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Not only that, but if this truly was Silver Hawk, then I was facing a cultivator a tier higher than what I’d been expecting. The same level as Fia really. But thank goodness she didn’t come with Fia’s repertoire of techniques.

She couldn’t Fly, used only one jian blade instead of three and was a washed-up hag to boot.

But that didn’t mean she wasn’t dangerous.

The [Odds were Against Me] still.

The woman scoffed at me from across the distance. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“You can drop the act,” I said. “How long have you three been doing this? Have you secretly won all the matches for your boneheaded sisters? Or is Wi Shen so weak that she chickened out for this fight specifically?”

She looked shaken again, as if unsure how to respond, but then her brows lowered as if making a decision, anger filling her soul. “Surprised you figured it out. Perhaps you’re not as stupid as you look. But it won’t matter. You won’t live to tell this to anyone.”

“Fine by me, Silver Hawk,” I said, twirling my axe. “Just means I know I’m fighting for my life now. That’s going to mean a world of pain for you.”

I backed up my words with a heavy dose of [Fear the Flame] and the flicker of uncertainty in her eyes echoed the fear flickering in her soul. I wasted no time with an all-out assault, throwing caution to the wind as I unleashed with a flurry of lightning-charged strikes.

Fia told me my unpredictable side was a strength.

And now I had to use it to the fullest.

It worked, with me landing a couple of cleaves to Silver Hawk’s arms and legs as I barreled into her, cutting through her robes, but hitting her body was like striking diamond. If I’d hurt her, she didn’t let it show and she gave me a nasty sneer instead.

“Nice hit, but I suppose even fools can get lucky.”

Her arrogance pissed me off, which was just what I needed to bolster myself with fresh Frenzy from my Flame. I went back at it, relying on my technique and forms to stay on the offensive. I pushed Silver Hawk back, but she managed to keep her distance from me with a combination of spacing and quick parries.

I thanked the stars for my time with Fia.

Short as it was, it had taught me the basics of the Silver Leaf fighting style and while I didn’t know half the moves Silver Hawk was performing, I knew enough to decipher which were safe to block, parry, or avoid most of the time.

The times I got it wrong I was met with the sharp sting of her jian blade. Her Qi-infused slashes were strong enough to cut through my [Iron Skin] technique and I had to switch to [Steel Skin] to offer any kind of protection at all.

But it came at a cost.

The technique was powerful but burned tons of Frenzy.

Already I could feel my Dantian draining despite the fresh Frenzy being generated from my Flame. With needing to keep up [Steel Skin], my reflexes as well as feeding my lightning-charged attacks, I was on the fast track to running out soon.

I glanced at the scoreboard.

Lady Silver Sparrow vs The Iron Bull

Odds: 25:3

Time - 11:23

Lady Silver Sparrow

Iron Bull

32

2

The score was lopsided as hell and time was running out.

I had the sense she wasn’t even pushing herself either.

A wicked smile remained on her lips as she danced me around the arena, slowly gaining the advantage point by point.

Son of a bitch, I thought. This isn’t going to work.

I needed another edge.

There was only one other trick left up my sleeve and I had to risk it.

Flipping backwards, I distanced myself from Silver Hawk while keeping her attention with [Lightning Arc Strikes]. She reacted as I anticipated, using [Flash Step] to avoid my technique. But I didn’t bother to chase after her this time.

I was forcing a different kind of reaction now.

After a few more exchanges it finally happened.

“[First Heaven, Piercing Strike]!”

Three silver quills flew from her hand as she executed the long-ranged attack and I used all my Frenzy to charge straight into it.

“[Iron Lightning]!”

Electricity arced across my body as I annunciated my technique, hopefully kicking its effectiveness up a notch as I barreled into the attack. Huge sparks broke against my skin as all three quills evaporated without a trace.

Yes!

I flew right into Silver Hawk’s stunned face and performed a flawless [One Chop Cleave] aimed directly at her jian blade. The weapons clashed with sparks and the sword went flying to the side but not quite out of her grasp. Her eyes still grew wide with shock and disbelief, however, and I used the opportunity to grab her about the throat with my free hand.

“Now listen to me,” I said quickly, before she could react further. “If you don’t fancy the idea of becoming your sister Wi Shen permanently, I suggest you drop that sword and concede.”

“What?”

I brandished my axe in front of her face. “I targeted your blade for a reason. It could just as easily have been your hand.” I edged the axe closer to her cheek. “Or your pretty little face.”

A ton of fear sprung from her soul as she finally got the message. If I scarred her permanently, she’d have to either reveal her charade to the world or be stuck playing Wi Shen for the rest of her life.

“Fine,” she said. “I concede. You damn bastard.”

I smiled at her with [Struggler’s Resolve]. “Good. But there is one thing I promised Wi Shen that you’re going to have to accept on her behalf.”

“What are you tal—”

Before she could even finish, I spun and struck her hard across the face with a ringing backhand. The slap resounded throughout the arena like a bomb going off and a gasp of hushed whispers filled the crowd as Silver Hawk fell to the ground holding her face in a new level of shock and disbelief.

“That was for Xi Xha,” I said. “Tell Wi Shen she owes you one for taking it for her.”

“I’m not sure what’s happening,” the announcer shouted above the stunned crowd. “But it looks like the Iron Bull clearly has the upper hand on Lady Silver Sparrow now. Or perhaps I should say the upper backhand. What a face slap! I think even her sisters Silver Dove and Silver Hawk felt that one!”

I chuckled at the irony of the joke, as the crowd went wild with laughter.

Anger rose up inside of Silver Hawk and I knew then I’d just made an enemy for life.

Still, I held the upper hand.

And she knew it.

Slowly she rolled to her knees, placed her blade to the side and bowed her head.

“I concede!”

The gong to end the match sounded and the crowd erupted into a mixture of cheers and boos as the final score tallied on the display board.

Lady Silver Sparrow vs The Iron Bull

Odds: 25:3

Time - 08:37

Tournament Winner

The Iron Bull

Lady Silver Sparrow

Iron Bull

35

3

I smiled at my accomplishment.

I’d done it.

My final Iron Bracket match was over.

I cultivated the Frenzy from the crowd and was about to leave the arena when an official approached me and told me to stay put. I wondered what the hell was going on when they asked Silver Hawk to do the same.

The reason as to why became clear as Master Lein Cho, the tournament director entered the ring surrounded by a bunch of people in official white and beige robes.

What the hell was this…?

“Well done,” Lein Cho said as he came to stand in front of the both of us. “An interesting match indeed. We shall now commence the closing ceremony of the Iron Bracket Tournament! May the winner step forward!”

A whole new fanfare of trumpets and revelry sounded as the crowd stood to their feet to salute me. The attendants ushered me towards Master Lein Cho and signaled for me to kneel. I did so bewildered, still wondering what was happening as the lemonade and confetti fell freely from the crowd.

“Max Chun,” Lein Cho said in a reverent tone. “Leader of the Furious Lightning Sect and Elder of the greater Fire Bird Clan, I hereby declare you the winner of the Jurin Province Iron Bracket Tournament. I place upon you your medal of victory as well as your just reward. Congratulations!”

More applause sounded as Master Lein Cho placed an iron medal about my neck and then presented me with a small certificate. An unexpected sense of pride filled me as everything took place. To me this was still only a means to an end. A way to afford entry into the Gold Bracket Tournament, but I couldn’t help but get caught up in the pomp of the ceremony somewhat.

As I looked at the certificate, I saw it was actually more than that. It was embossed with a golden seal and had the words, ‘To the bearer redeemable for 1000 Spirit Stones’ on its front.

Holy crap, I thought. This was a damn check!

It was more money than I’d ever held in my life.

I rose to my feet and bowed to Master Lein Cho again before saluting the crowd once more. The outpouring of both lemonade and hate was near overwhelming, perhaps rivaling the value of the 1000 spirit stone check in my hands when it came to cultivation.

The division within the crowd then went up a notch as Master Lein Cho addressed the arena again. “And now, to conclude the ceremony we shall have the award of the Iron Bracket Tournament trophy. And for the first time in five years, we finally have the passing of the trophy to a new sect! I call forth the leaders of both the Fire Bird Clan and the Silver Leaf Clan to the stage, Master Lo Feng and our beloved Warden, the infallible Lady Silver Tear.”

Holy crap, I thought as my heart raced.

I stepped back to stand alongside Lady Silver Hawk as two of my greatest adversaries took center stage. I had only heard of him before, but one look at the wiry old man with the wispy beard dressed in the red and orange robes, and I knew I was looking at Master Lo Feng, the leader of the Fire Bird Clan.

The other dead giveaway was the similarly dressed Hin Wu who walked by his side.

Both of them gave me stares as they approached.

From Lo Feng came a glare of disgust, but from Hin Wu there was a casual smirk of interest and even a little lemonade.

Before I could decipher anything further my attention was drawn to the elegance of a woman that more glided than walked onto the stage as she came to stand opposite Lo Feng. She was just as I remembered her and up close even more so. The silver hair pinned by a jade crown and the cold silver eyes of a woman who had lived well past the forty or so years that she looked.

The Lady Silver Tear.

My Flame burned with hatred, but I masked my contempt with [Indifference] as she sauntered past me. Joining her was who I assumed was one of her Elders, a woman who looked close to the same age but bore a closer resemblance to Silver Hawk and her sister.

Their mother, I presumed by the scowl she gave Silver Hawk as she passed by.

I wondered if she knew of Silver Hawk’s ploy.

Surely, as their mother she had to be able to tell the differences between her three daughters. But whether she expected to see Silver Hawk in the ring instead of Wi Shen I couldn’t tell. The disgust in her eyes could just as easily be for her losing as well as cheating.

Master Lein Cho went into another round of speeches, but I could barely focus as I watched the Lady Silver Tear present Master Lo Feng with a small iron trophy in the shape of two crossed swords.

“Don’t get attached to it,” Lady Silver Tear said aloud jokingly for the crowd to hear. “We’ll be back for it next year.”

That got a round of polite applause from the crowd and then Lo Feng and Lady Silver Tear bowed to one another equally with mutual respect. It was a rare sight, I supposed. They were equal as sect leaders now, but Lady Silver Tear held a much greater status as the Warden of Jurin Province.

As the ceremony concluded, Lady Silver Tear stepped in my direction again.

She made eye contact with me, and my soul froze.

Would she recognize me?

Remember me even?

The thoughts of her leaving my family to die flooded my mind, filling my soul with rage as she approached me casually. She stopped and glanced at me, a subtle smile on her lips.

“Well done, Iron Bull,” she said, and then flicked her eyes to Lady Silver Hawk. “You… not so much.”

And with that she moved on.

The bitch…

She had no idea who I was. Or cared even. The thought made me even more irate inside.

One day you’ll know, I vowed. One day you’ll remember exactly who I am before I kill you.

Lady Silver Hawk got a glare of disdain from her mother as she pulled her humiliatingly by the arm and pushed her ahead of her. I was about to chuckle when I was greeted with a clan chastisement of my own.

“Iron Bull,” Master Lo Feng said to me as he looked me up and down. “You elude my punishment. But do not think that your debt is forgotten.”

I gave a smirk as I performed a quick bow. “Master Lo Feng, I presume.”

“Presumptuous is right,” he spat. “Your treachery saw my nephew killed by our greatest enemies. And now you stand here in victory, putting us on the stage? If it’s my honor you seek, then you have duly failed. This will do nothing to shield you from my wrath.”

I glanced at Hin Wu who merely shrugged. “I offered my grace once, Iron Bull. I would dare to ask Master Lo Feng to consider you again. Winning an Iron Bracket Tournament at your age is exceptional.”

Lo Feng harrumphed. “This One has caused great ill to befall our clan, but he is indeed as talented as you say, Hin Wu. He has also made it very difficult now to exact my vengeance by winning this Tournament. Considering such, I may yet be convinced to give this wretched dog a second chance. If he bows his head in shame.”

Hin Wu smiled. “Well, Iron Bull? What say you?”

I almost couldn’t believe what was happening.

An olive branch of sorts.

But clearly it was on fire.

The hatred stirring within Lo Feng’s soul was strong enough to cultivate me to the next Realm and the lemonade spewing from Hin Wu made me just as wary. Thoughts of what rejoining the Fire Birds might look like played through my mind. Flashbacks to running around as a servant boy for that evil asshole Hong Feng. Even compromising encounters with Hin Wu that would put me at odds with Fia again. Something she desired, no doubt.

But there could be value as well.

I’d need to fight both of them eventually and learning their styles to fight against them would certainly give me an advantage. But the thought of stomaching through all that made me sick. And besides, I already had an excellent trainer.

“Appreciate the offer, but no thanks,” I said with [Struggler’s Resolve]. “I consider myself a free agent now.”

The anger within Lo Feng surged to the point of melting steel. If not for being in front of a crowd of thousands, he likely would have torn my head clean off. But I ignored it all with a nonplussed stare of [Indifference].

“You arrogant little piece of shit!” he cursed me. “A free agent? What even is that? All your strength belongs to me. And I will take it back when the time is right.”

Hin Wu sighed. “You are talented but not very wise, little brother. You should have taken the offer.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“Will you?” she said. “Do you forget the [Fire that Burns in my Soul]?”

Tiny flames emerged above her shoulders as I sensed something invade my being.

No… the soul technique again!

I quickly countered with [Soul Shield] and for a brief moment, her attack was rebuffed. A flicker of confusion crossed her crimson eyes, but then they narrowed with focus as the flames on her shoulders grew more intense.

My [Soul Shield] technique collapsed in an instant, still not able to withstand for more than a second or two. Her attack seized my Flame and I felt helpless as she leered at me.

It was the spiritual equivalent of her grabbing me by the balls.

And she knew it.

“Some improvement, but not much,” she said. “A shame you won’t be able to put up much of a resistance when the time comes.”

Lo Feng grimaced. “If only it could be right now. But you’ve gained too much notoriety by winning the tournament. People’s memories are fickle, though. A few months and they will all but forget about the Iron Bull until they hear that the rumor of his demise is true.”

Bastard…

“Guess it’s a good thing I’ve signed up for the Gold Bracket then,” I said.

Hin Wu laughed. “You think that will protect you? It will only make things quicker. It’s clear you’re not yet ready for Gold,” she said and gently squeezed my Flame to prove the point. “By your first match, you’ll be so outclassed and buried in the rankings that no one will even care if you disappeared or not. Assuming you survive your first match that is.”

I grimaced at the idea and by the way she was keeping my Flame hostage, I had no reason to doubt her. Suddenly, she released the technique and the flames disappeared from off her shoulders. I gulped air, not realizing I’d been holding my breath.

Lo Feng scoffed. “Pathetic.”

“I will come find you after your first Gold Bracket match,” Hin Wu said. “Enjoy your short notoriety as the winner of the Iron Bracket Tournament until then.”

With that, they both turned and left the arena.

* * *

“You sure?” Master Bo Ren said as I presented him the certificate. “The whole thing?”

“I don’t want to see a single spirit stone of it,” I said. “Just put it all towards the sign-up fee for the gold bracket tournament.”

Bo Ren shrugged. “All right. But I still say you’re rushing it, kid. You should take a couple of years off to prepare for this. Seen a lot of people try to move to the next bracket too fast and get knocked into obscurity or worse.”

His words echoed what Hin Wu had just said. But I wasn’t going to let that deter me.

I had goals that went far beyond the likes of her.

Still, being prepared to face her by that time would be key.

“How long can I delay my first match,” I asked.

Bo Ren wobbled his head in thought. “Well as the Iron Bracket winner you don’t really need to go through qualifying matches. There will be a good month or two of those depending on the field size. And with all the off-planet visitors looking to score, it’s going to be a packed field. Could be even three months.”

“So three months? Can you push it any longer than that?”

“Longer?” Bo Ren puffed his cheeks as he thought about it some more. “Well, with your clout I can probably hold back your official entry until a few more weeks after the Bracket actually begins. Same way how them Silver Bird Sisters used to do for the Iron Bracket. Comes with a catch though.”

“What’s that?”

“I might have to put you against someone of much higher tier. You won’t really get your pick of the litter for easy fights.”

“That’s fine,” I said. “I’ll need to improve by that time anyway.”

He chuckled. “Yeah, I guess.”

“Thanks, Bo Ren. I owe you once again.”

He only laughed. “You’re a crazy one, kid. I wish you all the best.”

As I left the stadium, a new sense of purpose and drive filled me. I’d gotten a glimpse of my most powerful adversaries up close, and it wasn’t looking good. I needed far more strength than I had right now to defeat them, and it would all be down to my spiritual progression to do so. I had to master the [Soul Shield] technique for more than just clearing out the bunker. I needed to master it to have even a chance at fighting Hin Wu and beyond.

I was in the eye of the hurricane now, a short reprieve of calm before the tempest would resume once again. Three months sounded like a long time, but not when you had years of training to make up for.

I looked to the night sky and the Bloodmoon.

There was power there and knowledge as well.

And I’d need more of both to progress further along my path.

Just three months to prep for the Gold Bracket, I thought.

I’d have to use my time wisely.

Between advancing the sect, mentoring Kelsey, recovering the bunker, and managing my own progression, I’d have to split my time carefully between the city and wild to ensure everything kept moving forward and nothing got left behind.

Already the pressure of it was weighing on my mind.

“No sweat,” I told myself as I began formulating a plan.

There were still 24 hours in a day.

And I was going to make sure I used every damn one of them.