A gentle breeze.
A gentle breeze was all it took to wake up the seemingly dead young man. He made no noise as he rose from the soft, green grass he was resting on previously.
In a daze the youth looked around, trying to make sense of what was happening. He felt shivers crawl down his spine as he observed his surroundings.
"Déjà vu...? Wait, what?"
The young man let out a small chuckle as he started trying to make sense of everything. Jia Junjie, at least that was what he believed his name was, calibrated himself for a moment and looked to his right, and he was greeted by the sight of a calm pond. This tranquil pond looked like it hadn't been disturbed for a long time.
Moving his attention to his left, he saw a verdant green plain, and a bit further beyond was a tall bamboo forest. Behind him was a very tall, jagged mountain, and it extended as far as the eye could see, but not before spreading out into a chain of mountains. In front of him was essentially the same thing; the mountains even seemed to link up behind the pond. Unfortunately the pond seemed to be situated on the edge of the cliff he was currently on. So he couldn't walk past it and investigate.
Notably, the air quality was magnificent; one could even go as far as to say that it was heavenly. Even if Jia Junjie couldn't recall anything at the moment, he was certain this air was the best he had ever had the pleasure of breathing in. But it wasn't just because it was clean but also because it was incredibly invigorating!
After taking a moment to appreciate the art that was the sky and the blessing of clean, fresh air, Jia Junjie thought to himself,
'Sitting here all day isn't exactly going to accomplish anything. I should at least survey my surroundings.'
He slowly stood up and dusted off the plain black hanfu he was wearing. He decided to start by investigating the eerily calm pond and hopefully find a hint of his whereabouts and maybe even who he was; as stupid as it sounded to have such grand expectations from a pond, it was his only hope at the moment.
With a clumsy gait from the stiffness in his legs, he slowly approached the pond and only stopped when he was looking into his reflection. There, he got his first real look at his face, and my oh my! He was a stunner if he had to say so himself, of course. His face was delicate, and yet his jawbone was refined, finding a perfect harmony between stoic and charming. He had long black hair that was tied up into the classic half-up, half-down style, which was very fashionable, by the way.
But other than getting the opportunity to gaze upon his own divine beauty, there were not many real options. Jia Junjie headed towards the tall bamboo forest. In the midst of his stroll on the grassy plain, the breeze that had awakened him before hit his face once again. But this time its aroma, which had gone unnoticed before, became overwhelming.
'Meat...mmm'
As any good man, Junjie absolutely adored food, so when he felt that wind hit his face, it was like a divine entity had blessed his nostrils. And by some stroke of luck the scent was coming from the bamboo forest, encouraging him to venture inside.
"What decent man would refuse a meal when it is so plainly presented to him?"
Letting out another chuckle, the young man quickened his pace, arriving at the bamboo forest a short while later. Standing on the threshold of the forest, Junjie stood still for a moment. He felt a force tempting him to enter the forest, one that was intangible yet undeniably real. The feeling only lasted a moment, however, before it disappeared from his mind entirely. Clearing his mind and steeling himself, Jia Junjie entered the bamboo forest.
---
'Heavens, I must have been walking for at least half an hour now. I am so indescribably bored of this, and even worse… I probably couldn't find my way out now even if I desperately wanted to!' He definitely could because he had walked in one giant loop, but he didn't know that.
Suffice to say, he wasn't very happy with his current circumstances.
The forest was rather plain with nothing but the detestable green stalk for as far as one could care to venture, but he did eventually find something of interest. There was a small dirt trail that on its own wasn't remarkable, but when surrounded by nothing but the same for a number of kilometres, it became an outstanding landmark.
'This is it! My salvation has arrived!'
The dirt trail was a promise to him that something lay at either end of its long, winding body. After an excruciatingly, mind-numbingly boring walk, he had finally found something.
'Now left or right, huh???? Well, you know how the saying goes, Right is always right!' He said before happily walking right. More things to entertain him had soon shown themselves too. Such as small shrubbery or little forest critters, which he could silently admire from a distance.
There was something strange, though. The deeper into the forest he went, the more his nose soured at the rapidly decreasing air quality. When he first began his little stroll, it wasn't very noticeable, but as time went on, it became harder and harder to breathe, and each breath became more unpleasant.
Regardless, after a short ten-minute walk, something crazy happened. The path, which, up until now, he had taken for granted, abruptly ended! This was outrageous; there wasn't even anything at the end, just more bamboo! To say he felt taken advantage of and betrayed was an understatement.
However, just as he began losing hope and moping about any longer, the wind that had awoken him originally smacked him in the face once again.
'It's just a bit further beyond; I can practically taste it!'
Resolving himself yet again, he ventured into the sea of bamboo with a determined expression. Finally, after a grand total of 45 minutes, Junjie found the source of the increasingly more appetising smell.
The origin was a humble cottage made of dark oak. Its craftsmanship was admirable, and the labour and love put into building could still be seen through small nicks and missed spots that hadn't been sanded properly.
And standing in front of this building was a young woman. She appeared to be about 15 years old with striking golden eyes and black hair that flowed down her back like a waterfall, not dissimilar to his own hair. She was currently practicing with her sword but all of a sudden stopped, turned around, and glared at him.
Noticing the strange young man that gazed at her from the forest, the young woman stared back at him with caution. Although initially startled, she decided to face this hooligan head-on, should he be a threat. It was then that she prepared to yell...