The night in the desert was colder than usual as Lassim sat beneath the soft glow of a lantern he had brought out to rest for a moment.
The desert stretched out endlessly in all directions, and in the distance, the faint silhouettes of towering spires reached toward the sky—natural formations that gave Sandspire Village its name.
In his hands were the mission report that he had chosen for his next destination. He scanned the details again, mainly focusing on the map to compare it to the current landscape. His eyes narrowed as he glanced over once more.
~~~
Mission:
Request for immediate assistance from Sandspire Village and former Outpost Code #3416. Rebuilding efforts hampered by ongoing attacks from rogue cultivators. Local force unable to provide sufficient defense. Combat specialist required to eliminate threats and ensure the safety of workers and residents during reconstruction.
~~~
The mission brief was vague, leaving out details about the identity or strength of the rogue cultivators, and it didn’t say much about the village leader either. Only that the Spirit Transcendent leader of Sandspire Village, had issued the request for backup.
It seemed like a relatively straightforward mission on the surface, but if someone of her caliber was requesting help, it was safe to assume there was more to the situation.
Lassim rubbed his chin thoughtfully. The leader was Spirit Transcendent, level 8, which made them stronger than him in raw power. If they couldn’t handle these rogue cultivators, it meant they were likely seasoned fighters, possibly veterans who had been expelled from their sects for one reason or another.
They were likely more dangerous, not just because of their strength, but because they had nothing left to lose.
He sighed, packing the report back into his magic pouch as he stood and stretched. The long flight through the night after leaving Blazewind had been quiet, but he wasn’t exactly looking forward to the heat the overbearing sun would bring once it rose. He would reach Sandspire Village by dawn based on his estimated current position.
The wind picked up, sweeping across the sand and stirring his martial attire as he prepared to take flight once more.
His [Tempest Steps] activated, lightning crackling around his legs as he shot forward, the darkness of the desert blurring past him as he pushed himself as a bolt of lightning towards the western side of the Southern Continent, where the village was located.
The sky slowly began to brighten with the first hints of dawn, the orange and pink hues painting the horizon ahead as the noticeable landscape of the towering spires of Sandspire came into view.
From above, Lassim could see the small cluster of buildings nestled between the jagged rock formations, their walls made from the same sandstone that surrounded them. A narrow river surprisingly wound its way through the village, a vital source of water making it a bit of an oasis in an otherwise barren landscape.
As he drew closer, something caught his attention—movement at the edge of the village.
At first, it looked like a dust storm, but as he descended toward the ground, he could make out the faint glint of elemental weapons being swung and the unmistakable spiritual pressure of battle arts and cultivation being released at full power. His brow furrowed as he realized how unlucky the village really was.
They didn’t lie about the constant threat of rogue cultivators.
Lightning crackled as his body accelerated toward the scene, the sound of clashing weapons and shouted commands growing louder as he came within ear shot.
A group of four mismatched cultivators with no matching uniforms or symbol of alliance had surrounded a lone figure—a tall woman with jet-black hair tied back in a loose tail, wielding a glowing lance of lightning and the standard Elder Robes of the Lightning Sect.
Above her head floated an 8 ring halo, and her opponents all had similar halos of varying ring counts between 4 and 7 above theirs too.
Her expression was fierce, even as she danced between the blows of her attackers, her lance flashing through the air with lethality as she aimed to try and take even a single one down to even the odds..
Lassim landed just in time to see her impale one of the attackers through the chest, the lance of lightning piercing through his armor as if it were paper. The man collapsed with a gurgled scream, his body convulsing as the lightning coursed through him.
Before she could turn to face the remaining three, one of the rogues launched a barrage of metal-elemental spikes toward her back.
Lassim reacted instantly, summoning his halberd and sending a thick bolt of lightning with a [Thrust] shooting from the halberd’s tip as he disintegrated the incoming projectiles before they could reach her.
The woman glanced over her shoulder, her sharp green eyes locking onto him for a brief moment before a grin spread across her face as she recognized Lassim’s martial attire.
"Well, if you’re here to help, I won’t complain!" she shouted over the sound of battle, her voice a bit sweet sounding as it met his ears.
Without waiting for his response, she whirled around, her lance carving a wide arc through the air as another of the rogues barely dodged the deadly strike.
The woman gave a hearty laugh, seemingly engrossed in enjoying the battle, as she deflected a second strike and sent a blast of lightning straight into the attacker’s face, knocking him to the ground.
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"Name’s Vaela! Pick whichever one you take a fancy to," she called out, her tone teasing despite the situation. "I’m the village leader here, by the way. Care to join the fun?"
Lassim couldn’t help but chuckle at how lighthearted she was despite the situation. "Lassim," he replied, stepping forward in a flash step of [Tempest Steps] to appear near her as the remaining rogue cultivators turned their attention toward him. "Personal disciple of Sect Master Volten and the person sent to help you with your troubles."
The introduction clearly had an impact on the remaining rogues, their postures stiffening as they exchanged uneasy glances.
"Ah, so they finally sent someone for the mission! Wait, what? You’re the combat specialist? You’re just in the Spirit Ascension stage." She gave him a curious glance as he just smirked in response, "Well, do you think you can handle just one of these guys for me then, Lassim?" Vaela said, "I’ll take the lead so you can just keep at least one from runnin’, that’d be great.
I usually only get one before the rest scatter, so time for a change with you here."
With a nod, Lassim began supercharging a [Hydroburst] on the halberd’s edge as he moved his cultivation to full rotation. This brought out his terrifyingly real Leviathan constellation above his head and the sky began to darken as the cloud cover from the Thunderstorm he could naturally summon began to form. "Leave one for me," he said with confidence.
The rogue cultivator across from him sneered, clearly unimpressed. His aura flared at the Spirit Transcendent stage, level 4 as he summoned a wave of fire, the flames swirling around him as he charged forward, his sword raised to strike.
Lassim’s eyes glowed as he activated his [Spatial Vision], the threads of space warping and bending around his attacker as he watched and used the insights from dealing with the wraithmire demons to anticipate the incoming strike.
With a flick of his wrist, he summoned a barrier of water mana for [Aegis], not letting it freeze for optimal effect in dispersing the approaching fire with a surge of cool mist before stepping in with a rapid counterattack.
The halberd crackled with lightning as it sliced through the air, before connecting with him, the explosion cutting through the man’s defenses. He barely had time to react before Lassim’s strike landed, sending him sprawling to the ground with a cry of pain as the plasmafied water exploded at point blank range like a massive bomb going off.
Unfortunately for Lassim, but lucky for the man, his robes seemed to be enchanted with an extremely strong defensive array that allowed him to survive the blast. But, just barely…
The rogue scrambled to his feet, blood dripping from his wounds as he glared at Lassim, but it was too late to flee or do anything more.
With another swift motion, Lassim sent another [Thrust], the bolt of lightning traveling through the air, striking the man square in the chest in the same spot as the [Hydroburst] had gone off and ended the fight in an instant.
Meanwhile, Vaela had already dispatched the second-to-last attacker, her lance appearing to be made fully of lightning pinning him to the ground. She let out a triumphant laugh as she yanked the lance free, the rogue’s body falling limp at her feet.
The final attacker, seeing his comrades were either dead or incapacitated, turned and bolted, sprinting toward the jagged spires of rock in the distance. Vaela’s eyes narrowed, her lips curling into a smirk.
"Not this time," she muttered.
With a quick motion, she summoned an array of lances of lightning, forming in the sky above her with her hand outstretched and holding her elemental weapon forward—all identical.
She then yelled out, "[Raindown Lances]!" sending them forward with a mimicking one-armed thrust with a grunt of effort. The lances flew through the air with a loud crack of thunder as they struck the fleeing man, turning him in to a pin cushion.
He collapsed in a heap with desert sand flying everywhere and the lightning coursing through his body as he convulsed once before falling still.
Vaela let out a breath, wiping the sweat from her brow as she turned to face Lassim. "Well, that’s more like it! Usually never goes that well, but today’s a good day, eh?"
Lassim nodded, his halberd disappearing as he returned it back to his inner heart world. "How often have you had to deal with these guys?"
Vaela snorted, planting her lance in the sand as she crossed her arms. "Too many times. These rogue cultivators have been a thorn in my side for weeks now. Every time I kill one, the others scatter and come back later with even more idiots. Thanks to them, we haven’t been able to finish rebuilding the former outpost.
We suffered a rough attack that took most of our forces out right before the attack on the headquarters. The timing was just the worst and this is the state we’re still in."
Lassim glanced around at the village behind them.
From this distance, he could see the damage the war had left behind. Many of the homes and buildings were in various stages of disrepair, with workers scrambling to rebuild walls and structures that had been destroyed during the fighting. It was clear that the constant attacks had made progress slow.
"I can see now why you called for help from the sect," Lassim stated.
"Exactly," Vaela replied, shaking her head. "I’m strong, but I can’t be everywhere at once to both direct the rebuilding AND fight these damn vermin. These bastards are quick to run with their tails between their legs, but sadly they usually end up robbing some of our supplies or materials in the process.
Maybe once every three or four battles do I manage to kill one or two, but the others always get away, and then we’re back to square one. I needed someone who can hold their own in a fight and keep them from retreating or at least add some deterrance."
She shot him a sidelong glance, a grin spreading across her face. "Looks like you might be the right guy for the job. You’re a lot stronger than you look."