We arrived at Yanmen Pass in the late afternoon. After using our travel documents and bribing the officers with some gold beads, Cynthia still hypnotized all the guards just in case. We had an appointment and met with our guides at the furthest inn in town, planning to continue our journey early in next morning.
Our two guides were a striking pair: a woman in her twenties whose face held features that didn't look entirely Chinese, and a well-built man with a thick scar running across his left cheek. The inn only had two rooms, so we had to split by gender, and we all gathered in one of our rooms to speak.
Before I could begin, the woman immediately got down on her knees. She placed her forearms parallel to the ground, palms up, and spoke in a clear steppe tongue, "We welcome you, Holy Ones! I am Altunay, and this is my husband, Wang Hao. He will guide us across this land."
Wang Hao seemed confused, but she pulled his hand, urging him to his knees as well. I quickly spoke to them in the Old Chinese of this time, "Please, both of you get up. That is not necessary. The soldiers will grow suspicious if you are so formal with us."
Altunay stood and replied in the same language, "As you command, my lord. If you prefer not to be the center of attention, we should use Chinese names. Mine is Zhao Jinyue, my lord."
While I was still processing her words, Erik's form began to shift. Before my eyes, his features softened, and his silver hair and beard grew long. "He will be my father, Wu Xuanming," I declared, "and she will be…"
Cynthia's appearance took on the shape of Aycecek, my late wife. A subtle shift in her posture revealing Cynthia's confident presence, her eyes was replaced by a familiar mischievous glint. I stared at her, caught in a moment of disbelieving grief.
She spoke to wake me from the trance, "Do you mind if I use her body?"
"No, of course," I replied, the words feeling foreign in my throat. "Then she will be my wife, Qiu Yuehua, brightest autumn moon flower."
Erik, as the elder Wu, frowned. "Xuanming, isn't that a bit too obvious for me, Kris?" he protested.
"I'm sorry, that's not the one," I explained. "This name means mysterious light, a profound brightness in the dark. It's suitable for a guide of souls that have lost their way. You can also switch to the deity Xuanming's name, where Ming means 'Underworld,' at any time."
A slow, delighted smile spread across his face. "Wow, you're great at naming things. A name is a really important thing for us, who depend on Belief and Faith. What about yours?"
I straightened my shoulders, feeling the power of my new identity. "I will be Wu Haotian, the vast Blue Sky, a boundless Heaven!"
At that moment, Wang Hao lost consciousness. It seemed that while Altunay had told him we were nobles from her clan, she had not prepared him for the sight of us shapeshifting our external forms. So, we let him sleep on our bed while the women went to their rooms.
That night, Erik spent time explaining to me that the True Form of their bodies and instruments is inseparable and unchangeable. Even though they change their image all the time, their True Form is their original form, a real story of who they are. He had not met anyone who could reshape the True Form of supernatural beings before me. It seems that when we truly awaken, our True Form takes shape and is set in stone.
While someone with a unique ability like Cynthia may freely change True Form of various things but if their external shape isn't also altered into exact same images, the results might become just like our horses' descendants. They will gradually develop closer to that new golden True Form. A little by little but surely, from generation to generation. In some way, it's almost like Plato's Theory of Forms.
Wang Hao woke up around two hours before dawn broke and went crazy. We had to explain to him that we are not demons for an hour. The Chinese loosely categorize us into Deities, Immortals, Demons, and Ghosts. If you're Deities or Immortals, you are good guys. If you're Demons or Ghosts, you are evils. I didn't know many supernatural beings, but this feels a little racist to me.
We joined up and had breakfast before continuing our journey. Some of our horses had already been placed inside one of Erik's evergreen Underworlds before we entered Yanmen Pass, making our group look like a small band of travelers. Altunay, who grew up in the central plains, didn't have much experience with horses, so she rode with her husband. Wang Hao, on the other hand, was a former Qin cavalry lieutenant and an excellent rider. He and his subordinates rebelled because they didn't want to kill civilians. He took this job, which his wife had told him about, just to support his men's families.
We met with some of his subordinates not long after we left the town. They thought we needed protection during this time of conflict, but what we actually needed were just some traveling guides. Because of them, we were moving so fast that we reached Taiyuan, in the center of Shanxi within five days.
We approached the walls of Taiyuan just before afternoon. Unlike the desolate countryside, the area around the city was teeming with activity. A long line of weary travelers and refugees waited at the main gate, anxiously watched by armed Qin soldiers. The tension was palpable. The air, thick with the smell of dust and unwashed bodies, hummed with a low, desperate energy.
As we rode forward, our group of well dress people with few muscular men, stood out against the crowd. At the gate, a grizzled officer scrutinized our forged documents, but a hint of Cynthia's hypnotic ability helped move us swiftly through the checks. Inside, the city was a jarring mix of order and chaos. Soldiers patrolled the streets, but the markets were still alive, albeit with a somber atmosphere. People moved with a quiet urgency, their faces etched with the strain of rebellion and scarcity. Taiyuan was a city under pressure, a fortress that felt more like a cage.
While the other cavalrymen spread out and resupplied, Wang Hao curiously asked how we had passed the gate. "Immortals, what was that? How you do that?"
"Please call us by the names we told you," I politely reminded him.
"It was my doing," Cynthia answered in a playful voice. "I just made them believe our story, that's all. A merchant family and their bodyguards needed to resupply before trying to get back to Xianyang."
"My apologies, Master Wu. May I know the purpose of your journey, and what are you? I need to know that for the safety of my men." Wang Hao spoke his mind. Altunay seemed displeased by his forwardness.
"It's alright, little Jinyue." Erik looked at her before beginning to speak with her husband. "We are the beginning and the end, the emptiness and the fullness. We are Yin Yang and the Triads, the Four Seasons and the Five Phases. We are the Six Harmonies and the Seven Stars, the Eight Directions and the Nine Palaces. We are the reason of change, so we are here in this time of change, Wang Hao!"
"So this chaotic time is also the will of Heaven, Old Master Wu?" he asked, his eyes filled with sadness. "Why must innocent people have to suffer from this painful change?"
"Brave soldier, you will see a long reign of peace after this," I stepped up and answered him. "Join with Liu Bang once our journey is complete."
He looked at me, a deep confusion in his eyes. "Why not Xiang Yu, the Duke of Lu, Master Wu?"
I let out a slow breath, my gaze fixed on a distant point. "His arrogance alone will bring him down. He has already shown his brutality by killing the surrendered troops without mercy. In that, he is no different from Qin Shi Huang. Later he will declare himself the Hegemon-King of Western Chu and will rule by force alone. If your goal is to protect the innocent, you must turn to another lord."
"I understand now…" He replied, then fell silent and seeming a little lost in his own thoughts.
We chose to stay at the inn closest to the south gate and rested for a day, so that Wang Hao's men could get ready to join Liu Bang's force later.
That night, I shared a room with Erik, while Altunay stayed with Cynthia, and Wang Hao rested with his men. When we were alone, Erik questioned me more on how I had reshaped the True Form of my sword. He thought this ability might be related to my power.
"How did you do that exactly?" he asked.
"I just imagined the details of the shape I wanted my sword to be," I told him. "It was so clear in my mind that it felt like I could reach out and pick it up."
"I see. I think Cynthia uses similar method," he said. "But she really struggles to reshape non-living things, even though she is incredibly good at engineering the shape of living beings."
"When I adjusted my armor and shield," I replied, "I just thought about what I wanted but didn't really imagine the exact shape, just like when I recreated my sword."
Then I let him take a look at my Thundering Sword and explained every single detail of its new form.
The next morning, Wang Hao told us there were bandits ahead before we reached the Yellow River. Because of this, he asked us to take care of his wife, and we let her ride with Cynthia. His men seemed familiar with the path, but they were not well equipped. Two of his men rode further ahead to pick up equipment from their company, which was hidden and waiting for us. When we reached them, they brought out some lamellar armors, lances, and swords. They put on their armor over their civilian clothes, not their soldier's uniforms, as they normally would.
It seemed that only the new guys were truly surprised when we brought out our tents that night, as Wang Hao might already told some of his men about what we were. With ten cavalrymen including Wang Hao, they had only five lances. Wang Hao would lead the lancers in the front line and let the others protect us with their swords. They also had two composite bows instead of their familiar cavalry crossbows, so I borrowed one. They might have had a hard time maintaining and resupplying their crossbow arrows.
After five days, one of Wang Hao's scout reported that some fallen trees had blocked the road. Erik let his crows out to scan the area before telling us there were a few unusual movements in the woods. Wang Hao told us that we might have to steel ourselves and fight the bandits. But I suggested that I would lure the bandits for them, they might be familiar with this tactic but not as the executor. They little confused but still agreed on this plan, so I asked Erik to ride with me and be bait. What they didn't know was that I just didn't want them to risk their lives for Immortals like us.
The key to the plan was to turn back neither too fast nor too slow, letting them think we were just ahead of their reach. Erik followed my lead, riding into the narrow road that was surrounded by thick trees. The moment I saw the fallen trees and a small path leading to the woods on my left, we rode back as fast as we could. We then slowed our pace a little to keep them pursuing us, and as I looked back, I saw they only had swords in their hands.
After we reached a more open area, I turned and began to shoot at them while we were still moving toward the lancers. When all the bandits showed themselves in the open area, the lancers let us pass through and began to charge in. Erik and I turned back and charged in as well, joined by two of the cavalrymen with swords, while the rest stayed with Cynthia and Altunay.
Erik threw his spear at the first bandit. It was so fast that it pierced through his target before Wang Hao could even reach them. The bandits were totally shocked by that incredible range but still continued to charge. When in range, I began helping by shooting at them. As our two groups finally clashed, I stopped shooting and charged in with my sword.
But the fight ended before I got close enough to use my sword. The last two bandits gave up, so I let Wang Hao decide what to do with them. After speaking with his men, they chose to take the bandits' weapons and horses and let them leave.
One of our men tried to bring Erik's spear back to him, but when he almost touched it, it turned into shadow and faded away. The man looked back at Erik and saw that Gungnir was already back in his hand. His face became pale and looked like he had just seen a ghost.
Our men didn't have any major injuries, while nine of the bandits met their end: three by my arrows, one by Erik's spear, and the others by the lances and swords of the cavalrymen. After we dealt with their bodies, we tried to hurry to get through the narrow path. We realized we would have to let some horses go, so I told them to leave those horses with Erik. They were all stunned by the scene of the horses entering the Void Rift and became speechless.
It became pretty clear to them that we weren't human at all, especially after Cynthia started healing their injuries with her energy. At that point, some of the men began to bow down, discussing among themselves that they should serve us.
Finally, Wang Hao spoke for them. "Please let us serve you, Immortals."
"Why do you want to serve us?" Erik asked.
"It will be our honor to serve the merciful Immortals rather than those greedy warlords. And my wife is already at your service anyway," Wang Hao replied.
I looked at them before speaking. "Are you sure about this? We're only trying to minimize the suffering of the common people, not trying to gain glory or wealth."
"All we want is to serve this land and its people. Please accept us," he gave a firm answer.
"Alright. After you finish escorting us, join the ranks of Liu Bang's army. This is your first mission." I announced.