Xian Wei felt a strange, erratic sensation as the jewel’s energy washed through him. It moved counter-intuitively to his natural energy, he could feel the energy flowing through his veins backwards. A searing pain surged through his body, as if he had been engulfed in flames. He stumbled back, clutching his chest as he gasped for breath. Xian Wei fell to his knees, the energy was ripping through him, the pain was unbearable, and he felt like he was being torn apart from within.
His body began to convulse as the foreign energy coursed through him, wracking him with pain that felt like hot knives slicing through his flesh. But then, as suddenly as it had begun, the pain started to subside. As the moments pass, he begins to feel a strange sensation, a coolness spreading through his body. The energy flowed freely through him now, knitting his fractured ribs back into place, and it even worked to enhance the connection between the prosthetic and his body.
The qi emanating from the gem was now more discernible to him. It felt strange and foreign, yet there was something oddly familiar about it. Then, a memory from his childhood surfaced – the memories of training with his fellow disciples from the terrace. As he meditated in the pit, the energy stirred recollections of Huang Kai, one of his brothers who wielded a similar type of energy. Unlike his brother, Xian Wei had only mastered a single qi nature, as evidenced by his lack of proficiency in other techniques during his training. Despite his father's efforts to teach him, their incompatibility had hindered Xian Wei's progress.
Xian Wei opened his eyes and focused on the gem before him. “I can use this!” he spoke excitedly. He remembered how strong his brother had been during their childhood and believed that he could achieve the same with this newfound energy. Quickly, he wrapped the gem in a piece of cloth, securing it to his person. “I need to get to the pavilion first.” he said. Now looking skyward, he traced a path with his eyes out of the pit. He would use the debris from the pillar and the numerous stalagmites to create a way out. With little effort, Xian Wei used his sole technique to enhance the stalagmites he planned to stand on. He created braces for the stones, metal bars he could place beneath the rocks.
Before leaving the pit, Xian Wei paid a final visit to the two now butchered sandscales. He thanked them for a final time before setting out. Xian Wei climbed to the top of the broken pillar. As he began to utilize qi synergy, he spotted a distant outcropping. That would be his target, but there was a large gap between him and the next hold. Xian Wei took a few deep breaths and focused his qi, feeling it flow through his body like a river. Then, with a burst of energy, he pushed off from the pillar and launched himself into the air. As he soared through the air, he felt a rush of adrenaline and excitement. He could see the loose rocks in his path and adjusted his trajectory accordingly, landing with a solid thud on the hold he had spied. Xian Wei continued in this manner, leaping and twisting through the air, using his enhanced vision and qi control to navigate the treacherous terrain. Finally, after what felt like an eternity of jumping and climbing, he reached the top of the pit, panting and sweating but exhilarated by his success.
As he stood above the gaping hole in the desert a thought crept into his mind, “What if no one ever finds this place again?” There had been a single piece of evidence that pointed to another individual. Xian Wei recalled the constellation on the wall and its missing star. The first among nine was missing. “I don’t think the others would have found this place.” he mused, pondering the possibilities as he relaxed in the sunlight. The wind was silent, a rarity in this land, and an unfortunate circumstance Xian Wei had not expected. His nose was the source of his path, and without the wind to carry a scent, he would be useless.
"Wait a damn second," Xian Wei sputtered, squinting his eyes in suspicion as he drew his blade. He held the hilt tightly and examined the pattern once again. The image remained unchanged from his previous observation – a nine-star constellation. Suddenly, the neurons in his brain began to fire, connecting his thoughts with the beginnings of a new idea, the electrical impulses in his brain formed links. Soon they began sending signals to one another and a new, combined idea was formed. The muscles in his face and mouth began to contract,“How the fuck’s my dad have a sword from this pit!?” he exclaimed. He paced around the pit attempting to construct another thought, but was unsuccessful. “Guess I can ask about it when I get there.” He muttered as he looked back into the pit.
Xian Wei walked aimlessly until nightfall, hoping to catch a glimpse of the constellation. He scanned the many patterns that illuminated the otherwise dark sky. Six stars, seven stars, eight stars...and then he saw it. Holding the hilt of his blade aloft, he compared the two. Despite some initial uncertainty caused by the missing stars on the wall of the pit, Xian Wei concluded that they were the very same. He began to circulate his qi, enhancing his eyesight, and looked deeper at the stars. The constellation revealed itself to him as a great dragon, forgotten by time but with traces of its existence lingering as the stars themselves.
As Xian Wei stared at the dragon in the sky, he suddenly felt a presence. It was distant, he closed his eyes and focused. The energies inside him circulated harmoniously, providing an even greater effect than usual. Then, he felt it, it was the gaze of the dragon. Long dead, yet a fragment of it remained. Xian Wei could sense its direction now. He steeled himself, and with his mind’s eye, he met its gaze. The unfathomable radiance of the stars caused him to kneel. A cold fragment of a once grand power greeted him, “It is good to finally meet you, I am Xiaofan, and I have been waiting for you for a long time,” the presence rumbled.
Xian Wei felt a pressure growing in his mind as he gleaned the meaning of the sounds. “I, Xian Wei, greet the Great Dragon.” he spoke with reverence, bowing his head. “Your constellation appeared to me in a dream, and I saw it on the wall of the pit I was trapped in. It’s even on the hilt of my father's sword! Please, tell me what you seek of me,” It was quite some time before he felt a response. Xian Wei did not move, paranoid that any disruptions might interfere with the connection to the constellation. "All will be explained in time, your mind is muddled enough with the strain of survival. For now young one, I have but a single task for you," Xiaofan replied. Xian Wei tried to rise, to stand and present himself ready, but his muscles would not move. From within his mind, he began to see.
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From a void of white light, a towering figure descended. Its appearance was strange to Xian Wei, it flickered in and out of existence and he could see through it at times. However, this hollow figure was what remained of the dragon’s essence. The final splinter of a fragment, saved for the last child. The colossal form of the dragon occluded the space, and a deep pressure began to build in Xian Wei’s mind as the dragon bequeathed the task. “Within your mind lies a growing evil, if you wish to survive and reach the pavilion, you will vanquish it.”
Xian Wei was suddenly transported to a dark and unfamiliar location, the air here felt thick and wet. He could hardly see the ground, uneven red stone. As Xian Wei took his first steps forward, the darkness seemed to consume him, pressing down on him from every direction with a weight that threatened to suffocate him. “This is the force you exert on the world, can you bear it?” a combined voice echoed.
Xian Wei moved through the darkness, withstanding the pressure of the environment through the force of his will. The metal qi that coursed through his veins protected his body from damage but the pressure was enough to crush him without it. Slowly, shapes began to take form, like the floor, the walls were also made up of the uneven red stone. In the distance, a solitary tree. He approached the tree and found it to be withered and dying, its bark peeling away to reveal a grotesque and writhing mass of insects within.
Xian Wei's gaze upon the tree evoked a profound feeling of disgust and revulsion. "The bugs have ceased their crawling," the voices echoed. Determined and filled with fury, he tightly gripped his sword. Inhaling deeply, he unleashed a powerful swing, aiming to strike the tree. However, before his blade could make contact, a spectral hand emerged from a crevice in the bark, effortlessly blocking his attack. Wisps of black smoke emanated from the hand as it firmly seized Xian Wei's blade. In an attempt to free his weapon, he abruptly pulled on the sword, only causing more of the hand's arm to emerge from within the tree.
Suddenly, the hand relinquished its grip on the blade, making way for another of the creatures' appendages to materialize. With an eerie grace, the two hands began a macabre dance, their spectral fingers intertwining and weaving through the tree's core. Methodically, they initiated a relentless peeling motion, forcefully stripping away the bark and layers beneath.
Xian Wei stood transfixed, his eyes fixed on the grotesque spectacle unfolding before him. With each violent tug, the hands tore apart the tree, unraveling its protective exterior layer by layer. The sound of cracking wood filled the air as the once sturdy trunk was laid bare, exposing the vulnerable interior. In disbelief, Xian Wei witnessed the hands defying the laws of nature, their ethereal presence effortlessly rending the fabric of reality itself. As if tearing through a fragile veil, the hands unraveled the very essence of the tree, ripping away piece after piece with a chilling determination. The dislodged fragments fluttered through the air, carrying the scent of sap and the weight of centuries. The scene was a grotesque manifestation of otherworldly power, a mesmerizing display of destruction that seemed to defy comprehension. Xian Wei could only watch in awe, mingled with a growing sense of dread, as the hands continued their relentless assault on the tree.
Free from its prison of bark, the creature now fully manifested itself before Xian Wei, its true form unveiled. It towered over him, a menacing presence that seemed to defy the laws of nature. Its silhouette, shaped roughly like a human, exuded an aura of malevolence. The creature's entire being appeared to be composed of a swirling, ethereal mist, pitch black like the deepest shadows of the night. Its gnarled skin, stretched tightly over protruding bones, hinted at the torment and suffering it had endured through eons untold. Sinewy muscles rippled beneath the taut surface, as if the essence of malice and despair had taken on physical form. The creature's elongated limbs, ending in razor-sharp claws, extended ominously towards Xian Wei, reaching out as if eager to embrace him in its spectral grip.
“Ah! Here he is! The hateful demon!” the twin voices rang out, “Will you survive?”
“Again they speak,” Xian Wei muttered as he settled into stance. The [Fallen Ash] style wasn’t much, but it was all he had against a foe such as this. This style revolved around reactive defense, utilizing precise parries and capitalizing on the brief moments of vulnerability to unleash swift and devastating counter attacks. It embraces the art of blade clashes as opportunities to create openings and dictate the flow of the battle.
The monster’s visage was a grotesque amalgamation of horror and despair. Its face, partially obscured within the swirling darkness, revealed jagged, obsidian-like teeth protruding from a gaping maw. Eyes, burning with an unholy fire, glowed within the depths of the creature's formless head, piercing the veil of darkness with an unsettling intensity. Every inch of the demon exuded an aura of otherworldly power and malefic intent. Its presence was suffocating, Xian Wei could sense the weight of countless lost souls clinging to the creature's form, their anguish and suffering etched into its essence.
Xian Wei flinched, “It’s already too late.. You should have hit the tree..” the demon growled as it lunged towards him with impossible quickness. Xian Wei’s reflexes took over, and with a swift motion, he raised his blade in a desperate attempt to deflect the blow. The clash reverberated through the battlefield as the demon's needle-like talons tore through the air, seeking to rend Xian Wei apart. The collision unleashed a shower of sparks that illuminated the darkness, momentarily casting a light upon Xian Wei's strained face.
In the shadow of the clash, Xian Wei summoned every ounce of strength he possessed, frantically drawing as much from his body as he could during the fleeting sliver of opportunity. In perfect synchronization with the force that propelled his blade from the clash, Xian Wei unleashed a swift and devastating counter-attack. The demon screamed as the blade tore through its ragged flesh, severing, cracking, and unleashing a vile torrent of thick black-blood, staining the crimson stone beneath, while the demon's mangled arm hung helplessly by a fragile thread of sinew. As the demon recoiled from the wound, Xian Wei noticed a momentary haze wash over the malevolent visage, “He doesn’t understand how I hit him,” Xian Wei thought. swiftly re-calibrated his strategy. With calculated precision, he capitalized on the demon’s disorientation, his agile movements betraying no hesitation.
Emboldened by the searing madness coursing through its veins, the demon, in a deranged frenzy, tore at the remaining shreds of its own arm. With an unhinged snarl, it hurled the severed limb towards Xian Wei, who reacted instinctively, ducking under the hurtling projectile limb, narrowly avoiding its trajectory.
Xian Wei watched as the demon's severed arm sailed past Xian Wei, its twisted ingenuity sparked into action. The vile creature, driven by a primal instinct for survival, seized the opening created by Xian Wei's evasion. Without missing a beat, the demon lunged forward, exploiting the distraction caused by its dismembered limb, and with a surge of unholy strength, the demon closed the distance between them in an instant.