Unintended Cultivator

Book 9: Chapter 50: One Man

When Sen had spilled all of those different cores on the ground, he’d expected it to be impressive but even he hadn’t anticipated the true scope of the devastation it would create. The wall, the gate, the cultivators behind the gate, and several nearby buildings had been… He supposed the right description was torn apart. It wasn’t quite on the level of what he expected more advanced nascent soul cultivators could do, but it was a frankly shocking level of destruction. For the moment, nothing was moving nearby in the sect. Sen took that opportunity to stride forward, flanked on either side by Falling Leaf and Glimmer of Night.

He crossed over the approximate spot where the gate had been and looked around. He let his spiritual sense sweep out again, having pulled it back before all the cracked cores exploded. He’d had the intuition that all of that qi going to war in such a confined space would probably have been disconcerting as hell in his spiritual sense. It might have been enough to stun him a little. He just wasn’t sure and didn’t feel like this was the opportune moment to test that possibility. As his spiritual sense brought information back to him from the entire sect, he had to suppress a grimace.

Spending more than a week creeping around in the sect had given him at least a rough sense of how many people were there. His initial strike had reduced that amount by around half and more were dying by the minute. On the one hand, that meant that his trap had been very effective. He’d never dreamed for a second that it would get everyone, but he had worried that the sect would have some kind of plan or countermeasures in place for something like this. They clearly didn’t. On the other hand, it felt wrong to be happy that the trap was so effective. Sen shoved that thought away. I can indulge in guilt later, he thought. Right now, I just need to finish the job. Still, he had committed himself to one tiny mercy.

“I don’t care about the qi-condensing cultivators,” he announced. “They can’t rebuild the sect. They aren’t powerful enough to pose a threat. If they want to run, let them. If they fight, kill them. Everyone else dies. I intentionally excluded a few buildings from the trap. I’d like to preserve the libraries if it’s possible. If it’s not, I’ll live with it.”

Sen had told them that before, but he suspected it wasn’t a bad thing to remind them about before the real battle took hold. That seemed particularly prudent given that they were separating. Not that he was happy with that prospect. In fact, he’d been entirely and vocally against that idea. While he knew that both Falling Leaf and Glimmer of Night were capable fighters, it was entirely possible that there were some elders still alive in the sect. He wasn’t eager to fight them, but he was relatively confident that he could fight them. He wasn’t nearly so confident that the others would enjoy success against superior cultivators.

It didn’t help that he couldn’t get a clear feel for Glimmer of Night’s cultivation level. It was the equivalent of core formation, but Sen couldn’t pin down exactly where in core cultivation. He had similar trouble with Falling Leaf, but it wasn’t as pronounced with her. He wondered if whatever transformation the Great Matriarch had put the spider through also helped to obscure his exact strength. While a frustration for allies, he could see a lot of utility value in potential enemies not being able to sense someone’s strength.

For all his misgivings, he’d eventually agreed. The truth was that Falling Leaf and Glimmer of Night worked better when they could ambush opponents. With the darkness of night and rampant confusion in the sect, there would be ample opportunities for ambushes. Sen, for better or worse, had built his fighting style around direct assaults. He wasn’t above an ambush by any stretch of the imagination, but his instincts didn’t take him there. He had to plan his sneak attacks. That made trying to move as a coordinated team less than ideal for all of them. The other two could always come in behind Sen to clean up any strays he didn’t kill. That would work but didn’t play to their strengths. A fact that Falling Leaf and Glimmer of Night had pointed out to him. In the end, he’d relented.

“Remember what I said about the organization of this place. The centermost part of the sect is where the core members and elders live,” said Sen feeling compelled to give one last piece of unnecessary advice.

Glimmer of Night and Falling Leaf both nodded before dashing off into the darkness. Sen took several deep breaths as he watched them go. Sen knew that Falling Leaf had no qualms about what they were doing, and he’d intuited that Glimmer of Night was largely indifferent. He was fairly certain that the spider had been more concerned about testing out that web and cracked core trick than about what came after. He supposed he should be grateful that he wasn’t asking them to do anything they didn’t want to do. For that matter, he hadn’t really asked either of them to do anything. They’d told him they were coming. Not that it alleviated his concerns about their safety, but he’d have to trust them. There was no other choice.

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He was about to start making his way into the sect when he felt a massive swell of qi in the distance. Sen felt a vague sense of unease that it meant the patriarch was on his way back when he felt a second swell of qi from the same direction. There was only one explanation for that. Uncle Kho had gone off to keep the patriarch busy. No, thought Sen. Uncle Kho went to kill him. He hadn’t wanted Uncle Kho to get involved, but he couldn’t pretend that having the patriarch off the board was anything but a massive relief.

He wasn’t sure if it was that last pause that gave the other cultivator the courage to try something, but Sen heard the creak of a bowstring and the sound of an arrow cutting through the air. He’d planned to leave that particular cultivator alone. They’d been hiding on top of the wall, and he was content to leave them there. Once they fired that arrow, though, they’d taken sides. Sen reached up and caught the arrow between two fingers. It had been a clean shot. If he was a mortal, it would have taken him through the neck and severed the artery there. To be fair, though, Sen didn’t think the arrow had enough power to even break his skin, let alone do any real damage.

Sen threw the arrow back where it had come from with a contemptuous flick of his wrist. He didn’t even bother looking. A cry of pain was his reward for a successful throw. He activated his qinggong technique. A heartbeat later, he was standing on the wall and looming over a qi-condensing cultivator with an arrow straight through his shoulder. The cultivator stared up at him with a sweat-covered face. Sen couldn’t tell if it was pain or fear causing that sweat. Probably both, thought Sen. The cultivator was fumbling for a jian at his waist but stopped as Sen shook his head. I should kill him, thought Sen. He turned and looked out at the pandemonium that gripped the rest of the sect, or at least what was left of it.

“What’s your name?” asked Sen, seeking any excuse to wait.

“Outer disciple Bin Enle, honored senior,” said the wounded man, his voice husky with pain.

“You’re not an outer disciple, Bin Enle. There is no Twisted Blade Sect anymore. Not after tonight,” said Sen with a weary voice. “Why would you fire on me? You had to know it was pointless.”

The wounded man stared at Sen in horror before he managed to choke out a few words.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“It’s my duty.”

“Anyone who tells you that it’s your duty to commit suicide against a cultivator two cultivation stages above you is a fool or a liar. It’s not your duty. There’s no honor in it,” said Sen, barely even registering the other man. “I have no desire to kill you, Bin Enle. So, I will give you your life and a task. Tell others what happened here. Tell them that Judgment’s Gale came to the Twisted Blade Sect and found it wanting.”

Bin Enle jerked in surprise or fear before he asked in a hushed whisper, “You're Judgment’s Gale?”

“I am. Now, take your life and go,” said Sen before he fixed the man in place with a glare. “Take your life, Bin Enle, and ensure that I do not live to regret this mercy.”

Sen could see how pale the man was, how frightened he was, but Bin Enle had grit inside of him. He did his best to give Sen a bow.

“It will be as you say, honored senior.”

With that, arrow still piercing his shoulder, Bin Enle leapt from the wall to the ground outside. Sen watched the man run off into the darkness as he almost absently batted aside a handful of techniques from some would-be heroes. He answered by sending crimson blades hurtling into them. There was one cry of pained despair before several more cultivators disappeared from Sen’s spiritual sense. Through it all, Sen watched the figure of Bin Enle racing away from the sect. He didn’t know if the man was grateful to be alive, cursing himself as a coward, or any other of a hundred possible reactions. What mattered to Sen was that the man was leaving. He would live.

Even if no one else from the Twisted Blade Sect walked away this night, that man would live because Sen had allowed himself a moment of mercy. He hadn’t known it, but he’d needed to do that. It was a tiny thing compared to what he was doing, but it was still a balm to him. The knowledge that he hadn’t killed everyone. He didn’t know if that would matter to anyone else, but it mattered to him. He could be cold if he needed to be but there had to be something inside of him to balance that out. Without that balance, he might go mad. Today, that balance was the life of one man he didn’t know. It wasn’t much, but it was enough. Letting cold indifference sweep over him, Sen stepped off the wall and dropped into the sect. When he landed, Sen had been left behind. Only Judgment’s Gale remained.