“Not strong?” Bear One said, a bemused expression on his face. “If he is not strong, you’re nothing more than a weak babe. I can tell it from the look in his eyes. He is not only strong; he’s useful.”
Cha Ming hesitated. He hadn’t considered joining a group. Then again, he was new to the Shattered Lands. Looking for the Gold Source Marrow would be difficult since he was unfamiliar with the area. “I think I’m better off on my own,” he said finally. “I mean no disrespect, but I’d just be a hindrance to your group.”
“See, boss?” Bear Three said. “He said it himself. He’s useless.”
“Oh?” Bear One said, smiling as he looked at Bear Three. “Is a smith useless when digging for metal? Is someone with earth affinity useless when digging through stone? He must have at least three affinities, if my guess is correct. And I sense other useful things about him. Something bestial almost.” He looked back to Cha Ming. “Perhaps you don’t see the benefit of going about with a group.”
“Perhaps,” Cha Ming said, a little concerned about how much the man could read about him. He’d spent much effort concealing his other elements, yet the man had already exposed his earth affinity. He’d done so without intruding on his soul, of that he was certain. Perhaps it was the man’s strange eyes, which seemed to look at something distant even when looking straight at him. “If men wander together, they’re more likely to fight over limited ore deposits.”
Bear One laughed lightly. “You say this because you are new. You don’t know the nature of these lands.”
“The nature of these lands?” Cha Ming asked. “Aren’t these lands where the Ji Kingdom hunts for ore and has done so for centuries? I find it hard to believe that there’s much undiscovered ore.”
“This ignorance is why you refuse me,” Bear One said. “The ores we seek aren’t here yet, but they will come. We wait here not because we are tired or lazy.” He looked back toward the wall. “Those behind us will get the dregs, leftovers from each shift. They will fight lesser demons, whose affinities drive them to harvest and consume fresh ore or unwary cultivators.”
He put a hand to his chest. “As for us, we will be fighting greater demons, doing our best to gather quickly and efficiently. Each of us has skills that make this easier. Our experience allows us to find better ore deposits faster. Now tell me, is it good to join us? Every member gets an equal share of the total harvest, including myself.”
Cha Ming considered for a while. He had no idea how ore appeared, but perhaps by accompanying them, he’d get a better idea. “All right. I’ll give it a try. I can’t make any promises, but I’ll work as hard as I can.” If he was going to spend a month out here, he might as well take risks and get rich while he was at it. This, he suspected, was the nature of the punishment. He could either waste his time near the wall with no privacy, no workshop, and no quiet, or he could put his life in danger doing hard labor. His time here could easily kill Pai Xiao if he wasn’t careful.
Cha Ming walked over and sat down beside the napping Bear Two and Bear Four. He summoned several flags and began to cultivate, purifying his already mostly clear core. He’d barely started circulating his qi when the land beneath him began to shake, and the men scrambled to their feet. Cha Ming stood up, stowing his flags as he looked around warily at falling boulders the size of buildings that crashed down on the land below, letting out deep, muffled booms as they did.
“Your presence brings us good luck, friend,” Bear One said, grinning. “Let us go.”
“But the earthquake,” Cha Ming protested.
“Now is the best time, or we will be late,” Bear One said. “Come, mysterious acquaintance. Let us see what you are capable off.”
Bear One ran off, pushing off the land that jutted up beneath his steps to propel himself forward. The others followed in their own way, executing whatever technique they were most familiar with to catch up. Sighing, Cha Ming shot forward into the nightmare of broken earth and falling stone.
Chapter 23: Fissures
Cha Ming dashed forward, propelling himself from a rocky outcropping and into the rain of crashing boulders. He didn’t know what he’d find by following the five bear brothers, but he knew one thing for certain: Wherever they went, he could follow. He flew between the rocks with inhuman speed, leaving a trail of rushing wind and rocks behind him. Sun Wukong’s training came in handy; the tumbling boulders were easy to sense, and he used his earth qi to repel some and push himself off others.
Bear One, who was closest to him, gave him an approving grin when he saw this. Then, to Cha Ming’s surprise, he did the same. No boulders dared strike wherever he passed. At first, Cha Ming thought it might be due to the sphere of earthen influence around the man, but he soon discovered that the way he dodged wasn’t simple. Judging by the perfect path the man took through the falling stones, it seemed like he’d mapped out a large area of falling debris and predicted its pathway. He moved not to avoid, but in anticipation of what would come.
Beside them, the other bear brothers used their own respective skills to dodge. Bear Three, like Cha Ming, was a smith. He used fiery movements to jump from stone to stone, summoning a massive blacksmith’s hammer to destroy incoming projectiles he couldn’t avoid. His wiry frame was disproportionately strong, and the grace in his movements told Cha Ming he used the hammer for fighting more than he did smithing.
The large Bear Five didn’t use metal nor fire. Instead, he used his massive, mountainous body to good
