Chapter 783 (Patreon)

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The earth shook and the Heavens raged as the Demonic Divinity clawed its way into existence, and Taduk committed every last second to memory.

A novel experience all things considered, even accounting for the danger this miscreation represented, for it’d been quite some time since he’d encountered something so unique. Well, that wasn’t entirely true, as Rainy boy always had some peculiar notion worth exploring tumbling around the back of his head, but this anomaly might well prove to be a watershed moment for every Divinity present. Demons were, at the core of it all, a deviation from the Dao, or at the very least an irregularity worth studying, but Taduk never had the time or inclination to make contact with the Defiled. Putting aside their murderous tendencies and hideous concept of home decor, the Defiled were an unpleasant bunch who resided in inhospitable lands, to say nothing of their lacking manners, hygiene, and culinary skills.

There was a time when Taduk would’ve hardly cared about what he ate, but he’d long since grown spoiled living with the Bekhai, especially once Rainy boy learned how to cook. Another oddity that, the fact that everything the boy made tasted so much better than anything bought or paid for, even though he wasn’t anywhere near as skilled as Charok or even Alsantset. An extra pinch of love, that was the answer Rainy boy gave when asked why his food tasted so good, and though he was being tongue-in-cheek, Taduk suspected it might well be the truth.

Something worth looking into when he had the time, and he intended to try his hand at the culinary arts once he puzzled out all this Runic Inscription nonsense, but for now, it would be best to focus on the matter at hand. A Demonic birth wasn’t anything too out of the ordinary, and Taduk had seen more than his fair share in recent years, but a Demonic Divinity was another thing altogether. Demons were fundamentally the result of a massive imbalance, while the Path to Divinity was achieved through Balance, so how would the creation of a Demonic Divinity differ from that of a regular Divinity or Ancestral Beast? How fortuitous a happenstance to see this happen so soon after Rainy boy’s recent unfathomable progress, because now Taduk could compare and contrast the two events while they were both fresh in his mind. Not that he understood much about what Rainy boy did, for he was ever the enigma, always going about things in his own unique manner. No matter though, because Taduk did so love to solve puzzles and mysteries, and Rain and this Demonic Divinity would provide both in spades.

A shame about all the lives which would soon be lost, but between Hua Lie, Rainy boy, and himself, Taduk was certain they could at least save the lives of little Lin-Lin and her friends, while the Abbot and his gaunt Divinity friend would undoubtedly save a few more. Only a handful out of hundreds of thousands, a true tragedy to be sure, but Taduk just didn’t have it in him to mourn for strangers anymore. The world knew him as the Medical Saint and praised him for his generosity and kindness, but it had always been a means to an end. In order to study medicine, it was best to see it in action, so he went out in the world to treat as many people as he could. Gold was meaningless to a Divinity like himself, but others saw his indifference to wealth as altruism and benevolence, even though he felt that the information gleaned from Healing so many was more than worth the effort. Then there was the wide array of test subjects for medicines, which he was always careful to ensure was safe, but even he made mistakes every now and then. The worst part was that even when his errors resulted in someone’s death, no one ever blamed him for his failures, they only thanked him for his efforts even though he might well have made things worse.

Curious creatures, humans were, so full of hate and anger, but also empathy and compassion. Rainy boy was the best example of the bunch, a kind soul who would undoubtedly blame himself for all these deaths, but would also be blamed for them by the Empire for reasons untowards. Perhaps it was for the best however, since he would have fallen out with the rest of the world regardless of how things went, for Lin-Lin’s status was no longer a secret and the world would soon come a-hunting for Taduk and his daughter both.

Something to deal with tomorrow, as he had more important matters to focus on today, but he never was any good at keeping his mind on task. That’s why he needed an isolated workspace to prevent himself from getting too too distracted, but there was no helping it here. He could hardly just stand around and study the Demonic Divinity, as time was of the essence if he wanted to get sweet Lin-Lin and her friends out safely, so he set about making the most of his time while he still had it. Cloud-Stepping over to Yan’s side, he carried her away over to stand with sweet Lin-Lin where Rainy boy could easily reach them both, and blessed Yan she didn’t so much as blink. A tough one, she was, and he liked her spirit, though he wished he could’ve helped her with her Blessing of Air. Once upon a time, Akanai had asked if there was anything he could do to help little Yan, but in truth, Taduk wouldn’t have known where to start, for using his Blessing of Air and Water was more a matter of instinct and intuition than actual intellect. Everything he knew about it, he’d learned in his past life, when he soared through the skies as the king of all hares, chasing the clouds wherever they went.

What an enviable life that would be, to take to the skies and become king once more, but he was a man now, not a hare, and he needed more in life than the wind in his ears and the clouds beneath his feet.

Sweet Lin-Lin needed more too, and he stopped to pat her soft, fluffy ears and pinch her pliable cheeks, so adorable he could hardly contain himself. Seeing her cute and concerned gaze, it was all Taduk could do to resist the urge to carry her away to safety, but he knew she would refuse if she knew it would mean leaving someone she cared about behind. Such were the trials and tribulations of being a father, to place your child’s needs and desires before your own, but even though these last few years had passed by in the blink of an eye, he couldn’t remember a time when he’d been happier.

These days, sweet Lin-Lin and Rainy boy were everything to him, but some thirty-odd years ago, Taduk had merely been a vagrant bachelor, one who spent his days and nights immersed in his studies regarding Spiritual Beasts and medicines. Most of the time, he stayed with the Bekhai or in his manor in Shen Huo, but this meant having to constantly fend off the advances of that floppy-eared temptress Hua Li, to say nothing of the none-too-subtle suggestions from Ling Lu seeking to one up her friend and rival. They were both very lovely women, there was no denying that, and under different circumstances, he might have considered a partnership with one or the other, but neither one truly had his best interests in mind. Hua Lie only wanted him because she mistakenly believed their pairing would result in a viable child, one who would naturally grow into a Divinity as he or she came of age, and he knew full well she would leave him once she realized no pregnancy was forthcoming. As for Ling Lu, her motives were even less pure than Hua Lie’s, for the Ancestral Gazelle’s interests were driven solely by her desire to compete with Hua Lie, and Taduk was no prize to be mounted and stuffed.

One afternoon, he woke up and decided he’d had enough of their antics, so he grabbed a pack and left. It wasn’t the first time he’d set off on a journey by himself, since he often went wandering to search for Spiritual Beasts and Plants alike, but it was the first time he left without telling anyone since he first made his home in the Saint’s Tribulations Mountains. Akanai had long since been his connection to the Bekhai for those times when he couldn’t be bothered to track down one of the Divinities, and she was a good friend as well, but dealing with her was almost as troublesome as dealing with Hua Lie. A hard woman, that Akanai, always scolding him for drinking and gambling with Husolt as if her husband wasn’t the one to seek him out, but Taduk always held his tongue and kept his head down lest she put him on a vegetarian diet. Unconscionable is what it was, cruel and immoral to be sure, but there was nothing he could do about it. Not a single person in the entire mountain range would dare cross their hero and Chief Provost, not for an ‘eccentric’ Healer. Even if Taduk were willing to reveal himself as a Divinity, he wagered they’d still all take Akanai’s side regardless, meaning his only recourse would be to retreat to Shen Huo where little Hai’s incessant requests made it all but impossible to focus on his research.

Honestly, how was anyone supposed to get anything done with little Hai dropping in every few weeks to see if he could treat this person’s boring, mundane sickness or attend that person’s insipid banquet? You’d think that short-lived mortals would be more prudent with their limited time, but they frittered away whole decades doing nothing of note, and they thought him the mad one.

That being said, the moment Taduk took to the open skies and headed away from the village, he felt a weight lift off his shoulders. Focusing on his studies was good and all, but he’d been at it for decades without any real progress. No matter how many Spiritual Beasts or Plants he came across, he could find no singular thread to link them all, nothing to explain how a mundane beast or plant might elevate themselves to become more. There was a time when he tried to study the Martial Path instead, but he was not suited for it, because too much of his Dao came naturally to him, which left him unable to fathom the hardships others encountered along theirs. Just finding Balance was a struggle for some, which was as incomprehensible to Taduk as a healthy human struggling to breathe, which was why he’d switched focus to beasts and plants instead. Beasts because at one point, he’d been one, and plants because they were easier to understand than people or animals, but alas, his success was limited at best.

So for the first time in decades, Taduk set out without a goal in mind, and it felt good to take to the skies and clear his head. At first, he kept to his normal route around the province to check in on previously discovered Spiritual specimens, but it’d been less than a century since his last trip and there wasn’t much new to see. Quickly losing interest after visiting three sites without finding anything worthy of note, he picked a new heading on a whim and soon arrived in the forest of his birth, the isolated heart of a lush and verdant jungle in the Southern Province many kilometres away from civilized life. Once, there’d been a giant Kapok tree overlooking the waterfall nearby, and he’d lived out his earliest days inside the nooks and crannies of that towering giant, but the original one had long since withered and died and new trees had sprouted in its place. There were still fruits and tubers aplenty scattered throughout the jungle, and plenty of stagnant pools where fish stopped to spawn, both of which provided him with ample, albeit unappetizing sustenance. Those were his earliest memories of this place, when he was already an established resident of the jungle living comfortably on his own, a child younger than even Tali and Tate were now, yet wholly capable of surviving without any help.

But only just. Divinity though he might be, back then, he’d only been marginally stronger than a mortal, and wholly ignorant to boot. Even now, the memory of gnawing away at tough roots and chomping down raw fish made his stomach turn, and he cringed to think of what a fool he’d made of himself when he finally found the courage to leave the jungle to seek out others like him. That had been a long and arduous journey he did not care to revisit, filled with trials and tribulations aplenty, but being in the jungle again reminded him of simpler times, when all he cared about was filling his belly and avoiding the fierce predators of the night.

As if on cue, he heard the tell-tale cry of a minokawa and an involuntary shudder coursed down his spine, reminding him all the close brushes with death he’d had in this life and the last. This fear was something ingrained into his heart and soul, for the minokawa was the Cloud Chaser Hare’s one and only competitor for the title of King of the skies, a massive avian predator capable of hunting even jaguars and anacondas, to say nothing of a young boy or Cloud Chaser Hares. To feel such fear irked Taduk greatly, for he was a Divinity now, one powerful enough to dominate everything under the Heavens, and he refused to be cowed by a fat flying turkey. In a fit of pique, he Cloud-Stepped over to where he heard the minokawa cry and unleashed the strongest attack he could conceivably let loose without breaking the world, an Amplified slap that could shatter stone from inside and out.

Admittedly it wasn’t much to be proud of, but he was surprised when his blow merely dazed the minokawa for a moment, though a moment was all its prey needed to turn the tables around.

That was the first time Taduk laid eyes on his sweet, precious daughter, though she looked very different at the time. A tiny, rounded thing, even for a Cloud Chaser Hare, able to fit comfortably in the palm of his hand, yet so full of fury and voraciousness, killing and eating the minokawa as they both plummeted from the skies. So intent on devouring her catch, the little hare almost crashed into the ground with its prize not even half-eaten, but it remembered itself just in time and Cloud-Stepped from mere centimetres above the ground to arrest its momentum and keep its catch from being pulped into the dirt. Settling down on a nearby tree, Taduk watched the little beast eat from afar and noticed a deep and vicious puncture wound in its side, one which would likely prove fatal if left untreated. Seeing how the creature might well be one of his descendants from his past life, he Healed the hare on a whim only to discover that it was no mere beast, but a Spiritual Beast brimming with power and potential.

Usually, he could sense a creature was a Spiritual Beast so long as he could see it, though it was only recently that he understood how. Back then however, he was fascinated to find a Spiritual Beast capable of evading his superlative perceptions, and more importantly, able to find him despite his Cloak of Concealment and offer a bared tooth threat warning him to stay back. Seeing him heed her warning, the little hare continued to stuff its cheeks while Taduk Healed her considerable injuries, and he was amazed by how quickly she devoured the minokawa which was almost twenty times her size. Once her meal was finished, she hopped once in Taduk’s direction, then thought better of it and took to the skies, whereupon she disappeared into the clouds and evaded all of his attempts to track and follow her away.

Back then, he thought it merely a missed opportunity to study a powerful Spiritual Beast and didn’t give it a second thought, but then two months later, he came across the same hare almost two-hundred kilometres away from where they first met. It was injured again, ripped open from shoulder to hip along one flank, and it hopped out in front of him as bold as could be while watching his reaction as if asking him to Heal her again. He did, because this level of intelligence was beyond anything he’d ever seen before, to not only realize that he’d Healed her earlier, but also track him down from so far away after so many weeks which he spent under a cloak of Concealment.

This happened several more times over the course of a year, and each time, he could tell that the little hare was growing bolder thanks to his care. Not just with the targets she hunted, coming back with more grievous injuries each and every time, but also with how comfortable she was in his presence. One time, after he finished Healing her missing paw, the little hare hopped over to his shoulder and planted herself there as if too tired to go searching for a safe place to rest, and he was touched by the level of trust she showed. While it might not seem like much, he knew how difficult it was for a creature that was both predator and prey to sleep in the presence of another, but she was all too happy to curl up against his neck and snore fitfully without a care in the world. After a few days, she left once more only to return an indeterminate amount of time later bearing fresh injuries, but eventually as the months turned into years, she started staying with him longer and longer until she was rarely away from his side.

It was a novel experience to be sure, for she wasn’t so much a pet as she was a companion, and Taduk had been starved of companionship for too long. As such, he was all too happy to keep her close and spoil her rotten while also studying her behaviour and mannerisms, only to be blown away by the sheer level of intelligence the little darling demonstrated. She learned her name quickly enough, as well as a dozen simple commands like ‘no’, ‘eat’, ‘wait’, and ‘sleep’. She also loved to perch in his pocket with her head sticking out in order to study the strange world of humans around her, tilting her head this way and that as if struggling to comprehend what lay before her eyes. She even knew how to communicate in a primitive sort of way, leading him out of the city and away from civilization before showing him how she loved to play, by soaring high into the clouds then letting gravity bring her back down to earth in a rush of pure, unadulterated glee, which he experienced first-hand as he played alongside her and spent many a day chasing her about through the clouds, or being chased in a joyous game of tag.

Though he didn’t realize it at the time, it soon became clear that the little hare had chosen him as her protector, for one fateful night more than a decade after they first met, she brought him back to where they first met and insisted they stay there for the night, stomping her feet every time he tried to leave and refusing to let him catch her. Figuring he’d humour the sweet hare, he found a comfortable spot in the treetop and laid down to rest, while the little hare nestled up under his chin and snuggled in for the night. A few hours later, Taduk’s beauty sleep was rudely interrupted by a monumental convergence of Heavenly Energy, one unlike anything he’d ever felt before, and he opened his eyes to see the darling little hare awash in the power of Creation and Destruction both as it took the first step towards True Divinity.

In that one, singular moment, Taduk learned more about Divinity and controlling the Energy of the Heavens than he’d learned in all his years of studies combined, for the secrets of the universe were laid bare before him. Even now, he still could not find the words to describe it, except to say that it was a form of Balance far beyond his meagre comprehension, but even the tiny morsel he understood was enough to catapult him along his personal Path to stand shoulder to shoulder with Hua Lie and the Old Wolf in terms of usable strength. This was significant, because a Divinity without usable strength might as well be a fish upon the chopping block, for the Treaty would not protect them if they lacked the strength to protect themselves, and bearing witness to this Cloud Chaser Hare’s ascension provided Taduk with usable strength aplenty.

Then, reality shifted and in the blink of an eye, the little hare was no more and a toddler sat in her place, a brown-eyed, honey-skinned child who looked to be no older than two, with a full head of sable hair and two floppy little hare ears dropping down from her crown. Those large, limpid eyes filled with tears as she tried to make sense of the strange and unfamiliar world around her, but even as she took her first breath to let loose a terrified wail, she caught Taduk’s gaze and suddenly all was right in the world. The tears spilled out, but her chubby cheeks stretched into a smile of pure love and joy as she reached out towards him with a laugh, and there was no force in the world strong enough to keep him away.

From that day forward, Taduk was a father in every sense of the word, for though she was not the blood of his blood, Lin-Lin was his daughter in every way that mattered. The world would not see it that way however, for the temptation of a breeding pair of Divinities was too strong for most to resist. An army of Divinities to raise and mould as you wish, even the Emperor himself would be tempted by something such as this, but Taduk had only just met his darling daughter and would sooner tear the world asunder than let her come to harm. Knowing their future might well be one filled with bloodshed and calamity, he made a vow then and there to never harm another living creature again unless it was to protect his precious Mei Lin, for he knew that there would be no turning back once he was forced to make a move, so better to avoid bloodshed as much as he could while avoiding was still an option.

Now, almost twenty years later, she wasn’t just his darling daughter anymore, but Rainy boy’s wifey first and foremost, a truth which both pained Taduk deeply and warmed him down to his bones. They were perfect for one another, one too serious and the other too carefree, a good Balance between the two, and the boy would need her help to get safely away from Meng Sha. Yan’s help too, because only with their Blessings bolstering his movement would Rainy boy have the speed necessary to escape this calamity alive. A difficult thing to do, leaving his precious daughter’s safety to another man, but aside from Rainy boy, there wasn’t another person Taduk would even think about trusting with his sweet Lin-Lin’s life.

There were no words exchanged between them, but he reassured his sweet daughter with a smile before Cloud-Stepping away to the boat, where he muttered an apology before hefting Luo-Luo under one arm like a sack of rice. Not the most comfortable or dignified means of conveyance, but it couldn’t be helped, as she was too tall to be easily held in one arm and would need the extra support once she inevitably panicked. Before the girl could even let out a cry however, he brought her away from the ship to Li-Li’s side, for Hua Lie had already gathered Mi-Mi and the pets, which meant Taduk only had to collect Li-Li before they left. Thankfully, they still had time to spare before things got too too dangerous, so he stopped to briefly pat the precocious half-cat on the head and make sure everything was alright. “Hello Li-Li,” he chimed, adjusting Luo-Luo on his hip and ignoring her screams and struggles while still keeping an eye on the transforming monk for fear of missing even the most minor of details. “I’ve come to bring you away before the big bad Demonic Divinity kills us all. If this discomforts you even the slightest, then I can bring you over to Hua Lie instead, yes?”

Hopefully, Li-Li would have no objection to being carried by him, because sweet Mi-Mi had grown into a beautiful but ponderous young woman, one he would rather not have to carry while Cloud-Stepping away. Not because he couldn’t, since he could carry ten Mi-Mi’s away to safety if he really had to, but Hua Lie was strong enough to carry a hundred while barely even noticing the extra weight, so why not pass the burden over to that hard-headed fool of a rabbit?

Despite all of Akanai’s silly arguments about treating Li-Li like a kitten, the girl didn’t mind having her head patted and even leaned into it, so starved of affection yet terrified to seek it out. Alas, Taduk didn’t have time to indulge her or even listen to her answer, for matters with the Demonic Divinity became even more interesting, and he lost himself in thought.

Balance and Imbalance. Creation and Destruction. Two sides of the same coin. This was something he’d long since determined to be true, and the driving force behind his desire to learn how to Heal. As an Ancestral Beast, he was functionally unable to wield the Energy of the Heavens with more than a bare modicum of control, limiting him to less than a single percent of his total capabilities and a restriction which frustrated him to no end. It was like having all the books you could ever want except they were all written in some indecipherable language, while also inlaid with Runes that might well explode when you tried to open them to boot. Thus, in order to exert more control over the Destructive aspect of Heavenly Energy, Taduk sought to uncover the mysteries of Creation, mostly because studying the Destructive aspect would have seen him hunted down by every Divinity in the world for violating the Treaty.

Yet another bothersome constraint, the Treaty, prohibiting him from exploring the full depth and breadth of the Dao, but even he had to admit it was a necessary one. One mistake while carving a Runic Inscription resulted in an explosion strong enough to shatter stone, the result of only a smidgen of Heavenly Energy running amuck, so he could hardly even imagine the aftermath of a Divinity faffing matters up while trying to harness Heavenly Energy with their Will alone. Then again, he hardly had to imagine it; he could just look beyond the borders of the Empire to see the total destruction their predecessors had wrought.

That being said, he would still have loved to explore both aspects of the Dao, but until now, he’d been restricted only to one. Probably a good thing in more than one way, as he might never have come so far if not for the Treaty forcing him to focus on the most advanced form of Heavenly Energy use that one could safely utilize. Healing was a fascinating subject, because the human body was a complex and convoluted machine that belied understanding, so intricate and interconnected that even an entire human lifetime wasn’t enough to unravel all its mysteries. Suffice it to say that Healing was the subject that’d captured Taduk’s interest for the longest, and he was still learning more and more about it with each passing day. That being said, he was also one of the foremost authorities on the subject, meaning that if he were to declare himself the second most knowledgeable Healer in the world, no one would dare claim themselves as the first, including the egotistical upstart Zhen Shi who fancied himself as some grand visionary. Taduk had read the man’s journals which Rainy boy kept tucked away in his chest, and it was clear the man was brilliant, but also deeply disturbed and easily distracted, overlooking important details and critical discoveries that didn’t fit his line of thinking in order to pursue studies he found more interesting or agreeable instead.

Zhen Shi was a genius visionary, this much could not be argued, but a failure as a scholar, one obsessed with finding facts to fit his predetermined conclusions and satisfying his sadistic urges rather than following the facts to the immutable truth.

As for Taduk, he felt no shame in admitting his wrongs, because life would be boring if he already had all the answers. As such, he was fascinated to see the monk Vyakhya transform into a Demon and compare and contrast it to Rain and Lin-Lin’s ascensions, even if it did away with facts and preconceived notions he once believed to be true. Or maybe Taduk found it fascinating because it was so different, for this was a glimpse at the other side of the coin which had long since been forbidden, and it gave him an entirely new perspective of the Dao to consider and might well hold the answer to the issue that plagued him and all others like him. What was the next step after Divinity? Whether it be an Ancestral Beast or Human Divinity, it was clear that their Path had yet to reach the true Peak. Lin-Lin had been so close, while Taduk didn’t know what to make of Rain’s progress, but where were they supposed to go from here? A lack of control meant they couldn’t study the uses of Heavenly Energy as they pleased, not without risking catastrophic consequences. This was doubly so considering how many humans ascended to Divinity by way of the Martial Path, so all they could really do was twiddle their thumbs and maybe practice in secret far away from prying eyes and potential collateral damage.

Meaning this Demonic transformation was a calamity and opportunity both, one Taduk would be a fool to dismiss out of hand.

At first glance, it was easy enough to see that Vyakhya was a false Divinity, a contentious term one could arguably use to describe most of the human Divinities Taduk had met. Degrading though it might seem, there was really no better term for it, because Vyakhya had not arrived at his current level solely through personal Insight and achievement, but through external aid and support. This wasn’t to say his method was inferior, because a Divinity was still a Divinity, regardless of the process used to become one, but a false Divinity was deemed false because their awareness and comprehension of the Dao was sorely lacking in comparison. It was a difficult matter to quantify, but it showed in the results, for though Vyakhya had clearly Shattered the Void, his success was superficial at best.

To Shatter the Void meant to bring down the barrier between the physical and what Rainy boy called the metaphysical, which was as good a name for it as any. Whether you called it the Void, the Heavens, the Empyrean plane, Primordial Elements, or what have you, it was all semantics. What mattered was that it was there, and mortals were separated from it by a barrier, but in order to ascend to Divinity, one must first bring down that barrier in order to have unfettered access to the Energy of the Heavens. Therein lay the rub however, for if one were to wholly Shatter the Void and remove all barriers between themselves and the Heavens, then one would have to bear its full weight.

And having experienced the oppressiveness of the Heavens firsthand, Taduk knew that even he, a proud Divinity and Ancestral Cloud Chaser Hare, had no hopes of surviving such an attempt.

Not that he could describe the experience with any words, for he’d been but a mere beast at the time, an adorable, long-eared, satin-furred king of the skies much like Lin-Lin when he first met her. While he had no memories of his ascension or his life before it, he still had an impression of how formidable the Heavens truly were, and from this, he’d long since concluded that he, and every other Divinity true or false, had yet to wholly Shatter the Void. This wasn’t to say that they’d failed in the attempt, because they’d all clearly found some success, but after seeing Lin-Lin’s ascension, Taduk believed that each and every one of those Spiritual Beasts had abandoned the attempt to wholly Shatter the Void out of continued self-interest. Those Spiritual Beasts attempted to overcome mortality and ascend to the Heavens, but once they touched upon the secrets of Creation and Destruction both, they discovered that moving forward could only end in failure or death. And so, having discovered they were still lacking in some way, they abandoned their efforts and reincarnated into human form instead, a reincarnation they themselves controlled and directed in order to set themselves up for future success.

Meaning that, in a way, becoming an Ancestral Beast was but the first step on a new Path that went beyond Divinity, a most awe-inspiring perspective to take in.

Of course, all this was merely Taduk’s own personal theory on the matter, and he might well be wrong, but he had yet to discover anything to disprove his ideas, so it was the best information he had to work with. Regardless if you were a true or false Divinity, the cold hard truth of the matter was that Ancestral Beasts and Human Divinities alike all had yet to wholly Shatter the Void, because if they had, they would have been crushed under the weight of the Heavens. Or swept away, or consumed, or broken down and repurposed by the cycle of reincarnation, the actual outcome was still a matter of debate, but suffice it to say that Taduk was certain no Ancestral Beast or Human Divinity in existence had wholly Shattered the Void, else they would not exist. Thus, the greatest distinction lay in how much of the Void each Divinity had Shattered, which again, was difficult to quantify, but without anything better to work with, Taduk assumed that the more powerful Divinities had Shattered more of the Void, and thus were closer to ultimate success.

It made sense after all, if one assumed the ultimate goal was to have unfettered access to Heavenly Energy, meaning less of a barrier equated to more access. Some Divinities might have Shattered themselves the equivalent of an open window, meaning the Energy of the Heavens was less responsive to them than to a Divinity who’d Shattered themselves a door or what have you. The greater the remaining barrier, the weaker the Divinity, but such things were not set in stone. With time and comprehension, one could whittle away at what remained of the barrier and turn a window into a door or whatnot, and perhaps even one day wholly Shatter the Void once they understood what they themselves were lacking and made up for it in some way. This was the goal most Divinities worked towards, but Taduk never did like to sit still and meditate, so instead of looking inwards for answers, he looked outwards at the world instead.

All roads lead to the Dao after all, and even if Taduk’s methodology was flawed, he had plenty of time to improve upon it. Though old for a Demi-Human, he was young for a Divinity after all, so why not take the path less travelled? It only seemed right, and Taduk was always one to trust his own instincts.

And those instincts told him that in the grand scale of Divinities, Vyakhya sat close to the bottom, if not at the very bottom itself. Not only was his comprehension of the Dao sorely lacking, his presence was only marginally more significant than a powerful Martial Warrior like Shen ZhenWu, or that Seneschal he kept on hand, though still many times more substantial than someone like that hateful Hideo, who still lived, or the likes of Akanai and Baatar. In more practical terms, this meant that Vyakhya’s connection to the metaphysical was tenuous at best, meaning he would have to work at it in order to summon enough Heavenly Energy to break the Treaty, a willful act rather than an inadvertent one. A failing of most Human Divinities, which was both a blessing and a curse, the former because it gave them more free-reign to act, and the latter because it meant they were too far removed from the Energy of the Heavens to wholly appreciate it in all its glory and majesty.

Now, his instincts were screaming at Taduk to inform him that Vyakhya’s flaws were being fixed and fortified at an unbelievable pace, likely by the maleficent spiritual entities Rainy boy called Spectres. Though visually, this appeared like every other Demonic birth Taduk had ever seen, metaphysically it was a storm unlike any other. The currents of Heavenly Energy roiled and raged as Primal forces overrode the laws of Creation and Destruction both, twisting reality and rewriting causality in order to accommodate its vast and domineering aberrant presence. What’s more, it was unlike any other ascension in that there was no sense of awe or admiration for the Heavens, only a cold and foreboding gloom and doom that twisted his stomach into knots. Unnatural was the only way to describe it, an affront to nature and life itself, but even more pronounced here than with any other Demonic birth because these changes went beyond the mere physical, and not in any way familiar to Taduk. When Spiritual Beasts Shattered the Void, they underwent a process to entwine the physical with the metaphysical, but it was always in that one direction. The essence of their existence was anchored in the physical world with ties to the metaphysical one, yet the Demon here was going about it in the opposite way. This was a metaphysical entity forcing its way into the physical realm, which would not be so surprising if not for its incredibly massive metaphysical presence.

And if metaphysical presence was any indication of strength, then this Demonic Divinity was several times stronger than every Divinity currently in Meng Sha combined, including Rainy boy whose connection was so substantial it was a miracle he had yet to slip up and cause widespread destruction given how much anger and emotion he’d already shown. This Demon was by far the strongest entity Taduk had ever come across, for if Martial Warriors were blades of grass, Taduk was a towering tree and Rainy boy a seven-story pagoda, which while not as tall, was more substantial, while the Demonic Divinity was a mountain at the very least, but only because he lacked the ability to take its full measure.

There was still so much to study, but Taduk knew his limits well enough and would take no chances with his darling Lin-Lin’s safety. All of this took place in the blink of an eye, and there might well be several seconds more to go before the Demonic Divinity was fully formed in reality, so it was high time he put Meng Sha behind him. Going back through his memories to find Li-Li’s reply, he ascertained that she’d indicated she was willing to allow him to carry her, so he hugged her close and Cloud Stepped back over to the others and said, “Run fast as you can, Rain my boy. There’s nothing we can do here.”

Bounding over a kilometre away in a single step, he stopped when he realized Rainy boy had yet to move, and in his panic, Taduk almost cursed the boy for his stubbornness. Returning back to Meng Sha with his wards in hand, he prodded the silly blockhead with his toe and said, “Come come, time we were gone and I can’t carry everyone away on my own.” That was the best way to convince him to move, to ask him for help rather than tell him what to do, but this tried-and-true tactic failed to provoke a response, so Taduk moved onto his next gambit, which was logic and reasoning. “You might think you can Devour the Demon, but this one is a Divinity-level existence. Even if you can defeat it, it’s death throes alone will be enough to kill everyone here, so it’s time we were away, yes?”

Just as Taduk was about to try something else, Rainy boy came out of his fugue. “Hm?” he began, so distracted from studying the Demonic birth that Taduk’s words had only just reached him.  “Oh, don’t worry Taddy,” he continued, which was the first time he’d ever used this curious mix of ‘Taduk’ and ‘Daddy’, one which was rather endearing. “It won’t attack. He won’t let it, because he wants to study it himself.”

He being Zhen Shi, Taduk presumed, since Vyakhya was hardly in any state to study anything now that he’d given into anger and despair. Say what you will about it, but Rainy boy had a knack for driving his foes to Demonification, though it would be better if he learned to exercise this talent with more restraint. Then again, Taduk rather liked seeing him act so unbridled and unrestrained, because for better or for worse, this was the man Falling Rain was, and the man Taduk loved like a son.

He still remembered the day they brought the little foundling to him, so broken and battered he could hardly understand why anyone would treat another living being this way. Kill if you must, but what purpose did torture and torment serve? The poor boy had been a little twig of a thing, so thin he was more bone than flesh, and covered in so many bruises and cuts it’d been easier to categorize the areas which didn’t need Healing. Most incredibly of all was the fact that he still refused to let his guard down, despite being battered, broken, and near death, sitting there wrapped in a blanket while shivering with fatigue and fright yet still vigilant against any and all threats.

But when he looked upon Taduk, his amber eyes lit up for all of a second and his cracked, bleeding lips stretched into a smile, so full of joy and amazement at the sight of two magnificent, velvety, Cloud Chaser Hare ears, and so similar to Lin-Lin’s first smile.

To think someone in his state could still smile in spite of everything he’d experienced, Taduk was amazed by the child’s strength of will. He knew then that Rainy boy would go far in life, and time proved him right. Oh how refreshing it’d been to see him talk down to a Divinity while wholly aware of Vyakhya’s status, to say nothing of how magnificently he dispatched of his admittedly overconfident and unprepared foe, but that unbridled, domineering arrogance which cared nothing for rank or status was part and parcel of Falling Rain. It wasn’t that he was rude, not exactly. He could be polite when he wanted to, and usually was, but he was also not a man to suffer disrespect lightly. He treated others the way they treated him, and in the eyes of the noble elite, this was arrogance beyond his station. In recent years, he’d grown more subdued and reserved as a result of the trials and tribulations he’d faced, believing that his attitude had brought trouble down upon himself, but while this was true, he wasn’t being fair to himself by trying to change who he fundamentally was just because people in power didn’t like how he refused to grovel at their feet.

Today marked the return of that unconstrained boy however, the same one who had the courage to face Akanai every day without complaint and beat up a noble in public for being overbearing and tyrannical. Falling Rain was a man who dared demand kowtows from a Brigadier and extort his peers for gold, someone who mocked his rivals and drove them mad while simultaneously feigning humility to lessen their achievements. Then there was the matter of how bold and brazen he could be, defying a Purge and staining his own hands in blood just to spare strangers another second of suffering, or charging headlong at a Demon with nothing but a mundane spear in hand at the tender age of sixteen. He loved, he laughed, he fought, he cried, and throughout it all, he was never ashamed of what he did, only indignant that his way was not the way things were. This was a strength few truly understood, the strength to stand apart, for at the end of the day, humans were social creatures who lived in packs, yet Rainy boy was more than happy to stand against the tide because he believed his way was right.

A quality he kept all these years and would soon help him change the world, assuming he survived this calamity today.

Against his insistent instincts and better judgement, Taduk directed Li-Li, Luo-Luo, and Yan to go stand with Hua Lie while he took his place with Lin-Lin behind Rainy boy. Since he seemed confident that it was safe enough to stay, Taduk would trust him, or in the worst-case scenario, give his life buying time for Hua Lie to get everyone out safely. At least then Lin-Lin would be safe, or at least safer without the temptation of two Ancestral Cloud Chaser Hares around. Besides, despite all his talents and accomplishments, Rainy boy was rarely this assertive when other lives were at stake, so surely he knew something everyone else didn’t. Standing there with his Spiritual Rifle resting on his shoulder, he was the very picture of calm and undaunted while watching the Demonic Divinity take form. With the actual process over and done with, Taduk had no interest in watching the grotesque metamorphosis and hummed a cheery little tune instead while covering sweet Lin-Lin’s eyes to spare her the sight. It didn’t sound pleasant at all, with all the bones cracking, flesh squelching, tendons snapping and more, but at least it was mercifully short.

When the Demonic Divinity let loose an inhuman screech, Taduk finally turned to study it and found a humanoid aberration towering over them with spade in hand in what he assumed was a debased image of Vyakhya in his younger years. Clad in flowing robes of bloody entrails, the monk-like Demon held a string of blackened skulls in one hand, a grotesque mockery of the wooden beads that Mahakala held during Rainy boy’s banquet, and a weapon similar to the spade Vyakhya held in life, only with a massive bladed head that would look comically oversized if it wasn’t clearly a weapon of death and destruction. Howling in defiance to the Heavens above, the Demonic Divinity lowered its eyes to gaze upon Rainy boy down by its feet, and only then did Taduk see its empty eyes and vacant expression fixed in a ghoulish, fanged smile, one that almost seemed kind and merciful if you didn’t look closely enough.

Not to Taduk though, for he knew that was not a smile of joy or compassion, but one of a predator looking down at its prey.

“Ha. Ha. Ha,” the Demonic Divinity intoned, neither features nor lips moving as it spoke with Zhen Shi’s booming voice. “So it would –”

A dull, hollow thunk echoed all across Meng Sha as Rainy boy’s bullet of Chi smashed harmlessly into the Demonic Divinity’s Domain defenses. The impact wasn’t enough to shift the aberration, but clearly it felt something as the empty sockets of its eyes glowed with naked black hatred and barely restrained violence. Looking at his Spiritual Rifle in mock surprise, Rainy boy exclaimed, “Oh gods, I’m sorry. Finger slipped.” Taduk might almost have been convinced had he not felt the stirring of Heavenly Energy gathering in the rifle once more as Rainy boy continued, “I really need to see about putting a safety on this thing, but I swear it’s never fired early like this before.” Even as he said this, he pulled the trigger and fired a second shot, this one powerful enough to rock the Demonic Divinity back on its heels with an impact that sent air and sand flying in all directions. “Oh, geez, I can’t believe I did it again, but in my defense, it’s been so long since I handled my rod, so you understand, right?” Even now, Rainy boy was able to make jokes, but then he threw away all pretense and said, “Ah fuck it. SUP-PRES-SING FIREEEEEEEE!”

Bullet after bullet hammered home into the Demonic Divinity, but without taking the time to gather his power, they were far too weak to move it, much less cause it any harm. After a good ten seconds of non-stop firing, Rainy boy sighed and shook his head. “Alright then. Clearly this isn’t working, so I guess I’ll let you go on with your monologue then.”

In spite of the gravity of the situation, Taduk found it difficult not to laugh at the boy’s pluck and courage, and many a soldier in Meng Sha uttered a nervous chuckle, but Zhen Shi was not amused. “Try as many times as you care to, little worm,” he hissed, and Rainy boy took that as an invitation to begin gathering power into his rifle once more, a turn of events even Zhen Shi hadn’t expected. Ignoring it for now, the crazed torturer brought the Demonic Divinity’s ghoulish face down to loom mere centimetres from Rainy boy’s, but he matched its vacant stare with a smirk. “Your futile efforts will change nothing. This Transcendent being is beyond your pitiful comprehension, one which has surpassed all others.”

“A weapon to surpass Metal Gear,” the boy quipped, though Taduk had no earthly idea what he was saying.

Neither did Zhen Shi, but he paid it no mind and continued, “Little Worm, this Sovereign offers his thanks for providing him with so potent a puppet. You have succeeded where so many others have failed and helped create a being which surpassess Divinity, one unbound by the restrictions of feeble human Will and emotion.”

“You’re welcome,” Rainy boy replied, sounding wholly unimpressed and unintimidated. “Honestly? Wasn’t even hard. Anyone who spent centuries trying and failing should probably take a good long look in the mirror and ask themselves why they’re so fucking useless.”

A snicker slipped past Taduk’s lips, but only because sweet Lin-Lin buried her face in his robes to muffle her laugh and squeezed his stomach too tight. Playing it off as a cough, he mumbled something about being thirsty and pretended to look for his waterskin while gesturing for Zhen Shi to continue, because so long as he was talking, he wasn’t killing, which meant Meng Sha could still be saved.

“Mock all you want, little worm,” he hissed, his tone concealing a mountain of barely restrained anger. “It will not change your fate. Know that this Sovereign now holds the unlimited power of the Heavens in the palm of his hands, and could kill everyone you hold dear with little more than a thought.”

“For someone so old and powerful, you sure are a terrible liar.” Still gathering power into his rifle, Rainy boy scoffed at Zhen Shi’s declaration. “If you could kill us all, you would, and we wouldn’t be having this conversation. It’s probably not easy controlling a Demonic Divinity, is it? Yea, didn’t think so.” Rainy boy sounded mighty pleased, but somehow, Taduk wasn’t sure it was a good thing that the Demonic Divinity was not so easily controlled, since it would wreak havoc upon the Empire should it be set loose. “Whatever. My time and patience are limited, so say your piece and be done with it. Some of us have things to do and places to be.”

For long seconds, Zhen Shi said nothing, but the Demonic Divinity drew a long, slow breath into its lungs before deliberately stretching out its exhalation. All for effect, since it hardly needed to breathe, or perhaps it was being affected by Zhen Shi’s efforts to rein in his anger, Taduk wasn’t sure which. Either way, there was a long silence before he spoke again, and when he did, his tone was tense and terse. “This Sovereign will make this offer but once. Order your forces to withdraw from the West and surrender yourself to my care. This Sovereign will then leave the outer provinces untouched for a period of ten years, and swear to never use this Transcendent Divinity in battle so long as the Treaty is upheld.” Holding out a hand to forestall Rainy boy’s instant retort, Zhen Shi added, “Think before you answer, little worm. Ask your honoured teacher to gauge this Transcendent’s strength, for it is no empty boast to say it is utterly unmatched.”

“I can sense how strong it is myself,” Rainy boy replied, faking a reluctant sigh. “Very powerful. Unimaginably so.”

The boy paused, yet still continued gathering power into his rifle, so much so that even Zhen Shi could no longer stand idle. “And?” he demanded, drawing the Demonic Divinity back to ready its defense. “What say you, little worm?”

“What say I?” Even the surrounding soldiers could see what Rainy boy’s answer would be, and their grim acceptance spoke volumes to their courage. “I say, ‘Parry this, you filthy casual.’”

The explosion of power set the earth to shaking as Rainy boy unleashed another Chi bullet, one which smashed into the Demonic Divinity’s defenses and drove it back a full three metres before finally fading out of existence. The resulting shockwave knocked many a soldier off their feet and even made Taduk reel back a bit as he felt the blowback wash over his Domain and shower him in sand and dust. None of it actually landed on his robes, thank the Heavens, for sand was notoriously difficult to get out of clothes, and Taduk would rather not spend his last few moments alive being tormented by sandy grit pouring into every crevice of his skin.

Though his efforts ended in failure, it was good to see Rainy boy back in high spirits, spewing nonsense and giving no face as he was wont to do. A shame they would have to part here, but Taduk would sooner die a thousand times than let his sweet Lin-Lin and Rainy boy come to harm. “Go,” he said, moving to stand in front of them both. “I will hold the Demon here.”

“No need.” Stepping in front of him with an almost indifferent wave of his hand, Rainy boy approached the Demonic Divinity with casual disregard for his safety and the safety of everyone around him. “Don’t worry Taddy. I can tell he doesn’t really want to fight us here, because then he’ll lose his new toy. Isn’t that right, you decrepit, eight-hundred-year-old fuck? You’re so full of anger and regret, I can taste it on your fetid breath. Enough of your games now. Fight or fuck off, but know that I will be coming for you soon enough.”

“Why must you force this Sovereign’s hand?”

“Typical abuser’s mentality. ‘Why are you making me hurt you?’ Get the fuck out of here with that shit.” Sneering in outright contempt, Rainy boy advanced upon the Demonic Divinity and jabbed it with a finger, though he could only reach its belly given the vast disparity in height. “You think your fancy new puppet will hold all the answers you seek, but I already know you’ll fuck it up, just like you fucked everything else up. Know how I know? Because you’re worthless, and you know it. You’ve spent so much time studying and getting all your ducks in a row, but I barely even knew what I was doing and still ruined all your best laid plans. The only difference now is that I finally figured some things out, so enjoy your reprieve while it still lasts, because I’ll be coming for your head soon enough.”

“Good, good.” The naked anger set Taduk’s hairs to standing as Zhen Shi growled using the Demonic Divinity’s throat, a low, rumbling vibration reminiscent of a steel plate scraping against jagged stones. “You think yourself clever, little worm, that you hold all the answers and know how the future unfolds, but you are mistaken in more ways than one, and this Sovereign will magnanimously explain.” Leaning over once more so that the Demonic Divinity’s face was eye to eye with Rainy boy, Zhen Shi continued, “You see, this Sovereign already has the answers he needs, and has no need to study this Transcendent. Alas, little worm was correct in assuming it is also not easy to control, and this Sovereign has wasted too much time on discourse and is wholly spent, so he must now abandon his efforts to bring it away.” The Demonic Divinity’s smile seemed to stretch without shifting even a single millimetre, as Zhen Shi’s voice oozed with smug satisfaction. “Do not say this Sovereign did not try warn you, little worm, but now you must reap that which you have sown.”

Silence hung like funerary drapes over all of Meng Sha as Zhen Shi withdrew from the Demonic Divinity, and as the aberration’s oppressive Aura burst out to shower them all in unmitigated hatred, Taduk heard Rainy boy muttering, “Ah. Fuck.”

Chapter Meme 1

Chapter Meme 2

Chapter Meme 3

Chapter Meme 4