Hong Xiu pointed his sword directly at Alex as they locked eyes.

Alex watched as the other man stepped forward. To his normal eye, it looked like he had faded from existence before stepping out of a shadow not ten feet away.

“Acolyte, what are you doing over here? You look suspicious.” Hong Xiu said.

Alex took another step back as his mind ran through possible ways to get out of the situation.

He stopped and stood straight before bowing with his left palm clasped into his right hand. “Junior Fang greets Senior Brother Hong.” This deferential greeting was how he’d seen others interact with the elder brother.

It was the closest Alex had been to the higher-level leader, and he was surprised to note that Hong Xiu was much younger than he thought. Xiu looked to be just over twenty years old.

No wonder this guy is cocky. He’s still a baby, and he’s this strong. That’s like me being Superman in college, but it’s culturally acceptable to throw my weight around.

The younger man lowered his rapier a fraction as he heard the standard sect greeting.

Alex maintained his position in the bow, knowing that it wasn’t proper for their group to stand until the senior-ranked person responded to the greeting. The silence stretched, and Alex began to feel uneasy. He felt his legs shake from the tension and he was beginning to wonder if he should flee.

Knowing that he needed to act quickly, Alex pulled up the notification he’d gotten just before setting off the ritual circles. It only took a moments thought to bring up the System windows.

Congratulations, [Mana Shaping] has leveled up!

You have reached the Tier threshold of an active skill. Would you like to advance or evolve this skill?

Advance: This skill stays the same and advances to an improved version in the same tree.

Evolve: This skill changes based on the different ways you may have used it or pushed the bounds of its purpose. You will lose levels in this skill if you choose this option.

Advance / Evolve?

Alex continued to clasp his hands and keep his head down to prevent Xiu from seeing his eyes flick back and forth across the prompts. He hadn’t been prepared to have a choice. He assumed that the skill would level up and change or grow stronger.

There is really not any time to unpack all of this right now. I want the skill to change, but how much will it change? It says it will change based on how I used it…

He mentally selected the Evolve option and watched both windows disappear to be replaced by a new one.

Analyzing skill usage…

New Skill Learned: [Mana Thread] (Novice - Level 7)

[Mana Thread] - Create impossibly thin and tightly controlled tendrils of mana. Your control and mastery over shaping mana reaches new heights.

While Alex felt a soaring sense of excitement, his thoughts were cut short by a condescending sneer.

“Tchh, go fetch water with the others and put this fire out.”

“Yes, Senior Brother!” Alex said. He bowed a bit deeper before standing and turning to go and join the others.

Before the tension could fall from his shoulders, he heard a slight shuffle of feet from behind him. Just as Alex glanced over his left shoulder, he saw Xiu crouching with his sword raised.

Alex threw himself to the side just in time as the younger man used [Lunge] and slid his sword through the same place Alex’s shoulder blades had occupied a moment before.

Xiu laughed and straightened from his martial stance and looked down at Alex with contempt. “Good awareness ‘junior brother,’ but I’m curious… how is it that an acolyte knows the [Mirage] technique? It’s reserved for those of us who are at least at the First Star.”

Alex pushed himself backward quickly and got back to his feet, creating as much distance between them as possible.

“No answer? I thought not. You are the imposter, the one that the Firstborn is seeking.” Xiu said. He looked down his nose at Alex, clearly pleased that he had seen through the ruse.

Alex looked around for an exit but found none. Around them, people ran back and forth, tents burned, and injured continued to scream or call out for help. Pieces of wood from the tent, along with the canvas, began to catch fire and threaten to spread throughout the camp.

While Alex’s panic grew alongside the rising smoke, Xiu seemed to grow more calm.

“Let’s end this swiftly. You have done great damage to our Sect, and your ambushes were well executed. As an enemy, you have my respect for your fighting spirit.” Xiu flicked his wrist, and his rapier made an audible swish as it cut the air.

In response, Alex dropped all pretenses of being submissive and fooling the man. He drew his own rapier and turned his right shoulder forward, slimming the target. Crouching and leaning forward on his right leg, he adopted the stance in the practice manuals.

Xiu leaned his head to the left as if to look at Alex’s foot placement. “Not bad, but it’s clearly self-taught. If you did that within the sect, Elder Brother Ming would beat you senselessly.”

Alex ignored the idle talk and watched the man carefully while planning his escape.

Xiu vanished, and Alex’s instincts screamed at him. He dodged to the side just in time to avoid Xiu’s rapier.

“I’ll give it to you. You’re quick, but that won’t be enough. I’ve gone through my first class advancement already. The gap between the two of us is too large.” He shook his head, almost sadly. “Let me show you.”

Alex swallowed hard and allowed his thoughts to race.

There must be a way out of this situation. He’s way more trained than me. His stats are higher than mine.

Fuck. I should have just left. I didn’t need to do this. It would have taken an extra day or two, but I could have gone around them. Time to gamble.

Alex activated his new [Mana Thread] ability. A small thread of mana slips down his left hand and toward the ground. He was surprised at the speed and efficiency of the thread. While the tendrils felt like a significant drain on his mana pool, he could tell the new skill felt like a trickle in comparison.

It took all of his willpower and confidence not to glance down at the thread, ensuring that it was invisible to the naked eye.

If I take my eyes off of him, I’m dead. Even if I survive, it could give up the ruse.

He snaked the thread to his side, beginning to shape the ritual in the direction of the Rift exit. Alex did his best in shaping and controlling the tread the way he’d seen the Mana Spinners do.

Both men had been staring at each other for the last few heartbeats. Alex was distracted and doing his best to watch for any movement, whereas his opponent was looking at Alex’s stance and watching for openings.

Alex saw him split into two people without warning, and his outlines became blurry. They crouched and sprung forward with explosive speed.

[Mirage] and [Blur]? Shit.

Alex was ready; with mana infused into his legs, he activated [Empowered Step] and leaped backward. In his haste and fright, he’d pushed more mana into his legs than he had wanted, which sent him flying back into a nearby tent.

He crashed into the tent and it took everything he had not to lose concentration on his mana thread. It was quite easy to recognize [Blur] and [Lunge] as signature abilities of the Shadow Serpent Sect, especially after studying them in the manual. Xiu’s use of the [Mirage] skill was beyond what Alex was currently capable of, making him hesitant about other skills he might not know.

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Come on, just a bit more.

He brought up his Status and checked his mana, trying to catch sight of Xui through the growing smoke. He saw his mana was dangerously low again, and Val sent him another pulse of mana through [Mana Infusion].

Such a good little mana battery. I’m gonna give you so many Mana Stones later.

Alex jumped back to his feet and held out the rapier once more. Unsure of where his opponent was, Alex swished the blade back and forth wildly. With the majority of his attention focused on the ritual, he had returned to swinging the sword around wildly. Dropping all pretenses of his “training.”

“Are you even going to use that thing?” Xiu laughed. He came into view as a dark silhouette through the smoke, and he threw aside broken and knocked-over pieces of the two wrecked tents, causing the smoke around him to stir.

Even though he knew that he should stall or attempt to draw the man into a longer conversation so that he had time to finish the ritual, Alex felt like his mind was being pulled in too many directions.

What do I say? Shit. Do I reason with him? Pissing him off wouldn’t work, then he’d just want to kill me harder…

Before he could settle on a stalling strategy, the younger man stepped forward and raised his sword dramatically. Rather than a quick lunge, Xiu approached calmly and with measured steps. Alex noted the way his eyes were studying every movement and shift in weight.

The ritual was almost complete, and Alex was unsure of how to dodge this next attack while finishing the last bit of the ritual.

“Wait! Wait, wait, wait. Hold on, do you even know why you’re trying to kill me?” Alex held up his hands.

“No more waiting. I’m tired of this game.”

“Let me just get these useless things out of my bag. I was always told that your entrance into the afterlife is based on what value you carry with you.” Alex said.

“What? The heavens?” Xiu stopped in confusion as Alex removed a rope. He raised his sword as the rope sailed through the air but landed harmlessly several meters away.

It’s no wonder he’s confused. I don’t even know what I’m saying.

Alex removed some dense rocks from his time in the tunnels and tossed them to the same area. Lastly, he lobbed a purple Mana Stone.

“What a waste of time. Stop stalling and accept your fate.” Xiu moved forward again and held his rapier at the ready.

Just a bit more.

Xiu attacked, and Alex was too slow. He was wholly focused on completing the ritual, and his reaction time with the sword was too slow to match the other man's greatly increased stats. The other man’s rapier was extended perfectly straight, and as he lunged forward, it struck toward Alex with deadly precision.

Alex could tell, too late, that the sword was coming directly toward his face. He felt the sword cut into his cheek and struck the bone there. Panicking, he turned his head to prevent the sword from piercing into his head. A sickening sound could be heard in Alex’s head as the blade scratched the bone and slid across the bridge of his nose, cutting the other side of his cheek. Even though the reaction was too slow, he jerked his face away, horrified.

Unfortunately, the damage was already done. While he didn’t think he’d die immediately, he began to feel lightheaded as he knew the cut was severe. He could see part of his skin hanging down, even from the bottom of his normal vision. It was bleeding profusely, and his face stung. As horrific as the damage was to his face, the real kicker for the fight was the damage that was done to his mask.

Blood ran down his cheeks, and Alex was caught between panting for breath and spitting out the metallic taste of blood. Hong Xiu stopped and stared at Alex with a dumbfounded expression for several moments as the mask fell away.

“You- you’re one of them! That eye. You’re a high-ranking member of the Celestial Lotus Sect!” Xiu took a step back as he registered his words and the bloody, blinking Heavenly Eye across from him. But then, he stopped himself, and he began to gain confidence once again. “No, that doesn’t make sense. You’re far too weak, even with the sacrificial binding.”

Alex moved in a small semicircle to his right. Having dropped the rapier, he wanted to cover his cheek with one hand but didn’t want to actually touch the wound. His other hand was raised in a placating gesture.

Xiu smiled wickedly at Alex. “Oh, I’m going to enjoy this. You will not get a swift death. I’ll cut you to pieces bit by bit and take that eye from you while you’re still breathing.”

Fuck me. I guess pissing him off was the right answer to stall.

Despite knowing that he wasn’t going to die in the next strike, Alex bent his legs and continued to reposition.

The Shadow’s Adept raised his blade, bringing the cross guard to pause in front of his face. With an exaggerated movement, he raised his empty hand and moved two fingers along the blade as his sword hand pulled the blade down and flicked it out to the side.

“This will slow you down and make everything much, much more painful.”

Alex removed the hand from his eye and could see through his bleary-enhanced vision now that the spider silk had been torn away and the wooden puck dropped to the ground somewhere in his dodge.

The rapier was now coated in a sickly green mana that seemed to drip from the blade.

Poison?

Knowing that he was close to death, Alex decided to let the chips fall where they may. Even though it was entirely too early to dodge an attack, Alex threw himself to the side and landed in an ungraceful heap on the ground.

He groaned as he landed hard on his side, and dry dirt flew up to cling to his bloody cheek. When he opened his right eye, he saw Xiu approaching him at a normal pace. The sword was held out to the side, certain not to brush the mana-poisoned blade against himself.

The sneer on his face was almost enough to make Alex laugh. The younger man had thought that he had won and that Alex, in his fear, had tried to flee and had tripped instead.

“You Celestial Lotus are all trash. I’m glad I’ll get to kill you like this, laying on the ground and bleeding in our dirt.”

Come on, just a few more steps.

In total confidence, Xiu strode forward and raised his blade, prepared to cut into Alex’s lower body. It was with that same confidence, that he walked directly into the ritual circle Alex finished preparing.

NOW!

The ritual circle activated through a pulse of mana through his [Mana Thread], and ropes shot out from the ground and latched on to Xiu from many different angles. As soon as they were settled, they changed from ropes to solid rock, holding him firmly in place.

Hurting in several places, Alex got to his feet and looked at Xiu. The sect leader stared in horror and outrage.

Alex walked forward and punched him in the face as hard as he could. Xiu’s head rocked to the side, and Alex hopped back while shaking out his fist.

Pent-up stress, excitement, and fear all rushed out of him with a single word.

"FUCK!"

He bent over and grabbed his bare fist before deciding to just press it to his side. He’d felt like his body was growing more tough with the increase in stats, but his stats were lower than Xiu’s and it was clear that the punch had hurt Alex’s knuckles more than the other man. The pain subsided after a second, though he felt a dull throb in the ring and pinky finger knuckles, and Alex reached for the dagger at his side. He took a single step toward Xiu and then heard shouts nearby.

“Hey, they’re over here!”

“Senior brother!”

“Senior brother!”

Alex groaned in frustration and took off at a sprint. He used [Empowered Step] to speed up the retreat. He had placed the ritual in such a way that he had a direct route to run toward the Rift exit. His Core pulled in that direction, showing him the way to freedom.

He crossed through the last hundred meters of wooded terrain before he emerged in the open plains. He remembered seeing this field of sickly yellow tall grass when he entered the Rift.

Almost home. Almost home.

He continued to run, so close that he could almost taste it.

When he was about two hundred meters away, heading up the hill, he could see the Rift. He focused on it and willed himself to cross the last bit of distance. His mana was running low enough to cause his head to throb, his body hurt, and his face was beginning to feel numb on the left side where the blade had cut deep.

Just as it felt that his escape was guaranteed, the grass far ahead of him parted. It looked like a shark swimming through the water. The odd sight caused Alex to skid to a halt and assess.

He heard a hiss and then saw a large black snake made of shadowed scales pull itself up and eye him. The ruby red eyes were cold and reminded Alex of two beads, staring without emotion or fear. Its tongue flicked out several times, and instinctively, Alex clamped down harder on his own personal mana to ensure that none was leaking from his body.

He looked past the monstrous snake and toward the glowing blue tear in space that would lead him home.

Fuck. This sucks so much.

Alex knew that there was no way to get around this serpent. It was too fast and too strong. Part of him wanted to use the Analyze skill to see its Status Window, but he knew that the distraction might cost him his life.

Alex only saw one way out of this situation, and unfortunately, it wasn’t his way home.

He jumped back and turned inland, back toward the forest. As soon as the snake began to move at an angle to cut him off, Alex spun around and used as much mana as he could to empower his legs. He ran directly at the chasm that divided the two sides of the Rift and threw himself with all of his power to the other side.

While jumping through the air, he remembered how, just a few weeks ago, his weak legs had only carried him a foot or two into the air, which caused him to fall into the river below. Then, not long after, he’d jumped into the open cavern, attempting to make a fifteen-foot jump to another ledge with his stats increased from a title. He’d almost cleared that jump and only lived thanks to the Mana Spinner webs that caught him. These memories flashed through his mind in an instant, and he grinned wide as he realized that this was different.

Despite the space being close to twenty feet, Alex could tell that he would make the jump. He hit the other side and rolled several times across the ground from his momentum. Bits of grass and more dirt clung to his bloody face, and he heard a cry of pain from Val as he rolled.

He raised himself to his hands and knees, spitting grass and blood, to see the large serpent on the other side staring at him.

Sorry buddy. Is it my imagination, or do I see frustration there?

The thought caused him to smirk, and the snake hissed in turn. It backed away and began to head up the hill toward the Rift.

I’m safe for now. But it seems to realize I want to go toward the top of the hill. Does it know about the Rift?

Alex let himself collapse for a moment, feeling glad that he was on the other side of the large crack from the snake.

Wait. Up the hill- the crack!

Alex got to his feet and could see the grass parting in a wake as the beast made its way up the hill. Alex remembered his view from the apex of the hill, where he’d emerged from the portal.

The crack starts there. If the snake makes it up to that point, it can just go right around the crack and come down on this side of the river!

Alex whimpered as he turned and began to limp away from the hill. He reached into his spatial pouch as he moved and brought out a Healing Potion. He drank the red liquid and was relieved to feel it take effect quickly. Next, he removed a Mana Stone and gave it to Val before removing another for himself. He used [Mana Siphon] on it, allowing him to use mana to empower his travel once more, heading further inland, away from the Rift and toward the cherry tree forest.