The Jade Shadows Must Die [Cultivation LitRPG]

Rix quickly scanned the area, but could see no obvious threat. Still, he proceeded with caution, his eyes roving, his staff tight in his fists as he approached.

The body belonged to an inmate; that much was obvious, and from the blood that streaked the ground beneath, they had suffered a violent end. He flipped the man over with the tip of his weapon.

It was the prisoner who had warned Rix off his territory just a few hours earlier.

Realisation set in, and Rix looked around once more. His circuit had inadvertently taken him back through the man's turf. Well, former turf. It didn't technically have an owner anymore.

Though the man had been a stranger, and one who had threatened Rix no less, seeing him with his guts painting the rocks brought Rix crashing back to reality. The man had been strong, stronger than Rix, and with heavens knew how much more experience. He could theoretically have ventured deeper and hunted bigger prey, and yet he'd fallen to the weak fades in first two-mile radius. It was a reminder of what the Quartermaster said: confidence was useful, but arrogance would get you killed. Rix knew his proclivities, to push too hard, too fast. He'd arguably done that today. Those desires would be an asset on the Martial Path, but only when tempered with sense.

When he thought back on his day, he realised that everyone lobbing scepticism at him had, in a way, been correct. Had he simply been who they thought he was, a regular mortal with no training or talent, he'd likely have died hours ago in his second fight. Only Energy Surge had let him survive that initial two-on-one, and though he'd relied on it less in subsequent battles, it had still been his trump card in several situations.

None of that undercut his sense of achievement — he'd earned Energy Surge through years of blood, sweat and tears — but it was a warning worth heeding. This place really was as dangerous as they said. For now, he'd show some restraint, at least until he had his feet under him.

Up close, the man's body looked sickly and grey, like he'd suffered something more than just his wounds. It was said the fades literally drank Martial Souls of their mana. Maybe that explained the man's pallor.

Some people Rix knew would have stood over the body and said a prayer to the heavens.

Rix went through the man's pockets.

There was no sense in leaving anything for the fades. Unfortunately, whatever treasures he'd had, they'd already taken. He briefly considered taking the man's weapon, but that would make it look like he'd died to another prisoner rather than a fade. Besides, Rix had no use for a sword at this point.

But there was still something to claim.

Rix stood once more and surveyed the area. A spot that no longer had an owner. That was how the territory game worked. Someone's fall was another's rise. As far as he was concerned, this place was his now, and he was eager to see what it had to offer. Silver linings.

He took a final glance at the dead man, then continued back to the portal. His battles with the fades had left him depleted of qi, and with just a trickle of mana, but thankfully he encountered no opposition, arriving back at the central clearing with ten minutes to spare.

The place was a hive of activity, with prisoners flowing in from all four of the canyon tunnels and forming a line for the portal. He didn't see Luna, and, despite barely knowing her, he was surprised to find a small pang of concern. But she'd probably just gone through already. The girl had seemed more capable than him. If any bets were placed on which fresh Whisper would survive, smart money would have been on her.

He'd barely thought about Yutaro while in the thrall of his hunt, but he caught the man staring at him with cold eyes as he stepped up to join the queue.

Proceedings moved fast and in short order, Rix was stepping up to the portal. The Divemaster looked him up and down with a sneer. "Well, both my little sheep made it back to the flock. Managed to hide for six hours, did you?"

"Not exactly, sir. You might be thinking of the fades? After the first few, they all but seemed to go missing."

The man scoffed. "Right, and I'm the Emperor's personal bodyguard. Save your tales for the other prisoners, dreg."

Rix shrugged. He didn't much care what the man thought. Eventually, his actions would speak for him.

"By the way, I found one of the other prisoners out there," Rix said. "Or what was left of him. Tall man, blue eyes. I'm not sure what the protocol is."

The Divemaster's eyes narrowed. "And how do I know you didn't jump this prisoner yourself so you could take his treasures?"

Rix put on his most innocent face. "You said it yourself, sir. I went in there with nothing more than a 'dreg weapon'. Surely you're not suggesting I could have taken out a proper Martial Soul? Not to mention one much stronger than me?"

The man chewed that over for a second, but seemed to realise he was caught. "Any losses are caught during turn-in," he growled. "Now get on through, you're holding up the line."

Rix was happy to oblige. He stepped into the portal, returning to the underground embrace of the prison. On the other side, the line continued. The desk that had previously sat empty was now staffed by a woman in a white robe who was flanked by two guards. Rix watched as, one at a time, his fellow inmates walked up and placed their treasures down in front of her. She would study each deposit for a few seconds before channelling her mana into it and placing it in a large basket.

Huan, the Shadow Runner who had given Rix the warning earlier in the day, stood off to one side talking with another inmate.

"Ho, Huan," Rix said as he approached.

The man shot him a ghost of a smile. "You live."

"So far. I have a question, if you don't mind? In the Fractured Realm, I found a spot where everything hurt."

The man grinned. "Entropy field. They're all over the place in there. One of the pleasures of diving an unstable realm."

"Do they do anything?" Of course, Rix couldn't mention the way the entropy field had resonated with his qi, but any information would be better than none.

"Beyond hurt like hells? Not that I know of. Fades don't seem to feel it, for what it's worth. My advice: stay clear of them. There was a prisoner about a year ago, another Shadow Runner, who wanted to play researcher and push his limits in one. He passed out and a fade ate his face."

Rix blanched. "That seems worth avoiding."

It seemed like the end of the conversation, so Rix nodded thanks and turned to go before his eyes landed again on the line and the woman collecting treasures. He realised he had no idea what the protocol was. "Sorry, one more question. Mind telling me what the story with all this is?"

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Huan grimaced. "Bane of my bleeding life is what it is." He dropped his voice low, leaning in closer. "White robe is an Auditor. She checks every treasure we collect to make sure it's not blighted with Entropy. Feed one of those bad boys into a factory array and—" he made a gesture that looked like an explosion.

"I didn't know that," Rix replied. "Why is that a problem for you, though?"

"That's not the problem. The problem is what she does afterwards." They watched the woman for several seconds until Rix felt that pulse of mana. "That's her signature of authenticity." The Shadow Runner spat those words like they'd done him great harm. "No treasure gets out of any Fractured Realm without one."

Rix cocked his head to one side. "They sign the treasures?"

"This is Cloudpiercer, friend. Everything is signed, catalogued and accounted for. Couldn't have it falling into the hands of the unworthy, after all." He nodded towards the door that led out of the room. Rix had used it when he entered and it had seemed ordinary, but from this direction he could see that it was lit up with runes, indicating an array. "And just in case you get the bright idea to sneak a little something out for yourself, any unsigned treasure will immediately trigger that array and leave you crying for your mother. Believe me, I've tried."

The setup was comprehensive, but not unexpected. He'd long since ceased to be surprised by the lengths the city would go to protect things of value.

"There's no way past?" In truth, it mattered little to Rix. He wasn't intending to try and keep anything for himself. But it seemed prudent to take advantage while he had Huan talking. Not many people gave away even knowledge for free.

"I didn't say that," Huan replied carefully, and Rix sensed perhaps he was testing the limits of the man's goodwill. "They sure make it difficult though."

He thanked him and joined the queue.

"Prisoner name and number?" the Auditor said as he reached the front.

"Zao Rixian, 503."

She skimmed the book that was open in front of her. "Haul?"

He emptied his pockets onto the table; five treasures in total. He'd not been paying enough attention to know if that was high or low.

The Auditor performed her scan, then called forth her mana to sign her work. It was the first time he'd really been able to sit back in complete safety and watch someone use a technique, so Rix tried to pay attention to the intricacies of what was happening. He felt the burst of mana, but the notion that he'd be able to glean any kind of understanding from the process was quickly disabused. She might as well have been writing another language. When she was done, she recorded his tally in the ledger, and he stepped out through the array.

With dinner on the horizon, Rix headed straight for the mess hall, finding Tolson at his usual station in the kitchen. "I met your friend," Rix said after beckoning him over. "You didn't have to do that."

The man shrugged. "I didn't have to, no. But I wanted to."

Rix studied him. They'd interacted several times, and he never got a hint of ulterior motive. Still… "Why? Why are you helping me?"

Tolson gave him a sad smile. "Because of that reaction. Nobody gives without getting something in return. That's especially true in here, but it's the same out there. It rubs me the wrong way. The world could be so much kinder."

"A kind world sounds nice," Rix replied. "Too bad we got this one."

"Too bad, indeed."

"I do appreciate the help, though."

Tolson nodded. "It's not much, but it's something. Don't suppose you managed to smooth things out with Yutaro?"

Rix sighed. "I tried, but when I gave him a stone and he just upped the price to two. It's pretty clear it's gone beyond a shakedown at this point."

"Wounded pride is heavy for some men," said Tolson.

"Any suggestions on what to try next?"

The man hesitated. "I know you already said no, but you could consider trying to join a faction. Not all of them will take just anyone, but a few of the smaller ones would give you some security and maybe make Yutaro think twice."

Rix exhaled sharply. Tolson had a point, but Rix had only just found territory of his own. He liked that. He'd never owned anything more significant than a torn shirt before. It felt like something, however tenuous.

"Still a no, but I'll let you know if I change my mind."

The man nodded, unsurprised. "Stay safe."

Rix collected his food, some kind of stew of indeterminate grey meat with rice and pickles, and found a seat. For a while, he was lost in thought. The day had exceeded his wildest expectations. Nobody could deny he was a Martial Soul now. He hadn't fallen to the first fade he saw. He hadn't wilted under the pressure. He'd tested himself and come up triumphant.

It was just one dive, but empires were built a day at a time.

"What was your tally?" said Luna, breaking his reverie and sliding onto the seat opposite him like they were old acquaintances. She immediately began wolfing down her dinner.

He blinked several times. "What?"

"Your tally," she said, her mouth full. "How many fades did you kill?"

"Oh. Ten. You?"

She whistled. "Bleeding hells. I only got eight. Tried to fight four of the pointy ones at once." She lifted her arm, revealing a long gash down her side he hadn't noticed before. "Had to bail early after that. Might have been a bit ambitious. Ten is a good effort though." A grin spread across her face. "Pity you didn't want to bet."

Rix rocked back a little in his chair. Four at once? The most he'd encountered was two, and those fights had been tense. Sure, she'd been wounded, but to take on four and still be sitting in front of him…well, that was impressive.

Then again, she looked like she'd come even closer to death than he had. "That looks nasty," he said, nodding at her wound. "Why are you even here? Shouldn't you be in the infirmary?"

She looked at him with indignation. "It's dinner time. I'll get some stargrass from the commissary after this."

Rix blinked several times. "Wait, we can get medicinal herbs from the commissary?" When the Divemaster had talked about the commissary, he'd assumed it offered food and other little luxuries. Stargrass was a legitimate medicinal herb.

Luna nodded. "If you're a diver, you can. They've got all sorts of things. Not much great stuff for us in the Farm, but they've got basic herbs. They want to keep us in good shape, I guess."

Basic herbs. That said a lot. Nobody where Rix was from would have called stargrass basic. And yet here he was, able to earn them just by doing what he'd be doing anyway. There was a certain irony to being richer in prison than he'd been as a free man, but he was a Martial Soul now. The game had changed.

"That's good to know. Thanks," he said.

She grinned. "No trouble. I want you to have all the information, so when I beat you next dive it's a fair fight."

Rix couldn't help but laugh. "Does everything need to be a competition?"

"I always do better when there's something on the line."

"Something besides your life?" asked Rix.

She shrugged. "Your life is always on the line. I'm looking for something to make it interesting."

She seemed completely serious, and Rix didn't know how to respond. He couldn't decide if the girl was crazy or not. He wanted to extricate himself from the conversation, but short of complete rudeness, there was no way to do that and finish the meal. He'd upset enough people in Spiritlock already, so he sat in silence and willed her to do the same.

It was not to be.

"I saw you talking to that guy from the Shadow Runners. Huan, right?" she said.

Rix nodded.

"You thinking of joining?"

"I'd rather steer clear of all that," he replied. "I had some experience with gangs in the city, and I'd rather not repeat it."

"Ah."

He considered her for a moment, then suppressed a sigh. "Are you?"

She brightened. "I'm thinking about applying. Tolson said they're apparently smugglers who can get things in and out of the prison. He seemed uncertain if they'd take me, but it could be fun. At the very least, it'd be nice to have someone to dive with."

She talked about it like a night at the Lantern Festival. The girl's perspective was confusing. She seemed genuinely excited by almost everything. It was strange. She appeared unburdened in a way that few mortals who had grown up in Cloudpiercer Citadel were. He'd be lying if he said it didn't make him curious, but he also wasn't willing to crack open that particular nut.

That nugget of information on the Shadow Runners was interesting, though. It explained Huan's particular take on the security surrounding the treasures. Could they get him things to improve his Path?

"Ten fades," Luna said, looking like she'd suddenly come to a realisation.

He nodded.

"That means you're ready to rank up!"

Her enthusiasm was infectious, and he found himself smiling. "I'm going to do it when I get back to my cell."

"Ancestor's shame! You have to tell me what it's like."

"You'll get there soon enough."

"That I will," she said, with a sparkle in her eye. "And I'll beat you to the next one too. You can stake your core on it."

"If you say so." He shovelled the last of his food into his mouth and stood up. "Wish me luck."

Back in his cell, he shut the door and settled on the bed, turning his attention inward. He could feel the steady glow of his mana and the vibrant tremor of his qi both coming from his dantian in the centre of his stomach. And above them in his chest was his essence, buzzing and warm like compressed sunlight. He knew how this worked in theory.

He opened his System display and smiled.

[Essence: 110%]

[8 attribute points to assign]