One-Eyed Monster

Kevin shrugged as he held the letter brought by the white grey eagle, then waved at Simon: ”We’re done, we’re done. Mentor said a rare guest is coming tomorrow, we’re to head over to the Stone House.”

Kadi jumped a mile high when he heard that. He could finally slack off! These days he’d been in special training every single day, not a moment’s rest, even in his sleep he was training in his dreams. He knew it was all for his own good, but after such a long time he couldn’t help feeling worn out, and that fatigue had gradually become a kind of instinctive reaction in him. Now that he had a chance to rest for a while, of course he was over the moon!

”Kadi, don’t make it so obvious, all right? If Kevin sees you like this and adds extra practice, don’t blame me later!” Simon couldn’t help reminding Kadi when he saw his expression. To be honest, Simon felt Kevin really was a bit too strict with Kadi.

”Uh, I can’t help it!”

”You’ve gotta learn to hide yourself!” Simon whispered.

”Okay, got it.” Kadi immediately understood and reined in his excitement.

”What are you two whispering about?” Kevin had been using that white eagle to send a reply and hadn’t noticed Kadi’s happy mood.

”Nothing, nothing, just talking about footwork.” Simon hurriedly said, and gave Kadi a kick on the side.

”Yeah, yeah.” Kadi chimed in quickly. His tacit understanding with Simon was pretty good by now.

”All right, let’s set out for the Stone House now, it’s a fairly long way.” Kevin didn’t bother about what those two were up to. He still arranged things step by step. To put Kadi through special training they’d basically been roaming all over Guru Mountain, but the results were good for the price paid. Kadi’s Physique Technique had improved a lot compared to before, and together with his special constitution, his Physique Technique had basically reached an Intermediate Rank level now.

They had no idea who this rare guest the Great Mentor mentioned would be, but since Mentor had sent the message, they had no choice but to comply.

It would take them about half a day to reach the Stone House. If they set off now, they could still arrive before dark.

It wasn’t just them; people from other parts of Guru Mountain were also heading for the Stone House. It seemed this rare guest was bringing some very important news.

Whether it was Kuren or Yuga, at this moment they were both on the road to the Stone House. They didn’t know what exactly the Great Mentor intended, but they knew it wouldn’t be anything simple.

On the other side of Guru Mountain, Igor had just arrived at Moonflow Stream. He hadn’t even had time to greet Arnold when a hawk’s cry came from the sky. He looked up to see Joseph flying overhead. Igor’s field of vision was much broader now than before, all thanks to Joseph. He just couldn’t figure out what Joseph was doing coming to Moonflow Stream.

”Igor!” Arnold stepped out of the shadow of time. ”We’re not training today!”

”Why?” Igor was puzzled. ”It’s not dark yet, it’s not even evening—why are we stopping?”

”The Mentor has ordered everyone to gather at the Stone House. He said a rare guest is coming.”

”Huh?” Igor was completely at sea. A rare guest? What was that supposed to mean?

”Anyway, once we’re there we’ll know. We’re closest to the swamp, we’ll see once we arrive.” Arnold didn’t say more and just started walking.

Igor hurried to follow. He didn’t understand what was going on, but he was always keen to go see the Great Mentor. The Great Mentor was incredibly knowledgeable; every conversation with him was rewarding.

After passing through the White Swamp and dancing with those constantly spurting flames, Igor arrived in front of the Stone House.

By this time quite a few people were already there. Everyone was gathered around the Great Mentor, some reporting on the recent situation in Guru Mountain, some catching up with each other. In truth they hadn’t been apart for many days, but these monsters were acting like they’d been separated for ages.

Igor found a place to sit down. Not many people had arrived yet, but he still didn’t see any sign of Kadi, which left him a little disappointed.

Could it be that Kadi didn’t need to come back here? Igor thought to himself quietly.

Before he could figure it out, a voice came from not far away.

”Igor!”

He looked up and saw, in the distance, a blue-skinned one-eyed monster stepping lightly toward him with a happy gait. That blue monster was none other than Kadi!

”Uh…” For a moment Igor didn’t know what to say.

”You’re here too!” In a few hops Kadi was right in front of Igor, a big grin on his face, clearly delighted to see Igor again.

”Yeah, everyone’s here.” Igor scratched his head, not quite sure what to say.

”Mm, those muscles are looking good. You must’ve practiced plenty of sword moves with Garon.” Kevin’s first words on seeing Igor were to ask about his special training.

”Uh, yes. Senior Garon’s sword techniques are really profound, I’ve only learned a few moves so far.” Igor hurried to answer Kevin. He hadn’t started learning blade techniques from Kevin yet.

”Haha, don’t be discouraged. His sword moves are all heavy, clumsy forms—once your strength is enough, you’ll be fine. Now that your body’s getting stronger, you’ll master them before long.”

”Kevin, you shouldn’t always think we’re so far above these youngsters. When it comes to the Inner World, no one here has reached greater heights than Igor!” The speaker was Kuren, who was still serving as guardian on Dawn Peak. Although his partner Dastan was gone, with Twin Peaks vanished Garon and the others had reassigned the guarding regions. Now Kuren and Garon were responsible for Dawn Peak; Xiso, Meslo, Arnold, and Goodley guarded Moonflow Stream; Grey Eagle Peak was still handled by Joseph, Jemma, and Yuga. As for Kevin and Simon, they had become the guardians of all Guru Mountain, like patrol wardens who went everywhere.

In that short time everyone had arrived. Grand Master Guzan also stood up. He’d been grilling fish, and now the fish were just about ready, waiting to be shared with everyone.

”All right, it’ll be dinnertime soon. Kuren brought back a few Rum Fruit. Since it’s rare for everyone to gather, let’s drink our fill tonight!” Grand Master Guzan announced.

”Yeah!” A cheer went up from the crowd. They quickly built a bonfire outside the Stone House and began preparing the whole dinner.

Guru Mountain was never short on game, and the aroma of roasting meat quickly spread through the air. Everyone brought out the prey they’d hunted and the fruit they’d picked. Some started grilling, some making soup. The atmosphere heated up all at once, just like a festival.

It was a rare gathering, and everyone was naturally very happy.