Fight07: Masters

After two days and three nights of 'flying' and resting, Chenlian finally arrived at a town she had been anxiously looking forward too. It was a peaceful and secluded village situated on a cliff above a great river and waterfalls and surrounded by beautiful mountains, but famous for hosting one person she had been dying to see again. She felt that by spending just a few days with him in this place, she was going to recover most of her mental and physical strength and abilities. Here, at Master Piandao's castle, near the town of Shu Jing.

She knocked on the castle door and the attendant opened. It was a pot-bellied man, not very young, with a condescending personality. But she nonetheless believed him to be a zealous and loyal servant. She had come to request lessons from the master, and when asked what she had brought to prove her worth she answered that it should be for the master to judge. The girl was brought to a room where the master was doing calligraphy. Chenlian sat down formally on her shins, her sword beside her at her right.

"Master, my name is Zhuhe, and while I unfortunately don't have much time I have nonetheless come to request lessons from the master."

That was right. Piandao was a master swordsman, the best in the whole Fire Nation and possibly the world. His speciality was the jian sword but he was also proficient with other blades such as the dao swords or the dragon sword. He had attained that level by incorporating techniques from benders, artisans, and warriors. After having fought and won many battles for his country, he had lost his taste for war and sought enlightenment. Conflicted about the Fire Nation's role in the war, he left the army and travelled through the world before returning home and settling in Shu Jing. And in a legendary battle, he defeated all one hundred soldiers of the Fire Army who had come to arrest him for deserting. After that, he was never bothered again except by arrogant and conceited youths who thought themselves the best in their region and demanded to be taught by the him...

"It is rather unusual for a girl to come to me. By the looks of it, it seems you have already been trained in the art of the sword. Why come to me, especially if it is only for a few days? Is it just for boasting that you've gone through hundreds of miles?"

"It is true that I have been trained, and it is true that I have gone through a long distance in many senses. I was often praised as a genius, a prodigy. And I was conceited. I thought I would never lose to anyone or anything. But then I lost everything. And I realized I was just a weak child ignorant of the world. I wandered a lot. I got lost. And I lost something important. That is why I came here, to recover part of who I was. I am not as foolish to think I can get everything back. Nothing can ever be same. But at this rate, it won't be enough. I am not enough. I must start over from scratch. Please give me the strength to walk and struggle forward without getting lost again. Please give me the strength to protect myself and what I must protect." She begged.

"What must you protect? And where will you go after you leave?"

"I will join with people who I believe share similar dreams, hopes, and ambition to mine. Even if I can't do much alone, with them... surely..."

"May I see your sword?"

The girl stood up and without a word went to sit at his side. She gave him the sword along with a small bag. He first gazed at the red scabbard with the golden dragon design before his eyes rested on the hilt where a white lotus had been carved. The pommel ended with a long dual red tassel. He slowly took out the sword from its sheath and admired the dark obsidian blade with a golden sheen and its razor sharp edges. It was a well-balanced sword, flexible, yet resistant and enduring. He then looked at the girl and her clear, honest, and straightforward eyes. He knew what the small bag contained without having to open it. And he knew who she was. And she knew he knew. And yet both played the game because for now that was the best option. That girl... children should not worry about adults... even though girls her age were already no longer children... especially considering what had happened to her in these past years...

"You remind me of a girl I once taught. She was self-centered, impatient, impulsive, aggressive, full of herself, way too direct in both speech and action, and didn't know how big the world was." The man pondered contemplatively. At this her expression turned into a slightly embarrassed smile. "But just like this blade, she was exceedingly keen and sharp, and had a real talent for the dragon straight sword and learned very quickly. Alright, you can live here for the time of your stay. I'll keep that sword for now. You can start by writing your name." That was right. You could not take back a brushstroke like you could not take back a sword stroke. She would stamp her identity on the paper. Her strokes looked sharper than before but in the same time there was hesitation and confusion, like she was forcing herself. The master then took her to the waterfalls where she had to draw what she only had three seconds to see. Once back she had to arrange the garden to fit her convenience. She put wooden planks or other stones on top of rocks to make the footing more unstable and thus the training more worthwhile. It was fun. The more difficult the task, the more motivated she was. The young woman was then made to spar with a guy using wooden swords, which she did for about two days. Her sparring sessions were cut by meditation sessions and other physical training. Before at last, the master decided to give her back her sword and spar with her himself.

It was the seventeenth day that Aang, Katara and Sokka arrived at the Earth Kingdom city of Omashu where the airbender used to visit his friend Bumi. It was the second largest city of the Earth Kingdom (second only to Ba Sing Se, the Earth Kingdom capital) and capital to one of its provinces. The tall mountain peak on which Omashu was founded was located in the Kolau Mountain Range in the southwestern Earth Kingdom and was surrounded by steep canyons and an enormous gorge. The peak and city rose high out of a deep chasm that had been created several centuries ago by earthbenders. The only way to reach the gates of Omashu was across a long narrow bridge of stone that spanned the sheer gorge, which provided one of the best defense imaginable. The city's three gates were composed of massive stone, each five feet thick and towering over thirty feet high. As a result, the gates could only be opened by skilled earthbenders who guarded its only entrance. The city itself was built on a number of hills with the Palace sitting on the tallest hill.

Sokka and Katara looked in awe at the city. They did not have anything like that in the south pole. Buildings that did not melt... Aang hurried to the city but for safety reasons the waterbender thought better to hide his identity as the Avatar. So they used some of Appa's shed fur to make him a wig and a mustache and he adopted a fake old man's voice, crouching slightly and using his staff as a walking stick. Sokka remarked he looked just like his grandfather, although whether it was sarcastic or not still remains a mystery. Katara noted that technically Aang was 112-year-old. The airbender also complained about the itchiness of the fur and asked Appa how he could live in this. Appa merely snorted at him in response.

The three humans left the bison here and walked down to the city. The airbender excitedly told his friends that they were gonna love Omashu as the people here were the friendliest in the world. As they approached they noticed the guards giving a merchant trouble for trying to bring "rotten cabbages" in. They earthbended the cart and made it fall – along with all its cabbages – into the gorge below, making the poor man scream "Noooo! My cabbages!"

"Just keep smiling." The Avatar said, plastering a smile on his own face. The waterbender and her brother followed him, their smiles much tenser. The guard who had just obliterated the cart walked forward to meet Aang. He earthbended a huge boulder out of the ground and held it above the small visitor, ordering him to state his business. The Avatar rushed forward out from under the rock in a move much too sprightly for his supposed age and points an accusing finger at the guard and using his old man voice begins to speak.

"My business is my business, young man, and none of yours! I've got half a mind to bend you over my knee and paddle your backside!"

The guard dropped the stone behind Aang in surprise. Katara and Sokka were both terrified at what their friend was doing.

"Settle down, old timer. Just tell me who you are."

"Name's Bonzu Pipinpadaloxicopolis, the Third, and these are my grandkids."

"Hi, June Pipinpadaloxicopolis. Nice to meet you." Katara introduced herself with a sincere smile.

"You seem like a responsible young lady. See that your grandfather stays out of trouble. Enjoy Omashu!" The guard pointed at her.

"We will." She replied. The guard motioned them to pass. The three walked forward into the city with Sokka trailing. When the latter's shoulder was grabbed.

"Wait a minute! You're a strong young boy. Show some respect for the elderly and carry your grandfather's bag."

"Good idea!" Aang exclaimed, throwing his bag to Sokka. Although he did not really act like a proper grandfather, he did seem to enjoy the situation. The three gates, which were indeed part of the walls, were slid open using earthbending. The gates began to close again as the three humans moved to pass through it. And just as his vision of the "grandfather" was obscured, the guard saw, with surprise and wonder, (Momo's) strange ears emerge from the white wig. They were inside the city, with all its houses with roofs painted in Earth Kingdom green, and its chutes with crates and packages sliding along them. Omashu's famous mail delivery system, consisting of miles of tubes and chutes to send packages through the city using earthbending and gravity. With a mischievous smile, the airbender explained that Bumi had found a much better use of this system...

A young boy with spiky red hair tied with a headband was looking out over the city where he was joined by Aang. The boy, Bumi, had a missing tooth and a slightly insane facial expression. Bumi told him to look around him and asked him what he saw.

"Umm the mail system?" Aang replied, stating the obvious. He did not see where his friend was going.

"Instead of seeing what they want you to see, you gotta open your brain to the possibilities." Bumi said conspiratorially.

"A package sending system?" The airbender slightly changed his original answer.

"The world's greatest super slide!" Bumi spread his arms, showing the chutes, which now indeed appeared more like giant slides, grinning widly.

"Bumi, you're a mad genius!" Aang told his friend, excited and respectful at the same time. Both had always been fun-lovers and makers, but with just a first glance, Bumi would see more and deeper than most people. The red haired boy laughed and snorted. They boarded a transport bin and rocketed down the slide.

And now Aang, Katara and Sokka were at the same place in the city where Aang and Bumi had been a hundred years ago. The three were the top of the slide, sitting in a teetering transport bin. Aang was excited as before, contrary to the other two who looked quite leery.

"One ride, then we're off to the North Pole, Airbender's honor." The Avatar promised.

"This sounded like fun at first, but now that I'm here, I'm starting to have second thoooooouuuuuuuughts!" Before Katara could properly finish her sentence, the bin had dropped into the intimidatingly vertical chute and was now rocketing down. They could have been killed by a rack of spears that had ended up behind them after the merging with a neighbouring chute if Aang had not made their own bin derail and freefall onto a rooftop below. Just then, a group of Earth Kingdom soldiers were being addressed by an officer.

"Men, you'll be going off to combat soon. It's important that you be prepared for anything."

At this moment, the bin with the group fell in-between them, shocKing the audience. Aang had grabbed the front of the bin trying to pull it up using his airbending, his foot in Katara's face and Sokka panicking in the back. The airbender propelled the bin back into the air and back into a chute and where they rocketed down once again. Misinterpreting Katara's suggestion to use his airbending (to go slower) Aang used it to go faster. The inhabitants were looking at them in alarm until they reached an off-load point. The children screamed and collided with a bin right in front of an earthbender. The impact forced them out of track and out of the bin. Everything was falling freely. Aang airbended everyone back into the bin which bounced off a few roofs and into a man's work room, destroying his pottery and out the window opposite the one they came in. They dropped into someone's living room and slid through their house, crashed through the wall of the balcony and dropped again, screaming. And they crashed down into a cabbage stall, destroying it, and spilling all the vegetables. Stall that belonged to the same merchant who had had his cart and cabbages destroyed by the gate guards. The children landed in a heap, Aang's disguise gone.

"My cabbages! You're gonna pay for this!"

"Two cabbages please." Aang said sheepishly as they were surrounded by guards.

They were taken to the King's large throne chamber, decorated in shades of Earth Kingdom green. The aged monarch was sitting on his throne in the distance and wearing the same crazy expression as the boy in Aang's memory. The guards forced the three juveniles to kneel and said they had been arrested for vandalism, travelling under false pretences, and malicious destruction of cabbages. The merchant wanted off with their heads but the guard ordered him to keep quiet as only the King could pass down judgement. However, to everyone's surprise – and the merchant's chagrin –, the old man commanded to throw them a feast!

The three youngsters were sitting at one end of the medium-sized food-covered table while the King was standing behind them. He took Aang's chicken drumstick and offered it to him but the boy refused it as he did not eat meat, so he stuck it in Sokka's mouth as he was sure he liked meat. And apparently, Sokka did find it tasty. Katara thought the guy's crown a little crooked. The Lord took his seat at the other end of the table and asked the 'young bald one' where he might be from. Aang invented a place that he called Kangaroo Island.

"Oh, Kangaroo Island, eh? I hear that place is really hoppin!" The old man cracked. Sokka was the only one to laugh. His friends looked at him as if he had grown a third head. He justified himself saying it was pretty funny. The King yawned. "Well, all these good jokes are making me tired. Guess it's time to the hay." As he ended his sentence, he suddenly threw another drumstick at Aang who out of reflex airbended it to a standstill. The guards drew breath in shock.

"There's an airbender in our presence and not just any airbender, the Avatar!" The King stood. "Aang dropped the drumstick, trying to act like he had not just revealed himself. "Now what do you have to say for yourself, Mr. Pipinpadaloxicopolis?" The Lord taunted.

"Okay! You caught me. I'm the Avatar, doing my Avatar thing, keeping the world safe. Everything checks out." The Avatar checked under the table. "No firebenders here. So, good work everybody." He put his arms around his companions and together they stood. "Love each other, respect all life and don't run with your spears. We'll see you next time!" The three had been walking backwards to the door, trying an innocent escape but were stopped by the guards.

"You can't keep us here. Let us leave." The waterbender said bravely.

"Lettuce leaf?" The King picked up a lettuce leaf from the plate in front of him and took a bite. Sokka thought he was nuts. Now serious, the old Lord announced that the next day, the Avatar was going to face three deadly challenges but for now the guards were going to show them to their room. There was an argument between the guard and the liege about a bad room, a good room, and a newly refurbished room.

The three youngsters were taken to a newly refurbished room, spacious, beautiful, and comfortable, but without door or window. A room that could only be entered and left by using earthbending, like most rooms in this palace... It might have been quite nice for a prison cell, but it did not change the fact that they were prisoners. They wondered about the challenges and a way to get out of here. It was then that the airbender noticed the air vent. Of course, they course, they could not leave through here, but Momo could, or so he thought. The lemur was sprawled on a bed, belly completely gorged and still licking a partly eaten apple. Aang stuffed the animal face first into the vent and pushed but to no avail, and Momo's behind was left dangling. He was stuck. Sokka doubted Appa could save them but the boy was confident that as a ten-ton flying bison, he could figure something out. But as Katara said: no use arguing now. They all went to bed.

Aang woke up to the sound of the 'door' being opened by an earthbender. But when he opened his eyes, his friends were gone. The guard told him the King would free them if he completed his challenges but he did not say what would happen if he failed. The boy was asked to give his staff, which he did, and led back to the throne room.

First, the King asked him a strange question: what did he think of his new outfit? Aang stared blankly at the robes weaved with several shades of purple and outlined with fur. It was obviously not exactly to his liking.

"I guess... It's fine." He replied nonetheless, scratching his bald head. The aged Lord praised him for having passed the first test, giving the child a false hope as it was not a deadly test. The real ones would be much more challenging. Now angry, Aang airbended himself in front of King and demanded his friends back. They did not have time for his crazy games. They were leaving. But the old one had expected it. In a wall at their side a door was opened to reveal Sokka and Katara held by guards who put rings on one of their fingers. The rings constricted and the teens could not take them off, no matter how much they struggled. The King explained those rings were made of jennamite, known as creeping crystals that grew remarkably fast until they covered the entire body, which would happen by nightfall in their cases. He could take them off, but only if the Avatar cooperated. The ring had already started creeping up Sokka's finger. Aang had no choice but to agree.

They went to a huge cavern whose floor was covered in stalagmites. There was a waterfall spouting down from the ceiling. The King, the guards and the prisoners were standing on a balcony. Crystal already covered the forearms of both. In a laugh, the seemingly crazy man told the Avatar he had lost his lunch box key and was hungry. The key was hanging by a long chain in the middle of the waterfall. A ladder reached up from the ground of the cavern to about where the key was dangling. Of course he had to go fetch it.

Aang jumped into action. Using his airbending skills he bouced from stalagmite to stalagmite and charged into the waterfall, holding his breath, and began to climb the ladder until the force of the water shot him out. He was nearly impaled but recovered between two stalagmites, one foot on each.

"Oooh, climbing the ladder. No one's thought of that before." The Lord said sarcastically.

The airbender tried another approach. This time he flew up to the stalactites on the ceiling and was soon looking down at the key. He concentrated, jumped into the waterfall, and was shot right back out, managing once more to grab onto a stalagmite. The crystal was now covering their arm up to the shoulder.

"That's right. Keep diving head in, I'm sure it'll work eventually." The King said with that same sarcastic tone. This gave Aang an idea. He broke off the top of the stalagmite he was holding and threw it at the chain holding the key. Using his airbending skills he hurtled a wind blade breaking off the water current and the chain. The tip of the stalagmite embedded itself like a spearhead into the top of the doorway, the key dangling just over the surprised King's head. Once more the Avatar angrily demanded to have his friends back. The man innocently replied that he needed help with another matter. It seemed he had lost his pet Flopsie.

Aang landed in the middle of a shallow arena meant to replicate a typical natural environment with its vegetation and rocky areas. He had landed behind a large bunny with long droopy ears that was sitting on a rock. The boy said he had found him. The King ordered to bring him to him.

"Come here, Flopsy!" The Avatar cooed. The boy turned around to face a huge horned monster that had silently landed behind him while the bunny squeaked and ran off. The monster crushed a huge boulder in front of Aang (who would have been crushed had he not dodged by flipping backwards). He ran after the squealing bunny crying "Flopsy, wait! Flopsy! Flopsy!" while the monster chased him. The liege was cackling maniacally. The bunny ran into a rabbit hole in the wall of the arena. Aang slid up next to it and stuck his hand in the hole, rummaging around but finding nothing. The monster was closing in. Aang had another idea. He stood up and faced the monster.

"Flopsy?"

The monster stopped instantly and wagged its tail. To the boy's surprise, Flopsy picked him up tenderly, making gentle noises and gave him a huge lick.

"Flopsy!" The airbender exclaimed, rubbing the beast's head. Flopsy let Aang go and scaled the arena wall in response to its owner's whistling and kissing noises. He flopped on his back in front of the King who doted on him, rubbing his belly as his left leg pawed the ground in pleasure. Aang jumped up onto the railing of the arena and asked his companions if they were okay.

"Other than the crystal slowly encasing my entire body? Doing great!" Katara replied cheerfully and sarcastically. She was covered from head to ankle in crystal. At her left, Sokka was in similar straits. A new length of crystal grew on the left side of his head, making him lose his balance and keel over. The Avatar turned back toward the King. He was ready for the next challenge, much to the old man's pleasure.

Everyone went to an earthbending arena which consisted of a dirt floor and rocks protruding here and there. There were three balconies: a big one in the middle and a small one on either side of it. The Lord was in the middle one with Aang while the prisoners were together on their left along with their guards. The third and final test would be a duel. He was allowed to choose his opponent but also warned to choose wisely. Two gladiator-type characters came up to flank their liege. One was lean with a nasty smile, his main weapon like a sickle mounted on a halberd, and the other was uncommonly muscular and had a giant axe. Probably taking him for a frail old man, Aang pointed at the King.

"Wrong choice." The Lord of Omashu said with a smile as he straightened his lumped posture and dumped his robes like shedding a shell, revealing a surprisingly muscular and nervous body. He stomped his bare foot, the balcony cracked and the rock suddenly shot up below Aang, blowing him far out in the arena. With a single jump, the King landed in front of the fearful boy and laughed evilly, claiming to be the most powerful earthbender he will ever see. The Avatar tried to see if he could fight the guy with the axe instead but there was no take-backsies in that man's Kingdom. The earthbending master motioned for a guard who threw Aang's staff back at him, and the real fight began.

The King lost no time and immediately launched several boulders that the boy dodged, but his opponent taunted him for using such a predictable airbender tactic. As they fought, the Lord of Omashu continued to taunt Aang for his unwillingness to fight back. The earthbender launched another stone that missed, but exploded upon impacting the ceiling of the arena. The debris knocked the airbender to the ground, making him lose his staff. The King repeatedly made huge pillars of rock block Aang's path. One of them catches the Avatar in the gut as it rose into the air. The boy jumped off the pillar, riding one of his famous airballs, and rode the wall of the arena, approaching the King from his right. He launched a huge gale at his opponent, who blocked it with a sheet of stone raised from the floor of the arena. The leader of Omashu taunted him about the ineffectiveness of such attacks.

The airball disappeared and the King kicked over the stone sheet, raised it on earth dug out of the arena's surface and shot the earth underneath the stone sheet like a wave that knocked Aang over. The Lord struck the ground with his fist, sending a shock wave in a line surface right at Aang. It was as if a line of tiny explosion that had made shin-length pillars rise up. The Avatar flipped backwards and avoided the attack, mostly meant to destabilize him and jumped again, recuperating his staff. But now He was close to the rear wall of the arena. The earthbending master taunted him again: what could he do from so far away?

With a determined look, Aang lunged at the King who used the side of his foot to dash the earth, making the ground around the boy become quicksand where he got bogged. The earthbender raised two boulders and sent them to smash the struggling Avatar who escaped just in time as the rocks smashed together. The airbender unleashed a blast of wind that knocked his opponent and the stone sheet he was standing upon back against the wall of the arena. The King raised one of the boulders from the other end of the arena and pulled it back towards him at frightening speed to crush Aang from behind, but the Avatar saw the danger just in time and did a backflip that barely allowed him to get up and over the flying boulder, which moved on to almost crush the King who broke it into many pieces as it reached him. With tremendous effort, the master tore the entire gate area of the arena out of the ground. Aang screamed in terror and ran in circles, creating a tornado. The Lord hurtled the massive earth mound, which got caught in the tornado's current and was propelled back at him. As it reached him, the King neatly bisected it. The Avatar appeared between the two rock pieces and pinned the King with his staff who smiled and looked up. Aang also looked up as a tiny piece of rock bounced off his bald head. Overhead one of the two halves of the rock was hovering, ready to crush them both...

The King congratulated him: he had fought well, with much fire in his heart. He threw the rock to the side of the arena and fell backwards into the floor, disappearing and leaving a human shaped hole and a flabbergasted Aang. A hole opened up in the floor of the balcony besides the prisoners from which the master emerged, the hole closing instantly beneath him. The child used his staff and airbending to join them. Now that he had passed all the tests, he still had to answer one question. Aang complained about the unfairness of the situation, but as the King said: "what's the point of tests if you don't learn anything?" He would free his friends after he answered the question: "What is my name?" And he left after reminding the boy that he only had a few minutes, by the look of those friends' state.

However, Aang was clueless about that person's name. Katara advised him – her tone a little tense and pressing... – to think about the challenges and suggested it might be a riddle.

"I got it!" Sokka suddenly exclaimed.

"Yeah?" The Avatar asked, hopeful.

"He's an earthbender, right? Rocky!" There was a long silence, followed by a cough in the background. "You know, because of all the rocks?"

Aang thought back about the challenges. All had been different that expected. They were not straightforward. In order to solve them he had to think differently than he usually would. And then he remembered. He knew his name. They went to the throne room where the King was waiting, hunched in his regular green robes.

"I solved the question the same way I solved the challenges. As you said a long time ago, I had to open my brain to the possibilities." The Avatar said. The King began to laugh and snort, exactly like his old friend in the boy's memories. "Bumi, you're a mad genius!" Aang said with the same time as before as he ran and hugged the old King.

"Oh, Aang. It's good to see you. You haven't changed a bit. Literally." Bumi cooed affectionately, hugging his small friend back and rubbing his head.

Katara and Sokka approached still encased in crystal and reminded them of their problematic situation. The Lord used his earthbending to shatter the crystals that flew all over the place. He took a piece and explained this jennamite was actually rock candy. He took a bite and made a blissful expression. He was soon imitated by Momo. Katara was surprised that the crazy King was actually Aang's old friend Bumi. And Sokka was annoyed: why go through all this instead of just telling who he was?

"First of all, it's pretty fun messing with people," Bumi laughed and snorted again. "But I do have a reason." He turned to Aang. "Aang, you have a difficult task ahead. The world has changed in the hundred years you've been gone. It's the duty of the Avatar to restore balance to the world by defeating Fire Lord Ozai. You have much to learn. You must master the four elements and confront the Fire Lord, and when you do, I hope you will think like a mad genius!" He gave the Avatar his wisdom. The child smiled, clasped his hands together in thanks, and bowed. "And it looks like you're in good hands. You'll need your friends to help defeat the Fire Nation." Momo jumps onto Aang's shoulder. "And you'll need Momo too."

The last airbender thanked him for his wisdom, but before they left, Aang had a last challenge for him...
And not long later, the Avatar and the King of Omashu were together in a bin rocketing down the chutes of the mail system like little kids. Both were having a blast as the air was rushing by them. And then there was an explosion and a plume of dust and smoke rose in the air.

"My cabbages!" A merchant cried in anguish.

The next day at the gate of Piandao's castle, the master and the girl were there, facing each other. She was ready to leave. She bowed and thanked him deeply for everything. While of course she was not entirely satisfied, it was more than what she could have hoped. She still needed to work on her stamina and brute strength, but training with that person, she had regained a good part of her former agility, swiftness, reflexes as well as her resourcefulness. Her body was remembering how to fight. Everything was coming back to her. That was what she needed. And by regaining some of her fighting ability, she had also regained some confidence in herself and the future. She could protect them with her own hands, she would not hold them back. She had also properly rested and fed, and asked some insane food orders to the attendant – Fat – in response to his annoying uptight and condescending personality, to what Piandao would generally agree. And she had meditated, done some calligraphy, and played some music. She had learned about her new self.

She offered her sincerest apologies for not being able to stay longer, which she deeply regretted, but she had something to do. She could not even stay for dinner. Chenlian left, walking down the path under Piandao's watch.

The arrogant little girl, too direct and aggressive, had grown into a beautiful, mature, strong and independent young woman. Her all too honest and straightforward personality might cause her some problems but she had at least learned to temper that a little. She certainly still had that habit of jumping into trouble without regard for her position, what depended of her or those she would leave behind in order to save other people, and especially people she liked. But she had become shrewd and level-headed enough to avoid most problems. And although it was not particularly evident, all the harsh trials had left their mark on her, in her eyes, her expressions, her movements, her countenance, the 'atmosphere' around her... She had gained experience and wisdom beyond those of normal teenagers. He had noticed it as soon as he had gazed at her and could only confirm it during those few days. Ever since that time, that girl had kept fighting every single day in order to survive and stay herself. Now she had decided on her path. It was not an easy one, but that was still the one she had chosen. And she was going to keep walking forward to the very end, even if she had to fight her way through hundreds of enemies or struggle through bogs and briars. She would no longer waver or hesitate because that was the decision she had taken. Well, that was only if some particular factor did not come to shake her up. Although that probability was small and difficult to see through... it definitely existed.