Fu made it to the back door of the Thousand Buddhas hall only a few strides behind the others. He knew what Long was thinking—they would cut through the hall on their way to the main gate. But when Long thrust the door open, burning air rushed out to greet them like a kiss from a dragon. Long jumped back, and Fu heard mortar cracking and bricks exploding inside from the tremendous heat. They would have to take the long way around.
Fu shook his head. He knew they should have gone the other way!
With Long in the lead, they ran once more. They raced along paths of bloodstained bricks, and Fu saw the dining hall, the toilets, the bathhouse, and the library—all burning.
Fu was surprised when they made it through the maze of buildings without encountering any soldiers. He was even more surprised when Long stopped ahead of him at the main gate. The others were stopped, too.
Beyond the gate lay a grassy moonlit area that separated the walls of the compound from a distant tree line, which was the beginning of a great, mountainous forest. Fu knew this grassy “moat” was kept treeless and well trimmed so that an enemy attacking Cangzhen would have nowhere to hide.
Fu caught up with the group. “What are you doing?” he asked Long, panting heavily. “Why did you stop?”
“There may be soldiers positioned in the tree line,” Long replied. “They could shoot us with arrows as we run across the open space, or they could wait and attack us as soon as we reach the trees.”
“So?” Malao said. “There are probably soldiers still here on the temple grounds. What else can we do?”
“Malao's right,” said Seh. “We have to take our chances over the grass, and then in the forest.”
“What does everyone else think?” Long asked the group.
“We should run for the trees,” Hok said softly. “And then separate as Grandmaster wished.”
“Brother Fu?” Long said.
“I think we should stay and fight!” Fu replied. “If we—”
“Sorry, Fu,” Long interrupted. “Fighting is not an option.”
“Fighting back is an option!” Fu roared.
“Keep your voice down, Fu!” Seh said. He turned toward Long. “Malao, Hok, and I say we should run for the trees. Three is a majority vote. That means we run.”
“And then separate,” Hok added quietly.
“Then it is decided,” Long said, nodding his head. “We must make haste. Goodbye, brothers. We shall meet again.”
Without another word, Long turned and ran like the wind across the open expanse. The others raced after him. Pumped full of adrenaline, they reached the tree line at more or less the same time. There were no soldiers there.
Without looking back, Malao, the “monkey,” let out a soft, high-pitched screech and took to the treetops. He was gone in the blink of an eye. Seh, the “snake,” slipped away through a patch of ferns, low to the ground. Hok, the “crane,” glided off into the wind, while Long, the “dragon,” seemed to disappear, like the mythical creatures were rumored to do.
Fu, the “tiger,” turned to run headlong into the forest, but his feet would not listen. It seemed they were connected to his heart, which was determined to stay and do something.
Fu spotted an enormous tree at the edge of the grassy expanse and clawed his way up as high as his weight would allow. Then he went out on a limb to evaluate the situation.
Back inside the smoke-filled practice hall, student and master stood toe to toe in a fight to the death. Though Ying was covered with battle stains, he had actually fought very little that night. He was young, rested, and extremely quick and strong. Grandmaster was unbelievably quick as well and normally had the strength of ten men. Tonight he alone had fought and defeated more than one hundred soldiers before sneaking back into the practice hall. But the fighting had taken its toll. Grandmaster was weak. He had no secret potions or ancient methods to regain his strength in the blink of an eye. Those things did not exist. He was just a man who had worked very hard and learned many skills in his lifetime.
Ying popped his knuckles one at a time.
“You know the real reason I've returned, don't you, old man?” Ying spat.
“From the look in your eyes, I can tell,” Grandmaster replied.
“I hate you!”
“I know.”
Fu lay on his stomach, his arms and legs wrapped tightly around a thick tree limb. He stared down at the Cangzhen compound. Every single building was burning. Fu strained his keen eyes, searching for movement in the smoky moonlight.
Way back in the far-left corner of the compound, small groups of soldiers walked from the weapons shed to the sleeping quarters. That's where they are, Fu thought. But what are they up to? There were weapons to steal in the shed, but there certainly wasn't anything worth taking in the sleeping quarters.