently, Lowis, Amaraline and Clowis were descendants of the Cockatrice. They had snake eyes, talons and wings that couldn't really fly. Although they had very watered down blood, they were still able to use some magic. Naturally, they weren't able to kill just by looking. However, Clowis admitted that Lowis was able to paralyse the enemy by looking at them. The magic broke when he blinked so Lowis didn't use it too often. Clowis couldn't paralyse anyone by looking but he could turn small items into rocks.

"See this?" Clowis held out a leaf he'd plucked from a nearby twig.

Zero nodded and Clowis looked at it with a frown of concentration on his face. The apprentice doctor gaped in amazement as the leaf slowly but surely turned into stone. The whole process took about twenty seconds but when Clowis passed the leaf to Zero, the brunet had to say, it was a really neat ability.

"Of course, this cannot be used in battle. It is far too slow," Clowis grinned. Zero smiled and tried hitting the stone leaf on the hard trunk. Nothing happened. The leaf had really turned into stone.

"Can you turn it back or will it be stone forever?"

Clowis grimaced. "It's permanent so while it is slow to take effect and not practical for battle, it is still terrifying to normal humans. It's not just a leaf. I can turn anything into stone if I activate the magic in my blood. It's part of the reason why we were chased away. Humans don't like us very much especially when we have powers strong enough to annihilate them."

"But you wouldn't hurt them..."

With a sad smile, Clowis shrugged. "Who knows? We're monsters after all. It's hard to trust a monster."

Zero frowned. "It's ok. I trust you."

Unprepared to hear Zero's confident reply, Clowis almost fell off the tree but quickly righted himself. "You're strange for a human."

Zero shrugged. "If you say so... I'm not really human actually so I don't mind. However, I'm sure there will be some humans who will feel the same way. Karris and Wiser are humans, they don't hate anyone in the village."

Clowis snorted at that. "I don't know about Karris but Wiser is a nut case. Don't believe everything he says, he's a broken human. As brilliant as some of his ideas are, most of them are plain ridiculous. I've never heard of a human who hates humans until I met him. He doesn't like Karris but he's only sticking around to record his observations about her halfling."

Zero grinned as he climbed onto Clowis' back once more to resume their journey to the Sky Bridge. Clowis shared a few more amusing tales about Wiser and Zero decided that he wanted to meet the man someday.

Ten minutes later, Clowis let Zero down. "Here we are, the Sky Bridge."

The brunet took the time to observe his surroundings. The Sky Bridge was everything he imagined it be and more. They didn't break through the top of the tree but now, the sun could be seen from the foliage. The branches weren't as gnarly anymore and the vines less mossy. Encompassed by these was a bridge. No, not a bridge... numerous bridges, almost like a network of sorts. Zero was standing on one of the tiny wooden platforms connecting two of these bridges.

Clowis didn't hurry the brunet. He allowed Zero as much time as he needed to take in the breath-robbing scenery. The bridge wasn't here when Clowis first arrived at the village. It was only after Wiser entered the village and suggested building some sort of natural defence tower that it got constructed. The Sky Bridge was Half Moon's village's proudest accomplishment. It was built with the blood, sweat, tears and magic of the villagers.

Hesitantly, Zero took his first step across the bridge. The bridge was made of wood and held together by vines. Zero didn't know how steady it was seeing that it swayed in the strong breeze. He held onto the side of the bridge to stabilise himself as he walked.

Clowis followed not too far behind, amused by the brunet's behaviour. The bridge was sturdy enough to hold even Camie's weight, it wouldn't break that easily. Besides, it was enchanted with magic to detect enemies and the living vines will cut them off by detaching the bridge. Zero didn't have to know that last part. He didn't want to frighten the boy too much.

Gaining some confidence after a while, Zero finally released the side of the bridge and walked normally. Clowis then talked a little about the history of the bridge.

"Raj built this?"

The cockatrice descendant nodded. "He didn't build it alone but he definitely designed this with Wiser and Tambolt. The rest of us pitched in with the labour although Lovina was the only one capable of enchanting it."

"The bridge is enchanted?!" Zero's eyes were positively sparkling and Clowis had to look away for a bit.

"Yes, it is. We're now going to visit the watchtower. I think Roovan is on duty now. You're in luck if he's there."

Zero cocked his head to a side. What did Clowis mean by in luck? His silent question was soon answered.

The watchtower was very similar to the apartment in the trees. However, it was a lot smaller and had windows in every direction. Zero didn't know if they could spot enemies from the watchtower with all the leaves obscuring the view but didn't ask. Magic was usually the answer to such things.

"Roovan, are you in?"

Clowis didn't see anyone in the watchtower but he'd be a fool to assume it was abandoned. Zero blinked when Clowis called out to the empty building. However, he soon understood why.

A huge bird, no, bird-man swooped down from above. He had huge black wings and a crow's head but a human body. After a glance at Zero, the crow head transformed into a handsome human face. "Hello there, I didn't think there would be guests."

Clowis grinned. "Chieftess told me to take him around the village yesterday but after eating her cakes, he had to rest so we're here today."

Roovan grimaced and gave Zero an apologetic look. "I apologise on behalf of the village for what you've gone through. Chieftess can be a rather passionate person although said passion does not always have the intended good results."

Zero gave a weak smile. "It's alright, I'll just be more cautious about eating anything she offers from now on. Also, my name is Zero. I'm training to become a doctor."

Roovan flashed him a bright smile. "My name is Roovan. Clowis mentioned something about a village tour. Perhaps I can help with that? Although the Sky Bridge is the fastest way to get around besides the underground network, it still takes a while. Say, are you afraid of heights?"

Zero shook his head and Roovan grinned. "I think I like this boy already. Clowis, do you mind if I brought him back for lunch with Coux?"

Clowis shook his head. "He has a lunch appointment with Zoe and the kids. I think they made a promise to play tag today. Perhaps another day. I'm sure Coux would be delighted to indulge him with stories about her travels."

Roovan exchanged a few more words with Clowis and passed something to the warrior before carrying Zero in his arms.

"Are you ready, young Zero?"

The brunet grinned. "Always ready!"

With that, the raven beastmen took off into a sharp nose-dive, eliciting squeals from the brunet. Clowis watched them go in the distance and assumed guard duty he exchanged with the village scout. Lovina's intruder detection magic didn't pick up anything so Clowis could afford to kick back and relax a little until the next guard came to relieve him from his duty.

They were now above the clouds and Zero held onto Roovan's neck tighter. Roovan proved to be rather strong and Zero was impressed by how his wings could carry both their weight.

"Over there you can see the farm you came from. The cliff beside it is where the cave is inside. Our village reaches all the way across the river. You can see that tree with the weird metal on the top... that's the apartment that Wiser lives in along with Lovina, Cleo, the fox demoness whose name I can't pronounce, Moona and Latitia."

Zero didn't know who the fox demoness was but didn't think Roovan was insulting her by saying so.

"Across it near the roads is where most of the warriors live. The kids like to play tag there too as there is a huge open area. Soon and his zombies, Vishnu, Gweshr, Titor and Crudgel live in that tree. Of course, it's best to stay clear of that apartment at night. Some of them can become really wild especially during a full moon."

Zero had lots of questions to ask but nodded anyway. He figured he would find out when he met them. But zombies? That got Zero's interest. Soon must be some sort of necromancer and Zero had never met a necromancer before. He was also curious to know if zombies fell ill.

"I think you've seen it before but over there is the Chieftess' tree and the heart of our village. You can tell it apart easily because some of the tree leaves have turned purple-brown from her cooking experiments. Although the tree is still well and alive, the leaves often absorb the poison so they've mutated a little."

Zero squinted. True enough, there were purple-brown leaves on the tree. Not all the leaves were purple-brown but it seemed to be spreading. Zero pitied the tree.

"And there nearer to the farm and clearing is where I live with Coux. Lowis lives on the top floor. Gerald and Vrald live there too. The guest room that you stay in is there too so if you'd like, you could drop by anytime. I'm sure my wife would be pleased to meet you."

"Wife? Oh, you mean Coux..."

Roovan blushed a little. "Yes. Coux is my wife. Not to brag or anything but she's the most beautiful woman in this village. I'm really lucky she's willing to put up with my lame personality."

Zero giggled and looked over to where Roovan was pointing. "Over there is where the kids live with the village guardian. Douglas and the giantess live there too. They're the closest to the river because that selkie needs water. Also, Camie takes up two apartments in that tree alone because of her height. You should meet her, she's a really gentle person despite her size."

Zero nodded and Roovan flew by to see the workshop. It is a little far out into the forest and Zero could hardly see anything apart from trees.

"Believe it or not, below these trees is a stone workshop where Tambolt and Raj work on new inventions. They live near the swamps with the magician twins, the yeti, Raj's apprentice and the other couple in the village."

"What is a yeti?"

Roovan shrugged. "From what I see, Chowkah something like a giant but hairier and unable to speak. He likes the winter a lot but is very skilful when it comes to gardening."

Zero nodded. He learnt a lot about the village in their short flight. So far, there were five tree apartments, the Sky Bridge, the farms, Raj and Tambolt's workshop, the feast cave and Zenobia's tree which was the heart of the village. It wasn't a huge place but it wasn't small either.

"I have a question. Do you know who built the underground passageway?"

Advertisements

Roovan smiled. "That happened during Grandma Moppo's time. The village didn't exist back then. From what I heard, it was Grandma Moppo's ancestors who designed and built this village. The tree houses were built by the faes and the underground network built by the dwarves. They lived in harmony together. However, a terrible disease struck about a hundred years back. Grandma Moppo lost most of her family. The remaining survivors left the village for a better place but many things happened and only Grandma Moppo was left. With nobody left and nowhere else to go, she returned to this village alone and lived for decades until the fox demoness came. One by one, we discovered this village and Grandma Moppo welcomed all of us. We slowly became a village together but it wasn't a true village until the stupid Count of Carrabas started attacking us about ten years back. Chieftess was the first person to fight for us and pull the village together. Half Moon Village was founded soon after when Hua Tuo chanced across it during his long trip back from the human town. He agreed to be our doctor on the condition that we will trade on his behalf for the supplies he required and that we kept his identity a secret."

Zero was deep in thoughts after hearing it. Ten years... Half Moon village was considered newly founded and Grandma Moppo had suffered a lot. He was sure everyone in this village had their unique story to tell. For example, why would a yeti who loved snow travel so far away from snow? Why would the fox demoness decide to settle down in an abandoned village with a stranger? Why did Lady Zenobia fight so hard for this village when they were just strangers? How did she become the Chieftess and why was the Count of Carrabas attacking Half Moon village?

Then, his stomach protested loudly, startling both of them.

"I guess it is time for lunch. What do you say we head over to Zoe's now?"

Zero blushed and nodded. What a way to ruin the moment, stomach... what a way...

Ball of Nothing

"Seconds please!"

Zero didn't know if he should look amused or disgusted by Leon's dining manners. The werecat hybrid ate with gusto but lacked the elegance Rima had. He ate more with his hands than with the spoon and shovelled way too much food into his mouth, causing bits of it to fall on the table. Zero toyed with the idea of texting Freya and have Leon go through the dining etiquette class he experienced. It might do Leon some good to behave more civilised so that he wouldn't be receiving looks of disgust from Jacqueline and Rima. Zoe smacked him across the head when Leon laughed out loud and caused everything in his mouth to go in all directions. The lady was scary when she was angry and Zero kept in mind never to anger her.

That aside, Zoe was a really great cook. Her food had a different kind of warmth that Zero couldn't get enough of. It could've been the spice or the unique method of cooking but it was definitely something irreplaceable to him. Of all the fine delicacies he'd tasted before, Zoe's food was the best. Rima told him that it was the taste of home and nobody's food could ever compare to Zoe's. Zero agreed readily and Zoe blushed under their praises. The village's foster mother was a really shy person and Zero found her to be very precious. He loved Zoe and all her shyness even though he'd only known her for a day.

Roovan had made himself scarce and flew away as soon as he dropped Zero off at Zoe's place. Hua Tuo stopped by briefly for a quick bite before excused himself hurriedly, telling Zero to meet him at the farms before dinner. Zero was equally excited to know that he'd be meeting Lovina and Cleo for dinner tonight. The ladies wanted to get to know Zero more and Hua Tuo simply couldn't refuse them after they requested to interview Zero about his theory of using healing magic in a revolutionary way. For all they knew, it might be a ground-breaking discovery that would accentuate the prominence of healers. What better way than to promote the effectiveness of it with one of the best magicians and healers in existence?

After letting out a long and loud belch, Leon grinned widely and announced that he was done. Rima's face was scrunched up in disgust at Leon's rudeness while Jacqueline rolled her eyes, accustomed to the boy's lack of manners. The children were told to wash up by a stern Zoe and they left obediently. Only Zero stayed back to help clear the dishes, much to Zoe's surprise. The woman tried to refuse the help but Zero's stubbornness and cuteness won her over. In the end, she let the brunet bring the dishes to the basin and help her wash it while the kids played in the living room.

The task was completed in record time with two people doing the dishes, they fell into a wordless routine with Zoe washing the utensils and Zero drying them. Rima watched them silently while Jacqueline and Leon wrestled on the floor with the werecat hybrid losing. The spirit propagator blinked at the strange sight but didn't comment on it. They waited for Zero to finish the chores with Zoe before dragging him outside near the huge open area beside the warrior quarters.

Zoe bid them goodbye with kisses on their foreheads and Zero received one too. He blushed a little at the intimate contact, unused to anyone showering him with such affections. It made him all tingly and warm inside but didn't have time to think about it as Leon dragging him away by the hand, too excited to wait. The brunet managed to wave goodbye to the silent woman before they completely disappeared from sight.

On the way there, Zero decided to as Rima the question that had always been on his mind.

"Why doesn't Zoe speak? Is she always this shy?"

The spirit propagator gave him a weird look before shaking her head. "Zoe is shy but that's not why she doesn't speak. She can't speak."

Advertisements

"Can't speak?"

Jacqueline stopped squabbling with Leon for a moment and turned to Zero. "They say she's mute. Zoe's a little special after all. She can't leave this village either."

"But why?" Zero was confused.

"Well, they say that Zoe is part of this village so she can't leave? Grandma Moppo says that Zoe has been in the village even before she was born. However, she only showed herself when Rima came to the village. She's been taking care of children ever since. Even Clowis and Amaraline were taken care of by Zoe so nobody really knows how old she is."

Rima smiled gently. "Zoe's a great mom even though she's not actually alive."

Zero froze. Not alive? Was Zoe also a zombie? Wait, something's not adding up. Zoe probably came before Soon so she couldn't possibly be a zombie.

"What exactly is Zoe? Is she a spirit?"

Rima frowned. "Something close. She's actually what humans call a ghost? However, she is not a ghost formed by the soul of someone with strong attachments to the world of the living. She's what we call a household ghost, born from the feelings of love and family in a village. Grandma Moppo's previous family and village must have been a loving bunch. They call her a Zashikiwarashi."

Zero hasn't heard of that before so he was slightly lost. Thankfully, Mii was able to give him some background information about household ghosts.

Race: Zashikiwarashi (Household Ghost)

Traits: Usually very shy, full of love for the household occupants, loves children, normally doesn't like to be seen. Can be very protective when the household occupants are endangered or if the house is on fire. When the household is neglected or abandoned, the Zashikiwarashi becomes negative and will feed on the life energy of any living creatures that enter its territory. Cannot leave the household they are protecting. Has the power to materialise and move things in their territory if there are occupants in the house.

"That doesn't explain how Zoe cannot talk..." Zero mumbled.

Leon heard that and shrugged. "Lovina and Hua Tuo tried many things to give Zoe back her voice. According to Grandma Moppo, Zoe has a beautiful voice and she heard it many years ago when she was still a young child. Zoe's voice sounded like wind chimes but for some reason after materialising, she lost the ability to speak. We don't know how Zoe lost her voice, she won't tell us."

Rima sighed and Zero looked troubled. Hua Tuo was right. Every villager here has a painful or troubled past. He was very curious about what happened to the lovely lady's voice and would help get it back if he could. But for now, he would have to pretend to know nothing about it. It wasn't good to pry into somebody else's business if they weren't comfortable with sharing it.

"We're here!" the werecat hybrid announced. Zero didn't even realise how fast they were travelling as Leon simply ran and dragged Zero behind like a kite. The brunet didn't even complain as he was half lifted into the air with the speed. Herein lies Zero's next concern. He heard that the game of tag consisted of chasing each other and tapping them to 'pass' the role of the tagger. Zero didn't know how it wouldn't be possible to catch Leon with his astonishing speed.

"Let's decide who the tagger will be," Jacqueline said. However, before she could continue, Zero raised his hand to interrupt her.

"Yes?"

"I have a question. How does the game work?"

Rima blinked. "Oh right. Sorry, we forgot to explain the rules. It's similar to normal tag but because we're not humans, there are some extra rules."

Jacqueline grinned. "The rules exist because certain people couldn't accept being losers."

That earned her a glare from Leon and his ears twitched. "It's not fair that you can hide underwater for the whole time while others run in circles to find you! Besides, I hate water! It's totally unfair."

"Hey, nobody faulted you for climbing all the way up into the tree and jump off branches or use your super speed to get away. Tag is more than speed. It's about the brains as well. Too bad you don't have any of those."

Rima had to break them apart before another fight could break out. She sighed tiredly.

"Alright, let me keep this simple so that everybody can understand the rules. Firstly, no hiding in the underground passages. Secondly, No going out of the play area. That means no going across the river or past the guardhouses. Thirdly, the use of magic is only restricted to helping yourself. For example, flying and camouflaging is allowed but trapping the tagger is not allowed. We don't want anyone getting hurt. Lastly, Each tagger will have up to half an hour to tag someone. If nobody is tagged, the tagger will be reselected. If you are tagged within twenty minutes, you will become the tagger and your twenty minutes starts from the time you were tagged. Any other questions?"

Zero was impressed by Rima's maturity and leadership. Jacqueline and Leon were attentive and didn't argue. The brunet admitted that he couldn't have handled the situation better. If not for Rima keeping them in line, the two would've cause Zoe a lot of trouble.

"No questions? Let's select the tagger. Who wants to go first?"

Jacqueline volunteered and Leon grinned. The quarter mermaid started counting and faced a tree. Leon took off immediately and Rima disappeared. Zero didn't know what to do and Jacqueline was counting down really quickly. With only twenty seconds left, Zero decided to dive into a nearby bush. He knew it was cheating to be hiding when he was supposed to run but Zero honestly didn't know what to do after being abandoned at the start of the game.

"Ready or not, here I come!" Jacqueline announced and took off in the direction that Leon disappeared to.

Zero heaved a sigh of relief when he was sure nobody was around. He decided that using Mii's map to locate everyone wasn't considered cheating. After all, that was magic used not directed to other players. Zero decided to leave his bush in search for a better spot.

The moment he left the bush and ran to the nearest tree apartment, he bumped into someone. Both parties collided hard and Zero fell to the ground. The other party also fell and Zero was horrified to find that he'd terribly injure another person due to his negligence. He didn't know where that person came from because he didn't reflect on Mii's map when he was running. But that didn't change the fact that a detached arm was lying by his feet.

"I'm so sorry! I can fix this... your arm... oh no, we need to stop the bleeding first!"

The man blinked as Zero fused over his torn arm. With his other arm, he lifted it and patted the panicking apprentice and smiled.

"It's ok, I got this."

Calmly, he picked up the arm that fell off and stuck it back to where it should've been. There was no blood and Zero was confused. The man wasn't bleeding but that arm had definitely fallen out. What was going on?

The stranger chuckled at Zero's bewildered expression. "I'm guessing you haven't seen a zombie before?"

Zero blinked. The man had light grey skin, black eyes that lacked a certain sparkle and looked completely human on the outside even if he looked sickly. This was a zombie?

The zombie didn't take offence to Zero's scrutiny. In fact, he seemed amused.

"I'm on my way to see Soon and Manny. Would you like to come upstairs? I'm sure they would love to have a guest over."

Zero smiled. He might be in the middle of a tag game but who said that accepting invitations for tea was against the rules? Zero could definitely manage to play tag and chat with new people. He'd been curious about the zombies ever since he heard about them. He just didn't think that he would be meeting them so soon.

"Is it really alright? I don't want to intrude on anything..."

Advertisements

The zombie smiled. "Don't worry about that, we'll be glad to talk to the famous young apprentice. I'm Peter by the way."

"Zero here, it's a pleasure to meet you. Sorry about bumping into you earlier."

Peter seemed amused. If that collision was a bump, he wouldn't dare to imagine what a real collision would've been like. Maybe he would've to reattach his head or something and that thought entertained him. He wondered what Zero would do if he ripped his head off right now only to make funny faces at the child. It was always fun to tease the young ones but he refrained himself from doing so. There was no point in traumatising the young aspiring doctor.

"Shall we head up?"

Zero nodded and followed close behind. He couldn't wait to meet the other zombie and their creator.

Ball of Nothing

Zombies are strangely cheerful beings. Zero didn't know if it applied for all zombies but Manny and Peter were very cheerful. On the other hand, their summoner looked very solemn. Soon was a short man who appeared human but really wasn't one. Zero got a shock when he met the man for the first time because the aura emitted from Soon was very cold. Zero actually shivered when he entered the apartment.

"I didn't think we would be expecting guests, please forgive the sudden attack earlier. I sensed an unusual presence and unknowingly summoned a defensive barrier."

So that was what the coldness was. Zero didn't know if auras could feel cold but now that Soon had confirmed what it was, the brunet knew better. He didn't know much about magic but it didn't hurt him so it was all good.

"I'm sorry for dropping by unannounced, I'm Zero!"

Soon nodded and Manny laughed heartily before slapping the young apprentice on the back.

"You're a wee fellow, aren't you? Are you even eating enough? You won't grow right if you don't drink milk."

Peter noticed Zero's discomfort and pried the tall zombie off him. "Sorry about that, Zero. Manny can be a little rough at times. He's a musclehead with no awareness about the strength he possessed. Not when he was alive and certainly not even now."

"When he was alive?"

Manny grinned in amusement. "Did you think zombies were born from zombie mothers or something? We're undead summoned by that grumpy looking shortie over there... Of course, we were alive once. But that was a long time ago."

Said shortie landed a kick on Manny's bottom and Zero winced. He was surprised to know that Manny's body didn't break like how Peter's did. After all, that kick was nowhere near gentle. Manny didn't seem to feel any pain from the impact, he didn't even budge from his spot. Soon glared at him.

Advertisements

"This shortie is in control of your body. You'll find yourself babysitting the kids if I hear that one more time."

Zero saw how Manny turned an unhealthy shade of blue and Soon smirked. Peter did nothing to save his fellow zombie friend. Soon ignored them and invited Zero to take a seat while he prepared some light snacks for their guest. Manny didn't argue any further and sunk into the chair unhappily. Peter decided to engage Zero in some small talk while Soon was readying the tea.

"What were you doing back there? It's quite a distance from the clinic..."

Zero blinked. He'd almost forgotten what he was doing just before. "I was playing tag. I'm still playing tag so if anyone comes finding me, I shall have to run..."

Peter chuckled and promised to let Zero know if there was anyone coming to tag him. Soon who overheard their conversation from the kitchen smiled. "I'll watch out for Rima if I were you. That girl can sense everyone within an active radius so even if you turned invisible, you can't hide from her."

Zero made a face. "That's almost cheating..."

Soon laughed. "It's not very effective against Leon though. That werecat child has speed and reflexes that can easily escape from her radius. It doesn't help that he has keen hearing. Rima is a bad match against Leon but great against Jacqueline."

Zero thanked the magician and accepted the steaming mug. He inhaled deeply and grinned. Soon was a fan of Jasmine tea and Zero found something in common with the solemn-looking magician.

"Jacqueline ran off to chase Leon earlier. I doubt they'll be finding me any time soon. Has anyone ever hid in houses during a game of tag?"

Manny who seemed to recover from the threat earlier took a seat across Zero and grinned. "Nah, they prefer hiding up in the watchtower instead. Jacqueline will catch Leon in no time so I'll say that you'll be safe for the next twenty minutes after she does. That kid is a great runner but not a very good tagger."

"He could outrun Rima so he could tag her just as easily..."

Peter snorted. "Him? Perhaps he could if he had half her intelligence. Leon's like an arrow with no direction. Rima is good at hiding and misdirecting him. He'll never find her. Jacqueline may be a quarter mermaid but you shouldn't underestimate her ability to create illusions. It's normally easy to break the illusion but Leon's a little dumb so he'll just continue walking circles for a while before he figures out something is wrong."

Illusion magic? He didn't think that Jacqueline would be capable of using any magic. Now he was curious to know what Jacqueline could do. His expression must have said it all because Soon smirked. "Would you like to experience illusion magic?"

Zero jumped at the chance without hesitation.

Soon chanted a short incantation and Zero found the living room distorting into a forest. Logically he knew that what his eyes perceived wasn't real. However, what was scarier was how Zero couldn't sense Soon or his zombies in the same room. In fact, everything seemed so real. Zero wouldn't be able to tell it apart if he didn't know that he was entering an illusion in advance.

"This is a high-tier illusion. It fools all your senses successfully and only those with very keen magic perception or a strong sense of self can see through it. Of course, Jacqueline's illusion can only fool the eyes. You'd be able to tell by touch or sound that something was wrong. Leon the fool couldn't do it, he's a lost cause for magic."

Zero giggled at Soon's explanation and marvelled at the illusion. Zero noted how detailed the illusion was. The smell of moist earth and humidity on his skin felt exactly like a real forest. There was chirping of birds in the distance and slight breeze that felt all too real to the touch. Every bar had a unique pattern and nothing seemed amiss. It was a perfect illusion.

Then, something touched the back of Zero's neck making him scream. He leapt up onto his feet and spun around only to be greeted by a huge tree trunk. The chair he was sitting on earlier was now a tree stump. Zero frowned. That was clearly something not within the illusion.

"Now then, I heard that you have a gift for magic. Allow me to test your innate abilities. Are you able to find a way out of the illusion or break the spell?"

Zero blinked and then grinned. Soon was testing him and Zero loved challenges. He didn't know much about illusion magic but from what Soon mentioned, it fooled the senses if done right. It could only be detected if one had a very keen magic perception or a strong sense of self. Luckily, Zero had Mii to help him out.

The strawcherry assistant got to work immediately, pulling up the map. Zero grinned gleefully at the thought of being able to escape quickly. His initial optimism faded away when he noticed something odd. There was nobody showing up on his map even though the layout of the apartment was accurate.

"What's going on?"

Mii ran some checks of the apartment again. Nothing changed. The same thing happened earlier when Zero bumped into Peter earlier. The zombie didn't show on the map. Was the map malfunctioning?

"Why can't I detect anyone in the room? Shouldn't the map show me anyone or anything in the selected area? I could use this before to find rare herbs at Endow Hill... does it not work in Half Moon village?" he wondered aloud.

There was silence as Zero tried to figure out what was going on.

"That map you speak of... is that a kind of detection magic?"

Soon was intrigued after hearing Zero's monologue. He knew that Zero might have some tricks up his sleeve but didn't expect for the young child to possess such powerful unique magic. No wonder Hua Tuo was enthralled by the child. According to Lovina, Zero had come up with some rather bizarre but ingenious ideas about using healing magic. The lich wanted to test if that was simply a moment of fluke or if Zero was the real deal who would take the world by storm.

Zero hesitated for a bit. Mind's Eye wasn't magic. In a way it was but it was more of an innate ability. He couldn't quite explain Mii's existence without compromising his promise with Hua Tuo to keep his identity a secret so he opted to remain silent. Thankfully, Soon didn't pry. Instead, he told Zero that detection magic wouldn't work on them because of the nature of their creation.

"Detection magic only detects anything with the existence with life essence in them. If life essence or mana was infused into a rock, you would be able to detect that rock. Anything living possesses life magic. Unfortunately for us, liches are magicians who'd sacrificed their mortality for greater powers. The same logic applies to zombies who are merely souls bound to dead bodies using undead magic. Generally, the undead can avoid detection magic. A few exceptions exist like vampires and ghosts who possess a soul."

Zero nodded in understanding at Soon's explanation. Then he wondered if Zoe could be detected with detection magic. He'd have to try that out later. For now, Zero had to find another way to escape the illusion. Then Zero remembered that he knew someone who as good at illusions. Perhaps she could help him out if he asked for help.

Soon observed how Zero sat down in the middle of the illusion and started meditating. Did Hua Tuo teach the brunet some kind of special skill that could break through his illusion? He wouldn't be surprised seeing how Hua Tuo was able to easily disintegrate illusions easily with the mysterious energy called qi. Hua Tuo didn't know much magic but his ability to control life energy or anything relating to it was very useful against illusions.

Zero quickly entered that familiar state of trance. His hazel eyes began to change into inky pools and Soon frowned. The magician didn't know what Zero was doing but he could feel the magical aura around Zero reacting to the change. Still, he observed silently and wondered what Hua Tuo's apprentice would do.

Peter and Manny who stood by the side tried to close in on another sneak attack. Peter wanted to poke Zero's cheek this time but halted when he felt that familiar sense of dread that he hadn't felt in many years. Manny who experienced the same thing leapt back quickly and assumed a battle stance. His ex-paladin reflexes kicked in as he readied for battle.

Soon was horrified. As a lich, he knew what this was. Black eyes and horrifyingly potent magic that originated from only the deepest parts of the abyss. How could such a child possess any healing magic? It was absurd!

"Stand back!" Soon told his comrades. He'd lost them once to the demons, he wouldn't lose them the second time. The demon they faced off against many years ago in a special raid quest wasn't even as powerful as the one residing within this brunet.

From outside, several other villagers reacted to the powerful magic. Coux shot up straight the moment she felt the dark magic. Mitchnew grabbed her bow and Lovina dropped her cup. Sekkin stiffened. He didn't think that he'd be found so soon after escaping. To think that one of his kind would appear just as he settled down... he growled and jumped out the window. They wouldn't take his home away... not again. Qin Yun allowed her human appearance to fall, unleashing her full powers as all nine tails materialised. There was an unwelcomed guest and Lovina told Cleo to help the rest evacuate. Vishnu who was on watch at the tower sprang to his feet and hurried to deliver the news to Zenobia. All these transpired quickly while Zero continued his pleasant conversation with the Demon Lord he'd made friends with.

Hua Tuo was surprised by Lovina's sudden aggressiveness and asked what was going on.

"A demon has appeared. Please evacuate with the others, we have to prepare for battle. It's not something we can hope to return alive from but we can buy some time for the children to run."

The Sage God became serious. "What's the disaster level?"

The witch looked grim. "Code black if not more. It's probably on the same level as an arch-demon or even a Demon King. It's coming from where the kids are playing tag."

Hua Tuo's heart dropped. Zero! He couldn't let anything happen to Zero. He didn't want anything to happen to Half Moon village either but if what Lovina said was true, not even Hua Tuo would be capable of subduing such a powerful opponent. The Sage God of Medicine never thought that he would ever battle a Demon King. He did well to stay out of all conflicts but his luck simply ran out after centuries of running away from reality. Karma was coming back to collect the debt.

"I'll get the children," he told the witch who gave him a thankful look.

"We're in your debt. Please help to take care of Karris too. It's too pitiful for both mother and unborn child if they should both perish now."

Hua Tuo nodded and left immediately to find the pregnant mother.

"Oho? You thought it would be a great idea to disturb me from my nap again to request for a little parlour trick. You have quite the nerve there, young friend."

The brunet stuck his tongue out at the Demon Lord before him. Demon King Baal was immensely amused. He'd been extremely bored of destroying worlds. Naps were only wonderful while they lasted and he was too lazy to do any real work. Torturing mortals sounded like pain and waging wars with heaven was also a pain. All he wanted to do was watch a good show. Hell wasn't very hard to rule. A simple sneeze of his would get all the demons and devils quaking in their hooves. Any idea of rebellion would be quelled and everything would fall back into line like how it should be. Such was the life for Divine Entity Duu's 'hardworking' fragment. Duu was too lazy to look for the Great One after Great One went into slumber even after Nel's persistence so Baal was created to do that in his place, not that Baal spent any real effort.

The Demon King was simply glad that Zero, who was Great One's other side, spared him the hassle of having to seek him out. What's better was how amusing the brunet was. The Demon King yawned. "What do you need me to do now? Please don't ask me to tell you another story about hell... I'm too lazy to recall all the details."

Zero grinned. "Come on, Bell! I'm not that mean. I came to ask you to help me with a teeny-tiny favour... there's this powerful magician who's made a powerful illusion that not even Mii can break out of. Apparently, detection magic doesn't work on the undead? Could you sneeze the illusion away or something?"

King Baal blinked. "Sneeze it away? You think too highly of that small lich. Just a yawn will do. In return for this request, what will you give me this time? My services aren't free."

Zero frowned. The last time he asked Baal to entertain him when he first met the Demon King in the space-time crack he entered during meditation, Baal demanded to be entertained. Zero grinned. He was very good at entertaining the Demon King.

"I'll tell you three new stories!"

Baal frowned. "Five."

"Two!"

"Five!"

"... two and a half?"

Baal raised an eyebrow. "How does one tell half a story?"

Zero grinned. "I learnt something called cliffhanger. It's really good."

Baal felt his eyebrow twitch. How dare this chipmunk threaten him with a cliffhanger. Whoever taught the young child that should burn in a cauldron for eternity. Baal would also gladly see to it personally.

Advertisements

"No deal. Four. I don't listen to half stories. Cliffhangers aren't even real endings. Besides, you woke me up just as I was falling asleep. I demand an extra story for nap cancellation."

Zero pouted and Baal almost caved. Almost. He wasn't shameless enough to actually admit it as a Demon Lord so he held his ground.

Knowing that he wouldn't win this, Zero begrudgingly agreed to tell Baal four stories. The Demon King smirked and borrowed Zero's body, ready to yawn whatever illusion the child was having trouble with away.

Baal wasn't exactly expecting an army awaiting his arrival when he transferred his consciousness into Zero's body. He recognised the fear in their eyes and was slightly surprised to see a familiar face in the crowd, one he didn't think he'll ever have the pleasure of meeting.

"Alright, can someone tell me where the illusion I was supposed to yawn away disappeared to? I'm not dealing with an army for only four stories."

Ball of Nothing

Demon King Baal waited. Eleven very powerful individuals with one more on the way stood before him with terrifying battle auras. Baal refused to fight. He wasn't getting paid enough to do this. Besides, the illusion Zero was talking about was nowhere in sight. That wouldn't do. He loved the young child's stories so he needed to break the illusion fast.

Baal lazily glanced over the tiny army before him.

"Two undead, one summoner, one archer, a half-blood demon, Lilith's descendant, an archer, a fox, a witch and three warriors... I'm flattered."

Nobody spoke. They were tense in the presence of a Demon Lord and horrified that Zero was the person who summoned it. Lovina didn't know what to do. The Demon Lord was an ancient and powerful but unpredictable one. It didn't help that the person who contacted him was Zero. What could the child possibly desire that he had to resort to making a contract with Baal?

"Zero," Lovina started. "Zero can you hear me? Whatever it is, we can help you. Please cancel the contract with this demon."

Baal blinked. Contract?

"What are you talking about? Zero's not some cheap human with a petty desire that needs damning. There's no contract although there is an agreement. I don't know what you were expecting but I'm a busy demon. Bring that illusion Zero had trouble breaking, I need to yawn it away before I can collect my payment."

Soon growled and became murderous. Peter and Manny became bloodthirsty too. Payment? As if they would allow such a thing. Zero might have been deceived by the crafty demon but there was no way they would allow the demon to win. Soon blamed himself. If he had been careful, Zero wouldn't be in danger.

Zenobia wasn't sure of what was happening. Zero still appeared to be himself although his personality had changed quite a bit. Vishnu came running in reporting about an intruder so she wasn't sure what was going on. One thing was clear though... something has taken over Zero's body and they had to get it out.

"Zero, if you can hear me please respond!" the chieftess tried.

Advertisements

Baal was getting irritated. "Look, the kid is fine. Just hurry up with the illusion so that I can get back."

Both parties were at a stalemate. Baal couldn't fulfil Zero's request and the villagers couldn't hurt Baal who was in possession of Zero's body. The witch cursed. If only they had an exorcist in the village, they might stand a chance.

Just before things could blow out of proportion, Hua Tuo flew in from the window. He took a look at the villagers and then back at his apprentice. Zero's eyes were black and Hua Tuo raised a brow.

"Zero, did you meditate again?"

Baal saw the newcomer and frowned. This old man looked strangely familiar. He was also very powerful and Baal had some suspicions about his identity.

"I seem to have seen you somewhere before... I just don't remember it. Who are you?"

Hua Tuo paused. That wasn't Zero at all.

"I'm Hua Tuo. May I know who are you? Why are you residing in my apprentice's body?"

Demon King Baal tried to recall where he heard that name before. Then, it clicked. His eyes widened and a smile grew across his face. "I see... no wonder I thought you were familiar. You're the doctor from before. I'm Demon King Baal. You once cured my insomnia a few centuries ago. En wasn't lying when he said that you were the best. I still haven't thanked you for that."

Hua Tuo blinked. Demon King Baal... King Yama... how many years ago was that again? He couldn't remember. However, he was certain that King Yama once told him about a patient who had chronic insomnia and a terrible migraine. If it weren't for Demon King Baal's bad temper from the pain and lack of sleep, Hua Tuo wouldn't have made the trip to the abyss.

"I see, I can't recall the details but I seem to remember having to make a special trip to the abyss for a patient. How has your health been?"

Baal smiled. He was fond of the Sage God. "I've been doing well. As a matter of fact, I was about to take a nap when your apprentice called upon me. He was saying something about needing my help to sneeze an illusion away but when I came to fulfil my end of the agreement, I was met with a tiny army who looked like they wanted me dead. Could you explain?"

"Agreement?" Hua Tuo was confused. "What did my apprentice agree on?"

"He agreed to tell me four stories in return for my help to break the illusion. It would be troubling for me if there is no illusion to break because I love hearing his stories. The kid is particularly amusing and a great storyteller."

Hua Tuo didn't doubt it. Zero had a way with words and it was always a pleasure to watch him tell his tales with such expressiveness. However, that didn't explain why Zero required the aid of a demon.

Soon was confused. Did Zero really need the help of a Demon King to break his illusion? Had he really pushed the child into desperation enough to sell his soul to the abyss? Wait, that's not right. The demon lord mentioned something about stories. What's going on?

"Demon King Baal, I'm afraid there is some kind of misunderstanding. The illusion was meant as a test of sorts to understand Zero's magic capabilities in detail. He was in no real danger and there was really no need for you to personally appear."

Baal paused. "A test?"

Soon swallowed. "Yes, a surprise test. I did tell him to find a way to escape or break the illusion. I never expected things to go so far."

Baal went deadly silent and everyone held their breaths. Then, he threw his head back and laughed. Baal laughed so hard till he cried but didn't stop for a good number of minutes. When he finally did, he looked at Hua Tuo and smirked.

"I believe you're going to face a lot more trouble in future with this apprentice of yours."

Hua Tuo nodded calmly. "It looks like it. I thought that taking the waterwheel apart was the worst things could get but I stand corrected."

Baal snorted. "Oh, just you wait. He's recently gotten into contact with some really troublesome personalities out there and I'm going to enjoy the show very much. In accord to our past, I will let this go. Zero still owes me stories but I will collect them from him at a later date. You might want to set some ground rules for him. I see that he's in the hands of good company here. Lilith will be delighted to know that she still has kin on Earth."

The Demon King looked at Coux and the half-succubus flinched. Baal smiled. "You really do look like her."

Coux frowned. "I'm sorry, I don't understand what you're talking about."

Baal shrugged. "Your ancestor, Succubus Queen Lilith, is a close ally of mine. You resemble her greatly although your blood has been watered down. It's still good to know that some of her kin are still alive on Earth."

Having said what he had to, Baal yawned and rubbed his eyes. "I would love to stay to chat some more and find out how the humans are doing but it's way past my nap time. Tell Zero not to disturb me for a while, I'll leave him in your care."

With that, the Demon Lord disappeared and Zero came back to his senses, slightly confused.

"Zero, how do you feel?" Lovina was the first to rush over.

Hua Tuo was already examining his apprentice for anything unusual and relaxed when he found none. He should really stop being surprised by what Zero could accomplish. Making friends with a Demon King? Who knew?

"You had us worried there for a second," Sekkin chuckled a tousled Zero's hair.

Seeing that it was a false alarm, Zenobia had Vishnu go back to the guard tower and had Lowis bring everyone who evacuated back to the village. She bid Zero a hasty goodbye and left to help.

Soon looked guilty and apologised to Zero.

"Oh... I didn't know. I was under the impression that I was to use whatever means at my disposal to break the illusion so I called a friend for help."

Qin Yun who had returned to her human formed giggled. "It's not wrong to do that. In fact, it's nice that your friend agreed to help. We were just startled because your friend is very powerful with a rather unique reputation."

Zero made a small 'o' with his mouth. "I understand now. Bell may seem scary and all but he's actually really lazy. Most the time things are destroyed not because he's angry but because he was clumsy. When Bell becomes sleepy he's an absolute klutz but he would never intentionally hurt anyone who doesn't hurt him first."

Mitchnew looked doubtful and Sekkin was quick to pull her away before Zero saw it. The half dark elf had quite the personality and the last thing he wanted his wife to do was to start another fight. She didn't like demons much after they burned her village down. Sekkin found it strange how fate pulled them together. He was rescued by Mitchnew during one of her assassination jobs and trained by her. They became work partners and eventually became a couple but that was a story for another time.

Lovina was torn. On one hand, she wanted to support Zero's all-encompassing attitude and personality. However, she couldn't turn a blind eye to how easily Zero could've become victim to the Demon King. Magic was both a blessing and a curse. If used correctly, it saved lives. If used wrongly, it kills.

While Coux and Qin Yun fused over the boy, the witch pulled Hua Tuo to a side. "Does this child have a magic teacher? I'm willing to take him as my apprentice. He has a great gift but it could be dangerous without proper training."

Hua Tuo smiled. He was glad that Lovina offered. Honestly, if Zero didn't already have such a great magic teacher, he would've agreed in a heartbeat.

"He has one already but won't be seeing them until next year. I doubt they would mind if you taught Zero some of the basics. Today's incident was quite the scare. It's my fault for neglecting his magic training and focussing too much on teaching him the ways of medicine."

Lovina smiled and placed a comforting hand on the physician's shoulder. "It's no fault of yours. You are a doctor before a magician. Nobody can blame you. And yes, I would love to have the opportunity to teach Zero a thing or two about magic basics. He has great power and with great power comes great dangers. The child is too young and yet he carries the weight of the world on his shoulders."

Hua Tuo wondered if that was true. "Zero doesn't want to be a hero but you could be right. We could talk more over dinner but I should rescue him now from those ladies before they decide to kidnap him."

Lovina saw how Qin Yun and Coux were trying to smother Zero in their ample bosoms and sighed. Leave it to the two most beautiful women to traumatise the child.

"That's a great idea. I think you might need to teach him about how to deal with pushy women too."

Hua Tuo grimaced. "I would love for someone to teach me how to deal with them too. Luckily, Zero has a pair of very fast legs."

Advertisements

Lovina laughed and Hua Tuo excused himself. Zero had never been so glad to see his teacher before.

"Save me!" he mouthed to Hua Tuo who approached the vixen and succubus carefully.

"Excuse me ladies but I would require some time alone with my apprentice."

They pouted but let Zero go reluctantly. At the first signs of freedom, Zero bolted and hid behind the physician. They exchanged pleasantries before leaving Soon's apartment, apologising for causing a mess on the way out.

Once master and apprentice reached the safety of their apartment, both of them slid down onto the floor and exhaled sighs of relief. Who knew that women could be scarier than Demon Kings?