CHAPTER 9: The Mystic Art and the Blood Trace
As Rexy was walking home, he suddenly felt as if his heart had been grabbed by someone. When he turned around, it was Reimu — his hand outstretched, radiating a flaming aura. Rexy instantly knew that Reimu had grabbed his soul to pull him back, but out of confusion, he still asked,
"What are you doing?"
Reimu didn't answer immediately. He pulled Rexy beside him before finally replying, his voice filled with seriousness.
"…You are ready to learn the Mystic Art."
Rexy's eyes widened in surprise. The Mystic Art? He thought it took a long time to accomplish. Why now, when Kamikaze was still roaming free?
"But what about Kamikaze?"
Reimu smirked before replying with certainty.
"We have enough time to learn it."
Suddenly, dark black flames engulfed them both. They were violent, strong, melting everything beneath Reimu's feet. Yet strangely, neither Rexy nor Reimu burned. Instead, the world seemed to warp in their eyes.
When the smoke faded, Rexy looked around and found himself in a different place — a ruined temple, with floating pillars and rocks scattered everywhere. At the center of the temple stood a massive tree, its vines expanding endlessly across the floating island and beyond.
Confused and shocked, Rexy blurted out a stream of questions.
"Where are we? Why is this island floating? Why is that tree so big???"
Reimu let out a short chuckle before replying.
"The God's Garden. The place where I learned the Mystic Art. Back then, it was during war, but I'm sure I can teach you even if there's no constant threat or struggle."
Reimu's hand suddenly lit up with flames before he placed the fire onto Rexy's hand. This time, it was truly burning hot. Rexy yelped in pain.
"HOT HOT HOT, IT'S BURNING IT'S— not burning???"
Strangely, Rexy's hand wasn't burning at all. The sensation simply tricked him. Reimu calmly waved his flaming hand through the air. As it glided, the flames grew stronger until he spun his whole body, blasting the ground and creating a large crater. The flames then wrapped around his body like a living aura.
Awestruck, Rexy shouted,
"That is so amazing! Can you teach me how to do it???"
Reimu replied stoically, not giving even a single hint.
"Now try to replicate it. Don't worry — the first attempt will be ugly. That's common sense."
Rexy nodded and surfed his flaming hand through the air, only for his sleeve to catch fire. Annoyed, he hissed,
"It burned my clothes! If this keeps up, I might be naked when I come back!"
Reimu chuckled, then burned his own sleeves. This time, the flame turned white. The ashes floated back and reattached to the cloth, regaining their color as the flames disappeared. Rexy sighed in relief before trying again.
The second attempt was as bad as the first, but on the third, something unique happened. He managed to move his hand through the air, creating an intense flaming aura around him. However, no matter how hard he tried to release the flames in a blast like Reimu, they refused to fire.
"What's happening? Why isn't it shooting out?"
Reimu, equally confused, stepped closer and studied Rexy's hand with curiosity.
"…Interesting… I've never seen something like this before. It seems you can't eject energy out of your body. That means you can't learn the Mystic Art's Vortex Blast. But maybe… try using it with Chi?"
Rexy's face lit up with excitement, practically jumping.
"Does that mean I'm getting a better version of the Mystic Art???"
Reimu sighed, shaking his head in disbelief before replying.
"Maybe. But you'll have to learn it yourself. I can only give advice, since your ability isn't the same type as mine."
Rexy stopped stalling and closed his eyes, slowly emitting his Chi. Suddenly, the flames turned bright yellow and radiated a condensed golden aura around his hand. When he touched a nearby pillar, a huge golden shockwave burst out, covering the entire island. The pillar disintegrated in a violent explosion.
Rexy's excitement vanished the moment he saw his hand — crippled by the blast. He screamed, forgetting the pain.
"M-M-MY HAND?!?!?!"
Reimu, shocked by the sight, ran to him, facepalmed, and healed the wound with his flaming restoration.
"Chi overload, a classic sign. That's probably why the pillar exploded on contact. The ratio is off — usually it's fifty percent flame, fifty percent Chi. Yours is seventy-five percent Chi and twenty-five percent flame."
Rexy looked at the crater thoughtfully.
"No… Maybe, just maybe, that's how it's supposed to be."
Reimu sighed again, recognizing that this was Rexy's unique ability.
"Alright… I'll heal you whenever you get hurt. Just don't kill yourself by accident."
Rexy continued to practice. The golden aura reappeared, and this time he didn't strike anything. He watched as the aura slowly dimmed from bright gold to a faint glimmer. He punched a rock — instead of an explosion, a small air blast knocked a pillar over. He noted the result mentally and tried again.
Each attempt brought progress.
By his sixty-first attempt, it was nearly midnight. Rexy wound up his arm; instead of gold, his hand now radiated a crystal-like cyan aura. As he surfed it through the air, trails of energy followed. Then, with a push, he launched a straight shockwave that knocked over all the floating rocks in front of him.
"I DID IT! I HAVE MASTERED THE ABILITY, FINALLY!"
When he turned to check on Reimu, he found him asleep on the God's Tree — upside down, his leg dangling from a flaming rope.
Rexy went to Reimu's bag in search of food or water but froze when he found two sealed packs of blood. Curious and uneasy, he tried to ignore them, but curiosity eventually won. Holding one up, he woke Reimu by pressing it against his face.
"Why do you have this?"
Reimu blinked in confusion, stuttering,
"W-woah, where did you find that???"
Rexy frowned.
"Don't play dumb. I found it in your bag. Better give me a good explanation."
Reimu sighed and replied, somewhat awkwardly.
"I have an ability that costs blood. It's a blood manipulation technique — it lets me create and use blood as a weapon. And yes, it can be lethal if overused. That's why I always carry two packs, just in case."
Rexy's eyes sparkled in childish excitement.
"Can you teach me it pleaseee, pleaseeeee?"
Reimu stared at him, dumbfounded, before replying with concern.
"You want to learn to control blood? I can't understand how you don't find that disturbing — most people do."
But Rexy's pleading expression didn't fade.
Reimu sighed again and declined gently.
"No, it's too dangerous for you. Even I can barely handle it, and I'm a master. You shouldn't try it."
Rexy sighed in disappointment, then lay down on the shared futon and fell asleep. Reimu quietly placed the blood packs back in his bag and drifted off beside him.
The next morning, training went on as usual. But this time, Rexy trained indoors. For some reason, Reimu told him to stay inside. Rexy couldn't use his ability since it might damage the temple, so he focused on resisting flames and channeling Chi instead. Confused and annoyed, he asked,
"Why are we training indoors?"
Reimu glanced at him and replied with a soft smile.
"It's a long story, but right now, it's time to respect the dead a little."
"The dead?" Rexy asked, puzzled. "How is that related to staying indoors?"
Reimu's voice turned calm and nostalgic.
"This place once suffered a war between gods. We lost, and that's why the temple lies in ruins. Countless lives perished here. I almost joined them… You mentioning those blood packs reminded me of that time — when I was lighthearted, noble, and brave. When I willingly sacrificed my blood for my comrades…"
Rexy listened quietly, nodding with respect. He left Reimu sitting under the tree and returned to his meditation.
He concentrated his Chi and set it ablaze, meditating under the extreme heat. Curious, he opened his eyes to see what the world looked like through the veil of flame.
He froze. A transparent soldier stood on the field — a phantom-like figure, old and scarred, yet calm and composed. His military uniform still clung to him, decorated with dozens of medals.
Reimu stepped beside Rexy, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"That man is my commander and my mentor. He never revealed his real name, but we called him the Pallid Phantom. He moved so fast and silently that he seemed one with the wind. His attacks were devastating — so deadly he wore white gloves to avoid killing with the first strike. Every blow left a white mark behind, giving him his name."
Rexy was awestruck.
"Is he stronger than Epifanno? Or faster?"
Reimu laughed, loud and brief.
"Our commander wasn't a brawler or a speedster. He couldn't match Epifanno's strength, but when it came to martial arts, I doubt he'd go down without breaking most of your limbs."
Rexy nodded. The phantom smiled, looking at both of them with quiet warmth, before walking along the temple's edge as if on patrol, signaling Rexy to continue training.
Rexy closed his eyes again and resumed meditation. The wind began to move gently around them, unnatural yet rhythmic — clearly the Phantom's movement. As the sun set, the wind faded into stillness. Silence embraced the garden as night fell.
When Rexy opened his eyes again, the phantom stood beside the tree. Reimu looked at him, tears falling — tears of joy and remembrance. The man smiled, saluted, and faded away into the dusk.
Rexy frowned slightly. "Why did he leave?"
Reimu's voice cracked just a little.
"He always patrols and leaves at this hour. It's just… I miss him. I miss those days — the battles we fought, the pain we shared."
Rexy gently patted his back.
"It's okay. I'm sure he's proud of you — as a mentor and as a master."
Reimu wiped his tears and smiled faintly.
"Thanks, Rexy."
Rexy smiled back, raising a thumbs-up.
"So, ever think about getting back to that lighthearted side of you after such a reunion?"
Reimu's reply was soft but serious.
"Yeah. I'll try my best. Let's sleep early tonight."
Rexy agreed, then suddenly realized something and yelped,
"WHAT ABOUT DINNER???"
Reimu froze for a moment before chuckling awkwardly.
"I think I didn't bring any. Should we just go back to the normal world and grab a bite?"
Rexy grinned mischievously and slapped his back playfully.
"Ride o' teleporters!"
Reimu groaned, sighing in irritation before teleporting them away.