by Yuri Ajin
“Of course not. If we were here, we would’ve been stormed by the factions. Our base is located in the depths of one of the anomaly zones, which can be accessed through the Hall of Portals on the first floor, or through our own portals.”
“Another important thing that I wanted to discuss is that my business interferes with some of Tassarion’s plans. Ranmaru gave us two weeks in gratitude for helping his—”
“I know.” Kasox nodded. “What do you plan to do?”
“I still need money. If I go into hiding, I want to continue creating potions. At least thirty thousand more. Would you agree to resell them, knowing that this interferes with the Fifth Faction?”
Kasox sighed in relief.
“I thought you’d quit. If you’re going to keep making potions, then everything’s fine. This isn’t the first time we’re crossing factions.”
“Then there’s only one question left — security. Forgive me, but we can’t fully trust you. Especially considering that the Abode Laws work only inside the Abode.”
“I understand. In this case, we can sign another spirit contract for the duration of your stay at our base. As one of the leaders, I have the right to sign it on behalf of all Cloud Anarchists. We have special empty scrolls with the energy of each member, so the contract will apply to everyone. I can confirm this with a separate oath.” Kasox grinned.
“We’ve got a deal then.” Kai nodded.
***
There was tension and fear in the air. The streets were practically empty. The shops and the taverns were closed. It had been three days since the Great Pack began its hunt for Kai and Shacks.
But Kai wasn’t going to wait for the storm to pass. He had important business to attend to on the Ground floor, so he returned to the Abode after spending three days at the Cloud Anarchists’ base.
During that time, he kept brewing potions. On average, he worked twice a day for five hours. Thanks to the Great Alchemical Cube being finally delivered to the base, he could prepare about forty potions at the same time.
Shacks started to work for the Anarchists. They were glad to take on such a brilliant cultivator and excellent scout.
Turning right, Kai finally arrived at the ruins of a large two-story building. It wasn’t his shop. It was Elea’s house.
Having carefully examined the rubble, he walked on, searching for Yoh. But he was lucky enough to meet someone else.
“Tao,” he called out to the giant who was passing by.
“Who are you? What do you want?”
Kai pulled back his hood for a moment, showing his face.
“Kai?!” Tao blurted out in shock and immediately covered his mouth with his hand. “What are you doing here?” he asked in a whisper. “Everyone’s looking for you and your friend. You should be hiding!”
“Everything’s under control. Tell me, how’s Elea? Where is she?”
Tao scratched the back of his head.
“Well... When she returned home, she was very weak. So weak that she could barely stay awake. Her brother fired me. At first, I was offended. I wanted to know who the fuck put him in charge. But then he showed me his mark and I quietly left. It was only the next day that I found out what had happened to you. Yoh and I assume Ranmaru took Elea to the first floor where she is safe. She was against leaving but she couldn’t stay here alone. Not in her condition...”
“I see. Thanks.” Kai nodded, turning around.
“Hey! Wait a minute! At the entrance-” Tao began but Kai disappeared, leaving behind only a small echo of twisted space.
In less than half an hour, Kai reached the north wall of the Ground floor where one of the many entrances to the first floor was located. There were always about a couple of hundred students in front of it, waiting in line to enter the pavilions. Today, there were hardly a dozen zeroes there, which meant that he wouldn’t have to wait for too long.
Approaching the guards, he stopped.
“Show your face,” one of them ordered.
Kai was in no hurry to do as he was told.
“Are you deaf?!” the other guard shouted. “Comply or we’ll attack!”
Raising his hands, Kai pulled back the hood and revealed the face of a fair-haired elf.
“It’s not him,” one of the guards spat in disappointment.
“All right, you can go.”
However, after only a few steps, they stopped him again.
“Hey, wait for a second,” a new voice said and a dorgan appeared by his side. Grinning, he put his hand on Kai’s shoulder “Something about you doesn’t smell like an elf. More precisely... You smell like a dead elf.”
“Elder brother, do you really have such a sensitive nose?”
“What difference does it make?” The guard who had just allowed Kai to pass frowned. “Why does it matter how he smells?”
“Because there are those who can change not only their appearance but also the System line describing the race. The unique frequency of their aura and even the stage of development can be altered. That’s why, even at the slightest suspicion, we must check everyone thoroughly!”
In the meantime, Kai rolled up his left sleeve, revealing a spot of black rot on his shoulder. He had soaked this area with Yin in advance, preventing the bloodline from healing his arm.
The two dorgans grimaced.
“Oh, that’s where the smell is coming from... Whatever. My gut is telling me that there’s something wrong with you.”
“And how do you plan to check me?” Kai chuckled.
“We have a couple of ways.” The guard grinned. “First, your ki. Show us some element with the ki density of an Exorcist.”
Kai shrugged. Raising his palm, he revealed a crimson mist, the strength of which corresponded to the Exorcist Stage.
“All right. Now give us permission to use energy and Forces on you.”
“What?” Kai frowned.
“So that we can use the Truth Revealer.”
“I don’t believe you.”
The dorgan didn’t argue but swore a system oath, confirming that he was only going to use this artifact and nothing else that required energy or Forces.
[Truth Revealer]
Rank: Royal
Quality: Peak
This artifact reveals the true appearance of all creatures within a radius of five feet, as well as dispels concealment techniques within a radius of five feet.
Remaining number of charges: [15]
This artifact works only on initial-level Elementalists and weaker cultivators. It can dispel only effects of techniques, potions, and artifacts up to peak-quality Royal-rank level.
Kai was silent.
“Answer!” the guard growled. “I’ve sworn the oath. So, either you allow me to use the artifact, or we beat the shit out of you right here. Take your pick.”
“All right.” Kai agreed, but clenched his fists, ready to defend himself in case anything went wrong.
Raising his left hand, he showed his Abode mark, and gave them permission to use energy and Forces.
“Excellent.” The guard smiled again. “Now, let’s see what we’ve got here,” he said, activating the artifact.
A wave of energy and Forces burst out of the translucent blue sphere, passing through everyone within a radius of five feet. Nothing changed. The same fair-haired elf was still standing in front of the dorgans.
“Fuck!” the guard cursed, grimacing. He had just spent a whole charge of a very expensive artifact for nothing. But his gut kept telling him that there was something wrong. This uncertainty angered him. Taking a sharp step toward Kai, he grabbed his robe. “You’ll now give me a System oath that you aren’t Kai Arnhard or Shacks Eldivize! Otherwise, I’ll chop off your fucking legs and arms and lock you in my basement. I’ll turn you into my pet!”
Chapter 15
ABODE’S FIRST LESSON
“How about you go to hell?” Kai growled in response, trying to look angry.
“Bastard!” The guard swung his fist. He
was crazy fast, but Kai managed to easily dodge and take a few steps back.
“Do you think that because you have those four idiots behind you, and six more nearby, you can threaten me? Is that what you think? I don’t respond well to threats! Come on! Attack. All of you, I don’t care. You won’t be able to touch me. I’d rather burn out my soul and use all available artifacts than let you have your way. And if the Abode eliminates me later, I’m taking at least a half of you with me!” Kai grinned.
The guard, although furious, froze. The other members of the Pack, who had already begun to surround their prey, did the same. All of them heard a genuine intention to act on the words, and most importantly, they felt strength.
And every dorgan had respect for such strength.
Excellent. Looks like I chose the right way to behave. Kai thought.
“If you really want to find those people, then fine. I can sign a spirit contract. But don’t even think about an oath! I’m not some kind of weakling who gives oaths at anyone’s request. And no threat is gonna make me do that!”
His attitude was bold and his words firm, which cooled off the guard, who was angry with himself for failing to intimidate him. He realized he wasn’t dealing with an ordinary cultivator when Kai mentioned the six hidden guards. One had to be very perceptive to notice them. Grimacing, he took out a scroll with a spirit contract from the Ring and threw it to Kai, so he wouldn’t lose face in front of everyone.
“Don’t make me wait.” He spat.
Kai quickly familiarized himself with the contract, and then poured ki into the scroll, thereby signing it. A wave of power rushed into his soul, and the scroll changed color from blue to green, which signified its activation.
“Start talking,” the guard crossed his arms over his chest. Intuition still made him question the elf’s identity.
Kai braced himself. It was time to test how good his soul protection was. He didn’t want to mess with the System by violating an oath, but with a spirit contract made by a cultivator, it was worth the risk.
The invisible Mask of the Great Liar was on his face. Kai was wagering that, if it was capable of being invisible to Rune’Tan, if need be, it would manage to deceive even the spirit contract.
“I’m neither human, nor am I Kai Arnhard, nor Shacks Eldivize, who recently entered the Cloud Abode after successfully completing the Cloud Trial. I swear.”
Everyone observed him intently, which made him tense up. A second passed, then another... but nothing happened. He didn’t fall in pain. His aura didn’t begin to deform, and his soul didn’t crack. What he felt was how the technique wrapped around his Soul Shell and tried to tighten its chains to harm it. He was about to activate the Mask, but at the very moment when the Spirit Grip Technique finally touched the Shell, a force escaped from Kai’s Spark, instantly dispelling the spirit attack. The danger had passed.
Although the guard’s intuition kept whispering to him that something was wrong with this elf, they still had to let Kai pass.
“Well, you showed those dogs.” An elf from the Fifth Faction smiled. “I see you aren’t one of ours. Did you not manage to save enough to join the faction? Or are you new?”
“I’ve only recently arrived at the Abode.” Kai faked a smile. “So I’m in the process.”
“Good. There’s no reason for you to linger at zero. You can’t begin to imagine what the first floor can give you. The Cloud Abode is truly a place of wonders. We all came here for a reason. So, don’t waste your time, try to save up to join us. Two hundred Coins isn’t much. I make a lot more per month just by guarding this staircase eight hours a day. Factions don’t just give you an opportunity to walk freely on the first floor, but you also have a chance to get good work. Friendly advice — go on expeditions to the Aive mountain range. This is probably the safest of the anomaly zones, and you can make money there. You could find one or two partners if you want. Be sure to buy a map from our guys on the first floor. It’ll help you avoid the most dangerous places, as well as predict the beginning of a snowstorm. I’ve done that in the past, and within six months, I gathered enough money to join the Fifth.”
“Thanks for the advice, elder brother.” Kai bowed slightly.
“I’m Glenx. Maybe our paths will cross again... By the way, how long are you going to stay on the first floor?”
“At least a day.” Kai shrugged.
“I guess you should go then. Two Coins are nothing. I’ll pay for you. What you did back there with the dorgans was amazing. Do you have a pass?” Kai nodded, and Glenx beckoned him over. “Come here.”
Without arguing, Kai held out a paper amulet with the number zero. With an artifact, Glenx changed the value on the pass by one.
“Thank you.”
“Good luck!” He nodded. “And remember, on the first floor, you’re obliged to keep the Abode mark revealed at all times so the guards know that you don’t belong to any of the factions. Otherwise, you may have some problems later.”
Seems like factions aren’t that bad. There are normal people among them too, Kai thought, climbing the stairs.
***
A little while ago
As soon as he returned to the Abode through the Anarchists’ portal, Kai realized that it wasn’t so easy to leave the Ground floor. Inside the city, he could avoid members of the Seventh Faction with energy vision, but at the exits, it was impossible to bypass the Pack members. That was why he prepared a whole set of tricks to hide his identity upon returning to the base.
Kai used the Dead Man’s Disguise Elixir, another recipe that he got from Rune’Tan. He used the face of one of the elves who died in the Whispering Bloody Forest a few months ago, whose surprisingly intact body was found by Kasox’s subordinates. The poor fellow’s flesh became one of the elixir’s main ingredients.
The elixir’s only drawback was the subtle smell of decay, which couldn’t be hidden in any way. That was why Kai temporarily infused part of his shoulder with Yin particles, allowing it to rot.
That elixir could even replace the System description. The recipe Kai used was created in the Belteise Empire, which had the word divine in its name for a reason. The imperial masters achieved considerable success on the path of cultivation, which, among other things, included alchemy.
Just like with the other elixirs, Kai strengthened it with the help of Yang particles, which was why it became Enhanced and managed to fool the dorgan’s artifact.
As for him appearing as an Exorcist, he used a common artifact called the Spirit Training Bracelet that could be found in any artifact shop, even outside the Abode, because it was intended for Exorcists and Elementalists to use during training.
These Bracelets were simulators of auras of a certain level. While pushing you during training, under certain circumstances they could change the cultivator’s strength, temporarily making it look like they have a more powerful aura. However, it had two serious flaws.
First, the Bracelet’s and the real auras constantly overlapped with each other, forming a strange mixture. This didn’t interfere with training, but it made it very hard to hide one’s true level of development.
Second, if the cultivator selected a level or stage higher than their actual one, a conflict of forces occurred upon energy release. The cover would immediately burst and the Bracelet would come off.
Fortunately, Kai was able to solve both of these problems with his special skills. He knew how to drown out his real aura, leaving only the energy from the fake one. That way, only Elementalists or cultivators who had also opened all the acupuncture points could see his true power. He got lucky, as, according to Rune’Tan, there were practically no such cultivators at the Abode.
With this, a person could hide or disguise a lot of things. This was why the most effective method had always been the use of a System oath or spirit contract. But the dorgan couldn’t have guessed that even that wouldn’t work with Kai.
***
Having reached the top of the stairs, Kai saw anoth
er group of elven guards, to whom he showed his pass, and then finally entered the city on the first floor.
The search took almost ten hours, but Kai found Elea’s new residence. Her spirit trauma made her astral body quite unique in the energy spectrum, so in the end he couldn’t help but find her.
Her new home was located near the center. It was a large and expensive one-story building with a beautiful garden and fence. Kai stopped once he was near the entrance. A pretty, golden-haired elf — an Artificial Spirit — appeared in front of him.
“Greetings, master.” She bowed. “This house belongs to Lady Elea Shion. Are you her guest? May I know your name?”
“My name is Kai Arnhard. Please, tell the lady of the house that I’d like to see her.”
“Right away.” The girl nodded. “Please, wait here.”
The Artificial Spirit disappeared, returning after thirty seconds. During this time, Kai removed the effects of the Dead Man’s Disguise Elixir, after making sure that no one was watching the house.
“Please, come in.”
Almost reaching the front door, Kai froze and jerked back his hand.
“Not bad.” He heard from his right, after which he flew to the side. “But still not fast enough!”
Before he had time to come to his senses, something incredibly heavy fell on him. Kai covered his head and torso with his hands, trying to throw the weight off, but he couldn’t do anything. The person was like a boulder.
“Freak! How dare you come here?!” the man shouted angrily, showering him with punches.
Finally managing to come to his senses, Kai strengthened his body with the help of the Body Gates and threw off the man. Summoning the swords from his Ring, he activated the Five Weightless Steps Technique and looked around.
Where is he?!
“Too slow.” The voice came from behind him, after which Kai’s hands were broken, and his swords thrown aside. A moment later, he was knocked down again, this time with his face driven into the stone path that led to the door.
But Kai wasn’t going to give up. He couldn’t teleport due to too close proximity to the stranger’s aura, so all that was left for him to do was to fight. He was preparing to activate Life Rampage when a cry rang out.