Chapter 89 – Indestructible
Back at the Spirit Warden’s tower, on the topmost floor, everyone was present, everyone from the Inner Circle that is. It was the middle of the night, and finally, Siu could stop his act, something that had become a bit more annoying than funny by now. The most bothersome part was that whenever he walked around in public, he had to maintain a double facade, acting as if everything was alright while feeling weak... which was the act in itself. But he couldn’t complain, as it was his choice of plans, and now, he had to play the part.
“Can you keep it up for a day or two more?” The Twins asked, looking at him with a grin, holding back a giggle, “If not, we can help you get exhausted and sell it better… You may even enjoy it.”
“Again?” Neya asked, shooting them a glare, as she had already become used to their constant nagging and offers, deciding she wouldn’t let them seduce him. No matter how strong Siu was… everyone would sooner or later fall for the twins! They were just too pushy, and they had the looks to pull it off. No man could say no forever... She was sure of it. They were... Just too bad!
“We wish it would be again!” They moaned, leaning onto the table, looking bored.
“I meant, you two starting it again?” Neya asked, crossing her arms, making Rinmei giggle, but remain silent.
It was then that a knock interrupted them, and it was the man they were waiting for. Opening the door, Neya let Varren in, who looked tired but had a smile on his face. It has been two days since Bren gave him the order, and he has been doing his best to accomplish everything… and, with today coming to an end, it was finally set in motion.
“Everything is going as you predicted, Senior.”
“Bullies never change…” Siu answered with a smile, almost sounding amused, but then he turned towards the others. “How bad is it, by the way? I tried not listening to other sources about my… situation.”
“Oh, it's the greatest gossip news since forever.” The twins exchanged a glance, and Milli continued explaining, “Bad enough that people are talking about quitting the group, too.”
“Some already said that they won’t pay another month,” Nilli added, nodding.
“Opportunistic bastards,” Neya grunted, and it was one of the few times she cursed loudly, surprising the others, but she continued freely. “I get that you collapsed in front of half the sect… But already leaving? Who hadn’t lost… like ever? Hmph!”
“That’s a bit dramatic,” Siu replied, waving a hand at her. “It was only a handful of people and not half of the outer disciples, not to mention the sect. And it isn’t a big deal, Neya. Relax a little.”
“It is a big deal. I agree with her,” Rinmei said without looking up from her notes. “The number of people leaving us doesn’t matter in the long run, but it will give us names that we must, and we will put on a blacklist. After we have everything, and when this all settles down, meaning, you beat down Bren… We should raise the monthly fee.”
“For newcomers only,” Siu hummed quietly at that, tilting his head back slightly against the back of his chair. “But leave it the same for those who stayed with us. It will be the perfect reward for their loyalty.”
“That… Sounds good,” Neya nodded, thinking about it. "We could also promote Kira. Everyone noticed her improvement during the fight with you! That would be a great advertisement besides only the opportunists coming to try and get a beast for themselves."
“And if anyone wants to, after the dust settles, slink back, make them pay triple!” The twins giggled, making Siu simply roll his eyes, but he kept smiling.
“You’re enjoying this way too much,” Neya said when seeing his smile, pouting a little.
“A little,” Siu admitted openly.
“Just make sure you take Bren seriously,” she warned him in a gentle tone, “Speaking of him, Varren, come, sit, don’t just stand there silently! Tell us what’s happening!”
“T-thank you, Senior,” Varren cleared his throat quickly, smiling as he sat down with the rest and began immediately telling them not only what Bren had ordered him to do, but what else he saw and heard while speaking with the others, enacting his 'orders.' Naturally, his report was just as detailed as they could be. “You are all right," he added at the end, looking around the group, "the news has spread exactly as expected, and Bren is acting just as quickly. The only part I’m nervous about is the rumors that you want to punish Baun and Kira… When she first heard it, Kira wanted to refute it at once, but I persuaded her to stay silent for now; we don’t want to alarm Bren of the trap. Luckily, she can be reasonable. And… This just came in.” He put a letter before Siu… “The challenge was issued publicly today.”
“Make sure,” he smiled, picking up the official issue of a challenge, “That my answer of accepting it is posted early in the morning.”
“It will be up,” The twins said with a chuckle, as Siu's answer was already prepared in advance, “I wonder if there will be betting this time around or not… I guess the Golden Scroll knows what’s going on, and they won’t show up this time around.”
No one commented on it, of course, as predicting Toban’s way of thinking was harder than anything else.
“Mentioning them,” Rinme spoke up, rummaging through her papers, “Lorean had delivered this,” she said, holding it out toward Siu. “It arrived this morning. I hadn’t opened it as it is addressed to you.”
“Oh? I have a guess what this is,” Siu said as he reached out and took it without hesitation, opening and unfolding the document at once. His eyes moved across the text, scanning the whole thing at first, then slowing from the top as he began to read more carefully. While he did so, the others watched him in silence, and even the twins stopped whispering, waiting for what it was. Apparently, Varren wanted to say something, but he held back, playing with his fingers. “Indestructible, eh?” he murmured after he arrived at the end, smiling.
“What is?” Neya asked, getting nervous, wanting to know what was in that message.
“Bren’s technique,” Siu answered, putting the letter before the others to read, “It's a detailed report about what he trains in. I asked Toban to look into it for me, and said he would send word with Lorean.”
“I never heard of that technique,” Rinmei muttered, reading the paper as everyone’s heads were now knocking against each other as they tried to get a better look at it. “Girls? Varren? Any of you?”
“Nope.” The twins said in unison, “But the description is pretty detailed!”
Indeed, it was. By its contents, the style he had chosen was built around absolute stability; from that, a hardy resistance was gained, then reinforced by an immense muscle-density the cultivator had to carefully maintain. Apparently, the practitioner was required to train their body not just to endure force, but to become something that could withstand more and more of it, no matter what form it took. They had to meet it in equal measure to nullify its impact, then overpower it from within. The cultivator’s every step had to carry their entire mass, and every strike had to have a sense of inevitability. Defense and offense were not separate concepts but extensions of the same principle, combined into one. While the body would withstand everything, their attacks would destroy everything… thus, the practitioner would become invincible.
At the end, there was even a copy of the technique's manual attached, straight from the library.
“A mountain did not dodge.” Nilli read out loudly, chortling, “What a pile of horseshit.”
“Check out the next quote!” Milli giggled, putting on a deep voice, “It did not yield. It simply existed! Whoever made this technique up was super dramatic and thought they were big masters, huh? Did they ever hear about mining?”
“I think they did,” Neya added with her own giggle, joining in on the joke, reading out loudly, also mimicking a deeper voice, “And anything that struck it paid the price.”
“Yeah,” Rinmei agreed, holding back her laugh, “I can see someone like Bren picking it up because of the flavor text slapped onto this technique. It sounds grandiose.”
“But there are warning notes in here,” Varren added, looking at Siu, “Senior, take those parts seriously. It says that physically, he’s probably the strongest among the outer disciples,” he added by reading it out loudly. “That’s the Golden Scrolls personal assessment!”
“I believe them,” Siu nodded once. “Don’t worry, I won’t take their evaluation lightly.”
“You can run a circle around him… He doesn’t rely on speed,” Neya muttered quietly, analyzing the details, “However, it also mentions that although he is not slow… he is not fast either.”
“I will have to check his actual speed in the fight,” Siu agreed, looking at them mutter, scour the letter back and forth, “And I also think that speed will be a deciding factor on how I will approach our fight.”
“And…” Varren shifted slightly in his chair, reading it a second time, “There’s more... It also says that Bren’s durability and stamina could be a dangerous pairing with his raw strength. It won't be a smart move to try and exhaust him."
“I have confidence,” Siu’s lips curled faintly, making the twins look at him, already opening their mouths, but he shot them a glare, “Don’t. I have been hearing the same joke from Arya, too.”
“Hey!” The little fox’s yelp sounded loudly from under the table as her head popped up, sleeping in Siu’s lap until the point she was mentioned, “Bully! My jokes are way better than what the two boobed ones wanted to say!”
"What did they want to say? I wasn't paying attention..." Marly asked, but Siu just closed the two out for the moment.
“Hmm…” Rinmei leaned forward slightly, finishing her own analysis. “This letter also warns you that breaking his defense directly is… most unlikely. If he catches one of your counters, he may break you in half, for real.”
“I wasn’t planning to be caught. Still, I don’t believe he had mastered the technique; otherwise, why would he still be an outer disciple, hm? He’s not actually indestructible,” he continued calmly, “Nothing is, anyway. The question is: where is his current limit… and how long does it take to reach it? I can test that in the fight, and I can hit him enough times to whittle his armor down.”
“But…” Rinmei frowned slightly, “That’s not something you can test casually.”
“No,” Siu agreed, of course, “But I don’t need to test it all at once. He can’t be scarier than the Icecrown Stag was.”
The moment he brought the creature up, Rinmei visibly shivered, shaking her head, while Neya crossed her arms more tightly, looking at Siu.
“But you had firebombs for that one… Siu… Please, be careful. You’re underestimating him.”
“I know what I can do,” Siu said, shaking his head to reassure her, smiling. “I’m not looking down on him. I know exactly what he is,” he continued, trying not to sigh. There was nothing to worry about, especially because in the future, he can't back down or be afraid when he eventually comes across another cultivator in the wild, “And I know what that means. I had seen his kind enough times, and I know how to lead someone like him in a fight. Most importantly, I know my own powers, and he does not. That’s why I know I can win this… It just means it will take longer than against Nue.”
Varren watched him carefully while he was speaking, trying to read something beneath the surface, some hesitation maybe, or some uncertainty, or... anything he had seen in others, be it Chalvert or anybody else he knew… But… He found none. And when he realized that, he admired him for it. Siu looked and felt confident, but he didn't cross the line into being overconfident. He felt like someone who indeed knew his own limits and felt secure enough to face the dangers. That's how a cultivator should be... And it became something that he suddenly wanted to emulate. Deciding it there and then, after everything was done, he would strive to achieve the same thing for himself. When he is finally free of all his debts, he swore that he would make sure that he would follow in his footsteps. Wherever those would lead him.