Chapter 77: The Better Part of Pride
Right as Paike felt that he might not only survive this challenge in front of him but also win, he heard the call for a retreat.
It was something they had all agreed to in their plan. Once Wu Chen had finished his part of the job, he would give the signal, and they would all regroup at the fallback point. The others were counting on him. They worked under the assumption that they would be chased, and he needed to help everyone get away.
He looked at the cracked carapace of the ant in front of him for a second. A dark temptation whispered in his mind. Why go? They will be fine. You can stay and prove that you are better.
Paike turned and ran. He wasn't going to let his pride get the better of him.
Pride was necessary to cultivate. You had to believe innately that you were the best. That you would succeed where so many others had failed. To upend the natural order and claim immortality for yourself. To challenge the heavens as the story put it.
Perhaps that was also why, in most stories, pride led to the protagonist's, or sometimes antagonist's, downfall. The antagonist usually fell to the protagonist's martial prowess, but not always.
Paike's pride had been trampled for years. He wasn't sure if that would help shield him more or only leave him more vulnerable. But he was able to overcome the temptation to finish his fight.
He just hoped the others could as well.
Reaching the fallback point, Paike skidded to a halt and did a quick head count. Liming and Mi Lixian had provided support. Their buffs from the music radiating through the forest or Liming's gentle fog of qi had kept them out of the fight.