V3C41: The Competition, Part 4

While Wei Yi couldn’t say that she appreciated the nickname that had been given to her, it was one that made sense for the persona that she had been intending to portray, so she could not count it as anything other than a success alongside Chao Ru’s victory.

She hadn’t had many opportunities to experiment with that particular method of strengthening another, given the fact that it required a rather intimate situation and what could only be described as an excess of fluid consumption by the one being strengthened, but it did allow her to confirm that through a slight stimulation of her physique energy, it could permeate the body and then affect another, albeit to a far more limited extent.

In theory, blood or even saliva would be a far better conduit through which to transfer traces of  physique energy, given the fact that the former was somehow more conventional while the latter could be accomplished through numerous semi-casual kisses, but the former did bring her onto a slightly different form of power – bloodlines.

Besides the case of Chao Jianhong, the Lady of Ashes turned draconic hybrid, there were quite a few interesting cases of bloodlines of powerful beasts influencing the body, mind and energy of others. Some were born with the bloodlines of an ancient beast as a result of a long forgotten night shared by a human and what was hopefully a humanoid planar beast, or, at the very least, a planar beast in human form, gaining powers that were becoming rather subdued the more generations passed and the more human features one gained, whereas others attempted similar experiments with blood and bloodlines as the Blood-tinged Church and had some degrees of success every now and then.

The primary point in all of this is that bloodlines contained a sort of inherent power that caused those who consume blood containing them to be transformed by the bloodline, especially when it is stimulated by a technique, array or ritual, or some combination of the three, and that her physique energy was currently behaving in a somewhat similar manner when similarly stimulated, suggesting a few possibilities straight away.

One was that the long-term effects of the Yin-Yang Ascendant physique had altered her body permanently, changing the very bloodline within her and imbuing it with its properties, meaning that she had taken a step away from common humanity before even reaching the appropriate realms.

Another was that there was a far closer link between physiques and bloodlines than she had initially assumed when first realising that all forms of energy were inherently linked with planar energy, thus also confirming the theory that was held by many that those born to large families gained greater talent not just due to the resources afforded to them, but also due to the powerful realms reached by their ancestors. This would be far more natural if bloodlines simply required particularly powerful energy to be altered, and it would mean that if she did ever have a child, he or she would inherit much of her talent and power, allowing them to advance in realms far more quickly than most other people.

She still didn’t have any intentions to test this without some secret method to impregnate another woman on her own, which was unlikely to be created or discovered any time soon, but it did give her a little more confidence in the possibility of having a child that could actually have the ability to take care of him or herself even if she was unable to take care of her at all times.

‘The main point, however, is that bloodlines function on a sort of hierarchy, from what I understand. Humans have the weakest bloodline of all cultivating entities, and dragons, phoenixes and the like have some of the strongest. The weak become transformed by the bloodlines they attempt to take in, changing themselves to suit the blood, whereas the strong can take in features of the bloodline, changing it to suit themselves. In theory, if I was able to obtain a bloodline through the use of the Yin-Yang Ascendant, Ascendant’s Dao and Path, and the killing will that I cultivate, I might be able to empower it with bloodlines of a low power until I am able to absorb a draconic bloodline without much risk,’ Wei Yi theorised as she headed out onto the arena, the possibility being a rather enticing one, especially when she glanced inwardly at the empty meridian network within herself, ‘Given that bloodlines are also a consequence of planar energy, it might be possible to cultivate them as well.’

Although she still didn’t think that she should grab the blood of any random planar beast and consume it, she did want to visit the Blood-bound Pursuers and investigate whether they had any understanding of this matter, or if they knew of the Blood-tinged Church and had any relation to them.

Even if they didn’t, with a name like the Blood-bound Pursuers, they were bound to have plenty of interesting information stored away somewhere, hopefully without much protection from spiritual perception so that she would be able to read it with minimal effort and obtain as much of their knowledge as possible without needing to chase down their leader and defeat them, or something along those lines.

Once again, that was something for later. For now, she was finally facing the Warlord’s Banners physique – or, rather, Luo Rongmeng.

Beside him, there were two more foes for her to deal with, two overly burly and muscular women, both in the Half-Step Active Core, although one had the realm-appropriate energy whereas the other possessed the core that allowed him to solidify planar energy. Luo Rongmeng himself was only in the ninth stage of Emergent Anchor, but it was obvious to most that he was the most dangerous amongst the three due to his physique, which had won him almost every battle that he had participated in.

Much like Wei Yi had been chosen to partake in every duel that she could, he was also set to participate in the majority of upcoming duels, which meant that if he fell now, he would either need to be replaced with another, weaker combatant, or the Gang Hong Clan would have to make do with one less person for those particular fights.

Regardless of what they would go with, it was obvious that getting rid of him now was the best course of action, and she was fortunately quite prepared for this.

She had spent a little more time within the Realm of Potential while waiting for the first duel to begin, and while waiting for the people beaten by Chao Ru to be removed from the arena, and although it had not given her enough time to raise the stage of any of her techniques, she had specifically planned out this fight to understand how to best defeat him while allowing him to expend as little of his precious energy as possible, as, although he lacked physique energy as she understood it, utilising the physique would still drain a form of energy separate from his planar energy.

The less of that energy that he spent, the larger the chance of her successfully awakening the Warlord’s Banners physique ability, empowering her own physique energy and adding a powerful tool to her arsenal with far less effort than consistently destroying her body with failed talismans.

As for those on her side… She had managed to convince Luo Lia Kun to submit a slightly incorrect version of the combatant order to the arena that listed two people that didn’t quite exist within the Brotherhood of Power, whether as permanent members or temporary hires, meaning that she was free to fight on her own, without needing to watch out for allies.

Up on the spectator stands, Shi Taihao noted the significant difference in quantity between the two sides and looked across at Luo Lia Kun, attempting to figure out something from her expression, but he only saw confidence, meaning that this wasn’t an actual mistake.

She had meant to submit that list, which meant that she was staking her hopes on that one woman.

In her position, Shi Taihao would have done the same, although he would have still given her the same backup as he had given Luo Rongmeng, since fighting against crowds always put one at a disadvantage. It was well known that a cultivator in the third realm could be killed even by ordinary folk, so long as they had enough time, patience, and sharp objects to stab their dantian or eye with, and while this was made significantly more difficult in the fourth realm and above, it still wasn’t impossible for someone with enough commitment to penetrate the core and shatter the anchor within.

That there was no one to assist Wei Yi this time, to him, meant that just as he had managed to obtain a fortunate opportunity and advance the realms of most of his warriors, so did Luo Lia Kun.

‘Hold on, I don’t think that she had ever used her planar energy outwardly so far,’ Shi Taihao recalled, his eyes narrowing slightly, ‘Was that because she has little ability to use it, or is that because she has not yet needed to unleash it even once?’

With her claws at the ready, Wei Yi smiled with as much confidence as she could infuse into every single one of her expressions, silently circulating her cosmic energy as she prepared to follow a little bit of the advice that had been given to her earlier, to strike out at full force and not give a single opportunity for the banner-wielding man to utilise his few advantages to potentially inflict some serious form of damage upon her.

Meanwhile, Luo Rongmeng did almost the exact same thing, for he had sufficient experience in battle to know that the foe that he faced was not a simple one.

“Following up on my earlier re-introduction, I will begin with the only individual on the side of the Brotherhood of Power – she must have far bigger balls than all of those in the Gang Hong Clan combined to be going against one of their greatest fighters in the Emergent Anchor realm!” the announcer exclaimed, “I’m surprised she wasn’t picked up by the Gang Hong Clan, frankly.”

His voice went quiet as the talisman he had been using finally turned to ash, doing so at the perfect time to not broadcast the numerous complaints he received from some of the organisers of the event. By the time that he activated a new talisman, a few minutes passed.

“As for the other side, there isn’t much to say. Everyone has advanced, two are now in the Half-Step Active Core realm, which feels far more common than any half-step realm has even been, except for the guy in the middle, who has carried the Gang Hong Clan quite far, much like that woman has brought the Brotherhood of Power far further than they would have otherwise gotten. Now, let us see which one is stronger! Begin!”

Neither of them took their time to start. As always, Wei Yi disappeared, this time doing so in a flash of flame, a pair of five scorching trails appearing within the air and flying straight towards Luo Rongmeng, as if her claws were able to sever the very space itself with their flaming tips, ignited by the planar energy infused throughout the star metal.

The two on Luo Rongmeng’s left and right rushed forward to block her path and to protect him, intending to give him some time to set down his banners as to be able to confront the warrior with a little more preparation and more favourable odds, but the instant that Wei Yi’s form reappeared before them, the twin trails of flame cut straight through their forms twice, severing countless blood vessels within their bodies and almost splitting them in half, with only feeble links of flesh and muscle keeping them together, while their clothing was absolutely ruined.

In an instant, they were brought to the very edge of their life, but they did manage to delay her for just a moment.

As she hastened towards him once more, the motions to set down a banner were already midway through completion, and thus she was in the perfect place to witness a banner drop from the sky with a fog of blood obscuring her vision, shading everything before her in a dark crimson.

The banner fell behind Luo Rongmeng, far enough to the point that the range of its effect and the circle around it just barely included Wei Yi, but she couldn’t think of retreating as the moment that she gave him the opportunity to set down more banners, or do something else that she had not yet witnessed. Instead, she directed an even greater quantity of planar energy into her legs, practically vanishing from sight once more.

A set of five scorching lines descended upon Luo Rongmeng, who reacted just in time to activate the mark upon one of the banners hanging from his shoulders, a powerful banner-like barrier surging from it and blocking her strike, although it immediately crumbled the moment that her claws separated from it.

It also didn’t push her back in the slightest, so while he attempted to retreat, she aimed her strikes at him again and again. Each attack was able to deplete a single one of the protective marks, but it also permitted him to get closer to his own banner, and for more of the energy within to seep into herself.

Due to nothing but the burning tips of her claws remaining visible for long, the slight smile that appeared upon her face was unseen by all that she was aware of, and those few that might have the ability to view her even during such fast movement would be unlikely notice it. She pressed on with great haste, slashing, cutting, and stabbing over and over, mark after protective mark cracking under her onslaught.

Traces of impatience appeared upon Luo Rongmeng’s face, as more than half of the marks upon the banners on his left shoulder were already absent, and they were almost being cleared away more and more quickly as if she had gotten even more used to attacking him specifically, and he almost panicked the moment that one side of his banners was entirely used up as he had delayed attacking for so long specifically so that she could be affected by the banner energy and be made slower and weaker. Just as he thought that he would need to attempt to use his combat abilities and try and find some opening within her attacks, she suddenly stumbled due to those strange boots of hers, falling feebly towards him.

The opportunity was so perfect that he couldn’t possibly fail to take it.

He raised one hand into the air to call down a bronze fist, while using the other to focus the energy for another combat technique that he was slightly less proficient in, but that he needed to use to ensure this insane warrior would be defeated promptly – using a second fist wouldn’t have been practical.

For the final nail in the coffin, he also activated all of the energy that had to have accumulated within her body, not necessarily intending to cause her to crumble to the ground, but to do anything to further contribute to the mistake that she appeared to have made. So long as he could guarantee a few powerful strikes, a few great impacts on the points of greatest significance, he would claim this victory for himself, for the Gang Hong Clan, and receive a great deal of rewards and resources, now and in the future, that would easily allow him to reach the fifth realm, at the very least.

And yet, mid-fall of both her and the fist above her, the foot that had stumbled suddenly landed on the ground with unparalleled surety, allowing her to entirely dodge the area where the bronze fist would fall, and slashed upwards with both of her claws, the very air pressure from them cutting into the man’s clothes, slightly cooking the flesh beneath due to the immense heat within it.

Midway through the attack, all of the flame on the tips of her dark claws exploded to cover the entirety of her hand, and then expanded even further, transforming into the claws of a great flaming bird, the name of which could not possibly be mistaken.

“Shit, that’s a phoenix! Wait, don’t- no, stop hitting- ah!” the announcer was not having a good day.

Nevertheless, the observation could not be denied. Although not a single soul within the Luo District had seen a true phoenix, as they were as long-gone as the primordial deities of the times before the Master of Yi City, their images were still clearly within their minds, for their might and grandiosity had once been cast in metal within the memories of a shattered world, and to remember what had been before the Master of Yi City rose to his place and freed them, they made sure that the great beasts of the past could never be forgotten.

It was for this reason that so much knowledge had been available to someone who was only in the first realm at the time, although some of her information was obtained due to her identity as part of the Yi family, but even if she hadn’t had access to libraries that were exclusive to that family, she could have easily learned all of the same facts without too much effort.

Dragons, phoenixes, qilins and the like were all described with great clarity, and so, when feather-like flames, or perhaps flame-like feathers, bird-like claws and the faint cry of a majestic avian creature were perceived all at once by the crowd, and by the one being targeted by them, they couldn’t possibly mistake the source for anything else. However, the question that arose within their minds was of the origin of the flames – was this the cause of her physique, some distant bloodline that manifested with the use of flame-type techniques, or was a claw-based technique of the third realm capable of producing such a fantastic visage?

With her spiritual perception, Wei Yi quickly gathered that her attempts had been successful, as her current techniques and usage of them bore no resemblance to the draconic methods of the Scorching Blades.

Perhaps it was the strike itself that was far more successful, since even as countless talisman marks soared from Luo Rongmeng’s banners, the flames tore straight through them with such might that the barriers did not have a single opportunity to form, nor did the attack that he had initially aimed at her have any chance of hitting. Furthermore, the suddenness of planar techniques from someone who had previously seemed to have no ability to use planar energy at all distracted him, albeit for a moment, preventing him from capitalising on the golden opportunity that had been handed to him. Perhaps if he had properly anticipated this, such an outcome would not have occurred, but alas, the seemingly victorious would not always observe everything as objectively as they could.

Whereas the air emanating from her claws was enough to lightly toast skin and flesh, the actual phoenix flame and the claws beneath it were more than sufficient to tear through most armour and weapons made from common materials, regardless of whether they were artefacts or not.

This was the gift of cosmic energy, and the incredible quantity of yang imbued into her every technique due to the Yin-Yang Ascendant, resulting in an inferno that a true phoenix would likely be proud of… Well, no. That was simply impossible, as even the weakest dragons and phoenixes were said to be born in the fifth realm, then naturally rose to the seventh realm as they aged, having the potential to ascend to the eighth realm through stimulating their bloodline and gathering energy in a slightly different manner to most humans.

For a moment, she pondered whether she could attempt to adapt some non-human techniques for herself, but then recalled that the Scorching Blades’ techniques had already done exactly that, emulating the nature of the dragons in an attempt to make themselves more suitable for absorbing the blood of a dragon the moment that they understood how to do so in a proper, safe manner.

Also, she was mid-slash with flaming claws. This was not the best time for consideration of one’s cultivation path.

With a burst of raw power, a shockwave shaking the entire arena, she left behind a shallow mark upon his front, instantly cauterising any semblance of an open wound, but also disfiguring his face and body in an instant, wide burnt gashes remaining upon his once pristine flesh.

Despite that, he survived due to the defensive imbuement from the banner that was right behind him, as well as the deliberate restraint displayed by Wei Yi during her strike. She hadn’t forgotten about her initial intent, but it was due to a discovery that she was no longer worried in the slightest about him running out of his energy by wasting all of it on his banner.

It was also due to this that she immediately taunted him, “Come on, you’ve beaten so many people with those banners of yours. Use them on me! Come on!”

Luo Rongmeng was not in the right mind to argue, nor to comprehend why she was not attacking him. He had little choice but to throw all of his energy into calling down two more banners, filling them all with the most strength that he could possibly infuse into any technique when most of his meridians were at the edge of melting due to the absolute heat that had flooded him only moments prior. What he was able to do, alongside the fact that he still moved and fought, prevented anyone from the arena from ending the battle, as they misinterpreted the odds due to the lacking damage dealt by Wei Yi.

Even Shi Taihao couldn’t warn his warrior in time, as he was too busy deliberating whether this was the provocation of an idiot who did not know her limits, or the action of someone who was very well aware of exactly what they could and could not survive, and exactly how she could do it.

Thus, two banners fell from the sky, their energy merging with the one behind him, the one that he now practically leaned against to remain standing, and their circles of energy fractured as all of it was directed towards Wei Yi without any restrain whatsoever, despite the deterioration that it appeared to cause to both the cloth on the banners and the man himself, violating some key principle of the physique just to further this one, singular, decisive attack, a small part of him believing that it could truly work, that his attack could actually tear her down and kill her, defeating this flaming monstrosity once and for all.

However, the smile on her face only grew as she gladly took in all of the energy from the banners and broke it down with the Yin-Yang Ascendant physique energy, not giving it a single chance to affect her in a negative manner as it slowly added to her physique foundation and unlocked the ability that she sought from him, although she could tell that it would be unlikely to come from this one encounter.

Simply put, he was already far too exhausted, and his physique had never been cultivated properly. He lacked the energy needed to allow her to replicate the Warlord’s Banners in full, regardless of how eager she was to obtain the power of another absolute physique.

‘In that case, I suppose that I have no choice but to end it now. You tried… you did try.’

She had talked a lot about tearing out hearts within her two days of acting in this district, so she did not intend to allow such a major foe to be defeated without displaying her well-practised skills before this audience, so that they could be certain that she hadn’t just been talking out of her ass the entire time. Thus, she drew back her hand, holding her fingers in just the right positions to grasp the heart the moment that the claws pierced his flesh, and thrust it into him.

“AH! NO, I-”

Whether he was going to surrender or offer her something to encourage her to keep him alive, she didn’t want to hear any of it.

Her clawed left hand grasped the beating muscle in his chest and held onto it tightly, before immediately pulling her hand out. The moment that the heart, alongside some ribs and other pieces of flesh, left his body, so did an enormous gush of blood, painting the arena ground in the life-filled crimson of someone with a wondrous physique, although none of that energy had the opportunity to leak out as she consumed it with a silent strand of physique energy burning any traces of it out of his body.

Some might have the necessary understanding of physiques to realise what had happened and question it, but that was the benefit of her persona. Few would believe her to have the attention to do more than one thing at a time, and with how impactful the move was, even the more tactical amongst the audience wouldn’t have been able to focus properly.

Combat between cultivators took many forms. Some were clean and simple, and others were incredibly vicious, bloody, dirty and, some would say, utterly horrible, but certain things were still seen far less than others. Amongst that ambiguous list of things was the highly non-surgical removal of the heart, while it still beat, from the chest of another, for it tended to be far more practical to stab, cut, pierce or sever the heart rather than going through the effort of actively taking it out of the body.

As a result, the sight was rather astounding, although few would view it in a strictly positive manner.

Exceptions were present during that very duel, of course, like a lone guard that was staring, doe-eyed, at the battle and constantly cheering silently for Wei Yi, but cultivator society tended to view itself as somewhat more refined than that, hence the wines, robes and other stylistic choices.

“T-The Brotherhood of Power is victorious! Well, that was… something…” the announcer was among those that couldn’t quite handle the extreme outcome of the heart removal, although he gathered himself quite quickly and continued, “With just one battle, the chances of the Gang Hong Clan winning have dropped significantly. Everyone who bet some money on their victory better not rush to try and undo their transactions, or else the guards around here will finally have someone to beat up, other than me.”

Besides a few guffaws at what his wording suggested, most of the arena remained rather quiet, none being sure enough of themselves to begin an applause or do much besides staring at the enormous mark of blood left behind, being expanded even further by the crimson pool forming around Luo Rongmeng’s body, not that the Brotherhood of Power or Wei Yi herself minded. After her victory was announced, she just walked out in an aloof manner, cleansing her body of the blood that had fallen upon it with yin physique energy as to not attract attention.

The moment that she caught sight of Chao Ru, she smiled towards her and waved, breaking everyone within the Brotherhood of Power’s area out of their trance.

Whatever she had begun to morph into within their minds, whether that was a terrible demon, a merciless slaughterer of men, or the reckoning of a new age, she quickly returned to resembling an ordinary, somewhat foolish girl that was just acting in the most effective manner that she could think of, even if it wasn’t necessarily the most efficient.

“Wei Yi, you managed it…” Chao Ru said, similarly recovering from the earlier sight, “I was worried when I saw that you stumbled, and I thought that you’d be killed…”

“Oh, don’t worry, that guy wasn’t very strong. He had way too many banners as well. What’s the point of having so many of them when they don’t even have anything on them?” Wei Yi questioned, earning a slight chuckle from those who hadn’t fought against Luo Rongmeng, and an impressed look from those who did, as this was the strongest technique that he had been able to display. The bronze fists were far more solid than most planar constructs at the third realm, but they were rudimentary and weak in comparison to the weakening and strengthening effects of the banners, which could potentially allow even a normal human to endure the attacks of a cultivator.

“Right… You can sit here for a while…”

Oculus