Chapter 164: Enter the Enforcers

Night had fallen once again and Wang Zen was walking across the academy grounds, visiting the places he had met Hue Yi previously. So far he was getting no luck. He found it strange that he knew so little about the older boy. But he knew his crush... love? He was obsessed with Xu Hau, the City Lord’s daughter. He was sure that if he found her and hanged around her long enough, he would eventually run into him.

He stopped when he felt something. “You sense that, Shibi?” he whispered.

“What?” Shibi said.

“I think we’re being followed.” Zen said. As he moved forward.

He weaved across the grounds but still felt eyes on him. The more time passed the more the feeling of unease grew. His head spun on a swivel but he saw no one, even though he knew someone was there.

He began jogging.

“Where are we going?” Shibi said.

“The school’s forest,” Zen said. “We should be able to lose whoever is following us there.”

“More than one.” Shibi said, narrowing his eyes at the blurs following them.

Zen touched the storage stone and his long nosed mask appeared in his hands. The entrance to the forest was ahead.

“We’re close.” Zen said. “Shibi, can you see any of them.”

“No,” Shibi said. “See none, sense many!”

“Well soon,” Shibi said as he entered the barrier to the forest and placed his mask over his face as his power level vanished, “they won’t sense me.”

He hid behind some vegetation and waited…

Sure enough, there was rustling and he heard a couple of boys enter the barrier after him.

“See him?” one of them said.

“No, how could he just vanish like that?” another said.

Wang Zen backed away quietly, making sure not to make a sound as he melted deeper not the forest.

Zen jogged deeper into the forest. He would stay there for a while until he was safe.

“Hey Shibi,” Zen said, “While we’re here maybe we should go hunting?”

“Mmm…deer meat.” Shibi said.

“I’m sure we can find one or two.” Shibi leapt into the trees, moving along in the brush.

A moment later, Shibi came back onto Zen’s shoulder. “Stop.”

Zen stopped, “What’s wrong?”

“Ahead!”

Zen dropped to the ground and crawled forward, spying on what Shibi had seen. He was surprised when he was surprised by the two people he saw talking to each other. He wondered how he could havestumbled onto them but then realised where they were. This was the place Lu Daomeng had showed him to train the Swirling Swath and this was also the place he had met Hue Yi being chased by the authorities and sure enough, Lu Daomeng and Hue Yi were standing there, talking in hushed tones.

Hue Yi wore all black but sections of his clothes had holes in them, almost as it had been burned. Though he wore a mask, Zen knew it was Hue Yi, he recognised that mask anywhere. Though they were speaking in hushed tones, he could tell that Lu Daomeng was angry. They stopped then at the same time looked towards Zen’s direction.

Zen pressed his face to the ground and kept still. He tried to cralw back away from them then sensed something, deep in the ground. He was not sure what it was but it was buried in the ground. Zen heard Shibi sigh and looked at the two men again.

They were back at it again, talking to each other but it was brief as soon after they were both gone.

Zen sighed and relaxed. “Lu Daomeng and Hue Yi? What’s going on?”

Zen could still sense something deep in the ground. At first he thought it was a best tunnelling beneath him but bow he was unsure. He got up on his knees and began digging in the dirt. The energy emanating from the dirt grew stronger the more dirt he moved.

Then he saw something red, glowing in the ground. He grabbed it and pulled it free from the ground. In his hand was a glowing root.

“It’s some kind of herb.” Zen said as he studied it under the moonlight. “I guess this night is not a total bust, I get a weird glowing herb and some confusion.”

Zen was making his way back to his dorm room. He looked up a small hill and saw the sun beginning to rise. There was a figure there, dressed in all white. He excitedly dashed up the hill towards the figure.

“Xue Shaonu!”

Xue Shaonu looked at Zen and smiled. “Wang Zen, I haven’t seen you in a while.”

“Yes, nice to see you.”

“Where have you been?”

“My father was injured.” Zen said. “I had to go home.”

She frowned and Zen thought how adorable she is. He was tempted to just tell her sad stories to see her adorable face some more.

“Is he okay?” she said.

Zen nodded and smiled. “He recovered.”

She smiled and his heart skipped a beat. This is why he didn’t want to just tell sad stories, cause her smile rivalled the rising sun.

“Good. I’m happy for you.” Her eyes wondered down to his hands. “What’s with your hands?”

“Uhm… I was out hunting.”

She nodded.

Zen looked as city enforcers marched into the academy in formation. “What’s going on?”

“I only know some facts and a lot of rumours.” She said. “Apparently, one of the enforcer barricks was burnt down last night by the Black Cloth Gang.”

“What?” Zen said.

“The City Lord believes that some members are in the Academy.” She said. “I had hoped that this would conflict would not enter the academy but I guess that is impossible.” Her eyes were shaded in sadness. “The fight has come to us.”