For the next few days, Khanh and Vy trained relentlessly. Bruises, falls, and aches spreading all over their bodies became routine. Yet in Khanh's eyes there was no longer hesitation, only sharp determination.
Between training sessions, Khanh spent hours in thought. Every move of Minh Triet, every unpredictable strike, replayed in his mind like puzzles waiting to be solved. And then, as he scribbled messy notes across sheets of paper, a thought struck him:
> "If Minh Triet is MOC… then KIM will restrain him."
The problem was simple yet cruel. Khanh himself belonged to THO. And MOC restrained THO. To face Minh Triet head-on with THO would be suicide. But if… he changed the angle?
His gaze shifted to Vy, who was swinging her three-section staff with clumsy excitement. That was the key. Her weapon had the ability to absorb energy from different elements, even though Vy herself had no natural affinity for Linh. If she could absorb KIM energy from an external source, she could become the direct counter to Minh Triet's MOC.
A tired but hopeful smile crept onto Khanh's lips. "We might actually win," he whispered to himself.
Vy tilted her head curiously.
– What are you thinking about now?
Khanh only smiled faintly, not answering, and said instead:
– You'll see soon enough.
That same day, Ho Lam Uyen informed the two that they would be accompanying him on a mission. To Khanh, it was the perfect opportunity: not only to train, but also to search for a source of KIM energy for Vy to absorb.
As they descended the narrow mountain path, Vy skipped forward, eyes shining with anticipation:
– Master, what kind of mission are we doing today? Are we hunting demons? Fighting someone?
Ho Lam Uyen strolled casually, biting into a sticky rice cake wrapped in banana leaf. With his mouth still half full, he answered lazily:
– Today… we're delivering letters.
Vy nearly tripped over her own feet, her mouth wide open.
– D-delivering… letters?!
Khanh chuckled softly, while Uyen kept walking without a care, smiling as if nothing could faze him.
– A mission is a mission. Without letters, how would people know what to agree on or who to meet? You youngsters only ever think about waving swords around.
Vy puffed her cheeks, twirling her three-section staff with frustration. She clearly felt cheated, but deep inside she still held on to a spark of hope—that maybe, just maybe, something unexpected would show up on the way.
Khanh, however, walked silently behind them, his mind absorbed in the plan he had carefully pieced together. If they wanted to defeat Minh Triet, they had to fight together, and they needed KIM.