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Jun’s POV (13)
🕑 Added 2024-10-29 20:50:38 +0000 UTCIt hadn’t taken much to overpower the soul of this body’s previous inhabitant.
The patriarch’s brat had been weak. Pitifully so.
Oh, they say he would’ve made for a “great man” some day. Indeed, they said a lot of things. A kind and just ruler, blah blah blah. He wouldn’t know. He’d never met the guy. All he did know was that he was currently making the best out of an especially shit situation, and was actually rather enjoying himself in the meantime.
Zhao Long felt something slam into his left shoulder hard enough to make him stumble. Looking down, he met the eyes of a short boy in initiates robes. Clearly too large for him, he was practically swimming in them, though that was the least of Zhao Long’s concerns.
No, instead it was the fact that the filthy little insect was still standing after affronting him in such a deliberate manner. Whereas he should have been on his knees, begging for forgiveness, if not for his very soul.
“Ah! Greatest apologies, elder brother. I did not see you there. Please accept my humblest-!”
“Too late,” Zhao Long snarled, grabbing the insect by the throat and lifting him up by one arm.
“Luckily for you, I like to consider myself a generous man. For such a minor transgression, I believe an arm should suffice.”
And so saying, Zhao Long reached up, grabbed the boys arm by the wrist, and began to pull.
“Oh? But elder brother!” the boy exclaimed, far less terrified than he had a right to be.
And as for his arm…? Remarkably, it wouldn’t tear. It barely budged!
Normally all it took was a small application of his cultivated strength to overpower most in this no name province. Minor enough to avoid suspicion, and thereby hide its demonic origins.
And yet this mere boy…? This mere child? What in the world was he made of?
“Elder brother, would it not be more prudent to sap me of my lifeforce instead? Or would you prefer my soul? That is the purview of demonic cultivators, is it not?”
Zhao Long froze. He knew. But how? How could he know? How could anyone have known?!
“I’ve changed my mind. For that vile insinuation alone your punishment has been amended to death.”
So saying, Zhao Long let his fingers close around the boys neck properly this time and began to squeeze. And yet, again, the boy spoke calmly, as if he was having no trouble taking in air whatsoever.
“Thing is, I’ve heard that you demonic cultivators are unlike us mortal men. Truly I am humbled to be in the presence of one such as you. For instance, is it true you can take a length of steel straight through the heart without risk of injury?”
That was all the warning Zhao Long was given before the tip of a dao saber punched through the boys, now that you mentioned it, conspicuously oversized robes—thrusting with unthinkable speed towards the center of his chest.
[Bloodstained Dusk Veil Movement Technique!]
In an instant, Zhao Long’s body became as illusive as moonlight on an overcast night, just as the courtyard was inundated with the malodorous stench of a rancid slaughterhouse. With eyes like burning coals—his form turned wispy, gray, and indistinct—he was just able to evade the quick thrust in time.
Contorting his torso with unnatural speed and fluidity—spine bending so far back it should have been at risk of snapping—he backpedaled awkwardly, burning eyes wary of a follow up strike.
Finding his balance with little more than a shallow cut across his chest, it could be said he’d gotten off lightly. Even that much, however, was unforgivable in the extreme.
For the briefest moment, Zhao Long fought to repress his baser instincts. But alas, in the end, his heart just wasn’t in it. He took a single step forward—the scents of rotting carrion and spilled awful sharply intensifying—ready to release all five gates of the crimson ravaged maiden technique on this impudent welp, this impertinent insect, when a second voice emerged from the shadows of a far alcove.
“So it’s true then,” came the weary sigh of an elderly man.
Zhao Long spun on his heel, ready to tear the throat out of whoever else fancied themselves prey, only to come face to face with a regal looking gentleman dressed in finely tailored robes. He was actually quite old, though you wouldn’t know it just by looking at him.
No, instead it was his eyes that spoke of time immemorial. A cultivator of the nascent soul realm, the waves of suppressive aura the old man gave off, simply by his existing, had the effect of stilling his bloodlust considerably. Of immediately locking his muscles in place. It was as if a never ending pit had opened up beneath his feet, and he was falling, falling, waiting for a splat that never came.
A cold sweat beaded his brow, and rolled down his back. Even in his previous body, he would’ve been utterly powerless before this man. Zhao Long quickly dropped his demonic movement technique, hoping against all hope that the old man hadn’t noticed.
“G-grandfather! What a pleasant surprise. I hadn’t known you were-!”
“Do not presume to address me so casually, demon!” his words carried the spiritual impact of a whip cracking. “It is enough that I have to suffer knowing you’ve been masquerading as my beloved grandson all these years. But to be forced to stomach that same deception knowing full well the truth of things? It is too much! Too much for this poor grandfather to bear. How I had not realized it for myself long ago…”
Silence followed, in which the older cultivator continued to stare off into the distance, a forlorn expression on his ageless, though undeniably ancient, features.
“But, now that you do know and everything…” a jarringly chipper voice chimed in. “You wouldn’t mind if I, uh…? You know?”
The boy made a rapid stabbing gesture with his dao.
“What…? Oh, yes. You were the one to bring this filth to my attention. It is only right that you should finish it I suppose. My grandson, after all, is dead. And has been for some time now…”
Again, the old man lapsed into contemplative silence—a slow tear tracking it’s way down one cheek while his face remained otherwise impassive. Zhao Long, feeling like he wasn’t entirely sure what was happening here, latched onto one very important thing with the desperation of a drowning man to a life preserve.
The shitty old man wouldn’t be the one to snuff out his existence with the mere snap of a finger? What good fortune was this?! Did that really mean all he had to do was contend with the boy, and he’d effectively be released consequence free? No matter how unlikely that seemed, it was the only saving grace he was presented with, and so he clung onto that glimmer of hope for dear life.
He heard the telltale scrape of heel on flagstone, and spun around quickly, Bloodstained Dusk Veil already cloaking him in shifting blood dappled mists. His body twisting around the strike before the sneak attack had even neared its completion, Zhao Long smirked at the over eager welp.
Clearly emboldened while his back had been turned, the boy had evidently over extended himself. His downward slash would ring off the flagstones well before it found his borrowed flesh. And by the time the insolent cur had fully recovered from his blunder, and so realized that Zhao Long was no longer where he’d been a moment ago, the belligerent fool would already be dead.
Zhao Long readied all five gates of his crimson ravaged maiden technique, just as the idiot boy's blade collided with the stone of the courtyard, and shattered into a million glittering pieces.
He never even saw the attack that rendered his borrowed body into a fountain of gore.
***
Ding!
Congratulations!
You have successfully completed a |1 Star| ranked trial.
OBJECTIVE CLEARS
Main Objective: Show moderate proficiency with the Basic Mantra [Leaping Slash].
Complete.
Hidden Objective: Defeat Brother Lang of the Silent Sword Martial Blade School in open combat.
Incomplete.
Hidden Objective: Complete the Silent Sword Martial Blade School’s monthly entrance exam with top marks.
Incomplete.
Secret Objective: Under your sole leadership, unite the underworld crime lords of Vermilion Flame City.
Complete.
Secret Objective: In a single night, single handedly eradicate over eighty percent of an affluent crime syndicate’s membership.
Complete
Secret Objective: Reveal the truth of the Twin Leaf Sect Grand Patriarch’s hidden tragedy.
Complete.
Secret Objective: Kill the demonic cultivator Zhao Long.
Complete.
Secret Objective: Place the Nascent Soul Realm Cultivator Liang Zhentian, of the Liang family, firmly in your debt.
Complete.
TITLES OBTAINED
Ding!
A set of temporary titles have been awarded due to your performance within the trial world.
|Butcher’s Bill 1| (Limited)
Earned by slaughtering twenty five sentient beings consecutively.
+500 celestial essence to body, mind, and spirit.
The potency of your killing intent has increased. Your aptitude for demonic commune has grown.
|Butcher’s Bill 2| (Limited)
Earned by slaughtering fifty sentient beings consecutively.
+1 celestial dew to body, mind, and spirit.
The potency of your killing intent has increased. Your aptitude for demonic commune has grown.
|Butcher’s Bill 3| (Limited)
Earned by slaughtering one hundred sentient beings consecutively.
+1.5 celestial dew to body, mind, and spirit.
The potency of your killing intent has increased. Your aptitude for demonic commune has grown.
|Butcher’s Bill 4| (Limited)
Earned by slaughtering two hundred sentient beings consecutively.
+2 celestial dew to body, mind, and spirit.
The potency of your killing intent has increased. Your aptitude for demonic commune has grown.
The potency of your killing intent has increased. Your aptitude for demonic commune has grown.
Ding!
A temporary title has been awarded due to your performance within the trial world.
|Neighborhood Boogeyman| (Limited)
Earned by striking prolonged terror into the hearts of normally fearless men.
Your aptitude for demonic commune as grown.
Your killing intent now has a mind altering effect. Instilling a creeping sense of dread into all those in the vicinity—sapping will and confidence in equal measure.
Ding!
A temporary title has been awarded due to your performance within the trial world.
|Peace Maker| (Limited)
Earned by coordinating a lasting peace between sworn enemies.
Your aptitude for angelic commune has grown.
Your word now holds more weight with people than it ought, and you are more likely to sway opinions with nothing but your voice.
Ding!
A temporary title has been awarded due to your performance within the trial world.
|Masked Vigilante| (Limited)
Earned by taking the law into your own hands, and distributing justice by any means necessary. By instilling feelings of security into the hearts of mere strangers. The unseen and forgotten who were without further recourse, and bereft of options. And all with the implicit knowledge that they would never know whose name to thank for their blessings.
+5 celestial dew to body, mind, and spirit.
Your aptitude for angelic commune has grown significantly.
(Note: These effects are only applicable whilst within a simulated trial.)
(Note: by completing a sufficiently high ranked trial, it is possible to transform a temporary title into one that is functional outside of a simulated space.)
RENOWN BONUSES
You begin to take confident steps down a dark and twisted path, and the bloody footprints you leave behind cause vast ripples to trail in your wake.
By ridding Vermilion Flame City of its more irredeemable elements, and uniting the rest of the seven gang powers under a single terrifying entity, Yexing Cangying—an urban myth made flesh—you have established the first beginnings of an organization whose roots have the potential to extend all throughout the trial worlds.
By revealing the existence of the demonic cultivator Zhao Long, you have upset the balance of power within the Twin Leaf Sect. By killing his son, you have made a lifelong enemy of the Twin Leaf Sect’s Grand Patriarch, Liang Chenglong.
Conversely, you have made an ally of his father, Liang Zhentian, a man who is not so blinded by grief that he cannot see the truth.
You are now more likely to find yourself within Seven Gang Territory.
Acclaim Bonus: Half-blood Rebellion, Liang Zhentian, Seven Gang Territory
Notoriety Bonus: Fallen Iron Fist Sect, Maximilian Alexander De Campos, Twin Leaf Sect, Liang Chenglong
GREATER ALIGNMENTS
You have yet to commune with either heaven or hell. Your soul is currently in flux.
Heavenly Alignments: NOT APPLICABLE
Demonic Alignments: NOT APPLICABLE
Complete Further Trials to Discover your Star Ranking.
(Note: the more difficult the trial, the higher your overall ranking will be.)
Trials Completed: [3 of 100]
Overall Performance Rating: S
