Chapter 88: The Final Phase (Part 2)
Within a chamber identical to Bu Cai's, Chen Fei was standing still with a slight frown etched on his face.
"...Eliminate your opponent, before they eliminate you."
The same robotic voice rang in his head saying the exact same words, yet as opposed to Bu Cai's bewilderment... Chen Fei was almost unphased by its words.
After all... this was a scenario that he'd anticipated.
Cultivators, by nature, fight, pillage, and kill in order to further themselves as much as they can.
It was a matter of fact that 'good' or 'righteous' cultivators, by mundane standards, simply did not exist.
Sure, there were cultivators who tended to avoid doing morally wrong deeds, but those who did so were generally the ones first to enter the grave.
In this world, it was not strange for children much younger than Chen Fei, himself, to be well acquainted with reaping the lives of others.
On this aspect, although Chen Fei was already further than many of his peers on his path to cultivation- He was an anomaly.
He'd not taken a single human life.
He'd killed spirit beasts before, many in fact.
However, not one human had died at his hands.
And unfortunately... this was a weakness.
A fatal weakness.
In a chaotic world where it was kill or be killed, how could one have the luxury to care for morals?
It was to be expected that Chen Long, the experienced cultivator who had lived for centuries in this merciless world, would definitely not let the two of them run around outside until they had gotten used to the notion of murder.
Though Chen Fei understood this concept, it did not help relieve his discomfort and angst one bit, as a soured expression still ended up painting his face.
In the end, Chen Fei's goal in cultivation wasn't to become unparalleled and kill all those that were in his way.
No.
It was to revive his dead mother and reunite his family.
So why must he be forced to kill now?
Couldn't it wait until it was a must?
These types of thoughts sprung up within Chen Fei's head, conjoining and stacking on top of one another building a tower of excuses, eventually birthing an intense feeling of rejection towards this whole ordeal.
Very quickly, he came to the decision that he would reason with his opponent and try and avoid the death match.
...Until the emotionless voice spoke up once more.
"Presenting the candidate with a relevant summary of the chosen opponent.
"Name...Fei Gui.
"Age...43.
"Crimes include... The murder of multiple Chen Clan members, indiscriminate slaughter of two hundred and forty mortals for the purpose of refining an alchemical pill, as well as many accounts of theft.
"Sentence received...To be crippled, painfully tortured, then executed."
As this rush of information was processed by Chen Fei, his eyebrows, which loosened after coming up with his plan, furrowed once more.
His somewhat nervous and tense expression twisted into one of disgust as if he'd just been forced to swallow shit.
The solid tower of excuses he'd made just moments ago had crumbled, as well as any hopes of discussing a peaceful conclusion.
Wouldn't it be better for everyone if I just killed this person?
As soon as this thought echoed within his mind, he immediately felt a sense of mortification from the hypocrisy he'd just displayed.
Was it really this easy to change my mind?
Didn't I just parade about not killing him, or people at all?
But can this person really be considered a human, instead of a monster in human skin?
No, certainly not.
He must die.
...But I'm afraid of the repercussions.
Not of what my opponent may inflict on me, but... of what will become of me.
If I can breach my bottom line once, then...
Before Chen Fei could finish his train of thought, the rugged, piercing sound of stone skidding off stone resounded within the empty chamber and snapped him out of it.
As he directed his attention to the source of this noise, he witnessed that part of the wall had sunk down to the ground leaving a door-shaped gap behind.
As Chen Fei focused his attention on the gap which contained nothing but abyssal darkness.
He heard the irritating sound of chains rattling and soon enough saw the cause of the commotion enter the light of the chamber.
An old man, who looked to be pushing seventy with a nasty hunchback and a dishevelled white beard, trodded in slowly.
His chained hands limply hung down- As if his arms were not strong enough to bear the weight of the chain- and his head was facing the ground.
He wore a pair of white shorts that were severely stained in dirt and dust, and nothing else, therefore his malnourished body, which was so thin that the naked eye could see every bone and tendon, was on full display.
Perhaps the most shocking thing about the man, and the thing that caught Chen Fei's attention first, was the numerous revolting gashes and scars which riddled the man's feeble body.
As the old man stepped foot within the chamber, the wall shot back up plugging the only known exit within this place.
Before any words could be exchanged, the robotic sound appeared for a third time, this time speaking out loud,
"Criminal Fei Gui, it has been established that upon the death of 'trainee' Chen Fei, you will be granted mercy and be permitted to live out the rest of your lifespan."
These words seemed to act like a revitalising spell, as the seemingly half-dead man's head suddenly sprung upwards, and his eyes that flickered with excitement and killing intent hastily locked onto Chen Fei as if he were the prey the man had been longing for.
Upon seeing the boy's eyes shake and his stance weaken, as if they would collapse at any moment, the old man's dry and flaky lips curved upwards forming a malevolent grin that exposed rows of sickeningly yellow teeth.
...
(Chen Fei's POV)
'M-Monster.'
This thought popped up the moment his manic gaze latched onto me.
My muscles went limp, and my body shivered as if it was trying to warn me of the deathly danger ahead.
It was nonsensical, erratic.
'How?
Just how... could a single gaze... make me so vulnerable?' I thought within my fear-stricken stupor.
The second that feeling of weakness and anxiety came about me...
...I should have acted.
I should have ended it there and then, when he was immobile and powerless.
However, I was foolish.
The terror brought about by just his gaze, and the horrifying intent behind those eyes, made me feel as if I was stuck in quicksand.
Perhaps this was his goal, to cover his current period of vulnerability by paralyzing me in fear.
And if it was.
*Click*
Then it worked magnificently.
*Thud*
The slight racket brought by the unlocking of the man's chains, and the subsequent dropping of the bindings helped me regain sobriety.
Luckily.
*Whoosh!*
Without as little as a sigh of relief from being unbound from those suffocatingly tight chains, the man blasted forward at an unprecedented speed.
He appeared within inches of me in under a few breaths and unhesitantly aimed his fist straight towards the bridge of my nose.
A hair's breadth.
That was how close he was to hitting me cleanly.
If it wasn't for my sixth sense kicking in and forcing my body to move, I would have been finished.
But the assault didn't end there.
...It continued.
A following roundhouse kick launched towards my midsection.
*Bang!*
I couldn't dodge.
I was forced to block with my arms.
'ARGHH!'
I let out a grunt from the pain of the impact, however, it soon disappeared.
Replacing the pain was numbness.
Only numbness.
...And continued.
Whilst my mind was caught up in processing the feeling of numbness within my arms, the man's right hand flew towards me with a few fingers poking out.
He aimed to take an eye.
Fortunately, I still had the chance to react therefore I rolled away.
Once again I had weaselled my way out of harm's way.
But the series of attacks...
...They continued.
Another kick.
Another punch.
Another dash.
Another Elbow.
For what felt like an eternity, the ceaseless strikes kept honing in on me without giving me a chance to counter.
How was this possible?
It was clear that neither of us was using Qi.
It was a fact that I was in much more superior physical condition than he was.
By almost all accounts, I should've been the one in control here.
So how come, I was the one being suppressed?
...And then it dawned on me.
Mental.
From start to finish my opponent had not faltered once.
The man seemed to have been entirely convinced that his victory was nothing but a foregone conclusion.
He built up a visage that he was unstoppable.
...Ah.
Was his fist always so slow?
After coming to the understanding that he was not so menacing, and snapping out of this seemingly 'suppressed' state.
The man's charade collapsed.
The fight then became simple.
The ghastly, despair-inducing offence that was inches of ending my life, became the pathetic struggle of a ghastly old man with one foot in the grave.
And soon I spotted it.
The weak point.
The winning ticket.
A blatant gap within his attack.
Every time the man let out a kick, his hip seemed to be locked for a split second afterwards.
Noticing this, I took advantage of it.
I blocked his umpteenth kick for the umpteenth time, however, instead of retreating as I had done so before.
I punched.
*Bang!*
*Crack!*
My fist shot out in an instant and brutally whacked the old man's right cheek, causing him to be sent stumbling backwards as if he'd just run into a wall.
Following that punch, the fight was over.
His fragile, aged body simply couldn't handle the impact.
No matter how persistently he tried to stay on his feet and regain composure, he just couldn't.
My eyes widened at this sight.
Was that pathetic old thing that was well past his expiration date, really the ferocious foe I had been facing this entire time?
*Thud*
Soon he tumbled to the ground like a tree being felled.
Fuck.
*Gulp*
...It had finally come to this.
After a final moment of deliberation, I clenched my teeth and took heavy steps towards the body.
Once I stood above him, I looked down at his face.
His breathing was irregular and laboured, and his eyes were narrowly open.
As he gazed up at me, no longer was there a ravenous intent, instead, all that was contained within those eyes was immense fear and a plea.
A plea for mercy.
Seeing that pitiful expression, I couldn't help but...
*Crunch!*
...crush his neck.
I ruthlessly trampled on it with the heel of my shoe, bringing about a grotesque crunching sound in the process.
And that was it.
He was dead.
Some thick, crimson blood did splash onto my shoe however that was not my main concern.
I booted his corpse away to the side to reveal what he tried hiding underneath him.
Soon the rusty and dull grey metal chains appeared.
I knew I saw it right!
That fucking bastard!
I gritted my teeth and I couldn't help but feel furious.
How dare he try and garner pity from me and then backstab me straight after!
Looking back over the corpse, my face alternated between disgust and anger.
Yet not once did I ever feel guilty or remorseful.
Since he so desperately wanted death, I'll just give it to him.
...
Within an old-fashioned study, Chen Long was sitting on an armchair viewing his son's entire ordeal using his vast spiritual sense.
Seeing his own son overcome another hurdle and mature further as a cultivator, Chen Long couldn't help but have a proud smile on his face.
This trial was actually something every single heir, regardless of whether they still bothered about taking lives by the time they got around to participating in the trial, would inevitably have to do.
It was mainly to ensure that every heir, or younger generation core clan member, would be desensitized to it.
Chen Long still recalled his own trial, back then he was rather arrogant and didn't put anyone in his eyes, so killing some low-life criminal was nothing but a waste of time.
However, this trial didn't stop at killing heinous criminals.
Over the span of two months, the opponents become objectively 'better'.
As in, the crimes they have to their name decrease in severity- This was to whittle down the participant's sense of morality and to ease them into the understanding that regardless of whether there is any reasoning or not, some people just have to die for you to progress.
Chen Fei's performance in the first fight couldn't be regarded as outstanding.
He wasn't the most ruthless, neither the most efficient nor the most decisive.
But it was satisfactory.
Moving on from his son, Chen Long diverted his focus over to the little genius that had been taken in.
As his imperceptible spiritual sense penetrated the area of Bu Cai's chamber, Chen Long's eyebrows raised slightly from mild surprise.
It wasn't common that something phased a man who had been drenched in the vicissitudes of life, yet this had.
However, in just a few breaths the corners of Chen Long's mouth curved upwards into a half-moon shape, seemingly ecstatic at the scene being presented to him.
Within the room, the picture of a young man in a white robe dotted with scarlet stains could be seen huddled to the side of a corpse- It was reminiscent of a child that was playing with bugs.
The smooth, youthful fist of the boy could be seen ferociously hammering down towards the already disfigured head repeatedly as if it was a pinata, each fist causing more vermillion to spray onto the surroundings.
Whilst doing such an act, the boy had a stone-cold straight expression and dim eyes that didn't seem to contain the innocent glimmer they once had.
...
(Bu Cai POV)
...At last.
At last, I've not had something taken from me.
...
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Author's notes:
Thanks for reading the chapter, hope you enjoyed it.
This is my first time writing anything in a more serious/darker tone, and I think that there are many things that could be improved on, therefore I'd really appreciate it if anyone could provide any insight as to what I could focus on to do better or pinpoint any major flaws.
Honestly, I do think that some of this chapter may have come out to be cringe, but I believe it's within the bounds of bearable cringe.
Plus, instead of sitting dwelling over it and staying on this chapter for longer, I think it would be better to just post it and see your thoughts.
As for the insanely slow updates, I get it.
I also don't like waiting for updates, however, I really haven't had the chance to sit and write that much due to other obligations.
However.
I will say that in the near future, I'll have a lot more time on my hands, therefore, you should expect the rate of updates to increase.
Thank you everyone for reading my novel up to this point though it is lacking in many ways.
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