Reputation

[Tai Lung's POV]

The meeting went well as expected even though it was called an emergency meeting. It was called as such because Shen needed to make a major decision as quickly as possible and he won't do that without me. It was not because there was an urgent attack or anything like that.

We talked about a lot of stuff which was mostly related to the military since I was the General, I didn't care much about other politics. One of the interesting things we talked about was the creation of mortars which would be extremely useful in taking over the kingdoms in the north which was a hilly region.

Shen also said that he was in the middle of a project. Said project was making a giant airship to carry infantries who would be dropped to the battleground with the help of parachutes.

On the issue of Tibet and India, there was nothing else to do other than sending the soldiers of Nanzhao to the borders to guard in case of an attack. There was not much information to work with.

Nevertheless, issues such as two countries making an alliance takes time so there was no need to rush. It was decided that I would leave after a month and until then, I could continue enjoying my vacation.

I leapt down from the Thorn room because god knew I was not going to climb down all those stairs. I landed on the ground in a controlled manner that barely made a sound.

Then I left the grounds of the Peacock and went to the city. The soldiers bowed at me with respect and admiration as I walked out.

I no longer wore a cloak to hide myself as I walked through the districts of Gongmen City. I held my nose high and my chest forward as I observed the city which we had fought hard to protect.

The time of mourning was over and the citizens who had left the city, fearing that it would be destroyed had also returned and settled back.

A sense of joy and security achievable only by winning a war filled the city. The citizens gathered around me but they knew to stay far away and made a path for me.

They admired me from the sides, whispering to themselves praises about me. My ears twitched as for the first time, I tried to hear everything they had to say.

It felt good.

But their admiration was also layered with a rightful amount of fear. Like a sailor gazing at the endless expanse of an ocean, awed at its infinite depth and calm yet also being acutely aware that it could drown the world.

From a rumoured criminal and a villain, I became their hero. The warrior who fought against three kingdoms to protect them from harm.

They were regretful of how they treated me in the past and wondered if there was anything they could do to make up for it. But they couldn't find an answer so they stared from a distance not too far yet not too close.

But then a young rabbit slipped away from the crowd, his tiny body and nimble frame escaped his mother's grasp and he ran towards me with a toy in his hand.

"Master Tai Lung!!" He called me with a huge smile that showed all his rabbit teeth.

He did not know why the people were hesitating to approach me because he was too innocent. He only saw the good in the world, he only saw the good in me. The perspective he had was how I protected his home from a huge invasion. The number of soldiers I had to slaughter to protect never crossed his mind

"Thank you for saving the city." He said with a bow. His feet tapped on the ground with excitement as I looked at the oddball.

Then my eye caught the toy he had in his hand. It was a figurine, like the ones Po had in his room which consisted of the furious five. But this one was a figurine of me.

"Nice toy you got there." I said with a small smirk and a raised eyebrow.

"Thank you! This one is my favourite." He said and showed it to me. I didn't know why i felt proud to hear him say that.

"Really, but I see its missing something," I said and took the toy from his hand then I made a small scar on his chest with my claws.

"See?" I said and showed him the new scar on my chest. It was a claw mark left by Master White Tiger. The wound he made turned into a scar because the poison had damaged it beyond normal injury.

It was a mark of his dishonour and also a proof of how I stood unfazed in front of deceit and tricks.

"Cool!!" He said and quickly took his toy from my hand. He looked at it with wide, shining eyes.

Then his mother hurriedly came to him and grabbed him by the hand before pulling him away with a small apology. I just shook my head and waved at the little kid.

I walked through the different districts and when I was near the gate of the city, I leapt into the air and flew back towards the Panda Village.

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The Panda Village sits at the peak of the rocky mountains in the North Eastern Part of China. The region was filled with ice and the low temperature made it so that no vegetation could grow there.

It was an isolated place where no one lives, unless of course the Pandas. The thick ice and constant snow storms made it extremely difficult to find if you did not know what you were looking for.

The Panda Village was surrounded by a towering barrier of mountains amidts a glacier. The village was built on the ground of a geothermal spring which melted the ice around the village and it was for this reason that the Pandas could cultivate and live there.

it was a hidden paradise, uncorrupted by the world outside. It made you wonder if the Pandas as a species were favoured by the universe itself for them to stumble upon such marvellous land.

I made a beeline to the place as I propelled myself through the icy storm winds using flashsteps. I landed on the entrance of the village with a soft thud and I finally took a breath that did not chill my lungs.

Warm air.

"Haaa.." I released a sigh and looked down from the small hill. From my position, I could get a perfect view of the Panda village and it was one of the most beautiful sight I had ever seen.

It was something I would imagine when I think of heaven in my past life. The Pandas were all farmers and I could see some of them working diligently with a smile on their face.

Even though it was located in a region that looked like Antarctica, the land of the Panda Village was fertile and bore great harvest even without much work.

It was a land as precious as gold.

I felt relaxed, not only in my body but in spirit as I felt the wonderful chi soothe my spirt. It was strange how the village was so abundant with Chi and the quality was unlike I had never seen before.

Maybe it had something to do with the Pandas themselves rather than the land.

I saw Tigress pulling down a tree from a distance. The tree bent down in ways it should not and Tigress used it as a way to propel herself like a spring. Her body shot through the air and she landed right next to me.

"You're back." She said with a smile.

"Yes, it took less time than I thought it would." I responded.

"So what was it about?" She asked in a curious tone as she stood next to me.

"Oh, nothing much. New enemies on the horizon, this time they are from Tibet and India." I said with a shrug. She gave me a complicated look, likely due to how carefree I was about it.

"So this does not bother you?"

"Why should it bother me? I always have enemies."

"No, not that." She said, "I mean they are from Tibet and India. I heard the armies of the Indian Gupta were vast and powerful."

I chuckled, "As long as they bleed, I have no worries."

It's the spirit warriors which I am wary of, not some vast and powerful soldiers. Afterall. thier quantity and quality just meant that I had to put in a little more effort.

"Okay then, seems like I was worrying for nothing." She said.

A pleasant silence befall us as we just enjoyed the view of the village. My eyes caught the sight of Po who was rolling down the mountain and constantly hitting either a rock or a tree.

He was hurt each time but his enthusiasm never left him as he tried again and again with his father. He was trying to discover who he was, and when he felt that he was getting there, it made him happy.

He was a panda.

..

I ducked my head as a bird flew past me with a gust of wind. I pulled my head back up and looked at Crane who was flying in front of me. He was carrying a red blanket in his talons where multiple baby were wrappee. They giggled in childish joy.

"Oh hi guys!!" He said and tipped his hat at us.

"Careful where you are flying crane." Tigress said immediealy, concerned for my safety "You might hurt the babies." Or maybe not.

I chuckled as I saw her serious face. She had gotten extremely close to the baby pandas in the village. They even called her stripy baby.

"Come join us, its lunch time." Crane invited us and he spun in the air to the joy of the babies.

Then he flew away and towards the village again. I saw Po and the rest of the Pandas going back to the village as well where I smelt some good food.

"Shall we?" Tigress said and gestured down the hill.

!?

"If you are trying to make me roll down the hill like a complete fool then I will ask you to stop." I said, offended at the mere idea.

"What? It's their customs and while we are here, we must respect it." She said all too amused.

I guess that made sense, as the saying goes 'When in Rome, do as the Romans do.'

But I was still not doing it.

"Don't tell me you haven't learned to roll yet? Po is still learning it now even as a Panda and the Dragon warrior. Can you not do it?" She asked.

Cheap tricks, she was a decade too young if she thought she could make me do it with those words.

I scoffed.

But then she got low and swiped my feet off the ground. I saw it coming but I chose not to stop it as I fell from my place and rolled down the hill.

Well, if I was already rolling, I might as well commit and become the best at this thing.

Later that week, in a rolling competition where the winner gets a hundred bowls of dumplings, I won against all the villagers and defeated the Dragon Warrior again.

Tai Lung- 2, Dragon Warrior - 0

Take that stupid fate.

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[IMAGE of Tai Lung figurine]

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