Jinzi was sitting with Baohu. He had kept a check on him and had decided to just sit for a while. Slowly Baohu came to himself. Jinzi heard him sigh and open his eyes. He turned and looked at Jinzi. Jinzi took his arm and checked his pulse. "How do you feel, didi?" He tried to talk, but his throat was very sore and he could only let out a type of gasp. He spoke to JInzi in his mind. "What's wrong with my voice?" "Do you remember anything?" "I was fighting a Xiyi when backlash hit me. He grabbed my throat. I think it was Er ge that killed it. I'm not sure." "Yes, it was Er ge. He saved your life. That Xiyi was about to kill you with it's death bite." "Has Fuqin been here?" "Yes. He has kept his own vigil over you. So have Da ge and Er ge." "How many days have I been like this?" "Today makes a week. Fuqin didn't want to continue with their tour until you had recovered. I expect him to come see you after lunch. It's nearly lunch time now. I made some soup for you since your throat is sore. Do you wish to eat any of it? Plus I have two potions and a huli elixer for you. That should aid your recovery." "Yes, please bring the soup and potions. I have to return to the mortal realm as quickly as I can. I'm sure their are at least two more colonies of those Xiyi." "How do you know, Baohu?" "I've heard them talking about the main lair. I have yet to find it. I must find it. I must!" He was eating his soup when his Fuqin walked in. He sat on the side of the bed and patted Baohu on the leg. "You have done very well my xiao jin huli. Very well indeed. Are you feeling better?" Baohu stared at his Fuqin and spoke into his mind. "I can't talk. I'm afraid my voice is gone forever." "Jingsi and Jiaxiao tried to heal you. Yingjie said you were ok. Maybe you just need more healing time. I came to see you for several reasons. Li Li is close to time to shift. Do you wish to see her?" "Fuqin, I had hoped to be able to take care of her this time. I have been celibate since I left the mountain. I want only Li Li in my life. She is my one true love. Would she see me?" "I can bring her to you if you wish it." "I do. Please?" "I will get her as soon as we finish here. I have a question for you. Do you wish to come home?" "Fuqin, it's all I want, but I have unfinished business with those Xiyi. I have yet to find their largest lair. We have destroyed two. There are two more. I have destroyed the small ones. There is an alpha queen. I have to find her." "Then that leads to my next question. Would you want Fenli, Ali, Jin, Shing, Long Hei and Ru to help you?" "They would be a great help, but they must take my orders. Will they?" "Yes, they will. Ru really doesn't want to go, but Ye Hua is tired of him chasing every woman that comes in front of him. I really think he wants to take Lian Song's place as the God of Love. Ye Hua is very disappointed in him, especially since he is a brilliant tactician. It would be up to you to keep him out of the flower houses. It's settled then. I will bring Li Li to see you before you are ready to return to the mortal realm. Rest for now and recover. I love you, Baohu, very much. It was very hard for me to send you away, but I had to. Do you understand now?" "Fuqin, you really had no choice. I understand and I can assure you, I'm a better man now. I love you more than you will ever know. One day, I will be able to show you. One day." Mo Yuan took him into his arms and held him tightly to his chest. He looked into the honey brown eyes of his son and his own eyes turned to gold. "Xiao Jin Huli, I am proud of the man you are today. Very proud!" JInlong held him and purred to him. Baohu sighed and laid in the arms of the only man who had ever loved him for what he had always been.
Later that afternoon, Mo Yuan brought Li Li to see Baohu. When she walked in, he raised his hand to her and the tears started flowing down his face. "Li Li, Baohu is unable to talk at this time. He can speak into your mind and you can answer him out loud. I'll be right outside if either of you need me." They sat in silence looking into each other's eyes before he spoke to her. "Li Li, have you been well?" "Yes, Jinzi said I'm doing very well this time. My appetite is much better, too. I think we may have girls this time!" "Really? Girls? It seems Fuqin wanted little girls so he's getting them!! First Da ge, then Er ge and now us! I've missed you so much!" "Baohu, I have missed you. Really missed you. I wish for us to be a family. A real family. I'm tired of being alone when I have a man like you. Are you ready to be a man now?" "Li Li, I want nothing more! I must kill off the last of the Xiyi, but then I will be home for good. I had hoped to be able to take care of you this time without being a Xiao chanchu." "I'm right sorry I called you that, but you deserved it at the time." "You had every right to call me that. Every right. And a few other choice names too! I have seen and learned much this past year. After you have these babies, I want us to go to the estate on Mount Junji for a while. Are you interested?" "Well I would love to but you know I don't cook. You would have to bring someone to cook for us." "No worries. We will find one. Now please go and rest and take care of yourself. I'm sorry I couldn't talk to you. I may never be able to again." "My love, as long as you are in my heart and I can hear your voice in my mind, it doesn't really matter." She held out her arms for him. They met in a soft kiss. His lips were soft and his breath was on her tongue. His forehead touched hers as he spoke into her mind. "I have been with no other woman since I left here. I wait only for you, my xiao zhanzhi." He lay back on the bed and watched her leave. Mo Yuan was waiting outside of the door for her. She was wiping a tear from her beautiful little heart shaped face when she came out the door. "Fuqin, I want him in my life! I love him so!!" She fell into his arms as she cried. "There now! He will be in your life. We are going to help him complete his mission and then the two of you and your children can go to the estate on Mount Junjie for a while. It would be good for both of you. Now wipe your tears! Let me take you back home."
Mo Yuan called the Dragon Wing into his study the next morning. They all sat and waited expectantly for him to speak. "I have called you here because I have a task for all of you. Jiao-long Ming will not be with you. He has other duties. You are going to the mortal realm with your SiShu. He has told me that he is positive there are at least two more lairs of those Xiyi. One of them contains an alpha female. They must be killed. This is not a little trip where you can lag around and lay up in the flower house. In fact, if I find out any of you do so then you will face Jinlong in the arena when you return. Understood?" Wide eyes told him they all got that message loud and clear. "Good! You are to use your abilities to help him kill off these last two lairs of Xiyi. No fooling around. This is serious business. Baohu has lost his voice. He can speak into your mind. If he gives you any order, you do it without hesitation. If he tells me that any of you disobeyed him or did not follow orders, then you will answer to me. Be ready to leave in a week. This will relieve you of the monotony of our tour. Now go get your gear in order. Dismissed!" Mo Yuan grinned to himself as he left to go to Qing Qui. Baohu was coming back to the mountain today. He had something planned for him. Bai Qian had all of the children in the hall when he walked in. "I'm going to get Baohu. All of you be ready to welcome him home, ok?" Little voices cheered. "Good! Dearest, call Xue and JinDe here as well. I want him to know that we have missed him!" He left and went to get him. Baohu was rather hesitant. He still couldn't talk. He was sitting under the pavilion at Jinzi's house waiting. He drank his tea in pensive silence. When his Fuqin appeared in front of him, he was nervous. He hadn't seen Kunlunxu for over a year. "Come, my son! It's time for you to come home!" When Baohu stood up, his Fuqin grabbed him around his waist and jumped him to the gate. Taowu bowed as he entered. He looked up the stairway and path that led to the hall. He looked at his Fuqin as a tear slid down his face. Mo Yuan nodded and jumped him to the portico outside the hall. When he walked in, little voices rang out his name and ran to him. He fell to his knees to take them into his arms. He wiped the tears from his face. He set them back and looked at Jingsi and Jiaxiao with their beads in their hair and pretty little dresses to match them. He touched their hair and smiled at them. Bai Xue and Mo JinDe saw the joy on the face of their errant didi. Yes, he had grown up! JinDe grabbed him up into a bear hug and swung him around like a toy. "Ho, Baohu! I've missed you, didi! I'm sorry I called you a xiao chanchu. Forgive me?" Baohu looked into his eyes and smiled. He punched JinDe on the shoulder and hugged him. Bai Xue spoke into his mind. "I have missed you, my xiao jin huli. Very much." Baohu hugged him for the longest time and turned to see the rest of his family. Instead of taking his place on the dais, he sat at his old place at the table. JinDe took the dais and smiled at his didi. Mo Yuan smiled and stood. "Today, Bai Baohu Zhe has come home. He has proven himself to be a true warrior of Kunlun, a true gentleman and last but not least, my son. Baohu, I have a gift for you. I told you when I forced you to leave that only a worthy man would ever carry a weapon of Kunlun. You have come home and proven to me that you are indeed a man worthy of being a warrior of Kunlunxu. Today I gift you with a new set of blades to replace the ones destroyed by your Da ge. These are your new blades. I call them Diyu zhi huo. Out of your blades come crimson hellfire. You are no longer thunder and lightning. You are fire, hellfire. Here are your weapons, my son. Use them well." Mo Yuan waved his hand and his full gear appeared in front of him on the table. His golden armor, his dagger, his throwing stars and his new blades. The blades caught his attention. The handles were the old ones from his old blades. The blades were new. They were black with the design of a nine tailed golden huli sitting on the back of a white horse that was rearing up. He ran his hand down the blade and grinned at his Fuqin when he did. He took them into his hand and raised them over his head. He called his power into them and felt a surge into his own spirit. He powered down because he felt the power come into him like a shock wave. He looked at his Fuqin with a question on his face. "Yes, my son. Your power draws from the sky and you can pull it to you. You must learn to control it though or you will burn up like your Da ge nearly did because he couldn't control his power. Understand?" Baohu nodded. He made a sign over his heart and pointed at his Fuqin. He spoke to him alone. "Fuqin, I will never disappoint you again. Of that you can rest assured!" "In a week, Baohu will take the Dragon Wing with him to the mortal realm to find and destroy the rest of the Xiyi. After he does that, he is going to rest and recuperate for a while. Our tour will resume as soon as he returns from the mortal realm. Now let's celebrate!!"
Baohu was standing on the portico waiting for his group to assemble. Everyone was there except for Manchu Ru. Ye Hua had decided that Yu Shenlong would not go. After waiting for an hour, Baohu called his Fuqin to him. "What is wrong? Why haven't you left yet?" Shangdi Long Hei stepped up to speak. "Shushu, Manchu Ru is not here. He is probably still in someone's bed. Fuqin should cut off his...." "Enough! When is that errant boy ever going to learn?!" Mo Yuan called to Ye Hua. "Didi, Manchu Ru has not reported for duty this morning. We are waiting for him." Ye Hua was in his study. He called Jia Yun to him. "Jia Yun!" "I am here, Tianjun!" "Would you happen to know exactly where Manchu Ru is?" "Tianjun, Taizi Manchu Ru was in his Da ge's room not too long ago." "Thank you. I will get him myself." Ye Hua walked to Jiao-long Ming's room as fast as he dared go, considering he was blowing smoke out of his nose. Huo Jin Hua had been quartered in rooms right across from Ming's. He was walking by her room when he heard glass break and a monkey screaming. He decided to go in and check on her. What he saw made his temper explode like it never had before. Manchu Ru was bleeding from a bite of his face and a cut on his arm. A throwing star was stuck in his arm. "I'll get you, you xiao jinu. You know you want me! Ming is weak! He doesn't know how to please a hot xiao huo like you! Come on out!" Ye Hua jumped right in front of his errant son. "Manchu Ru, there are many things that you have done that have made me embarrassed, angry and sad, but today you have crossed a line that I will not tolerate. Today you pay, and dearly! Guards!!!" Two guards walked into the room and bowed. "Take Taizi Manchu Ru to the punishment platform." Ye Hua stepped in front of him and bound him with a spell and blocked his powers. "You will not go to the mortal realm at this time. You will receive 35 bolts of lightning every day for three years. After you receive your bolts, you will go to your room where you will be locked in. Guards will be posted so no one can come or go. Lord Jinzi will come and tend to your other problems, like an overblown libido. I'm tired of you Ru. You are a disgrace to my name. An utter disgrace. Take him!" When the guards left with him, Ye Hua sat down for a moment to collect himself. He put his head in his hands and cried. Xiao Hua was hiding in her monkey form. Ru had surprised her when he came into her room. She was about to go for her training. Seeing Tianjun Ye Hua so upset moved her heart. She peeked out from her hiding place and inched toward him. Finally she threw caution to the wind and just jumped into his lap. Startled at first, Ye Hua jumped and then smiled. "I'm very sorry Xiao Hua. He won't hurt you any more. Did he hurt you?" She touched his hand and shook her head. She jumped down and shifted right in front of him. Her dress was torn and there was a scratch on her arm. Ye Hua reached for her arm. She recoiled in fear. She realized her error and sighed. "I'm sorry, Fuqin. He hurt my arm and scared me. I was really afraid. That's why I shifted. I bit him then but not before I threw one of my stars like Lord JinDe showed me. Please forgive me!" She bowed to the floor in front of him. He held out his arms for her. She flew into his lap and was there crying when Ming came running in. "Fuqin, what exactly has happened here?" Ye Hua motioned for him to sit by him. Xiao Hua went from Ye Hua into Ming's arms. "Ming, Ru attacked Xiao Hua. I have sent him to the punishment platform to receive 35 bolts of lightning today and every day for three years. He will be locked in his room every day. Let me handle him, please. I don't want you to do anything. Do you understand?" "Fuqin, why do you let him do these things? Xiao Hua is to be my mate! Why must you always let him off easy? If you won't do anything, then I will!! She is my wife! Tell me, Fuqin!" "You are right, of course. I will set up a duel between you and Ru on Mount Cangwu. Take Xiao Hua to your Mother for now. She needs her understanding. Xiao Hua, please go with Ming now. Yu'er will tend to you. Just know that we love you and I am brokenhearted. I apologize to you." Ye Hua stood and bowed to her. He jumped out of the room to the punishment platform. Lord Pua was waiting for him. "Tianjun, we are ready to begin." "Begin."
Ye Hua stood by Lord Pua and watched Manchu Ru take every strike. His anger was riding high that he would dishonor his Da ge in this way. Ru started cursing him. "You never loved me! You always favored Ming! Arghhhhh! You never do anything for me. All you do is berate me and call me worthless. I could command the celestial armies since JinDe is now God of War. AGGGGGH! I hate you! I hate you!" Ye Hua's face was unmoved. He watched intently as each strike hit his errant son. At strike 35, Ru cursed him. "Your nothing but a worthless shadow of Shushu Mo Yuan. He has the real power! Your just a useless copy! You should have never lived!" Ye Hua turned to Lord Pua. "Ten more strikes." "Tianjun, it may cause him great harm." Ye Hua turned and his face was a picture of anger, hurt and disgust. "I said ten more strikes." Ye Hua called to Mo Yuan. "Da ge, come to the punishment platform now please." Mo Yuan was there in less than a minute. "Just what is going on here, Didi?" "Da ge, Manchu Ru assaulted Huo Jin Hua this morning. He is being punished." A tear ran out of Ye Hua's eye. "He called me a worthless shadow of you. He said I should have never been born. It's not true, is it, Dage?" "No, it's not. We were together in Mother's womb. I held you and you held me. Mother tried her best to save us both. Fuqin saved you. He saved you. Don't listen to the words of a spoiled little brat who thinks he can get anything he wants. He should be banished, Ye Hua. Set him down in the mortal world with no powers to fend for himself. If he wishes to return and be a true taizi of this realm, then fine. If he doesn't, let him go." "He will take three years of lightning strikes first. Then banishment. Da ge, thank you!" Mo Yuan hugged him tight and turned to watch as the last two strikes hit Ru. He was loosed from his shackles and brought to his Fuqin. Ru looked at his Fuqin and his Shushu. "You both stand there so self righteous! I hate both of you! I hate you! I will leave Fuqin and you won't stop me!" Mo Yuan worked the spell to remove his powers. He grabbed him by the waist and jumped him to Mount Cangwu. He called Ye Hua to bring Ming. Jiao-long Ming was still riding a very high level of anger. He arrived with his Fuqin. "Jiao-long Ming! Your Didi has dishonored you today. Here you may take your revenge and claim back your honor and that of Xiao Hua. What say you?" Ming drew his blade that Mo Yuan had made him. "Manchu Ru! You are my Didi, but today you are my enemy! Prepare yourself!" Ru stood and wiped blood off of the corner of his mouth. "So be it. DA GE!" He charged Ming but he was ready. Back and forth they went in an elaborate dance between them. Ming cut Ru on his arm and then across his leg. Ru was struggling and it was showing. He charged at Ming again. Ming cut him across his chest. He fell on one knee with his sword as a crutch. Mo Yuan called a halt. "Manchu Ru! Your Da ge had defeated you. You will finish your lightning punishment and then you will be taken to the mortal realm to live without your powers until you can learn to be a real man. You will have no contact with any one of your family. You will be alone and you will have no friends. Any person who does befriend you will meet an ill fate because of you so be warned. If any human mortal dies because of you, I personally will see you gelded and blinded. Take him to his room." He was bound and taken away. When he was out of sight, Ye Hua turned to Mo Yuan and collapsed right into his arms. Mo Yuan felt the pain in his chest. They both fell to the ground. Mo Yuan looked up at Ru and spoke, "Jinzi, take us to Jinzi....." He grabbed both of them and jumped to Qing Qui.