Book 6: Chapter 10: Take the Hint

Book 6: Chapter 10: Take the Hint

Li Yi Nuo stared at the man she only knew as Judgments Gale and tried to decide what to do. She refused to let it show on her face, but his last words had frightened her. They hadnt been boastful, the way she would have thought that something like that would sound. Hed sounded like a man earnestly pleading with someone not to make a terrible, terrible mistake. Worse still, he was calm. He was far, far too calm for a man who should be expecting at least the possibility of violence. There was a stillness to him, and that stillness spoke to a bone-deep resolve to do what had to be done, even if meant doing things he didnt want to do. Her heart told her to just let it go and run away as fast as she could. Hed let her. She knew that much. Hed all but said it. He didnt want the fight.

Of course, if she ran away, she would fail in her mission. She would dishonor her master and his faith in her. Shed never be able to return to the Vermilion Blade Sect. Yet, if she didnt, elders would die by the score so she could avoid facing the consequences of her cowardice. For all intents and purposes, he anointed you as the young mistress of the Vermilion Blade Sect, her master had said. It might be an honor, but it was also a responsibility. She couldnt let her fear, however rational it might be, divert her from her course. She had been tasked to bring this man back to the sect. Thats what she would do. As if he could read her very thoughts and intentions, Judgments Gale looked at her with an expression of boundless sadness.

So be it, he said.

Li Yi Nuo summoned a spear from her storage ring, one of the treasures that had been bestowed on her. It was a heavens chasing spear. It was the kind of weapon that most cultivators could only dream about possessing. Weapons like those could turn the tide in a battle. She studied him as he gave the spear an interested look. Will he relent rather than face such a weapon? He shrugged at her and summoned a spear of his own. It was all she could do not to weep in frustration. Hed summoned a heavens chasing spear of his own. She couldnt even imagine where he, a wandering cultivator, had gotten such a thing. She watched the way he held the spear, the way he moved it, and quiet dread passed through her soul. He didnt just possess a uniquely powerful spear. Someone had trained him with spears.

***

Sen watched Li Yi Nuo tense up when he summoned his spear. He wasnt sure what shed expected. Shed gotten out a nice spear, so hed done the same. He kept trying to think of some way to talk her back from the cliff, but he got the impression that she was doing this for reasons other than wanting to fight him. He sensed her cycling for a kind of qi he didnt recognize. She swept her spear in a horizontal arc that looked very familiar to Sen. Something that resembled one of his own wind blades shot at him. Yet, instead of a mostly translucent wing of qi, this was the color of blood and even seemed to have hints of metal in it.

Huh, said Sen. Thats new.

***

Based on the stories shed heard, Li Yi Nuo had expected Judgments Gale to explode into a flurry of violence. Instead, hed just given her a mildly quizzical look and not even cycled any qi. That was fine by her. If he was willing to give her an opportunity to launch a technique out of overconfidence, that was his mistake. Shed considered several options. In the end, shed gone with what she knew best. The technique that had given her sect its name. The vermilion blade. Shed struggled with it for a long time because it called for not one but two kinds of qi. Granted, it only needed a little metal qi, but even summoning that small amount of qi had proven an arduous challenge for someone with an air qi affinity. Learning to fuse those qi types the right way had nearly cost her a leg once when the technique failed to form properly. Still, she had persevered and mastered the technique.

She couldnt understand what he was doing. He should have followed up after that hit. Shed been stunned and helpless. What game is he playing? Does he mean to humiliate me before he kills me? She ran through the list of weapons and treasures shed been given. Having seen some of his true capacity, she doubted that most of them would even slow him down. There was one last option, though.

***

This is a really nice spear, thought Sen. It probably wasnt good enough to give to Uncle Kho, but Sen decided he needed to start keeping an eye open for something that would suit the old spear master. He glanced over at the sect woman who was giving him looks that ranged from confusion to murderous rage and calculation. She's not quick on the uptake, thought Sen. I may have to just tell her what to do to get out of this. Before Sen could act on that plan, Li Yi Nuo threw something at him.

***

The Thousand Stone talisman left her hand and flew straight at the man. She felt it activate and heaved a sigh of relief when she heard him grunt. It was just a matter of time now. Shed held off on using it because that talisman was insanely expensive, but that didnt matter anymore. All she wanted at this point was to survive. A stabbing pain in her side stole her breath and made her vision tunnel. That throw had not been advisable for someone with shattered ribs. She had time now, though. The talisman would keep adding weight until it drove him to the ground. It would contain him there long enough to get the qi suppression treasure on him. She looked over, expecting to see him sprawled on the ground. Instead, he barely looked like he was under strain at all. He looked over at her.

Thats a fun trick, he told her.

Then, the end of the spear he was holding, her spear, turned some color that was perhaps a thousand times darker than black, and she had purple afterimages in her sight every time she looked at it. He swung the spear once. There was a noise that made Li Yi Nuo feel like shed been present for the murder of some celestial being of peace and kindness. Earth qi exploded in every direction, kicking up a storm of dust and rocks that pelted her. When the dust settled, the man was back to looking at her spear. This was beyond futile and humiliating. This was a shame that would stain her and her sect when the story of her utter failure spread. If she could explain this to her master, he would understand. Defeat at the hands of a man like this was to be expected. If shed only known the truth. Then, he spoke.

How convenient would it be if someone said that they changed their mind and preferred not to have a duel? he asked, turning an annoyed expression toward her. Imagine all of the problems that would solve.

Li Yi Nuos mind tried to go several different directions at once. Part of her thought it was some kind of trick. Part of her wanted to weep in relief. Part of her reminded her about her duty. The end result was a confusing mass of half-formed thoughts that didnt go anywhere. Is he trying to give me a way out?

Wait, she finally blurted out. What?