65 Survival

Protector Song sweated profusely as he made a move. It was the most difficult game he had ever played in his life and made him wonder if Transcendents had an unfair advantage in the game.

Can he read my mind? he wondered. No, that's impossible. There's no way a Transcendent who can read minds would be stuck in a backwater place like this.

Mind reading or not, the entire game hinged on this final point. It was a Ko fight , a stage of the game where they sought out each other's weaknesses. Protector Song wasn't bothered by such a close game. After all, he had gone through many grueling games such as this in the past. What bothered him was that he had precisely thirteen weaknesses left while his opponent had forty-seven. He was clearly slow rolling him! Yet the man was unfathomably powerful, and he could only play along.

Truth be told, the endgame had been ongoing for the past twelve hours. With every move, his frightening opponent took an unreasonable amount of time.

Is he trying to delay me? No, that can't be. How would that whelp know someone so unreasonably powerful? The only reasonable explanation is that he's an eccentric master that passionately loves this game.

Despite the eighty or so remaining moves, the game continued until well after sunset. Protector Song wore a long face as he made each of his moves with lightning speed, only to be chastised by the older man for being too impatient. Impatient, my ass! You're just making this difficult for no reason. Resign!

Finally, only three moves were left. The older man finally let out a long sigh and voiced a silent resignation. Tears were practically streaming down Protector Song's cheeks. He swiftly got up and bowed to the superior cultivator. "Thank you for the game!" he shouted.

"Off you go, you little runt." Protector Song darted off, flying toward the nearby mountain range, where ominous clouds were gathering. "The younger generation is so impolite nowadays," the older man muttered.

***

Elder Ling let out a long sigh as he looked toward the weeping willow behind him. "You may as well come out. I know you're here." A few breaths of silence followed. Elder Ling grunted and threw a talisman toward the tree. The projection of massive fangs appeared in front of the tree and bit down on the tough bark. Splinters flew out everywhere until the tree completely disappeared. A beautiful woman with long black hair and black robes now stood in its place.

"If you can hide for fifty years, why can't I hide for a few moments?" the woman spat back, her voice full of venom.

"My dear wife, you sure know how to jest. It's so boring in the sect, and I knew that it was fine in your perfectly capable hands," Elder Ling said with a smile on his face.

"Shameless!" she yelled. Thousands of pitch black chains appeared in front of her. They darted out and surrounded Elder Ling, who didn't resist in the slightest. Mr. Mao Mao got up and howled in rage at the treatment. The woman frowned.

She snorted. "The third wheel. Well, I have an old friend here to keep you company." A tiny little white kitten stepped out from behind the woman. While it looked defenseless, Mao Mao's pupils narrowed as he backed away shivering.

"Damn you, you vicious witch!" Mao Mao roared. "How dare you bring that thing here?" Mao Mao's intimidating aura faded little by little as he gradually shrunk in size. Yet he still stood in front of Elder Ling, protecting him.

"Get him, Miu Miu!" she said. The baby kitten nodded and disappeared before suddenly reappearing beside Mao Mao. She extended her baby kitten claws and shot out a white web, trapping Mao Mao. He was now a little helpless cat ball, and Miu Miu began playing him with an expression of pure joy.

"I'm taking you back to the sect," she said. "You're grounded for a hundred years."

Elder Ling teared up when he heard this. "Can I just do one small thing before going? I only need a couple of hours. It's very important this time, I swear!"

"What could possibly be important in this backwater place?" She sniffed before flying out into the sky at ten times the speed of lightning. Both the frightening Elder Ling and the imposing Mr. Mao Mao were nothing in front of that woman and the kitten. This wasn't the first time they'd escaped, however. They knew resistance was futile.

***

Protector Song kept his perception expanded in every direction, searching for signs of the two convicts. They weren't even at foundation establishment, so he figured there was only so far they could travel. Meanwhile, the ominous black cloud had precipitated its first bolt of lightning. It would shoot out any minute.

Calamity Lightning? There shouldn't be anyone transcending here in the middle of nowhere. Just what is going on? Of course, it wasn't possible for him to interfere with Heaven's judgment. As long as he didn't enter the lightning's deadly range, no harm would come to him.

His eyes narrowed when he finally saw the area where the lightning would strike. A young man and his pet fox where sitting in the middle of a strange formation. A white circle surrounded them, and a web protected them from above.

How is this possible? he thought. Even a Godbeast wouldn't have to overcome a Calamity Lightning to enter Foundation Establishment.

Still, he had found his quarry. He sat cross-legged in midair just outside the range of the Heavenly Tribulation, waiting for it to end. When he noticed the lightning splitting into two portions, he shook his head derisively.

Alas, I might not even need to act. They'll need a miracle to survive.

***

Cha Ming gripped his staff tightly as he gazed up at the sinister clouds. They crackled in rage as they prepared to smite down those who dared defy the heavens. The first bolt struck down suddenly, giving Cha Ming barely any time to react before striking the shield of knives. Much of its power dissipated, and the remaining strength of the bolt, which was as thick as a needle, dissipated as soon as it struck the white bubble generated by the circle of protection. He still felt his skin tingle as some residual lightning bathed his body and soul.

He had overcome the first strike without needing to lift a finger, but he knew it wouldn't be so easy from now on. A second bolt of lightning flew down from the heavens. This time, it was two fingers thick. It weakened considerably as it crossed both shields. Cha Ming was ready for this one and struck out at the bolt with his staff. It was an ordinary strike with his Hard Staff Art, but it dissipated a good deal of the lightning's energy. Cha Ming lost all feeling in his body as the lightning traveled through his head and down to his toes. He felt great exhaustion from the bolt, both physically and spiritually.

Still, he readied himself to receive the third bolt. This time, he didn't fool around and increased the weight of his staff to 100 jin. The first part of the test was a battle of endurance, and he needed to waste as little energy as possible. The heavens rumbled for an incense time before accumulating into a lightning bolt as thick as a fist. It was weakened two times consecutively, and Cha Ming used a Quake Staff strike to dissipate the majority of it. This time, however, it took him several breaths to recover his motor functions.

How frightening, he thought. And Huxian and I will have to fight nine of these? This part could be considered a warmup. He looked over at Huxian curiously, only to see him yawn as he waited for the next bolt. Alas, not everyone is created equal.

The next bolt gathered for a quarter hour before crashing down. It was as thick as a leg, and it caused the formations to tremble as it traveled through them. Cha Ming increased the weight of his staff to 500 jin. He coughed out blood as the bolt struck him, searing several portions of his flesh. He instantly activated Healing Flower Manifestation with his rosary, recovering from the serious wounds. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do about the charred flesh.

However, he didn't have as much time to recover as he expected. The next bolt came down after a single incense time. This one was as thick as a human body. The air screamed as the lightning passed and struck the shield with full force. Cha Ming manifested a fiery shield atop of himself before barely defending with his staff. The might of the impact finally made him realize the severity of the situation. If the red-bearded man hadn't made these formations, he would have died by now.

One incense time later, the sixth bolt rushed down from the heavens. It roared as it descended, taking the shape of a flood dragon. The lightning flood dragon's power and speed were frighteningly stronger than the last two bolts, and Cha Ming was forced to defend once more. This time, he felt his insides sear as the lightning traveled through him. The formation above them cracked slightly with the latest blow.

Brother, this is bad, Huxian warned. This was as strong as the final bolt of a Calamity Lightning, and this is only the sixth bolt! I don't think the formations will be able to last for very long. Use everything you have and hang in there.

Cha Ming focused his eyes on the sky above. His pupils contracted when he saw that the lightning in the sky was no longer white, but red instead. The sky rumbled for three quarters of an hour before a single, finger-thick peal of red lightning struck down four times as fast as the previous one. Cha Ming felt death approach with this bolt of lightning. He didn't hesitate to pour wood qi and fire qi into an Earth Shield Manifestation above him. He increased the weight of his staff to 756 jin and increased the length to double its original. This small bolt of red lightning shattered the top formation as it passed through. It weakened while passing through the circle of protection, but it took Cha Ming's full strength to ward it off. Despite this, he suffered grievous injuries in the process.

Cha Ming gritted his teeth as he noticed that a second peal of red lightning rained down on them half an incense time later. He didn't hesitate to send out 36 pearls in advance as a giant sword. The lightning impacted the circle of protection, shattering it. The sword slightly weakened the lightning before it hit on Cha Ming's earth shield once more, breaking it apart like crumbly bread. Cha Ming used his strongest physical strike to resist once more. He felt his heart stop for a full three breaths before starting up again.

How on earth am I going to resist it? He looked over to Huxian, whose fur was singed. The fox was otherwise all right. He looked toward Cha Ming worriedly.

Don't worry about me, brother, Huxian said. This last lightning bolt is the least threatening for me. I'll use my powers as a Bagua Fox to first purify then swallow the bolt of lightning. The energy will form the basis of my advancement as a demon beast. Just focus on yourself, and don't hold anything back!

The last bolt of lightning accumulated for a full hour before coming down. It was a red bolt as thick as a fist. Cha Ming gulped as he saw it rushing down. He was practically helpless without the aid of the formations. Yet he didn't give up. First, he imbued twelve pearls with all five types of qi. They glowed with a white light as they flew into the sky. As the bolt of lightning flew toward him, Cha Ming decisively clenched his fist and detonated the pearls, slightly weakening the bolt in the process. He then threw up thirty-six pearls. They hovered together in a circular formation. As the bolt approached it, he detonated them as well.

Finally, he threw up the last seventy-two pearls. They flew to the sky in a formation that looked very similar to the circle Sun Wukong had drawn. This was a last-ditch effort by Cha Ming, an imitation of the Circle of Protection formation. He had no idea if it would work, but it was worth trying!

The seventy-two pearls glowed brightly as they came together, forming an intricate circle with complex geometric symbols. Cha Ming had imbued them with all his remaining five-element qi, in addition to all of his creation qi. They shuddered as the lightning tore through them, though it had clearly weakened in the process. It only took an instant for them to crack and finally shatter from the power of the red lightning bolt.

Cha Ming looked at the bolt with determination as it came down. He took his 756 jin, 18-foot-long staff and swung it out with perfect timing. The staff struck the bolt with the most power Cha Ming had ever imbued in it. It shook slightly but did not shatter. Instead, it winked out of existence and flew into Cha Ming's body.

Cha Ming stayed calm as the lightning approached. A red lotus brooch on his shirt glowed slightly as it activated its one-time defensive function. This was the brooch that Hong Lai had crafted for Cha Ming as compensation for pointing out a flaw in his craftmanship. It didn't do much to weaken the lightning, but mosquito meat is still meat . The lightning struck Cha Ming square in the chest. He felt intense pain as the lightning devastated his body. His internal organs cooked, and his meridians began burning and tearing.

Blood burst out of his mouth, and he was forced to kneel and catch his breath. Simply existing at this point was pure agony. By his side, he saw Huxian turn into two gigantic foxes, one black and one white. They calmly swallowed the lightning just as he had said. The calamity was now over. The clouds quickly dispersed, and Huxian trotted over to Cha Ming and began licking his wounds. His brother had survived. Barely.

Then there was the sound of clapping.

Both Cha Ming and Huxian looked up to see a floating armored figure.

"Congratulations, my friends," the figure said. It's not every day you see someone passing a tribulation prior to entering Foundation Establishment." The figure floated down to the top of the mountain. Cha Ming forced himself to stand up, despite his grievous wounds.

"Does Senior require anything from us?" Cha Ming asked. He understood that people could barely manage to fly at the foundation-establishment realm. But even then they had to use flying swords. This figure didn't use any such treasure.

"Ah, thank you for asking, young friend," the man replied amicably. "You see, Cha Ming, I am here for your life."

Cha Ming paled when he heard this. They were clearly not this man's match, so he struggled to find an answer that could buy them time. It was so unfair. They had survived Heaven's wrath only to be killed by a cultivator.

"Why might you be needing my life, sir? I can't say that I'm acquainted with you," Cha Ming said.

"No, you aren't. But you see, my Young Master Zhou Li's older brother perished recently. The Young Master has determined that you are the culprit. So guilty or not, I must kill you. Any last words?" The armored man drew his sword as he spoke and pointed it toward Cha Ming.

Cha Ming held out his injured left hand and put it on Huxian's head. Then he reached inside his bag of holding and retrieved a badly damaged piece of paper. It was the ruined talisman that he had purchased at the trade meet. After Sun Wukong had laid out the protection formation, Cha Ming was destitute. All his spirit stones, crystalized elemental essence, and ink had been utilized. After using the brooch to defend against the Calamity Lightning, all he had left was this worn-out piece of paper.

Where's all my good luck when I need it? he said to Huxian mentally. I gave the last of it to Feng Ming, so I can only trust fate will get us through this. Get ready. I'm going to use the talisman. We have a ninety-eight percent chance it's a dud, and a one percent chance of success. If it's the other one percent… at least we'll have a great way to commit suicide.

The armored man frowned when he saw the talisman but didn't stop them once he saw it in its wretched state. "Are you sure you want to risk using such a wasted object? How about you just give up, and I'll leave you a complete corpse?"

Cha Ming smiled at the man before pouring what remained of his qi and spiritual force into the talisman. "Tell Zhou Li I'll come back to collect our debts."

Protector Song grunted and sent his sword flying toward Cha Ming, aiming to impale him.

Cha Ming felt a small prick on his chest as the sword stabbed into him. But it didn't continue. It was as though time and space had frozen. He tried to communicate with Huxian, but to no avail. Then he noticed the space around him breaking up, piece by piece. A storm of mysterious black energy was heading toward them like a whirlwind.

Cha Ming looked down toward Huxian, who now had an expression of fear in his eyes. The storm of black energy blew them apart, and they flew off into the distance. Cha Ming felt his body being torn apart by the strain. His damaged meridians were being chopped into tiny pieces. He felt his bones shatter and his skin break.

And then his mind went blank.