The last motes of qi from Lu Zudong’s punch attack began to fade far below. Hui closed his hand, disappointed. It wasn’t much. It seems like waiting until after the attack lands is too long.
Even as he absorbed the qi, Lu Zudong flew at him. “Turning your back to the enemy?”
Without turning, Hui chuckled. “Behind you, Elder Brother.”
Lu Zudong threw his hand behind him and caught Jin Xian by the throat before she could claw him. He clenched his fist, and...
2022-06-14 19:56:46 +0000 UTC
View Post
Lu Zudong’s form blurred as he rushed at Hui, becoming a streak of white light. Hui fell back, throwing barrier after barrier between the two of them. Lu Zudong burst through them one after the other, the barriers barely slowing his rush. Hui grit his teeth and backed up at full speed, still throwing barriers. At last, Lu Zudong began to slow. Hui could make out his body from within the beam of light.
He grit his teeth and activated his crystal mode under the snakeskin, then stopped t...
2022-06-13 21:04:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
Hui’s hands flickered as Tang Fei closed in. Wall after wall materialized between them, the barriers so thick their transparent walls began to blur Hui behind them. Shouting ferociously, Tang Fei smashed one wall after another, as animal projections raced out ahead of her fists.
The last barrier broke to splinters. Tang Fei rushed past and slammed another punch down onto Hui. “Take that! Who’s uncute now?”
Hui popped. He exploded into a thousand tiny bits of skin, blowing ...
2022-06-12 17:00:02 +0000 UTC
View Post
Jin Xian hesitated. She turned back and looked at Hui, then vanished. A black blur raced toward the sect below.
The disciples she’d held back charged toward Hui. The lotus beast ignored them, too busy fighting the disciples in front of her. Hui backed away as they charged. He glanced over his shoulder, then raced for the Starbound Peak disciples. I need some front-liners between me and the battle. Jin Xian is checking on Xixing and Sis Mei, so in the meantime, I’ll go stick clos...
2022-06-11 21:01:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
Hui and Li Xiang blasted out of the dark void alongside a handful of fellow disciples, all of them with their hair bedraggled and their robes in disarray. Before they even had the time to look around and fix their robes, a ferocious explosion shattered the air. Silvery light shimmered over the sect, then dissipated, a hole gaping bigger like a popping bubble in slow motion. Even as it opened, All-Heavens disciples in white and gold poured in. In white hemmed in black, the Starbound Sect culti...
2022-06-10 22:00:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
Deep inside Hui’s soul’s dantian, one of the ducks stirred. This duck’s eyes burned red, its feathers ragged and crow-like. It flapped its wings once, twice, then took flight, bursting out of Hui’s soul’s dantian and into his flesh. It tore its way free, biting and clawing, twisting a bloody path out. Black wings flecked with greenish blood, it took to the sky.
Hui stared as a crow-like duck tore its way out of his dantian region. That duck? The one that formed from the fi...
2022-06-09 22:00:04 +0000 UTC
View Post
The sun beat down. The poppies rushed around them, whispering past. Hui paid none of it any attention, focused on absorbing qi from the passing pavilion and contemplating his faking-death talisman at the same time.
His vision flickered abruptly. He froze in place and looked around. “What?”
Fang Hua paused as well, looking back at him. “Xiao Hui?”
“No, it’s… nothing,” Hui said. He started running again, but frowned. What was that? A cultivator at my level...
2022-06-09 00:00:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
As he and Fang Hua ran, they passed by a pavilion. Hui grit his teeth, trying to ignore it, but at the last second, swerved toward it.
“Hey! Xiao Hui, where are you going?” Fang Hua asked.
“I… I can’t face Li Xiang like this!” he shouted back. Walk away from good fortune? Ignore a jackpot of death qi? I’d be betraying Master’s final teachings if I did that! Li Xiang, hold on. It’ll just be another minute or two, I promise.
“We’re still mind-lin...
2022-06-07 18:00:04 +0000 UTC
View Post
They walked along, Hui clinging to Fang Hua’s hair. He relaxed and looked around, enjoying the ride. Being small isn’t so bad. I can get rides, no one’s going to target me… if I play dead, it’s easier to hide, too!
Still, I’d rather be in my original body. I can’t build a harem like this, after all.
Fang Hua sighed. “He’s in rough shape, Hui. Be prepared.”
Hui nodded, gritting his teeth. I have plenty of life qi right now. Even if he...
2022-06-07 00:01:01 +0000 UTC
View Post
Fang Hua’s voice sounded in his mind. “I’m ready.”
Hui took a deep breath. He nodded. “Here I go.”
Circulating his qi, Hui focused on his connection to Fang Hua. He pressed his lips together, still nervous despite everything. The soul is a form of energy, like qi. I should be able to pass it through the connection, the same as my qi.
But… communicating takes energy. What if passing my soul takes so much energy that I never make it to the other side...
2022-06-05 15:00:05 +0000 UTC
View Post
Hui followed after Chen Wuya, hurrying along. “Senior… why did you stop me? What would have happened if I chose the needles instead? The pavilions only show an illusion, right?”
“What is illusory can become real, and what is real can become illusory. If you make a different choice in your soul and come to regret your path, your entire Dao can crumble. Fen Long is trying to destroy my cultivation from the foundation,” Chen Wuya declared.
How dangerous! I never even co...
2022-06-04 15:15:34 +0000 UTC
View Post
Sunlight against closed eyelids. Drifting shadows. A faint cold breeze to offset the still heat of summer.
Hui opened his eyes. He laid under a wisteria tree. Trailing blossoms drifted low over his face, blue as the sky above.
This doesn’t seem that dangerous, he thought, sitting up. He sat atop a hill, looking down on a sect. The wisteria tree protected him from the day’s sun, releasing its fragrance on the breeze. As he sat up, the blossoms caught in his hair. Casua...
2022-06-03 18:00:01 +0000 UTC
View Post
Across the field. An endless monotony repeated itself before them. When Hui glanced back, no trace remained of their crossing. When he looked ahead, he saw no way to differentiate the field before him with the field behind. Am I even moving? Maybe I should stop. It’s pointless.
Hui shook his head hard and slapped his cheeks. No! Don’t let the realm get to you. It’s a trap realm, a trap! I have to keep my mind clear, or the realm will slip in and interfere with me.
2022-06-02 15:00:05 +0000 UTC
View Post
Crows chased after Hui, crying out, their claws spread wide, beaks gaping. Hui ran, hands over his head. He circulated his death qi and fled at top speed.
Just once, he chanced a look back. Elder Sister, will you help this small cultivator?
The white-robed woman turned her head away, sheathing her sword.
Elder Sister! Hui cried silently.
Crows swooped down on him. They clawed at his flesh and bit away bits of his body, tearing him apart. Hui tried to ...
2022-06-01 16:00:23 +0000 UTC
View Post
A hair’s breadth from his neck, the sword stopped. Hui sucked a shallow breath, staring down at the naked blade. “Li Xiang. Li Xiang, it’s you, right?”
The sword shivered. It backed away a centimeter.
“Dao Dao, return,” the sword cultivator called.
The sword shivered again, then swooped around and rushed back to the sword cultivator’s hand. She caught the sword and turned to them. Despite the blur that obscured her face, Hui had the intense sensation she was st...
2022-05-31 21:08:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
Hui cast his eyes aside. “I, er, I don’t know what you’re talking about, Senior.”
Gu Tian frowned at Hui. “Xie Hao, what’s going on? You know the crows’ leader? Tell them to stop eating my plants.”
“Silence,” Chen Wuya snapped, eyes blazing. Gu Tian stumbled back, hands clasped to his mouth.
Hui jumped up in front of Gu Tian. “There’s no need to hurt him, Senior!”
“I didn’t hurt him. He’s only quieted for a bit,” Chen Wuya sighed. He r...
2022-05-30 15:00:06 +0000 UTC
View Post
Gu Tian! Hui stared, wide-eyed. That’s right, I remember! Those cultivators mentioned him vanishing into the realm. With Li Xiang vanishing, I forgot about Gu Tian. Did he end up in the same place as me?
Wait. What do Gu Tian and I have in common? Hui frowned, putting a hand to his chin. His brows furrowed. We were both in Black Asp Sect. Did something mark us there? Or was there something else? Gu Tian’s soul was swapped into his body, but… mine was...
2022-05-29 15:00:04 +0000 UTC
View Post
Light spiraled around him. Something wrenched at Hui’s body, pulling it apart. He screamed, soundlessly. The rift devoured all sound. Hui hung between the worlds, neither in the realm nor the world he’d come from. For a moment, he caught a glimpse of darkness, biting through the brilliant light. Then the world shook, and Hui fell into the True Self Realm.
For a moment, he caught a glimpse of pure blue skies and a sea of red poppies. Then a horrible weight crashed onto his shoulders....
2022-05-29 00:00:02 +0000 UTC
View Post
Fang Hua stopped suddenly. Hui looked up. “Fang Hua?”
“Over there. Was there always someone on that hill?”
Before the, the land rose up in a soft rise. A woman stood atop the hill, hair swaying in the wind, sword in hand. A strange blur hid her face. She wore plain, undecorated white robes and a white ribbon around her forehead. The wind caught both and sent them billowing around her, but she stood still, unmoved.
“Was there always a hill?” Hui murmured.
Fa...
2022-05-27 23:06:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
Wondering what MTPDDAT character you're most like? Would you like to take a silly quiz? Warning: Results may be wildly inaccurate.
https://uquiz.com/QT4Utb
2022-05-27 00:44:45 +0000 UTC
View Post
Another few days passed by. Jin Xian raced from pavilion to pavilion. Unlike Hui, she felt no particular emotions at the insides of the pavilion. Suddenly, she froze in place.
“What is it?” Hui murmured, paying more attention to what his left eye saw.
Jin Xian stared hungrily at a set of finger-blades. Pitch black and wrought with delicate ornamentation, they were meant to sit at the end of one’s fingers and form talons with which to attack the enemy.
“Eh? Jin Xian, ...
2022-05-26 23:00:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
Nodding one last time at Hui, Sis Mei stepped through the portal. The world wobbled all around her. Bright light obscured her vision. When it cleared, she stood in a wide field. The field stretched in all directions, completely coated in knee-high poppy flowers. They undulated gently under a soft breeze, a blood-red sea that reached the horizon. Overhead, a pure, clear-blue sky met the red, so that it seemed the world was divided into two: the poppies below, and the blue sky above.
Sis ...
2022-05-25 23:00:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
Cowering atop Unrivaled Under Heaven Peak, Hui looked up. Brilliant light lit the heavens above, nearly as bright as the sun. He shaded his eyes rather than look directly at it. Is this the realm that Master warned me about? Naturally, I won’t enter! I remember your words, Master.
Beams of light burst from the surrounding peaks. One after another, disciples poured into the rift. Lower-realm disciples held on tight to their master’s and elder’s coat-tails to ride into the ...
2022-05-24 20:00:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
As Weiheng Wu faded into the heavens, the spectators turned and vanished back into the sect. A few remained. Sect Master Lan, Lan Taijian, and the other Peak Lords. Their eyes fell on Hui, who stared back.
“We need to choose a new Peak Lord. Does anyone have any disciples close to breaking through to the fifth realm?” Sect Master Lan asked, looking away.
“Mmm… I do, but she’s not interested in this sort of empty peak,” the Peak Lord of Butterfly Pavilion Peak said, adj...
2022-05-23 20:00:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
Hui sighed one last time, then drew his sword. If I’m going to fight, I’d better learn how to fly on a sword. He looked at his sword and frowned. Is it really as simple as Bai Xue says? Is that even possible?
Well, it’s worth a try.
He put his sword on the ground and stood on top of it. Closing his eyes, he let his qi flow without thinking about it or trying too hard to fly. The sword under his feet vibrated, letting out a quiet buzz. After a secon...
2022-05-22 22:00:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
Hui wobbled atop his sword, both arms spread wide. He bit his lip in concentration. His feet slid back and forth, the sword sliding up and down with his weight. Sometimes the tip started to fly up, sometimes the handle. He narrowed his eyes and balanced for a moment, only for the sword to suddenly flip the next second. It dumped him off and zoomed into the air. Hui covered his head and ran for it, simultaneously activating his crystallization technique. The sword flashed back to the earth whe...
2022-05-21 21:03:59 +0000 UTC
View Post
At the top of his Master’s peak, Hui looked around, staring into the sky at Mount Mu above. “Master!”
No response. His voice echoed up Mount Mu’s root system and over its bark. He frowned. If I could fly... argh! Is it time to learn?
He drew out his sword and held it parallel to the ground, frowning at it. “Pass qi into my sword… hover it… above the ground…”
Hui slowly fed qi into the sword. He felt the shape of it, the way the qi filled up the met...
2022-05-20 23:00:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
The Sect Master left. Lan Taijian followed after him, and in the distance, beams of light shot up with them as the Peak Lords gathered.
The second the Lan father and son left, Hui stood from behind the other disciples, shedding the scholar skin as he stood and replacing it with a snakeskin replica of himself wearing Starbound Sect robes. The other cultivators murmured amongst themselves. Rather than a righteous anger or a fury, a quiet uncertainty hovered over the disciples. A few murmu...
2022-05-19 01:00:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
Lan Taijian glared at Gui Delun. “Is our Sect Master your servant, to come at your beck and call?”
Gui Delun gave a cold snort, which rattled through the watching cultivator’s minds like thunder. A few of the weaker ones directly collapsed. He gave no answer, but simply turned his head upward.
Lan Taijian snorted as well, then followed Gui Delun in gazing upward. From the moment he had accused Tang Fei of attempted assassination, the situation had escalated beyond what a mer...
2022-05-18 01:00:00 +0000 UTC
View Post
Li Xiang turned, but too slow. Tang Fei’er’s hand darted for her back.
Hui narrowed his eyes and stepped forward, using the Bai Clan step technique, but flickering with death qi. Time slowed as his perception sped up. He threw out a barrier talisman, but it flew too slowly.
How? There has to be a way. Something I can do…
He stepped out of his body. His third eye snapped open. Threads appeared, black and white threads that connected the internal pieces of Tang ...
2022-05-16 22:00:04 +0000 UTC
View Post
