Ringing.

A young man with straight black hair struggled to get up as his ears rang and vision blurred, causing him to sway. He tried to stand but the sky dipped to kiss the ground.

“Valley Master! Valley Master!” he heard himself called. A hand-held him up steady, allowing his balance to return to him.

“Valley Master, we won!” the person holding him up shouted excitedly. His ears rung harder at the shout causing him to wince, and pull away from the one holding him, only to stumble back onto the wet ground. He knelt in place and stared up at his surroundings. He could see a jubilant bunch shouting out in victory. Their joy echoing miles far for all to hear. For a second he wondered what he was doing there, then it all came back to him.

Valley Master? That was him they were calling, yet it was unfamiliar to him. He was Edward Desecar, Prince of Emerald and Jurazel. He had arrived here a few years ago. Where he was from, he had been on a quest. One that required of him to walk The Mist. The Mist. Yes, that is where this should be. But he was not entirely sure. He remembered the rippers letting down their dark cloaks and blinding light engulfing him. Next thing he knew, he was lying in this unknown place. He had first thought it was part of the test, but he was not entirely sure any more. The first few months, he endured in the Valley, trying to understand where he was. This place was considered part of the west and there was an emerald and Jurazel but they had long become one kingdom. The king there was a man he had never heard of before. This only told him, he may have travelled in time to the future. But the other kingdoms he heard about were ruled by kings he knew were long dead in his world. He tried to ask people what was going on but many stared at him weirdly.

He started to go by the name Ed here. When he had first told people his last name, they Laughed and said, “Thinking yourself part of the old blood of emerald, are you?”

After living here for a few years, he wondered if he would ever get back? He wanted to leave this valley, but one needed 10 spirit tokens to do so. A spirit token was equivalent to three thousand gold coins. He had spent his time doing odd jobs but had not come close to that number. He was comforted by the fact that none of the big families in the valley had these tokens laying around. They would usually have to wait for the trade to get some, and the trade came once every ten years.

It was in his fifteenth year in this strange land that he was found by the valley chief and adopted as his son. The Valley chief was ecstatic when he met Ed and said that his spirit roots were strong. He wanted to train him into the next Valley chief. That is how he found himself here in this situation, after winning a war against the opposing tribe who rebelled against his adopted father's position as head of the valley.

Ed turned to his subordinates with a frown they were used to seeing on his face.

“Clear up here and return,” he left his instruction before he climbed on his horse and rode back to the tribe.

His horse was not a normal horse; it was a spirit beast, so he rode faster than horses Ed ever saw back in his world. He was yet to really understand this world, but he understood a few things, he was really weak in this world. Back where he was from, he could be considered one of the best warriors in the west. Yet here, he was nothing more than a normal person. He could not fault this analysis, because he had seen those considered strong here, and they were incredible.

Many here cultivated spirit bodies. This was the power of this world. He had only started cultivating this art after his adoption, while others had long started cultivating since age three, but he was strong enough to defend his title as the Valley Master and the next Valley Chief.

Many bowed as he entered the tribe gates that said Jhun Yui Tribe. He rode straight to the main house and dismounted.

“The Great Valley Master approaches,” a voice full of mockery said. Ed turned to meet his brother. The true son of the Valley Chief, Hun Ou. Hun Ou stared at Ed his eyes full of hate. He may not have been as strong as the direct young masters of other tribes, but he was still eligible for the Valley Chief position. Before his father went out and returned with this unknown man he was supposed to call brother, he was referred to as Valley master even though he had not formally taken the title. Now he was just the Valley chief's second son. Ed was older than him, so father had insisted he be known as the first son. He, Hun Ou had become a shamed man. A man who could not even maintain his position as first son, a title one was born with, something ordained by fate, and he still managed to have it taken from him.

Ed but glanced at his adopted brother and walked away. He was already immune to these taunts and he understood why the Valley Chief’s sons did not like him. He was not related to them by blood, and truly, he did not care. He was not of this world. He had to go back and finish his quest. This position of Valley Master held no meaning for him. Its only perk was that he needed not work too much for the money to leave in five years, he could leave when the Valley Chief allowed it.

Walking in briskly, he made his way to the Valley Chief’s courtyard. He was familiar with the way, so it took little time before he stood before the door.

“I request an audience with father,” he said. Father, that word sounded odd to him. The man looked nothing like his father back home. But nevertheless, this man was his ticket out of here.

“Enter,” a strong voice said from inside. He opened the door and bowed before walking in.

“You have handled the battle?” the clean-shaved elderly man with a head full of white hair looked at him. Ed kept his head bowed as he answered, “Yes, father. We won,”

“As expected,” the Valley Chief said mildly, “Sit down, Ed. I have some things to discourse with you,”

“What is it, father?” Ed asked as he sat down.

“You mentioned Leaving the Valley to explore once before. I have always said if you reached the picking spirit stage, I will let you go out. After all, that is the only way for you to be safe outside. Something has come up. The Emperor Sage Academy has sent notice that they will be coming to hold an examination in the valley. You must forget all your responsibilities and go into contemplation. The other Tribes have been informed. The slots for acceptance is limited. You must make sure you get a slot,” the Valley Chief said.

Ed maintained his forever blank expression and asked, “Who are they? The Sage Emperor Academy, what are they?” he asked.

“Oh, I forgot, you have never been out of this valley. They are an academy based in the west. They are second best only behind the Spring Light Valley. Both are schools, but the Spring Light Valley is a sect. Unlike the Emperor Sage Academy, the Spring Light Valley only accepts girls. Usually, a sect would require you to swear loyalty to them and would teach you but, they become a clan on its own. The Sage Emperor academy concentrates on teaching alone. You need not swear loyalty forever. You could graduate and decide to become an elder, but that is up to you. When they come, they will hold a series of tests. You must pass this and bring me Honor,” the Valley Chief explained.

“I will try my best not to fail you, father,” Ed said before as he bowed, then took his leave. When he closed the door to his father's room, he took in a deep breath. Leaving the Valley, he had waited for the moment for fifteen years. As he walked back to his courtyard, he wondered about what would happen when he leaves the Valley. This Valley was part of the mist. Would this mean he would be returning to his world? All will be clear when he leaves. He could fill energy sing in his bones as he arrived before his courtyard. It was large and greatly furnished. He took a seat on his bed and opened his space bag. From it, he took out a sword. The sword shined a hallow of blue when it touched his hand and the blade seemed to sing and buzz. This sword had been doing this a lot for a while now. He wondered what it meant. This was the sword he was given by the oracle when he accepted his quest. It had come with him to this world. That and a piece of Tyraniya's Hair. He had cut a piece without her knowledge while she had slept at Deranox.

As of then, he was not sure why he had done it, he had only just learned of her identity and he guessed curiosity took over. Now, these two things were the only thing he had of his world. The hair was tied together with a white strip of cloth. It was a large amount of hair he had cut because it was the size of a thumb. He looked at the hair and the string. It was a red string when he had used it to tie the hair, but it had turned White the next time he set eyes on it. The hair made him wonder about her, what was she doing? His quest was to go and save her. If he does not leave this place, what would happen to her? What if he takes too long?

“Are you thinking about her?” A girl asked from the doorway. Ed put back the hair and sword first before turning to look at her. She was his cousin, or better yet, adopted cousin. The only one that did not find him an eyesore. She had sneaked into his room at night to steal the keys to the armoury when she heard him call her name in his sleep. She was still a child of fifteen so, she remained naïve. After escaping with the keys and causing an uproar in the tribe, she asked out of curiosity who Tyraniya Was. When he asked her in anger how she had heard of the name, she said she heard him say it in her sleep, giving away the fact that she had come into his room at night and was the one who took the key. He frowned at her.

She may be the only one that likes him in the entire family, but her constant insistence to be where he was caused him a lot of trouble, making him wonder if she truly liked him at all. Looking at her innocent face, he sighed inside. This girl, what did she want now?

“Why are you here, Jian Ou?” he asked her.

“I heard that the Emperor Sage Academy is coming to recruit disciples. I know Uncle Valley Chief must have told you. Are you preparing?” Jian Ou asked. Uncle Valley chief? Ed sighed inside. This girl had always been mischievous. He had noticed something about the way she was treated since the day he came. She could get away with anything. She may be a girl from the second family, a daughter of the Valley Chief's younger brother, but people suspected she may be the Valley Master's blood child. She was someone the valley Chief dared not hurt. The other tribe chiefs had made it clear, that no one should touch her.

She was playful all the time, but only around Ed. To others, she preferred to cause them trouble when they annoy her. But with Ed, she was obedient and even cheeky. Still, she had weird contemplation techniques. Those that were not in the Valley's Library. How she got these, he did not know. But she always gave him new ones to please him. Her unusual like for him, made the other family members and even elders jealous. He knew this girl must not be simple if even the Valley Chief wanted to be on her good side.

“How can I practice when you are here?” Ed asked.

“Oh? Brother Ed, you have risen a rank!” she said excitedly.

“Are you intending to participate in the admissions?” he asked her and she nodded.

“Mn. Brother Ed will be there, so I must come too!” she nodded her head vigorously. He wondered if her head would fall off one day. Was he surprised she wanted to come? She had the habit of following him around.

“Then go practice,” he said hoping she would go away.

“Brother Ed, I have some new techniques, would you like to see?” she pouted as though wronged.

“Let me see,” he said and her face brightened as she bounced over to his side.

She handed him a space bag full of techniques and he started to scroll through it. He already had a contemplation technique that was suitable for his gray spirit core, so he had no interest in these. Most of the time, he just took some techniques that he could learn when he entered the spirit-picking stage. At this stage, he could practice multiple techniques. But something caught his eye; there was a book titled, Space and Realms. It had caught his attention, causing him to open it and start reading as Jian Ou watched.

The realms of men and immortals are stages as vast as the skies and one ought not aim to reach the pinnacle, one ought to love the journey. This is possible for those aware of the unknown lands; the forests of truth and dare, the runes of ancient kings, The Mist. These are the places beyond time and realms. Places of no place.

“Where did you get this?” Ed asked almost shouting and startling Jian Ou.

“Do you like it? It's just a stupid old book. You can have it,” she said, excited that he found something he liked.

“I can keep this?” he asked her and she nodded enthusiastically.

This was the first time he had seen anything that mentioned The Mist. Could this book be it? Could this be his guide out of this place? Tyraniya.... he had finally got a clue.

The Valley was buzzing with activity. The Emperor Sage Academy was coming to hold an open contest; those chosen would have the chance to be outer disciples. All through, Jian Ou only dropped by for a few minutes to see Ed before leaving; she never stayed as long as she usually did. Ed could tell she was serious about going with him to the Academy.

She was not the only one serious about the upcoming event; he had not seen his brothers appear to taunt him even once throughout this period. He enjoyed the solitude. It gave him time to explore this book. He also took his contemplation seriously, because that was also an option to leave this world.

Many did not know that he was close to his spirit-picking and all he needed to do was stabilize his foundation before attempting to break through. He contemplated in his sleep and when he walked. Split attention; this was something people thought completely rare. He had never told a person about this ability.

He spent his time reading the book he had gotten from Jian Ou. He had learnt a lot. Most of what was written, he did not understand, but he learnt a lot about the Mist.

Apparently, the mist was part of a place called the Unknown Lands. In this place, space and time were like a lump of fluid; they mixed up and unravelled. There was no such thing as a timeline here. This explained why there were different kings from different eras talked about as though they were of the same time here. He wondered if the king ever met face to face here. Did this place just mix up timelines or replicated the actual people in the real world? Reading on, he understood that this world appeared different for those living in it. Many people don't experience the same thing. He understood that the Kingdoms he knew were referred to as the mortal world here.

It was a place devoid of power, his world. The Mist was like a passageway into the higher realms, where power was life. He understood that this Valley was just a region under the Godhand Gate. He understood that there were many gates. They all led to different worlds.

He scanned the book looking for the Gate to his world. Nothing. All that was written was that his world was locked during the time of the ancient kings. No one from the higher world can descend to the mortal world. Those of the mortal world must pass through points to reach other planes but cannot return. It was written that the powers in the lower world used magic, a force that was not truly understood here. It did say that the Quest Takers were the last people to cross the planes without care. It was their birthright, he had read. This made him glance at his space bag, where his sword was resting. He could almost hear it buzzing. The book said that Quest Takers had reached the stage of Godeater to move that freely. The book mentions of legends of those who were so powerful, that they could tear open the veil and descend.

Ed paled and closed the book. Would he have to become a God Eater before he could attempt leaving? It had taken him five years to get to this stage and he was still yet to enter the spirit-picking stage. Though others may think that was fast, but for him, that was too slow. How long would he have to stay to get back to his world? He had things to do there.

“Ed,” he heard himself get called. He rose from his bed to see the Valley Chief arrive. The Valley chief always had him called and not the other way round. Even though he was shocked, Ed did not show any expression as usual. He got up to welcome him.

”Father,” he answered.

“Sit. I have come to tell you to concentrate on your contemplation. You do not need to make an appearance for the welcome ceremony.

You only have to worry about raising your power. The Emperor Sage Academy is arriving today. Stay inside and contemplate,” he said and left thereafter.

Ed understood the Valley Chief did not intend for him to be around during the celebration. Though he was his beloved adopted son, he still was not flesh and blood. He had always known that the Valley Chief wanted him to never leave the valley. That way, he would be married to one of the family members and take over as Valley Chief.

Ed almost shook his head tiredly. They did not understand that no matter what they did, the moment he stepped out of this valley he would not return.

He understood that no matter his level of strength, he was an older person. He looked almost in his thirties, while the others trying out were in their teens. No matter his strength, he had taken too long to start contemplating.

Sighing, he concentrated on his reading as though nothing had happened.

That night, the Emperor Sage Academy arrived. They were received by the Valley chief and other tribal chiefs, along with their sons. They all smiled and bowed to the ones that had arrived.

“Valley Chief! It's been a long time. You have aged,” a man in his forties said with a smile. The valley chief laughed humbly, "Lu Guan, you have not aged a day. I see, you have gotten stronger,”  the Valley chief answered.

“Well, it's fate, fate,” Lu Guan said and the Valley chief just smiled. One looking would not be able to tell that these two were not complimenting each other but holding back from a good fight.

The guests were led to the reception hall, where they were entertained and drank through the night. It had gotten a long way into the party when a boy of the younger generation decided to challenge the Valley chief's sons.

“Valley Chief, forgive me, I had heard of all your exploits and though I cannot challenge you, a tiger cannot birth cats. I wish to challenge one of your sons,” One of the young boys not older than thirteen said while sipping on his cup of wine.

Everyone in the hall paused. The chiefs of other tribes hid their smiles behind their wine cups as they relaxed to watch a show. The Valley Chief was aware that this was a ploy to embarrass him. He looked around and wondered which of the Tribal chiefs had told those from the Emperor Sage Academy of the disappointment of his bloodline.

His first son Hun Ou, too slow to understand this was a plot had to stand up bravely and accept the challenge.

“It would be an honour!” he puffed his chest and said with confidence. Everybody in the valley knew this son of his has no talent in contemplation. He wished he could get up and squeeze life from his shameless body.

“This is a game between the younger generation. Let's not interfere in this,” Lu Guan said with a laugh.

“Jia lin, you asked for this challenge. Even if you are bored, you cannot get up and disturb the Valley Chief’s family like that. You must offer compensation if something goes wrong,” Lu Guan said coyly. The Valley Chief gritted his teeth, trying to suppress his anger. The look on everyone's face said it all, Lu Guan was mocking him. By his words, he already assumed Hun Ou would lose.

“Haha! No need to compensate. If I, this young master can lose in a mere exchange of pointers, then I am not qualified to enter the Emperor Sage Academy,” hun Ou said. The Valley Chief almost swallowed his teeth as everyone in the room blanched. Did this boy actually think he was going to win? He just made such a daring statement at a gathering such as this, was he stupid or did he have no intention of joining the Emperor Sage Academy?

“Really? The honour of a man is weighted by the value of his words,” Jia Lin chuckled at the naïve boy.

“Of course! Please go ahead,” hun Ou said. They all relocated to a training ground where the servants began to light up brightly with torches. With those torches, the stage was bright even in the darkness of the night.

Hun Ou and Jia Lin took to the stage and waited upon the referee, who was an inner disciple from the Emperor Sage Academy. When the drum sounded, the challenge was considered to have begun.

On the sound of the drum, Hun Ou moved first, moving toward Jia Lin with a surprising speed. He threw his leg into the air when he got to him and before it landed, he bellowed, "Desert hammer!”

The air gave way as his foot landed. With one look, a person could tell the power in that kick. If that stage was normal, it would have collapsed. As the kick touched Jia Lin's clothes, there was a loud sound of bones cracking.

Jia Lin only looked towards his shoulder, where Hun Ou's kick had landed and smirked.

“A nice technique, a weak user. You had not compensated for the lack of strength in your other leg. Did you not consider that if that kick failed to harm me, thereby letting the energy you just unleashed pass through me, it would have nowhere to go?” Jia Lin said as he reached to grab Hun Ou's leg that was stuck in that position.

To others, the hand moving to touch Hun Ou's leg resting on Jia Lin's shoulder was moving swiftly but lightly. But to Hun Ou, it was like a devil's hand approaching him from the depths of hell. He felt the danger in that hand and did not dare to let it touch him. He pulled all his strength to move away faster, thereby doubling his speed. He may have escaped twenty steps back, but his entire core was spent. He panted as his eyes bulged in fear.

How did it turn out like this so fast? The battle had only started and before the time it took to boil a cup of tea, he had no energy to continue. Shame? Yes, he felt it. The eyes looking at him from the crowd were full of mockery. Though he did not look back at them, he could feel their gazes touch his sweat-soaked clothes and penetrate through his skin. But, they did not matter. The danger was the person approaching him. He was about to shout a surrender to escape, but a thought crossed his mind.

“Don't! I give up!” he said but when the person moving towards him did not stop, he shouted, ”My big brother would kill you if something goes wrong,” Only then did Jia Lin's steps pause.

“I have already surrendered. This was just a case of exchanging pointers, would you still continue?” hun Ou asked.

“He has surrendered, so you win, Jia Lin,” the referee said. Hun Ou sighed a relief before using his last strength to get up and try to leave.

“I have lost. Thank you for a good game, I must go and have my leg checked,” hun Ou said and turned away.

“Wait! You are the first son. Who is this elder brother?” Jia Lin asked and Hun Ou smiled inwardly.

“Oh? He's the strongest in the Valley. I may not be good enough to enter Emperor Sage Academy, but do you think any of you that came are good enough to fight him?” hun Ou said and walked away.

The Valley Chief wished to bend his son over his knee and give his behind a beating that he would never forget. That statement was a clear provocation toward the Emperor Sage Academy. The fact that Ed did not even show up to welcome them, now seemed like an act of arrogance. If he told the guest now that he had not had his adopted son appear because this was an important gathering and not a place where adopted children from the wild could appear, they would not believe him.

The other tribe chiefs all had guarded expressions and some even held expressions as though they were in thought. They wondered if this claim was true? Did they really think this in their hearts? They already assumed Valley Master Ed was going to get in for sure and he would be on top. This was because the extent of his strength among the younger generation was known to them. But his title of Valley master did not come by defeating all the young men his age and the geniuses in the Valley. It came when he killed a tribe chief with a lazy swing. What he was holding, they knew it was a sword, and it looked ordinary at that. They wondered if he had some hidden power they did not know about. They had increased the number of spies in the Valley Chief’s residence but got nothing. Many of the tribe chiefs coveted this power no matter what it may be.

What they did not know was that the look on their faces as they thought of Hun Ou's statement had already caused suspicion and anger among the guests. This son they did not know about, they were going to have to keep an eye on him.

Ed sat in his room oblivious of the trouble his brother had caused him.