Chương 30: Competition 2 (X): Bloodlust

[Qi demons are resilient pieces of shit. They've existed for as long as Qi has existed on this planet, the only different being is that they were properly hidden and were not as numerous as they are now.

The first cultivator to advance to a higher plane of existence opened the portal for more of these Qi demons to waltz into our planet and cause untold amounts of destruction. They're powerful, resilient, and ferocious.

The battle against Qi demons are not as simple as many people think it is. People call them monsters, however it was discovered that this Qi demons are actually sentient, and the first part of an advance force. These things aren't just monsters, they're invaders! Waiting and biding their time for the opportune moment to strike.

If you all don't listen to me and prepare yourself for war against these demons, we're all going to die! You have to stop treating them as common beasts. They're not, they're smart, and they're coming for us.]

JOURNAL OF MAD MAN FROM NEPAL.

Alex felt the air heat up a bit as he swung his swords downwards. The south style of the four seasons of the weeping world placed emphasis on fire and destruction. To push forward and strike at everything within your path, with no hesitation as the raging flames are born.

West wind and East cloud suddenly developed a red hue, and as Alex slashed down on the already injured head of the spider monster, Anya jumped over him raising the hammer part of her scythe up into the air. If Alex had turned around, he would have seen the shadow of a massive mammoth standing on its hind legs as flames seemed to appear on the body of the hammer.

BOOM!

The monster's head was split like an egg, and raging flames seemed to stretch forth and consume it's entire body. It did not even have time to cry out before it was completely burnt to death. All that was left was a blackened mess, that released a rather thick stench.

This monster was strong, even for Anya to face alone. But apart from having really great weapons, the weapons arts they practiced had the essence of the fire element within it. And while Alex could not bring out the full power of that strike due to his low cultivation, he was still able to coax his swords to display essence of flames. And Anya already had a deep understanding of both her weapon and the weapon art she was using, it increased the power by a notch, and the fact that she could channel Qi through her weapon also helped.

"How did you find me?" Alex asked her as he sheathed both swords.

"Seriously? We're connected. I know that's not an explanation, but we've been like this since we were children. Anyway we go, we'll always find each other, and I'm sure you know it's the same for you."

Alex shook his head. Everything about Anya has to be an attack, and an argument, but that's just who she was. Alex picked his way forward, trudging to the forest with Anya walking close behind him. They kept to the edge this time, choosing to not move into the forest, but by it's side as they made their way up the mountain.

Whether it was by luck, or just by their foresight. They had not met any other fighter or teams. But Alex was a little worried about that, they had to defeat other fighters if they wanted to pass this stage of the competition. It was no use worrying about it, but he couldn't help it, this was what he was currently feeling right now.

They had lapsed into a comfortable silence as they walked, and it was like that for hours and even the sun was already beginning to set by the time they noticed a change. By this point they had already gotten close to the peak, and they had left the forest behind. Now the mountain seemed to have stretched out into a plateau, with hills of various sizes, and each of them seemed to have caves.

But the most peculiar thing about this area, was the fact that there were was a barricade made of rocks, it was obviously man made, and as Alex and Anya drew closer, they could see almost a dozen people behind the barricade.

The moment the people behind the barricade saw them, they all pounced over, carrying varying degrees of sinister smiles on their faces. Quite a few of them were in the open meridian realm, and just a few seemed to be in the body refining realm, which means this team was a cut above average.

"Well, look what we have here, free medallions to add to our tally. If you two know what's good for you, I suggest you both surrender to me. And you, girl! O can make you feel good, in fact you don't have to surrender your medallion. Just spend the night with me and I'll make sure you pass this stage of the competition."

The person who had spoken did not look a day over sixteen. But he was talking like he was years older than both Alex and Anya. But even with his threat Anya did not seem worried as she turned to Alex and said.

"doesn't this seem too cliché to you? I mean come on! We're face with generic thugs, whose names we won't be remembering in the next hour, much less their face. This feels weird right?" Anya asked Alex.

Alex on the other hand could do nothing but shake his hear as he smacked his hand on his face. In a nutshell they were supposed to be afraid, maybe turn tail and round to avoid any confrontation with the thirteen guys in front of them. But Anya and Alex had made a name for themselves fighting against the odds, and this wouldn't be the first time they had to fight guys a whole lot older than they were.

Alex felt that the best thing to do was to just get this over with, so he shot towards the closest guy. Who unfortunately turned out to be the person who just threatened them. This person was in the first level of the open meridian realm, and without a doubt he though that it was such a joke that a runt in the ninth level of the body refining realm; could even envision that he could beat him.

He threw a kick towards Alex's approaching form, but Alex was prepared as he moved his palm, slapping the leg to the side and moving into his opponent's guard where he slammed his elbow into his rib cage. Then holding on to his opponent's arm, he pulled him over his shoulder and slammed him on the ground.

The nameless would be leader of the wannabe gang of fighters was dazed. And to put an exclamation point into this whole fight, Alex slammed his legs into his face, knocking him out. A white light came from his medallion, and entered Alex's, changing the number on it from two to three.

The remaining guys were shocked. They could barely follow the entire fight, because from the moment Alex had made his move, to the moment he delivered the final blow, barely fifteen seconds had passed. It was completely inconceivable to them, that someone younger than them and weaker, could beat their strongest in such a short time.

But Alex didn't care what they thought, and neither did Anya. For some reason, he felt the need to keep fighting, to be ruthless and bloody. To swing his fist and enjoy the feeling of skin giving way beneath his knuckles. Somewhere at the back of his mind, something was telling him that this was not normal for him, but Alex didn't care. He was already attacking.

With Anya beside him, they made short work of what was left of the other fighters. Every blow delivered was crippling, and delivered with the aim to injure, and Alex made sure he hit them where it hurt the most. But if Alex's fist was so devastating, then Anya who wad widely swinging her scythe and reaping limbs was nothing more than a goddess of death.

By the time they realized what was happening, they were surrounded by a pile of heavily injured bodies.

Thankfully no one was dead, but each an everyone one of them would probably be bed ridden for a very long time, and some of the might not even walk again.

Both Alex's and Anya's medallions had hit the ten mark. Which means as long as they could survive the remaining six days without loosing a fight, they were golden. With their enemies completely beaten down, Alex and Anya left to find shelter, still dazed, high, and shocked by their sudden bloodlust. It was really weird, and they both agreed without a doubt, that there was something wrong with this place.