Ascent of the Beast King

Ancient Realm

Li Dan stared at the lion and tiger. They dipped their heads and he jumped back until he realised they were not attacking. Something told him he should reach out a hand to each of their heads. They were acquiescing to his authority. It wasn't quite a voice, just an intent, something he somehow knew. As he reached out, both beasts rubbed their heads up against his hands.

"Master," a voice appeared in his head. It was the lion. "What breed of creature are you? What is your lineage?"

"Huh? Creature?" Had they not seen a human before?

The tiger chimed in. "All creatures must know their lineage. It is what separates the weak from the strong and the prey from the predator. Master must have an exceedingly noble lineage. Tell us, what is it?"

"Umm... I'm a human?"

"... A hoo-man?" The two looked to each other. They didn't know what a human was?

"Wait, why are you not fighting?" Li Dan smacked his head. Oh no, why had he even asked? That was just asking for trouble.

"We would never fight before master."

He considered asking why they kept calling him master but swiftly reconsidered. Sometimes, asking questions was a bad idea. Wait, Lin hadn't mentioned anything about this place. Shouldn't he be on the other side of the door by now? He reached for his ring. It was still there.

"What is master's purpose?" It was the tiger which took the initiative now.

His purpose, right... what was his purpose? He needed to find somewhere safe first. This place scared him. Everything was massive. Even the trees were larger than the Imperial Regent's tower in Jing. But there were so many questions too.

...

The old man stepped into the room. The boy was gone. Still, it made sense. He was surprised that it had worked. Even he was not completely sure of the book's origin. His fate was good. He would have to bring him back, there was much work to be done. With that, he disappeared.

When he reappeared, Li Dan and the two beasts were beneath him. He drew the boy to his side. The lion and tiger turned around, ready to assault whoever it was that had dared lay hands on their master but upon seeing him they cowered as though they were mice in the presence of a tiger. Li Dan watched on in awe, and yet, he could not detect the faintest whiff of a threatening aura from this man. He looked so gentle, and kind... as though he could not even hope to harm anyone.

"Senior, these are my friends, Big Black and Big White. Please don't harm them." He took out his ring, perhaps that might help. It had shocked Lin. Lin... wait, what had Lin mentioned about his master... looks like he could hardly hurt a fly but... he looked at the old man. The old man smiled and appeared to be about to speak before...

"You know my dad!" The old man reared back, surprised. He quickly regained his composure however. The lion and tiger cocked their heads but did not dare to speak.

"Yes. But this is not the time or place for that discussion. Come with me."

"What about Big Black and Big White?"

"They can't come where we are going but don't worry. You will most definitely see each other again. Soon." The man clicked his fingers and they reappeared in a small room hewn out of rock. An orb hung in the air, illuminating the small space, a mattress rested in one corner with a small desk beside it.

"Welcome, to Blue Mountain."