[A.B.P.P.E.] Bk 2 - Chapter 63 - Speeding Up and Strange Things

As unexpected as it was to Yin Hu and the rest of the Hu Clan, the rest of the journey had been relatively quiet. 

No more attacks and attempted plots to kill Zhong Da and his wife by white furred bunnies. No more kidnapping attempts on Jun and Shui. Nor was there anything that had bothered Rong and Da Ruis enough to go out and scout or study as they continued to push through the forest and toward their final destination; the Neutral Bloc masquerading as the Righteous Bloc.

Of course, there had been multiple curious things along the way they could have explored. 

Problem magnets that would have guaranteed more headaches for Yin Hu. 

Yet, he refused to pause for even a second to check them out. It didn’t matter how much Shui begged him to check out the strange structures, pyramids, or anything else. His focus was on getting out as fast as possible. Anything that even looked suspicious had the group looping wide around the area. Avoiding everything that could derail them for an extra few months like the plague. 

But that didn’t mean they hadn’t witnessed things that left them confused or even downright shocked. 

First and foremost, the forest had changed in the months they continued to move along. Baby birds were more common and were brightly colored. Insects appeared though far more rarely. Even tiny critters that scuttled beneath the foliage to give the area life that had been absent ever since they had entered the Bleak Forests. Something that had not only confused Rong and the other, older members of the crew, but had left Yin Hu wondering what was different. All of which were likely babies rather than adults or juveniles. 

Did it mean there were fewer threats along the way?

Were specific predators marking territory back there and had entire populations of weaker prey animals running for dear life?

It was strange, but not as strange as what they had seen the past day and a half. 

In the distance had been a mansion. One that seemed well taken care of and maintained. The desire to go toward it had been something that they considered for a moment before they got close enough to notice the screaming ghosts within the building itself. Watching from the windows. Shadows flickering and flashing past open doorways, just waiting for any foolish passerby to make the mistake of getting too close. 

Yin Hu had quite literally grabbed the girls and dragged them away from the building. 

There had been a strange mental weight that affected everyone but him, making them listlessly walk toward it without conscious thought. 

It was a terrifying experience to have to tie everyone to him and drag them away as they tried to weakly fight against their ropes, but did not have enough mental capacity to actually remove them. Including the Warg, dragon hatchlings, and Da Ruis. He needed to pull out special Spirit Binding Rope Yin Hu had discovered while trying to find a solution to pull the old ghost away from certain doom. 

Yin Hu had to continue in this condition for said day and a half before the team woke up from whatever hold the mansion had on them. 

Forcing the party to stop and set up camp for the rest of the night. 

Which had come at a perfect time. 

They were getting closer to civilization and they needed a moment of time to discuss their future and the plans for their entrance into society again. Walking around with a giant Warg, dragon hatchlings, and a ghost would likely cause more havoc and attract too much attention. 

For now though, the team needed to be reprimanded. Yin Hu surveyed them all as they sat there with their heads downturned. “I expected more for all of you. Not only have you failed to detect the illusion array, but now this? Dragged semi-unconscious toward certain death and doom? What happened to being trusted members of my Hu Clan and protecting its weaker members? Rong? Zhong Da? Da Ruis? Do any of you have anything to say?”

No one responded. How could they when they had failed so spectacularly?

“Set up camp,” Yin Hu said as he turned away and looked out through the forest. The foliage had lessened so much that he could see for miles ahead. It offered less protection, but helped them see to the distance in case anything appeared that needed to be avoided. “We have a few things to discuss before we head out again.”

“Yes, Patriarch!” they all shouted at the same time. 

He could hear them scramble to prepare the area for his tea drinking and rice eating–

Yin Hu blinked as a fog appeared in the vast distance. A white cloud of translucent energy that spread across a large distance that came to a halt just at the edges of his vision. 

It was only a moment later that a figure appeared within said fog. Stepping out for Yin Hu to see it in its full glory. 

A giant stag of white and pale green with its head touching the tall tree canopy. The thing studied him as he studied it. Intelligent eyes and a crown above its head made of antlers that gave it a regal, otherworldly appearance not befitting the forest around him. It shifted back and forth, allowing the fog to surround and obscure parts of its body. Whatever it had been looking for, it found it when Yin Hu narrowed his eyes and pulled out DragonsWrath. 

The stag jumped into the air and rocketed through the forest canopy. Galloping away into the night sky.

“A-Ancestor,” Shui appeared from behind him with bright, wide eyes. “Can I have it? I want to get a battlemount like Jun found in the Inheritance Instance!”

Yin Hu blinked at her for a few seconds before he slowly turned toward Jun. 

The older girl froze mid-swing, but refused to turn around and address his attention in any shape or form.

Finding and taming battlemounts and monsters were shenanigans he expected from Shui, not Jun. She had always been the source of consistency and reason within the party in a world filled with chaos and uncertainty. Mostly perpetuated by a certain little girl that was constantly surrounded by six equally mischievous dragon hatchlings. Of which all seven were now begging him to chase after a stag that had to be twenty feet tall at the shoulders. 

Hmm… Maybe that’s not a bad thing.

A battlemount would be a great way to make sure nothing untoward happened to them, but it also forced them to take responsibility in a form they hadn’t needed to while he was around. They never needed to take care of the dragon hatchlings or the warg while all the fancy clothing Shui put on them from his rice bag cleaned them and pampered them up instantly. Made them smell amazing too. 

Yin Hu still remembered how terrible the Warg’s stench was when it had first been dragged through the foliage by an excited Shui. 

Having something that powerful charging and taking the biggest hits for the girls would save him a lot of headaches. 

Almost like the Weapon Spirits, but in the physical realm.

Yin Hu patted Shui’s head. “Not now. Maybe in the future I’ll help you find a proper battlemount–”

Jun’s ears perked up, but acted like she hadn’t heard anything. 

“–including you Jun.”

Her face lit up with a giant smile before she returned to practicing with renewed energy, dedication, and focus. 

Shui and her compatriots, on the other hand, all sagged visibly. Walking away with drooping shoulders and sad expressions that had been slowly getting worse the longer she didn’t throw herself at every problem situation that cropped up around them. It itched at her soul to charge directly ahead at everything before her without a single thought going through her head other than maximum exploration. 

Imma need to make a protection force around her. Strong enough to face whatever dangers she finds herself in when I’m not around to keep saving them from these past situations. 

Learning that even Da Ruis, Zhong Da and his wife, and Rong were still susceptible to mental attacks had been a nightmare come true. Yin Hu needed them to be the source of protection, but now he had to reset them from the start and figure out how to develop their mental strength through his endless treasures in the Vagrant’s Rice Bag. Hopefully the Compendium had a volume or two on that subject matter. 

Yet, that required stability and foundation he could rely on. 

One that they would not have until they either built a base in the first city they entered or they were forced to wait until they reached the Hu Clan. 

Getting attacked while everyone was mid development and pre-occupied with not ruining their cultivation and Dao was not a situation he would allow his members to experience. 

That was the basics of being a good patriarch after all.