“I see” - I said to myself as I tested the artifact.
The most complicated part of the compass converted an astral image into the direction the needle pointed, but I didn’t really need that function since my psionics could handle it. In the future, I’d probably be able to replicate the same Qi structure without a compass at all, but for now I focused on its practical utility.
“We’re heading this way” - I announced, indicating a new destination.
The disciples obediently changed direction, staring at me with open mouths. The compass was glowing in a kaleidoscope of colors, with dozens of characters flaring above it. It was impossible to make sense of all that flickering, but I didn’t bother trying to.
“All right, let me explain my plans: I’m going to break into the ancient Qi realm. As you all know, it’s extremely dangerous there, so if anyone doesn’t want to take that risk, I can leave you by one of the ‘ordinary’ geysers, where you can safely focus on raising your level. Some people need countless treasures to develop further; others just need a small push. Now, we’re going to land over there.” - I pointed to an unremarkable spot in the dense forest. - “So, who wants to stay here at a powerful geyser?”
“Which geyser?” - Sixth asked.
“The one that’ll appear in this spot in about… forty minutes.” - I peered at the compass to check the exact timing. The group began exchanging glances. - “Makes no difference to me if you all want to try to get into the ancient Qi realm, you can follow me.”
“I’ll stay here” - Ninth spoke up. She was the weakest of my entourage, and also a girl, so the idea of diving into the thick of things clearly didn’t thrill her.
“I’ll stay too” - Eighth added, looking at the girl. Evidently, he was interested in her, and judging by his expression, he planned to get his way by force if necessary.
“I’ll keep an eye on them” - Sixth decided. Judging by the glance he exchanged with Eighth, they were planning to divvy up the ‘prize’. Well, good luck them.
“Anyone else?” - I asked. - “No? Too bad. All right, you three — this geyser will appear exactly where I’m standing now, so you’ll be able to get right into its center and spend three days there in relative safety. That’s all. The rest of you, follow me.”
I took off, running on air and simultaneously scanning the destination point with the compass. I much preferred moving on my own rather than relying on these companions, who clearly weren’t in a hurry. My target was the main geyser that was supposed to break through in about half an hour. Having decided on my route, I checked my surroundings once more and re-evaluated the strength of my teammates. There was one cultivator at the tenth level (20), three at the ninth (19), one at the eighth (18), and one girl at the seventh (17). Let’s hope at least some of them survive.
We covered about ten kilometers when suddenly, ‘unexpectedly’ for them, at least, three cultivators from the Black Lotus Sect appeared. I’d foreseen their arrival, but there was no way to avoid them, so I decided on a straightforward plan: kill the trio on the spot. That required them to show up abruptly, catching my unsuspecting group off guard.
“Ah, there’s my future pills!” - exclaimed the leader of the trio, who was at the first level of Core Formation (21).
He rushed to Number One straight away, suppressing him with some kind of technique, while his two companions — both at the tenth level of Foundation Establishment (20), charged to our five-person group, attacking haphazardly and preventing anyone from interfering in the leaders’ fight. They paid zero attention to me, because my sixth level of Qi Condensation (6) could only make them sneer.
That was what caused their deaths.
I rushed forward, pretending to flee, but then spun around, jumped into the air, and came up behind the cultivator at the Core Formation Stage. He must have felt my maneuver but didn’t even bother turning around, merely surrounding himself with a glowing shield. I, however, accelerated to my limit, pulled out my club from behind my back, and struck him in the side of the head with all the force I could muster, literally knocking his useless pumpkin off his shoulders.
The shield he had counted on let out a pathetic clang before disappearing. At the same time, the club briefly revealed its internal Qi, which caused a fatal disruption in the opponent’s defensive technique. I also felt my weapon’s inner energy increase slightly.
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As soon as attackers’ leader died, flow of the battle changed drastically. The two remaining enemies found themselves caught between superior forces. Even more, seeing a Core Formation cultivator get mercilessly killed by a mere Qi Condensation disciple completely demoralized them.
“Kill them!” - I shouted, using my Eastern Demon Tentacle on one of the opponents who had decided to run away. Although my technique was fairly weak, it was enough to slow him down, after which Number Two and Number Seven literally skewered him on their swords.
The last enemy chose not to surrender without a fight, but when six cultivators converged on him, he couldn’t stand against them and was sliced to pieces by several techniques at once.
“Drag the bodies over here!” - I ordered my subordinates as I moved closer to the leader of the attackers to search him.
My main interest was his Qi, but I had too many witnesses. In the end, I decided the risk was worth it and, under the guise of searching his corpse, quickly stabbed him in the abdomen, instantly draining about three-quarters of the Qi in his Core. The remaining quarter would be enough to make it look like his energy was dispersing on its own.
Besides acquiring Qi at the Core Formation level, I also scored three rings, one of which appeared to be the equivalent of my own alchemist’s seal. I pulled out of his pocket a strange device that looked like a cross between a scepter and some predatory insect with many blade-like legs.
“What’s this thing?” - I asked my companions, who had gathered around me.
“It’s a Qi extractor” - Number One replied with disgust. - “Cultivators of the Black Lotus Sect use it to turn people into pills for their cultivation.”
“A useful tool” - I nodded. - “It’ll come in handy.”
I slipped the scepter into my pocket as well. There had to be a good reason its previous owner didn’t keep it in a spatial ring.
“Have you already searched these two?” - I asked, turning to the remaining bodies.
“Why?” - Number Five asked, surprised.
“The rings” - I said, pointing at a conspicuous ring on the corpse’s hand and starting to twist it off his finger. It looked like some kind of family heirloom.
“But they’re sealed by their owners’ Qi. At best, you could open them in ten years.”
“That’s not a problem for me” - I replied, rummaging through the corpse and covertly stealing most of its Qi in the process.
Outwardly, nothing changed, because only the Qi closest to the skin was escaping the body at that moment. Without an autopsy, the difference wouldn’t be noticeable for several hours—and who was going to bother with that?
My companions said nothing and simply watched in silence as I “gutted” the last corpse. He had been cut in half at the waist, so most of his Qi had already dispersed, but I managed to collect a little, which I’d use later to open his ring.
“Does anyone here know how to get rid of bodies?” - I asked.
“I do” - Fourth replied. From what I’d observed, he only ever spoke when necessary and had the distinct air of someone whose main line of work involved “problem-solving.”
I silently pointed to the corpses, and Fourth just as silently used a technique to pull them underground, leaving no trace on the grass. Clearly, he had plenty of experience using this particular skill.
“Excellent. Now…” - I pulled out the compass again and started scanning future possibilities. It significantly reduced the load on my psionic abilities, so I didn’t have to strain myself. This compass was turning out to be a handy little tool. - “Now we need to go that way” - I said, pointing in a new direction.
We took off, and within a couple of minutes, we arrived at a large boulder that jutted out over the ground on one side, creating a sort of roof-like overhang. Occasionally, forest creatures used this spot as shelter, but it was empty at the moment.
“We have about five… maybe seven minutes to split the loot.”
“Why did we stop here?” - Number Five asked.
A split second later, there was an explosion not far away, and two Core Formation cultivators could be seen flitting about in the sky, locked in a deadly battle.
“Any more silly questions?” - I asked. - “Good.”
I took out the ring from the “sliced-up” corpse and used the Qi I’d taken from it to simply dump the ring’s entire contents onto the ground. These guys had been loaded, there was plenty to go around. I took a few alchemical herbs for myself, as well as the largest Qi crystals, leaving behind a couple of swords, a scattering of smaller crystals, and a pile of pills.
“The rest is yours” - I said to the disciples, who were looking my newly acquired valuables in astonishment.
They hesitated for a second before starting to divide the spoils. I waited until they’d cleared some space, then emptied the contents of the second cultivator’s ring. This haul was even more interesting. I grabbed a jade slip inscribed with some technique, a pouch of herbs, and an old copper bracelet with a Qi seal of some sort inside it. I also claimed a large Qi-infused stone. The only catch was that the energy within it had very peculiar properties.
“I’d advise you to throw this thing away and not even touch it” - I said, examining the stone.
“Why?” - Number Seven asked, craning her neck to get a better look.
“There’s a chance that if you absorb even a drop of this energy, you’ll either die or stop being a cultivator.”
After that review, no one was willing to mess with the stone. They all went for the simpler valuables instead.
“And now the tricky part. This might take some doing.” - I pulled out two rings.
To open them, I needed Qi at the Core Formation level, a tall order for someone at the Qi Condensation Stage. But I’d managed to obtain a thin “thread” of Qi from the former owner and used it to crack open one of the rings.