Born in Blood



When the General uttered his insult, Usan and Kuan's eyes narrowed dangerously.

Four powerhouses. 

Queen Thyress. 

The General.

Hand of Light. 

And Unforgiven Shadow. 

Liam couldn't see their auras at all.

But he could feel them.

It was like their own signature displayed for all to see. 

The General was so far away. 

But just looking at him made Liam feel ten times as heavy, pulling him to the ground and keeping him there. 

All the low ranking acolytes had already fallen unconscious, their mouth frothing with foam. 

The only reason Liam hadn't passed out, was because he'd thickened his skull and head as much as he possibly could.

At the same time, he'd activated his mental defenses. 

Queen Thyress made him shudder. Her sight alone sent a million little needles pricking into his skin. 

Only Hand of Light's influence wasn't malicious. It was like warm sunlight on a cold day. Strange and ominous, but not outright fear-inducing.

As the seconds passed on, Liam realized he wasn't breathing!

Or, more accurately, he couldn't breathe.

Air pretty much abandoned his lungs.

Thankfully, Usan's shadows spread to cover him and the rest, relieving them of the burdens they felt.

Meanwhile, the four powerhouses looked at each other from a vast distance.

None of them were allied and looked friendly with one another.

Not even Usan and his father. 

Despite that, the Unforgiven and Hand of Light were both staring daggers at the Queen and General. 

Queen Thryess didn't budge. 

Silent and beautiful, she looked uninterested in the whole ordeal, but still lingered for some reason.

Slowly, the General's old face turned dark. 

Any trace of cockiness or playful demeanor disappeared.

"I lost interest in that little plant after a while. A lousy way of attaining strength. Keep cutting corners and there'll be nothing left to cut."

"And I was right," the General pointed at the Unforgiven. "You're like a building with no floor."

"You'll crumble apart on your own."

Usan's shadows started to shriek, turning violent.

…But he didn't attack.

Unfortunately, the General was right.

Right now, Usan's strength was not permanent.

It was temporary.

He had become a Rank 6 cultivator.

With a Rank 6 sea of consciousness, body and core.

But he simply burrowed that strength for the time being. And it wasn't even the real thing. 

It was a pale imitation of what a powerhouse could actually produce.

Not to mention, there was unimaginable pain rummaging through his body.

Right now, Usan was like an old man, with a hunched back and a cane, carrying a massive bazooka. 

Even carrying the weapon was painful to him.

And what would happen if he detonated the weapon?

He'd die due to the recoil.

But then again, so would the target he aimed his bazooka at.

Queen Thyress and the General didn't kill the Unforgiven straight away.

One less powerhouse was one less catastrophe in the world.

But no one wanted to bear the brunt of that. 

Left alone, Usan would die anyway. 

Why get involved for no proper reason? 

Usan's face turned dark. 

But he didn't respond to the General's words.

'Their time will come,' he thought.

'It will come.'

'I have to play my cards right.'

'I've already accepted death.'

One second of silence passed.

"Enjoy the strength while it lasts," the General said with a deep voice.

"You clearly didn't earn it."

Bloodlust oozed from Usan's body… but a moment later, the General and his soldiers vanished into thin air.

Now, only Kuan, Usan and the Queen remained.

"And what do you want?" Kuan asked the Queen as the General disappeared.

Silence.

The Queen turned around to leave. 

As she did so, her indifferent gaze briefly passed the island where Liam and the acolytes were on.

Liam's heart rate spiked. His eyes widened as much as they could. A tremble ran across his body.

Liam cursed loudly.

…Was it just him?

…Or did that woman flash an imperceivable grin as her eyes brushed past Liam's?

By then, her face was no longer visible.

Before long, she faded into the distance.

Yeah… she knew.

She definitely knew Liam was among the crowd!

And why did she grin like that?!

It was a grin of sadistic enjoyment!

Liam's breathing grew unstable.

But there was still Kuan and Usan to settle their ordeal.

"Don't do anything brash," Hand of Light said with a stern tone. "You can start a war. But you won't be around to finish it."

"If I find out you're secretly planning an invasion, your sickness won't kill you. I will. Then I'll come for that little demon you're housing, next."

Welp, if the Queen didn't kill him, Hand of Light sure would.

With that, Kuan left as well.

Usan hovered the air with a complicated expression. 

A moment later, he lowered himself to the Temple.

Daylight had returned to the world.

Everyone was still afraid of approaching Usan.

But Liam was next to him already.

***

"Why didn't you cure your sickness?" Liam said, as Usan poured himself a large glass of ale in the underground hall.

Now that he was staring death in the eye, Usan reckoned he could take his time with a few things.

He wouldn't be around for much longer, after all.

But Liam was still tense. 

If Usan could cure himself, why not do that instead? 

The deal with devouring Rank 5 and 6 cultivators was an enticing deal.

But Liam would rather choose long term stability.

"Tried," Usan answered. "Couldn't make it work. It would take time, which I didn't have, and if I didn't rush it, I wouldn't have advanced to the sixth."

"It's not like a cure was guaranteed, either."

"Plus, any longer and the inheritance would've slipped from your grasp."

Liam nodded slowly.

With all those things adding up, Usan did the right thing, as selfish as it sounded.

That said, he couldn't help but ask.

"How's it feel?" 

Usan raised a brow, taking a long swig of his jug of ale.

"How's what feel?" he questioned.

"The power. You're a powerhouse, aren't you? Don't you feel different?" 

Usan pursed his lips and paused. 

"Well, beside the excruciating pain I'm constantly in, which makes me wish I was dead, I'd say I feel pretty strong," he gave a dead thumbs up. "Though, my shadows gained sentience, somehow."