Mana 5 Chapter 24 (Patreon)

We rotated guards while we took turns sleeping, but we remained unbothered through the night. The temperature dropped to freezing cold, and we were glad to huddle next to our fire, with mana so thin it was difficult to maintain our body temperature with mana alone.

Conserving mana was difficult, something that many of us hadn’t done to this extreme in a very long time. We’d taken mana for granted and now the tomb was testing us.

Fires dotted the horizon; others had the same idea we did. And I knew that meant it was unlikely my wives would find me amid the night of the purple moon.

One battle broke out across the desert during the night, but all in all, it seemed peaceful. Like I’d suspected, the other groups were conserving mana like us. We all knew there would be a challenge ahead.

If this was a test of endurance, we need to conserve our strength for the monolith.

When the red sun rose, the ash beasts went quiet, and we felt more comfortable moving in the light. We hurried along the red sand to the monolith as it hung there at the end of the desert like some ominous prize.

As we approached, it was easy to see that we weren’t the first. Two groups were ahead, and they seemed to be arguing.

“That’s not what it means.” Jade Yutu was shouting at Tian Jin while standing on her tiptoes, pointing at a sign written in a language I didn’t understand.

Ming stopped, and the two other groups noticed us.

Jade spun, scowling. “Ming. Can you read this?”

“Not a clue.” She shrugged, turning to me for help.

“Don’t look at me. It’s gibberish.” I wasn’t an expert in ancient languages.

Tian Jin laughed, turning back to an angry Jade. “I was only kidding Jade.”

“Dirty pervert.” She scoffed, stepping away and back into her own group. “Who the fuck learns to read this language, anyway?” She kicked sand into the air.

“The Biji family.” I reminded all of them. “If we wait for them, I’m sure they will be able to read it.”

Tian nodded. “That seems wise.” Both of their groups were sitting on the ground in meditation. Much like us, it seemed they had a rough night and were struggling to hold on to their mana.

“Wiser than riling up Jade.” Ming added as she came and sat on the edge of the monolith.

I could feel sixth rank cultivation emanating from Tian and Jade. They’d also broken through. But they felt just as drained of mana as Ming.

At that point in the desert, we were all drained. Mana seemed to be slowly evaporating from each of us, even when we conserved it, and it was impossible to cultivate more.

My hunting food had only lasted so long. Our group had ravenously eaten it to sustain their mana levels. Ming had even handed out priceless pills to help each of us retain as much mana as we could in our systems.

“No one will get anywhere fighting right now.” I agreed, but Jade scowled at me as she sat down. I was glad her eyes couldn’t literally burn holes in me, given the intensity of her gaze.

Yi Long’s group appeared next on the horizon. They were far more ragged than before, and they seemed to be missing several members.

He had also stepped into the sixth rank, but I could tell that things had not gone well for him. His clothes were torn and a long scar now made its way down his face.

“What’s everyone waiting around for?” Mu Biji, along with the six others from his family, came into view. They were wearing hiking gear and using walking sticks as they tread across the sand as if it was just a casual, sunny afternoon.

I wondered if they trained for situations like this with how comfortable they looked.

“We need a translation.” Tian Jin bowed his head to Mu. “I hope you can help us.”

“That we can, for a price. Twenty percent.” Mu smiled.

Those present sighed. “If we can, we will.” Ming said, “But I don’t see any treasure here.”

Mu rubbed his hands together. “No problem. There’s always treasure in a tomb. Let’s see.” He pulled out a small journal and started studying the language at the base of the monolith, flipping through his booklet and checking several times.

While he was doing this, my wives approached. Seeing them sent a wave of happiness through me. Each and every one of them was walking on their own two feet, even if they looked ill from the lack of mana in the air.

I got up immediately, moving to meet them halfway and walk back alongside them, sharing side hugs along the way.

They wandered over to join Ming’s group.

Once we paused, the girls got even more touchy, kissing me one by one as we settled in by the monolith.

And Jade managed to look at me even more intensely than she had before.

“Glad you all made it.” I nuzzled into Michelle’s hair, calming at the familiar smell.

The girls looked around at the gathering. “So many lost.”

I nodded. We hadn’t seen all the other groups since we entered the tomb, but if they weren’t split like ours had been, then they were few in number indeed.

Even Ming’s group had lost over a third of its members, and hers had fared better than most.

The Zhi family hadn’t even shown up yet. I wondered if any of them had survived.

Lee had just shown up, dragging two of his other members in a sled, and with those last three arrivals, there were ninety-eight cultivators present around the monolith.

There was a solemn moment of silence among everyone as we looked around and realized what we were seeing.

Three cities had their entire young, elite cultivators annihilated. I could only hope they turned back at some point to preserve themselves.

“I think I’ve got it.” Mu shouted, oblivious to the mood behind him. But when he turned around, his excitement visibly dimmed. “Everything okay?”

Tian pulled a jug of wine from his spatial ring and poured it out. “For all those lost souls. Over four hundred entered the tomb, and now we count only ninety-eight.”

I pulled out my own wine and joined him.

The wave continued. Many cultivators did the same, dying the sand beneath our feet a rich red for those who had fallen. We all knew, given different circumstances, it could have been us. Only the strongest had entered the shard.

Mu stared at the display before tugging at his collar and bowing slightly. “I have bad news and good news. There is a way out here. You can leave the tomb now.” He went over to a corner of the monolith and pulled at a brick, opening a passageway. “You can leave through here. I know I will when I’m done giving you the translation.” He looked over at his family members, and they all began shifting closer to him.

My blood ran cold. Whatever was in the translation meant fighting, likely among ourselves.

“The way forward is meant only for ten. Until that number is met, no one shall go forward.” Mu read off his notebook.

Steel rang in the air; everyone drew their weapons at once.

Mu tugged at his collar. “This is where we all part ways.” He bowed at the waist. “Let me and my family go without conflict, and you’ll be down six.”

Lee stood up, dragging the sleds carrying his wounded teammates. “I must leave as well. My people are worth more than continuing this fight.” He scowled at me as he paused mid-step. I could see he wanted to go toe to toe with me, but in the end, he shook his head and protected his people. While I wasn’t his biggest fan, I respected him for his decision.

“If you would like, we would be willing to bring them with us for a price.” Rei spoke up. “It would be a shame for you to have done all of this for your time here to end so abruptly.”

Lee narrowed his eyes before nodding and handing off the sleds.

Mu bowed again to everyone before herding his family and the injured into the passage and out of the tomb.

“Anyone else leaving before this gets bloody?” Yi Long cracked his neck.

Ming was already leveling her spear, ready to fight.

“Hold on.” I said to her quietly. “The first to fight loses.”

She shot me a frown, about to argue, but then she realized what I’d already determined.

All of us were nearly depleted of mana. Whoever fought first would use the little bit of mana they had up, leaving the power in the other cultivators’ hands.

Suddenly, the entire space between the monolith became a standoff.

“Why don’t we make a truce?” Tian Jin said, stepping to the side. “Those of us at the sixth rank stand aside in return for guaranteed admission into the next challenge.”

Ming had a flicker of guilt as she looked at me, but I nodded for her to take the deal. Not only did it remove her from the fight, but more importantly, it removed several sixth rank cultivators that were hostile towards me.

She stepped aside, joining Yi Long, Tian Jin, Lee Leon and Jade Yutu. The five of them had broken through to the sixth rank. They all stood at the base of the monolith, like they were just spectators in the fight.

“If you are injured and wish to leave, I fear now is the last chance.” Ming reminded everyone.

A few shuffled their feet before they turned and headed out.

The number continued to drop until sixty were left.

There were only five spots left, and I turned to my wives, wondering what they were going to do.

Michelle stared me down, determination in her eyes. There was no way she was going to leave while I remained.

Looking at my other wives, they all seemed to have made the same decision. None of them were leaving.

But my wives made up one-sixth of the remaining forces. Between them, Breeze, and myself, we were by far the largest group.

And because of that, we seemed to be drawing attention. The other groups whispered among themselves, eying us.

Kat put her hand on my shoulder and tugged me close to her, whispering in my ear. “Hang back. We will go all out when the fighting starts. Save your strength to clean up the rest.”

My eyes flashed dangerously at Kat, telling her my opinion of that plan. I couldn’t believe they were asking me to hang back while they got potentially walloped. But Kat just beamed back into my scowling face before she turned to the other women. They all looked at each other and nodded in silent conversation.

They were going to sacrifice their remaining mana to give me a better shot at being one of the victors.

We didn’t have time to discuss a better plan, and I honestly didn’t have one, but I still hated the current plan.

Michelle just winked at me as the women shifted from an unordered mass to a rounded line, facing the rest of the cultivators. Everyone started shifting uncomfortably, ready to fight.

“Ha!” A fighter from the Yutu family struck first, moving in a flying kick at Michelle.

As one, all of my wives flared their bloodlines. There was a moment of silence as the other cultivators took in my line of beautiful and deadly women, all displaying strong bloodlines.

The Yutu man, already in flight, reached Michelle. She blocked as those on either side of her struck out with their blades. None of them imbued mana into their attacks, but it didn’t matter. The blades still cut right through the Yutu man. His own mana was depleted.

With that first death, the floodgates were opened, and the real fighting started.

It was chaos as cultivators reverted to simple martial arts to fight.

Thankfully, many of my girls came from the mortal world, where we’d learned how to fight as we were learning to cultivate.

Michelle was especially a force to be reckoned with; her shield and mace were out as she led my wives forward into the other groups.

I remembered back all the times we had sparred in that ruined natatorium. She had always been an aggressive fighter, using that shield to cover her ass as she went wild with her mace. More than once, she had pushed me to my limits.

All five groups collapsed inward to attack, and that was when Kat acted.

She leapt high into the air, using her bloodline of the vermillion bird. Then she rocketed down like a meteor into the cluster of cultivators.

I didn’t wait to see what happened. Using the last of my mana to blink in, I grabbed her by the waist and pulled her back behind Michelle.

Two blades slashed into my back, and a third thunked against Michelle’s shield before her mace came down in a wet crack.

“That was reckless.” I pulled Kat to her feet, but she was just grinning widely, looking back at the fight. She looked up at me and then tilted her head back towards the fight.

Turning, I took in what she wanted me to see.

Cultivators were on fire everywhere, burning with the bright red flames of the vermillion bird. They were batting ineffectively at their clothes. Many were using the last of their mana to disperse the flames.

What she had used had been a wide weak attack with fire, but for a group of cultivators nearly out of mana, they weren’t protecting themselves and their clothes from just a simple wave of fire and heat.

“Did you think that when they were able to cultivate as soon as they could walk that they learned simple ways to get rid of fire, like rolling on the ground?” Kat smirked.

Watching them, it became clear that they hadn’t. It was almost comical watching them resort to using mana to disperse the flames when bouncing around haphazardly hadn’t worked. That mana they used to put out the flames on their clothes had likely depleted what little many of them had left.

I looked down into Kat’s face, which was watching me closely for my reaction. She’d used up her own mana, but she’d taken the mana of many of the opposing forces in the process.

“Clever, but you could have died.” I glared at her, but she only smiled more.

“Just a few cuts. Watching them dance like that would have been well worth it.” She giggled, ignoring the risk she had taken. Kat was always the reckless one.

Seeing she was well enough to joke, I let her get back to the fight, surveying the scene once more.

I eyed the group. Most were in the big fray, but there were a few that were keeping out of it, saving themselves, much like I had intended to do before Kat put herself in danger..

The writing was on the wall when the groups fighting used the last of their mana. They saw their weakened position, and none of them wanted to die. Several dozen broke from the fighting and left through the same passage that Mu had used.

My wives were banged up, but standing strong. They had a cohesion that none of the other groups could match, as they had paired up to fight. Practice and trust helped them win out over the other side.

The biggest surprise during the battle was Nikki and Diana. They had disappeared into a thousand petals on the wind, passing through the groups and striking two of those who had stayed back.

Both of them appeared at the end, as hundreds of small cuts covered the cultivators they had passed through.

It was brutal, but efficient in thinning the ranks as well as weakening two of my competitors. Both Nikki and Diana then ran for the exit. Their mana was gone, but their jobs were done.

They’d all done a great job narrowing down the field.

“Halt.” Tian shouted, and everyone paused. “I think that’s enough bloodshed. It is clear who will be the last, don’t you think?” He focused the last bit on me. He looked over to my wives, then back, clearly wanting me to back him.

If I played along with him, then I would also spare my wives from potential harm as this fight dragged out and everyone became sloppy.

“Does everybody concede to Breeze, those two, me, and…” I paused. The cultivators from the Yutu and Jin camps were among winners, but I wasn’t sure who would get the last spot.

“Pick one of your wives; they clearly hold the field.” Ming shouted.

I waited, but nobody fought her on it.

“They can pick themselves.” I said.

There was a brief nodding between them before Michelle and Kat both stepped forward. They both glared at each other fiercely before Kat nodded and stepped back, giving Michelle the role.

But Kat eyed the other cultivators. “If he doesn’t come back, you will all die.” Despite being above her in power, I swore a few of the sixth rank cultivators flinched.

With that, the remaining cultivators grudgingly accepted the joint decision of the five sixth rank cultivators.

“It doesn’t matter. It’s likely those of you still in the fifth rank don’t stand a chance competing in the next stage.” Yi Long offered. I wasn’t sure it was really as consoling as he meant for it to be.

I kissed my wives goodbye as they left the desert, and the monolith ticked down to ten as the last stepped through the door and it slammed shut.

When it hit ten, the monolith’s front ground loudly, and a door opened in the flawlessly smooth exterior of the monolith.

Beyond the door, I could see a simple room. We moved slowly, cautiously, stepping into the room. All of us were wary of the tomb’s next challenge.

It was faintly lit by a mana crystal, and the only items in the room were ten floor length mirrors, standing in a semicircle.

“What’s this?” Jade asked, poking one. As she did, her finger caused a ripple on the surface. But before she could step back, she was sucked into the mirror.

I snorted laughter, wondering what would happen. But then I watched as she just continued moving forward inside the mirror, sitting down and beginning to cultivate.

The second cultivator from her camp ran up and tried to enter her mirror, but he bounced back.

“It would seem we each get a mirror.” Michelle whispered.

“It does. Be safe, and if you need to, back out. You are more important than any prize here.”

Michelle kissed me on the cheek and stepped up to her own mirror, touching a hand to it and disappearing within.

“Be safe. I hope to see you in the next challenge.” Ming nodded to me before taking her mirror.

Everyone else was following suit. Facing the mirror, I stepped forward to take my turn at an unoccupied mirror.

The second my hand touched the mirror, it was like I was inverted through a tank of water and spat out the other end.

It was disorienting to say the least, but the most important part was, I could feel mana again.

After not feeling it for half a day, I was almost high on the sensation of power flooding back into my limbs, and mana filling my meridians once again.

Sitting down on the floor to cultivate, I let out a sigh of relief. It was like taking a deep gulp of water after a day of grueling workouts.

Mana cycled through my body, bolstering everything that made me an immortal again.

My mana beasts pulsed excitedly in their rings, taking in mana themselves. Together, we all worked to restore our reserves.