Chapter 369 – Just Like That
Kang Lin opened her eyes, a feat she hadn't believed she'd ever manage again. After all, some small amount of time previously, she'd been a disembodied soul floating off to wherever such things end up.
But Master had, somehow, called her back.
"How are you doing?" he said.
She took a deep breath before patting herself. Her robe was torn, revealing more of herself than was proper, but it wasn't too bad. The more important part was that her body appeared to be in perfect condition, and she didn't feel any pain.
"How did you do that?" She pointed at the sky. "I was up there."
He shrugged. "One grows older. One learns things."
Kang Lin probably would have laughed at his response, one he'd used repeatedly after doing something extraordinary, if it weren't for the other person hovering over her—Yang Ru. She looked at him.
His eyes were wet, and his expression was one of profound disbelief. She didn't blame him. Even for a disciple of the Rising Tide Sect's leader, it wasn't often that one experienced something as unbelievable as seeing someone brought back from being dead.
"Are you … really you?" Yang Ru said.
The question puzzled Kang Lin. Too much was happening too quickly. She was still trying to catch up.
"She is," Master said. "Do you think I practice necromancy?"
Oh. Yang Ru's question was a good one actually, an important one.
Yang Ru's face contorted as he realized the accusation he'd accidentally lobbed. "Of course not, Master, but…"
The sect leader grinned. "You've had a bit of a shock. It's fine." He went on to explain that he had a Soul Cultivation technique that could transfer souls from one body to another or, in her case, pull one back to its original body. Since her soul hadn't yet departed, it was apparently easy for him to restore her.
"Her soul. Her body. No passing beyond the veil. She is her," he continued, chuckling a little at the end. "Good job with the contingency ring, though. There would have been absolutely nothing I could do if her soul had passed on."
Yang Ru helped her to her feet, and she tested herself for any pain. She still felt absolutely fine.
"Well," Master said, "the emergency is over, but I still have to deal with the tedious part and some additional unpleasantness."
Kang Lin grimaced. He referred to the fact that he'd vowed to exterminate every person in two big three sects at the realm of Golden Core and above. Which basically meant all their Golden Cores because he'd already killed all the Nascent Souls.
The Poison Claw Sect had just become the big one, and Kang Lin didn't know what to think about that. For the moment, she was happy that people much more experienced than her would be responsible for dealing with the ramifications of what just happened in the square and what would be happening at the Swift Blizzard and Jade Chameleon sects.
"You two kids should talk," Master said. "Really talk. Understand?"
"Yes, Master," she said.
Dying had clarified her life for her. It would be good to get some of her thoughts and feelings out into the open.
"Yes, Master," Yang Ru said, his tone much more reluctant.
"Be safe," the sect leader said. "See you later, alligators."
He disappeared, Teleporting away as usual.
"Did he just call us alligators?" she said.
"I think so."
They both looked at each other and laughed.
It was said that the more powerful a cultivator became, the more eccentric they acted. Having been around the sect leader for quite some time and understanding that he stood above everyone on the continent, she could vouch for the truth of that statement.
Tension had existed between her and Yang Ru for quite a while, which was mostly her fault. Really, it was entirely her fault. The shared laughter eased it some, for the moment, anyway.
She spoke quickly to take advantage of that opening. "I'm sorry. I really messed everything up."
Kang Lin had apologized before to the twins, but that whole situation had been weird. They had both, after all, been suffering from an emotional affliction tied to their qi aspect at the time. She felt the need to offer a more personal acknowledgement of her fault to him.
"You died," he said.
That wasn't the reaction she'd expected to her heartfelt apology.
"I didn't ask for you to do that," he continued. "It should have been me."
There was no heat in his voice, but he was clearly irritated.
Her first thought was to become defensive. She had, after all, literally died for him. Being annoyed with her wasn't the response she deserved.
"You are too important to die for a random junior," she said.
"That's my role. You interfered with me doing my job."
Honestly, his response stung.
"Is that the only reason you're upset?" She felt her own eyes water, though she wasn't sure why.
Yang Ru took a deep breath. "No, of course not. I hated seeing you… Your… your corpse. I hated the thought that I couldn't protect you. I hated the thought that you died protecting me." He paused. "Why? Why would you do that? You don't even care about me."
She'd always heard the expression "jaw dropping," but she'd never experienced it. After that last part, though, her jaw literally dropped.
"How can you say I don't care about you?" she said, her voice quivering embarrassingly.
He looked at her like she was a complete idiot. "You knew where I wanted things to go between us, and you pulled away. What other explanation was there?"
Guilt stabbed at her. She should have sat down with him and truly explained her feelings. Instead, she'd simply told him about the problem without adequately conveying how the situation made her feel.
"It was because I cared about you that I acted the way that I did," she said. "I didn't feel worthy of you and felt it was my duty, as your … friend to protect you."
He tensed, and she realized that she'd chosen her words poorly.
"The real problem was me," she said, continuing hastily. "With my average roots, my family treated me exactly as that—average. It was clear that I wasn't as important as my cousin. My future was capped as a result of a trait I was born with, something I couldn't control. I was not important.
"If I wasn't worthy of love and respect in a struggling mid-tier family in a sect, how could I have considered myself worthy of marrying an A ranked talent who was the heir of a truly heavens defying entity? To even imagine myself as such would have broken my mind. It was truly beyond comprehension.
"It was because of that insecurity that I hurt you. And, for that, I am truly sorry."
"But I told you—"
"It doesn't matter what you told me. Mere words couldn't penetrate through my feelings. Nothing could."
He opened his mouth but hesitated before speaking. She gave him a moment to gather his thoughts.
"I don't understand why you think I'm so important," he said.
She almost laughed, but seeing how serious he was, she kept her tone even. "It's how sect cultivators are trained to see people. Your potential is incredible. Barring you getting yourself killed while protecting meaningless juniors, you will eventually be counted among the elite, you and your sister both."
From his expression, he clearly didn't understand.
"In a sect war," she said, "how many Qi Gathering cultivators does it take to kill one at Foundation Establishment? How many at Foundation Establishments to kill one Golden Core? The higher the realm, the more important to person. Master is unbelievably powerful, able to defeat sixteen Nascent Souls almost completely by himself. Any number of us juniors should be willing to die to protect him."
"That's not the way he thinks. He believes it's his job to die, if necessary, to protect us."
"I know, and I still don't understand how to reconcile the position of someone obviously so important with what I've been taught my entire life."
Yang Ru paused again, obviously thinking, before finally saying, "I get how being told you're one thing all your life would affect your thinking. The difference between how I grew up and now is … difficult for me sometimes. But you do know you're amazing, right? You made top four in the tournament. That's extraordinary, right? And Master listens to your advice more than anyone's except Zou Tian's. There's not a person in our sect who doesn't respect you."
Hearing those words from him were both challenging and just about the best experience of her life at the same time.
"I know," she said.
His expression showed his confusion, which made sense given their conversation.
"My success in the tournament helped me see the truth about myself, which led to a lot of thinking. I was an idiot to let my parents and siblings influence my thinking so much. Challenging the heavens isn't about accepting what you were given at birth; it's about becoming more than that." Kang Lin cupped her hands toward him. "I forgot that, and it caused me to hurt you. Again, this lowly one apologizes."
"What does that mean?"
The question confused her. She raised her eyebrows.
"I mean for us?" he said. "If you pulled away from me because you didn't think yourself worthy and you now think differently, what does that mean?"
Her newly restarted heart started beating quite rapidly. "That really depends on you."
"How so?"
"After what I did to you, it would be the absolute height of hubris to think that you would take me back."
"And if I did want to take you back?"
Her mind froze. She couldn't even say it.
"Kang Lin, I do want you back. I would marry you right here, right now."
Heavens. It was really happening, wasn't it. And her all bloody with a torn robe. She must look quite the sight.
"Okay." Her voice squeaked.
"Just like that?" He seemed surprised.
"Most cultivators don't get a chance to make the same mistake twice. Those rare few who do would have to truly be idiots to actually repeat their error. I am not that much of an idiot."
"Oh."
They both just kind of stood there for a moment, her looking at him and him looking at her. Both were clearly confused about what to do next.
"I'm going to kiss you now," he said.
That did seem appropriate given the circumstances… So he did exactly that.
Chapter 370 – To Kill or Not to Kill, That Is the Question
As soon as Benton Teleported away from the kids, he clenched his fists. The JCSB alliance had killed Kang Lin. She had been dead. Her soul was slipping away. If he would have been a few seconds slower, he would have lost her forever.
They. Killed. Kang. Lin.
Back on the roof that had served as the JCSB's base for the fight. Yaun Yaozu faced off against the three weirdly proficient Nascent Souls, who all looked surprised for some reason when Benton returned.
He really wanted to vent his anger but still wasn't one hundred percent sure that those three were the appropriate targets. Luckily, another option presented itself.
The angry woman from the Swift Blizzard Sect was angrily haranguing the Nascent Souls at that very moment.
"What are you waiting for?" she yelled. "Kill him! That's what we paid you for."
Benton was pretty sure that the only reason the three hadn't already killed her was that they had surrendered, and any offensive act would likely make their situation even worse. He had no idea why Yuan Yaozu hadn't.
How the woman didn't see that was beyond Benton. His understanding was that her sect practiced some type of Mind cultivation, so he couldn't help but wonder if there was something seriously wrong with it that caused them to have suicidal impulses.
Or maybe they were simply stereotypical cultivators.
Either way, it didn't matter to him.
Was she a Golden Core or above? Yes, check. Was she a member of either the Swift Blizzard or Jade Chameleon sects? Yes, check.
Two questions, two positive answers, one dead cultivator.
"Shut up, lady." Benton reached out with his Gravity Aura and suppressed her.
"What? Wait. You can't—"
Benton would never find out what it was that she thought he couldn't do because the Void sphere that he tossed at her obliterated her entire body before she could finish her thought.
Darn. Now that was going to bug him.
"What should I do with you three?" he said.
And that was the question of the day. On one hand, they had fought against him. The woman Nascent Soul had ordered an attack on his juniors that had killed Kang Lin. Neither of those actions were acceptable. Both deserved death.
On the other, he was positive that killing them would come back to bite him in the butt. Same thing with the so-called Formations Master. Should he be killed or spared?
"The typical resolution of such a situation is to ransom us, Esteemed Sect Leader," the woman said.
"I seriously doubt you have anything that I need," he said. "Pills, equipment, formations … my guess is that I can create better of all three than you have access to."
The woman scoffed. The eyes of her two associates went wide.
"Did you just scoff at me?" Benton said.
"I did, Esteemed Sect Leader. If you truly think that you're better than an Order verified Formations Master, it is your arrogance that is extraordinary."
The man standing next to her tugged on the sleeve of her robe, but she ignored him.
"Did you not see how easily I countered his formation? What kind of idiot leaves such vulnerabilities? If you think he's a master, I've got a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you."
"You—"
"Esteemed Sect Leader," the man who'd tugged on her sleeve said loudly, "This lowly one is Deng Boqin of the Azure Cliff Hunting Sect. This woman, Qian Liqin, is a rival from the Thousandth Heavenly Qi Sect and does not speak for me."
"For us, Esteemed Sect Leader," the third of the group said. "Harmonic Yellow Mercantile Association recognizes you as a Formations Master regardless of the word of the Order."
The woman, Qian Liqin apparently, gasped. Literally gasped. If Benton hadn't been so angry, he probably would have chuckled.
"Esteemed Sect Leader," Deng Boqin said, "Did this lowly one sense the death of a Foundation Establishment junior who … was restored to life?"
"Yeah. And?"
The two men looked at each other. Even the woman grew quite flustered at his response. Only Yuan Yaozu seemed somewhat unimpressed, though Benton knew him well enough to understand that he was playing it cool.
"It's not that big of a thing," Benton said. "Her soul hadn't completely departed yet, so I was able to pull it back."
"Pull it back, Esteemed Sect Leader?" Deng Boqin said.
"I used a Soul Cultivation technique. Pretty easy for someone at the peak of the Nirvana realm."
That time, all four of them seemed shocked. Benton kept forgetting how rare Soul Cultivation methods were.
Well, kind of, anyway. Actually, he just figured that the citizens of the Da Qing continent probably had access to some as they appeared better off cultivation wise than both where he'd set up shop and where the original Chao Su had lived.
Clearly, he was wrong.
Deng Boqin was the first to recover his cool. "This lowly one has observed that the Esteemed Sect Leader can somehow suppress a fellow Nascent Soul with a single Aura; possesses a total of four Auras; has access to Void, Space, Time, and Gravity qi elements; and can pull souls back into the bodies of dead people. Are this lowly one's observations … correct?"
"Don't forget that I'm at the peak of Expert Mind Cultivation as well," Benton said smugly. "That gives me some nifty benefits as well."
If he decided to let them go, it would be wise for them to think he was as overpowered as possible, after all.
"Esteemed Sect Leader, this lowly one is Lai Xiaowen. Can you confirm that you were the Master Blacksmith and the Formations Master who created the swords sold at the Premiere Jade Treasures Auction House about a half year ago?"
"Yep. That was me."
The man looked angry. If anyone had a right to be angry, it was Benton and only Benton, but seeing the man's expression made him curious.
"What's wrong?"
"That slimy man from the Jade Chameleon Sect swore that you were not the originator of those swords and that only he could provide the contact for the man who was. Without that lie, this lowly one would not be here."
Ah.
"So you represent a merchant association and are only here to establish relations with a master craftsman?"
Lai Xiaowen cupped his hands. "Truly it is so, Esteemed Sect Leader."
Benton thought it over. He could understand the motivation, and the guy hadn't directly attacked the juniors. Besides, a merchant rich enough to afford to raise a Nascent Soul of such quality would surely be a pain in the neck to be on the wrong side of.
"Fine. You can go," Benton said. "Please provide what you feel is an appropriate ransom for your life to Kang Ya-Ting of the Poison Claw Sect. As long as you give enough, I won't come after you."
He wouldn't go after the guy in any circumstances, but the rich merchant association didn't need to know that.
Lai Xiaowen cupped his hands. "Gratitude, Esteemed Sect Leader" He wasted no time flying away.
Benton turned to the other man. "Why are you here?"
"At the behest of the Order, Esteemed Sect Leader. My sect has a formation we desperately wish to have created, and assisting in this matter was one of the conditions put upon us."
With the first decision made, the second was pretty easy.
"Fine. Same deal as with your friend."
As Lai Xiaowen had before him, Deng Boqin cupped his hands, thanked Benton, and flew away.
That left only Qian Liqin on the side of the JCSB.
"You present me with a tougher choice," Benton said. "I don't like it when people hurt my juniors. Usually, I will not rest until such people are destroyed, and you ordered an attack that killed one of them."
"One that you brought back to life," she said. "Not to mention the fact that your juniors entered the fight of their own volition and were using Nascent Soul level talismans to attack. Either of those factors on their own made them valid targets. The two combined made it so that I would be an idiot not to attack them."
Benton literally felt a vein on his forehead throbbing.
Qian Liqin swallowed. Hard. "Don't forget that your juniors were not followed when they retreated, and they were only attacked to keep them from attacking us."
On one hand, she had a point. On the other, she killed Kang Lin.
From her perspective, she'd come her to do a job, probably in return for a shoddy array from that idiot Formations Master, and simply done her best to accomplish her mission. Even if that put her at odds with him, did it necessarily deserve death?
As he'd decided with the two men, no.
But she'd ordered the actions that led to Kang Lin's death. Kang Lin, the girl who amused Benton so much with her reactions. She was a good, smart kid who, his enhanced senses told him, was even at that moment explaining to Yang Ru exactly why she'd run away.
And the tale made Benton so sad. Anyone who made someone as smart and funny and competent as her feel bad about herself warranted having something really bad happen to them.
He was so proud of her for working hard and finally realizing her worth. Good for her!
And the idiot standing in front of him had caused that awesome young lady to die.
Benton clenched and unclenched his fist several times.
"Are you okay, Esteemed Sect Leader?"
"Give me a moment," he said through gritted teeth.
He continued listening to the kids while Qian Liqin waited uncomfortably. Which was fine. A little discomfort and trepidation was far, far less than she deserved.
Finally, the kids' conversation started to wane. And then it happened. Yang Ru proposed. And Kang Lin accepted.
Benton felt like his heart was about to burst. Finally. That outcome had been so long in the coming.
They kissed. Which normally Benton would have tried to give them privacy for, but it wasn't a need-to-find-a-room kind of kiss. Instead, it was about as chaste a kiss as two affianced could possibly get.
Yikes. Yang Ru would need to step up his game if Benton was ever going to get real grandbabies.
Eh, the kid would figure it out. They had time.
Benton fired off a message dragon to them, and the two soon Teleported to him.
"I approve of the marriage," he said as soon as they both appeared.
Both their faces went scarlet, probably because they realized he'd heard their conversation. Well, tough, they could deal. He had more important matters to address than their embarrassment.
"But I have one condition," he continued.
Yang Ru looked reticent at that, but Kang Lin said, "Of course, Master. Anything you want."
"Perfect. Wan Ai won't let me throw her and Zou Tian a big wedding, so I want the two of you to go first. And it will be an event. I want everyone there. Sect Leaders. The Emperor. Everybody It'll make the birthday party look like … well, I can't come up with an appropriate insult right now, but it'll be huge. Huge!"
Kang Lin smiled widely. "Of course, Master."
Yang Ru, on the other hand, went pale. Benton wondered why.
"Anyway, that was the most important reason I summoned you here," Benton said, "but I also needed help with something else. Should I kill this woman or not?"
Qian Liqin looked like she had swallowed a fly, but again, Benton simply didn't care if she was upset or scared or insulted or whatever weird cultivator reaction she was having.
Kang Lin apparently decided that it was her turn to go white as a sheet. "You want us to decide the fate of a Nascent Soul realm cultivator?"
She didn't actually ask why, but Benton could hear the unasked question.
"I want your opinion, specifically," Benton said. "This woman issued the order that led to your death."
"Oh. I see." Kang Lin paused. "Do you know what faction she represents?"
"Some sect I never heard of. Something like a thousand leaves?"
Qian Liqin cleared her throat. "The Thousandth Heavenly Li Sect, Esteemed Sect Leader."
Kang Lin had already went white, but her completion somehow paled further. Benton almost channeled some Health qi into her.
"The Thousandth … Master, her sect is the most powerful on the entire Da Qing continent. I don't know of a stronger one in the entire world."
Qian Liqin had the audacity to look smug.
"Don't concern yourself with such trivialities," Benton said. "If I have to destroy her entire sect, I will. If you want her dead, she dies. Period."
"Triv… Master, her sect has verified Nihility realm cultivators."
Benton had fought Nascent Souls as a Golden Core. Going against Nihility realms was sure to be difficult, but he didn't care. He shrugged.
Kang Lin nodded. "You would kill her, wouldn't you. Just on my say so. Just on my whim." She smiled. "Thank you, Master. That you care so much for me affirms all the choices I've made over the last few weeks."
Benton's heart swelled. Nothing better than being able to cheer up one of the kiddos. "Your decision?"
"Let her go, but make her pay for the privilege. It's what Grandfather would tell me to do."
Benton smiled. "Here that, Qian Liqin? You're free to go. Don't make me hunt you down to collect payment."
Surprisingly, the woman meekly cupped her hands to both Benton and Kang Lin before leaving.
Benton sighed. One less person to kill wasn't much of a lessening of his burden. He dreaded what was to come next, but needs must.
"I'm off to run some errands," he told the kids. "See you soon."
Chapter 371 – Paying Any Price
Benton's first Teleport was to the arena. Though the conclusion of the last match had seemed like it finished hours ago considering how much had happened, a very short time had actually passed. Some of the Jade Chameleon and Swift Blizzard sects' Golden Cores were still present there.
They weren't when he left.
That was to say that they weren't still alive there when he left. Their corpses remained.
His anger over Kang Lin being killed had largely faded—she was, after all, still alive—so the executions were carried out with dispassionate efficiency as he made each death as quick as possible. In some cases, the target barely knew Benton was nearby before their head was separated from their body.
The task was … unpleasant.
He tended to avoid or put off such objectionable chores when he could, but there were multiple reasons to get that one done in a hurry. For one thing, the targets knew he'd be coming for them and would scatter to the winds with all due haste, making tracking them down a tedious endeavor. Days, if not weeks, of his life would already be consumed in finding them all. If he didn't get to most of them fast, he'd be spending months or years instead.
The second reason was that, until he reached Nihility—which was years off with no way he saw to rush it—his sect was still in danger. Safety lay in making it known that he'd absolutely destroy anyone who came after him, and obliterating every single high ranked cultivator from two former top sects was needed to convey that message. If that task drug on for years, though, his prowess would be questioned and his power doubted.
Between rapidly carrying out the promised destruction of the JCSB alliance and letting those three influential Nascent Souls return to the Da Qing continent to spread the news of his power, it was possible that his sect would finally be left in peace to grow into what he wanted it to become. And if the threats didn't work, he hoped that greed would.
He was, after all, at the pinnacle of craftsmanship in four of the most important fields cultivators valued—Alchemy, Blacksmithing, Formations, and Talismans. Letting it be known that factions could profit from him might just keep his people safer than any amount of personal power.
Thus, Benton's next chore was to find the so-called Formations Master, Lei Bohai as letting the man return home without setting down some ground rules would be a mistake. Besides, Benton had to give the man a little credit. His formations had been good enough to conceal his identity as a Nascent Soul and to hide the other Nascent Souls he'd smuggled to the ambush site. So he obviously wasn't a complete idiot, just more suited to be called an Expert instead of a Master.
Benton had long since prepared for his current task. One thing he'd done in preparation was to explore all the important landmarks on the continent—such as the main branches of the big three sects—so he could Teleport there at a moment's notice. He'd also memorized the qi signature of every high realmed cultivator in Sixth Flawless Flowing City, so the knew exactly what Lei Bohai felt like, both unrestricted as a Nascent Soul and disguised as a Golden Core.
If Lei Bohai had flown straight home and was currently over the ocean on his way to the Da Qing continent, it would be a long time before Benton had the opportunity to find him. He hoped, however, that the man had run for the protection of either the Swift Blizzard or the Jade Chameleon sect.
As the bigger and less previously impacted of the two, Benton Teleported to the Swift Blizzard Sect first and cast his spiritual sense out over the main grounds. There were dozens of Golden Cores that he'd have to deal with, but that would unfortunately have to wait until after he found Lei Bohai, who wasn't present.
Holding out a slim hope that the Nascent Soul formations crafter would be at the Jade Chameleon Sect main grounds, Benton Teleported there next. Many fewer Golden Cores were there, and one of them was Lei Bohai!
Benton Teleported through the sect's Grand Defensive Formation and arrived right in front of the Order representative. "Look what I found—an idiot and a coward all in one!"
Always good to start a negotiation by putting your rival on their back foot.
"Y-you…" Lei Bohai sputtered.
"Yes, me. The one you tried to ambush with a formation a mildly talented apprentice array crafter could have made. You call yourself a Formations Master?"
The room Benton had appeared in was a large, opulent meeting area. A Golden Core wearing gray robes resembling those of the Jade Chameleon Sect but much more ornate sat at the head of a table. Two other gray robed Golden Cores sat on either side of her.
Unless Benton missed his guess, the woman at the head of the table was the sect leader, Duan Dandan, and the other two were probably elders. Combined with Benton and Lei Bohai, they were the only occupants in the room.
Benton used his four Auras to suppress each of the others, and after completing his mental checklist on the three Golden Cores, swiftly decapitated each of them simultaneously with Void spheres.
Lei Bohai's eyes widened at the display of martial might.
"I have a problem," Benton said. "To be clear, my problem is with you, specifically."
Lei Bohai recoiled, seeming to finally realize his predicament. He obviously wasn't much of a combatant and yet found himself in a room with an enemy who was.
"First, you assisted those who tried to ambush me, actively trying to sabotage me to make their jobs easier. Of course, that act is mitigated somewhat by just how bad you were at it, so…"
Lei Bohai's jaw tightened. Benton could tell that the man was doing everything he could not to dispute the claim.
"Further, you apparently recruited additional Nascent Souls to attack me by promising to build them arrays, which, coming from you, would probably be clearly second-rate. I appreciate neither your acts against me nor the fact that you claim to be a Formations Master, considering that your craft is so poor."
Lei Bohai literally shook with suppressed rage, and finally, he could apparently hold back no more. "I am a Formations Master. The Order has declared it so. Who are you to say otherwise? Who are you to claim yourself such without our verification?"
"We live on a big planet, dimwit. It's huge. Ginormous. You think there are no other organizations entitled to declare their members Masters? Are you truly that arrogant? That ignorant?"
The man opened his mouth, probably to argue the point, before shutting it again. His tightened jaw relaxed, and some of the tension drained from his body. "You've been declared a Master by another organization?"
The System was more an entity than an organization but sure.
"I have," Benton said.
Lei Bohai took a deep breath and visibly centered himself. "Perhaps this one might have been somewhat hasty. The Twelfth Majestic Order of Formations Masters is the preeminent governing authority for formations in this part of the world, and it is incumbent upon those who wish to practice here to announce their presence to us. However, whether than going straight to the punishment phase, giving you face by approaching you first would, perhaps, have, in this instance, been a better procedure." Lei Bohai paused. "Please consider that most of those calling themselves Formations Masters are true charlatans trying to scam sects into giving them more of a commission than their craftsmanship warrants."
Kind of like how Lei Bohai's entire Order did as far as Benton was concerned. He chose not to further provoke the man, though, as they were beginning to find common ground.
"Hmm," Benton said. "I'm not sure if that makes my decision harder or easier."
"Decision?"
"Whether to kill you or not."
The man's eyes widened. "Do you know who I am?"
Not a good sign. After all, no conversation was enhanced by that particular statement.
"You are Lei Bohai, representing the Twelfth Majestic Order of Formations Masters. And neither your name nor your organization matters to me in the slightest. You came here and helped my enemies. You attacked me, stood right there on that building announcing yourself. If I let such an act go unpunished, what does that say about me as a cultivator?"
"Kill me and the entire weight of the Order will come down on you. Every sect and faction we do business with will attack you, or they will find themselves no longer able to procure our services. You wouldn't dare!"
"Are all the members of this Order of yours as incompetent, arrogant, and, frankly, stupid as you are?"
Lei Bohai sputtered incoherently for a moment.
"I'll take that as a yes," Benton said.
Contrition was not a word in Lei Bohai's vocabulary, which rubbed Benton's cultivator sensibilities the wrong way. Could he weather any storm the man's death produced? Yes. But how tedious would dealing with those ramifications be?
From Qian Liqin's reactions, Lei Bohai's reputation was top notch, one of the better if not the best Formations Masters in the Order. Which meant that, overall, the Order sucked.
Benton was sure that, once he demonstrated how good he was to the sects on the Da Qing continent, the Order's influence would quickly wane. But it meant being away from his sect to establish that reputation.
Hmm.
Honestly, seeing the world seemed like fun, and he had Yuan Yaozu to keep an eye on things.
"I shall court death," Benton said, laughing at himself even as he uttered the words.
Lei Bohai was already suppressed, so Benton tossed a Void sphere at the man, fully expecting that first one to be blocked by a formation. Incredibly, the man started fumbling inside his robe when he saw the sphere, but whatever he was trying to activate didn't get triggered before the attack hit.
The mighty representative of the Twelfth Majestic Order of Formations Masters, Lei Bohai, had fallen to a single attack, not even able to defend himself by activating an array.
Benton shook his head. Those guys really were incompetent. And, on one hand, he understood why. They were used to being protected by their reputation, not their martial might. The problem was that soft power was vulnerable to hard power. And vice versa.
He made a mental note to teach that to the kids.
Meanwhile, he had more unpleasant tasks to perform, and he spent the next several hours executing all the Golden Cores at both the Swift Blizzard Sect main branch and the one in Sixth Flawless Flowing City, those at the Jade Chameleon main branch, and the three Nascent Soul mercenaries who had fled.
Which left all the Golden Cores who either escaped before he got there or who were off on sect business. It was a tedious and deeply unpleasant task, being the last person that so many ancient cultivators saw. But it was also the only way he knew to keep the kiddos safe.
Benton would pay any price to meet that goal.
***
Teng Wuying had fled the arena once he'd received a message that the fight was turning out poorly for his forces. And that was a good thing because he received messages later that Chao Su had killed all the Golden Cores who had remained behind.
Luckily, Teng Wuying had a plan for just such an eventuality. All his most important valuables—the few he had left since the destruction of the sect branch—were stored in spatial devices on his person, and he'd purchased the best disguise device possible. He couldn't afford one from Lei Bohai, of course, but the man had evaluated the device as a favor and declared it, "passable."
That would have to do. As long as Chao Su's spiritual sense wasn't enhanced, it should be fine.
Teng Wuying fled the city immediately after leaving the arena and headed for a cave in the middle of nowhere, well away from any sect grounds or anything of any importance. The idea was to live there for a number of years, cultivating and consuming only spirit coins from his storage. Then, once everyone had forgotten his very existence, he'd emerge.
He reached the cave just fine and settled in, disturbing as little of the surroundings as possible and wearing the device that lowered what could be sensed of his cultivation to Foundation Establishment. Hours turned to days, which was a bit boring. But that was okay. He was a cultivator, used to patiently cultivating in seclusion. A few years was nothing.
The main question facing him was what he would do next. His plan to acquire the Trials Pagoda had obviously failed. There had to be another way, but he didn't see one currently. He had no contacts remaining. The only ones who might have lived were on the Da Qing continent, a troubling journey for him, and even if he made it there, he might not be received graciously.
Then again, he did have one thing that might help him—his reputation. After all, a man could claim that his worth was judged based on his enemies, and his nemesis stood supreme on the entire continent. With Chao Su's victory, news of him was probably already making waves elsewhere, especially on the Da Qing continent.
Extensive knowledge of the man had to be worth something, and the claim of being his nemesis could be easily verified.
Yes. Teng Wuying would have to be careful, but there was a path there. A whisper about the Trials Pagoda in the right ear, a Nihility realm ear, might just put him in control of the very thing he sought.
So many plans and contingencies floated around his mind that he found it hard to cultivate. He'd been soundly defeated, but he was only down, not out. Teng Wuying would return, and when he did, he would finally acquire the Trials Pagoda.
Chapter 372 – In Defense of Actions
Teng Wuying broke from his cultivation cycle unsure of why he'd done so. Something told him that danger was near. But what danger and where?
He sensed the area around his cave. There was no one else nearby. No cultivator, anyway, and any possible mortal was of no concern.
So why had his subconscious drawn him from cycling?
He was probably just on edge. Only two and a half days had passed since he'd arrived at his present location, not nearly long enough to get fully used to the surroundings. Maybe some spirit beast had brushed up against the edge of his sense.
Yeah. That made sense.
Just as he was about to dive back into his cultivation method, though, someone popped into existence in front of him. And not just anyone. Chao Su.
Oh shit!
The jig was up. He'd be captured and hauled back to the city in disgrace. Probably have his cultivation restricted. His goal of acquiring the Trials Pagoda had just gotten a lot more difficult.
Teng Wuying let out a huff. "How did you find me?"
The sect leader seemed bemused. "It wasn't hard."
"As expected from my nemesis."
"Your … nemesis?"
"Of course. It was I who set my brother on a collision course with you and I who arranged the ambush."
"I see. And, sorry, but what's your name again? I think I've seen you around. You were at the steering committee meetings, right?"
Teng Wuying frowned. Chao Su was pretending not to know who he was. Which made sense. Never give an enemy the satisfaction they seek.
"I am, as you well know, Teng Wuying."
"Teng, huh? The name sounds familiar. Are you associated with the Premiere Jade Treasures Auction House?"
"You can drop the act. My family and I are highly placed in the Jade Chameleon Sect." Teng Wuying almost added "as you can clearly see from my robe" before remembering part of his disguise had been to change to a different outfit.
"Ah. Used to be, then, I'd say."
"Excuse me?"
"The Jade Chameleon Sect is no more, just a bunch of juniors running around at the moment. Thus, you and your family used to be highly placed. Can't exactly still be since it no longer exists."
Teng Wuying had always known there would be a cost for failure. He supposed the final death of an already failing sect was one he could live with. No matter, he'd join up with the Swift Blizzard Sect.
Ugh. Mao Biya. She probably hated his guts at right about that moment. Better to join the Poison Claw Sect. Yeah. That would work. He'd start as a lowly clerk but his expertise would be so valuable that he'd work his way up to elder in a few decades. Then, as a true ally of the Rising Tide Sect, he could finally figure out a way to seize control of the Trials Pagoda.
As plans went, it wasn't the most well laid out, but it was workable. And, at the moment, that was all he needed.
"Okay, then. I'm ready," Teng Wuying said. "Take me away."
The bemusement returned. "Why would I take you anywhere?"
"For my punishment, of course. My sect lost. To the victor goes the spoils. And so on and so forth."
Chao Su chuckled. "I'm not going to arrest you. I'm going to kill you."
Though his tone was light, his eyes were hard. Starsteel. By the heavens, the man was serious!
For the first time in a long while, a sliver of doubt made it's way into Teng Wuying's consciousness. "You can't do that. I'm your nemesis!"
Chao Su outright laughed at that statement. "You said that before, and it sounds just as delusional the second time. Maybe a cave spider back there somewhere considers you its nemesis. But me? Sorry, man."
"You don't understand. I arranged literally everything bad that happened to you. I pointed Teng Jian at you. The only reason your sect was invited to the tournament was because of me. I contacted the Order. Do you know how much work it took to assemble sixteen Nascent Souls in one place? Sixteen!"
"Uh … bravo? I'm not sure how you want me to respond to that."
He was being mocked. Chao Su was mocking him. The price of failure was even higher than Teng Wuying had understood.
"I get that your nephew was an idiot and an opportunist," Chao Su said. "And, as much as I hate to admit it, your brother was probably justified in trying to make me pay. What was your deal, though? Did they mean that much to you?"
"Of course not! Teng Chun was a moron and his father a musclehead. Neither were worthy of the Teng name."
Chao Su nodded as if he understood. "If it wasn't personal, what was it?"
"The Trials Pagoda. I want control of it. The person who does can rule the world."
Chao Su chuckled again. "Oh you poor fool. The Trials Pagoda is soul bound to me. The instant you killed me, you would have lost it forever, anyway."
Teng Wuying felt his jaw drop. Soul bound? Was such a thing possible?
Before he could even begin to answer that question, he felt something else, like he felt when he stood to a powerful Nascent Soul but even more intense. He tried to use a technique he'd found that helped with such symptoms but discovered he couldn't use his qi.
Then, there was no time to determine what was happening because Chao Su launched an attack, a small metal sphere. Teng Wuying knew what happened when—
***
Zou Tian had been expecting the paper dragon ever since learning that Master had returned to the sect a few minutes prior, and its contents were exactly what he had anticipated.
Zou Tian,
You are hereby summoned to the sect leader's office. Proceed there immediately.
Normally, he would have been worried. The shorter the message from Master, the more trouble the person receiving the message was typically in. Given the brevity and the lack of a signature, Master was truly upset. Not to mention the use of "hereby." That was a dead giveaway as well.
Still, Zou Tian, though he hurried to the appointment, wasn't concerned. He'd known the meeting was coming, and he'd given much thought to his response.
The door was open when he arrived, which was a new tactic on Master's part. Only Master, Senior Brother Yaun Yaozu, and Sun Hua were already present. Zou Tian cupped his hands to each of them and waited. Others had surely been invited.
Soon after, he was proven correct. Senior Brother, Senior Sister, and Jin LiJuan arrived within the next couple of minutes. As soon as the young girl and her wolf entered, the door slammed after them on its own.
Another sign of Master's displeasure.
The assemblage was as expected. Master's presence was a necessity, of course, as the judge and, if necessary, executioner. Sun Hua would take notes. Zou Tian, Senior Brother, Senior Sister, and Jin LiJuan were the four Foundation Establishment cultivators who had taken part in the fight. With increased realm came increased culpability.
Only Senior Brother Yuan Yaozu's status was unclear. As a Nascent Soul, he might be counted upon to judge the juniors. As someone had signed off on the plan, he might just as easily be facing punishment along with them.
"You five know why you're here, obviously," Master said.
Five. That cleared up Senior Brother Yuan Yaozu's position—one of the accused.
Zou Tian stepped forward. "We do, and I do, Master. The others followed my lead. I believe you will remember that you have counseled them to consider my advice?"
"Considering your advice and following you blindly into danger are not the same thing."
That was a good point, which Zou Tian had been sure that Master would point out. Clear leadership had still been established, however.
"May this lowly one ask a question, Master?" Zou Tian said.
"You just did. But fine."
There was a little lightening of Master's tone as he'd pointed out the question of asking permission to ask a question. He always grew either amused or annoyed at that situation. Zou Tian had bet on amusement.
"Is the Rising Tide Sect worth dying for?"
Master didn't immediately answer, and Zou Tian hadn't expected him to. The question did not have an easy response.
"In your mind," Zou Tian said, "it must be. Or to state it more accurately, you believe that its members, if not the organization itself, are worthy of the ultimate sacrifice, considering that you have risked yourself multiple times."
"I have," Master said through tight lips.
"We, your sect members, believe that the sect itself is worthy of that same risk. It has given power to the previously powerless, even when those powerless possessed none of the qualities that a sect normally seeks. Most of those who are its members would have, in fact, already been killed were it not for your recruitment. It has brought a sense of belonging to many who had no family. From your own lips and witnessed by the very heavens, it is to be a force for good in this sometimes evil world. Our belief is considered, not simply the whim of young adults."
"If your goal is to save a fellow sect member, I have always said that could be considered a worthy sacrifice."
Master's response did not answer the fundamental question, and he surely knew it. Zou Tian smelled blood.
"And the sect itself? If it fails, most of us will return to our former lives." Not the people in that room, of course, but the villagers and the F and E ranks would not find a home in another sect. "Those so affected will die before their time, so does not protection of the sect equal protection of the sect members?"
Master glared at Zou Tian. The point was obviously somewhat weak, but he wasn't finished.
"Protecting the sect goes well beyond just protecting its members, too. Our members yearn to do great things. Wan Ai has plans to distribute vitamins and healing pills to commoners throughout the continent. Jin LiJuan wants to form a protective force such that no one ever suffers the loss of their parents from an attack like the one on hers. Sun Hua has talked about how an efficient distribution system could make it so that no one on the continent ever experienced another winter of starvation. Without the Rising Tide Sect, none of those things are possible."
Master hesitated, and Zou Tian knew at that moment that he'd won.
"There is only one entity crucial to the sect. Only one entity is the glue that binds us together. Only one entity provides the techniques and cultivation methods and equipment and protection from those who would tear us down. You are the Rising Tide Sect. Without you, it and we do not exist and cannot continue to exist."
Master closed his eyes.
"You believe that it is better for you to die than for any of us to be harmed," Zou Tian said. "We believe that it is better for all of us to die than for you to be harmed. We understand your feelings, but we believe ours are more grounded in fact."
Master reopened his eyes, but he also frowned. "If you had not been there, I could have retreated."
"Could you have?" Zou Tian said. "Physically, yes, you had that ability, but realistically, you had no idea what your enemies would do with a group of sixteen Nascent Soul cultivators and no target in front of them. They could have destroyed the sect or Vermillion Incomparable Rain Town or both. The square was the only place where you could contain their damage."
"I could have contained it if you hadn't been there."
"If we weren't there, you would have died when they suppressed you. Besides, we retreated as soon as they started attacking the pylons."
All had gone according to the plan up to that point. Then one Qi Gathering junior had gotten clumsy.
"Kang Lin died," Master said.
"You fixed her."
"Still, she died."
"Better her and all of us than you," Zou Tian said, his voice resolute.
Master turned to Yuan Yaozu. "And you agree with them?"
The Nascent Soul disciple paused, considering his response. "Honestly, I try to respect your wishes, but you are worth an infinite number of juniors. If only you are left, you can completely rebuild everything from the ground up in a small number of years. Even the most talented of them are still powerless juniors in the grand scheme of things."
Master blew out a breath. "I don't like what you did, but I understand it. Going forward, I hope not to put myself in that kind of situation again, so you don't feel the need to protect me. From this moment on, however, none of you will make a plan like that one without me knowing about it. Understood?"
"Yes, Master," they all chorused, including Senior Brother Yuan Yaozu.
Just as Zou Tian had anticipated.