Lucius caught Darian just before he fell onto the ground. Fear coursed through him as he laid Darian down, and knelt by his side. His friend had fallen unconscious and was in poor shape. Darian’s right hand was twisted and broken, though not beyond the point of repair, as long as he made it to a healer fast enough. What worried Lucius the most, however, was how pale Darian looked. His friend’s olive-toned skin looked ashen, and lines of exhaustion marred his features.

It was such a transformation from the vibrant and energetic, if violent, young man Darian had been mere moments ago. It had happened so fast that if Lucius hadn’t witnessed the change with his own eyes, he wouldn’t have believed it happened.

“Answer me, Lucius.”

Lucius spared a brief look for his father, who had arrived just a few moments ago. What he was doing here, Lucius didn’t know. Neither did he care, not at that moment. His only concern was for Darian.

The rest of their kin all bowed to his father.

“Greetings, Elder Dominic,” they all said in unison, before rising up again.

Lucius was the only exception.

“Darian needs a healer,” he said.

His father walked to his side, frowning. Lucius looked up.

“What happened here?” his father asked. “Why is your friend injured like this?”

Lucius opened his mouth to reply, but Junior Brother Zayne beat him to it.

“Darian and I were resolving our differences, Elder Dominic,” he said. In his hands, he held the mangled remains of the practice sword he had used in his bout with Darian. “We fought, and he won.”

Dominic’s frown deepened.

“Impossible,” he scoffed. “Darian is not a cultivator. Are you telling me that you lost to a mortal, Nephew Zayne?”

“He’s telling the truth, Father,” Lucius said. “Darian and Junior Brother Zayne fought, and Darian won. However, he then became like this. Ask anyone here. They will tell you the same.”

There was a murmur of agreement from their kin.

“It’s true, Elder Dominic,” someone in the crowd said. “Darian fought Senior Brother Zayne.”

Lucius’ father looked over the crowd as they all said something along the same lines.

“Are you telling me that a mortal beat a cultivator in the middle of the Foundation Establishment stage?” Dominic asked. “I find that difficult to believe.”

“He didn’t fight like a mortal,” Junior Brother Zayne said. “He fought like a cultivator.” He glanced at Darian. “I suspect he has a way to hide his cultivation. He might seem like a mortal, but I don’t believe he is one.”

This caused the crowd around them to explode into excited whispering. Darian’s lack of cultivation was well known among the clan. For him to be a cultivator, one who had hidden his cultivation for who knows how long, made for ripe and juicy gossip. Lucius suspected that the whole clan would know about it before nightfall.

He had to hand it to Darian. His friend had found one of the flashiest ways to reveal his strength. Picking a fight with a cultivator three years his senior? One in the middle of the Foundation Establishment stage? It was unbelievable, given what everyone had known about Darian, or thought they had known.

Even Lucius found it difficult to believe, and he had witnessed the fight. To his mind sense, Darian felt like a mortal, albeit one with a subdued aura. Was that a result of the method Darian had used to hide his cultivation? He would have to ask later on. Right now, his friend needed help.

“Darian needs a healer,” Lucius repeated.

Unfortunately, Clan Wind Dance’s healers, Vera and her sister, were still out collecting medicinal herbs in the Silverwood. Lucius didn’t know where in the Silverwood they had gone, and it might take hours to find them, even with his flying sword and mind sense. While the clan had access to more mundane forms of healing, Lucius didn’t think they would be enough in this case. It was possible that Darian’s hand would be permanently damaged.

Lucius cursed his friend for hitting the metal practice sword with his bare fist. Was he an idiot? Why had he taken off his gauntlet?

“Bring him to Niece Lynda’s clinic,” Lucius’ father commanded. He wore a complicated expression on his face. “I’ll have Nephew Jayson fetch her and Niece Vera. He should know where they are.”

Relief flooded Lucius.

“Thank you, Father,” he said.

While Lucius had been at odds with his father these past several weeks, he knew he could count on him when it mattered.

“Of course, my son,” his father said, putting a hand on Lucius’ shoulder. “While I had made my feelings about your friendship with…Nephew Darian clear, he is still your friend. It is the least I can do.”

Lucius gave his father a grateful smile, before pulling out his flying sword from his holding bag. He picked up Darian.

“Will someone bring his things to Senior Sister Lynda’s clinic for me?” Lucius asked.

He had tried to put Darian’s bag and snake-shaped stone bracelet into his holding bag, but neither one would go in. He suspected there was something strange going on there.

“I will, Senior Brother Lucius!” Colin Wind Dance said. He picked everything up, including the gauntlet Darian had dropped.

While Lucius sometimes found the younger man’s sycophantic attitude annoying, at that moment, Lucius could have kissed him.

“Thank you, Junior Brother Colin. I shall remember this.”

“As for the rest of you,” his father said. “It’s best if you resume your training.”

With that, the two of them flew off.

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It took every ounce of Dominic’s willpower to remain on his flying sword. Fear gripped his heart in an icy claw, to the point where he thought his legs would give out. Somehow, they didn’t.

The day had started out so well for him. His plan had been to provoke a confrontation with Darian Wind Dance, give him a crippling injury, and leverage the means to heal him against his son. Crude and blunt, but sometimes the simplest solutions worked the best. He had even managed to remove the biggest potential obstacles to this plan.

The first had been Vera River Heart. The girl was friends with Darian, and would have healed him without hesitation. Jayson, Vera’s brother-in-law, was one of Dominic’s subordinates. Together with his wife, Lynda, Jayson managed to remove Vera from Mt. Wind Dance long enough for Dominic to enact his plan.

The second obstacle had been Darian’s grandparents, Patriarch Darin and Elder Astoria. While they barely acknowledged the boy’s existence, he was still their grandson. If he became injured, they might have felt obligated to help him. Dominic had resorted to asking his grandfather, Elder Fletcher, to keep them both occupied for a time. He hadn’t told his grandfather why he had needed them occupied, however. This gave Grandfather Fletcher plausible deniability, in case things went wrong and Dominic got caught.

After such a strong start, things went downhill from there.

First, when Dominic had arrived at Darian’s location, he learned that the boy was a cultivator who managed to hide his cultivation for who knows how long. The implications of that had worried Dominic. There were things going on beneath the surface, things he knew nothing about, and he didn’t like that. Knowledge was a form of power, after all.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

Still, he would have continued on with his plan despite that. Darian had even already been injured, saving him the trouble of doing it himself. Lucius’ presence was an even bigger boon. All he had to do was offer to have Darian healed, in exchange for his son’s obedience in the matter regarding Willow Stone Pillar.

However, before he could even try, a woman’s voice had spoken to him in his mind.

“If you involve Darian in one of your petty little schemes, Dominic Wind Dance,” the voice had said. “I will kill you and burn your soul to ashes.”

The voice had a presence to it, a weight that could not be denied. It had pressed down on Dominic, each word as heavy as a mountain. Somehow he had remained upright. He even managed to interact with the others without revealing his panic.

That voice was the reason why Dominic had contacted Jayson through telepathy and told him to bring Lynda and Vera back right away, so that they could heal Darian. He didn’t want to make an enemy of whoever it belonged to.

As Dominic and his son flew towards Lynda’s clinic, he made some mental adjustment to his plans. Darian’s cultivation, and that voice, were new variables that needed to be taken into account. He needed to find out what was going on. Perhaps it would be a good idea to consult his grandfather.

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Stella sneered at Dominic as she watched him fly away with his son, heading towards Lynda River Heart’s clinic. She knew he had been up to something when he appeared at the training courtyard. While she hadn’t known for sure what he had been up to, she recognized the gleam in his eyes. It always appeared when he was scheming something. If it hadn’t involved Darian, she wouldn’t have cared. He could scheme to his little heart’s content, for all that it mattered to her. However, it had involved Darian, so she intervened.

Stella had followed Darian when he left home that morning because she had a feeling that something would happen, something that involved violence. And she had been right. That prick, “Zayne”, had been up to his usual tricks. At first she thought “Zayne” had been exactly what he had always seemed to be, a bully picking on Darian to compensate for his own shortcomings. However, when he had used his energy techniques, Stella realized who he actually was. It seemed she wasn’t the only Immortal who had disguised herself.

What kind of Immortal picked on a child several centuries their junior? Stella ignored the fact that she had been the one who engineered Darian’s current circumstances.

Darian’s performance had been within expectations. He still had a long way to go, but given how long he had been cultivating, that was to be expected. He had been at it for less than six months after all. With Astra’s help, Stella expected that it wouldn’t be long before he reached the Energy Gathering stage.

As for Darian’s current condition, she wasn’t worried at all. If Astra hadn’t intervened and calmed Darian’s demon, she would have. Other than that, except for his injured right hand, he was just exhausted. Besides, Astra was nearby, and Stella knew that her Junior Sister was always prepared for a number of contingencies. That fiery wreath of hers also served as a spatial storage item, similar to holding bags, and the sun cat had a staggering number of resources inside it. The thing qualified as a repository in its own right. The amount of medicine Astra had access to would be enough to heal an entire army of injured cultivators.

Even if Astra didn’t have anything, Stella did. While she would prefer not to act directly, for Darian’s sake she would. Motherhood was such a pain sometimes. Despite that, she had a fond smile on her face.

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Astra approached “Zayne” Wind Dance. In a bit, she would join Darian and keep an eye on him, but for now she would leave him in Lucius’ hands. At the moment, she wanted to have a talk with “Zayne”.

He was with a junior of his, a girl fifteen years of age or so. At the moment, the two of them were resting, while the rest of their kin continued on with their training. The girl kept trying to check on “Zayne”, seeing if he was injured. He assured her that he was fine each time, but she refused to believe it. She radiated with worry.

“Look at what happened to Darian,” the girl said. “What if the same thing happens to you?”

“Senior Brother Darian,” ‘Zayne’ said. “He’s your senior, Clarissa, in both age and power. You should treat him as such.”

The girl, Clarissa, looked conflicted at this.

“But…Everyone treats him…You…He hurt you, Senior Brother Zayne. He wanted to keep hurting you, even after you surrendered.”

“Zayne” smiled at this.

“And I was cruel to him. In his shoes, I would have wanted to do the same.”

Clarissa frowned at this.

“Senior Brother Zayne, why did you say such cruel things to him? You’re always so nice to me.”

Astra was curious about that as well. She sat nearby and listened.

“Lightning strikes the tallest tree in a forest, Junior Sister Clarissa,” ‘Zayne’ said. “Darian’s anger is like lightning. Rather than let it strike at random, I thought it would be best to let it focus on me. That way, he would have an easier time forgiving the rest of the clan for what we did to him.”

Clarissa blinked at him.

“Senior Brother Zayne, you make it sound like you knew that this would happen.”

At that, “Zayne” grinned.

“Of course I did. Didn’t you know? Your Senior Brother knows everything!”

Clarissa snorted with laughter. The worry from earlier faded away.

“Now get back to training. I’ll rest here for a bit longer.”

“Yes, Senior Brother Zayne.”

When Clarissa ran off to join the others, Astra took her spot.

“Was any of that true, ‘Senior Brother Zayne’?” she asked him. “Or should I just call you Sword Immortal Darian?”

“Of course,” Sword Immortal Darian said. “I have no reason to lie to Clarissa. She is my future disciple after all.” He grinned at Astra. “And please, when it’s just the two of us, call me by my real name.”

Astra looked at the girl. Anyone chosen to be an Immortal’s disciple was special in some way. However, what Astra saw surprised her.

“Her?” she asked. “Her talent is average at best. I can tell just by looking at her spirit root. I would have expected you to pick Lucius, or some other prodigy to be your disciple.”

Sword Immortal Darian shook his head.

“No. Sophie, my fellow Sword Immortal, has her eyes on him. Clarissa is better suited to me, or it would be better to say that I’m better suited to her. I also had mediocre talent in cultivation, and I still remember what it was like.” He shrugged. “Besides, she’s a hard worker and has unbelievable luck.”

At that, Astra nodded. Perseverance and luck could make up for a lack of talent. In fact, sometimes luck was even better than talent.

Sword Immortal Darian’s expression turned sober.

“The other reason I decided to treat Darian as I had was to keep close to him. That way, if his demon ever broke free, I would be able to suppress him right away.” He nodded in the direction Lucius had brought Darian. “You saw it, didn’t you? The demon?”

Astra grimaced. She had. When she had calmed Darian’s anger and fixed the crack on the seal keeping his demon in check, she had caught a glimpse of it. Though, that was an inaccurate way to put it. Calling it Darian’s demon implied that it was something separate from him, something that haunted him, when in reality it was Darian. At least, it was a part of his being.

He, and the demon was a he, had looked like a black-skinned version of Darian, with horns adorning his head. He had red eyes, long claws, and sharp teeth. Rage had twisted the demon’s face as he battered his fists against the seal keeping him in check. If Astra hadn’t fixed the seal, he would have broken out.

The demon had caught Astra’s eyes as she had done so. She saw nothing in them except pure rage and battle lust. If Darian never learned how to control his demon, he would become like Gavin, a monster who butchered everything around him. Astra could not, would not, allow that. She would rather kill Darian, much as she loved him. Or maybe, it was because she loved him so much. The last thing she wanted was for him to be consumed by his demon.

In a way, it was similar to an inner demon. However, unlike an inner demon, this one hadn’t been born from trauma, extreme negative emotions, or an unresolved issue. Darian had been born with it. It had always been, and would always be, a part of him. Also unlike an inner demon, it wasn’t hostile to Darian. In fact, except for the uncontrollable blood lust, this demon was a boon. When he learned to control it, and Astra would make sure that he would, it would become a source of great strength for him.

“Yes, I did,” Astra said.

“If Darian had lost control while fighting someone else, anyone below the Core Shaping stage would have been severely injured, especially with those gauntlets you gave him,” Sword Immortal Darian said. “Those in the Foundation Establishment stage might have even died. As I said, it’s better for someone like me to be the focus of his anger. At least I could have suppressed him without him injuring himself trying to kill me.”

Astra smirked at that.

“A big bad Immortal, reduced to being a babysitter for a demon. It’s like a poorly written joke.”

“I am one of his Honored Ancestors,” Sword Immortal Darian pointed out. “One of our duties is to protect and nurture our clan. Darian is a Wind Dance, whatever you or your Senior Sister might think.”

He had a point there, but Astra refused to say so. She didn’t want to give him the satisfaction.

“It’s best if you stay away from Darian for now,” Astra said instead. “Antagonize him too much, and you’ll just make things worse. Let him develop on his own for a bit.”

“You know, I was just thinking the same thing.” Sword Immortal Darian smirked at her. “Great minds think alike, eh?”

Astra sneered at him.

“You make me want to claw that smile right off your face.”

“Anytime you want a rematch, little kitty, let me know. The results will be the same, however.”

Astra unsheathed her claws, scoring the stone beneath her paws, though she managed to resist the urge to attack him. During their fight in the icy wasteland north of the Ice Fang Mountains, Sword Immortal Darian had beaten her with embarrassing ease. Even though he was one stage above her, he was an Immortal while she was merely at the Nascent Soul stage. The difference between them was the difference between a mountain and a molehill.

“Keep laughing, Sword Immortal. When I become an Immortal myself, you’ll be the first person I visit.”

Sword Immortal Darian’s smile turned sharp.

“I look forward to it, little kitty.”

At that, Astra huffed and flew off, heading towards Darian.