level_act31side_04_beg

Are you okay?

Duoxie, thank you so much.

I was transporting rare ore from the north and selling it in the south when I got waylaid. You really saved my hide there.

You shouldn't be traveling by side trails.

It was because we were in a hurry...

Anyway, thank you very much for your help. Please, accept this token of my appreciation.

Not interested. Bye.

Sir... sir!

I assume you're a martial artist of some renown...? That you walk in jianghu?

Do you want to spar?

Ah, that's not for a meek merchant like me.

But if you're a martial artist... as a matter of fact, I came across a rare tome on kung fu in the course of my travels. I think you might be interested.

What use do I have for kung fu books? Don't make me laugh.

How about just a look? I never sell anything my customers don't need.

I'll pass.

Just one look. It won't take much of your time. I promise, you won't regret it.

Enough is eno—

Your skills have advanced beyond my wildest dreams.

I am no longer a match for you.

It's you...

If I beat you, will that make me the First Under Heaven?

You are already the First Under Heaven.

The First... I'm the First Under Heaven?

His heart feels like it is boiling. His fists still feel warm.

He has reached the summit, he has done what he sought to do all his life.

Wait, no.

Who is this man?

He feels dazed.

...What's going on?

Who are you?!

Like I said, a humble merchant.

I buy and sell everything.

How did he find me?

Why me?

I know you've trained for forty years with one opponent in mind.

You have the chance to close the gap by a few decades. Are you not interested?

I don't need your help!

Maybe you don't want anything from me, but you have something I want.

I heard you recently came into possession of a certain sword. Name your price. What can I offer you for it?

Get lost!

What the—

It appears you're not satisfied with my offer.

Now, now, there's no need to be hasty. There's room for negotiation.

There's nothing to negotiate!

You honored the sword, and you honored our promise. I knew my oath-brother could be trusted.

Forty years in search of the peak of kung fu perfection.

Is there no price you would pay to reach that peak?

Enough of your tricks!

Dad?

Ah, yes. Everything is for sale. It's just about putting the right price on it.

How about... the life of your daughter?

Weiwei! This is a construction site. You can't enter without permission.

Long time no see, Nian.

Did you make all this? Very impressive.

Skip the flattery. What do you want?

Aw, it's been so long since we last saw each other and this is how you greet me?

Where would you have found the funding for your little toy, if I wasn't hard at work north and south, paying taxes on my hard-earned income?

You think I don't know where your money comes from? Speculation and inflated prices, not to mention you're not the one who made all that stuff.

There's a reason traders like you weren't respected in the old days.

What are you doing here? I thought you would go to see Shu first.

Just curious about this thing they say will let our family live in peace and comfort forever and ever.

Heard you ran into a bit of trouble. Need a hand?

If I did it, wouldn't be yours. What do you know about engineering?

I could help a little with Shu's side.

What are you planning?

I know that this energy core is more than just a construction project. It must be given the concept of 'life' in order for it to become the conceptual 'Feranmut' that enables our continued existence.

That's why you need our big sister's powers, but she already has so much to deal with here.

I've learned a trick or two from her. Wouldn't it be more efficient for me to take over?

So you care about her, after all... I thought you two had a split.

Perish the thought...

Can I take that as a yes?

No, hold it right there.

Go back where you came from, and I'll pretend I never saw you today.

Ai, my sisters really don't want to see me?

I'm just on guard against your bag of tricks. Don't wanna fall into your trap.

Wouldn't be the first time you cheated me out of something.

I was just helping you sell some of your things. You always got your fair cut.

Just stop. I don't have time for your smooth talking.

Go away, far away from my project. The last thing I need is even more complaining from the old men.

What if I <i>really</i> wanted to go and see?

...Wei.

Don't get so excited. Do I look like the kind of man who would steal from my little sister?

I'm just here to see my sisters. I'm glad you're all still alive and kicking.

Saw him once, and that was it...

Where did he go?

Wei.

Hraaagh––

(Bite)

You—!

...Dusk?

What's the matter? Not quite as spirited as the last time I saw you, eh?

You should not abuse your proxy powers like that...

Ah, give it a rest.

Did you think I would have come looking for the Sui Regulator if I didn't really, absolutely, definitely have to?

So he already found you.

What are you planning?

Why did he suddenly return to Dahuang, just as work on the Twelve Pagodas and Five Cities is beginning?

Why are you asking me? Aren't <i>you</i> the Candleholder?

I'll get to the bottom if it, of course...

And where do you intend to start?

I suspect there was someone behind the previous disaster... with the construction of the Twelve Pagodas and Five Cities looming, the offender may be in hiding nearby.

And what is a lone Candleholder going to do without help?

I'm not the only one the Sui Regulator has in Dahuang.

Then you can keep following the lead of others, completely oblivious to what's going on, just like you always do.

Looks like taking off that uniform has cleared your eyes a bit. Maybe there's hope for you yet.

I don't need your advice...

I don't like to deal with calculating types. I'm going to say this once, and only once.

The needle prick is smart. Very smart. He's not going to leave a trail for you to find. And you people know that, having been on his case for so many years.

Brute force is more effective when dealing with someone like that.

Force?

Here.

A picture scroll?

What do you think you can do on your own, even if you somehow catch him in the act?

This will at least keep his feet tied for a while.

It's a major violation of regulations for a Candleholder to have private contact with a proxy, never mind borrowing her power...

It's your choice.

You'd help me?

I've said enough. The ball is in your court now.

...Duoxie.

So you came here to play and saw me sleeping by the river?

But that doesn't make sense! Why would I still have flowers that I picked in a dream? My leg hurts too.

Leg cramps while dreaming means you're growing taller. Congrats. Yay.

Hmph, you haven't grown an inch these past few years. The only thing that's gotten bigger is your voice.

And you sneaked out of class, didn't you?

Shh, keep it down!

I knew it!

Are you really a student at the Tianshi Bureaus? Why do I always see you outside?

If I'm not at school, it means I have something more important to do than sit in school. None of your business.

I won't tell anyone you sneaked out of class if you don't tell anyone I came to the riverside. Deal?

Where's my fan? Give it back.

How did you know—

Pff, so mean.

I already gave you your flute. What do you want?

You just cobbled it together from some bamboo lying around, and you only gave it to me after you were done playing it.

Cobbled it together?! You—

Listen to the sound! Look at the texture! Do you know how hard it was to give it away? Give it back, if you don't want it!

...It's that nice?

Alright, you can have your fan back. But we're keeping this a secret.

That's more like it...

Here, it's this stalk of rice.

See how pretty the red color is? It's the only one alive here. Is it some kind of new species?

Hey, why did you pull it out?!

My homework.

Do you know where else something like this grows? Any kind of crop will do, any that's pretty like this. Don't tell anyone, just let me know. I'll come and take a little bit.

Isn't that cheating?

And don't pick it yourself. Don't want you damaging it. Tell me and I'll come. Don't tell anyone else.

Fine, fine, just keep my name out of it, if the Tianshis catch you.

You worry about that time you gave the test stockbeasts diarrhea with the wrong feed.

You—!

I have a dream.

Dahuang is big, very big. It takes a whole day to walk from the east end to the west end. And you'll break your leg before you walk a full circle around its farmlands.

But Laoshi says Dahuang isn't big enough to feed everyone.

I've never been outside Dahuang. This is the northern border of Yan, with only rough roads through the mountains and rivers. The food produced here is the only link to the world outside.

The weight of the grain on the stalks in summer and autumn is the weight of the land. There is no sight like the sight of farmland during a bumper harvest.

Who's there?

An old farmer stands in the fields. Her facial features are unclear. There are tiny flowers in her hair.

Er... hello?

Here.

A hoe?

Till the earth.

Loosen the soil, plant the seeds, and let them grow.

Plough with focus.

The youth takes the hoe. The old farmer turns around and bends down to work the soil again.

The hoe is heavy. He raises it up high.

Then, he brings it down onto the earth.

Thump.

A rice seedling buds from the loosened soil. It grows rapidly, and soon flowers begin to bloom from its stalks.

The youth feels a strange sense of fatigue. He wipes the sweat from his forehead and raises the hoe again.

Thump.

In the blink of an eye, the blooming flowers fall, and grains start to fill the stalks.

The rice has borne grain. It should be ready for harvest soon.

The hoe seems to be getting heavier and heavier. He looks at his hand. Thick callouses have formed, and his arms and shoulders have grown creased and wrinkled.

The old farmer says nothing and continues to work the soil.

A seedling emerges from the earth, in the shadow of a patch of rice.

Thump.

Life, then death. Golden rice grains fall from the stalks, then fields after fields of crops fall lifeless onto the earth.

The youth freezes, just before he brings the hoe down, staring at the scene before him in shock.

Old timer... what happened to the rice...?

...*cough* *cough...

From spring to autumn, one harvest to the next.

What is a season to you, young man?

Reaping the fruit? Filling your belly? Planting the next batch of seeds?

The youth lifts the hoe and brings down on the earth again and again.

The rice seeds take root and sprout underneath his feet, blossoming and bearing grain, before wilting and returning to dust. He never gets the chance to hold the seeds in his hands.

He feels his strength fade. His hair grows rampant, from black and strong to soft and fragile, and his clothes rip and tatter, hanging on the back that he could no longer keep straight.

He brings the hoe down one last time, not having the strength to do it again. A knot of white hair drops down by his face.

I spent all my life farming here, but life is too short.

Hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands... numbers that are too big for me.

I...

...I'm old?

He is standing on shambles.

I will never see them grow up. I don't have the time to wait for them to bear fruit.

It is beyond my lifespan.

The old farmer plants a tree on the levee and caresses the tree trunk, before disappearing into thin air.

Tree after tree appears on the levee. There are strands of red silk tied to them, wooded placards hanging off the silk, but the writing on the placards are too blurry for He Sheng to read.

Wind causes the forest to rustle.

What are those placards?

Why can't we keep the crops we grow from the earth?

Broken rice grains lie on the ground.

What did you see, young man?

Why... why don't I see the fruit?

He lifts the hoe again, bringing it down, wilting and growing old with each swing.

He pours his life into the earth so that it may nourish the crops, but the crops do not respond. They grow and wilt without leaving seed.

His long, white hair covers him like dried grass.

Does any of this really mean anything?

His back is hunched. The pain of age spreads across his back. Weakness has robbed him of the strength to speak. He can only mumble meaningless sounds.

He casts his cloudy eyes to the ground, where patches of rice seedlings lie.

Who... will see the day?

He Sheng turns around.

A white figure stands behind him, her long hair like an ancient old tree, blue as the river.

The figure waves her sleeves, and the rice starts to grow rapidly.

Before long, all He Sheng can see is growing rice.

The figure begins to stride, and everything is silent.

He Sheng!

He Sheng? He Sheng! Wake up!