2 This One Wants to See the Forests

Yao Huang's vision was filled with the image of a white beast. Its body was shaped like a horse, but its head was smooth and round with a wide jawline. Five horns protruded out of its head, pointing toward its back. Two of the horns were long, situated at the sides, while three smaller ones were spread in the middle. On its back, five swaying tails opened out like a peacock.

The most surprising thing for him was that the creature could talk. Even though it didn't open its mouth, Yao Huang was sure that the one talking through his mind was this monster!

There was no mistake! This thing must be...

"A high-ranked spirit beast!" Yao Huang blurted out.

Kokuo, who was in the middle of gathering its chakra, froze.

"...What did you call This One?"

"...? Spirit beast, right?" Yao Huang reiterated.

Wait. High-ranked spirit beasts were proud beings. It wouldn't like being called a beast...

"Should I call you with a different name? I don't know what your title is, though... May I call you as Venerable One?"

"..."

Something seems wrong...

"Human, This One is called Kokuo, the Five-Tails, one of the Tailed Beasts. Remember that as This One devour your soul!"

The white beast began gathering chakra once again, trying to weaken the seal just enough to breach through and overpower the kid's psyche. After all, it should be easier to corrupt a young human's will. It should try before those pesky ninjas returned and brought a stronger, more compatible Jinchuuriki.

Yao Huang, however, was oblivious to its attempt. He was more focused on something else.

"Alright, King Mu..."

The chakra gathering stopped again.

"This One is Kokuo!"

"Ah. Apologies."

Yao Huang smacked his lips. Because this body's memory prior to his awakening and his own soul's memory were overlapping, the language used by both selves were unconsciously mixing up. When he thought of a word with the same meaning, his native language popped up instead.

Maybe he should focus on the sound instead...

"Gao Ku Oo..."

Hmm... that also sounds wrong.

"..."

This kid... Kokuo was wondering whether this kid was really alright in the head...

"Nevermind that. What did you want to ask This One just now?"

"Oh, okay. So, uh..."

He wondered whether it was alright to ask. It could be a sensitive topic after all.

"Do not make This One curious. Speak up."

"Fine. So... you said you're a Tailed Beast."

"Correct."

Yao Huang frowned.

"Isn't that too ambiguous? Which beast has no tail? What makes you different than the other animals then?"

"..."

Slowly looking up toward the ceiling, Kokuo...

...Stopped moving.

---

"IHaveFiveTailsSoImDifferentRight?ButThenWhatAboutShukaku?IfThatRaccoonIsJustANormalAnimalThenAmIDifferentFromHim?WereAllFromSamePlaceSoWereAllTheSameRight?AmIJustANormalAnimalThen?"

While the white beast had an identity crisis, Yao Huang was trying to assess the situation.

The room was dark, really dark. The only source of light was the faint glow that the monster was emitting from its body as well as these five-branching tails on his back, which were similar to the monster's.

He was wearing some form of robe that was slung over his body and tied with a sash. It wasn't drastically different from the clothing he'd used throughout his previous life, which meant that he hadn't leaped through a very distant era. The question was, how many years had it passed?

He hoped that it wouldn't be too far in the future. The peaceful era might be able to last long, but it wouldn't be eternal. The succeeding eras might not be as generous. There might even be war. Yao Huang felt a headache visiting him just from thinking about it.

"For now, let's calm down and cultivate."

Crossing his legs, he began feeling his new body's spiritual path. Starting from his dantian, he traced his meridian, getting a clearer image of its crosses and curves. From there, he willed his dantian to move, enticing qi, the power of the universe, to gather and circulate within him.

"..."

"..."

Sitting in a lotus position, the kid gave off a calm smile while closing his eyes. However, in actuality, he was breaking out in cold sweat.

Ah, heck, he couldn't feel any qi at all!

"What is going on?!"

His new body wasn't a cripple, alright? He had checked it just now. It was rather strong for a child, perhaps even more talented than he previously was back in the day.

The problem was the world's qi! No matter what kind of cultivation method he tried, whether it was dantian spinning, reverse spinning, or even external qi push, none managed to successfully gather qi into his body.

How could it be? Qi was prevalent in the world. Even the most complicated sealing array couldn't isolate an area completely off qi. At most, it would just make the concentration of qi extremely thin.

"What are you doing..."

"Whaw!"

Yao Huang almost jumped out of fright when Kokuo appeared again out of nowhere. Instead of the proud tone from before, its voice was weak and raspy, like a ghost's voice. Yao Huang even thought that it wasn't the spirit beast, but a vengeful spirit instead!

"What's wrong with you?!" Yao Huang couldn't help but ask.

"Nothing..." Kokuo let out a long, long sigh. "This One just feels that This One has lost the meaning of existence..."

"..."

This was the first case of spirit beast mental breakdown that he had ever witnessed, so he sadly couldn't offer any help...

Anyway.

"Venerable spirit beast-"

"Tailed Be- you know what, that title is useless. Call This One whatever you desire."

Kokuo sat on the floor, showing a dejected face.

Fine. Spirit beast it is.

"...I want to know why there's no qi in here."

"'Gas'?" Kokuo tilted its head in confusion.

"Gas? I'm talking about qi...err, wait, you write it like this..."

He touched one of the white beast's legs, and then traced the word for 'qi' with his finger.

"...What is that?"

"..."

Seriously? A spirit beast that didn't know qi? How did it cultivate after all these years? There was no way that it could get this big without cultivation, right?

Yao Huang coughed a few times before explaining.

"It's the vital energy that is available in everything in this world."

"Energy? Do you mean chakra?"

Eh?

The word was entirely foreign to him, but his new memory had supplemented him with the meaning in an instant.

Energy.

That was what it meant.

Furthermore, it was close in meaning with qi, although it was stored inside a living being instead of floating freely in the world.

Hmm... strange... was that a new way of utilizing qi?

Could it be that he was flung so far in the future that the old cultivation method was no longer viable?!

Looking at the dumbfounded kid, Kokuo shook its head.

"How weird, for a Jinchuuriki to be ignorant of chakra. Perhaps it's because you are a mere container vessel."

"Jin chu lei... what's that again?"

Kokuo's blue-green eyes opened wide. Maybe this kid really had a few screws loose?

"Jinchuuriki. Human sacrifice. Right now, This One is sealed within your body. That is why This One is determined to take over your body and break free from the seal. You won't have long to live anyway."

"Within this body?"

"That's right. This One right now is just an astral projection for you to see. This One's real form is still inside your body."

Yao Huang patted his chest, letting the words sunk in.

Sealing a spirit beast within a cultivator's body was possible back then, but it was an extremely rare case. A cultivator's body wasn't the most suitable place for a spirit beast to dwell, so it was an unfair situation for the spirit beast, while the cultivator would benefit from near-enslavement of the spirit beast.

Enslavement...

"Gao Ku Oo..."

"It's Kokuo!"

"Are you inside me by your own will?"

Kokuo immediately went silent, its eyes narrowing dangerously toward the bloodied kid standing below him.

It was a stupid question. And the answer was equally predictable.

There is no way.

"Rather than here, This One would rather seclude Oneself out in the forest, far from the madness of this pitiful world."

At that moment,

A slight smile appeared on Yao Huang's face.

"What did you say about me not having long to live?"

"Simple. You are merely a temporary vessel, utilized to keep This One busy until the arrival of a compatible sacrifice. When that time comes, This One will be extracted out of your body, and you'll finally die."

'-In a few days, we'll transfer the beast.'

What Kokuo said lined up with the words that man said back then.

Actually, dying wouldn't be too bad. He could reach the underworld again and this time reincarnate properly.

However...

"You're inside me? In my soul?"

Kokuo nodded.

Taking up the lotus stance once again, Yao Huang shut down his senses, numbing his pain, and concentrated into his deeper self.

Slowly,

Slowly,

He delved into a world of darkness. He was a tiny spark of light, sinking deeper and deeper into his innermost psyche.

A white glow was waiting at the bottom.

Meters-long chain was strewn around in the shape of a huge dome, and in the middle of it sat the white beast. It lifted its head upon sensing its Jinchuuriki coming near.

"Kid! You're really pushing your luck!"

A tremendous pressure emanated from the beast. It was the strength of its will, its desire for freedom that had been suppressed for hundreds of years.

Upon crashing on Yao Huang, however, that will was deflected just like that.

He had just reincarnated into this era. Whether it was physical or spiritual strength, his new body was definitely lacking compared to his old self, nevermind to this majestic spirit beast. However, his soul was still filled with the spirit of a thousands-year-old cultivator, who had faced the tribulations of Heaven again and again.

In terms of willpower, he could boast that he would rival even a true Deity!

"I want to live."

Yao Huang loudly declared.

"This is not the time for me to die yet."

This world was strange. Things greatly differed from what he had known for years. There was a high chance that the underworld wouldn't function the same way as before. He couldn't die just yet without investigating any further.

Moreover...

"Venerable spirit beast, tell me..."

There was only one reason to seal a benevolent spirit beast into someone's body: to control its power as a weapon. It was a tremendously malicious intent that went against the teaching of Dao. As a cultivator who had advocated for peace, he couldn't just turn a blind eye.

If possible, he wanted to, at the very least...

"...what do you desire?"

...to save this pitiful spirit beast, before anything else.

As if entranced, Kokuo's mouth parted, and its soft, sonorous voice rang out within Yao Huang's soul.

"...This One wants to see the forests."

Not just seeing it through this cage, but to walk among the trees with its own feet, and feel the fresh dew of the morning on its skin.

To once again taste the nectar called freedom.

Reaching out for the paper containing the seal, Yao Huang firmly addressed the beast,

"I shall do it. Your desire... I promise that I'll grant it to you."

With a thought, he ripped the paper apart.

The chain began to unwind, losing its rigidness. It could no longer contain Kokuo's tremendous chakra. With a loud crack, it burst open, flinging pieces of metal everywhere.

The world that was once dyed in black, was now filled with light.

As he opened his eyes, Yao Huang felt his body heating up. For once, he had thought that it would explode, but as soon as the thought appeared, it dissipated in an instant.

"Be grateful. If This One didn't control the surge chakra in time, your small body would've died just now."

Shining brighter than before, the Five-Tails Kokuo stood proudly in front of the kid.

Escaping by itself would have been the better choice. Taking over the kid's body after the seal was lifted would be ideal. That was what it had done before, and it would have done it again if only it was another Jinchuuriki.

However, this kid was different.

Something in the kid made the beast unable to abandon it just yet.

Perhaps, it was fine to wait for a little bit longer.

"Keep your promise. In the meantime... This One shall hold this tiny life of yours."

Just a little bit longer.