After some years, our story begins in an underground city called Stone Rock City, also known as the City of Stone.
This city lies deep beneath the earth. It is a vast and beautiful place with stone buildings. On the ceiling above, there are four enormous openings where sunlight pours in every morning. The rays of the sun power the city, feeding giant generators that provide energy—electricity and more. At the same time, rivers and streams flow through the city, giving life to thousands of animals, allowing them to plant, farm, and thrive.
Here live thousands of anthropomorphic herbivorous animals of every kind: rabbits, mice, rats, deer, weasels, otters, ferrets—even cats and dogs.
Somewhere in this city, Las, now nearly 10 years old, sits calmly on a rock, gazing down at the city below. He closes his eyes and repeats softly to himself:
"Inner peace… inner peace…"
Suddenly, he feels a chill at the back of his neck. He turns quickly—but sees nothing. Out of nowhere, a dark silhouette appears behind him and shouts:
"Boo!!"
Las jumps into the air, terrified, letting out a monkey's screech. He spins around and sees it's just Eli—a beautiful white anthropomorphic cat with sky-blue eyes and pointed ears. With a sly, mocking smile, she says:
"Ha! You're so funny when you get scared like that. I'm going to keep doing it forever!"
Las, with an annoyed cartoonish face, snaps back:
"Stop it! It's not funny at all… Eli!"
Eli shrugs with a fake innocent look hiding her irony and says:
"I think it is funny… little monkey-boy."
"Stop calling me that!" Las shouts.
"Fine then… little ape," Eli answers with a smirk.
"Leave me alone," Las says angrily. "I'm trying to meditate to find peace inside me—so I can become stronger."
Eli rolls her eyes and replies with a mocking tone:
"Forget your peace and silly stuff. Come on, Sifu is waiting for us for today's training."
Las yawns lazily, stretching his arms.
"Alright… I'll come in a bit."
But Eli shoots him a sharp look and teases:
"That's what you said last time—and then Sifu smacked you all over the head with his staff. If it happens again, it's not my fault."
Las, fuming with cartoonish frustration, finally bursts out:
"Fine, fine! I'm coming! You're so annoying!"
They head into the heart of the city.
At the center, Stone Rock City comes alive. The animals have built a whole community, a culture of their own. Some run fruit stalls, others carry stones and wood to build houses. Children play in the plaza. A few animals fetch water from the streams flowing through the streets. The city is alive and bustling.
There, sitting on a bench, is Sifu. Thick glasses on his nose, a wooden staff in his hands. He spots Las and Eli running toward him.
"You're late," Sifu says calmly.
Las scratches his head with a goofy grin.
"Come on, it was just a minute…"
WHACK!
Las grabs the new bump on his head and cries cartoonishly:
"Why?! What did I do this time?"
Sifu, shaking his head, replies:
"A basic rule of training—never talk back to your master."
Eli bursts into laughter, clutching her stomach.
"Haha! Monkey-bump! That's your new name!"
Las turns red with anger.
"Shut up!"
BONK!
Another lump sprouts instantly on his head.
Sifu frowns.
"And another rule: we do not speak rudely to our friends."
Las sobs dramatically, tears streaming down like a cartoon. Eli can hardly breathe from laughing so much.
Inside, Las mutters to himself:
"One day… they'll understand my true worth. One day they'll see who I really am…"
...
Las is a 10-year-old anthropomorphic monkey, standing around 1.60 meters tall. His fur is light brown, his eyes a warm chestnut. Energetic, curious, and impulsive, Las often leaps into situations without paying much attention to the sense of danger.
Eli is a 10-year-old anthropomorphic cat, about 1.40 meters tall. Her fur is snowy white, her eyes a deep blue like the sea. Smart, sharp-tongued, and sarcastic, Eli loves teasing Las and rarely misses a chance to mock him.
Fushi is their master—a 60-year-old anthropomorphic turtle, nearly 1.80 meters tall. Wise and intelligent, Fushi has mastered many martial arts and wields his wooden staff with precision. He has taken it upon himself to train Eli and Las, preparing them for the harsh surface world above and the cruel realities they will one day have to face.
Sifu led them down into an underground chamber.
The walls glowed faint yellow, the ceiling dripped—tick… tick…—echoing across the room. Heavy punching bags swung from chains, ropes dangled, and in the center stood a stone ring. White bulbs along the wall flickered faintly.
Calmly, Sifu spoke:
"Since you're late… 100 push-ups for warm-up."
Las froze, his face blank with shock.
"Wha—? H-how am I supposed to do 100? I can't—"
WHACK!
The staff came down on his head. A massive bump popped up instantly. Eli was already choking with laughter.
"You will count each rep out loud," Sifu continued. "Chest to stone. And every complaint means +10."
"Perfect!" Eli chimed, grinning. "We'll reach 300 in no time!"
Las dropped face-first to the floor.
"One… two… nineteen… ninety-nine… one hundred!"
Sifu bent over him, eyes sharp.
"That was five."
BAM! Another smack. Another lump. Las collapsed like a ragdoll, sporting a collection of cartoonish bumps.
---
Next drill: the punching bag.
Las charged at it, fists flailing. The bag swung forward, then slammed back with brutal force—flattening him instantly.
"You hit like a wet rag," Eli teased, shaking her head. She stepped up and demonstrated:
"Left foot back, right foot forward. One hand guards, the other strikes."
She unleashed a flurry—punches, kicks, quick footwork—like a kickboxer in perfect rhythm.
Las growled, cheeks puffed in frustration.
"I can do that too!"
He stormed at the bag, wound up, and threw a wild steel punch.
BAM! The bag hurled him across the room again.
Sifu's cartoonishly twitching eyebrow said it all.
---
Part Two.
The dripping grew louder. Plop… plop…
Sifu placed them on narrow stone poles beneath the falling drops.
"Balance. If you fall—reset. Learn to hear the water before it strikes."
Las trembled, eyes on the drop above. Plop! He slipped instantly and hit the ground.
"Begin again," Sifu said. "Feel the rhythm before it falls."
---
Stone-carrying drill.
Eli walked gracefully with her load.
Las staggered, sweat pouring.
"Inner peace… inner peace…" he muttered through gritted teeth.
---
Sparring.
Sifu stepped into the ring. At first, he moved slowly… then in an instant, he vanished—reappearing behind them.
THWACK! A light tap on Eli's shoulder—she froze.
BONK! A smack on Las's head—he spun around with stars swirling over him, another bump added to the collection.
---
Air duel.
Las shut his eyes.
"Inner peace… inner peace…"
Then, a random silly thought popped into his head and he burst out laughing.
WHAM! The staff cracked down again. Las howled, clutching his head. Eli was doubled over, tears streaming from laughter.
Silence.
Sifu's patience thinned.
"Focus, fool," he snapped.
The bulbs flickered.
From the ceiling, the dripping changed—faster now, like sudden rain.
Sifu's eyes narrowed. He glanced at the ceiling, uneasy for a brief moment… then turned back to them.
"Again. Until the water itself obeys you. Until it pauses at your command."
Las clenched his fists. Eli's tail flicked straight.
The battle in the stone arena began.