"So… how powerful are these people from the Shattered Flame Sect that you are trying to get revenge on? Or is it all of them still. You weren't totally clear on that part" asked Kat
Xiang didn't say anything as he followed behind Kat. The silence hung in the air for a few minutes before Kat flicked her tail into a tree, making a loud thump and bringing Xiang back to reality. "Ah… well, truth be told that's actually a matter I haven't decided yet. You see, the Shattered Flame Sect is just as the name implies, shattered, or, more accurately it is made up of a few smaller clans"
"Truth be told… I don't actually know enough about their internal politics to know which branch attacked me" said Xiang
Kat groaned, not even trying to hide the sound from Xiang. She let out a long sigh along with the noise and glanced over her shoulder with the most disapproving look she could manage. "You swore revenge and summoned a demon without even knowing who it was against?" asked Kat
Xiang glared back "The guardian of the place insisted I could do it and he was right. I summoned you, didn't I? Plus, I can just take on them all, or rather, you can" said Xiang
Kat shook her head "Regardless of can or cannot, it's ridiculous to try and go into this with so little forethought. Tell me Xiang, is there a town in the area? Perhaps some village we can pass through and try to find information. If we can narrow down who is responsible, it saves us a lot of time, and potentially a number of innocents"
Xiang shrugged and said, "Is it so important? If you are capable of destroying their entire sect why not?"
Kat let out a long sigh. *This boy clearly knows nothing about politics.* "Well, even if we ignore the power vacuum destroying such a large sect, if it is as important as you seem to think, we still have the issue of revenge."
Xiang looked at Kat strangely as she continued on "Yes revenge, think about it, you are one boy from a rather small village who has sworn revenge against the Shattered Flame Sect. Imagine how many enemies that same boy would garner if you attacked the sect and destroyed it in turn?"
"Well we can just kill them all then it will be no problem" said Xiang with the same tone as someone stating they could just pick up the eggs next week when they went shopping.
Kat shoved as much energy as she could into her mind to let her deal with what she'd just heard without reacting too much. *What the hell!* Kat let out an internal screech, screaming into the mental void to try and relieve some of her anger. *How can a child even say that. I… even if he isn't quite as young as I think of him in my head, Xiang cannot be much older than me if I'm very generous.*
*So that means there is a, at the very most, twenty-year-old trying to tell me that killing is ok. And not just one person, or maybe a group of people directly responsible no, he wants to kill them and anyone that might want revenge for them. Plus, he's still half convinced we need to go after the entire organisation… what the hell do I say to him?*
Kat let her perception of time keep her suspended as she ran through a number of options as to what to say. She didn't want to shut him down too hard because she did need to change his mind, and a kid like Xiang would just dig in his heels if he thought she was ignoring him. Eventually, she settled on a bit of a gamble.
"So, Xiang, I'd like you to consider something" said Kat, glancing back to see Xiang's nod. "Are you always in your village, or clan compound or whatever?"
"Of course not" said Xiang
Kat nodded "Yes, yes entirely reasonable… now, IF your plan was to kill everyone, you'd need to make sure everyone was in the compound when you did it. You've already admitted a smaller clan like your own has at least a few people out at any given time. Imagine how many would be exploring in the entire Shattered Flame Sect"
Xiang hmmmed, before saying "Yes I can see that becoming a problem. I had not considered that. What do you propose demon?"
"My name is Kat, by the way. And I propose that you do it all as stealthily as possible. Maybe have only me do it if possible. As long as nobody knows you were the one to take revenge you and your clan should be completely safe from any sort of retaliation" said Kat.
*And, if I'm the one who has to go in, I can make sure that whatever I do isn't nearly as bad as Xiang off the leash. I can destroy a bunch of things, maybe burn some crops and I can say "I burnt the crops" or some such without it being a lie.*
"No" said Xiang firmly.
Kat let out a long sigh. *Why! It was so easy! Even if I couldn't manage to do it all myself, convincing him to go stealthy would let me limit the damage somewhat. It's perfect, and even sounds reasonable.* "Why do you find that objectionable?" asked Kat
��I need them to know who is responsible for their suffering. Even if it is as they die" said Xiang.
*So morbid kid. I thought I was talking you out of the whole genocide thing. Nobody is cool with genocide. You just don't do it.* "Why?" said Kat genuinely confused.
"Clearly a demon doesn't understand anything about face" said Xiang
"Face? No I don't. Like, I have no idea what you are talking about in the slightest" said Kat as she sliced through a tree branch that had fallen over the path and kicking the pieces away clear the path afterwards.
Xiang clicked his tongue. "That was the expected answer and yet I cannot help but find myself disappointed in your species"
*Suddenly it's my whole species under attack huh? I find myself liking Xiang less and less. I wonder if everyone in this place is crazy. Hey, and he didn't answer me about finding a nearby village either.*
"To have no concept of face is a shameful thing" continued Xiang clearly not noticing Kat's discomfort, despite the fact she was knowing slicing any foliage that crossed her path rather than just brushing it aside. Xiang wasn't taking the hint. "To have no concept of face is to have no honour. To have no honour is to fail as a cultivator. You must have a creed, and it is only right to follow that creed even if death would stand in your way"
"So you have a something against being stealthy?" asked Kat
"Well… er no, I mean… not especially" said Xiang suddenly put on the back foot.
"Then why do they need to know?" asked Kat
"Because!" said Xiang "They marched into my village as if they owned the place, thus the only way to pay them back is to do the same. March into their village and let none stop me"
"Well I'm going to stop you right there" said Kat "Regardless of if I can fight an entire sect on my own. I certainly can't fight an entire sect and protect you at the same time. So how would you propose I manage both of those things? Surely you didn't want to die for your revenge?"
Xiang bit her lip and said "If that's what it takes?"
Kat sighed. "Have you never heard the say- proverb 'The best revenge is to live a fulfilling life'?" asked Kat
Xiang scoffed "How is that any kind of revenge? Such a cowardly way of thinking about the future. If you must die in the pursuit of glory and honour so be it"
Kat blinked tiredly. *You know. I thought knightly honour was an outdated concept when I heard about it. Now I realise, that those guys were at least more intelligent than the people in this dimension. I mean seriously, is fight all they do? Is that it? Have they been taught that the only answer to a problem is punching it?*
Recognising that she wasn't getting anywhere with trying to talk Xiang down at this time Kat decided to ask about nearby villages again. "So, is there a village or town nearby, somewhere we can get information?"
"Oh, I have no idea" said Xiang.
Kat stopped and looked at Xiang horrified.
"I mean… there is a road if we keep going? And I'm sure we'll find a town or something if we follow it long enough?" said Xiang as if it was a question.
*Note to self, never get into debt again.. The inability to just not do a stupid contract is a much larger punishment than it seems.*