The Path of the Strongest Mortal, page 8
This year’s Fist Fight promised to be bigger than any before.
***
Having finished meditating, Kai, sweating heavily, left the energy-filled room used for cultivation, after which his collar activated again, suppressing seventy-five percent of his strength. Grimacing, he went to the bathroom. He wanted to relax in the hot water rather than take an actual bath. Especially now after he had completed a long meditation session and spent several hours contemplating the concept of Yin.
“Lord Arnhard,” his servant addressed him. “They’re waiting for you...”
“I know,” Kai answered, not even looking at him. “Tell them I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”
“As you wish.”
Walking down to the first floor of the large mansion, Kai entered the spacious bathroom. By touching a special artifact embedded in the wall, he activated it with ki. At the same moment, hot water filled the bath from disguised pipes built into statues of various mythical sea creatures, its temperature pre-set in the artifact (which was part of a huge array covering the entire mansion).
He slowly sank into the hot water. Relaxing, Kai closed his eyes and activated the System message menu.
Attention!
Your understanding of the concept of Yin has reached the peak level of the second layer.
Kai smiled.
After the fight with Urus, Lex had almost literally dragged him into the sector administration building to register him as a slave of the first rank. Not wanting to bother with reassigning Kai’s collar, Lex broke it, and gave the young cultivator the one that had used to belong to Urus.
Aside from the collar, according to the rules, the winner received the loser’s property, as well as their status, if it was higher than their own. And although Kai wasn’t one of the Pit’s regular fighters, but a mere Abyss worker, Lex decided to apply this rule anyway, giving him Urus’ luxurious mansion on the outskirts, and more than a hundred slaves.
“Heal your body and train. Fist Fights will begin soon. I have high hopes for you,” Lex told him before he left.
For the past three weeks, Kai was focused on three things — contemplating Yin by using the remnants of the dark fog, healing himself with Urus’ resources, and training, relying on Rune’Tan’s knowledge of unarmed combat.
After soaking in hot water for about ten minutes, he climbed out of the bath, and dried his body with ki. Calling over the servant, who was quietly standing nearby the entire time, he ordered her to change the bandages on his chest.
When she did as told, Kai retrieved an expensive, snow-white robe from his Ring and headed to the balcony. They were already waiting for him there.
***
It was a quiet evening, perfect for a stroll through the garden.
“Kai, ol’ buddy, ol’ pal, it’s been ages!” Shacks exclaimed, saluting Kai with a half-empty bottle of very expensive alcohol, taken, no doubt, from Urus’ private stash.
“Kai,” Malvur said shortly, nodding.
“Long time, indeed,” Kai agreed, coming closer to them. “Where have you two been?”
“Dude, you won’t believe the shit that happened!” Shacks said after taking a long sip. “We were on our way to see you when some random dude appeared out of nowhere! His name was Tiorn. He’s an overseer, I think. Doesn’t matter. Anyway, he led us to his arena, where all the first two hundred fighters were already gathered, not counting the first twenty. He promised to give us a hell of a workout! And you know what?!” He paused to take another sip. “He wasn’t kiddin’! The bastard said he was preparing us for the Fist Fight, but I think he was just lookin’ for an excuse to kill us! Bastard... I’ll never forget how my body ached yesterday. Like a rock fell from the sky and crushed me.”
“You’re exaggerating,” Malvur said in his usual calm manner as if he were a statue, not a living person. “He taught us a lot of helpful things. Especially unarmed combat techniques.”
“Pff...” Shacks snorted in response, taking another sip. “You’re chatty today, big guy.”
Kai smiled to himself. If he had left the two with Ghim, they would’ve quickly died in the Abyss, since they weren’t really Resilient. Without his protection... He didn’t even want to think how slow and painful their death would’ve been.
He still couldn’t believe that Lex had agreed to buy the two and make them into Pit fighters.
However, things were a bit more complicated than that. The two had to qualify for their new position. And to do that, they needed to win against ten other slaves. After each battle, they’d receive a rating that increased with each victory, and, accordingly, decreased with defeats.
Malvur and Shacks fought, increasing their status and simultaneously entertaining the audience. And although the two of them had never fought with collars before, they were still brilliant cultivators, so they won every fight. In the end, Malvur reached forty-sixth place, and Shacks finished fifty-first.
However, only those who were in the top twenty became slaves of the first rank, and got permission to freely move around the city and own property. Malvur and Shacks would’ve had to stay in the Pits if Kai hadn’t vouched for them and bribed one of the Pits’ workers.
According to the law, the two could come to his mansion, but Kai couldn’t buy them as his slaves, since fighters were forbidden to own other fighters. They were all Lex’s property.
It came as no surprise to anyone that Alex was very angry when he learned that Lex had taken the three of them for himself. The fact that he couldn’t do anything about it made him even angrier. Rules were rules, and the trio was bought fairly.
To make matters worse, he couldn’t complain to anyone either. His boss, Kalia still hadn’t returned to the city, and the overseer of the Abyss, Ginx, didn’t want to see anyone after the recent incident with the Emerald Water.
“Lord Arnhard,” a dorgan girl addressed him. “Will you be needing my services today?”
“I believe so. Go wait in my chambers,” he replied.
“Yes, my lord.” She bowed.
“Oho... Kai, Kai...” Shacks said, smiling, as he followed the leaving girl with his gaze. “What about the whole ‘a cultivator must not succumb to the temptation of flesh’ thing, hm?”
“Says the man who owned his own harem back on the Plateau,” Kai replied with a grin.
“Who? Me?! I’ve no idea what you’re talking about! Those are all blatant lies! Rumors of vile people!” Shacks replied, smiling broadly. “It was just a couple of concubines.”
“Sure, sure,” Kai said, pouring himself some wine. “Also, it’s not what you think. She has a rather unusual bloodline that helps speed up one’s recovery. And I really need that now.”
“I think it’s time to talk about our plans,” Malvur interjected.
“I agree,” Shacks said, sipping more wine.
“The plan’s simple,” Kai said with a grin. “Since we all want to get out of here, we need to win this tournament.”
“Will the winners be given freedom?” Malvur asked.
“They will. I don’t know much about this Fist Fight tournament, but what I’ve heard is rather interesting. Those who find themselves among the top ten will be presented with a choice — freedom or ten thousand Azure Crystals. The winner, however, will be given a different award.”
“And what fool would take the second option?” Shacks said with a sneer.
“Those who, for one reason or another, sold themselves into slavery for a while. You’d be surprised to see how many of them are there. Here, they get a chance to earn a living for themselves or their family. Also, among the strongest fighters, there are plenty of those who’re happy with being slaves and don’t strive for more. I mean, just look at where Urus used to live...”
“I hate to admit it... But you do have a point there...”
“And what about the winner? What do they get?” Malvur inquired.
“They get the right to ask Starks for anything. Within reason, of course. The winner’s owner gets to do the same. That’s why so many slave owners have come to Udin. Everyone wants their fighter to win.”
“We’ll have a lot of competition then. Ha! Good! I wouldn’t have it any other way! My friends, to victory!” Shacks exclaimed, raised his glass high into the air, and then drank the rest of his wine.
Chapter 9
THE FIST FIGHT
The first day of the tournament had come, and over two hundred thousand spectators had gathered to watch it. The event was held in Udin’s largest arena, located at the very edge of the Fight Pits.
The structure consisted of four parts — the arena itself; stands; a special VIP lounge levitating above the stands; and a tall monument resembling a blade, at the top of which was a giant Azure Crystal, feeding the arena’s array with energy. This Crystal was made from hundreds of thousands of smaller ones, merged together by using one of the secret techniques known only to the most talented of artifactors.
The audience had been waiting for over an hour when the fighters finally began to enter the arena through large doors. Five hundred slaves quickly found themselves in the center, where they were greeted with loud applause.
“Where have you been?” Shacks asked Kai, waving to the audience.
Kai shrugged.
“I sold all of Urus’ property and bet all the Crystals that I’d be among the top ten.”
“Why didn’t you bet you’d be the first?”
“I’m not naive enough to believe that I can beat everyone here.”
“Uh-huh. And how much can you get if you end up in the top ten?”
“A lot. I got about fourteen and a half thousand Crystals for the property. I kept about five hundred of them, as well as some of Urus’ resources.”
Shacks whistled.
“Not bad. Well, then, good luck to us.” He looked at Kai and Malvur, who was standing next to him.
In the next moment, the stands exploded with loud screams. On a special stand, located across from the giant Crystal, appeared the most important faces of Udin — the overseers.
Lex, Ginx, Sanatos, and four others sat in one row. They all looked pompous and incredibly powerful since among them there was no one below the seventh level of the Holy Lord Stage, unique for being divided into as many as ten levels.
To become a level one Holy Lord, an Elementalist had to endure an ordeal called the Holy Punishment of Heaven. As the name implies, it was nothing short of torture, for which one needed immense strength of both body and mind. And to approach the Divine Stage, they had to repeat this nine more times. The chance of dying was almost a hundred percent, discouraging most from attempting to ascend to this stage.
To perform the Holy Punishment, the cultivator needed to collect an incredible amount of energy. And in some of the peripheral worlds of the Ecumene, there was simply not enough of it. It was precisely because of this that the Old Man and the others so desperately wanted to open the Tower and go to the next world, since they couldn’t get what they needed on Saha.
When the overseers were finally seated, the portal platform lit up again. Two new figures appeared, one of which was Starks.
As soon as the audience saw him, the stands burst with cries of the joyful townspeople. At that moment, the arena array activated. Starks waved his hand, smiled, and then gave a short speech.
After him, a strange silhouette appeared. Linus Gard was the right hand, and the twin brother, of the sylphs ruler. He looked much like a human but still differed in some details. His eye sockets were slightly larger, and a blue mist constantly billowed around his glowing blue eyes.
The history of the sylph race was similar to that of the dorgan. Only it didn’t originate from divine animals but from divine spirits. Here, in Nikrim, there were three types of sylphs: sylphs of the wind, sylphs of the sea, and sylphs of the flame.
“The audience adores you, as always,” Linus said as he sat down next to Starks. Only he had the right to occupy that place.
“And as always, nobody notices you...”
“I don’t need to be noticed,” he replied with a shrug.
“Isn’t it difficult to use so much of your willpower to influence two hundred thousand people?” Starks asked calmly.
“Do not worry. I got used to it.”
“And what are you scheming this time?” Starks asked, curious. His friend was always full of surprises.
“You’ll see,” Linus smiled, which was a rare occurrence. “And you’ll be surprised like never before. This time, you will definitely tell me the secret of the Extract of the Seven Emeralds.”
This miracle of alchemy was probably the most expensive product on the entire continent, the secret of which was known to no one but the alchemists of Udin. The reason for its price, aside from being difficult to create, was that it increased the chances of surviving the Holy Punishment. Everyone in Nikrim wanted it, but only a few could afford it. However, even the poorest cultivators had a chance to get it. From time to time, Starks held a competition, in which he offered a select few to become his servants in exchange for the Extract. One portion equaled five hundred years of service. Many agreed, which was why Starks was able to collect so many Holy Lords in one place.
As for Linus, he didn’t need the Extract. First, he possessed enough willpower and strength to go through the ordeal unscathed, and second, he had already reached the peak of the Holy Lord Stage. He wanted something else. He longed to get the recipe for the Extract in order to restore the former power of his race.
Starks smiled.
“You remember that out of more than forty Fist Fights, the first place was taken by a slave who wasn’t brought in by Lex only three times. That is, it’s my slaves who always win.”
“Of course.” Linus nodded calmly. “But this year, everything will be different.”
“Are you so confident in your slaves?”
“I am confident in my slave, yes.”
“A slave?” Starks was slightly surprised.
“One, yes...”
There was a pause.
“How peculiar...” Starks grinned a little. “And who is it?”
“You’ll find out soon enough. They don’t like to stand out unless they’re in the ring.”
“Very well, I’ll be patient then. I hope your confidence has a good basis.”
“Of course it does,” Linus replied with a sneer. “Do not think of me as a fool, Starks. I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s pointless to spend money on other slaves if one can do the job. They have no chance against my champion.”
In the blink of an eye, Starks’ willpower unfolded over the arena, with the help of which he hid from the audience, thereby protecting them from his thundering laughter. Even the Holy Lords sitting next to them had to use their ki to shield themselves from its power. Only Linus continued to sit quietly.
“I can’t wait to see it.” Starks’ eyes flashed.
***
When the ceremonial opening ended, it was time for the much-anticipated battles. Above the arena, standing on a levitating platform was an elven Exorcist. She was the main judge and host of the event.
“I would like to announce the beginning of the Great Brawl — the first stage of the Fist Fight! The rules are simple! Out of the five hundred fighters, only one hundred and twenty-eight will go further! The battle will begin in: ten... nine... eight...” she counted down. “One! Let’s start!”
At that moment, the collars’ physical limitations were powered off, allowing the fighters to use their brute force but not their ki and Forces. Nobody moved for a full second, and then... then all hell broke loose.
Several large dorgans rushed at Kai, clearly wanting to kill him or at least cripple him, and thus avenge the death of their friend. Once they got close enough, Kai began to move at a speed almost double their own. Before they even got a chance to come to their senses, they were overpowered by lightning-fast and extremely strong attacks that knocked them unconscious in an instant. At that moment, the array covered them with a solid barrier so that they wouldn’t get killed, thus marking their elimination from the tournament.
The remaining four dorgans froze. A couple of months ago, Kai would’ve said something arrogant in order to provoke his opponents into attacking him without thinking, thus making them more likely to make a mistake. But he had matured since then, not to mention the Cold Void’s influence, so now he focused more on the actual strategy rather than luck.
He suddenly disappeared, after which one of the dorgans was suddenly tossed aside. None of them had had the chance to watch the fight between Urus and Kai, so all they knew about his strength and abilities came from rumors, which they didn’t really believe.
Within seconds, almost half of the fighters were eliminated, and one hundred and twenty-two held out for just over a minute. In all this chaos, Kai, Malvur, and Shacks felt like fish in water.
Kai simply knocked out anyone who ran up to him, regardless of the fact if they were Urus’ friend or not. Malvur threw everyone he could reach aside, relying on his rock-hard skin and incredible strength. As for Shacks...
Well, Shacks was being Shacks.
“Ahahaha! Help! Save me! I want to go home!” Shouting, he kept playfully dodging all attacks, making sure that each of them hit someone else instead of him. “Please don’t hit me! I bruise easily!”
The Great Brawl ended faster than it had begun. Kai, Shacks, and Malvur exchanged glances and nods.
“Well done, guys!”
***
The Great Brawl was followed by an hour-long break so that the fighters could recuperate in the inner premises of the arena, and so the audience could discuss the fights as they waited for the next round to begin.
“Have you heard? They say that six of the top twenty fighters got eliminated already!”
“What?! Six? In one round?! How? Aren’t they the strongest fighters from the Pit?”
