12 — Contracts of Blood and Tide
Blackwind City did not close its gates simply because Imperial Hunters hovered above it.
Business continued.
Markets reopened.
Mercenary boards filled.
Cultivators returned to their routines.
But beneath the surface, the atmosphere had shifted.
Whispers traveled faster than caravans.
Two anomalies.
Probability distortion.
Hunter presence.
Most dismissed it as rumor.
Those who understood remained silent.
Kael and Ren did not re-enter through the main gate.
Instead, they circled the city and entered through the eastern supply checkpoint used by independent contractors.
Lower scrutiny.
Higher traffic.
Ren's artificial engine pulsed faintly as they crossed the boundary.
No scan triggered.
The Hunters had withdrawn to upper observation altitude.
Temporary.
Kael's system remained at low-activity mode.
[ Concealment Integrity: 33% ]
[ Tracking Residue: Weak ]
[ Probability Convergence: Stable ]
Good.
Stable meant opportunity.
They moved toward the Mercenary Exchange Pavilion near the docks district.
The eastern edge of Blackwind connected to river trade that eventually flowed into the Eastern Oceanic Territory.
Exactly where Kael intended to head.
Inside the pavilion, large wooden boards displayed active contracts.
Beast suppression.
Resource escort.
Rogue cultivator elimination.
Maritime security.
Ren scanned quickly.
"We need something dangerous enough to accelerate you—but not structured enough to attract Imperial oversight."
Kael nodded.
He stepped closer to the board.
One contract caught his attention.
High-Risk ContractLocation: Shattered Reef BasinTarget: Crimson Tide Leviathan (Juvenile)Threat Level: Bone Forging — Mid Stage EquivalentReward: High-Grade Beast Core + 60 Spirit StonesAdditional: Essence Suitable for Organ Tempering
Kael's eyes sharpened.
Organ Tempering required dense vitality reinforcement.
A high-grade aquatic beast core would provide exactly that.
Ren tilted his head slightly.
"Juvenile Leviathan at Bone Forging — Mid Stage equivalent."
Kael responded calmly.
"I'm Early Stage."
Ren's faint smile returned.
"Which means calculated risk."
They registered for the contract under independent identifiers.
No sect affiliation.
Minimal paperwork.
Departure scheduled at dusk.
Hours later, they stood aboard a reinforced river vessel heading eastward.
The Shattered Reef Basin lay two days' travel from Blackwind's dock district, where river currents met fractured stone outcroppings before merging into oceanic flow.
The river wind was sharp.
Cold.
Kael stood near the bow, studying water movement.
Ren leaned against a support beam, eyes half-closed.
His artificial engine projected faint predictive overlays across the river's surface.
"Leviathans don't attack randomly," Ren said quietly.
"They test flow patterns first."
Kael nodded.
The system pulsed.
[ ─── Environmental Scan ─── ]
[ Aquatic Life Density: Moderate ]
[ Depth Variance: Significant ]
[ Probability of Leviathan Ambush: 62% Within 3km Radius ]
Two days passed without incident.
On the third evening—
The water changed.
Subtle at first.
Currents tightened.
Temperature shifted.
The river's surface became unnaturally smooth.
Ren opened his eyes.
"It's below us."
Kael activated Combat Projection.
Predictive lines appeared faintly across his vision.
The boat captain shouted suddenly.
"Brace!"
The river exploded.
A massive crimson-scaled shape erupted upward, jaws wide, teeth like curved blades.
The Crimson Tide Leviathan.
Even juvenile, it was enormous.
Its body easily stretched fifteen meters long.
Kael did not hesitate.
He leapt forward as the beast crashed across the deck.
Wood splintered.
Sail mast snapped.
Screams erupted.
The system flared.
[ ─── Target Analysis ─── ]
[ Crimson Tide Leviathan — Juvenile ]
[ Realm Equivalent: Bone Forging — Mid Stage ]
[ Strength : High ]
[ Vitality : Extreme ]
[ Structural Density: Aquatic Reinforced ]
[ Weak Point: Ventral Gill Junction ]
[ Combat Projection Recommended ]
[ ───────────────────────── ]
Ren moved instantly, projecting probability distortion along the beast's peripheral perception.
The Leviathan lunged toward a group of sailors.
Ren's distortion caused its targeting alignment to shift half a degree.
Just enough.
Kael intercepted.
He slashed along the beast's side.
Sparks flew as blade struck reinforced scale.
His Bone Forging strength prevented recoil collapse.
Still—
The beast's vitality dwarfed his own.
The Leviathan roared and swept its tail violently.
Kael barely dodged, Combat Projection guiding micro-adjustments.
Ren shouted from the side.
"Force it into shallow section!"
Kael understood immediately.
Aquatic beasts lost maneuver advantage in low depth.
He deliberately baited the creature toward fractured reef stones visible along the right bank.
The Leviathan lunged again.
Kael stepped back along broken planks toward the shallow reef zone.
Ren amplified turbulence along one side of the river using micro-distortion.
Currents shifted.
The beast adjusted instinctively.
Too late.
Its lower body struck submerged reef.
Momentum faltered.
Kael saw the opening.
[ Combat Projection — Critical Window Detected ]
[ Ventral Gill Exposure: 1.2 Seconds ]
He moved.
No hesitation.
He drove his blade downward with full skeletal force.
The tip pierced through softer tissue beneath the gill plates.
The Leviathan thrashed violently.
Water exploded upward.
The boat shattered further under the impact.
Kael held position, bracing through Bone Forging density.
He twisted the blade deeper.
Ren projected concentrated distortion along the beast's pain response threshold, amplifying reaction misalignment.
The Leviathan's movements grew chaotic.
Then weaker.
Then—
Still.
Silence returned to the river.
Kael stood panting, blade embedded deep in crimson flesh.
The system activated automatically.
[ Target Vital Signs: 0 ]
[ Extraction Available ]
[ Daily Extraction Remaining: 3/3 ]
[ High-Grade Vital Essence Detected ]
Kael did not extract attribute points immediately.
Instead—
He activated Attribute Storage Mode.
[ High-Grade Vital Essence Stored ]
[ Stored Attribute Points: 4 ]
[ Beast Core Retrieval Required for Full Assimilation ]
Ren stepped closer.
"Efficient."
Kael nodded once.
They secured the beast core carefully—dense, crimson, pulsing faintly with vitality.
The remaining sailors, shaken but alive, stared in stunned silence.
One whispered, "You're only Bone Forging Early…"
Kael did not respond.
The system pulsed again.
[ Organ Tempering Preparation Feasible ]
[ Core Assimilation Success Probability: 71% ]
[ Additional Stabilization Recommended ]
Seventy-one percent was acceptable with Ren's interference assistance.
They returned to shore by midnight.
The sailors delivered the reward without dispute.
Kael and Ren withdrew immediately to a temporary hideout near the reef cliffs.
Inside the stone alcove, Kael placed the Crimson Core before him.
It radiated dense vitality.
Organ Tempering would strengthen internal organs—heart, lungs, liver—allowing higher energy throughput.
Necessary before Spirit Awakening.
Ren sat opposite him.
"I'll distort probability during assimilation," he said calmly.
"Minor fluctuations. Not enough to attract Hunter attention."
Kael nodded.
He placed his palm over the core.
The system activated.
[ Core Assimilation Initiated ]
[ Vital Density Absorption: High ]
[ Organ Reinforcement Sequence Beginning ]
[ Structural Stability Required ]
The Crimson Core dissolved into liquid energy, flowing into his body.
Pain erupted instantly.
More intense than Bone Forging.
Internal.
Deep.
His heart convulsed violently.
Lungs burned.
Blood pressure surged dangerously.
The system screamed warnings.
[ Organ Stress Level: 83% ]
[ Failure Risk: Elevated ]
[ External Probability Assistance Recommended ]
Ren's artificial engine flared.
Distortion fields wrapped subtly around Kael's internal energy circulation.
Stabilizing fluctuations.
Not healing.
But smoothing variance.
Kael pushed through.
His heart strengthened.
Lungs expanded.
Vital capacity increased dramatically.
Then—
Snap.
Internal alignment stabilized.
[ Breakthrough Complete ]
[ Realm Advanced: Organ Tempering — Early Stage ]
[ Vital Throughput Capacity: +38% ]
[ Energy Efficiency: Improved ]
[ ───────────────────────── ]
Kael exhaled sharply.
Pain subsided.
Clarity replaced it.
He opened his interface.
[ ═════ HEAVEN'S DEBUG SYSTEM — LEVEL 2 ═════ ]
[ Host: Kael Ardyn ]
[ Realm: Organ Tempering — Early Stage ]
[ Core Attributes ]
[ Strength : 28 ]
[ Agility : 18 ]
[ Vitality : 30 ]
[ Spirit : 7 ]
[ Luck : 2 ]
[ Concealment Integrity: 36% ]
[ Tracking Residue: Minimal ]
[ Fate Divergence Index: Stabilized ]
[ ─────────────────────────────────── ]
Concealment increased.
Residue nearly gone.
Ren leaned back slightly.
"You're advancing faster than projection."
Kael met his gaze.
"So are you."
The river wind carried salt from the distant ocean.
Eastern Oceanic Territory lay beyond the horizon.
Spirit Awakening required crossing Mortal Tier's final threshold.
And once he reached that—
Level 3 would unlock.
Fate Thread editing.
Possibly limited manipulation.
Heaven would not ignore that.
Kael stood slowly.
The ocean called.
The Imperial Domain recalculated.
And somewhere beyond planetary governance—
Something older watched.
This was no longer about surviving Hunters.
It was about climbing beyond planetary Heaven itself.