《Daopunk》


 Chapter 1, An Arrangement

    Sun¡¯s steps echoed lightly through the ancient wooden halls of the building. The walls he passed were covered in murals older than his grandfather, depicting scenes of battle as well as terrifying monsters and beasts.


    Sun paid them no mind, however, as he¡¯d seen them plenty of times before and found them of little interest. Instead, he was more concerned with where the two surly core disciples behind him were escorting him to. According to them, he had been summoned to stand before the sect elders, and that was the end of it.


    Now, Sun was no stranger to being punished for doing nothing, the elders always had some bone to pick with him. He wasn¡¯t strong enough, fast enough, smart enough, and so they would withhold his allowance or throw him into the deep wilds to ¡°test him¡±. Those, however, had always been impersonal at best, the elders had plenty of lackeys to do their dirty work for them and so rarely suppressed him personally.


    The disciples silently marching him forward like a prisoner heading to his execution, did not help to alleviate his worries.


    They passed servants who quickly stepped out of the way and gave respectful bows to Sun¡¯s escorts, but he caught the dismissive glares they shot his way. He almost found it funny that even the servants looked down on him these days.


    Eventually they arrived at a set of heavy wooden doors twice as tall as he was, decorated with carvings of fire and painted a vibrant red with gold filigree. On either side of the door was another core disciple, each outfitted with ornate armor and helmets over their robes with equally extravagant halberds at their sides.


    What would happen, Sun wondered, if they spent as much on food or medicine for the peasants as they did on pretty baubles. What a wondrous world that might be.


    The guards gave a curt nod to his escorts as they approached before turning and pulling open the doors by their large golden handles. The room beyond was dimly lit by a stone brazier in the center surrounded by a dozen odd seats elevated on platforms just enough so that you had to raise your head to see those sitting.


    One of the guards stepped forward into the room.


    ¡°Outer disciple Chen Sun presents himself to the Elders!¡± the guard announced in a booming voice that left Sun¡¯s ears ringing slightly.


    ¡°Approach.¡± responded a familiar gruff voice from near the end of the room.


    Sun¡¯s heart dropped a little as he recognized the voice of the sect patriarch, before resolving himself and stepping forward into the room. Neither his escorts nor the guards entered with him, instead closing the door and casting the room into even further darkness.


    As he moved to stand before the brazier, the pressure around him began to mount as he stepped into the domain of the elders¡¯ qi. Sun reached inside himself and grabbed at his own feeble qi reserves to lessen the intent upon him, but it made little difference.


    He cursed himself and his lack of talent that was once again making his life harder than necessary.


    He stood in the center of the room, near to the brazier, its brightness making it harder to see into the shadows around him. Turning to where he heard the patriarch¡¯s voice before, he bowed low and clasped his hands in a martial salute.


    ¡°I greet my Lord Father, Patriarch of the Chen clan and Scorching Fist Martial Sect.¡± Sun did his best to keep the venom out of his greeting, as whatever the elders had planned for him was likely going to be bad enough without his father¡¯s ire added on top.


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    ¡°How goes your cultivation, my son?¡± It was not his father who spoke, instead it was a feminine yet monotone voice and Sun could barely make out a slender figure standing next to his father¡¯s throne.


    ¡°I have made little progress since the tournament last year, honored mother.¡± he stated, biting back a grimace. Little progress was an understatement, it had been almost a year and his cultivation had remained almost unchanged. He had been outpaced by children half his age and been openly humiliated within the sect. That seemed to be the nail in the proverbial coffin as he became the laughing stock of the sect.


    ¡°I see.¡± was all she had to say in response.


    ¡°That is enough talking about the past, as we have important matters to discuss with you today.¡± another voice cut in, one of the elders.


    ¡°Yes, the mistakes of the past are best left in the past, don¡¯t you agree?¡± asked another.


    Murmurs of ascent and acknowledgement moved through the gathered elders.


    The tone of their voices being almost jovial set Sun on edge, as he had never heard the elders speak except with anger or annoyance. The fact that they were now acting like doting grandparents, only heightened his confusion.


    ¡°And, pray tell, what matters are so important that the esteemed elders of the sect have taken valuable time out of their day to address this lowly one.¡± He was starting to get a headache from all the intent being pressed upon him.


    The murmurs stopped and he felt as the elders¡¯ attention turned away from him for a moment, instead being directed towards his father. Although he could not see the man, he heard him give a deep and weary sigh before he spoke.


    ¡°Rejoice, my son, for it has been arranged that you are to be married and that you will move to live with your intended and her clan.¡±


    The words of his father took a moment for Sun to register, but only led to more confusion. Before he could respond, several of the elders began to clap softly at the announcement.


    ¡°. . .I¡¯m sorry, but . . . I don¡¯t understand.¡± Sun stated.


    ¡°He always was a little slow.¡± an elder whispered, and several more chuckled at Sun¡¯s expense.


    ¡°Your intended¡¯s family is an upstart clan and has offered a vast sum as a dowry to join hands with the sect.¡± one voice explained, sounding bored of this whole meeting. ¡°Congratulations, you will finally be of some marginal use to the sect and repay us for all that we have done for you.¡±


    Anger welled up inside Sun¡¯s chest and his blood felt like it was boiling. All that they have done for him? All that they have done for him is turn his life into a waking nightmare!


    Not only was he cursed with poor talent in a sect where one¡¯s cultivation is everything, he had become a punching bag for older disciples who wanted to vent their frustrations. He was pretty sure he¡¯d broken each bone in his body at least once and had been sent to the medical pavilion more times than any disciple in the sect¡¯s history.


    And to all this, the elders and the enforcement pavilion had all turned a blind eye. He had once gotten lucky and managed to break the hand of an outrider who¡¯d tried to turn him into target practice. For that, he¡¯d been locked away in the dirtiest jail cell they could find for a month and fed nothing but gruel.


    His anger writhed inside him and he opened his mouth, ready to vent it all on those assembled.


    Suddenly he was forced to his knees as the weight of the intent upon him magnified, he clenched his teeth as he willed himself to keep his head up. He looked towards the patriarch and felt that it was his intent that pressed upon him.


    ¡°The decision has been made. Be grateful and accept your circumstances, for you will no longer be tied to our sect.¡±


    Sun wanted to scream and shout and rage against the elders, to let the festering hate in heart out of its cage. Instead, he shoved the anger down with difficulty and composed his expression as the intent upon him lessened. He stood up once more and looked around at the assembled elders. The dim light of the dying brazier revealed the arrogant smiles and smirks of the older men and women.


    ¡°I would beg forgiveness from the elders and the patriarch for my discomposure. If you would allow it, I would enter into secluded cultivation until the time of the ceremony so as to not shame the sect further.¡± The words tasted like bile as they left his mouth, but the nascent idea in his head required it.


    He heard the cold and distant voice of his mother speak up.


    ¡°We would allow this. Your intended and her retinue are set to arrive in one month¡¯s time. It is expected that you are to be presentable to her at that time, but until then are free to continue your cultivation.¡± she stated.


    None of the elders contradicted her words, and so Sun bowed to his parents before bowing in turn to each of the elders. He fought the instinct to sprint out of the room, keeping his pace to a relaxed and steady stroll as his mind worked hectically to formulate the rest of his plan.


    He walked past the guards at the door and moved through the sect grounds. He slowed as he came to a balcony overlooking the sect and the forested mountains that surrounded it. All he had ever known could be seen from here, and for all the bad memories, it was home.


    He continued through the halls, his mind working the entire time putting the pieces together. The elders wanted him to leave the sect? Fine. But, he was doing it on his terms.

 Chapter 2, Burning Questions

    Sun moved with purpose as he made his way through the sect grounds, passing training halls and meditation chambers, heading towards the alchemy hall. The squat stone building was reminiscent of a forge with the many chimneys and smoke billowing out from their tops.


    He entered and was met by the empty entrance room, bare of any decoration save for a piece of calligraphy hanging on the wall declaring the ¡°purity of the flame¡±.


    He approached the lone disciple managing the desk, a young woman wearing the pristine white robes of an alchemist, and asked her for his allowance of pills for the month as well as thirty days worth of food pills. He handed her his sect token and she disappeared into a back storage room to collect his order.


    Outer disciples like him were allowed a limited number of pills from the alchemy hall each month, any more he would have to pay for in some fashion, but that was not his goal today. Marrow Washing and Spirit Refining pills had never had much of an impact on his cultivation and he doubted more powerful pills would have any greater effect.


    Even as a child, his family had had to use expensive reagents and pills to awaken his dantian and despite nearly twenty years of cultivation he was still behind his juniors.


    The disciple returned with his token and two small bags with the strong herbal scent of alchemical reagents wafting off them. He cleared the counter, grabbing his token and the bags and began making his way back to his residence.


    He strode through the sect, ignoring the sidelong glances other disciples gave him as he passed as well as the loud ¡°whispers¡± they passed to each other. Surprisingly no one got in his way as they usually would, pointing down at him and declaring him useless and weak. Perhaps the rumor of his engagement had already leaked or maybe the elders simply didn¡¯t want anyone to ¡°break the merchandise¡±.


    He sighed and shook his head to clear those thoughts away.


    He arrived at his residence in the outer sect, the ramshackle house looking to have been abandoned for years at this point. Sun had stopped trying to repair and maintain the house after one too many disciples had ¡°accidentally¡± burned it down while practicing a new technique.


    Sun pushed open the door that was barely hanging onto its hinges, it creaked loudly as if the wood itself was about to give out. The small room inside was barren and dirty, with empty and dusty shelves and gaps in the wood that let in a cool draft from outside.


    He moved to the cold hearth on the side of the room and pulled one of the clay bricks out of its place to reveal a small hidden satchel. He pulled the satchel free and replaced the brick, the bag¡¯s contents jingling as it was freed. He opened it to see the thirty-seven silver tael he had carefully saved and hidden from the others.


    It was hardly a fortune, even by mortal standards, but it should buy him some small parcel of land somewhere. Enough for a small farm or tavern on the road, he could even offer to work on someone else¡¯s farm as even his meager cultivation granted him great endurance and strength to make up for his lack of agricultural skill.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    He set the satchel down and stepped outside, grabbing a handful of cut logs which he threw on the hearth. Crouching down, he took a deep breath, letting out a small shower of sparks and heat as he exhaled. The sparks caught the tinder began to burn, spreading to the logs and wood chips within the hearth.


    He sat and folded his legs as he stared into the growing fire. He began to mentally chant the sutras of Scorching Flame Cultivation Method and channeled his qi throughout his body.


    It would be hours until nightfall and there was no way he was getting out of the sect in the light of day, so he decided to cultivate while he had the time. He figured it would also have the benefit of convincing any minders observing him that he did intend to cultivate in seclusion like he¡¯d said.


    The sutras and chants flowed through his mind with the ease of years of practice and repetition, and he felt it as the subtle warmth of his qi moved through his body. He traced the path it took through his meridians, down one leg, then an arm, through his bones and arteries, purifying and slowly refining his body to an impossible ideal. He controlled his breathing in time the flow of qi, as he had been taught and had been beaten into him until he¡¯d perfected it, supplying fresh air and ambient qi to his inner fire.


    He turned his inner eye inside himself and observed as the ambient qi he had inhaled seemed to pull away from his qi channels, with only a small amount getting caught in the flow. This was the source of his misery, a phenomenon none of the sect physicians could explain and with no record of ever happening before.


    The world itself appeared to reject Sun¡¯s efforts to reach for the heavens and actively denied him swift progress. His entire life had been one long bottleneck, where others might encounter one or two in a mortal lifetime.


    He caught himself in his thoughts, he was doing that too much recently. The mind affects one¡¯s qi and one¡¯s qi affects their mind. If he wasn¡¯t careful with his thoughts he could form a heart demon, which was the last thing he needed right now.


    Sun continued to trace his qi through his meridians until the process retreated to the back of his mind and he could afford to let his thoughts wander.


    Sun seethed as he remembered the arranged marriage that had been forced upon him by the elders and his family. All his life he¡¯d been given no help or consideration by those above him and now they were tossing him away for their own greed. Well, he wouldn¡¯t let them.


    He was leaving. Tonight.


    The only problem was where to go.


    Long ago, in the days of his great grandfather, the sect had retreated deep in the wilds beyond the bounds of proper civilization. For hundreds of miles in all directions was nothing but forests, mountains, and hungry spirit beasts waiting for a weak cultivator like him to offer himself up.


    A handful of minor villages had been established around the sect before all communication with the rest of the world had been cut off, to supply the mortal needs of the sect as well as for new recruits.


    Safe to say he couldn¡¯t go to any of those villages unless he wanted to be found in less than a week. Many sect members and disciples stayed in those villages on a regular basis to make sure they were protected. Good for the villagers, bad for someone trying to hide from the sect there.


    Sun¡¯s thoughts turned to the old maps he¡¯d seen in the archives. He¡¯d spent half his childhood escaping into the many books and scrolls in those shelves, and among them he¡¯d once found a map of the southern region. The map was almost five hundred years old, yet carefully preserved by the wards and formations present throughout the archive.


    He remembered that a city was marked out far to the south, a trade hub between the western continent and the east. He considered it. The city was far outside the range of the sect and would have to be very large to have been marked as it was on the map, meaning it would be easy to lose any pursuers in the crowd. And access to trade caravans meant he could catch a ride to pretty much anywhere on the continent, or purchase travel to the Tiger Lord continent to the west.


    He made his decision. Albeit, there weren¡¯t many other options. Smaller villages are more likely to have dispersed or migrated because of droughts or natural disasters. And the next big city was far to the southeast with many mountains and dangerous spirit beasts in between there and here.


    Sun cracked open his eyes and saw the slowly lengthening shadows on the ground, estimating another hour or two before night fully took hold and he could begin his plan.


    He closed his eyes again and settled in to cultivate until that time, feeling the beat of his heart match the pulsing of qi coursing through his body. A sense of excitement and liberation overshadowed his anxiety towards the coming challenges, as he would finally be free of his tormentors.


    However, even as the sutras of the Scorching Flame Cultivation Method filled his thoughts, an idle worry quietly scratched at the back of Sun¡¯s mind. Villages and small settlements might come and go with time, but so did big cities, and for all the longevity cultivation grants cultiva


    tors, five hundred years is a long time. How much has changed?

 Chapter 3, Escape

    Hours slipped by as Sun¡¯s sense of time dulled inside his state of meditation and soon night had fallen across the sect grounds. The dim silver light of a crescent moon filtered in through the window shutters. Not ideal for a night escape, but Sun was not willing to wait another day to try and escape from under the elders¡¯ thumb.


    He let his qi return to its normal state, suffusing his body with power and strength above what a mortal could achieve, but still far less than his fellows in the sect. In this case, it would help him, making it easier to slip through the spiritual senses of the guards, like the flicker of a candle rather than a blazing torch.


    He quietly stepped over to the window and left the hovel, making sure he wasn¡¯t seen as he crossed into the back streets and into an alley across the way. Sun gave one last look at his long-time home before he slinked into the deep shadows of the night.


    He had changed into simple robes that lacked the flair and insignia of the sect. It wouldn¡¯t go well, trying to hide from the sect wearing their uniform.


    Through the dark streets of the sect, he ran, ducking into alleys and hiding behind corners as patrols of guards passed by. Security was never lacking within the sect, as you never knew when a spirit beast would attack or from where. Fortunately, Sun knew the patrol schedules like the back of his hand and managed to evade detection as he moved through the outer sect.


    Despite his care, he nearly walked into a pair of guards as they rounded the corner and quickly crawled into a warehouse through the window.


    He crouched and waited as the guards marched by, their banter muffled by the walls as they passed the window. When Sun was certain he was in the clear, he let out a nervous breath he¡¯d been holding and wiped the sweat off his brow.


    The Scorching Fist Martial Sect only had about one thousand members, but the outer sect alone was the size of a small city with many residences, training halls, and courtyards. He had never thought much about it before, but it was taking forever to descend the mountain while avoiding the patrols.


    He took a moment to rest in the silence of the warehouse, recovering from his frayed nerves.


    A tiny traitorous voice at the back of his head told him that it wasn¡¯t too late to turn back. Who knows? Maybe he would like his fiancee and they¡¯d be happy together?


    He shook his head and shoved that thought down into the crevice it crawled out from. He was here, he was doing this, he would finally be free and live the way he wanted to!


    Rested, he pulled himself up and slipped back out through the window. The coast was clear and he once more slinked through dark alleyways.


    As he did so, he couldn¡¯t help but reminisce as he passed by this courtyard or that statue. So many of his memories in the outer sect had been bad, and usually ended with getting the shit kicked out of him by one of his seniors.


    But the early memories of training with his father and receiving praise from his tutors were still held fondly in his mind. His family had put great expectations onto him, despite his low talents, believing that it would just be an early slump or a quirk of his immaturity.


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    When he was ten years old and still behind those younger than him, the physician had examined him and discovered his accursed condition. Even then his family still held out hope and he had been given many resources and experimental pills to improve his cultivation.


    But¡­it all led to nothing.


    Then his family began to pull away from him, the bullying from the other disciples turned from name calling to ¡®trading pointers¡¯ to just physical assault.


    He hadn¡¯t taken it lying down though, and he smiled as he caught sight of a small stream flowing through a courtyard. He remembered tripping one of his seniors and nearly drowning him in the stream after they¡¯d burned his food.


    Good times. He thought.


    Finally, as the walls of the sect came into view, Sun slowed his pace and carefully moved from shadow to shadow as he approached. Stealth and subtlety were not his forte. His success thus far was thanks to his familiarity with the sect grounds and the paths the guards took on patrol.


    Now he stared at the massive wall more than five times taller than himself, crawling with guards and lit with braziers that burned brightly. The guards wouldn¡¯t need to be at full alert to catch him leaving, because there was nowhere for him to slip through undetected.


    And he must go undetected. His meager qi meant he couldn¡¯t sustain a movement technique to help him escape from pursuers.


    If he tried to scale the wall, he would be seen. And even if he managed to make it over, they would give chase to the mysterious escapist, and they would catch up to him quickly. Possibly even killing Sun if they felt catching him would be too much work.


    And yet, going over the wall was his only option, as the main gate was even more heavily guarded and the sewers beneath the sect were filled with powerful wards to stop spirit beasts from sneaking in.


    He needed a distraction.


    Sun stepped back into the shadows and weaved through the buildings along the wall, looking for his opportunity.


    Finally, he spotted a guard atop a section of wall leaning against the stone merlon, a halberd resting alongside him. His posture was relaxed as he stared out into the dark forest. Although Sun did not recognize him, he could tell this was the man he was looking for.


    He stayed near the guard¡¯s section of wall as he searched the buildings around him until he found a small storehouse filled with construction materials. Sun didn¡¯t know the intended purpose of the material, but the stacks of wooden planks and rope were exactly what he needed.


    He grabbed some of the rope and began to work it apart with his fingers, reducing most of it to raw fibers. After an hour he managed to get a good amount of kindling and moved some of the planks and tools around the room, as if some disciples had been messing around.


    He laid out the fibers as a fuse leading to the jumbled planks and, with a snap of his fingers, ignited them.


    He dashed through the buildings and hid in a bush with a clear line of sight to the relaxing guard. After a minute the guard suddenly tensed and spun around to see a rising column of smoke nearby, leaping from the wall and across the rooftops to its source.


    Sun scrambled out of his hiding place and began to scale the wall as alarm bells echoed across the outer sect.


    He didn¡¯t have the time to look back to see his handiwork, as he reached the top of the wall, dashed, and leaped into the forest below. He caught onto the branch of a tree as he fell, nearly losing his grip as the wind was knocked out of him. Cultivator or not, gravity was not his friend.


    He slid down the rough bark of the tree, cutting his hands on the wood and letting a trickle of blood mix with the sweat on his palms. Sun¡¯s heart pounded in his ears as he made a mad dash through the dark woods, the pale light of the moon blocked out by the canopy of leaves.


    He ran and he ran until his lungs felt like they would burst and he was forced to stop and rest. He steadied himself against a tree, catching his breath and listening to the sounds of the forest. The cry of insects and the rustle of leaves in the wind was almost deafening and his eyes couldn¡¯t pierce the shadows.


    He stood and he waited. Seconds turned to minutes as Sun prepared for the specter of failure that had haunted him his whole to rear its ugly head and smile on him.


    But it didn¡¯t.


    The realization slowly dawned on him as he wasn¡¯t tackled by outriders or pressed to his knees by the intent of an elder. A laugh bubbled up from within his chest as he cackled in the night.


    He must have looked like a man driven insane, dirty and wearing sweat soaked robes, laughing at nothing in the middle of the forest.


    That just made him laugh harder.


    He was free. Finally, finally free.


    His legs gave out from underneath him as a wave of relief crashed through him at the realization and he leaned his back against the tree. For a moment, he simply enjoyed the cool breeze across his damp skin and the softness of the grass under his bruised hands.


    He sighed before mustering his strength and standing once again. He may have left the sect, but he wasn¡¯t safe yet and he had a long journey ahead of him before he could truly rest.

 Chapter 4, Travel Montage

    Days passed by quickly, blurring together as Sun continued to push further and further south through the wilderness.


    He kept an exhausting pace, even with his strengthened body, carving his way through untamed forests and mountainous terrain was a struggle. At the end of each day he wanted to collapse, but instead climbed into the trees above him and secured himself on the branches.


    Such precautions were next to useless against a spirit beast but it was still better than sleeping on the ground where he would look like a free meal for anything wandering nearby. Despite his tiredness, he barely slept as his paranoia and anxiety were constantly pointing out rustling in the bushes or a shadow in the corner of his eye.


    Each morning he expected to wake up only to find he¡¯d been trussed up by one of the sect¡¯s outriders or have his father standing over him like a wrathful god. And each morning he awoke free was a relief, yet also heightened his fears, for nothing good could last forever.


    For all that, he was making good time along his journey. As he moved south, the temperature continued to rise, and he found himself missing the familiar bite of cold on the wind back in the north. The forest around him also changed slowly, shifting away from predominantly pine and coniferous trees to deciduous trees like oak and maple.


    The thick canopy of leaves overhead offering shade that protected him from the malicious heat of the day.


    Although the days became increasingly hard to differentiate as his exhaustion accumulated, Sun maintained his sense of time by keeping track of his supply of food pills. Food pills were a basic product of alchemy that even novices could learn to make and could sustain a person for a day.


    They were often used as rations for the outriders or for sustenance by those in closed door cultivation for long periods. Sun didn¡¯t understand how people could eat them for so long as they tasted like nothing and he was getting sick of them after only a week. Not to mention, the months or even years an elder might stay in isolation cultivating.


    After nearly two weeks of travel, Sun crested the top of the mountain he¡¯d been climbing and looked down in awe. Below him, beyond the mountains, was a seemingly endless expanse of arid desert. Internally, he cursed at whoever had drawn the map in the archive, as there had been no signs or notes that there was a desert here. The space had simply been left as a large open spot and Sun had assumed it would be grassland or prairie.


    Now, instead of dashing through an open field, he would have to trek through a barren dust-covered wasteland. He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose as his headache grew. He needed to restock what he could and prepare for the next leg of his journey.


    He spent the night on the mountain before descending, trying to catch up on as much of the sleep he¡¯d lost in the past weeks. He enjoyed looking up at the stars this high up, closer to the clouds than the earth itself. Despite this, the stars seemed dimmer than he was used to, but maybe that was a trick of his mind, the stress and tiredness getting to him.


    The next day he hiked down the mountain and crossed into the desert beyond, continuing south. The heat he¡¯d noticed as he traveled rose even further with no trees overhead to shade him or rivers to cool the air.


    He wrapped a part of his robe around his head to cover his eyes from the sun¡¯s glare. In order to negate some of the desert heat, Sun moved his qi through his body, channeling heat out to keep cool. He marched through the day, and when night fell the temperature plummeted, and he altered the movement of his qi to warm him from within.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    He was glad that his ancestors had been so pragmatic when it came to developing qi techniques. As a martial sect, many of the techniques the disciples were taught were meant for combat and using fire to defend oneself or to annihilate their enemies. However, when their sect had moved into the deep wilderness of the north centuries ago, their ancestors had also developed techniques to aid in the survival of their outriders, who patrolled the region for months at a time.


    And, luckily, these techniques used barely any qi, meaning Sun could use them just fine. Although he lamented his inability to use something like a movement technique, which would have cut down his travel time by a huge margin. But like most powerful techniques, he lacked the qi to use them.


    But it seemed that he wouldn¡¯t have to worry about that now that he was beyond the mountains. For all the elders might be angry at his escape, they wouldn¡¯t send an outrider this far south just for him alone.


    He was also relieved he hadn¡¯t encountered any spirit beasts on his trek. For all the danger they posed to humanity, especially in the far flung wilderness near the sect, spirit beasts were a rare breed. It takes a lot of effort and skill for an intelligent human to awaken their qi, and so it is even rarer for a base animal to achieve the same feat.


    Unfortunately, those that do awaken can be thought of akin to top grade human talents and seem to have an innate disposition to cultivating their powers. This makes even the average spirit beast a terrible threat for villages and towns, worse still if they gain an intellect and reason.


    As Sun pondered the luck he¡¯d had in his journey, he looked out to the horizon and saw something strange. At first, he thought he was seeing a mirage caused by the desert heat and his own exhaustion. But, as he grew closer, he saw it clearly stretching out across the land like a great stone serpent bathing in the warmth of the sun. A road.


    Of course! He thought. This close to a city, of course I¡¯d find a road!


    Although the map he¡¯d read wasn¡¯t the most accurate, his travel should have put him somewhere slightly to the east of his destination. Now he could simply follow the road directly to the city.


    As he approached the road, he scanned the horizon for carriages or people, but found none, which was to be expected. Sun had hoped to find some companionship for the end of his journey, to learn about the city and its people as much as for idle conversation. Weeks alone in the woods had left him starved for companionship, or at least to be in the presence of other thinking people. Unfortunately, it seemed he would have to make the last leg of his journey alone as well.


    When he reached the road, however, it wasn¡¯t as he was expecting. Instead of cobblestone or thick slabs of stone over compacted earth, the road seemed to be a single long stone path, as if it had been carved out of the earth rather than built. The sun had bleached the road to a pale gray and faded yellow lines marked the center with white lines at the sides.


    Sun knelt down and examined closer, seeing small imperfections in the road, as if countless pebbles had been melted together and poured onto the ground. In fact, that¡¯s probably what it was, Sun nodded to himself, he knew senior disciples could melt stone with their power and could likely recreate the effect. However, he questioned if such a cultivator would lower themselves to the level of building a road through the wasteland.


    Then again, if he was paid well, Sun would take that job as well, so maybe he shouldn¡¯t put it entirely out of mind.


    Sun was pulled from his thoughts as he felt a rumbling through the road, starting quietly and slowly growing in strength.


    He straightened and whipped his head around, searching for the source of the rumbling. Perhaps a herd of animals was coming to trample him or a spirit beast was beginning its charge?


    As his head swiveled on his shoulders, he caught a gleam on the horizon as the sun¡¯s light reflected off something in the distance. Sun stared incredulously as a massive form sped along the road towards him at a speed he couldn¡¯t fathom for a creature that size.


    It was a great hulking beast with metallic scales and crawled across the earth at unparalleled speeds. As it got near, he heard it begin to roar like a strangled bull that hurt his ears as the light reflected into his eyes, nearly blinding him but he couldn¡¯t look away, nor could he even move.


    He stood in frozen terror as the beast bore down on him before a whine and squeal echoed over the road. Surprisingly, the great creature slowed to a halt until its gaping maw and bared metallic fangs were mere feet from him.


    Sun could barely hear a rumbling purr over the sound of his heart beating in his ears, before the rumbling stopped and he consigned himself to his fate.


    ¡°What in the hell do you think you¡¯re doing?!¡±


    Only to be shocked again as the side of the beast¡¯s head flew open and a man crawled out and began to yell at him!?

 Chapter 5, Catching a Ride

    ¡°What in the hell do you think you¡¯re doing?!¡± The man bellowed.


    He was heavyset with a light tan and had gone red in the face with anger. He wore clothes in a style unfamiliar to Sun, with blue pants made from some kind of thick linen-like material, rough and worn, held up by a leather belt buckled under his bulging midsection. He wore a white sleeveless shirt that looked too tight on him, but stretched out to fit, and a red hat with a visor that shaded his eyes.


    He clambered down the side of the great beast¡¯s head, or rather the massive metal carriage, now that Sun took a better look. He had no idea how such an artifice could function, especially as he felt no qi emanating from it or the man and no work animals to pull it.


    The man dropped to the ground and began to storm up to Sun. He waved his arms about him and Sun could see the veins bulging in his neck and around his head.


    ¡°Of all the absolutely stupidest things you could do with your time you decide to just stand in the middle of the road?!¡± He yelled, ¡°What could possibly be going through¡­your¡­mind. Oh gods, are you alright, kid?¡± When the man got a few steps away from Sun his face quickly shifted from anger to confusion to concern. ¡°You look like you¡¯ve been out here for days.¡± He said.


    Sun¡¯s mind had been numbed by the shock of his situation and so responded without much thought.


    ¡°I was¡­going to the city.¡±


    ¡°The city? And you decided walking through the middle of the desert was the bes-¡± He cut himself off and sighed. ¡°Nevermind, it doesn¡¯t matter. Where are you even coming from?¡± He asked, looking back along the road.


    Sun didn¡¯t want to say he was from the sect, that¡¯s exactly what he was trying to stay away from. Instead he raised his arm and pointed in the general direction he¡¯d come from, keeping it vague enough for the man to form his own conclusions.


    ¡°But, all that''s out there is the mountains? Wait, you didn¡¯t seriously come all the way from the mountains on foot did you?!¡± The man suddenly got very worried and began to look over Sun again and Sun decided to follow suit.


    He realized why the man had become so concerned seeing his appearance. His robes had become tattered, beaten, and torn from the rough journey through the mountains and the exposed skin was burnt and cracked from the desert heat. His shoes were all but gone and he wasn¡¯t sure how he was only just now realizing he had trekked across the desert almost barefoot.


    He was an awful sight and he surely smelled just as bad considering he hadn¡¯t bathed in half a month. He¡¯d washed himself in the occasional river at the beginning of his journey, but his paranoia had pushed that it was a waste of time and that he needed to stay on the move.


    ¡°Yes, I''m from a small village beyond the mountains.¡± Sun said. ¡°My family is quite poor, so I planned to go to the city to earn money.¡±


    The man crossed his arms as a look of consideration came over his features.


    ¡°I''d heard people lived out there by themselves for ages, but I never actually believed it. I mean who would choose to live in the middle of nowhere. Er, no offense.¡±


    This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    The man looked back up to Sun and paused, taking a moment to think and gather his thoughts before carefully beginning to speak.


    ¡°You know, I¡¯m actually heading to the city as well. I don¡¯t know if you¡¯d be interested but I could give you a ride down there in the truck. I¡¯m sure it¡¯d beat the hell out of walking the rest of the way.¡±


    Sun scanned the man¡¯s features, he didn¡¯t want to get caught in a trap of some kind so soon after he¡¯d gotten into the wider world. But he could sense no intent to harm or trick him from the man, only genuine concern for his well being, which left him at somewhat of a loss.


    Well, I was hoping to find company on the way, Sun thought.


    ¡°Thank you, sir, it would be much appreciated.¡±


    The man nodded as Sun composed himself, snapping himself out of his stupor and choosing to accept the reality before him. He stretched out his hand and Sun grasped it with his own, giving it a firm shake that the man returned.


    ¡°Name¡¯s Mickey, but you can call me ¡®Mick¡¯ like everyone else.¡±


    Sun paused and considered.


    ¡°...I am Sun¡±


    He decided to omit his family name as he no longer considered himself a part of the Chen clan. Just as well, Chen could well be a common name to have in the city, but how many Chen Suns would there be? Many? Few? Either way wasn¡¯t worth the added risk.


    He''d thought about using an alias with the man, Mick, but it wouldn''t help him much in this case. If anyone did come looking for him and described Sun to the man, it wouldn''t matter what name he gave.


    ¡°Nice to meet you Sun. Hop in on that side and we can get going.¡±


    Mick gestured over to the other side of the carriage from where he¡¯d come out before climbing back inside. Sun walked over and carefully stepped up the stairs built into the side and reached for what he figured to be the door handle. With a dull clunk the door popped out and swung open revealing the truck¡¯s interior.


    Sun was stunned by what he saw.


    The inside was relatively spacious with most of the front taken up by two incredibly plush looking seats. Sun peered into the back to see what could only be a bed laid out across a raised platform with a blanket and a very plump pillow resting on top. A wheel was positioned in front of Mick¡¯s seat as well as some other strange artifacts facing him.


    Mick himself dropped into his seat with a grunt, shuffling and adjusting his position to his liking before pulling a strap across him and pushing a metal hook into a slot attached to the chair. He turned to Sun and waved him in, with Sun tentatively following his lead and leaning back into the most comfortable chair he¡¯d ever sat in and pulling the strap across him.


    Sun looked out through the clear glass into the endless scorching desert and realized¡­he wasn¡¯t hot. The inside of the carriage was warm, but it should have been far, far hotter in the enclosed space.


    Mick took out a key from his pocket and pushed it into a slot, turning it, and causing the entire vehicle to rumble and purr. Sun tensed but when nothing else happened he let himself relax back into his increasingly comfortable seat.


    The truck began to move forward, quickly accelerating up to its original speed before Mick had stopped to yell at Sun. The dunes outside turned into an endless blur as the truck sped down the road at a pace that would¡¯ve left Sun in the dust.


    Glad to see I made the right choice there, he thought.


    Mick fiddled with a knob in front of him and suddenly Sun was being blasted with cold air coming out of the vents in front of him.


    Definitely the right choice.


    Mick fiddled with another knob and the device in the center of the carriage blared to life as the sound of strange twanging music emanated from it. Sun wasn¡¯t familiar with the style of music but he decided that he didn¡¯t particularly mind it, and the fact that it was coming out of a little box was now just a mildly interesting detail.


    He had seen so many impossibly impossible things that he was beginning to fear that all this had been a dream. That he was going to wake up, open his eyes, and see the sect outriders or his father or an assembly of the elders.


    But he was tired, so very tired. So he let his eyes droop and his body relax and fully lean back into the chair that an elder would pauper themselves for. He listened to the strange but quite catchy music coming out of the truck that was as big as a house and moved faster than any animal could hope to run without the aid of qi.


    ¡°Hey, uh, it¡¯s gonna be a couple of hours before we get there so you can go ahead and get some rest, alright?¡± Mick said.


    Sun mumbled a response, as he no longer had the mental wherewithal to form a coherent sentence. He tried to recall how much he¡¯d been sleeping as he¡¯d traveled south through the mountains, but found his memories sparse.


    Sun let his anxiety go and let sleep take its hold properly for the first time since he¡¯d left the sect, falling deeply into his dreams as the truck sailed down the road under the midday sun.

 Chapter 6, Far and Away

    Mick shuffled and stretched as he worked his back into the leather seat, getting comfortable for the rest of the trip. It was always a long drive between the cities, made even longer by how boring it was. Not that Mick would want that to change. He¡¯d heard too many stories about people being lost to qi storms or spirit beasts that made it through the patrols. No, boring was just fine for him.


    Which left him feeling conflicted about his unexpected stop.


    Mick took a glance over at the slumped and sleeping form of his passenger in the seat next to him. The kid looked like he hadn¡¯t slept in days with thick and heavy bags under his eyes on top of the fact that he¡¯d collapsed into the seat after they¡¯d set out.


    And he was a kid, still having the last bits of baby fat clinging to his face and his proportions just starting to even out. His clothes looked like they were shabby before they¡¯d been through the ringer, rough and cheap. Hand-me-downs, maybe?


    He¡¯d said his family was poor and he left to make money in the city, but Mick didn¡¯t put much stock in that story. He had friends in the defense forces who¡¯d been out there in the wilds on long patrols and they¡¯d never seen hide nor hair of even the most backwater of villages. So that means the kid must have traveled a lot farther than he let on, too far to simply mail back some money, on top of a lot of other holes in his logic.


    Plus, Mick recognized the look in his eyes, the paranoia and restlessness, like he was being chased. The kid, Sun, if that¡¯s his name, was running from something. Maybe he¡¯d done something bad and gotten chased out of his village?


    Mick shook away the thought. He had an eye for people and Sun didn¡¯t strike him as a bad person. Plus who knew what those backwaters considered such a heinous crime worth banishing someone so young.


    It didn¡¯t matter. Mick would bring him to the city and point him in some directions to look for work if he was serious about that. He¡¯d do more, but the fucking corpos weren¡¯t exactly garnishing his, a lowly truck driver¡¯s wages now were they? Plus Grace was at home with the baby on the way and he had to pay for the insurance and¡­ Mick shoved the thoughts away before they could give him another ulcer.


    He gave the exhausted kid another look and felt a distant sense of kinship before it was overtaken by worry. A worry that the kid might have just jumped from the frying pan into the fire.


    ¡­Maybe he could spare the kid a few credits?


    * * * * *


    ¡°What do you mean he¡¯s gone!?¡± The elder screamed.


    The meeting room of the elders was filled with the sounds of outrage as the old cultivators barked out orders and questions to the disciples that came and went. The normally quiet palace of the patriarch had become a hive of activity as outriders, guards, inner disciples, and even servants were called forth for questioning.


    ¡°He couldn¡¯t have just disappeared into thin air, now could he?!¡± the elder spat at the guards before dismissing them.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    ¡°I actually know of two techniques that could do that.¡± muttered Fu Ming, Elder of the Archives.


    Yu Mei, Elder of Alchemy, purposefully ignored the mindless bookworm, choosing instead to screech at the diviners who were supposed to be capable. ¡°And how exactly can he hide from the Heaven¡¯s Eye Array? Is it not possible to find a single boy lost in the woods?!¡±


    The Elder of Intelligence, Hu Guo, sat straighter and frowned at the chastisement from his fellow elder. ¡°The array is working as it should and it has never failed to find its target before. I can only surmise that he is either deep below ground where the eyes of heaven cannot penetrate or he is being shielded by an equally powerful artifact.¡±


    Yu Mei wanted to shout more at the imbeciles that surrounded her, but was cut off by the voice of the patriarch who spoke out for the first time.


    ¡°Enough. Divination has proven useless and he has been gone for at least a week as far as can be ascertained.¡± The man stated, his voice calm, as if his son had not just been declared missing. ¡°The outriders have already been deployed in full force to find him and given every resource to complete their mission.¡±


    That the failure had caused this much of an uproar after wasting the sect¡¯s time and resources for nearly the last twenty years burned at Yu Mei. After all, she had personally crafted many of the ¡°young master¡¯s¡± cultivation aids in his childhood before it was understood that he was defective.


    Now he didn¡¯t even have the sense to pay back what he owed to the sect by getting married off to some haughty clan leader¡¯s daughter. It was the patriarch¡¯s saving grace that he¡¯d decided not to spawn another, the lowborn ignoramus who¡¯d only won the seat of patriarch by marrying into the Cai family.


    An elder in the shadows spoke out. ¡°And, if he cannot be found, what is to be done about the arrangement?¡±


    This question silenced many of the elders and reduced the rest to mutterings. The elders had very much desired the marriage between the two clans. It had seemed like a purely good deal, get rid of a failure and in return the clan would pay a hefty dowry.


    The sect hardly hurt for money, but out at the edge of the world, their access to distant reagents and materials for cultivation was limited. The clan had promised a surplus of rare reagents they had acquired through trade.


    Yu Mei thought back to the first meeting with the clan¡¯s representative. He had arrived quietly at the gates only a month prior, speaking to the guards and arranging a meeting with the elders. A strangely dressed mortal, wearing a jacket and pants of high quality silk and strange metallic decorations around his temples. It was clear the outside clan had wealth but nothing else of redeeming quality, as they hadn¡¯t even sent a cultivator to bargain with them.


    His visit had been quick and discrete, better not to disturb the sect with unnecessary drama.


    The request he made was simple: a marriage between their clan¡¯s young mistress and the firstborn of the patriarch. Perhaps the clan did not know about their methods of succession and thought they could take over the sect through a simple marriage. When asked what the clan could offer in exchange for such an arrangement they had produced a crate of unknown material filled to bursting with unique and powerful reagents. Then proceeded to claim one hundred more of equal value. The elders had taken a few moments to discuss the deal, but the decision was already clear.


    The man had left as quickly and quietly as he came after arranging for the boy to be picked up at a certain time. Many meetings had followed as they discussed the division of materials from the dowry and how they would be spent. It was only later that it was decided by the patriarch that the failure in question should be informed of the decision, ¡°to prepare and be presentable¡± as he argued. It even made sense at the time, but had clearly been just another mistake of the man.


    ¡°An alternative suitor should be prepared¡± Yu Mei declared. All eyes turned to her. ¡°Multiple, if possible. If the boy cannot be located before the appointed time then we must be ready to secure the dowry.¡±


    ¡°They were specific that it was my son that was offered.¡± The patriarch reminded. Yu Mei could tell he hoped to salvage the situation by finding his son and keeping the plan on track, but it was too late.


    ¡°True, they may not be happy with the change, but we can assure them of intent by offering something else as well. Perhaps some technique manuals or some lesser artifacts?¡± Another elder chimed in.


    The elders'' debate turned to compensation for the clan, what they could offer that had little value but would ensure the dowry was collected.


    Yu Mei saw the patriarch¡¯s frown deepen, showing the first real emotion throughout the entire meeting. She could also see how the elders were turning away from him and discussing amongst themselves.


    A plan began to put itself together in her head as she filed through her descendants, preferably someone in the main family but she could compromise. If all ended well, she could secure the dowry and, while the position of sect leader was out of the picture, she would elevate her clan¡¯s power to rival the Cai family.


    A small smile cracked on her face. For once, she was glad for Chen Sun to be born.

 Chapter 7, Open Eyes

    Sun awoke suddenly as the truck lurched to the side, narrowly avoiding a pothole. He snapped his head around at the unfamiliar surroundings until it all came back to him and he started to relax.


    ¡°Shit, they were supposed to have filled that in by now.¡± Mick sighed beside him. ¡°Sorry about that, kid. I keep forgetting about that one.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine. Sun replied, stretching as best he could in the confined space. ¡°How long was I out for?¡±


    ¡°Five, maybe six hours.¡± He shrugged. ¡°But you woke up at the right time. We should be seein¡¯ the city soon.¡±


    Sun looked out the window, seeing that the sun had lowered close to the horizon and was casting the sky in hues of deep red and orange. The passing landscape had changed too, still dusty and dry, but flatter and with the occasional spot of greenery like a clump of shrubs or a lone cactus.


    He also saw that the long and lonely highway was no more and that the road had expanded to four lanes. They were not alone either, as Sun saw another truck just ahead of them, as large and imposing as the one they rode in now. And a glint in the side view mirror let Sun notice a handful of smaller vehicles, closer to the size of wagons, were trailing behind them.


    Sun wanted to be surprised and shocked and flabbergasted at these new developments, that such fast and powerful vehicles were not rare, but he had somewhat expected it. They wouldn¡¯t give such vehicles to just anyone if they were incredibly rare or difficult to produce, nor would they let it travel the wilds unattended save for the driver.


    Sun relaxed back into his seat, clenching and unclenching his hands to work out the last of the stiffness in his body. He had vastly underestimated how tired he had been, his paranoia and qi fueled body barely keeping him moving until he got too tired to notice how tired he was. He smirked at the irony, but he had managed to get as far as he did because of it and was now traveling quite leisurely with his new companion.


    Sun paused.


    His new companion, whose very clean and nice truck now had stains on the seat and door from where he had fallen asleep after being offered safe travel.


    Sun suddenly felt very awkward as he realized how rude his actions might seem. The silence in the cab was suddenly deafening and he needed to break it.


    ¡°Er, um, so, t-thank you very much for, um, letting m-me ride with you, by the way.¡± He winced internally at his stuttering. He was usually much more composed.


    Mick looked a little surprised by the sudden conversation but didn¡¯t seem to mind it. ¡°It¡¯s no problem, man. Consider it my good deed for the week.¡±


    Sun relaxed a bit at that, but realized that Mick wasn¡¯t going to continue speaking and scrambled to find a response.


    ¡°Right but, still, thank you. Um, so, I was wondering if you could tell me a little about the city, if that¡¯s okay.¡±


    Mick nodded in understanding while keeping his eyes on the road. ¡°Yeah, of course. Well, I don¡¯t know if I¡¯m the best person to ask about this. Arcadia is a city like any other, I guess. Big, lots of people, some looking to help you, most just looking to screw you over.¡±This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    Sun nodded along as he listened, recognizing a lot of what Mick was saying from stories about big cities. But there was one thing he didn¡¯t recognize.


    Arcadia, he called it. It was a strange name and he wondered if they had changed it from something or it had always been called that. Sun mentally shrugged and decided there were weirder things around him than the name of the city.


    Mick continued. ¡°It¡¯s a real melting pot, y¡¯know? People from all over come here for one reason or another, like trying to get into the Academy, or getting a job as a fuckin¡¯ corpo. Most of them end up in the gutter either way, so try not to end up like them, alright kid?¡± Mick turned in his seat to partially face Sun, pointing a finger towards him with a stern yet compassionate expression on his face.


    Sun nodded vigorously, still not sure how to feel that a complete stranger had shown him more kindness than his family had in the last decade. But, what Mick was saying made him think back on his plan for when they reached the city. That plan had been to find a small, out of the way village, buy some land if possible, and hide away as a farmer. Now though, he wasn¡¯t sure how viable that plan actually was.


    Sun knew so little about the world outside the sect and what he did ¡°know¡± he was beginning to question. It was clear that he didn¡¯t have enough information to make a good plan, so first things first: survival. Finding a place to stay, preferably not on the streets, was step number one.


    He lightly tapped at his satchel, miraculously still fully intact after the hard journey, and heard the soft jingle of the silver coins inside. He didn¡¯t know what they would be worth, but hopefully he could get a room at some tavern or inn for a few nights to catch his footing.


    After that, he needed to find out whatever he could about the world at large. The city may be big and easy to get lost in, but it was also still too close to the sect for his liking. If it took him two weeks to get here, it would only take the outriders a couple of days, and even less time for the elders if they got off their asses and out of their shady meeting room. Not that Sun thought they would do that, especially not for him.


    But thinking about the elders brought a question to mind: did they know? Did the elders know that the world had changed around them and were just lying to the disciples telling them how they lived was how it was everywhere?


    As much as Sun hated the elders and wanted to blame them for every perceived slight, he didn¡¯t think they knew. The sect had been cut off from the world for centuries, and the last time any sect members had left the north was¡­he couldn¡¯t remember.


    Thinking about it made Sun realize just how closed off the sect had been, like its own pocket world, completely disconnected from reality. He decided to stop thinking about it. He wasn¡¯t going to come rushing back to the sect to tell everyone who¡¯d bullied him and criticized his cultivation about the amazing trucks and roads, or anything else he¡¯d see in the city. He wasn¡¯t going back and, thinking about it, they weren¡¯t going to break hundreds of years of isolation just for him.


    The relief that thought brought him almost made him want to go back to sleep. But instead something on the horizon caught his eye and made him sit up straight.


    The road they were driving on was no longer alone as a number of others had begun to converge. Each road extended out across the desert in a different direction, mostly to the south and east as far as Sun could tell. He could see the distant lights of the vehicles on those roads, almost all of them driving in the same direction as Mick¡¯s truck.


    Sun¡¯s eyes followed the roads to where they would converge, and could make out what almost looked like a small mountain silhouetted against the setting sun. The mountain had many peaks and glittered like a jewel amongst the arid emptiness of the desert.


    ¡°Uh, Mick?¡± Sun asked, pointing out the approaching mountain. ¡°What is that?¡±


    Mick glanced at him questioningly before looking out and squinting into the distance, the light of the sun making it hard for him to see. Sun had almost forgotten the limitations of sight unaided by qi reinforcement.


    Mick used his hand to block out some of the light but seemed confused as to what Sun could be pointing out. He turned and was about to say something before his eyes widened and looked out again, a look of understanding crossing his face.


    ¡°Oooh, you mean the city?¡±


    ¡°City?! That¡¯s not a city, that¡¯s a mountain!¡±


    ¡°I mean yeah, it¡¯s pretty big.¡± He shrugged ¡°Something, like, twenty million people live here? So yeah, it¡¯s gotta be at least that big.¡±


    Sun¡¯s jaw dropped.


    ¡®Twenty million?!¡¯


    He looked back to the mountainous shape, standing alone and proud in the middle of the flat and empty landscape. As the sun dipped below the horizon and the sky darkened, the peaks of the mountain, now revealed to be titanic towers, ignited with artificial lights in every imaginable color. Some of these lights began to dance and animate or spell out words as the city seemed to ignore the passing of the day and shine its own light into the world.


    ¡°Yup. Hah, welcome to Arcadia.¡±