It was fascinating just how routine life could be when the city was going through a civil war. Another week passed without anything noteworthy. The siege stalled, and even under curfew, the city fell into a weird, comfortable monotony.

I woke up, I ate, I practiced. Marana always stopped by when she was going out, and I used the opportunity to get a quick lesson about Muscle Reinforcement Tiger Fist, which finally pushed it to Minor Immersion as well, far faster than I could do on my own. I managed to get a few more Calligraphy lessons, allowing me to reach Major Accomplishment. I even got some cooking classes, continuing our lessons from Dumassa.

To maintain variety, I practiced the other martial arts as well whenever Marana was out, which allowed me to push them to Minor Immersion as well, each success making the next easier. Unfortunately, no matter how much I tried, I failed to do the same for Forest Dance or my unnamed sprinting techniques.

Something was lacking, preventing them from taking that step forward.

It was a small setback, but I didn't care much. Not when I achieved my biggest objective after last night's session.

The real benefit was the Essence Massage technique, finally reaching Minor Immersion after last night's massage. I was yet to test its benefits, but I was rather enthusiastic about the potential improvements.

A rather important benefit. In a way, massage skill proved to be a surprising strategic asset, as raising people's martial cultivation rapidly was valuable enough that, if I ever revealed it, the city lord — maybe even the king — would have recruited me forcefully. Also, as the campaign against Tiger Fist showed, ruining people's cultivation was far more effective as a weapon of terror than actually killing them.

Of course, neither really compared to its real advantage. It helped me to keep my lady friends happy and pampered, which, in turn, kept the rewards coming.

And, the ability to improve their cultivation was certainly a benefit.

Meanwhile, Crane Kick School had gone through an incredible burst of improvement. Marana had been training her disciples aggressively during that period, which put the pills she had received to good use. I had taken a few glimpses of their disciples fighting against Demon Claw disciples, taking them down aggressively.

Tiger Fist members were still in their compound. Unexpectedly, the Dragon Saber compound was empty. It seemed that they decided to pull back. I didn't know why, nor did I care. Ultimately, it was not my fight. I just intervened to keep a few people I cared about safe.

Marana's hospitality and attention were an excellent bonus, though.

It was an ideal, easy life. A little more isolated for my tastes, but getting better was worth it.

This was why, when a sudden explosion rocked the city, I felt frustration along with fear. Such an explosion was never good news.

I dashed through the tunnel to get out, curious what I would find.

The source of the explosion was even easier to find. A robed man, floating above the city manor, his hand glowing red. A second after I saw him, he slammed his hand against the glowing protective dome, and another quake rocked the city, the shockwave wounding many and killing some.

Power…

No wonder people treated cultivators as gods and demons. I had a good idea about the limits of a martial artist. Even hundreds of them wouldn't be enough to deal with that man, not when the aftershocks of his punches were enough to cause mayhem.

I didn't try to go and intervene. I wasn't suicidal. I didn't even run away, afraid of somehow getting his attention.

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I had no idea what he was capable of.

I shivered in fear as he hit the barrier again and again, each hit adding more cracks. Yet, before he could complete it, another figure appeared in front of him. A woman, wearing a veil and a thick robe, with her sword out. It was a familiar sight, but I had no idea if she was the one responsible for my unusual greeting, or just belonged to the same group.

"Stop. Kartpa Valley has no right to be here, attacking civilians," she said. Her voice was familiar. She was the one responsible for my unusual greeting.

She didn't shout, yet I was able to hear her. And, from the hopeful expression of the people around me, I wasn't the only one who could hear her.

"Nonsense. I'm not attacking civilians. I just found this formation an eyesore, and I wanted to remove it. After all, it's a cultivation artifact, and an eyesore," he said, his voice hitting harder. A lot of civilians around me fell down in pain. I copied them. He paused for a moment, then continued. "Don't tell me that you're going to fight me over it. A mere inner disciple, daring to challenge an elder."

When she swung her sword, I felt the touch of death. I didn't know who would win, but from what I had seen, the odds of the city surviving were minimal.

I let out a breath when, rather than hitting him, however, the sword hit against the barrier, enough to shatter it completely. "Here, the eyesore is gone," she said. Whatever she did, it left her exhausted.

"Clever," the man said, then looked down toward Lord Eirto's army — which had pulled back to avoid the shockwaves — before speaking again. "Don't disappoint me."

With that, he disappeared.

I didn't know exactly why he pulled back, nor did I care much. All I saw was a power that would have killed me if I had been in the wrong place. Everything I saw showed that he had the ability to destroy the city easily, held back by some kind of treaty.

Not a comforting thought.

The woman looked at the city for a moment, then disappeared as well. "Attack!" Lord Eirto shouted.

With his order, the army moved. From a closer vantage point, I heard Marana shout as well. "Attack!" The Wolf Fang and Demon Claw schools crashed against each other, while Tiger Fist members abandoned their earlier reticence and rushed out.

I stayed away. I wasn't weak, but also I wasn't strong enough to make a real difference. More importantly, I had no idea whether those cultivators were still nearby.

I couldn't afford that female cultivator to notice my incredible improvement. Nothing good would come out of it.

Luckily, everything I had done until this moment had been enough. Crane Kick disciples were able to stand their ground against Tiger Fist disciples, especially when eight Instructors of the Tiger Fist school surrounded Marana, trying to take her down first. Three of those Instructors were at the Bone Forging realm, probably reinforcements that arrived during the week.

Crane Kick instructors tried to help her, but even with their recent losses Tiger Fist was numerous enough to keep them back. I might have been tempted to intervene if I thought that Marana was under any threat, but even when she was surrounded, she never displayed anything above the Bone Forging Realm — which was still enough to shatter stone and steel casually.

Then, the moment they surrounded her, a subtle glow covered her. Her essence bubbled to the surface as she empowered her whole body at the same time. The biggest advantage of the Connate realm. Her attributes increased, her kicks hitting with a power that would put a tank to shame.

"Connate Realm. Escape —" one of the Bone Forging realm artists shouted, but it was the last thing he was able to say. The eight instructors tried to pull back, but none succeeded. I had to admit that Marana had planned that well. If they knew about her breakthrough, they could probably come up with a way to keep her in check, like spreading and forcing her to chase them, attack her disciples, or many others.

Their lack of information proved costly.

I climbed to a roof, watching as the blood covered the streets. Once she dealt with the Instructors, Marana didn't waste any time with the panicking disciples. She rushed toward the manor, hitting the army from behind.

The following battle hadn't been easy or quick, yet it was decisive. A Connate Realm Martial artist might be nothing compared to the earlier cultivators, but against anyone else, she was an unbeatable paragon. She moved along the army, cutting through a path toward Lord Eirto.

Which, in turn, forced the experts in his army to pull back and defend him, once again proving that quantity had a quality of its own.

Yet, the sudden shift was enough to turn almost a certain victory into a devastating loss. Lord Eirto and his forces started to pull back. The battle was over … but killing was not.

I returned to my room, but only to write a note that looked like it was from the mysterious evil apothecary — the Calligraphy already coming useful — that Arthanum had been taken away momentarily, but would be sent back soon to act as a courier.

And, with my excuse for an eventual return in place, I left the city.

A civil war was one thing, but the presence of the cultivators was a deal breaker.