THE FRICTION FORCE

Zhao YunLan almost kiss his lover to comfort the man when a helicopter's voice echoed nearby, forcing the doves to delay their romance. Welcome Shen YongZheng and Zhao XinChi who get down from the helicopter, Shen Wei reports the situation.

'That's meant everything the man chases is the two chambers. What I never realize is that my sons are the myth's guardians...' Shen YongZheng sighed, he struggled to hide his anger. 'It seems like that was the reason for them to forced YeZun to use his power...'

'Do you have to blame yourself for that? Nobody sees this coming...' Zhao XinChi tries to calm his friend, 'The most important thing is to find where he brings YeZun...'

'Even though we find him, I'm afraid that YeZun is refuse to come with us...' Shen Wei lowered his gaze.

'Why so?' Shen YongZheng stares at his son. Shen Wei keeps lowering his head when he tells the story. 'You said what!?' Shen YongZheng almost shouted, 'How could you decide something important without thinking about the consequence!?'

'I'm ignorant, I deserve the punishment.' Shen Wei fell on his knees not even trying to find an excuse.

'Do you think if I punish you I can have my son back?' Shen YongZheng does not lower his voice, 'To find YeZun and bring him back at all cost that is your punishment!' He points a finger to his eldest son.

'Yes...' Shen Wei replied.

Zhao YunLan's heart squeezed but he can't either say something to defend his lover or blame YeZun for the decision the man has made. Zhao XinChi pats his best friend's shoulder to remind the man of his surroundings. 'Let's see Xiao Guo and Commander Chu...' He said.

'Mhm...' Zhao YunLan nodded. He helps his lover to stand up and they walk to the people who tend their wounds on another side.

'Do you need to be that harsh? It's not like everything is Shen Wei's fault...'

'Of course, I know...' Shen YongZheng replied to his best friend, 'But if I dont do that he will punish himself crueler than just let himself be scolded...'

'I see. It's not easy to be a father...' Zhao XinChi sighs, 'They are lucky to never be one...' He glances at his son who walks side by side with Shen Wei.

'What makes you so sure? With the help of the technology, it won't be impossible for Zhao YunLan to be pregnant...'

'Eh, why my son?'

'Judging from the character my son will never be the one who gets pregnant...'

Zhao XinChi lowers his gaze as he thinks, 'You right...' He sighed.

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'Chu...Chu Ge...' Guo ChangCheng keeps following Chu ShuZhi everywhere, 'I told you that I'm sorry...'

'Are you alright?' Chu ShuZhi asked his younger brother, not even sparing a glance to Guo ChangCheng. Chu NianZhi has no time to reply as his elder brother tending his wound seriously which the man was already had.

'Ge...'

'Just tell me which part is hurt!' Chu ShuZhi cuts his younger brother.

'Ge...'

'Here...Let me wrap the wound first...' Chu ShuZhi takes the bandage himself even though Guo ChangCheng already passed him a bandage.

'Ge!' Chu NianZhi shouted.

'What? Am I hurt you?'

'Not yet but soon you will...' Chu NianZhi irritatedly replied.

Chu ShuZhi halted for a moment, look at his brother, and just realized his mistakes. He has been wrapping Chu NianZhi's wound so many times that makes his brother's wounded arm looks like a broken hand. 'Sorry...'

Chu NianZhi sighs, 'Why don't you finish what you should finish? I will take care of my wound on my own...' He said when Chu ShuZhi was about to undo the bandage.

'How could you do that your own?' Chu ShuZhi called his brother. 'Hey, NianZhi!'

'Ge, everything will be better if you both are willing to speak about it. Trust me, I and YeXin already passed this phase so many times.' Chu NianZhi said before he strode away.

'Chu Ge...' Guo ChangCheng steals a glance timidly.

'What!?' Chu ShuZhi keeps ignoring the young man, cleaning up the medication supplies scattered.

'I told you that I'm sorry...'

'Are you mean it?'

'I do...'

'Then tell me! What did you do wrong?' Chu ShuZhi crosses his arms.

'I...I...I didn't keep my promise...'

'Do you think I will be this angry with you simply because you didn't keep your words!?' Chu ShuZhi rumbled, surprising everyone who stay around them.

'But...'

'No, but! How many times should I tell you that everything needs to be planned before the execution!?' Chu ShuZhi cuts the poor young man's words.

'Alright...Alright...' Zhao YunLan meddled, 'Hey, Lao Chu. You know that our Xiao Guo is not bright. Why should you shout at him like that?' He turns to Guo ChangCheng, 'So, Xiao Guo. Can you tell me what was going on here? Why did you say that the monument shouldn't be destroyed?'

'It was what the demon-beasts told me.' Guo ChangCheng answered.

Listen to the reply, everyone looks at each other. 'Do you know what it means?' Zhao XinChi asked. Everyone glances at him confusedly as nobody knows who he talked with.

'Yes, I do.' Another voice was heard from Zhao XinChi's mouth as golden shade shone in his eyes. The man strides to Guo ChangCheng and pulls his necklace. Everyone is not finished with their stun when Zhao XinChi walks to the monument and puts the necklace pendant into a slot in its center. Soon, the engravements in the pendant merge with the engravement in the monument as if both were chiseled as one piece. The stun turns into astonishment when a red light shines from the pendant runs along the engravements to the whole part of the monument. And then, blinding flash flares brightly.

'What...What happened?' Zhao YunLan is the first who is sober enough to ask.

'Greetings, humans.' The bear-like demon beast greeted them.

Zhao YunLan frowned, 'What? Why can I hear you?'

'When the sorcerer stone is placed on the monument, it transmits the power to all of us.' The bat-like demon beast explained.

'Sorcerer stone?' Shen Wei was confused.

'Yes, Lord Black Cloak.' Zhang Shi replied, 'I told you once that the first map was entrusted to the demon-beasts, the second map is among the four perils and the keys are kept by the auspicious beasts. To talk to them, the Lord of Du Huang mountain created this stone then left the stone to a trustworthy HaiXing man. Your ancestor.' He glanced at Guo ChangCheng.

'Then can you tell us what was happened in this place?' Shen Wei asked again.

'From the very beginning.' Zhao YunLan added.

'Lord of Du Huang mountain created this oasis, gathered us the demon-beasts, and gave this place to us so that we and humans could live in peace in our own world. He built the monument inside the cave and commanded us to guard the monument at all costs. Nobody may touch the monument but the gatekeeper. And the one who will link us with the gatekeeper is the translator. It's you, the necklace bearer...' A demon-beast explained.

'But those men somehow can find this place.' Another demon-beast adds, 'He came with special-powered humans and attacked us. They rebuilt this cave, locked us inside, and used many of us in their experiments.'

Listen to the story, everyone lowered their head. They could imagine what kind of hell the creatures had to deal with. 'The jewel is gone. It seems that the Gatekeeper is on their side now.' One of the demon-beast scrutiny the monument.

'If that happens then HaiXing is in great danger.' Zhang Shi lowered his gaze.

'The second map, where is the location?' Shen Wei clenched his fists.

'Only the map bearer who knows where it is.' Zhang Shi replied.

'Then we should find YeZun...' Shen Wei muttered.

Zhao XinChi takes the stone back from the monument and gives the necklace back to Guo ChangCheng, 'Keep it well. Our journey starts now.'

'Yes.' The younger replied.

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'Xiao Guo, how can you get inside the cave? I saw many surveillance cameras there on the site.' Zhu Hong's noisy self returned soon after they reach the headquarters. Everyone gathered in the main hall sitting together around the wide table. Chu ShuZhi sits at the working desk. It seems he is still upset with Guo ChangCheng.

'I got some help from the lizards.' Guo ChangCheng replied to Zhu Hong but his eyes glanced at Chu ShuZhi who keep ignoring him.

'Lizards!?' Zhu Hong is surprised.

'Mhm, they open told me when Professor Ouyang left and help me to cover the surveillance cameras.' Guo ChangCheng replied timidly, 'I think about everything. I was not reckless.'

'If they helped you that much then what made you get caught?' Da Qing is curious.

'Someone called me.' Guo ChangCheng lowered his gaze. 'I forgot to turn the ringtone off.'

Listen to the reply everyone is stunned, glance at each other. Even though it was not laughable but this time they can't hold their snort as they glance at the upset man. Chu ShuZhi's face in another hand is softer when he realized that he was the cause of Guo ChangCheng's difficulty.

'Then, Lao Zhao, I still don't understand one thing.' Da Qing changed the subject, 'If Ma TiHua is a normal HaiXing, how did he control those people's minds?'

'He lives over centuries. To manipulate everyone around him, he took many different professions.' Shen Wei who keeps silent finally lifts his voice, 'hypnotherapist is one of those...'

'Hypnotherapist? It means he knows how to hypnotize people.' Zhu Hong is shocked.

'That's why it's different from mind control ability who only could influence several people at a certain distance. He could put suggestions inside someone's mind and walks away as if nothing happens while that person keeps doing what they suggested without even realizing it.' Lin Jing who kept thinking finally conclude.

'Not just someone.' Zhao YunLan sighs, 'The guards in Zhang JiKeng's jail and the people who almost committed mass suicide.'

'Now, everything makes sense.' Shen Wei messaging his nose bridge.

'Geez! Why don't we realize that earlier?' Sang Zan sounds annoyed.

'That's because in our mind HaiXing people are harmless. If there is a crime, we automatically think that DiXing men or yashou tribes are the culprits. We never consider the powerless HaiXing men as the suspect.' Shen Wei sighs, realizing every mistake he did.

'Director, do you think Professor Shen is under his influence?' Chu ShuZhi finally said something.

'I don't know. YeZun is currently not in his right mind. Ma TiHua could have manipulated him.' Shen Wei takes a deep breath. Zhao YunLan intertwines their fingers secretly to calm his upset lover.

'Then we should find him before he is dragged into a crime he doesn't realize.' Wang Zheng gulps, 'he will suffer deeply if he does.'

'But how can we persuade him?' Shen Wei seems lost. 'He does not even consider our parents.'

'We could...' Wang Zheng can't finish her words as Zhao YunLan codes her to be quiet. Everyone turns their head in the direction of Zhao YunLan's sight and they could find Zhao MingAn entering the hall. The young man looks so miserable.

'Ah Ming.' Zhao YunLan strides to get his younger brother. 'What happened?'

'What should I do, Ge?' Zhao MingAn returned the question. 'When I heard how Professor Shen hurt you in your past I was snapped. I'm angry but I'm also sad. I do everything to forget about him but I can't.' He looks at his brother with broken eyes, the young man seems defeated. 'I love him too much to hate him. What should I do, Ge? What should I do?' He cried in Zhao YunLan's hug.

'What should you do? Of course, you have to keep loving him as you should be.' Zhao YunLan replied to everyone's shock.

'Even though he did something horrible to you? You don't mind I keep loving him?' Zhao MingAn asked in the middle of his sniffle.

'Stupid!' Zhao YunLan smacked the head of the young man who keep crying in his hug softly, 'YeZun who hurt me died already. Your YeZun is not that YeZun.' He smiled.

Zhao MingAn tightening his hug, 'Thank you, Ge. Thank you.' He muttered. Zhao YunLan glances at his lover, he could see that the man looks so relieved. It seems that Shen Wei is also intimidated by the idea of him hating YeZun. And when Zhao YunLan smiles, Shen Wei smiles too. No words were mentioned but they understand each other.

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Shen YeZun wakes up in an unfamiliar bed, in an unknown place. 'You awake?' Ma TiHua's voice startled him.

'Yes.' YeZun answered.

'You fell asleep in the car, I can't bring myself to wake you up. So, I carried you inside.' Ma TiHua chuckled at Shen YeZun's embarrassment.

'I'm sorry to bother you.' YeZun lowered his gaze.

'Do you need to be that polite?' Ma TiHua laughed, stretching his hand to touch YeZun's head but the nervous YeZun flinch. The situation is getting awkward for a moment. 'Where am I?' He looks around, trying to mend the awkwardness.

'In my secret hideout. Nobody will find us here.' Ma TiHua sits beside YeZun, offers him a drink. Shen YeZun welcomes the offer, sipping the water slowly.

'It's still midnight. You better back to sleep.' Ma TiHua pats YeZun's shoulder.

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'Brought him to this place, are you out of your mind?' Liu AnHe's voice welcomed Ma TiHua when he closed YeZun's room.

'This is the only one way for me to watch him closer.'

'The only one way, my *ss!' Liu AnHe almost shout. 'I'm not blind! I can see that you are infatuated with him.'

'No, I'm not.' Ma TiHua smiles, 'It just as he already here, why don't I let myself indulge in the pleasure?'

'Like he will let you do that?' Liu AnHe snorted.

'Then, AnHe. Why don't you give me a little hand?'

'What is it?'

'Get rid of Zhao MingAn.'

'But what for?'

'To make sure that YeZun is truly mine.' Ma TiHua said as he walks away.

The friction force is the opposing force that's created by two surfaces to create resistance to the motion of one surface over the other surface. Everything in the universe always creates a balance. There is bright, there is dark. There is the day, there is night, every system has its contra system. Just like good and evil...

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Picture credit to dreamstime.com