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Chapter 4: Breaking the Deadlock

Half a month later the General’s Household was shrouded in silence.

The servants tiptoed about, afraid to make the slightest sound.

Anaga, dressed in white, sat in a wheelchair with a calm face, neither joyful nor sad.

He held a military treatise in his hands, yet he had not turned a page for a long time.

Asubo no longer immersed himself in the training yard and had been drunk night after night since his elder brother’s accident.

He muttered nonsense and roared incoherently.

Adolf remained silent, and the old man always went alone either to the ancestral hall or his late wife’s grave.

There he would babble apologies to his family.

Their mother Qin Lan cried daily as she thumbed through every medical text Grandfather had left before wandering the world, hoping to make her eldest son stand again.

She knew that even her father could not heal him now, yet she believed that somewhere heaven and earth hid an elixir that could rebuild his bones.

But such heavenly treasures were beyond the reach of a minor General’s Household in little Olei Kingdom.

Every time she saw her eldest son in that wheelchair, her heart felt as if it were being sliced by a blade.

A Fengtian still shuttled between the barracks and the mansion each day, expressionless, yet the two strands of sudden gray at his temples made the patriarch look all the more haggard.

Azhiya said nothing, and the once lively little girl had lost her smile.

She practiced wood-element magic every day; having heard that a yellow-tier wood spell could heal grave wounds, she, who had never even seen blue-tier magic, vowed to master that yellow-tier art.

Ashura locked himself in his room for three days and nights without food or water.

No one knew what he did or thought inside, for he merely hated his own impotence on that day.

He wrote to his soon-to-be sister-in-law, now shaven-headed, telling her that his elder brother would stand again and marry her into the family.

Ashura swore on his life that within 10 years he would annihilate the Black Water clan, and he ended the letter solemnly, “Sister-in-law, take care.”

At dawn on the third day Ashura stepped out of his room and headed straight for the training yard.

Standing at the center of the yard, sunlight lit his still-youthful profile.

Staring at the rows of weapons on the rack, he reached out then drew back, as if afraid and somewhat embarrassed.

After a moment’s silence the youth grabbed a broadsword and, relying on memories of Father teaching the older brothers, began to practice each move.

The training yard had once been the last place he wished to visit, and the weapons upon its rack were the last things he wished to touch.

Yet now his eyes held resolve, and he hated only that he had awakened too late and gripped a blade too late.

Just as Ashura was sweating profusely while training, a heavy thud sounded.

He turned hurriedly and saw Asubo sprawling on the ground, clutching a wine jar.

Ashura rushed over, helped his second brother up, and said, “Second Brother, drink less; I know you’re upset, but you still have to take the August Academy exam soon, you can’t go on like this!”

Unexpectedly, Asubo let out a tragic laugh for quite a while before saying, “Ashura, your swordwork looks good, but I can’t sit the August Academy test; I’m fine, I’ll stop after two more days of drinking, don’t worry!”

Ashura asked in shock, “Why won’t you take it, Second Brother? Wasn’t entering August your dream? Are you afraid of the Black Water clan’s revenge?”

Staring at the wine jar, Asubo replied slowly, “The Black Water clan is an enemy I must destroy; why would I fear them?”

“Big Brother can’t stand now; the A family needs me, the Mountain-Shattering Army needs me!”

“I will finish what he left undone and guard the family, so August Academy no longer matters!”

After speaking, Asubo looked at his stunned younger brother.

He patted Ashura’s shoulder and said, “Third Brother, your talent is far greater than mine; you will be the family’s hope, so carry my dream to the academy and one day become a renowned powerhouse on this continent!”

“This is my dream, and I’m counting on you to fulfill it!”

Ashura had never considered that after his elder brother fell, Second Brother would abandon his own dream and step forward for the family.

Looking into Asubo’s eyes, seeing both helplessness and hope, he said nothing and nodded firmly.

Just then a dignified yet world-weary voice sounded behind them, “Third, are you truly willing to train at an academy?”

A Fengtian walked over slowly and gazed at the brothers with an indescribably complex expression.

Without much thought Ashura nodded and said, “Yes, Father, I’ll enter August Academy, and when I return I will take revenge on the Black Water clan!”

Looking at his two sons, A Fengtian sighed and said, “I failed as your father and have let you down!”

The brothers shook their heads together, and Ashura spoke first, “The rise and fall of the family is everyone’s duty; it’s time for us to shoulder that responsibility!”

A Fengtian looked at the boy whose brows now carried a faint sorrow; the youth who used to smile had not smiled for a long time.

Yet they were right… the family’s fate had to be entrusted to them now.

A Fengtian said solemnly, “First, your second brother must take over your elder brother’s post as deputy commander of the Mountain-Shattering Army!”

“Second, the Black Water clan is said to have placed watchers with your brother’s portrait in every town leading to August Academy; once they spot Asubo they will strike ruthlessly!”

Ashura answered at once, “Father, you still have me; I’ll set out for August Academy at once, and I’m sure I can pass the entrance test!”

A Fengtian shook his head and said, “You can’t go to August Academy; the Black Water clan watches every route, and I fear something will happen if you travel alone, while your grandfather and I cannot leave the family to escort you.”

“Besides, every academy requires candidates to reach Warrior stage 3 or Mage Adept stage 3 before turning 16 in order to enroll!”

“You are only at Warrior stage 1 now, and with less than 6 months until the exam you cannot meet the standard.”

“Alas, each academy recruits only once every 3 years, and by the next intake you will be overage…”

Ashura’s face was full of unwillingness; after pondering briefly he suddenly said, “Father, I have a way to pass the exam!”

“The Valencian Empire has more than one academy; if I can’t reach August, I’ll go to the distant Saint Gobban Academy!”

“Though I’m only Warrior stage 1 now, I believe I can hit Warrior stage 3 within 6 months, and I will gain entry to Saint Gobban Academy!”

A Fengtian was stunned by the youth’s resolute words.

Only after a long pause did he say, “This is no child’s play; Saint Gobban Academy lies on the empire’s far side, an immense distance from us.”

“The journey is fraught with dangers, and you have never left Olei City… how can we rest easy?”

“Furthermore, you’d have no time to advance while traveling, and even if you reached Saint Gobban you still couldn’t pass; this plan won’t work!”

Ashura looked at his father with steely eyes and shouted, “Father, believe me… I will make it; I’ll grow strong at Saint Gobban and personally cleanse our A family’s shame!”

Asubo added, “Father, I believe in third brother; we all know he is the brightest and most gifted!”

A Fengtian said slowly, “Talented prodigies abound in the academies, and the youths of King’s Continent all vie for admission!”

“Do not think yourself so clever and gifted; do not be a frog at the bottom of a well!”

A Fengtian paused, closed his eyes in thought, and said, “Since you wish to venture out, I will support you!”

“But promise me one thing: until you have truly grown, you must keep a low profile and cultivate quietly!”

“Even if you fail to enroll, you must still wander and train to grow stronger; your restless nature has worried me from childhood!”

“Our family can bear no more upheaval… can you agree to this one request?”

Ashura lowered his head for a while and said, “I promise to keep a low profile and hide my claws beneath a docile mask!”

A Fengtian looked deeply at his youngest and said, “Come to the training yard at dawn; I will teach you the family’s secret art, Thunderclap Fist, and once you master it set out as soon as possible… do not disappoint me!”

With that he turned and left.

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