Chapter 29 - Planning Ahead

“&%@#!”

Yu Yin woke up with a bad headache. A really bad one. He knew he shouldn’t have stayed up almost all night reading, but the tome of the [Myriad Blades of the Endless Night] technique was a lot thicker and a lot more convoluted than he had thought. It wasn’t like the technique itself was complex; it was actually rather simple in practice. No, the problem was that the damn author of the book decided it would be funny to take a principle that would take a sentence to explain and dilute it into pages worth of nonsense. Yu Yin opened the tome and reread his least favourite sentence in disgust.

‘The energies of heaven and earth are present in all things, all creatures. They can mimic all things and can take all forms. The Great Dao itself is but energy having taken the form of principle. This principle can also take many forms and at times can manifest itself in physical form. Legends say that the worlds themselves are formed from the enlightenment of higher beings. While these are just legends, there is some truth in every legend. Blades can also take many forms just like the energies of heaven and earth, as blades are yet another extension of these energies like all things. Blades can also take the form of principle, which is called blade intent. Blade intent can…’

The book went on like this for pages, going into way too much detail than Yu Yin would have liked. Were cultivators supposed to gain enlightenment from this? It wasn’t that Yu Yin didn’t understand what he was reading. The general message that the tome was trying to get across overall was that to advance in the [Rousing Soul] realm, one needed to comprehend blade intent and use it to form a blade template in the soul abode. The energies of heaven and earth would then mimic the template and converge themselves to form a blade that could be stabbed into the soul, awakening it further.

The good news was that the technique didn’t require talent in absorbing the energies of heaven and earth, which was something that Yu Yin was useless at. In other words, this was a technique for people whose talents were in other areas, like comprehension. The bad news was the idea of sitting down for hours on end trying to comprehend something didn’t appetize Yu Yin one bit.

The tome itself was split into five chapters, one for each great realm of soul cultivation. Yu Yin had only bothered to read the first chapter. He couldn’t be bothered to read even a sentence more of that drivel, especially since the latter 4 chapters didn’t apply to him right now. At the end of the first chapter there was a list of soul techniques unique to the [Myriad Blades of the Endless Night] and each came with a set of diagrams showing how the technique was to be cultivated. Yu Yin much appreciated the more practical approach to this part of the book, and it was the part that interested him the most. Among the soul techniques listed there were a few that appealed to him.

The first was [Dark Blade Array]. When this technique was used an array of blades from [Blade Conjuration] formed a formation that could be used either offensively or defensively, ripping apart anything that came too close. The tome also described various evolutions of this technique that could be used at higher cultivations, the highest being [Ravage], the technique described as being able to command infinite blades to blot out the sky and create an endless night.

Another interesting technique was [Blade Shadow] which transformed the user’s shadow into a blade, allowing it to be manipulated like a conjured blade. The shadow would be able to inflict physical damage on enemies in a concise yet concealed manner.

Although these techniques caught Yu Yin’s attention and seemed powerful, Yu Yin wouldn’t practise them in the end. It wasn’t because he didn’t like the soul techniques. He liked them very much actually, it was just that he had found another technique that seemed to suit him a lot better. He opened the book to look at his chosen soul magic. It was called [Living blade]. The technique enchanted a conjured blade to grant it minor intelligence. Nowhere near enough for sentience, but enough for the blade to act independently on simple orders. [Living Blade] allowed Yu Yin to command a blade to stab someone, and the blade would fly all on its own to impale the enemy as long as it was supplied with enough soul power. The blades couldn’t attack automatically like [Dark Blade Array] could, but the technique was a lot more flexible.

‘If I learn [Living Blade], it’d be like having a subordinate for every stage of the [Rousing Soul] realm. That way I can buff all my blades with [Acceleration] and overcome my enemies with numbers, even if I’m on my own!’

Although Yu Yin had been using [Acceleration] in a purely offensive fashion since he had left the Yu Family, his bloodline magic in essence was a support-type ability and was most effective when used as one. With [Living Blade] combined with [Acceleration] Yu Yin imagined that his combat ability would at least double. However, it still wouldn’t be enough for his needs. If Yu Yin ran into the Crimson Cross again, they could just cripple his blades with their [Cross of Crimson]. Yu Yin needed something else. At first, he took another look at [Shadow Blade], but the technique was more for assassinations and surprise attacks. If Yu Yin was in a battle and somebody got close enough, he was most likely already finished. He couldn’t just let his enemies get close to him and hope that his Silver Qilin Horns and [Aspect Acceleration: Strength] would be enough for him to hold out.

The truth was that Yu Yin was in dire need of more soul techniques. He needed to find a way to get hold of more resources, which meant that he needed to go somewhere that had what he needed. Since he was planning to leave the Windwing Village anyway… Yu Yin nodded to himself and stood up. He left his room and descended down the stairs of the inn only to find Seeker eagerly waiting for him at the bottom of the stairway.

“Good morning Master!”

Yu Yin rubbed his temples in annoyance. Did he really have to deal with Seeker first thing in the morning? Why did he ever think it was a good idea to take in a disciple? Oh yeah, it was for the locket wasn’t it. Yu Yin took a deep breath. He could do it, he would do it for the treasures.

“Out!”

“Huh?”

“Get out! I’m not ready for you yet!”

Seeker left upon command, passing through the doorway. He didn’t seem disappointed or even disheartened by Yu Yin’s rudeness. It was almost as if he came for the direct purpose of worsening Yu Yin’s headache. Yu Yin groaned and bought a drink from the innkeeper, very reluctantly parting ways with one of his gold coins. The innkeeper seemed fearful at first, but he changed his tune very quickly when he saw the gold coin. Yu Yin clicked his tongue in annoyance at the happy innkeeper. He didn’t carry around silver or copper coins before leaving the palace as he didn’t see the point of owning a currency of lesser value, so unfortunately, he had to give out a tip this time. The thought disgusted Yu Yin, but he would deal with it. After all, he was the greatest cultivator in all the worlds! Surely, he could be a little generous now and again, right?

Yu Yin shot down this thought immediately and demanded his change. He quickly stashed the copper and silver coins in his storage ring, ignoring the extremely disappointed innkeeper, before downing the drink he had just bought. He mentally prepared himself to deal with Seeker and left the inn only to find the boy loitering around a nearby fence, looking around cautiously.

'What is this lunatic doing?!'

Yu Yin approached Seeker reluctantly whilst surveying his surroundings carefully. What could possibly have Seeker looking so distressed? Was the Crimson Cross back? Or perhaps the Church had sent another priest earlier than expected.

"What's wrong?" Yu Yin asked, startling Seeker in the process. The boy gulped, his expression grave.

"The village chief's daughter is looking for me…"

Yu Yin stared at Seeker's dead serious face frustratedly, using all of his energy to not explode. Why was it that literally everything about Seeker made him want to pull his hair out? Yu Yin already had a headache, and watching Seeker worry about girl problems only served to make everything worse. This wasn't even about the bullcrap detector anymore, Seeker was just another level of annoying.

"Well, lucky you then! Because we're leaving right now!" Yu Yin snapped.

"Now?"

"Yes, now!"

Yu Yin began walking towards the north at a brisk pace, determined to leave the village as soon as possible. Legitimate reasons aside, if Yu Yin stayed in the village long another to witness Seeker's reunion with his ex, he honestly just might snap. Watching Seeker attempt to explain himself out of his doom whilst feeling his bullcrap detector throw a fit was not something Yu Yin wanted to do. Seeker, realising that he would otherwise be left behind, quickly followed. Before long, they were surrounded by the dead-looking trees that populated the local area. Yu Yin turned to look at Seeker who was looking around confusedly, probably due to the abrupt departure. Before they advanced any further, Yu Yin decided it would be a good idea to have a destination in mind.

"Seeker, explain to me the basic geography of the Earthen Wyvern Continent.”

"You don't know it already?!" Seeker replied, a surprised expression on his face that looked oh so punchable. Yu Yin was tempted to actually do it for a second but instead chose to just glare at him. Perhaps Seeker was justified in being shocked as being an Unbounded and being from another world were two different things, but to openly question his Master? The audacity! Think this, Yu Yin glared even harder. Hopefully Seeker should get the message pretty soon.

Noticing Yu Yin's foul mood, Seeker did the wise thing and just continued speaking.

"The Earthen Wyvern Continent is split into two countries, although only the Sunbright country that we're in now can really be counted as a country. The rest of the Continent is the Earthen Wyvern's Domain, and the only reason the Earthen Wyvern lets Sunbright exist is out of respect for the Purified Church of Extreme Order's God."

Seeker stopped speaking and glanced at Yu Yin to see his reaction. No reaction was given of course, Yu Yin would never give Seeker the satisfaction. That didn't mean that Yu Yin wasn't impressed. By the sounds of it, some giant ass dragon had taken over the continent and only allowed humans to live here on its own terms. It was basically everything that Yu Yin aspired to be: at the top of the food chain where nobody could bother him. Dragons also liked hoarding treasures didn’t they? Yu Yin mentally added claiming the Earthen Wyvern's hoard to his 'things to do when I'm strong' list and then fixed his attention back on Seeker.

"Are there any noteworthy Cities worth mentioning nearby?" Yu Yin asked

"There's the Red Serpent Sect five days west from here and there's also the 4th Holy City of the White Dragon located a couple hundred miles north. We could arrive there if we travelled for four days’ time."

Yu Yin remembered that Layla wanted to join a sect, so she'd probably end up at the Red Serpent Sect as it seemed to be the nearest Sect nearby. It hadn't been all that long since they separated and Yu Yin was in no hurry to reunite with her. If Seeker discovered that there was another Unbounded running around, he'd probably ditch Yu Yin for Layla wouldn’t he? If that happened, then Layla would have both the locket within Seeker and her own one, and when she inevitably discovered how to open it… Nope. Yu Yin refused to think about it. Seeker had his locket, so therefore Seeker was his. No questions asked. All the treasures belonged to Yu Yin, all was well. Having concluded these thoughts, Yu Yin’s next destination was obvious.

"You know your way around don't you Seeker?"

"Uhh, I suppose so."

"Lead me to the 4th Holy City then"

Seeker opened his mouth to speak but Yu Yin silenced him with a look before he could do so. The boy was about to question Yu Yin's decision, he knew so. Thankfully Seeker didn't say anything more and began walking northwards. Yu Yin strolled afterwards as he took out Vakhtang’s silver Katana. The blade intent that he felt before was still pulsing inside the Katana as strongly as ever. It was going to be a long journey and Yu Yin wanted to do something productive as he travelled.

Yu Yin had been at the first stage of the [Rousing Soul] realm for far too long. It was time to make a breakthrough.