Shun Zhang: The Red Beast

I am Shun Zhang

One Year Ago

"YAOGUAI! YOU SHALL PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID TO MASTER LEUNG!"

"Kill the Red Beast!"

I planted my foot firmly on the ground, the head of Master Leung dangling by my side, held by the strands of his hair.

"No one will stop me," I said, wrapping the head in a cloth and tying it to my waist.

No one can stop me now.

I have become stronger than Talon-sifu.

Converging River Fist

"Shun Zhang of the Red Circle Triad. Do you not feel remorse for what you did?! Master Leung was kind. He was nurturing. He took in homeless children and taught them to defend themselves. Everything he did was for the good of Chinese martial arts. Yet without hesitation, you stepped into his home and struck first" One of the Masters snarled at me.

"That's right! Master Leung was a good man! How far will the Red Circle fall? How depraved will you be! There was no reason for any of thi-"

I cackled evilly, cutting the Master off.

"How far will we fall? The better question is how far will we rise. We are unstoppable. We are the greatest Triad in the Hebei province. And we will become the strongest Triad in all of China!"

I lifted my fist and aimed it at the hundreds upon hundreds of kung fu practitioners, rival Triad members, and masters, all collectively joining forces to take me down.

"For the sake of Dai Ban Lok. The man who took me in and transformed me into The Red Beast. I was a boy who had nothing. I was a boy who failed in every aspect of kung fu, a dropout from the Shaolin Temple. But under this man's tutelage and my yaoguai companion, I can finally reach my brother in power. The mission was to assassinate Master Leung so I could prove myself worthy of becoming Dai Ban Lok's son. But I won't stop there. I will prove it even more. To show all of China just how strong the Red Circle Triad is, by showing China just how fearsome The Red Beast is!"

I brought my foot back and assumed my stance, thunder rumbling in the sky, rain pouring from above.

"I will conquer all of China. And with these fangs of the beast, I will show my brother just how much stronger his big brother has become."

Wen.

You were always ahead of me.

So much so that Ma and Ba always compared me to you, calling me a failure.

But I was okay with it because as long as you were happy I would be happy.

I never realized just how much I was ruining you.

All because I was so weak, so stupid, and not good at kung fu did your reputation have to be ruined.

You wanted to be a peaceful and kind kung fu master, but your reputation as a Shaolin prodigy came from the numerous people who you had to defend me from, the hands that you soiled to defend our honor.

But now big brother has become stronger.

Though not in a way that either one of us imagined.

Because big brother isn't good at martial arts, I had to resort to other ways to become strong.

Shun-dono. Enemies flank your rear. I suggest the Vortex Technique. A demonic voice emanated in my head. The demon who had taken partial control of my body.

"Hai. Hataka-sensei." I went low, unleashing a wide kick, spinning wildly as shockwaves blew outwards, sending bodies into the air.

The attackers backed off, machetes in hand as I brought my hands up.

"RAAAAAH!" I roared in defiance.

"COME! PRACTITIONERS OF HEBEI PROVINCE! I, SHUN ZHANG, THE RED BEAST SHALL TAKE YOU ALL ON!"

"ROOAAAAAH!!!" The attackers charged in all directions, as I rushed forward in a frenzy.