Dragon's Soul: An End's Beginning

by Tony Tran

  “Yes, my lord.”

  ================

  A few miles north from the capital of the Heilong kingdom there is a mountain range with a certain mountain which the locals call the Tiger’s peak. This mountain was home to the midsized sect called the Yu Sect.

  In the beginning the Yu sect had been established on righteous principles such as “the strong should help the weak”. But time passed, and after many generations their principles became warped.

  The current Yu sect, instead of helping the weak, used their power to oppress the common folk living on the mountain and established a mini kingdom in which they were placed at the top. Everyone who did not submit to them would be mercilessly killed.

  The Yu sect had established an almost absolute control over the mountain range thanks to their many thousands of disciples and ruthless tactics.

  Today, the usually quiet mountain had fallen into chaos. The thousands of members of the Yu sect that had left early in the morning returned. Some of these men were heavily injuries and had to be carried back by their comrades.

  Today, the tyrannical members of the Yu sect did not bully any of the common folk like they normally did after returning from a mission.

  Today, they walked up the familiar mountain paths with their heads down and a sense of dread filled the air.

  Seeing this the common folk were struck with confusion. They, who have lived on these mountains for many generations and were always oppressed by the Yu sect, had eventually began to think that the Yu sect was invincible.

  One could say that these people are the fish in the pond, the frog in the well, the bird in the cage, none have yet to see the sea. Because out in the vast world the Yu sect is nothing more than a speck of dust.

  The members of the Yu sect made their way up the mountain to a large mansion at the very top. This mansion has been the headquarters of the sect for hundreds of years and was a symbol of fear and power in the mountain range.

  As the members of the Yu sect walked through the large twin gates of their headquarters a sense of fear fell over them. The Yu sect was in fact not under the control of the sect master, but instead the grand elder who happen to be the sect masters father.

  With that being said none of these men wanted to be the one to report the news of the sect master's death to the grand elder. The grand elder was a man named Yu Jia who had reigned over the sect for hundreds of years. His long reign was thanks to the fact that Yu Jia had reached 8th rank of cultivation which increased his lifespan by roughly eight hundred years. So despite his age Yu Jia looked very much like a regular middle aged man.

  Yu Jia had over the course of hundreds of years had many children, but the one he dotted on the most was Yu Zhao, to whom he finally gave the position of sect master to. But of course just because he dotted on Yu Zhao did not mean that Yu Zhao was a good leader.

  Yu Zhao lacked one essential thing when it came to being in control of a sect, that thing being foresight. He never bothered to plan anything carefully and simply did as he pleased. Knowing this, Yu Jia manipulated the sect behind the scenes to ensure a stable reign for his favorite son.

  “Maybe we should just run away.” Some of the men murmured amongst themselves as they walked into the sect headquarters. The thought of fleeing and not returning to the sect ran across their minds many times however for many if not all of these men they knew they could not make leave.

  “Fools do you not remember? When we joined we had to eat the heavens rebirth pill. How many days can you last without taking a regular dose of it?” One man yelled out.

  All of the members of the Yu sect, besides its masters, had taken the heavens rebirth pill. This pill had been created by the masters of the Yu sect and anyone who took it would forever be bound to the sect. Without a regular dosage, anyone who had taken one of these pills would be sent to heaven and be reborn as another person. In other words, they would die, but only after suffering extreme pain and agony for days.

  Only the grand elder possessed the cure and there was no way he would give it away.

  As these men contemplated their fate, a loud bang sounded out from inside the main hall.

  “Who did this! Who killed my son!!!”

  A few brave men had carried the lifeless body of Yu Zhao into the main hall and broke the news to the grand elder. One of these men happened to be laying lifeless in the doorway to the main hall.

  “Who was the bastard that did this! You useless good for nothing dogs! You couldn't even protect your own sect master you all deserve to die!” Yu Zhao could be seen yelling from the inside of the main hall with one hand choking the life out of one of the sect members.

  “Gra-grand elder please spare me.” The man begged as his life was slowly being choked out of him. However, it was a futile attempt. Yu Jia continued until he at last tossed the man’s lifeless corpse onto the ground.

  “You! Tell me what happen or you'll end up just like him.”

  The timid looking man Yu Jia pointed to began recalling the events that happened earlier. As Yu Jia listened, the wrinkles on his face increased.

  “That is everything that happened grand elder, please spare me.” The timid man pleaded.

  “Good, you will be spared the same fate at him.” Yu Jia said as he pointed to the lifeless corpse on the ground.

  “Many thanks grand elder!” The man said overjoyed. However, before he could take another breath, a sword came flying from Yu Jia’s sleeve and pierced his neck.

  “I said you are spared from the same fate, I never said that I would spare your life.” Yu Jia sneered.

  “You go gather all the men and get them ready for battle, I want the head of the bastard who killed my son.”

  Just as Yu Jia finished his sentence a panicked looking man ran in from the outside.

  “Grand elder! Grand elder! The mountain has been surrounded!” The man yelled with panic filling his voice.

  Chapter 55: Wrath

  “This way my lord. Everyone move faster!!!” A black armored soldier yelled as he galloped through an open plain on top of his trusty steed.

  “Men, let’s go!” Zhang yelled to the men behind him.

  His scouts had found the location of the Yu sect’s headquarters and they were currently leading him there.

  “Debt of blood must be paid with blood.” Zhang murmured as he held the reins to his inferno wind walker. Of the one hundred guards who accompanied Zhang only twenty survived.

  “I'll send their entire sect to accompany you guys to the afterlife.” Zhang thought about his dead soldiers as he gripped the reins in his hand tighter.

  These men had died serving under him so their deaths must be avenged. The armies of Aurora left no blood debt uncollected.

  “STOP!!!” Zhang bellowed as he pulled back the reins of his mount.

  The thousands of horsemen behind him came to a sudden stop and awaited his command.

  “We will be splitting into four units composed of roughly five thousand men each. These units will be led by Yuying, Ling and Lu Xun. Each unit will move into the mountain from a different direction. We will encircle the mountain and make our way up, a special unit of about five hundred men will be left to outside of the mountain to make sure no enemies get away. Make sure to not harm any civilians, our goal is the Yu sect and only the Yu sect.” Zhang yelled toward his soldiers.

  “Yes my lord!” The soldiers of Aurora yelled back in response.

  Moments later Zhang’s army split into four and went in separate directions heading toward the Tiger’s peak.

  ========================

  A few common folk who lived in the Tiger’s peak, that happened to be returning home from a trip to the city, could hear the rumbling of thousands of hooves hitting the earth. Soon they could see many horsemen speeding toward the mountain.

  “Who are they?” One man asked as the horsemen began to dismount.

  After dismounting the soldiers brandished shields and spears and formed into neat rows and
began marching. A young man in shiny black armor with a halberd resting on his shoulder could be seen walking at the very front of this army.

  “Father we must get home quickly to warn the other villagers to run! Something bad is going to happen!” A youth yelled.

  However, they had been spotted by the young man, and before they could make it very far he was running toward them at full speed.

  Moments later he appeared right in front of them and with a swing of his fist knocked them out.

  “Tie them up, we don't want anyone giving away our arrival.”

  “Yes my lord.”

  =====================

  Lu Xun, Yuying and Ling each led their forces to a different side of the mountain and began the encirclement. Ai had been placed under Yuying’s command since she was not fit to command soldiers.

  According to the plan, once they reach the designated area each commander will shoot a green flare into the sky. After the four green flares are shot, then a single red flare will be fired signaling the beginning of the battle.

  And just like planned one green flare after another shot into the sky.

  Zhang pointed the flare in his hand toward the sky and lit it, once the contents inside caught fire a dazzling red colored flare shot into the heavens.

  “Attack!!! Leave no one from the Yu sect alive!” Zhang yelled. He had noticed that all the members of the Yu sect had one thing in common and that was their sects uniform so he ordered his men to kill everyone wearing the Yu sects uniform.

  The villagers living on the mountains fell into panic as they saw the approaching soldiers with weapons ready. However, the soldiers seemed to ignore them and just continued marching by.

  “Everyone run!! Run for your lives!!” Some villagers yelled out as they made their way down the mountain.

  Slowly Zhang’s army made their way up the mountain, every single member of the Yu sect they ran into was mercilessly slaughtered.

  There were small pockets of resistance but most of the Yu sect’s forces were nowhere in sight.

  “Everyone be careful there might be enemy ambushes!” One of Zhang’s soldiers yelled out.

  However strangely there weren't any ambushes at all. The soldiers of Aurora were able to make it almost to the summit of the mountain without any resistance.

  As Zhang led his soldiers up the mountain he eventually ran into Lu Xun’s men and Yuying’s men. They had formed a perfect encirclement of the Yu sect’s headquarters.

  A sentry that guarded the outer grounds of the Yu sect could be seen frantically running inside once Zhang’s forces made their way toward the mansion.

  “Everyone stand back!” Ai yelled as she whipped the Black Thorn whip using her essence to extend and increase its size drastically.

  BOOOM!!!

  Once the whip made contact with the walls of the Yu sect’s headquarters they crumbled into tiny pieces.

  “Charge!!” Zhang yelled leading his men in through the broken walls.

  Thousands of men swarmed through the broken walls and inside, ready to cut down anyone they happen to run into.

  As Zhang entered through the wall it seemed like the sentry from before was just breaking the news of the mountain being surrounded to the rest of the sect.

  A middle aged man could be seen standing in front of two corpses. One of these corpses had a sword piercing through its neck.

  “Grand Elder! It was him! He was the one who killed the sect master! The one with the halberd.” A man yelled out.

  “So it was you!” The middle aged man yelled out as he leaped toward Zhang.

  “I don't know who you are but be it man, demon or god, anything or anyone that stands in my way will perish!” Zhang yelled as he jumped and smashed the sky piercer downward on the grand elder who had just landed in front of him.

  “Hmph arrogant brat who does know how high the heavens are.” The grand elder, Yu Jia sneered as he rotated his body to dodge Zhang’s halberd. Then with the palm of his hand he smashed into the side of the halberd changing its trajectory.

  Zhang's halberd slammed into the ground creating hundreds of little cracks on the stone tiles that were laid on the ground. It had landed inches away from where Yu Jia was standing.

  Before Zhang could pull up the halberd, a fist came flying toward him.

  “Shit…” Zhang cursed in his mind as one of his hands grasping the halberd let go he rotated to the side with one hand still grasping the halberd to avoid the blow.

  Once the fist missed its target Zhang used his free hand to grab Yu Jia’s fist. Then Zhang let go of the halberd completely and used his other hand to also grab onto Yu Jia’s fist with the intention of flipping Yu Jia onto the ground. However, Yu Jia performed a sideward flip and broke loose of Zhang’s grip.

  “Hmph!” Zhang snorted as he grabbed hold of his halberd with one hand and swung.

  “Brat you think you can hit me with these simple swings?” Yu Jia sneered as he dodged Zhang’s attack. However suddenly a large shadow descended from the sky.

  From up above a giant black whip came crashing down.

  A grin appeared on Zhang’s face.

  “My simple swings serve as great distractions.” He laughed.

  “Hahahah still not enough!” Yu Jia laughed as a blood red sword appeared in his hand.

  Seeing this sword, a hint of confusion appeared. This is of course because Zhang happens to have a sword that looked exactly the same in his interspatial ring. The sword he got from Yu Zhao.

  The odd thing was the sword in Yu Jia’s hand emitted a terrifying blood lust as if thousands of vengeful souls were attached to it.

  With one swing of the blood red sword Yu Jia knocked back the black whip that Ai had sent crashing down on him. The impact between the whip and the sword caused the whip to fly out of Ai’s hands.

  “What are you idiots doing fight!” Yu Jia yelled to his men who had been preoccupied with watching his fight between Zhang.

  “Lu Xun make sure none of them get out of here alive!!!” Zhang also yelled.

  “Yes my lord! Everyone attack!!! Shields to the front spears from behind! Leave none of them alive!!!” Lu Xun yelled as he commanded the soldiers.

  Whereas the Yu sect simply rushed into battle, Zhang’s soldiers formed into a soldier wall of shields and spears. It became a one-sided slaughter for the Yu sect. Zhang’s men had formed a meat grinder and slaughtered everything and everyone that came in their path.

  There was no way to compare the Yu sect's fighters to the soldiers of Aurora. The soldiers of Aurora simply outclassed them in all aspects. Be it equipment, training, or coordination there was nothing that the Yu sect could do better than the soldiers under Zhang’s command.

  As the battle between the two forces intensified so did Zhang’s battle with Yu Jia. Trails of blood could be seen wherever Zhang went.

  Yu Jia’s blood red sword had been able to easily slice through Zhang’s Lightning Eater scale armor. Despite being armor made from the scales of a level eight demonic beast the blade was able to slice through.

  If it had not been for the design of the armor itself then Zhang’s wounds would be many times more severe. Thanks to the overlapping scales a few of Yu Jia’s sword strikes had simply slid off the armor instead of dealing damage.

  “Just you watch I'll skin you alive, cut you into a thousand pieces and feed you to dogs!” Yu Jia threatened as he madly slashed at Zhang. As blood dripped out of the small cuts all over his body.

  From time to time the three beauties would try to intervene and help, however their skill sets did not enable them to do very much against Yu Jia. All of the reanimated corpses Yuying sent at him were cut to ribbons. Everyone of Ai’s attacks were sent flying away. As for Ling her water element magic was more useful for large scale attacks or healing thus she was of no use either.

  That being, Zhang was able to hold his own against Yu Jia but just barely. Although he was able to inflict wound on Yu Jia, they were all only light cuts.
>
  Zhang had decided against using the black flaws too early in the battle. There was always the possibility that he would not be able to hit Yu Jia with the fire. So the only sure way to utilize the black fire was to surprise the enemy with it.

  “You'll have to be able to beat me before you can do any of that!” Zhang sneered as the ten dragon talon throwing knives shot out from his hands.

  Clang!Clang!Clang!

  However, Yu Jia used the Slaughterer sword to send the dragon talons flying away.