Chapter 793

Chapter 793

The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.

Leaving us naught but grief and pain in place of promised joy.

The concept seemed so simple and brilliant at the same time, a way to seize control of the battles tempo and force our opponents hand. For whatever reason, the Enemy was wholly content to continue grinding us down with tribal Defiled auxiliaries, to exhaust our strength, buy time for whatever dire machinations Zhen Shi has planned, or something else altogether, but I thought I found a way around it. Most times, its soldiers against soldiers and generals against generals because this is simply the most effective use of Imperial strength. Given the difference in numbers, one Peak Expert killing hundreds of Defiled is less advantageous than one Defiled Peak Expert killing hundreds of Imperials, so we need to reserve our top tier fighters to keep their top tier fighters in check. Thats really all it comes down to, the fact that the Enemy can afford to take disadvantageous trades while we cannot. This leaves the Imperials in a largely reactive and defensive position at all times, but after a few hours immersed in Insight, I came up with what I believed was the perfect solution, something to solve all my woes in one fell swoop.

And all I had to do was dangle myself out as bait.

Sounds stupid at first, but it would have accomplished so many things all at once. First, it afforded me the opportunity to put into practice the skills Id been theory crafting up in my Natal Palace the last few hours, like using Domain Plated Deflection to skate across hard surfaces and interfere with my opponents ability to move freely about the battlements. Not only that, but it places the ball in the Enemys court now, because they cant afford to stand around and watch as I familiarize myself with my strength. Considering how much effort Zhen Shi put into making sure the Mataram Clan had a clean shot at taking me out before I woke from my coma, to say nothing of what Ive accomplished in the short time Ive been awake, I suspected Mataram YuGan is itching to finish the job and wipe away the shame of his inglorious failure in Meng Sha.

So essentially, I expected I would be ambushed at some point after revealing my position and I prepared accordingly. I had Dad, Naaran, Gerel, Husolt, Yaruq, and so many more elite Peak Experts standing guard over me, and I felt confident of preserving my life while matching whatever forces the Enemy could throw at us. Even though Imperials are grossly outnumbered in the grand scheme of things, the distribution of strength is actually not so terribly skewed when you focus solely on Peak Experts and nothing else. Typically, tribal Defiled whove reached the Peak of their Path are few and far between for obvious reasons, with Wraiths and Demons traditionally being the most dangerous foes an Imperial would expect to face on the battlefield. With the advent of the Chosen and Half Demons, this has changed drastically of course, as now we have to face the likes of Bai Qi and Mataram YuGan, as well as the plethora of surviving elites of the Mataram Clan. Mataram Minze for example, the Whirling Dervish, who exchanged hundreds if not thousands of moves against the formidable Situ Chi Gan without deciding a winner, or the Crimson Reaper, a Brigadier of the Mataram Clan who was able to avoid matching up against a stronger foe by remaining low-key as he slaughtered the defenders of Meng Sha. There are still other Enemy Peak Experts to note, as well as the Half-Demons who have yet to join in on the siege of Shi Bei, but after running the numbers in my head, I figured our chances were pretty good in a top-tier clash.

We were still outnumbered of course, but numbers hold less weight as you approach the apex of skill. Even basic soldiers need to be wary of getting in each others way, and theyre usually only limited to a few basic options when fighting. Imagine how complicated the lines of battle become once you have Peak Experts Cloud-Stepping all over the place. Its fine and dandy to say you want to surround your opponent and take them down in one strike, but another thing altogether to coordinate an attack and pull it off without getting in each others way. Peak Experts move so fast I could easily see Akanai going all in with a Ground-Shrinking Strike only to have to back off lest she be pulped by Nian Zus Shooting Star or Mitsue Juichis Mountain Collapsing Stomp, which I agree is an extreme example, but just the clearest one I could come up with.

So there was the plan. I go out and slaughter a few fools, then get ambushed and fight back. With Enemy Peak Experts taking the field, that would limit the space available to regular Defiled who would only get in the way, allowing Imperial Peak Experts a chance to hold their own weight and give the rank and file an opportunity to change shifts. Not the most comprehensive plan, Ill admit, but sometimes, you have no choice but to paint in broad strokes and fill in the details as you go, and Dad was more than happy to go along with it. Alas, as with every plan, it barely survived contact with the Enemy as they responded with overwhelming force within seconds of me coming out of Concealment, which Ill admit is much faster than I expected. I figured theyd come in waves to test my strength, which was correct, but after a wave of Chosen Elites followed by Wraiths, Mataram YuGan appeared and tried to skewer me with his spear. Unfair is what it is, outright bullying for a man of his status to attack a junior without warning, but it seems the traitor Clan Patriarch is wholly lacking in shame and propriety.

It wasnt supposed to go this way. The Enemy was supposed to keep testing me, keep sending chaff to ferret out my strengths and weaknesses which simultaneously would give me a chance to get a better grasp of my power. Instead, they went all out from the get-go in a three-wave strike, first Chosen, then Wraiths, and jumping straight to a pinnacle existence who has no business picking on young Talents. Even then, things had yet to go completely to shit, but when three Mataram Peak Experts followed up on their Patriarchs blitz to finish the job, somehow, my sister was the first to react. Not Dad, who was busy trading blows with YuGan, nor was it Husolt, Naaran, Yaruq, Gerel, or any of the other Peak Experts ready and waiting around me, but Alsantset who had no business sticking her nose in an exchange of this level, but was also closest to the action and first to arrive. I should have known she wouldnt just sit back and watch, should have Sent her a warning or told her to stand down and rest, but I didnt expect her to move so damned fast as soon as my foes appeared. Playing it back in my mind, I watch as she surges past the thin line between Expert and Peak Expert to Manifest her Domain around her, not in the showy, overbearing manner in which I use it to take control of my surroundings, but in a subtle, more personal working limited to her body which improves her in every possible way. I call this sort of skill a Domain Exo-Suit, but my Sister does not cover her body in a layer of Domain so much as merge with it in whole. One with the World in the truest sense of the word, not just her body, but her mind and soul as well, resulting in a boost to all her Chi skills that comes from within rather than without.

In other words, rather than an Exo-Suit, it would be more apt to call this a Domain Augmentation. With the Exo-Suit, I could always feel my Domain bolstering my efforts, like well, an external suit pushing me along, as if I were running along a moving sidewalk or having someone pull me up as I climb. You can feel the assistance allowing you to go beyond your limits, but you know its not your strength, so you dont feel entirely in control and it takes some getting used to. Like when I was spinning all about the battlements with sword and shield both, I wasnt entirely in control and mostly just trying to go with the flow, but there was not a single moment when I didnt feel like one wrong move would screw everything up. In contrast, Id imagine Alsantsets experience is entirely different for her strength comes from within, emerging from her mind and soul to lift her to new limits in a way that likely felt wholly natural and reasonable in the moment, a strength that is hers and hers alone, and therefore entirely under her control.

Unfortunately, Alsantsets instinctive Domain Augmentation was focused purely on offense, allowing her to slaughter two Half-Demons in the blink of an eye, but leaving her wholly vulnerable to her third foes counter. Even as the spear erupts through her belly and she disembowels her foe in turn, I am already moving to save her from certain death. My Domain stretches out and merges seamlessly with hers as I set to Healing her wounds using the Fountain of Healing Keystone which materializes inside my Natal Palace during this moment of need. Before I can do more than get the ball rolling however, a solid and sturdy presence slams down around my sister and cuts off my connection, a Domain Barrier of some sort preventing me from supplying any further Chi or even coming into physical contact with Alsantset. Snarling in fury as I slam into the invisible wall, I gather my Will and Hone my Domain with the Intent to force my way past this Domain blockade, only for five more Half-Demons to emerge from Concealment and send their spears hurtling towards me. Instinct takes over as I abandon my efforts to punch through and unleash a Maelstrom of Deflection instead, a wide-spread Domain-Plated working which knocks their spears aside and would have done so against the three Half-Demons Alsantset fought off, but I couldnt have expected her to know that.

I shouldve warned her, sent her further away, told her to stay safe and not worry about me any more. In her eyes, Im still the hurt child who wandered into the Iron Banners camp and spent weeks waking up screaming in the middle of the night. Despite having seen my damage and knowing all the risks it entailed, she took me into her home and slowly brought me out of the darkness and back into the light, an act of love and empathy for which I will always be grateful for in a way I can never repay.

And now, she might well have given up her life for mine.

Overcome with rage and remorse, it is all I can to do to hold fast to Balance as Buddy howls in warning at Blobbys agitated stirrings, but losing control wont save my sister. Nor will contesting against an Elemental Spirit do me any good, so I lower my inhibitions without fear or hesitation because there is nothing I wont do to save my sister. I am Blobby, and Blobby is me, and together, we Manifest our Domain. This is more than mere Domain Plating, which is interweaving my metaphysical presence into the fabric of reality, but something entirely different and far more complex. This is an exertion of my Authority, one in which I bring my metaphysical Domain into the physical world and wrest control from the Heavens above. In the eyes of those watching, nothing appears to change, when in fact, everything changes as my Domain emerges all around me to take the place of whatever metaphysical landscape preceded it. There is no interweaving with reality, but a superseding of it, pushing aside whatever was here before to replace it with what is mine and mine alone, creating a pocket in reality where I stand alone in defiance of Heavens laws.

Die, I command, and though the Half-Demons are not bound by my Authority and compelled to obey, the Energy of the Heavens surges forth to make it so. Caught within the bounds of my Manifested Domain, my foes are helpless to react as the air around them turns to Water Chi and scours away at their armour, Unravelling the protective elements which trap the Energy of the Heavens within flesh and chitin to Cleanse the impurities away. In practical terms, the Half-Demons melt as if splashed by caustic acid, their physical forms dissolving away amidst a symphony of agonized screams which are cut short as they are rendered into dark pools of liquified flesh, bone, blood, and Ichor. Expelling the foul remnants of their existence out from my Manifested Domain, I move towards my fallen sister and feel the Barrier hold firm against me, keeping me and my Authority away and all but consigning Alsantset to death.

It makes too much sense to ignore. This has to be the reason why my Healing efforts arent working, and why Taddy has yet to offer any advice. This is also why Zhen Shi has been holding back his Half-Demons throughout this entire conflict, because hes saving them to use against the Imperial Clan. Not just because theyre stronger than your standard Martial Warrior, but because the elites of the Imperial Clan are built different, and these Half-Demons are tailor made to counter them. I dont mean the Death Corps Guards, and maybe not even the Royal Guardians, but those noble elites who benefit from the full knowledge of the Dao and therefore cultivate not just their bodies, but their minds and souls as well. It wouldnt surprise me to learn that Shen ZhenWu was following a Path similar to my own which is why these spears were made to do more than just pierce flesh and bone. Maybe its an evolution of Wraith poisons, the same stuff that sent Shen ZhenWu fleeing for the Eastern Province. Through the power of Anathema, the power of Destruction itself, this spear embedded in Alsantsets gut is capable of inflicting damage to the very essence of life itself, which is why my sister is dying.

So theres the why, but it doesnt explain why I cant Heal her. If the power of Destruction is killing her, why cant I use the power of Creation to fix what ails her? The answer comes easily even though I wish it were otherwise, because it is always easier to destroy than create, and to create the essence of life itself is likely something only a literal God can pull off. I am no god, just a mortal cast adrift in this world of trials and tribulations, but Ill be damned if I let this hateful world take my sister away from me.

Inappropriate as it might be given the circumstances, a meme fortuitously springs to mind, in which a pink, pointy-headed blob in swimming trunks emphatically declares, We should take this life essence over here, and push it somewhere else!

Make sense right? Im alive. Im breathing. Im young and hip. Stands to reason Ive got life essence to spare, so why cant I just use that to Heal what ails my sister? The moment I consider it, my mind is made and my Will directs the Energy of the Heavens to make it happen, while Buddy falls silent with a mournful whimper. Retreating inwards to my Natal Palace, I hold my dog close and console him as best I can, because even if it costs me my life, I will save my sister or die trying. Its not what shed want, and Id be leaving a lot of people and pets I care about behind, but I refuse to give up on her, the same way she refused to give up on me. So long as there is life, there is hope, and I would rather cling to hope and lose my life than give up hope and live on.

The Heavens do not roil and the world does not shake, and in truth, I dont really feel any monumental changes taking place, just the Energy of the Heavens surging through me as I neither succumb nor surrender to its whims, an effort made all the easier with Blobby directing things from his end. Seconds pass in tense apprehension as the battle rages around me, my flying sword and shield making short work of any enemies who approach while Gerel and Naaran oversee my safety, both of whom are just overflowing with regret. Dad would be here too, but hes thrown everything he has into the battle and is unleashing his fury upon Mataram YuGan, so much so that he doesnt even have it in him to be anxious or afraid just yet.

And he wont have to be, because my sister draws a deep breath, and I can feel her strength rekindle from deep within, a flame which grows until it is strong enough for me to remove the hateful spear from her flesh. From there, its only a matter of seconds before shes able to lift her head up and look down at her mended torso, one covered in arterial blood and splattered organs and bodily detritus, but none the worse for wear. Glancing up at my tear-stained eyes, she blinks in mournful heartache. Silly child, she whispers, heaving a sob for she somehow senses what Ive lost. Why?

Because youre family, and I cannot stand to lose you just yet.

A bark of laughter pierces through the din of battle, and I move to defend Alsantset without thinking, standing before her with Unity in hand. There was no need to do so however, for Gerel and Naaran both are ready and waiting as well, their anger burning as they stare at the amber-eyed Half-Demon standing on the battlements before us. Family? he scoffs, his lips twisted in a hateful sneer of ugly derision. Pei. She is no family of yours, boy. Just a half-breed tiger bitch birthed by the depraved union between man and beast.

Despite being a Half-Demon, I can sense his emotions the same as anyone elses, and he feels nothing but contempt for the people before him. Not just Alsantset, but Gerel and Naaran as well, while harbouring maybe a smidgeon less for me, but only because its intermingled with disappointment. He thinks me a fool for Healing her, because he knows what it would have cost me, and he sees that as weakness and stupidity. Two things he abhors above all else, it seems, but hes still begrudgingly willing to reconcile.

Knowing this and having long since guessed the rest, I offer him a scoff in return, because no one scoffs better than me, because I have ridicule locked down pat. What would you know of family, Defiled? We have no ties of blood, but she is still my sister and saviour both. Without Alsantset, there is no Falling Rain, its as simple as that, but I wouldnt expect you to understand.

Oh? So theyve told you then? Removing his helmet to better show off his features, the Half-Demon flashes a sneer so hateful its a wonder no one has rammed their fist through his face just yet. Its easy to see the similarities once you know to look for them, not just the amber eyes, but the cold arrogance and natural disdain, as well as physical features too like the shape of his nose, the set of his cheeks, the jut of his jaw that makes him look like hes always clenching it. No, he continues, studying Gerel and Naarans reactions as they both spike with alarm and regret. They have not told you, but you know all the same, for you are a clever child, and blood speaks to blood. His lips stretch into a smile that doesnt touch his eyes, one full of dark delight and cruel amusement which makes me hate him all the more as he extends his hand out in a symbolic offer to both me and Gerel. Come, my children. Cease your foolish struggles and leave these pretenders behind. Join me, your father, and together, we shall overthrow the dog Emperor who has abandoned you so.

If not for his armour and a few extra lines around his eyes, I might well have mistaken him for Gerel, and far too many people have mistaken us for brothers for it to be a mere coincidence. I knew there was a reason I hated Gerel, because I hate myself and he reminds me too much of me, except better in so many ways. Ugh, I guess this means Im actually related to that psycho blowhard of a loner, but on the other hand, I almost cant believe I didnt see it sooner. We look alike, were both anti-social, we both rock a mean man-bun, the list goes on and on. That being said, in light of recent developments, I find it difficult to control of my emotions and try not to let anything show on my face, because I only have one shot at this, and I cannot fuck it up.

Breathe in. Breathe out. You got this. Youve heard it a thousand times before, so all you need to do is channel that out and make it real. Breathe in, and

NYOOOOooOOOOooooOoooOooOooooooo!!!

Chapter Meme 1

Chapter Meme 2