Yet memory of Liu Li’s beautiful smile, the warmth of her laughter, the pain now in her gaze all compelled him onward.
Until at last, he was before her door.
“Liu Li? It’s me, Alex.”
Alex swallowed, suddenly sensing her father a short distance off, somehow knowing that were he to see Alex right now, it would not end well.
His heart started pounding.
He guts roiled, dizziness overcoming him.
His eyes widened. So brightly were the tomes glowing, he could see his bones through his skin.
"Oh, that can't be good," he muttered.
“Liu Li? Please! It’s sort of urgent!”
He shook his head.
He really should have planned this better.
He knew how desperate she was, every day looking sadder, more withdrawn, desperately trying to repair herself with imperfect techniques, and failing.
Alex blinked, recalling all the times Master Liu had asked the outrageous from him, only surprised when he somehow pulled it off.
His mentor was not above lying, if he thought it would serve a purpose.
Suddenly Alex was certain that the damage Liu Li had suffered was far graver than even his mentor had admitted.
Alex wondered if she was even at 50% recovery. From the desperate looks her father had given him, he halfway thought his pills were the only reason Liu Li lived at all.
And what happened when they ran out?
Alex felt breathless relief when the door was finally opened, revealing a devastated-looking Liu Li, tears streaming down her face.
“Alex.” She swallowed back a sob, unable to hide the despair in her gaze.
Then her eyes beheld the treasures within his hands, her face now glowing with reflected Wu Wei.
“Heaven’s Mercy! What do you have in your hands, Alex?”
Alex grinned. “The key.”
“The key to what?”
“Saving the fox who stole my heart.”
He laughed at her incredulous expression. “Gotcha.”
Her eyes flashed with heat for a second, before she cracked a smile, chuckling in turn, pressing her palms against her eyes.
“Got me you did. Alright, enough tears from me for one day. Now tell me true, what is that prize in your hand?”
He swallowed, gazing intently into her widening eyes.
His heart raced, feeling he could fall right into those pools of jade green.
"I think I can help you, Liu Li. These tomes… I think they hold the secrets to the cultivation techniques you've been looking for all your life."
Powerful hands gripped his shoulder, pulling him into the shadowy depths of her room.
And Alex trembled with a sigh so deep, he felt his knees go weak.
The comforting gloom coated everything, and his tomes, he sensed, were safe once more. As if a creature of prey had darted across a grassy clearing with scores of hungry-eyed predators glancing its way, before darting into protective cover once more.
Liu Li’s gaze was unreadable, though her authoritative voice brought Alex to immediate attention.
“Explain, Alex. Explain everything.”
And to the best of his ability, holding back only that which he sensed his master would want him to keep hidden, he did just that, Liu Li’s eyes growing wider with every word.
“So, these tomes are divine artifacts given to you by my ultimate grandfather?”
Alex solemnly nodded.
“But why? You can’t use Shadow, can you? Did he mean for you to give them to his offspring?” She swallowed. “To me?”
Alex solemnly shook his head. “He expressly said he meant them for me. That he was forbidden to give his offspring any aid. And that were I to ever surrender them, I could never get them back, and he could offer me no compensation. In short, I’d be a complete and utter idiot, were I to ever commit such a foolhardy act.”
Liu Li swallowed, stroking his cheek.
“And yet, you did.”
His heart was hammering. He was suddenly feeling dizzy for an entirely different reason.
“Yes, I did.”
“Why?”
Because I love you.
“Because you need these tomes far more than I. Because the best friends have our backs when we need them the most, even if it’s not convenient. Because I’m wise enough to know that people matter more than power, and cultivating both is the true path to victory in life. Besides, I think I’ve already gleaned absolutely everything I can from those tomes. Now what I need are tomes incorporating all the elements, if I’m going to break into Bronze with the strongest foundation possible to excel into Silver.”
Graceful hands that nonetheless exuded powerful strength clenched his tightly. She peered up into his eyes.
“Is that really all there is to it?”
Alex swallowed, cheeks blazing hot.
"Let's not waste any more time. Come on, let me see if my hunch is right! Here's the first tome. I'll explain what I can to you if you have any questions, but I'm letting you know ahead of time that there are sections I couldn't make heads or tails of." He flashed a smile. "Sections involving Shadow. The one element I don't have."
Desperation and excitement flickered across Liu Li’s eyes. “Yes, of course you’re right, Alex! Let’s put the tomes there. Okay, this is the first section. Pass me the empty manual and the magic brush? Thank you. First thing I’m going to need to do is to make a copy...” She frowned in consternation. “For some reason...”
Alex smiled. "It's a divine tome. You can only transcribe what you understand. You have to master the sections first, Liu Li. Only then can you transcribe a version that will be limited to your own mortal understanding.”
She frowned, rubbing her temples, putting the writing material aside. “Fair point, Alex. Alright, let’s go over this first section together...”
And so raptly was she focused on the prizes before her, and such joy did Alex take in being able to mentor her, his heart lightening with each smile of insight she gained, that it wasn’t until the wee hours of the morning that they finally agreed to call it a night.
"Thank you, Alex. For always being there when I need you the most, I will always be grateful." She flashed a teasing smile. "I told Father we were wise to look after the wayward cub Fate left on our doorstep."
Alex chuckled at her smile, grateful to see the old Liu Li finally coming out of her shell, filled as she was, for the first time in weeks, with genuine hope for the future.
Then she paled, her eyes growing wide with fear.
"Oh, no."
Alex blinked, suddenly alarmed.
“What?”
“Father!”
“What about him?”
“He’s here. And it’s two bells past midnight, and I never went to dinner!”
“Okay...”
Her gaze hardened. “You’ve been in my room since dusk, Alex. You’re not stupid.”
His cheeks flushed hot. “Crap.”
“Alright, Alex. Here’s what we’ll do. You’ll stand there, by the tomes, and I’ll answer the door. At least I know Father won’t kill me on sight, no matter how angry he is.”
“Do you really think...”
“Do it!”
And sure enough, when Liu Li cracked open the door it wasn’t his mentor that Alex caught sight of, but a being who only looked nominally like Liu Li’s father. They beheld an avatar of terror and destruction whose granite features were filled with incalculable fury, radiating a killing aura that had Alex trembling in his boots, for all that he was wedged in the corner of the bedroom.
“Where is he?”
Three terrible words any courting boy dreads most to hear.
“Calm yourself, Father. You don’t understand.”
“Where is he!?” Alex wasn’t imagining it. The pent-up Qi was causing the building’s very foundations to shudder.
"Saving my life, Father! Because you and I both know the damage was so bad, I was dying!
"
Those words alone eased the tiniest fraction of the man’s simmering fury. And before he could say another word, Liu Li dragged him across the boundary to her room, leading him across what seemed a suddenly impossibly vast chamber, for all that Alex knew her room was barely 20 paces wide. As if shadow and space were both behaving oddly.
Then, allowing her father time for but a single lethal glare Alex’s way, she led his gaze to the manuscript laid out before them.
His own dark eyes widened, skin taking on a pasty pallor.
“Daughter! Do you know what this is? Do you have any idea?”
She nodded. “I do, Father. It’s a divine manuscript. And best neither of us say a word as to the source.”
But her father ducked his head and turned around, refusing even to gaze at the tome.
“Father, what’s wrong?”
But all he said was. “Best you keep it hidden in shadow, little fox. So that only those who share your affinities may ever glimpse its secrets. Your room should be safe enough, for now. But when it is time for us to leave...”
“The soulbound storage ring you gave me the day I became a woman. I know, Father.”
Her father jerked a nod. “One of the very few artifacts tied to Shadow I’ve ever seen. And it’s only because those fools didn’t realize its true worth that it sold so cheap. Small as the storage space is...”
“It’s priceless, because no one can open it unless they share my affinities.”
Her father nodded, a relieved smile on his features, though he still refused to look her way. It was Alex who caught his gaze.
“Come, Alex. It is time we allowed my daughter a good night’s sleep, and plenty of time to reflect upon the prizes now in her care.”
Alex gulped and nodded, quickly following behind.
And when she exchanged a farewell smile with her father as she softly shut the door behind her, her final gaze was for Alex, and the gratitude he saw within made his cheeks blaze with fire.
Particularly with her father looking right at them both.
Then Alex blinked, suddenly gripped by hands of steel, it seemed, unable to budge them for all that he took no injury, led to his own chamber almost as fast as he could blink.
He trembled before his mentor's gaze. Fortunately, the killing aura had been cloaked, for now.
“Say nothing of what you have done this day, Alex. Never! The world is a far more dangerous and terrible place than you realize, and certain things must never be uttered aloud, lest you antagonize powers content to leave most of us ants scurrying upon the board of life well enough alone. Do you understand?”
Alex nodded, having deduced that much himself just with his journey to Liu Li’s chambers.
“Will she be...”
Her father sighed. “One of the inherent powers of her tribe is that even the most inexperienced of cultivators are all but impervious to detection. Shadows and night are forever their friends, and not even…” he deliberately looked at the ceiling of Alex’s chamber. “Can spot all the secrets they hold. Just one of the reasons why there is such animosity for her tribe.”
Alex bowed his head. “I understand, sir.”
“Do you? I truly hope you do.”
Liu Jian sighed, patting Alex's shoulder, very much a fatherly gesture. "Ah, my boy. I am no fool. I fully recognize you have given my daughter a treasure beyond compare. I don't think even you can imagine how much those items would be worth, had you given them to the head of any temple."
Alex swallowed but held the other man’s gaze. “I don’t care. Even if I could have sold it for coin I don’t need, no mansion, no matter how large, is as precious to me as giving Liu Li the hope of a brighter future. She’s my friend, Master Liu. I will always have her back.” He flashed a cheeky smile. “Besides, what is treasure to the cultivator already learning at the feet of the master they most admire?”
Master Liu chuckled. “Don’t think I will go any easier on you than I already have, Disciple. If anything, your lessons will only grow harder. You do understand that, yes?”
Alex swallowed, bowing his head. “Yes, Master Liu. I understand completely.”
“Good. Then get some rest. By this time tomorrow, you’ll wish you had never met me.”
Alex chuckled at his mentor’s grin, already fearing what his master would put him through on the morrow. Yet at the same time, he was filled with exultation, realizing just how significant their meeting had been.
Master Liu had called him disciple!
Yet as days turned to weeks, early excitement soon turned to exhaustion then despair as his mentor pushed him as hard as he ever had before, relentlessly practicing sparring and drills with Alex every morning, pushing him ever closer to mastery with pike, ji, gladius and unarmed combat, till his weapons seemed but extensions of his hands and he could strike with fists and shins as quick as thought. His ruthless master pushed him so hard that even his interface acknowledged his growth.
Congratulations! You have achieved Rank 4 in Long Spear.
You have achieved Rank 4 in Golden Realm Kung Fu.
You have achieved Rank 4 with Gladius.
You have achieved Rank 4 with Fangtian Ji.
And even that wasn’t enough.
For all that continued practice made it all the easier to use his Qi Abilities, Piercing Strike still seemed to be beyond him. Yet thanks to the constant practice, his fingertips were suffering a constant dull throb, and his sense of the various types of Qi in relation to his body had improved dramatically. He could both see and sense not only wards infused with Earth and other elemental manifestations of Qi, but also the streams of Qi emanating forth, causing the effect.
When he told his master this, the strange glance he earned left him a bit puzzled. He had thought it obvious. If he couldn't see and sense the Qi fields, how was he expected to pierce his opponent's wards in any case?
Then Master Liu had flashed a cruel smile, his hand suddenly holding a tiny ball of flame.
"Then let's see just how well you can sense and influence another's Qi, shall we, Alex?"
Alex’s eyes widened as a tiny stream of flame licked his left ear with exquisite control, for all that he had yelped and stumbled back.
His master had only grinned. “Did you feel that, Alex?”
"Yes! That hurt!"
“Don’t be a child. I barely singed a hair! I mean did you feel the stream of Elemental Qi coalesce and form?”
Alex inhaled to snap out an angry retort before suddenly blinking, realizing he had indeed felt something.
His mentor flashed a satisfied smile.
“Pain, I find, can be a wonderful tool for reinforcing vital lessons. And far better you train with the same tension you would expect on the battlefield. The good habits you ingrain will make it that much more likely you will survive. Ready yourself, Disciple. Your lessons have just begun!”
And Alex spent the rest of the day desperately pivoting and dodging away from his mentor’s cruel flame whips, all but sobbing with exhaustion when the day finally ended, a mass of cuts, bruises, and anxious flinches when his master approached.
“Not bad for our first true session of practice, Alex. Of course, I’m going to push you twice as hard tomorrow.”
Alex groaned. As frantic and desperate as he had been, as many times as his master had attacked and burned him with what he had assured were the weakest of spells, Alex had only been able to turn aside his master’s attacks just once.
Qi Deflection is presently at Rank 0. You do not yet fully comprehend this art.
Alex groaned and sighed, so exhausted he didn’t even bother eating before going to bed.
At least his interface had given it a cool name.
24
Piercing Strike!
Alex winced as his fingertips once again smacked against the rigid Qi Earthen Shield. No matter how hard he focused his Qi, visualizing it like a laser trying to melt through steel, he could never quite mirror the success of his one succes
sful strike executed days before. No matter the full night's sleep he had gotten, and this morning no one was looking over his shoulder, so he should be calm as a lake on a windless day.
But it just wasn’t working.
Adderstrike! Adderstrike! Adderstrike!
He did take some comfort in his increasing ability to chain his Adderstrike blows as he did on the other test dummies. And though the latest pair of Qi disciplines his master had showed him seemed to be far beyond his skills, it didn't mean he was going to waste his entire day in futility.
His preferred weapon in hand once more, he practiced Bullrush in conjunction with pivot and spin techniques using his training ji, feeling a surge of satisfaction with the jarring clang of half-moon axe head against armored helm.
Because if he could get the drop on his enemies with just one Qi burned on Bullrush instead of using it twice? All the better. But for ideal positioning, two jumps were still best.
And between intense training and using his Dual Path Cultivation technique to quickly restore his Qi, he made good use of the afternoon, feeling like he had managed to breach yet another threshold with both of his core Qi abilities.
Adderstrike is now Rank 3. - You can now chain attacks faster than ever!
Bullrush is now Rank 2 (4). - Extended range discovered. You now suffer no disorientation, can control excess inertia, and can pivot and strike against a target beside or behind you with zero penalties. (If you have sufficiently rehearsed your attack sequence!)
Qi Deflection is Rank 0. You have yet to fully comprehend this art.
Piercing Strike is Rank 0. You have yet to fully comprehend this art.
With a grim smile, Alex took the last message to heart, spending a good extra hour on the training grounds Bullrushing several feet behind the target dummies on their shield side before pivoting and striking with his ji, delivering lethal blows at an angle that assured his foe would be in no position to strike before Alex had already cleaved off their heads.
Or so he hoped.
Then he froze after delivering his last strike, feeling a killing aura behind him.
Alex raised his ji in a sudden panic.
Silver Fox & The Western Hero: Warrior Reborn: A LitRPG/Wuxia Novel - Book 1 Page 39