Kai balanced in a handstand, then slowly pressed himself to the ground. Vertical push-ups weren't even really training for him anymore, he could just think more clearly while physically exerting himself. Given the barriers to his Physique, thinking might do more good than training.

He completed one slow push-up with his first name: Ren Ziq Quen. The foreign cultivator seemed to be entirely loyal to Yulthens and Zae Zin Nim was convinced of his ferocity. She had tried to tell Kai everything she could about his techniques, strongly implying that it would be better for him to take that battle. Probably their single strongest opponent, and trouble no matter what strategy they used.

Another push-up: Tareth Nordulind. Kai was disappointed that the Goralian hunter hadn't hesitated in putting down uprisings, and even though they'd fought side by side, might not hesitate to fight them. He still wanted to try to negotiate with the man, if he could get him alone. If not, Omilaena had developed even stronger poisons after their previous fight.

Vyorrine Nermtrian: expert at all trades, master of none. The sheer breadth of different abilities she could bring to bear, not least the Golden Dragon Breath, made her a hard opponent to match. Given that his defenses were strongest, Kai suspected he would probably be the one to fight her, if there wasn't a choice. Maybe this time the golden flame wouldn't do so much damage.

Four out of five now: Traelisia of the Earthquake. Her earth powers from the Elemental Nations were enormous and more flexible than they appeared. Despite that, she had shown so many of her abilities during the exhibition match that she was vulnerable. Zae Zin Nim seemed to have thought about their matchup and wanted to target her out of all the Diamond Crystalliers.

That left Boreas of Kartiis. Enforcer of the merchants, carrying an insane amount of wealth inside him. The fact that no one knew exactly what he could do made him dangerous. He absolutely needed to be kept away from all the crystal mine workers, as their Physiques might still contain a weakness to power like his. Only Omilaena seemed like a safe match-up against him.

And Suortril - always Suortril. When Kai thought about the merchant smugly holding up Orillia's head, the rage burned through him all over again, but rage couldn't win this fight. He needed to strategize against his opponent's resources.

Any one of those fights, or any combination of them, Kai could imagine a path to victory. The Diamond Crystalliers who had stood so far above him at the top of Krysal were in range now and he wasn't even concerned about some of them.

Yet they weren't fighting just the top five, they fought the entire system. Each of them would be supported by Ruby Crystalliers, who couldn't be written off as simple crystal cultivators. He had fought some of them during his time in Yulthens, but he wasn't intimately familiar with the group. Yet there were too many to effectively gather intelligence on them... being assaulted by unknown powers could turn the tide on any potential fight.

Finally, he couldn't let his hunger for revenge against Suortril blind him to the fact that the merchants were also a powerful force. They would have resources prepared, and Suortril himself seemed impervious within his prism. Kai was fairly sure it wouldn't protect him from simply being buried, but he stood behind an entire army that wouldn't allow that to happen.

One more push-up, just to clear his mind. For a moment, no other thoughts, then he turned inward.

Monstrous Hunger was still the core of his power and he didn't want to risk removing it. Behemoth's Heart and Direboar's Strength were immensely powerful and probably couldn't be removed even if he tried. Despite all his experimentation with other techniques, he thought that Isulfr's Bite and Tyrant's Claw couldn't be beaten for straightforward effectiveness.

Which left him one decision, not easily changed in battle. Void Gaze seemed like the obvious choice, since it didn't duplicate any of his other monstrous abilities. Yet in a battle like this, Kai wasn't sure that he could count on it. A gaze that served to defeat weaker opponents might not be able to stop elites.

If not that, what? The essence he'd consumed from the Shadow of Death was by far the most powerful, yet he still couldn't force it into a usable form. Acidic Lance and Infernotoad's Burst were his most familiar ranged options, yet he felt like he needed to do better. He had barely managed to merge diverse essence into Behemoth's Heart, could he do it with varying techniques? Trying felt risky, yet going into the battle without a new ability was a different sort of risk. Kai experimented with the idea while exercising in the hopes that he could fuse them together in the end if necessary.

He couldn't find an answer, not so simply. Kai kept training, hoping that something would come to him.

.

..

.

While the others fought for their lives or their freedom, Omilaena went shopping. She wasn't complaining about the quirk of their plans, she just found it amusing.

Krainuun had moved significant resources from the revolution for her use, and Kai had arranged for her to meet with Goralian merchants near the border. For a warrior he knew surprisingly much about potions, which she'd have to ask him about later. Until then, she was actually engaged by a task for once, because it had the potential to benefit her even more than the revolution.

Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

Apparently they were throwing enough money around to attract some significant players, because the trading outpost was crawling with potion merchants. Since there were all types, Omilaena had changed into a more daring dress. Some were sober professionals and some were women who didn't swing that way, but there were others who would ogle her cleavage when they thought she wasn't looking and let her pull one over on them.

"And this is a Class Potion," her current merchant was saying. A professional and probably more of a legs man, she guessed. "It grants a rush of mana that temporarily grants you the abilities of a Class!"

"Not the full abilities, I'm guessing?" Omilaena asked. "How would you know how to control them?"

"Very astute, madam. That is just the problem, which is why the most effective Class Potions are those that grant simple physical boosts."

Potentially useful, but judging from the mana levels, not enough to tip the balance. Omilaena sorted through the whole collection for the sake of being thorough, then paused as she felt one. So familiar... "What is this?"

"Ah, that represents a Class called Acidmaster! Very rare, we only have mana donated from a single master in far southern Goralia. I'm afraid the price will be rather higher, and the Power rating quite small, so-"

"That's fine, I'll take it." Omilaena paid the price and eagerly examined the potion.

The value was never in using a single potion, of course, but in replicating it. Her abilities were strongest with poisons, due to the synergies, but as a Lethal Artisan she could create other substances. She could use the Class Potion as a base model, then develop the process.

In theory, she should be able to inject pure mana into some of the acid cultivators. The power should, in theory, be drawn straight through the channels they normally used for qi. That would be an edge that no one expected. Not a battle-winning edge, but useful nonetheless.

"Does madam need anything else?" the man asked.

"Got any poisons?"

"Normally we would not sell such things, but out here on the border, the rules are a little laxer. If you'll look this way, we'll start with Vile Nightshade, which-"

"Don't need the tour for this part." Omilaena dismissed the largely trivial poisons and plucked out one that looked new. "I've been a good customer this far, are you going to try to cheat me and make me negotiate a reasonable price?"

"You've cleared out some very old stock, madam. A fair price it is."

"Great." Omilaena popped the cork out of the flask and sipped the poison. As the merchant stared in horror, she swished it around in her mouth to get a good taste, then downed the rest.

The Goralian poison was slightly different than anything she'd consumed before, so she could feel it joining her Heart of Poison. Their poison arts weren't very advanced here: all the poisons she had drunk so far had only increased her Level by one, and she didn't expect it to rise again. Still, when was she going to get another chance to drink Goralian poisons?

Nothing she'd found so far was the critical difference they needed. And how much good would a few exceptional potions do, unless they could help Kai or Zae Zin Nim break through? She persisted more out of stubbornness than anything else.

She was walking beside another stall, a mediocre one that likely hadn't even come for her sake, when she suddenly paused. There was something about the dull potions there, a defensive sort of mana. Omilaena turned on her heel and smiled at the woman running the stall.

"And what is this?"

"Ironskin potion." The woman blinked at her, as if uncertain if she was being made fun of. "They're a bit expensive, but common. Makes the skin tougher. It only adds a couple to your Power rating, though, so most strong folks don't bother with them. More for workers, or new monster hunters."

"I'll pay triple if you give me a complete ingredients list." Omilaena quickly memorized the information, then began making plans as she left the baffled herbalist.

The Ironskin potion was hardly groundbreaking on its own, but the simple reinforcing mana was admirable. As she considered the formula, Omilaena became convinced this was what the warrior from the Frontier had been hinting to Kai. In a stronger form, the Ironskin potion would be resistant to qi and extremely resistant to crystals. So many crystalliers depended heavily on cutting with those edges, and without that slicing power, they were basically waving around pretty sticks.

As she purchased stronger materials from the specialist merchants, Omilaena pondered just how strong the formula could become. She definitely wouldn't depend on it against a real opponent who understood their abilities. But there were so many others who just followed the most obvious paths of crystal cultivation...

"A special gift for you, madam." The merchant who extended his hands was staring at her, but Omilaena abruptly felt as though something had changed. What he was holding in his hands was a message crystal.

"Thank you." She pretended nothing was wrong, but slipped around the corner before activating the crystal to see the message.

Immediately an ornately furnished palace room sprawled in her mind's eye. An older woman sat in it, staring toward the crystal with real venom in her gaze. Omilaena didn't care much for merchants, but she recognized Riuklina, the second most influential power in all Yulthens.

"Omilaena the Maneater. You've caused us a great deal of trouble, and I don't understand why you'd make connections to Goralia. Planning to leave, I hope." Riuklina leaned forward in her seat. "But if you're coming back, if you intend to help these miserable peasants, then I want to ask you to reconsider. It's clear that you're seeking something, I presume materials to enhance your Rosemount abilities."

"Clever girl," Omilaena murmured under her breath.

"You don't need to join us or fight on our side. If you step out of the way and let us handle our own business, you will be amply rewarded. I have certain poisons from Rosemount, hidden in a secret location, that I think you very much want. And if some workers to experiment on would sweeten the deal, you'll have your pick once we're victorious.

"You strike me as a woman who knows what she wants, and you deserve better than these fools. Consider my offer... I think we'll talk soon enough."

"Well, that's interesting." There was more work to do, but instead Omilaena stared at the crystal for a very long time.

.

..

.

A man in tattered silk robes walked toward the Brightwind Pagoda on leaden legs. Seeing the glory of his sect, he wished that there had been time to find better robes, but he couldn't afford to give up his secret. If someone else knew about the patriarch's daughter, they might kill him and take the knowledge back themselves.

His journey felt so long, it seemed impossible that he was back home. At first the guards stopped him from entering the inner sect, since he was just at the Nascent Foundation stage. But when he finally revealed what he knew, he was escorted into the grand chambers where the patriarch sat.

Patriarch Zae Clen Ban wasn't holding court at the moment, only cultivating, and he fixed his eyes on the man when he entered. "What is it?"

"My lord... your daughter... I found her..." All at once, his mouth was as dry as it had been on the ocean.

"Finally!" The patriarch leapt to his feet. "One of our lines has reeled in a catch after all. You there! Gather some sect members, those who have reached the Earth Soul stage and have binding techniques. This time, there can be no accidents with my daughter..."