01
My footsteps came up unwittingly. The armour is getting heavier, sweating and permeating from the pores, wondering how long I can run. The ropes on my leg have been loosed, and I have no intention of thinking about it.
The sun was like a drum of war, hanging far above the sky, staring at me with its red eyes, and lighting the whole yellow earth. It's the strange red I've never seen before.
As if the air were burning, the light before me was shaking, and the sky - a red curtain like a veil - seemed to collapse slowly. I'm getting hotter with the red.
There are large and small holes on the slopes, like trenches. Is there an army there? I lost my spear, and it was dragged on me, as if it were heavy. It's a shame, but it's not enough for me now.
02
How long has it been? I don't know. The Qin soldiers won?
The only memory left is clear: the warriors shouted in the drums of war, and the joy of victory ignited us. The battlefield is boiling. The sun has got me on top, and I'm with all of you, despite my fatigue. It's not easy. There's another one left. Although victory means little to me, I am nothing but a pawn, ecstasy can still be enjoyed - I survive and I see the sun tomorrow! Fortunately, another long gamble has come to fruition.
My life was made out of this war of chainsaws, and my life was at stake for the king's ambitions. That's exciting.
The general's back reflected an eye-opener than the sun, but I couldn't help but look at it with my eyes - pain, burning heart, tears coming out quickly.
And I would have closed my eyes: the light looked at me, and the shadow of the dark curtain appeared: thin and resilient, like a sword crossed, and threw the blade straight across.
In the immediate aftermath, the light suddenly turned in its direction, like an arrow of a spending bow, and turned straight towards me from the face. I felt like I had been hit by a heat wave inside my head, too late to open my eyes.
03
Wake up again and I'll lie here. I was alone on the empty yellow-earth plateau.
The red in the mountains is like a big noose: where is this? Why am I here? What about the battlefield? Where are the lords and the robes? Has the kingdom we have conquered become dust?
I struggled to stand up, but I felt like I was nailed. I can't stay where I am. I'm going west along the Yellow River, upstream: the direction of Qin.
The journey of yellow earth has begun. This torment of never-ending peace is far more painful than walking in battle.
The unbridled yellow earth is a circle fort engraved by Skysmiths. It's another one. The red plume of dirt, strange and dazzling, step under my feet, take a little deep.
I don't know how long I've been gone, and the sun behind me doesn't seem to have moved, it's still so high, so bright. Is it this long?
The heat has not faded.
It's as if I heard the whirlwind of the horse. It's strange, it's like it's coming out of the red sky, mixed with the red earth. I don't know. The horses, the soldiers, the swords, the swords, the helmets, the swordsmen running away, the wavers scrambling, scrambling at me and killing me, the bodies of the fallen are groaning... is it a tired illusion?..the voices are shaking, the red of the sun is dancing, my past memories are shattered - nothing can be picked up.
04
"The prairie are the descendants of tigers." A voice whispers into my mind. I looked around and there was no one.
"The prairie are the descendants of tigers."
"The prairie are the descendants of tigers."
It echoes on the highlands, and it spreads further and further.
When I shivered, I thought about my situation: where is Yellow River? Why can't you see it so far?
The water on my body was about to evaporate, and I stopped and decided to remove the armour, or I would never get out of here alive. There's a pile of slices piled up on the ground, like my old skin.
It's a little easier. I've got a hot wind in my shirt, and I feel like I'm free. I tried to stretch my arms, but my knees were soft and I fell forward. My hand fell straight on the ground, as if it had been sucked by a magnet.
Tiger claws.
A strong force came out of a red earth spray, into my limbs, and I was connected to it. Every muscle stretches in rebirth and becomes tough again. The red seas before us have rolled up and the world is getting lower. The details of the red soil appear large and clear, and I can see the fine particles of dust. I opened my mouth and, somehow, the power that made me sound like a long, long moaning - the whole yellow-earth slope echoes me.
I became a tiger. The front claws, the back legs, the grips were strong, the force was strong. This red wasteland is destined to burn with me. I ran up.
The Yellow River should be right up ahead. That's the west, the upstream direction.
"I'm watching."