81 The Hero Has Returned

"Ha ha ha ha ha!" Altemuller did not stop laughing, even as his heavy wounds caused him to cough up blood.

Blackie placed a heavy paw on Altemuller's back and pressed him into the icy ground. The injured man could not move at all.

"What are you laughing at?" Van demanded.

Altemuller abruptly stopped. He turned his icy blue eyes to Van, "Don't you want to know? Don't you want to know who is behind this? Someone made me into this, this thing... They are the one who deserves... a thousand deaths! I never wanted any part of this!"

Van recoiled, "What do you mean?!"

Altemuller squinted at the young man standing above him. A long-suppressed memory pushed its way to the forefront of his mind.

_____________

[Memory start]

A small boy, hardly six years of age, thin and gaunt, stood in front of a figure wreathed in darkness.

"No…no, please…" The small boy whimpered. His pale eyes were full of unshed tears. He looked pleadingly at the figure before him, the one person who should love him the most in the world, the nurturer, giver.

The monster that stood before him.

"I can't eat any more…They make me feel bad…wrong…A-and they taste bad!"

The shadowed figured drew closer trailed a pointed claw down one soft cheek. A gentle press was all it took for a bright red bead of blood to well up. The boy whimpered piteously.

"Dear oh dearsss...." The voice hissed softly, "Whatever shall we do….?"

"How about I let you off, pat you on the head and let you go play with your little friends…?"

Altemuller hiccupped. He looked up; eyes full of dim hope.

"Or how about…I bring your little brother in…hm? If one little rat doesn't want to do the work, another rat will do the trick very nicely…" The shadowed figure said gloatingly.

Altemuller felt himself fill with terror.

"No! No, you can't!" He cried out, "Not him!"

The shadowed figure in front of him smiled victoriously, "Then you will keep eating, won't you little rat?"

"Let the darkness slide down your throat…corrupt you… taint your soul…! Let the power breed within you, until it takes over…!"

The shadowed figure threw its head back and laughed.

Altemuller crawled forwards and he picked up his plate once more. A half-decayed demonic heart filled with dark blood lay upon it. Trembling, he bit into it and forcibly swallowed even when all he wanted to do was throw it all back up.

The demonic essence trickled into his bloodstream. Like a disease, its influence spread through his blood cells.

"Yes…you will do very nicely, my dear! Eat up! Eat until you can eat no more!"

[Memory end]

____________

[The present moment]

Altemuller looked pensively at the flame-haired boy in front of him; searching. Now that he was looking, he noticed things that he hadn't before. They say that the eyes are a window to the soul. In this young man's eyes, he sensed an indomitable power. A strength of will. Though his eyes were dark, they seemed as if an eternal flame flickered within them.

"What is your name…?" Altemuller asked at length.

The young man crossed his arms, "Van."

"Van…She won't let this offence go. I am only but one general in a vast army…and the demon nurseries that you destroyed here are not the only ones…"

Altemuller tried to continue, but at that moment he felt a terrifying presence from afar trying to breach his mind. Blood started dripping from his orifices.

"WHY WON'T YOU LET ME GO!?" He screamed, clawing at his face. With the last of his strength he forced Her out of his mind.

Gurgle. Cough cough.

Altemuller was choking on his own blood. Pale-faced, Van could see Altemuller's lips becoming blue and the time between each blink growing longer and longer. The white-haired man weakly drew out an object from the sleeve of his robes. A small box with a strange design clattered to the icy ground.

"She will mobilise the armies when the Six Country Alliance is distracted. If you want to save Cloud River..."

Van looked sharply at the dying man. Altemuller pushed the small box forward.

"Give this… to my brother…he will know what he must do..."

Altemuller focused a blue eye onto Van's dark gaze, "… only the Mind Bore Beetle can…remove…the demons in the sect disciples...!"

The last thing the emaciated man felt was a sharp pain in his mind, and the vision of a pair of bright yellow eyes filled with venomous hatred staring right through him.

Altemuller smiled weakly.

[I forgive you…Mother.]

Then everything went black.

___

Van stared at the corpse at his feet. At the last second, he had felt a terrifyingly strong aura emanating from Altemuller before he died. The power was accompanied by a feeling of hatred and viciousness so strong that Van felt an uncontrollable need to run far away.

Jet's sigh echoed in Van's mindscape.

[Poor thing. He was only able to resist the person controlling him in his final breaths.]

Van shook his head, "The amount of deaths Altemuller is responsible for… the amount of havoc he has created… that cannot and should not be forgiven. If he had the courage and conviction, he may have found a way out."

Jet acknowledged Van's words.

[It may be so. But we cannot truly judge his actions when we do not know the full story.]

Van shook his head but did not continue to argue. His eyes lit upon the small box on the floor of the chamber.

Van knelt and picked it up. He turned it slowly in his hand.

The box smaller than the size of his fist and quite light. It was made of light brown wood. Interlocking pieces formed the four sides.

"That looks like a puzzle box," said a girlish voice somewhere to his side.

Van turned to see Delphine, who looked slightly worse for wear.

"You have dealt with Cyrus?" He enquired.

Delphine pouted, "Of course! We have beaten so many tough 6th level demon beasts already, how could be not even deal with a puny 6th level Qi Distillation cultivator? Pew! That icky man even called himself 'Cyrus the Great.' What was so 'Great' about that ugly fellow? In my opinion, you're a hundred times better than him- oh!"

Delphine suddenly realised that she had spoken the last bit out loud. Her small face turned bright red. She quickly changed the direction of the conversation.

"Um… that is… that stinky Cyrus fellow just relied on his father's fame and title of 'Great General'… maybe that's where he got the idea to add 'Great.' Hehe!"

Van watched amusedly as Delphine's eyes darted from side to side.

Moments later, Ryan appeared along with several freed prisoners. They were thin and dirty, but their eyes lit up the moment they saw Van. They rushed forward to give their thanks.

"Thank you, thank you! You saved us from the horrible monster."

"He was going to kill us and bleed us dry… I owe you my life!"

"Saviour, please, tell us your name so we can tell every one of your heroic deeds!"

Van smiled, "Van. Of the Cedar Sect."

The disciples that had been saved engraved that name into their hearts. They also turned and thanked the troop, causing Delphine to blush. Ryan smiled, a vast change from his usual dour face. Ed, Gef and Phern were bright red from head to toe. They had never been so fervently thanked their entire lives! They felt proud that they had been involved with such a heroic mission.

Van looked around, "Hm? Where did Synthia go?"

Van asked around but no one had seen her. It seemed that the elegant girl had vanished as soon as the battle ended.

The young man turned back to the crowd of twenty or so people and addressed them.

"We will take you guys to our temporary camp in the Ice Caves. There are hot springs and plenty of food. Once you have all rested up, we will begin our return journey out of the Ice Caves. You are safe with us."

A starved-looking girl began to weep with joy. Others, including men, sniffled and looked to the side as tears ran down their faces.

Van smiled warmly, "Do not cry. You have all endured a lot. Remember your deceased friends and fellow disciples in your hearts, they live on within your memories."

___

Van's return to Pollog was greeted with much fanfare. Ed, Gef and Phern had left ahead of them and had rushed to inform the Garrison Keep of what had transpired within the Blizzard Plains. Soon, the Mayor was informed, and a letter immediately sent to the Lord of Griever's Fort.

The news that a great devil had been building an army of demons by corrupting Luminous Ice Worm eggs was shocking. Luckily, the great devil had been killed and the remaining eggs burnt. The Lord of Griever's Fort was immensely relieved.

Apart from Van, no one else knew that disciples from the surrounding countries had had demons planted within their minds. And that they were still at large.

Van knew that there was an entity with more power than Altemuller, a 'She', moving in the shadows. If this entity found out that their plan had been found out, they might force their hand and immediately unleash the full force of the corrupted disciples onto their unsuspecting sects. Van would be better off discretely telling the Sect Master, who could then decide whether to inform the other sects. They might then decide to secretly monitor suspect disciples and take actions to research the 'Mind Bore Bugs' and remove the hidden demon from the disciple's minds.

["She will mobilise the armies when the Six Country Alliance is distracted."]

"The Six Country Alliance...?" Van asked himself, "Another thing I must ask the Sect Master."

And there was the issue of finding Altemuller's brother - who may be key to saving Cloud River according to the dead man. Van felt a headache brewing behind his eyes.

Van and company walked down the streets, crowds of townspeople gathered and cheered. Baskets of items such as bread and fish were shoved into their hands. Confetti fell from the air. Every man and woman were delighted that such a great evil living near them had been eliminated. They would sleep sounder in their beds at night without having to worry.

The younger children stared gape-mouthed at the heroic young man standing in the centre of the procession. Although he was not the tallest person, his bright red hair was quite eye-catching. His dignified and calm demeanour caught the attention of many people.

"Don't you know?" A middle-aged woman chuckled as she gossiped with her friends, "They say the hero who vanquished the great evil inside the caves is known as the 'Crimson Mist.' He must be that young man at the head of the group. Look how handsome he looks despite his young age!" Her friends nodded their heads in agreement. Their impressionable teenage daughters watched with awed eyes.

The group continued through the main street of town.

The Mayor of Pollog was waiting for them with the garrison keeper. The Mayor was a short, fat man with a friendly face and a warm disposition. As soon as he saw Van, he walked up to him and enthusiastically shook his hand.

"Well done, young chap, simply well done! You have done this town a great favour and have earned our respect."

The garrison keeper nodded and interjected: "We were all extremely worried when a month passed by and not even one of the mission-takers returned."

The Mayor nodded enthusiastically, "When your three militiamen came by and informed Tomas, he informed me. I am the happiest I have been for weeks! Come, come! Let me treat you all to a hearty supper to prepare you for the long journey back!"

So excited was he, that after he went around and shook everyone's hands, he even went boldly up to Blackie and patted the snout of the hulking black wolf. Blackie blinked confusedly and looked at Van with a question in his eyes.

Van chuckled, "No, Blackie. You can't do that."

The giant black wolf whined.

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[A vast distance away.]

In an immense desert plain, a young man with silver hair and cold blue eyes stood upon a large sand dune. A large scorpion with glittering eyes stood beside the young man. Small whirlwinds of sand churned up the landscape in the distance.

"Let's see if we have any luck today, Hellebore. The moment the Great Sand Dragon shows itself is the moment that its destiny becomes death by my hands!" Klaus said viciously.

[After fighting it, my comprehension of the essence of sand will go up another level. Ingesting its core will allow me to break into the 7th level of Qi Distillation!]

Klaus' eyes narrowed, [I cannot fail!]