Headless Monk#

Sanxian, sanxian, grief and rage untold, Defeated and demeaned by my follower bold. Confused, I saw kindness repaid with hate, The sands obscure the truth, the wind seals my fate.

In the days when strange winds first howled through Windrest, a curious event unfolded.

Children of the village were at play near the village's edge, when haunting chords from the Sanxian wafted through the air. Their young ears caught the song's pleasant notes: "In a land o' bloodshed and chaos's sting.." Intrigued and never having heard such a song, the youngsters raced toward the musician. As they neared, they beheld a figure leaning on a boulder-headless.

The children scattered in fright, all but young Chengda, who stumbled and fell. As he lay, weeping and watching his friends flee, the Headless Monk ceased his strumming. He emerged from behind the rock and strummed once more. Invisible forces gently lifted Chengda, steadying him on his feet. No longer fearful, the boy observed that, apart from the missing head, this figure resembled the benevolent monks he'd seen in the hamlet.

Seeing Chengda unafraid, the Headless Monk plucked another chord. A cooling breeze passed over the boy's bruised leg. Looking down, Chengda found his wound miraculously healed. Clapping in joy, he exclaimed, "Magic! Magic!" The monk strummed again, and Chengda's torn trousers restored themselves. With that, the monk returned to his eerie song: "Yellow Wind Ridge, a mighty ole' range, once buzzin' with joy and glee..."' and vanished into a gust of wind and sand.

When the villagers returned to save Chengda, they found him pointing at the sand, exclaiming, "It was an immortal" The adults scoffed, "Nonsense, what sort of immortal lacks a head? You've seen a ghost, boy!"