Banquet

A strong wind was sweeping in from the south, and dark clouds loomed over the city. The howling wind, carrying fallen leaves, swept through the streets, stinging Nathanos's face. When Nathanos was talking to Old Wu, the sun was shining brightly, but before he could help Old Wu finish the remaining chores—basically cleaning the bookshelves piled high with scrolls—the sky darkened. Then the entire monastery gradually fell silent.

Nathanos preferred a quiet atmosphere, which allowed him to remain calm. Pandaren in the Zen Temple had already gone to bed. Only Nathanos remained, wandering around the temple with boundless energy. He thought about how Old Wu had explained the concept of "Sha" to him earlier that day, and how the Pandaren's panicked expression at the time had been overly exaggerated.

The Sha is the embodiment of a person's negative emotions. That's what Old Wu meant at the time. He also said that it's not only Pandaren who are affected by Sha; anyone who sets foot in Pandaria could potentially summon the Sha.

What puzzled Nathanos was that he hadn't been affected by the Sha for so many days. He looked down at his feet, where a faint shadow flickered in the candlelight of the fireflies. The Forsaken harbored an inextinguishable rage, hatred for the Scourge, and confusion about the path ahead.

Anger, hatred, and doubt—since these three negative emotions have been surrounding him, why is he unharmed?

"Has death made me unable to accurately grasp my emotions?" Nathanos speculated. Perhaps he wasn't angry, hated anyone, or confused. He just perceived himself that way.

"It's not so much that it's beyond our grasp, but rather that it's beyond our understanding." A voice suddenly sounded behind him. Nathanos turned around and saw an old man taking a walk in the monastery that evening. The Pandaren before him was very old; his white fur far outweighed his black, but a clear ring of black fur remained around his eyes. "Anger is not being angry; hatred is not being disgusted; doubt is not merely asking questions."

"Very well, old man. You have successfully eavesdropped on my soliloquy. Then may I ask why you don't go to sleep, but instead choose to disturb my thoughts here?"

"Do you really want to know the answer?" The elderly Pandaren, leaning on his cane and stroking his long white beard with the other hand, smiled and continued to Nathanos, "Or is your question really important to you?"

Are you trying to indoctrinate me with philosophy?

"This is a question that requires deep thought." The Pandaren exhaled through his nose, but his tone remained calm and unwavering. "Do you genuinely wish to resolve your confusion, or do you simply want to experience the sense of accomplishment that comes with knowing everything? Until you figure this out, perhaps the chores at Temple of the Jade Serpent would suit you well."

Nathanos roared in anger in his heart, but he didn't put it into words. What was he arguing with an old man for?

"Questions are a burden to me," he said. "The same goes for hatred and anger. If they can't be released, I'll be in great pain."

"Oh, it seems you don't understand your own heart?"

"My heart?" Nathanos instinctively placed his hand on his chest. He wanted to tell the old man that his heart had long since stopped beating and was no longer affected by emotions. The words of the living were useless to the dead.

"Deep within everyone lies a beast, a terrifying weapon that cannot be used. The Sha attacks the mind with its emotions; your thoughts will be paralyzed, your soul will be strangled. Whether your body is still alive or not, you cannot escape the fate of being accompanied by that lurking darkness day and night."

After another long string of strange words, Nathanos narrowed his eyes. Come to think of it, he hadn't seen this old man at all during his stay at the Temple of the Jade Serpent. "What exactly do you mean?"

"Ten thousand books are not as good as ten thousand miles of travel; you will understand once you have experienced it." The old man turned and left, disappearing without a trace in the wind under Nathanos's gaze.

The Witherer prepared to continue with the chores that Old Wu was supposed to do. He didn't want to think about what the Pandaren had said, and he had even cursed the man. If the man could resolve his confusion, why didn't he just give him the answer directly? All that nonsense about "you have to experience it yourself" gave Nathanos the feeling that "to know the answer, you must pay a price."

He was already tired of this kind of teasing game.

The next day, when Old Wu discovered that Nathanos had finished all his work for the day, his appetite was several times greater than usual, and he even boasted that he wanted to have a few drinks to celebrate. Nathanos didn't want to stop him, but he wasn't free labor; he helped Old Wu lighten his load so he could have more time to listen to him continue explaining Pandaria.

The Pandaren, holding what were called "chopsticks," buried his face in the bowl, reminding Nathanos of another creature. The Undead suppressed a laugh, "admiring" the scene while recounting his encounter with the strange old man the previous night to Old Wu.

"Friend, there are many elderly people at Temple of the Jade Serpent, but none of them are the person you described."

"So he was an outsider, and came in the middle of the night?" Nathanos found the word "outsider" strange. "He said something to me that I couldn't understand, and then he disappeared."

"There are many reclusive masters on Pandaria, no need to make a fuss." Old Wu chewed his rice and then ladled out another bowl for himself.

The Witherer chuckled. "So my charm actually drew them here?"

"Perhaps they heard that the welcome banquet for the new apprentices is starting tonight, so they came to ask for a drink."

If Old Wu hadn't reminded him, Nathanos would have almost forgotten about the banquet. To be honest, he hadn't attended a large banquet in a long time; the last one was the court banquet held in Lordaeron when Arthas was promoted to Paladin. Back then, he could still appreciate the lively atmosphere. Now, he didn't know what meaning a banquet held for him anymore.

By evening, Nathanos was ready to blend into the atmosphere. He told himself to be patient; as Ranger, he trusted his endurance. But he gave up after only five minutes of the banquet. He forgot that these Pandaren weren't the refined human nobles who used beautiful music and elegant language to maintain a so-called upper-class atmosphere. On the contrary, the boisterous group before Nathanos completely changed his perception of the banquet. The usually diligent apprentices had become drunkards, drinking glass after glass, several already passed out. Even their martial arts instructors were drinking with Yunpu. Interestingly, Nathanos saw the Hozen and Murlocs at the party chatting and laughing together.

If it were just this chaotic, Nathanos could understand, but the situation was escalating to the point of being out of control. Some Pandaren were inexplicably fighting, and instead of stopping them, bystanders were cheering them on. Nathanos, who had been sitting in a corner of the banquet hall, now had to find a way to stop them.

"Don't bother... Ignore them." Old Wu, carrying a jar of liquor, staggered closer to him and casually pulled up a chair to sit next to him. Another Pandaren head was still foggy, hadn't noticed his seat being taken and fell to the ground, never to get up again.

"If you need a cup of hot water, I can get it for you," Nathanos said, looking at Old Wu, whose eyes were glazed over. The smell of alcohol emanating from the man was even blowing into Nathanos's face.

"It's nothing, hiccup~. I'm perfectly alert. I just... saw Yunpu and Xia... Instructor Xia fighting."

Nathanos was startled and quickly looked in the direction of the elder. Sure enough, the elder in the blue robe and Instructor Xia were rolling around on the ground in an embrace.

"This is insane."

"Instructor Xia... won 999 consecutive matches in the previous competition." Old Wu burped again, occasionally revealing a silly grin. "He said... in the thousandth match... his opponent... cheated, and then Elder Yunpu... taught him a lesson."

"Why?"

"Because, the thousandth match... was... between the two of them."