Yang thought back to the day after he'd told the Li family about his desire to leave. About finding more information on martial artists in Guanshi Town.
Li San had started pestering Uncle Li immediately after waking up. His voice rising with excitement and determination. "Father, I want to go too! I want to learn to be as strong as Yang! Please let me go with him!"
The eldest and second brother had exchanged looks. Clearly thinking Uncle Li would never allow his youngest son to leave. Li San was barely fourteen. Still a child in many ways. The baby of the family.
But Uncle Li had proved them wrong.
"If I would support Yang, then of course I would also support the decision of Li San," Uncle Li had said firmly. His weathered face showing no hesitation. "If he wants to look for a future outside the village, he has my full support."
He'd looked at each of his sons. His expression war and loving. "He is my son. Of course I would support my sons if they desire something and it isn't against morals. I would always support them. All four of them."
The words had made Yang's chest tight. All four of them. Uncle Li had claimed Yang as his own without reservation.
Li San had been ecstatic. Hugging his father. Thanking him over and over.
The eldest and second brothers had looked shocked. Then resigned and finally supportive. Understanding their father's reasoning even if it hurt them to lose their youngest brother.
Ultimately, this allowed both Yang and Li San to leave Yunxi Village on foot together.
Their journey began with them traveling through the wilds. Following the direction Elder Qingshan had indicated. Westward. Toward where Guanshi Town supposedly lay.
It wasn't until a week into their journey that they met the road.
An actual road. Worn dirt packed hard by years of cart wheels and foot traffic. Not well-maintained. But clearly man-made.
Yang had nearly wept with relief. A road meant civilization. It meant they were going the right direction, that they weren't completely lost in the wilderness.
They walked from dawn till late afternoon, resting at night under trees or the night sky. Leaving immediately at the rise of the sun each morning.
It was Li San's first real journey. He'd been raised rather pampered compared to Yangs rather uncomfortable upbringing in the forest. The village had been his entire world. He'd never walked for hours upon hours day after day.
The blisters were awful for him. Despite working in the fields, Li San wasn't used to walking for such long hours with a heavy pack. His feet developed painful sores. His shoulders ached from the weight and hiis legs trembled with exhaustion each evening.
But Li San didn't complain. Not once.
Yang noticed the pain. Saw how Li San limped slightly by afternoon and how he winced when taking off his boots at night.
Once, Yang offered for them to take a day's rest. "We can stay here tomorrow. Let you recover."
Li San had refused immediately. His young face stubborn. "Would you have taken rest for the whole day if I weren't here?"
Yang had hesitated. Then admitted, "No."
"Then I won't either," Li San said firmly. "I will get used to it. I want to accompany you and see what's out there. Not hold you back."
His eyes were determined despite the obvious pain. "I will learn to travel the road like you. Don't worry."
Yang's chest had swelled with affection and respect. "I agree. But tell me if it's too much. It doesn't have to be instant. You can learn slowly. There's no shame in resting when needed."
Li San had nodded. But his expression said he wouldn't ask for rest unless absolutely necessary, Yang has outwardly agreed but made sure they paced themselves better from then on. Yang's own strength was enhanced by the beast cores and he was rather unaware about how much a normal young boy can walk.
They were on the road for three days when they met a small caravan of merchants. Five carts pulled by oxen. Maybe a dozen people total. Traveling from Guanshi Town to another town.
The meeting was fortunate. Incredibly fortunate. Because after talking with the merchants, Yang and Li San found out they were traveling in the wrong direction. Away from their destination instead of toward it.
Yang had thanked the merchant leader. A portly man with a kind face who'd laughed at their mistake. "Easy to get turned around out here. The roads aren't well-marked. You're not the first to go the wrong way."
They'd spent the night with the caravan. Sharing their fire and food. The merchants were friendly. Curious about two young men traveling alone. Yang had told them a simplified version. Looking for opportunities in Guanshi Town. The merchants had nodded knowingly. Everyone was looking for opportunities somewhere, looking to better their circumstances.
They'd parted ways the next morning. Yang and Li San having to backtrack two days and change direction completely.
Despite having to backtrack, they were in good moods. Even Yang felt lighter than he had in years.
It was his first time traveling with a companion. The difference was stark.
Yang had always thought of journeys as something he needed to do. Something to endure. In the forest, travel had been about survival. Find water. Find better shelter. Find beasts to hunt. The journey never mattered. Only the end did. The destination.
But this time, for the first time, Yang enjoyed the journey as well.
Yang wasn't used to speaking much. Years of solitude had made conversation feel foreign and difficult but he has gotten used to Li Sans chatter in his time at Yunxi village.
Li San had a friendly demeanor. He filled silences naturally. Talking about the village. About memories. About his dreams and hopes. Asking Yang questions and sharing observations about the landscape.
The time passed quickly with Li San's chatter. Yang hardly noticed the miles.
The merchants they'd met had informed them they were unlikely to meet bandits on the road to Guanshi Town.
"People hardly use this path," the merchant had explained. "No robber would spend their time watching such a road. Not enough traffic to make it worth their while."
He'd also explained that Guanshi Town was a border town. At the edge of the kingdom. "If you want to get deeper into the kingdom, you'd have to go almost the opposite direction from where you came. Guanshi is about as far out as you can get while still being in civilized territory."
As they traveled, Yang thought back to the past few years after Grandpa's death. Reflected on what he'd become during those years of solitude.
He realized something painful. Something he'd been avoiding acknowledging.
Yang had stopped living since fleeing to the forest. In his effort to survive, and to run from grief and danger, he'd become numb. Hollow.
Living for months in Yunxi Village with the Li family had made him realize how much he'd lost. How much of himself he'd buried to deal with his grief.
He'd pushed his emotions so far deep in order to survive that he'd stopped feeling anything. Just went through the motions of what needed to be done. Made survival his only aim.
Grandpa had died saving him. But Grandpa wouldn't have wanted Yang to live like that. He would have wanted Yang's happiness as well. Would have been heartbroken to see the shell Yang had become after those years in the forest.
The first time Yang had felt any strong emotions other than fear and a desire to survive was when he'd killed Grandpa's murderers. Even then, he'd pushed it down immediately. Moved on. Kept surviving.
But living with the Lis, their acceptance and love and care, had made him feel again. Made the numbness crack and break apart.
Finally, one day when the Lis were all out at the fields and Yang was sweeping the floor, something suddenly had broken inside him.
Yang had dropped to the floor. Just collapsed. And began to cry his eyes out.
He'd bawled like a baby. Holding himself with his arms wrapped tightly around his torso. Trying to hold himself together.
Yang had felt as if he didn't hold himself together, his chest would cleave open. All the emotions he'd pushed down for years would spill out and drown everything. Drown him.
Someone who would have seen him would have thought him a child. The way he'd wailed. Rocking back and forth. Gasping for breath between sobs.
At the time, Yang hadn't known Li San was there.
Li San had snuck away from the fields. Coming home early for some reason.
He must have been shocked when he found Yang in that condition. Curled on the floor. Sobbing uncontrollably.
But Li San hadn't hesitated. Hadn't asked questions. Hadn't judged him.
He'd rushed to Yang immediately. Dropped to his knees beside him. Wrapped Yang tightly in his arms and began rocking him back and forth.
"It's okay," Li San had whispered. His voice breaking with emotion. "It's okay. I'm here. You're not alone."
Yang had clung to him. Sobbed into his shoulder. Let years of grief and pain and loneliness pour out.
Li San had held him through all of it. Never letting go. Never pulling away.
Afterward, they'd never spoken about it. Li San had simply helped Yang stand. Helped him wash his face. Made him tea. Sat with him until the others came home.
But something had changed between them that day. A bond formed deeper than friendship. Deeper than brotherhood.
Li San had seen Yang at his absolute lowest. His most vulnerable. And hadn't turned away.
Yang would never forget that. Would never stop being grateful.
Now, walking the road together toward an unknown future, Yang glanced at Li San beside him. His friend was chattering about something. Pointing at a bird in a tree. His face animated and alive.
Yang smiled.
He wasn't alone anymore. Hadn't been alone for months now. But this journey was proving it in ways village life couldn't.
Li San caught Yang's smile and grinned back. "What?"
"Nothing," Yang said. "Just glad you're here."
Li San's expression softened. "Me too."
They walked on together. Toward martial arts and mysteries and a future neither could predict.
But whatever came, they'd face it together.
And that made all the difference.