ã€ŠEdge of Mortality [Cultivation X Skill Fusion]ã€‹


 Chapter 1: Mortal Again

    ¡°The test is clear, you have no spirit roots ¡ª nothing more than a mere mortal. Move aside!¡± A stern voice spoke down at a young boy.

    The boy was ragged, like many of others in line before him he wore faintly tattered cloths, a simple shirt and frayed shorts. His hair, a rats nest of darkness that sought to blind his muddied eyes.

    Yet despite the sudden failure of aptitude, there was a distinctly lackluster reaction from the young child, the test proctor was surprised. The usual cries of anguish and defeat of the many children he¡¯d tested before made him an odd contrast to the rest.

    If anything, it felt like the boy was more annoyed ¡ª merely comfirming bad news.

    The young child bowed, cupping his hand in fist and turned away casually like he¡¯d just bought dumplings. His steps firm, as if had long since come to grips with his mortal coil.

    The test proctor could only shake his head, his perfectly combed dark green hair barely moving as he did so. With a sweep of his long robes, he bellowed out another death sentence.

    ¡°NEXT!¡± He commanded, his eyes scanning over the slowly shortening line of children.

    This village has nothing but mortal blood. He thought, clicking his tongue. Already tired of the assignement given to him by the Sect. It had taken a whole week of travel to get here, even if he did detour a couple times to nearby friends.

    Did they truly expect to find potential Cultivators in these backwoods? Not even a town, a mere village on the outskirts of a Savage Land.

    Another small child approached as he grimaced at the still long day ahead of him.

    Tsk, and I still have to deal with the nearby bandit trash¡­ if I don¡¯t find a single Heavens-damned spirit root, then this place deserves to be pillaged.

    But even as he dismissed the already crying child, another failure, he couldn¡¯t help but glance  to the now distant back of the previous boy. Something about him felt¡­ off.

    Does he not desire the eternal path?

    It seemed  even frogs trapped in wells could close their eyes and sing in bliss.

    The proctor shook his head once more, adjusting his dark blue robes so they sat perfectly on his shoulders.

    ¡°NEXT!¡±

    ¡ª

    It seems the system does not lie. Fang mused to himself as he walked away from the Spirit test.

    To not have spirit roots, even after crossing universes to a world of cultivation ¡ª what sort of joke is this?

    He had thought for a moment that he¡¯d lucked out, though perhaps reincarnation wasn¡¯t the boon he was expecting. He thought himself special, entitled even, to a magnanimous fate, for it must¡¯ve been destiny for him to be reborn?

    He sighed, before muttering under his breath.

    At least I still have you¡ª

    ¡°¡ªSystem¡±

    Instantly out of the immaterial, a beautiful scroll of jade paper unfurled, its borders jeweled in gold. It glowed a lustrous warmth, the text laced into the page like embroidered bone. And yet despite its sudden appearance in space, hovering just before Fang, nobody nearby even reacted. Since only his eyes were blessed with its sight.

    Fang :

    [Cultivation]

    - Empty

    [Technique]

    - Empty

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    Fang clicked his tongue, he had the feeling his bloodline meant he wouldn¡¯t have the special sauce for immortality. It was common knowledge both on Earth and here in the Jade Plains, that no spirit roots meant no access to Qi, and no Qi meant no cultivation.

    It meant a slow eventual death.

    Mortality.

    Fang gnawed his teeth in anger. This would not do¡­ He fumed.

    I didn¡¯t fucking die, to live at the bottom of the barrel once more.

    His eyes stared wildly at his system having yet to find a function outside of its appearance. It had only been a month after all, since he died.

    A month spent in utter confusion, the disbelief of being reborn slowly tearing at his now child-like mind.

    Forget being reborn, he had quite literally stolen a child¡¯s body. It was harsh to come to grips with, his only solace being he was an orphan. Fang didn¡¯t know how he would¡¯ve dealt with the guilt of parental love.

    He sighed as he reached the orphanage steps. A simple thatch roofed home made of weathered wood and mud. The small attached bunk rooms soon to become nearly unbearable as winter crept its way closer.

    The village he found himself in, Forests Edge, was truly a backwater. The population small, subsiding off of scant harvests from the nearby forest and whatever the hunters could takedown ¡ª which was few and far between since aparently the forest was nigh infested with Qi-beasts and monsters alike.

    He¡¯d never seen one, but had heard and see enough from the hunters who returned to know that the forest depths were not a place for a Qi-less mortal such as him.

    Let alone the few hunters that did venture into its depths. Most of them were body refiners, though barely outside the limits of being mortal. Nothing worth mentioning in the eyes of any Sect disciple.

    This system cannot be a mere stat-sheet¡­ there must be more¡ª

    ¡°¡ªFang! Welcome home, how did the the test go?¡± A wizened voice called out him, pulling him out of his musings. The head of the Orphanage was an elderly lady, with fingers callused from years of stirring pots of thick soup. Her white hair carefully bundled into two buns above her ears. She stood over a small hearth that could scantly heat the humble home, a large iron pot hung over its flames bubbling the soft scents of whatever herbs and vegetables she could get her hands on.

    Fang shook his head ruefully, earning a soft sigh from her wrinkled lips.

    ¡°Ai! Worry not my dear, all that cultivator business is too much for simple mortals like us anyways, now come, help your poor old mortal granny prepare dinner for everyone.¡±

    Fang smiled, shelving the issues of his mortality for after dinner, he had work to do after all.

    After his reincarnation he¡¯d found himself confused, lost and feeling out of place in his body. Trying to act like a twelve year old was an exhausting task ¡ª thankfully, his sudden change in personality was taken in stride by Granny Gian, who was grateful to have a pair of mature hands to help around the Orphanage.

    Fang busied himself, chopping vegetables with a dull knife, peeling skins from odd looking herbs he¡¯d never seen before and grinding spices reminiscent of peppercorns back on Earth.

    For his efforts he was given a small allowance of a single copper. Enough for a single piece of hardened bread, or perhaps a small bowl of rice porridge.

    He gratefully received the coin, adding it to his meager savings. Granny Gian didn¡¯t have to pay him, but she did so regardless in an attempt to teach him the importance of working for your meals.

    With this final addition, along with the Fang of old¡¯s savings, he had accrued 50 coppers. Enough for a set of tattered clothes, perhaps a couple lavish meals at the only tavern in the village.

    But Fang had other plans for his money.

    Dinner was a rancous affair as Granny Gian corralled a small gaggle of children to sit at the small dinner table. Fang being the oldest of the kids was in charge of serving the vegetable soup, making sure to take delicate care in equal portions.

    ¡°Elder brother Fang! Did you meet a cultivator today?!¡± A small child asked with an outstretched bowl. Fang smiled, nodding his head.

    ¡°I did, he wore robes made of the finest silks I had ever seen, bluer than the sky¡­¡±

    The kids ooh¡¯d and ahh¡¯d at his retelling of the spirit test. He exaggerated slightly, making the honestly disappointing day into story of grandeur.

    The Cultivator himself didn¡¯t appear like much, but  his eyes pressed an uncomfortable aura on anyone he looked down upon. Like he was watching ants, futility surviving, unknowing that their fates resided in his hands.

    After dinner he helped Granny Gian clean the dishes in relative silence. His mind now returning to his future plans.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about being mortal my dear, we can¡¯t be all blessed by the heavens.¡± Granny Gian consoled him.

    Fang could only ruefully smile, but what if I am blessed by the heavens¡­

    Finishing his chores Fang made to his hidden savings, a small pouch hidden under the floorboards. Retrieving all that he owned he looked outside, seeing the sun begin to set. While Forests Edge village was relatively safe, he  generally never moved around at night, especially while carrying all the money he owned. It was the presence of the Cultivator that gave him confidence, who would be foolish enough to cause trouble before the wrath of an immortal?

    ¡°Granny, I will be back in an hour.¡± He informed her respectfully. The tired woman was reclined in an old rocking chair, her eyes already long since closed.

    She gave no reply, already asleep by the hearth.

    Fang quietly left the Orphanage, his coin pouch tucked into his shirt, the weight of its bounty feeling like noose around his neck.

    As uncomfortable as he was, his destination only operated at night. It seemed to betradition no matter where you were in the Jade Plains, that a night market would be present in any village, town or city. Though Fang didn¡¯t know if such claims were true since he¡¯d never left the village.

    His walk was short, keeping to the main avenue of the village, he saw a host of people, mainly parents out and about in an attempt to console their children with trinkets or snacks after failing the spirit test.

    The night market was established in the center of the village, a large square patch of stamped dirt, with a twisting tree in its center. Lanterns sheathed in wooden cages hung from the tree¡¯s branches bathing the many stalls below in light.

    Some stalls were clearly nicer than others, having signboards, multiple lanterns or even a guard nearby. While others were simpler, bamboo mats on the floor with a number of items strewn about.

    There seemed to be a larger number of stalls than usual, probably due to the presence of the cultivator and spirit test.

    It was a pseudo-festival of sorts, happening once a year when a cultivator from the nearby Sect would visit to conduct the test and find fresh blood for their ranks.

    Fang approached a small stall with a wide variety of different items, from combs to brushes, scrolls and manuals bound in weathered leather.

    The man operating the stall spied Fang approaching, his face sour as if had just smelt shit. The man pushed his short brown hair back, already disintrested with the incoming interaction.

    ¡°What do you want kid?¡± He said bored.

    Fang ignored the rudeness, after all why would a merchant entertain someone who was clearly broke.

    ¡°Hello, I¡¯m looking for any body refining manuals.¡± Fang asked.

    The man sighed, as if he¡¯d heard the same question a million times already.

    ¡°You and the rest of the damn village. No, I do not have any body refining manuals ¡ª and even if I did ¡ª Kid, let me give you some advice: Stay mortal.¡± He said waving his hand dismissively.

    Fang furrowed his brows. An anger bubbling inside of him before he released it with a sigh, cupping his hands together and giving a curt bow to the rude merchant.

    ¡°Thank you for your advice senior.¡±

    The old man raised a single surprised brow at the sudden respect and clicked his tongue.

    ¡°Ah, sorry kid, don¡¯t bother with this old man. I hear that a couple of travelling peddlers have set up on the northern side of the square, try your luck with them.¡±

    Fang smiled, thanking the man once more before leaving.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    The peddlers in question were all dressed in worn robes, most of them wearing masks and hats that covered their mouths and heads alike. Before many of them lay a myriad of random looking trinkets and items with no pattern from one to the next.

    There were bones, small knives, a few pieces of jewelry here and there with a scant amount of scrolls and books.

    Fang approached the merchant with the least amount of customers, a woman he assumed by figure, since he could see nothing but a pair of sharp eyes under her large brimmed hat.

    ¡°Greetings.¡± Fang said introducing himself, to receive only a nod in return.

    He gazed over the items, his eyes locking onto the few manuals and scrolls present.

    ¡°Are any of these body refining manuals?¡±

    The woman nodded, before speaking with a voice so quiet and soft it was a near whisper.

    ¡°Five copper taels.¡±

    Five fucking taels? That¡¯s 500 hundred copper. Enough for a small family to subside off for a month. Fang sighed, disgruntled with his poverty.

    Might as well try my luck.

    ¡°Do you have anything for half a tael?¡±

    The woman tilted her head, looking Fang up and down with a discerning gaze. She opened a basket beside her, rummaging through its depths before pulling out a clearly tattered manual. The manual looked like it had been chewed on by a dog before being thrown off a cliff.

    ¡°Incomplete body refining manual, 50 copper.¡± The woman whispered once more.

    ¡°Can I look at it?¡±

    She nodded, throwing over the manual without a care in the world.

    Fang caught the manual feeling the worn binding in his hands. He flipped it open, reading the faint, faded ink on its first page.

    ¡®Mortal Forging Sutra

    Strength is only found through pain, pain is gained through suffering, suffering comes from chasing the unobtainable.

    The body is flesh, and the flesh is weak, only through suffering can it become strong.¡¯

    Fang furrowed his brows at the rather grim description. The manual had three stages, though only the first two were present. Each stage had four further levels within: Initiation, Small Success, Great Sucess, Peak Mastery.

    The first stage told him push his limits to the edge, holding stances and conditioning his body until even existing was painful. Peak mastery of the first stage granted him the strength of three Ox.

    The second stage turned its gaze inwards, he needed to starve himself, then endure a harsh environment while meditating in a specific pattern, expanding his lungs till even breathing hurt. Peak mastery of the stage would grant him the hearing of a fox, eyes of a crow, and the reactions of a snake.

    What sort of masochistic manual is this? No wonder she is willing to part with it for 50 copper, I honestly don¡¯t even want to know the third stage.

    Even more so, having never seen a Cultivator in action, nor the Hunters stalking the forests, a part of Fang still found it hard to believe that such¡­ power was accessible through mere training. Fang grimaced. His gamble would not only cost his entire savings, but also be one of pain.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take it.¡±

    ¡ª

    He shouldn¡¯t have taken it.

    It had been ten days, and the soft pounding of his raw bloodied fist on bark resounded in the air.

    With each strike Fang grimaced, trying desperately to ignore the needle piercing pain that came with each strike.

    Two hundred and ninety eight¡­

    Two hundred and ninety nine¡­

    Fuck!

    With his three hundredth strike he collapsed backwards, his hands throbbing in wafting waves of pain.

    His breath heaved in his lungs, his legs like lead weights from the run and horse stance only an hour ago.

    Fang cursed himself, fully having come to regret his gamble. But, just as he was about to scream in indignation a bright light appeared above him.

    The system scroll of jade and gold unfurled its lustrous surface with a mythical grace.

    Fang :

    [Cultivation]

    - Mortal Forging Sutra I (Initiation)

    [Technique]

    - Empty

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    The additions were minor, but his face widened into a disturbing smile. A wave of energy coursed through him, a revitalizing strength flooded his muscles as they painfully contorted, weaving into denser bands of flesh. His bones hardened, a disturbing itchiness crawling over his skin.

    Fang let out a deep breath of ecstasy as the sensation faded. A euphoria had overcome him, the pain becoming a catalyst of pleasure. From above, the image of a small child with bloodied hands smiling at the sky, convulsing like a fish on land would¡¯ve caused any nearby passerby to hurry away.

    The manual didn¡¯t mention anything like this?

    It was supposed to be a slow grueling process of tempering, taking months to reach initiation even for an adult.

    Fang grinned, his gamble had payed off. The system had finally revealed its potential.

    The moment he had completed a perfect repetition of an entire refining session, 10km run, 10 minute horse stance, and 300 bare knuckle strikes the system had propelled his body immediately into the initiation stage.

    What would¡¯ve taken him months of suffering was completed in only ten torturous days.

    Did the system only help with reaching initiation? Or does it accelerate all of my training?

    He¡¯d have to test it further once he got his hands on more manuals or techniques, though currently he was broke.

    He stood up again, feeling the raw strength in his hands. His muscles felt taut, his bones firm like iron. He approached the training tree once more, his eyes lingering on the small crater-like impression that formed over the previous ten days of pain. The dark almost black wood stained with a faint layer of old blood.

    With a deep breath he loaded his arm back before launching his fist forwards. A deep resounding thud shook the tree, a cascade of small heart-shaped leaves washing over him from the impact.

    He punched just slightly above the previous crater, his fist digging nearly an inch deep into the bark with a single strike, eclipsing his previous days of effort in one movement.

    He couldn¡¯t help but smile, the searing pain in his knuckles a distant thought. The system had done more than accelerate his training, it blessed him with the instinctual knowledge of the manual.

    If this is just initiation, then I yearn to discover what the peak feels like.

    Qi or no Qi, Fang was determined to claw his way up the social pecking order.

    But who knew gaining power could be so¡­ delicious?

    ¡ª

    ¡°Move those logs over there! OI OI! Careful with those things for heavens sake!¡± A man¡¯s voice boomed overhead.

    A group of men were busy hauling large freshly cut logs to a cart that sunk into the dirt with each haul.

    ¡°Come on kid, put your back into it!¡± A man shouted at Fang in jeering encouragement.

    Fang grimaced as he carefully balanced the weight of the log on his shoulder, each step he took slightly wobbly.

    The sight of a child barely half the size of the other men carrying a log two times his height was absurd. Fang had picked-up a job helping transport wood for the incoming winter. The pay was meager, a per log basis netting him three copper coins each.

    He¡¯d been at it for the last week ever since he¡¯d reached initiation with the Mortal Forging Sutra which he had kept practicing but at a lower intensity.

    The foreman of the lumber mill had looked at him incredulously when Fang had approached him for a job. Already having dismissed the obvious joke before Fang had asked to be tested.

    Imagine his surpirse when he watched the small kid lift a log that would¡¯ve made his younger workers struggle. It wasn¡¯t without effort however, the strain clear on Fang¡¯s face yet he still slowly walked around the lumber yard.

    He appreciated the kids gumption, and had hired him at a lower rate to match his slower speed.

    Fang continued his slow march to the cart, his heart hammering in his chest with each step. With a grunt he slid the log onto the cart before pushing it into place.

    Fang stumbled to a nearby stump before unceremoniously slumping over himself.

    He took deep breaths, trying to ease the strain in his back and legs. That was his tenth log, a massive increase from the five logs he managed on his first day. He¡¯d slowly improved, his body becoming used to the balance and weight of the logs.

    Today would be his last day on the job. Winter was soon to come, and the logs need to be cut and stored in a dry place for use throughout the snow biting months.

    Fang made more money than he¡¯d ever had, including his small allowance from Granny Gian he had around a copper tael and a half. A sizable amount for a boy his age.

    Though it was all about to disappear.

    ¡°Good work today kid, wanna come drink away the sweat with the rest of us?¡± The foreman, Cai invited as he held out a small water skin.

    Fang graciously accepted the water, the cold liquid flowing down his throat cooling his burning lungs to great affect.

    Fang cupped his hands.

    ¡°Thank you for the drink Senior, but I must decline the other drink. Granny Gian would have my head if she found out I was drinking.¡±

    Foreman Cai laughed, patting Fang on the shoulder.

    ¡°Well the offer stands, you did good work today, let us know if Gian needs any wood this winter and we¡¯ll see what we can spare.¡±

    Fang thanked the man, before heading back to the orphanage with tired steps.

    The village had been quite busy as of late, as the last peddlers and merchants passed through as they made their way to warmer towns. People were busy reinforcing their roofs, filling gaps with mud and stacking wood for the winter.

    The village was filled with the scent of smoking meats, as people prepared rations for the harshness of the frost. Game would become sparse, herbs and vegetables all but gone. The world would be blanketed in knee deep snow in only a month from now.

    It was incredible how routine and intense the shifting of seasons was in this world. Fang wondered if it had something to do with the presence of Qi, though couldn¡¯t verify these claims as it was akin to asking if the sun always rose from the east.

    Granny Gian was already working on dinner when he returned, many of the children helping bundle herbs to hang or checking the rice bags for rodent bites.

    ¡°Ah Fang, welcome home my dear, help your poor granny with dinner would you?¡±

    Fang smiled.

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    He had become fond of his new home, the memories of who he once was on Earth replaced by the peaceful monotony of caring for the Orphange.

    If not for the looming presence of superhuman beings, Qi beasts and monsters just beyond the forest depths, he could¡¯ve been quite content.

    A simple life¡­

    Perhaps after he¡¯d secure his own safety in this harsh world he¡¯d settle down. But not now, not while the unknown terrors lurked through the night.

    After helping and informing Granny Gian of the offer for firewood Fang quickly set off once more. His destination the same as a over a week ago. The sun was already low when he left, much lower than it was even just a week ago this time.

    His breath rose into the air as he watched people out and about with furs and goods in tow.

    The night market was practically desolate in comparison to before, with only a few local stalls present setup around the twisting tree. The Cultivator had long since left, and with him the protection of his presence. He saw a couple people seated close together enjoying steaming noodles, and the old man from before, still sitting behind his stall with a bored look on his face.

    Fang waved to him and received a barely perceptible nod of acknowledgement in return. He then looked around the square before smiling when he spotted the rogue peddler from before still preset. She sat cross legged, almost completely still despite the cold temperatures.

    ¡°Greetings once again.¡± Fang said cupping his fist.

    The woman peaked at him from under her hat, before replying in her soft whisper of a voice.

    ¡°Hello child, what can I do you?¡±

    Fang smiled.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking for techniques.¡± He said scanning over the mismatched items she was selling.

    ¡°To fight or to run?¡± She asked.

    Fang thought a moment.

    ¡°Can I see both? I only have a copper tael to spend.¡±

    The woman chuckled.

    ¡°A word of advice child, never reveal how much you have, especially to someone who has what you want.¡± She said softly.

    ¡°Thank you for the advice senior, I¡¯ll keep that in mind.¡±

    The woman grabbed a couple books from the mat as well as a couple from a nearby basket.

    ¡°Most of these are a tael, but the offensive arts are a little more.¡±

    Fang nodded before reading through the selection of techniques.

    Splitting Stone Palm, Iron knuckle Strike, Ox Stance, Copper Shield, Crickets Leaping Steps, and Earth-Shattering Steps.

    After careful consideration he decided on the last technique. All of the techniques with exception of the Earth-Shattering Steps lacked a certain degree of versatility. And while being a movement focused technique, Earth-Shattering Steps implied that it could be used offensively if mastered.

    And it sounds the coolest.

    ¡®Earth-Shattering Steps

    A strong step to crush the earth, a single movement to cross the heavens.

    Unwavering in direction, no foe will stand in your way. Anything foolish enough will be shattered under foot.¡¯

    Crossing the heavens in a single movement? Who the fuck wrote this thing? Isn¡¯t this literally Mortal grade?

    Regardless of the claims it made in its description the technique itself remained more grounded. Aiming to focus all of the practitioners strength into a single stride, when mastered to peak could shatter the very earth under foot as they exploded outwards with blurring speed.

    It similarly had three stages, with the peak stage saying that it would be possible to direct the force generated enoughso that¡¯s he¡¯d be able to shatter a tree from a distance in a single stomp.

    The only downside he could see from his cursory glance was its inability to easily change directions during his strides¡­

    And another insane training regiment. Holding a weighted pistol squat on only my toes, explosive leaps over my head-height with double my body weight, and 10km of duck walking?

    It was no wonder that despite the prevalence of Mortal techniques and cultivation manuals that anyone could use, spirit root or not, people rarely tried to cultivate their bodies. Who the hell would endure such hellish suffering only to be swatted away by a single hand gesture of a Cultivator? People had things to do, families to feed after all.

    Fang grimaced at the long days ahead of him, his only solace being the systems hopeful assistance.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take it.¡±

    ¡ª

    The wind blew over the trees, thick coats of snow flurrying off leaves in plumes of glittering flakes. The village was serenely quiet under the suffocating blanket of white. Chimneys churned with coiling bands of smoke into the grey sky above.

    In the nearby forest, barely a hundred strides from the village border Fang was training. A large log was balanced across his shoulders, as he strained to maintain coordination. Holding a pistol squat on only his toes. His body was covered in a thin cloak of snow that had accumulated from his stillness.

    His legs quaked unceasingly, not from the cold but from the strain. His veins bulged along his calf and thigh, his core long since sore under the weight of the constantly shifting log.

    Despite feeling like his knees were going to explode at any moment his breath held smooth, a rythmic pattern that brought in the chilling cold air before being released as a small cloud of vapour from his lungs.

    Steam rose from his body in small wispy strands, the heat of his efforts slowly melting the ever piling snow on his form.

    With a grunt he let the log roll off of his back, hearing it crush softly into the snow. Fang fell forwards, landing on his hands as he took deep breaths, his knees throbbing. With slow delicate movements he extended his legs, trying to ease off the built up tension.

    The movement technique was harder than he expected, even with his newfound strength from his Mortal Forging Sutra.

    But it was all worth it, two weeks of effort had culminated to this very moment, as he finally completed a full session of training without pause.

    His system scroll appeared out of thin air, unfurling its page with a delicate grace.

    Fang :

    [Cultivation]

    - Mortal Forging Sutra I (Small Success)

    [Technique]

    - Earth-Shattering Steps I (Initiation)

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    His legs bulged slightly, an internal wave of power coursing through his muscles. His calves twitched uncontrollably as his tendons wound over themselves, adapting his body to the Earth-Shattering Steps. A rush of  knowledge sept into his muscles, refining his instincts as if he¡¯d been practicing the technique for months.

    Fang exhaled slowly, enjoying the fading euphoria.

    The reason it¡¯d taken him nearly two times as long as Mortal Forging Sutra was due to balancing his time training both equally.

    When he reached small success in his cultivation he didn¡¯t experience the body crushing, seizing metamorphism he had before, but a soothing sudden increase in power. His muscles had suddenly doubled in density. His efforts in training had begun to show, despite his small form, his muscles were taut under  skin like banded steel.

    The system was accelerating his progress, skipping months of work by a factor of ten. As long as he practiced perfectly he¡¯d reap the rewards.

    Fang stood carefully, stretching out his legs, his joints popping in a gnarled crescendo of relief.

    Finally¡­

    He took a deep breath, his lungs filling with a refreshing taste of the cool air.

    In an instant, he snapped downwards into a sprinting start, his bare feet digging into the ground below with a primal stability. Every muscle in his leg flexed before activating in perfect unity.

    The ground beneath exploded! Fang shot forwards reaching eye watering speeds in the blink of an eye.

    Hell yeah! Fang thought to himself, relishing the rush of speed, it felt amazing ¡ª superhuman.

    His joy was short lived however as he struggled to land, his body tipped forwards, unused to air maneuvering. He slammed into a tree, the impact punching the wind out of his lungs before falling into the snow below with a heavy crunch.

    He groaned, unmoving.

    The tree shook and an avalanche of snow flooded from the leaves above burying him.

    ¡­

    I think I need to learn some flips¡­ and maybe get a drink.

    ¡ª

    Fang groaned as he walked up to the only tavern in town. The day had turned dark, the air now painful to breath. He hugged his new dark-fur cloak tightly around himself, satisfied with his recent purchase.

    The moment he pushed through the doors he was hit with a wave of warmth and life. The tavern was abuzz with activity, tables were filled with hunters drinking rice wine while joking with labourers. A large woman was busy preparing drinks shouting over the commotion with a big smile on her face.

    ¡°Kang if you guys break another one of my tables I¡¯ll make sure you never drink again!¡± She joked.

    A large table cheered at her warning, the largest of the bunch, a man dressed in heavy furs with a bald scarred head chortled.

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t dare! To be barred from Yan¡¯s special wine would be the day I die!¡± He vowed to even more cheers.

    Fang couldn¡¯t help but smile at the atmosphere. But before he could even take a single step a familiar voice called out to him.

    ¡°Is that our little bull?¡±

    Fang turned his head to see foreman Cai waving a drink in his direction. He smiled, heading towards the table of labourers, most of their faces flush red in a drunken stupor.

    Fang cupped his hands. ¡°Greetings foreman Cai, mind if I join you for a drink?¡±

    Cai grinned, sloshing his drink around. ¡°Lady Yan! One Yan special for our little bull here!¡±

    Fang¡¯s brow raised at the nickname. ¡°Little bull?¡± He asked as he took a stool at the round table.

    The labourers laughed, one of the drunken men he had worked with before answered in slurred speech.

    ¡°Yes! Little bull, small yet strong like bull, hardheaded and determined ¡ª ugh, oh heavens ¡ª I¡¯m gonna heave brothers!¡± The man grimaced holding his mouth closed.

    ¡°If you dare heave in here I will make you lick it up!¡± Lady Yan shouted over from behind the bar.

    The man quickly stood before running out of the tavern with a chorus of laughter following him.

    A server brought a wooden tankard of rice wine over, before quickly moving on to serve another table.

    Cai pushed the drink over to Fang.

    ¡°So little bull, thought Granny Gian would have your head yet here ya are?¡±

    Fang smiled.

    ¡°I¡¯ve made some gains in my body refining and thought I¡¯d celebrate a little.¡±

    The men around him nodded in agreement, such things were worth celebrating they thought. A man¡¯s worth was tied to his strength of arm, the stronger he was the more he could provide.

    ¡°To our little bull!¡± Cai shouted aloud raising his drink.

    A cheer resounded. Fang smiled, taking a sip of the rice wine, his brows rising in surprise. Sweeter than I thought it¡¯d be.

    The night continued, with the men getting drunker and drunker. Every now and then a woman would storm in the tavern fuming as she dragged a drunken excuse for a husband into the cold street. Each time a chorus of cheers would follow.

    ¡°Gah, another winter has come. I wonder if this one will be as cold as the last?¡± A nearby hunter mused.

    ¡°We¡¯ll be fiiiiiine¡ª¡± Another hunter replied. ¡°¡ªnot even that Cultivator wanted withstand the cold, what does that say about us!¡±

    The men cheered.

    ¡°Gah, bloody cultivators, thinking they¡¯re so much better than us with their fancy silks and graaaaceful techniques! Consider me happy that he didn¡¯t find anyone here worthy ¡ª true mortals we all are!¡±

    He didn¡¯t find a single person with spirit roots? Are they rarer than I assumed?

    Fang could only speculate, slowly finishing his drink. He took in a deep breath taking in the atmosphere one last time, his face felt slightly flushed, the drunken warmth turning his cheeks red. As he stood to leave he was suddenly grabbed by foreman Cai.

    ¡°Whoa whoa WHOA little bull, where do you think you¡¯re going?! One drink? Only?!¡±

    Fang laughed. ¡°Apologies senior but I¡¯m still young and can¡¯t handle my liquor.¡±

    ¡°Ridicuuuuulous! You¡¯re too strong to be saying that.¡± Foreman Cai said before burping aloud. He pointed a finger into the air taking a large gulp of his drink.

    ¡°To leave you must beat us in a test of strength!¡±

    Fang sighed. They wanted to compete in a test of strength with a twelve year old?

    ¡°Okay, but only one match.¡±

    The few remaining men cheered, even a few of the hunters had taken interest. Entertainment was hard to come by in these parts after all.

    Space was made and Fang quickly found himself in an arm wrestling match with a young man he¡¯d seen before, the son of Foreman Cai if he remembered correctly.

    To the surprise of the whole tavern Fang was holding strong, even more so he was winning! The young man groaned, his eyes widened in incredulity as he lost to a boy five years his junior.

    He wasn¡¯t weak by any means, having practiced his fathers Copper Muscle body refining manual to small success.

    The young boy before him however had cleanly defeated him while barely breaking a sweat.

    ¡°HAHAHA! Cai looks like you¡¯ll need to train your son even harder this winter if he¡¯s loosing to the little bull!¡± The bald headed hunter jeered, slapping his thigh in laughter.

    Cai was surprised himself, he had known the boy was strong but not this strong. He must¡¯ve truly had gains in his refining.

    ¡°Gah! Kang you try the boy! He¡¯s stronger than he looks.¡±

    Kang chortled before standing. His hulking form towering over the rest of the labourers, as he unceremoniously sat down across from Fang.

    Fang could only sigh. I said one match¡­

    His hand was dwarfed in Kang¡¯s. He¡¯s strong. Through grip alone he could tell that he was going to lose, the hunters were the strongest in the village, all of them were body refiners and had been battling beasts for a living. They stood on a different level from the foreman¡¯s son.

    Kang grinned. ¡°You have a strong grip there little bull!¡±

    And without warning he yanked Fang¡¯s arm towards the table. Fang grimaced, his teeth grinding as his entire body flexed against the strength of the hulking hunter.

    For a moment it seemed like he could hold on, the sheer fact that he could resist Kangs strength caused the tavern to explode in cheers.

    ¡°DONT YOU DARE LOSE LITTLE BULL!¡±

    ¡°COME ON! SHOW US YOUR HORNS!¡±

    Unfortunately the difference in strength was too much, Kang grunted and doubled down, a vein on his bald head pulsating. Before he slammed Fang¡¯s arm into the table shattering the wood.

    The tavern cheered, it was a match well fought.

    ¡°Impressive kid! You must¡¯ve seriously trained hard to become this strong¡ª¡° Kang complimented before being unceremoniously slapped in the back of the head.

    ¡°Kang! In heavens name what did I say about breaking my tables!¡± Lady Yan shouted at him.

    The tavern cheered once more, jeering as the hulking man apologized profusely to the woman half his size.

    One of the hunters turned to Fang, giving him strong pat on the back.

    ¡°Good show good show! Say kid¡­ you looking for a job?¡±

 Chapter 2: Bull Stalks Beast...

    Winter was a sordid affair. Forests Edge was all but lifeless with scant few daring to leave the warmth of their homes. Northern winds from the distant Dragon Range blew freezing gusts over the towering pines, sending flurries of snow into the air, the flakes fading into the permanent overcast clouds like stars in an abyssal sky.

    Yet despite the frigid weather, Fang was preparing to head out on his first hunt.

    ¡°Granny, I¡¯ll be back in a few days at most.¡± He said, trying to soothe her motherly worries.

    ¡°Oh dear, it¡¯s too cold, too cold to be out there! I have no idea what that brute Kang is thinking but I swear! If you have so much as a cut on your beautiful face they¡¯ll have more than the heavens to fear!¡± She said with a huff.

    Fang chuckled, ¡°I¡¯ll do my best to stay safe Granny, but no promises, hunting is¡­¡±

    Well, I don¡¯t know what hunting is do I?

    Granny Gian waved her hand dismissively. ¡°¡ªDangerous! And foolish in this weather!¡±

    She sighed. Cupping his small face in her weathered hands. He felt the callouses on her fingers against his skin.

    ¡°Promise me you¡¯ll come back in one piece?¡±

    ¡°I promise Granny, and I¡¯ll bring back plenty of meat for the kids.¡±

    She smiled, adjusting the fur cloak on his shoulders.

    ¡°Heavens bless you Fang.¡±

    ¡°You as well Granny.¡±

    Fang left the orphanage, heading towards the hunters lodge on the outskirts of the village, he adjusted his leather pack, the weight of his dried rations and bedroll insignificant despite its large size.

    Fang smiled, the excitement of finally leaving the village getting to him. It was his first steps into the wider world after all ¡ª the mundanity of his training had almost made him forget that there was an entire world out there. Filled with supernatural and magical entities he had only read about back on Earth.

    Hell, I¡¯m no longer a mere human myself.

    Fang :

    [Cultivation]

    - Mortal Forging Sutra I (Great Success)

    [Technique]

    - Earth-Shattering Steps I (Small Success)

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    Fangs progress was incredible, his Mortal Forging Sutra had already reached Great Success, granting him the strength of an Ox. Though it was clear that his small stature was currently holding him back. That was unfortunately out of his control, unless he could suddenly age five years he¡¯d be unable to fully enjoy the fruits of his labour.

    The System was accelerating his growth by unfathomable amounts, each perfect training session was akin to ten. He wagered he¡¯d reach Peak Mastery in his Cultivation by the end of winter, and Great Success in his Earth-Shattering steps as well.

    The only worry on his mind now was getting access to higher grade refining manuals and techniques.

    But is this it? Will I have to just keep stacking refining manual after refining manual?

    He had long since come to terms with his lack of Spirit roots. But he worried that no matter how strong his body could become he¡¯d forever be at the mercy of Qi. A small fish in an ocean of flying swords and Qi arts that could slice mountains in two.

    Lost in his musings Fang quickly arrived at the lodge. Just outside five large men could be seen packing gear and sharpening spear tips. Fang spotted Kang sitting on stump staring at the sky, a large mug in his hand steaming into the cold air.

    The man quickly spotted Fang as he approached, a large grin plastering across his face.

    ¡°It¡¯s a lovely day for a hunt isn¡¯t it Little Bull!¡± The man shouted to him as he downed the contents of his mug back.

    Fang gave a small smile, hiding his annoyance at the nickname, it was honestly getting on his nerves and he didn¡¯t know why. He looked up to the sky to see nothing but grey, it was supposed to be morning yet there wasn¡¯t even a lick of sunlight to be seen.

    Kang seeing him look at the sky could help but laugh.

    ¡°Come over, we¡¯re almost ready to leave.¡±

    Fang joined up with the group, watching keenly as they went through their final preparations. The other four hunters: Liu, Dan, Tian and Lu were all in their late twenties and thirties like Kang, they¡¯d been sworn brothers for decades, their familiarity with one another apparent as they prepared in utter silence, handing one another rations to pack or rope to coil. Each of them carried a bundle of throwing spears, javelins made of simple iron and dark wood.

    They were built alike, broad-shouldered with dark muddied hair that hung to their shoulders, hugging their necks like wild manes. It was a stark contrast to Kangs bald head, though he made up for it in strength of build and beard.

    It wasn¡¯t long before they set-off. Northward, into the depths of the Savage Land.

    The scenery quickly turned disorientingly beautiful. The towering pines above them blending into a repeating pattern of white and dark bark. Wind blew overhead frequently, slapping small piles of snow from branches that fell in small white showers. The soft crunch of their leather fur-lined boots filled the otherwise overbearing silence with a squelching rhythm. Nobody spoke, as it would likely alert any intended prey.

    Fang kept up quite easily despite the knee-deep snow, the hunters in front of him trailblazing an easy path for his much smaller legs.

    Fang did his best to try and stay oriented, but quickly found himself lost amidst the surrounding landscape. He had to place his trust in the hunters to lead him home, as he quickly admitted to himself that¡¯d he¡¯d be screwed without them.

    It had already been nearly a full day, and they hadn¡¯t spied the faintest hint of an animal.

    This is going to be a long few days Fang inwardly groaned, wondering what he¡¯d just signed himself up for.

    He realized a little too late that his leather boots weren¡¯t treated with the same fats as the others, a coldness seeping between his toes like his boot were filled with snow.

    He¡¯d survive, praying that his recent attainments in body refining would stave away the creeping onset of frostbite.

    His toes were, after all, quite important.

    ¡ª

    They had been searching in and around the forest for over two days, the wet reality of the cold becoming commonplace ¡ª inescapable.

    It felt like the hunt would never end, that they were going in circles over and over with no final destination. An anxious feeling of impatience had slowly bubbled within Fang, his shoulders aching in tempo with his steps.

    Suddenly, Kangs fist rose into the air, hovering just beside his head, the endless march ground to a sudden halt.

    ¡°I see tracks, brothers.¡± He whispers, his grizzled voice carrying a bubbling excitement.

    A breath of relief is pulled out of everyone behind him.

    ¡°Finally¡­¡± Liu whispers, shrugging his shoulders in relief.

    Without prompting everyone begins to unload their gear, dropping everything but their weapons. The gear would be useless in battle, and unless a blizzard came through in the next day or two they¡¯d find it again easily. Supposedly.

    All of the hunters hold their javelins and larger spears tipped with iron points. Kang, however, seemed to prefer hunting with a great saber ¡ª it¡¯s dark metal blade the size of his torso.

    He kneels down, his hand grazing across the large hoof holes that trailed away deeper into the forest.

    He grinned, the exhilaration of incoming battle bringing a smile to his face.

    ¡°It¡¯s big, could be a halfstep Qi-beast¡­¡± He said, his voice trailing as he stares into the forest in anticipation. The hunters grunt in agreement.

    He turns to face his brothers, seeing similar smiles on their faces. He gives a quiet laugh at Fang, seeing the serious look on his little face.

    ¡°Relax little bull, don¡¯t let the cold strangle your muscles taught, just breath boy.¡±

    Fang nods, only now realizing that he was overly tense with anticipation. He took a deep gulp of air, before letting his breath dissipate into the clouded sky above. This whole experience was a first for him, having never had the chance to hunt back on Earth.

    Kang grinned, with another grizzled whisper he speaks once more, his words a declaration of ensuing victory.

    ¡°Tonight brothers, WE WILL FEAST!¡±

    The hunters moved quickly, gliding through the snow like silent bulldozers. Fang followed in their wake, his eyes darting around him half-expecting to see a beast of terrible nature staring at him from behind a tree.

    Yet it wasn¡¯t until another thirty minutes had passed that the group finally caught sight of their prey.

    And it was no beast of terror, a beast for sure, but nothing that would cause his breath to hitch in his throat.

    It was just a boar ¡ª albeit one the size of a small car. It¡¯s rotund body matted in tufts of brown and white fur, a confusing camouflage that helped meld its large frame into the snow and forest around it.

    Two tusks the size of Fang¡¯s legs curled upwards. From between them small snorting breaths lifted into the air as the boar used its tusks to dig into a patch of earth beneath a great pine.

    Kang signaled everyone to hold steady, his fingers giving a series of silent commands to his brothers.

    ¡®Fan out, surround, throw spears, make it bleed.¡¯

    His charade of orders was surprising easily to understand Fang thought, likely developed in-house through years of hunting.

    Kang gave Fang a look, and motioned for him to stay alert and look for an opportunity.

    His eyes all but screamed, don¡¯t get yourself killed, Little Bull, followed by a predatory smile as he looked at his brothers. They all nodded, turning away and silently stalking around the boar.

    Fang could feel his heart ramping up as he watched the hunters surround the boar. Even despite its thick coat of fur he could spot thick bands of muscle squirming under its skin.

    Kang stood, pulling his great saber off of his back, his knuckles white gripped around its dark leathered hilt.

    Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    Without a sound he charged forwards.

    Immediately the boars ears pricked upwards, but before it could turn to face the hulking man charging it down with a saber a chorus of whistles filled the air.

    Four javelins soared through the air, stabbing into the beasts fur with fleshly thunks.

    It roared, a screeching squeal that shook the earth around it. Kang shot forwards, his own movement technique on display as he bounded forwards with large strides.

    The boar twisted its tusks at him, trying to skewer the man. Kang easily evaded, leaping to its side. He slashed his saber across its side-chest in a heavy swing. The metal clawed a deep gash open, deep crimson blood quickly flooding out the wound.

    The boar roared once more, lifting itself on its hind legs before slamming down.

    Kangs eyes went wide as he lept backwards. Even then, the sheer force of the slam caused him to shake, his bones rattling in his legs.

    Another series of javelins flew through the air, though only two landed this time. Tian and Lu charged forwards, spears in hand they tried to stab the boars hind-legs.

    The boar in a surprising display of dexterity whipped around and shattered the spears with its tusks, nearly taking out the two hunters in the process.

    Blood flowed into the snow. The white quickly stained in splatters as the boar shook itself, dislodging the javelins in its side. It huffed, stomping its foreleg into the ground below repeatedly.

    ¡°WATCH THE CHARGE!¡±

    The boar shot forwards, rearing its two black curved tusks at whoever dared to block its path. Liu and Dan tried anyways, facing the beast head-on. With shocking speed, their spears shot forwards like bullets.

    The iron points sank deep, a squelch of blood erupting in red blossoms in the boars neck before the spears shattered against the charging force.

    The hunters were thrown aside, one of them screaming as his arm bent backwards against the boars thrashing charge.

    ¡°LIU!¡° Dan screamed watching his brother get flung backwards, his arm clearly mangled.

    ¡°DONT LET THE BEAST GET AWAY!¡± Kang bellowed.

    Yet before the beast could charge into the forest, leaving a trail of blood seeping into the snow. A thunderous crackle resounded, shaking the nearby trees of their snow. The ground nearby exploded into a plume of snow and dirt.

    Fang blurred through the air, his tiny form flying at the boar. Right as he reached it, he twisted his body, flipping himself into a front-flip and slamming his heel down onto the boars spine.

    A blood-curling snap rang into the air, the boars flesh reverberating at the impact. Its hulking form tumbled across the snow covered forest floor leaving a trail of bloody destruction in its wake.

    Fang landed in a crouch, his breath hot in the cool air.

    ¡°It¡¯s still alive!¡± He screamed. The boar tried to rise again, though it was visibly struggling.

    Kang flew past Fang displacing frigid air as he did. He raised his great saber over head. The iron blade bisecting the falling snow around him in two, before he slashed down into the boars neck. A small boom shook the earth, a cloud of snow uplifting into the air, leaving the world in a stunned silence.

    Snow continued to fall around the hunter group, the many heaving breaths the only noise filling the air.

    Kang rose from the floor, dusting the snow off him before pulling his saber free from the boar with a fleshly rip.

    He turned, seeing all of his brothers alive.

    ¡°FUCK YEAH!¡± He cheered raising a fist into the air.

    The men all cheered, Fang included.

    ¡°WE WILL FEAST TONIGHT BROTHERS!¡± Kang cheered once more.

    ¡ª

    Liu¡¯s injury was hard to look at, but the hunters assured Fang that it was merely a flesh wound, easily fixed with a months rest and some herbal remedies from the village doctor.

    Liu and Tian quickly left to retrieve their gear, as the others made quick work at creating a makeshift sled from the nearby trees.

    When the pair returned they rolled the the beast onto the makeshift sled, before tying its corpse down with copious rope bindings.

    With little fanfare they began the long trek back to the village, the weight of the boar made easy by the snow below.

    Despite having been out in the wilds for over two days, the hunters said it would only take a day to return.

    ¡°That was impressive Little Bull! What technique was that?¡± Kang asked from nearby as he lugged the boar forwards.

    ¡°Thank you, it¡¯s called the Earth-Shattering steps.¡± He replied which made the hunters widened their eyes in surprise.

    ¡°Heavens little bull, the refining regimen didn¡¯t scare you away?¡± Tian asked from nearby. He was familiar with the Mortal grade technique, as there really weren¡¯t many to choose from in these parts.

    Fang chuckled, ¡°It wasn¡¯t easy, but no pain no gain.¡± He said which elicited an affirming nod from the group.

    ¡°Well said! No pain no gain indeed ¡ª Ya hear that Liu? HAH!¡± Kang said as he poked at the injured man with a booming laugh.

    Liu rolled his eyes only to wince in pain as he did so.

    Kang thought for a moment, rubbing his beard with is bear like hand. ¡°That¡¯s a powerful technique but it lacks flexibility during movement Little Bull, you know this?¡±

    Fang nodded. ¡°I do, but it was the best one I could afford that also gave me an offensive move.¡± He said with a sigh.

    Hopefully he¡¯d be able to gather enough money to afford another technique once winter was over, a fist or palm technique was surely at the top of his list once he was less¡­ broke.

    ¡°Well¡­¡± Kang said hesitantly. ¡°¡­with how hardworking you¡¯ve shown yourself to be¡­ I¡¯d be willing to share my own Wind Striding Steps with ya if you promise to keep up the effort?¡±

    Fang looked at the man incredulously, sharing techniques, even measly mortal grade techniques, was akin to passing along a family heirloom.

    ¡°Truly?¡± Fang asked.

    Kang grinned, slapping his chest with a deep thud. ¡°Of course! I, Kang, never go back on my word!¡±

    Fang smiled, and bowed cupping his fist to the large man. ¡°Thank you senior! I will be forever grateful!¡±

    ¡°Ah, none of that matters boy, just show us that pain and gain you talked about and I will rest easy.¡±

    ¡ª

    The hunting party returned to the village with little fanfare. Liu immediately broke off towards the village herbalist while the rest continued onwards, dragging the boar to the only butchery available.

    ¡°Old Ren! We have work for ya!¡± Kang screamed from outside the small workshop. The building was of two parts, a house attached by a semi-open aired workshop with a collection of knives, from large curved dao blades to bone knives. Fang felt like he was peering into an armory instead of a butchery.

    The door to the house opened with great effort, the snow that had built up just outside the door was swept away as an elderly yet muscular man with tied back hair peered out from behind the door.

    ¡°Kang you need to learn how to lower your damn voice¡ª¡° Old man Ren said before his eyes went wide like saucers.

    ¡°¡ªGreat heavens! Is that a Qi-Beast?!¡±

    The hunters laughed and even Fang couldn¡¯t help but smile in satisfaction at the old man¡¯s reaction.

    ¡°HAH! Old Ren you wish! It¡¯s merely a half-step beast¡­¡± Kang said with badly hidden sarcasm.

    Old Ren shook his head. ¡°Ai, you young¡¯ns have no humility! None I tell you!¡± He said in mock anger, a smile tugging at his lips. He was after all the butcher, which meant a part of the beast would be his to keep, even if it was small.

    ¡°Bring it round back to the block and I¡¯ll get you all a leg for tonight, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve had a long day.¡±

    Fang watched with rapt attention as Old Ren dismembered one of the Boars hind-legs with a massive curved blade. His movements clearly refined over decades of practice, the old man made quick work of the boar, first skinning the leg then severing it at the ball joint. He then quickly portioned and packed the meat in an oiled leather-bound wrap, and under Kang¡¯s direction also reserved a smaller yet still substantial amount in another package.

    Kang grabbed the smaller portion and turned to Fang, handing it to him with a large smile. ¡°Here Little Bull, there¡¯s more to come but why don¡¯t you take this portion back home for Granny Gian and the others, she must be worried sick about you. Meet us later tonight at the lodge and we¡¯ll feast together!¡±

    Fang smiled, gratefully thanking Kang and the butcher who only nodded him away too busy hacking away at the boar.

    As he made his way back to the Orphanage, victory meat in tow, a small wave of exhaustion overcame him.

    His body had been running on adrenaline and the high of battle and only as he approached home was it beginning to relax.

    I cannot wait to sleep in a warm bed tonight. He thought, the two nights of cold and wet bedroll was enough for him. He wished he had access to a spatial ring or an system-granted inventory, but could only sigh at his lack thereof.

    When he stepped into the orphanage a comforting wave of heat and the sweet herbal scents of the stews he had come to love quickly filled his nose. Immediately, many small faces turned to see the haggard intruder, before a chorus of cheers filled the air.

    ¡°Elder brother Fang is alive!¡±

    ¡°Big bro is back!¡±

    ¡°Is that meat I smell?¡±

    A small gang of little thugs charged at him, hugging him from all sides before they quickly reeled back in disgust.

    ¡°Big bro you need to bathe¡­¡± Said one of the smaller kids. Fang could only laugh as he was pulled into the home.

    ¡°Now now, go back to the table and keep eating! You dare let the stew I cooked go cold? You want your dear old granny to break her back for you!?¡± Granny Gian said in soft scoldings.

    The kids quickly returned to eating but couldn¡¯t help their bubbling excitement.

    Granny Gian approached Fang pulling him into a soft hug and cupping his face, before she turned his head over as if examining him for a fleas.

    ¡°Are you hurt? Did that brute Kang make you fight a Qi-beast? Why do you smell so bad?¡­¡± She said in rapid fire, her endearment washing over his tired muscles and bringing a calmness to his mind.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine Granny, just a little tired. I¡¯ll tell you all about it after i¡¯ve bathed ¡ª oh, and I brought you all a present.¡± He said as he unwrapped the large morsel of boar meat.

    The kids at the table stared stunned, before a clatter of spoons dropping led way to a roar of victory.

    ¡°MEAT!!!!¡±

    ¡°Big Bro is the BEST!¡±

    ¡°I LOVE MEAT!¡±

    They screamed in fury as Granny Gian could only shake her head with a soft smile.

    ¡°Thank you Fang, we¡¯ll save it for tomorrow to celebrate your first successful hunt it seems¡­¡± She then turned staring the kids down with a fearsome gaze. ¡°BUT ONLY¡­ if you can finish your dinner tonight.¡± She added.

    That made all the kids sit straight, as the ravenously gobbled down the stew mouths already watering for next dinner.

    Fang chuckled.

    After bathing himself and washing away the days of grime and exhaustion, he left the orphanage towards the hunters lodge.

    Even from afar he could see the flashes of a large fire ablaze, the mouth-watering scent of dripping fats and meat carrying through the air. His stomach grumbled, his muscles hungering for that sweet sweet protein.

    A small band of people were already merrily drinking away as he arrived. The boars massive leg was skewered and cooking over a large open fire that sizzled as its juices dripped down. Kang had two drinks in his hand, his voice booming as he retold the battle with the beast.

    ¡°¡ªAND! As the beast reared to charge away, already frightened at our sheer power and killing intent, Liu and Dan met it face on, their spears causing the air to explode as they stabbed the beast nearly stopping it in its tracks!¡± People gasped and cheered, some smacking Liu on the shoulder in astonishment. The man grimaced at the impact but still smiled at their words.

    ¡°Yet even bleeding a river of blood could not stop the beast from running from us. For a moment we all thought it would get away until¡­¡±

    His voice hung in the air, people leaned forwards as he drew out the cliff hanger.

    ¡°BOOM!¡± Kang shouted, making people jump in shock.

    ¡°Out of nowhere our Little Bull shattered the very earth below him, moving faster than any of us could see, he kicked the boar so hard its back snapped in two!¡±

    Fang smirked, that¡¯s not exactly what happened¡­

    ¡°The force was so great that the beast nearly broke in half, the trees shook and the snow receded, like an immortal cultivator had descended. Our Little Bull shouted at us: KILL IT! And hearing him, I strode forwards, my saber in hand I cleaved the boars head clean off its body.¡±

    Everybody cheered as Kang wolfishly grinned at his retelling until he sighted Fang approaching.

    Oh Heavens, please spare me.

    ¡°There he is! Our very own beast slaying bull! Little Bull!¡± Kang said pointing a sloshing mug at Fang.

    ¡°Little Bull! Little Bull!¡± People began to cheer, as Fang could only shake his head ruefully.

    Before he knew it a drink had been shoved in his hand and he was pulled into the band of the increasingly drunk group.

    ¡°A CHEER! To a great hunt, and our Little Bull!¡± Kang exclaimed.

    ¡°A CHEER!¡± He received from everyone back, as people slammed their drinks back.

    Fang smiled, the atmosphere like a black hole drawing him in. He likewise slammed his drink back, feeling the rice wine burn down his throat.

    The night continued on, amidst a cacophony of laughter and exaggerated tales. Kang, despite having already drunken enough to kill a mortal man still found time to bring Fang into the hunters lodge.

    The inside was lit by a number of animal fat candles, and a large hearth that burned in the center of the large single room. A number of animal skulls and furs adorned the walls, along with a host of weapons from spears and broken swords, claws and fangs of beasts long since slain.

    Kang pushed a small manual into Fangs hands. A worn thing, his leather binding tattered at the edges and its pages slightly yellowed with time.

    ¡°Keep it Little Bull, I¡¯ve already mastered it long ago, and I¡¯ve thankfully no kids to pass it down to. Just promise me you won¡¯t give up on your training, and live up to the name of little bull will ya?¡±

    Fang smiled, feeling the alcohol sloshing in his stomach. ¡°I promise Kang, hell, I¡¯ll even promise to becoming a Great Bull one day!¡±

    ¡°HAH! It won¡¯t be long now, you seem to be talented in body techniques. Go, feast then rest. We won¡¯t be going for another hunt any time soon ¡ª what with the all this meat to eat, we¡¯ll be too busy sleeping and drinking!¡±

    The night dragged on, and in a drunken haze Fang stumbled back to the orphanage, his new technique in tow.

    The moment his face touched his small cot, he fell asleep. The warm embrace of his bed sucking him into a deep catatonic slumber.

    ¡ª

    Far to the south-east, following the Blue River away from the Savage Land and Dragons Range, a series of mountainous uplifts rose into the sky. The numerous peaks like fingers reaching for the heavens.

    Nestled between these very peaks lay the Azure Lotus Sect. Despite the frigid snow-scape all around, not a flake of snow dared land on the sect grounds. A great formation encapsulated the sect in its entirety, isolating the paradise within from the mortal world just outside.

    A myriad of pagodas and arching pathways hugged the mountains, winding around from its highest peaks to its lowest base. The buildings liberally spaced about, carved delicately from stone, as if hewn from the mountain itself. Small artificial ponds and streams flowed about the sect grounds, a million lotuses, blue as ice gently floated on their surfaces in perpetual bloom giving the waters a mystical aura.

    At the entrance of the sect, a massive gate stood, its two pillars made of translucent blue jade that glimmered against the formations magics shimmering as they reflected against the winter wonderland outside.

    An outer disciple, Ku Lu, stepped into the sect formation with a great sigh. He quickly combed his dark green hair back with his hand, before adjusting his blue robes with another sigh.

    ¡°Hurry up will you? How much longer will you make the Elder wait?!¡± He says harshly to three young children behind him.

    The kids are ragged, but wide eyed in awe as they step into a new world. They can¡¯t help but gawk at the barrier behind them, the frozen world seemingly unable to penetrate the magical barrier they crossed.

    They glanced upwards, cranning their necks to see the massive gate above them, carved into a signboard with glowing gold letters they read: ¡°Azure Lotus Sect.¡±

    Ku Lu sighed again, rubbing his forehead in exhaustion.

    These fucking country bumpkins, barely passable aptitude taking my precious cultivation time away. Curse these damn missions!

    ¡°Come!¡± He says, whipping his sleeve forwards. The kids struggle to keep up as Ku Lu quickly strides forwards. He greets two guards dressed in taoist robes similar to his, but emblazoned with black lotuses on their sleeves.

    ¡°Identification.¡± One of them demands.

    Ku Lu flipped his sect token towards them, a small Lotus carved of blue jade, with the words ¡®Outer Disciple¡¯ emblazoned on its surface.

    ¡°Outer Disciple Ku Lu returning from a mission, with three new potential disciples.¡± He says respectfully.

    The two guards eyes glow blue, as if peering into the immaterial itself. They scan the token, below staring deep into the kids behind him. The kids quiver, a cold sweat building on their backs as their spines chill. The feeling of being seen through washes over them as they struggle to stand upright. The guards hold their gaze for a moment, before their eyes return to normal.

    ¡°Proceed to the Hall Of Beginnings.¡±

    Ku Lu nods, silently cupping his fist to them as he strides forwards. The kids struggle to to the same, fumbling through the gesture before frantically chasing after Ku Lu.

    They weave through the outer sect grounds, passing by a number of other cultivators, all dressed in similarly blue robes. Some were merely walking around or conversing with their fellow daoists, some were seated in lotus position at the edge of a pond, or under a blossoming cherry tree. Waves of Qi visibly emanating from them as they meditated.

    Ku Lu approached a large seven-story pagoda made of dark wood and marbled stone, a number of lanterns floated outside, illuminating its entrance with a otherworldly presence.

    An old man with long grey hair wearing blue robes adorned with white stripes was waiting just outside. He stood with his hands clasped behind his back, staring out towards a large cherry tree in the distance.

    Ku Lu respectfully approached, bowing his head low as he gave another cupped fist greeting.

    ¡°Disciple Ku Lu greets Elder Zhen, I have successfully found three potential disciples for the sect.¡±

    Elder Zhen turned his head slowly, glancing at the three kids behind Ku Lu, his gaze sending chills down their spines. One of them foolishly met his gaze only to see that his eyes were deep, unfathomable pools of dark blue.

    ¡°Very good Disciple Ku Lu, and what of the reported bandit encampment?¡± Elder Zhen asked, his voice carrying a deep resonance to it.

    Ku Lu gulped, his hands shaking ever so slightly as he held his head down.

    ¡°Reporting to Elder Zhen, I found no evidence of a bandit encampment in the area ¡ª I believe the information to have been wrong-¡°

    The temperature around them dropped suddenly. Ku Lu grimaced as he felt an intangible weight press down on his shoulders. A cold-sweat breaking out on his forehead.

    Elder Zhen stared down at him, a sneer on his face.

    ¡°Wrong? Tell me, Disciple Ku Lu, do you mean to tell me that the Sect was wrong?¡±

    Elder Zhen¡¯s voice echoed outwards, a wave of power behind his every word.

    ¡°N-No Elder! Forgive this foolish disciple! I will immediately set out and search again!¡± Ku Lu stammered out, his heart banging in his chest like a war drum.

    Elder Zhen looked away, back towards the cherry tree in the distance. The instant he did so the pressure on Ku Lu subsided. Ku Lu gasped for breath but still didn¡¯t dare look up.

    ¡°No matter, I will deduct a hundred contribution points from you for failing part of your mission. Do not make the same mistake again, you are dismissed. Leave the children.¡±

    Ku Lu nodded, before bowing once more and turning away. He passed the kids, not batting an eye towards them.

    The kids were trembling, their heads hung low as they struggled to breath under the presence of Elder Zhen.

    The moment he was out of eye-sight of Elder Zhen he let out a deep sigh.

    One hundred fucking points! That¡¯s nearly my entire completion reward for heavens sake! For a measly bandit camp?! He bemoaned.

    Yet before he could inwardly curse further a voice called out to him.

    ¡°Ku Lu? You¡¯ve returned! My dear fellow daoist, how did the mission go?¡± A tall man said as he approached.

    The man was similar in age to Ku Lu, both of them in their early thirties. Their cultivations granting them retained youth. The new man stood in stark contrast to Ku Lu. With silvery hair and a pale face he looked like a ghost.

    ¡°Yin Gui, you¡¯ve caught me at a bad time, I feel like I¡¯ve just swallowed a frog.¡±

    ¡°A frog? What happened?¡±

    ¡°Gah, I lost a hundred heaven-damned contribution points because I didn¡¯t clear out a bloody bandit camp!¡± Ku Lu said with a pained expression.

    ¡°Who the hell cares if the mortals fight amoungst themselves? Why do we need to concern ourselves with their petty affairs?!¡±

    Yin Gui sighed as he watched his friend vent at the sky.

    ¡°Ku Lu my friend, it¡¯s like this¡­ We are like shepards!¡±

    ¡°Shepards?¡± Ku Lu asked, his brows raised in confusion.

    Yin Gui smiled, a perfect set of pearly white teeth bearing themselves. ¡°Yes, shepards! The mortals are our sheep, and the bandits a loose wolf.¡±

    Ku Lu gave a look of incredulity at his friend. ¡°But a shepard protects his sheep because they provide him with wool, the mortals provide us with nothing?¡±

    Yin Gui clicked his tongue repeatedly while waving a finger at Ku Lu. ¡°Tsk tsk tsk, you have wool over your eyes despite having just come back from herding?¡° He said.

    Ku Lu tilted his head in thought before it suddenly clicked in his head.

    ¡°Oh!¡± He said smacking his palm with his fist.

    ¡°The new disciples! I see now, Yin Gui when did you get so wise?¡±

    ¡°Aha, unfortunately that pill of wisdom came from my master¡­¡± He said tapping his cheek.

    ¡°Though he used lambs, and a rather distasteful perspective of slaughter as well. Regardless, I feel sorry for you friend. How about I treat you to this spirit wine I won from Shui Han over game of Go a few days ago?¡±

    Ku Lu smiled. ¡°How in the heavens did you beat Shui Han at Go?¡±

    Yin Gui smiled. ¡°I cheated!¡±

    The pair looked at each other before laughing.

    ¡°Thank you Yin Gui, you made a sour day sweet, let¡¯s go drink my worries away and I¡¯ll tell you of all the things I saw on my mission.¡±

 Chapter 3: Crimson Snows

    ¡®¡­It is the very essence of the wind, each step a gust of power, dodging shadows and crossing rivers. To be free is to be fast, to be fast is to outrun the wind itself.

    Yet it is impossible to outrun the wind, so one must glide upon its surface, follow its gentle breeze with the ferocity of a storm.

    Free, Unyielding and Relentless¡ªTo be like the wind, is to be ever moving. Master these movements and you will stride across the heavens, never to be caught.

    Fang sat beneath a pine, his body quaking as he held a horse stance with a book in his hands. The area around him had cleared of snow. Melted from the sheer heat generated from his body.

    For the past hour he had been reading up on his newly acquired technique, the Wind Striding Steps.

    But what the fuck is wrong with these guys? Why do they describe their techniques like they¡¯re anything but mortal grade manuals?

    The sheer ego contained in the words made it hard to read. And like the manuals he¡¯d read before it included a ridiculous training regimen.

    Ten kilometers of explosive knee-jumps, spinning on the tips of my toes for an hour, and bloody running up a hundred foot tree without faltering?

    How in heavens name was a mortal supposed to achieve any of these movements in a reasonable time. People had to work!

    Fang sighed, closing the manual. With every technique he acquired he became more and more grateful for the Systems presence. If he was truly normal he¡¯d still be trying to reach initiation in his cultivation.

    Thankfully I¡¯m blessed.

    With a large snap he closed the manual and stood. Maybe if it was the him of a couple months ago he¡¯d be grinding his teeth at the regimen, but ever since reaching Great Success in his Mortal Forging Sutra, and Small Success in his Earth-Shattering Steps, what the regiment called for didn¡¯t seem so hard.

    It¡¯s nice being superhuman¡­ but why do I feel like I¡¯m going to hit a wall?

    He knew why, Kang had informed him that while it was smart in theory to acquire multiple techniques and increase one¡¯s breadth of skill, there was a limit to what a person could master.

    The mortal body is a vessel, one that can only hold so much. Pouring too much water into a pitcher will eventually cause it to overflow, and trying to incorporate techniques/body refining techniques that differ wildly is like mixing boiling and freezing water in that same pitcher. The disharmony would eventually cause the pitcher to crack and shatter.

    That is to say I need to be cautious about the techniques I¡¯m choosing¡­ yet I don¡¯t have the luxury of choice.

    Fang sighed, deciding to put his future worries behind him. He had a new technique to learn after all, and ten kilometers of explosive knee jumps to complete.

    ¡ª

    Fang sprinted at a pine tree, the snow beneath his feet long since compacted from his previous attempts. The entire area around him looked like a herd of deer had come through and frolicked amidst the snow. Yet it was only Fang training relentlessly.

    As great as the system was, he still needed to train properly for it to work.

    With a huff he shot forwards, leaping at the tree¡¯s trunk as if he was trying to kick through it. His toes dug into the bark with a crunch, the skin on his feet raw and tender from so many attempts.

    C¡¯MON! He screamed internally as he willed his thighs to push him upwards.

    The bark shattered and Fang shot upwards. Maintaining his momentum he ascended the sheer vertical length of the tree, planting another foot into the bark just as his acceleration waned.

    A series of loud snaps echoed through the quiet forest as Fang continued upwards. He passed branch after branch, the trunk thinning as he ascended.

    With a final grunt he dug his toes deep into the tree. The veins on his legs bulged as his toe bled from under his nail beds.

    Voosh!

    Fang pierced the forest canopy, the world clearing in a sudden moment of pure exhilarating clarity.

    It was if time had stopped. He saw the Dragons Range far to the north, between them the endless sea of trees stretching to infinity. And to the south he saw sharp peaks, like swords rising from the earth and the great plains even further beyond.

    But what truly captivated his sight was the system appearing out of thin air.

    Yet surprisingly, it wasn¡¯t there to inform him of reaching Initiation in Wind Striding Steps, but to ask him a question.

    [Compatible Techniques acquired¡­

    - Fuse Wind Striding Steps (Initation) into Earth-Shattering Steps (Small Success)?

    - Fuse Earth-Shattering Steps (Small Success) into Wind Striding Steps (Initiation)?

    Fang could only stare with his mouth agape.

    Wha¡ª?

    Unfortunately any thoughts were cut short as he quickly began to plummet downwards.

    His body smashed into the canopy, plowing through the densely woven branches like a freight train, his body thrown about as they broke his fall.

    He landed with a heavy slam, the layers of snow below him doing little to cushion the throbbing pain.

    ¡°Uuugghh¡­¡± He groaned. His body battered and bruised.

    He lifted himself with shaky arms, checking his body over for any broken bones. He sighed with relief as he was only covered in numerous gashes and cuts. His Mortal Forging Sutra had made him quite resilient, yet did little to stave away the pain.

    Once he was sure he wasn¡¯t on the brink of death he looked back towards the System prompt. A weak smile forming on his face.

    Fuse Wind Striding Steps into Earth-Shattering Steps!

    The moment his mind confirmed the choice, a quake of energy rushed through his body. The muscles in his leg spasmed, erupting shocks of pain from the wounds across his skin. His veins pulsed and constricted as if a sharp blade was carving his muscles anew, rearranging and reforming his being into a form perfect for the new technique.

    Fang flopped around the forest floor like a fish out of water, snow and dirt grinding into his wounds as he struggled to keep conscious.

    The tendons in his knees snapped making him cry out in anguish. He felt his knee-cap shift and morph as bands of new muscle formed and twisted, his bones rearranging themselves in even denser coiling bands of steel-cordage.

    For what felt like an eternity he suffered, the pain sending his mind into a near drooling state. Until finally, the transformation subsided, a wave of euphoria slowly replacing the pain.

    He laid on the floor unmoving for over an hour, the sun drifting across the sky until it began to set.

    Eventually he lifted himself up to lean against the nearby tree, resting his back against its cold bark with a soft sigh of utter relief.

    ¡­

    He could only stare down at himself wordlessly. His legs had turned from lean, toned figures into hunks of muscle ¡ª like he¡¯d been a professional powerlifter all his life. His lower abdomen had similarly shaped itself into hardened muscle, though not nearly as drastically as his legs did.

    ¡°Jesus, fucking christ.¡±

    What unholy power did this system possess? To metamorphose his body so easily as if playing with clay?

    Regardless, it was undeniable that he felt a well of power deep in his muscles.

    System.

    Fang :

    [Cultivation]

    - Mortal Forging Sutra I (Great Success)

    [Technique]

    - *Stormquaking Strides I (Initiation)

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    Stormquaking Strides¡­

    The two techniques had fused into a wholly new one, a single star shimmering next to the new entry.

    Has it surpassed Mortal Grade? Did the fusion result in an Earth Grade technique?

    He¡¯d never seen an Earth Grade technique, so he couldn¡¯t know for sure, but the star indicated that there must be a qualitative difference in the technique.

    Gingerly, Fang stood. His muscles stretched, the fascia and joints under skin releasing in small pops of ecstasy.

    The fusion had done more than merely transform his legs, a volume of instinctual knowledge filled his head and muscles. Like last time, the system was doing a massive amount of the heavy lifting for him, granting him months worth of training in mere days.

    Without warning, Fang whipped around, twisting on his toes as he sent his leg shooting out at the tree behind him.

    WHAM!

    This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

    The large pine shuddered, as if hit by a cannon. Fang¡¯s foot throbbed as stepped back, his body unable to handle the sheer output of his technique.

    The tree had been nearly crushed in two. The trunk that needed several men to fully encompass was splittered down its center.

    Fang was stunned at the sheer power behind his kick.

    Is this the power of an Earth Grade Technique¡­ He thought.

    Yet even seeing the power he held, his brows furrowed.

    If this is the power I hold as a mortal I shudder to think about what a Qi-infused kick could do¡­

    ¡­Would it have taken out the whole fuckin tree?

    Good heavens.

    ¡ª

    A few days passed. Fang approached the hunters lodge to see if he could find Kang and inquire about how far the nearby villages and towns were.

    ¡°Fang what in the heavens happened to ya? You try to fight a rock with your face boy?¡± Kang laughed aloud as he saw the state that the boy was in. The man was busy applying oil to his blade, rubbing a piece of cloth up and down the dark iron saber.

    Fang was clearly littered in a myriad of bruises and gashes, most having scabbed up over the past few days since his technique fusion.

    He did, however, have a few fresher wounds from testing his new movement potential, as he¡¯d underestimated the eye watering speeds he could now achieve, and his ability to maneuver during movement. His body knew how, but without practice his mind hesitated.

    One notable benefit of his new technique over his last, was simple, yet, for him, game changing.

    He no longer needed to grind himself to dust to improve his technique.

    Practice now made perfect. Just utilizing his Stormquaking Steps was akin to the same training he did before. Though the same couldn¡¯t be said for his body refining¡­ yet.

    Fang smiled, scratching the back of his head, feeling his grimy hair along his neck. ¡°I was training, and well, I might¡¯ve left my face in a tree or two¡­¡±

    Kang laughed. ¡°I did the same thing when I first started; for months, I would come home with my nose smashed in. Ah, good times, good times¡­¡± He said, staring off into the distance, reminiscing on his bloody noses.

    ¡°Kang, I was wondering if you knew how far the nearby villages and towns are? I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever seen a map around here.¡±

    ¡°A map? You¡¯d have better luck finding a half-dead Qi-beast than a map around these parts boy, why? You planning on leaving us?¡± The man said, his gaze sharp as he leaned over.

    Fang shook his head quickly. ¡°No, no, senior I just wanted to¡ª¡°

    Kang laughed again, interrupting him with a slap of his thigh. ¡°I¡¯m messing with ya boy! Just messing with you. What ya trying to get your hands on?¡±

    Fang smiled. ¡°I want manuals, a library or maybe a larger market if possible, the more the better.¡±

    Kang rubbed his beard. ¡°Mmm¡­ that¡¯s definitely a town thing. You¡¯d be shit out of luck finding more than a handful of manuals around here. But I thought you already had a refining technique. I mean, do you even have the money to buy anything, even if you did make it to a town?¡±

    Fang grimaced. ¡°Well, no. But can you blame a man for planning ahead?¡±

    Kang grinned. ¡°A man?! Well, I suppose after what you¡¯ve shown us, you¡¯re qualified to be called such¡­ Mmm, well, the closest town is Blue River Town along the Blue River. If you go south, following the trail out of town you¡¯ll eventually meet a bigger road that apparently goes all the way to the plains¡­¡±

    Kang began to draw a rough map in the snow, using the tip of his saber as a pencil. He drew the Dragons Range to the far north, the Savage Land between, and a river that flowed all the way through to the central plains.

    ¡°¡­If you didn¡¯t want to go south then East is your best bet, but you¡¯d need to cross the river. There¡¯s no bridge, only a ferry, and once over you¡¯d have to walk for a couple days before you reached Three Banyan Town. Past those two towns, more and more towns will appear the closer you get to the central plains and sects.¡±

    He drew an ¡®X¡¯ far to the south, a few days¡¯ travel from Blue River Town.

    ¡°This is where the Azure Lotus Sect is located, apparently, never been there myself, never will. I¡¯ll warn ya to stay clear out of their territory but I¡¯m sure you know that they don¡¯t take too kindly to us Mortals.¡± He said with a grin.

    Fang nodded as he listened to Kang¡¯s breakdown of the surrounding area.

    He made note of the vast unknowns that lay between each settlement. Qi-beasts were rarer outside of the Savage Lands, but not as rare as a traveler might hope to be. And normal half-step beasts were still plentiful, making travel a dangerous affair.

    So the closest town is either Blue River Town or Three Banyan, both over two weeks of hard travel south or east¡­

    The journey would not be an easy one, nor did he have the money to even bother making it anytime soon. Fang sighed, realizing that he¡¯d need to make do with the slim selection of techniques that the traveling peddlers came with.

    Kang, seeing the boy¡¯s sigh, placed a rough hand on his shoulder.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Little Bull, you¡¯ll have your entire life to travel when you¡¯re older. For now you have us hunters to keep you entertained!¡± He said with a laugh. He turned around and sat back on his stump, returning to maintaining his saber.

    ¡°Oh, and get ready to leave for another hunt in about two weeks time. It¡¯ll be our final hunt of the winter, and then you¡¯ll really get a taste of how fun it can get out there!¡±

    ¡ª

    The weeks passed in a blink of an eye. Fang spent his time training, dashing through the forest relishing in the freedom his Stormquaking Steps brought him. Leaping off trees with explosive cracks, and chaining steps together to speed through the forest like a pinball.

    On the day before his last hunt, he finally broke into Peak Mastery with his Mortal Forging Sutra. The wave of strength had him feeling giddy, and not needing to do horse stances anymore was equally rewarding.

    He¡¯d finished the first section of the manual, and now he needed to change up his training to progress further. Though he could only grimace when he remembered what the manual called for.

    The second stage called for self-starvation, enduring harsh environments and breathing till his lungs hurt.

    He cursed his past self for being broke and choosing such a brutal manual. To be poor was to suffer, it seemed, and Fang was feeling the direct consequences of his sins.

    As he approached the hunter¡¯s lodge, he checked over his gear mentally one last time.

    Animal fat and oil treated shoes check, a thicker bedroll check, makeshift bandages check, two water skins and a backup check, dried rations check¡­

    He made sure he was better prepared this time around not wanting to suffer the same cold, wet conditions he did last time.

    And finally, system.

    Fang :

    [Cultivation]

    - Mortal Forging Sutra I (Peak Mastery)

    [Technique]

    - *Stormquaking Strides I (Small Success)

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    He smiled at the golden and jade scroll with a stupid grin. It wasn¡¯t much in the grand scheme of this world, but he¡¯d seriously put in the work and finally achieved significant gains.

    His body refining had given him a resiliency greater than most of the hunters¡ªKang excluded, and his movement technique was easily his most prized possession.

    His legs felt like cannons without a fuse, ready to shatter the very earth at a moment¡¯s notice. He made sure to practice plenty of chained moves, air maneuvering, and offensive attacks these past weeks, and for the first time, he felt somewhat confident about entering the Savage Land.

    Kang and the rest of the gang were outside the lodge, gearing up like before. Liu was up and about, his arm having fully healed. The resiliency of a body refiner was not something to scoff at, as he made a full recovery rapidly.

    With little fanfare the group set off, plowing through the snow depths in silence once more.

    Over the course of three days the hunters searched for tracks, tufts of fur caught on trees, or the scent of piss in the wind.

    However to their surprise, they found nothing. Not a track, hair, or the hint of prey.

    Towards the end of the third day, as the sun threatened to set and the party was searching for a place to camp Liu spoke up.

    ¡°Something¡­ doesn¡¯t feel right, Kang.¡± Liu said, gripping his new spear tightly.

    Fang almost slapped the guy on the back of the head for saying such cursed lines.

    Dan grunted in agreement, ¡°I agree it feels like¡­¡±

    No, don¡¯t fucking say it.

    ¡°¡­we¡¯re being watched.¡± He said, cursing them all.

    He fucking said it.

    Kang stood stock still, unsheathing his saber despite there being nothing around them. The air was still, the world frozen as the sky had relented in its snowfall.

    Kang¡¯s ear twitched, before he suddenly shouted, breaking the silence with a desperate order.

    ¡°READY YOURSELVES!¡±

    On queue, as if waiting for this very moment, a cacophony of howls pierced the air.

    Awoooooo!

    An unholy chorus of barking laughter followed in its wake, as the hunters eyes went wide.

    From behind the pines, wolves bathed in fur as white as snow rose and encircled the group. There were at least a hundred of them, all as big as Fang was tall, growling through rows of razor teeth. They frothed at the mouth, their snouts held low as they quickly surrounded the party.

    ¡°Shit! No wonder we couldn¡¯t find anything! Heavens-damned Lunar Wolves!¡± Tian cursed aloud, his spear white-knuckled in his hands.

    ¡°We need to climb!¡± Lu yelled.

    ¡°And starve to death as they wait us out?!¡± Liu snapped back.

    ¡°We fight!¡± Kang shouted. ¡°We can win this brothers as long as we stay together and watch our backs we¡¯ll be¡­¡± His voice drifted off, his words caught in his throat.

    Grrrrr¡­

    A deep, body shaking growl filled the air.

    A wolf, a hulking beast of fur and flesh stepped into the open. It was as bigger than the boar, its back standing easily three to four heads taller than Kang.

    A single glowing horn rested on its massive head, curved over its eyes, emitting an eerie white glow.

    ¡°Heavens save us¡­¡± Liu murmured.

    Kang grimaced, and for the first time, Fang saw fear in the man¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°A Qi-Beast¡­¡± He whispered with quaking breaths.

    The Matriarch stood tall, gazing past its snout with a royal demeanor as wolves instinctually moved out of its path.

    It walked towards the group with slow, silent steps. Taking its time as if it already knew it held their fates in its maw.

    Fang shuddered, an intangible pressure pressed down on his body. Just the presence of the Matriarch alone was enough to make him quiver.

    With determination he bit down on his tongue, the pain scantly pulling him back in control.

    This is going to be a long, fucking day.

    The Matriarch growled, its paw scratching the snow below in taunt. The group could¡¯ve sworn it smiled.

    With a simple bark, all the wolves shot towards them.

    ¡°FIGHT BROTHERS!¡± Kang screamed, shooting forwards. His saber carved upwards, taking a wolf mid-lunge by the stomach. Blood and guts exploded onto him and the snow below. His screams of the battle pushing the rest of the party to act.

    The other hunters shot forwards, spears and javelins flying freely. Wolves whined as they quickly met their deaths.

    Fang grunted, before exploding outwards in a blur.

    Before a wolf could even react his foot was already crushing down on its face. He felt the squelch of brain-matter beneath shoe as he stomped down.

    The hairs on his neck prickled as he swiveled on his toes, his leg coming round to catch a wolf in the stomach.

    The force behind his kick left little room for mercy, as the wolf ruptured into a bloody blossom of gore.

    Another wolf lept at his face, forcing him to dash backwards, only for him to collide with another that had been sneaking up behind him.

    He nearly stumbled to the floor, the snow making it hard to keep his footing. He yelled and slammed his foot into the earth, centering himself with a horse-stance before sending a powerful front kick at the wolf. He felt his foot crush its shoulder into dust, its body tumbling into a tree with a sickening smack.

    The ground rumbled, the wolves nearby swaying as their bones rattled.

    Fang spared a glance at his fellow hunters, seeing them still alive, but fiercely locked in their own life and death battles.

    The Matriarch still hadn¡¯t made a move, its eyes holding a disturbing intelligence that analyzed the group like a cat watched a mouse struggle in its grasp.

    Kang had already built a small pile of corpses near himself, his saber giving no quarter to any that dared to test his cutting edge.

    Fang could only grimace, taking a deep breath before shooting forwards once more.

    Adrenaline shot through his body as he chained his movements together.

    He swept a wolf¡¯s legs out from beneath itself, shattering bone like twigs, only to spin and catch another by the jaw. The wolf bit down into his hand, its fangs sharp enough to scrape bone, a shock of pain ran along his arm before he ripped its mouth in two in retaliation.

    A blood-thirst slowly built as he continued fighting, his vision tunneling with every step and blow.

    Even with his speed he still found himself quickly lacerated with claw marks and bites.

    ¡°GAAAH!¡± Dan screamed out. Fang turned to see him struggling against two wolves that had gotten on top of him.

    Fang pivoted, exploding forwards to help him. But just as he was about to send the wolves flying, a shadow appeared at the edges of his vision.

    A claw, the size of his head slapped him aside, sending him barreling into the snow.

    The Matriarch watched him ragdoll away with disinterest, a snarl on its lips.

    Dan screamed.

    Screamed until he didn¡¯t.

    ¡°DAAAAN!¡± Lu screamed, his eyes filled with fury as he snapped a wolf¡¯s neck. The man charged the Matriarch, bringing his spear to bare as he sent it flying towards the hulking Qi-beast with all of his strength.

    The Matriarch, however, only tilted its head, the spear flying passed by a hair¡¯s-breadth. Its fur ruffled as the weapon shot by, before plunging into a tree with a slam.

    Lu, caught in his rage didn¡¯t notice the horn on the beast¡¯s head begin to glow.

    Kang shouted at the man in warning. ¡°WATCH THE HORN-¡±

    But it was too late.

    A beam of white light blasted out from the horn. Like a hyper-focused laser it sliced Lu in two, melting the snow behind him into a bubbling cloud of steam.

    The world froze for a moment. Lu stood there, a look of complete disbelief in his eyes, before his body fell apart in two halves, his viscera seeping into the bubbling snow below.

    The Matriarch snarled, its horn hissing as ethereal white vapor rose from its surface. The glow dimmed, but slowly began to grow again.

    Fang couldn¡¯t believe his eyes. How the hell are we supposed to beat this thing? Is it even possible?! I¡¯m gonna FUCKING DIE¡ª!

    His spiraling mental state was cut short as Kang screamed into the high heavens.

    ¡°GAAAAHHHH!!¡±

    The air around Kang exploded outwards! A wave of force sweeping across the battlefield in a circle, throwing the nearby wolves into the ground in whimpers as they cowered under his emanating pressure.

    Kang gripped his saber with both hands before stomping the ground, shattering the earth beneath and sending himself flying at the Matriarch.

    The massive wolf snarled, before launching itself at him.

    The two met in a clash of furious blows, saber meeting claw in rapid succession.

    ¡°FANG!¡± Liu screamed through the commotion.

    Fang tore his eyes off the battle to see Liu and Tian swamped by wolves. Over half of the beasts had been culled, but they still overwhelmed the two tired hunters with sheer number.

    Fang grit his teeth, his will to fight returning as he watched Kang go toe to toe with the Qi-beast.

    He sucked in a breath digging his feet into the ground and shot forwards. He landed with a heavy step, crushing a wolf under foot.

    A spear shot by his face barely missing his ear as a wolf was skewered just behind him.

    Liu smiled with a pained expression before pulling his spear back to kill another wolf.

    Fang blurred around them, sending wolf after wolf to their demise as the three worked together to cull the remaining pack. The ground quickly became slick with blood, as pools of dark crimson tainted the area wet.

    With a flying knee he crushed the neck of another wolf before turning to glance at Kang and the Matriarch.

    The giant wolf was bleeding, though not nearly as badly as Kang was. The man¡¯s left arm was hanging limp as he roared through blood soaked teeth.

    The Matriarch barked, a flash of light emanating from its horn once more.

    NO!

    Fang¡¯s legs, tired and heavy from the battle tensed. His muscles bulging as he pushed his body to the limit. His toes curled in his shoes bursting through the soles as they gripped the earth below.

    In the blink of an eye he blasted forwards, his form blurring as he flew at the Matriarch.

    The wolf, focused on Kang, on the cusp of unleashing its Qi-laser was caught unaware as Fang¡¯s knee slammed into its skull.

    Kang¡¯s eyes went wide as saucers as he watched the boy, barely a young man, plunging a flying knee into a Qi-beast five times his size.

    The horn fired, a beam of blinding white, slicing across the battlefield with wild abandon.

    It tore through a nearby pine tree, cleaving through the wood like butter, setting the wood and water within ablaze as steam exploded into the air.

    The tree squealed, a creaking groan filling the air as the colossal plant began to fall towards them.

    Fang backflipped, kicking off the Matriarch and leapt away. The wolf shook its head, trying shrug off the impact to its brain. In a haze, the wolf could still register the tree coming down on it, its instincts screaming at it to move.

    Yet before it could, a sudden impact slammed into its legs, a blossom of pain shooting up forelegs.

    Kang had charged into the wolf, tearing his saber across its legs, drawing a fountain of blood along with it.

    ¡°HAHA, YA FUCKIN MUTT! FETCH!¡± He screamed with a distorted laugh, before throwing himself at the wolf once more with his saber overhead.

    ¡°KAAAANG!¡± Fang screamed.

    Time seemed to slow.

    The tree fell through the air almost sluggishly. He could only stare as Kang hacked away at the beast as it tried to bite him while.

    For a second, it seemed like the moment could go on for eternity.

    For a moment.

    BOOM!

    A wave of debris washed over the battlefield. Snow, dirt and wood lifted into the air in choking clouds that caused all the fighting to stop.

    The world went quiet, only filled with the soft pattering rain of splinters and dirt.

    When it all settled, Liu and Tian joined up with Fang to stare lifelessly at the scene before them. The wolves had cleared out, the battlefield eerily still.

    The Matriarch lay dead. Its back crushed beneath the tree, Kang¡¯s saber stuck between its teeth.

    Liu dropped his spear, falling to his knees. Tian could only grit his teeth as he held back a wave of tears.

    Fang could¡¯nt believe it.

    I killed him¡­ I fucking got Kang killed¡­ I¡ª

    ¡°WOOOOOH! FUCK YEAH BROTHERS! HOW IN THE HIGH HEAVENS ARE WE GONNA CARRY THIS BABY BACK?!¡±

    A voice bellowed from behind the massive tree. Before a figure leapt upon its surface, grasping a limp arm with only an eye to spare.

    Kang grinned a wolfish smile down at the trio. Liu and Tian breathed sighs of relief, the two of them falling on their asses in exhaustion.

    ¡°ha¡­ haha¡­ hahAHHAHA!¡± Fang started laughing uncontrollably, as they all looked at him confused, this was the first time they¡¯d seen the boy laugh.

    Kang tilted his head, confused.

    ¡°Did I say something funny brothers?¡±

 Chapter 4: Fusion

    When spring finally came, along with the blossoming of the flowers, melting the layers of snow into a deluge of mud and muck. It carried with it not the dance of life that it usually did, at least, not for Fang and the hunters.

    Lu and Dan had long since been laid to rest, their ashes spread into the twisting tree in the town square, washed into the earth with their favorite wine.

    Kang had taken to drinking relentlessly in the aftermath. Losing two of his sworn brothers had left a bitter taste in his mouth, that he couldn¡¯t wash out, even with all the wine in the world.

    Liu and Tian weren¡¯t any better, but luckily had wives and kids to help them recover.

    It took a whole month until Kang finally awoke from his grief. He cleaned the Matriarchs¡¯ skull, hanging its head on the outside of the hunters¡¯ lodge as a reminder of the pyrrhic victory.

    Every remaining intact organ not crushed by the tree was harvested. The eyes sold to the herbalist, the claws made into knives, the fangs into spear tips.

    Save for the horn¡­

    Kang had given the horn to Fang. The boy tried to refuse, citing that it was Kang who stalled the beast. But Kang wouldn¡¯t accept it, he knew that without the boy¡¯s intervention he would¡¯ve been reduced to cinders by the Qi-beam.

    It was only right in the man¡¯s mind for the boy to take the horn.

    The group then divided up the rest of the bounty, giving larger portions of what was sold and harvested to the families of Lu and Dan.

    Even then, with fur, claw and bone still remaining, Fang had finally found himself somewhat rich. He had a hefty twenty taels in his bank, with more to come as he sold the rest of his bounty.

    He was sure the Horn itself could be sold for a massive sum, but unfortunately, Kang had warned him that it would be a fools errand to try and sell it to the peddlers.

    Not only did they not have the money to buy such an item, but the very sight of such a treasure would likely paint a target on his back.

    Greed knows no bounds.

    Or so he says.

    A Qi-beast wasn¡¯t even the rarest thing, but the Lunar wolf Matriarch was. Such an exotic treasure would surely invite death.

    Kang recommended him to try his hand at an auction house. They were bastions of rare and hard to find resources. Promising anonymity and only the highest prices. The only problem was, that they only appeared in towns, or cities.

    Fang could only wait, as he wasn¡¯t confident in making the trip to Blue River Town with his current strength. He needed more manuals to fuse together, time to train, and hopefully a peddler to hitch a ride with, if he was lucky.

    And so spring passed by in the blink of an eye.

    ¡ª

    Beneath a half-shattered pine with its trunk split nearly in two, as if a boulder had been launched at it from point blank range. Fang sat, his legs crossed in lotus position. His face serene.

    The summer breeze had made its way to Forests Edge, the temperature almost too perfect to be true.

    Birds chirped and squirrels ran about, chittering away at one another as they frolicked amidst the trees.

    Yet, despite all the peace and serenity on the outside, internally, Fang was suffering.

    His stomach clawed at him from within, threatening to vomit nothing but bile as wave after wave of nausea built into knots of pain.

    He hadn¡¯t eaten a thing in the last seven days. Not a grain of rice nor smidgen of meat. His beautiful body withered like a malnourished dog. His lips had long since gone dry, chapped and bleeding ¡ª devoid of even a hint of moisture.

    He¡¯d gone so long without water he¡¯d forgotten when he last pissed.

    But yet he sat completely still.

    His chest rising up and down like the trees waving in the summer breeze.

    Time went by¡­

    The previously beautiful skies slowly grew dark. Ominous bundles of clouds formed and without warning, a deluge of rain crashed to the earth. The small critters around dashed into the thick of the trees as they sought cover.

    Yet Fang sat completely still.

    There was water all around him, that just looking up would¡¯ve given him a hydrating respite from the terrible thirst within, but he made no attempt to move.

    His breathing stayed calm even as his body shook, his muscles quivered and the rain pelted his skin like rubber bullets.

    From thin air, seemingly out of the immaterium, a flash of golden light washed over Fangs body.

    His eyes opened with immense difficulty, as if trying to pry apart a a clam shell.

    A weak smile graced his desolate lips.

    ¡°Finally¡­¡±

    Fang :

    [Cultivation]

    - Mortal Forging Sutra II (Initiation)

    [Technique]

    - *Stormquaking Strides I (Great Success)

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    His Mortal Forging Sutra had finally reached the second stage.

    Without warning, Fang¡¯s whole being shook.

    His eyes bulged as his irises expanded to fill his sclera. Blood flooded out of eye ducts as the sound of his beating heart drummed in his ears.

    His nose bled rivers of blood, quickly washed away by the crashing rains.

    His mind numbed as the very world around him seemed to slow.

    It was like each of his senses was set aflame. Forcefully expanded, wrenched open by heaven¡¯s heavy hand.

    The dark of the day grew bright, as if there wasn¡¯t a single cloud in the sky.

    His skin tingled against the rain, the cold felt to his very bones.

    His ears felt like balloons about to burst as the world screamed at him.

    SNAP!

    Like a rubber band whipping back, his senses normalized. His pupils constricted back to normal with a sharp lash. His ears popping as if he¡¯d descended from Everest ¡ª the very world spun back to normal.

    Fangs body shook once more as the System adjusted his mortal coil. The familiar feeling of euphoria gracing him with relief.

    With great difficulty he craned his neck to the sky, feeling ice-like rain pour needles over his heightened senses.

    He opened his mouth, drinking the water as it fell onto his tongue. Each tiny droplet, pure unadulterated nectar.

    God, I fucking love water¡­

    With a monumental effort he stood. His legs quivering with every step as he slowly walked back to the village.

    The sky had just began to darken as he made it back to the orphanage. He stumbled through the door, his body barely able to support its own weight and exhaustion.

    He found himself face to face with anger incarnate.

    ¡°You FOOLISH, FOOLISH BOY!¡± Granny Gian admonished, walking over and smacking him on the back of the head in anger at how late he was.

    Fang felt the full brunt of the impact rattle his skull, too weak to even reply, he began to crumple to the floor.

    ¡°Ah!?¡± Granny Gian gasped. She immediately reached out, desperately trying to stop him from slamming to the floor. Yet her age could hardly bare his weight. She felt his malnourishment beneath her weathered hands, the cold emanating from his bones.

    ¡°QIN! YEON! Wake up!¡± She screamed into the building. The two kids, only a couple of years younger than Fang rushed into the room. Their eyes went wide as they spied their older brother covered in mud, slumped to the floor in Granny Gian¡¯s hands. They ran over, helping her carry him towards the fire.

    Granny Gian moved to the large pot hung over the hearth, filling a small bowl with leftover stew, still warm from dinner.

    She lifted Fang¡¯s head, tipping the contents into his mouth.

    ¡°Slowly¡ªslowly dear.¡± She whispered.

    Qin and Yeon could only stare at him, confused.

    ¡°What happened to him?¡± They asked.

    Granny Gian could only shake her head.

    ¡°We¡¯ll talk in the morning you two, thank you for helping your dear old granny. Please, grab a blanket for your elder brother and return to bed, he¡¯ll be okay.¡± She said, with a soft smile.

    The two left to grab bedding for Fang before returning to bed.

    Fang was barely conscious, his body swallowing the stew out of pure instinct. He muttered, the faintest of sounds.

    ¡°Thank you, Granny¡­¡±

    ¡°Shush boy, sleep, rest.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    Fang nodded, and before he knew it he fell into a deep slumber.

    ¡ª

    Explaining to Granny Gian that he¡¯d been starving himself to the bone for the past few days wasn¡¯t easy.

    ¡°Why Fang? Why are you so desperate to get stronger?¡± She pleaded.

    Fang could only sigh. He rubbed his face, feeling his bones through his fingers.

    ¡°Because I feel like a frog in a well...¡±

    ¡°A frog?¡±

    Fang held a bitter smile, the words caught in his throat.

    ¡°I.. I don¡¯t know Granny, I feel like it¡¯s what I¡¯m supposed to do. That this is my fate. I can¡¯t escape it.¡±

    Granny stared at the young boy before her. She saw his dark eyes flicker with an unusual glow, a spark hidden deep beneath the surface. She sighed, knowing that there was nothing she could do.

    ¡°If you believe it to be the will of the heavens, then all I ask is that you¡­ that you take care of yourself Fang. It¡¯s what your parents would¡¯ve wanted.¡±

    Fang took a deep breath, releasing as if a weight had been taken off his shoulders.

    ¡°My parents? I thought-¡°

    ¡°They abandoned you? No dear, they couldn¡¯t bare to bring you with them. Like you, they were chasing the heavens. The world of immortals is not a place to raise a child.¡±

    Fang nodded his head. It was understandable, he doubted they were Sect disciples, most likely rogue cultivators on their own path.

    ¡°Thank you Granny, for everything.¡± He said, holding her hands in his.

    She looked down at his fingers, a tear bubbling in her eyes.

    ¡°You say it like you¡¯re going to leave us.¡±

    Fang smiled softly.

    ¡°Not immediately, but soon, when the peddlers arrive I plan on leaving with them.¡±

    Granny Gian could only wipe her tears from her face. A smile on her lips.

    ¡°My little Fang is all grown up, promise me you¡¯ll visit again?¡±

    Fang grinned.

    ¡°Of course Granny, I can¡¯t go the rest of my life without your stew.¡±

    The two shared a hug before Fang left to ruminate.

    Waves of emotion ran through Fang. The memories of his past life overlapping with Granny Gian¡¯s tender care. It was disorienting to say the least. His parents of both lives barely present. To be loved was foreign to him, and to love in return equally as distant.

    It seems fate works in mysterious ways. He thought, sighing. He looked down at himself, seeing his emancipated form.

    The worries I have can wait, first I need to regain my muscles, my strength.

    ¡ª

    As summer came to its end, the warm breeze replaced with a soft cool air that hung below the trees like a blanket. Fang was excited as the first wave of peddlers finally arrived. They always came towards the end of summer, on their last leg of their journey before returning and hunkering down for the winter months.

    But Fang could only frown as they pulled into Forests Edge.

    The groups looked haggard, as if they¡¯d been through hell and back. Many carts were littered in sword marks, arrows and dried blood along their sides. The guards were bandaged up and down, even some the peddlers themselves were injured.

    With great relief he spied the peddler who he¡¯d traded with before, surprisingly uninjured as she stepped into the village square. Her large brim hat still covering her face as she set her bamboo mat across the compacted dirt floor.

    Fang approached, with a water-skin in hand.

    ¡°Hello again, it¡¯s nice to see you once more.¡± He said, holding out the drink.

    The woman tilted her head back, just enough to glimpse Fang and the water-skin. And though he couldn¡¯t see her features he could sense a brow raise beneath her masked cowl.

    ¡°Hello, likewise¡­ is this for me?¡±

    Fang smiled. ¡°It seems like you¡¯ve all had a hard time getting here.¡±

    The woman smiled, and received the drink, pulling her mask down barely before taking a large swig of the refreshing water before handing it back to Fang.

    ¡°Thank you, that was very kind of you.¡± She said, shifting her position until she was comfortable.

    ¡°Yes, we encountered a few bandits on the way here. They were stalking out on the northern road out of Blue River Town. Praying on anyone traveling to to the ferry or further North. They wanted us to pay a toll, some did¡­ and others didn¡¯t.¡±

    Fangs brows creased together at the news. That was the route he planned to take, and he didn¡¯t feel all to keen to have to give up the hard-earned money he gathered.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t the Sects supposed to handle these sorta things? He asked.

    The woman nodded.

    ¡°Usually, but sometimes they get¡­ lazy.¡±

    ¡°Lazy?¡±

    ¡°Mmm, it¡¯s below them. More of a chore than duty to many of them.¡±

    Fang grit his teeth, fucking immortals.

    The woman seemed to notice his anger and chuckled a soft laugh.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry yourself over it, people are unlikely to come this far north, now, how can I help you today?¡±

    Fang quelled the anger in him, knowing that there was little he could do about it¡­ for now.

    ¡°I¡¯m looking for a couple things: Body refining manuals, and as many fist, palm and finger techniques you can offer me.¡±

    The woman tilted her head.

    ¡°Come into some money have you?¡± She asked.

    Fang smiled.

    ¡°A little. But someone once told me to never reveal how much.¡±

    The woman chuckled.

    ¡°They sound wise.¡±

    She rummaged through her large pack, pulling out a stack of manuals bound together by a corded rope.

    ¡°Here, look through these and see if anything resonates.¡±

    Fang accepted the bundle and sat on the floor quickly delving into the manuals.

    There are still the same ones I¡¯d seen previously: Splitting Stone Palm, Iron knuckle Strike¡­ but also new ones: Heart-Breaking Fist, Snake Coiling Punch, Lighting Needle Finger, Bone-Crushing Claw¡­

    I also have to consider not just the technique, but the potential fusions.

    The question is, do the techniques have to be of the same vein? Can a claw technique fuse with a palm? I don¡¯t believe the system, in all of its mystical glory, would be limited by such¡­ stylistic problems.

    It¡¯s a gamble, but one I¡¯m willing to take.

    Wait¡­

    Why am I limiting myself to just body techniques?

    ¡°Do you have any sword or saber manuals?¡± Fang asked, looking up from the stack of manuals.

    The woman nodded her head, pulling out another stack of manuals from her pack.

    How much shit can she fit in that bag?

    The new stack of manuals were all weapon based, all focusing on the most popular weapons, the sword, saber and spear.

    Sky Shearing Sword, Three Mountain Swing, Falling Leaf Slash, River-Parting Blade, True Spear Thrusts¡­

    Hmm, it would be smart to not spread myself too thin. I don¡¯t even have a weapon to practice with.

    Fang scratched his head, trying to make a decision on what path he should follow.

    ¡°Would you like some advice?¡± The woman asked, chuckling as she watched the young boy rattle his head in indecision.

    Fang gave a wry smile.

    ¡°Please, if you would senior.¡±

    The woman nodded, and looked Fang up and down. He felt a slight shudder as she did, as if her eyes could pierce into his soul.

    ¡°You have a sturdy foundation, it seems you¡¯ve reached a high stage of body refining, much higher than I¡¯ve seen for your age. I would recommend capitalizing on this, weapons are useful tools, and can enhance a persons strength, but tools can break. Your body on the other hand, will only continue to strengthen.¡±

    Fang nodded, her advice resonating deep in his core.

    She¡¯s right. I¡¯ve built a strong body, it would be foolish not to continue using it, to rely on a blade when my hands can shatter stones.

    ¡°Your words ring true senior, I¡¯ve made my choice. I¡¯ll take three manuals, the Heart-Breaking Fist, Bone-Crushing Claw and Lighting Needle Finger.¡±

    She smiled, nodding her head.

    ¡°That¡¯ll be nine taels. Do you still want to look at body refining manuals?¡°

    Fang nodded. This was arguably the most important decision, as it would evolve the very foundation of his body.

    She rummaged through her bag once more, but this time only brought out three manuals.

    Golden-Bark Skin Refinement, Iron-Shelled Turtle Method and Enduring Breath Scripture.

    The first two manuals focused on increasing the durability of the user. Of the two, Fang found himself leaning towards the Iron-Shelled Turtle Method, as it focused not just on the skin, but the muscle underneath as well. Though it fell a little short of the other in terms of pure defensive power.

    I could use a little more durability, but honestly, the chances of me surviving any Qi-based attack with mere body refining is slim to none, no matter how strong I get my skin.

    The last technique, however, did peek his interest.

    The Enduring Breath Scripture aimed to raise the practitioners vitality, increasing their innate regeneration and endurance, while offering small boons towards their foundation.

    The increased regeneration caught his eye, and while the scripture didn¡¯t promise regenerating an arm or leg, more so recovery from wounds and bone damage¡­ For Fang, such a limitation wasn¡¯t a problem.

    If I can fuse this manual with more like it¡­ Can I achieve near immortal regeneration? Is that possible?

    The potential ability was too great to pass up.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take the Enduring Breath Scripture.¡± He said, confident in his choice.

    ¡°Good choice. Shoring up your foundation is always vital, as weak wood only leads to collapsing pagodas.¡±

    The total price was nineteen taels, nearly all of his money. But Fang paid without hesitation.

    ¡°Thank you senior, also, I was wondering, is it at all possible to journey with the caravan when you all decide to return to Blue River Town?¡±

    The woman thought for a moment.

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t be opposed, but you realize that it¡¯s a treacherous journey? Bandits aside, beasts stalk the wilds¡­ among other things.¡±

    Fang nodded his head firmly.

    ¡°I do, and I¡¯ve also fought a few beasts myself. I would do my part in keeping the caravan safe.¡±

    The woman smiled.

    ¡°Well then we wouldn¡¯t be opposed to additional hands. Make sure to meet us here in two weeks and we¡¯ll set off together.¡±

    Fang beamed a large smile.

    ¡°Thank you senior, for the opportunity and advice.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t mention it, make sure to practice properly, and take care.¡±

    Fang set off, immediately heading to his training spot in the woods. He planned on initiating all of his new techniques before they left, which meant non-stop training for the next two weeks.

    And, despite the skin blistering training that lay ahead, he was actually quite excited to get started.

    Getting stronger after all, was turning out to be quite addicting.

    ¡ª

    Fang decided to focus on his offensive techniques first, as practicing the Enduring Breath Scripture required long bouts of hyperventilation, hanging upside down, and enduring freezing cold waters. He¡¯d have to make a trip to a nearby lake for that, so he opted to focus on his offensive techniques first, as the closest lake was a couple hours away.

    The first technique Fang learnt, was the Heart-Shattering Fist.

    The fist technique aimed to disrupt the internal organs of the target through fast, twisting strikes with his middle knuckles.

    At the moment of impact, he had to rotate his entire arm so fast that he nearly dislocated his shoulder the first couple times he attempted the technique.

    It¡¯s training regimen wasn¡¯t too bad either, just bare knuckle strikes, arm twists with heavy stones in hand, and grinding his knuckles into a tree until smoke appeared.

    Within two days, he initiated the technique. To his surprise however, there was no body morphing pain that followed, only a slight warmth in his hands, followed by small wealth of instinctual knowledge.

    It seemed his body was already adapted, or that the technique wasn¡¯t as demanding as his others.

    The next technique Fang chose, was the Lightning Needle Finger.

    This¡­ wasn¡¯t nearly as easy as the last. As human fingers just aren¡¯t suited for striking. There are just too many points of failure: Nineteen little pieces of bone and nine joints are too many moving pieces to endure a powerful attack.

    The Lightning Needle Finger aimed to remedy that. The technique promised fingers strong enough to puncture stone, and even more, explosive speed to back it up.

    The process was grueling. Fang had to progressively stab his fingers into harder and harder materials, slowly building up resilience in his fingers over a period of five days.

    He started with rice, then dirt, then even harder dirt, then the softness wood he could find, before moving onto the bare hard-wood of the many pines, before he could finally reach stone.

    His fingers had swelled, the joints becoming rigid and tender. His nails hardened into malformed square shapes. His hands hurt to the point that just trying to grip something caused pain to shoot up his arms.

    When he finally reached initiation, his hands shook immensely. His finger joints cracked, shifting like ants were crawling under his skin. He watched in horror as his nails slid off his fingers, only to reveal new blackened nails beneath, as if they had been forged in fire.

    The ensuing euphoria was a relief, as his hands had finally returned to usable states, having adapted to the technique proper.

    Yet, nothing could top the feeling of sheer joy Fang felt when the system appeared before him.

    [Compatible Techniques acquired¡­

    - Fuse Heart-Breaking Fist (Initiation) into Lightning Needle Finger (Initiation) ?

    - Fuse Lightning Needle Finger (Initiation) into Heart-Breaking Fist (Initiation) ?

    Fuse Lightning Needle Fist into Heart-Breaking Fist!

    A wave of power coursed through Fang¡¯s hands. A terrible crackling filling the air as the bones in his hand morphed and hardened once more. It felt like he¡¯d accidentally placed his hands in a hydraulic press before slipping them into a wood chipper.

    The scene was disturbing. The bones moving under skin like hundreds of worms were boring their way through his tendon and muscle alike.

    Fang could hardly endure it, falling to his knees as he groaned through his teeth. His black nails had fallen off again, only to grow back in real-time, replaced by new, onyx black nails that glistened in the day-light. They were pointed, sharp-like knives and incredibly study.

    Fang took heaving breaths as the pain subsided. The following euphoria honestly doing little to help numb the lingering experience.

    He could only give a weak smile as he stared at System.

    Fang :

    [Cultivation]

    - Mortal Forging Sutra II (Initiation)

    [Technique]

    - *Stormquaking Strides I (Great Success)

    - *Viscera Rupturing Strikes I (Initiation)

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    ¡°haaa¡­¡± Just another technique and then some enduring breathing left to go¡­ at least I won¡¯t have to worry about training my hands anymore¡­ He thought to himself.

    Like many times before, Fang¡¯s head filled with a small trove of instinctual knowledge. It wasn¡¯t anything tangible, yet his mind and body knew how to use his new technique.

    Fang stood, turning to face the poor battered tree that he¡¯d abused throughout all of his training. The tree was littered in small, finger-sized holes, knuckle sized craters, and his kick that had nearly carved the tree in two.

    This might be the final nail¡­

    Fang¡¯s hand shot out with terrifying speed. He felt the air part like water as his fingers formed a blade-like structure.

    He stabbed his hand into the tree, his nails sinking into the hardwood like butter, before twisting over with such force that the entire tree groaned.

    The wood swirled around his hand like clay, before Fang pushed forwards once more, collapsing his fingers and performing a one-inch punch.

    VH-BOOM!

    The backside of the tree exploded outwards in a sudden hail of wood and debris. Fang stepped backwards, his feet carrying him thirty steps in a single stride, leaving heavy prints behind him.

    The colossal pine groaned as it began to fall away from him, the trunk snapping in two as it separated from its stump.

    Large chunks of wood shot outwards at Fang in retaliation. His eyes dilated, his senses kicking into overdrive. In a single breath his deflected numerous pieces of wood from impaling him. His hands stabbing out in a blurred mirage of strikes.

    BOOM!

    The tree slammed to the earth, before lifting a cloud of dust into the air.

    Fang waved the smoke from his face, smiling as he did so.

    Ah, this will do. This will indeed, do just fine.

    He was satisfied with the results. And it wasn¡¯t even the end, he still had a claw technique, not to mention the Enduring Breath Scripture.

    Though, it was hard to imagine the claw technique empowering his new Viscera Rupturing Strikes even further.

    Fang was giddy. His teenage body unable to handle his excitement as he almost visibly shook in glee.

    Truly, the young boy was becoming addicted to gaining strength.

    As many, in this harsh world, are.

    ¡ª

    The time to leave was approaching.

    Fang had easily initiated the Bone-Crushing Claw technique a few days ago, his newfound hand and finger strength making the training laughable easy.

    It was no surprise then, if a little disappointing, that upon initiation he didn¡¯t get a fusion prompt. He also didn¡¯t experience no such metamorphosis. A slight warmth perhaps, a minor internal itchiness in his hands, but nothing else.

    Fang hypothesized that it was due the claw technique being ¡®inferior¡¯ in grade to his new technique.

    Going forward, he¡¯d either have to fuse two Mortal grade techniques into an Earth grade technique before attempting another fusion, or find an Earth Grade technique to begin with.

    As it stood, the claw technique would just have to wait its turn before fusion. It did provide a small benefit in allowing Fang to incorporate claw forms into his fighting style, giving him even more versatility in battle. Or if need be, as a cover for his better techniques.

    With only two days left until the peddlers were to leave, Fang made the journey to the lake to finish the final component of his body refining. Though, the couple hour journey took far shorter than he thought it would, as he was finally able to push his Stormquaking Strides to its limits, shooting through the forest like a speeding bullet.

    The second stage of the Mortal Forging Sutra was vital in allowing him to function at such high speeds, he moved with blurring strides, each step propelling him thirty in a single second. His heightened senses came in clutch, allowing him avoid smashing face-first into a tree during the journey.

    Within only thirty minutes he reached his destination.

    A large lake of crystal clear waters. The trees surrounding its shores reflected off of its serene surface, painting a beautiful picture for Fang to take in. On the far side of the lake he could barely make out a couple of deer lapping up the crystal waters. Next to them, a quiet stream fed into the lake.

    Fang quickly undressed before pushing through the reeds along the lake bank, stepping into the frigid waters. He felt his feet sink into the ground below, small plumes of dirt rising to muddy the waters.

    He waded until he could sit down with his head just barely above the waters¡¯ surface. His body shivered as he did so, goosebumps rising across his skin as the cold swept away his internal body heat.

    He looked down, seeing his reflection stare back at him.

    His hair had gotten quite long. Mimicking the rough style of the hunters, dark, thick lengths of hair rolled down to his shoulders in small blade like clumps, giving him a feral look.

    His eyes, muddy like the lake floor stared back, holding a sharp, slightly bored look.

    I am Fang.

    Fang is me.

    With a deep breath, he began to practice the Enduring Breath Scripture.

    He started with deep, long breaths, before moving to faster hyperventilating breaths.

    His heart rate rose, then dropped. Like the soft waves ebbing onto the lake shore, he continued regulating his breath and heart until his body became numb to the cold.

    He sat still for so long that even the fish inhabiting the lake had began to swim around him. Thinking him an odd looking rock, or a misplaced tree.

    Perhaps if he was aiming for Peak Mastery, he would¡¯ve needed to spend weeks meditating in the lake.

    But as it stood, with the help of the system, it only took a matter of hours to reach Initiation.

    [Compatible Techniques acquired¡­

    - Fuse Enduring Breath Scripture I (Initiation) into Mortal Forging Sutra II (Initiation) ?

    - Fuse Mortal Forging Sutra II (Initiation) into Enduring Breath Scripture I (Initiation) ?

    Fang withheld his choice, rising out of the waters, scaring the fish away as he did so.

    He didn¡¯t want to go through the fusion process in the water, lest he drown to death as he spasmed in pain.

    He dressed himself, taking a deep breath before sitting down, resting his hands on his knees.

    Fuse Enduring Breath Scripture into Mortal Forging Sutra!

    His body quaked, a tremor of pain flickering through his eyes. His heart thundered a single time.

    Then darkness.

 Chapter 5: Aura

    ¡°Brother Shui Han, forgive my ignorance, but¡­ why are we in this backwater again? I know that the Sect mission is an elimination request but isn¡¯t this below you?¡± A young man dressed in dark blue robes couldn¡¯t help but ask. He was young, perhaps too young for his own good, with dark black hair and a straight-sword at his waist.

    Shui Han sighed, not even bothering to look over at the junior disciple in question. Why he was charged with bringing along these fools was beyond him. He stared ahead, pushing his light blue hair out of his dark eyes, barely able to make-out the town in the distance. Beside it, the Blue River flowed, its expanse wide enough that even he, a peak Qi-Gathering cultivator, couldn¡¯t see its distant banks.

    It was more of a small flowing sea if anything. The sun high-above reflected glamorous rays off of its, truly, blue waters. The river of course, ran south through the Sect, but that was a mere branch of a tree large and long enough to encompass most of the Lotus Plateau.

    It served as a neat border between the Azure Lotus Sect and those barbaric brutes further east.

    The Jade Horde Sect.

    Regardless, Shui Han wasn¡¯t here to waste his time staring at the river¡¯s waters, nor was he here to spar with the Jade Horde Sect.

    ¡°You remember Ku Lu?¡± He asked, though it was more of a statement than a question. The disciples nodded, the name familiar, another rising star in the sect.

    ¡°Junior Ku Lu failed to eliminate a known bandit encampment north of here.¡± Shui Han explained.

    The two disciples beside him only stared at him, their faces devoid of any semblance of intelligent thought.

    Shui Han sighed, again. He felt the pommel of his twin swords swirl against his palms as he thought.

    Should I just kill them? I could easily get away with it.

    But he only shook his head, smiling a little. It would be too annoying, and getting blood on his robes would be such a shame. Especially since he was about to enter Blue River Town.

    I¡¯m too kind. Truly, too kind.

    The two disciples beside him could only share a worried look as Shui Han went quiet. Not daring to ask again, despite not fully understanding his explanation. Just seeing Shui Han smile was enough to send a shiver down their backs. As Shui Han was infamous in the Sect for smiling¡­

    ¡­but only when he killed.

    ¡ª

    A small distance from Forests Edge, near the banks of a lake, just a few steps shy of its softy lapping waters¡­

    Fang lay unconscious.

    His body, however, was quite alive. More than it¡¯s ever been. His eyes fluttered uncontrollably ¡ª hints of an unknown energy swimming just beneath his dark, muddy irises.

    Fang¡¯s vitality surged through his veins. The usually blue and purple bloody highways had begun to carry wisps of gold through them. As if he¡¯d been injected with some kind of radio-active marker. His veins swelled to the beat of his heart, throbbing across his skin with slow, rhythmic pulses.

    ¡°HUUU!¡±

    Fang¡¯s eyes snapped open. Unbeknownst to him, they glowed gold.

    A nightmare¡­

    He¡¯d been stuck in a terrible dream.

    An infinite loop of his death.

    His killers face, the snarl of a grin loomed above him the entire time.

    Fang was helpless. Little more than a cognizant corpse.

    He could only watched as he was stabbed in the chest, over and over and over and over AND OVER AND OVER AND¡ª

    ¡ªFUCK!

    Fang¡¯s fist slammed down beside him. The pent up rage exploding out in a cone of devastation. The earth cracked, a splinter running through the dirtcrawling up a nearby pine causing the tree¡¯s bark to explode off of its trunk in a flurry of destruction.

    Fang stared wordlessly at his hand, and subsequently at the crater that extended out from beneath his knuckles.

    That¡­ that was new.

    No technique, no wind up, no nothing. Raw, unadulterated power had exploded out from his hand.

    Suddenly, a flash of gold and jade light appeared above him. His eyes snapped over to the System as the familiar scroll unfurled itself.

    Fang :

    [Cultivation]

    - *Aura-Burning Art I (Initiation)

    [Technique]

    - *Stormquaking Strides I (Great Success)

    - *Viscera Rupturing Strikes I (Initiation)

    - Bone-Crushing Claw I (Initiation)

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    Aura¡­ Burning?

    Fang felt a small ember settled deep in his chest. There was a single mote of fire, pure gold in luster, simmering inside him. With each passing breath the fire siphoned into his muscles, like small shots of pure adrenaline.

    Though the energy was foreign to him, he knew what it was.

    A drop of life-essence. The energy of life.

    Every living thing had life-essence, as it was the base requirement for being alive. Just by virtue of living, a person would burn through their life-essence. Every action, whether big or small used some modicum of it ¡ª until death.

    Old age, a disease, or a simple sword to the throat reduced one¡¯s life-essence. It was the intangible lasso that bound the soul to the body.

    The combination of the Mortal Forging Sutra and Enduring Breath Scripture had unlocked Fang¡¯s awareness, and subsequent ability to tap into his life-essence, burning it in exchange for strength.

    However, those two factors alone would result in a short death, because life-essence was incredibly hard to increase. For Mortals, there were only few ways they could prolong their longevity: Pills, natural treasures, perhaps even techniques like the Enduring Breath Scripture.

    But those were mere drops in an ever-leaking bucket.

    Immortal Cultivators were called such because breaking into a new stage would subsequently increase a cultivators life-essence. Thusly prolonging their lives.

    Just breaking into Qi-Gathering alone added on average, fifty years to one¡¯s life-span. With each stage further along following a geometric progression of added life-span, by the time a cultivator broke into Core Formation, they¡¯d theoretically be able to live up to 650 years old.

    Fang wasn¡¯t a cultivator. He hadn¡¯t broke into a new stage, nor had he ingested a pill or natural treasure.

    Was he accelerating his death? Trading life-span for power?

    No.

    The system, in all of its blessed glory had fused his two techniques into something greater than he could¡¯ve ever imagined.

    He could cultivate life-essence, forming the aggregated energy into small distilled drops of Aura.

    Fang had no clue how long it would take to form a single drop, yet the fact alone meant the world to him.

    He had forged a completely new path of power.

    Fang laid on his back, feeling the drop of golden Aura burn into his body, the power suffusing into his muscles and tendons. He couldn¡¯t help but grin, just feeling the strength coursing through him was nearly enough to make him shout out in joy.

    Fang grabbed the floor behind his head before flipping to his feet with graceful ease. For a moment, he eyed the nearby pine trees. His hands itching to taste the power beneath his black finger-tips.

    Sigh¡­ I¡¯ve fucked up enough trees around here, I need something that¡¯ll hit back. He thought with a sigh.

    He turned to take in the lake one final time, its serene waters reflecting the purple that brushed across the sky as the sun fell behind the pines.

    A fly zipped across the lakes surface, until suddenly, a golden carp broke out of the waters, snatching the bug from its flight before splashing back into the lake with a ripple.

    Fang grinned.

    This would be a nice place to grow old and die.

    He turned, his calf straining as his ankles dug his toes into the earth below.

    DHUUUM!

    He disappeared in a blur, a pillar of dirt rupturing into the air behind him.

    His speed had easily doubled. Each stride of his Stormquaking Steps propelled him sixty. The air roared as he ran through the forest. His hair whipping behind him wildly, like a mane of shadows. His clothes, barely able to cling to his body.

    His eyes and mind just barely able to keep up with the newfound speed.

    After just ten minutes of running, just shy of the village border. Fang felt the drop of Aura begin to peter out. He was forced to slow down as his muscles began to scream at him, a wave of pain shooting up his thighs with each passing step.

    Even after slowing down, he felt the world press down on him. His legs throbbed, as a small headache began to build at the back of his mind.

    It seems theres always a price¡­

    Fang slowed himself even further, needing to drop down to 80% of his max speed until his legs stopped screaming at him.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    He arrived back home until near dark, just barely in time for dinner.

    The warmth of the orphanage was like a breath of fresh air as he entered. A small chorus of excited children shouting at him as he walked in.

    Granny Gian smiled warmly at Fang as he entered, a hint of surprise in her eyes as she saw his cleaner than usual state.

    ¡°Did you take a bath, Fang? Are you okay?¡± She asked jokingly.

    Fang rolled his eyes, smiling.

    ¡°Yes Granny, just a small dip in a nearby lake.¡± He explained as he helped himself to a small bowl of stew.

    Granny Gian raised a questioning brow at him. ¡°But there aren¡¯t any nearby lakes, dear.¡±

    Fang coughed, giving her a weak smile. ¡°Nearby for me Granny, a small lake to the west¡­ I¡¯m, uh, very fast¡­¡±

    ¡°Yes, yes, I believe you. Don¡¯t worry dear, just curious.¡± Granny said with a soft laugh.

    The kids were quick to barrage him with questions, like how big the lake was, or how fast he was.

    He was tempted to tell them how fast he really was. But he couldn¡¯t exactly say, I¡¯m fast as fuck, boys.

    ¡°Faster than a horse.¡± He settled with.

    ¡°A HORSE!¡± They exclaimed in disbelief.

    ¡°Thats like¡­ SO FAST!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t believe it!¡±

    ¡°Show us Elder brother!¡±

    ¡°A HORSE?!¡±

    The barraged him with questions and requests as he ate his stew. Asking if he could beat a bear, or how a technique could change his body so much, and whether or not he was really faster than a horse. There was a smile on his lips the entire time.

    ¡°Sure!¡± He said with a mischievous grin. ¡°I¡¯ll show you all tomorrow.¡±

    The kids yelped in excitement. ¡°Thank you Elder Brother!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re the best!¡±

    ¡°First the meat, now a horse!?¡±

    Granny Gian smiled softly as she watched all the children crowd around Fang.

    ¡°Now, now. There will be no demonstrations tomorrow if you all don¡¯t finish your food! I swear, you¡¯re all trying to work me to the bone, tsk!¡±

    The children¡¯s eyes went wide in fear, before they all scrambled back to their bowls, slurping down the stew with newfound fervor.

    Granny Gian and Fang chuckling as they did.

    ¡ª

    Fangs last day was spent in pure joy. His distinct lack of material possessions meant there was little need to pack. His morning was spent dashing around the Orphanage, providing piggy backs to all the children. Taking them on short yet thrilling bursts of speed around the Orphanage.

    They screamed, holding on for dear life as he would suddenly accelerate with small uses of his Stormquaking Steps.

    Afterwards, he went around town gathering all the supplies he needed, though most of it was in dried foods and small quantities of vegetables such as bamboo shoots or leafy greens packed into dense bundles. He made sure to stop by old man Ren¡¯s butchery to get some dried Qi-beast meat. The Matriarch had been huge after all, and Kang had worked out a special deal to have the old man preserve as much as the meat as possible, with a small percentage of it put aside for the old man himself.

    Fang had decided to leave all of his manuals behind, as he¡¯d already made use of them. Telling Granny Gian that they were available for any children who wanted to work labour and needed a body-refining manual. He also implored her to use the Enduring Breath Scripture, if only its breathing component.

    His final stop was the Hunters lodge. He spied Kang out front, swinging his blackened saber in practiced forms.

    Fang watched as the man shifted between swings, heavy overhead cuts that flowed into sharp twisting slashes. His entire body moved in tandem with his blade, his hips pushing behind each movement, his toes digging into the soil.

    Fang waited for him to finish,

    Kang grunted as he completed his combo, wiping a sheen of sweat off face with his arm. He turned to Fang, giving him a large grin.

    ¡°Is it time for our Little Bull to spread his wings?¡±

    Fang chuckled.

    ¡°This little bull can only try.¡±

    Kang laughed, before stabbing his saber into a nearby stump. He waved Fang to follow him inside. ¡°Come, Winged Bull.¡±

    Fang followed the man inside, staring at the wolf Matriarchs skull as did so, passing under its gaze as he entered.

    Kang made to the far end of the room, grabbing a small leather wrapped bundle off a table. He turned, before shoving the item into Fangs hands. He crossed his arms, a small smile on his lips.

    ¡°Open it.¡±

    Fang raised his brow.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    Kang shrugged.

    Fang rolled his eyes, before opening the bundle.

    Within the leather bound package he found a small dagger. It¡¯s blade was bone-white, curved gently inwards, ending in a razor point. Fang ran his finger along the blade¡¯s edge, feeling the sharp cutting edge nearly part his skin. He gripped the dark leather wrapped handle, the hilt just slightly too large for his hand.

    Fang smiled, recognizing the daggers blade.

    ¡°The matriarchs¡¯ fang?¡±

    Kang grinned, showing his own fangs in the process.

    ¡°The one and only! I even made sure to leave room on the hilt, since I know you¡¯re still growing. But¡­¡± He looked Fang up and down, raising a single brow at him.

    ¡°At this rate it seems I should¡¯ve left even more space. Did you grow? Boy, you¡¯re nearly as tall as my chest now!¡±

    Fang shrugged, looking down at himself. Though he only reached Kang¡¯s chest in height, when considering that he was a behemoth of a man, that was quite a significant accomplishment.

    Fang had made strides in his growth recently, still smaller then most of the average men in the village, yet for his age, he could be considered tall.

    ¡°I guess, all the beast meat and body refining seems to be paying off.¡±

    Kang slapped his shoulder.

    ¡°That it is little bull, that it is. You even feel different, there¡¯s a new air about you I cannot place, have you made another breakthrough? I can see you¡¯ve been practicing a finger technique with how weird your nails look¡­ but there¡¯s something else.¡±

    Now it was Fang¡¯s turn to grin, bearing his own fangs at the man.

    ¡°You could say that¡­¡±

    Kang laughed.

    ¡°Okay, keep your secrets, boy. But your eyes tell a different story.¡±

    ¡°My eyes?¡±

    Kang nodded, glimpsing into his eyes with a squint.

    ¡°Yes my boy, maybe most wouldn¡¯t notice, but I do. There¡¯s¡­ a subtle gold deep within.¡±

    Huh¡­ must be a side-effect of attaining Aura.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯ve made more gains than I thought¡­¡±

    Kang waved his hand in the air.

    ¡°It¡¯s not unusual, not something to worry about, I¡¯ve met many body refiners with have interesting features. I mean, look at me boy!¡± He said flexing his biceps.

    ¡°My Mountain Bear Manual is a perfect example.¡±

    Fang chuckled. ¡°That much is clear.¡±

    Kang smirked. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know what you¡¯ve been doing to cause your eyes to turn slightly gold, but it feels strong.¡± He rubbed face, scratching the sides of his jaw in thought, before his eyes sharpened with mischief.

    He turned and sat at the table behind him, before pointing to the stool on the other end of the table.

    ¡°Sit, we shall have one final match before you leave.¡±

    Fang could only smile. Before taking a seat and placing his elbow onto the table confidently.

    ¡°It won¡¯t be an easy win this time, little bear.¡±

    Kang laughed.

    ¡°Big words for a little bull. COME! Show me where you get your confidence from, the looser must drown themselves in wine tonight, or my name isn¡¯t KANG!¡±

    The two of them wrapped their hands around one another, their biceps and forearms tensing in anticipation.

    With a grin from both, the match began.

    ¡ª

    It was time.

    Fang stepped into the dark of the morning. He had a large leather pack on his shoulders, filled with rations, his bed roll and importantly, the Matriarch horn.

    He wore a dark-brown fur coat around his neck and simple brownish shirt and pants, a small leather belt held his clothes together, his newly acquired knife sheathed at his waist. His leather boots, freshly oiled and waxed, hugged his feet, firmly wrapped at the ankles with roughly made cord.

    He turned to Granny Gian. Seeing her teary eyes as she stood in the doorway.

    ¡°Thank you for everything, Granny. I don¡¯t know when, but I promise to return.¡±

    She wiped a tear from her face, pulling Fang into a deep hug.

    ¡°Stay safe my dear, may the heavens bless you in all that do.¡±

    Fang smiled, turning to leave before the hot feeling in his chest bubbled any further.

    At the outskirts of town, under the soft glow of lanterns. A small commotion of people were busy packing carts with merchandise, tying down bags and baskets, already weary of the long journey ahead of them.

    Those who didn¡¯t own space on the carts made themselves busy cinching down straps on their packs. Making sure nothing hung freely from their bags. The noise of, even small items, clanging in the wind or jangling against one another would quickly earn the eire of others in the caravan.

    Fang spied the mysterious peddler standing to the side of all the commotion. She was dressed in her usual dark robes, wearing a large brimmed-hat that draped her face in perpetual shadows. Her pack rested on her shoulders, deceptively small compared to what Fang had witnessed it holding.

    Fang approached her giving a curt bow.

    ¡°Morning, senior.¡±

    She turned her head to him, her eyes hidden under the veil of shadows.

    ¡°Good morning, ready to leave?¡±

    Fang nodded.

    ¡°The feeling is bittersweet.¡±

    ¡°Mmm¡­¡± She hummed. ¡°This will be your first time leaving?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, and I get the feeling that I won¡¯t return for a long time¡­ alas, a bird must eventually leave its nest.¡±

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not sure that applies to bulls, hmm¡­?¡± She said, stifling a small laugh.

    Fang turned to her with a look of incredulity, before rubbing his face of the embarrassment.

    ¡°You¡¯ve heard?¡±

    She smirked, or at least Fang thought she did, it was hard to tell through the mask.

    ¡°One eventually hears such things, it can be quite boring at times, being a peddler.¡±

    ¡°I see¡­ and you senior? Do you have a nickname?¡±

    She didn¡¯t answer for a moment, taking a second to stare off into the darkness, before shaking her head.

    ¡°You can call me Yunfeng.¡±

    Fang smiled, cupping his fist, giving her a light bow.

    ¡°I¡¯m called Fang, though some people refer to me as Little Bull.¡±

    Yunfeng raised her hat enough for Fang to see her eyes. Her pupils were dark like onyx, curved slightly upwards as she smiled in return.

    ¡°Pleased to meet you, Little Bull.¡±

    The two of them continued watching the last of the peddlers finish their preparations. The sun now barely peaking over the trees in the east, dying the clouds above ablaze in a beautiful contrast of fire and shadow.

    Just as the caravan began to setoff, a voice called out to Fang.

    ¡°Wait boy!¡± Kang shouted. His voice strained and severely hungover.

    Fang smiled as he spied the hunter.

    ¡°Looks like you didn¡¯t manage to drink enough to drown to death, I thought your name was Kang?¡± He said with a playful smirk.

    Kang groaned, his stomach rolling at the reminder of his loss the night before.

    ¡°Gah! Who would believe that a boy less than half my height and age would beat me, truly the heavens are unfair¡­¡± He said throwing his hands into the air.

    Fang could only laugh.

    ¡°Anyways, I won¡¯t hold ya up so I¡¯ll make it quick. If you find yourself in trouble, which I get the feeling ya will, look for a guard named Han Tie. Good man, owes me a few favors, and if you mention my name he should be willing to help you.¡±

    Fang nodded, as the two exchanged a firm arm-clasp.

    ¡°Thank you for everything Kang.¡±

    Kang waved his hand in the air as if it wasn¡¯t much. ¡°Ah, stop it kid, you¡¯re gonna make me cry here, go on, go! Show the world the power of Forests Edge ¡ª the power of our Little Bull!¡±

    Kang laughed as he turned away. Leaving Fang in embarrassment, the man¡¯s words had echoing across the entire caravan, eliciting a few light-hearted chuckles.

    Fang turned to join Yunfeng, who had waited up ahead for him, expecting to hear her jab at his nickname once more. But he saw only an odd gaze in her eyes, as if they tried to pierce through him, seeking to see his soul.

    ¡°You beat him?¡± She asked.

    Fang scratched his cheek, unsure if there was an ulterior motive behind her sudden questioning.

    ¡°Only in an arm-wrestling match.¡±

    ¡°Impressive. He must be at least a mid-stage bronze body refiner¡­¡± She said, looking at Fang with her discerning eye.

    ¡°Mid-stage bronze?¡±

    ¡°Mmm, It¡¯s a classification system that¡­ some people use for body refiners. Iron, Bronze, Steel for Qi-gathering, and Silver, Gold, Platinum for Foundation Establishment.¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t go any higher?¡± Fang asked, curious about the new knowledge.

    ¡°Not that I know of, some say Jade is after Platinum, but I don¡¯t believe a body refiner has ever reached such a stage in all of history. Could you imagine? A person destroying a mountain with pure physical strength?¡±

    ¡°I could¡­¡± Fang said softly, low enough that Yunfeng didn¡¯t hear. His fist tightening at his side.

    And I won¡¯t just be fine with imagining, I swear I¡¯ll make it happen ¡ª Or my name isn¡¯t Fang!

    ¡ª

    The first day of journey turned to be more¡­ mundane than he anticipated.

    It was interesting to see the parts of the forest he hadn¡¯t before, but the slow speed and all-too familiar trees quickly grew boring. He spent most of the time conversing with Yunfeng and peddlers nearby. They provided him with a wealth of knowledge about the immediate political and geographical information on the region he lived in.

    From what he learnt of The Lotus Plateau, was that it was rather isolated from the rest of the wider world. Separated from the plains by the White Cliffs, a massive uplift that made access to the central plains a rather painful affair.

    Two sects reigned in the Lotus Plateau, the Azure Lotus Sect, and the Jade Horde Sect. And while there were other, more minor sects around, those two were the true powerhouses of the region.

    The more¡­ eccentric peddlers also talked of a third sect in hushed tones, a demonic group.

    The Blood Cauldron Sect.

    Though the truth behind their claims of such a sect seemed tentative at best.

    Fang listened to them ramble on and on about different resources in the region. The fishing industry of Blue River Town versus its competitors spirit wood industry in Three Bayan Town.

    Apparently all of towns in the region had ties to sects, relying on them for protection from beasts and external groups alike.

    They had their own forces, cultivators even, those who¡¯d been turned away by the sects or people who didn¡¯t want to live the isolative lives of a sect disciple. But in this wide world, such measly might wasn¡¯t quite enough to sleep comfortably at night.

    He was also informed that the peddler group was in discussion to go to Three Bayan Town, not Blue River Town, since the bandits from before were surely going to be stalking the road back to the closer town. Not all of the peddlers, however, were on-board, since at least half of the group had families to return to, or business to finish.

    When the group finally settled in for the night, finding a large clearing between the pines. Fang witnessed the routine chaos of a peddler camp being established.

    Tents were flung up in a loose circle as bedrolls sprawled about around sporadic fires. Quickly, a myriad of delicious smells filled the air.

    It was a far cry to Kang¡¯s hunting camps. As they wouldn¡¯t even start a fire most times, as the smell was sure to attract predators in the night.

    Fang questioned a guard belonging to one of the larger peddler groups about this.

    The man scoffed. Shifting an iron tipped spear on his shoulder as he loosened his leather helmet.

    ¡°You new?¡± He asked, barely giving Fang a glance.

    ¡°Yes sir.¡±

    ¡°Well, kid, large groups like ours have what¡¯s called a Concealment Talisman.¡± He pointed to the center of the circle of tents, towards a large ornately carved wooden pole about ten feet tall that had been plunged into the earth.

    ¡°See that thing? That makes it so beasts ignore us, even if we were to setup a bloody butchery in this backwater.¡±

    Fang nodded. ¡°Even Qi-beasts?¡± He asked.

    The man frowned.

    ¡°Well, some of them, not all of them ¡ª that¡¯s what we¡¯re here for.¡± He said smacking his chest before shooing Fang away with the tips of his fingers.

    ¡°Now sod off kid, I¡¯ve been working all day so leave me be.¡±

    Fang bowed to the man, returning to his own spot a good distance away from any nearby tents. Yunfeng had chosen a spot quite a distance away from everyone else, preferring the peace and quiet over the security of numbers.

    I¡¯m almost certain now, with her knowledge of the sects, body refining and how she carries herself, she must be a cultivator.

    Not to mention the whole, mysterious aura she was obviously¡­cultivating.

    Yunfeng had already setup a small fire of her own, hanging a small iron pot over its flames, she masterfully began preparing her own dinner.

    Fang approached her with a small bundle of herbs and dried meats.

    ¡°Senior Yunfeng, this might be presumptuous of me, but could I share dinner with you ¡ª I offer herbs and meat.¡± He said, extending his offerings outwards.

    Yunfeng, even as the day had grown dark, was still fully dressed in mask and hat. She glanced from beneath her brim, her eyes resting on the dried meat in his hands.

    ¡°Is that¡­ Qi-beast meat?¡±

    Fang nodded.

    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s very good I might add.¡±

    ¡°Where did you even get¡­¡± she muttered before shaking her head. ¡°You¡¯re welcome to join me, I graciously accept your offerings, and for sharing such delicacies with me.¡±

    Fang smiled as she took the herbs and meats from him. He watched as she delicately broke off some leaves and crushed them before tossing them into the pot. The stew within bubbled, popping with aromatic bursts of earthy notes. She ripped the Qi-beast meat into thin strips, before also adding them to the stew.

    Fang¡¯s stomach grumbled as the smells reached his nose. He watched with anticipation as Yunfeng carefully poured the stew into two bowls, before passing him one. The creamy stew steamed against the cool early fall night.

    Fang listened to the distant sounds of the caravan as he enjoyed the meal, savoring the bites of Qi-beast meat between the thick aromatic stew.

    It taste like chicken. He laughed inwardly. How a wolf Matriarch could taste like chicken was truly beyond him.

    The night wound down as the temperature did. The moon high above shined small rays of lunar light by through the forest canopy, a blanket of stars smattering the darkness of space.

    I wonder how far I am¡­ from Earth, my old home.

    After Yunfeng had retired into her bedroll, Fang walked a little ways into the dark of the forest. Still within earshot of the camp, he found a seat beneath a large pine.

    He pondered about the distance between him and his past world. Were the people he once knew still alive and kicking? It was doubtful, who¡¯s to say hundreds, or thousands of years could¡¯ve passed since his reincarnation.

    A small breeze wafted through the forest, lifting the leaves into a small chorus of noise.

    Fang closed his eyes and looked inwards.

    Deep in his center, a small fingernail-sized drop of golden fire burned. It sat alone in his chest, emanating small waves of power through his body.

    Fang found that just having the drop of Aura within him increased his strength.

    It was like an additional source of power, a battery that passive fueled him, increasing his overall output, but one that could be ¡®burned¡¯ for a greater burst of power.

    Fang breathed deeply. Following the instinctive breathing pattern his system had granted him. His chest rose and fell.

    An hour passed.

    Then two.

    At end of the second hour a small spark erupted in his chest. A second drop of Aura burst into life, hovering just beside the other. Almost immediately Fang felt an odd pulling sensation in his chest. Like a pair of magnets, the drops of Aura yearned to join together, to become one.

    Fang didn¡¯t even have to force them, with a slight tug of his will the drops coalesced together. The fingernail-sized flames doubling in size.

    A small jolt of power rushed through his body and his eyes snapped open to the darkness around him.

    His body felt lighter, not as incredibly as when he burned his drop previously, but enough to feel the difference.

    Fang had to hold himself back from burning the coalesced drop of Aura, the power so tantalizingly close to fruition. He knew that he needed to reserve such maneuvers for life and death situations. The backlash alone would surely leave him in a severely weakened state.

    My body can¡¯t handle all this power¡­ but I can¡¯t keep gathering and stacking manuals since I¡¯ll keep running into the same issue¡­

    System.

    Fang :

    [Cultivation]

    - *Aura-Burning Art I (Initiation)

    [Technique]

    - *Stormquaking Strides I (Great Success)

    - *Viscera Rupturing Strikes I (Initiation)

    - Bone-Crushing Claw I (Initiation)

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    There were still a few things he could work on. Namely getting his techniques to Peak Mastery, but improving his movement and offensive techniques took practice and experience. Just rote exercise wouldn¡¯t be good enough anymore, which he was rather grateful for.

    He¡¯d have to look into getting a short-term job once he reached town. He remembered the peddlers mentioning that there was plenty of contract work, whether labour-wise or combat-related.

    After I sell the horn, of course.

    Fangs eyes panned down the system scroll, he stared at the one part of the scroll that had yet to change.

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    This¡­ I wonder if the system will help me do some bloodline fuckery?

    Fang couldn¡¯t help but grin.

 Chapter 6: It Rains, It Pours

    ¡°Ah! Finally, something other than these damn trees!¡± One of the peddlers exclaimed from atop his cart. His eyes gleamed in relief as he stared ahead, seeing something nobody else could.

    A chorus of relief swept through the caravan as that only meant one thing. They had finally reached the Blue River.

    Fang stepped aside from the group, trying to get a better look at the river, but all he could see was a mirage of blue in the distance. The trees on either side of trail created a weird illusion to his eyes, as if he was staring down a tunnel enclosed by a wall of water at the far end.

    Thankfully it wasn¡¯t too long until they finally reached the river bank.

    Fang approached the river, his mouth opening wide enough for a family of flies to enter. He couldn¡¯t believe his eyes.

    This is not a fucking river, it¡¯s a goddamn ocean!

    He stood on the ¡®bank¡¯, which was really a sheer cliff-face of white rock that dropped hundreds of feet below, extending north and south as far as he could see. Countless small plants and spindly trees hugged the cliff-face. An entire ecosystem seemed to live and breathe on the white rock. He saw flocks of birds fly across the blue expanse, small critters climbing along the white cliff rock, scuttling between the tree and stones alike.

    Truly, it was the largest river he¡¯d ever seen, both lives accounting.

    The distant shore was non-existent, so far away that he couldn¡¯t even get a whiff of land, even with his heightened senses.

    The water was eerily blue, reminiscent of an energy drink in saturation. Glacial silt flowed down the river, pouring off the Dragons Range and painting the waters into an obfuscating icy abyss.

    ¡°First time?¡± A man beside him asked, a smug look on his face.

    Fang could only slowly nod. His mind unable to comprehend the sheer size of the so called ¡°river¡±.

    ¡°Hah, I had the same look on my face when I first laid eyes on her, who knew there could be so much water in one place, huh?¡± The man uncorked his water skin taking a large gulp. ¡°And guess what?¡± He continued.

    ¡°Legends say¡­ it¡¯s deeper than it is wide! Hah! Can you believe that?¡± He expanded his arms out, as if his arm-span was at all enough to convey the sheer magnanimity of the Blue River.

    Fang could only gulp as he peered down into the rivers depths. An uneasy feeling gripped his stomach as he stared into the unknown blue waters. For some, godforsaken reason, he felt like he could see¡­ something. Goosebumps bubbled across his arms as a terrible thought floated to his mind.

    Beasts on land means beasts in the depths.

    Fang stepped away from the edge. His heart-rate rising. He turned to see the man who had talked to him returning to the caravan. He gave a quick, tentative glance back to the river, a shiver running down his spine.

    Yeah, fuck that.

    He quickly caught up with Yunfeng.

    ¡°Senior Yunfeng, do you perhaps know anything about bloodlines?¡± He asked, trying to distract himself.

    Yunfeng give him a sideways glance.

    ¡°For what reason?¡±

    Fang scratched his cheek. Uh, because I think my heaven blessed system can help me maybe change my own?

    But he couldn¡¯t exactly say that

    ¡°I was wondering if cultivators had different bloodlines to us mortals?¡±

    Yunfeng chuckled.

    ¡°I see¡­¡±

    ¡°¡­Cultivators do indeed have different bloodlines. Though, the vast majority aren¡¯t anything special¡ªoutside of having roots¡ªdo you know what spirit roots are?¡±

    Fang nodded.

    ¡°As much I can without having one.¡±

    Yunfeng gave a wry smile from beneath her mask.

    ¡°Yes, well, it is said that spirit roots are dependent on having immortal blood. What that really means, is that at some point in time an ancestor of theirs descended from an immortal cultivator.¡±

    ¡°Over millennia descendants had more descendants, and so on and so forth. There are more cultivators than you¡¯d think, though they¡¯re still much rarer than mortals.¡±

    ¡°Bloodlines are manifestations of those immortal cultivators attainments. Whether that would be affinities to a certain element, or certain¡­ features.¡± She said, her eyes momentarily scanning Fang¡¯s nails.

    ¡°One thing to note, is that not all Immortal cultivators were human.¡±

    Fang¡¯s brows rose in surprise.

    ¡°Huh? What? They uh, got busy with qi-beasts?¡±

    Yunfeng laughed, her hand gently hovering over her lips.

    ¡°Not quite, though you¡¯re not too far from the truth. At the Immortal level there is no difference between a ¡°Qi-beast¡± and a human cultivator. In their eyes, we are just another beast among the millions that inhabit the world.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡± He said rubbing his chin.

    ¡°So a bloodline is unchangeable, wholly dependent on one¡¯s ancestry?¡±

    Yunfeng¡¯s gaze suddenly sharpened, the air around her growing slightly cold.

    ¡°Such things are possible¡­ yet tampering with bloodlines is very much abhorred by cultivators. It is seen as going against the will of the immortal ancestors, the natural way of things. Those who ignore such things are given a heavy, black label¡ª¡±

    An almost tangible pressure formed around her, her clothes ruffling against the easterly winds as her eyes turned a slight green.

    ¡°¡ªdemonic.¡±

    Fang gulped. A cold sweat crawling down his neck.

    Well¡­

    shit.

    ¡ª

    Fang dropped the topic rather quickly, as it was clear to him Yunfeng held so called, demonic cultivators with contempt. Whether that was due to their unorthodox practices or from personal experience, he wasn¡¯t willing to pry any further.

    The caravan continued along the rivers edge, the sparkling blue waters frequently giving way to large schools of fish that lept to the air like dolphins upstream.

    The road along the river had become firmer, more defined and clearly more traveled. Eventually, small road markers began to appear. They were head-height stone obelisks, the four faces inscribed with multiple scripts, some in languages Fang couldn¡¯t even recognize.

    It was clear how old they were, as some scripts had been overwritten many times, or had been there so long they had become overgrown with moss from the river humidity.

    In the script he did recognize, it read: ¡®RIVER-DROP PORT, TWENTY MILES, SOUTH¡¯

    The caravan stopped a little bit after the marker in an established site that was clearly, frequently used. It had a few fire-rings, deep ruts in the ground from years of cart traffic, and grass long since trampled into impacted dirt.

    The routine was similar to the night before. A flurry of exhausted groans, sporadic fires and tents.

    A myriad of smells, swelling into the air.

    Yunfeng found a further isolated spot¡ªFang shared his rations once more.

    After she turned in for the night, he quietly strolled a little ways back down the road, finding a spot to meditate. He leaned back against a pine, watching the moon rise and reflect over the river. Its lunar light melded into the waters, streaking across the river, forming a bridge of shimmering white.

    Fang breathed deeply, savoring the sight. He stole the fresh rivers¡¯ breeze into his lungs, as cool humid air settled on his skin.

    This world¡­ is truly beautiful. Sights like these are worth the effort, I should find a map of natural wonders, maybe go on a few scenic delights.

    He closed his eyes.

    Once again, he delved into his Aura-Burning Art. His chest rising in rhythmic pulses, like bellows to a forge.

    Time passed, the moon rising high over the river. Rising until it was finally overhead.

    Face gamiled softly as he felt the new ember settle near his heart. It hummed with power, flickering with golden flames. Suddenly, Fang immediately clamped down with his will, holding it from the larger drops pulling force. His aptly named, Core Aura. He winced, eyes still closed. As the magnetic pull was even stronger than before, over two times as great.

    Fang didn¡¯t want to fuse this drop of Aura, as he wanted to have a one on backup. Instead he forced it to sit quietly in his chest. Interestingly enough, it still provided him with a slight increase of strength, but he could tangibly tell that it was less than his Core Aura. As if together, they were greater than the sum of their parts.

    Fang finally opened his eyes, smiling lightly as he saw the the moon overhead, reflecting perfectly on the river below.

    Huh? What is that¡ª

    His eyes slowly widened.

    A shadowy silhouette swam across the moons reflection. He could hardly see it, but the moon clearly revealed its many sharp, angular fins, slithering along the river surface.

    For a whole minute, Fang watched its silhouette glide through the moon. Disrupting the perfect reflection until its tail-fin finally caught up with its colossal length.

    It disappeared into the night, likely descending back into the abyssal depths.

    Fang could only stare ahead, wishing he hadn¡¯t seen what he was quite sure he did.

    What¡­

    He shook his head. A small chuckle of absurdity escaping his lips.

    What a wonderful world.

    ¡ª

    Finally, after three more days of travel the caravan came into sight of River-Drop.

    Fang wasn¡¯t sure what he was expecting, a slope down to the river perhaps, maybe a very precarious staircase carved into the cliff.

    Instead he saw what he saw could only described as an engineers worst nightmare.

    On the edge of the cliff, sat a large building. It stood two stories high, much wider than it was tall, with three large barn-like entrances. Each of them had their own signboard: DROP ¡ª OFFICE ¡ª LIFT, respectively.

    The stomach curling part was that the buildings butt-end was hanging freely off the cliff. As if the white rock below had eroded away half its foundations, yet it was clear this was intentionally designed. Large reinforced beams were anchored deeply into the cliff just below, bracing the end of the building aloft like a waiter holding a tray.

    Fang glanced over the cliff, looking below the soon to be unfortunate event of a building, and saw a small dock, weathering large waves. They lapped against the wooden platform, rustling two elevator-like pulleys that ran on either side of its short length, connecting to the building high above.

    He noticed a distinct lack of ferry, not a single boat anywhere to be seen. Others in the caravan had similar observations, as a wave of commotion ran through the group.

    ¡°Where¡¯s the ferry?¡±

    ¡°Screw the ferry where are the dock-hands?¡±

    ¡°The dock-hands? Where is ANYBODY!¡±

    An unsettling feeling quickly took hold of them, as they slowly approached the port office. The guards took point, their hands on their spears, poised as if a bear was going to burst out the bay doors.

    Fang leaned over to Yunfeng, his voice low.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    ¡°Is¡­ something wrong?¡± He said, but immediately followed with a wince. He had cursed them with those simple words.

    Yunfeng only nodded lightly, her eyes narrowing at the building.

    ¡°It¡¯s usually quite busy.¡±

    ¡°Is everybody on some sort of holiday?¡±

    She chuckled.

    ¡°Funny.¡±

    Fang scratched his cheek.

    How was that funny?

    The guards motioned for everyone to remain behind. As five of the ten broke off to get a better look inside. Fang could see the hesitation in their steps, their feet trying desperately to make as little noise as possible.

    They slowly entered the office, their figures disappearing into the shadows.

    The group waited.

    ¡­

    Their breaths held tight.

    ¡­

    Waiting, as a cold sweat built on their skin, as a sudden dread built in their hearts.

    ¡­

    Until finally, one of the guards stepped outside. The peddler group let out a collective sigh of relief. An old man atop one of the carts shouted out.

    ¡°Well?! Anything?¡±

    The guard took one step forwards, dragging his other as if it was weighed down by a thousand pounds. He opened his mouth, trying to reply, but only a disgusting gurgle of blood spewed from his throat.

    He collapsed.

    His face smashing into the cold dirt with a sickening smack. The noise cutting through the air like a record scratch.

    A sickle, curved and maliciously serrated had been impaled into the guards back. A series of loud steps echoed from within. The wooden floor of the office creaking under the weight of the unknown assailants feet.

    From out of the shadows a single hand reached out, grasping the sickle¡¯s hilt and ripping it from the guards corpse with a flesh-rending rip.

    Blood splayed across the ground, dripping from the sickle¡¯s blade as it is brought to a man¡¯s face.

    ¡°Hello, meat bags.¡± He said, stepping into the afternoon light.

    A collective recoil washed over the group as they saw his face. He was bald, with terribly gruesome scars for what should¡¯ve been eyebrows. His lips were smothered in blood, a maw of sharpened teeth digging into what little flesh remained. The rest of his body was worse, as his lack of shoes and shirt displayed a hive of lacerated scars, some still festering on his skin.

    He smiled, his eyes curving into crescents¡ªglowing a sinister red.

    Fang felt the air near him shift. He glanced at Yunfeng, seeing her eyes scowl into daggers. Even through the mask he could see her grit her teeth, gnawing on her jaw in restrained rage.

    It was the most emotion he¡¯d ever witnessed from her.

    The old man atop the cart was the first to break the silence, releasing a squealing scream of desperation.

    ¡°a-aahH!? Guards?!¡±

    The five remaining guards stepped forwards, though their hands were shaking in fear as they pointed them spears towards the murderer.

    The mangled man gave a cold laugh at the sight. As if the bravery of the guards was a mere joke.

    ¡°We must leave.¡± Yunfeng whispered. ¡°That is not a bandit.¡±

    Fang nodded, taking a careful step backwards, trying not to trip the building tension in the air.

    The mangled bald man clicked his tongue. ¡°Oi¡­¡± he said with a raspy crawl. ¡°Did I say you could leave?¡± He asked.

    Immediately, more figures appeared from the darkness. Though these were, thankfully, significantly less gruesome looking. Much more in line with a stereotypical ¡®bandit¡¯, they were garbed in ragged, mismatched weapons and armor.

    But something was wrong, as it was awkwardly clear that they were nearly as fearful of the bald man as the peddlers were. Giving him a wide-berth¡ªas if he was liable to attack any that got too close.

    Fang glanced behind him towards the trail and the subsequent forest further beyond, only to see more figures appear from out of the tree-line.

    ¡°Surrounded.¡± He whispered to Yunfeng. She nodded, clenching her fist as her eyes darted around looking for a way out.

    The mangled man didn¡¯t seem at all bothered. The event boringly routine for him. He took slow, casual steps towards the peddlers, his sickle swinging loosely in his bloodied hands.

    ¡°STAY BACK!¡± One of the guards screamed. ¡°OR ELSE WE¡¯LL¡ª¡°

    His voice caught in his throat.

    Within the blink of an eye the mangled man exploded out with a single swift slash, the air in front of him screaming as he released a finger-thick line of blood from his sickle. The guard¡¯s eyes barely opened in surprise before he fell to his knees. A gurgling sound filled the air as he clawed at his throat. Blood poured from his mouth, before his head tilted over and fell to the floor. His body following shortly after.

    ¡°Did I say?¡± The mangled man growled, as he swept a bloodied hand across his bald head, smearing crimson blood along his scalp.

    ¡°You could speak?¡±

    Chaos erupted. The guards shot forwards with trained agility, their spears moving in tandem. The mangled man growled in reply, easily leaping back, avoiding the attacks.

    ¡°KILL THE MEN! HAMSTRING THE WOMEN!¡±

    The peddlers screamed in fear, most abandoning their valuables and running for their lives, dispersing like headless chickens. Some, however, pulled out weapons of their own, determined to defend their livelihoods to the bitter end.

    A roar of excitement poured out from the bandits. Hellish decrees of violence as they charged the fleeing peddlers. They drove steel into flesh, rending life from the desperate people.

    Yunfeng stared at the chaos, watching listlessly as blood spewed into the air. Her heart thundered in her chest, a terrible nostalgia stunning her into indecision.

    This was a lost battle. Out numbered, caught off guard, and as she felt the waves of Qi emanating from the demonic cultivators attacks, she knew she was weaker in pure cultivation.

    Do I run again?

    ¡°ng¡ª¡°

    ¡°feng¡ª!¡±

    ¡°YUNFENG!¡± Fang screamed at her.

    Her mind snapped back to reality, she turned to see Fang¡¯s muddied eyes staring at her, small specks of gold floating in their depths. She turned to the demonic cultivator, the source of her nightmares. The man had already killed two more guards, practically playing with the men, torturing them with a thousand cuts.

    ¡°We need to fight.¡± He declared. ¡°Can you hold off the bald fucker?¡± She gave a short nod.

    ¡°Barely-¡°

    Before she could finish her reply he suddenly vanished from her vision. The earth beside her exploded into a small crater, the wind whipping as Fang launched himself towards the nearest bandit. His backpack slammed to the ground as her eyes widened into saucers. Yunfeng couldn¡¯t believe her eyes, such speeds were nearly impossible, for a mortal¡­

    ¡ª

    Fang grit his teeth as he strode forwards, his hand twitching as an odd feeling gripped his chest.

    His eyes focused on a bandit that was busy bashing a peddlers skull into the ground.

    I¡¯ve never killed a person¡­

    The sheer thought made him slightly queasy. He¡¯d killed beasts before, hell, he¡¯d kill his murderer if he had the chance, but actually doing it? The line of right and wrong was a razors edge in this world, he knew that. But the moment he awoke in this foreign body, in this world¡ªhe knew more so¡ªit wasn¡¯t a matter of if he¡¯d kill, but a matter of when.

    Fang shot forwards, digging his toes into the ground as he accelerated to eye watering speeds. The bandit didn¡¯t even react, completely ignorant of the idea that anybody in the peddler group could¡¯ve been a threat. How foolish, was this a world where things couldn¡¯t go awry?

    He appeared from within a blur, his hand swiftly stabbing into his back, sinking into the man¡¯s chest cavity like it was butter. The sensation was stomach churning, as he felt hot blood and organ brushing against his skin.

    The bandit stilled, slowly looking down at the sudden pain. His eyes widened as his mind registered the feeling of incoming death far too late. Fang twisted his hand. A rupturing force imploding from his technique. The bandit¡¯s scream cut short as his chest burst open in a flurry of blood and guts. His organs rent free of his chest, flying to the wayside as he fell to his knees.

    The commotion was a record scratch. Bandits and peddlers alike stared at Fang in confusion.

    What? A kid? They thought.

    A cold voice spoke up.

    ¡°Well, well, well¡­ would you look at that? Hmm? A little kid, playing a righteous hero!¡± The mangled baldy cackled. His voice grating on the ears. He kicked a guard to the side, the body rolling across the ground lifelessly.

    ¡°Come here little boy, come and fight the big bad¡ª¡°

    ¡°Can you shut the fuck up?¡±

    The bald man choked, as if he had been punched in the gut. His face incredulous to what he just heard. His eyes turned sharp, a visage of rage enveloping his face.

    ¡°What did you just say?¡±

    Fang turned to face the man. His heart hammered in his chest, a five-fused drop of Aura pulsed immense strength into his limbs. He had one loose drop, practically screaming at him to be burned. But he knew he had to save his strength¡ªrevealing all of his cards right away would be stupid.

    Fang raised a single hand at the bald man. Then flipped his middle finger up.

    The bald man growled, unsure as to the meaning of the gesture, but the context was palpable.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to flay your fucking entrails around your neck.¡±

    He stomped on the ground, shooting towards Fang with mind-numbing speed. He screamed as he charged towards him, his eyes ferally focused, so focused that he didn¡¯t see the massive translucent jade fist barreling towards him.

    WHAM!

    At the last moment his eyes dilated. He brought his arms to his chest, but the force of the blow still sent him flying into the port office. Wood exploded as the structure groaned under impact. The materialized fist dissipated into a beautiful cloud of jade Qi, the green mist parting to reveal Yunfeng.

    She walked slowly towards the port office. Her arms draped in bands of jade Qi. A faint shimmer of pure power emanating off her form. She turned to Fang, giving him a nod before dashing into the port office.

    I fucking knew it.

    Fang grinned, turning to the bandits¡¯ stunned faces. Their confusion quickly turned to rage, as they roared at him. They all but forgot about the peddlers, charging at him with wild abandon.

    Fang didn¡¯t wait for them to reach him. He lifted his leg and sent it crashing into the earth below. A wave of force blasted towards the bandits¡¯ sending many of them tumbling to their knees as it lifted a large cloud of obfuscating dirt into the air.

    Fang dashed into the cloud, quickly planting a foot into an unguarded chest. He felt the man¡¯s sternum give way as a bone curling snap rang out, sending the bandit flying into his friends.

    He stepped back, dodging the wild swing of an axe, the wind brushing past his face. His fist snapped upwards catching the flat of the axe in an uppercut. The metal buckled as the weapon was ripped from its wielder¡¯s grasp. The bandit screamed in surprise as his axe spun violently into the air.

    Fang snapped forwards, stabbing his other hand visciously into in the bandits¡¯s throat. Hot blood sept in-between his fingers. His pupils dilated, he stole his hand back, barely dodging a saber slashing towards his arm, missing by a hairsbreadth. Fang immediately retaliated, slapping the saber down, smacking its tip firmly into the ground. The bandit let go of hilt, unhesitatingly launching a wild fist at Fangs face.

    Fang weaved his head, snatching the bandits punch by the arm, his nails clawing into skin before he twisted harshly. The bandit pleaded as he felt his arm bend.

    ¡°NO NO NO!¡±

    POP!

    ¡°AAGH!¡± He screamed.

    Fang pulled the man closer, placing his foot down on his chest. He tugged on the man¡¯s arm feeling tendon tear, he grunted, using all his strength to tear the arm off. The man screamed with renewed terror, until his sheared off from his body. The man collapsed back, still alive, screaming about a flesh wound.

    The whistle of a sword caught Fang¡¯s ear, making him instinctively duck down. The blade cut by, nearly scalping him bald. Fang spun low, sweeping the stolen arm around him as he did so.

    The stolen limb caught the attacker by the knees, snapping his legs sideways. Fang went in to finish him off, but had to roll away as a warhammer crushed into the dirt only moments later. Hr deftly leapt to his feet, staring down the bandits even as he landed softly.

    The air was thick with the smell of blood, the injured bandits screamed hell as they clutched their wounds. The armless man rolled along the ground, digging dirt into his bleeding stump as he wailed, his slow death grating on his comrades ears.

    There was hesitation in their eyes. A kid, barely a young man had taken out a quarter of them in the span of a single breath. The sounds of their dying comrades doing little to quell their nerves. They stared at Fang, trying to swallow their fear.

    A bandit suddenly screamed, leaping to the side as an axe fell from the sky, nearly decapitating his head.

    Fang stood stock still, his eyes baring at them like knives. His hair, wet with blood stuck to his skin, glistened in the sun settling day.

    ¡°Ah, I missed.¡± He said with a wolfish grin.

    ¡°Fuck this!¡± The bandit who dodged decapitation shouted. He stumbled to his feet, fleeing into the forest.

    It only took one, a catalyst to set their cowardice aflame. Like dominos they all began to turn tail and flee.

    Their dying comrades screamed at them to take them with. The man with broken knees crawled after them, whimpering as he dragged his useless legs behind him.

    Fang glanced at the nearby surviving peddlers.

    ¡°Finish them off, I need to help with the ugly one.¡± Fang turned, and shot towards the port office.

    The survivors stared gobsmacked at the carnage left behind. Their eyes turning vicious as they spied the remaining bandits.

    ¡ª

    Yunfeng twisted away from a blade of blood slicing at her face. The demonic blood art whipped past her hat, taking a large chunk of the brim in the process. She maintained her momentum, spinning gracefully into a punch as two jade gauntlets formed on her fists. She punched out twice in rapid succession, launching the Qi armament faster than a bullet.

    The demonic cultivator grunted, his sickle glowing blood red as he sent out a flurry of slices. The fists exploded on impact, a screech of Qi enveloping the room.

    Immediately the demonic cultivator followed up with two more attacks, shooting curved blades of blood Qi barreling towards Yunfeng. She sucked in a breath, stomping her foot into the floor. The ground rumbled, a wall of jade rising to meet the incoming blood blades.

    BOOM!

    The building shook on impact, the jade wall taking the brunt of the attack before shattering.

    Yunfeng¡¯s eyes suddenly widened. Her instincts screamed at her as she leaned her head back. A wave of blood whipped passed her head, mere millimeters away from decapitating her.

    The demonic cultivator took advantage of the moment, shooting through the dissipating Qi and driving his fist into her stomach.

    Yunfeng choked as her body was thrown towards the far side of the building.

    The foundations shook, cracks lacerating the wood as the building slightly teetered towards the river far below.

    With a slow strut the demonic cultivator approached Yunfeng. The nails of his feet scratching across the wooden floor-boards.

    ¡°Jade Horde Bitch.¡± He cursed, spitting a mass blood onto the floor. ¡°You¡¯re on the wrong side of the river, little rat.¡± He said with a smile.

    Yunfeng grimaced, feeling a pulsating pain emanating from her stomach.

    ¡°Shut your mouth, you hairless dog.¡±

    The demonic cultivator laughed, cackling into the air as if he heard the funniest thing.

    ¡°My blood brothers insult me better than you.¡± He scorned, ¡°I will send your tongue to your sect after I bite it out of your mouth.¡± He licked his lips, baring his bloodied teeth.

    A shiver of disgust ran down Yunfeng¡¯s spine. The fact of the matter was, she knew what these grotesque beings were capable of, as she¡¯d seen such a thing happen first-hand.

    I can¡¯t die here.

    She stood to her feet, willing her Qi to flood her body. Her eyes gained a fiery jade glow as translucent jade gauntlets formed over her hands. Her eyes stared the demonic cultivator down, widening slightly as she saw a flicker of shadow behind him.

    She smiled behind her mask.

    ¡°Come try it, you filthy mongrel.¡±

    ¡°This will be fun.¡± He smiled, dashing forwards.

    Yunfeng knew she had a single shot. A new pair of jade gauntlets materialized on her hands.

    ¡°SEAL!¡± She shouted aloud. Her voice giving will to strengthen the technique, she slammed her hands together.

    Her gauntlets vanished, instantly appearing on either side of the demonic cultivator. They swelled in size, clawing towards one another with air shattering speeds.

    The demonic cultivator smirked, slapping his foot against the floor and leaping into the air. The jade hands slammed together, missing their target.

    ¡°PREDICTABLE!¡± He screamed in glee, raising his sickle above his head.

    A voice echoed from behind him.

    ¡°Agreed.¡±

    Fang burned his loose drop of Aura. Power surged through his body as he coiled low. His ankles loading like cannons as he channeled the full force of his Stormquaking Strides into his legs. The floor below shattered into splinters as he shot forwards.

    The demonic cultivator whipped his head around, his eyes bloodshot with panic as he tried to maneuver himself out of the air. But there simply wasn¡¯t enough time. Was the kid a cultivator? No, there wasn¡¯t a lick of Qi present in his body.

    So how in heavens name is he so fast!

    The cultivator screamed, bracing himself for impact, a barrier of blood Qi covering his arms. Fang punched forwards, the air rippling as his fist compressed the air against itself.

    The Qi barrier felt like he punched a concrete wall. His mortal knuckles shattered under the impact, but Fang ignored the pain, refusing to believe Qi could stop sheer stupid strength.

    He twisted his arm, channelling his Visceral Rupturing Strikes against the wall of air trapped between his fist and Qi.

    BOOM!

    The world shook, a sonic shockwave exploded outwards from Fang¡¯s fist.

    The demonic cultivator screamed as his Qi barrier shuddered, he stared in bloodshot disbelief as his barrier cracked, barely able to stay together.

    Even so, the force of Fang¡¯s strike sent him careening through the air, his body smashing through the far wall of the port office. The rays of the setting sun flooded into building as he unwillingly opened a window towards the river.

    His voice grew distant as he arc¡¯d towards the river below, curses echoing against the cliff face until another resounding boom smacked against water far below.

    His screams cut short.

    Fang¡¯s heaving breaths filled the room as splinters fell to the port office floor.

    Yunfeng dispelled her own Qi barrier, before staring at Fang with incredulous eyes.

    Fang looked at her, then down towards the water. His eyes narrowing at the waves that smashed against the cliff face.

    ¡°You think he knows how to swim?¡±

    Yunfeng laughed.

    ¡°That was a six-hundred stride drop, even a foundation establishment cultivator could die from impact alone.¡±

    Fang glanced back down, seeing nothing but waves below. He stepped back, letting out a sigh of relief.

    ¡°Jesus christ¡­¡±

    ¡°Je Su Chist? Who¡¯s that?¡±

    Fang coughed. ¡°Uh, just a minor spirit around my village.¡±

    Yunfeng raised a brow, but merely shrugged, before cupping her hands at him.

    ¡°Thank you for the help, I would¡¯ve lost that fight.¡±

    Fang waved his hand.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I doubt I could¡¯ve beaten him either.¡±

    Yunfeng couldn¡¯t help but laugh. Doubted? A body cultivator beating a 8th stage Qi-gathering demonic cultivator?

    If only Fang knew the amount of people who¡¯d spew blood at his casual remark.

    ¡°Come, let¡¯s check on the peddlers.¡±

    ¡ª

    Only a few peddlers had survived. The small group reduced to eleven. When they spied Yunfeng and Fang they quickly dropped to their knees.

    ¡°OH GRACIOUS IMMORTALS, THANK YOU!¡± They fanatically said, weeping tears of joy. The prostrated themselves repeatedly, thanking the two for saving their lives.

    Fang took a step back, the fervor uncomfortable to him.

    Yunfeng placed a hand on his shoulder, stepping forwards.

    ¡°Your welcome, now please, continue paying respects for the dead. We should leave quickly, as the battle will surely attract beasts.¡±

    The peddlers thanked her once more, before returning to their work.

    She handled that with practiced ease.

    The peddlers quickly worked, forming a small pyre for the innocent, and a corpse pile for the bandits. Others organized what remained of their merchandise.

    Fang chewed on some jerky, feeling a soreness begin to wash over his body. Adrenaline subsided to reveal throbbing pains across his legs. His right hand especially hurt, the skin of his knuckles caked in shorn skin and muscle, flattened as if he¡¯d punched a steel wall.

    The strength of the Qi barrier made him frown. If I hadn¡¯t burned that drop of Aura¡­

    Yet, the sheer fact alone that he cracked the barrier gave him hope. Even though it wasn¡¯t a true battle, he had fought against a cultivator and won. He relished in the weakness that dredging into his limbs, feeling his strength drop to 80%.

    A small cost for survival. He thought to himself.

    System, he inwardly said, before grinning.

    Fang :

    [Cultivation]

    - *Aura-Burning Art I (Initiation)

    [Technique]

    - *Stormquaking Strides I (Peak Mastery)

    - *Viscera Rupturing Strikes I (Small Success)

    - Bone-Crushing Claw I (Small Success)

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    All his techniques had increased a step despite the relatively short battle.

    It¡¯s clear that combat is the best way to improve. He mused.

    His eyes lingered on his Aura-Burning Art, a little disappointed to see that it hadn¡¯t increased. Though he speculated that it was tied to the quantity of Aura rather than usage.

    Suddenly, a voice shouted aloud.

    ¡°Immortals! Our saviors called for reinforcements!¡± A peddler yelled in joy. He ran forwards, prostrating himself once again to the south, in the direction of Blue River Town.

    Fang squinted his eyes.

    No we didn¡¯t?

    Three men wearing azure colored robes appeared down the road. They strided toward the peddler group with an elegant grace in their movements. Bounding multiple meters with every step.

    All of them had long, silky hair that flowed behind them, unnaturally well-kept despite their speed. The center cultivator especially, carried an air of superiority to him. Standing taller than his peers, his light-blue hair glimmered in the setting sun, his handsome face holding a small smirk on his lips as his eyes scanned the group.

    Yunfeng clicked her tongue.

    ¡°Azure Lotus Sect¡­¡± she whispered to Fang. The name familiar to him, since they were apparently the big shots of the area.

    ¡°Friends?¡± He asked.

    Yunfeng shook her head.

    ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t know.¡±

    Oh, good heavens.

    The lead disciple, the taller man with a waterfall of light-blue hair suddenly stopped, his momentum arresting unnaturally. Despite the sight before him, a small battlefield of death¡­ he was smiling.

    ¡°Ah¡­ I can¡¯t believe this!¡± He said. ¡°These dastardly bandits murdered all these innocent mortals!¡±

    Huh?

    The man feigned a pained expression on his face. Clutching the space over his chest as if his heart had been broken.

    ¡°Senior brother, we must get revenge for them!¡± The disciple beside him shouted, a dumb smirk on his face.

    Fang face scrunched with a dumbfounded look.

    The fuck?

 Chapter 7: YOU DARE?!

    ¡°N-no! Immortals we¡¯re not bandits, just mere peddlers-¡± The prostrating man pleaded to no avail.

    The right disciple, grinned completely ignoring the man¡¯s pleading. He stepped forth drawing his sword with an overly fanciful twirl. To his credit, his sword moved with a practiced grace, drawing mesmerizing circles of blue Qi in the air.

    ¡°Silence bandit scum! I, Wang Changsheng will make you pay for your crimes, taste my blade ¡ª Blooming Strike, First Form!¡± He shouted, a disgusting smirk on his face.

    In the blink of an eye, before anyone could react, he appeared before the peddler in a blur. After-images shimmered in his wake, his sword leaving trails of Qi behind as he slashed down at the poor pleading peddler. The peddler squealed, bringing his arms to protect his face.

    ¡°AAAGH!¡±

    Both of his arms fell to the floor as a fountain of blood erupted from his stumps. The disciple spun on his lead foot, his back leg coming around in a perfect round-house kick ¡ª it crushed into the peddlers skull with a sickening crack.

    The peddler was sent tumbling across the impacted dirt, his body limp.

    The shit-eating grin of a disciple flicked his blade towards the dirt, the blood along its edge slapping into the ground.

    ¡°Brother Changsheng, your Blossoming Strike has reached Small Success, congratulations!¡± The other disciple with black hair said, clapping his hands softly as if watching a talent show.

    Changsheng smiled, bowing softly towards the others. ¡°Thank you brother Mingzun, but it is nothing much, merely due to my new sword. This humble disciple wouldn¡¯t dare boast his skills, especially before Senior Brother Shui Han.¡±

    Fang couldn¡¯t believe the sheer bullshittery he was hearing. They were just¡­ jacking each other off, after killing an innocent man?

    His interactions with cultivators as a whole had been bad, Yunfeng excluded, but this was just absurd.

    Was the social disparity really this bad? They just killed mortals freely? With no consequence? Not even a smidgen of guilt?

    ¡­But why would they? When it was akin to killing an ant? Would you feel remorse over killing an ant?

    Fang grit his teeth. Not at the injustice in full display, but at the thought of being viewed him as nothing more than a bug.

    Yunfeng grimaced, she recognized the name Shui Han. A relatively popular up-and-coming inner disciple of the Azure Lotus Sect. She had only heard rumors about him, his prowess with his twin-swords for one, and a darker, more sinister rumor about his blood-thirst. The other disciples were nothing to write off either, while their cultivations were lower than hers, the quality of the Azure Lotus Sects techniques made up for such minor differences.

    Shui Han stepped forwards, silently approaching the frightened peddler group with a smile. His hands rested on the pommels of his two swords. His blue eyes scanning over the group before suddenly stopping when they reached Yunfeng.

    A subtle blue glow rose to his iris¡¯s, his gaze seemingly piercing the veil hiding Yunfeng¡¯s face. He smiled.

    ¡°Ah, who knew there would be another fellow disciple here? Which sect do you hail from¡­ junior sister?¡± He said, drawing out the last two words with a lick of his lips.

    Yunfeng frowned, a wave of disgust rolling down her spine. Rather than reply, she took a defensive stance, bringing her hands close to her chest and face. A wave of jade Qi bubbled to her fists, the Qi crawled along her forearms, slowly forming into two jade gauntlets. They coalesced with a sharp shimmer, a low gong-like noise ringing out as they solidified.

    Shui Han eyes slightly narrowed at her response. He glanced at her gauntlets, a sneer rising to his lips.

    ¡°Do all you brutes from the Jade Horde have no manners? Or are you just especially venomous, hm?¡± Shui Han said, unsheathing his own swords. The metal softly screeching as they tasted air, the expert craftsmanship of the weapons gleaming in the setting sun.

    Yunfeng didn¡¯t even bother replying. As it was clear Shui Han wanted one thing. She grit her teeth as she felt her Qi reserves sitting at half.

    I cannot waver again.

    She glanced at Fang, giving him a nod with just her eyes.

    Yunfeng exploded towards Shui Han, her legs like cannons as she sprinted towards him.

    ¡°SHE¡¯S MINE!¡± Shui Han barked out, dropping into a low stance, smiling as he did so. A small blue Lotus formed over his head, hovering above his hair like a crown. It pulsed, a tangible wave of power flitting around him. His eyes glowed blue as he stepped to meet Yunfeng.

    The air shook as gauntlet met sword in a blurring flurry of attacks. Azure and jade Qi screeched as they met repeatedly in a matter of seconds. Yunfeng defected sword strikes that appeared in the blink of an eye, punching out with so much force that the ground tremor¡¯d. Shui Han smiled, feeling the difference in their cultivations, a relaxed look overcame him.

    This should be fun.

    The peddlers couldn¡¯t even keep track of their movements, their eyes in utter disbelief as they witnessed the supernatural battle before them.

    Unfortunately for them, this wasn¡¯t a demonstration.

    The two remaining disciples charged the peddlers, their swords drawing lines of Qi through the air.

    Changsheng launched himself at another peddler, repeating the same overhead slash at a fear stricken woman.

    Yet, just before his sword came down a fist shot towards his jaw.

    Fang appeared once more from a blur, successfully ambushing the disciple, who, like the bandits before didn¡¯t expect a threat to be present amongst the mortals.

    Fang¡¯s eyes, however, widened in surprise.

    What?!

    An icy barrier materialized just mere milliseconds from impact. Fang¡¯s fist cracked, the bones in his hand fracturing as he slammed into the Qi barrier.

    Regardless, the force alone sent Changsheng flying into the ground, he dropped his sword as he tumbled across the dirt pathetically, but completely unharmed.

    The icy barrier over his skin shimmered, before shattering into a million beautiful motes of Qi. Changsheng stared, completely stunned at the dissipating barrier, a rage flooding through his passably-handsome face.

    ¡°M-my life saving talisman!¡± He screamed out. He looked up to see the transgressor, his eyes filling with an ugly fury as saw Fang, standing by the woman, holding his sword.

    Changsheng rose to his feet in a fit, his finger pointed at Fang.

    ¡°RETURN MY SWORD! YOU FILTHY MORTAL!¡± He screamed.

    Fang spared him a glance, then looked towards the river in the distance. Then back to the sword.

    Changsheng felt a sinking feeling in his stomach. His eyes turning blue as they flooded with Qi.

    ¡°YOU DARE?!¡±

    Sure do.

    Fang whipped his hand, mustering the full extent of his power as he sent the sword flying towards the river like a javelin. Even reduced to 80% capacity, the sword whistled as it flew.

    Changsheng eyes went wide, his body moving before he could even think. He charged for his sword as it flew towards the river, desperately chasing his beloved new weapon.

    Fang exploded at him, intercepting him even as he blurred with speed and launched a powerful kick at his chest.

    Changsheng snarled, throwing his palm at Fang¡¯s leg. A small blue lotus materialized on his palm, its petals flattening as Fang¡¯s leg slammed into palm. Changsheng grunted, his feet scoring the ground as he deflected the attack.

    The sword dropped below the cliffs edge, plummeting to the river¡¯s abyssal depths.

    Changsheng stared daggers at Fang, his disciple-like visage dropping into an ugly rage, his head whipped towards his fellow disciple.

    ¡°Brother Mingzun! Help me skin this impudent mortal!¡±

    Mingzun turned towards him, busy sinking his sword into a man¡¯s back, he gave Chengsheng a bored look.

    ¡°Brother Chengsheng¡­ really? You can¡¯t handle a mere mortal?¡±

    Chengshengs face grew dark, his eyes shooting towards Fang viscously.

    ¡°I suspect him to be demonic! Look at his nails!¡± He pointed accusingly.

    Mingzun glanced at Fang¡¯s black nails, scoffing at the sight. He sighed, pulling his blade free from the corpse-sheath.

    ¡°Whatever you say brother, but this is unbecoming of our sect.¡± Despite his harsh words of admonishment, Mingzun withheld no reservations helping. He charged towards Fang, leaving after-images behind as his sword streaked for Fang¡¯s neck.

    Fang sucked in a deep breath.

    No room for mistakes.

    His eyes dilated, his heart thundering as his Core Aura pulsed with power. Mingzun approached with a furious strike, his sword carving at Fang faster than anything he¡¯d ever witnessed.

    Fang twisted on his toes, Stormquaking Strides blurring his movements as he narrowly sidestepped the sword. It carved by, the sheer force of the attack whipping a blade of wind into the ground. Fang stabbed out in retaliation, his blackened nails piercing towards Mingzun¡¯s face. Mingzun¡¯s eyes went wide in surprise, but quickly recovered, twisting his sword around him to parry Fang¡¯s attack.

    DANG!

    A loud clash resounded as blackened nail met steel. The sword vibrated violently in Mingzun¡¯s hands, his eyes narrowing as leapt backwards.

    ¡°Chensheng! Are you just going to stand there?¡± He shouted to his brother.

    Chengsheng grinned. ¡°Haha! Brother Mingzun, I thought he was just a mortal?¡±

    Mingzun groaned, ignoring the remark. He twirled the sword in his hands, dropping into a low stance with the point towards Fang.

    ¡°Shut up and kill this demonic cultivator with me!¡±

    Fang¡¯s hand throbbed, he looked down to see that his nails had flattened against the sword. His brows furrowed as he looked at the two disciples.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    I don¡¯t think I can win this without burning my Aura. Survive? Maybe, but I don¡¯t want to survive¡­

    He willed his Core Aura to burn. His heart audibly throbbed as a rush of air exploded from his body.

    BA DUM!

    His eyes glowed a deep gold as the energy flooded through his veins.

    Chengsheng and Mingzun eyes practically ballooned. Fang¡¯s presence suddenly erupted, emanating an unseen pressure from his gaze alone.

    Fang grinned at them.

    I want to win.

    He took the initiative, vanishing from sight with a single step. The wind screamed as Mingzun swung out to meet his attack. The sword buckled as Fang stabbed into it once more. Mingzun grunted as an incredible amount of power crashed into his blade, sending him stumbling.

    Fang leaned back, dodging a palm strike from Chengsheng ¡ª he twisted, throwing a countering kick. Chengsheng dexterously slapped his leg, parrying and redirecting the attack to the ground. Fang grunted, feeling the impact shake his bones but maintained momentum, twisting his failed kick into a furious stomp.

    The earth below them thundered, a shockwave exploding outwards sending Chengsheng reeling back.

    Fang gave no quarter, switching targets in a blink. The ground exploded three times as he blurred with more speed. He circled around like a lightning bolt, shooting towards Mingzun in an instant. The man grimaced, his eyes pulsing with Qi. Energy flooded into his sword. The weapon glowing a bright blue before he slashed towards Fang. Dust parted as a wave of azure Qi launched outwards at Fang.

    Fang twisted on his toes once more, rapidly changing directions and dodging the streaking blue sword wave. He kicked off the earth, flipping multiple times into a heel slam. Mingzun eyes went wide as he braced for impact.

    Fang¡¯s heel slammed into the flat of his sword. Mingzun buckled to his knees as his arms quaked.

    IMPOSSBLE!

    Fang spun off the kick, landing andtwisting with superhuman agility, snapping into a back-kick. Mingzun¡¯s eyes dilated as Fang sank his leg like a cannon in his chest.

    BANG!

    A familiar icy Qi barrier appeared on his skin as he was sent skating across the ground, his robes twisted around the impact point. His feet drew deep ruts in the earth as he arrested his momentum. His lungs heaved heavy breaths of disbelief as he watched his life-saving talisman dissipate into the air.

    Chengsheng screamed as he charged at Fang. His palm pulsed with power, a lotus blossom forming on his hand once more.

    Fang didn¡¯t shy away, launching his fist directly at Chengsheng¡¯s palm.

    ¡°FOOL!¡± Chengsheng screamed in glee. To dare challenge Azure Lotus Qi with mere mortal hands! DIE!

    Fang¡¯s fist hammered against the lotus, the Qi seemingly holding against his super-human strength.

    Fang grinned ¡ª twisting his fist.

    The lotus shook, the flower suddenlycontorting under Fang¡¯s fist even as it ripped his flesh away, revealing pure bone underneath as he forced his punch through. Chengsheng¡¯s eyes bulged as a wave of force imploded into his palm. The bones in his hand shattered into a twisting maw. He cried, flying back clutching his hand as it spewed blood. Reduced to just a stringy mess of sinew and tendon.

    Mingzun stared gobsmacked, his heart pounding in his chest as he witnessed his fellow disciple wailing in excruciation. The mortal whipped his head towards him with a wolfish grin. There was nothing but savage fury burning behind the mortal¡¯s golden irises. The grip on his sword wavered.

    Demon¡­

    Fang laughed as he ignored the fear-stricken man, bolting directly towards the screaming Chengsheng with a raised fist.

    ¡°NO!¡± Mingzun screamed. He stepped forwards suddenly accelerating towards the two, his sword shooting like a comet to intercept Fang¡¯s attack.

    ¡°Fool.¡± Fang taunted, abruptly dropping low. The telegraphed sword strike passed overhead in a blue streak. Mingzun¡¯s eyes widened as he felt the world grow slow. His body screamed at him as he watched Fang¡¯s fist approach his jaw from below.

    He tried desperately to pull back, but his momentum chained him to his death.

    WHAM!

    Fang¡¯s fist crumpled his jaw into his skull like a shotgun fired at point-blank. A disgusting explosion of brain matter lifted into the air, painting the near night-sky red. Fang shoulder checked Mingzun¡¯s corpse, sending it smacking into the ground limply, rolling until it came to an eternal rest.

    Changsheng stared at Fang with a disturbed look. His face was absolutely incredulous. How in HEAVENS-FUC-CKING-NAME! Does that make sense?!

    You must understand. For him, it was heaven and earth flipping, imagine being pummeled into submission by an ant. It¡¯s disgusting pincers stabbing you with enough force to buckle steel.

    He would¡¯ve much preferred the sun rising from the west.

    Unfortunately the moon was currently rising from the east.

    It rose over the Blue river at a sharp angle. For a perfect moment it painted a bridge of lunar light to its surface.

    The Mortal turned to him as crimson blood fell from gore high above, a trillion droplets glimmering in bone-white lunar light.

    ¡°How¡¯s that taste?¡± He said with a chuckle¡­

    Changsheng shook in a stupor, his brows going stupid.

    ¡°W-What?¡± He stammered.

    ¡°Perspective.¡± Fang said coldly.

    ¡ª

    Shui Han was already growing bored.

    He sidestepped, his chest barely leaning back as a gauntlet the size of a cart nearly kissed his chiseled jaw. Even his hair swept aside to safety. His sword glowed as he casually twirled it behind his back.

    He suddenly slashed out. Carving space sixteen times in the blink of an eye. The sword waves whipped forwards in staggered succession, leaving a trail of Qi petals in their wake.

    ¡°Sixteen Petal Sword ¡ª Catching the Breeze¡­ huh?¡± Shui Han announced with a smirk, until he stole a glance at his junior brothers ¡ª his voice dropped low, turning oddly casual.

    The Jade Horde disciple grunted as she shuffled backwards with butterfly steps. She threw out air popping punches in rapid succession, Jade Qi exploding against azure, dying her vision a blinding blue. With just her senses she bobbed and weaved, her hat brim thinning with each successive close call. With a roar, a pair of jade greaves manifested over her feet and shin.

    She jumped and twisted, dodging the final barrage of sword waves, before landing into a guarded stance, her eyes flaring green.

    But Shui Han wasn¡¯t even looking at her.

    She stole a glance towards his gaze. Until she too, had a similar thought.

    Huh?

    Shui Han couldn¡¯t believe his eyes. It was true that he had piss poor, bottom of the barrel expectations of his fellow disciples¡­

    But to lose to a fucking mortal? And what is that repulsive look of fear in Chengsheng¡¯s face. It hurt him, physically, to see such pathetic faces. The Mortal stood over the sorry excuse of a disciple, before he suddenly snapped his head at Shui Han.

    A large grin spread over his face as he pointed at him.

    ¡°You¡¯re next.¡± He declared.

    He exploded a single leg forwards, sending a jackhammer kick at Changsheng¡¯s face. The disciple¡¯s head blurred as it cratered into the dirt.

    Thuk!

    Shui Han¡¯s face transformed into a dragons snarl, the lotus crown above his head thrashing with power. His Qi empowered voice flooded out in a wave of dust.

    ¡°UNACCETABLE!¡±

    A flash of jade green erupted from above him. His eyes snapped upwards to see a house-sized fist of solid jade barreling down at him. With a single furious stomp he launched up to meet it. His twin swords erupting upwards in grand arcs.

    The jade fist screamed as it met the sword wave in a blinding clash of energy. The jade fist buckled, the armor cracking as the sword waves sawed straight through.

    Fang shot forwards, blasting himself upwards. His body blurred into a streak as he flew towards Shui Han. He intended to intercept another fool caught in the air.

    But Shui Han suddenly stepped.

    In mid air.

    His foot hovered above a blue lotus petal, the materialized construct of deep blue Qi supported his entire being.

    ¡°Enough games.¡±

    He vanished.

    Fang blinked, and Shui Han was suddenly only a step away. He could barely process what happened before he disappeared again, suddenly far away again, standing on a blue petal sheathing his swords. His vision parted, a sharp sensation stinging his eyes.

    Then everything went dark.

    ¡ª

    Yunfeng moved before Shui Han could destroy her fist. Her stomach sinking to a pit as Shui Han¡¯s Qi built in his lotus crown.

    As strong as the kid was, Shui Han had just unsealed his cultivation. The smug fuck had been keeping it suppressed the whole time¡ªand even then she hadn¡¯t scratched him once!

    His power rose breaking into the 10<sup>th</sup> stage with ease, before charging up the immortal ladder.

    11<sup>th</sup> ¡­ 12<sup>th</sup> ¡­ Dread flushed through Yunfeng¡¯s face.

    Peak Stage¡­

    Without hesitation she reached into her chest pocket and crushed a talisman made of white jade. A hourglass of white-sand appeared above her hand.

    Three seconds!

    Her body blurred towards both of their bags, snatching them with iron-grips. The packs vanished from sight, a silvery ring on her hand pulsed with Qi.

    Two seconds.

    She turned, and watched as Fang was slapped out of the air by an eye tearing wave of Qi. Her eyes dilated, tracking his descent to earth. She sprinted forwards, accelerating towards his crash angle.

    One second.

    Fang smashed into the earth in a mushroom cloud of dirt. Yunfeng slid across the ground on her jade greaves, extending her hour-glass hand blindly into dust cloud.

    Please!

    A cocoon of white energy suddenly appeared around dust cloud. Shui Han¡¯s eyes went wide as he immediately slashed out with both swords.

    His sword waves cut across space in an instant, mere millimeters away from the white energy.

    THRUMMM!

    As if space itself had struck a cord, the area within the cocoon shivered, a bright radiance enveloping the world within.

    Then it vanished.

    The sword waves sliced the dust cloud in two halves, the dust curling around the attack like inverted waves.

    Shui Han floated to the ground. He sheathed his blades, swapping a hand towards the dust cloud as if swatting a fly away. Qi rushed out like massive fan passed by, blasting the refuse away.

    Shui Han clicked his tongue, seeing nothing but a bloodied crater.

    ¡°Tsk. Typical.¡±

    He looked over at his junior brothers. Or at least what was left of them, before sighing. Elder Zhen was going to chew him out, he might even get a month in ice-box. Not the worse thing in the world¡ªbut a necessary formality¡ªhe was told.

    By Elder Zhen himself.

    Shui Han sighed, his eyes looking back to the crater. The brute aside, that mortal¡­ there is something seriously off about him.

    It wasn¡¯t demonic.

    No¡­ it felt like something else entirely.

    What is he hiding?

    ¡ª

    Ten thousand miles east, over the Blue River.

    Wind roars over a bamboo jungle. Massive green stalks creak and bend under a torrential downpour. The sky screams as a flash of light smites the earth. A towering bamboo stalk suddenly explodes into a charred mess, embers sizzling in the rain.

    Far below, where the charred mess rains onto the earth, a stone pagoda rests. Its cobbled walls are smothered in a strangling mess of vines and moss, having been untouched since long, long ago. The sky rumbles with the power of the heavens.

    Deep inside the temple, a pin-drop of blinding white appears in space. It hovers for three seconds. The moment awkwardly long as nothing happens, before suddenly-

    THRUMMM!

    The spot of white erupts, expanding into a glowing cocoon of energy in the blink of an eye. Lightning streaks across the sky, flipping the night into day.

    When night returns the cocoon is gone.

    ¡°AHHH-¡±

    Yunfeng screams from within the temple, her Qi flaring in a raised hand, defending against a non-existent enemy.

    ¡°-HHHhhhhaa¡­¡± Her hand dropped. A small crack resounds, and she looks down to see the hour-glass above her other hand shatter. The white energy dissipating into the air.

    From underneath her hand, a warm wetness bubbled.

    Hm?

    She raised it, a string of dripping blood stuck to her palm, her own blood ran cold as she spied Fang¡¯s mutilated face. His eyes were gone, smushed into a moist mess of white juice. His chest rose, a choke of blood rising to his lips.

    HE¡¯S STILL ALIVE!

    Yunfeng flipped her palm, sending her Qi through her spirit ring. A small somewhat bright-red pill appeared in her hand. With a single move she shoved it into Fang¡¯s mouth, then tipped his jaw back.

    Fang choked even more blood as the pill went down his throat, he tried desperately to vomit, but Yunfeng clamped his mouth closed. She always hated this part of the process.

    After a breath passed, Fang finally stopped choking. The wound across his face throbbed, his eyeballs suddenly twitching violently. A wisp of red Qi enveloped his eyes, slowly reconstructing and regrowing the organs anew.

    The wind continued to roar high above as the moon crested into the night sky.

    Yunfeng looked at Fang with Qi vision to see that his eyes had fully healed. Unfortunately, since most of the healing went to his eyes, it couldn¡¯t fully finish the rest of the wound.

    A massive scar streaked across his face, from his upper nose to just below his brow, masking his eyes with a grizzly reminder of the attack.

    Thankfully she didn¡¯t have to worry about potential Qi deviation happening from this event, as Fang wasn¡¯t a cultivator.

    Which might be the oddest thing today.

    The bandits, were as frequent as having a drink.

    The Demonic Cultivator? Rare, but not her first time, nor unheard of.

    The disciples from another Sect, hell-bent on killing her? Its what she trains for.

    But a mortal killing not one, but two Azure Sect disciples, above the 6<sup>th</sup> stage, while the other was even slightly higher. Their inexperience aside, those were decade-long, trained martial warriors.

    Had they spent their entire lives cultivating?

    She couldn¡¯t make sense of it. A kid, with the strength of a low-stage platinum body refiner. He Neared the peak of what a mortal could ever achieve. The only refiners even close to such absurd physical strength, were Empresses¡¯ honor guards. Not to mention that they¡¯re also Core Formation experts, they¡¯d been practically baptized and drowned in medical baths since birth.

    Some kid on the fringes of a Savage land should have no business being even close to that strength.

    Yunfeng gazed down at Fang with a curious gaze.

    What are you hiding?

    ¡ª

    Fang awoke with a scream.

    He shot up, only to groan as a terrible pain racked his body. His head throbbed as if he¡¯d taken a gunshot to the brain.

    My eyes!

    His memory kicked him, reminding him of the final moment. Of his vision splitting in two. His hands reached to his face. He sighed with relief, feeling his eyes still there. His hands brushed against his skin feeling a rough scar stretch across his face.

    Better than death.

    Fang carefully looked around to see nothing but darkness. His ears focused, a low rumbling sound echoing in the distance. He stood carefully, easing every tender muscle fiber into movement. His hand touched a wall, he took a few steps away from it, before his hand touched another.

    A tunnel?

    Fang limped towards the noise. It grew louder as he approached, like the pounding of a waterfall. Finally, he reached the exit, entering into an overgrown stone temple. Just outside Fang saw the source of the noise, a storm was raging just outside.

    The world flipped in brightness, a thunderous boom clapping the sky asunder. Fangs¡¯ eyes winced, barely catching the silhouette of a bag in the distance. His backpack was placed in the center of the temple room, impossible to miss. A single rock was placed onto what looked like parchment cloth. He trudged over to the bag, before carefully sitting beside it.

    Fang placed the cloth to the side, saving it for later. He felt up his bag, fumbling through its contents to grasp a small bundle of dried sticks he kept in his sleeping bag. A habit Kang instilled in him during their first nights in the freezing snow. He placed one carefully onto the temple floor before drilling it down with his palms. Rather quickly, an ember formed. Fang then stacked small little twigs over the ember, blowing softly to entice flames to form. After a surprisingly peaceful moment, he had a small flame going.

    Fang relished in the warmth of the measly flame, before bringing the piece of parchment to the fire-light.

    Fang, you¡¯ve been asleep for three days. I have to go. I used an Escape Talisman right after you lost consciousness, it landed us in a forest I recognize to be East of Three Bayan Town. The Green Maze.

    I wish I could¡¯ve stayed but I need to inform my sect about the demonic cultivator, as well as killing two disciples. I pray that my greater healing pill was enough to heal you.

    Hopefully you see this and our life-debt is even.

    Visit the Sect if you¡¯re alive.

    - Yunfeng

    P.S. The storm will not pass, the temple is not safe.

    Fang stared at the message before sighing. He leaned against his backpack, letting his muscles rest. A weight lifted off his shoulders.

    I almost died again¡­

    Would he have awoken again? In a different body, in a different world? He closed his eyes, an exhaustion washing over him. There was no way to know for sure, but he didn¡¯t want to bet against death. He just hoped there wasn¡¯t a new nightmare to torment his dreams.

 Chapter 8: A-Mazing Progress

    [CHAPTER 8]

    A-MAZING PROGRESS

    The forest is perpetually overcast, a dark mass of clouds roaring down at a drowning forest. Lightning flashes through the sky, radiant bolts glistening off the slick surfaces and mud below.

    Fang sits alone in the dark temple chewing on a tough piece of meat. It has been two days since he awoke, his body still relatively raw from being sword slapped in the face by Shui Han.

    The good news was that all major injuries had healed, especially his eyes, losing sight would¡¯ve sucked. His hands were hard to move at first, his bones felt crunchy, tendons a little tight. His knuckles were rapt in scars and his nails were still flattened.

    Yet, all in all, he was thankful to be alive.

    The backlash from burning five drops of Aura had prevented him from doing anything serious. He could hardly walk as his body had groaned and complained with each tentative step. For two days he sat unmoving, meditating. Listening to the skies¡¯ thunderous roars. His world illuminated by intermittent flashes of smiting light.

    Two small drops of Aura burned in his chest, a far cry to what he used to have.

    He thought back to the battle, replaying the fight between him and the disciples. While it was true, he did beat them both, he couldn¡¯t discount the element of surprise he had over them. In a prepared duel, he felt that his chances were much slimmer. Unless of course, he burned five drops of Aura immediately¡­ He remembered the feeling of euphoria as power coursed through his veins ¡ª flowing straight to his head.

    He cringed as he remembered launching himself towards Shui Han, only to blackout in a single move.

    No more leaping at things¡­ He promised himself. He replayed the fight over and over throughout the two days. His mind rolling over the crisp graceful moves of the disciples, the way their feet shifted for maximum power with little effort, the continuity of their movements that allowed them to react to his explosive strikes.

    In comparison to them he moved like a bull. Thrashing about, relying on pure unadulterated strength to pound them to death.

    I need more manuals¡­ training and time against cultivators.

    His battle experience was lacking. The instinctual reactivity provided by the System could only take him to far. Fang was no fool, and while his knowledge of cultivation worlds from Earth seemed at times accurate, granting him insight far above his age, it was a matter of time before his expectations of what should be leads to would be foolish death.

    The image of Shui Han standing in mid air flashed in his mind. How Qi gave way to teleportation was beyond him. A tinge of envy almost flittered through Fang, though it was quickly stifled with a self-deprecating chuckle.

    I need a ranged offensive option.

    He had no Qi, and Aura couldn¡¯t manifest outside of his body. So he¡¯d probably have to settle for simple throwing knives, javelins, or needles. He gazed at Matriarchs¡¯ knife, realizing he had also had little to no skill with the weapon.

    Another thing to add to the list.

    He ruminated on his thoughts before swallowing the jerky and sighing.

    ¡°System.¡±

    Fang :

    [Cultivation]

    - *Aura-Burning Art I (Initiation)

    [Technique]

    - *Stormquaking Strides I (Peak Mastery)

    - *Viscera Rupturing Strikes I (Great Success)

    - Bone-Crushing Claw I (Great success)

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    The system was practically a beacon of light in the temple, it wasn¡¯t really there however, the system was invisible to all but Fang, even if it did illuminate the darkness.

    His techniques had leaped forwards, all of them either at or very close to the peak of the 1<sup>st</sup> stage. It was unclear to him how many stages a fused technique truly had, but he hypothesized that there wasn¡¯t a limit. Perhaps it was a matter of resources, coincidentally no different from normal cultivation.

    He focused on his Stormquaking Strides. There was an odd feeling behind it, a wall, something intangible that prevented him from moving to the 2<sup>nd</sup> stage.

    Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, fused techniques didn¡¯t follow the manuals that they evolved from. Which meant in order to improve his technique further, he¡¯d either need to fuse another 1-star or Earth Grade technique, or have an epiphany of sorts, easier said than done.

    Fang stood, stretching out his limbs with a soft groan. It was time to move, he was running low on food and starting a fire in this drowned bamboo forest was an unlikely endeavor.

    He leaned outside the temple peering at the sky.

    No moon¡­

    No way to determine East from West.

    He sighed, turning back to look into the temple¡¯s abyss.

    ¡®The Temple isn¡¯t safe?¡¯

    Why?

    His curiosity was getting the better of him. Yet the feeling of near death remained too close to heart to tempt fate.

    ¡­Just a little look.

    Fang stepped into the darkness, using his system as a bonafide flashlight. The overgrowth of vines and moss that consumed the temple slowly began to recede away as he delved deeper down the hallway. As if nature itself didn¡¯t dare venture into the temple depths ¡ª the roaring of the storm faded away with every step he took.

    There was no mistaking it, there was something wrong¡­ then he saw it.

    A door.

    Fang eyes struggled to focus. It was like looking at a colony of ants from a distance. What looked at first, like a solid mass of color slowly congealed into a slick oily substance that crawled over the door like moist worms.

    Fang¡¯s breath hitched as goosebumps rose across his arms. His body found the sight innately disturbing, his lizard brain screaming at him to not get any closer.

    Thankfully¡­ he didn¡¯t need to.

    The golden system flashed, a new screen appearing above his own.

    [Enter Dungeon - Nine-Faced Realm?]

    [Foundation Establishment or lower required¡­]

    [Enter?]

    A secret realm?

    Yet the system described it as a dungeon. He was well read on such phenomena of course ¡ª secret realms were the subject of many a cultivation stories. Hidden worlds filled to the brim with rare resources, powerful legacies, and mystical beasts¡­

    Or a fatal trap of a desperate immortal¡­

    The fact alone that the system described it as a dungeon tolled the bells of caution in his mind. And as much as he wanted to¡­ he had to accept he was too weak.

    It was infuriating.

    I will be back. He declared, acquiescing to his limits. He overestimated himself once, it would not happen again.

    Fang turned and left the disturbing door behind.

    ¡ª

    He quickly found himself soaked to the bone. His backpack likewise laden with water as the sky tried to weigh him down with each furious droplet. His cloak had unfortunately been reduced to tatters in the fight against the cultivators, another mistake he made ¡ª one he was now paying for with interest.

    The rain pounded down relentlessly, the large shoots of bamboo creaking under their thumping fury.

    Fang truly had no idea where he was going, unable to see the sky to discern his cardinal heading he decided to gamble it on some esoteric remnant knowledge he had read about back on Earth.

    Temples faced south, or so it goes¡­

    Whether such things are still applicable across, dimensions, planes, universes¡­ remained to be seen.

    This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    As such, he took a right out of the temple, doing his best to maintain a straight-line.

    No wonder it¡¯s called The Green Maze.

    For as far as he could see, which wasn¡¯t far at all, it was a suffocating thicket of ribbed green. Small blade-like leaves fluttered in the incessant wind, a rumbling howl of a forest-sized wind chime. The bamboo itself was surprisingly sturdy. A cursory finger punctured into the stem of one, broke a dam of fresh rain water to burst free.

    Each and every shoot seemed to be storing water en mass, most likely for a dry day.

    Fang couldn¡¯t help but laugh.

    Drowning men, hoarding water.

    It had been days and the rain showed no sign of stopping. And from the way Yunfeng had declared ¡®The storm will not pass¡¯  he had a suspicion that the current forecast was not a matter of natural occurrence.

    After what felt to be an entire day, though he no true way of discerning since the cloud canopy above was so thick it gave no room for the light of day. Fang setup camp for the ¡®night¡¯.

    He had been making incredibly slow progress. As trying to maintain his heading without sight of his target or a single point of reference was a practice of blind faith. The bamboo, while somewhat evenly spread, tended to bunch in impassable bundles thicker than a small house.

    It was in one of these bundles that he had found a small space somewhat free from the rain above. And with a little make-shift construction, Fang was able to fashion the bamboo into a roof, shoving the long roughly half-cut pieces into the narrow spaces above him using friction as holds.

    He laid out his bedroll with a sad sigh, the fur and leather sleeping sack slapped onto the muddy ground with a wet smack.

    Man...

    It was a sorry sight. A young child huddled in darkness, drenched in exhaustion, chewing onhis last pieces of dried jerky.

    Under the light of his system, he mindlessly ate. He felt his face, feeling his cold, wet skin give way to a freshly healed scar. He traced it across his nose until it curled under his jaw.

    I guess my modeling days are over¡­ he laughed ruefully to himself before falling silent.

    This is going to take too long¡­

    He could only jog with his backpack, as any faster risked ripping the straps ¡ª not to mention being embarrassingly awkward.

    He felt the wet bedroll squelch underneath him, water seeping into his pants. He leaned back against the bamboo, feeling the subtle shifting as it swayed in the wind high above.

    It reminded him of home, of the ocean. Of the soft swaying of a boat on a clear summers day.

    Slowly, Fang drifted to sleep, under the hollow patters of rain and the rumbles of a furious storm.

    ¡ª

    ¡°CHEEEEEEEK!¡±

    Fang shot awake. Leaping to his feet and smacking headfirst into his makeshift roof. The bamboo shattered, a bolt of lighting streaking across the sky.

    The world grew bright, and Fang eyes grew wide.

    A giant Mantis, larger than an elephant was trying to slice its way into his little abode.

    Fang dropped to the ground suddenly. A sharp blade of wind carving over him. The bundle of bamboo all around him shifted, sliding off their stumps in a tangled mess of timber. Rain exploded into being, drenching the small refuge he had painstakingly created.

    The giant Mantis leapt backwards with insect-like grace, blurring in speed despite its size. Large translucent wings fluttered behind its back as it reared its scythes close to its body.

    Its mandibles twitched, a high-pitched stutter crying its intent to battle.

    ¡°CHE-E-E-E-EK!¡±

    The sky roared, lighting flashed and in the blink of an eye the Mantis was upon him. Its scythes punched forwards in rapid succession, tearing through the rain with watery trails.

    Fang twisted, Stormquaking Strides throwing him out of danger by a hairsbreadth. His eyes could barely keep track of the man-sized blades as they carved past him.

    Its fucking fast!

    Fang ducked as the Mantis sent another slash towards his torso, his eyes went wide, the anticipated attack never came.

    FEINT?!

    The Mantis chittered curling its scythes back with a snap it sank its wrist like a cannonball into his chest.

    WHAM!

    Fang was sent careening back, his legs pulsing as they wrestled for control. His feet dragged across the ground leaving cart-like ruts in the muddied forest floor.

    He wheezed, breath forced from his lungs, pain blossoming across his body. His ribcage creaked, fracturing slightly under the single punch.

    Fang coughed, trying to catch his breath. He glanced up at the Mantis, it stood there standing tall on its four legs, scythes held close to its chest.

    And though it had no human features he could tell ¡ª it¡¯s fuc-kin playing with me.

    Its mandibles chittered.

    ¡°CHEEEEEK!¡±

    ¡°Yeah fuck you too.¡± Fang replied spitting out a globule of blood. Without hesitation he ignited the two drops of Aura in his chest.

    Power exploded across his body, his heart thundering in chorus with the sky. His eyes began to faintly shimmer gold, the world snapping into clarity.

    The machine-gun fire of rain slowed, the towering bamboo around him swaying softly in the tranquil storm-rage.

    The sky cried, lighting clapping the round bell.

    KAA¡ªCHAAAK!

    A sharp flutter of wings screamed over the the thundering crater of Fang¡¯s strides. The Mantis sent clawing slashes, air & rain rending apart. Fang shifted, streaking around the mantis, dodging as the slashes carved ravines into the earth behind him, he launched himself forwards with blurring speed. His hands forming blades searching for insect flesh.

    The Mantis leapt backwards with a snap of its wings, chittering at the feeble attempt. Fang quickly realized his attack wouldn¡¯t reach, but he wouldn¡¯t take no for an answer¡ª

    VISCERA RUPTURING STRIKE!

    His hand shot forwards regardless of distance, his muscles tensing, entire body twisting in perfect unity as Aura burned through his veins. He stabbed forwards ripping his hand over itself ¡ª rupturing sheer air pressure.

    DTHUUUMM!

    A spiraling spear of air barreled towards the Mantis. It screeched in surprised, scythes crossing in protection. Bamboo shaking as the air spear slammed into the Mantis with the force of a jackhammer.

    WHAM!

    Its scythes held strong, as it slid a short distance back. It shook its head, anger burning its in two large compound eyes, its beady irises locked onto Fangs.

    Fang grinned at the Mantis with a wolfish snarl, when his attention was suddenly stolen. The system appeared with a flash of golden light.

    [*Viscera Rupturing Strikes I (Great Success) ¡ª> Viscera Rupturing Strikes II (Initiation)]

    The Mantis spat out a short chitter, a single drawn out syllable.

    ¡°Cheeeeeeek.¡± Its wings flaying out behind its back as it stared down at him.

    Then it vanished.

    Fangs eyes ballooned as he wrenched his attention away from the System. The hairs on his right arm suddenly rose ¡ª he twisted, a searing pain erupting across his shoulder. Blood spurted outwards, as the Mantis appeared beside him in a delayed rushed of wind, scythe dripping with his blood.

    Fang grimaced, trying to counter with a sweeping back-hand ¡ª THUK!

    He felt the bones in his hand shatter as the Mantis blocked with its scythe. With a vicious flick of its organic blade it sent Fang flying.

    Air whipped around him as he tumbled through the air, a pulsing pain running up the side of his body. The moment was awkwardly slow, the Mantis staring up at him with a bored look in its beady eyes.

    Still not fast enough¡­

    Fang flipped, landing horizontally on a bamboo shoot. His body weight pressed into the towering plant, it bent back like a bow ¡ª Fang as the arrow.

    The Mantis tilted its head.

    ¡°Che-eeek?¡±

    Fang twisted his feet, Stormquaking Strides loaded like buckshot in his legs. The bamboo snapped back into place launching Fang forwards as he mustered the full extent of his movement technique.

    The bamboo shattered in his wake, the stored water within crushed underfoot.

    Fang flew like a bullet not at the Mantis ¡ª but another Bamboo stem.

    He flipped, barely able to control his speed, feet crunching into the bamboo stem.

    Control¡­

    Stormquaking Strides was anything but delicate. He was like a bull trying to stack a house of cards, he needed control.

    The bamboo stem bent once more, and he shot off its momentum with another Stormquaking Stride. This time, the stem merely shattered, water seeping out from its cracks.

    The Mantis¡¯ eyes followed Fang with a building sense of curiosity. It had never seen prey like this, how quaint ¡ª it thought.

    But Fang continued building speed despite his steps leaving smaller and smaller craters behind. A small smile rose to his lips.

    I understand it now.

    And the System agreed.

    [*Stormquaking Strides I (Peak Mastery) ¡ª > *Stormquaking Strides II (Initiation)]

    He didn¡¯t even bother looking at the screen, as a euphoric warmth bled into his legs. His thighs bulged momentarily, his muscles shifting, his balance increasing and the wind surrounding his feet curling as he moved.

    The silent before the storm.

    Fang vanished.

    The Mantis¡¯ jolted, its beady eyes snapping back and forth as the bamboo shoots around it began to sway. It brought its scythes to bare as a whistling sound filled the air.

    It couldn¡¯t see its prey.

    Fang appeared in a blur, his foot slamming down on the Mantis¡¯ arm like it was a twig. Its exoskeleton shattered, Scythe falling to the floor in a green gush bile and blood.

    ¡°CHEK!¡± It screeched, using its remaining scythe to lash out at Fang. The Scythe carved through nothing but air, as Fang had vanished once more ¡ª not a crater left in sight.

    THUK!

    The Mantis looked down, only to see its remaining scythe fall to the floor. For aquiet moment it looked over at Fang, their eyes meeting. The rain fell on them, a flash of lighting illuminating the battlefield. He smiled at the Mantis.

    ¡°Thanks for the help.¡±

    ¡°CHEE--¡±

    THUK!

    ¡ª

    Two fucking months¡­

    For two months Fang was lost in The Green Maze. Every single other day a fight for survival.

    In a way, the experience should be enjoyable for him ¡ª he wanted to see the world? Did he not?

    Though the forest was a homogenous desert of bamboo and rain, it was thick with all manner of animal and Qi-beast alike.

    Three headed pythons that could swallow a boar whole, a half-bear-beetle with pincers that could crush rock like clay and even what he believed to be a dryad.

    A spirit beast, the first he had seen since transmitigating. It was beyond his expectations, humanoid in form yet molded from living root. You could see right through its body, as well as its visibly beating heart. An organ of pure natural energy ¡ª spirit essence.

    Fang did not approach it, hiding under the cover of rain and shadow. He watched as the dryad manipulated the surrounding bamboo like a snake whisperer, the plants willfully twisting under its will forming beautiful patterns and arches.

    Fighting a dryad in the forest must be akin to wrestling a squid in the sea.

    And so he left it behind.

    Fang shot towards a bamboo stem, his steps emitting a low rumble through the Earth, the noise drowned by the rain. He launched himself upwards, striding up the stem before kicking himself off towards another.

    He landed on the stem, his weight bending it backwards as it loaded like a bow.

    It snapped back to place and Fang launched himself directly upwards. The air rushed passed him, his twisted mane of dark shoulder-length hair whipping in the wind. The sky roared as he pierced through the forest canopy.

    His eyes glowed a subtle gold, a hawk-like gaze locked in them. He swept his vision around him, before they suddenly narrowed, his pupils focusing to their maximum.

    Finally¡­

    He saw something new for the first time in two months. From this distance it looked like¡­ an ocean? He couldn¡¯t fully tell, the rain obscuring his vision.

    Maybe it¡¯s the river?

    Regardless he was relieved. Two months was too long, he needed some cooked food, a bath, and maybe a vacation.

    His tattered clothes whipped in the wind as he began to fall back to earth, the remnant of civilized apparel holding on by mere threads.

    Need some new clothes too, thankfully I have plenty of stuff to sell.

    It had been an incredible hassle, but he had accrued a small collection of what he thought to be the most valuable pieces of all the monsters he fought.

    A pair of Mantis Scythes (quite handy for making makeshift shelters), six eyes and six fangs of a three headed snake, and even a large pelt off the half-bear Beatle thing (surprisingly warm and comfortable).

    He was sure they¡¯d fetch a pretty price... probably.

    Yet, the most fruitful part of his ¡®short camping trip¡¯ was not materialistic.

    Fang broke back into the forest canopy, twisting towards a bamboo stem. He began siding down the stem, using the friction of the bamboo to arrest his momentum. A burning sensation bubbled along his soles, as he suddenly leapt off the bamboo landing into the wet forest floor with a squelch.

    His feet steamed as they sank into the mud, the heat visibly dispersing.

    With a deep breath he smiled.

    System.

    Fang :

    [Cultivation]

    - *Aura-Burning Art I (Initiation)

    [Technique]

    - *Stormquaking Strides II (Great Success)

    - *Viscera Rupturing Strikes II (Small Success)

    - Bone-Crushing Claw II (Initiation)

    [Bloodline]

    - Mortal Human

    Though on¡­ scroll the change seemed insignificant, externally his prowess had taken leaps and strides forwards. The difference between 1<sup>st</sup> and 2<sup>nd</sup> stage was immense, and during his battle with the Mantis he found first-hand that fused techniques were more than the sum of their parts.

    He had at first assumed that Viscera Rupturing Strikes required solid contact to work, yet that had proven to be a close-minded perspective. Like-wise, he had misinterpreted the nature of Stormquaking Strides itself. Though the System did grant him a level of muscle-memory like instinctual knowledge, pulling out the full potential of the technique, understanding the essence of the technique itself, was up to Fang.

    It had been a good two months.

    And that wasn¡¯t even the best of his efforts, that, lay within.

    A baseball-sized mass of Aura hummed in his body, ethereal strands of energy rushing along his veins like electricity from a power plant. While he didn¡¯t get a pure, two months of meditation ¡ª what with the need for food, shelter, battling beasts and burning the odd drop here and there ¡ª he was immensely satisfied.

    Twenty-nine drops of fused Core Aura ¡ª with nine more single drops in reserve to burn as needed.

    Why twenty-nine? Fang wasn¡¯t too sure either, it was like he had hit an immaterial wall. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn¡¯t get his Core Aura to thirty. Seeing Aura-Burning still at the 1<sup>st</sup> stage, and still at initiation was infuriating. Regardless, he was sure it would be solved with either A) more Aura, B) more fusions, or C) vitality-based medicines. All of which he could achieve in a town¡­ he hoped.

    I¡¯m gonna miss this place¡­ his mind drifted to the hidden dungeon deep in the forest. It was going to be an absolute pain in the ass to find it again, but he was currently too wearied to worry about it now.

    Fang grabbed his backpack, the poor thing barely holding together as he lugged it onto his shoulders. Two Mantis blades hung off the sides of the bag and a roll of bear-beetle fur was strapped under the pack lid. It had gotten much heavier over the past two months, and he could only pray it held together for just a little longer.

    Its time to go.

    ¡ª

    The rain stopped.

    Abruptly, like someone had turned off a faucet. The moment was surreal as Fang stepped out of The Green Maze. He turned to see a perfect wall of rain still falling, confined to the forest by some unknown force.

    He looked up, the storm clouds high above refusing to cross the same invisible barrier. For as far as he could see dark clouds stretched along the edges of the forest.

    Fang turned away, his eyes wincing as some foreign heat seared down at him.

    Is that¡­ the sun?

    The radiant rays of light graced his dirt ridden skin for the first time in two months. A soft breeze passing over him.

    Fang looked onwards, his head tilting in confusion at what he saw.

    Another sea of green. Yet, unlike the towering stems of the bamboo hell behind him, he saw instead a verdant sea of head-high grass stretching endlessly into the distance. His eyes narrowed at a disturbance in the uniformity of grassy sea.

    For a moment he wasn¡¯t too sure what he was looking at ¡ª a tree?

    But the scale was off.

    For it to be so big at such a distance meant it must be gargantuan in size.

    His eyes focused, scarcely making out further details.

    No. Not a tree¡ª

    ¡ª Three Trees.

    Finally, Three Bayan Town was in sight.