Chapter 320 - Bait
Yang Xiu was as happy as happy could be, walking around the tournament grounds with her brother trying to find people who wanted to attack her. So far though, the worst that had happened was a bunch of Jade Chameleon Sect members in their gray robes giving her evil looks.
More promising was that some of them had dashed off after catching sight of her, hopefully to report to their superiors.
The blue and white robed members of the Swift Blizzard Sect had been more circumspect in their disdain for her and her brother, but she could tell they loathed her to the core of their very beings.
It was glorious. She couldn't wait until the tournament started.
Luckily, there was a market set up for the participants with hundreds of stalls and plenty of stuff to look at. Otherwise, the two of them just walking at random for hours would have been much more suspicious. As it was, though, she thought they did a good job of pretending to shop. Yang Ru even bought a pretty necklace, probably for Kang Lin—not that the gift would do him any good.
Yang Xiu was pretty sure that he'd let the girl get away. It wasn't really his fault, of course. The idiotic girl somehow thought that he was too good for her. Yang Ru. Too good. For Kang Lin.
That thinking made no sense to Yang Xiu. She loved her brother fiercely, and anyone talking bad about him would have to deal with her. But he wasn't anything special compared to the girl she'd hoped would become her sister.
Yang Xiu gave a mental shrug. If someone wanted to be that stupid, there was nothing anyone really could do about it. She'd already tried to talk sense into Kang Lin.
The current mission demanded Yang Xiu's attention as she was supposed to be keeping watch for enemy cultivators, so she dropped that line of thought.
If you do it long enough, even shopping and acting as bait can become boring. She seriously thought about calling it a day. Master hadn't been sure that anyone would react immediately or at all.
Finally, though, it happened and in the best possible way.
That jerk Golden Core that had accosted them at the auction house arrived. He flew toward the twins on his sword, his expression enraged.
"You!" he shouted. "I told you what would happen if I ever saw your faces again."
"You did," Yang Xiu said. "But, just for the record, can you please re-iterate that you, a Golden Core from the Jade Chameleon Sect, intend to do bodily harm to us, two Foundation Establishment cultivators from the Rising Tide Sect?"
After all, Master had instructed her to pop her ring if she was accosted by a higher ream cultivator. She took that to mean an attack, not just being yelled at.
"Girl, what are you talking about? You know what, it doesn't matter. Soon, you'll never talk about anything ever again."
Her sense detected him charging up qi for an attack, and she quickly popped her contingency ring. She'd been hoping to hold it up in the air and do it more dramatically, but Master would have chastised her severely for putting her and her brother in unnecessary danger if whatever attack Big Ugly sent didn't kill them first.
In less than the time it took Big Ugly to finish charging his attack and launch it, Master appeared in the air directly between the twins and the Golden Core cultivator. The man attacked, but it was far too late. The qi struck Master.
Since his back was to Yang Xiu and he was between the man and them, she couldn't tell what effect the attack had, but she guessed that it was very little. At most, the man had triggered a brief flare of Master's shield. Master might have even decided to, as he called it, tank the hit just to make a point.
"It appears to me that the Jade Chameleon Sect has declared that attacking juniors is acceptable," Master said. "Note that you're my junior."
"I warned these two what would happen if I ever saw them again!"
"And that makes attacking them somehow okay?" Master shrugged. "You know what? I'm fine with that. I've warned the Jade Chameleon Sect multiple times about what will happen if they attack my juniors, which you have just done. Time to suffer the consequences."
The Golden Core, wisely, decided to retreat, attempting to flee on his flying sword. Attempting being the operative word. Master's Gravity and some other energy that Yang Xiu couldn't identify held the man in place.
Master Teleported to right next to the Jade Chameleon, sword in hand ready to strike. He hesitated, though, and instead turned back toward the twins. "Disciple, leave now. I don't want you to see this."
More than anything, Yang Xiu desperately wanted to see exactly what happened next. Well, almost more than anything. Her desire not to disobey Master was stronger by a lot.
As ordered, she and Yang Ru retreated from sight.
Teng Wuying was incensed. Everyone he worked with were idiots. That was the only explanation.
The Jade Chameleon Sect couldn't afford to lose any more face. Their entire sect knew that fact. Why, then, did Fang Changming insist on attacking juniors? Even worse, why did he walk into such an obvious trap?
There was no hope for it but for Teng Wuying to do as much damage control as he could. Which meant meeting with Mao Biya. Again.
The last time hadn't turned out particularly well as he was still convinced that someone had been spying on him. Though, admittedly, he couldn't figure out how the person could have escaped. Unless the spy were a Nascent Soul, but one of those should have better things to do than listen in on a conversation between two Golden Cores.
Regardless, he had to meet her again. She'd surely want to react to the provocation from Chao Su. Her actions would have to be mitigated as much as possible.
They met in a different tea house in a different back room, and he was much more cautious, sweeping every room he walked through for invisible occupants multiple times and finding none.
"I'm sending a Golden Core after those twins, and nothing you say will stop me," were the first words out of her mouth. She didn't even bother sitting first.
He sighed. "Whoever you send will end up the same as Fang Changming, minus their arms and legs. Did you know that one of his arms won't regenerate. The best pills and the finest healers couldn't regrow it. It's Soul damage, they say. Soul damage."
Mao Biya scoffed as if Teng Wuying were lying or mistaken somehow.
"At least, send someone you don't like because they'll probably end up dead. Chao Su specifically said the only reason he was sparing Fang Changming's life was to carry a message back to us. Chao Su said, and I quote, 'Any further attacks on my juniors will result in the perpetrator's death. Period.' I don't see why you would expect any other result."
"For one thing, we're going to block the signal from that ring. And even if that doesn't work, we are the Swift Blizzard Sect, and we still have all our Golden Core and Nascent Souls. He will give us face."
Teng Wuying metaphorically threw up his hands. Chao Su was a Formations Master. The chances of Mao Biya coming up with something to block one of his arrays absent paying an enormous sum that she didn't have to Lei Bohai seemed unlikely at best. And if Chao Su's primary disciples gave no face to a Golden Core, what made her think their Master would give face to anyone or any organization?
They were destined to head into the tournament with both sects having lost so much face that they'd be laughing stocks. The damage might be so great that the City Lord would be forced from his neutrality to take up opposition to them.
The ambush had to succeed. Everything was riding on it.
Yang Ru and his sister were once again acting as bait, as they had every day for the last several. Since the Jade Chameleon Golden Core had been literally quartered, no one had even dared looking at them askance. Which was fine with him. Not having to concentrate on being attacked gave him more time to consider how he could fix things with Kang Lin.
He grimaced. Not that he was having any luck in that regard.
A figure flying on a sword drew his attention, one wearing the blue and white robe of the Swift Blizzard Sect. Surely, the woman wasn't heading toward him and his sister.
No, she definitely was.
Surely, she didn't intend to attack them. No sooner had that thought passed through his mind than he sensed a build up of qi.
No, she definitely did.
Yang Xiu had already popped her ring, and Master appeared in the air between the attacker and them.
"What are you doing?" Master was as incredulous as Yang Ru.
"You aren't supposed to be here," the woman said, looking quite upset.
Master looked at each of the twins. The twins looked back at him.
"Why wouldn't he be here?" Yang Xiu said.
Master stared intently at the woman. "Ah. I see. She thought that trinket she's carrying would block the signal from your ring."
"That's stupid, Master. Doesn't she know how good your arrays are?"
Kang Lin always said that Yang Xiu's lips were way too loose around higher realmed cultivators. Yang Ru thought that they were too loose in general.
"Apparently not. Time to go, kids."
"We know what happened with the last one, Master. We've killed before. Remember the warehouse? Watching won't scar us."
As Master and his sister chatted, the woman grew even more agitated. "You cannot kill me. I'm an elder of the Swift Blizzard Sect. Harm me in any way, and my sect will strike you down."
Master shook his head ruefully. "Your sect is already trying to strike me down. What's adding one more reason?" He glanced back and Yang Xiu. "Fine. I wish I could protect you from seeing stuff like this, but that's unrealistic, isn't it? Watch if you want."
Yang Xiu made no attempt to leave, and Yang Ru wouldn't leave her there alone. So they both ended up staying.
The woman tried to pull away, but Master effortlessly held her in place just like he had with the man several days earlier.
"I take no pleasure in this," Master said, "but I gave my word."
He Teleported, blinking out of existence and reappearing instantly next to the woman with his sword drawn. The metal had a black edge to it, Void qi. Moving faster than Yang Ru's enhanced eyes could follow, he made four slashes. After each, a limb separated from the woman's body.
Master sighed. "The only mercy I can give you is a choice—I can simply kill you by taking your head or I can damage your Soul so that none of your limbs can ever be healed. Choose."
"Kill me, scum. My sect will avenge me!"
Master sighed again. "Crazy cultivators."
He sounded sad and exasperated as the same time.
One final slash, again made faster that the eye could see, separated her head from her shoulders. He let go of her with his qi, and her torso fell to the ground.
Chapter 321 - Maneuvering
Benton didn't feel great about the situation. He'd used Yang Xiu and Yang Ru as bait to attract enemy higher realm cultivators, putting the twins in danger. He'd also allowed them to watch him execute one of those cultivators, which wasn't exactly what he considered exemplary behavior.
Once he'd finished dispatching the woman, he Teleported the twins back to the compound that was to serve as their base for the duration of the tournament.
Benton sighed. "What I did today is not something I want you two, or any other sect members, to consider a good thing. Unfortunately, this …" He almost said world before hasitly correcting himself. "This continent is not run by the rule of law. No sect or the Emporer's faction is strong enough to enforce justice. Thus, we have to make our own. Which leads to injustice. Understand?"
Yang Ru quickly nodded.
His sister, on the other hand, said, "They wanted to attack us, juniors way weaker than them, in defiance of all custom, Master. Obviously, they deserved what they got."
"In a way, I have to agree with you. I mean, I did kill one of them and maim the other. But here's a question for you—do I deserve to be executed?"
"Of course not, Master!"
"Why not? I killed a junior. I could have Teleported Fatty Ren to the city and had him fight her instead."
"But… But…"
"From the perspective of protecting our sect, my actions were completely justified. From the perspective of our enemies, my actions were a gross violation of social norms. If they had the necessary power, they'd punish me. Why does our perspective matter more than theirs?"
She opened and closed her mouth, but no words came out.
"It's a difficult question," Benton said. "My bottom line is that I will protect my sect members with my dying breath, consequences be damned. And I don't regret that. I'd rather tens or hundreds or even thousands of enemy Golden Cores lay slaughtered than for any of you to be hurt. But I can still wish none had to be killed, and by explaining all this to you, I truly hope that, one day when you may be in a position to take a different path, maybe you will decide to be merciful. Understand?"
"Yes, Master," they chorused.
But they didn't. Not really. Maybe Yang Ru was beginning to have an inkling as to what Benton tried to teach them, but Yang Xiu was too engrained in the cultivator culture to comprehend. He just hoped he had time to reach her before she truly stepped out in the world. The thought of her embarking on a path of pursuing face and vengeance was depressing, and the example he'd set for her so far hadn't exactly been a sterling one.
"On the plus side," Benton said, not wanting to end on such a depressing note, "you two did great work over the last few days. Our enemies now know that threatening our juniors is a truly perilous activity. Because of your actions risking yourselves, your fellow sect members are safer. Gratitude."
He cupped his hands.
Yang Ru grunted while Yang Xiu looked quite pleased with herself.
After the two departed, Benton proceeded with his next political maneuver—crafting a gift for Qiu ZhenKang. The what was at least quite easy. He was a Metal aspected sword wielder. One of Benton's base model blades that created an amplified qi attack would be fine. After all, masterworks that combined formations and blacksmithing were quite valuable and should easily surpass the value of anything the man currently owned.
Of course, Benton being Benton, he considered going over the top and crafting something unique. The idea of VoidFire called to him, not that he had any more than a vague thought of what such might entail, but the name was super cool.
Keeping the gift a bit more down to earth held two distinct advantages, though.
One, the sword was supposed to signal to their enemies that it was payment for services rendered, implying that the inclusion of the clan in the tournament was actually to the benefit of the Rising Tide Sect instead of those allied against it. Thus, a rift would possibly be formed between those allies and the City Lord's faction. If Benton went too all out, his largesse might be seen as so far in excess of his gain that it would have the opposite effect.
Two, possessing a unique, crazily powerful sword would be dangerous for the man. He was a functionary in the Golden Core realm, not a powerhouse, and the City Lord only provided so much protection. Given how Benton's really interesting blades had been fought over at auction by outside factions, being the known possessor of one without enough strength to hold onto it would not be a good thing.
Thus, Benton stayed disciplined for once and stuck to his original plan. A blade with self repair and Sharpness arrays that amplified Metal attacks channeled through it by a factor of ten was a really good gift, but it wasn't so ridiculous as to put the man's life in jeopardy.
As luck would have it—or, you know, planning and judicious use of Time Manipulation—Benton finished crafted just as a steering committee meeting was scheduled to end.
He popped into the venue, drawing everyone's attention. "I hope I'm not interrupting. Just have a quick bit of business with the Esteemed Qiu ZhenKang."
That particular meeting was public, so besides a representative from each of the factions—the aforementioned Qiu Zhenkang, Kang Ya-Ting, Mao Biya, and a Jade Chameleon Golden Core who Benton didn't recognize—there were a decent number of onlookers.
Perfect. Just as he and Kang Ya-Ting had planned.
The City Lord's representative, for his part, remained impassive as Benton approached, which also was planned. Kang Ya-Ting was quite familiar with the man's temperment and predicted his reaction well. To onlookers, he would appear completely neutral to what was occurring, which could be interpreted as him having foreknowledge.
The next part took a bit of acting on Benton's part. He couldn't exactly say, "Hey, thanks for inviting the clan for us!" Instead, he had to imply it in a way that didn't seem to imply anything of the sort. Luckily, according to Kang Ya-Ting, cultivators tended to be a paranoid lot, seeing conspiracies in the most minor of acts. All Benton had to do was not be over the top, and he'd be fine.
For anyone else, those instructions would have been easily followed. Benton, naturally, struggled.
"Friend Qiu," he said, internally wincing as the words left his mouth. "This one wants to express his gratitude for the service the City Lord provides to this great city and the efforts you personally have put into making sure the tournament is an outstanding event. No one values the rule of law more than I do, and more than anyone else here, that is what you stand for. I hope you will accept this minor token of my esteem and appreciation."
Benton really, really wished he'd written up what he would say in advance and ran it past someone. Anyone. Was that way too over the top, or was it what was expected from cultivators with all their flowery language and nonsense?
He pulled the sword from his ring and held it out toward the man, who remained just as impassive as when Benton had appeared.
"Gratitude, Sect Leader Chao Su," Qiu ZhenKang said without even paying much attention to what he was being given. "This one appreciates your acknowledgement and gratitude."
When he actually looked at the sword, his eyes actually widened slightly. "Sect Leader, are you sure? This gift exceeds my expections greatly."
If Benton would have been in a position to visibly let out a sigh of relief, he would have. Those words were perfect. His enemies would surely interpret them as Benton overpaying the agreed upon amount for a service.
He cupped his hands and lowered his head far more than was required for a Nascent Soul addressing a Golden Core. "Your dedication to this city, its people, and the tournament deserve nothing less."
The crowd was muttering. Mao Biya looked absolutely livid. He wouldn't have been surprised if she rose and either attacked him flat out or spit in his face. Well, his or Qiu ZhenKang's.
Glorious.
Kang Ya-Ting, of course, kept up a completely neutral expression, so Benton would have to ask feedback later. The other man, the Jade Chameleon, appeared contemplative and, weirdly, almost pleased.
How odd.
His task more than adequately accomplished, Benton Teleported out before he could accidentally ruin it somehow.
Later, after giving Kang Ya-Ting time to return to his sect and settle in, Benton Teleported to the elder's study.
He cupped his hands. "How did this lowly one do, Friend Kang? And give it to me straight. I can take criticism."
"There were … hiccups in your performance, Friend Su. Referring to Qiu Zhenkang as friend was not a good idea. The speech itself wasn't bad, though, but it was his slip that really made things absolutely perfect." Kang Ya-Ting paused. "Frankly, it's good to discover that there do exist tasks that you aren't good at."
Benton laughed. "Get to know me well enough, and I'm sure you'll find many, many things. Were my late wife still with us, she could have provided you with a detailed list."
"You were married, Friend Su?"
Benton tried not to talk too much about his life back on Earth for obvious reasons, and discussing it with the spymaster for the Poison Claw Sect's branch was absolutely the wrong person to start with. He shrugged. "You live long enough and many people pass through your life. Some have much more impact than others."
"Understood, Friend Su." Kang Ya-Ting went on to share his belief that Mao Biya, at least, would take the bait. The Jade Chameleon Sect would have a hard time restraining her even if they wanted to.
Of course, they'd first bide their time. They didn't yet know exactly what service Qiu Zhenkang had performed for Benton, after all. Assuming that the clan did lose to, or even failed to dominate, their Rising Tide opponents in the tournament, however, Mao Biya was sure to draw the exact conclusion that Benton wanted her to.
Perfect.
While he'd never been one for office politics, making big maneuvers like he'd done earlier that day was actually kind of fun. Employing a secret agent spy. Coming up with all kinds of cool toys … uh, tools. Acting. What wasn't to like?
Chapter 322 – A Gain, Tests, and a Reversal
A few days had passed since Benton had put on his performance at the steering committee meeting, and all was quiet. Neither Mao Biya nor the Jade Chameleon Sect had made any overt moves against City Lord's faction. But that was fine. Expected. After all, Benton could have been paying Qiu ZhenKang off for something that had nothing to do with them.
Benton had an idea that might anger them enough to take actions that would push the City Lord's faction away from them, but it would have to wait until the tournament started. For the moment, it was time to test his Aura suppression against multiple Nascent Soul opponents. He Teleported to the arena at the Poison Claw branch sect. Kang Ya-Ting and Elder Dai were already there, and they all exchanged greetings.
"Revered Senior Sister Duan Lan will be here momentarily," Elder Dai said. "We also secured the participation of two of our three Nascent Souls who aren't in seclusion, Revered Elder Xu Chuanli and Revered Elder Tang Huan. Unfortunately, Revered Elder Luo Xiaotong has other commitments."
"That's fine. Yuan Yaozu makes four, which should be a good test."
Five would have been better, but Benton felt sure that he could extrapolate results well enough that the lesser number would work. Gathering so many Nascent Souls was not a trivial task, after all.
Soon, Duan Lan did, in fact, show up, and right after a round of greetings were exchanged, Benton Teleported to his sect and brought Yuan Yaozu back to the arena with him.
Benton noticed a small bead of sweat on Kang Ya-Ting's brow.
Nascent Souls naturally exuded a small representation of their Aura, one that they really couldn't control unless they'd practiced their technique extensively—or unless they'd cheated and paid to have the System bring it to Mastery. So having two of them nearby had a noticeable, though not too intense, effect on the Golden Cores.
"The plan is simple," Benton said, once yet another round of greetings were complete. "I need both of you to attack me simultaneously with your Auras."
Targeted use of Auras was much different than the naturally emitted pressure, and even at just Small Success—the level at which Nascent Souls started with their techniques—attacks were eminently controllable. Thus, since no powerful qi techniques were expected to be used, there was no need to move the test farther out onto the arena floor. Kang Ya-Ting and Elder Dai didn't even need to move away as the Nascent Souls' control extended to including and excluding any targets they desired from the effects.
"Begin," Benton said.
A pressure descended upon him as two Auras sought to suppress him. To test the impact of the restraint, he used his Concept of Light to send what amounted to a laser pointer beam at both his sparring partners. A red dot appeared on each of their foreheads.
If he had to guess, he'd say that, with two of them suppressing him, he was maybe at eighty-five to ninety percent power with his qi attacks. Though it was two on one and he wasn't actively using his Aura, they were both much lower than him in realm, and his superior Auras provided decent passive protection.
Nice.
He pushed back with only his Gravity Aura, and the force bearing down on him lessened to almost nothing. After firing his laser beam again, he honestly felt that his qi attacks weren't hindered at all.
That was a good result for him.
Next, he tried to ramp up the power of his Aura to suppress both his sparring partners. "Are your qi attacks affected?"
Nascent Souls could easily shut down a cultivator in a lower realm—several cultivators at once, actually—but in a one on one match with both opponents being in that same major realm, it was well known that the Auras basically cancelled themselves out. Suppression could only be achieved if multiple Nascent Souls focused on a single target.
Not knowing about the impact of Benton's Aura Mastery, Duan Lan had no idea what he was talking about. Her face showed only confusion.
"No effect, Master," Yuan Yaozu, who had experienced the phenomena, said.
That result was a bit of a bummer, but Benton wasn't quite done for yet. He switched the focus of his Aura to Yuan Yaozu only.
If the test were an actual fight, Yuan Yaozu would basically be out of it, having his qi restrained to the point of making his qi attacks mostly powerless, and leaving Benton one on one versus Duan Lan. Since her Aura alone did very little to weaken him and his attacks were much superior, he was in a very advantateous position.
He tried adding a second Aura without using his Mind technique, Split Focus, but as he'd discovered in previous tests, it was impossible. When he did use a second Mind to add his Time Aura, he suppressed both of his opponents simultaneously.
Duan Lan obviously noticed his Aura overwhelming hers and was surprised.
"Try to attack me," Benton said. "Use your most powerful technique."
A pathetic Illusion based strike lanced out at him. He restrained his shield, not even needing to waste the qi to absorb the hit. Of course, Illusion was more than a little sub-optimal for attacks, anyway. Still, the point was to demonstrate the power of his suppression to her.
"That's impossible!" she said.
"As impossible as using a Trials Pagoda to break through to Nascent Soul even with an extremely damaged cultivation circulatory system?" Benton said calmly.
She hesitated a moment, calming herself down before cupping her hands. "Acknowledged. Gratitude for the instruction, Sect Leader."
Even with just two opponents, he'd learned a lot. He just needed to see if the experience scaled with twice as many sparring partners. "I'm ready for the others."
Elder Dai dashed off two quick messages, and several minutes later, two more Nascent Souls descended on the arena. With so many gathered in a small place, even Benton, protected as he was, could feel the pressure generated. It didn't affect him, obviously, but it was definitely present, not something he could ignore. Kang Ya-Ting and Elder Dai had beads of sweat running down their faces.
Greetings went on for practically forever. The more powerful someone was, the more face had to be given. Yuan Yaozu and Duan Lan hadn't been too bad because both were acquainted with Benton and understood his distaste for the process. He was actually amazed that he'd somehow gotten the two Golden Cores to mostly ignore that social convention when it was just him visiting them.
Still, Benton did nothing to rock the boat. Those newly introduced Nascent Souls, after all, were busy, powerful people and were taking time out of their lives just to help him out. Besides, he could force himself to deal with the niceties when he had to. He really didn't want to be rude to anyone. It was just that he was too old of a dog to learn too many new tricks.
Once they finally began, he basically replicated the previous tests just with more subjects. He could fairly easily suppress all four as long as he used his Split Focus, but as four was the limit with that technique until he was allowed to advance another realm, there was no way to add a fifth even if though he had another Aura available. Still, the ability to basically take so many out of the fight was nothing to sneeze at. Even better, even with all of them trying to suppress him, his qi attacks were still about sixty percent effective.
That amount of his considerable power was still enough to go toe to toe with at least three or four Nascent Souls.
Benton effusively thanked the two unfamilar cultivators, and they quickly left, both of them having grown to appreciate his power quite a lot.
"Alright, I honestly think that I can handle seven Nascent Souls solo," Benton said. "Maybe eight, but that would be about the limit."
None of the four remaining cultivators disagreed with him after his performance.
"The Jade Chameleon Sect and the Swift Blizzard Sect combined can only field six," Elder Dai said, "a number we can match on our own thanks to your generosity."
"Remember, Friend Su, you don't need to win, only hold off until we can get re-enforcements to you."
Benton honestly didn't see the need. He fully expected the fight to be over before any of his allies had a chance to intervene. No need to make them feel useless, however, so he cupped his hands. "Gratitude, Friend Kang. I do think, however, that my experiement shows there's no reason to bring your final Revered Elder out of seclusion."
Elder Dai frowned.
"It's seven on six, and if I can make four of them fight at the level of a Golden Core, it's more like seven on two. Making it eight is completely superfluous."
"It would be something of a tragedy to bring the Revered Elder out of seclusion without sufficient need." She hesitated. "Worse, though, would be to need him and not have him available."
"Let's approach this from a different direction," Benton said. "What's the worst case scenario?"
"First of all, Friend Su, we stop assuming that they're capped at six combatants. What if the Emporer's faction joins them? You'll be facing at least four more. Additionally, what if they somehow prevent you from communicating with us, meaning no support will be coming. Can you fight ten on one?"
Benton grimaced. "Not easily. Honestly, I think that would be about my limit. Any more than that, and I think they could suppress me. Still, I can always Teleport out, and if I can't get word to you, having another Nascent Soul available for backup wouldn't help."
"True…" Elder Dai said.
Benton turned to Yuan Yaozu. "What are your thoughts?"
The man let out a breath. "What about the Formations Master?"
"I've seen his formations in that square. Master? Really? I'd barely call him an Expert. I don't want to toot my own horn, but I'll easily neutralize anything he has prepared. Easily."
"If it were anyone else making these claims," Yuan Yaozu said, "I'd be highly doubtful, but I've seen you do everything from the improbable to the absolute impossible. On the other hand, you are known to overestimate yourself on occasion."
"Point," Benton said. "I'll leave it to you guys. It's your sect, after all. But we do have them literally outnumbered without your final Nascent Soul and not counting any other considerations."
Elder Dai sighed. "When I tell the sect leader, he will surely choose to have the Revered Elder remain in seclusion." She paused. "Unless there's a chance he could use the Trials Pagoda to break through to Nihility?"
"Sorry, that's a true no go. The pagoda does not have the ability to advance anyone so high yet."
And Benton wasn't just blowing smoke. He'd asked the System some questions about its capabilities and found out that it was capped at raising people only to his current realm.
His audience, though, only seemed to hear one of those words—yet.
Teng Wuying was meeting privately with Mao Biya. Again. He barely held back a sigh. Chao Su would have to be an absolute idiot not to know about the alliance by that point.
Worse, the woman was going on and on about how Qiu Zhenkang was a traitor. First of all, how could anyone who wasn't an official part of their alliance be considered a traitor? He was free to act in his own best interests. Second, Teng Wuying was almost positive the gift of the sword was a setup put together by his nemesis.
Not that Mao Biya would listen to reason.
There was one bright spot, though. Teng Wuying would have to be quite careful in his approach, but he might be able to turn the situation to his advantage.
"I fear you're right, Esteemed Branch Sect Leader. They've made fools of us, given us no face." He feigned a shudder. "My biggest fear is that the City Lord goes fully over to the other side and joins their Nascent Souls with Chao Su's."
The suggestion clearly startled her, and her eyes widened. "That would be a disaster. This is an all or nothing ambush at this point. The side that prevails will rule the continent. The side that loses will perish sooner rather than later."
She wasn't wrong about that part.
"We have to do something!"
"Agreed, Esteemed Branch Sect Leader, but what?"
Mao Biya paused for a moment, thinking. "The Swift Blizzard Sect will come up with enough money for another mercenary. You will have to do the same."
That task wouldn't be easy for either of them, but the fact that she committed to it gave him the leverage he needed to get his elders to agree.
"The problem with that solution is availability. The four mercenaries we already hired are the only ones who were willing to wait around for us to spring the ambush," she said. "All the others will only Teleport in right before the attack, meaning our timing has to be perfect."
Teng Wuying grinned. "That won't be a problem, Esteemed Branch Sect Leader."
"How so?"
"Chao Su has given us everything we need to get him to any location we choose anytime we choose, Esteemed Branch Sect Leader."
Her expression showed her clear confusion.
"When we attacked his twin disciples, they signaled him by breaking a ring, Esteemed Branch Sect Leader."
"Ahh. So all we have to do is put those twins in danger."
"We don't even have to do that much, Esteemed Branch Sect Leader. When a ring breaks, he comes. We simply must steal one of those rings, and even better, all his sect members carry them."
Chapter 323 - Trades
Yang Xiu put on her most winning smile. "C'mon, Junior Brother. It's a fair trade."
"I am not giving you Stone Shaping for Lightning Bolt," Zi Delan said.
"Why not? When will you ever need to scult stone? Are you planning on making a statue of yourself of something? It's useless. Lightning Bolt, on the other hand, might just save your life."
"Yeah, and I already have three bolts. No one else has Stone Shaping. Master only made five of them."
Most of the sect members had no idea about the worth conveyed by rarity. She'd exchanged a short range Teleport, which everyone received ten of, for a Temperature Manipulation. Obviously, instantly disappearing from one place and appearing nearby was much more useful than changing the temperature of an object or area, especially since their robes now kept them completely comfortable. But when one was trying to acquire the complete set, it was the scarce ones that were the most valuable.
As far as Yang Xiu knew, very few people were collecting the talisman, which made the effort a lot easier for her. Unfortunately, Zi Delan was one of them.
Yang Xiu gritted her teeth. "Fine. I have an extra Explosive Growth."
"Hmm. I do need that one, and I know who has another one of the Stone Shapings…" Zi Delan shook his head. "The value isn't there for the trade, though. Master made eight growths. Throw in the Teleport, and it's a deal."
The next time she got the kid in the sparring ring, she was going to make him wish to the heavens that Yang Ru had steped in instead of her. "Teleports are way too valuable. You know as well as I do that they'll be used up. By the end of the tournament, there might be hardly any of the original printing left."
"Okay. A heal them."
"That's the same thing as a Teleport, and you know it," she said. "I'll give you an Earth Shot."
Master had made a lot of each of his simple attack spells. Which made sense. In a fight, each would give his sect members an option that didn't require a lot of thought and that packed a hefty punch.
Zi Delan frowned. "Those are almost worthless."
"I'm giving you two for one already."
"Throw in either a Hydro Blast or Wind Slash on top of the growth and the shot, and it's a deal."
"Fine."
Zi Delan smiled. "Pleasure doing business with you, Senior Sister."
Benton grinned. He'd been walking outside one of the compound's huddle rooms and noticed Yang Xiu and Zi Delan talking instead of fighting. Curious, Benton did a wee bit of eavesdropping.
It turned out they were trading talismans. Awesome.
He'd happened upon such before, of course, but it was usually an exchange based on utility like when Huang Yimun gave most of his Coin Creations to Sun Hua for the combat focused Chain Lightning and Gravity Burst. What Yang Xiu and Zi Delan were doing, though, was completely different. It did Benton's heart good to see that at least some of the kids had gotten into the spirit of collecting.
For him and Greg, competitions were fun, but there was nothing better than putting that last holdout that completed a set into a binder. Good times.
Obviously, these particular collectables were functional as well as for fun, and Benton looked forward to seeing the talismans in action. Besides limited use in sparring and demostrations for the purpose of explaining their functionality, they hadn't been used yet because Yang Xiu ordered everyone to preserve them for an emergency.
Benton didn't countermand her, either. For one thing, the instruction made sense. If their enemies knew about the cards, they could prepare for them—maybe?—and having an ace up the sleeve was always a good thing in a fight.
For another, he generally didn't like putting someone in charge and then undermining their authority. Unless a mistake was so bad that was more likely than not to lead to disatrous, long-term consequences, it was far better to allow a protégé to make mistakes.
Benton did, however, make sure that all the sect members knew that, if they felt like they were in danger, it was far better to use a talisman and not get hurt than to try to preserve secrecy.
With the trade winding down, he returned to his patrol, walking around the compound on the lookout for trouble. Not that moving about was necessary—his defensive formation would detect any intruders and his spiritual sense was just as effective at detecting problems while he rested in the comfort of his temporary office as it was anywhere else inside their designated area—but the combination of tense anticipation and boredom drove the need from some kind of physical activity.
The previous three weeks had flown by. Though nothing actually happened, the time was actually quite stressful as he had to remain alert throughout almost every day just in case one of his sect members popped their contingency ring. Nights were better, of course, because the kids were confined to the base with rare exceptions.
Honestly, he'd expected there to be constant fights—or at least tense encounters—with the enemy allied sects, but Yang Xiu was big on the element of surprise. When she found out that the number one opponents for the Qi Gathering juniors in early rounds would be the clan, she clamped down on everyone hard. She didn't want those opponents learning that all the Rising Tide Sect members also used Body Cultivation, so she made avoiding conflicts a huge point of emphasis.
Combined with the Swift Blizzard Sect apparently making some attempt to be circumspect and the Jade Chameleon's obvious desire not to lose additional face, the three main potential instigators all had turned unexpectedly pacifist, leading to a dearth of disputes.
Thus, other than effectively being on constant call, Benton didn't have a lot to do. For the first time in a very long while, he had no pressing projects that he needed to complete, and even if he wanted to tinker, he was away from his crafts area in the Administrative Hall and forges of the Blacksmith Pavilion.
He could have Teleported back to the sect, obviously, but he feared going heads down into a project and having an emergency occur when he was distracted. As a Nascent Soul, his reaction time even while busy doing something else was quite fast, but fractions of a second mattered when a junior was being threatened by a rival cultivator. Better to be safe and bored than have one of his kids hurt.
On a positive note, he had all those novels that the auction manager purchased, so those gave him a bit of an outlet.
Other than reading, the only tiny distraction came from Huang Yimun of all people. The guard captain had organized an excursion into the slums and came back with over two dozen friends and family members of the original set of guards and drivers. He'd pled their case to have them inducted into the sect, and Benton had agreed—not that he'd required much convincing.
He didn't want any rival sects to witness their intake processes, especially the spiritual root enhancement, though, so he found places in the compound for the twenty-seven recruits, intending to induct them back at the main sect grounds when the tournament was over.
Oh well, he'd gladly trade a few weeks bored out of his skull for his sect members' safety. Besides, at least initally, it was a nice change from his previous frantic pace. The really good part, though was that the tedium was almost over as the tournament started the next day. He was sure that between watching the bouts and keeping everyone out of trouble, there'd be more than enough excitement to keep him busy.
Sun Hua was completely surrounded. Huang Yimun walked side by side with her, and four of his guards fanned out around them. Frankly, she felt ridiculous.
"Are you sure this is necessary, Guard Captain?"
"Senior Sister ordered me to keep you safe. If a hair on your head is damaged, it will be my head. So, yes, this is necessary."
Mother would probably have been impressed at the entourage, but it just made Sun Hua feel self conscious. She was just going to a logistics meeting with other juniors to discuss details too mundane to bother the actual leaders with—not exactly a high profile or high risk activity. Sure, representatives from all the other sects and the clan would be there, but no one would be higher than low to mid Foundation Establishment.
Considering the she wore her battle robe, had her contingency ring on her finger, and kept several talismans close at hand, it was hard to imagine anyone below Golden Core being able to harm her.
Obviously, the level of protection provided by Huang Yimun was seriously inflated. Admittedly, she wasn't much of a fighter, so she did feel safer having a guard. A single one would have been fine, though.
Sun Hua felt even more foolish when she entered the meeting room and discovered that none of the other representatives brought even one guard, much less five. She shot a glare at Huang Yimun, but he just shrugged.
Her escort also hadn't been ready to leave quite as early as she would have preferred, which meant she'd had to wait. Which meant that she wasn't the first at the meeting. Not even close.
The group wasn't late, of course. She wouldn't have allowed that to happen regardless of the guards' tardiness. But she was the last of the representatives to arrive.
Since the others were already present and seated, there was only one chair left open at the end of the table. It was, to her dismay, right next to the blue-robed Swift Blizzard Sect representative, which wasn't as bad as if it had been the Jade Chameleon Sect member.
It was almost as bad as the worst case scenario, however.
The man was sure to be hostile toward her. With her guards present, she doubted it would devolve into physical threats, but she envisioned shouts and insults.
There was no help for it. Her job was to participate in the meeting, so that was what she would do.
Mother's training took over. Sun Hua utilized her purposeful walk, designed to show that she was a capable, no-nonsense worker who was fully prepared. She marched to the open chair and, without a word, placed her stack of papers on the table in front of it.
After taking her seat, she smoothed her robe and sat with her back completely straight and expression poised.
At least she hoped it was.
Surprisingly, the Swift Blizzard Sect representative, who appeared to be in his mid twenties, inclined his head at her, showing no sign of hostility. Somewhat relieved but still cautious, she returned the gesture.
There were still several minutes before the meeting was scheduled to start, and she expected to spend them in silence. To give herself something to do, she read through the top paper in front of her even though she had its data—and that contained in the rest of the stack—memorized.
Mother always said to bring all necessary documentation. A good assistant should never have to refer to it, but it was much better to do so than to—heavens forbid!—forget a number and not have access to it. Besides, some bosses wanted to see the data, not just be informed of it.
"Greetings, Esteemed Cultivator," came a voice from her right. "This one is Wu You."
The introduction startled Sun Hua as it came from the Swift Blizzard Sect representative. Their two sects weren't on a war footing yet, but either active combat or a formal declaration or both were expected at some point during the tournament. If he was being nice to her, he surely had a reason.
But her training had stressed that it was never okay to be rude. The rival you snub today might be the employer in charge of hiring decisions tomorrow.
She looked more closely at him. He was short, not much taller than her, and somewhat scrawny, lacking the muscle tone that came from constant work with weapons. Ink stained his fingers.
"This Assistant is Sun Hua."
There. Short and succinct, neither rude nor welcoming.
"This one has heard good things about you, Esteemed Cultivator. All your members were correctly entered into their matches." He chuckled. "The branch sect leader herself mentioned how frustrated she was that you'd somehow navigated the labyrinth of paperwork they threw at you. Impressive performance."
The forms had been detailed but not particularly complex. She didn't consider completing them to be a noteworthy task. "This Assistant just did what was required."
Luckily, the chair, representing the City Lord's faction, called the meeting to order, so she was spared more conversation. And, once the meeting concluded, she rose quickly, not giving him the chance to engage her, and left.
The whole experience had been strange.
Chapter 324 – Polite and a Good Sport
Zi Delan strode into the arena to a mostly quiet reception. A few fights between the big three sects had already taken place, but somehow, he'd become the recipient of the honor of being the first Rising Tide Sect member to compete in the tournament.
Yay?
The entire contingent was there to support him, including Senior Sister, Senior Brother, and the sect leader. As if the pressure to do well wasn't already intense.
Led by Senior Sister, all the Rising Tide Sect members cheered loudly, but they were the only ones excited to see Zi Delan. And the stands held thousands of cultivators. No one booed, but even their Poison Claw Sect allies observed in silence.
Senior Brother had told him to put all distractions out of his mind, though, and that instruction definitely included the crowd. Zi Delan was to focus on his opponent and only on his opponent.
And the guy was a brute.
Wearing the rough hewn pants and shirt of a clansman instead of a cultivator's robe, the combatant had muscles on top of his muscles and stood at least a foot taller than Zi Delan.
Scary. Strong. Formidable. Intimidating. Those were his first thoughts upon observing the guy.
Zi Delan surreptitiously patted his pocket for his contingency ring, suddenly regretting that he couldn't wear it since he hadn't crafted it himself. The only reason he had it on him was that the sect leader demanded that it remain accessible at all times.
Neither could Zi Delan wear the battle robes the sect leader created since they had formations imbedded within. The clothes changing ring wasn't even allowed onto the arena floor and had instead been left in Zhong Kun's care.
The only equipment allowed that wasn't created personally by the combatant was basic weapons. Luckily, Zi Delan and the others had received upgrades prior to departing for Sixth Flawless Flowing City, his in the form of an Orange Vigor Spirit Wood spear. The weapon was many orders of magnitude better than the basic one he'd been using, but the quality didn't matter as long as it was based on material strength alone. Only advantages provided by arrays were against the rules.
In contrast, his opponent used only his fists. Of course, those were so gigantic and backed by such an enormous physique that they were quite an intimidating sight. The guy looked like a killer, scarier in appearance even more than Senior Brother.
If the guy had been on the streets of Vermillion Incomparable Rain Town, Zi Delan would have run the other way.
But he wasn't that kid anymore. Instead of being the starving leader of a street gang, he was a cultivator, a respected member of the Rising Tide Sect. A member, for some reason, of the sect's council of elders. And with status came privileges.
Since he possessed a Metal and Earth related aspect, he couldn't use any of the Time dilation rooms for cultivation, so he had only reached Qi Gathering minor realm eight instead of being at the peak. But the technique rooms had been wide open for him, and he'd availed himself of every opportunity.
He'd mastered his spear technique and chosen two new ones—Refined Movement and Tough Skin. Able to be used by a cultivator of any aspect, both skills had been created for the guards at Ye Zan's behest. The first concentrated not just on speed but on knowledge of how and why to move in certain ways. The second focused on predicting where an enemy's strike would land and making that section of skin tougher to absorb some of the energy of the blow.
Both were only Qi Gathering level techniques, of course, which meant that neither was overpowered. Still, they both complemented his weapon skill, allowing him to build a refined personal martial art.
With the huge advantage offered by the Time dilation rooms, he'd brought both new techniques to Mastery and spent plenty of hours sparring. Combined with the sect leader's manuals on basic combat, Zi Delan had reached pinnacles the him of even an objective month prior wouldn't dare dream of.
The techniques and the style he'd developed were both amazing, but it was the final benefit that gave him confidence to stand in an arena against a big brute—Zi Delan had long since reached the peak of Bronze Body Cultivation. Like with his fellow sect members, the method hadn't transformed his body into a mass of muscle, but he grew stronger and faster and tougher with each minor realm.
Compared to his opponent, not only did Zi Delan possess higher Spiritual Cultivation and had reached Mastery with more and almost certainly better techniques, he also was in the same realm of Body Cultivation. Granted, the clansman's method appeared to focus on greater strength, but any scripture distributed by the Rising Tide Sect was pretty much guaranteed to be of a higher quality than anything another sect possessed.
Zi Delan wasn't alone in feeling confident. All his sect mates, including Senior Brother and the Guard Captain, believed that the advantages granted by the superior scriptures would easily win the day. Zi Delan vowed not to take his opponent lightly, though.
In fact, that was one of his three main goals. One, be polite and a good sport as the sect leader commanded. Two, win, as Senior Sister expected. Three, take his opponent seriously, mainly because that goal made the other two more achievable.
Speaking of taking things seriously, the fight was about to begin. Zi Delan gave his head a mental shake and forced himself to concentrate on what was about to happen. He studied his opponent.
The clansman had a neutral expression plastered on his face. Which made sense. Like the Rising Tide Sect, the clan wasn't exactly respected by the big three sects. There was no cause for him to display arrogance.
As the sect leader had ordered, Zi Delan began by showing the utmost respect, cupping his hands and inclining his head much lower than was required for an equal. Since the guy was listed as only being in the fourth minor realm, he was technically the lower ranked of the two. He should have bowed low to Zi Delan.
Instead, the man inclined his head slightly as a senior to a junior, though his expression didn't change.
Zi Delan repressed a frown. He was supposed to stay polite, but he wasn't supposed to accept any disrespect. Then again, the sect leader seemed to care much less about the proper depth of a bow than most cultivators.
"Participants, ready yourselves," a voice announced.
There was no need to go over any rules as there really weren't many. The fight was over when one of the two couldn't or wouldn't continue or a judge halted it. Any attacks after either of those points was reached could result in disqualification. Other than that, may the strongest combatant win.
He'd discussed strategy beforehand with his squad members, the Guard Captain, and Senior Brother. There really were only two choices—charge or wait. Zi Delan's natural inclination was to gather data before attacking, and it just so happened that the others agreed that learning how the clan operated would be good for the entire sect.
So he settled into a ready stance—his right foot forward but with his weight resting on the back one, his knees bent. His left hand was positioned about a third of the way from the tip in order to control the weapon while his right hand rested on the middle of the shaft for power.
"Participants begin in three … two … one…. Go!"
Both remained stationary for an instant, Zi Delan as per his plan. Upon seeing him settled with no sign of moving, his opponent charged. His arms and legs pumped. And he was … fast. Kind of.
Just as Senior Brother and the Guard Captain sparred with Zi Delan to instruct him, he taught juniors in the same manner. Compared to a normal cultivator of the same realm as the opponent without Body Cultivation, the man was fast and agile. Compared to Senior Brother… Not so much.
It wasn't like Zi Delan had time to take a nap or anything, but he felt fully prepared by the time the clansman neared.
Three long strides away. He cocked his right arm back. Two. One.
In a single fluid motion, he threw a cross with his right fist.
The move was obvious. Really obvious.
It was so obvious, in fact, that Zi Delan thought it was a feint. Instead of thrusting with his spear as would have been the proper response, he chose a more cautious move—stepping to the right.
His opponent's arm thundered past, missing completely. Even worse for the clansman, he'd put so much force into the swing that the whiff caused him to almost fall.
Zi Delan's first thought was that Senior Brother would have punished such a huge mistake. Zi Delan's second thought was that, oh yeah, he should punish such a huge mistake.
Since the man had already lost his balance, the best bet was to simply help him the rest of the way to the ground. Zi Delan swung the heel of his spear at the man's back leg, contacting with a loud thwack and sending the guy sprawling.
With the clansman eating dirt, it would have been a simple matter to end the fight right then. A spear thrust to the back. Stomping on his head. Heck, even foregoing technique altogether and clubbing him over the head with the shaft.
None of that seemed very sporting, though. Moreso, it didn't seem like a polite way to end things, and Master had ordered them to be polite. And good sports.
Zi Delan calmly stood back and allowed his opponent to rise and reset himself.
As soon as the clansman set himself, he again charged and swung. Zi Delan again dodged and swept. And the clansman again ended up eating dirt.
When he rose for the second time, he appeared angry. Livid, really. Face red. Eyes narrowed. Muscles rigid.
At least he seemed to learn from his mistake, approaching more slowly, and when he swung and missed, he didn't leave himself so out of balance.
Zi Delan, on the other hand, did just what he'd done before—dodged and swept the guy's legs. And it worked. Despite the clansman having what appeared to be a solid, balanced stance, the force of the spear shaft took his feet out from under him, and he again ended up on the ground, though on his back instead of face down.
Wow. Zi Delan couldn't help but think that he was the completely dominant fighter. He was definitely faster, and judging from how easily he'd executed that sweep, he might just be stronger, too.
If his Body Cultivation were that superior to the clansman's, the other Rising Tide Sect members probably possessed the same advantage. Zi Delan figured it would be a positive if his sect mates entered their contests with full knowledge of their comparative strength.
A test was in order.
He stuck his spear tip first in the ground as he waited for his opponent to get back up. The clansman was slower to rise and obviously limping when he did. His face was still an angry shade of bright red, and a vein on his forehead pulsed.
Zi Delan had almost no training in unarmed combat. If he could win the next exchange, it would be due solely to superior physical attributes.
The clansman threw a conservative jab, clearly expecting Zi Delan to dodge. Instead, he blocked it.
Smack!
While the heavy contact didn't hurt him at all, the clansman winced, but the pain only seemed to make him angrier. He wound up for a massive cross and lunged forward with the punch.
Zi Delan did something that would make him look idiotic if it didn't work, but he had to know. He intercepted the punch with his open hand.
Thud!
The punch was stopped cold, and it didn't even hurt. Not one bit. Zi Delan followed his instincts and squeezed. The bones in the clansman's hand cracked, and he let out a quite unmasculine squeal before collapsing to his knees.
"Pardon, Esteemed Clansman," Zi Delan said, still squeezing the poor guy's hand, "but are you ready to give up now?"
"Mercy. Please, mercy!"
Zi Delan let go, backed up several steps, and cupped his hands. "Gratitude for the match, Esteemed Clansman."
There. He'd been perfectly polite throughout the fight, including before and after. The sect leader would surely be pleased.
Benton was more than ready for the tournament to begin, and finally, the first fight featuring one of his kids was about to start, featuring Zi Delan versus a clansman. The only question was—from where should Benton watch?
The clear solution was in the stands with the rest of the Rising Tide Sect. That choice would definitely be the most fun as the kiddos were sure to be exuberant. A more refined possibility, though, would be joining Kang Ya-Ting in the Poison Claw Sect's luxury box. That option would make Benton appear more highbrow in the eyes of the other cultivators.
A final alternative called to him, though. An unconventional one. And one that the very conservative Kang Ya-Ting might advise Benton against—viewing the match with the clan.
The problem was that the move was quite aggressive, and while it might pay off in a big way, it was just as likely to blow up in his face.
Decisions. Decisions.
He scanned the stands where the clan congregated and found the vast majority of the fifty or so of them to be in the Qi Gathering realm. Only two were higher than that, including who he presumed was the clan leader, and they were both only in Foundation Establishment.
Other than the fact that they mainly pursued Body Cultivation, not much was known about them, and honestly, Benton was curious. That interest, more than any tactical or strategic consideration, drove his choice.
He Teleported to just outside the clan's area, activated Time Manipulation, and hastily inscribed a series of quick arrays around the clan members. By the time any of them noticed he was there, the formations had been activated, isolating the bubble within in regards to both sight and sound.
Benton materialized beside the clan leader. "Greetings, I'm Chao Su. May I know your name?"
Chapter 325 – Where Had He Gone Wrong
Gao Zian knew there had to be a catch. A representative from a big three sect, the Jade Chameleon Sect specifically, didn't approach a small faction such as the Gao Clan and make an offer of inclusion in the Quinquennial Tournament without there being strings attached.
The problem with dealilng with high realmed cultivators, though, was that there was no way for a lowly clan patriarch like him to discern the truth behind such machinations. Even if he had the ability to fly—which no one in his clan did—his mountain was so far from Sixth Flawless Flowing City that it would have taken most of a day to get there. What did he know about politics between the major factions?
And it wasn't like Gao Zian could say no, regardless of what acts would be required of him. Such an invitation was only likely to come once in a lifetime, if even then. Declining was akin to admitting that your clan had no strength or honor.
Not that his clan had much power compared even to the small sects in the area. They were a small family, less than two hundred members. Centuries ago, an ancestor had found a Body Cultivation manual. It was nothing special, but over the years, the family had experimented with different herbs and eventually refined the method to greatly enhance physical strength.
They'd also found, bought, or otherwise acquired a few spirit grade techniques and Spiritual Cultivation manuals. Those were only a small step up from complete trash, but they gave a tiny number of the clan a chance at reaching Foundation Establishment.
An invitation to the tournament was their opportunity to turn things around. As long as they could navigate what were sure to be turbulent political waters, the clan could come away, perhaps, with better scriptures. Even a single method and technique in the profound grade could elevate the future potential of all their descendants.
That caveat was difficult to achieve, however—if they could navigate those waters. If. When they'd arrived at the tournament, Gao Zian found that proposition to be even more difficult than he'd imagined. He and his senior leaders had made discrete inquiries. It seemed that the Jade Chameleon Sect had made an enemy of a tiny sect with, depending on who you talked to, either a true powerhouse for a leader or someone who had gotten very fortunate in his encounters thus far.
Which put the Gao Clan in an awkward position. As Body Cultivators who had developed their method over the course of centuries and trained their juniors to fight from birth, they would have no problem crushing that small sect's participants. He wouldn't put his clan members against top ranked big three sect talents, but against what were described as mostly peasant farmers with trash talent, his people would absolutely dominate.
The trick, then, was to win handily enough to satisfy the Jade Chameleons while not angering their opponents' Nascent Soul sect leader and, more importantly, that sect leader's powerful ally, the Poison Claw Sect.
It was a fraught situation, one Gao Zian wished he could have avoided. Making an enemy of one of the big three was not something his clan could survive, and no possible benefit made that risk worth it. Refusing, however, would have made enemies as well, definitely of the Jade Chameleon Sect and possibly the Swift Blizzard Sect as well.
He sighed. Dealing with sects was never easy.
The first match featuring one of his clansmen, Gao Yun, was about to begin, though, so Gao Zian shifted his focus to the arena floor. The blue robed figure was nothing special to look at. Short. Kind of scrawny.
To be fair, though, those descriptions of the kid were only in comparison to Gao Yun, who was among the biggest and tallest in the clan. The Rising Tide Sect member simply resembled a normal cultivator.
Still, looking at the two, Gao Zian was a bit nervous. He hoped the little cultivator didn't get hurt too badly. Gao Yun had been given instructions to take it easy, but the boy sometimes lost his head when his ardor was raised.
As the match was about to start, the surrounding space suddenly went completely black, and the crowd noise disappeared. Simultaneously, a young man with close cropped hair and wearing silver and blue robes appeared next to Gao Zian.
"Greetings," the man said. "I'm Chao Su. May I know your name?"
That name, if not the man's appearance, was well known. In fact, it was seemingly on everyone's tongue. Stories of his immense power and brutality were commonplace. During the lead up to the tournament, he'd viciously quartered a Jade Chameleon Golden Core, going so far as to somehow inflict soul damage so that one of the man's arms could not be regrown. Most recently, he'd given the same treatment to a Swift Blizzard Sect Golden Core, except he'd shown no mercy at all, killing the woman after mutilating her.
The man could obliterate the entire continginent for the Gao Clan without lifting a finger.
Gao Zian drew in a breath, intending to answer Chao Su in the most polite manner possible. Unfortunately, his clan members had a different idea. Reacting to the appearance of a presumed threat, the nearly fifty Qi Gathering cultivators rose as one and raised their fists. As if even their combined strength could do anything to Chao Su beyond further offending him.
Even as Gao Zian internally praised their courage, he cursed their stupidity.
Before Gao Zian could order them to stand down, an immense pressure bore down on him. It was so intense that, if he had been standing, he surely would have been forced to the ground. All around him, his clanmates met just that fate.
Once the last had sunk to their knees, the pressure vanished.
"If you could direct your clan to return to their seats?" Chao Su said. "Just have them act natural, like I'm not even here."
"Go." Gao Zian said. "Now!"
Obedience was drilled into members of the clan from birth. Not a one of them hesitated.
As they all quickly took their former positions, Chao Su looked on expectantly, obviously waiting for an answer to his inquiry.
"This one is Gao Clan Patriarch Gao Zian."
Somehow, Gao Zian had gotten that out without stuttering or being overly obsequious.
"Well met, Clan Patriarch," Chao Su said, seemingtly affably.
Gao Zian cupped his hands. "To the Sect Leader as well."
Which really made little sense to say, but he was at a loss as to how to respond to a madman. He'd kowtow if he thought it would save his clan, but doing so might just make things worse.
"Well, I guess you're probably wondering why I'm here."
"Yes, Sect Leader."
Chao Su sighed. "I get the situation you're in. I really do. And, honestly, me sitting here right now will probably make things worse for you in the short term. The problem is, though, that you've backed the wrong horse. The JCSB alliance is not going to win this one."
Involuntarily, Gao Zian raised his eyebrows at the acronym.
"The Jade Chameleon/Swift Blizzard alliance," Chao Su said. "It's kind of a mouthful, and I have a tendency to shorten things. A product of my background."
Gao Zian nodded. What else could he do?
"Did you know that I've already killed half the Jade Chameleon Nascent Souls and nearly half their Golden Cores? They're really a part of the big three in name only at this part. Their decline is inexorable. In a century, they'll either be disbanded or a shadow of their past glory."
"This one has heard rumblings, Sect Leader."
"The thing that you problably don't know is that the JCSB won't even make it that long. Soon, they'll attack me. They'll inevitably lose. Again. And I'll destroy both sects, executing everyone at Golden Core and above."
Gao Zian swallowed hard. The idea that one man could defeat two big three sects by himself was ludicrous, but speculation about just that subject ran rampant. Few people thought he could succeed, but that some did made the situation so much more bizarre.
Regardless, every tongue belonging to someone who was in any way trying to be objective said that Chao Su and his resources exceeded cultivator norms.
"So, what does that have to do with you and your clan, right?" Chao Su said. "Honestly, I'm not asking for much. One, don't have your juniors cheat or go out of their way to be cruel to my sect members. If your guys win, great. I'll congratulate you. If they start giving my juniors an unwarranted beatdown, on the other hand, I'll be angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry."
For some reason, the man grinned at the end of that statement. It was incredibly creepy.
"This one's clansmen are honorable fighters here to test their mettle, Sect Leader."
"Good. That's good. As long as that remains the case, we'll get along just fine." Chao Su paused. "The thing is, though, that I don't think things are going to go how you think they're going to go."
Gao Zian felt his eyebrows raise again.
"Did you know that my sect members are Body Cultivators, too?"
That fact, assuming it was true, was not something that the clan had been made aware of. Gao Zian's eyes widened. If that were the case…
"Yeah. I know," Chao Su said. "The second thing I want is to watch the matches today with you."
Gao Zian's head spun. If the Rising Tide Sect members really were all Body Cultivators and they possessed higher cultivation and they used methods and techniques that even came close to the quality that Chao Su was rumored to give, the day would be a disaster. Instead of the clansmen beating the sect members down, the opposite would occur. And when the Jade Chameleons saw Gao Zian sitting with…
"Yep," Chao Su said. "I'm putting you in a horrible situation. Apologies for that."
Gao Zian's mind froze. The entire fate of his clan hung in the balance, and he didn't know what to do.
"Your best choice is to switch sides," Chao Su said. "Declare your loyalty to me, the Poison Claw Sect, and the City Lord's faction, especially the latter."
What? That made no sense.
"Think about it. If what I think is about to happen does happen and the JCSB alliance follows the breadcrumbs I've laid, your bridges with them are well and truly burned. My coattails, on the other hand, are quite long enough for you to attach your entire clan to, and I at least have sympathy for your position. Do you think anyone at the Jade Chameleon Sect cares a lick about you?"
Suddenly, the black void surrounding the clan's designated section of the bleachers disappeared, and Gao Zian felt the eyes of everyone in the arena on him.
"Tea?" Chao Su said as a table with a pot and cups appeared between them.
Gao Zian did the only thing he could think of to do. He cupped his hands. "Gratitude, Sect Leader."
Benton hid a grin. His actions had, admittedly, been a bit on the slimy side, but the results were great. The JCSB would be furious at the City Lord's faction because, obviously, the clan was in the Rising Tide Sect's pocket.
The only thing that could possibly disrupt his perfect plan was if the results on the arena floor didn't pan out the way he expected. The whole thing rode on Zi Delan's shoulders.
Benton was fascinated to see what happened next.
The start was good. Zi Delan bowed much lower than necessary, giving the clan much face. Which further sold the story Benton was trying to tell.
Then came the fight, if one could call it that. The clansman charged, and Zi Delan calmly and smoothly stepped to the side, efficiently swept the off balance clansman's leg, and sent him tumbling into the dirt.
Zi Delan could have, of course, ended it right then, but instead, he let his opponent get back up? Why?
What followed could only be described as the much smaller Zi Delan toying with the clansman. It was like a child going against an adult only the sizes were reversed. The man couldn't lay a finger on Zi Delan, whose every strike landed to devastating results.
The finale came after he, for some reason, abandoned his spear. The clansman swung, and Zi Delan caught the fist and squeezed. Benton's enhanced hearing detected the sound of multiple bones cracking, and the clansman begged for mercy.
Zi Delan then taunted the man with an over-the-top "thanks for the match," before strolling calmly back to the stands.
Benton had never seen something so cruel in all his life, and that was coming from someone who had recently literally quartered two people.
He wanted to bury his face in his hands. The kids were supposed to be kind and polite and good sports. Where had he gone wrong?