A LOTUS BORN OF MUD

CHAPTER 20 - LUCKY IT'S RAINING

  BiMing heard the sound of rustling clothes and from the corner of his eyes concluded that XiuYin was now kowtowing.

  "Take your sorry ass elsewhere, you're no longer my disciple to punish," BiMing said, in a dismissive tone before forcing his rigid legs to walk. He won't bend, he won't snap... not in a world where he has the power to choose, to do something for himself, BiMing will not be prey to his previous fate.

  "This ungrateful disciple will kneel three days, ten days, a month, a year... This disciple will kneel until he is forgiven!" XiuYin stated as he remained kowtowing, aware that Lu ShiZun was walking away.

  BiMing sped up. The heavy, grey clouds above rumbling with a promise of heavy rain as a small sprinkle of rain began to fall. BiMing's lips trembled as he kept walking. He will not yield to his emotions.

  BiMing wondered the colourful town like a ghost, the lights around him nothing more than ablur if he squinted a little he could almost tell himself he was in a modern day city. However, as time went, and the small sprinkle of water grew and became a downpour, lights went out and stores closed. Plunging BiMing back into darkness only accompanied by the odd flash of lightning and the persons running for cover with lanterns in hand. BiMing could've chosen to shield himself from the rain using spiritual power but he wanted to feel the cold drops of water on his heated skin, he wanted something to keep his mind grounded.

  As he rounded a corner he came upon a small group of people... or rather, after squinting through water drenched eyelashes, a small group ganging up on a man in white. The gang of men, all burly with muscles and dressed in tattered black was a great contrast to the man stood in white. He stood with hands slightly raised as if telling the gang of men to calm down. BiMing noticed immediately the reason why they must be harassing this man, not only was he fair looking but his hair, long strands escaping from a tight bun above his hair, with the flash of lightning, BiMing saw it was the oddest hue of red. Not a common type of hair colour. He was about to step in to help, nothing like venting anger on lowlife scum when in a bad mood when the auburn-haired man began kicking and shouting. But someone beat him to it, a tall man of imposing aura with a farmer's hat. BiMing leant against the wall with arms crossed and watched as events unfolded. The gang of men were quickly beaten by the man in the straw hat, he stepped over the bodies towards the auburn-haired man. BiMing extended his hearing as he was mildly interested in the two people's story. The pretty man seemed to have expressed his thanks and was going to walk away when the farmer's hat man spoke.

  "...You've left me for eight, long years... that's quite cruel JiaoLong ah..." BiMing scrunched his face and walked off immediately, he could hear the thick yearning in the man's voice, those two were definitely cut - sleeves no doubt. 

  Turn left, turn right they're fucking everywhere... Gimme a break! BiMing thought up to the heavens, as if mocking him, they only poured more rain on him. And so he stuck his middle finger up at the sky.

  When BiMing arrived back at the mountain base, his emotions were in a turmoil when he found XiuYin still kneeling. not an inch on him was dry. head hung low with a straight back he looked pitiful to any who saw.

  BiMing walked over and paused next to XiuYin. "The pendant." He said, coldly.

  "Lu ShiZun?"

  "You no longer have the right to have one of the entry pendants."

  XiuYin clenched his fists as he reached into his drenched robes and pulled out the pendant he kept close to heart all these years, it was like a second heart that resided next to his. He handed it over to Lu ShiZun's outstretched hand, careful not to make skin contact as much as he wanted to. However as soon as the pendant touched Lu ShiZun's hand it evaporated into shining, crystalized dust. XiuYin lowered his head again as he felt the clenching of his own heart.

  "Leave," BiMing grunted as he mounted his cloud.

  "Lu ShiZun, don't I even have the right to take punishments of my wrongdoings?" 

  "...No."

  BiMing didn't stay any longer, he urged the cloud to ascend, but not before he heard XiuYin's last words.

  "Then I'll have to disappoint Lu ShiZun once more..."

  BiMing was glad that he had not shielded himself from the rain. 

  Otherwise, he'd know for sure that the salty water at the edge of his lips came from his eyes.

......................................................................................................................................

A/N- phew... I got a wee bit emotional writing that... it's all the music's doing... emotional ah!!

And for those who've read kidnapped by the bandit... see what I did there? hahaha, nothing  like a little cross over 😎