[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/oe1uZEE.png[/img][/center][hr][sub]mentions:[@Searat][@Gentlemanvaultboy][@WindsOfFate][/sub][h1][color=white]Gou[/color][/h1][indent][color=gray]Gou took a mental note after watching the helmet monster bend the rules of reality by changing its signs - this fight was not going to be easy for him. Yet earlier when he had arrived, there were those around him who confidently stepped into the fray not long after. This gave him plenty of time to gauge what the sign-wielding creature was capable of. From the moment the light beam detoured and took its exit, things ramped up fairly quickly. The 75mph sign transformed into one that read "No Trespassing". The pieces didn't come together for the young man at first and squinted his eyes at it. 

While still in confusion, his stone face did not betray him. His train of thought did not have a chance to start before he was interrupted by a voice that came from beside him. This sudden closeness coupled with the dialogue that came from nowhere would have startled Gou if he hadn't already steeled himself before entering the fight. [color=white][b]"The Yuheng Sect you say? I know your master, quite a lovely man."[/b][/color] Being a cultivation disciple, it was important to stand your ground and keep a steady face. However, hearing that sentence made Gou's stance shift slightly. 

[color=silver][i]...my master? is a lovely man? could it be that we are thinking of different people?[/i][/color] he questioned the possibility and inadvertently narrowed his eyes at the man in white.

[color=white][b]"...I also know the Lan Sect masters and a few others. I dated a few of them, but that's a different story, anyways..."[/b][/color]

At this, Gou's eyes could not have possibly gotten any wider.  The Lan Sect is a place where he had trained for four whole seasons as a young transfer disciple not too many years ago. During his time there, he learned that they were the strictest of all sects within the cultivation world. Respect, righteousness, and most importantly, discipline. There were over thousands of rules written in stone, and breaking any one of them meant risking your life's worth of hard work and getting kicked out of the exchange program. Their disciples were separated by male and female - anytime Gou would even glance at a girl, he'd be met with disgust and dust thrown in his face. The boy lamented this fact as the scenes flashed across his eyes. With disbelief etched across his soul and heart, he struggled to maintain a thick face in front of the man as he tried to digest such offensive information. Just how, how could this be? 


While that person was getting involved with the Lan Sect leaders... this poor disciple could not even ask for the names of the sectmates he fancied. Just then, a name resounded in his head as words overheard from his sectmates flooded in. Could this person really be the same man his peers spread word about? Rather than being gossip, he was held with respect in terms of getting what he wanted when he wanted. [i][color=silver]So, this was Yuri.[/color][/i]

 [color=silver][b]"You..."[/b][/color] Gou grit his teeth as his ears turned a shade of red.  [color=silver][b]"...you'll have to tell me about them when this battle is over."[/b][/color] The young man cringed internally. He was equal parts annoyed and embarrassed after being one-upped by a tenfold so easily - but he was always the type who willed himself to learn more from those he respected.

The disciple turned his attention back to the fight, seeing that the lady in blue had just managed to dodge the monster's swing. The fight ensued between the two after the lady introduced herself as [color=00aeef][i]Luna[/i][/color], and the rest of them simply watched in anticipation. The situation that unfolded left Gou feeling amazed. Since this was his first time taking missions outside of his sect's province, this was also his first time witnessing an ordinary person brandish the power of waves - and with a technique that he'd never heard of, let alone learned. This disciple was shaken. For the longest time, he'd thought himself one of the best at his age group, spending countless years meditating, and disciplining himself to cultivate a core to properly hone his element: wind. It was not easy, and without his core, he would be practically useless. And yet, this water-elementalist in front of them had no spiritual core that he could sense... spiritual core or not - he had to admit that her skills were no joke. The boulders summoned by Helmet's new sign were sliced in half above her as the water around her oar continued to swing and showcase its deadly potential. He decided that as soon as this mission was over, he would communicate directly with his master and inquire about the existence of these deviants. 

After that passing thought, the mech spoke. [color=green][b]"Please cover your ears."[/b][/color] Gou's hands quickly shot up and pressed against his ears expecting the worst. He already knew that the mechanized, yet somehow thoughtful, creation had the potential to melt him down easily with only light rays - what more could it do with sound waves? The man cursed at the fact that he chose to stand so close by. Would his ears be able to handle what was to come? At least the robot warned them...

[color=white][b]"This might hurt."[/b][/color]

Gou was ready to lose his eardrums before coming to realize that the white-clad mage had already cast a sound-protection barrier around himself, Gou, and Luna. And not only this, but the magic-user had also been materializing and sending out what looked like butterflies to counter the giant rocks falling from above, threatening to crush them both if not for the intervention of the mage. His last move was not clear to Gou, squinting his eyes at the butterfly that landed on the mech. However, he was not keen to ask too many questions this time. He was with a team that was more than capable of pulling their weight - he figured he’d do the same. 

Under the protection of the barrier, he unsheathed his saber and poured his spiritual energy into it, imbuing it with the element of wind. He willed the motions of his weapon to collect and guide the air surrounding it and performed three consecutive slices aimed at the helmet-sign-monster. Three shockwaves exploded from where he stood, shaking the ground around him and kicking up debris as it traveled quickly towards the monster alongside the mech's sonic blast.[/color][/indent]