Myriad Rivers to the Sea

The severed head of the Origin Awakening ancestor rolled across the crushed white stones and came to a rest near the edge of the ruined fighting ring. The resounding thud echoed through the silent coliseum like a final death knell. The surviving guards of the Thorne faction dropped their weapons and were on their knees in despair. Their pride and hopes fractured into a thousand unrecoverable pieces upon witnessing the brutal execution of their supreme elder.

Li Yu did not need to take any further action to secure the victory. The ruling Astor Clan had already prepared just as Li Yu had suspected. He didn’t see through their entire plan but he could tell that they were prepared for today. To what extent they were willing to fight, he wasn’t quite sure though.

Silver armored troops poured into the arena from the hidden corridors beneath the grandstands. The city guards moved with swift precision while their weapons leveled at the throats of the remaining purple robed fighters. The Astor elders descended from the viewing platforms and cast suppression seals over the broken Thorne members. They captured every single person affiliated with the hostile faction in a matter of seconds.

While the swift subjugation unfolded across the stadium, Li Yu collected the storage rings belonging to the Origin Awakening ancestor, the Tribulation clan leader and the other two fighters that he had killed. He would sort through their wealth later. Ever since he had gone broke crafting his flying arsenal, he was especially sensitive to making sure he looted everything he could.

A soft breeze then swept through the arena to carry away the thick scent of blood. Li Yu turned around and found the Astor Patriarch approaching his position. The stately man walked alongside his wife and the stern Head Elder. The three veteran cultivators navigated the broken stones with careful steps and stopped a respectful distance away from the black robed youth.

Li Yu rested the long shaft of his glaive against his shoulder as he looked at the three powerful figures standing before him.

"Are you trying to catch me now?" Li Yu asked with an unbothered tone. He didn’t think they would be but he also had a token he could crush to get help. In the worse case, he believed he could survive long enough for help.

"Of course not." The Astor Patriarch shook his head quickly while raising his hands to show he held no hostile intent. "We came down here to personally thank you for resolving this dire situation. You fought a tremendous battle today and eliminated a terrible threat to our city."

"I think you mean your clan, not the city.” Li Yu smiled at them while correcting.

“You should be thanking your daughter for her kindness instead of praising my martial skills." Li Yu continued while looking up toward the raised balcony where Sera stood watching them. "Her willingness to offer us a secret escape route last night is one of the reason I decided to entertain this death match. Such genuine kindness is quite rare but usually not a good thing to possess in this cruel cosmos. It often leads young heirs into early graves."

The Astor Patriarch sighed and nodded his head in solemn agreement. He understood the harsh reality of the cultivation world better than most people.

"However, I appreciated her gesture." Li Yu continued while lowering his glaive to rest the curved blade against the dirt. "I will be honest with you. I do not have a good or bad impression of you as a clan head. You clearly used us as a convenient pawn and you were willing us to the wolves to preserve your own peace. However, you are a leader doing what is best for your people and I most likely would have made the same choices if I were standing in your shoes."

The Head Elder frowned slightly at the blunt assessment but the Patriarch simply listened with a calm expression. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

"Leadership comes with heavy burdens and impossible choices." Li Yu continued and it was as if he was speaking to himself more than anyone else. His eyes moved to look at the bound Thorne prisoners being marched out of the arena. "A ruler must prioritize the survival of their own over the lives of passing strangers. That is a universal truth of any organization. It is also the reason that I do not want to ever lead."

Li Yu smiled faintly to himself.

"I could have left this city anytime I wanted last night as I am sure you know but I chose to stay and see this conflict through to the end for my own reasons." Li Yu stated while locking eyes with the older man. "So in a sense, everything worked out for both of us today. Your city is safe and I got what I wanted as well.”

He didn’t say it but his thoughts drifted to, ‘however, if I had been weak, I would have died on these stones to soothe a bruised ego. As usual, being weak is the greatest sin of all.’

"You speak complicated truths for someone so young." The Patriarch offered a respectful nod toward the youth. "Please stay within our estate as an honored guest so we may properly celebrate your victory tonight."

"I appreciate the hospitality but I am done staying inside your walls." Li Yu declined the invitation while gesturing toward the open sky. "My companions and I will camp outside the city tonight to enjoy the fresh air."

Li Yu did not wait for further pleasantries. He channeled his Qi and reached out to the dozens of heavy iron weapons scattered across the battlefield. The spiked balls, spinning discs and heavy javelins lifted into the air and streamed into the glowing spatial rift he opened to his Koi Sanctuary. He recalled Whispering Frost, Pale Extinction and the rest of his swords back into their resting places as well.

He then expanded the spatial portal and aimed it toward the giant oyster shell resting there. Krag had remained perfectly still since the battle ended.

"You did excellent work today." Li Yu mentally spoke into the rift while manipulating his storage rings.

He summoned a stream of cultivation pills. The glowing spiritual pills cascaded through the water of the inner world and poured directly into the waiting cavern of the giant shell. Li Yu made sure to transfer the resources just as he promised.

Krag opened his jagged shell just enough to swallow the pills in one go. The ancient beast let out a deep rumble of satisfaction before closing his thick defense and heading right back to sleep in the dark trench. Li Yu closed the portal and secured his inner world.

Borum, Faen and the three Zhan disciples jogged across the ruined stadium to reunite with their leader.

"You really live up to your… unique name." Zhan Feng breathed out while looking at the deep trenches carved into the arena floor. "We knew you were strong but fighting up two full realms and winning is something out of a legend."

Li Yu deactivated his Abyssal Black outer armor and let the dark plates flow back into his inner world. The Phantom Aegis remained wrapped around his body to provide a comfortable and weightless layer of protection. He had been barely hurt at all from the intense exchange of blows thanks to his double layered armor. They had mostly protected him from the glancing hits and the explosive shockwaves that managed to get through his spinning hurricane, swords and glaive.

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"I am fine physically." Li Yu assured his cousins while rubbing his temples with his fingers. "I am just suffering from mental fatigue right now and my muscles are sore in many random spots from the recoil and tension of the fight. Using that many weapons at once takes a toll on the mind."

The group turned their backs on the broken coliseum and walked toward the primary gates of Silverguard City. The Astor guards parted respectfully to let them pass through the wide avenue while the citizens watched from their windows and whispered in hushed tones as the walking calamity departed their city.

Those that had stayed and watched began to gossip and spread rumors about the fight. The battle began to get more and more exaggerated with each retelling. By the morning of the next day, Li Yu’s attack had morphed itself into a flying metal dragon that rained down apocalyptic destruction with each flap of its wings.

High upon the elevated balcony of the arena, the Astor clan head watched the black robed youth leave the city limits. He turned his head and looked at his daughter standing quietly beside him.

"You might have just saved our entire clan, you definitely saved the lives of a lot of our people, with your act of kindness last night." The Patriarch commented with a tone of relief in his voice. "Genuine empathy is a rare tool in this cosmos and it is even rarer when it yields such a bountiful harvest or result. You did well Sera."

Sera offered a tired but genuine smile to her father before returning her gaze to the empty arena. She truly didn’t know what to think, the events of the last two days were similar to the technique she had just seen. A hurricane of events that happened so quickly she was just completely swept up in. Thankfully though, it had worked out well for their family.

Li Yu and his companions traveled several miles away from the towering walls of the city. They found a serene clearing nestled near a winding river and decided to set up their camp as the evening shadows began to stretch across the plains.

Li Yu sat down on a smooth boulder and leaned his back against the cool stone. His mental energy was simply too drained to focus on the intricate details of preparing a proper meal. The complex layering of spices and precise temperature control required a steady mind and he just wanted to close his eyes for a while.

"I cannot cook tonight." Li Yu announced while tossing a large cut of raw spiritual beast meat toward the disciples. "The kitchen is yours today, don’t let me down."

Zhan Ren caught the heavy slab of meat with a grin. "Do not worry about a thing. We will handle the provisions tonight."

The cooking was left entirely to the three disciples while Borum gathered dry wood and Faen scouted the perimeter. The culinary attempt turned out quite decent because the warriors of the Zhan clan loved to eat immense portions of food to fuel their dense body refinement. They were decent enough cooks who at least had the rugged basics down to a science.

They built a roaring fire and seared the thick steaks over the open flames while boiling a simple broth using wild roots and gathered herbs. The smell of roasted fat and wood smoke drifted through the tranquil clearing. The meal was more simple but the simpleness also has its own charm and favor. Li Yu enjoyed this style as well.

The group sat around the warm fire and ate their heavy meal in comfortable silence. The rich meat replenished their physical stamina while the hot broth chased away the chill of the evening air. Li Yu chewed his food slowly and let the ambient energy of the wilderness soothe his strained meridians.

The night passed by uneventfully as the moons climbed high into the starry sky. Borum stood watch near the riverbank like an immovable statue while Faen rested lightly in the branches of a nearby tree. Li Yu meditated near the dying embers and consolidated his combat insights from the battle against the Origin Awakening ancestor. Picking apart what he had done well and what he had done poorly.

The next morning arrived with a chorus of singing birds and a bright sunrise painting the horizon in shades of vibrant gold and deep violet. The camp stirred to life as the companions packed their minimal belongings. Zhan Feng, Zhan Ren and Zhan Lei stood together near the edge of the clearing and Li Yu was next to them.

"We are going to leave here and continue our training journey." Zhan Feng announced while offering a warriors handshake toward Li Yu. "It was quite interesting to be with you for this short period but we must continue on our own. Comfortable defeats the purpose of our expedition. A blade only grows sharp when it strikes the grindstone."

"We need to face our own trials and find our own fortuitous encounters." Zhan Lei added with a bright smile.

"I agree with your reasoning." Li Yu nodded with a smile, they were here for a reason after all. "The path of cultivation requires personal struggle and growth. I bid you a safe journey and urge you to be careful out there. There are many hidden dangers scattered across this realm and it seems more dangerous the more I see of it."

"We will see you back home when the time comes." Zhan Ren promised while waving his hand.

The three young warriors turned and marched eastward toward a distant mountain range. They moved with renewed purpose, motivation to get stronger and vanished into the dense morning mist.

Li Yu watched them leave and felt a sense of quiet satisfaction. His cousins possessed strong wills and great mentalities. While they had gotten unlucky this time around, they handled the situation very well until Li Yu jumped in for his own purposes. The three of them would undoubtedly carve their own paths forward and shine brightly in the future. He then turned toward his two companions and prepared to pick a new direction for their own travels.

They were just about to leave the campsite when the space a few yards away suddenly rippled with energy. The Astor clan head materialized from the shifting air and stepped onto the damp grass. He wore simple traveling clothes instead of his formal ruling robes but his Tribulation aura remained steady and calm.

Li Yu paused his steps and looked at the unexpected visitor with a smile. "Hello there. What brings you out here? Are you here to see us off or are you here to make sure we are seen off?"

"No such things today." The Patriarch chuckled softly while pulling a spatial pouch from his robes. "Since you got caught in our internal affairs and fought a battle on our behalf, I believe you should be properly rewarded for your monumental efforts."

The older man tossed the silken pouch through the air and Li Yu caught the item with an easy grace.

"That pouch contains half of the total spoils confiscated from the Thorne clan estate." The Patriarch explained while crossing his arms over his chest. "We liquidated their vaults and their vast armories. The reward is given entirely as high grade spirit stones so you can purchase exactly what you want during your travels."

Li Yu held the heavy pouch in his palm in thought. He did not know whether the Patriarch offered this fortune because he was feeling a lingering sense of guilt for using him as a pawn or if he was simply being pragmatic by establishing a better relationship with an expert and perhaps the forces behind him. In the end, it did not really matter to Li Yu which it was. The undeniable fact is that the man had actually done it and delivered a vast sum of wealth without being prompted.

Because of this decisive and kind action, Li Yu’s overall impression of the Astor Patriarch went up significantly. He appreciated a leader who understood the value of paying their debts and closing karmic loops. Even if the leader was doing it for other reasons then being kind or righteous. Those things rarely mattered in the cultivation world or any world. Actions were actions.

Li Yu did not check the contents of the pouch or verify the exact amount of spirit stones. He trusted the man enough to accept the gesture at face value and even if it wasn’t, how would he really know. He slipped the silken bag into his own storage ring and offered a polite nod of gratitude.

"I thank you for the generous reward." Li Yu said with a genuine tone. "From the little time I spent walking through your city streets, the people seemed happy and prosperous. At least they seemed that way on the surface. That at least tells me your clan must be doing a very good job managing this territory."

Li Yu did not say out loud that his karmic instincts told him their clan were actually good and mostly just rulers. The flow of fate around the Astor estate was bright and stable, which was not a common sight in a world built on ruthlessness but he kept that insight to himself.

"We try our best to maintain the peace." The Patriarch smiled warmly at the unexpected compliment. "I wish you a safe and prosperous journey."

"Perhaps we will meet again when the tides of fate decide." Li Yu replied while turning toward the open plains.

He bid the ruling leader a final farewell and walked away from the serene riverbank. Borum and Faen followed closely behind him as they set a brisk pace toward the unknown horizon. The shadows of Silverguard City faded into the distance as Li Yu marched forward to uncover the next mystery waiting for him here.