In the quiet, cold night, the moon hung low above the bamboo forest, reflecting on the smooth surface of the bamboos.
Li Cheng stood in the center, his hands bruised and dirty. He was breathing heavily from the intense training. He was seventeen and would be turning eighteen in the next few days, but he was already stronger than most grown men in the sect.
"You must never hesitate, Cheng'er" Lord Li Yuan said from the sideline. He was wearing a luxurious dark robe decorated with golden symbols. He was standing there with his hands behind his back. "Hesitation is weakness. And weakness is death."
Li Cheng lowered his head. "Yes, Father."
His voice was calm, respectful, but tired. He wanted to rest — just once. But his father never allowed it. Not when humans were at war.
The war between humans and demons had lasted longer than anyone could remember. To Li Cheng, demons were just stories. He had never seen one up close, only the sketches in his father's study — twisted faces, horns, fangs. His father said they were monsters who devoured souls, that it was their duty to destroy them before they destroyed mankind.
But, sometimes, Li Cheng wondered if demons were really as evil as his father said.
"Again" his father ordered.
Li Cheng gripped his sword and started again.
He stomped the ground and shot forward with his sword pointing toward the bamboo. As he was getting close, he struck his sword in a vertical slash. The sword energy shot out from his blade and struck the bamboos.
"Crack."
Multiple bamboos were sliced clean in half immediately. Only then did his father nod.
"Good. You are improving. Let's stop here for today." When he finished, his father was still there, looking out at the mountains. The moonlight reflected the silver streaks in his hair, making him look older than he was.
Li Cheng nodded in understanding. That small praise was enough to make him smile. He turned toward his father, while breathing hard. "Father," Li Cheng said quietly, "do you ever get tired of it?"
His father glanced at him. "Of what?"
"Training. Fighting. The war. Doesn't it ever end?"
For a long time, his father didn't answer. Then he said, "As long as demons exist, there will be no peace. If we do not fight, they will destroy the human race."
Li Cheng hesitated. "But what if demons aren't all the same? I mean… what if some don't want to fight?"
His father's gaze turned cold instantly. "You have been listening to the servants again."
"I just..."
"Enough!" His father cut him off. "Mercy toward demons is foolishness. They live to destroy. That is their nature."
Li Cheng bit back the rest of his words and lowered his head. "Yes, Father."
The conversation ended there. His father turned to leave, his steps were slow and steady. "Tomorrow, you will train at dawn. There is a meeting with the sect leaders tomorrow morning. I want you to go with me."
"Me?"
"Yes," his father responded without looking back. "It's time you see things for yourself."
After his father disappeared into the darkness, the bamboo forest became quiet again. Li Cheng stood there for a moment, feeling empty and emotionless, his arms aching from the intense training. He really didn't understand why his father was so strict with him. Ever since he was a kid, every day before dawn, his father made him train until the sun came up. He never allowed anyone to come close to him.
Li Cheng wasn't allowed to play with other kids and was locked away in a separate courtyard, alone, with no one to talk to. He has never stepped outside the sect. The only thing he knew was his sword, and the only thing his father has always taught him was how to kill and show no mercy. At times, Li Cheng felt like he was just a dead wood.
...
The next morning, Li Cheng was already awake. He stood by the window, watching the courtyard fill with disciples, but none dared to look at him or approach him. He was the young master of the Li family and the successor of the Tian Yu sect. Still, he felt lonely.
After breakfast, he went to the main hall. His father was there, sitting behind a wooden table. He was surrounded by scrolls and incense smoke drifting from a black cauldron. Several scrolls and maps lay across the floor, showing the borders between human and demon territories.
As Li Cheng walked in, his father didn't look up. He was busy reading a scroll in his hands.
"You are early" he suddenly said.
"I couldn't sleep" Li Cheng responded.
His father looked at him and smiled, then pointed at one of the maps. "Do you see this line here?"
Li Cheng stepped closer. "The Demon Ridge."
"Correct. They have been pushing further north every season. The other sects are growing nervous. Soon, they will beg for someone capable enough to lead them."
Li Cheng frowned. "You mean you?"
Li Yuan smiled. "Who else?"
Li Cheng didn't answer. His father's ambition both amazed and frightened him. He had read in some stories, what power did to people — how it made them cruel, suspicious, and hungry for more.
His father looked at him then, his expression hardened a bit. "You doubt me, don't you?"
"I... No, Father. I just…"
Li Yuan stood up and walked towards him. He placed his right hand on his shoulder. "You are young. You don't understand yet. But one day, you will see — the world cannot be saved through kindness. It can only be ruled by strength."
Li Cheng nodded, though he didn't quite understand what his father meant.
"Now, let's go. We are almost late. I don't want those old geezers to start nagging me," his father said and took the lead. Li Cheng glanced at the scroll on the table one last time before following behind.