Guru Pathik was thin, with dark skin and a bald head.
Although he had no hair, his thick, grizzled beard gave him the air of a wandering sage from a distant land.
Despite being over a hundred years old, his eyes were still clear, and his spirit remained lively.
His smile carried a warmth and humor that made people lower their guard.
This had to be Guru Pathik.
However, his greeting made Kahn's heart skip.
Despite all his doubts and worries, Kahn first introduced himself.
"Hello, Guru."
"My na is Kahn, and I've co here to learn spiritbending from you."
"You just called an unusual spiritbender."
"Why?"
"Hmm, a very polite child."
"My na is Guru Pathik, and I am happy to offer you so help."
"And to the four honored guests, ancient spirits, it is a pleasure to et you."
East, South, West, and North chirped in response.
This old man gave them a warm feeling as well, causing the spirits no fear.
"As for why I called you that…"
Guru Pathik smiled, took out a bowl of unknown liquid from behind him, and handed it to Kahn.
"Before we listen to the story, drink this."
"It will help calm the turbulence within you."
Kahn accepted the bowl with both hands.
The mont he brought it near his nose, a pungent sll rushed up at him.
He quickly moved it away, his expression turning strange.
"What is this?"
"I think I sll onions and bananas."
"Of course."
"In fact, it is a bowl of onion-banana juice."
"Trust , it is definitely a good companion for a spiritbender."
As he spoke, Guru Pathik lifted a large bowl of the sa drink and downed it right in front of him.
After finishing, he smacked his lips with clear enjoynt, as though it truly tasted wonderful.
"…"
Seeing this, Kahn remained doubtful, but still forced himself to drink it.
The mont it entered his mouth, the bizarre taste nearly made him vomit on the spot.
"Ugh!"
The strange flavor clung to his mouth, refusing to fade.
His initial tension and pressure did lessen considerably.
Unfortunately, they were replaced by a wave of nausea swirling through his mind.
"Congratulations on taking your first step in spiritbending cultivation!"
Guru Pathik blinked, looking like a mischievous old child.
Kahn wiped his mouth helplessly.
"Thank you."
"But I hope it's actually useful, and not just a prank."
"Of course it is not."
"I believe you will gradually co to appreciate its wonders in the future."
Guru Pathik smiled, then finally turned to the main point.
"I noticed you a long ti ago."
"Well, perhaps not that long ago."
"Three or four years, maybe."
That single sentence made Kahn's entire body tense.
Three or four years ago was exactly when he had first arrived in this world.
"Let make one thing clear first."
"I am not the sort of person who enjoys peeking everywhere."
"Although there was a ti when I did enjoy doing so."
"It is simply that, back then, I believed the Avatar had awakened, so I looked in that direction."
"And then I saw you."
"Clearly, I misjudged."
"However, you and the Avatar are indeed sowhat similar."
"You both possess a special soul."
The Avatar was the union of Wan and Raava.
And now, Kahn was also a union of two souls.
From that perspective, there were indeed similarities.
In just a few short sentences, Guru Pathik had already exposed most of Kahn's secrets.
Kahn's heart filled with conflicting emotions.
Although he had long imagined the worst-case scenario, when the mont truly arrived, his thoughts still fell into chaos.
After a long silence, Kahn asked with a complicated expression,
"So from then on, you've been watching ?"
"Monitoring my every move?"
"Monitoring?"
"No, no, no, of course not."
Guru Pathik shook his head.
"In fact, once I realized you were not the Avatar, I stopped paying attention to you."
"Until now, when you ca to of your own accord."
Kahn was highly skeptical of that explanation.
"Since you know about my uniqueness, how could you so easily—"
"Do not trap yourself in fixed assumptions."
"They narrow the mind."
Guru Pathik interrupted him, then smiled.
"You are certainly special."
"Unique, even."
"But so what?"
"What does that have to do with ?"
Hearing this, Kahn cald down slightly.
He had considered these questions before as well.
"Earthbenders, spirits, the Avatar…"
"There are too many special beings in this world."
"Many of them can determine the future of the world, such as the Avatar, Vaatu, and the lion turtles."
"Compared to them, what does your specialness amount to?"
"Furthermore, every spirit, every person, every animal, and even every plant is unique and special in its own way."
"What makes you so different from them?"
"If I had to watch every special existence, I would be far too busy."
Hearing this, Kahn finally regained his composure completely.
Indeed, as Guru Pathik said, and as he himself had already thought before, what was there to fear now?
He had only been a little too agitated a mont ago.
Then Guru Pathik suddenly changed the subject and asked with a smile,
"However, since you know of my existence, you should also understand my abilities."
"And you know your own uniqueness."
"Given that, why were you still willing to co before ?"
Having thought things through, Kahn answered neither arrogantly nor humbly.
"As for my uniqueness, I understand that it exists, but I do not know the reason behind it."
"But my words and actions are clear to my own conscience."
"I have no regrets."
"So there is nothing to fear."
At this point, he paused, then confessed honestly.
"Alright."
"The truth is, before coming here, I was afraid you might use this secret to threaten ."
"So I had already told a friend about it of my own accord."
"In the end, it turned out not to be that special after all."
"You voluntarily told a friend the secret you feared most being exposed?"
Hearing this, Guru Pathik looked sowhat surprised, then praised him.
"To be honest, that is quite a remarkable act."
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