Risk It All: Payout (ch. 42) (Patreon)

I thought we'd have a pretty short interview, answer a few questions, then we'd go out for the first public outing of the Titans. Exciting, but I was more excited for spending the millions of Prestige and going through all of the new options I had available. Instead, I was facing down a bunch of zombie ninja cultivators and some ancient guy with a name I'm honestly shocked he could introduce himself as with a straight face. The Sovereign of Death? I'm pretty sure I called myself similar things when I was twelve -- a time when I genuinely thought that being called the 'Bloody Demon' or something was the pinnacle of coolness.

All the same, I was ready. I slipped into Moon Breathing, the air stirring as I filled my lungs while strength flowed through my body from a bonfire that settled deep in my stomach, my Qi glowing. The night sky gathered along the edge of my sword, twinkling stars, and spiraling moons before I flashed stepped directly for Ming-Yue, the abyss in his sockets watching me the entire way. Slowly, as if he had all the time in the world, he raised a finger up and shifted it to catch my sword.

There was nothing that hinted at the danger. No special effects of any kind. However, deep in my gut, I felt it. A deep and foreboding sense of fear -- my hair stood on end, my blood suddenly became ice. It was the same feeling I had experienced when that guy pulled a gun on my first night out as a hero. A tangible feeling that death was near and with a single misstep, I would meet him.

I shifted with a double jump, abandoning the attack just as my blade struck his finger, and I watched in awe as his finger went right through the blade that had been a gift from Wonder Woman like it wasn't even there. That awe quickly became horror when I felt a sharp pain at my elbow and I watched as the bottom half of my arm flew away alongside my broken sword. Blood spurted from the wound, so stunned that I slammed into the ground, sliding through a dozen chairs before I slammed against the wall.

God fucking damn it. "I broke another sword," I gasped out, feeling an inch where Regeneration was trying to cap the injury off. "And why is it always my sword arm?" I gasped, forcing myself to a knee as blood gushed out of the stump, my head going light.

"My apologies," Ming-Yue spoke, turning around to face me as the undead cultivators launched themselves at the Titans. "I intended for a quick and painless death, but I underestimated you. That was a mistake on my part. If you would stay still, I'll ensure that you don't suffer unduly." Ming-Yue requested, gently raising a finger again and I saw nothing -- no hint of what took my arm with my sword. With the blade, the two had made contact, but he was projecting some kind of invisible blade that I couldn't see from his finger.

I flashed stepped to the side, an invisible slash effortlessly cutting through folded chairs and the wall. I flash stepped again, and again, each time dodging a slash until I landed next to my broken sword and the bottom half of my arm. "Could you stop making it sound like you're trying to do me a favor by murdering me?" I asked, swear building upon my brow as I opened my skull list. It wasn't the skill I thought I would be maxing out first, but I upgraded Regeneration.

Regeneration

T10R5

Peerless regeneration. So long as a single cell remains of your body, you can regrow from it.

That was kind of wild, I thought as steam erupted from my stump. More than just being capped off, I saw bone, muscle, and flesh emerging from the stump until a few seconds later, I had an unblemished arm to grab my broken sword from my severed hand.

"I see you have mastered the Golden Butterfly Metamorphosis technique," Ming-Yue remarked, a hand stroking his beard thoughtfully as I took a second to catch my breath. "And I'll have you know being killed by me was considered the highest honor I could bestow upon another. Men and women came across the world for the sole purpose of dying at my hands."

"Yeah, well, the gift isn't wanted," I told him, keeping watch out of the corner of my eyes. The ninja garbed cultivators were strong too, I realized with a sinking pit in my stomach. I watched as Conner was thrown into a wall, collapsing to the ground as he coughed heavily while Kaldur was getting pushed back with almost casual ease. No techniques of any kind. Just pure martial arts skill and overwhelming power.

"Your concern for your friends is admiral, young Song, but unnecessary. They will not suffer any lasting harm," Ming-Yue reassured me.

I reinforced what was left of the longsword as I rose to my feet. Reading the expression of a mummified corpse was difficult, but from the sound of it, he meant it. The other cultivators were here solely to tie down the rest of my team -- one for each of them -- so he could kill me.

'Guys, get out of here,' I told them through the mental link.

'No way-' Zatanna started to protest but I interjected as I made another purchase.

'He sent people after everyone in my family. Everyone,' I told them. My extended family? I couldn't care less even if I tried. But my Mom and Dad? 'I can hold out even if I can't win. My Mom and Dad can't.'

I could feel the reluctance coming from some of them. Megan flung the conference table at a cultivator, who simply smashed it to pieces with a palm strike. In that moment, she picked the others up, some with more protest than others, and flew towards the door with them. 'We'll protect your family, Ren,' Megan told me, her voice laced with worry but there was faith. I was oddly touched by it.

I told her I would be fine and she believed me.

"Fascinating. Telepathy is considered a rather advanced skill, yet for an alien it's considered a natural ability," Ming-Yue remarked, watching as the Titans left the conference room and I saw that the zombies didn't try to follow. "The world is certainly an interesting place. I thought I saw it all in my lifetime. If only I had lived for another thousand years," Ming-Yue continued with a chuckle.

I let him talk. It gave me an opportunity.

Black Heaven and Earth Technique

T10R4

The ultimate Qi circulation technique that has been perfected. The user's strength is increased tenfold while using this technique and the risk of madness is only present when pushed beyond that point.

Strength: 2000 => 3000

Perception: 1750 => 2750

Endurance: 2500 => 3500

Charisma: 1000

Intelligence: 1000 => 2000

Agility: 1500 => 2500

Luck: 1000

I didn’t have time to individually pick out stats, so I gave my physical ones a thousand-point boost simply because I knew that I couldn't afford to blackout from jacking them all the way up to ten thousand like I wanted to. My grip on my broken sword tightened until my knuckles were bloodless, my body wracked with pain as changes were made -- my vision got sharper until it felt like I was looking at everything through a magnifying glass, every muscle fiber was brimming with incredible strength…

All of which was amplified by the Black Heaven and Earth Technique. If it really increased my power tenfold… then I should have thirty thousand points in strength, right?

My foot dug into the thin laminated floor and the concrete below before I flung myself at Ming-Yue, but it was the zombies that responded. They lunged forward with a foot technique that I didn’t recognize, seemingly materializing from thin air. I shifted midair, double jumping to change my trajectory to dodge a strike from a zombie that thrust down with a sword, one that would have plunged right through the back of my head. Spinning sharply, I connected the top of my foot with the side of the zombie’s head and knocked him away.

Gathering the night sky, I continued the spin and launched a 180 Pound Phoenix at Ming-Yue. The undead cultivator simply stood where he was, watching the blast cross the short distance between us. It washed over him for but a moment, the other four zombies closed in, their blades shining with dark Qi, and closed in on me like a noose.

“Did you just raise from the inner realm to the Earthly realm?” Ming-Yue questioned, the night sky fading around him to reveal that he hadn’t moved an inch, nor was he harmed. A perfect circle was around him, the deep grooves on the floor were proof that he used something to protect himself. A bubble of some kind.

“I-” I began, blocking a blade before flash stepping back a half step before I began to spin like a violent top, trying to overwhelm the zombies with a barrage of attacks. They were strong, I realized, my attacks were either blocked or avoided. I was stronger than I had ever been before. Each clash sent sparks up and the force behind the blows seemed to shake the air in the room, and five random zombies were keeping pace with me. “Don’t have any clue what that even means.”

Ming-Yue seemed vaguely offended as he seemed content to watch me push away the zombies, his hands clasped behind his back. “I don’t understand. What do you mean you have no clue what it means?”

“You might as well have said that-” I started, diverting a blow before slashing out and sending a wave of the night sky at a zombie. “I had raised from the heavenly earthly realm to the spiritual golden realm and became a jade-like beauty.”

“The Spiritual Realm comes- ah. I see. I hate children,” Ming-Yue began, and I was mildly shocked that the nonsense somehow made sense to him, before realizing that I was making fun of the whole thing. “That makes even less sense. How have you achieved this when you don’t even understand the utter basics of cultivation?”

“Because-” I answered, finding myself annoyed. “You’re barking up the wrong tree! I like my family less than you do. The only ones I care about are my mum and dad. Do what you want with the rest of them,” I snarled as the five zombies formed a line while I landed on the stage. My armor was worse for wear -- dozens of nicks and cuts that healed even before the slash was finished marked the armor that couldn’t heal from the damage so easily.

If he hadn’t come after my parents, I don’t think I would have a problem with Ming-Yue. I didn’t even particularly have a problem with him coming after me. Given my uncle, I was getting pretty used to it. But he sent people after my dad and mom. That's not something that I was capable of forgiving.

“I see. Your… extended family taught you nothing then. I thought it odd that I saw nothing of the Heavenly White Tiger Fist in your style,” Ming-Yue remarked, flanked by the zombies as he considered me, the abyss in his gaze drinking me in.

Strength: 3000 => 4000

Perception: 2750 => 3750

Endurance: 3500 => 4500

Charisma: 1000

Intelligence: 2000 => 3000

Agility: 2500 => 3500

Luck: 1000

More pain as my stats were jacked up once again, but it was far more manageable this time. There was a difference between rising double compared to merely a third. While I accepted the pain of the increased stats, I spoke and did the best I could to keep the pain out of my words. “I never bothered to learn. My dad only knew a little, and from what I’ve seen, it’s not that great. I’d rather do my own thing.”

“... Eh?” Ming-Yue uttered, sounding genuinely caught off guard. His head tilted to the side ever so slightly, as if he were processing what he just heard. “You… Ha! Hahahaha!” It seemed to click into place because he threw his head back and laughed loudly and from the gut. The kind of laughter that you couldn’t fake. “The pinnacle of martial arts wasn’t worth learning? Haha!” He seemed to find the idea of it genuinely hilarious.

“In its current state, I suppose it wouldn’t be,” Ming-Yue remarked, his chuckles dying down a bit but his shoulders still shook from mirth. “Oh, how your ancestors would weep if they could see how far the Song family has fallen. From the first among equals of the Heavenly Nine Pillars to falling into depravity so great not even the vilest of the Demon Sects would do what they did.” The chuckles died down and I noticed that he sounded genuinely sad about it. Heartbroken, almost.

I tightened my grip on my broken sword, eying the zombies, “Look, we can still talk this out. Call off the people you sent after my Mom and Dad, and we’re good. I don’t care that you tried to kill me. Just them,” I offered because Ming-Yue wasn’t what I expected. The Demonic Sects, according to the little that I knew, was filled with assholes that were trying to see who was the biggest one by one-upping each other with atrocities. Ming-Yue… I don’t know. He seemed… decent? Ish? As decent as he could be as an undead martial artist that sent zombies after the people that I loved. Maybe it was the fact that he seemed apologetic about it.

Like we were collateral. Which pissed me off in a different way but Ming-Yue didn’t strike me as malicious. For that reason, it felt like I could reason with the guy.

“Once,” Ming-Yue began, “I had a chance to eradicate the Song family and the Heavenly White Tiger Fist. The Heavenly Pillars of the Orthodox sect had been a constant thorn in my side for a thousand years at that point. Yet, I stayed my hand because of one of your ancestors -- Shin Song. He was the best of the Orthodox Sects. One who believed in doing the right thing and using his power for the benefit of others. He swore to me that his family would never fall. That under the Song's guidance, I and my Sect would be… unnecessary.”

That was… weird, I thought, listening to him. I knew a little about what he was talking about. Orthodox Sects were basically Sects that had a code of conduct of sorts. They had rules on how to cultivate. I’m pretty sure that they were still total assholes, but they had lines in the sand. What the Heavenly Pillars were -- I had no idea. But, from the sounds of it, Ming-Yue’s and my family’s relationship was… weird.

Demon Sects were assholes that would slit a baby's throat if it meant gaining power. Orthodox Sects wouldn’t and looked down on those that did. They fought and clashed because they held points of view that were fundamentally unable to coexist. So, why would Shin's, my apparently one decent ancestor, promise that he wouldn’t be a prick be enough to stay Ming-Yue’s hand?

“I believed him. To the extent that I aided him in his ascension to the Divine Realm. Then I slept for a thousand years, awoken by that promise breaking in the cruelest way I could imagine. I am sorry, Ren Song. You do not deserve this fate. Perhaps neither does your father. Yet, I have made it a point to never repeat the mistakes of the past, and sparing your bloodline thousands of years ago was a mistake. The Song family has destroyed the world in their reckless bid for power and undeserved arrogance. And as the leader of the Vengeful Demon Sect, I will see the world avenged.”

With that, the five zombies darted forward, vanishing and reappearing around me with their swords shining with black Qi. With my upped Perception, I could see them move and I was ready for them. Flash-stepping a half step back, I caught the downward strike, diverting it before slamming a fist into the zombie’s ribcage, using a Soul-Crushing Strike that shattered every rib along with his sternum. That zombie slammed into the ceiling while the other four closed in.

I caught movement out of the corner of my eye and I saw it this time. The slash that had taken off my arm. It was almost like a line so fine that you could only see it when you were looking at it from a specific angle. I jerked my head down, narrowly avoiding being beheaded before I returned the slash with a wide sweep of the night sky. The other four fell upon me, their sword clashing against mine in a powerful series of blows.

With my enhanced strength and endurance, my style was radically improved. Each time they clashed against me, my spins became faster and sharper as I stole their momentum. I clashed against them all, at first not quite fast enough to take them all on, but quickly enough I found myself overwhelming the four of them. I delivered a powerful Tekken punch to the side of one’s head, shattering the zombie's skull. Then another was defeated with a Focus Stomp.

Gripping my sword, I slashed out again with the night sky, and with only two of the zombies left, they were cut to pieces this time, even as Ming-Yue watched on.

“Such promise,” Ming-Yue remarked, almost mournfully, not at all bothered by the destruction of his zombies. “Your style is a truly odd amalgamation of techniques, but I have seen enough.” He decided before he moved. I saw the barest hint of a foot technique before I felt something slam into me. I positioned my sword at an angle to catch the blow that I knew was coming, Reinforcing the blade, and I felt the flat of my sword slam into my chest hard enough that my ribs shattered and I went flying.

I slammed through the doors, ripping them off of their hinges before slamming into the wall across the hall. My ribs put themselves back together quickly, saving me from hellish pain that vanished before I could register it. Reacting on instinct, I threw myself forward just in time to avoid another slash that cut the doors in half as I rolled to my feet.

It was insane, I thought, looking down at what was left of my sword. It hadn’t been cut in half, which probably saved me from being cut in half, but it was bent at a ninety degree angle. Tossing it to the side, I was forced to use my previous purchases to buy a ringed chinese broadsword with a quick buy. But, knowing that it wouldn’t stand up to the blows, I went into my Skills and jacked up another skill.

Reinforcement

T10R4

Both objects and the body can be reinforced to the utmost perfected versions of themselves. The higher the base, the greater they can be Reinforced.

Perfect. I felt my Qi flow into the blade, strengthening the simple steel but, more importantly, I felt my own body increase as well. Qi reinforced my muscles, my bones, and every aspect of my body. All the while, Ming-Yue slowly stepped out of the conference room to join me in the hallway. He wasn’t wielding a weapon, yet I could see the qi circling around one hand. Not quite like a blade, but not far off.

My foot dug into the soft concrete before I shot off at Ming-Yue like a bullet, filling the hallway with a clap of thunder as I broke the sound barrier. In an instant, I crossed the distance between us, swinging my sword down, and Ming-Yue blocked it with the side of his hand, the night sky grinded away at his Qi, but the undead cultivator wasn’t pushed back even an inch. Gritting my teeth, I lashed out with a kick, intent on Focus Stomping his head, only to find the attack side stepped and my leg cut off at the knee.

As the bottom half of my leg flew away, I landed in a crouch with my one good one before a new leg sprouted from the bleeding stump. Shifting my grip, I rose up sharply, undaunted by the injuries simply because I knew I could survive them. I launched a barrage of attacks, building momentum as each one clashed against the side of his palm, and stopping dead in their tracks. They weren’t countered. He just stopped the attacks cold, preventing me from leeching any momentum from them.

“You reveal your youth, young man. More power isn't necessarily the answer to a greater opponent,” Ming-Yue coached before I felt something powerful slam into my stomach that sent me flying down the hallway. I landed heavily, rolling uncontrollably for a few seconds and landing with such force that the carpet was ripped up. I slammed my sword into the ground to right myself, a hand going to my gut. I could feel the ruptured organs healing themselves. “You… do not possess a Golden Core?”

I answered by filling the hallway with the night sky and spinning crescent moons that carved deep lines into the hallway and sliced through doors entirely. I knew the layout of the building well enough. Would it be better to fight him out in the open? Or in an enclosed space? We were in a folded space at the moment, and I couldn’t say I wanted to find out what happened when the room in the folded space got destroyed.

“Of all the cultivators I have faced in my long life and my unlife… you perhaps are the most unique,” Ming-Yue stated, proving that he was unharmed as he strode forward, not so much as a scratch to be seen on him. “You haven’t even reached the Foundation stage, yet here you are, throwing around powerful techniques with your slapped-together martial arts. I’m not certain I can even call you a cultivator.”

“I’d prefer it if you didn’t,” I remarked, taking in a slow breath, filling my lungs with air. He was giving me another opportunity. He said that power wasn’t the answer, but I’m not sure I agreed. Maybe if I had time, I could search my skill list for a silver bullet that could take him out, but I didn’t have the time. Instead, I had to make sure I was physically strong enough to survive the fight because Ming-Yue was strong. The kind of strong that was honestly kind of terrifying to witness.

I could wipe the floor with the me of a few minutes ago at the moment. Between my stats and techniques I was several times stronger than I had been when the conference started. And I felt it in my bones -- Ming-Yue wasn’t taking me seriously. He was letting me struggle to see what I could do because he was curious. Right now, that was the only reason why I was still alive.

Strength: 4000 => 6000

Perception: 3750 => 5750

Endurance: 4500 => 6500

Charisma: 1000

Intelligence: 3000 => 5000

Agility: 3500 => 5500

Luck: 1000

The pain was sharper this time, but manageable. “I don’t get it,” I decided, buying myself a moment for the pain to recede. “How you talked about my ancestor. I thought that the Demon Sects were all competing to see who could be the bigger asshole?” I questioned, shifting my stance. The edge of my sword was already sporting nicks and dents.

“Crudely put, but not inaccurate,” Ming-Yue uttered, striding forward as he held out a hand. Out of thin air, a jian sword began to materialize into the palm of his hand. It was pretty weird looking, but I couldn’t throw stones in that regard. The blade was pitch black while the edges and the tip of the blade were a stark white that reminded me of a bone bleached under the sun rather than true white. It was a single-hand sword that he gripped loosely, but the air seemed to scream as it moved. “What you speak of is what the Demon Sects became, rather than what they started as.”

I was reminded suddenly that Ming-Yue was old. Thousands of years old. “Meaning?”

“The Orthodox Sects proclaimed that they stood for stability and by virtue of that, they supported the nobility of the world. It was a symbiotic relationship, I suppose you could say. The Orthodox Sects, which later became the Heavenly Pillars, hunted Spirit Beasts on behalf of the noble caste, fought on their behalf, and protected their positions. In exchange, their worldly wants were satisfied -- they were given fine foods, lavish clothing, property, and special privileges.” Ming-Yue uttered, striding towards me.

“But those with power shall always abuse it. They supported the nobility even as they fell into depravity. A son of a prominent family taking sexual pleasure in flaying the children of a mother before her eyes. A daughter deliberately poisoning the common folk’s farms because she found it amusing to watch them eat grass and bark to fill their bellies. These people are who my Sect vowed to take vengeance against, because the Orthodox Sects allowed them to exist in the name of stability. Better the few to suffer than the many.” There was a snarl in Ming-Yue’s voice.

That was… I stood across from Ming-Yue and started to think that, maybe, he wasn’t that bad? Because, I could see it.

Stability in the back when times was a huge deal, because when it was lost, that's when wars happened. Especially in Ancient China -- both because of the attitude towards those in charge and because when it came to evil shit, Ancient China dialed it up to eleven. No one did atrocities better than the Ancient Chinese. So, I could see the argument for allowing a tyrant to exist simply because killing him would make things worse.

At the same time -- fuck that. Flaying kids alive and making their mom watch? Forcing peasants to eat dirt for shits and giggles?

Yeah. No. I was fully on board with the idea of tearing them down and dealing with the aftermath.

“My Sect was established for the victims of the nobility to get their revenge. We exist as tools to teach those with power to tread lightly,” Ming-Yue continued, a low growl in his voice. “However, that purpose was lost. People looked to our methods and decided that they were a quick and simple path to achieving power, ignorant of the intent behind them.”

I was curious, “What methods?” I asked, taking the chance to increase my stats further.

Strength: 6000 => 10,000

Perception: 5750 => 9750

Endurance: 6500 => 10,500

Charisma: 1000

Intelligence: 5000 => 9000

Agility: 5500 => 9500

Luck: 1000

“The victims first had to climb a mountain. They had to crawl on their knees to the gates of our sect. Their case would be heard, and then they would give their lives in the names of vengeance. Their Qi would be harnessed and bequeathed to the tool of vengeance that accepted the task, empowering them. Unfortunately, as time passed, people only remembered the bathing in their blood part of those stories,” Ming-Yue stated and my lips thinned.

“That's… I don’t like that,” I decided, stating it outright. “Didn’t they lose enough already?” I asked him and the abyss in Ming-Yue’s eyes seemed to soften ever so slightly. As if he was looking at me with an expression of pity.

“Oh, child. You are far too soft-hearted to survive in this world,” He told me before he bared his fangs as Qi began to gather around his sword, much like the night sky gathered around mine. “But, I shall acknowledge you. A Song you might be, but I have deemed you worthy enough to die at my hands. Not as a mercy, but as a worthy opponent.” The Qi began to take shape and what I saw made my stomach clench in fear.

The night sky swelled around my blade as his Qi took shape. It wasn’t an element of any kind but something far worse. I saw people form in the wisps of qi that gathered around the long blade -- their faces emaciated, hollow cheeked, and sunken eyed. Their fingers were bone thin with cracked nails, grasping at the air in want.

Ming-Yue raised his blade, “First Form: Realm of Starvation,” he uttered before he swung down, filling the hallway with the howl of starving people that raced right towards me.

I think I liked him better when he wasn’t taking me seriously.