The riders charged at us with ferocious impunity, if not for one final linked rope to cause a few to stumble I would have died right there and then, trampled by a warhorse.
The horse that fell in front of me, delivered its rider to my feet, concussed obviously but still looked whole, I dove my sword right at the small opening between his helmet and chest armor, I didn't need to do more, the strike slit a major artery and he would die within minutes, nor could I afford to make a cleaner hit as more rider came at me.
Our forces, not more than a couple of dozens that decided to stand and allow the rest to escape, were nothing more than grass in the way of a stampeding rhino, only the rhino needs to slow down due to the narrowness of the valley, the ropes stumbling the horses and the fallen animals blocking its way. If we were on open fields, we would have been mowed down to the last in less than a couple of seconds.
But thanks to the buckle of the enemy, we managed to stop the rest by using their own numbers against them. At best, twenty of our soldiers remained to fend off hundreds.
A wide mace threatened to cave my skull in, but thanks to my mind's eye, I was able to predict the mace's trajectory. Though I was unable to use any cultivation, my mind still worked like that of a cultivator, giving me ample time to duck under the mace then deliver a rising slash at the rider, slicing through the opening under his armpit.
The sword connected and the rider's arm was barely attached to its socket thanks to a bloodied tendon.
Another spear threatened to impale me where I stood, to which I dodged by the barest of margins. The spear's tip sliced through my leather pauldron causing mild discomfort while the shaft rubbed against my shoulder netting it a hollow empty strike against the air.
I pulled lightly at the already extended spear causing the rider who refused to abandon his weapon to fall from his horse. I sliced at the rider's back neck, as fast as I could as I noticed another spear coming my way.
My sword slid fast enough, ripping the man's neck, gushing blood, and moved in a rising slash to parry the spear, where one of my comrades struck at the spear wielder with his own spear toppling him from over his horse.
I knew that I had no martial skills to speak off, and most of the stuff I had just done was thanks to the power behind the soldier I was currently possessing, and the increased thinking process of the mind's eye. But mental exhaustion will soon down upon me, that is of course if this soldier's body I'm using doesn't outright collapse from physical exertion.
The battle continued for what felt like hours as we fought on the back end. More of our comrades fell to errant sword strikes or crushed under the maces of the enemy, further dooming this already hopeless situation, but I had to fight, and I kept on fighting, even when one spear cut through my thigh, not because I couldn't dodge in time, but because the body I'm using refused to dodge, it was already exhausted beyond humanly possible.
Another soldier sliced at my left arm, rendering it barely useable. But I still fought, and fought, using every scrap of energy I could muster, every bit and every speck of power that was left in this body.
My comrades had long since died and only I was left fighting and that had been a long time ago, or perhaps I felt like it was.
Bloodied, battered, and exhausted. I still heaved for more breath as I sliced at the enemy. Until a time I noticed everyone standing still, none moved towards me.
For they knew that with injuries such as the ones I have right now, it would only be a matter of time before I fell down.
The enemy soldiers knew that if they were to attack, they'll only die. And not attacking is what they did. Standing still watching this strange man, fighting to the literal last breath. And then one of them slapped a fist to his chest, as did others, and soon I understood why.
They were saluting, an enemy, one worthy of respect for standing against odds, fighting to the brinks of death, yet still grasping straws of futile hope, they didn't see an enemy, they saw a soldier fighting for a cause and that would bring even the mightiest of foes to respect such act.
There and then, my eyes darkened, and I fell on my knees, breathing the agonizing last breaths of this body.
Suddenly, I woke up, where I found myself seated within the Laughing Slaughterer's pagoda, in front of me was the small table with the teacup emptied out.
The laughing slaughterer's sound resounded through the hall.
"Pitiful display! Such is yours, for you only slew forty-three of your enemies. Many had achieved higher than you have, you're better off giving up, for the tests will only become harder."
The voice was monotonous as always.
But then another vocal message sounded.
"However! Unlike any before, your battle had secured the survival of more than three hundred and nineteen soldiers. You are the first to have managed to help soldiers escaping the pursuit of the Crown Regime. Most would fight against the enemy, scoring as many kills as they can, while the enemy would run rampant among their lines only for them to die once outnumbered. You secured a path to retreat for the others before you returned to battle. And my verdict is…" the voice trailed.
This time the message felt a bit more… life-like, but still it had a neutral dead tone to it.
But the following words were like heaven and earth.
"STUPID!" the word sounded like a thunder's echo within me.
"For no cultivator would weigh their own self-preservation against the survival of people they do not know! Foolish! For you gave your life for ones you didn't have any relation to. The most stupid of all, your pride blinded you to the simple truth, survive! Survive at all costs!"
I couldn't debunk the statement, because I knew in a sense he was right, I didn't know any of them, and I should have escaped when it was possible. I do know that I stopped and fought alongside the soldiers so others would survive? But why did I do that? Did I know them? They weren't friends family or anything else, they were just soldiers. Still, it felt wrong to leave them to their demise
"My conviction," I muttered, though I didn't think the voice would answer back, "I fought because I believed it was right."
A loud silence echoed around, it was so baffling that I could only hear the sound of my own heartbeats and the breaths I drew, it was a still deathly silence that I never felt before. Then the Laughing Slaughterer's voice echoed once again.
"So young…and you have the rudimentary understanding of the Truth…your Dao, perhaps not, perhaps egoistic beliefs, still. Idiotic, but I won't sway you against your conviction for it is not my place. Proceed!" the words echoed and another spiraling staircase came down, this time the reward was different.
It was a manual, a sword art. The Sanguine Blade, first tome.
I took the book in hand and began flipping its pages, it was a series of sword arts dedicated to slashes and stabs, with overexerted and overextended strikes. The risks entailing these sword arts were dangerous, for every attack was overbearing, but at the same time, held great risks. For every attack, would cause the enemy to falter, hesitate briefly, as did the manual explain, this art required a resolution far beyond what any man could ever hope to obtain.
It was the epitome of a high-risk high reward. A sword art that relied on diving without regard to the enemy's blows or one's self-preservation. It was meant as a risky sword fight that made every attack be seen as a trade of life. Just the major idea behind this book would make one shake in fright, who would ever learn something as dangerous as this? But then, I remembered what happened in the dream I just had.
This book, is a reward for the same actions I did, lack of self-preservation. This sword art is a reward for the actions I have shown. Though without any other sword art at my disposal, I believe this sword art would be good in my hands. I tucked the book inside my robes where the book on my chest sucked in the manual and I moved forward.
Once I was on the third floor, I saw Xi Son, who looked exhausted beyond exhaustion and had several wounds all over his body. He was the first thing I noticed before I took a second look at where I was.
This floor was also slightly smaller than the one before it, but not much, the only difference was, this floor was separated into two sections. One, where I and Xi Son stood. It was the same as before, a wooden floor with no decoration in sight and no doors or windows, while the other side of the room had vast treasure troves, weapons spiritual stones, manuals and even crafting materials.
Yet there was a mirror-like barrier that stood tall, separating the two sections. And on the corner, there was the spiraling stair leading upwards.
"Greed is the bane of all man, but in front of so much wealth, would you ignore it? Or risk all to obtain it?" the question the Laughing Slaughterer was the last of his words as I stood looking at the treasures in front of me.
Indeed, they were mighty appealing, as I noticed many spiritual herbs that I didn't even recognize or the Space Stones on the floor that looked like the least important bits and pieces of this treasure. These Space Stones are things I need to continue cultivating my Star Technique to hide my poison cultivation. But I can't get past the barrier, this I know of, but Xi Son apparently doesn't, seeing from the look on his eyes.
He looked at me like I was a heaven-sent gift.
"Shen Bao! You made it here!" he said.
"Yeah, I'm also surprised to see you here." I mused.
"How did you manage your way here? It took me a lot of effort to fight my way through the hordes of Spiritual Beasts lying about, I doubt you have the ability to fight them. But now…" apprehension was apparent on Xi Son's face, especially now that he is weakened, and thinks I was able to fight my way through numerous enemies.
I pulled out the healing pill I got on the first floor and threw him the vial. He inspected it using his divine sense which 'conicedantly' passed through me once again as he tried to see if I had anything on me.
But right now, as long as I appear calm and collected, and not answer how I managed to defeat hordes of spiritual beasts -even though I have no idea what he is talking about, perhaps we took different routes to get here, and his was ridiculously dangerous- I should be able to instill a sense of mystery and with it, danger. Good, the less he knows, the more apprehensive he will be, and with the disregard to the value of the pill I just gave him, which by the way would definitely fetch a fortune outside, he will think I have no interest in it, making me stand on a higher mental pedestal than I deserve.
Games within games, mind games to put one above the other, without any verbal word spoken. As long as I carefully set myself above him, I will give him one more reason not to test me, or outright turn hostile. I could have easily ignored his exhausted and wounded self, but a wounded lion is more prone to be aggressive than a healthy one. Especially since he will subconsciously feel that even if he was as hale and healthy as he is right now, he proved to be of no consequence or danger to me.
"Thank you, fellow cultivator Shen Bao!" Xi Son said and chucked down the pill. He sat down in the lotus position and began digesting the pill.
'Fellow cultivator' he said, and that's a sure sign that I gained his respect or his apprehensive fear. Which was better.
"No need," I said as I got closer to the barrier, giving him an easy target as I turned my back to him.
I looked at the barrier and smiled, then turned around and said, "let's go, there is no need to waste time here."
"Why? I tried hard to break through this barrier, and I think it could crumble with a bit more effort." Xi Son said.
I shook my head saying, "This barrier is designed specifically to do that, it will wane and look about to break just enough for you to exhaust all your power, then when you replenish, you'll try again and will seem about to break just as you're exhausted once again, it will do so until you're fully depleted, desperate and without any speck of power or items to replenish yourself. This is a test of your greed, and if you continue down that line, you'll fail."
Xi Son took a moment to digest my words the said, "How do you know all of that?"
"Simply put, this barrier is made using quasi saint Qi. No matter how strong you are, you'll never match this barrier in strength unless you're an ascendant. Even I can't decipher all of its mysteries, but I know that this thing will survive the bombardment of millions of nascent cultivators without a crack." I said in a decisive and certain tone.
Xi Son sighed and stood up, "Damnable trick, it almost cost me my cultivation as I tried to break through it using a forbidden technique. Damn, damn!" Xi Son cursed and I felt that he was pissed enough that he was going to once again take it off on the barrier.
"Also," I added, "Your efforts would have been for naught," I said.
Xi Son looked at me questioningly.
"Yeah, because those treasures are fake," I said.
"Nonsense, I could feel their spiritual release even through the barrier." Xi Son shook his head.
"That's the thing, this barrier is actually replicating the spiritual residue of all of the items behind it, these are nothing but fakes, but that doesn't mean that they're not here."
Looking completely lost I interjected, "These treasures probably exist on another floor and they are only projected here to exhaust the cultivators in futile attempts to lessen their chances at retrieving the real treasures. Simple method, but undoubtedly effective. I said as I gave a knowing gaze at the now slightly ashamed Xi Son.
"Right," Xi Son said after clearing his throat, "Let's keep moving then."
And we took off to the upper floor.