— The Emperor’s Imperial Record, Entry No. 16 —

  "Damn it.”

  I had been a fool. I should have realized. I was on its hunting grounds, stealing its food, disrupting its territory. The rocks of the dirt road crunched beneath me as I hurried to Healer Yao Po’s place.

  Of course, it would start hunting me.

  I had decided to fight it, but my own mind was against me. ‘I should leave. Run.’ The thought clawed at me. I had the silver. No one would stop me. I could disappear, live like a rich man somewhere far away. Never struggle again.

  ‘I could-’

  No.

  What was this nonsense filling my head? My father was dead. My cultivation dreams were all but up in smoke, and I was going to give up? If I ran now, I would keep running forever.

  What kind of man would I be if I hid like a coward? Would I spend my whole life running? Could I even face my father in the afterlife?

  Tell him that not only did I fail my promise to him, but that I also gave up at the barest roadblock?

  And I wanted to be a cultivator? Would I back down as a cultivator, too? Would I shy away when a rival decided to fight me for my place in a sect? Or a resource I wanted?

  I threw my fist against a boulder. It was a foolish thing to do, and my hand started bleeding. This was starting to become a habit.

  I still had a few scars from when I had last hit something in anger or frustration, one of them split open again, leaking warm blood.

  Damn it.

  I clenched my fist but forced myself to stop. I exhaled, flexing my fingers, and made a small promise under my breath, “No more foolish injuries.” I needed both hands to kill.

  I had told myself I was going to fight it, so I was. There would be no turning back for me.

  But first, I needed knowledge. There was only one person in the district who might have it—Healer Yao Po. The only one I could think of who might know something more than gossip and old wives' tales about the spirit beast, and would be willing to talk to a peasant, the rest would all be nobles, or maybe Azul.

  I didn’t want to talk to him.

  If she didn’t know anything, then I was ready to die anyway.

  ****

  I knocked on her door, but she didn’t answer it. “Probably sleeping,” I whispered, then knocked again, louder. I could hear shuffling.

  “Healer Po,” I screamed in a whisper. “I have a serious question to ask you.”

  After some more slow shuffling, she was at the door.

  She gasped, “Khan!” then grabbed my hand and pulled me in. “What happened to you?” Then forced me onto a chair she had dragged near, which was surprising considering she was such a frail woman, and hurriedly got some medicinal equipment out to treat me.

  Healer Po held out her hand for mine, and I gave it to her. “I was hunting.”

  She shook her head, “I’ve seen you after you’ve hunted before, Khan, and that's not how you looked.” Her aged eyes gazed at me, waiting for an answer.

  If I was going to get her to tell me anything about the spirit beast, it was best I also told her something about how I’d gotten hurt. I began to speak about what I was doing…

  “Are you out of your mind, child?” She tossed my hand away, mid-treatment, but I didn’t mind, that was not what I came for.

  “That’s not the point.” I leaned forward. “I’m not asking for you to sanction it. I just need to know how to kill the spirit beast.”

  “You stubborn—”

  “I’m already dead if I don’t fight.” My hand was in her palm again.

  She opened her mouth, then closed it, only speaking up again after a while, “You want to kill a spirit beast? As a mortal?”

  A sharp sting tore through my hand, and I stiffened, clenching my jaw and swallowing a hiss as she put some alcohol on my wounds.

  “I know how well-read you are… well, do you know anything about the spirit beast?”

  “You are serious,” She put her hand up to her gaping mouth, her eyes as large as boulders. “I’m not helping you to go kill yourself.”

  “You don’t understand the situation. The beast is hunting me now. The only other choice I have is to hide out here in the district.”

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  She raised an eyebrow as if to say… ‘So? What’s the problem with that?’

  “I have to slay it.” I reached out to her, my voice was raw, craving, like an addict... “What would you have me do? Waste away and live out my days? Hiding like a dog?”

  “Dogs live very good lives, Khan. What you are trying to do is to jump from a cliff and not die.”

  “That’s why I want your help, if there’s a chance of surviving, I want to take it.”

  She scoffed, “The chance at surviving is not going in the first place.”

  I held up a hand to stop her, it was rude, but she wasn’t listening to me, “I came here to ask for your help so I don’t jump and die. I’m perfectly willing to go in there and kill it or die in the pursuit.”

  She crossed her arms, and I crossed mine.

  She raised her eyebrow, and I raised mine.

  “I’m not sending you to your death.”

  “You think I don’t know that? I don’t care. Tell me how to kill it. If I go now and die, so be it. If I live.”

  “What’s the point of all this? I’ve seen your work these past few months. You work like a dog and barely enjoy it. You don’t even taste the fruit of your own labor. Stay here, that blacksmith is a good man. He might even take you on as an apprentice.”

  I shook my head as she spoke, not intending to listen.

  She raised her eyes to the roof and put the back of her hand on her forehead, something she had been doing a lot throughout our conversation. “Oh, the folly of the young.”

  “You stubborn child…” She sighed heavily, rubbing her temples before finally meeting my gaze. “You really won’t let this go? Are you daft?”

  Silence. She took that as an answer and continued. “Fine. I know what type of spirit beast you're dealing with.”

  I leaned forward. “What you are describing sounds like an otterhound, they are supposed to stay deep, far deeper in the forest, where the flow of the lakes and rivers is stronger, and there are far more prey animals to hunt.” She got up to get another concoction of liquids and started rubbing it on my face.

  “If it’s been hunting beavers in such high numbers and has now turned to hunting you, it’s likely a mother protecting her newborns. She’s moved from the deep forest to the outer to give birth, the predators there are far weaker than they are in the center.”

  A deep breath, a folding of the hands as she hesitated to continue, “Your hunts made it see you as a threat, you were stealing its food. The head at your camp is abnormal behavior. I’ve never heard of them acting like that before.”

  I interrupted, “You’ve seen one before?”

  She shot me an irked look before continuing, “Yes, when I used to work…” the words ran to the edge of her tongue, but she swallowed them back, “...somewhere else. The family I used to work for liked to hunt them for sport.”

  I nodded, urging her to continue.

  “You’ll find her young near water,” she said. “She won’t stray far from them, especially while they’re still weak. But if you’re going after her, you need to be careful. She’s either pregnant or has just given birth, she’s weaker—”

  “So there’s a chance?”

  The healer glanced up at me from my wound and sighed, “Yes, but there’s a higher chance of survival if you stay here, Khan.” She pleaded with me.

  “Where does it rank compared to other spirit beasts?”

  Yao Po let out a low grumble that I couldn’t hear, then said, “If it’s what I think it is, then low, right at the bottom, she raised a finger, “but it should still be as powerful as at least 2 strong men.”

  “Is that all?” I scoffed, “Is that why everyone else is so scared of them?”

  This time, she glared at me, “That’s not why so many mortals are scared of them, boy,” she shook her head, “Arrogance kills more men than swords. The reason is their qi-based abilities. The second you notice something abnormal, flee, otherwise, you will lose your life.”

  The words she spoke were wise, but I wasn’t concerned. I had already made my decision, “What qi-based abilities does it have?”

  Healer Yao folded her hands on her lap, “If I knew, I’d be even more against you going on this,” she rolled her eyes expressively, “hunt.”

  “Alright, then what can I do?”

  “First, I want you to mask your scent. Roll in mud, burn bitter herbs, I don’t care, I won’t be responsible for any deaths, you hear?”

  Healer Yao waited for me to respond before continuing, “If she catches your scent near her young, she won’t hesitate, her fangs will be in your back–or your neck.”

  I took out a detached arrowhead from the inside of my robes and started to file my nails against its edges, something I did sometimes on a hunt. When I was nervous.

  Yao Po raised another finger. “Second, traps alone won’t be enough. You will have to mortally wound her yourself. You use arrows, yes?”

  I showed her the quiver at my back. I had bought a new one along with the arrows and bow needed to go along with it some time ago. Relying on the field overseer’s equipment didn’t seem wise to me.

  “Very good. You need a plan for when–if you catch her. I advise you to keep her as far away from you as possible.”

  Finally, she raised a third finger. “Third, if you do manage to trap her, make sure you fill her with arrows then. That will be your best chance at winning. ”

  “I’ve seen it before, its too fast,” I scratched harder on the arrowhead, “how will I be able to shoot it?”

  “Don’t go.”

  I clenched my jaw, still stubborn, “What else should I know?”

  Healer Po pressed her palm flat on the table. “The weakest spot is the back of the neck, between the gills. If you can strike there with Oakre’s blood, it’ll burn her insides. It’s poison to them, but,” and she finished applying the ointment on my face, “She’ll go wild before she dies. When you see that, run. All you’ll have to do is wait.”

  I absorbed her words, already piecing together a plan in my head. “Thank you,” I clasped my hands together, “I won’t forget this. How do I get Oakre’s blood?”

  “It’s not actual blood, you say it as if you must get it from some wild animal, it’s a potion. You will need 3 liang of Oakre leaves, and half a liang of Crimson Vein Tree leaves, the rest of the ingredients I have here.”

  The arrowhead I was holding fell onto the ground. “You’ll help me?”

  “No. But, I won’t let you go off to your death, Huo Qianlei’s girls love you too much for me to do that.” I reached out to take her hand and kiss it, but she pulled it away, “If you’re that grateful, then don’t go.”

  At this, I got up slowly, “I’ll be back, I’m going to get the leaves.”

  She sighed and took out an inked feather. “Give me your hand.” When I gave it to her, she wrote a few lines on my forearm, “go to these places. You’ll find the best quality there.”

  I thanked her and left. Outside, it was still dark, the moon hadn’t yet given reign to the sun, and somewhere, out there, in the forest, was an enemy, the first of many to come. I held my coin pouch and then my dagger.

  First would come silver, and then steel.