Squawks erupted in the distance, the bird-like bipeds shouting warning cries of their approach. How many of them were ahead, through the garden of mushrooms? My eyes scanned the towering latticework above, but I couldn’t find any.

I extended an arm, palm open.

When Kim didn’t throw the spear to me, I turned towards her. She was staring at me confused. “Your spear?” I asked, quirking an eyebrow.

Kim tossed the spear to me, pulling free a knife and kicking over the bird monster’s body. She hacked into its chest, pulling out a fingernail sized beast-core. I leaned against the spear while she worked, my eyes scanning far above, trying to trace the retreating noises.

“Ready.” Kim said, standing up and waving her hand to flick the blood away.

I followed the noise of the bird people. It quieted as I approached, the calls becoming fewer and farther between until there was silence above. I waited, eyes on the sky, for the dive, pacing forward slowly until I heard the rushing of air of it’s dive. Instead of intercepting its path, I waited for it to be too low to the ground and too fast to move its path. I stepped to the side.

The billowing glider on its back opened with a crack and a rush of air as its claws slid through the air where my neck had been a moment before.

My spear found purchase in its ankle, and it screeched, flesh tearing as it pushed away from the blade, all of its downward moment converted in a second in a sickening tear and crunch. Blood splattered as it rolled across the ground.

I closed my eyes for a second, reflecting. The patterns and knowledge of the Lunar Path, and its twelve lesser paths, echoed through my mind. The knowledge had been seared into my very soul by an artifact of great power. They came to me perfectly with just a moment of thought. I opened my eyes.

“Pay attention. I’m going to teach you the forms of the Celestial Spear.”

The bird screeched, the call having changed to one of distress.

The warning calls stopped. I stepped towards the bird slowly, lowering the spear, two hands on the half, pointing towards the bird.

“Feet shoulder length apart. Later, as you advance in cultivation, you’ll be able to channel your force into the spear to enhance the attack. Look closely.” My muscles bulged as I forced the Qi through my meridians, pulling the haft back. “This is Dusk Falls on a Cloudless Sky—“ I stabbed.

The spear didn’t pierce the birds head.

It eviscerated it.

Qi exploded outwards at the point of contact, the remnants of the birds head falling down like bloody, ground beef, as its body collapsed instantly. I smiled.

“Dusk Falls on a Cloudless Sky?” Kim asked, doing her best to stifle laughter.

“What?” I asked.

“Its just—“ She laughed. “Its just kind of a silly name, you know. Its like in anime when someone calls out their move before they attack. Kamehameha?”

“It sounds better in its original language.” I said, eye twitching. “Besides, the name is tradition. Its much older than I am.”

“It’s just so chuuni.”

I sighed, rubbing my eyebrows. “The name isn’t the important part anyway. Did you take care to observe the form?”

Kim nodded, and we repeated the hunt, walking towards any of the scouts calling a distress alarm. None of them managed to touch me.

I showed Kim 5 moves of the forms; a set that would allow her to attune her Qi by practicing them in moonlight. The Qi the monster’s provided me was little more than a trickle, but I was probably 5% of the way through the first stage of the 3rd Realm. I handed her the spear and had her demonstrate the forms, correcting her posture and working through them one by one.

“Okay, so what’s this one called?” She asked as I corrected her on the 4th Form.

“The name isn’t important.” I replied.

“Its good to know it, though, right? C’mon. Tell me.”

I sighed. “Slaying the Dragon Swallowing the Moon.”

“Yeah, its— good. Its good.” Kim chuckled, rubbing at one of her eyes. “Good naming sense. Who came up with this?”

“Its— I found it in a tomb.” I replied. “Its far older than I am?”

“Wait, a tomb? Like you went grave robbing?”

“Sort of. Cultivators sometime turn their tombs into a testing ground. To see whether you’re able to pass their legacy and inherit their teachings. Puzzles, riddles… that kind of thing.” I shrugged.

“Like Indiana Jones. And you passed all the tests? Jumped over some snake pits? You don’t seem like a big riddle guy, no offense.”

“No. I just broke down the walls. Punched through them one at a time.”

Kim blinked.

“That’s… wow. Thought martial societies had some crazy respect for the dead? I was… googling.” She breathed in. “Are you ready to go? We already earned more than enough gems to pay for this trip.”

I looked between Kim and deeper into the world.

“We did all the work killing those scouts. It would be a waste to not see what they were protecting.” I replied.

“Its a risk.” Kim said, voice faltering. “There could be dozens that way.”

“Good.” I replied, relishing the thought of getting to go all out again. It had been… a month? My legs started carrying me that way.

Kim made a noise of affirmation. “Wait.” She unstrapped the carving knife from her belt, passing it to me. I opened, checking the blade. It was long— longer than it needed to be for carving anything we killed. It was also clearly sharpened and cleaned frequently. I sheathed it.

“With this many scouts out, there is probably a cluster of nests ahead. It would be good to be prepared.”

I nodded, already walking forward. The various warning calls of the birds had lead us in a wide circle around a forest of stone pillars, like the one where the gate opened, but clustered closer together, some toppled and leaning together. The inside of it couldn’t be seen from where we stood, our sight lines blocked by the density of the forest.

Our prey were inside.