Voyage With The Pirate King

Wei Wei\'s heart sank as she cursed this old lady in her heart. Why didn\'t she go with her husband like other couples instead of staying here complicating her plans? It seemed escaping in the dead of night was her only option.

"Mother," she said as she ushered her into the house, "please come in. The weather has been chilly a little lately and you can\'t be walking outside like this."

While Wei Wei ushered her into the house, her son who was obediently following her orders looked through the crack of the door watching the two people. He never understood why his mother tried to limit his interaction with his grandparents when they were both so nice to him even pampering him at times.

It was obvious they loved at him and only wished the best for him but his mother was so strict. Now he wasn\'t even allowed to go and receive his father. Even if the situation was dangerous his grandfather would protect him well and not let anything happen.

He had dreamt of meeting his father so many times and played the scenario of their first meeting over and over in his mind. Thinking he should show his father how brave he was and that he had been taking great care of his mother in his absence he took out a purple marble from his storage and smiled gleefully before tossing it on the floor.

A purple mist surrounded his body and he vanished in the next second. This was one of the teleportation devices that his clan invented especially for the women and cubs in case they needed a quick get away. He had used these countless times to find his grandfather without his mother\'s knowledge.

As to why he had these in his possession? Well, he was the only grandchild of the clan leader which meant he would get his hands on anything he wanted. Wei Wei had no idea that her son had left the courtyard. She was still looking for a way to shake this old woman off without seeming rude.

***

The bright sunless sky rippled like when a fallen leaf gently touches the surface of a calm lake. At the centre of the ripple, Rui Fei appeared slamming on the ground in a crouching posture on one knee and his palm on the ground. It was indeed the most graceful hero\'s pose done to perfection. He looked especially handsome but unfortunately, Ji Yao wasn\'t around to see how cool he looked.

Huishe Yue on the other end wasn\'t as handsome. Because he was unprepared of the weightlessness as he ripped through the barrier he landed flat on his stomach kissing the ground.

Rui Fei turned his head slightly about to make fun of him but when he saw Qilin Hao descend from the skies the mocking smile on his face vanished before he pulled his uncle up. It was best they kept their distance otherwise he might actually get into a fight with Ji Yao\'s mother.

Huishe Yue was a little embarrassed as he got up with his nephew\'s help. Knowing his character too well he said, "What no mockery? I thought you would call me old man agai...," but his voice died down when he saw Qilin Hao and Ji Wen standing behind them.

Turning his head sharply he mumbled, "Let\'s go," before dragging him by the elbow.

On the other hand, the Qilin clan leader who had paused his steps clenched his fist and gold dust like subtance trickled out of the palm of his hands seeping into the ground. \'That ought to keep them busy for now,\' he thought before taking a step forward.

With a wave of his hand, a circular portal with sparking edges opened. Inside was an environment greatly different from the desert. It was all lush greenery like heavenly paradise on earth. Ji Yao who didn\'t expect this stared at him with a little suspicion.

The middle-aged man was the least bit offended by his reaction. He gestured with his hand and said, "You want to leave then this is the only way."

Weighing his options Ji Yao decided to go along with this suspicious man\'s plan. He stepped into the portal and he was met by a flat plane of greenery with seven pillars geometrically arranged on the stone slab.

This place was like nothing he had seen before. One word to describe it would be the word breathtaking. When he looked up what he saw wasn\'t the sunny sky but something out of this world. It was an upside down world with buildings far different in architectural design than on Hyesong.

The buildings were structured like a rosebud before blooming and at the centre of the bud was an oddly shaped structure like a bridge. It was stuck between futuristic and fantasy leaving this conventional half-blood confused.

Ji Yao instantly knew what was happening but whether he could get away from this was another question entirely. He never wanted to open the curtain between the two worlds because it would complicate his relationship with Rui Fei. This old man had just tricked him into coming here and doing the very thing he didn\'t want to do.

Sensing the change in Ji Yao\'s mood the middle-aged man chuckled drawing the boy\'s attention. "I was surely hoping you were as stupid as your grandmother but I guess I was wrong," he said with a wolfish grin on his face.

"I thought it would take you long to figure out what is happening but I guess I underestimated your intelligence....," he continued as he slowly walked around Ji Yao. Ji Yao followed him with his piercing gaze as he engaged his core ready to fight.

The middle-aged man stopped walking as he watched the seraphic energy seeping out of Ji Yao\'s fist. With a slight tilt of his head, he chuckled lowly before saying, "You think I hadn\'t anticipated that? Let me show you something interesting."

He swung his hand and an image popped up out of thin air. The sand that had been peaceful a second ago was vibrating violently like an awakened giant. "You see... us Qilin aren\'t the same. We have a myriad of abilities and can do so many things...," he said before leaning forward to whisper, "more than you could ever imagine."

He was bluffing because in truth he knew he was weak as his physical body wasn\'t here. This was the guardian of the gate and all he did was wake the docile giant but of course, Ji Yao didn\'t know that.

The sand began to take shape forming an abomination of nature that bellowed as it rose to the sky. That\'s when Ji Yao saw it. His cub was in the dead centre of the chaos so was his family and the concord.

"You want to save them... then open the gateway.. It\'s as simple as that," said the middle-aged man as he rubbed his fingertips feeling a sense of victory.