You have failed to cleave spell! Qi Deflection partially deflects damage. Qi Absorption partially absorbs damage. Metal armor fails to absorb damage. Draconic Essence reduces Fire damage by 2 full tiers! You have taken 1 Light Wound. Vitality check made. No combat penalties suffered.

“Zhu Bi!” Alex screamed as he tore through the gate in an explosion of flame so intense his only hope was to fly through it with a bow wave of spiritual energy pushing against the intense heat while trusting his enhanced biology to handle the blast of deadly flame for the heartbeat it took to race through the air, pain and terror poisoning the fierce joy taking to the skies normally gave him.

Not when his mind was full of terror for the girl he had so desperately hoped was safely in the arms of her Speed cultivating cousin, the only thing that had kept him sane and focused for the too long handfuls of seconds it had taken to don the most important pieces of armor he had, draw some quick slashes on the ground, link up, and dive through the gate.

Not when his heart was full of blinding fury for the laughing cultivator Alex saw flying in skies, surrounded by a swirling maelstrom of flame, glaring with such contempt Alex’s way. Looking so much like the arrogant, saturnine featured Wujen with the same crimson officer’s uniforms who had so eagerly hunted him down during his first trip to Baidushi.

And here were yet more elite regiments of the Red Prince’s men, thousands of miles away.

There could be no doubt. Dongfang Hong was flooding this territory. Already annexing it in all but name.

Either that, or he knew just where and when to strike.

And Alex felt a cold chill in his gut, suddenly more than certain that General Shalu, a god who despised Alex more than he would have once thought conceivable for the simple crime of existing, was behind the sudden attack.

Alex was so damned certain, during the endless heartbeats he and the fire cultivator glared caustic hate for one another, that he could almost hear the mad god laughing inside his head, flipping down yet another card that risked dooming all Alex had ever known and loved.

“A knowledge card, brother? Really? What good could it possibly do you, with my favorite piece protected by a double trump Cleaved Fates and Fog of War?” sighed a tired-looking WiFu, jade green eyes underneath tricorn hat glaring at the coldly smiling bloated monstrosity across from him.

The the bloated monster of a god, hideous where so many others radiated unearthly vitality and beauty, flashed a vindictive smile, highlighting the ugly weeping gashes upon his face and neck that hadn’t cut nearly deep enough in Alex’s bitter opinion.

“Stupid little fox. So arrogant, so brazen, and so damned foolish. Your most brilliant gambits have only and ever been based on your own base survival. In all other things, in all other ways, you have always and forever been a fool! Did you really think we would fail to understand the significance of that world seed now upon the board of fate? A realm now so solid, so real, Ydrassil’s branches hang with it’s weight?”

Alex felt a frisson of horror almost as great as the dread he felt for the massive ball of flame slowly being formed in the snarling Wujen’s hands as Shalu howled with laughter. “Fool! We’re not going for your stupid broken piece, a piece whose existence we can no longer confirm!”

And the hate-filled smile he sent WiFu’s way radiated the malice of centuries. “We’re going after the greatest prize of all! An entire new world. A realm not at all protected by those damned cards!”

The Wujen’s eyes widened with odd recognition in the heartbeat it took Alex to snap back into the moment. “It’s you. The Ruidian who can fly! A thousand spirit pearl bounty is on your head. Die, worm!”

And for a time Alex was force to dance and spin through the air just like a certain blond haired hellion in his favorite anime of a lifetime ago as the air came alive with fire.

Yet no matter how he tried to close, his foe just laughed and twisted to face him. “Fool! I am protected by the Dragon’s blessing! There is no way you can get close without burning to cinders!” The wujen laughed, smirking at Alex, eyes lighting up with what seemed utterly unprofessional malicious glee. “And don’t think I fail to understand the significance of your arrival. You are seeking to defend these fools occupying our king’s rightful lands? Then defend them, fool! Defend them from the flames that will wash over you all!”

And that was when the laughing monster sent fireball after fireball streaking through the air for the largest cluster of greens Alex could sense below, not even giving a damn, it seen, about the dozens of reds seeking to pincer Alex’s friends.

But if there was even the slightest hope Zhu Bi might actually still be alive… that Alex might be able to somehow rescue one of the precious few relatives he had on either world, he knew he had no choice but to endure the flame.

Spellcleave successfully ruptures spell! Light Wound taken.

Spellcleave successfully rutpures spell! No damage taken.

Yet even as his enchanted dao cleaved through the air to explosive effect, his enemy’s wide-eyed look of disbelief transformed to one of outrage.

“You dare to mock my arts! You will pay for that with your life!”

Alex could feel a sudden, horrible pressure that brought home his peril like never before as the air flashed with bronze and fire even hotter than anything the wujen had previously unleashed.

Sharktooth Dao modifiers in effect! You have successfully cleaved Silver Dragon Flame! You have successfully deflected deadly flame from hitting allies! You have taken 1 Medium Wound reduced to 1 Light Wound!

Willpower check made! You sense an unknown opponent trying to burst through your realm!

It was all Alex could do to counter his enemy’s devastating attacks as he felt a sudden awful pressure.

The pressure of a Gold monster trying to rupture the gate he had been ironically oathbound by his own ascension as Headmaster of Risen Phoenix Academy to leave open in the servant’s halls, a steady stream of servants having fled for sanctuary ever since.

A constant stream of unwitting tools who, for All Alex knew, his enemies had used to triangulate the gate leading to his sanctuary.

Because he was suddenly certain that oath-binding barriers would do nothing against a powerful Gold, should he actually manage to break through.

“Pincer the fools and guard the gate!” The officer glared down at the ground as Alex cried out in sudden pain, feeling the awful terrible pressure of a monster who would threaten his entire kingdom trying to break through.

Your GATE is in contest.

Gate Gold Rank 3 is being contested by Gold Rank 4.

Gate failure imminent.

“You are nothing more than an annoyance. A fool! You cannot strike at me. All you can do is die! Accept your fate. You’re head is mine, Ruidian scum!” roared the wujen even now summoning a massive ball of liquid fire after heightening the wards around him to a glaring white heat.

“Wrong, asshole,” Alex said, locking eyes with his suddenly wide-eyed foe as he covered his limbs with liquid blackness. “Your head is mine.”

Bullrush! Bullrush! Blackswan!

Dark Qi covered limb pierces all Silver tier Wujen Wards!

You have successfully decapitated your foe!

And the air was suddenly alive with flame as ruptured wards exploded and Alex was sent flying.

But not before claiming the greatest prize of all.

Furious burning hands shoving themselves down a suddenly ghostly throat, eyes widening in terror and horror as the Wujen artist whose name had been Cheng found not only life but a thousand lifetimes of rebirth being torn from his soul as he struggled and choked on the deadly limb now withdrawing a brilliant Golden core.

The potential of all that the soul named Cheng who had died a Silver who had only just touched all could have ever aspired to be.

Had been, over countless lifetimes, Alex struck by flashes of a gentle scholar both a wise compassionate, tending to those in desperate need, the memories of hard-eyed commander leading hundreds of thousands of troops in a war he knew he had no chance of winning, all for love of a doomed king lost to time, to the cold gaze of a killer who would do anything to crush his foes.

Glimpsing eternal memories both bitter and sweet. A soul that had embraced virtue as much as darkness over countless lives, now crying out for the core of its potential, the seed of potential it had struggled to bring to fruition over countless lifetimes.

And Alex couldn’t help but catch the gaze of the young confused spirit that would be reborn again and perhaps do noble, wonderful things, living a rich, full, well-loved life.

Before tearing his prize free.

And with a final desperate wail, the reborn spirit sunk deep into the abyssal waters Alex now strode above, having committed the most horrific of acts. One he had sworn to himself he would never commit.

Spirit Crane Strike successfully tears free Rank 2 Golden Soul Stone!

Warning! Qi Perception detects previous lives of dignity and virtue!

Warning disregarded.

Soul stone claimed!

You have dared the forbidden! Your soul blackens with the karmic weight of golden potential torn free of its rightful host for all time!

You have disregarded your internal code of only harvesting corrupted souls! Your corruption is now absolute.

Candidacy for Honorable Hellion has been revoked!

You are now considered one of the Fallen, the wings of your soul now so blackened with karmic debt that purgatory can be your only reward!

Cleaved Fates card in effect!

All karmic ties have been severed.

Your karmic virtue has been reset to zero!

A part of Alex wanted to howl with bitter mirth, his enemies’ most desperate attempts to destroy him by canceling countless lifetime’s worth of virtue to cut him off from any sort of karmic payback aiding him in this, his final life. Now allowing him the freedom to embrace any act, no matter how desperate, cold, or ruthless, in order to save himself.

Perhaps, to save his realm.

If it wasn’t already too late.

Yet no matter what the voice in his head declared, he was the farthest thing from a fallen monster.

The desperate pleading look on that tiny child’s face was a sight he feared would haunt him all his days.

And if he didn’t act now, he’d have countless additional regrets that would one day crush him more thoroughly than his enemies ever could.

Chamber of Doors Interface sheet Accessed.

Do you wish to invest Rank 2 Gold Soul Stone in Chamber of doors?

You have chosen YES! Rank 3 Chamber of Doors is now Rank 5 Gold Chamber of doors.

Desperately Alex scanned the options, sensing them as quickly and easily as he could sense the fingers on his hand, not having to read through endless reams of information, as it was quite literally a part of him. His doors could already pierce any Gold tier ward, thanks to his Penetration perk, and he was somehow certain he’d be able to penetrate any rank of Jade as well, should he actually survive long enough to develop his world seed that far. But what he really needed… yes!

Hesitating not a moment longer, he made his choices, both relieved and horrified by the messages he received.

Your doors now benefit from Resiliency Perk. No attack of any magnitude below Jade may penetrate your doors. – Warning! You currently have two gateways in dispute! Contest of Wills is still in effect!

You have successfully purchased an additional 6 gates for 1 gold rank.

Alex felt a cold chill of prescience, somehow utterly certain that he and WiFu’s greatest opponent was far more savvy than even his mentor had realized.

Or perhaps, his mentor had known all along.

Which was why he had been careful to say and imply absolutely nothing, not with word, silent communication, or gesture.

Because after a thousand years of playing this and countless other games against vindictive psychopaths eager for Alex’s death, he was almost certain he could imagine the cold malicious smile upon a certain bloated monster’s lips, confused befuddlement at sudden missing pieces and all their potential turning out to be the greatest of deceptions.

Because the moment Alex had jumped through the gate to the panicked screams of his endlessly great granddaughter, being burned alive by flying psychopaths over a thousand miles from the heart of Dongfang Hong’s attempted power grab, he had been chillingly certain far more was at play than a too clever scout marking and spying on their location til travelers appeared once more.

And when Alex felt the sudden pressure of hideously powerful foes trying to breach what he would have closed endless weeks ago if had had a choice, he had known.

Just as he knew exactly what Shalu’s gloating words would be as he spat in WiFu’s face.

“Finally, this damned farce of a game draws to a close!”

WiFu coldly looked up at his brother, glaring as his acidic spittle fazed the kitsune lord not at all, no matter that Shalu’s caustic hate caused even divine stone to bubble and melt. “You’re fool of a disciple overstepped, WiFu!”

And WiFu, to his credit, didn’t bat an eye.

Even as Alex felt the weight of roaring death fast approaching, multiple Golds radiating horrific power that Alex once remembered freezing him to terrified stillness, countless months, or perhaps it had been years ago, when he, Liu Li, and Liu Jian had dared raid a cockatrice’s most valued prizes.

Only now, it wasn’t a half mad semi-sentient spirit beast happy enough to take its wrath on massive deep Silver beasts sharing the woods before retreating back to its layer.

Because these Golds somehow knew exactly where Alex was.

Gold Wujen or Titans, he had no idea which, would be here in just seconds.

“And how exactly did my piece overextend?” said WiFu, his cold smile the equal of the snarling Shalu’s, even as Long Wang and Zheng Yi’s eyebrows widened in surprise.

“Your piece is alive?” snapped a now furious Long Wang, banging his massive fist against the table, causing the ground to shake which did nothing to slow down the Golds eager for his head.

“Run!” Alex forced himself to scream, in his mind, at least, as he prepared himself to do what he must, catching the gaze of only a few of the Silver’s now jumping through the gate to duel the soldiers eager to pincer the survivors of the ill-fated caravan, none of them realizing just how close they were to dying. Not until Alex embraced what it meant to be a party leader to the fullest, no longer hesitating to slam every bit of what had happened, his part of it, even the conversations of spite-filled gods, echoing inside his head.

And the looks of awe and horror sent his way as first one than every single Silver jumping through immediately screamed for everyone to head back through the gate, with giants like the ones he had dueled doing what they could to buy them time, Alex now feeling fierce gratitude for their strength as they sent countless Reds pinwheeling with a single rush, not even bothering to kill them before immediately pivoting, grabbing up injured, burned, and half dead caravan members, and darting back through the gate, until the field was cleared.

Even Yingpei’s broken and too still body Alex saw being brought through.

Zhu Bi, however…

Alex choked back a furious, choking wail.

Because the entire region was flooding with reds and there was not one green still on the board.

“Zhu Bi!” Alex screamed, already knowing it was fruitless.

Pointless.

His recently discovered eternally great granddaughter had been sacrificed to the machinations of the vindictive god laughing in his patron’s face at that very moment.

Cut down and butchered, as Alex’s foes had done to everyone he had ever loved.

Over countless lifetimes.

And the scream he let loose was that of a man who had lost everything.

The howl of a grandfather who would never again hold his granddaughter.

Or know the child she had carried.

The titanic fury of a man who would hold back no longer.

Who would embrace every dark act imaginable in his pursuit of vengeance against the monsters who had done this, his mind was flooded by a thousand memories of a thousand horrific deaths as his enemy played yet another card.

Determined to see Alex fall for all time.

“Did you truly not think I knew that your piece was still alive? That he had been making use of a ring only the divine are worthy to use? Daring to make a realm of his own?”

The entire hall grew utterly silent, all eyes upon Shalu as he roared and slammed the table before WiFu, the Ice Queen and her court coldly looking on at the fools destroying their own team.

“I knew he was alive, you fool of a fox.” The bloated monster flashed a savage smile at WiFu’s poleaxed expression. “Oh, what an idiot you look. A yuling in every sense of the word! Thinking your conversations private, thinking we wouldn’t know every thought, every desperate wail of the mutant freak we had locked away before this world was even forged!”

He then grabbed WiFu’s strangely unresisting hand, plunging perfect fingers into his own suppurating flesh. “That monster dared the unforgivable! Dared to mark the perfect flesh of a god! So I know his darkest secrets, WiFu, just as I know your own!”

He then shoved WiFu back with a snarl, sending the fox god flying. “He dares to embrace the waters of death! The River of Souls! He is now tied to the realm of the dead! For hours or days, it matters not how long. The fool has pinned himself! His gates are now closed to him. He can’t escape!”

The entire hall shook with Shalu’s laughter. “The damned fool took the bait as I tore free the life of his precious descendant who he was too stupid to even think of shielding from my gaze! Idiot! Thinking I wouldn’t taste the similarities as I purge every single trace of kitsune trash from our world that has that foul mongrel’s blood flowing through their veins!”

He pounded the massive gaming board somehow both a grand dining table and a world the size of Jupiter, looking at the tiny patch of forest holding a gate between worlds with unholy glee.

“Soon this farce will be over, you damned fox!”

Then Shalu slammed down yet another card. “And a final gift for your disciple.” His face split wide with his inhuman grin. “Knowledge! Knowledge of every girl I ever tore from his arms, every child I cut down before his disbelieving gaze! Every prize stolen, every victory I crushed to defeat. I gift all of them back to him, and a thousand times more! May he choke on his bitterness as my pawns send him to hell and the ever winding tendrils of the serpent who will choke him for all time! For his empire falls and he can do nothing about it, trapped and pinned down a thousand miles away from the school and the prince that will take his land in my stead!”

Long Wang and Zheng Yi both smirked and nodded their approval as the monstrous god of gluttony and avarice howled with laughter.

Before breaking it off with a hot snarl when he caught the dark glee in his enemy’s gaze.

And it was the visiting goddess, playing them for an empire, that laughed at the farce before her. “You seem amused, even as your supposed allies torment your most precious prize, WiFu. The first mortal to ascend since your foolish family tried to close the path behind us, petty as your clan always was.”

WiFu’s cold smile grew with those words.

Long Wang roared, pounding the table with his fist that did not break it, though sent shockwaves and earthquakes dooming an entire city a continent away. “We have destroyed you. Utterly, you worthless piece of mutant filth. You have no reason to smile. None!”

Lord Justice's gaze grew increasingly hostile. “Your favorite piece is lost, and you’re out of the game. We cleared all your other Jades, long ago! There’s no reason why I can’t smash you to a pulp right here and now, and force you back into your cage!”

To this WiFu began to laugh. A cold, bitter chuckle that seemed to chill even the ice queen, echoed perfectly in a man who had fallen to his knees with bitter horror in the world below, forced to endure the most nightmarish of revelations, his fully healed knees resting not in a puddle of death’s doom, but living grass. His flesh not burned, but flawless and whole as Alex screamed for the pain of his soul. For the countless stream of beloved lives that had been brutalized over countless lifetimes for no other reason than to torment him, for daring to stand by WiFu’s side.

Alex’s howl turned to a shriek of inhuman fury.

His mind flooded with far more than just the torments of a hundred lifetimes.

It flooded with the white hot rage of a blazing sun.

It was time to stop holding back.

It was time to embrace the storm.

You have saved versus Final Oblivion!

You have saved versus dissolution!

You have accepted the Gift of Bitter Knowledge!

The trials and tribulations of countless lives are now your own! (Memories successfully compartmentalized. Experience pools and salient insights retained.)

YOU HAVE MASTERED THE RIVER OF SOULS!

Because Alex knew at that moment that this wasn’t the first time he had walked up those steps of Gold and Jade leading to the Hall of the Gods. That once before, at least, he had dared the feat.

For even as death closed in on him, his mind blazed with one transcendent memory among a sea instantly put away. And that was the vision of a single perfect Silver cable. Vast as the heavens, Wide as all the seas.

A cable he was more than capable of forging.

A loop of inconceivable potency that he had sensed even those countless centuries ago would be absolutely flawless. The first true step to transcendence.

A steep he had taken once before.

Before being cut down by friends he had trusted with his life, before he could ever find the pattern that best fit that one massive shimmering loop of perfectly entwined Dark and Light Qi, flashing at the speed of causality itself.

Memories cut off in treachery, agony, and death.

Before he had woken up with a gasp yet again, making his way in a state somewhere between ghost and man, to the ever smiling WiFu holding a ring of worthless copper and priceless gold, before making his choice once more.

The same choice he had made since the beginning of time.

A thousand years?

No.

Yidushi was cursed. And had been from the day they had cut down their saviors.

Kitsune and Terran alike.

He realized to his horror that his story was far, far older than that.

A thousand years for his soul to mature.

A thousand years to be worthy of WiFu’s mantel.

And countless eons struggling for his place, ever since.

And even as he trembled and shook, his enemies closing in, Alex acted.

Even as he wanted to howl with the screams of all his fallen children, he wept with the sheer brilliant beauty of the perfect Silver cable that he had achieved only after countless scores of lives. A wonder so brilliant, so majestic, his soul had rung with its perfection.

Before being immediately cut down by those Alex had trusted with his life when a furious Shalu revealed his hand, Alex losing his head and an entire city he had once ruled as a lord, including countless generations of his offspring, before he could advance even a single step as a Divine Silver.

His cries turned to shrieks as the agony of his past sought to consume him.

For it was here and now, in his darkest hour, that he would ascend.