Outsider

Old Wu got up the next morning. He slowly crawled out of bed, dressed, and walked to his wine vat. There were several wine vats in the corner of the dimly lit room, all filled with his treasures. The intoxicating aroma made him want to take a few sips immediately. Of course, the self-control unique to Pandaren reminded him that he was still injured, and drinking alcohol would not help his wounds heal. He considered it carefully.

"I was just smelling it," he said, then brought the spoon to his nose again and downed it in a flash. Afterward, he looked around nervously, as if he had been caught doing something wrong.

Walking past the stone fireplace set up in the wall opposite the house, Old Wu reached for the broom he usually used to sweep the Zen temple. The familiar, cold feel of the broom was very comfortable in his hand.

He hadn't brought a weapon when he entered the Red Candle Forest last time, and he wouldn't make the same mistake again. But he hoped he wouldn't need it. He tucked the broom under his arm and quietly pushed open the door. It was still dark, and he was trying to minimize the noise of opening the door to avoid alerting anyone else.

When Old Wu reached the exit, he prepared to push open the heavy courtyard gate, but then he groaned in pain. The wound on his back still ached. Opening the heavy gate was simply too difficult for him.

"Can you tell me what you're doing?" A suspicious voice came from his left rear. Old Wu, panting heavily, removed his hand from the door and turned to face the person who had discovered him. It wasn't Shang Long, but the most respected person in Temple of the Jade Serpent.

"Elder Yunpu," Old Wu bowed in greeting. "What are you doing here?"

"Few people in Temple of the Jade Serpent know my habit. Every day before dawn, I come to the Twin Dragon Shrine to meditate for an hour." Yunpu, dressed in a long blue robe, slowly walked over. His face was resolute and etched with concern. "Lin said your injuries will take some time to heal. Why are you leaving the temple again? Are you going to Red Candle Forest again?"

"I'm going to investigate that woodland. I feel there's more to my injury than meets the eye; I definitely didn't come back on my own. Someone must have saved me, and I'm going to find them and thank them in person," Old Wu said directly.

Yunpu nodded. "Alright. Then I'll go with you."

"I don't want to come with you. I have to do this myself, Elder," Old Wu said. His voice was firm, but Yunpu's concern was even more obvious.

"Why are you doing this, Old Wu? What secrets are you still hiding?"

Old Wu interrupted him. "I have nothing to hide. You know me. But this time I only want to go by myself. And I promise you I won't encounter any more danger." With that, Old Wu gritted his teeth and pushed open the door forcefully.

A vague unease crept into Yunpu's heart as he watched the gardener speed away and disappear into the distance. He felt that Old Wu hadn't told him everything.

Finding the place where he had encountered danger that day wasn't as simple as Old Wu had initially thought. He spent an hour winding his way along the forest paths. The morning mist still clung tightly to the earth, spreading and meandering along the winding trails. However, he was gradually able to discern the outlines of some scenes he remembered seeing. As he approached, he became increasingly cautious, relying on his hearing and smell to detect any signs of danger. Considering the presence of tigers in the Red Candle Forest, and the fact that he had no companions around to help him, he was particularly cautious.

He needed to be more cautious, he thought.

After all, those wild beasts rarely roamed alone. But his intuition told him he had nothing to fear. His savior was in the Red Candle Forest. Caution was cast aside, and Old Wu boldly continued forward, reaching the place where he had fainted that day. Looking down, he saw that the surrounding vegetation was withered. The area wasn't very large. He desperately wanted to know what had happened. He looked around for signs of a struggle. He found nothing.

A deep, rumbling sound from its throat caught his attention. He turned and saw a tiger sitting on a large rock. The creature was calm and composed, but its eyes were fixed on Old Wu. Old Wu also thought the beast was cautious.

The Pandaren quickly held his broom in front of him; with a weapon, he felt much more at ease than before. The beast braced itself on its four limbs, looking down at its prey as if preparing to pounce. Old Wu nervously took a step back.

But suddenly, as if it had seen something, the tiger shuddered. It panicked, shrank back, jumped off the rock, and fled as fast as it could.

When he saw this, Old Wu thought to himself with amusement: It really is a big cat.

But he soon realized that he might have made a grave mistake regarding the beast's strange behavior. The creature was running because it sensed a threat; something it feared was right behind it.

He turned around to see what it was.

A figure he couldn't describe in a second stood before him. Compared to the vibrant life of the Red Candle Forest, this man seemed utterly out of place. He was dressed entirely in black, reminding Old Wu of the Order of the Cloud Serpent, but this man was definitely not the Order of the Cloud Serpent.

The man was only a few steps away from him. Old Wu raised his hands, clasped them together, and saluted the other man. The man raised one hand and placed it on his left shoulder.

Old Wu blinked. Was that his way of saluting? How strange.

"I only have one hand, so I can't do what you Pandaren do," the man said in his broken Pandaren language. His voice was deep and like rubbing Shali, but his pronunciation was surprisingly accurate.

"Hello, friend," Old Wu said, unable to think of anything else to say.

The mysterious man glared at him sternly. "Don't you know what danger is?" he asked. "You were badly injured, barely escaped death. And after only a few days, you dare come here alone again? Didn't you see those feline beasts?"

Old Wu was surprised and delighted by this person. He had truly found his shooting star, and, to put it subtly, the other person had just saved him once again. "I must know who saved me? We Pandaren have a saying: 'A drop of water in need is repaid with a spring of water.' Was it you who saved me from the tiger's jaws and brought me back to the road outside Temple of the Jade Serpent?"

"A drop of kindness deserves a spring of gratitude?" The mysterious man stared at him for a long time before nodding. "It was me," he said. "But I didn't expect anything in return."

Old Wu smiled happily. "Thank you," he said. "Without your help, I would have been a tiger's meal long ago."

The mysterious figure in black shook his head dismissively. "I just happened to see you. Besides, two tigers are no enemy to me," he said.

Old Wu wasn't sure what he wanted to hear, but he knew for sure that this answer was acceptable to him. "Besides, you also helped me collect the remaining berry juice. In any case, I should thank you." Old Wu scratched his head, wondering how to properly address his benefactor.

Sensing the Pandaren's embarrassment, the mysterious figure said, "My name is Nathanos the Witherer, and I am an Undead. You can simply call me Nathanos."

Old Wu looked at Nathanos in surprise and replied, "Thank you, Nathanos. You can call me Old Wu. Thank you for saving my life. But you just said you're an Undead?"

Nathanos snorted and removed his hood, letting the Pandaren see what kind of monster he was. This continent had been isolated for far too long; the people here knew nothing of what was happening outside.

"Can you see my dead face now? Or should I explain to you what the Undead are?"

More than his appearance, Old Wu noticed that Nathanos was clearly missing an arm. "You misunderstand. I'm not surprised by your identity; I noticed it as soon as I saw your eyes. It's just that you seem a bit different from the Undead in the rumors."

"What? Does this continent also have Undead? How is that possible?"

The Pandaren smiled gently. "I bet you think we know nothing about the outside world. But Pandaria has never lost its connection to this world, my friend. Many of us Pandaren love adventure. They don't confine our sights to this continent; some choose to leave, to explore the outside world, and then bring back what they see and hear to tell us. Of course, that includes descriptions of the Undead. They say the Undead are dangerous creatures, very evil. Now I have to wonder if they've ever really seen the Undead."

Upon hearing this, Nathanos visibly surprised. Azeroth had indeed appeared in Pandaren. They were few in number and welcomed by both the Alliance and the Horde. However, few people asked where they came from, or rather, almost no one ever did.

"Indeed, some Undead creatures are warlike and bloodthirsty," Nathanos chuckled. "But to think you are ignorant is my own ignorance."

"The world is full of endless things. Everyone is ignorant." Old Wu waved his hand. "But your appearance is indeed an unexpected surprise. Just as you said, this continent originally had no Undead. This means you came from a world beyond the mist, doesn't it? How did you do that? For tens of thousands of years, almost no one knew of Pandaria's existence, let alone found this place."

Nathanos thought of Wrathion, the Black Prince, who had led him to Pandaria through the son of Deathwing. Could the black dragon have also come here?

"My ship sank at sea," Nathanos fabricated, "I came here by accident and cannot leave."

"So you've gotten separated from your crew!" Old Wu frowned. "To be honest, it's unfortunate; any ship can lose its way in the Mists of Pandaria."

"There will be a way out. But this continent has attracted me, and I have many questions I want answered."

Old Wu burst into laughter, seemingly forgetting that he was in the Red Candle Forest and that his voice might attract other wild beasts. "If you want the answer, ask someone who has the answer inside their belly," Old Wu patted his stomach. "Why don't you come back to Temple of the Jade Serpent with me? My compatriots will surely be happy to see a friend like you who has come from afar."

Nathanos's mind raced. He knew perfectly well that the opinions of a few did not represent the whole. Old Wu was not wary of him, but what about the others? Looking at the Pandaren's face, Nathanos wanted to refuse; he wanted to observe a little longer. But the enthusiasm in Old Wu's eyes had already moved him. "I've never known how to understand this continent, but perhaps the Pandaren can help me."

"Of course..." Old Wu strode over to the Witherer and, before the man's surprised expression, placed a hairy hand on Nathanos' shoulder. For a split second, Nathanos' hand twitched. He wanted to reach for the hilt of Sulfuras's sword and yell at the Pandaren to let him go. But he didn't, and was astonished at his own ability to control the urge to attack. "There are many learned scholars in the Temple of the Jade Serpent. They will tell you anything you want to know. And we have delicious food and fine wine. Do you like to drink? Or perhaps you need a warm coat, my friend, you're really cold."