Kung Fu Panda: The Spirit Rifts

Rough Rescue

Upon witnessing the capture of Po's goose father, faulting himself alongside taking out his frustrations by repeatedly bashing his head against the desk situated in front of him, Tai Lung schemed as to how he could free the goose without drawing any unwanted attention... But attention would be everything he draws the moment he steps foot within the city.

From what everyone knew, he had been dead for years, he was taken down by the very Dragon Warrior that had evolved to become the Spiritual Leader... The very same adversary Qianzhi wished to rid the world of so she could become the best presence China had to offer, not villainous, not heroic, simply her own element. As Tai Lung scratched his chin in thought, his mind wouldn't stop berating him about how he could let such a simple task turn into such a disaster.

"That Spirit Realm has made me extremely complacent and prone to needing more naps than usual, but seriously? How hard could it have been for Ping to keep his cover? AGH! I'm blaming him again when I should really be blaming myself. I was the one that fell asleep, I was the one who had ONE important mission and yet I blew it... But I can't just waltz into there without drawing unwanted attention. The moment I show up, the moment Qianzhi sends me back to the Spirit Realm. What in Oogway's Legacy can I do about this situation?"

Thoughts like these plagued the very echo chambers of the snow leopard's mind, it was such an easy endeavour and yet he failed. Yet, he wasn't going to simply wallow as he peered through one of the cracks within the wooden shutters he was observing through. His ambition about quickly freeing Mr. Ping soon turned to simple dreams as he realised that there were over two hundred and fifty Spirit Warriors in the nearby vicinity, possibly hundreds or even thousands more patrolling the city.

"By the Spirit Realm, panda, what did you get yourself into?" Tai Lung openly muttered as his beady eyes continued to lock onto countless Spirit Warriors, yet one trait he noticed about the staff Qianzhi had hijacked from Po was the fact that the jade factor had faded away, leaving a hollow crystalised shell that could be seen through in its place. "And you've used up all of the Chi inside of that staff and if any lesson is to be drawn from those war rambles that Kai goes on all the time, it's the fact that this means she's exhausted much more energy than anyone could think. There's possibly thousands of them out there. I can't do this by myself, I need to recruit some help," As Tai gazed back towards the inside of the city as well as Ping's distressing calls for the final time, he realised that this was a duty larger than him; even if it meant awkwardly explaining how something as simple as observing a goose ended up in failure.

Yet, the wiser yet still boisterous snow leopard wasn't going to let his mission go to a complete waste. Within his observation tower was a trapdoor that led to a massive room filled with endless barrels of gunpowder. He had no clue how damaging losing this supply would be but considering he was able to focus his Chi and light small patches of land on fire, he sought to make one final statement before retreating for help.

Bringing both of his paws together as he gazed into the musty compartment, he focused his eyes, watching as his paws glowed a dominant gold before casting a small yet substantial ray into the pit beneath him. He watched the string for a fuze light up before channelling the energy to let loose an audible yet intimidating cackle for the entirety of the city to behold as he jumped down from the observation tower, slid down from the wall and sprinted for the hills.

A singular minute passed by as Tai Lung found the pathway leading to a town in which he directed Po and Tigress to visit. For a brief moment, the scheming snow leopard let off a sigh of disappointment as he assumed his grand plan to blow a hole within the wall had failed, yet just as he was about to turn his back.

BOOM!

A cascade of fire alongside a mushroom cloud of smoke rose from where he had previously been situated, the explosion loud enough to ripple throughout the city alongside draw the immediate attention of some of Qianzhi's scouts as they peered out into the distance to catch the one responsible. Unfortunately for them, the moment they peered off into Tai Lung's direction, he had already vanished down the path which would inevitably lead him to Po and Tigress.