Perception - 17 (Exceeds 99% of Population.)
Willpower - 19 (You have the resolve to walk in the Valley of Death and slip free of the River of Souls.)
Qi Pool - Silver Rank 4 (140) (20 points reserved - Divine Soul Stone anchored.)
Health Points: 451
Perks
Insightful – Rank 2
Charismatic – Rank 2
Lesser Shadow Affinity - You can now see Shadow Qi! You have +5 to spot all those using Shadow to ambush or confuse you.
Golden Apple of Wisdom consumed: Increased chance of cultivation breakthroughs.
Favored Skills
Golden Realms Kung Fu – Rank 6
White Crane Kung Fu – Rank 7
Silver Swan Kung Fu – Rank 6
Poison Spitting – Rank 4
Stealth – Rank 4
Qi Disciplines
Adderstrike – Rank 8
Black Swan (Soul Cleave) – Rank 5 (You have discovered an advanced Silver Swan assassination technique! Strike with the fury of a tsunami behind your blow! This technique can shatter lesser wards. Water-Steel Qi elements involved. Cost to use: 4 Qi and risk of meridian strain, unless used after Silver breakthrough made, or in a storm.
You have learned the advanced Black Swan variant Soul Cleave. You may effortlessly pierce any ward, armor, or body cultivation technique below Gold as you slice through your enemy’s spirit directly, channeling the River of Souls itself! Cost: 8 Qi and moderate meridian strain. Your repeated exposure to the River of Souls has boosted your deadliest attack to transcendent status! For increasing cost, you may now modify Soul Cleave to pierce defenses of any rank! You now have added resistance against being claimed by the River of Souls with repeated uses in the same day, so long as you avoid sleeping before the following dawn.)
Bullrush – Rank 6
Dark Qi Projection – Rank 4
Forest Flight – Rank 4
Forest Sense – Rank 4
Piercing Strike – Rank 1
Qi Absorption – Rank 4
Qi Deflection – Rank 0
Qi Flood – Rank 2
Spirit Crane Strike – Rank 5 (You can sense the specific potency of all eternal Soul Stones claimed. You may now pluck the eternal spirit cores of even lesser deities or Jade Ranked opponents! Your feat of triumph within the River of Souls has made the river leery of trying to claim your own. Reduced risk of being pulled into its depths with repeated uses of this technique. Note: this skill puts you in contact with the River of Souls for up to one full day. You risk oblivion, slipping into those very same waters, if you dare to sleep before the following dawn.)
Storm Flight – Rank 5 (Wind Running has been incorporated into Storm Flight and enjoys the same rank. You may now effortlessly race through the heavens during storms, over ley lines, or over wild forests 2+ miles from any major city. Outside of these parameters, flight is still possible at significantly increased Qi costs.)
Water Walking – Rank 4
Qi Perception Linked Disciplines
Qi Perception – Rank 6
Artificer – Rank 4
Find Weakness – Rank 5
Soul Sight – Rank 5
Spiritual Teacher – Rank 6
Body Cultivation Techniques
The Eternal Fox Unified Cultivation Technique – Rank 11
Metabolic Mastery Subskill is now at Adept Rank! You can survive for extended periods of time without food, water, or oxygen! Dark Qi Metabolism will now automatically activate when needed, even when unconscious. Physiological strain from switching states and neural discomfort has been minimized!
You have transcended Master Rank! Eternal Fox Unified Cultivation Technique now has Unlimited Potential! (Note. No mortal disciple will be able to ascend beyond Master Rank without personalized instruction from yourself, or access to your divine tome.)
A Path Cloaked in Mist
You have permanently gained 8 points of Impact Resistance, 4 points of Cutting Resistance, and 2 points of Piercing Resistance! Your peripheral meridian channels are now Extremely Resilient, and enjoy a total +5 modifier to all durability checks, +6 against all meridian-searing attacks based on Flame.
Biochemical Mastery – Rank 6
You are now able to near effortlessly synthesize hydrochloric acid, alcohol, and most other compounds naturally found in limited quantities within the body, as well as synthesize or cure any poison or alchemical formulae mastered, save for those reliant upon silverbell or shadow blossoms.
Unused Eternal Soul Stones
1 Divine (Rank 1 Deity. 20 Qi Points reserved.)
1 Gold (Rank 1)
2 Silver (Rank 1, 7)
1 Bronze (Rank 7)
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16
Alex took a deep breath and smiled. He could only imagine what his high school coach would think of him now. Rank 3 Bronze Strength and an extra point earned with his own intensive training this past year, culminating with hours-long nightly training sessions with his overweight fangtian ji and dao, had raised his physique to a phenomenal 31. Leagues beyond any Olympian or power lifter, and he would never play the distracted fool tripping over his own feet ever again, moving with the sort of effortless grace he was sure any gymnast or dancer back on Earth would have killed for. He could snap-punch faster than a mortal could blink, and felt a fierce, bittersweet satisfaction in just how far he had come.
Even as a part of him still cringed in memory of the desperate shrieks and wails he had heard while trapped between life and death, enduring that which should have seen him forever cleaved free of the mortal coil.
Yet somehow, he was here. Stronger than ever. Truly, he thrived on the bitter, the hammers of his foes only serving to harden the steel of his soul.
But the cost in innocent lives would never be something he could forgive, or take lightly.
His lips pressed tightly together, all but certain that tragedy had struck while he had danced between life and death for countless days, weeks, or however long it had been. Nonetheless, he knew it was time for him to go. With those thoughts in mind, he began to free himself from the cocoon of greenery that had kept him safe.
Only to find that the foliage was impossibly thick, a massive network of flowering vines amidst the greenery happy to prick even his skin.
Alex’s eyes widened with surprise, before realizing he wasn’t being imprisoned so much as led in a very specific direction. The dome of rustling greenery had one very definite exit, and leaning beside it were his two enchanted dao that resonated so well with the waters of life and death in their sharkskin sheaths. Priceless treasures that seemed to have survived his ordeal unscathed.
Unlike the corroded remnants of bronze armor so ancient it had been utterly destroyed by time’s caress. As if it too had been forced to taste the waters of oblivion, leaving only corroded lamellar tiles in its wake, the spirit-hide and linen padding long ago dissolved, his steel helm and dagger corroded to nothing.
Which made the presence of his original bone button changshan shirt, finely woven pants, and leather footwear neatly folded beside his sheathed dao all the more remarkable.
As if he were being reborn yet again, WiFu forever thoughtful in leaving his disciple his starting attire once more. Though the sword belt comprised of woven vines was a nice touch, Alex thought as he covered his body with the most comfortable fabric he could hope for, his feet feeling the forest’s secrets underneath the soles of his leather shoes so well that he knew he’d have no problem climbing and springing through the trees with Forest Flight, even with them on.
Steeling himself for what was to come, he proceeded to make his way to the exit, girding himself for spirit beasts or bloodthirsty cultivators or nothing at all, realizing that what he feared most of all was making his way to Baidushi only to find vine-covered lumps by the side of the road, knowing that the dozens of surprisingly friendly faces he had gotten to know during his journey would never reach their destina
tion, now one with the forest after one final horrific day, falling before an entire company of powerful Bronze cultivators that had served to highlight to Alex like nothing else just how small and insignificant he was in this mighty, terrible world.
They, and cultivators like them, were the reason why he had dared such an unorthodox approach to his build. His now massive Qi reserves might be just the edge he needed to survive in a world full of hostile Bronze and Silver warriors until he could ascend the ranks and need fear their wrath no longer. And considering that any of the major cities of ten million or more citizens might have thousands of Bronze cultivators... his goal wouldn’t be to defeat entire companies, merely to survive long enough to escape the encounter, until he could finally ascend to Silver and beyond.
Hardly any light penetrated from the outside world, thick and gloomy as the arboreal passage was, leaves rustling with an unseen breeze, making him feel like he was trapped in a massive hedge maze where the shrubbery and vines on either side had grown so thick that they had merged overhead.
Though he found the tunnel of green far more comforting than the underground cavern that had reminded him so much of the underworld, he couldn’t deny the sharp pang of relief he felt at the shafts of sunlight illuminating the area just before a fork in the tunnel ahead, the play of shadows and golden light somehow manifesting into a bemused-looking figure it filled Alex with wonder to see, his mentor tipping back his tricorn hat as he leaned against the impossibly sharp vines laced through the hedges as if they were the softest of cushions, ancient inspector’s cloak rustling in a ghostly breeze.
The roguish smile that the god of mischief flashed Alex filled him with sudden warmth, as if stumbling upon a long-lost friend whose sharp significance he all too often forgot until reminded once more of the bond they had shared, lifetimes ago.
“Silver Fox! Here, of all places. Why is it you always show up with that maverick grin when things are at their craziest? And why am I always so damned happy to see you?”
WiFu chuckled. “Hardly damned, Alex, save by the choices you yourself choose to make.” His gaze turned serious. “And it’s good to see you, too, my young friend.”
Alex’s mouth opened for a witty rejoinder when he suddenly froze, slack-jawed.
There was no WiFu.
Only the odd rustling of shadows, and the promise of unspeakable power.
All he had to do was turn down the rightmost tunnel, he realized, his eyes dazzled by a sudden shaft of golden light and the warm laughter of the gods above, long since forgiven Alex for his daring boldness, forever the hallmark of youth.
All he had to do was continue walking down the corridor he had just taken his first steps along, and he would soon emerge in a world now quite different from the one he had left.
With all the powers of a Gold at his fingertips.
He could feel the promise of it, the sheer certainty, as the coiled presence of a serpent deity twined about his heart continued to infuse him with unspeakable power, ready to fill his core with sweetest Gold the minute he stepped through.
No matter if he had no true cultivator’s foundation yet, or never formed one at all.
Cords of Bronze and lattices of Silver need mean nothing to someone whose chest beat with the pulse of a god.
Alex allowed himself a single fierce smile, sensing the sheer glorious promise of it.
And why not? He had endured so much madness, come so close to being slain by bitterest circumstances and darkest whim so many times before.
He had every right to this power.
He had earned it!
But he would play the fool for no man or god.
And one god alone had chosen to aid a lost soul in slipping free of the icy doom of one world for a second chance at life. One god alone had dared to befriend a youth being exploited by the most corrupt of government officials in a world a thousand years gone by.
Alex swallowed, proud heart hammering, hating the thought of forsaking the sweet golden promise before him.
But for the sake of an old friend, he would stop. Force himself to take that one awful step back before the fork in this hedge maze of a tunnel, peer into its depths, and listen to what the rustling leaves had to say.
And if all he saw were flickering shadows and bittersweet memory, he would race back down that glorious gold-green tunnel and never look back.
Alex turned, breath catching in his throat when he caught sight of WiFu’s haunted expression cloaked in shadows, immediately shifting to that of a roguish trickster chuckling in approval at Alex’s daring that he knew so well as he stepped forward into the shaft of light, as if invited into existence by Alex’s will alone.
But he wasn’t fooled.
For just a heartbeat, he had seen the gaze of a terrified boy.
One who knew the awful betrayal of being abandoned to an eternity of merciless radiating light and lifeless steel cages.
A sickly deformed child left to rot while his entire family ascended above.
Alex’s cheeks blazed with shame at seeing such naked truth in a god’s eyes. He quickly lowered his head.
A chuckling WiFu took it all in stride.
“You had me going there for a minute, Alex. I really thought you were going to pass me by.”
Alex swallowed the lump in his throat. “Don’t sell me so short, WiFu. I’m not stupid. I can taste the Gold that the gods are offering.” He flashed a cheeky smile at WiFu’s nonplussed expression. “And the fact that they want me to take the rightmost tunnel is reason enough for me to wait a hot minute and hear why I should instead forsake that juicy potency and head left.”
He couldn’t help laughing as a flummoxed fox god just stared, at a complete loss for words.
“Oh, come on, WiFu. This fork in the hedge maze couldn’t be a more blatant metaphor for the twin choices before me. So, out with it. Tell me why I have to give up sweet, sweet power and go for the honorable, disgustingly noble route, yet again. What delicious prize am I giving up, and what am I getting in return, save golden Karma already clipped from my soul, thanks to the Cleaved Fates Card?”
Alex could sense the thoughts racing behind his divine mentor’s silver-green eyes. Features alight with a roguish charm turned solemn.
In one gloved hand WiFu held out a shimmering golden sphere with a serpent etched upon its surface. In his left, he held a tarnished little ring.
Alex’s heart skipped a beat. “Is that...?”
WiFu gave a sad shake of his head. “I’m sorry, Alex. I wasn’t able to save it. Your former headmaster’s hate was transcendent, and when you flooded him with the entire River of Souls through your artifact, showcasing your budding mastery of a realm even the gods fear to tread, as much as it awed me and the entire council, it was just too much for one little ring to handle.”
Alex swallowed, lowering his head. “I see,” he said, feeling a sudden sharp sense of loss.
“But even so, I can’t tell you what a delight it was to see my brothers’ expressions. You killed a Gold, Alex. Killed a Gold and claimed the eternal pearl of power at the heart of his soul!”
His mentor shook his head, equal parts wonder and bemusement upon his features. “Daring such madness, warping a skill it took Master Panheu decades of study, dark sacrifice, and manipulating his most reviled enemy in ways you can’t even fathom, just to use even once! Yet somehow, you’ve transformed a dark art only a Silver just a half step away from Gold should be able to endure into an abomination of a skill you can actually use to pluck free the eternal Soul Stones from the spirits of your enemies almost as easily as plucking fruit from a tree! No matter that you must actually dare to enter the endless waters of the realm of the dead, a river of darkness that should instantly doom any mortal just to enter. Waters that even the gods above do all they can to keep a world away from their own anxious feet! Yet here you are, with the unmitigated gall to wade in the waters of oblivion with less concern than a man stepping into a stream to spear fish for his supper. Deli
ghtful!”
Alex’ couldn’t help but grin at his mentor’s golden laughter, heart lightened by the roguish twinkle in his eyes. “Sure, I lost a priceless artifact, but at least I got to spit in the face of the gods. Again.”
“That you did, Alex, forging two more Divine Bronze cords that should have taken you centuries to form, even had you managed to spend all your time in pristine reflection, cultivating upon the highest mountaintops of this continent!”
WiFu’s gaze turned somber, hands still holding out the prizes before him. “And then one of my descendants dared to strike you from behind, piercing your skull so expertly that even you were caught off guard, wielding a dark blade so heavy with caustic magics, it’s a miracle your cranium wasn’t instantly shriveled to the size of a prune. Even so, the damage was fatal. No cultivator below Jade should have been able to survive that combination of toxin and trauma.”
WiFu’s gaze grew strangely intent. “No one.”
Alex held his mentor’s gaze, fists clenched so tight his nails bit into his flesh, remembering for just a heartbeat the sheer awful despair of dangling between life and oblivion for countless months or years, even the ancient forest forced to slowly let him slip away, Alex tormented by the laughter of a hissing serpent and the endless black waters waiting for him below.
“You can’t fathom how bad, how awful it was, WiFu. Even as I strove to become one with the forest all around me, finding sweet comfort in the passing of the days and seasons, at the same time, my soul was being pulled into that nightmare below.” He swallowed, doing his best to hold back the visceral horror that could so easily send him crashing into the shoals of madness, just a single careless thought away. “Pulled into that awful promise of eternally drowning, just like when I was choking and gasping in the raging sea as a child, before my father pulled me free. The thought of being forced to endure that for all time… Oh God, WiFu, you can’t imagine!” Or maybe you can.
Alex refused to lower his gaze, no matter the pain he saw in WiFu’s eyes. So close to his own.
Silver Fox & The Western Hero: Warrior Redeemed: A LitRPG/Wuxian Novel - Book 5 Page 28