Alex winced and groaned under the light burning through his skull, desperate to sink back into the soothing darkness of sleep so deep it was blissful oblivion, before his now exquisitely sensitive nostrils caught the delicious scents of Reny’s absolutely scrumptious spirit beast stew, filled with spicy chunks of meat so tender it practically melted in his mouth, with broth so rich and flavors so complex that Alex just knew he’d feel better once he had a bowl.

He frowned, surprised both by how his mouth was instantly watering, belly feeling like a hungry void. He winced, rubbing open gummy eyes, feeling less like someone who had been the recipient of a too-intense workout, and more like a man half-starved and on the brink of death. That thought as much as any other alarmed him into full cognizance, Alex squinting in the dim light that still stung his eyes as he caught the Reny’s worried gaze which immediately transformed into a professional smile as she propped him up with a tray of soup with the clever use of a planks and pillows, her gaze immediately sharpening when he inhaled to protest, before letting it slip free, taking in deep breaths, only now catching the scent of someone who had been seriously ill, covered as it was by mint, rosemary, and half a dozen desert breeds of wildflower perfuming the wagon.

“What happened?” Alex whispered at last, surprised to hear his voice so ragged. “And why does it smell like some cultivator broke through to Bronze?”

It was a question that instantly earned a snort. “I should think that would be obvious, Alex,” Reny gently reprimanded, before gently touching his wrist. “No more questions. Not until you have your fill of soup.”

Alex reflexively inhaled to protest, before realizing how stupid that would be, since only an idiot antagonized a healer, and in truth, Alex wanted nothing more than to savor his fill of delicious, hearty fair.

And much to his exquisite delight, the soup was every bit as scrumptious and fulfilling as he had imagined.

And not a word needed to be said, Reny’s intense, anxious gaze quickly transforming to a relieved matronly smile when Alex politely asked for a second helping, and then a third, his exquisite hearing picking up Wing Qu’s whispered words from the other side of the wagon.

“How is he?”

“The boy had three bowls of soup! A healthy appetite is always a wonderful sign, love.”

“Will he recover fully, then?”

“I have no idea,” she said, cheerful demeanor slipping with her sigh. “All we can do is what we have been doing. Allow his body to rest, and treat him with the tinctures best suited to any cultivator who strains their foundation.”

Alex’s bubble of happy contentment instantly popped with those words. The comfort he had taken from a full belly as his lingering aches seemed to miraculously fade, or perhaps not so miraculously, given that Prismatic Fox now had the fuel that technique needed for hyper-rapid healing, had become the sudden dreadful fear that Long Wang had won in the end, tearing all his gifts free, leaving him nothing but a broken husk.

Yet a quick look at the character sheet of his soul made it clear that such was the farthest thing from the truth.

_______________________________________________

Alex Hammer

Class – Cultivator: Disciple of the Boundless Path

Rank 6 Basic Cultivation Achieved!

Physical Characteristics

Strength – Bronze Rank 3 (30)

Vitality – Bronze Rank 3 (30)

Quickness – Bronze Rank 1 (20)

Finesse – Bronze Rank 1 (20)

Spiritual Characteristics

Scholarship - 14 (Exceeds 84% of Population.)

Perception - 18 (Exceeds 99% of population.)

Willpower – 25 (Rank 2 Bronze achieved the hard way! - You have the resolve to walk in the Valley of Death and slip free of the River of Souls.)

Qi Pool – 19** (Bronze Tier threshold must be reached to unlock Silver Rank 5 (165!)

Health Points: 390

Perks

Insightful – Rank 2

Charismatic – Rank 3

Lesser Shadow Affinity

Increased chance of cultivation breakthroughs.

Draconic Ancestry.

Favored Skills

Golden Realms Kung Fu – Rank 10

Wind Crane Kung Fu – Rank 5

Poison Spitting – Rank 6

Stealth – Rank 4

Qi Disciplines

Enhanced Water Shield – Rank 6

Enhanced Water Strike – Rank 8

Thorn Shield – Rank 5

Oak Strike – Rank 5

Fire Shield – Rank 5

Flame Fist – Rank 5

Earthern Shield – Rank 5

Stone Fist – Rank 5

Forest Flight – Rank 5

Wind Blade – Rank 5 (May be used in conjunction with Enhanced Water Strike with a skill check! - Adept perk chosen: Spiritual Harmony: You may now use this elemental attack freely, with minimal spiritual energy expenditure!)

Storm Blade – Rank 5 (Infuse your weapon with the power of the storm at its most fearsome, to cut through any foe (or deliver a healthy dose of lightning) from three feet beyond the edge of your blade! - Most definitely NOT Black Swan! - Adept feat chosen. Internal Harmony. The strain of this technique has been limited to Bronze, stabilized by Advanced Comprehension.)

Prismatic Shield – Rank 5 – This ability can now counter half-step elements & dark curses! - Note! Unorthodox meridian configuration is prerequisite! - You have chosen the Adept Perk: Spiritual Harmony. Spiritual Energy expenditure to maintain this technique has been significantly reduced!

Prismatic Strike – Rank 5! - This is a Pristine (Jade) Tier Technique! All elements are boosted by previous elements in a Divine Tier cascade only Long Wang and his chosen disciples understand. Note! No mortal may wield this technique before Gold Tier without saving versus Meridian Rupture!

Your Divine Tier Meridians are immune to rupture!

- Spiritual Energy Cost: Significant! Best only to embrace when fueled by P**e**y Ma**ery or when your Qi Pool is well into Bronze!

Dantian shift has stabilized. You must achieve Deep Bronze (Rank 4 or better) to safely expel Life Force without straining your foundation!

You have successfully infused Prismatic Strike with spiritual resonance! Prismatic Strike is now an intrinsic part of yourself and cannot be forgotten or pulled free by Death or Divine Intervention! Your karmic debits and merits will now be extended to include all of your skills!

Qi Perception-linked Disciplines

Artificer – Rank 7

Find Weakness – Rank 7

Qi Perception – Rank 8

Soul Sight – Rank 7

Spiritual Teacher (Student) – Rank 8

Forest Sense – Rank 7

Alchemy – Rank 3 (Foundation Restoration Tincture)

Desert Sense – Rank 2

Additional Abilities & Techniques

Full Regenerative Capacity

Gift of Tongues

Biochemical Mastery – Rank 8

Desert Fox Cultivation Technique – Rank 5

Prismatic Fox Restoration Technique – Rank 4. You now have a base passive regeneration rate of: (8) health point per minute. Your focus on mastering the interplay between heat and entropy has unlocked the Ageless Perk. - You enjoy your Prismatic Fox Restoration Technique Rank as a bonus in saving versus all poisons, toxins, mental ailments, curses, taints, and all other areas where another UNDEFINED art had once reigned supreme! Continue to master your body and yourself to expand this art and it’s capabilities!

Sacred Perk – You can now neutralize all infernal taints.

___________________________________________________

Alex had, in fact, grown by leaps and bounds. He saw no signs of lingering damage, any last lingering injuries having been fully healed with the infusion of nutrient rich soup he had just enjoyed. He was pleased to see that both Flame Fist and Stone Fist had hit Rank 5, though perhaps he shouldn’t have been, when he scrolled down to his newest handful of Qi Abilities.

Windblade, he was pleased to see, had evolved itself into a hyper efficient form upon reaching Rank 5. He definitely appreciated his interface allowing him to perceive it with a gamer’s dispassionate tactical mentality. Yet he simultaneously recalled just how it felt to summon it forth, practicing so many hours until it was effortless. A fantastic melee range attack, especially if he could keep it flowing near effortlessly through an entire battle.

And the fusion of Wind, salt-rich water, and Lightning had culminated in Storm Blade. An attack that had so much in common with Black Swan, yet had been forged from completely different, even if similar roots, meant he could use it freely, without stricture, and to glorious effect, so long as he had the Qi Pool to do so.

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

His Prismatic Shield as well had evolved to be a bit more efficient, capable of warding pretty much everything, including half-step attacks and infernal strikes, so long as he got his shield in position to parry his opponent’s strike or spells. His goal was to be able to use it along with Wind Blade indefinitely, even without use of Potency Mastery that came from making kills and claiming their potency or, as he liked to think of it, experience pool. The key was in using his Desert Fox cultivation technique to absorb eight-element spiritual energy directly, and channel it right into his defenses.

Finally, the true centerpiece of his present cultivation path, was his Pristine tier Prismatic Strike, the evolution and ranking up of that art having helped to raise all the lesser arts up to match that which incorporated them all, for he noticed that none of those lesser arts was now below Rank 5. Even Wind Crane kung fu, using that element so similar to White Crane in fluidity and movement, had blossomed under the crucible of combat the night before, assuming it had been the night before. Even now he sensed his connection to the flow of air all around him heightened, remembering with greater clarity so many of the lessons and insights that he and his former master had embraced in their dance toward perfection, a lifetime ago.

And how terrifying it was to realize that those same spiritual anchor points could have been used by a chortling Long Wang to tear free absolutely everything Alex had struggled to learn and master. Like playing a trump card only after Alex revealed a choice prize and stealing his entire hand. Which Alex supposed, in a sense, was exactly what had happened. At least until Alex’s soul had given Long Wang the metaphoric finger, and probably not for the first or thousandth time, before skinny-dipping right into the River of Souls. Or at least his exquisitely sharp and visceral memory of too many years… or had it been millennia? Freezing in those impossibly cold waters. So sharp and bitter were those memories he did his best even now to suppress that the gods so rightly feared above fled even the memory of those torments.

“Such a shame those bastards fear death so very much,” he whispered to himself with a mocking grin, feeling a fierce jolt of triumph, even if he wouldn’t ever be so stupid as to actually utter a single name from the pantheon that had done everything it could to destroy him. Just a quiet smile in the dim light as he debated whether or not he could get away with asking Reny for yet another bowl of soup.

And it turned out, much to his immense satisfaction, that he could.

In fact, the only thing that spoiled the otherwise glorious experience of eating his fill were the concerned looks that his companions were now giving him.

“how do you feel, Alex?”

Alex offered Ya Ling a bemused smile as he finished his latest bowl. “I feel fine, Ya Ling. Just like I did the last time you asked… no, don’t scowl. You’re far too pretty to risk wrinkles now. Wait until you’re married with a dozen beautiful children who need a firm hand as well as a loving smile.”

His cheeky tongue got ahead of him, as it so often did with her, earning a surprised blush and a too-knowing look exchanged between aunt and uncle. Alex quickly cleared his throat. “Actually, I feel like now might be a wonderful time to get some air.” He bowed to all three of them. “This one thanks you all for taking care of me during my time of need, and would like to at least spare your noses the scent of a cultivator recently broken through.”

Those words earned a crooked smile from Qing Wu. “We would welcome a strong young man’s back in taking out the bedding, Alex. Thank you.”

Words that earned a scowl from Reny. “Husband...”

He gave a minute shake of his head. “Let him do this. If he’s unable to perform that degree of manual labor… then best we know now, in assessing just how significant the damage is.”

Alex deliberately paid no mind to the concerned whispers now filling the wagon, though he did find a certain satisfaction at the surprised curse when Alex adroitly bundled the entire affair and sprung out the back, Qing Wu having already released the wards and opened the reinforced paneling to let let in the night air, giving them a beautiful glimpse of the endless desert sands graced by the full moon, and the brightly twinkling stars overhead.

Alex gave a relieved chuckle, his friend’s worries having gotten to him, but he found it effortless to separate and air out the rolled mats and blankets, not above using Biochemical Mastery to generate a little bit of scent-canceling solution he had first learned at Cui Liu Jian’s side, what now felt like a lifetime ago.

In very short order he was back with mats, blankets, and even the cushions, smelling like the warm sands of the desert, and very little else.

Ya Ling was gazing at Alex with wide almond eyes. “Alex, how did you do it?”

He flashed a cheeky smile, bowing his head respectfully toward Reny. “I might not have a thimbleful of the alchemical knowledge that your aunty does, but I did pick up a trick or two during my time as an apothecary. If you need glues, solvents, lubricants, or deodorants, not to mention treatment for any one of dozens of ailments, well, our apothecary was a popular choice.”

Ya Ling gave a solemn nod, though Reny’s gaze turned curious. “Sounds like you treated and interacted with a number of people, Alex.”

He grinned. “I did.”

“Which is kind of strange, for someone who came from a closed-off Ruidian commune.”

Alex blinked, realizing his slip-up, so pressed on with a cheeky smile. “I never said I was.”

Reny’s frown deepened, though Qing Wu gave a soft chuckle. “He’s right, there. A number of them are traders, or work the caravan route, and our young hero here has a familiarity with both wagons and spirit beasts you wouldn’t find from someone who’s never seen a camel before, clueless on how to dodge their teeth, or their spittle.”

Alex smirked. Because in fact, Three-toe had gotten him with a good wad, and an evil yellow-toothed smile that Alex was wise enough to ignore. He had enough enemies that he didn’t want to add irate spirit beasts pulling his wagon with it, so he resorted to the most classic method of successfully forging diplomatic relations and making friends in general. Bribery. He could find the rare desert fruit and blossom far better than most, and Three-toe now had nothing but soothing brays for Alex when he did his nightly training or sparring, and all it cost him was a few of the spiritual energy-rich prizes he had claimed by the score that Reny hadn’t needed after all, safely tucked away in his herbalist’s pouch.

Ya Ling tilted her head in renewed interest. “Is that how you grew up, Alex? By caravan? Were your parents traveling apothecaries, going from oasis to oasis, city to city?”

Alex laughed off the question. “Not exactly, but it sure sounds romantic, doesn’t it? Our caravan sailing the desert seas as we drift between ports, making our fortunes as traders and cultivators and going wherever whim or trade route takes us.”

Her eyes lit up with her smile. “You know what? I think I might like that very much.”

Alex blinked, seeing something deadly serious in the playful twinkle in her eyes. “You know what I think? I think it’s time for a sparring session. How about you?”

Her features instantly filled with concern. “Alex, please. You’ve done enough already. I think you should get some more...” Her words died out when Alex calmly left the wagon and, upon making sure he had plenty of space, began embracing the combined White Crane, Golden Realms, and Silver Swan katas, minus the kicks of course, that had served him so well in training his martial skills, and just as importantly, his flow of Qi, in the life most recently lived. Even if he had made adaptations, now using it to channel Wind Crane Kung Fu as he alternated flurries of strikes, darting parries, and winding thrusts with fierce slashes of cleaving wind, his left arm countering imaginary volleys of quarrels brilliantly with the prismatic shield, the pair of techniques finally placing his sword on par with polearm, thanks to the extra three feet of reach his latest Qi attacks earned him, not to mention his near inviolate defense, and lack of Bullrush to close distance like he had once utterly depended upon.

Still, his emphasis had always been on the fangtian ji, a lack he was feeling now, sensing that he wasn’t quite as fluid with sword and shield as a true master would be.

Fortunately, with a happy belly and feeling in perfect health, he had plenty of time to catch up.

And as became quite clear when a gamely smiling Ya Ling tossed training sword, helmet, and padded hauberk his way, he wasn’t the only one in need of a good workout.

You have successfully countered Sand Blast.

Your opponent has slipped past your guard!

There were no half-measures, not tonight, the pair of them immediately opening with a flurry of probing attacks and feints, Ya Ling’s wooden blade streaking forth like a serpent to taste Alex’s flesh… or at least leave a bruise or two.

Never had she seemed quite so agile or quick on her feet, never had she used her dancing shield and winding blade to such effect, dazzling the eye before darting in for the kill.

So her frustration wasn’t at all surprising, when her strikes failed to land. Alex always step-sliding with consummate grace on the sands when she closed, his prismatic shield always where it needed to be to counter even the sharpest cutting blade of Sand, even if she only struck full force with blunted wood. All ended with strike foiled, and the slightest brush of wood against her own soft skin when Alex’s blade inevitably claimed yet another point of their endless match.

Her cheeky grin soon became a thin-pressed lips and a too intent stare, the girl before Alex smelling of bruised pride and hunger, and something in his eyes told him that the next blow was going to land, one way or another.

So he wasn’t surprised when the sand behind him erupted, Desert Sense making it clear what Ya Ling intended. Yet somehow she still slipped past his shield with a twist and a wrench, sacrificing her own weapon and somehow tossing him off his feet. Even if that meant she had been forced to close the distance and surrender her own blade, both of them now locked in a tight wrestler’s embrace that threatened to become so much more.

A single hot kiss and a painful throb, and Alex broke off the unexpected and far too welcome kiss with a desperate gasp.

“Okay, you win, the match is yours.”

Ya Ling didn’t immediately get up, soft brown eyes locked with his own as she whispered soft words that set his cheeks blazing.

“Not until I hit Bronze. And Deep Bronze, at that.”

Ya Ling blinked at this, then flushed, dusky cheeks rich with color he would have kissed, if his heart didn’t already belong to another, even if she was long lost to history’s ancient tale.

“I thought before, you seemed so close to… it got worse, didn’t it?”

“Your aunt and uncle were right. There was a cost to what I dared,” he gasped, forcing his ragged breathing to a slow, steady pace, his heart pounding from far more than simple exertion. “I pushed my gifts, and my Dantian. Now Deep Bronze is the price I pay before any of my essence can safely go towards anything but my own perfection.”

Ya Ling’s eyes grew forlorn. “Alex… Deep Bronze is something very few cultivators ever achieve. And those that do… it takes decades to achieve.”

Alex sighed, flashing a bittersweet smile. “I know.”

Now sitting beside her on the desert sands, he sighed and gazed toward the starry heavens. “Beautiful sight, isn’t it?”

Ya Ling nodded. “I know. Vast and magnificent. Best savor the view as best you can, tonight, Alex. Because tomorrow we’ll be in sight of Liushi, and if all goes well, the day after we’ll be applying for entrance into Silver Sands academy.”

Alex blinked. “But wait, I thought Liushi was weeks away!?”

“It was. Then you fell into a coma and we feared you’d perish.” Ya Ling’s eyes grew misty. “Alex, the way your struggled and thrashed, Reny was terrified that exposure to the undead had caused a deviation in your cultivation. A fatal deviation. You don’t know how long you thrashed and cried out, as if you were fighting against the very heavens!” She paled in memory. “It was everything for Reny to just get you to sip soup, and clean you after you had...”

Alex flushed, suddenly feeling far more acutely embarrassed than he had for a very long time. “I had no idea.”

Ya Ling squeezed his hand. “Don’t feel bad. Aunty’s been taking care of the sick for a very long time. And I’m not overstating it when I say that we owe you our lives. Twice over. So cleaning you just as every mother who has ever cared for her child is not such a great burden as all that.”

Alex groaned and shook his head. “You don’t understand… I’m not ready! We spent so much time just surviving this trip, that I wasn’t even able to make use of your uncle’s lessons… I still can’t cast a single Ice Spear.”

The girl beside him nodded solemnly. “I know. You really are a strange one, Alex. The things I’ve seen you do with spiritual energy connected to you in a warrior’s echo...” she shook her head in awe. “Uncle’s already made it clear that no one is to breathe a word of what you can do. Not a word. But as far as range goes…”

Alex winced. “Compared to any wujen worth his or her salt, it’s bad.”

She flashed a sad smile. “Beyond bad. And strange. People are either body cultivators with all their spiritual energy enhancing their physical forms, or wujen, with mastery over their element, even if only a fraction of their spiritual potential is echoed in their physical frame. But you, Alex. You’re some weird hybrid I’ve never seen the like of before.

“Not that I mind,” she quickly assured with a soft squeeze of her hand and a teasing grin.

Alex smirked. “Would you believe my style isn’t that odd where I… never mind. Anyway, yeah. I would have loved more time to learn from your uncle.”

She smirked. “A powerful Silver who devoted countless hours in personal instruction that anyone with a lick of talent would have absolutely blossomed under… and you couldn’t embrace a single one of his techniques.”

Alex winced. “Yeah… shit. I guess I won’t be the young genius, this time around.” He forced a chuckle. “More like the struggling neophyte desperate just to advance a single step along his chosen path, as all his classmates surge ahead.” He smirked at himself. “Very slice-of-lifey, with an emphasis on overcoming challenges and personal acceptance and satisfaction as the politics, struggles, and glory are relegated to whoever this year’s ‘young masters’ will be.”

Ya Ling laughed. “Precisely!” She teased, before her smile turned solemn. “Alex, about the fight with the dead… you do understand that you can’t show those things off to anyone, don’t you? Especially not if you, um… well, want to keep anything like a low profile.”

Alex froze. “I’m sorry?”

Ya Ling crossed her arms, looking off into the distance. “I’m just saying that a wujen capable of using one element at a time won’t stick out too much. Even the occasional Ruidian can be seen at the school, after all, even if they look like a mix between the two of us, more often than not. They also tend to be on the lower end of the class, and no one pays them much mind. But unless you really want to stick out, and earn the attention of people you maybe don’t want to burn too brightly before...”

“I get it,” Alex said, raising up his hand. Because he did. The last thing he wanted to do was catch the eye of the powers-that-be that had no love or loyalty towards him, and would use him as a puppet for their own games, perhaps try to destroy him out of hand, or just keep such a sharp eye on him that he could never trust that he would be truly free from observation again.

No. If he wanted privacy, anonymity, and to utterly avoid getting caught up in or being ground to dust by the politics and intrigues of either school, city, or the territory as a whole… best he keep a low profile in the warm snug valleys of anonymity, and let others get caught up in the howling winds at the peaks of cultivation high above.

He had led the vanguard, savoring madness, brilliance, and tragedy, more than enough for a dozen lifetimes.

He’d already unlocked his path.

Now it was just a matter of learning and growing and strengthening his foundation. And that he was happy to do at the humblest of paces.

As long as he could live a life free of bitter strife, tragedy, and pain.

As long as he could be happy. Simply savoring the joy of learning, growing.

Making friends.

Perhaps finding love that wouldn’t be callously torn free from his heart by the bitter winds howling across the mountain tops of desperate ambition.

There was a reason, after all, why lush green valleys gave rise to cold, lifeless rock, steeped in bitter snow.

And that was a life he no longer had any desire to live, no matter how beautiful the view from the summit might be. There was no point if the cost was a heart as hard as granite, bitter and cold.

“Wind, I think,” he said after a moment, earning a curious look from Ya Ling. He smiled. “It plays to my strengths, works well with the Wind Crane kung fu I know, and I can use Wind Blade for deadly strikes and 3 additional feet of cutting winds to my dao.”

Ya Ling grinned. “Not a bad choice. And you almost have some range with it. Almost.” Her eyes lit up with excitement. “And I here that true masters of Wind can actually fly! Even if your defenses amount to just blowing attacks off course, a powerful enough wujen can send a cloud of arrows off course, saving the men under his care in times of war.”

“Exactly,” Alex said, comfortable with a choice that mirrored White Crane Kung Fu in so many ways.

“And nothing says I can’t blossom in another element, like your Uncle’s ice. Or anything with range that can effect a group. But Wind Qi is as close as I seem to be able to get to that, at least for now, without combining elements, and you and Qing Wu have made it damn clear that will get all eyes looking in my direction faster than anything else.”

Qing Wu squeezed his hand in agreement. “Wind’s a good choice,” she assured, as the pair of them sat together under the moonlight, talking of life, future dreams and all they hoped to accomplish at the academy that just might be the key to unlocking their dreams. An oasis in a sea of endless desert sands.