Chapter 14
The next two days I spent practicing the punches and footwork technique, during that time I could feel my body becoming accustomed to the movements. It’s honestly incredible how much stronger I’ve become since reaching [Qi Gathering]. The strength I feel now is comparable to enhancing myself with my psychic abilities. This gives me a chance to attack and defend at my full strength without having to protect myself. I have also noticed how much more durable I’ve gotten as well. Usually, enhancing one's self was the only burden we could place on our bodies at the time. This is because of how volatile psychic energy is, enough that it could harm its user as well. Those who had a large amount of psychic energy however were able to withstand using their psychic powers on themselves. This was because they exuded psychic energy just by breathing, meaning they had a natural protective barrier. My body has reached a state where it is strong enough on its own to withstand my psychic powers. I’ve experimented a bit and the aches I would get from using my [Electrokinesis] have disappeared.
I’ve almost reached halfway to the second level. From what Coachman Cai has told me, I’m pretty fast compared to others. However, he claims this is mainly because of my familiarity with cultivation arts beforehand. In the time we aren’t on the road, he and I have been getting to know each other. From what he told me, he grew up outside the sect. He lived as a small merchant at first, trading between there and the [Autumn Hare Village]. He married a woman he met in his travels. After a while, he was booted from his own merchant company by his very own wife. He was left with nothing and she married a new man not long after, then moved to the city of [Kangdong]. Then he was taken in by the [Heavenly Stars Sect] and became a coachman. There seems to be more to his story than what he’s told me, but it was best not to pry too much. Today, I decided to give myself a bit of a break. The sun is high with no clouds to be seen for miles. We are currently in a rocky terrain, causing the cart to shake more than usual.
I take a look at our surroundings, rock formations, and barren dry ground now stretches out in front of us. The road is somewhat hard to see as it’s mostly stone underfoot. The energy in the air shifts a bit as we make our way further on. An unease settles over me as my eyes begin to sweep the area. When nothing pops out at me, I move to the front.
“Hey, how safe are these roads?” I peek out to catch his eye.
“Safe enough, there will occasionally be bandits that end up attacking around here. But there’s no need to worry, most bandits aren’t stronger than [Outer Disciples]. Some may be strong in martial arts, but without ‘Qi’ they can’t pose much of a threat.” Now I know what was causing my unease. I sit back in my seat, body tense. I don’t have a proper weapon right now. Though I have my guns with me, the rifle has limited ammo while my other one is too destructive. They took my blades and other weapons away when they took me in. I spread my [Psychic Detection] to the limit, looking over every movement within. It doesn’t take long for what I was worried about to come true. A group of people on either side of a rock formation a couple of feet in front of us lie in wait. Thankfully, none of them have the same energy that the disciples have. I shift up to the front again, keeping my eyes focused on the rock formation.
“Coachman Cai, there is a group of bandits ahead of us hiding behind that rock formation. What should we do?” He looks back in surprise and partial disbelief as I subtly point out the formation I’m talking about.
“And how do you know this exactly?”
“It’s an ability I have, I’m able to sense the world around me with it.”
“Hmm, if what you say is true, then leave them to me.” He looks calm and relaxed despite the danger. If need be, I’ll use my rifle to pick them off from the cart. As we get closer to the formation my body tenses and coils. Then, the group on the left jumps out right before we get close, cutting off the way forward. The group on the right cut off our escape. In total there seem to be about fifteen, all of them armed with old weapons and wearing patched clothes with animal leathers and furs. They look clean but that’s about all I can say about them. A tall muscular woman with what looks to be a wolf pelt around her waist and chest stands in the front with her hands resting on the hilt of a massive battle axe. Her hair is a dusty shade of dusty blue, kept in a loose and wild ponytail. Unlike the others I’ve met so far, she has a more tan complexion. I know who the leader is now, so now I know who to shoot first.
If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.
“Hand over your money and anything of value that you have!” She yells in a commanding voice. A wild smirk plays across her face.
“I do not have much, only this bag of coins.” He tosses a good-sized bag of coins on the ground. Another bandit runs up and snatches the bag before scurrying back over to the woman. Her smile gets bigger, eyes shining with greed.
“Let him through!” With a wave of her hand, the bandits let us pass quietly. I let out a shaky breath I had been holding. I was worried I would have to fight with fifteen people with only one person on my side. We manage to travel the rest of the way without further incidents.
“We will be arriving at the campsite soon, prepare yourself. There will be a large number of sects from all over the kingdom coming here for a chance at the treasures within the [Secret Realm]. So, you must always be on your guard even at our own campsite.” The seriousness of his tone lets me know just how dangerous it’s going to be. I check over my things one more time just as we finally arrive at the [Secret Realm]. I don’t know what I was expecting in the first place, but it was definitely not anything like this. In front of us, stretches a sea of tents and camps flying flags and banners of various groups and sects. There must be thousands if not tens of thousands here. The disciples and members walk around, mixing and chatting with other sects. While some seem to glare daggers at each other. At the front of the campsites is a small stone mountain. A large crack splits the center from the ground up, revealing a giant wall of energy inside.
“Is that the [Secret Realm]?”
“That’s the portal to the [Secret Realm]. The realm is on the other side.” My eyes remain glued to it as we slowly wobble down to the camp. It takes as long as I thought it would to get to the camp. I finally step out of the cart, stretching my limbs as the sun moves to the evening. The tents set up all have the sect symbol somewhere on them, with the sect flag flying in the center.
“So where are we going to be staying?” I turn to Coachman Cai as he loads off all my stuff from the cart.
“We will be staying in the tent I was ordered to bring along. We will rest for today and start preparing tomorrow. Though it wouldn’t be a good use of your time, you can find your friends over there.” He points out a cluster of tents with disciples walking about. I can’t say that I’m truly friends with any of them, more like comfortable acquaintances. Though I suppose Yijun and Hao Yi treat me like a friend would. Rubbing my neck, I walk over to the cluster of tents. I scan the sea of disciples for anyone familiar, my eyes landing on Zemin sitting with a group of disciples around a fire. They all chat and laugh animatedly, something I’m not sure I would see from Zemin while I stuck around. It’s best to steer clear of him and any friends of his. I look around a bit more before heading deeper within. There are so many unfamiliar faces, I contemplate going back to ask Zemin where Yijun is when I spot Hao Yi off with a group of disciples. I walk over, waving to Hao Yi as I go. Hao Yi notices me and brightens, smiling wide as they hurry over to me.
“Peter! What are you doing?!” Hao Yi wraps me in a hug in their excitement. I pat their head with a chuckle.
“I was told to come here.”
“By who?”
“Elder Deng told me to come over and give my assistance.” Hao Yi notices the uniform I’m wearing.
“Does this mean you’re joining the sect?!” It’s a little sad how excited they are right now at the prospect.
“I’m not sure if that’s what it means.” Hao Yi deflates a bit at this.
“Oh, I see.” I ruffle their hair a bit in response.
“Even if I don’t officially join, I’ll still stick around for a bit.” This makes Hao Yi brighten a bit. A startled gasp causes us both to flinch a bit in surprise. I spin around to find Yijun gawking at me and Hao Yi.
“Peter?!”
“Yijun, I was actually looking to see if you were here too.” She briskly walks over, leaving behind the group of disciples following her.
“Of course I would be here, any [Core Disciple] of the various sects has joined in exploring the [Secret Realm].”
“I see, well it’s good to see you.” I smile at her.
“Why are you here though Peter?” She looks over my face in concern.
“Elder Deng asked me to come here to help out.” She massages her temples a bit as she takes in the news. Breathing out a sigh, she fixes me with a hard stare.
“Well, if you’re here to truly help. Just stay in the camp and help the disciples with whatever they need. And don’t, go anywhere near the other sects or the portal to the [Secret Realm].” She points at me to drive her statement home. I hold up my hands in surrender as I look to Hao Yi for help, only to be met with them ignoring me. Yijun cracks a smile before grabbing my hand and pulling me to a nearby fire. Hao Yi joins us, laughing and chatting with each other into the night.