The first month traveling with Tian was interesting to say the least.
Tian was obviously smart, well-educated, and had a great deal of theoretical knowledge about combat technique, but he lacked practical experience. It was almost funny to Hou as he watched the noble learn the basic skills of life on the road like setting up camp, maintaining weapons, and being able to read the subtle signs of whether bandits or dangerous animals were in the area.
"Stop holding the sword like it’s a venomous snake that will bite you," Hou said while they practiced one evening. They had set up camp near a mountain stream that was far enough away from the main road to avoid curious travelers. "It’s a tool."
With a nod, Tian adjusted his grip and performed the moves that Master Jian had shown them previously.
From Hou’s point of view, even though the moves looked technically accurate, there was still something off about it, he just couldn’t put into words what it was.
"You are making progress," Master Jian said from where he sat sharpening his own sword. "But you are still thinking too much. Combat is not an intellectual exercise."
A confused look passed Tian’s face as he tried to understand what the master swordsman meant by that, but he continued going through the motions, clearly determined to work it out.
As the weeks went by, Hou’s interest in Tian only grew.
There were times he saw what looked like muscle memory take control and Tian was able to perform techniques perfectly without even thinking about it. But then the flash would disappear and Tian would revert to his overly cerebral, slow, and deliberate approach to combat.
"I can tell that you’ve fought before," Hou said one evening after Tian had automatically shifted into a perfect defensive stance when a branch had fallen near their camp. "I don’t mean with swords, but you’ve definitely been in a fight."
Tian looked a little surprised by Hou's statement.
"There was one time when I was a child that a bully attacked me. I reacted without thinking and somehow I knew how to take him down without actually hurting him." The look in Tian’s eyes became unfocused as he lost himself in the memory. "But I don’t know where that knowledge came from."
Hou didn’t respond, but that answer left him in deep thought.
It was moments like this that made him feel like he and Tian had more in common than he thought.
***
Their first major mission together happened three months into their journey.
A merchant wagon train had been attacked by bandits near Black River Town, and the local authorities had requested help in tracking down the bandits. Master Jian assigned the task to his two apprentices, but he planned to observe from a distance.
"About twelve men, probably," Hou said after examining the tracks around the destroyed merchant wagons. "They came from the North, hit fast, and then ran off towards the mountains."
"Take a look at the wounds on the guards who resisted,” Tian murmured, taking a closer look at the tracks. “I don’t think they’re random slashes from desperate bandits. There’s at least one person in this group that knows how to fight."
Hou was impressed by the care to detail, it wasn’t something he expected from a city boy.
They tracked the bandits to their hideout in the rocky mountains and Hou felt his stomach turn when they realised that the group was larger than they had anticipated, and their leader didn’t just know how to fight but was actually a cultivator.
"We should leave now," Tian said softly from their hidden location in the rocks. "Tell Master Jian what we have found and ask him for help."
"There’s not enough time," Hou replied while watching the bandits prepare to leave their hideout. "Those merchant families need justice."
The original plan was to distract the bandits and allow the leader to split from his followers, and then Hou would fight him while Tian kept the others from joining in the battle, but as with most plans, reality usually had a different idea.
It all began to go wrong when the bandit guard spotted them.
"Intruders!" the guard shouted, raising his crossbow,
Hou was the first to act, pulling out his sword and charging the closest bandits. His technique was fluid and accurate, and each swing of his sword connected perfectly with each subsequent swing, cutting down the bandits' crude defenses. But even as he fought, part of his attention remained on Tian.
When the alarm was first raised, Tian had frozen for maybe a second or two, but then something changed in his demeanor, and he began to move.
What Hou witnessed was nothing short of incredible, and totally opposite of what he had expected from his friend. Gone was the careful, overly cerebral way that Tian approached combat.
Instead, he flowed through the bandit ranks like water through cracks in the earth, his sword finding openings in the bandits' defenses with deadly precision.
"Behind you!" Hou yelled to alert Tian to a bandit who was attempting to sneak up on him from behind.
Without looking, Tian turned, redirected the bandit's attack with a perfectly executed manoeuvre and quickly delivering a follow-up blow that dropped the bandit instantly.
The entire battle took approximately a minute or two.
And when it was over, twelve bandits were lying on the ground unconscious and the leader had fled into the wilderness.
Tian was left standing there staring at his hands like he didn’t recognise them.
"I don't know how I did that," he said quietly.
"Neither do I," Hou said, patting him on the shoulder. "But that was incredible."
"Both of you fought well today," a voice said, making them tense up. They turned to find Master Jian walking towards them as he sheathed his blade. From the red liquid dripping off the weapon, it was clear that the bandit leader hadn’t been able to flee far. "But Tian, you need to understand that whatever instincts you're drawing on, they're not sustainable without proper training to support them."
"What do you mean?" Tian asked.
"Knowledge without understanding is brittle. What happens when you encounter an opponent that uses techniques that do not resemble the combat experience that is buried in your subconscious?"
It was almost prophetic as what Master Jian had warned about played out over the next year.
Hou watched as Tian struggled with that exact problem.
When it came to bandits, wild animals, and other easily identifiable opponents, Tian's mysterious combat instincts served him well. But when it came to cultivators who could manipulate dream qi to produce effects that Tian couldn’t anticipate, he would often freeze up for a second before figuring out how to counter.
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"You’re trying to remember instead of learning," Hou said after one particularly frustrating training session. "It’s like you have all of the answers somewhere in your head, but you can’t consistently access them."
"That’s exactly what it feels like," Tian said dejectedly while putting away his practice sword. "There are times when I know exactly what to do and other times when I’m completely lost."
Hou tried his best to help his new friend.
And over the years, the two drew closer.
Whether it was the long days of walking on dusty roads, the cold nights sitting by campfires, or the joint danger of their missions, it all created a bond that extended far beyond what one would expect from a simple travel companion.
And if Hou was being honest with himself, he found that he actually enjoyed Tian's company.
"To be honest, I never thought I would find a real friend when I left Moonhaven City," Tian said one evening as they camped beside a highland lake.
“Same,” Hou replied, glancing up from the fish he was cleaning for dinner. "Most people see the famous sword master and don’t pay any attention to the servant."
"You’re more than a servant," Tian said seriously. "You pay attention to things that other people miss. You understand why people do things. And you have a sense of honor that is rare these days."
The compliment embarrassed Hou in a way he couldn’t fully explain. There were times when his friend talked about honor and responsibility and it struck something deep within Hou's chest, but he didn’t understand why.
In their third year together, Hou and Tian continued to develop their skills. Hou's swordsmanship had grown to the point that it impressed Master Jian, and Tian's combat instincts were growing in reliability and accessibility.
"You are beginning to grasp the principles behind your reactions," Master Jian said after watching Tian defeat a novice-level cultivator in one-on-one combat. "That is the difference between knowledge that you borrow and real ability."
Hou had patted his friend on the back.
He knew just how hard Tian had worked and it was nice seeing his efforts being rewarded.
But it wasn’t the growth in their skill level that Hou cared most about, he found the more time they spent together, the more he realised that life wasn’t all about reputation and power. And this feeling was cemented during their fourth year together after a particular incident had shifted the dynamic between them.
The mission had been simple.
A bandit group had taken two children as hostages from a merchant family.
All they had to do was bring back the hostages alive and well.
"I’ll create a diversion at the main camp while you get the hostages to safety," Hou said as they planned their strategy.
"That’s too dangerous," Tian quickly interjected. "If things go badly, you’ll be left to face 20 armed men by yourself."
"I can take care of myself," Hou replied firmly.
"That’s not the problem," Tian responded with an intensity Hou hadn’t seen before. "We’re brothers, and brothers don’t leave each other to gain a tactical advantage."
The simple declaration struck Hou with an emotional force he hadn’t expected.
"Brothers", he whispered, liking the way it sounded.
During those years on the street, it had always been every man for himself. And even the lessons he had learned from Master Jian emphasised protecting their reputation. Putting his life in danger was worth it if it increased the chance of completing the mission.
But here was Tian, saying he doesn’t care about an advantage and what mattered more was making sure they both made it out alive. Everything he was saying went totally against what Hou was used to.
That kind of loyalty was both unfamiliar and profoundly moving. It went beyond friendship, it was brotherhood.
Even though, their original plan would have been more efficient and what Master Jian would have approved of, they decided to change it so that they were both included in the hostage rescue operation.
Fortunately, they successfully rescued both hostages.
That night, after making camp with the grateful merchant family, Hou watched Tian interacting with the two young children they had rescued. His friend was usually the quiet type, the type of person who didn’t interact with others unless it was necessary, but right now, Hou was seeing a different part of him he never saw before. The Tian before him was patient and making an active effort to answer the excited questions about sword fighting and adventure that the children were asking.
"You’ll make a great father someday," Hou said softly when Tian sat down beside him.
Tian seemed to be caught off guard by the comment.
"Why do you think that?”
“You’re kind and loyal,” Hou replied, thinking about his own experiences growing up under difficult circumstances. "That’s what really matters when it comes to family."
Tian had grown silent at that.
For some reason that Hou didn’t understand, it seemed like Tian felt like he didn’t deserve happiness.
And this was something even after their fifth year together, that Hou never understood.
By then, they had reached a level of trust with each other that neither of them had ever experienced before. They were able to anticipate each other's movements and provide complete support for each other in battle. Outside of fighting, they discussed everything from their hopes for the future to their regrets about the past, and the philosophical debates that Master Jian had sometimes initiated during their evening discussions.
Yet despite all of that, Hou felt there was a part of Tian that his friend never felt safe sharing.
And what concerned Hou was that maybe there was a part of himself that he didn’t feel safe sharing with Tian.
What that was, he didn’t know.
All he knew was that there was a sense of danger, it was so slight that most people would miss it.
***
One evening, Master Jian was away on some sort of business and the two were left sitting silently watching the sun set together. It was then Hou began to wonder if Tian ever regretted accepting his offer to join their group.
"Do you ever think about what your life would have been like if you had stayed in Moonhaven City?" He asked, breaking the silence.
For a while, Tian didn’t reply.
It was clear from the serious expression on his face, that he was thinking deeply about the question.
“Sometimes, I do,” Tian finally admitted. “I probably would have lived a quiet, uneventful life as a scholar or something similar."
"Would you have preferred that to this?" Hou asked casually even though the answer mattered more to him than he was letting on.
"No," Tian said immediately. "Whatever dangers we have faced, whatever hardships we have endured, this has been real. I would rather have lived one real day than a hundred safe ones that weren’t real."
Hou nodded, he understood what his friend was trying to say.
He felt the same way.
The five years of traveling together had been the most fulfilling, filled with purpose and a real sense of camaraderie that his childhood had never offered.
He wouldn’t replace it for anything, not even the ability to cultivate.
That was the reason why their experience in Thornwood Valley felt like such a betrayal by fate itself.
When the demon emerged from the dimensional rift, Hou's initial reaction was to stand between his friend and the threat, not because Tian was weak, five years of travel and battle had demonstrated that he was far from helpless, rather, it was because that's what family do for each other.
"Run," Tian said, his voice full of urgency as the demonic presence pressured them spiritually. "Get back to Master Jian. He needs to know about this."
"Not without you," Hou replied immediately, and absolutely meant it.
When Tian’s protective pendant activated and Tian’s father’s spirit killed the first demon, Hou had felt a glimmer of hope that they might actually survive, but then the roar of the cave system immediately eliminated that hope.
There was another demon.
Even though it was smaller than the first, it wasn’t any less lethal.
Its draconic form was extremely mobile as it pursued them up the mountain trail.
As they tried to flee, Hou could hear Tian stumbling behind him, still recovering from his earlier wounds despite the protective pendant's healing effects. But the stumble was enough for Tian to fall into serious danger of being killed so when the demon rounded the bend below them, Hou didn’t hesitate for a second.
"Go," Hou said, turning to face the approaching horror. “Get the word to the other villages. Get Master.”
"I'm not leaving you," Tian protested.
"Yes you are," Hou replied. “One of us has to live long enough to report this. You still have remnants of that defensive energy. Go!”
With every lesson he had learned over the course of eight years of intense and dedicated training, Hou’s blade struck the charging demon’s armor again and again with everything he had. And for a few precious seconds his pure technique and dedication held off the sheer supernatural power of the demon.
Then the demon's tail came out of nowhere and hit him in his blind spot.
Hou was sent flying through the air, his sword spinning free as the force of the blow shattered his ribs and forced the air from his lungs. The ridgeline swept beneath him, followed by open space, and then the disorienting reality that he was plummeting toward the deep valley below.
The first impact occurred against a rocky outcropping roughly halfway down the cliff face, which spun Hou around and sent a fresh wave of agony through his broken body.
The second impact was with the trunk of an ancient pine tree that protruded from the vertical rock wall. The branch went through Hou's chest just below the heart, completely through his body, and emerged from his back in a gush of red blood.
For a moment he dangled in the mountain air, suspended only by the branch that had become his final resting place.
As Hou's vision began to fade around the edges due to shock and massive bleeding, he wasn’t focused on his pain or regret, instead, he was concerned with Tian's safety, if Master Jian would come in time to help, and the five years of meaningful friendship and purpose that had defined Hou's second chance at life.
The last image he saw was the serene pale blue of the sky above him, infinite and peaceful, before his eyes went wide in the instant awareness that this truly was the end and then shut forever.
Next chapter, we find out the identites for both characters.
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