Before Calvin could decide whether he wanted to attempt capturing Immortals, a chilling voice called out behind them.
"I suggest that you choose your words wisely." The voice warned, "While you'd make excellent training puppets for my soldiers, I'm afraid today is a day for overwhelming victories. I can't have you messing that up, no matter how valuable your deaths may prove."
Calvin and Amy's chests tightened when they heard the magnetic voice behind them. While they would normally feel safe on the Mortal Plane, they knew of Mary Emerson's disappearance and the death of the Silver Medallions. So they took the situation seriously.
More importantly, the mysterious cultivator had an overbearing pressure, so feeling him materialize behind them added a degree of terror and uncertainty.
"We do not mean you harm." Calvin swallowed nervously, taking a sharp breath that burned his dry throat, "We're simply observing the birds' flying patterns."
"I will give you respect for being wise beyond your strength." The voice smiled.
The cultivators slowly turned with their hands up. Their eyes widened when they saw the person behind the overbearing pressure and domineering words was a teenager, no older than eighteen.
While people could live their whole lives without aging beyond adulthood, most didn't. They aged with the breathing technique they had, slowing aging until they got better ones.
So the teen had to have been born into nobility to keep his youth and be over eighteen. Still, keeping cultivators secret for thousands of years was not simple, especially if they had immense talent.
And their enemy was talented.
The teen had a divine breathing technique, and his waterfalling was a spellbinding display. Even if he were a bastard heir, there was no reason for someone of immense talent to stay hidden for millennia. He didn't make sense!
"I appreciate your praise." Calvin gulped, glancing at Amy, awestruck by the attractive teen, "Please allow us to introduce ourselves.
I am Calvin Olman, a senior proctor of the Mortal Plane Ascendence Trial. The woman next to me is Amy Ryas, an overseer.
We're guarding the Beast Sanctuary and assessing the cultivators. We're only here because we saw a large flock of seagulls leaving the Sanctuary and investigated as part of our jobs."
"I view your poor talent for falsehoods as an ironic sign of trustworthiness." Kaze smirked mockingly, "If you were a senior proctor, you'd know I wasn't part of the operation, and thousands of mortals shouldn't have earth-grade techniques.
Your acceptance of the current situation is as comical as it is revealing."
"I-I'm sorry for deceiving you." The elderly cultivator stuttered, seeing the teen's murderous smile, "Amy genuinely oversees the Sanctuary. However, I'm here to investigate the disappearance of high-ranking cultivators."
"And so you'd walk into a dragon's den, looking for weak ilk to capture?" The emperor mused, "Such folly is unbefitting of weak squires, not a Heaven Realm cultivator."
The cultivators' fight-or-flight responses triggered, pulling their hands back for an attack. However, their meridians went haywire, and the atmosphere became alien to them, making it hard to fly or attack.
"Back of, you air-bending sky nazi!" A sharp female voice yelled from a nearby skyscraper, "Wave that hand, and your meridians will look like a mento tongue fucking a diet coke."
"My partner has slowed the Qi rotation around you." Kaze rolled his eyes in embarrassment, seeing their perplexion, "If she reverses it more, your meridians will explode if you attack."
"I-I've never heard of such a technique in my two thousand years." Calvin stuttered, hearing the explanation for the horrifying sensation, "Who are you people?"
"Apocalyptic beginners cultivating during Earth's futuristic great hellscape." Kiera chimed mockingly, "I just know like-minded nobodies--overseeing people quickly rushing survival training--understand very well Xiao Yang Zhang."
"W-Who's Xiao Yang Zhang?" He stuttered, "You have the wrong person. I'm not even oriental!"
"No, I have the right person." She scoffed, "I just wasn't gonna fuck up my alphabet word game to pretend like you matter. Check your privilege."
"Unnecessarily clever as my partner's answer was, she answered one of your questions accurately." Kaze sighed, equally impressed and mortified, "Now it's your turn to answer one of my questions."
"What do you want to know?" Amy asked nervously, confused but unwilling to contradict.
"I present you with two options." The emperor warned, "First, you can provide information about the Killian trial, the location of resources, and future events.
If you do that, I'll spare your lives, allowing you to live among us. If you refuse, you will die a gruesome death after I extract that information from you. What do you choose?"
Immortal Skye was a month away from war with the Sky Plane cultivators. If they had treasures, items, or useful beginner techniques, he wanted them. Every advantage was critical.
Moreover, he wanted more cultivators to act as guides and teachers. The two held immense value, assuming they accepted. So he didn't mind incentivizing them with citizenship and resources.
Naturally, he would only do that under blood oath restrictions to prevent betrayal. However, they didn't know such a technique existed, so they were shocked he'd let them live amongst them. Moreover--
"Do you think that torture and death scare us?" Calvin asked pridefully. He placed immense value on honesty and loyalty. So while he may die, it didn't mean he'd give in to torture.
"Torture and death scare all people, Calvin Olman--some just endure them to die honorable deaths." Kaze smiled chillingly, "Unfortunately for you, that isn't an option.
You lack the spirit fortification necessary to resist my techniques, so I'll obtain my answers regardless. Dying to prevent betrayal would be nothing more than an exercise in idealism for the sake of irony."
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"Combustion!" A man yelled, hand to the sky.
Boom!
"Yeeeeeaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!"
The small firework triggered battle cries from thousands of soldiers. Their voices echoed through the broken city streets, spreading in the eerie, silent atmosphere for miles.
"KYEeeeeeeahHHHhhHhhHhh!"
Thousands of sick, angry people met their words with equal bloodlust and enthusiasm.
"This is our city!" Jackson responded fearlessly, "If you want it, you'll have to fight us for it!"
"YEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"
The bloodlust in the atmosphere was intoxicating, fueled by adrenaline and endorphins. Everyone had fought against overwhelming odds and survived--without a casualty.
Buzzing off their crushing victory, they felt they could take over the world. So they roared back against the zombies that terrified them only days before.
Now that they had tasted power, they felt capable of fighting against the world--and winning.
-
Calvin and Amy froze when they heard the two sides declare war. It was not the behavior they expected from mortals. They should be crying in despair upon hearing the zombies!
"It seems the soldiers have secured their first victory." Kaze smirked, "So I haven't the time to let you agonize over a forced ultimatum. So I suggest you accept your fate quickly."
"W-Will you let us return to the Sky Plane?" Calvin swallowed nervously.
"On the day I ascend, I will allow you to return to the Sky Plane." Kaze smiled wickedly, "Now speak quickly--betray Killian and return to the Sky Plane in 40 years on the winning side, or betray Killian before dying a pointless death. Those are your only two options."
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"Thousands of zombies will crash into the shipping yard walls in a few minutes!" Sandra yelled boldly, "However, their numbers will not deter us!
You have fought and won against overwhelming odds and survived without a single casualty!
Tonight we'll teach the sick that we own this city! And we'll send the Sky Plane cultivators a message that we still rule this world!"
"YEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"
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Calvin and Amy heard the woman's words in disbelief. They looked at the emperor with speechless expressions, asking for answers without the ability to speak.
"Your ears do not betray you." Kaze smiled proudly, "My and my partners' soldiers will not run.
On September 2nd, 2032, the next rift in the Sky Plane will open, and Killian's soldiers will seek to eradicate all dissidents. And on that day--will fight them."
The cultivators were stunned beyond words, paralyzed while watching the soldiers below. While they were remarkable, given their status, the cultivators knew what was coming. It wasn't something a month of training could overcome--that's what they thought, anyway.
"If you're conflicted over whether it's better to die at my hands or at the hands of the Killian's reinforcements, you're wasting your time." Kaze grinned brazenly, "Even if Killian sends one of his Dukes, we will be victorious."
Icy chills crawled down the cultivators' spines after hearing his words. They could tell that the cultivator was serious and that he had the power to back up his words.
However, a Duke was a faction's second strongest, behind the emperor. If Kaze defeated Mary Emerson and knew the difference in a Duke's power, he was far more powerful than they had imagined.
They watched thousands of zombies run across the Meridian City streets, preparing to attack the base. It was an overwhelming sight laced with the sound of shattering glass and crunching metal as they ran over vehicles. Calvin and Amy would soon see their potential--and looked forward to it.
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