Chapter 123 — The Li People
The Sword Questions the Heavens · Page 5 of 5
The man called Ahetai wore a mysterious smile. "Chief, I have already shown you the divine art that the Beast Lord of the Ten Thousand Wild Mountains taught me, and the wondrous treasures he gave me. If the great shaman is dead, well and good; but even if he lives, I will surely defeat him."
The Li chief looked at him a long while, then nodded heavily. In truth, the shadow of the great shaman had long hung over all the tribes of the southern border like a dark cloud, and for the Li it was a nightmare that would not fade. But this tribesman named Ahetai, who had vanished as a child and returned in mystery from the Ten Thousand Wild Mountains, had suddenly shown a sorcerous power beyond all belief—power so great that it had at last stirred the old hatred buried deep in the heart of every Li, high and low.
To live on. To live better!
The Li chief ground his teeth. On his tall, powerful frame the great bear's-head tattoo looked more savage and terrible than ever.
"Two hundred years of vengeance—we take it tonight!" He forced the words out between his teeth.
The sun fell across him and Ahetai, warm upon the mountain ridges. Behind the two of them, on the slope that faced away from the sun, countless Li warriors appeared—stern and grave of face, every one of them so mighty. And on their scarred and seamed chests, the savage bear's-head tattoos seemed to roar into the wind.
Qili Tong. A secluded little house.
Ming Li sat by the table in the room, quiet and saying nothing. Time here seemed suddenly to have slowed its pace—silent and tormenting.
In such stillness, what is it that comes to mind?
Perhaps the years gone by...
The days of youth are like a sigh echoing through the deep, dim corridors of time—rising faintly, then falling away, until at last not a trace of them remains.
His expression was blank, his brows slightly knit.
Beyond the window, the scenery was like a painting.
Stillness, silence...
Until, all at once, a sound startled him out of his brooding.
"Knock. Knock, knock."
A soft tapping at the door suddenly sounded within the house.
Ming Li turned and looked toward the door.