Chương 35: Dao of Growth

Rowan Rowan cursed and ran into the closest tunnel. He slowed down after a while, realizing that the demonic cultivator wasn't chasing him. Daoist Apex might have many talents, but stealth certainly wasn't one of them. It was dark in the tunnel, but he could still see. Every few feet, a tiny, flickering sconce lit the way. He noticed something interesting. Rowan touched the formation on the wall. It wasn't a basic formation.

The softly glowing arrays floated a finger's length off the wall, and consisted of seven interlocking bands of evenly spaced symbols, with different rings spinning clockwise and counterclockwise. The symbols were carefully drawn to be exactly the same size, and each orbited a larger, anchoring symbol at the center. Yin. The formation was a mystery to him. He couldn't divine its element. He wasn't even sure what type of Yin the formation was. Not only that but the brushstrokes were confident and precise.

There were only a handful of masters in the First State of Kyrr that could draw a formation at this level. Maybe even less than that. Where would Daoist Apex have gotten the funds to hire a Formations Master? A formation this skillful would have been a fair trade for all of Highwater. A sick feeling entered his gut. He had thought Daoist Apex was the fat spider in this web of demonic cultivators. Apparently, he might not even be the fly struggling in the threads.

He continued on, becoming more and more apprehensive. At this point, he was immune to the thick, cloying smell of blood that hung in the air. The odor of viscera. But the smell seemed to grow stronger the further he continued down this tunnel. He flinched violently when he stepped on something thin and frail, a snapping echoing in the darkness. Bones? His fears were confirmed as the light from the next sconce illuminated the ground ahead. Piles and piles of bones. Small, human bones.

Rowan couldn't feel any malignant qi. That must be what the formation was - a dampening ward. Otherwise this much death in one place would've surely created a Fading Yin Garden. Realm-warping phenomena like that were responsible for the disappearance of entire towns. Rowan closed his eyes and focused on his Waking Spring Breathing technique. The pill's healing sped up. A numbness flowed through his system.

"Found you," a voice said. Rowan opened his eyes, prepared. He sheathed his sword in his qi and struck the mass of flesh behind him. He did it quickly - before the sword could mutate further. The steel drove deeply into Daoist Apex's side. Then, as Rowan's hand abandoned the hilt, it exploded, shards of steel spraying further into the demonic cultivator's flesh. Metal vines erupted from the man's skin, curling, leaves growing and piercing. Daoist Apex didn't scream in pain.

Blood flowed from his blackened eyes as he yelled in fury, tearing into his own torso to remove the intrusion.

"It will take more than your weak methods to injure me!" shouted Daoist Apex.

"I am the next step in cultivation. I can regenerate from a single drop of blood. But that technique did hurt, so I will make sure your death is slow and painful. Your flesh does not deserve to join my body." Even though the demonic cultivator was clawing at his own flesh, the remnants of the sword were like an infection, spreading slowly through his body like filigree. Rowan hadn't expected this outcome - not exactly - but hope sparked deep in his belly. It was like Ostra had said.

The Ensouled in Wood scripture countered demonic cultivation. And the more evil your cultivation - the more rotted and full of death you were - the more his arts would take hold and blossom. Daoist Apex abandoned his self-surgery with a growl.

"This Dao Lord will deal with this once you are dead." Rowan took a step back. His sword was gone. All he had left were his qi techniques. So… he had better make it count. Rowan packaged all the remaining qi in his Qi Sea into a Germination. A brilliant green light exploded from his fingertips, glowing fiercely against the tunnel walls. He staggered, qi fatigue racing through his suddenly dry meridians. It was dangerous to expend so much qi at once. But he only clenched his jaw, watching the attack unfold.

Daoist Apex could not dodge. His form was as large as the height and width of the tunnel. The seed sank into his abdomen. Flesh rippled violently. The steel vines thickened instantly, racing across his body like the bars of a cage, the leaves stabbing into him like daggers. Daoist Apex fell to his knees.

"What the hell is this?" he cried out.

"Wood qi? Metal qi? … Foolish. All elemental techniques are weak against my superior demonic form!" A dizzy spell hit Rowan and he slid down the wall. With a trembling hand, he found a spirit stone in his robes, attempting to recover as much as he could while the demonic cultivator struggled. He'd thought the Germination would've burst through Daoist Apex's body just as it had with Clodde Bastin. At least, he'd hoped so. The inertia of another cultivator's qi was working against his spell now.

The spirit stone's pure qi sank into his apertures, but it was weak and inefficient. Rowan could barely keep his eyes open, his lungs sucking in breath for the sake of survival. There was no technique to the way he cycled qi. After a few moments, the fatigue started to fade into the background. Rowan gained some footing over his own spiritual system. He still felt queasy, a migraine blossoming in the back of his mind.

The symptoms of qi fatigue wouldn't immediately vanish even if all of his qi was suddenly restored. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. He was just lucky he had these spirit stones with him. If he stayed in a state of prolonged qi fatigue, he could permanently damage his Spirit Root and meridians.

"How could this be?!" mumbled Daoist Apex, his voice far away in Rowan's head.

"What rank is this scripture? Not fair, not fair, not fair!! A mediocre pup like you gets all of heaven's blessings - how could I be blamed for the demonic path? I regret nothing! If I'd known I would face you today, I would have eaten every child in Highwater!" Rowan turned his head to face the demonic cultivator. The metal vines pierced through every inch of the man's body, moving like a nest of serpents through his skin and bones.

The leaves were like serrated knives, cutting off sections of flesh and limbs as they moved. Every time the body tried to regenerate, it was like the metal vines were drawn to that area, sprouting violently. Rowan could feel the demonic cultivator's life start to leave him. But he was worried. The man had claimed he could regenerate from a droplet of blood. Then, the giant, fleshy mass of a man slumped over, still tangled in the metal vines.

"Good job," came Ostra's voice.

"Forty points. I suppose I can throw you a point for Clodde Bastin as well."

"He's dead? For sure?" gasped out Rowan.

"Demonic regeneration can be tricky to deal with, but you suppress him in that area. When it comes to the Dao of Growth, I doubt anything on this continent can contend with the combined might of your Bloodwood lineage and the Ensouled in Wood scripture." Well, that was one thing he didn't have to worry about.

"How is my Germination technique, Senior?" he asked. Ostra didn't respond. It seemed like the question wasn't worth his time. Rowan exhaled heavily, leaning his head back against the rocky wall. The senior didn't give him much advice on his cultivation, except seemingly when Rowan was about to permanently ruin himself. In a way, his silence was also a way of guidance. Rowan must be on the right track. Or at least, not deviating away from it too badly.

His Qi Sea was only about two-tenths full when the spirit stone he'd been using broke apart. A miserable waste of pure qi, but he hadn't exactly had a choice. Rowan shakily stood up and wandered deeper into the tunnel. There were a lot of dead, but what if someone was still alive, just like Dalia had been? Bones and bones and bones. He stepped over what he could, but he still felt old splinters beneath the dirt cracking. At the end of the tunnel, the skeletons were fresher.

Some still had bits of leathery skin and flesh clinging to the bone. He continued until he saw three corpses. They hadn't been fully eaten yet, but were each missing their limbs. Heads on torsos. Rowan pulled out the portraits of the missing girls he had collected. No matches. He rubbed his forehead and left the tunnel, searching through the other two. Same result. Piles of bones - each with a few bodies at the ends. No matches.

Rowan thought Daoist Apex's method of eating seemed ritualistic, but he wasn't experienced enough to know which ritual it was. What he did find in the man's personal quarters was a stack of demonic scriptures and a phial of Human Pills. The pills were blood red, smelling pungently of iron. He also found five spirit stones underneath the mattress. Rowan debated for a moment before sweeping everything into his sleeves. Voices called out from above.

"This is the Dao Court! Please reveal yourselves!"

"This is Righteous Mountain Sect! Stand down!" He walked to the giant hole in the ceiling where the orphanage had been. Three men in robes were peering down at the destruction from the lip of the hole. One man was in the elaborate, seven-layered white get-up of the Dao Court. One man was in the autumn-gold robes of the Righteous Mountain Sect's inner disciples. And the third was none other than Baudelain Fross, who seemed extremely concerned. Rowan didn't recognize his fellow sect member.

He had fluffy, curly hair down to his shoulder blades, with several little braids woven into it. The thick set of his brows reminded him of someone, but he couldn't place who. Rowan cautiously strode into the light.

"Helsing?" muttered Baudelain Fross in shock. The other two, who hadn't recognized him on sight, looked at Baudelain.

"You know this kid?" asked the Dao Court official.

"He's wearing the robes of our sect," the inner disciple rushed to say.

"Obviously, he came here for a mission and disaster struck. I'm going to alert our elders."

"Do you often post missions for Highwater?" asked Baudelain dryly. The three of them, upon seeing Rowan, seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Probably thinking that since a direct descendant of one of the four major houses was involved, the matter couldn't be too severe. After all, he had chased away all the orphans before blowing up the building, right? Rowan quickly set their thinking straight.

"There's a demonic cultivator down here - we fought, but I don't know if he's dead! This place is full of skeletons. Please come quickly, seniors, I need your help!" The three of them donned on serious expressions and jumped down the hole. Rowan led them to the corpse of Daoist Apex.

"What the hell…"

"Oh my word." The man from the Dao Court covered his mouth, his face green even in the dim lighting. All three men stared at the grotesque form of Daoist Apex, fleshy tentacles splayed out around him like a squid. The metal vines and leaves had expanded even further, crawling up the walls and drooping down like the branches of a willow tree. The inner disciple pulled out a small handheld mirror, gazing at something on its surface with troubled expression. Baudelain Fross seemed the most unaffected.

His eyes were analyzing the formation on the wall, a small frown on his lips.

"Is this your doing, kid? The metal technique?" asked the Dao Court official.

"My sword's," said Rowan.

"A qi sword special attack," muttered the inner disciple, forming his own conclusions on the spot. Rowan let them believe it. A technique that could allow a mere second layer cultivator to kill a fourth layer cultivator - especially one practicing the demonic way, which was known to be stronger than their level suggested - would be coveted. It was better if they thought it had been a one-time attack from an artifact. Rowan cupped his fist and bowed.

"Seniors, this one is but a humble outer disciple from the Righteous Mountain Sect. But I believe this demonic cultivator was not working alone. How has he been able to prey on so many children without anyone noticing? Who put this formation here? This Daoist Apex was totally out of his mind from his demonic arts - he isn't capable of this level of calculation."

"It's said that demonic cultivators only trust themselves, but have many friends," said the Dao Court official thoughtfully.

"Leave it to the Dao Court, Mister Helsing. We'll investigate this matter thoroughly." His gaze slid to the inner disciple.

"Your Righteous Mountain Sect, it seems, is a birthplace of heroism and righteousness. This junior sect brother of yours is so young, yet he's already made such an impact." The inner disciple puffed out his chest proudly.

"Of course! Our youngest generation is full of dragons and qilins - the best in the peninsula." He patted Rowan on the shoulder.

"Don't worry, junior brother, I can tell you are the modest sort. But I won't let this slip under the rug! By the day's end, everyone will know of your great deed slaying evil!" Baudelain Fross smiled genially.

"Just in time for the Conference of Earthly Harmony?" The inner disciple laughed shamelessly.

"I wonder if Heavenly Skies Sect or Red Lotus Hall has a junior as heroic as Mister Helsing? Maybe they can learn a thing or two from our Righteous Mountain Sect." Surrounded by darkness and the bones of children, Rowan got the distinct feeling he had just stepped into a trap.