The first thing Lu Chang noticed was that he didn’t see the storm cloud barrier that had been hiding the inner sect from view. He turned to look around. He’d come out from the staircase into a plaza that had clearly once been grand, but had been diminished by time and whatever calamity had befallen the sect.
Tall pagodas and magnificent buildings were all over the inner sect, which was the size of a small city. From what Lu Chang could tell, the inner sect was built on a massive platform in between the two tallest mountains, and used said mountains as support pillars. The scale of such construction was breathtaking.
From his position near the edge of the inner sect, Lu Chang had a perfect view of the mountain range, and the outer sect below. Still wondering what happened to the storm barrier, Lu Chang closed his eyes and stretched out his senses.
Immediately he could feel the apocalyptic power of the barrier. He opened his eyes and stared at the spot he’d felt the barrier. Lu Chang could see nothing there. Extending his senses again, he felt the barrier. Perhaps it was invisible from this side? It was the best explanation Lu Chang could come up with.
Putting it out of mind, Lu Chang turned back to the inner sect, eager to explore and possibly find even more benefits.
He moved through the inner sect slowly, taking the time to inspect everything as he went. Again, Lu Chang wished he could see the temple in its heyday. Even its current, ruined state, the inner sect still emanated a feeling of grandeur that could not be extinguished. He felt a strange sorrow as he walked through the derelict ruins.
As Lu Chang got nearer to the center of the inner sect, he spotted what seemed to be another barrier of storms, only smaller, in the very center of the sect. He adjusted course to head that direction. After a few more hours of exploration, Lu Chang reached the edge of the barrier.
This barrier was alike to the one outside the sect, but radiated such intense power that Lu Chang could not even approach within a dozen paces of it. It was much smaller, looking like a dark grey orb only a few hundred feet tall, with streaks of bright blue lightning streaming through it. In the light cast by the lightning, Lu Chang thought he could see the shape of a building inside the barrier.
Lu Chang was startled from his investigation by a loud voice calling out to him.
“You there! Which Feng disciple are you?”
Lu Chang turned around to see the Jin clan heir, Jin Shun, dressed in resplendent gold robes. The man seemed surprised to see him when he turned around, though quickly his expression shifted to contempt.
“A slave? How did yo- Oh. You’re that attendant of Feng Mei’s aren’t you? Yes, I remember you now. How on earth did you survive that fall? Nevermind, it could only be the luck of a fool. Regardless, you’ve done well to make it into the inner sect. Which means you must have had a few opportunities of your own. Hand them over, slave.”
Lu Chang had frozen at the sight of the golden robe, remembering the foul sensation of the chains of black thorns as they’d scoured his meridians. He only came back to his senses when Jin Shun demanded he hand over whatever he’d found.
Lu Chang stared at the heir of the Jin clan, calculating the possibility of beating him in battle. Lu Chang had been nearly reborn after his fall from the bridge, his strength exponentially improved.
He had no idea where Jin Shun ranked in comparison to the other clan heirs, but if he wasn’t vastly stronger than Mei, Lu Chang had the confidence to beat him. The choice was taken away from him, though, as Jin Shun seemed to tire of waiting for him to answer.
“A slave dares not obey me? Hmph, I supposed I’ll take whatever treasures you scrounged up from your corpse.”
At that, he drew an elegantly decorated golden sword and leapt at Lu Chang with a thrust. Lu Chang hastily raised his dagger to parry. The golden sword must have been a spirit weapon, though, as a strong golden energy permeated the blade. When it made contact with his dagger, the energy invaded it, scoring and cracking the dagger, until it was ruined and unusable.
Caught off guard, Lu Chang kicked out at Jin Shun and then leapt backwards to make some room. He had a few more mundane daggers, but Lu Chang had a feeling they would all suffer the same fate on contact with that golden sword. There was one option, though.
Lu Chang had put away Tempest before, feeling a bit unworthy of it. Now, though, with the flames of his ambition re-kindled, Lu Chang wanted to reveal a bit of his own resplendence. He retrieved Tempest from his pouch and felt much more confident holding the short saber.
Lu Chang rushed forward with a shout, Tempest clashing with the golden sword in a spray of sparks and spiritual energy. A furious melee ensued, neither of them able to gain an advantage. His opponent jumped backward to make space this time, both of them taking a moment to catch their breath.
“No wonder you could make it to the inner sect. You picked up a spirit weapon somewhere. I’ll be taking that from your corpse. I’m sure it will sell for a high price.”
Lu Chang said nothing, merely tightening his grip on the saber. Jin Shun, now recovered, started to exude spiritual energy for a technique.
“Golden Asura, Ascend!”
The Jin heir’s bright, golden spiritual energy poured out of him in waves, then it started to twist and writhe, consuming itself. The energy roiled, and the golden hue faded, becoming black as night. A large figure started to materialize from the energy, a demonic figure with golden lines traced all over. It wielded a greatspear in one hand and held a cat-o-nine tails in the other, the whip’s thongs formed of thorny chains. After it formed completely, Jin Shun pointed at Lu Chang.
“Binding Thorns of the Asura!”
The asura swung its whip at Lu Chang, and each of the nine thongs speared towards him, like thorny tentacles seeking to wrap him up. Lu Chang flooded tempest with energy, and fired off several slicing winds as he retreated, unable to destroy the chains, only keep them at bay. He saw a chance when one of the thorned chains buried itself in the ground right in front of him.
Lu Chang leapt onto the chain, sprinting towards Jin Shun as he ducked and dove over the other chains. Once near enough to his foe, he dove off, slashing out with Tempest. Jin Shun was unable to move, concentrating all his energy into the figure of the asura and its chains.
Lu Chang’s saber took the man’s arm off at the shoulder, and would have continued on had Lu Chang not been slapped away by the asura’s greatspear. He slammed into a stone wall nearby and groaned in pain, while his opponent screamed in a mixture of agony and rage.
“Aaaaargh. How dare you, slave! Die!”
The wind screamed at Lu Chang to move. He rolled over desperately, just as the greatspear lanced out, burying its point where he’d just laid. The asura was now glowing malevolently, the golden lines faded away.
Scrambling to his feet, Lu Chang immediately had to dodge away as the thorny chains whistled through the air towards him. Lu Chang danced around the strikes of the spear and the whip for a few moments, pressed too hard to counterattack. He needed something to turn the tides, as it seemed Jin Shun’s spiritual energy was endless, or at least his stores of pills was.
Lu Chang retreated a ways, leaping to the wide roof top of a nearby building. His foe promptly followed him, the black figure of the asura still glowing behind him. Lu Chang was already in the middle of executing his technique, though.
“Heavenly Wind from the Mountain!”
Again, the resplendent mountain formed behind Lu Chang, and the wind that came with it screamed its majesty. Jin Shun eyed the manifestation with fear and drew his black asura in front of him, its arms crossed in a defensive position.
The heavenly wind crashed down on Jin Shun and his asura, collapsing the building they were standing on in its fury. Lu Chang lightly glided down as the building collapsed. His foe was not so lucky. Lu Chang’s technique had blown the black asura away entirely, and then hit Jin Shun, burying him in rubble.
Lu Chang looked through the wreckage warily, when suddenly a golden sword came piercing out from underneath the stone bricks. Jin Shun was on his last legs, the stump of his arm bleeding profusely, along with many other wounds caused by the heavenly wind. Lu Chang slapped aside the desperate stab, then, with a quick swing, beheaded the Jin heir.
The head, still boasting an unresigned expression, fell into the rubble. Lu Chang sagged with exhaustion, pulling out a few minor healing pills he’d taken from others and eating them like candy. He picked up the Jin heir’s treasure pouch and the golden sword and put them away. Lu Chang was about to leave, when a new voice called out to him.
“Impressive.”
Whirling around, Lu Chang saw someone standing atop a nearby roof. The man was dressed in plain, white robes, and carried an ethereal air about him. Somehow, Lu Chang knew for certain if this man wanted him dead, there was nothing he could do to stop it. The man jumped down, landing lightly on the street, and approached Lu Chang.
“I was on my way to my objective, when I saw an interesting sight. A slave fighting a cultivator that should, by all measures, be far out of his reach. And not just fighting, winning.”
He circled Lu Chang, examining him like a scholar might examine a particularly interesting specimen.
“If that were all, I’d have likely passed by with only a glance. I noticed, though, that last technique you used was well mastered. The technique itself is nothing special, only secular trash. The comprehension was superb, though. I’d wager you don’t even know why it’s so strong do you?”
He paused then, waiting for Lu Chang to answer. Still cautious, and a bit confused, Lu Chang shook his head. The man nodded.
“I thought as much. Extraordinary. Who is your master?”
Lu Chang hesitated, but it wasn’t a great secret.
“Feng Mei.”
“Feng Mei. Hmm.”
The unknown cultivator rolled the name around, musing to himself, then shook his head.
“Well. You won’t find anything here, near the center, junior. Anything of worth here was taken long ago, or is locked away in the core disciples’ tower.”
He nodded towards the storm barrier.
“There are plenty of legacy trials and treasures near the outskirts, though. Mostly entry-level techniques for the temple, too commonplace to be worth much. I seem to remember, though, a particular trial that might suit you.”
He turned to look to the east.
“Head that way, there will be a nearly intact pagoda with three levels. It was intended for beginner disciples born into the inner sect, and its artifact spirit is even intact, like the barrier to the inner sect. I can tell whatever cultivation technique you possess is the worst kind of trash, most likely trash even in the secular world. If you can pass all three levels of the trial, there is a technique there that would suit you.
Regardless, you should not attempt anything with this barrier. The core disciples’ trial would kill you in an instant.”
Abruptly, the man walked toward the storm barrier.
“You may call me Xie Xing of the Sidereal Celestial Sect, or senior brother if you like. I’m sure we’ll meet again, little junior brother. I’ll look forward to seeing your strength then.”
He called over his shoulder with a hearty laugh as he walked straight through the storm barrier, the clouds retreating as he stepped through and closing behind him. Lu Chang watched him go, a strange expression on his face.
The man, Xie Xing, had been terrifying. The knowledge that he could kill Lu Chang at any second had him on edge. The part about his technique being strong for a reason he didn’t understand had intrigued Lu Chang, but then the man didn’t explain it.
He looked to the east, where this pagoda supposedly was. Xie Xing didn’t seem to mean him harm, even going so far as to tell Lu Chang to call him senior brother. He would at least check out the pagoda, but first he would find a place to recuperate for a while.
As Lu Chang left, still contemplating Xie Xing’s words, he realized something. How had Xie Xing entered the minor realm? He was sure the elders would have noticed an infiltrator among them. He also had strange knowledge of the ancient temple’s secrets. Lu Chang could only conclude that there were other entrances to the minor realm, and this Sidereal Celestial Sect knew of one.
Looking back at the storm barrier that protected the core disciples’ tower, Lu Chang wondered what Xie Xing’s objective was. Putting it out of mind for now, Lu Chang found a small building to recuperate in, a fair distance from where he’d killed Jin Shun.
He pulled out the Jin heir’s treasure pouch. Lu Chang might as well organize his gains while resting. Emptying out the pouch produced a vast array of treasures. There were pills of all kinds, healing, energy recovery, and even a couple precious cultivation pills.
Jin Shun had clearly had a great harvest in the minor realm, as there were dozens of rare herbs and natural treasures, though none with any current use for Lu Chang. There was a technique scroll, likely earned from somewhere in the outer sect, though it was metal aligned and useless to Lu Chang.
One thing that caught Lu Chang’s eye immediately was a set of flexible armor to be worn under the clothes. Lu Chang put it on immediately, wondering at the quality. This kind of armor would not reduce the wearer’s speed at all, but still protect against crippling injuries.
The last thing that was potentially useful to Lu Chang was a small tome, titled, “Golden Asura’s Benediction.” He flipped it open and skimmed through, though once he realized what it was, his eyes widened in shock. This was the manual for the technique that the Jin clan slavers used to apply the thorny crown on his head and in his dantian.
Lu Chang immediately started scouring the manual for a method to release the technique. After a about an hour of study, he closed the manual with a huff, disappointed. There were no external methods to end the technique listed. The only methods detailed required the involvement of the slave’s owner and the golden energy of the Jin clan. Even if he could garner Mei’s support, which was not a sure thing, he’d also need the help of a Jin clan member.
Lu Chang stared at the wall listlessly. There were no good methods available. He had confirmed his suspicion that the technique would end on the death of the master. It would usually revert back to the nearest Jin clan member then, but there was an easy method detailed within to stop that.
He couldn’t even imagine himself doing that to Mei, though. Lu Chang had come to terms long ago with killing for self-defense, and in defense of others, but this was something entirely different. It would be so easy to kill Mei and escape into the night, but the idea felt wrong to Lu Chang. Perhaps with some research and this manual he could find a way to release the technique. He had to believe that. He didn’t want to believe that he was someone to kill anyone who obstructed him.
Stowing away the manual for another time, Lu Chang stood up. Now that he was fully recovered, it was time to check out that trial pagoda that his ‘senior brother’ had mentioned. He set out to the east quickly, no longer stopping to explore along the way. An hour later, Lu Chang stood in front of what he believed to be the correct pagoda.
It was in remarkably better shape than most of the buildings in the sect. Lu Chang investigated it. He could feel a bit of emanated spiritual energy from inside. It looked like it was truly a trial after all. After confirming that, Lu Chang entered.
Inside was a square chamber, plain and undecorated, large enough to fight freely in. Lu Chang walked forward, Tempest at the ready. As he reached the halfway point of the room, a vaguely feminine voice spoke from everywhere around him.
“Inner Disciple Token recognized. Disciple cultivation: Late-Stage Meridian Opening. There are three trials, disciple. Are you ready?”
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Lu Chang was startled, and thought back to Xing Xie’s words. This must be what he called the artifact spirit. Was it sentient? He asked a question.
“What does the trial consist of?”
There was a moment’s pause, then the voice spoke again.
“This pagoda’s trial involves fighting inside a Mirage Battle Formation, tuned for disciples born into the inner sect in the beginning stages of training.”
Lu Chang smiled wryly. It seemed like Xie Xing had sent him to a trial meant for children. Though, being compared to a child cultivator of a sect as illustrious as this one seemed to have been was no insult. Lu Chang had never heard of such a thing as a Mirage Battle Formation, though.
“What is a Mirage Battle Formation?”
The reply was prompt this time.
“It is an illusionary array used to test disciples skills in deadly combat.”
Lu Chang didn’t like the sound of that, but had confidence in himself. Xing Xie wouldn’t have pointed him to something he couldn’t beat, would he? Taking a deep breath, Lu Chang centered himself.
“I am ready.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, three tendrils of gray fog seeped in from the roof, and, similarly to the bridge, formed into humanoid shapes. There was a difference this time, though. The shapes were normal sized, and solidified into actual flesh and blood, becoming indistinguishable from real people.
The three of them were armed with sabers, and shouted a battle cry, charging towards Lu Chang. They weren’t particularly fast, especially by Lu Chang’s standards. He threw a slicing wind at the left and right one to keep them busy for a moment, then rushed the center man.
His slash was parried, but Lu Chang was much stronger than the man, and pushed him back easily. They returned to a stalemate, and Lu Chang thought over the short melee. From what he could tell, these faux cultivators should be no more than halfway through opening their regular meridians, and Lu Chang had long since been able to kill foes like that with ease.
He waited until all three were right in front of him, then caught each of their strikes on the blade of Tempest. While their blades were stuck, Lu Chang covered his other hand with a slicing wind, and ripped out the throat of the left faux cultivator.
By that time, the other two had recovered, but Lu Chang took the initiative this time, using the drastic difference in strength to overpower and kill each of them. The bodies faded back into fog as he killed the last one, and the stairway to the second level appeared.
Lu Chang walked upstairs, and waited expectantly for the voice to speak up again. This time, though, apparently he was already considered ready, as the tendrils of fog descended immediately.
There were only two this time, and Lu Chang could tell they were much stronger. Both of them felt only a bit weaker than him. This would be a great battle.
Lu Chang started off the fight by rushing at the one on the left, hoping to kill him immediately. He had to abort the dash partway through and dodge, though, as the right man swung his sword and launched a blade of water at Lu Chang.
As Lu Chang dodged the water-blade, the left man raised his hands and several birds made of flame appeared. With a wave of his arms the birds shot off towards Lu Chang. He was chased around the room, dodging the birds and water-blades.
Eventually, Lu Chang was able to lead the techniques into each other, instantly covering the room in dense mist. While the two couldn’t see him, Lu Chang could feel their motions cause minute fluctuations of wind. He used this ability to assassinate both of them before the mist had cleared.
The bodies dissipated again, revealing another stairway. Lu Chang took out a few pills to recover energy and swallowed them, resting for a moment to catch his breath, then he ascended the stairs.
As he did so, Lu Chang mused on his opponents. The first floor had thrown three mid level meridian opening cultivators at him. On the second floor he’d fought two that were near his own level. If the pattern held, this last floor would be a one on one fight with a sea formation cultivator.
Lu Chang grimaced. Fighting above one’s realm was nearly unheard of outside legends. Then again, this sect was something right out of those very same legends. Lu Chang had yet to fight to his fullest extent. Hopefully it was enough to let him be victorious.
Once again, the fog tendril descended as soon as he entered the floor. This time his foe wielded a greatsword as long as he was tall. Just from the pressure exuding from the man, Lu Chang could tell this was a genuine second realm cultivator, and not a particularly weak one.
Without any delay, the man dragged his greatsword forward, scraping it on the floor, and launched a hellish wave of fire at Lu Chang. Lu Chang repeated the maneuver from his fight with Jinghai, launching himself up and over the wave of fire, then kicking-off straight down at the man.
Lu Chang slashed out with his saber, only for it to be easily parried by the giant greatsword. The man backhanded Lu Chang with his other hand right as their blades connected, Lu Chang crashing into the wall.
Suddenly, the man was upon him, moving quicker than such a large person should be capable of. Lu Chang saw red-hot lines of fire trace themselves all over the man’s skin. He barely got Tempest up to block, and the force of the blow carried him halfway across the room.
Blindingly sharp pain assaulted Lu Chang as he looked down at the broken mess of his arm. With his good arm he retrieved a handful of healing pills and swallowed them down. He stood back up, Tempest gripped in his off hand now.
His foe hadn’t pursued him, staying on the other side of the room channeling some technique. To Lu Chang’s despair, rings of fire started to appear behind the man, looking like the corona of a star.
Desperate to interrupt whatever technique this was, Lu Chang quickly started the “Heavenly Wind from the Mountain.” As he was almost finished, though, the corona of fire around the man exploded outward, igniting the room into a firestorm.
As the conflagration roared towards him, Lu Chang had to change tack. He finished the technique, but held it from releasing. While it was held, he jumped up and floated in the wind that strained to be free and ravage everything. Finally, Lu Chang attempted to apply the principles of the slicing wind to the technique. Just before the firestorm would reach him, Lu Chang let his heavily modified technique loose.
He was launched forward, riding in the middle of the heavenly wind as it screamed. The now sharp wind sliced right through the middle of the firestorm, and the shell of winds around Lu Chang barely protected him from the flames.
The momentum of the wind carried him all the way through the storm, right up to his foe, who was still recovering from launching such an apocalyptic technique. Lu Chang raised his saber, channeled his last bit of spiritual energy into it, swinging straight through the faux cultivator, cutting him in two.
Immediately the remnants of the firestorm disappeared, and the body dissipated. Lu Chang collapsed to the ground, more exhausted than he felt he’d ever been. He pulled out another handful of pills and swallowed them, shaking his head at how spoiled he’d become. He could still remember a time when he’d only ever heard of pills in rumors and legend.
Lu Chang set his broken arm to the best of his ability. His enhanced healing as a cultivator would mend it soon, but in the meantime a splint would keep it from worsening. After he’d splinted his arm, Lu Chang heard the artifact spirit again.
“Congratulations on passing the trial, disciple. You are now eligible to claim one of the Temple of Limitless Paths’ seven-hundred and sixty-three elementary cultivation techniques.”
Lu Chang raised an eyebrow. Seven-hundred and sixty-three was a ludicrous amount of cultivation techniques. These were only the ‘elementary’ level as well? It seemed Lu Chang had once again underestimated the scale of this ancient sect.
“How many of those techniques are suitable for a wind affinity?”
The spirit promptly answered.
“Forty-one.”
He nodded, then further narrowed it down.
“Of those techniques, break them down by grade.”
There was a pause, then.
“Do you want them listed by the grading used in the secular world or the sect’s own grading?”
Lu Chang frowned in confusion.
“What is the difference?”
The voice of the artifact spirit explained.
“By the standards of the secular world, all of these techniques would be considered Heaven rank. The secular world has long been bereft of proper legacies and techniques. Thus, their grading system shifted to reflect this.”
Lu Chang took in that idea. It made sense. There was such a massive difference in what he thought an Earth or Heaven ranked technique should be now, as opposed to when he was in Hundred Fragrance City.
“I assume you were watching my trial?”
“Yes.”
“The slicing wind technique I used many times, how would you rank it according to the sect’s scale?”
Lu Chang asked this to get a firm hold on the real measure of a technique. When he’d been given the technique by Mei, she’d called it low earth rank. He was interested in how the temple would rate it.
“It would be considered the lowest level of mortal rank, only for the lack of a lower rank.”
Lu Chang was stunned. He felt as if his eyes had been opened to a whole new world. It was beginning to become a pattern in this minor realm. No wonder Xie Xing had called his cultivation technique trash. It was not even earth rank by the secular world’s scale.
Humbled, Lu Chang spoke with the spirit again.
“I see. I admit; this disciple is ignorant in many matters. Would senior artifact spirit please help me pick an appropriate technique?”
For the first time, the voice had a hint of emotion, shock, as it responded.
“You know what I am?”
Lu Chang explained.
“I know not the details of what an artifact spirit is, but someone pointed me this way, and said that this pagoda’s artifact spirit was still around. I assumed that was you, senior. Your intelligence seemed beyond anything a mere formation could accomplish.”
The spirit pressed him.
“Who was it that told you that?”
Seeing no harm, Lu Chang told it.
“It was a cultivator by the name of Xie Xing. He wore white robes and professed to be part of the Sidereal Celestial Sect.”
This time, the emotion in the spirit’s voice was plainly heard.
“Oh.. That child.”
There was a long pause. Then it spoke again.
“That child was correct. I am an artifact spirit. Those of my race are formed from heavenly treasures, and live forever as long as our housing is not destroyed.”
Lu Chang was intrigued. This was the kind of thing he yearned to learn by exploring the world.
“So, you remember the Temple as it was? Can you tell me about it?”
The voice spoke apologetically.
“I apologize, young disciple. My existence is limited to the inside of this pagoda. I can tell you about each of my challengers over millennia, but I am ignorant to anything outside of that.”
Lu Chang was disappointed. Something struck him, though. That sounded an extremely lonely existence.
“It sounds like you’ve been here alone for a long time. Does it not get lonely? I could tell you about some of the outside world, at least the bits I’ve seen.”
There was a pregnant pause, then the voice erupted into laughter.
“Oh my. You know, that is the same thing that child said to me the first time he visited, years ago? I’ll tell you what I told him. It is not so lonely; my race can hibernate for hundreds of years at a time. I do yearn sometimes, though, for those days when disciples would challenge my pagoda every day, burning with youthful ambition. So, I’ll not reject your gift if you would tell me of your piece of the world, young disciple.”
Lu Chang nodded.
“You don’t have to call me disciple. The temple has been nearly razed. I’m just a slave anyway.”
The voice spoke in an admonishing tone.
“As long as there are disciples, the Temple still exists. And slave or not, if you claimed that token, you will always be a disciple of the Temple of Limitless Paths.”
He nodded again, an unknown emotion settling heavily into his gut. Slowly, Lu Chang began to talk about the outside world. From the Sacred Empire and Hundred Fragrance City, to the Asura Empire and the Painted City.
He spoke his own story all the way through, without holding anything back. By the time he’d told all he had to tell, many hours had passed. His throat ached a bit, and Lu Chang fell silent.
“A wonderful tale, young disciple. Thank you for telling it.”
Lu Chang nodded, and asked his earlier question again.
“It was no hardship, senior. Now, would you help me pick a suitable technique? Xie Xing said there was one here particularly suited to me, but I have no idea how to tell. I am ignorant on the finer details of cultivation.”
The voice chuckled again.
“Through no fault of your own, child. You will learn in time, on your own path. Considering everything you’ve told me, I think this technique should fit you well.”
A manual materialized on the ground of the third floor. Lu Chang picked it up and read the title.
“Sublime Wintry Sky Invocation? Senior?”
The spirit explained its choice.
“When you absorbed the frigid energy of Hell during your tribulation, your spiritual energy acquired a strong yin attribute, making you suitable for this technique. This technique does not specialize in either gentle or violent winds, only cold yin winds.
I know not whether you will walk that path to its end, but expanding one’s scope is never a poor option. By the scale of the sect, that technique is low earth ranked.”
Lu Chang looked down at the manual in his hand, growing to like the idea. He bowed in the middle of the room, hoping to express his heartfelt thanks to the spirit.
“Thank you, senior. You’ve helped me more than I can repay. Is there anything I can do?”
The spirit laughed again.
“No, disciple. If I asked for repayment for doing my duty I wouldn’t be much of an artifact spirit, would I?”
Lu Chang nodded, then turned to leave, but stopped as the spirit spoke again, almost tentatively.
“Although… There is one thing.”
“Anything, senior.”
“If you ever encounter the Temple Master on your journeys, please do tell him that the Temple still exists as long as there are disciples.”
Lu Chang frowned confusedly.
“The Temple Master? Could he still be alive?”
The spirit explained.
“I know not. But the Temple Master was near the apex of cultivation path. If anyone could have survived the calamity and lived until now, it would be him. It is a long shot, I know. Just keep it in the back of your mind, disciple.”
Lu Chang nodded seriously.
“If I ever do somehow come across him, I’ll tell him what you said.”
“Thank you, disciple.”
Lu Chang said his goodbyes again, then exited the pagoda. He stood outside, contemplating where to go next, when the ground of the inner sect started to tremble, like an earthquake. Lu Chang looked around warily. What could possibly cause an earthquake in the inner sect?
After a few minutes of tremors, a vast explosion of spiritual energy blasted throughout the sect. Lu Chang was knocked off his feet by the blast, though not harmed. He stood back up and immediately his sight was drawn to the center of the inner sect.
The storm barrier there had tripled in size, and was swirling agitatedly. Violent gusts of wind blew around it, and the tremors seemed to intensify all over. Suddenly, the air fell still and the swirling barrier calmed. Then, a roaring sound was heard, and a coruscating beam of pure white spiritual energy lanced out from the top of the barrier, like heavenly lightning striking upward.
Immediately, the tremors on the ground increased, and Lu Chang could see cracks spreading all throughout the streets, along with the collapsing of buildings. Lu Chang didn’t know what was going on, but he did know it was time to go.
Pulling the jade tile out of his pouch, Lu Chang crushed it, and counted down the seconds as the energy hooked onto him. The last thing he saw as he disappeared was the ground start to crumble and fall around him.
After another dizzying trip through the void, Lu Chang appeared back in the cave in the Skytooth Mountains. Many of the other cultivators were already present, and more showed up each second. Lu Chang looked around for-
“Lu Chang!”
-Mei.
Smiling wryly, he turned and caught her as she launched herself into his arms. She was crying, and he could barely understand anything she said, other than many variations on, “you’re alive!” Lu Chang soothed her, and she finally calmed down, wiping her tears and dragging him off somewhere else so they didn’t make a scene. On the way, he looked at the returned Feng clan members.
“Hey, what happened to Feng Rong?”
Mei snorted.
“I killed him. Idiot thought no one saw him blast you off the bridge. I didn’t even have to explain myself. He really was an idiot.”
Lu Chang hummed his approval.
“Shame, I had plans.”
Mei giggled at him, clearly ecstatic at his survival.
They swapped stories of what had happened since he fell off the bridge, though Lu Chang held some things back, like his killing of Jin Shun, and the exact details of his strength.
He learned that Mei had encountered a trial much like his in the inner sect, winning an earth ranked technique. She had also found some remnants of the inner sect’s alchemy division, inside which were some cultivation enhancing pills, much like those he looted from Jin Shun.
They talked through their experience in the minor realm until all the cultivators had returned. There were many missing, of course, either dead or having lost their jade slip. They would have waited longer, but the elders had discovered a change in the portal arch. According to them something had changed in the minor realm, accelerating its decay, and it was no longer possible to enter or exit.
A headcount was taken, though none of the dead cultivators amounted to any more fuss than a checkmark on a list. That changed, however, when the absence of Jin Shun was noticed. That caused all twelve of the clans to become somber. This was all really for the benefit of their heirs. Nothing was supposed to happen to them. Every one of the entering cultivators were expendable in the end, all but the heirs.
The rest of the afternoon and evening, the Jin clan interviewed each of the surviving cultivators, desperate to figure out what had happened to their heir, and if needed, exact vengeance. Luckily, the interrogations did not extend to slaves. The only slaves that had entered the realm were the personal attendants of each heir, and it seemed the Jin clan considered them merely extensions of the heirs rather than intelligent individuals.
Lu Chang watched the upheaval with a grim face. He’d known the death of Jin Shun would cause some trouble, but he’d had no idea how much of an understatement that had been. The Jin clan had immediately blamed their rivals among the Painted Families, and the tension was palpable, even between usually friendly clans.
After an entire day of investigating, it was determined that Jin Shun had clearly died in the realm, and that there was nothing to be done until the perpetrator was found. They started their packing for the return journey then.
As the convoy left the mountain peak, Lu Chang looked back at the cave and the portal inside, wondering what exactly that ‘senior brother’ of his had done in the core disciples’ tower. Shaking his head, Lu Chang turned back to Mei, who was chattering excitedly about one of the techniques she’d found in the realm.
He frowned as he looked out at the horizon, though. Their return to the Painted City would happen soon, but Lu Chang felt a foul omen on the wind. He was sure things would get complicated in the coming months. Pulling the Sublime Wintry Sky Incantation from his pouch, Lu Chang started to study it.
He’d just have to do what he could to survive the coming storm.