Imperial Justiciar Zactus flew through the air, eyes glued to the pocket watch in his right hand. He tapped the top of the watch with his unusually long index finger, in sync with every tic. His personal aides flew behind him, their nervousness growing with every tap of that glowing red index finger. With each tap, the watch’s embossed platinum emblem of the Order of Justice, a clenched fist, glowed with the same eerie light. As the clock reached eight, the smallest of frowns covered his face.

“We are going to be late.” Said Zactus

The three peak core cultivators at the back exchanged looks. Zactus’s second in command, an early nascent soul cultivator, cleared his throat.

“High Justiciar, surely the General heeded your warnings. As long as they aren’t discovered yet, your plan should work.”

“Mmm,” murmured Zactus. He stared at his timepiece in thought as his cloak billowed behind him. “No, no I fear we are already too late.”

He gave his hand a casual twist, flipping the pocket watch closed. He slid it in his breast pocket and gave the pocket a little pat.

“We have to be there now.” He said

His second in command opened his mouth but then Zactus stopped holding back. Under the full might of his peak nascent soul cultivation, he disappeared from their sight. The land blurred by as air shrieked with his passing. With every second that ticked by in his head, he felt his sense of foreboding grow. Minutes later, the smell of smoke entered his nose. Soon after that, he broke through their secret outpost’s illusional formation to find fire and destruction.

The giant protective array that was being built was wrecked beyond recognition. Barely any of the array’s kilometer-long lines or hundreds of runes were left unmarred. The treasures and rare materials arranged with meticulous care were disrupted. Bodies of imperials were scattered so widely that one would think the array required corpses. At the center of the gigantic formation, besides the remains of a modest camp and barracks, fighting still raged.

Zactus’s chiseled cheeks flexed in fury as he recognized the culprits from his men’s reports. Elders from the Thousand Season Sect.

A man of indeterminable age, one elder bai, sat atop a floating lotus drinking from a golden gourd. The man lazily sent a mixture of conjured pink petals and floating silver petal blades flying forward, fending off the majority of the army's remaining core cultivators. What was left of the essence condensing soldiers, originally some 3,000 strong, tried desperately to get into a battle array. However, Elder Bai would casually flick a finger each time they nearly finished, sending a few stray petals to kill the soldier at the weakest points of the array. Their formation would collapse, forcing them to rearrange themselves.

Adjacent to this fight, past the pulverized corpses of two of the outpost’s nascent souls cultivators, three more attackers corralled the remaining imperial nascent soul cultivator, General Sun Wu. The general wielded a war Guando, desperately fending off his three assailants. Though the general moved with a grace that belied his great frame and clad in fire and shadow, he was unable to bring his greater strength to bear on his assailants. Zactus rage boiled as he saw an imperial general losing to three nascent soul cultivators clearly weaker than him.

A female of little renown, one Elder Ja, moved with grace as she wielded a long ribbon imbued with a strange mixture of earth and water qi. Every movement of the general was slowed as the ribbon brushed along him, causing him to appear as if he was a mortal man walking through muddy water. The general was unable to do anything about this as a shirtless man, reportedly named Elder Jackie, confronted the general directly.

The man’s body moved and twisted in insane ways as he dodged the General’s blows. Slipping past the general’s guard, the exaggeratedly toned elder delivered shattering blows with feet and fists. Even though the general’s armor was unable to completely negate the attacks and he was already coughing up blood, Sun Wu might have still been able to fend the two off. That is of course if the locally renowned treasure hunter, one elder Kang, had not been there. The elder had been floating above the fight and giggling while he threw a fortune of treasures at the general.

The nascent soul cultivators noticed the High Justicar’s arrival instantly but Zactus gave the elders no time. He raised his hand up and a huge matching illusionary hand appeared in the sky above. Just like his hand, the index finger was several times as long as his middle finger and glowed an eerie red. The glow in both fingers, illusionary and real, deepened. He then brought it down, the razor tip of the giant finger screaming towards the surprised Elder Bai. The elder ignored the lower level cultivators and brought all his petals together forming a shield of several layers of stacked lotuses. In the same moment, he spat out the alcohol in his mouth in a fine mist. The mist squirted forward to land on the lotuses, causing them to glow gold and give off a sacred feel.

Zactus followed right after the gigantic red finger as it came screaming down, piercing and scattering the flowers one by one. Elder Bai desperately brought his gourd in front of his chest as the finger passed through the last lotus but it pierced halfway through the treasure. From the point of impact, angry red cracks spread over the gourd. Unable to withstand the blow, Elder Bai was blown back, sinking deep into the earth. Ignoring the downed elder, Zactus sped toward the besieged general. Though he moved in a blur, each of his steps now left a golden character in the air for a moment so that it seemed he was spelling a sentence in his wake.

As soon as they had seen Zactus appear, the three elders had increased their assault on the general with frenetic energy, desperate to finish him off. As Bai was sent flying off, elder Jackie landed a blow on the general’s chest that sent him to his knees. The general desperately fought for control of his broken body as blood trickled from his ears, eyes, nose, and mouth. Elder Ja spun and sent her ribbon twirling toward the incoming Zactus, a mirage of a wave of mud accompanying it. Zactus pointed his red index finger before him and unlike where the general was slowed, Zactus’s finger simply burned through the swampy construct.

Zactus ignored Elder Ja, who had coughed blood and crumpled to the ground. Jackie was focused on his task and brought his foot up above the kneeling general’s head. The bare foot glowed brown, as the gravity on it drastically increased, and Elder Jackie’s heel came crashing down toward the General’s head. Yet somehow Zactus made it to their side, the sharp tip of his finger knocking the foot aside with a deceptively gentle touch.

Changing tactics, Elder Jackie ignored the barely alive general and spun with the force of the blow, spinning to bring his foot toward Zactus’s crotch. Zactus’s eyes widened in surprise but brought his more normal left hand up, a gauntlet of glowing runes appeared on it. He caught Jackie’s incoming blow, slowing it down but not stopping it. Zactus’s right hand retracted back as the barely slowed foot neared his crotch and flicked his red index finger, sending the foot back.

Undeterred, Elder Jackie moved with the motion to make the most of it, sending a rain of fist and feet at the High Justiciar. Yet somehow in these exchanges, Zactus had moved between the body cultivating elder and the downed General, redirecting the shockwaves from the now unconscious man.

Even while protecting the general, the High Justiciar seemed to casually angle the tip of his finger to intercept each attack from Elder Jackie.

In a rhythm, Zactus was barely ruffled as a talisman of thunder and then a glowing mace came down from above. No longer did giggling come from the elder on high. Zactus opened his mouth and began to speak even as the fight continued.

“The intelligent ruler makes the law to select men and makes no arbitrary appointment himself; he makes the law measure merits and makes no arbitrary judgment himself,” Said Zactus.

Though the words were mundane, each seemed to express a deeper meaning and golden runes appeared in the air, deflecting nearly all of the treasures that Elder Kang threw. The High Justiciar continued speaking more words of law and justice in response to each treasure and different golden runes appeared in turn, designed in response to each treasure. In frustration, Elder Kang brought out his personal sword and began to send down waves of sword strikes in concert with his treasures.

Though Elder Jackie didn’t let up, the smell of burnt flesh began to fill the air. Each spot the tip of the glowing index finger touched left angry red burns spiraling out from the point of contact in crack-like patterns. Elder Bai burst out of his ditch, bellowing in anger as hundreds of petal blades filled the air. Before he could join the fight, Zactus’s second in command and his three personal aides flew through the illusionary formation. They took the scene in and immediately began chanting words similar to Zactus yet somehow less profound. The four took out chained sickle weapons as golden chains composed of small golden characters appeared around them. They intercepted Elder Bai while petals and chains of golden runes battled around them. Elder Bai’s face turned red as he tried to burst past the four men, yet their coordination kept him contained.

Elder Ja finally fought down the cultivation backlash and joined her two brothers fighting Zactus. However, the three elders were now losing even while Zactus was defending the slumped form of the general. The High Justiciar’s every finger movement or summoned golden word seemed ready to counter them no matter what they did. The three elders could not find a good moment to disengage as Elder Jackie’s limbs became covered in burns. The elder’s movements slowed as he frantically fought off the invasive fire qi, allowing Zactus’s finger to sneak by and strike his chest.

Elder Jackie flew back, his smoking body now having an insanely large burn from sternum to his lower left hip. Elder Ja’s burnt ribbon fluttered out, catching Jackie and sending qi into the fallen elder to help fight against Zactus’s corrosive touch.

“Those who serve the empire shall be rewarded,” said Zactus.

His words caused another stream of golden runes to appear, forming a protective cage around the general. Then he began walking toward the elders. Elder Kang landed in front of the pair and tossed out defensive treasures in rapid succession, desperate to get enough time to use his most powerful riches. Zactus glanced at all the fallen imperial soldiers, eyes stopping briefly on the dead nascent soul cultivator who was their empire’s top formation expert. He ran his left hand through his silver streaked hairs and mentally began to readjust his plans. Finally, his eyes were back on the three elders, taking on the same cold cast that they did for all executions.

“Enough of this farce.” Said Zactus.

He pointed his finger forward, his fine clothing still undamaged. The finger’s red glow became darker, more sinister. Then he shot forward; piercing, shattering, or burning each protective treasure.

As Kang reached out for his most valuable treasure, a small blade of energy seemed to appear in front of the trio and sent Zactus flying back. He flipped through the air and then brought himself down on his feet, sliding back a few more meters. The high Justiciar brought his eyes and spiritual sense to bear on the diminutive frame of an old man who was now landing lightly between him and the three elders. Zactus’s right eye twitched in recognition. The old man returned a pleasant smile one would use for an old friend.

“High Justiciar Zactus, what brings you around our Sect,” said the old man. The man looked over the battlefield and paused as he saw elder Jackie’s smoking body with more than just his spiritual sense. The man’s face contorted in such inhuman fury that the soldiers who could see him stepped back. Yet when he turned back to the High Justiciar, that friendly smile was back in place. “I expected some visitors soon. Heard about some lawless bandits who were going to visit the area.”

High Justiciar Zactus did not return the smile. Elder Bai and the remaining imperials had stopped fighting to watch the confrontation.

“Now these things happen. Unruly kids who don’t know best.” Said Elder Akeno, spitting in the direction of a downed soldier. “Though I find it is normally the parent to blame. Probably the same here. These men just have a shitty parent that needs to be dealt with.”

The two men held one another’s gaze. Elder Akeno’s smile slowly fell away and his eyes became just as cold as Zactus’s.

“I am confused about one thing, however. Why the empire deemed it necessary to send THE High Justiciar.” The elder’s cold eyes focused on Zactus, “Am I to take it that the Empire is greedier than I thought?”

“I am sorry, Elder Akeno,” said Zactus. “That is the business of the empire. I am afraid you aren’t permitted to know that.”

“So, you aren’t willing to tell me,” Said elder Akeno.

“Unfortunately, no, no I am not”

The two stared at each other in silence, the air seemed to become so saturated that even the remaining nascent soul cultivators began to feel it was stifling. Then an unadorned short sword appeared in Elder Akeno’s right hand, so chipped and weathered that one wouldn’t be surprised if it would shatter at the first blow. Then the night erupted in violence.

Edward blearily came to and found himself on a cot in what only could be called a dungeon. As he sat up, with some struggle as he was covered in chains, he found it to be quite the clean dungeon.

Ugh, what happened? I was trying out the new game when some NPC went crazy.

Edward shook his head.

Then I realized that it might not be a game…

Edward sat at that thought. He pulled up the system interface and began looking through it.

I should have realized it earlier.

The system interface was much barer than the game he was supposed to be playing.

I thought it was simply because it was still the beta version…

Edward sighed and leaned his head against the cold stone wall.

Did I really kill someone? What am –

“Hello there kid.” Said a familiar voice.

Edward let forth a very high pitched scream out of his young body and opened his eyes to see a familiar man in the embroidered robe standing in front of him. At his yelp, the man gave a crooked grin.

“Well, now I know what Elder Shen feels like.” The elder snaps his fingers and a chair appeared. He leaned back in the chair and looked Edward in the eyes.

Edward can feel the sweat begin rolling down his neck.

If this is real… then I am in some deep shit.

“So kid, you said something about levels. How about you tell me all about that?”