Mana 5 Chapter 7 (Patreon)

I cursed, surprised that I hadn’t sensed the powerful beast.

But as it approached, its draconic aura washed over me, a pale imitation of my own dragon bloodline.

It radiated power. I could tell it was at the peak of the fifth rank.

The dragon splashed out of the waterfall, landing in the pond and sending a wave of water at both of us. We both used our auras to part the wave of water, keeping it from actually reaching us.

I took in the beast. The dragon had to be even bigger than Quinn, who stretched out over forty meters. But where Quinn radiated power and majesty with her gold scales and horns, this dragon’s power was muddied just like its mottled blue and brown scales. Its back half wasn’t very draconic, instead resembling the slimy scales of an eel.

“You call that a dragon?” I ignored the beast for a moment as I faced Ming Feng, still putting on airs.

“It’s a water dragon.” She said, stupefied by my reaction.

“That’s barely a dragon.” I scoffed, letting loose my own bloodline. And proving just what the pressure of a pure dragon bloodline felt like.

Power bloomed from my blood as a character blazed to life on my forehead and my aura vastly grew in power.

The tyrannical nature of the gold dragon filled me, giving me an idea. I was ready to test the limits of my fifth rank and ability to realize things into the world.

Just as I could create a pair of wings on my back, I decided to try other aspects of a dragon.

Golden scales covered my arms and spread down my chest, becoming armor that hugged me like a second skin. Antlers sprouted from my forehead, and my hands became wreathed in claw like gauntlets.

Ready for the fight, I jumped toward the dragon, thrusting out my palm with my fingers spread. The aura of a dragon wreathed me, and a massive, phantasmal gold dragon appeared over my shoulder.

For a moment, it was as if I had truly become a gold dragon. I was going all out with this attack.

My opponent let out a meek roar, taking the blow on its side as my claws tore straight through its scales. It looked as if it was going to flee.

Ming Feng was already there behind it, a wisp of a phoenix hovering behind her as she too took on the aspects of her bloodline and blazed to life like a phoenix, diving at the retreating dragon.

But its tail flicked out of the water, catching her spear and tossing Ming Feng back into the air. The dragon used the moment to surge out of the water and escape back into the waterfall.

I leapt into the air, slashing down at its tail with all the power I could muster before it could escape. I caught the last ten feet of its tail, severing it, while the rest of the beast disappeared.

Grabbing the tail soft eel-like tail, I threw myself clear of the lake and landed on the shore.

Ming Feng shot back into the sky, coming down into the space beside me. Her hair was askew, but otherwise she looked unharmed.

I noticed that she was doing everything she could to look calm and natural, but her eyes betrayed her. Her pupils shook as she looked at me.

I released my bloodline and the armor I had realized with my cultivation. “Dragon tail? It’s the best part.” I said casually, pretending that those two attacks didn’t just take everything out of me.

“We should go after it.” Ming Feng scowled.

“No, thank you. There’s no sport in chasing scared prey.” I waved my sleeve and knocked down a small tree, cutting the wood into logs and setting them up for a fire. “Do me a favor and light this?”

She finally relaxed, releasing her own bloodline to light the fire.

I couldn’t help but notice that when she had pushed herself, only an incredibly vague form of a phoenix had formed. It was absolutely nothing like my own. It had almost been as if a real dragon had been behind me.

My mother had done something to the bloodlines in the mortal world, but I was shocked at how weak Ming Feng’s own had been.

“Who are you, really?” She demanded as she rolled a ball of fire off her palm that lit the stacked logs into a blaze.

“Issac Hughes. I never took the Jin family name.” I pulled a knife from my spatial ring and started deboning the tail.

My answer didn’t satisfy Ming Feng. “Impossible. There’s no way the Jin family would ever let you out of their sights. Your bloodline is… so pure.” She struggled to say it.

I only nodded along with her. “Well, the Jin family doesn’t know about me. I let you believe I was from the Jin family, but I wasn’t born there. I have never met them.”

Ming Feng’s breathing picked up. “Then you are some hidden bastard of the family?”

Given how she’d reacted to seeing my bloodline, I instantly knew I’d made a mistake. She’d never trust me if I were to keep up the charade.

“Sort of. My bloodline came not from birth, but from an old man. His name was Old Jin, and inside his soul palace was an entire world and the body of an incredibly powerful ancient gold dragon. My bloodline comes from that dragon’s own blood essence.”

Ming Feng was as still as a statue as she stared at me. “So, you have no family association?”

“No, though my mother is from an ancient family, but my father is not. And I was raised in a lower world, as I’ve heard them described.”

Ming Feng relaxed slightly. I was starting to speak in terms she could understand.

“Does your mother know you are in this world?” Ming Feng asked.

“I don’t think she does. But I also wouldn’t put it past her.” I shrugged; my mother’s abilities were beyond my ability to predict.

After a moment, Ming Feng blurted out, “If you promise to help me, I will see that you are able to travel to any of the other cities to see your family.”

The way she stared at me without breathing meant her request was going to be big.

“You’ll need to tell me what I’m agreeing to. Open-ended requests are hard to work with.” Finishing deboning the dragon tail, I skewered large sections of it and propped them over the fire.

“Do you know what a fragment of the broken world is?” She asked, speaking softly.

I nodded, happy that the conversation was going in the way I’d wanted it to. “A piece of that world that is limited in what strength of cultivator it can accept, but rich with opportunity.”

Ming Feng nodded. “Much like yourself, I want to see the essence blood of a powerful beast. There are signs that a legendary phoenix existed on the shard. I hope to find something to empower my own bloodline there.”

Ah. I suddenly understood why she’d stopped her cultivation at the peak of the fifth rank to be able to go into the shard. “I see. And what do I get out of this?”

Ming Feng scowled. “To be transported to one of the other cities. We have an array in the family that is capable of it.”

“That’s nice.” I shrugged. “Going over land would take time, but I’m not in a rush. No, I’m interested in what else would exist in this shard. Would there be powerful beast cores? Maybe even the Phoenix’s own core?”

“Beast cores? My family will happily pay you if that’s what you are after.” She was confused, but that was to be expected. In the immortal world, beast cores were treated similarly to mana crystals. They were meant for cultivation.

But what I wanted was something powerful for my fifth ring. She could probably give me my choice of fifth rank or even a sixth rank mana beast.

The phoenix she spoke of sounded far stronger than a fifth or sixth rank beast. I wondered if it could be on par with the strength of Old Jin. I’d be more than happy to help fight for that.

“No. I’m looking for a single beast core of something powerful. The stronger the better.” I explained.

Her fine eyebrows pinched in confusion before they let up. “Fine. But if its core still exists, it might not even have much mana in it. You understand that?”

“I’ll take my chances.” I held out my hand.

She stared at it for a moment before shaking it awkwardly. “It’ll be close enough to our world in a month. Most of the cities will bring their best to come and fight for treasure on the shard. Will there be any problem if you meet your family or even the Jin Family?”

“Not a problem.” I smiled. “I’d love to challenge the other brats of my family. They probably grew up with silver spoons in their mouth, soft and weak.”

Ming Feng frowned as if I had just said that about her, so I quickly clarified.

“No, your Feng Family seems to have hardened you for battle.” I tried to salvage it, but her frown only deepened.

“I am still a lady.” She barked.

I decided to just stop talking before I dug myself deeper. I quickly became enamored with the dragon tail I was cooking, taking spices from my spatial ring and adding them to the meat. The meat was looking tender; juices dripped down the wooden steaks and they glistened with a sheen of greasy goodness.

“Do you always bring spices with you?” She asked, trying to restart the conversation.

“Yup. Never know when you are going to be cooking and eating wild game. A stash of spices is invaluable to living in the wilderness.” I repeated long gone words from my father.

Suddenly, I realized there was something else I wanted from Ming Feng. “I have another request.”

“You’ve already agreed to help for the core, if it still exists.” She reminded me. “Or are you always this greedy?”

She was right, but there was more I could offer. “I have a number of wives. Each of them has a different bloodline that is as pure as mine. They will join me on this quest if I ask.”

Ming Feng froze. “You have others that share this pure of a bloodline?”

I wasn’t entirely sure, but given that I’d received the bloodlines of the girls and they seemed just as strong, I assumed so. “Yes.”

“What do you want in return?”

“The Feng Family’s help in finding someone. My mother is from an ancient family, but my father disappeared in the territory around Blueheavens, looking for her when I was younger. I want the Feng Family’s help finding him.”

She let out a sigh. “He may already be dead.”

“I don’t believe that.” I countered swiftly.

“Okay. I can agree to look, but I can’t make any promises. Do you have a picture?”

I did not, but with my ability to realize things at the fifth rank, I created one in my soul palace. Then I pulled out the painting. My heart squeezed as I looked at the photo. It was him. “Here.”

Creating something so simple was easy, but even this had tapped my limited amount of mana crystals. Doing so to help me find my father was well worth it, though.

She took it into her spatial ring after only a glance. Instead, her eyes rested on the roasting dragon meat, which smelled delightful.

The grease was starting to drip down into the fire, hissing as it touched.

“Do you think it’s ready?” Ming Feng asked, her nose twitching.

“There’s one way to find out.” I pulled one of the steaks away from the fire and held it out to her.

Ming Feng took it and bit into the meat with a smile as the grease dripped down the side of her face.

The prim and proper woman melted with her first bite as she ravenously attacked the meat. “This is so good.”

I laughed, taking my own skewer and biting into the dragon tail.

Wonderful flavors and mana exploded in my mouth; flavors I didn’t even know existed came to life. “Holy crap.” I mumbled over my first mouthful. “Maybe we need to go chase after that dragon.”

“No. Let it regrow its tail, then I’ll hunt it again.” Ming Feng said as she grabbed another skewer.

I wasn’t about to let her have all of it, so I downed my piece and went for another.

We continued on like that, and soon, fifty pounds of dragon meat had been consumed in less than half an hour.

“My stomach hurts.” Ming Feng lay on the ground, cupping her food baby.

I was sporting my own full belly. The dragon meat, while delicious, was taking forever to digest. Even with my advanced cultivation, apparently a heavy meal could still take me out.

“So, what else does the Princess of the Feng Family do?” I asked, rolling to my side.

“I am not a princess.”

“Pretty sure you are the definition of a princess, but I’ll let it go. But I’d still like to know what you do.”

She lay there on her back. “Prepare to take over for my father when he retires to the role of an elder.”

“Is it all so boring?” I joked.

“It is not boring at all. I go to plays, see martial tournaments, and practice the arts.”

“Music?”

She somehow managed to turn her nose up while laying on the ground. “I happen to be very skilled at the zither.”

“Let me hear.” I pushed her, but she looked at me in shock. “Not even my fiance has heard my music. Forget it.”

I ignored her outburst and held onto the fact she had just dropped. “You have a fiance?”

“Of course I do. My family works hard to ensure that our main family’s bloodline is as pure as possible. A member of a branch family with the highest quality Phoenix bloodline has already been chosen for me.”

I laughed. “You talk of him by his qualifications and don’t even use his name.”

“That’s what is most important.” Ming Feng declared, throwing her arms up in the air. “Seriously, how would you pick your fiance?”

“I’m married… uh…” I had to count in my head for a moment, and figure out if I would include my mana beasts. In the end, I did. “… ten times over, soon to be more.”

“And how did you pick them?” She huffed.

Shrugging, I rolled onto my back, thinking about it. “They really all picked me. Well, maybe not Lumi. But she warmed up quickly.” I paused before continuing.

“To answer your question more fully, I love each of them. They might have qualifications, but those are secondary to how I actually feel about them.” I turned to look at Ming Feng. “How do you feel about this nameless man with nice blood?”

She rolled her eyes. “He’s handsome and at the fifth rank—”

“Those are qualifications again. How do you feel when you’re around him?” I interrupted her before she gave me a laundry list of qualifications.

“We only meet once in a while, and only with guards present.” She stumbled. “I… uh…”

“You what?”

Her face turned bright red. “I really only think about him giving me a kid. After that, he can do what he wants. I’m essentially done with him.”

My jaw dropped open. “That’s so cruel!”

“What do you mean, cruel? He’ll get to be with me.” She puffed out her cheeks.

“Pfft.” I scoffed. “Maybe until he gets you with child. But after that? What, do you just put him on the shelf like a decoration?”

“He’ll become part of the main family and have anything he could want.”

“Except a woman who loves him.” I shot back.

Despite both of our full bellies, Ming Feng rolled to her feet and looked like she was about ready to fight. “He should be so blessed that he should join one of the most powerful families in the world. By joining the main family, he will get to be a father to the next generation of the Feng Family.”

“I’d much rather live in a hut in the woods with a wonderful lady that loves me.” I rolled to my feet, feeling my center-of-gravity shift with my rotund belly.

“Am I not wonderful?” She screamed as if I’d just slapped her. I worked hard not to laugh, knowing that would only anger her more. But she definitely was not delighted at that moment.

Before the situation could escalate further, two sixth rank guards appeared and broke up our fight before it could start.

“Miss Feng, your prior fight with the water dragon has caused a stir in the central region of the hunting grounds. We should leave.”

She whipped her head to the side, glaring at the guard. “Now?”

“Yes, right now.” He nodded with a smile plastered on his face.

“Fine, but answer me a question first. Would you rather a love filled marriage but be destitute for the rest of your life or would you rather a loveless marriage but be welcomed into the Feng Family?” She asked the guard.

I nearly fell over hearing her question. I didn’t understand how she could think that being a part of her family was the best life anybody could lead, regardless of how happy or miserable they were while doing it. She’d been raised to think it was the peak of the world.

And as a result, she’d devalued herself to the point that she thought her love had such little value. I suddenly felt very sorry for the fiery Ming Feng. In different circumstances, she could have been so much more.

“Miss, now isn’t the time for such questions. We need to leave.” He tried to dodge the question.

Ming ignored him, planting herself in the ground even as the cry of a large beast echoed in the distance. “No. Answer the question first.”

“Please, Miss, we need to go.” He did his best to smile and convince her to go, but she was clearly stubborn and used to getting her way. She didn’t budge, and it was clear the guards were afraid to force her.

“Answer, now.”

“Of course, joining the Feng Family would be the highlight of any man’s life.” The guard smiled and agreed with her, guessing that was what she wanted to hear.

“You are a terrible liar.” She sighed. “Fine, let’s go.” At least she wasn’t so sheltered that she had taken his answer at face value. It showed she was open to new ideas.

But as she rose, the aura of several more sixth rank cultivators flared behind us. A battle exploded deeper in the forest.

Before we could react, we were swiftly wrapped in the aura of the two guards and hurtled out of the forest, back towards the city.

The entire way out, Ming Feng remained stoic and silent, looking out at the horizon. It would appear that our brief conversation had made her think.