Standing atop the region's tallest mountain, Liang Zhenwu looked up at the night sky and wondered what might have happened if he had not acted quickly enough to save his cherished daughter, Xuanxuan.
He raised his foot and stomped it firmly on the head of his shadow.
The shadow quivered like restless water before it rose up from the ground, tearing itself loose from the rock like dynamic ink. When it did rise up, features became discernible—a human form of sorts with no face excepting two fiery red eyes with no feeling, warmth, or any kind of humanness.
"Master," the shadow replied in a harsh and gravelly voice.
Zhenwu raised the compressed ball of purple poison and made it float up in the center of his palm. He used a casual flick of his finger and sent it flipping end over end at the shadow creature.
"This energy," he said, his tone uncanny calm. "You need to locate every iota of it on this planet. Every drop. Every shred. Scour every human being, every creature, every living thing. Scour the air and water and ground. If there is a molecule of this poison within the confines of Earth, then I need to know."
Shadow grasped the violet orb, its red eyes focusing harder as it examined the energy pattern. "Got it, Master. Search parameters: full planet scan. Target: interdimensional poison, unknown classification. Time period?"
"Now."
The shadow tilted its head. "Command accepted."
What happened next was without logic, biology or any other conceivable law of nature that Zhenwu could even begin to construct. The shadow split evenly and right down the middle and suddenly, there were two perfect duplicates. The two, in turn, split to form four. Four became sixteen. Sixteen became thirty two. Multiplication was now exponential, they were now thirty two, sixty four and one hundred twenty eight.
In mere minutes, the peak of the mountain was elighted by the hundreds and then by the thousands of shadow doubles, each one containing a piece of the original energy imprint. The fanned out into a pervading living tide of darkness some of which burrowed into the ground, ascended into the air or spilled down the face of the mountain like black water.
Within a minute, they had completely covered the entire continent and Zhenwu could distinctly feel the power within them spreading in every nook of the planet, Nothing was beyond their reach and nothing would hide itself from their search.
He was alone once more at the top, but, never truly alone. As a member of the shadow network, Zhenwu knew their presence was everywhere — in the cities and forests, the bottoms of oceans, and in mountain caves, coldly scrutinizing every living thing within the world with cold logic.
Now, on to the next step.
With his eyes closed, Zhenwu searched for a familiar entity scattered across a booming universe.
Xiao Hei.
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The presence of Taotie at this moment on a remote space world remained unknown to human speakers. During this period he reached the absolute peak of his life at this location. The creature's physical appearance combined elements of tigers and dragons while their lightning-infused essence made their consumption particularly desirable.
After consuming the Thunder Mane Alpha remains he detected the presence of Zhenwu speaking to him through telepathy.
Master. Taotie remained alert and showed excitement through his tail and ear movements even though he maintained his human form. Master if you have found me any delicious treats please let me know.
Report. What did you discover?
The bright blue blood from his feast ran out of his mouth as he extended his body to full length. The alien forest population declined significantly after an hour passed from their previous numbers. The world is filled with spiritual treasures Master! This planet contains a vast number of rare spiritual creatures which offer eternal vitality to those who seek them. The native inhabitants have pursued me for twenty-four hours yet their skills fail to threaten me.
Investigation Xiao Hei.
Sure thing. And then he expressed a higher level of seriousness through his facial expression. The purple poison discussion has now started Master. This substance exists universally. The cultivation materials received this substance as an additional type of contamination in addition to its presence in both air and water. The poison was particularly designed to exterminate individuals who possess spiritual roots.
Zhenwu sounded detached when he spoke. Could you provide additional details.
Someone is distributing spirit stones and qi-gathering pills which contain dangerous substances. The weaker cultivators are unable to detect the danger because their spiritual perception remains under the required threshold. A talented person who detects the danger will experience slow meridian and spiritual core deterioration. Most people mistakenly believe their cultivation troubles are responsible for their situation.
Can you identify the main source of the problem?
The organization responsible is called the Purple Moon Pavilion. They present themselves as a legitimate cultivation society while secretly distributing poisonous resources. I maintained a monitoring of their activities across the past hours. Taotie decided to stop speaking about the topic. Master, the organization behind this operation does not consist of the main leaders. This operation represents a single part of their broader scheme. Three different groups are operating similar operations on different planets.
The atmosphere surrounding Zhenwu seemed to crackle with power which he barely kept contained. They directed their actions towards my daughter.
Halfway across the galaxy, Taotie froze mid-chew, a piece of Thunder Mane still clinging to his mouth. The words rang in his mind like thunder.
Daughter?
His inner voice went slack with surprise, almost laughable. He dropped the half-devoured spirit beast and stared at nothing, mouth agape. Master, you… have a daughter? When did this happen? How? Didn't you say mortals were boring?
For a moment the fearsome Taotie—one of the Four Ferocious Beasts, devourer of planets—looked exactly like what he was: a confused dog who'd just learned his owner had brought home a puppy without telling him.
Xiao Hei.
But Master, this is huge news! Taotie's tail began wagging uncontrollably. You never said you had a little one! Is she adorable? Does she have your frightening face or her mother's? Can I meet her? Does she like dogs? I bet she does—
Xiao Hei!!
Zhenwu's mental voice carried enough killing intent to make Taotie's tail tuck between his legs.
Right… right. Taotie's face went deadly serious. Someone hurt little princess.
The master's anger reached Taotie even though they stayed apart. His eyes transformed into red orbs as his inborn nature made an appearance. The only being in the universe that Zhenwu cared for more than everything else was his little cub which someone had dared to harm.
The mental demeanor of Taotie shifted from relaxed to serious after the master spoke. Proceed with the command. I will start investigating the Purple Moon Pavilion and expand my investigation. I need to collect all intelligence related to the person who attacked your family.
Begin by discovering the reality. The next step is to destroy them. Your mission involves complete annihilation. I will eliminate every trace of their existence. All life that remains after the operation must disappear completely along with every piece of proof and any indication that they ever existed.
The individual decides to stop talking.
Zhenwu presented a cold and distant reaction to the situation. They will not refuse. Not after you demonstrate the consequences faced by those who endanger my family. Taotie grinned widely, revealing his pointy teeth and unbridled hunger. He focused on the faraway mountains where the Purple Moon Pavilion had made their base of operations, and powerful spiritual pressure started radiating from him like a black tidal wave. The other spirit beasts within his range scattered with violent fear, sensing the impending arrival of a danger far greater than any that they had ever faced before. It shall be done, Master. They will regret the day they attempted to poison a child. When the psychological connection was lost, Taotie was left alone with his anger and anticipation. He popped his knuckles, shrugged his shoulders, and began walking toward the Purple Moon Pavilion territory. Each step made tiny pits within the alien ground. The night was shortly going to be very long to some—and far too short to others.