Rick Scott

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 30

Princess Lunalah tapped rewind on the arena footage playing across her Qi tablet.

She zoomed in on the segment where the Iron Bull removed his helmet especially.

The screams from the crowd echoed her own sentiments.

A fine specimen indeed.

She watched the fight play out against the earth master, Fung Wang.

The Iron Bull’s style was haphazard and unrefined, yet somehow that matched his rugged exterior perfectly. Sometimes he didn’t even try to evade h...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 29

I’d heard of the auction plenty of times but had never been before.

For one, not just anyone could enter or even participate.

Citizenship was a must, but beyond that you needed a special license available only to artisans or crafters. Even when clients nabbed monster cores with me out in the wild, they would then have to hire an artisan to auction it for them for a small fee. It was a way to ensure the artisan and crafting sects took a healthy role in the economy. Not only did t...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 28

It turned out to be a bigger challenge leaving the arena than it was to get back into it.

Throngs of people mobbed me as soon as I exited the locker room, everyone wanting to shower me with praises and to get a glimpse of the Iron Bull up close and in person. I’d gone from a minor celebrity to a citywide sensation overnight, and my Dantian had no complaints as I cultivated the free Frenzy and used the excess to heal my wounds and strengthen my body even further.

I signed autogra...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 27

“Holy shit…” I said as I glanced out at the crowd.

Bo Ren was nothing short of a genius.

In three short hours the stadium had gone from 10% capacity to being overcapacity by nearly double. Patrons and commoners flooded the seats with people filling the aisles and walkways, some even sitting on the floor of the stadium itself. The air was abuzz with noise and high above skiffs gathered for the big wigs to catch a glimpse of the impromptu battle about to unfold.

“I thi...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 26

I headed straight for the arena after a quick change of clothes.

Before I left, I promised the people that I would rebuild their homes, starting in the morning, but as of right now, I had to ensure this didn’t happen again. I’d been blindsided by this, looking at the situation from all the wrong angles. I had thought an attack was only possible from other cultivators, but this proved that even other commoners were jealous of our new-found prosperity and fame.

And that meant ha...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 25

I awoke with a hangover from hell.

And in this case, it might actually be literal.

Remnants from fever dreams filled with demons and monsters evaporated from my mind as my head began to clear. My eyes squinted from the bright lights of the infirmary and I realized I was once again in one of the grossly undersized hospital beds.

I expected to be stiff as a board from my wounds fighting the demons, but surprisingly my body felt fully rested and healed. I closed my eyes and che...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 24

Master Hei Dong stepped lively through the lower halls of the high court, satchel and key tablet in hand. It was not often he had chance to engage in direct conflict with a rival sect. As an artisan craftsman, his skills were far removed from the courts of combat, but today he would do battle in the courts of law.

The prospect of humiliating Master Lo Feng had his spirits soaring to the heavens.

The same could not be said for his daughter trailing behind him, however.

“Kee...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 23

I rushed in with abandon, fists flying.

I lacked my sword and axe, but I was far from weaponless. I tapped into the fresh Frenzy streaming from my Flame and cultivated it into solid form. The snake pounced at me lightning fast like a viper and it took all my focus to leap to the side at just the last moment, escaping its jaws by milliseconds.

Damn that was close! I thought.

I honestly still couldn’t comprehend how something so large could move so quickly. But then...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 22

True to my word, I was up early the next morning and out into the wild scouting as soon as the Bloodmoon set. It didn’t take me long to track down another giant boar which I quickly killed and slaughtered for the community to enjoy.

By daybreak I had returned to the bunker to find Jim already assembled with the soldiers, ready to assist with building the wall. I handed the boar over to the civilians to prepare while I met with Harris to discuss the plan.

“So what exactly do yo...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 21

I didn’t go to Jim’s office right away.

After the newly promoted Sergeant Andrews collected Richards’ body to prepare it for disposal, I hung back with Kelsey to do some preparations of my own. I rooted through the nearby trees for fist-sized rocks and began placing them in a line about three feet back from the mass of the snarling demons.

“What are you doing?” Kelsey asked, looking over my shoulder.

“Marking the edge of the barrier,” I said. “The sword will ...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 20

I took the lead with Kelsey, staying a good couple hundred feet ahead of Jim and his men. They were still trekking behind us cautiously with their weapons drawn like they were on a night jungle patrol or something.

I couldn’t blame them, though. Stepping outside like this was probably going against every survival instinct they had developed over the last ten years—never leave the safety of the bunker at night and all that. It was a no brained. No different than how I’d learned to ...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 19

The first part of the Shura went into the details of how to properly kindle someone’s ember into a Flame. I had gotten it mostly right with Kelsey, by evoking [Frenzied Flame] and [Pain and Sorrow], although I did it a bit out of order. It would then be up to the unkindled to overcome their fear of uncertain death to truly ignite their Flame.

Which Kelsey had done by saving me.

Further into the Shura I found exactly what I was looking for—a method of transcribing.

But it...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 18

I spent a few minutes investigating the ape’s body for a core. Sure enough, there was one, but quite small. Certainly not as big as I thought it would be for how strong it was. Perhaps it had been drawing strength from Threja’s sword.

That reminded me of the strange effect the sword had had upon me killing it.

Did the sword absorb part of the core perhaps?

So many questions, but I didn’t have time to be looking to them now.

After splinting Kelsey’s leg and appl...

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Path of the Berserk II - Chapter 17

Before Kelsey could even question what that meant, I charged forward with a savage roar of my own. My Dantian was still near empty, with preciously little Frenzy to spare but I used it to bolster my speed as I swept in to land a [Two Log Chop] on the beast’s sword arm.

It felt like hitting stone, my cursed steel axe bouncing off its thick hide with a tuff of cut fur.

Holy shit, I thought. Not even able to wound it with my casual strength alone?

I was at t...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 16

The next morning, we were assembled outside the bunker, surveying what was left of the wagon. Jim was there, along with Flores and Harris. Joining them was Sergeant Richards and four of his men who I remembered from my visit before.

Kelsey and Susan were there also, albeit with Susan staying within the safety of the inner airlock of the bunker’s side door. Kelsey strode right on out with me though, much to the chagrin of both Jim and Susan.

“Hey, it’s okay,” I said. “She...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 15

The aftermath of the battle was a nasty one.

Hacking through a horde of two hundred plus demons was all fun and games until you had to clean up the mess. I took the lead on the job, throwing severed torsos, legs and arms into piles. It was gruesome work, but once I started, Colonel Jim commanded his men to join in.

Thankfully the basement was also the location of the facility’s waste incinerator, a device they hadn’t used for years, but one that now became a necessity. No way ...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 14

My vision went in and out as a trio of soldiers manhandled me down several flights of stairs and finally threw me into a cell. I was only vaguely aware that there were other people in there with me until one of them suddenly cried out.

“Kelsey?!”

“Mom!”

Through my hazy vision I saw Susan rushing to embrace her daughter.

“Why is she in here?” Susan shouted towards the cell door where several of the soldiers were gathered. “Answer me, Jim!”

In my Da...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 13

For a split second I wondered if I could have possibly gotten lost and found a different bunker, but that was wishful thinking. The place where I had lodged Threja’s sword into the group was now a gaping crater of busted concrete and twisted rebar.

How the hell did they get it out? I thought as I stared at the hole puzzled.

But the bigger question was not how but who?

And there was only one person I could think of who would do something like this.

“That di...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 12

I woke up early the next morning with thoughts of competing in the arena still on my mind, but I needed to prioritize the safety of my people in the wild first. By the fading red hue of the Bloodmoon, I mucked about in the empty square of D block, loading a wooden cart with the supplies I had rounded up the day before.

I had sacks of rice, fruits and vegetables, seeds and an assortment of medicinal balms, oils and pills, some even laced with Qi. Finally, I stacked several cages of lives...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 11

The mixing of Zu Tien into the fold went about as well as could be expected.

People were initially shocked, confused and even angry, but Gui Zu, the master bridge-builder, stuck by Zu Tien’s side as he introduced her to people as an ally, reassuring them of Zu Tien’s penance the same way he had with me. Not everyone took to it, but Jian Yi at least accepted the logic that we had no other options at the moment.

“You should probably make an announcement,” she said when we we...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 10

The multicolored hues of neon Qi lightning ran criss-cross above the square of the central market district in the heart of downtown. It was twilight now and the Bloodmoon was on the rise, filling the city with an eerie red glow. Gui Zu walked next to me as we waded through the crowd, his large form now only slightly bigger than my own.

He still hadn’t said where we were headed yet.

After getting myself cleaned up and putting on some fresh clothes, Gui Zu told me we’d have to w...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 9

I borrowed some clothes from a couple of the farmers that came to put out the fire. I offered to pay them for the threads, but after me helping them tend to the blaze and knowing who I was, they refused to take a single Wen. Granted the clothes didn’t fit too well either, but it was better than walking around town practically naked.

As I stepped through the market district headed for home, I engaged [Mask of the Despised]. The technique caused most people to look away from me the mome...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 8

I left the handler station feeling like a mountain was upon my back.

The day had turned from pretty great to shitty in a matter of minutes and my mind was still reeling from it all.

I need to focus, I told myself. I had stop worrying about what happened and get my head back in the game.

I still had a year to deal with Fia and a lot could happen between now and then.

Plus, I had to remember that there was a lot more at stake than just her. Failing to d...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 7

Butterflies filled my stomach as I approached the abandoned train station that was now overrun with weeds, vines and decade old trees. Ren and Rho were already there, flanking the cultivator wearing dark robes and a black veil.

Her body stiffened as she caught sight of me and I could sense both anger and desire flare from insider her.

“Thanks guys.” I bowed to Ren and Rho. “I can take it from here.”

Fia barely acknowledged the two of them as she stepped forward.

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 6

A wave of familiarity and nostalgia hit me as I approached the Eastern Gate of Jurin Province. The wooden lean-to, that was constructed more like a barn with no walls, was already brimming with off-world cultivators eager to get their hands on the exotic advancement components found out in the wild. The familiar white and green uniforms of the handlers darted in between them. They were the trained scouts who guided the cultivators through the unfamiliar terrain and ensured they came home befo...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 5

The Tarim Wastelands, Li Wan Province, Planet Terra

Princess Lunalah, Two Hundred and Fifty-Seventh heir to the Imperial Yee Dynasty released a tired sigh as the two Gold Bracket cultivators bounced back and forth across the mile- wide battlefield in the height of the noonday sun.

The Tarim wastelands made the perfect venue for the duel. A sandy desert, without a population for miles, but it meant enduring the oppressive heat as well. The large awning of her imper...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 4

I stared at the Lady Silver Light with utter incomprehension in my mind and uncertainty in my heart.

Here was a woman I’d spent intimate time with.

We’d fought together.

Killed an Awakened Reper Beast together.

And after bearing her soul to me, we had made sweet love together as well.

But now I wasn’t sure what was going on inside Silver Light’s head.

More importantly.

How the hell could I have missed that she was Hein’s sister?

My bra...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 3

Master Hei Dong let out a tired sigh as the fool Lo Feng stormed into the audience chamber of the High Magistrate. The room was relatively quaint and modest for the authority it held. Simple wooden partitions, barely waist-high, divided the room into three separate boxes.

Hei Doing stood within the defender’s box, accompanied by his wife Rhi Dong. At the head of the room, the High Magistrate, Yi Xhi Yen, sat upon her elevated throne within the third box, flanked by several junior memb...

Path of the Berserker II - Chapter 2

As the square got back to normal, Jian Yi and I made our way to the Official Head Quarters of the Terran Sect. Despite the fancy name, it was little more than one of the empty apartments on the bottom floor of the complex, which in itself was the dilapidated remains of a Days Inn hotel. The empty room was converted into an office by removing the bed, tearing out the kitchenette and installing a couple of tables and chairs from the square.

Total ghetto style but it was getting the job do...