Sky Pride

Tian was out on patrol with nine of the senior brothers. It sounded somewhat casual- patrol. Like he was just walking around on a tidy path with his battle hardened seniors. Those same seniors quickly set him straight. Before they left the base, they carefully checked him over. His protective clothing was carefully examined, with serious care taken to make sure everything fit and nothing chafed.

It was explained to Tian simply but directly- the protective gear worked as one system. Everything needed to be properly layered and connected for the system to work. If the system didn’t fit properly, it wouldn’t work. If it didn’t work, he would die. Quickly or slowly, he would die.

The bases were covered in a spell array that made conditions bearable inside. Outside of the base, the stone dust air of the Wasteland would rub away his skin, then his muscle, then his organs. He would go blind. His lungs would shred into pulp. It wasn’t a fast process, but it was incredibly difficult and time consuming to heal. The first and most inescapable enemy of any cultivator in the Wastes was the Waste itself. And it only needed to win once.

“Grandpa, could I manage it with Gourmet?” Tian was getting good at subvocalizing, but he still kept his questions for times when he was as alone as he could be.

It might let your lungs survive a bit longer, but everything else? It would be no help. Advent of Spring is your best friend there. The wood qi helps break down the stone qi in the dust and it promotes healing. But don’t get too happy. Try to feel the qi in the air.

Tian half closed his eyes, trying to execute Counter-Jumper to better understand what was going on around him. There was air, and earth, and- “Fire?”

Based on what we heard, we are near a big lava field. That doesn’t mean it’s hot, it’s a place where lava flowed out onto the surface and hardened into basalt. The wind and flying sand erodes it, and the dust blows into the air. That basalt still has traces of fire poison in it, a sort of destructive, difficult to process fire qi. It can build up in your meridians and literally burn you out. So be very, very careful how you cultivate, and when you do cultivate, do your best to keep the fire qi out of your body.

The cultivators were covered quite literally from head to toe. Their gloves cinched down over the sleeves of their protective robes, their headgear sealed to their underrobe with a simple charm, but still layered with a protective scarf. The face mask was made of fine silk processed to provide both filtration and breathability by crafters in the Inner Court. The mask covered the eyes, but was practically transparent. Tian couldn’t explain it, but then, he knew nothing about crafting.

A hood went over everything, carefully cinched down to press against the scarf and sealed to the face mask. Not an inch of skin was exposed anywhere. It made fighting more than a little exciting. Each team member had emergency patching kits with them. A tear wouldn’t be instantly fatal, but it was going to be a long war. It would be wise to avoid damage as long as they possibly could.

So a patrol was not “merely” a walk with seniors. Each team member had a specific direction to look in. Everyone had jobs to fill. Tian was in the middle, but he had his own quadrant to keep an eye on. He was running Counter-Jumper constantly.

He realized quite quickly why his seniors had insisted he learn how to ‘stroll.’ Far easier to practice your alertness and bodily control on peasants than on the battlefield, but the skills were highly transferable.

Everyone else was doing roughly the same. The heretical cultivators were fighting in the same environment as the orthodox cultivators. It’s why they favored demon summoning, curses and other sorcerous arts. Anything that let them stay behind cover and far away from the fighting was a good thing.

Tian had long noticed that his seniors almost exclusively used flying swords or flying sabers. More than a few used bows, carrying sabers on their hips as backup. Even the ones that favored staves used very long ones that hit like a collapsing mountain. They were also firm believers in not getting into melee in an environment that could kill you.

Tian didn’t know where his rope dart landed in that mix. For the first time, he had one of the shortest range weapons. Since it was still the basic weapon he was issued at Level Three, it was also by far the weakest.

It couldn’t be helped. No better option was available. He would just have to earn military merits and get one made. Given his level, he couldn’t use a powerfully enchanted weapon anyway. It wouldn’t be too expensive. Hopefully.

The squad moved out onto the black sand desert. Patches of solid basalt spread out on the surface like fungus slowly eating a fallen log. The earth itself was riddled with shallow caves and hidden channels barely a few feet deep. The sheer emptiness became oppressive. The back of their brains whispered that the emptiness was a lie, and that enemies were hidden just a step away. They would never know they were surrounded until it was too late.

Not without reason.

Tian looked carefully at his patch of basalt. It was still and dead. He moved his eyes away for a moment, attracted by a rock. There was a flicker of something in the corner of his eye. Before he even saw what it was, his hands were moving, sending the rope dart forward. A scorpion, nearly as big as him, soft black and perfectly blended with the rocks. “ENEMY!”

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“CONTACT FRONT LEFT!

“CONTACT FRONT RIGHT!”

“CONTACT REAR!”

Tian watched his dart bounce off the shell of the scorpion. The scorpion didn’t even hiss, it’s six eyes fixed on him as it rushed in. Pincers as long as his arms reached for him. The sharp hook of the tail up high, coiled, ready to drill down into him, burn him from the inside out with venom. Tian yanked the dart back and spun it quickly around his neck, flicking it out to catch the hook.

The scorpion hissed and rushed in close. The stinger shot forward and down almost faster than Tian’s eyes could follow, like it was trying to pierce the top of his head as the claws closed in on either side of him. Tian saw how the scorpion got low at the front as it raised its hind legs to strike, bowing its whole body. He passed the rope behind his back, and hopped backwards.

It worked, but not quite as well as he hoped. The scorpion was very stable, its front legs spread wide and the brutal claws pressed against the ground, keeping it from flipping over. There was a momentary stalemate. Tian felt the tension on the line. The stinger was fast, but not very strong. With an acrobatic flip in the air, he brought his foot up, over his head and down on the rope, shortening the line.

Something snapped. And then the scorpion screamed.

The stinger didn’t fall off, but the hook had lost its rigidity. It swayed as the scorpion rushed forward to tear its mutilater apart with its claws. Tian rushed forward too, and to the side. Light Body was still at a very crude, very basic level, but he could manage a bit of extra speed. It let him avoid the lunge. With a sharp tug and another twist over the rope, he launched himself onto the scorpion’s back. He had noticed there was a limit to how far down the stinger could stab. Crouching on top of the scorpion was, oddly enough, one of the safer places to be. He didn’t linger. He just started smashing out Thunderous palms, hoping to find the brain of the scorpion somewhere under the armor.

The penetrating force from the palm must have reached something. The scorpion started spasming, legs jerking, broken tail thrashing. It bucked once, hard enough to launch Tian ten feet away. It was dead by the time his feet touched the ground.

He was the last one fighting. Tian flexed Snake Head Vine Body and the rope loosened around the scorpion. He made a tidy hank as he rejoined his brothers.

“We will debrief when we return. Don’t bother harvesting anything from these scorpions, even their venom isn’t worth much. Roughly low-grade Earthly tier.” There had been seven others, each killed with a single sword blow to the face. The senior brothers were already back to watching for enemies.

Tian bowed silently, appreciating what they had done for him. He returned to the line and the patrol continued.

They had only gone another four miles when they were attacked by a bird big enough to carry Tian away, inky black with burning eyes and a screech that pierced the ears and rattled the soul. It could endure the three arrows that pierced it as it approached, but not the saber that rose to decapitate it. The two crossed so fast, Tian missed the moment the blade struck. The horrible bird was diving at them, then it was falling in two parts. Less than two seconds had passed since the bird plunged out of the clouds.

“Is that a Demon, Senior Brother Tan?”

“No, but related. Debrief after. Eyes out.”

They went another ten miles before they ran into a swarm of thick shelled beetles. Tian was in his element there, the whipping dart made a wonderful hammer and the long rope let him sweep the beetles into easily choppable heaps. Unlike the bird or the scorpions, the beetles were swept up into a storage ring without comment.

They did a forty mile loop. Barely half a day’s walk for cultivators. Tian couldn’t remember the last time he was so tired. It was the constant anxiety, punctuated by terror and all out fighting. He ate like a starving wolf at dinner, inhaling the buns and vegetables like they were air, and barely noticing the rich soup filled with chunks of fish.

Once dinner was finished, one of the brothers sat down with him. “Alright, ask.” 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

“What’s a debriefing?” It was the first thing that popped into Tian’s head. He had never heard the word before.

“What’s a debriefing…?”

“Senior Brother.”

“Good. You have almost made it a complete habit. You are doing very well on the bowing too.”

“Thank you, Senior Brother.”

“A debriefing is, technically, an interrogation after a mission to get any useful information. The word ‘interrogation’ puts people off, but it just means asking questions.”

“The scorpions were low-grade Earthly Realm animals?”

“Yep. They are absolutely everywhere in the wastes. They aren’t literally the bottom of the food chain, but they are way, way, way down there.

“The bird, Senior Brother?”

“Not a demon but demonized. Probably an ordinary crow or something that spent too much time near devilish energy, or ate something it really shouldn’t have. Less common than the scorpions, still quite common and since they tend to be completely insane, they are easy to manage.”

“And the beetles?”

“Those are a little more interesting. Still fairly common, but always in high demand regardless. You can process their shells to make a really pretty blue dye. That’s what I hear, anyway. There is a standing bounty for them posted by the crafters.”

“And… do they also kill people? I am pretty sure they were trying to kill me, Senior Brother.”

“You are made of meat, which means food, which means yes, they are trying to kill you. Little Bro, how many plants did you see today?”

“None, I think.”

“Correct. There is lichen hidden here and there, and a few plants that rise just barely above ground. In well protected places, you sometimes find some kind of fungus, or very tough patches of grass. There is more water than you would think, but it’s all bitter, brackish stuff. You have to process it thoroughly before you could drink it, and by the time you did, something would have found you and killed you. Most of the place is brutal, empty desert, filled with the shredding stone wind.”

“So the only food is other animals. Except for whatever eats the lichen, I suppose.” Tian shook his head.

“Yep. And the heretical cultivators not only live there, they grow powerful.” The senior brother patted Tian on the shoulder. “You did well. Get some sleep. I guarantee today was the easiest day you will ever have in the wasteland.”