Zhaoyu felt it as soon as she entered the gates of their home, and even more so when she and her master came face to face with the rest of the disciples. Even as pleasantries and welcomes were exchanged, the first disciple could sense the level of tension that was hanging in the air. Upon closer inspection she noticed that Ling Shuang, Jiang Wanru and Qin Suyi seemed to be disturbed or conflicted about something. Something that was much greater than Wanru's infection. Yet the first disciple knew that whatever it was had to be closely related.
After having a lunch Fu Hua retired to her quarters, but not before announcing that she would be joining the disciples for dinner that night. A rare occurrence in itself, the celestial more often than not preferred to eat in her chambers. The other disciples never questioned it and more than welcomed the few times that she did eat with them, but this time they could find no joy in the news. They knew the matter of Wanru's corruption was going to be brought up tonight, be it from the master or from the disciples themselves.
That being said, the disciples were gathered in a small room far from their masters room, Zhaoyu knew they were expecting an answer from her, or at the very least a sign that pointed towards the decision that their master had made, unfortunately she had none of those. She herself wasn't sure where her master stood.
"Alright Zhaoyu, you were alone with her for the whole month you travelled to the South Seas and back. You must have some sort of clue as to the master's verdict." Mei stated as she and the rest of the disciples turned to the oldest of them all expectantly.
Zhaoyu took a moment to look at Wanru and Wanxi who sat on a stool next to each other hand in hand. The former attempted to put up a brave front as her face remained neutral for the most part, but the first disciple could see the fear and slight level of concern that was within her eyes. The latter of the twins, and the younger between the two, held the hands of her sister almost protectively. The look in her eyes spoke levels of how far she was willing to protect her sister. In the end it all made Zhaoyu even more disturbed than she was, the look in Wanxi's eyes one of someone that was ready to kill.
"I'm not certain." The first disciple finally said with a sigh. She knew that was not the answer that the others wanted to hear, even she wouldn't want such an answer in their situation.
"What do you mean 'I'm not certain'?" Wanxi suddenly asked, the frustration in her voice very apparent. She more than anyone here wanted an answer to the fate of her sister, and she more than anyone deserved that answer.
"Calm yourself Wanxi, I'm sure Zhaoyu has a reasonable explanation." Feima spoke out from his position on the other side across the room, opposite the twins, with Suyi next to him. The youngest disciple nodded her head in an attempt to diffuse any tension or conflict before it could arise.
"Yes Zhaoyu, surely that must have been something of note that would have given away her thoughts o the matter." Mei inquired as she eyed the first disciple. If she was going t proceed with her plan then she was going to need the other disciples to help her with the assassination attempt. The first disciple sighed before answering in the best way that she could.
"All I can say for sure is that the entire way she was conflicted about the ordeal. The most conflicted I've seen her in a very long time. The last time I saw her in such a state was when she took me in all those years ago. I wasn't even a disciple back then, but she told me she had just lost someone that was important to her." Zhaoyu said as she allowed the words to sink in to the other disciples before continuing, "However on the way back she seemed to be at peace with herself again, she seemed to have regained the clarity she had lost." Zhaoyu finished.
"What are you trying to say?" Ling Shuang asked the question that seemed to be on everyone's mind.
"Master Phoenix chose to go to the South Seas because that is the place she buried her long deceased friends, the ones that guided her in the early years of her long life. I believe she chose to do so because she was too conflicted with the matter of Wanru's corruption. But I'm sure that by the time we were making our way back her choice had been made. Personally I believe she doesn't want to kill Wanru, but she doesn't believe there to be any other way to deal with it either. She didn't give anything away that would show what her choice was, and I believe it was because she wants to speak with all of us about it tonight." Zhaoyu explained as best as she could, she looked around to gauge the reaction of the other disciples.
Suyi seemed to be satisfied with that answer as she nodded her head. She was probably hoping for the best and happy that their master cared enough to actually torn apart by the issue. Feima said nothing as he simply looked towards Mei for a second before looking away, now this strange act caught the attention of Zhaoyu, though she did not speak on the matter. Wanxi seemed to be a bit more at ease than she was before but still held onto Wanru tightly, obviously still afraid of the potential outcome of tonight's discussion. Wanru looked a bit more relieved if anything, but like her sister still held doubts, not that Zhaoyu could blame either of them. Shuang was slightly hard to read but her posture seemed to be a bit more relaxed than it previously was, her face was still neutral if anything. Though the look that the fifth disciple sent her when their eyes met was one of someone who had much they wanted to talk about, it seems the two of them would be having words after this. Lastly the first disciples eyes landed on Mei, her expression was plain clear, unbelieving and mistrusting, this did not surprise the first disciple. Zhaoyu was aware that Mei had been there when their master killed her parents due to honkai corruption, and was aware that there was a part of the redhead that still held her master accountable. So it wasn't that surprising to see her disbelieving of the words she said.
"In other words you're not sure what she's going to do." Mei suddenly broke the long silence that had been in the room. Zhaoyu simply nodded her head in agreement, she wasn't gong to pretend she knew what was going through her masters mind, but she had let them know what she saw and her thoughts on the matter.
"It's impossible to know what is going through her mind at times. Whatever she decided, I assume will be revealed tonight…..for better or for worse." Zhaoyu muttered the last part quietly, but everyone within the room heard her.
"Then all we can do is wait." Feima suddenly spoke up as he stood from his position, "Given everything that Zhaoyu has said, even if master phoenix chooses to go through with killing Wanru, it is safe to assume that she will not carry it out that sentence for a week or two at the very least. That's more than enough time for us to regroup and discuss how we want things to move forward." The sixth disciple spoke up, no one said anything in response to him and simply opted to nod in agreement.
There was a lot that needed to be said. Zhaoyu could still fell a lot of tension between the other disciples in the room, something that went beyond just Wanru's infection, however she would not bring this up now, simply because everyone seemed stressed enough as it was, it would be best not to add onto that for now. At least after tonight, they would know where they stood and would be able to act accordingly.
"Alright then, I'm going to go ahead and get started on dinner." Zhaoyu spoke up as she began to turn around to make her way our of the room. Before doing so however she turned to look at the other disciples once more. Wanxi, Wanru and Suyi seemed to be anxious about tonight, none of them were looking forward to it. Feima and Mei seemed to have be the most calm at the moment, but there was also something within their eyes that made Zhaoyu a little wary of the two of them. Then there was Lingshuang, her eyes displayed not only concern, but also conflict, almost as if she was unable to make an important decision.
"I'll come and help." The fifth disciple suddenly spoke up as she made her way to the first to follow her out. Zhaoyu did not comment and simply nodded, it was obvious to her that Lingshuang wanted to speak to her about something, preferably in private. And whatever it was, it seemed that Mei was already aware of it, if the manner in which her eyes suddenly narrowed were any indication to the first disciple.
Something was definitely going on her…….
Nearly forty minutes later into the preparations of the nights supper, Zhaoyu and Lingshuang were almost done with the meal. The first disciple had not pressed the fifth for any answers, knowing that if she wanted to speak Lingshuang would do so, and if not then it was only a matter of time until she found out for herself.
"Zhaoyu." Lingshuang suddenly called out to the first disciple, catching her attention almost immediately. The fifth disciple did not turn to meet the eyes of the first, and instead she continued what she was doing.
"Yes Lingshuang?" The first disciple responded questioningly as she returned to the tasks at hand, she didn't want to pressure the other disciple by keeping an eye on her if she wasn't going to make eye contact.
"Out of all of us here, you've known master phoenix the longest. Aside from that, you helped her raise each and every one of us into the people we are today." The fifth disciple spoke softly, the words causing Zhaoyu to pause momentarily in her tasks.
"I only did what I could to help, master phoenix was the one to provide us with everything else." Zhaoyu responded, she had a feeling she knew what was coming next.
"What would you do if master phoenix went on to kill Wanru?" Lingshuang asked as she stopped what she was doing and turned to the older disciple. The question was enough to have Zhaoyu also stop what she was doing and turn to the fifth disciple. Their two eyes met, and for a moment silence reigned in the room.
The question in itself did not surprise Zhaoyu, she had been asking herself that same question since their journey back to mount Taixuan started, and up until now she still did not have an answer.
"Mei is planning an assassination on master phoenix, whether she does or doesn't follow though with killing Wanru." Lingshuang finally said upon seeing that Zhaoyu would not be answering the previous question. The revelation in itself was enough to break the first disciple out of her thought process as she stared wide eyed at the fifth disciple.
"Y-you can't be serious." Zhaoyu wanted to shout, but managed not to. She looked into Lingshuang's eyes and knew that the girl was absolutely serious. While Lingshuang was one of the youngest disciples of the school, she was among the most mature, she wouldn't lie about something this severe. "By the gods! Why?! What happened while we were gone?!" Zhaoyu shouted in a hushed manner so as to not draw the attention of the other residence of the house.
"I'm not sure of the full details, Mei just came to me whilst training in the mountains and asked if I'd stand with them in the attempt." Lingshuang explained with a frown, but one word in particular caught the attention of Zhaoyu.
'Them'
Does that mean that Mei had already convinced some of the other disciples to also turn against their master. If so then who?
The twins were most likely involved since one was at the center of the whole issue and the other was very protective of her sister.
She could see Feima also being involved due to his infatuation with Mei and his willingness to do anything for her. That would one day be the downfall of him if he didn't see that the second disciple had no romantic interest in him.
Suyi was a bit of an unknown. Zhaoyu was pretty sure the seventh disciple was very loyal to Phoenix, if not because she was young then because she relied on the celestial a lot more than the other disciples. What made Zhaoyu unsure was the fact that Suyi was also closer with Mei than the rest of the other disciples.
"And what did you tell her?" Zhaoyu asked hesitantly, she didn't want to doubt Lingshuang but she was aware how the fifth disciple view the others as family.
"That I would think about it. I've yet to give her a response." The fifth disciple answered as she turned her gaze away from the first. She didn't want to see the potential disappointment or betrayal that could be in her eyes. "I don't want to betray Master Phoenix, she's done so much for all of us, myself included. But I also want mercy for Wanru dispute her corruption." Lingshuang expressed herself.
"….this won't change anything for Wanru." Zhaoyu said after carefully thinking her words through. Killing their master would only delay her turning by a year or two, and then one of the disciples would have to cut her down themselves.
"I know…" Lingshuang said still sounding unsure of herself.
"And we'll be the ones to deal with her corruption once she turns." Zhaoyu said as the fifth disciple nodded her head in understanding, "Then there is nothing more I can say, you know the consequences for either decision so the final choice is your own." Zhaoyu said, she wouldn't do anything to try and persuade Lingshuang and the other disciples out of their plot, one couldn't force loyalty. Whatever came to pass would be.
"What about you?" Lingshuang asked the first disciple.
"Mei doesn't seem to want me involved, but if she had asked I would have refused. Not because I don't care about Wanru, but simply because asking me to choose between her and master is an impossible choice for me." Zhaoyu answered honestly, she didn't want any part in the assassination should it come to pass, should it I even succeed. She would have preferred not knowing at all but she also understood why Lingshuang had come to her.
"I also made my choice when you told us What happened during your trip to the South Seas." The snow haired girl said as she met the confused eyes of the eldest disciple.
"What are you going to do then?" Zhaoyu asked more than a little nervous.
Lingshuang was the school of Taixuan best disciple thus far. She's the only one who's close to mastering the fifth essence, eminence. With it master Phoenix would then go on to teach her how to create her own 'blade eminence'. If Mei was going to succeed in whatever plan she then Lingshuang was probably a key element to her plan.
"If master Phoenix decides to spare Wanru then I'll warn her against Mei's plot. But I won't fight against my brother and sisters." Lingshuang said, "However if she proceeds with the other option….then I'll leave things as they are."
"So you won't join the assassination attempt?" Zhaoyu asked as she raised an eyebrow towards the fifth disciple.
"I don't know." Lingshuang said as she turned around and began to make her way out, but stopped by the exit and turned to Zhaoyu once more, "I want to believe that master Phoenix cares for us more than she has shown, and that she'll at least give Wanru time if she decides to kill her. But if I feel that's not the case then….it's her who would have betrayed us first." Lingshuang said before walking out of the kitchen.
~~~
Dinner time came about faster they had expected. The disciples sat around the table as an uncomfortable silence filled the room. Fu Hua, their master and the celestial Phoenix, sat at the head of the table. Her eyes on the surface of the wooden furniture as she could not bring herself to look into the eyes of her pupils at that particular moment. They had dinner in relative silence, and Hua knew that they would have to speak sooner or later, she would have to speak.
She finally took in her breath and looked around the table to see the various distressed, worried and anxious expressions of her disciples. She knew that she was more or less responsible for their current predicament. The law she created when she founded the school had caused a division of sorts between her and her disciples.
"I think it's time I told you all my story." Fu Hua suddenly spoke out, her voice catching the attention of everyone around the table as they turned to her. Though the confusion at her words was apparent on their faces. "No, not tell, it would be better to show you." The celestial added on.
"Master we don't understand." Zhaoyu spoke out what was on the mind of all the disciples. They had thought that today they would be addressing the matter of Want, but it seemed that their master had other things she wanted to speak about before addressing that matter.
"You've all followed me this far, and I've taught you much since I took you in." Hua said as she brought her hands together on the table, her words causing a feeling of unease within them. The way their master was speaking...it almost sounded as if she was saying goodbye. "Yet of all the tales I have told you, I've just realized I've never told you my own. Of how I became the celestial the world knows me as today."
The disciples were shocked at the words being spoken by their master. None of them had ever asked of her origins, her tale. Why would they, they knew that the past was a sensitive topic for the celestial. She often told them tales of the people around her, and confirmed legends and myths that had been twisted by the common folk, but never had she told them stories regarding her. So for her to be coming forth like this meant something was about to change, for good or for worse.
"Why are you telling us now?" Mei asked, ever the cautious one. If Fu Hua was bothered by the way her second disciple questioned her then she didn't show it. Instead a soft smile appeared on her face, confusing her disciples even more since their master rarely, if ever smiled.
"I've had an epiphany, and with it I've made a choice. But in order for you to understand it you must understand my past." Hua said as she looked at each of her disciples.
"…the decision, is it about me?" Wanru asked the celestial. Oddly enough their master shook her head sideways which intrigued the rest of the disciples.
"Not entirely. I'll admit that your circumstances lead me to think about it, but this has more to do with the entirety of the School of Taixuan and it's future." Hua said as the other disciples couldn't help but wonder what she was going on about now, "As I said, I'll tell you….or rather show you my story and tell you my conclusion afterwards. Everything will be clear then."
"Show us?" Feima asked, the celestial didn't seem to have anything in hand to really show them, unless it was hidden within her kimono.
Rather than answer the question the celestial simply offered an mused glance at her sixth disciple. Before any of them could question her further, red feather suddenly appeared all over the room as each of the disciples felt their minds begin to feel their minds begin to slumber as the world around them slowly vanished and became black.
While they had been trained in keeping their minds strong and focused, none of them had experienced the effects of Fenghuang Down before.
When the disciples regained their awareness they were no longer seated around the table within the dining room, but instead they were standing on a concrete floor in the middle of an extremely large city.
The buildings were nothing like the disciples had ever seen, reaching as high as the sky and some being made out of glass. There were numerous strange vehicles as well moving all over the city.
"This is the city that I was born in." The voice of their master broke the disciples out of their see as they turned to look at her.
"Master what is this place?!" Suyi asked in slight panic. She wasn't the most comfortable with foreign environments. And this place looked way too different to be anywhere in China.
"Calm yourself Suyi. This is but an illusion, and how I will show you my past." Hua said as she began to walk into the alleyways of one of the streets, and morning the disciples to follow her.
The disciples exchanged looks for a few seconds. Each of them wary of the place they were in. It felt much too real to be an illusion, but at the same time they had no reason to doubt the word of their master. Shuang was the first to follow their master, followed by Zhaoyu, Suyi, the twins, Feima and lastly Mei, who tailed behind with a sigh.
The disciples followed their master as she took several turns within the crowded streets of the illusionary city. The people surrounding them didn't appear to acknowledge them in any form or manner, almost as if they were not even there to begin with. This brought more questions. It didn't take long for the celestial to arrive at her destination before stopping, prompting the disciples behind her to do the same.
In from of them was decent sized building with a dojo advertisement logo on it that advertised martial arts classes to all those who wanted to partake in them.
"This was my home for the first sixteen years of my now very long life." Hua started as the eyes of the disciples widened their eyes in shock as they once more looked at the building in front of them, the one their master once called home . "I was born into this world like the rest of you, a normal child, human and mortal. I had parents, a mother and a father, unfortunately I never really knew my mother as she passed when I was young. But I was content with just my father." Hua explained as the door to the building of the house opened.
Out of the house walked a slightly younger looking Fu Hua, dressed in a blue uniform that the disciples were unable to recognise. But what truly shocked them was the way that this Fu Hua seemed more lively and happy despite the discipline and posture that she held.
"Back then I was a civilian, who knew nothing of the plague known as honkai." Hua said as she watched her past self leave her home making her way to school. The celestial followed and the disciples also followed close behind, now eager to learn a lot more, "My father owned a small dojo within the city, and thus I grew up learning martial arts within it. Though it was just for the purpose of self defence, I took my fathers teachings seriously." Hua explained as her past self made her way to school.
World around the celestial and the disciples then shifted once more, and they found themselves within a hospital. Fu Hua stood in front of the door to one of the rooms. The young girl took in a deep breath and opened the door before entering the room. Within it was an older man who looked much like the young girl, with similar coloured hair but a slightly darker shade of eyes. Obviously her father. He was seated within a hospital bed and dressed in the white gown.
"Master is that…" Zhaoyu trailer as she and the other disciples instantly noticed the pink linings of honkai energy that were present of the man's face and arms, his skin far paler than that of the average man.
"…my father. Back then I knew nothing of the plague known as honkai. When my father fell ill I thought nothing much of it." Phoenix explained as she watched her past self and her father interact. "The doctors were unable to tell what it was due to also not being knowledgeable on matter regarding honkai. My father played it off as an minor illness and claimed he would recover soon….and I believed him." Phoenix explained with a small frown on her face. She should have seen the signs back then, but she didn't want to be live that her father would leave her. She had put on a brave front for his sake more than anything.
"What happened to him?" Suyi asked as she couldn't help but feel for the loss of her master.
"I never got the chance to find out." Phoenix said once more earning the confused looks of her pupils. They had assumed the tale would end would the obvious tragedy of her father dying to his infection, "This was the last time that I ever spoke to my father." The celestial went on to explain as the world around them began to shift once more.
This time they found themselves standing within one of the glass buildings. Not too far away they could see Fu Hua leaning against the railing looking outside into the night sky. The sky being crystal clear and the stars being visible for all to see. It truly was an amazing sight.
"This was the day that my entire life changed for the first time." Phoenix said as she joined her past self in gazing outside. The disciples followed their gaze, wondering what their master was talking about.
Then they saw what they master, and he young Fu Hua, were seeing. Up in the distant sky, numerous pink meteors could be seen falling from the sky. Much too close to traveling across the sky, but rather they were defending upon the city itself. The disciples instantly knew these were no ordinary meteors but rather honkai beasts descending upon the city itself.
The meteors crashed into various parts of the city, causing explosions and carnage. Soon the city itself was infested with honkai beasts everywhere.
"I ran for my life. I hid from the honkai." Phoenix spoke as the world around them once more vanished, the disciples listened to their master attentively as they had never heard her speak with such a level of self loathing and resentment, "Back then I was no different from the average human. I was nothing more than a child, I stood no chance against the honkai." Phoenix said as their surrounding shifted once more, this time the eight of them found themselves standing within an alley.
That could hear the stomping and cries of honkai beasts within the distance. But what truly surprised the disciples was the sight of none than Fu Hua seated on the ground with her face buried within her knees.
It was clear to the disciples that the young master was terrified. The way her fingers dug into her legs and the way her body was shaking, all clear signs of fear to the seven disciples. They had never seen their master in such a vulnerable state, and chances were they never would. She was no longer the weak child they were seeing here, but was now a warrior that had stood for thousands of years.
"But that all changed when she came." Phoenix said as she shifted her gaze to the opposite side of the alley, prompting the disciples to do the same.
There they saw a woman with red hair and orange eyes walking towards the young Fu Hua, her footsteps were loud enough to draw the attention of the young girl who gazed at the older woman in front of her. The woman said nothing as she stretched out her right hand towards the young Fu Hua, it was only then that she spoke.
"Come with me, and I'll teach you to fight them." The woman said as the young Fu Hua's eyes widened slightly at the offer. The disciples watched as the young master slowly and unsurely stretched out her hand and grasped that of the redheaded woman.
"Everyone has a teacher, from who they learn their way of life. My father may have taught me martial arts, but she taught me to fight the Honkai." Phoenix explained with a soft and reminiscent expression on her face. For the disciples this was the first time they had seen their masters past as well as seen so many facial expressions and voice tone come from her within such a short span of time.
"What happened afterwards?" Auto decided to ask.
"I followed her, Major Himeko, and joined a military organization that was dedicated to combating the Honkai. An organization called The Moth who Chases the Flame. I became a soldier that fought not for one nation, but for the survival of the entirety of our species." Phoenix responded as the illusionary world around them shifted once more, they saw the young Fu Hua now dressed in a military uniform that matched that of the hundreds of other soldiers around her as they four the Honkai. "There I learnt the truth about the force known as Honkai. An entity with the intent on wiping out the human race. A force that grows the more advanced human civilisation becomes, making it near impossible to have an advantage over it. It was also there that I learnt about the heralds of the Honkai, the ones known as herrschers." Phoenix said, the way she said that last word caught the attention of the disciples. They could hear the anger, bitterness and hatred that came from her when she said It. To think their master had kept all these emotions buried deep within her was something the disciples.
"Herrscher?" The sole male student, Feima, questioned. Phoenix took a deep breath as she remembered the countless battles and sacrifices that were made in her time just to create soldiers capable of fighting toe to toe with herrschers. The results themselves were debatable with only a handful of MANTIS actually being able to fight Herrscher one on one.
"These were humans that were chosen by the Honkai to unleash their hatred upon the world. It would feed upon the negative emotions of the chosen vessel, warp their minds into a state of hatred against mankind and gift them with super natural abilities that go beyond even my own powers. The are fourteen if them in total." Phoenix said as the eyes of the disciples widened considerably at the revelation, especially to those that revered her highly such a Suyi. To think there was something out there stronger than the Celestial Phoenix was something that was hard for the disciples to understand. "Zhaoyu, Wanxi, Wanru and Lingshuang, you've already met one such individual." Phoenix added causing all the disciples eyes to widen, especially the four mentioned.
"I'm sorry master but I think I would remember meeting such a powerful being." Zhaoyu said as the other mentioned disciples nodded their heads in agreement
"That's because the one we encounter was partially awakened. Do you remember Yan Shiluo?" Phoenix asked as she turned to face the disciples. All the disciples immediately nodded their heads, especially the four previously mentioned.
How could they forget, Wanxi and Wanru had both been chosen as sacrifices to the gods labelled as 'the children of fire' and Lingshuang had long since lived in the temple in the early years of her life. It wasn't until Zhaoyu bested the master of the three sublime arts and master Phoenix killed him that they were free if him and joined the school of Taixuan. Seeing her students nod the Celestial Phoenix continued.
"He was a Herrscher that willingly received gifts from the Honkai. However he was a pseudo Herrscher, one who holds no true threat in the grand scheme of things. A true Herrscher of Fire would have had the power to bathe the whole of China in a sea of fire." Phoenix said as the world around the disciples shifted once more they saw an injured Fu Hua on the ground on her knees, the buildings and city around her lit ablaze.
In front of her was none other than the woman that the Celestial Phoenix had once called teacher. But instead of the warm yellow eyes that the disciples had seen before, the woman in front of them now had eyes that were blazing with white flames and orange flames emanating from her hands. It became clear to the disciples that she was the one responsible for the destruction of the city around them.
"My teacher became the Herrscher of Fire in my time, the seventh of her kind out of fourteen." Phoenix said as the world around them froze, "I never truly understood why she turned. What emotional weakness did the Honkai expose in her that allowed her to be overwhelmed by it? I never got the chance to find out, for once she turned I knew there was no saving her, she had already killed millions with her awakening, if left unchecked she would kill millions more. But still…despite knowing this I could not bring myself to fight her."
The world around them continued to move once more as the disciples watched Fu Hua try to reach out to her teacher, for a second it seemed as though the Herrscher recognised the girl as it stopped it's attacks and glances at the blue haired girl, but that moment of hope was short-lived when a large glacier of ice erupted from the ground and pierced the Herrscher right through the chest.
"I never got to find out why she turned. And if there had been a means to save her, I never got the chance to find that out as well. I was left with questions, minor resentment towards the man who killed my teacher despite knowing it had to be done, and I was ostracized for being the disciple of a Herrscher by my fellow soldiers." Phoenix said as the world around them began to change once more.
This time they found themselves within another destroyed city once more crawling with several Honkai beasts of various kinds. They were also numerous soldiers combating the beasts, among them was Fu Hua, but what really caught the were the golden blades that were wielded by all of the soldiers.
"Are those…" Zhaoyu trailed
"The Xuanyuan swords." Phoenix confirmed for her disciples, "Though back then they were known as the tenth divine key. Weapons forged from the tenth Herrscher, a Herrscher that came in the form of a thousand individuals. When the herrscher was defeated, it's powers were used to forge a thousand blades known as the tenth divine keys."
"Divine keys? " Mei asked.
"These were weapons that were created after the defeat of each Herrscher, we'd harness their power and craft powerful weapons that we would use to fight the Honkai." Phoenix explained as she then gestured to the ongoing battle in front of them, "This was the first time the tenth divine keys were put to use on the field. We had been told it was just a routine test to see the efficiency of the divine keys, but…"
It was at that moment that a loud roar was heard within the distance. The disciples turned and saw a large Honkai beast that black with blue linings. The disciples recognised it as the beast their master had labelled as Paravati. They had never fought an emperor class beast as per their masters request, but even they knew that such a beast was too powerful for the soldiers on the ground right now, Fu Hua included based on what they had seen thus far.
True to their suspicions what followed was a massacre. Even with the divine keys the soldiers fell left and right before the powerful beast.
"What we didn't know at the time was that the routine test also surged another purpose." Phoenix spoke up as the disciples turned to the white haired celestial, "In order to better fight herrschers and powerful Honkai beasts such as these humanity needed stronger warriors than they currently had. Warriors that fought above the capabilities of human limits. And in order to achieve such a thing our superiors did the unthinkable."
Phoenix focused her eyes on a near by rooftop. The disciples, seeing as she wasn't go on to elaborate further on her words also turned to look in the same direction. There standing by the edge of was none other than Fu Hua, tenth divine key in hand. The disciples watched as the young soldier leapt of the building as the emperor class beast Paravati passed in the streets below.
Aiming her blade on a blind spot behind the head on the emperor class beast the young soldier attempted to drive her blade into its armour. Only for her attempt to fail when the blade met resistance in the form of the incredibly tough endoskeleton of the beast. The blade cracked towards the tip from the force of the impact and the amount of resistance. Paravati noticing Fu Hua's presence let put an ear piercing roar that sent the young soldier soaring through the air.
"I was ready to meet my death that day." Phoenix said much to the shock of the disciples, the world around them pausing in its movement, "I had lost everything, my family, my home and my teacher. I had no one left in the world. But even as I looked death in the eye there was something that clawed at the back of my mind. Just one simple question. Why?"
"…why what?" Feima asked the celestial.
"Why the Honkai existed? Why I had to lose everything? Why I was never strong enough to protect anyone? Why my teacher became one of the herrschers? And why I was still alive when thousands around me had already perished?" Phoenix explained, and all seven disciples saw the fatigue and tired look in the eyes of their master. "These questions, the desire for answers and the desire for change triggered and awoke something within me."
The world resumed as the disciples watched as Fu Hua gained a determined expression on her face. The young soldier reach out to empty air and clench her fist. In that moment her body began to glow as the tenth divine key began to reform and change shape. The disciples watched as the blade vanished and reformed around Fu Hua's hands, the hair of the soldier turning white and her eyes red. But what truly surprised the disciples were the large blue wings that emerged from the both sides of Fu Hua's waist and carried the soldier into the air.
"Wh-what is that?" Lingshuang asked, apparently being the only one capable of voicing the thoughts of all the disciples.
"In order to combat the Honkai, our military needed more powerful soldiers that could exceed the limitations of the human genome. And in order to achieve that they blended human genes with that of Honkai beasts to create super soldiers." Fu Hua finally admitted as the eyes of the disciples widened at the sudden revelation.
Lingshuang was quick to process the words of their master as best as she could. Blending the genes of a human and Honkai. It explained their masters immortality as well as her inhumane strength. But there was still one thin that backed at the back of her mind. The fact that this essentially meant that their master was no longer truly human in a sense. It would certainly explain her inhumane strength as well as her immortality.
Fu Hua Could tell that she had given her disciples a lot to think about tonight, they needed some time to digest. She truly hoped she was making the right decision in telling them, but she also felt they deserved to know more about her past.
Whatever came from the revelations that she was telling them she would accept. If they couldn't see her the same way, she would understand. If they chose to leave the school, then she would let them.
With that said the celestial Phoenix shut down Fenghuang Down causing the illusionary world around them to disappear. This pulled the disciples out of their thoughts as they found themselves once more around the table they had been eating supper on not too long ago.
"I know that you all probably need some time to digest everything, so I will leave my tale here for the night and We'll continue tomorrow at the same time." Fu Hua said, to which the disciples nodded their head in acceptance. Seeing that no other words were going to be exchange in that moment the celestial stood up, "I'll go ahead and turn in first.
With that Fu Hua turned around and left the dining room. She didn't know what they would decide at the end of it all, but she hoped they would support her when she revealed her plans for the School of Taixuan. Things would move faster if they did. Aside from all of that she just wanted them to be close as well, because they were all she had now.
They were her family.
One that she never showed enough appreciation of.
One that she may lose due to her own selfish actions.
