Deeper Mysteries Lie

The yellow sapphire trees reflected the sun's light intricately on a patch of grass. Their leaves were golden smooth, the texture of a leather jacket. The outline of the wide leaves was the shape of a spade. The Yellow shrubbery engulfed the white bark of the Yellow Sapphire trees.

They towered over the grass, which spread on a large scale. From an aerial view, the grass surrounded a large pool of water. The grove of sapphire trees distributed around the large pond shaded the grass from the desert heat. The Oasis was in the heart of the Sǐwáng desert.

Yung Fu looked up and stretched his hand toward the closest branch, seventy feet above the ground. As he did that, he closed his eyes, he took a deep breath, and sighed with pleasure, almost as if he had a connection with the trees.

"Eh, Yung Fu, what are you doing?" Pete inquired as he looked at Yung Fu from behind.

"Ssshhh," he gently shushed, waving his left forefinger behind.

Pete placed his hands on his hips and looked from behind. He spotted the Yellow Sapphire tree and marvelled at its features. He had never seen a tree quite so bizarre.

"These are the Yellow Sapphire trees, Peter. They are a rare species of plant life and scarcely found in four locations in the multiverse," Yung Fu began.

"Why are they so rare? What's special about them?" Peter inquired, as he looked up, and saw the fat, robust branches stretch out to the branches of the next tree. The pointy ends of each tree's branches interlaced, scarcely leaving space between them.

"Normally, the green pigment of the leaves of common trees absorbs the sun's energy. And we ingest that energy through the food we eat. This tree contains Sapphirephyll, the golden pigment found on the leaves. They absorb more light energy than common trees since they have adapted to surviving the hottest regions of the planet."

A yellow glow of energy seeped out from the leaves and descended toward Yung Fu's hands. Pete gaped his mouth open with astonishment.

"Woah," he marvelled as he watched the scintillating energy from the tree seep into Yung Fu's palm.

"Since the gold pigment stores excess solar energy, it gives us Utopian Warriors a great advantage on the battlefield."

Peter placed his finger under his chin and pondered, "In what way?"

"We Utopians have adaptable evolutionary cells in our skill cells. Depending on our habitual environment, we evolve physically faster than many biological sapients. For instance, when I was trained to be a Divine Guardian, my teacher often left me in an oasis full of sapphire trees. I faced starvation, feeling weak and helpless. My skin cells learnt to absorb the sapphire energy from the leaves, thus helping to renew my lost energy."

"So you're saying that you can absorb energy also from plants?" Pete inquired, his eyes as big as balloons.

"Not only that, but by absorbing the light energy from the leaves, it also enhances my strength, my stamina, my speed, and attacks quite more effectively,"

"That is severely cool," Peter answered. He rocked his fists with excitement.

"Observe," Yung Fu responded

Yung turned around and approached the desert. He looked ahead and saw a valley of mountains arching over the horizon. They appeared small from where they stood; they were 1000 feet tall. The Oasis that Yung Fu and Peter were on was nine miles from them.

Pete ran after him and stood behind him. He stretched his left hand, 'the hand' that did not absorb the energy from the Sapphire trees. He fired a red ki blast in the direction of the mountains. It soared with incredible speed, surpassing the top speed of an average car.

The energy beam eventually dissipated, only reaching halfway to the mountains.

Yung Fu then stretched his right hand, 'the hand' that absorbed the energy from the yellow trees. He emitted another ki blast, which dwarfed the previous one. After firing, he recoiled from the force and speed of the ki blast. His feet ploughed through the dirt as he pushed Pete from behind.

The ki blast soared with a speed equivalent to 500 miles per hour and reached the mountain in less than a few minutes.. A large explosion eruption, pulverizing several mountain ranges and slopes. Half of the mountain was blown away.

"Holy Smokes, that was cool as an ice cream pizza," Pete said, licking his lips. "Speak of pizza ice cream, I'm in the mood for a third dish."

Yung Fu turned around. "Fair warning, it may amplify your power level, but only for an hour."

"So what was the lesson of this exercise?" Pete asked.

"Since you're Utopian, I want your body to develop the cells to absorb the energy from Sapphire trees and other plants. Whenever you run out of stamina or are depleted of energy, you may find some plant life nearby to renew your strength."

"So will the green plants provide the same energy as the sapphire trees. They may, but not the same as the Sapphire trees. As I stated before, the sapphire trees absorb more sunlight energy than common trees or plants."

Pete nodded as Yung Fu touched his shoulder. "I theorise that learning to use the sapphire energy will enhance your performance in your Golden Phoenix form. You will be able to overcome the inability to retain the form for a prolonged period since it taxes your energy."

************

When nightfall descended, Yung Fu and Peter ventured into the streets of downtown Hong Kong.

As they strolled further, they looked up, admiring the scarlet-draped paper lanterns that hung above them. The lanterns garnished the streets with bright yellow hues, lighting the street ahead. Above the lining of lanterns, a series of signboards were affixed to each building. The writing on the boards was in Chinese font and illuminated by the LED lights. The LED lights emitted an array of colors. They varied from warm, bright colours to dark colors

The area was bustling with life, filled with people. They swarmed numerous market stalls.

"Do you smell that, Yung Fu, old buddy?" Pete said as he looked up and sniffed the waft. "It's called freedom, it's a good thing I talked you out of training and coming here. Otherwise, we'd be grinding ourselves to the bone in your dojo."

Yung Fu turned to look at him, "I only agreed to come with you because you begged me, since you had no one. Otherwise, I don't see the need to be here."

"So you're telling me you'd work yourself to death rather than take a break. That's insane. We flew to the Siwang desert early in the morning and back to Hong Kong for training in the afternoon. I don't know about you, but that's not a healthy way to live. Go out a little, buy some clothes or food," Pete gestured at the markets from both sides.

"I prefer to buy my food and clothes online, instead of waiting in queues for hours until you turn into a fossil."

Peter placed his arm on Yung Fu's right shoulder, "Queses aren't a death sentence, man. Look at me, I stood in line and waited at least three hours to get on a roller coaster at Dark Kingdom Park."

"You waited for that long. I'd pass. A ride experience equivalent to two minutes isn't worth my time." Yung Fu said as he turned to face the building on his right side and pushed the door to enter.

"Either way, there's no escaping queues. You'll come across one soon enough, even if you're one rich bastard."

Once they got inside the building, they entered the restaurant's premises. They approached the till and spotted a queue. Yung Fu gaped his mouth with bafflement; he could not comprehend the lengthy line that snaked to the till.

"This must be my unlucky day...." He began

Pete chuckled and patted him on the shoulder, "Would you look at that, I spoke sooner than later. Wait, that means I'm a prophet! Whatever I say will magically appear!" He clenched his right fist and shook it with excitement.

"That only happens in the movies, Peter," Yung Fu tutted.

"Say what you will, but don't say I didn't tell you so if I prophecy about something else."

As the two continued talking, an enthralling woman walked past them. The direction she came from implied that she had just bought her meal. After all, the package was in her left hand. She had black charcoal hair, and the shape of her eyes was molded with an epicanthic fold covering the inner corner of her eyes. Buried deep were her hazel colored eyelids.

Yung Fu cast his gaze at her; she returned the gaze. The two held a prolonged gaze with each other. Yung Fu then directed his eyes away from her to her right side, and beside her, she held onto a young child. Based on his short height and the look of innocence on his countenance, one would assume he was between seven and nine.

Suddenly, a plague of memories daunted Yung Fu.

*************

"You can't take my son away from me. He is all I have, Alexa!" Yung Fu bellowed with tears pouring from his eyes while his then-wife, Alexa, walked away with their son cradled in her left arm as she dragged the luggage with her left arm.

He ran after them, and when he caught up to them, he grabbed her arm, firming his grip.

"I won't allow you to take Damian from me!"

"Take your hand off me, Yung Fu!" She firmly said. A tear drizzled from her right eye. "If you don't, you'll never see your son again!"

He removed his hand from her arm, and she turned to face him. Her features were boiling red, it was a matter of time til her rage liquified her.

"Give me one good reason that we should stay here. I'm tired, Yung Fu, I've tolerated your antics far enough!"

"Give me one last chance, you and Damien are all I have. If it means destroying my legacy to have you, so be it."

Yung Fu stretched his hand in her direction and tried to caress her cheeks, she cocked her head away from his reach and said, "I gave you many chances and you still failed me. We tried counseling, we tried rehab, but still, you can't get over your addiction!"

As she continued speaking, a stinging sensation choked her throat. It represented the pain that she harbored, trying to become the glue of the family, yet still failing nonetheless. She felt as though she was confined by the eternal grasp of quicksand, with her head and hand reaching out.

"It's best that I leave you to overcome your demons..."

"You can't! We made a vow that we will stick with each other through sickness and health. Only death will separate us! So our vow means nothing to you?!" He snapped back at her.

"Our vow means everything to me! I'm not holding onto it if it comes at the cost of Damian's and my security." She shook her head in disagreement.

He stutttered, struggling to utter his sentence, "That...that... was a mistake... I didn't... I didn't... mean to cause you harm. I don't know what got into me."

"What about two months ago, when you slapped me that night for reprimanding you? You said that I shouldn't stick my nose into your business. I was worried sick for you! Damian had to watch all of that!" She snapped back.

He looked down in shame, unable to respond. She looked down at him as more tears welled in her eyes.

"I'm sorry, Yung Fu, this is for the best. You'll receive the divorce papers from my lawyer tomorrow." She turned around and walked away.

********

He glanced at the floor. He returned to reality from his memories; however, Alexa was nowhere in sight. As he scoured the restaurant, he saw her approach the door.

"Cover me," Yung Fu told Pete. He narrowed his right brow with bafflement while Yung Fu ran after Alexa.

"Alexa!" He shouted and opened the door.

"Alexa!" He shouted again while she pottered down the pavement. Luckily for him, she stopped dead in her tracks before she dispersed into a sea of humanity.

"Hey, Fu," she said calmly. She turned around to face him. This was the opportunity he had to see his son.

Yung Fu smiled when he saw him. The last time he saw him, he could not walk or speak. His heart drummed with joy.

"I'm good, and you, Alexa. My word, your ravishing," he began.

She smiled in response while he directed his gaze at Damian once more. "Wow, Damian, is this you?! You're all grown up!" He stretched his hands toward him and grabbed him by the rib cage. He hoisted him above; the boy cried with fear, as it was a novel and frightening experience being catapulted into the air.

He caught him and laughed with joy. He gently placed him on the ground. Damian hid behind his mother's skirt.

"He doesn't like that, you know. I guess he isn't as daring as his father," she said with a smile.

"You know me too well; I'm too brave for my good," he said, placing his arms on his hips.

"It's expected, you're a seasoned warrior from a distant world. Even you're physiology enables you to do extraordinary things. Things I could only dream of, and things that scare me."

His grin withered away like a flutter of petals blown by the wind. Her words dawned on him.

"We could make things right again. I'm ready to accept you guys," he said, his voice troubled with fear because of what her response would entail.

"No, you're not. You don't need us anymore, Fu. You fulfilled your dream, your legacy, by becoming the owner of the Tseng Martial Arts studio. You're well-known now, with many dojos under your name. You should be proud of yourself." She nodded with a smile.

"Even so, what is a man without his family?" Yung Fu replied.

"Yes, what is a man without his family. But what about my trauma? Trauma doesn't heal quickly like a wound. It brands you until you rot in the grave."

She looked at him for a while, her emotions running wild. She was fearful, in anguish, and also yearned for love. How she missed him, but she couldn't let herself into his care once more.

"It was nice seeing you, Fu. I'll see you around," she said, tucking the small strands of hair behind her ear, which roamed loosely around her forehead.

Pete came from the shop with two boxes of chow mein and advanced toward Yung Fu. When he stood by his side, Alexa had already left. He didn't see her entirely, but he did catch a glimpse of her before disappearing into the sea of humanity.

Pete touched Yung Fu's right shoulder and tutted, "So you left me hanging for a hun? I'll get back at you, you'll see."

Yung Fu shook his head, "It's rude to stick your nose in where it doesn't belong."

He scratched his hair from behind and chuckled, embarrassed by hastiness, "Heh-heh. Ah, c'mon man, lighten up. I was joking." He punched Yung Fu on the shoulder playfully. His teacher walked away regardless.

Pete arched his shoulders and hands in response. Words failed to utter from his mouth.

"....Are you gonna leave me here?!"