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The Imperial Transport.

And one that had finally arrived with a most precious of cargos.

Master Hei Dong had kept his eye on the craft ever since it arrived in view a few hours ago and now he waited for the various planetary skiffs disembarking to deliver their goods and passengers from the core worlds to the small backwater that was Jurin Province.

It would have been less costly to have arranged for passage via the larger imperial skiffs that would land at the Capital in Li Wan Province and then hire a smaller skiff to make the hop over to Jurin, but Hei Dong had spared no expense for his special guest.

And why not?

Not only would it bring Hei Dong more favor as a host, but in the end, he would not be the one paying the bill anyway. A smile came to his lips as he savored the victory soon to be had.

“Must you pace so?”

The words had come from the High Magistrate, Yi Xhi Yen.

“Apologies,” Hei Dong said with a short bow. “This One is filled with anticipation. It has been months in preparation after all.”

Yi Xhi Yen merely harrumphed, clearly not pleased by being dragged to perform official duties so late at night. She had joined him to welcome the Grand Sage from the core worlds, more due to the formality of procedure than a true greeting. The Sage had come at the behest of the Courts after all, and she had to be here to officially receive him—even if Hei Dong was footing the initial bill.

He didn’t want to even remind himself of the cost of passage for the Grand Sage, which was paltry compared to the time for the Grand Sage himself.

62 spirit stones per day, he thought. And he had charged for every day since leaving his domicile in the core worlds. Two months of passage.

The total sum knotted in his stomach with stress.

This foolishness with Lo Feng needs to be over with quickly, he thought.

He had depleted a large portion of his family’s estate on the Sage and he needed to burden Lo Feng with that cost as quickly as possible.

Assuming he could even pay it.

But the Fire Birds had access to wealth.

Wealth questionably gained but wealth nonetheless.

Another ten minutes went by before a glowing light appeared in the distance. A black skiff then emerged, covered with a canopy in contrast to the planet-bound skiffs that roamed the surface. It was large enough to fit some fifty people, but when it finally landed only one disembarked.

The man was taller than Hei Dong had expected and younger-looking as well. In his mind he had pictured a venerable old man, hunched over at the waist, but perhaps he had been thinking too stereotypically. The man that approached them looked even younger than himself, late thirties perhaps.

Only a streak of silver in his jet-black hair gave him an aura of experience that tempered his youth. Were it not for his auspicious beige and purple-trimmed robes as well as the small jade crown that signified him as a Grand Sage, Hei Dong would have easily assumed him a fraud.

But as he neared, Hei Dong understood how he had achieved such a youthful appearance.

His spiritual pressure was immense, similar if not superior to that of the Warden herself.

He had to be a high-tier Sacred Soul Realm cultivator, but to achieve such a high cultivation level as a Sage normally took centuries. The man smiled warmly as he came to a stop and bowed before them and both he and Yi Xhi Yen did the same.

Hei Dong had prepared to bow first but the man beat him to it, taking a surprisingly humble posture of a servant.

“Greetings,” he said. “This One is known as Zin Tai, Imperial Grand Sage to the Lower Courts and servant of his Divine Imperial Majesty, Soul Emperor Yu Lun Yee.”

The auspicious title was enough to make Hei Dong’s skin bristle with fear, yet the man gave no impression of his superiority at all. He was one who had no doubt been within the Great Soul Emperor’s physical presence himself.

A feat few could attest to.

Or even survive if they were mere mortals.

“This One is Yi Xhi Yen,” the High Magistrate said formally. “The courts officially welcome you to Jurin Province, Grand Sage Zin Tai.”

He smiled again. “It is a pleasure to finally meet you in person, High Magistrate.” He then glanced at Master Hei Dong and bowed again. “I am sorry, you must be my benefactor. Vice Warden Hei Dong, I presume?”

Hei Dong bowed, almost embarrassed at how low the Grand Master bowed to him. “Please, I am merely Master Hei Dong of the Dong Family, part of the greater Silver Leaf Clan.”

“Master Hei Dong is representing his personal family,” Yi Xhi Yen explained. “And as a private citizen. Not a Vice-Warden.”

“Ah, I understand.”

“How were your travels?” Hei Dong asked. “Was the journey comfortable?”

“Much,” he said. “I do not travel out of the core systems often and if I do it is normally via Omni Gate. I must say it was quite refreshing to experience the joy of travel in such a relaxed and leisurely manner.”

“I am pleased to hear it,” Hei Dong said and then added with a chuckle, “One so busy such as yourself, I feared you would have loathed wasting so much time being stuck on an Imperial Transport for eight weeks.”

The man laughed with a genuine and pleasant tone. “In all honesty, it felt like a true vacation. As you said, my schedule does not leave much in the way of leisure. I caught up on much reading and meditation during my transit, so for that I thank you.”

Hei Dong smiled. At least his money seemed to have gone to good use.

“I must admit,” Hei Dong said, feeling more comfortable around the man. “You are much younger in appearance than I presumed you would be. You must truly be a gifted cultivator to have achieved transition to the Sacred Soul Realm at such a young age as a Scholar.”

Zin Tai laughed with a slight blush. “Indeed. Another odd characteristic I am known for within the Courts.”

“Apologies, I did not mean any insult of course.”

“None taken,” he said. “But in truth there is no anomaly with my cultivation talent. I became a sage much later in life.”

Hei Dong raised a brow in surprise. “Is that so?”

“Yes,” Zin Tai said. “I began my cultivation path as a martial artist in my youth, but upon reaching the Jade Bracket I found the deeper mysteries and complexity of Qi cultivation far more interesting than simply employing it for violence.”

Hei Dong chuckled. “You would perhaps find yourself at odds with my wife then, she lives for combat and fancies herself a fighter to this day.”

“I would love the pleasure of meeting her then.”

“And she you,” Hei Dong said. “We will have ample time. We have prepared a villa for you at our estate.”

“Oh,” he said. “That is quite generous of you.”

“And unnecessary,” Yi Xhi Yen added. “I have already booked you a room at the Imperial Marquis. It is the best resort within the city, Grand Sage.”

“Ah,” Zin Tai said, looking a bit sheepish. “Well thank you.”

“There is ample room at my estate,” Hei Dong said. “No need for further expense.”

“Your hospitality is most appreciated, Master Hei Dong,” Yi Xhi Yen said. “But I remind you that you are still a party to a dispute and while you are funding the Honorable Grand Sage’s presence here, the neutrality of the courts must be absolute, which includes appearances. The perception alone, of the Grand Sage residing at your residence, would be disturbing to say the least, to the counter party within this dispute.”

Hei Dong blushed with embarrassment. He was indeed trying to leverage more than mere hospitality by hosting the Grand Sage, but it had nothing to do with the court case. Of that he was assured of victory, but a man in the Grand Sage’s position was someone good to know on a personal level. And this would be a rare opportunity to foster such a relationship while he was here on Terra. But perhaps there was some means yet to capitalize on his visit. To have paid such an enormous amount and have no tangible return for his investment would be a travesty.

“Quite understood and agreed, High Magistrate,” Hei Dong said and then he bowed to Zin Tai. “Grand Sage, once the proceedings conclude, I would extend my invitation to you if you so desire to tarry a few days before your return to the interior. I am not certain how often one in your position has chance to visit the exotic reaches of the Empire’s domain, but we have much to offer as a young planet. Our excursions and local spirit beasts are not to be missed, and we are at the start of our local Gold Bracket tournament which you may find somewhat entertaining as well. My home is welcome to you in that regard.”

The Grand Sage smiled and returned his bow. “Most generous of you, Master Hei Dong. If time permits within my schedule, I may indeed accept your gracious offer.”

Hei Dong smiled at his small victory, but Yi Xhi Yen did not look impressed.

“The case will commence at noon tomorrow,” she said. “I am sure the Grand Sage would like to retire now and rest from his travels in order to render his services to the court tomorrow.”

“Yes of course,” Hei Dong said.

“And we shall be forwarding you the bill from the Imperial Marquis, Master Hei Dong,” Yi Xhi Yen said. “Regardless of the outcome.”

Hei Dong smirked inwardly at the unnecessary remark.

But what was another 100 spirit stones on top of 10,000?

“Very well,” he said. “I shall see you both in court tomorrow.”

* * *

I brought my axe down hard, cutting through three demons as I sprinted through what had become a near endless tunnel. It was smaller than I had imagined it would be, barely 15 feet wide and 10 feet tall, with at least a foot of that taken up by plastic conduit strapped to the walls and ceiling. It made my use of the glaive all but impossible and even wielding my axe challenging at times. I pressed on with speed through the semi-darkness, making use of the open space where we could.

Behind me I could hear Kelsey’s heavy breathing along with her pounding footfalls.

“199!” she called out, making note of the mile markers printed in yellow numbers on the wall. “Last damn one, thank God!”

We’d been pushing hard, but our progress had been anything but speedy.

I slowed a bit as we neared what would be about a half mile left to our destination.

“What’s wrong?” Kelsey asked. “More up ahead?”

“No,” I said, sensing nothing approaching us. “The opposite. Let’s rest while we can. Before the big push into the bunker.”

“Good idea,” Kelsey said, and we both stopped to finally catch our breath.

We’d been running and fighting non-stop for the last three hours since our last break and were covered in the sweat and demon blood to prove it. Kelsey collapsed against the conduits attached to the wall and slid down while pulling a canteen from her pack. She chugged the water and offered me some.

“You keep it,” I said. “I still got some left.”

We sat in silence for a while, using the limited water we had to wash our hands and faces before drinking some and then chowing down on the cold rice and cured meat we had brought as food. After traversing the wild so many times over the last few months, my body was fairly well conditioned, but I could tell Kelsey was struggling. I pulled out the elixir I had brought with me from the city and chugged half of it before giving it to Kelsey.

“Take that,” I said, savoring the icy taste of oranges and limes it’d left on my tongue. “It’ll help replenish your body.”

She downed it without question and let out an appreciative sigh. “Man, that tastes like heaven. What was it?”

I shrugged. “Some Qi cultivator spirit juice stuff. Not sure how much it’ll help, but it tastes refreshing at least.”

“That’s for sure.”

“How you holding up?” I asked.

“I think I must have conquered my Fear of Certain Death by now,” she said. “Because I’m pretty sure I died about eighty miles back already.”

I chuckled at her dry humor.

She was indeed probably running on pure frenzy by now, probably relying on [Death’s Door] for some of her functions. But I wouldn’t know that from just looking at her. She looked fresh as ever and was still pushing as hard as I was to keep pace with me.

But beyond the dogged determination in her gaze, I could see more there as well.

“How about inside?” I asked.

“Flame is burning like a volcano,” she said. “Getting stronger the closer we get. These demons are in for a world of hurt.”

I smiled. “That’s good, but I wasn’t talking about that.”

She looked confused for a moment, but then looked down sullenly as she finally understood what I’d meant. She released a sigh. “It’s literally all I keep thinking about. I know Harris forgave me and all but…” She shook her head. “Jim, man. I killed Jim.”

I didn’t say anything, but just listened as she stared into some unseen point in front of her.

Eventually she continued. “And I know it wasn’t me me, but it was still me, you know? It was me to them.”

I nodded. “Sometimes the Path takes you places you don’t want to end up…but, in my experience…limited as it is, I’ve found to always trust it. No matter how painful it can be.”

Kelsey frowned. “You know what the worst part was?”

I raised a brow at her rhetorical question.

“Afterwards,” she said. “Once I came back to myself. I could sense their fear. Their fear of me

. I’d become a monster to them.” She then paused a moment. “Maybe I always will be…”

I could sense the pain inside her then, the strength of the Struggler pushing through.

“Hold onto that,” I told her. “The pain of that memory can one day be the thing that saves you from becoming a monster for real. And to be honest, more people know your secret than they do mine now.”

“Huh?”

I chuckled. “It’s true. I only just revealed myself to Fia and thankfully that went well in the end, but no one else in my family knows. Maybe they never will.” I pondered that a moment and considered that I might never be able to reveal my Berserker nature to Yu Li, Gui Zu, or Jian Yi. “Like I said. People treat this Berserker stuff way different in the city. Yee society is no joke.”

Another lull fell between us as we relaxed against the walls.

Then finally Kelsey spoke.

“Max, if we survive this I want you to promise me something,” she said.

I looked over at her quizzically. “Sure.”

“Take me to the city,” she said. “Once I know my mom is safe, I think it’s time for me to get away from this place for a while.”

There was no juvenile pleading like before.

Kelsey needed space to still come to grips with what had happened.

And I couldn’t blame her.

“What’s your name?” I asked her in Yee.

She looked at me startled for a moment, suddenly realizing it was a test.

“This One is… known… as… Kel Zhi,” she said stiltedly.

“Never seen you before, where are you from?”

“I… from… D block. Ter…ran… Sect.”

I chuckled. “You still sound retarded as hell, but you can understand pretty good. Maybe you can pass.”

I’d spoken in Yee and it took her a few seconds to translate.

“Hey!” she said a few seconds later. “I understood that, damn it.”

I laughed. “Guess that means you pass, Kel Zhi.”

She shook her head with a smile. “Asshole.”

I looked up at the ceiling and wished I could see the sky.

“How long has it been now?” I asked switching back to English.

Kelsey glanced at her watch. “About fourteen hours.”

“Crap,” I said. “This took a hell of a lot longer than I thought it would.”

“Yeah, no shit. This place was packed with demons. I think I must be High-Tier Foundation Realm by now with how much Frenzy I’ve been cultivating from killing them.”

“A nice side effect but we’ve got another problem now.”

“What’s that?”

I pulled out Jim’s map. “According to this, the gate was on the second floor. That’s close enough to the surface for the Bloodmoon to affect us.”

Kelsey grimaced.

“I put us at just before noon right now. That gives us about seven hours to clear the bunker up to the second floor and destroy that gate.”

“That’s plenty of time,” Kelsey said. “Let’s get to it.”

“Hold on,” I said. “I’m down to about half a tank and your body needs rest as well. If we push forward, we’ve got to make sure it’s enough.”

“Or what?” Kelsey asked. “Wait it out another fourteen hours in this damn tunnel for the next day break? Screw that. With those things coming out of the gate, they’ll keep us up all night anyway.”

I grinned. “Just making sure we’re on the same page.”

She smiled back at me, her Flame increasing in intensity.

“Still,” I said, slipping into lotus position as I prepared to meditate. “Seven hours is a lot of time. Let’s give ourselves a couple to rest and restock.” I glanced at the map again, and looked at the path we’d have to take to get to the top.

“Because once we enter that bunker, there’ll be no stopping until we get it done.”