Vibrations infiltrated the ground, forming a deep connection with me as the earth and violet mist wrapped around me. With a deep breath, the violet mist filtered into my grounded body and caused my cultivation base, the spiritual dirt particles, to rotate, and power flowed through my system.
Whew.
My seventh stage was already completely stable, and with each passing moment, the door knocking to the next stage was getting worn down by a constant rhythmic battle as the earth around me assisted in pushing my cultivation higher.
“That’s enough here. The Matron’s influence has been purged.”
I nodded and gazed behind me, momentarily noticing the small tufts of violet-hued grass that had begun to spread across the ground. I wasn’t sure what the nature of the Violet Earth Qi was, but it seemed to allow for more natural growth than the Bloodthorne Qi that forcefully occupied the ground and forced twisted trees to grow.
Shink.
I pulled out the Mountain Sealing Sword and hefted it onto my shoulder like a badass, but only momentarily. My body sagged under the sword’s weight and from the weakness of converting an area under The Matron’s influence into my own. Thankfully, the violet mist healed and replenished my body in no time.
“Gou Jing, is there a limit to how much the violet mist can heal me?” I asked.
There was a silence as Gou Jing considered things for a moment, and she spoke skeptically.
“Your injuries will quickly heal as long as the violet mist is around without a limit at Qi Condensation. But fast doesn’t mean instantly, so you can’t get overwhelmed with attacks or take an attack that instantly kills you. A powerful enough poison or counteractant to the violet mist would also likely end up with you dead, like how Gou Hui used the Bloodthorne Qi to suppress the violet mist in the area.”
Gou Jing seemed like she had more to say as the ground lightly tremored beneath my feet.
“You may need it in a moment.”
I cocked my head sideways, about to question her words when my ears perked up with a distant noise. It sounded like a steady thumping beat drawing closer with each second.
“What do you mean—”
The sword in my hand flashed on reflex as it sliced the swooping Bloodthorne Bat above me. Following it, two more bats harmlessly bounced off the earthen armour that protected me. I punched the first and swung at the second, which dodged out of the way as my body got knocked aside.
The horned bramble dog that knocked me aside growled and leapt at me as I tumbled, trying to get me before I got back on my feet. I did with a speed that outpaced the horned bramble dog, using my sword as a grounded crutch. With the sword impaled in the ground, I felt the way the earth shifted according to my will, and with a single thought, the earth spiralled beneath the horned bramble dog, piercing its unsuspecting throat.
Unfortunately, another took its place almost immediately after, staring at me with bloodthirsty eyes that wished to tear through me.
“Where did they all come from!?” I shouted as my sword decapitated the horned demon dog that was trying to bite through my armour.
“Gou Jia likely summoned them here to deal with you. He always was the type to let others do the work while he sat behind like some commanding mastermind.”
I leapt backwards, landing on a bramble dog and driving its head deep into the dirt. My sword followed, carving a path through the horde of bramble beasts that surrounded me as I immediately sprinted away.
“But this is good; we can kill two birds with one stone. To fully convert the area, we needed to eliminate the bramble beasts here anyway.”
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A dissatisfied grunt escaped my throat as I swung the sword at the pack of bramble dogs surrounding me, causing the ground to shift as crags of rocks lifted and flew into the air. The rocks killed many of the bramble bats flying around.
“More like two bats with one stone!” I said, impressed by my bad joke. Gou Jing had another opinion on that.
“Please stop. You’ve been making terrible jokes this entire time.”
“Oh, come on, the opportunity was right there! How could I not take it?”
This time it was Gou Jing’s turn to sigh.
*****
Hands pushed apart the courtyard doors, and a figure dressed in the inner disciple embroidered robes burst in with an urgent message. His voice stomped in, interrupting the chatting between a pair of outer disciples.
“We have new orders from Sect Leader Gou Da! Round up the earthers and the prisoners; we must gather and prepare them for tonight’s ritual!”
The outer disciples hurriedly bowed, and upon seeing this, the inner disciple scoffed, leaving the courtyard to deliver the message to others.
Chuckle.
Giggle.
“Stop laughing!” One of the outer disciples reprimanded as she slapped her partner.
“Heh, how could I not? It’s like, with a simple bow, he doesn’t even notice who we are. The cultivator customs can be quite deceiving.”
“Would he have even noticed in the first place? The inner disciples treat the outer disciples as disposables, anyway.” the outer disciple laughed before heading deeper into the courtyard towards the training building. With a push, the building doors opened, revealing a flurry of activity as disguised disciples moved on their respective missions.
The pair of outer disciples rushed to their leader, Sun Cai, and instructed him that the inner disciples had begun moving according to Gou Da’s command.
“Thank you for relaying this to me.” Sun Cai briefly nodded, then gestured to one of the boxes behind him.
“Go ahead and take a bloodthorne mask and coordinate with the others to—”
Suddenly, the doors to the room opened as Abby rushed in with the torn-apart root in her hands. She arrived before Sun Cai with the speed and grace of a water movement skill and hurriedly spoke.
“Sun Cai! We have to alter our plans!”
…
After explaining her findings to Sun Cai, Abby watched his eyes, monitoring how they shifted with ideas. Finally, his eyes locked on Abby, and a hand was placed on her shoulder.
“This helps a lot, Abby. I was worried about one of the Gou Brothers reactivating something in the people who couldn’t force the crimson pill out of their bodies, but if what you say is true, then the violet mist should limit their danger to acceptable levels. But we must act fast to change things, and the disciples who eliminated the hidden crimson pill will have to watch over the less fortunate.”
With a call, the two outer disciples, who were disguised earthers, shifted to Sun Cai in attention.
“Take the bloodthorne mask as a precaution, but alert the others that our rendezvous point has changed. Tell everyone to meet at the north bridge point and bring all the Wood Qi cultivators you can; we need to install the backup plan bridges to evacuate people below into the violet mist. Coordinate with Mrs. Collins out in the field.”
The outer disciples shouted their agreement and ran off to do their duties, leaving Sun Cai behind to speak with Abby.
“Are you ready?” Sun Cai asked Abby, who nodded, but with reluctance hanging down her head.
“Trust me. You can fight against Gou Jia. I will finish my fight with Gou Da as soon as possible, and Arden will do the same against Gou Hui. We will rotate to assist you as soon as we are done.”
Abby nodded, feeling a bit more reassured.
The two-step plan was a simple one.
Step one was to evacuate the rebels to safe houses scattered across the sect. But, thanks to Abby’s revelation, that plan shifted to descending into the violet mist.
Step two was the tricky part. While the others dealt with keeping the rebels safe, Sun Cai, Abby, and Arden would eliminate the Gou Brothers. With the head of the sect removed, they could do as they themselves had experienced: disbanding the community after their leaders died.
“Alright, go help evacuate the rebels faster; they need all the hands they can to help. I’ll send a message via talisman when we are ready to go into phase two of the plan.”
Sun Cai handed over a communication talisman to Abby, who nodded and quickly left the courtyard to help escort the weaker cultivators.
Once outside, Abby rotated her cultivation base, feeling the empowered effects coursing through her. Looking upwards, Abby noted the twinkling stars, the blackening void of space taking over the clear blue sky, and the most crucial object.
Like a beautiful pearl glistening in the sky, the full moon cascaded as it rose from the distant mountaintops. The full moon would hang above them in a few hours, providing the centrepiece to the beautiful night sky.
Seeing the moon caused Abby’s fists to clench as the reality of the situation fully hit her.
“Tonight, we end this all for good.” Abby took a deep breath, and images of her loved ones fighting for the same goal swept past her mind.
Abby paused.
“Tonight is for you, Dad.” She whispered and disappeared into the sect streets, eager to face the upcoming battle.