"So, how did you lose your key, I suppose the water key, right?" Meng Hao asked.
Master Rain groaned as he began recollecting things of a time long gone.
"It was the four of us, Me, Lu right here, Du Shen, and the past lord of the Water Domain. All four of us were chasing after the Key as it appeared in a distant planet deep down within a cave," Master Rain began explaining.
"Du Shen was the fastest of us all," Master Rain said, "He managed to reach deep within the cave while the rest of us were still struggling to fight off some of the underground dwellers, his fighting abilities were absurdly high and he left us in the dust," Master Rain said.
"Well, if you weren't too preoccupied with trying to decipher every bit and word written on the walls of that cave, we probably could have made it faster than he did," the bartender Lu said.
"Hey, that was some undiscovered ancient language, you never know when it could come in handy," Master Rain sighed, "But you're right, maybe I would have gotten faster to the Key, but in the end, it didn't matter anyway," Master Rain said.
"How come?" Asked Meng Hao as he drank from his jug.
"The Key is the one that chooses its owner, and that was one of the reasons why Du Shen became more and more aggressive the more he progressed in life," Master Rain said.
"I have no idea what the keys are, what do they look like?" asked Meng Hao.
Lu looked at Meng Hao and said, "It is said that the origin of all things is the Five Elements, Fire, Wind, Metal, Earth, and Water. The keys present the four primordial elements to exist in this universe and have created it. Our goal is to find them, gather them, and use them to open up the path to the Beyond," he said.
"What is the Beyond?" asked Meng Hao.
"It is the true world, or so the legends say, I don't really believe them much but the key I had spoke of a world that exists beyond this small area we call the Vast Expanse, it is really not vast at all. Though you see planets and galaxies as far as the eye could see and more, it is still a small place as a whole. We're in a prison," Lu said.
"You spoke of the key in the past tense, do you no longer own it?" Meng Hao asked.
Lu shook his head, "If I still had it we'd probably be out by now, but no. The Keys do not remain in the same place for a long while, especially if the owner is incapable such as I, it had left me one day," Lu said.
"You shouldn't have scammed me out of it then," Master Rain grumbled.
"You're the one who decided to bet it for a drink," Lu said.
Master Rain didn't reply and slowly drank more of his Jug.
"What was I saying? Ah right, Du Shen's inability to own the Key was pretty vexing for him, since he really needed to leave the Vast Expanse," Lu said.
"Why so? If you said the Vast Expanse holds planets and worlds that would take several lifetimes to visit, why did Du Shen want to leave? He could achieve a lot here even, and he did," Meng Hao said.
"As an Immortal, how would you feel like when you are promised immortality only to have the looming scythe of the grim Reaper forever close to your neck," Lu said.
Meng Hao clearly didn't understand so Lu had to explain.
"The thing you saw this morning, it harbored inexplicable hatred toward Du Shen, following him everywhere, ruining worlds and planets he visited, and slaying and killing many people. The mere fact that Du Shen existed caused that thing to forever pursue him, and soon, the people began rejecting Du Shen, refusing his company or assisting him for fear of bringing that abomination, the Primordial Serpent God is an infamous and grudgeful creature. Du Shen wanted to find all the keys and open the path to the outside world since he tried and tried many times to fight off the serpent only to lose time after the other," he said.
"Not even the Poison God was able to escape death…" Meng Hao said.
"Well, we don't know we honestly have no idea if Du Shen truly did die, he just disappeared one day, no one knew saw, or had any idea where he went. And after a thousand years, he was presumed dead. Still, with the heritage out, we assumed that he passed away and left it for the next generation…"
"Du Shen's line's been cut," said Master Rain breaking the story, "That snake just went up and ate him. I couldn't do much," Master Rain sighed, sadness clear in his eyes.
"You must have known him," said Lu as he poured Master Rain another cup.
"Yes, my disciple, a bright one, fisty and arrogant to boots, but he knows what he speaks of, and speaks what he knows. He was a person who wasn't afraid of power, he even punched me in the face the second time we met, and tried to fight me the first time. Hah," Master Rain laughed as he remembered.
"Do you know how many people in the vast expanse could teach me something new?" asked Master Rain.
"You old foggy lived for so long and read so much I'd find it a miracle for you to learn something new, especially from the newer generation," Lu said.
"That's what I believed," Master Rain said, "But, it was not the case with Shen Bao, he viewed the world… not from his eyes, it was more like his very presence was adjacent to the world we're in, he was the person who'd ask you to prove that 2+2=4 and then when you do it, he'll show you an easier way to do it. It took me hundreds of years trying to decipher a text, whereas Shen Bao took no less than half a day, just by simply thinking outside the box. A genius of a brave and powerful man with resourcefulness I've never seen before in a hundred combined men…"
Lu sighed, "Reminds you of him, doesn't he," Lu said.
"Of Du Shen, no, the complete opposite, Du Shen was strong, frighteningly so, if he couldn't solve a problem with violence, he used more violence. He was smart, I have to admit since he was one of the few who could take several paths in Dao and remain sane. But, he was a bully. He would destroy a planet just because it blocked his view of another star. I've seen him do worse. Shen Bao on the other hand is far gentler, far gentler than most cultivators… yet when the need be, he is as cruel as any of us. He would always try and solve an issue using his head before his fists. And I like an intellectual man…still, he couldn't save himself from that, no one could…"
***
"It's dark in here…and why does my ear itch so much… someone must be talking about me… anyway, what am I gonna do now. This does not look too good…"
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