That afternoon, the autumn wind blew gently, scattering dry brown leaves across the front yard of Uncle Jack's house. The sky was beginning to turn orange as the sun slowly sank in the west, leaving behind a warm glow that filtered through the gaps in the simple wooden walls. Inside, the scent of hot tea mingled with the faint earthy smell of the light rain that had fallen earlier. A small fireplace flickered dimly, offering a soothing warmth.
"I forgot that I brought my little brother here," Su Jin said, rubbing the back of his head. The expression on his face made Arthur and the others see him not as the Soul Master who had been so serious during the martial soul awakening ceremony not long ago.
"How could you forget? You were the one who brought him to this village," Uncle Jack said as he opened the door for Su Yuntao.
"Well, I didn't expect to run into that kid Arthur. I got too excited about explaining why I came here," Su Jin replied, looking embarrassed.
"Big brother, you said it would only be a moment. I've been waiting outside until the sun's almost gone," Su Yuntao complained, glancing at Arthur, Jing Liu, and Uncle Jack. He gave a polite bow. "Sorry for the intrusion. My name is Su Yuntao."
Arthur studied the young man carefully. Age fourteen, level ten, about to finish his internship at the Spirit Hall. But his talent seemed rather poor—maybe just considered rare in a village like this. Arthur gave a small smile. "Arthur. Nice to meet you."
The occasional crackle of firewood added to the cozy atmosphere inside, even as the wind outside grew stronger, shaking loose the remaining leaves clinging to the old maple tree in the yard.
Su Jin continued where they had left off. "Like I said, I have to go to Anxi Village tomorrow. I can't accompany Yuntao to the spirit beast hunting forest. So..." He looked deeply at Arthur. "I want you to go with him, Arthur. Of course, you can rest first—no need to leave tomorrow."
"Wait, wait," Su Yuntao interrupted, raising an eyebrow. "Big brother, are you serious? I don't need anyone to babysit me. Besides, who would be protecting whom? I'm fourteen, and they look about nine. I want to go alone. I've trained all this time to face spirit beasts just to get my first spirit ring. There shouldn't be any real danger if I don't go deep into the forest."
Su Jin looked at his younger brother with understanding—the boy was still young and needed guidance. "Yuntao, never judge someone by their cover, or you'll end up in trouble. This is Arthur—the one everyone's been talking about since the academy incident six months ago. And he already has his spirit ring before you. He's not nine, but seven years old. Besides, practice drills and actually doing it are two very different things." Su Jin tried to open Yuntao's eyes to reality.
Arthur nodded slowly. The spirit beast hunting forest in this region wasn't as dangerous as the Star Dou Forest, but for a level-ten beginner, dangers still existed—especially from low-level spirit beasts that often moved in packs, or larger century-old beasts lurking about. And with the strange news from Anxi Village, the atmosphere was already tense.
Su Yuntao let out an annoyed grunt, but didn't dare argue with his brother. He simply folded his arms and stared at Arthur with a slightly defiant look, as if wanting to prove that he didn't need anyone's help.
Outside, the autumn wind rustled again, carrying the scent of dry leaves and damp earth. The last traces of twilight slowly faded, replaced by night creeping in among the trees.
TO BE CONTINUED...