Silver Fox & The Western Hero: Warrior Forsworn: A LitRPG/Wuxia Novel - Book 3

by M. H. Johnson

  He flashed the suddenly-furious Hao Hai a calculated smirk. “Because yes, son of a merchant cultivator who failed to hide his true nature from the guardian of the gate, I know exactly who you are. Frankly, I’m surprised your family’s still able to afford living in this city. Your father did lose two thirds of his trade caravan, after all, to say nothing of an absolute fortune in gold and platinum. Probably his life savings, I’m guessing? Gold that might have been yours, one day. What a damned shame. To say nothing of so many infernally-tainted contracts, now forever out of his reach.” Alex had the gall to wink. “Or so I hear. Empty rumors propagated by your family’s many enemies, I’m sure. After all, you would know far better than me how close your family is to financial ruin, right?”

  Hao Hai’s face blotched with fury. “You! It was you who robbed my father blind! My father was right! You snake! You worm! You’ll pay for that, you piece of filth! You’ll pay with your life!”

  Alex smiled. “Death threats? Before a referee? Ooh, there has to be some penalty for that in there somewhere.” He deliberately looked away, buffing his nails. “I, however, am quite happy to wait both you fools out until semester’s end and go where the winds take me, savoring a life sweet and golden.”

  Qie Qie actually whimpered as the air turned thick with killing intent, Alex not even looking the way of his homicidal enemies until the intensity reached the breaking point.

  He snapped around, pinning them with his smile. “I can’t wait until you snap and play the fool, Lai Wei. Do you truly think my master doesn’t have eyes and ears on us, even now? You’re right. He cares little about a bit of bullying, but if you break covenant on the sands, he will absolutely love the opportunity to make your uncle bleed for your sins!” Alex chuckled as he said it, tilting his head thoughtfully. “I can only imagine how much you yearn to pummel my flesh right now, but I’m afraid, ladies, that unless you give your oaths right now, you’ll be forever denied the pleasure of thrashing me ever again, and I promise you I’ll be miles away before you know it, laughing at having gotten the better of you both, with a fortune in gold to my name.”

  Alex waited long moments, gloating at the pair of infuriated cultivators. “Well, I guess that’s that then,” he finally said. But before he could make his way from the ring, a horrified Qie Qie by his side, he heard the baritone voice he had been hoping for.

  “You have it, worm!” roared Hao Hai.

  Alex spun around, patting his sparring saber. “What do I have, exactly?”

  “I will agree to your terms!” the powerfully-built Hao Hai said. “Five count holds. One on one matches. And you can have your damned five-minute breaks when you cry ‘yield’ like a slave, or after I smash you to the ground!” His smile turned liquid. “Not that you’ll be up to saying anything at all, when I’m done with you.”

  Alex peered thoughtfully at the young giant before slowly nodding his head. “Alright. I can accept that.”

  “Good!” Hao Hai roared. “Then come and face me, Ruidian! Strip your armor and your weapons! We do this barehanded! Now come, enter the ring and earn your five credits, and savor the pain that comes to any man or beast that dares to cross my clan!”

  “Alex!” Qie Qie hissed, but Alex just shook his head.

  “No, Qie Qie. It has to be this way. If I’m to have even a shot at surviving this semester, I have to face them. I have to face them both. But at least this way I can do it on my own terms.”

  “But they’re both Bronze!”

  “I know.”

  “And they both have insane reserves of strength!”

  Alex grimaced. “I know.”

  “Then why?”

  “Because I don’t really have a choice.” Because this is the only way I can study their methods before I’m forced into a killing match. Which we both know will be sooner rather than later, he said with his eyes, not daring to say the words aloud. But something in Qie Qie’s expression made him think she understood the real reason.

  She gave a curt nod. “Alright, Alex. Just… alright. Do what you have to do.”

  Lai Wei’s mocking laughter filled the arena. “Have fun breaking him, brother. Just leave him working enough so I can have my fun as well.”

  Alex frowned. “What the hell are you talking about, Lai Wei?”

  His nemesis flashed the cruelest of grins. “Why, it seems like you’ve signed up for two sparring matches on the very same day, and back to back at that. How incredibly stupid and foolish of you! So of course I just had to take that slot.”

  Alex gazed coldly at the man, realizing in that instant what must have happened with the clerk.

  “Don’t worry,” mocked Lai Wei. “I agree to your terms. A one on one match. Holds no longer than five seconds, and you can have your breaks every time you cry ‘yield’ like a coward.” He flashed the cruelest of grins. “I’ll even give you time to put your bruised and bleeding body back into your armor. Not that it will do you a lick of good. Even with us adhering to your pathetic terms, you’re going to be begging for the mercy of a slave’s collar by the time we’re through with you!”

  With those words, Hao Hai was racing across the sand at full speed, roaring as he closed on Alex. He was no fool, and was as ruthless as they came, not leaving himself completely open with grasping hands outstretched, but leading with a knee bomb that would shatter bone if it actually hit Alex’s chest.

  Modified Quickness check made!

  But Alex had already dropped and rolled, whipping out with his leg to trip his foe as the monster came around, getting only a dark chuckle for his trouble as he sprang to his feet and circle Hao Hai.

  “You really think such a weak move can get me, fool? I’m Bronze and I already feel the strength of the blood coursing through my veins!”

  Alex nodded. So he took after his father. Definitely the easiest path. And though inhumanly strong, one thing his father had not been was quick or dexterous. Though his opponent did have a grappler’s stance and radiated a deadly sort of competence…

  Angle kick strikes just above knee. Opponent takes no noticeable damage.

  Qi Perception check fails! Find Weakness check fails! You have successfully dodged roundhouse punch!

  Alex darted in with quick snapping kicks just above his opponent’s knee, which lacked the force of a typical Muay Thai or Golden Realms style roundhouse kick, but gave him an edge at darting away just before his opponent could reach him with fists or grappling arms.

  “You think your kicks are going to hurt me, fool? They’re nothing! Which is all you’ll be when I’m through with you, maggot!” Hao Hai roared after the third time Alex had successfully darted in and struck before spinning away with a Silver Swan twist before his foe could touch him.

  But Alex was no fool. He knew eventually his opponent would pin him down and work him over, and Alex mentally braced himself for the pain to come. But in the meantime…

  Foot jab strikes left knee! Your opponent suffers 1 Light Wound! Crippling damage averted by Bronze Rank Vitality and unknown body cultivation technique!

  And Alex felt a brief flash of exultation when his smiling foe under-estimated Alex’s range and technique, having fallen into the pattern he had set, shifting his balance just as Alex had hoped he would before he pivoted and slammed his heel against his foe’s knee, feeling something tear and give before springing away from a roaring Hao Hai, glaring daggers of hate at Alex.

  Alex flashed a cold grin back, exulting in that flash of knowledge which told Alex so much, and gave him a flicker of hope as the giant lumbered forward once more.

  He knew his opponent had suffered a Light Wound. Maybe it was because of their deliberate contact, flesh upon flesh, but he thought he was just beginning to sense his opponent’s intentions, the barest flicker of his enemy’s Qi flow, vindicated by that quantized message. With Lai Wei he received no message at all, just incredible pain and Fire Qi that seared.

  You have been struck by Ox Fist! Left shoulder dislocated!

&nbs
p; Alex cried out as his world suddenly became one of pain as he stumbled to the ground, having gotten too cocky when he tried to pivot around his foe, darting close for another knee strike, only to find himself the one fallen into a trap, a massive killing fist just barely missing his skull, hooking right into his shoulder.

  He felt his arm pop, and felt the terror of death descending.

  “I yield! The match is yours!” Alex shouted, knowing that would buy him a five-minute breather.

  Only to cry out when his ribs shattered, his foe’s foot stomping his chest.

  Alex wheezed for air that wouldn’t come when his opponent roughly gripped him by his hair. “What was that, Ruidian? You say something? I didn’t hear a damn thing!” Hao Hai roared, rattling Alex like a marionette before tossing him into the air, Alex spinning end over end, knowing how much trouble he was in.

  Bullrush successfully activated!

  But he had learned since the time Hao Hai’s father had nearly killed him, doing now what he wished he had done then, inertia instantly adjusting as if he were weightless, soaring to his target, which was merely the ground now five feet below him, doing his best to blend his technique as discreetly as he could, going in the very direction he had been tossed. But his spinning, uncoordinated, potentially neck-breaking crash had been averted to a controlled descent where he landed neatly on his feet.

  Gasping at the pain of his jerked shoulder and cracked ribs, grateful that the monster’s sadistic rattling had actually jolted him back to breathing.

  And as his open-mouthed foe gazed at Alex in awe and Qie Qie screamed at the sneering referee to call the fight, that Alex had been the victim of foul play, Alex spoke loud and clear.

  “Can you hear me now, asswipe? I said the first round is yours! I yield! You want a second bout? I get my damned five minutes of rest!”

  Hao Hai chuckled cruelly. “Fat lot of good that will do you. Your arm popped out of its socket. Your ribs are shattered! I own you now, slave of my father.”

  Qie Qie glared at the referee. “He just disqualified himself and you know it!” she screamed. “I don’t give a fuck who Lai Wei’s uncle is, if you don’t call it, I’ll go to the headmaster himself!”

  The referee’s frown tightened. “I suggest you leave now, girl. Clearly a woman such as yourself is not fit for combat cultivation.”

  Qie Qie’s eyes bulged. “The hell I will! You’re no Silver! Challenge me and watch me wipe the floor with you!”

  Lai Wei laughed at Qie Qie’s distress and perhaps the referee getting mocked as well. He was the type to enjoy the suffering of both enemies and the tools he used. Tools no doubt so intimidated that their only response would be to thank him for the abuse. And he knew it, and knew his pawns knew it, which was probably the biggest kick of all for Lai Wei, monster that he was.

  But for the moment, Alex was glad to let the scene play out, making furiously fast use of the time, swallowing the grunt of pain as his musculature reflexively forced his shoulder back into its socket before pain could overwhelm him.

  Willpower check made! You succeed in keeping your agony silent, so your foes can’t sense how rapidly you’re healing or how badly hurt you truly are!

  Alex took deep, focusing breaths, doing his best to heal while measuring the scene unfolding with Qie Qie before accepting the fact that he was being selfish, putting his friend at risk of enemies she could afford even less than him.

  “It’s alright, Qie Qie!” Alex cheerfully called, gritting as he felt his cracked ribs mend at hyper speed, the pain of madly regenerating cells not completely dulled by even his rank six Eternal Fox technique. “I just need my promised five minutes.”

  “You’ll need a hell of a lot more than that, worm! But it’s good you’re not letting your bitch push this, or she’ll get to pay right alongside you,” said Hao Hai.

  “Too late,” promised a sneering Lai Wei. “Qie Qie’s going to find that there is a price to be paid for crossing me. Good thing for her she’s fetching enough I’ll let her pay it in the only way a woman’s good for!”

  Qie Qie turned pale with fury.

  “Not worth it, his technique burns meridian channels!” Alex roared, not caring that he was giving away what his foe thought hidden from him, and Lai Wei’s furious hate-filled scowl made it clear he was both surprised and outraged, and no doubt would hurt Alex worse than ever when he got the chance. Not that Alex cared. All that mattered was keeping his friend safe who wouldn’t have a chance in hell of healing from those wounds.

  Qie Qie’s eyes widened with horror. “No! But… no way, that’s a forbidden technique! To dare use it here?”

  “It’s a lie!” Lai Wei roared. “It’s deliberate slander! I make you bleed for that, Ruidian! And your master will pay the blood price for character assassination!”

  Alex smirked. “Did I say burn? I meant tickle. A massage, more like. Honestly, your attempts at forbidden techniques are almost as weak as your sword blows or your flame strikes. Good night’s sleep, and I almost forgot they were there.”

  “You’re lying!” snarled Lai Wei, before flashing a cruel smile. “How does it feel to be crippled for life, knowing no spirit doctor would dare to heal you? Knowing that your own master will forsake you the moment he sees how badly you’re ruined?”

  Alex smirked. “Only one way to find out. At least now you’re not denying it, so no libel suit needed. Unless you want to sue yourself.” Alex faked a curious expression. “Can you do that? Sue yourself? Or just make an ass of yourself? Because you have the latter down cold.”

  “Enough!” roared Hao Hai. “Time for you to die, worm!”

  “Good! Glad you can understand me okay now, so next time I concede the match and you fail to listen means you’ve just sacrificed your cultivation base, breaking your oath as a cultivator. Right?”

  His enemy just snarled and charged as Alex twisted aside, flippant quips stopped cold as his mind focused on one thing and one thing alone.

  Survival.

  You have successfully struck your opponent’s knee! Ligament torn!

  And sniping his foe as much as was humanly possible before getting killed in turn.

  Finesse check made!

  Just managing to twist out of Hao Hai’s grip by winding against a massive thumb with his entire body a split-second before the monster he faced could get a two-handed grip and literally pull his arm free of his socket, inhuman vitality allowing him to lurch with almost no impairment, despite the abuse Alex hurled at his knee.

  “I’m going to kill you, Ruidian,” Hao Hai said in a soft voice, promising brutal death. “But first I’m going to make you scream with pain. Scream when I pound your damned knees to dust!”

  Alex said nothing, focused solely on his foe, measuring his every pivot and shift in movement, doing his utmost to understand his enemy, his every motion. To judge when a shift in balance or the flicker of his eye meant Hao Hai was shifting left or right, attacking or backing up.

  And time after time, his careful focus paid off, allowing Alex to strike his foe numerous times to greater and greater cumulative effect.

  Until the time it didn’t, and Alex found himself screaming as his foe wrenched his arm so hard that bone snapped as Hao Hai smashed him to the ground. Leaving his wheezing and breathless once more.

  You have suffered Compound Fracture of Right Humerus!

  You have suffered three cracked ribs!

  Alex was blinded by pain before wheezing as fresh agony suddenly exploded through him, kicked so hard he was sent sliding across the sand.

  Right kidney has been bruised. Internal bleeding suffered. Saving throw made.

  Wavering in and out of consciousness as his foe roared, stumbled, then stopped, shouting curses Alex’s way.

  And Alex, tormented by agony, forced himself to open his eyes and gasp for breath, looking at a visibly pained Hao Hai, realizing at once what must have happened.

  His enemy had happily kicked him when he was down, again before Alex c
ould say a word. And for his trouble, Hao Hai had managed to tear another ligament in the knee Alex had focused most of his attention on, forcing him to stop and hobble with sudden pain, and probably the only reason why Alex was alive right now.

  Alex coughed blood, and flashed a bloody smile. “I concede the second round, you fucking bastard. Give me five minutes, and I’ll happily pound your obnoxious ass to the ground!”

  And Alex stared at his foe with hate-filled eyes, matched by his opponent, who this time didn’t begrudge the five-minute rest himself, laughing at Alex’s whimpers and curses. “Hurt you bad, didn’t I, you piece of filthy slag? Shattered your arm, bruised your organs, and it’s just a taste of the pain you’re going to get from me. Just a taste!”

  But Alex refused to waste another second on his foe. Carefully tapping the same beast core as before, and grateful beyond words that his rank six Eternal Fox technique had led to so many breakthroughs, he managed to heal a full quarter-pound of regenerated tissue during those precious five minutes his enemy was snarling and cursing and waxing eloquent in all the ways he would soon make Alex’s life an endless torment, which translated to countless cracked bones being fused back into place while his body repaired the most significant sources of internal damage.

  By the time five minutes had passed, even though he had hissed and cursed and snarled with pain, his nemesis smiling in cold satisfaction, Alex was mostly healed.

  His opponent was not.

  Hao Hai’s vindictive sneer was instantly wiped off his face when Alex forced himself to his feet, hunched over only slightly, wheezing just a bit, and even that much was an act.

  Yet it was so much more than what his enemy had expected.

  “No. There’s no way you can be up again that fast. No way!” Hao Hai roared, instinctively backing away as Alex slowly approached. “I shattered your arm. I wrenched the other out of its socket! You should be crippled. Your ribs shattered!”