The Laws of Cultivation: Qi = MC^2

Sheng Yuan flew in the skies, watching the Divine Beast give chase. This trip had very quickly gone from a fun, leisurely one to a battle he was rather under prepared for. There was no way the Azure Dragon would not notice this, so their time was cut even further as the Emperor himself would realize what was going on. He would need to make sure he got his due back for this favor from his dearest new Junior Brother.

“Man, grandfather sure loves picking children like us, doesn’t he?” Sheng Yuan exclaimed to the beast, who did not reply, simply letting a strike of Chi burst that cracked reality in front of him. The void seeped from between the cracks, and Sheng Yuan had to exert his will to keep the realms from cracking as he took the blow.

“Calm down, you really don’t want to create a rift to the void here. There are worse things than either of us in there,” Sheng Yuan said, but his smile was starting to slip. Maintaining this form while fighting was proving to be more and more difficult, but he could not exactly let that slip right now either. He would need to improvise to manage somehow.

“Say, how about we both move somewhere quieter?” Sheng Yuan said, before Stepping. The realms peeled away as he moved a large distance within moments, bridging the gap between space itself. The beast was far too heavy in its presence to do what he had just done, and so it would have to move through the space itself to give chase.

Granted, that would only take a few minutes at best, but it was enough time for him to gather his strength. Looking down, Sheng Yuan noticed the spirit beasts running away in terror as they felt the battle raging.

“Meh, they’ll have to do.”

Rushing down, he grabbed a giant tiger in his hand. A moment later, the beast collapsed into ash, as his life was absorbed into Sheng Yuan. Stretching his presence, Sheng Yuan began to pull, using his will as he commanded.

“Perish.”

The lush forest around him began to decay within moments, as Gu formed in giant quantities. Within moments, he absorbed the death and life of the creatures, calling them within itself as his strength replenished itself. A giant hollow crater remained in the forest now, filled with gray ash.

“Oh shut the fuck up, you know I’m doing you a favor,” Sheng Yuan shouted back, as the heavens stirred. But no tribulation came.

“That’s what I thought,” he snorted. Looking back at the destroyed land he shrugged. He didn’t have the time to fix it, and the forest would regrow given enough time. With a stomp, the ash hardened, forming a giant arena.

Any leisure time he may have had was lost as the Divine Beast appeared above him, noticing him standing in the clearing. With a burst of speed that broke the sound barrier, the beast launched itself into the earth in a collision that moved tons of earth, causing the ground to tremble.

Sheng Yuan blocked the strike, letting Gu seep into his body, before he punched the beast back, flinging it across the clearing. A second later, he teleported to where the monster was moving towards, letting a second strike launch it into the ground.

“Do you know how hard it is to not only beat you, but also not kill the body you’re holding hostage?” Sheng Yuan complained, as he flew over the beast.

The creature was far lost from its sanity, as it roared, lunging at Sheng Yuan. Chi burst out in a powerful explosion, as the creature used power that would make Divinities shiver in fear.

Divinities who were stronger than he was, in this form. Thankfully the beast was all power and no control, or Sheng Yuan would’ve been forced to change his plans, or abandon the seventh peak entirely.

“What do you say about playing a game, my friend?” Sheng Yuan asked, dodging a strike that cracked the earth beneath him. Fire spewed from the ground, torrents of Gu escaping from its earthy prison.

“I’m taking that as an enthusiastic yes,” Sheng Yuan replied. “The rules are simple. You win if you catch me. Sounds good?”

A roar that shook the ground escaped from Lu Jie’s mouth, as the creature broke a giant chunk of earth, throwing it at Sheng Yuan.

Sheng Yuan broke the boulder with a strike, dodging the fist coming from Lu Jie by an inch as he moved sideways, before touching him on the shoulder.

“Okay, you need to catch me now,” he said, as the monster swung, and he moved through the world, vanishing.

The beast moved fast, giving chase, near-instantly arriving where Sheng Yuan was. Energy gathered in the creature’s hands, as it struck at the air itself. Fire erupted from the friction, as a flaming fist tore through where Sheng Yuan had been within a fraction of a moment.

“Whoa! You almost got me,” Shen Yuan said, dodging once more as the monster swung.

“You’ll need to do better if you want to win!” Sheng Yuan said. To his surprise, the beast stopped. A moment later, it turned his focus up to the skies.

“Wait, no, that wasn’t an actual suggestion, don’t do better!” Sheng Yuan shouted, rushing after the creature. But it moved swiftly, jumping up to the skies as it reached out to the heavens. Lightning rumbled within the skies, striking down, as the creature struck with his fist. Sheng Yuan cursed, joining it in the skies, as he let his own strike land on the creature.

“I know we’re enemies and all, but how about a truce? Help me out a little, maybe?” Sheng Yuan called out to the heavens.

The skies rumbled, shivering. A moment later, he saw ghostly warriors manifesting around him, and smiled.

“Hate to say it, but thanks,” Sheng Yuan replied, as he rushed in towards Lu Jie. The creature roared, Lu Jie’s aura growing stronger and stronger by the minute as it continued to absorb all the energy from its environment.

With a shuddering strike, a pulse of energy shot towards the skies themselves, as he grabbed onto a strand of the heavens, ripping it apart.

“Normally, I would cheer you on, but not today,” Sheng Yuan said, rushing in as he struck Lu Jie at his chest, flinging him back onto the ground with a powerful strike.

Gu gathered in his hands, and he drew on Qi from the heavens, combining them in a dizzying array of energy. Chains descended from the skies and the earth, wrapping Lu Jie’s arms and legs, as they held the Divine Beast at bay.

Sheng Yuan panted, feeling his energy drawing to a limit. But the chains would last, at least for a short while. Glancing at the heavens, he gave a grudging nod, before stepping through the world once more.

Appearing in the castle, he looked around. “So, do any of you have any idea how to stop Lu Jie? He’s obviously lost control.”

The girl looked at him in surprise.

“I don’t have all day, if I don’t go soon, that thing will be crashing through here,” he said.

Quickly composing herself, she replied. “There’s an antidote to cure the poison that has eaten away at Lu Jie’s spirit. My spirit has gone to the capital for it, but I can’t say when it’ll be here.”

“Wonderful,” Sheng Yuan said, wanting to curse. So he possibly had to hold back that thing for a week.

With a sigh, he jumped back into the skies. He hoped all this effort was going to be worth it.

***

Liuxiang felt the wind brushing past her. They had been going for three days now, without any breaks and she could feel Leiyu’s exhaustion. But at last, their destination was starting to be visible. Liuxiang noted the seventh peak in the distance, feeling a strangely pleased sensation fill her to be back here. Though through rather unusual circumstances at her part.

“Is that… a ward over the entire city?” Leiyu said.

Liuxiang focused her attention, noting Leiyu was right. There was a ward present on the entire city, shimmering with Qi. Even the surrounding area looked like it had been destroyed in chunks, like some kind of large-scale battle had been taking place at the location.

“What is going on here?” Liuxiang asked.

“Leiyu doesn’t know. But clearly something happened,” the spirit replied.

A moment later, she felt a powerful burst of energy explode in the distance, sending a shockwave that almost knocked her off. She looked off in the distance, noting tiny figures fighting in the skies. The heavens rumbled with lightning, storms brewing across the lands as Liuxiang felt her heart begin to race.

Those… were Divinities. Multiple Divinities at that, nothing else had power of this level. No wonder she had been sensing a disruption on her way here. But what Divinity had come here to battle, and for what purpose?

Slowly, Leiyu began to lower himself to the ground, before circling over the seventh peak.

“We sense Yan Yun in there,” Leiyu said.

“In the Lord’s manor?” Liuxiang asked curiously. Focusing her senses, she noted that Yan Yun was indeed inside the manor, alongside Zhang and others.

Slowly, Leiyu circled around, letting out a loud, piercing cry, after which a small section of the ward faded and Leiyu slipped in, flying down to the manor with sparkling statics.

People rushed closer, before staring with wide eyes at Liuxiang. Yan Yun stepped in, as Leiyu returned to his smaller form, before swiftly moving into Yan Yun’s spirit.

“Liuxiang?” Yan Yun asked.

“Indeed, it is me,” Liuxiang replied. “It is good to see you, Yan Yun, Zhang, Granny Lang. Though I can tell that now is not a good time for greetings.”

“You can say that again girl,” Granny Lang snorted.

“Leiyu told me about the poison and I decided to come here myself, since delivering the antidote is a difficult process. But there seems to be something entirely else happening,” Liuxiang said, before glancing around. “Where is Lu Jie?”

She noticed the people looking at each other uncertainly, and she felt her heart sinking.

“He’s, well, he’s sort of the reason we’re all here,” Yan Yun said.

“Brother Jie has been possessed by a spirit, after the poison took hold of him. He’s now being held back by Lord Zhou, all the cultivators in the seventh peak, and the Cloudy Peak sect. But they’re struggling,” Zhang replied.

Liuxiang’s eyes widened. “They’re… all struggling to hold him back?”

Nods came towards her, and Liuxiang had to wonder just what sort of madness Lu Jie had gotten up to this time.

A loud tremor shook the skies, and Liuxiang turned to face the skies. She noted warriors flying in the sky circling around a single figure with power so overwhelming that her spirit senses felt like they were burning.

Even her grandmother did not possess this much spirit energy.

“Is… that Lu Jie?” Liuxiang asked, horrified.

“It is,” Yan Yun said. “If we can bring the antidote to him somehow, I think he can be stopped.”

“We can take care of the boy for a small time,” a man said, and Liuxiang turned to see Elder Tian Feng standing nearby.

“It is good to see you, Elder,” Liuxiang said, nodding.

“Me too, though I am but a clone,” Tian Feng said, before glancing at the skies. “I’ve already relayed that the antidote is here, Elder Sheng and Lord Zhou will be down momentarily.”

As soon as Elder Tian Feng said that, the world rippled around Liuxiang.

“Where is it?” a man barked with blood flowing down his arm and clothes in tatters. A moment later, his eyes rested on Liuxiang. “Shie?” he said, pausing.

Liuxiang looked at the man uncertainly.

“Do you have the cure?” Lord Zhou asked. Liuxiang saw the Lord, and her expression further turned grim. His body was injured, heavily so, and his Qi was faint.

“I do. If you can bring me to Lu Jie, I’ll be able to administer it. I will need you to hold him still for a minute though.”

“Great,” the man, she assumed Elder Sheng from what she’d heard, grasped her hand. Liuxiang almost let out a hiss, but let the man pull her as the world itself warped around her.

Her eyes almost widened again. That was something her grandmother could do. And only her, of all the people she knew. Was this man a Divinity then? She did not have the time to ponder the question, her eyes on Lu Jie. She almost didn’t recognise him, his hair a pure white, his eyes glowing with Qi… no, something else entirely.

Just what had happened to him?

“Okay, I’m going to try and hold him back for as long as I can, but I’m basically spent at this point. Try to be quick, or he’ll erase you from existence,” Elder Sheng said.

Liuxiang wanted to protest that the Lu Jie she knew would never do anything like that, but she knew that this was not Lu Jie. But something else using his body. She gave a small nod.

“I can fly,” she replied, noting the elder was holding her hand.

“Won’t be enough. Stick to me, and when I say go, rush in,” the man said. Liuxiang looked at him, a concerned expression on her face.

“Oh, don’t give me that look. You’ll be fine,” Elder Sheng said.

“That was not what I had intended,” Liuxiang replied, but did not banter further as Lu Jie rushed towards them. Just his movement alone caused the air around him to ripple, and she felt the world itself descending on her.

With a warp of the world, they moved through reality itself again, dodging the strike as the man let go of Liuxiang’s arm.

“Junior Brother, you’ve been a serious pain this far. Time to give back some of that pain,” the Elder said, before he rushed back in like a descending bolt of lightning.

Liuxiang began to count.

A powerful blast shook the ground from where the Elder struck Lu Jie down. A dark aura spread over the world, and for a moment everything seemed to turn to night, as the stars themselves blinked out of existence.

“End’s call,” the man said, as a great aura descended upon the earth.

Lu Jie screamed as the world itself began to crush him, pushing him down into the earth itself. He screamed, a powerful burst exploding from him as he broke apart the technique, which would’ve taken multiple Master ranked cultivators to fight, in an instant.

The man moved undeterred as if he had been expecting as much, already preparing another technique. The earth stirred around Lu Jie, rising around him as it slammed down upon the boy. For a second Liuxiang worried the attack would be enough to kill him, but Lu Jie simply tore his way out, his hands breaking down the energy as he absorbed it within himself.

Liuxiang watched, in awe and fear, as Lu Jie moved in closer, landing a strike on the Elder as he launched him across the grounds. A moment later, he disappeared, the struck opponent being a clone as he grasped Lu Jie from behind. Power gathered in his hand, as he commanded.

“Stop.”

The world itself seemed to freeze under his command, Lu Jie standing with his body stuck in time.

“Now!” the man screamed, and Liuxiang rushed in. Moving down, she quickly reached Lu Jie, feeling the overwhelming aura around him crushing her like an insignificant bug. Breathing felt difficult but she reminded herself of the training her grandmother had given her. For the first time she felt grateful for the brutal nature of her practice.

She pushed through the heavy aura, taking out a bowl with the black liquid as she dipped a needle into it. Slowly, she began to run it across Lu Jie’s body, tracing the pathways in his body. Each little movement crushed her, and she could feel the Elder’s aura; no, not just his, the Lord and everyone in the seventh peak shielding her from being crushed.

“Be… a little… faster,” the man gasped, and Liuxiang refocused on her task. Her needle moved, her movements precise and rapid as she moved across his arms, chest, and neck until she was down at his abdomen. With a final stroke, she inserted the needle into his dantian.

Liuxiang felt the shielding from the aura fade and she almost fainted at the spot from the pressure. With sheer will, she hung on, rising back to her feet, as she reached out to grab Lu Jie’s shoulder.

“I don’t know what happened, Lu Jie, but whatever this is. You can break it. Snap out of it,” she said, mixing her own Qi as the antidote mingled into Lu Jie’s body.

A moment later, the Elder grabbed her, the world warping around her once again as she stood back in the castle. The man collapsed, falling down onto his knees in exhaustion.

“Is it done?” Lord Zhou asked, a grave expression on his face.

“I’m… okay… thanks for asking…” the Elder said, before lying on the ground where he had appeared.

Liuxiang nodded as she looked at the Lord. “I have administered the antidote.”

The rest was on Lu Jie now.

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