The Jade Shadows Must Die [Cultivation LitRPG]

Fear lanced through him, and in desperation, he summoned his Energy Surge as he threw himself backwards, his body accelerating to superhuman speed as the qi fired through his muscles. The technique was all that stopped him from being impaled by the second fadeborn that shot through the space he'd occupied just an instant before.

Of course, there were two. What had the Quartermaster said? There were no rules in the Fractured Realm.

He struck the root of a nearby tree hard. Though his mantle activated, the impact still momentarily stunned him. He'd kept twenty percent of his mana allocated, as the Quartermaster recommended, but a chunk of that had just been consumed by the fall.

Dragging himself up, he whirled to be confronted by two of the creatures advancing on him with lethal intent. One was lightly injured, but Rix had no illusions about the danger he was in. The fight had turned in the blink of an eye. His veins surged with adrenaline as he tried his best to watch his opponents while also scanning the trees for further threats. Who knew how big the packs of these things were?

The fades were clearly experienced at working in tandem. They were already fanning out, trying to encircle him and get at his exposed back. He lashed out with a flurry of [Wind Blade] blows, but the fade he targeted simply slid backwards, evading his attacks, giving the other an opening to dart in from his side. Two spikes of dark chitin plunged towards him, threatening to skewer him through the chest, and he was forced to call on his Energy Surge once again to whip up his staff in defence.

Already, his qi reserves were running low. He had enough left for perhaps a second or two of Energy Surge. More concerning, his mana was also dropping rapidly. He couldn't fight like this. He needed to maintain [Wind Blade] to have any shot at killing them, but they were surprisingly patient now that they were a team, probing his defences, covering each other's weaknesses. It was already clear how the fight would go. They would corral him, they would wear him down, and they would kill him.

He needed to do something.

In his desperation, his mind pulled forward memories of his childhood in Cloudpiercer Citadel. This chaos was not entirely unfamiliar. As a street rat, he'd often been alone, and more than once come up against superior numbers. The environment was different, but the principles were the same: reduce their advantage. Narrow walkways and choke points were your friends.

Not giving himself a chance to second-guess, Rix feigned an attack, then bolted in the opposite direction. If he gave the fades a clear line of sight, they'd be on him with their terrifying leap, so as he ran, Rix zigged and zagged, ducking behind trees and making himself as difficult a target as possible. He didn't know what they were like in pursuit and didn't dare risk looking back, but he could hear the tear of undergrowth behind him that said they were hot on his tail. Shoving down his rising panic, he pushed a little more of his precious qi into Energy Surge, shooting forward like an arrow in a vain attempt to put some distance between himself and his opponents.

Though he was running, he was not fleeing, and a few moments later he found what he was looking for. The part of the forest where the trees grew dense and interwoven. A natural corridor. A place where his sides were protected and he couldn't be leapt on from above.

Skidding to a halt between those makeshift walls, he spun and raised his weapon. From the brush, the two fades emerged. They didn't attack immediately, stalking forward, assessing with their eyeless gaze. Though Rix heard no communication, they seemed to decide on a strategy, as the uninjured fade began to advance. Despite missing a leg, the other didn't seem particularly impaired. It watched him a moment longer, then coiled its back legs and leapt, disappearing into the canopy above.

Rix glanced around. The trees were densely packed, but he wasn't confident they were impenetrable. The fades called this forest home. Perhaps they knew of a gap or place of weakness. Alternatively, the other fade could simply be taking the long way around, circling behind to attack from the other end of the corridor. Either way, his situation was tenuous, but right now he had what he wanted. A one on one duel.

He had to capitalise.

The fade came at him, lashing out with its spear-like limbs. Though the corridor offered him protection, it also hampered his ability to dodge, forcing him to take the attacks on his staff. They exchanged brutal blows, and though Rix managed to shear the tip off one of its legs with a well-placed [Wind Blade], it seemed to adapt quicker than its brethren yesterday, avoiding the dangerous bladed tip wherever possible, instead opting to block his attacks lower down on the staff itself.

He didn't escape unscathed either. A misread blow led to the fade landing a skidding slash along his thigh. Again, his mantle flared to life and made something crippling into a flesh wound. If this was going to be how his days went, he perhaps had to rethink his mana allocation. Then again, his current pool was already dwindling as he pushed more and more of his mana into [Wind Blade], trying for a decisive strike. He couldn't keep this up.

He let the technique wink out and returned to simple staff combat, trying to lull the creature into a rhythm, to find some pattern he could exploit like he had in the canyon earlier. His metal bands met piercing claw as they battled, neither party seeming to have an advantage. He was quick, quicker than he'd ever been in his life if you ignored his rare moments of Energy Surge, but the fade was easily his equal. Maybe his style would have proved the difference, but trying to channel it would be a fruitless endeavour. This fight would rely on his mortal skills alone.

After another furious exchange, it became clear the creature wasn't really trying to win. Like its partner before, its goal was simply to keep him engaged until reinforcements arrived. And then, as if on cue, from somewhere deep in the tunnel behind him, he heard a shifting in the trees, and he knew his time was up.

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He had to kill his opponent now.

Striking out for the creature's right leg as he had several times before, he suddenly pivoted his weight, sending his blow wide and letting the follow-through carry the staff upward. Reaching deep into the centre of his dantian, he wrenched forth the last vestiges of his qi, forcing it into his Energy Surge even as he called forth [Force Hammer] using his mana. It was a desperate gambit. Under normal circumstances against this opponent, he'd have judged this a risky move, but he had no choice. He simply had to hope his qi would make him fast enough.

He felt the speed up sputter to life, rushing through his body as he whipped the staff to its apex. He didn't even know if [Force Hammer] would fire. Because of the low canopy above him, he had to grip his weapon in the middle, rather than at one end as the technique called for. It gave him less leverage, less power, and his mind screamed as he tried to bend the technique to do something it was not fit for. Then his mana surged and snapped into place, and he brought his staff crashing down as the fade's brutal limb knifed towards his exposed chest.

There was a mere blink in it. His technique connected, slamming the creature into the ground, shattering half its torso. Essence flowed into him.

He let out a long breath. He'd been a heartbeat from death. The tiniest bit less qi would have meant Energy Surge ran out earlier, letting the fade impale him. He didn't know if his remaining mantle would have saved him. His whole body was shaking with nervous energy, and he desperately wanted a moment to let his heart settle, but the fight wasn't done.

He turned to see the second fade appear at the far end of the corridor. The keening it let out could have been anger or sadness, Rix wasn't sure, but it immediately rushed him and launched into a furious series of strikes. Gone was the caution, the cold calculation. Now that it was alone, the fade had reverted to what it knew. All out attack.

But with its partner dead, Rix had the advantage. This fight he knew. Maybe it was the adrenaline, or his burgeoning confidence, but the battle was over quickly. He blocked the fade's opening salvo, then in quick succession sheared off three legs, before driving his [Wind Blade] through its throat.

More essence, and he let out a primal cry.

He was exhausted. His lungs burned and his nerves were frayed. But he'd never felt so alive. Not in the prison yard melee with Yutaro, nor that first battle with the bear-like fadeborn. Not even in all his years running the streets of Cloudpiercer Citadel. He'd fought violently and often, but it had always been about survival. A clawing against the current. This was different. This was dominion. This was him imposing himself on the world. No longer was he a rat scurrying in the shadows. He was a hunter in his own right.

The elation was almost overwhelming.

He stayed there in the relative safety of the tree tunnel until the fight had left his veins. He took the opportunity to assess his situation. Most of the mana he'd assigned to his mantle had been consumed, along with basically all of his free mana pool. It was regenerating in the background, as always, but it would take time. His qi, meanwhile, was completely gone.

There were lessons to be taken from the fight. Resource management really was going to be critical for him until he found some way to enhance both pools. Maybe he needed to consider assigning some points to mana capacity. In any case, for now he had to be judicious. Every reckless technique was ultimately more downtime between battles, and that wasn't even factoring in the risk of getting caught with nothing left. What if Yutaro decided to collect on his debt early? Rix would be all but helpless.

The good news was that since mana refilled automatically, he could rebuild both supplies simultaneously. After refilling some of his qi, he also fortified his mantle once more. In total, he spent just over half an hour on the process.

When he was done, he returned to the clearing where he'd first encountered the two fades. There, at the base of the tree, was the source of the creature's distraction. A brown mushroom that glowed faintly of mana. A natural treasure. The thing was half eaten, but Rix picked it anyway. Perhaps it would still be worth something.

He had a decision to make. Despite being mostly recovered, it was fair to say he was not 'at his best', as the Quartermaster would put it. His qi was below half, his arm injured, his muscles tired. His mind felt heavy in a way he couldn't quite define. The sensible thing was to begin heading back.

But he had a taste for this now. He knew what it was to be the hunter.

He pulled up his System display.

[Essence: 40%]

With each fade giving ten percent, just six more kills would raise him to Mid Whisper. What would have felt like a gargantuan task yesterday felt very doable in that moment. There were more than three hours left before the portal closed.

He pretended to think it through briefly, but the choice was already made.

He began to hunt.

By the time he felt the thirty-minute warning through his tether, he'd exceeded his goal. Seven fades had fallen to his staff. The change in mindset seemed to unlock his potential. No longer was he searching for danger so he could avoid it. Instead, he was barrelling forward. He'd discovered a second pair of the spider fades, two more of the bear fades, as well as three of a new variety he was dubbing snake fades, for their elongated bodies and lack of legs, though their method of attack mostly involved a whip-like tail. Though several of the fights had been tense — particularly the first time one of the snakes uncoiled itself from a nearby tree and managed to get a grip around his leg — Rix survived. His mantle had shattered completely in one battle, and he'd actually exhausted his mana pool in another, but despite the struggle, his confidence had grown with every enemy he felled.

[Essence: 110%]

Making the jump up a rank wasn't automatic. He'd need to forge the essence into his body, which required time and privacy. That could wait for night-time and the security of his cell. He could hardly contain his excitement.

He hadn't been targeting them, but he'd found several more treasures too. A couple of the small green roots and one of the blue flowers the Divemaster used as an example. Though they were hidden, he could feel the faint warmth of them through the pocket of his robe, like freshly baked bread.

As he'd roamed, he'd made sure not to head much deeper into the Fractured Realm, using the tether as a guide. He'd passed three other inmates, and while the exchanges had been frosty, nobody had tried to pick a fight or claim a spot. Everybody seemed content to go their separate ways.

He began the ten-minute journey back feeling flush with success and satisfaction. The idea that this could be his life day in and day out filled him with joy. It felt every bit as good as he'd dreamed.

The environment had shifted several times during his hunt, so he didn't think much of it happening again. Not until he rounded the corner and found the body.