Story 8 - Tribulation Troubles (Part 23.5 - Little Black's Reaction) (Patreon)

Author’s Note And Schedule Update:

Hi everyone! I’m still working on Part 24 for story 8. It’s pretty massive, so I’ll need some extra time to get it out to you all. So it will probably be out late Saturday night or early Sunday morning. Thank you so much for your patience!

While you wait, here is a short vignette from Little Black’s perspective. I wrote it because one of you mentioned that you’d like to see her reaction. This will be an exclusive for you all. I don’t plan on posting this to Royal Road. It is edited but it hasn’t gone through my normal hours of polish. Thank you for your understanding.

Some of you might be wondering what happens next after part 24 is posted and what my schedule is like. I’m already working on world-building for story 9 and Volume 3. I’ll need half of next week to write the outline and the week after to write the rough draft of the story. That means that I might post nothing for two weeks unless I end up writing a short story and posting it (which I am considering). Regardless, I’ll always be available to talk on my discord. You’re welcome to message me asking for updates on my progress.

This means that the first part of Story 9 and Volume 3 will be up sometime on Friday, March 17th.

It’s a longer break than I usually take between stories but I think I need it. I’ve been posting one 2.2k-3.4k word part of WIAFTTTTA every week for the past 2 years with very few breaks in between. Well, most of the breaks I took were to write the next story or for my physical health, so I don’t really count those as breaks. I am a tired Dragon. Fortunately, my slow posting speed helps combat burn out and keeps this story fresh in my mind.

Anyway, if I write a short story to post on one of the break weeks, it will either be a story from Little Spring’s POV or the Crab Mission short story from Clear Eyes Mad Tongue’s POV. Let me know which one you guys would prefer in the comments here or in my discord. I will probably only have enough energy and time to write one of them. And they’ll be about this vignette’s level of polish.

>>> Little Black’s Reaction <<<

There was only one way I could describe the mission my master assigned to me… incomprehensibly… fun.

I loved being a demonic cultivator. And, judging by my successes in manipulating dozens of my sect members into following in my joyous footsteps — being a demonic cultivator agreed with me.

If I had to say the one thing that made my mission difficult, it would be my Dear Customer. Well, it would be more accurate to call her Great Aunt Lin.

That irritatingly slow monster of a child.

Once I hooked her with a chance to do black market deals, my first goal was to manipulate her into becoming a demonic cultivator. Unfortunately, during our first meeting I could tell that wouldn’t work. She might be a bit crazy and oblivious in areas, but she was sharp where it mattered. It was like she was a warrior who had fought against demonic cultivators for centuries.

So, after talking it over with my master, we decided that it would be enough to crush her dreams of cultivating by giving her an inner demon she’d never get rid of. How amazing would it be to have this sect’s Great Martial Aunt never grow past Qi Condensation!

Through gathering intelligence on what she was doing, I managed to figure out that she was terrified of her tribulation.

Seriously, who collected fistfuls of Foundation Establishment level talismans for a little tribulation to reach Foundation Establishment? Her fear was obvious. So I thought of clever ways to manipulate her subconscious. I even used the immortal cave I found with the lightning scorch marks and made up a story about my father.

The truth was, both of my parents were killed in service to the sect, just like my master’s children and husband. The bastards in charge of assigning courtyards would have kicked me out of my home if I hadn’t taken up my father’s side business of doing simple black market deals.

I hated this sect and everyone in it. It took everything away from me. And the only thing that could make me happy was taking steps towards watching it burn. And that dream… no, that promise, was what my master swore to me would happen as payment for my help. Because I couldn’t take it down by myself.

Unfortunately, my demonic master became impatient. The little girl kept getting in the way of people higher up in the demonic, cultivating sect. That and manipulating this crazy girl’s subconscious was more difficult than with any other cultivator I’d ever dealt with.

Did she have a will of iron and the brain of an immortal or something?

My master came up with the idea of sending assassins after her. She even paid for them herself. While I was left to come up with an excuse to get her out of the sect. Fortunately, she went looking for a particular out of stock wood so, at the last minute, I convinced her to go after it.

Of course, that plan failed spectacularly. She returned. Then she put me in an uncomfortable position. Deciding for herself that she would take most of my profits. Even bringing the Sect Leader up while threatening to expose me. The bitch.

That was the moment when I truly started to loathe her. At first, taking her down was just part of my ultimate mission. Now, it was something I had to do or die trying. In this world, the two of us could never coexist.

That was when I felt it. A strange tribulation nearing Golden Core strength. And when I looked at it with my divine sense, I could tell it was almost twice as large as one.

And in the center of it, that cockroach-like little girl stood, her fist raised to the sky.

Whaaaaat?! This was the tribulation she was terrified to face?! There was no possible way for her to survive that... except that she had fistfuls of talismans. She had so many preparations for it even I didn’t know what she had.

Wait. Wasn’t this the perfect chance to get revenge on her and kill her off?

I quickly contacted my master to see what she had to say, but she was fighting the sect leader. She only told me to kill the crazy girl no matter what and to not leave until the job was done. Because this was our last chance to stick it to the Indomitable Will sect. If I succeeded, we’d both watch as every single building and hypocritical, righteous disciple burned.

I couldn’t help but feel giddy with joy. Finally, my goal was going to be achieved. Something I could never do without the demonic sect.

I had recently smuggled in a rare spiritual-beast-holding spatial item. While most of those could only hold beasts, this one could hold humans under Golden Core rank. They just wouldn’t have a good experience living inside there since time didn’t stop.

Mine was filled with demonic sect archers who were being punished for something. They were given to me to be used as disposable men. This was the perfect chance to use them.

I grabbed their tiny cage and headed over to the Tribulation.

Finally, I had that dumb little cockroach cornered!

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Author’s Note: Thank you all for reading! You are the best readers a writer could ask for!