Li Yu sat near the front and was checking his map and talking with a few representatives that have been told to make a positive connection with him. Behind him the cultivators had formed small cliques, their whispers carried away by the wind but a cultivator's hearing was far too good to miss them.

  In a huddle somewhere in the middle, a young disciple from the Gale Wind Sect, eyes wide and shining, was whispering furiously to a skeptical elder from the Iron Rock Clan.

  "I’m telling you, Elder Mo, the stories don't even do him justice!" the disciple hissed. "My cousin’s friend was a janitor at the CrimsonFang. He saw it all. He said Li Yu didn't use a sword or a spell. He said Li Yu challenged the CrimsonFang Patriarch to a punching match. The Patriarch’s punch didn’t even move Li Yu. And when Li Yu punched... the shockwave leveled the mountain. He even allowed those not truly involved with the Crimson Fang to leave unharmed."

  Elder Mo rolled his eyes as if he just listened to an idiot. "Don't be an idiot, boy. A punching match? Ridiculous. I heard from a reliable source in the Merchant Guild that Li Yu is actually an ancient spirit beast in human form. Specifically, a Void-Eating Hamster. He stuffs his enemies into his cheek pouches. That’s where the CrimsonFang went. They were slowly digested and turned into Qi for him."

  A few feet away, a woman from the Mystic Water Sect was staring at Li Yu’s back. She was doing so with a mix of fear and fascination. She heard the conversation being had and chimed in. "You’re both wrong. Look at how he treats that beast we are riding on. He pats it. I heard that the beast isn’t truly a beast at all. It is actually a machine construct. It’s his deceased grandmother, soul-bound to the construct using forbidden techniques. Li Yu travels the world trying to find a way to turn her back into a human."

  "That’s... oddly touching," someone muttered.

  "Touching? It’s necromancy!" another whispered back and was terrified. He had not heard this story before.

  Li Yu heard the conversation. ‘Grandmother? Really? Who believes these things…’

  He turned around and looked in that direction. The people there noticed and the conversation died instantly. The cultivators straightened their backs and were looking everywhere but at him.

  "You guys okay back there?" Li Yu called out just to check on everyone.

  He finished his conversation with those around him and stood up.He walked comfortably across the surface and approached a different group.

  He stopped by a burly man. This was Sect Leader Zhang of the Shattered Rock Sect, a man known for his brutality in battle.

  A younger cultivator, a boy with messy red hair and sharp eyes who seemed less afraid and more skeptical than the others spoke up. "You’ve never been? But you took the assignment. Do you even know about the Razor-Wind Valleys?"

  "Hush, Chen!" an elder hissed at him.

  Li Yu looked at the boy. "Razor-Wind Valleys? No. Tell me about them."

  "The wind there cuts through standard protective qi. The CrimsonFang used blood arrays to deflect it. Without them, we’ll be shredded before we even see a beast."

  Li Yu nodded thoughtfully. "Sharp wind. Got it. Thanks for the tip. I’ll think of something."

  Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

  "He'll think of something?" Elder Mo whispered to his neighbor. "That’s his plan? The CrimsonFang spent a long time perfecting those arrays and he’s going to 'think of something' on the ride over?"

  "Maybe he’ll just shout at the wind to stop," a disciple whispered back. "I heard he once debated a tornado and won. The tornado apologized and became a gentle breeze. He has control over nature."

  As the journey continued, the group’s fear began to morph into a strange confusion. Li Yu wasn't acting like a high-level cultivator. He didn't meditate. He didn't lecture them. He spent twenty minutes trying to catch a cloud wisp in a jar he produced from his ring. He asked the Iron Rock Elder for a recipe for stew.

  He’s playing with us, thought a younger disciple. It’s a psychological torture technique. He acts nice, makes us lower our guard, and then—BAM—he harvests our dantians when we least suspect it. He is to be feared as much as our enemies.

  He’s an idiot, thought Chen. We’re all going to die.

  The sun began to dip, casting long shadows across the clouds. Ahead, the horizon turned dark and jagged. The Southern Jagged Peaks lived up to their name. Massive spires of black rock pierced the sky, looking like a forest of spears. The air grew turbulent.

  Li Yu frowned slightly. He tapped his foot on Tekton.

  ‘Expand the protective Qi shield. Make sure it's strong enough.’ he commanded softly.

  A golden dome of energy generated by Tekton snapped into existence. It covered the entire back of the beast. The howling wind instantly vanished and was replaced by a hum of silence.

  The representatives gasped as they looked at the golden barrier.

  "This shield... It's incredibly powerful. And he just turned it on like a light switch." Elder Mo muttered.

  "Grandma is protecting us," the Mystic Water disciple whispered reverently.

  Tekton descended toward a plateau that had been carved out of the mountainside. The Crimson Fang’s old forward base. Not belonging to the Crimson Fang but the guardian outpost they commanded for the Alliance. It was a ruin now, overgrown and damaged by battles with beasts but the foundation remained.

  This was going to be the staging point where the forces will be gathered. The forces coming already had an array from the Crimson Fang that they could use to get in. Li Yu brought Tekton down with a heavy thud that shook the dust off the nearby ruins.

  "We’re here!" Li Yu announced.

  He hopped off the side, floating gently to the ground. The representatives followed him down. They were now looking around nervously at the gloomy, ominous mountains surrounding them. Roars echoed from the deep valleys—sounds that promised violence.

  Li Yu clapped his hands together and drew their attention. The group formed up, looking at him for orders. They expected a rousing speech about blood and glory or a threat about what would happen if they failed.

  "Okay," Li Yu said, scanning the ruined fortress. "First order of business. Does anyone know how to fix arrays? Because if we're going to be fighting an offensive war, we’re going to need a working kitchen. It’s not good to fight on an empty stomach."

  The group stared at him.

  "I... I know a bit about fire arrays," a timid voice from the back volunteered.

  "Perfect," Li Yu beamed. "You're promoted to Head of Logistics until the main force arrives. Everyone else, start cleaning up around here. I will patrol the surrounding area a bit. Tekton will stay here and keep everyone safe."

  The group dispersed, bewildered but strangely calm. Chen lingered for a moment and watched Li Yu inspect a broken wall.

  "You're weird," he said bluntly.

  "I get that a lot," Li Yu agreed and not bothering to look up. "But weird keeps you alive. Normal people die quickly in places like this."

  "Go get some rest, Chen," Li Yu said gently. "Tomorrow, we will find out if the rumors about the beasts are as exaggerated as the rumors about me."

  He turned and winked. "And for the record, I don't eat people. Not tasty."

  Chen stared at him for a second, then a small genuine smile cracked his skeptical face. "Right. I'll tell the others."

  He ran off to join his sect. Li Yu turned back to the dark mountains, his smile fading into a look of sharp and calculated focus. The rumors were funny but the killing intent radiating from the valley below was not. It was time to work.