“This is just a training formation.” I said. “You’re not real.”

  I looked at Tie carefully for any sign of an unnatural reaction. From how he woke — having snapped to consciousness already aware of my name — I knew the minds of the people in this formations were being meddled with. But I didn’t know to what extent.

  This was a prod at the leash and limits of their minds, one that it seemed would be unanswered.

  “Pardon? I don’t understand.”

  “It doesn’t matter.” I said, turning back to continue walking toward the next group of monsters.

  The sky was still dark with clouds that looked like they could burst into rain at any moment, and the air was still choked with smoke. The fire from the city had rolled over and out, burning through dry fields and setting a blaze across the distant furnace. The black smoke in all directions gave the impression of a solid wall.

  Tie hesitated for a moment before racing to catch up with us. Poppy walked up and studied me carefully.

  “How are you feeling, sword maniac?” I asked Poppy.

  “Sword maniac?” She asked. She waved her fists in front of me. “I think I’ve sworn them off. Swords, I mean. This is the core of the Vascaran Combat Art anyway. Fists, that is.”

  “A sword maniac is a… a cultivator who feels most alive in the heat of a close fight. When blades cross at the last moment before arrival. When a winner is indeterminable in the middle of a fight. When — ”

  “A battle junkie, then.” Poppy said. “I’m not a battle junkie. You are.”

  I shook my head. Sword maniacs were always in denial of their title.

  Despite being surrounded by a burning city full of spiritbeasts, there was something oddly calming about the day I found myself in. With a new friend, a strong weapon, and power that I could wield as my own, I felt a sense of purpose that I had rarely matched in as many years since losing my core.

  I was made for this.

  We found the next group of monsters a few streets farther down; more of the [Long-Arm Steel Grip Screamer Monkey’s] from the day before.

  “There are five of them.” I said, leaning around the side of a building before turning back toward Poppy and Tie. “We should fight them together.

  Poppy nodded, turning to look at Tie.

  “You should go in first. Your weapon has the longest reach.”

  “I am real.” He said.

  “What?” Poppy asked.

  “Do not sacrifice me because you don’t believe me to be real. I am real. I have a mother and father. I — ”

  “No one is sacrificing you, Tie.” Poppy put a hand on his shoulder and sent me an exasperated look. Her expression softened as she turned back to him. “Your weapon just has the longest reach.” Her free hand pointed above them to the tip of his spear.

  “Alright.” Tie said. He didn’t move forward, though. He stood stock still.

  “We’ll be right at your side.” I said. “Just hold them at bay while we carve them to pieces.”

  Tie looked nervous for a moment before assessing each of us. He closed his eyes, steeling himself.

  “For Heaven’s Crest.” He said, looking up to us.

  Poppy looked at me confused.

  “Glory or death. No surrender.” I replied with a slight smile. “For Heaven’s Crest.”

  Tie stepped around the corner, lowered his spear, and charged toward the five monsters with a scream.

  “Not like that…” I said, running after him while channeling the Anti-Light technique. All five of the monkeys turned and looked up.

  The oversized creatures were easily ten feet tall, with long, spindly limbs devoid of much flesh or muscle. They had been taking turns reaching inside of a house and pulling out stores of food as well as clay dishes and other accessories. There was a pile of ash covered garbage in the street.

  Their ears twitched as Tie ran his breath ragged charging into them. He thrust his spear toward the first monkey he saw. The beast staggered backwards, collapsing to the ground and howling wildly as it rolled away. I stopped and pulled back as the other Screamer Monkeys descended toward Tie.

  I prepared to swing, but then ducked as Tie swung his spear overhead to drive the monsters back.

  The monkeys started throwing trash at us. Clay cups shattered against me. When I lunged toward the Screamer Monkeys, they all scattered backwards. I circled them, driving one back against the wall before eviscerating it in a single blow. It was still alive where it fell to the ground, but I knew it wouldn’t be for long.

  A clay mug exploded on the back of my head. I staggered forward, turning around to a Screamer Monkey descending on me.

  Tie’s spear lashed out, giving the monkey a deep cut across the front of its chest that stopped its momentum entirely.

  Poppy arrived a half second later, punching it in the stomach with a whomping noise of compressing air. Reality seemed to twist around her punch; she wasn’t just punching into the beast’s stomach, but to space all around it. And the space was destroyed, too.

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

  With a violent noise, the monkey collapsed onto the ground.

  The remaining three monkeys swarmed us as we ended up back to back. I cut. Poppy punched. Tie stabbed. Then they were all dead.

  “Easy.” Poppy said. She was still in a fighter’s stance, arms up and coated in dark. I let the black dissipate from my blade.

  I nodded.

  “Easy. Let’s climb up and get a look around.” I said, gesturing to the house next to us. “To find another hunt.”

  “We’re not making our way back toward Heaven’s Crest?” Tie asked, genuine worry on his face.

  I shared a look with Poppy.

  “It doesn’t look like they’re letting anyone in.” I said, gesturing up the hill. “The last I saw, most of the citizens were still trapped outside of the wall.”

  “But I’m an outer disciple. They’ll open the gate for me, surely!”

  “And let the throng of people behind you shove their way in behind you, or worse, be forced to cut them down? Unlikely.” I replied.

  Tie looked at the ground. Then back up at me.

  “We hunt, instead. Purge the city of the spiritbeasts rampaging in it. Until things get worse.”

  “Things are going to get worse?” Tie asked.

  “They can always get worse.”

  [You reached level 9!]

  A bird spiritbeast hit the ground in two parts after having dove toward me. Its feathers had glowed with a silver edge that rapidly dimmed when its body hit the ground. Blood pooled at my feet.

  We hunted for hours, pecking at the loose and split up groups of spiritbeasts. Without the spirit horde’s leader, they were of little threat and consequence when isolated. Our teamwork slowly improved, especially after controlling Tie’s tendency to charge in wildly.

  A dozen different types of spiritbeast died by our hands as we cut through the horde.

  “I’m level nine.” I announced.

  “Congratulations. Do you know what class you’re aiming for already?” Poppy asked. “No. Probably not.”

  “What options will I have?” I asked, inspecting my sword before sheathing it.

  The Anti-Light coating that manifested from my technique left the blade free of blood and clean after each fight, though using the technique constantly for hours had become a straining endeavour.

  “The class options you’ll have are based on the feats you’ve accomplished.” Poppy said. “Think… great endeavours or personal victory. My family had a list of a combination of a dozen feats to unlock a signature class along our path. Things like defeating a monster with only half of your health remaining, or dodging ten spells consecutively.”

  “Why?” I asked, leaning against the wall of a house. The streets had become increasingly more covered in a layer of ash from the blaze around us, and the air was permanently hot and acrid now. Though the sun had set, the horizon still glowed as the hills around us smoldered. The dried fields had long since burned out.

  “Why what?” Poppy asked, confused.

  “Why does the system base what you have available on things you have accomplished?” I asked. “When a water cultivator advances, they absorb water attributed qi. They build sects over the ocean and deep wells of power that come from within the earth. When a fire cultivator advances, they absorb fire attribtued qi. They build in forests of trees that burn eternally and build sects on mountains that bleed lava. What you’re saying makes no sense.”

  “I don’t know.” Poppy shrugged. “It’s just the way it is.”

  Tie sat and stared at us with rapt attention, but didn’t speak up.

  I nodded after a moment.

  “The class options you have will be sorted by rarity. The harder a class is to get, the better it is, generally. Oh, and each class raises a different set of attributes by a set amount each level.” Poppy said.

  “What’s your class?” I asked.

  Poppy cringed.

  “The class I’ve built is based on Vascaran secrets held close to our chests for years. Even if I wasn’t given the resources to attain the class on my own, the knowledge and training I received to build it is considered intellectual property of the House. Technically illegal to share, and they’re not beyond putting their own daughters on house arrest. That said… you’ve extended at least as much trust to me.”

  Poppy’s eyes flicked to Tie for a moment. She closed her eyes, then turned back to me.

  “The class I have is called Steel Vanguard. Most of the feats associated with it involved taking immense damage and continuing to fight. Normally, you would only unlock this class after level 50, and choose an easier class instead. But that’s done when you raise a child through the levels, before they’re ready to endure the hardship necessary. Not for adults. The class makes it easier for me to learn defensive and barehanded skills, as well as all skills associated with metal attributes, and raises my my Strength and Constituion both two points a level, while giving me two more to assign freely.”

  Poppy stared at me as if waiting for a reaction to that. It was a lot compared to me — over eight points of attributes per level.

  “Right… you don’t have context. The average class would assign a single point toward one level and give you another point or two for free at best.”

  “So your class is exceptionally good?” I asked. “I’m familiar with the concept. Low level cultivation techniques typically break down and become prone to slow your progression, especially at the third realm.”

  “Yes. Very.” She said. “But based on your current level of strength, I have no doubt you’ll be able to accomplish something similar.”

  Our conversation was interrupted as an ear splitting, world breaking screech roared out over the city. I winced, turning toward its direction.

  A second roar sounded a moment later. The city all but shook as every spiritbeast inside of it began to converge toward the source of the roar.

  “What’s happening?” Poppy asked, shifting into a combat position.

  “Get into the alleys.” I replied, not hesitating before pulling away from the main street. It turned out to be prudent. Only a moment passed before a dozen spiritbeasts raced by us, then a dozen more. Screamer Monkeys threw themselves over the roofs above us. Flocks of mismatched birds sailed through the sky. Hordes of wild hogs charged down and tore apart the road.

  “The spiritbeast horde is reconvening. The head of the spiritbeast horde has had its fill of looting the city. They’re going to charge the gates of the sect.”

  “We need to head back to help hold the walls.” Tie said. He stepped forward with conviction.

  “That would be suicide.” I replied. “We wouldn’t be holding the line with other soldiers. We would be flanking an army of spiritbeasts with just the three of us.”

  “I agree.” Poppy said. “I’ll admit I’m hungry for more experience… but I’m not so eager to die. But that begs the question; what’s your plan instead, if we’re not heading to the fight? Every single spiritbeast is convening towards it, yes?”

  Even as she spoke, loose collections of spiritbeasts were still passing by us. They grew stranger and weaker, but I still didn’t want to provoke a fight with any of them.

  Another monstrous howl shook the sky. I squinted. Perhaps it was a physiological ability of this spiritbeast to shout so loudly — or perhaps it had a sound attribute to its qi, and was using some disruptive technique to scream. Either way, there was something abnormal about the beast, and I could tell that without even seeing it. They were called Screamer Monkeys, but based on the second realm beast I fought, I had assumed they were focused more on steel than sound.

  “We should wait and see.” I said. “It’s unlikely that the Heaven’s Crest wins the confrontation.”

  “What?” Tie said. “That’s unthinkable. The inner disciples and Elders will tear through this horde without any trouble.”

  “Why?” Poppy asked.

  “Because we still have another entire day left to survive.” I said. “The way I see it, we have two options. We can run. Flee the city entirely. It’s lower risk. If the spiritbeast horde breaks into the sect, they could spend weeks there before devouring all the resources inside.”

  “And the other option?” Poppy asked.

  “The leader of the spiritbeast horde will be significantly weakened after.” I said. “Infact, theres a chance he’ll be the only thing left alive. Our other option is to lurk nearby at the edge of the fighting, and once it dies down…”

  “We go in and steal the kill.” Poppy finished.

  I nodded.

  “If we kill the spiritbeast king, the horde will scatter. But we need to decide now.”

  Poppy and I looked at each other.