“Wake up, Chun!”


    The gruff voice of Master Hong Feng jarred me out of my sleep.


    The room spun as I tried to orientate myself and for a second, I was surprised to find myself in the library back at the sect.


    <i>How the hell did I get here?</i>


    Then my fragmented memories from the night before slowly filtered into my aching skull and I vaguely recalled dragging myself half-drunk across town from the brothel to make it back to the sect before morning.


    <i>Why the hell did I leave a warm bed with Xi Xha toe and deal with this shit?</i> I said to myself. And then I remembered the stupid transcript I had started to write at some unearthly hour in the morning before promptly passing out on the floor.


    <i>Damn it</i>. The intention was there but I had failed in the execution.


    Now Hong Feng hade looking for histest edition of the Fury manual just like I figured he would, but I had nothing to give him. And as my eyes adjusted further, I noticed Hong Feng wasn’t alone either. Next to him was Shen Ju. The cultivator’s eyes filled with contempt as he literally looked down his nose at me, shaking his head.“He looks drunk.”


    “No matter,” Hong Feng said. “<i>Get up</i>, Chun!”


    <i>What the hell was this?</i> I stifled my anger and yed it cool with [Indifference] as I slowly rose to my feet.


    “Morning, gentlemen,” I said with a half-hearted bow. “You’re both up early.”


    I was beginning to fear that Hong Feng was after more than just the manual by the way he was staring at me. Might he have witnessed something he didn’t like in my performancest night? Or perhaps the opposite was true, seeing as I had finally made true lightning.


    “Come to congratte me on my win?” I said with a cocky grin. “You did catch the fight, didn’t you? I’m about to break into the top twenty to—”


    “That doesn’t matter now,” Hong Feng said abruptly. “Something far more important is taking ce. It’s time for you to pay your debt to me, Chun.”


    My me stirred at the sound of that and I nced at Shen Ju to see if this might be some kind of ambush. “Is that right?”


    “Sumatra just received an anonymous booking from a rival sect this morning,” Hong Feng said. “We need to move quickly.”


    <i>Shit</i>, I thought. <i>It was an ambush. Just not the kind I was thinking</i>.


    Getting involved in this kind of ilk was thest thing I wanted to do, especially now with me being so close to my goal. “I see, but I have my final match for qualifying tonight,” I said, trying to weasel my way out. “I should probably focus on that if I want—”


    “That wasn’t a request,” Hong Feng snapped. “This sort of thing doesn’t happen often. Anonymous bookings like this are only made by prominent or high-profile sect members. It’s an opportunity we can’t afford to waste.”


    <i>No dice</i>, I thought. I was expecting as much, but I had to try regardless.


    “I understand,” I said with [Indifference] but then yed dumb once more. “What is it you need me to do?”


    “You’ll report to work this morning as a handler,” Hong Feng said. “Sumatra will pair you up with whoever the client is. You are to then take them to the northern ts where Shen Ju and his team will be waiting.”


    “The northern ts?” That was the realm of A and S-ss monsters. “You trying to turn this into a suicide run? There’s nothing but reaper beasts out there.”


    “Exactly,” Shen Ju said. “We’ve staked out a narrow canyon that dead ends a quarter mile in. It’s the perfect setup. Once you reach the ins, look for piles of red stones. It will lead you to it. We’ll ensure the client engages with one of the reapers. All you have to do then is to lure them into the canyon as a means of escape.”


    “How are you going to ensure that?”


    Shen Ju grinned. “You’ll have to wait and see. But once you get them in the canyon, we’ll attack from behind. Should make for a much easier kill if they have their hands full with something that strong.”


    The thought sickened me.


    I had to get out of this.


    “There’s no way I could justify taking a client to face that kind of risk,” I said. “The enforcers would be all over my ass afterwards. Sumatra’s too. You’d have to be a 9th-Tier Core Realm cultivator to take on a reaper.”


    “To have registered anonymously it’s likely they are that level or even more,” Hong Feng said. “Hence the need for the reaper. You along with Shen Ju and his team would not be able to defeat them alone. But regardless, it doesn’t matter. As the sole survivor from the excursion, it will be your job to tell the authorities what happened. Come up with any story you wish. The main thing is that the client was killed by the powerful spirit beast. Nothing more.”


    A spark of ire lit within my soul. Here they were, using me as both pawn and patsy for their damn murder mystery plot. But dammit what could I do? This is what I had signed up for to achieve my aims.


    It was a grim reminder that all power came at a price.


    And it was looking damn steep right now.


    “I’ll be leaving with my team shortly,” Shen Ju said, and I noticed he was dressed in the in brown robes again. “I’ll be waiting just outside the gate for you though.”


    I raised a brow at him. “I thought you said you’d be waiting at the ts.”


    “The rest of my team will be,” he said. “I want to ensure that you make it there yourself. This is your first time after all. I don’t want you getting cold feet.” He gave me a leer and I felt like punching his bloody teeth in. “Don’t worry,” he continued. “I’ll be sure to stay out of sight.”


    <i>I’m sure you will, you bastard…</i>


    I heaved out a sigh as the proverbial walls began closing in on me. Just one more fight and I could be done with all this nonsense. But until then, I had to y along with this sick game.


    “Fine,” I said. “Let’s do it.”


    Hong Feng smiled. “I’ll be counting on you, Chun. This will be a great victory for the sect to remove such a strong rival. Do well and even my uncle, the great Sect Leader himself, will honor you.”


    * * *


    A half-hourter I was on my way to the gate, dragging my feet like they were made out of stone. I got within sight of the camp and already I could tell something was up. The ce had a buzz about it, with offworld cultivators and locals alikemunicating in hushed whispers as my co-workers danced around energetically, some of them giving me sly grins as I passed by.


    <i>What the hell was going on?</i>


    Mu Lin and Lee rushed up to me wide-eyed once they saw me and pulled me quickly to the side. They both reeked of alcohol and I wondered if they had even managed to make it homest night.


    “Did you two sleep?” I asked, furrowing my brow at them.


    Mu Lin giggled, her eyes bloodshot behind her new specs. “Kind of, maybe?”


    “Never mind that,” Lee said, his smile ear to ear. “The question is, what the hell did you do, my man?”


    “What are you talking about?”


    For a second I feared that they somehow had all found out about the ambush plot. But then Lee thumbed behind him and when I saw what he was gesturing at, my mind came undone.


    <i>Holy shit…</i>


    I saw the skiff before I even saw her, but one glimpse of the slick vehicle and I knew exactly who the client was. Lady Silver Stick-in-her-Ass was standing over by Sumatra in all her glittering glory. ck and silver robes pristine and shining, as were the three sheath-less <i>Jian</i> des that hung about her hips as if suspended on nothing. The bright silver of her hair caught in the morning light, creating a halo over the stylish neck-length bob like she was an angel or something.


    <i>You’ve got to be shitting me</i>, I thought. The woman was anything but an angel. “What the hell is she doing here?”


    “I don’t know, but she asked for you by name,” Lee said, still grinning like an idiot. “My guess is she wants a special tour, if you know what I mean.”


    “Before you say anything, this has nothing to do with me,” Mu Lin said making a ‘no-way’ gesture with her hands. “<i>Nuh</i>—<i>thing</i>.”


    “I say it all has to do with that bod of his,” Lee said with augh.


    Mu Lin rolled her eyes. “I doubt that. More like payback for when he was being an ass to her the other day. She’s probably going to ride you like a ve out there.”


    “Ride, being the key word,” Lee said with a yful wink.


    “Ew! You’re so disgusting!” Mu Lin said, pushing Lee away as heughed.


    I huffed out a sigh. These two idiots were still way too drunk to be of any help.


    “Let me go see what’s up,” I said as I left them, but I knew exactly what was up.


    And it wasn’t good.


    Not only would I be responsible for this woman’s death if I took her out into the field, I was now also the one responsible for making here here in the first ce––apparently anyway. My stomach soured at the thought, guilt mixed with disdain.


    As I headed towards Sumatra, the woman caught sight of me and after an initial look of surprise, her brows lowered in a predatory re.


    “There he is!” Sumatra weed me with a p on my back. “My best and most senior handler, just for you, Lady Silver Light. The great Chun! He’ll lead you safely to the Reaper ts and make sure you don’t bite off more than you can chew.”


    Sumatraughed as if to make it a joke, but Silver Light red at him as if he’d just insulted her.


    “You think a rabid spirit beast is a challenge for one such as me?” Silver Light pierced Sumatra with a stare and the big man began to stutter.


    “No, of course not!” he said bowing profusely. “What I meant was… actually, that Chun brings great fortune to his clients. But a few weeks ago he helped an off-worlder bag a B-ss monster core. Didn’t you, Chun? I’m sure he’ll bring the same luck to you.”


    “Luck is for the weak,” she said with a scoff. “If I wish a core, I’ll simply y as many foul beasts as I need to, to find one.”


    Her bravado was cringeworthy, but something about her told me that what she said was likely true. I had no idea who this woman was, but by the way she carried herself, she had to be in the Gold Bracket League.


    “Well, let’s get you out there so you can start killing then, yes?” Sumatra said with another shameless bow. “I’ll just get him his partner and then you’ll be all set. Lee!”


    My blood froze.


    <i>Shit…I’d forgotten about the new rules</i>.


    Just as I was about to wrack my brain on how I could spare Lee from bing involved, the Lady Silver Light scrunched up her face.


    “Partner?” she said.


    “New safety protocols, my Lady,” Sumatra said and nodded towards the Imperial Guard and Enforcers on duty. “Two handlers to an excursion. No exceptions.”


    <i>Dammit</i>, I thought. Maybe I could take Lee and then convince him to skive off once we were far enough away. But then when I returned without the Lady Silver Light with me, that would cause even more questions. And Lee wouldn’t have good answers. I’d have to get him to lie and then swear him to secrecy the same way I had with Mu Lin when the Fire Birds first robbed that old man of his lightning core. Or hell, maybe I could just take Mu Lin instead of Lee. That would be easier to exin. But dammit, I didn’t want to involve her in any more of this crap either.


    “One handler is more than enough,” Silver Light said curtly. “This One does not require to be baby sat. I thought I made it abundantly clear earlier that my strength is not to be questioned.”


    “A thousand apologies,” Sumatra said, groveling before her obsequiously. “But the rules are the rules. By order of the Warden herself.”


    “I see.” Silver Light rocked her jaw at that, unknown machinations transpiring behind her shifting chrome eyes.


    “You there, guard!” she suddenly barked, causing the man to jump. “Approach me!”


    I couldn’t sense Qi, but by the way his eyes popped open and the speed at which he hustled over, I could only imagine that she had flexed the power of her core at him.


    “Yes, mydy,” he said with a bow.


    She pointed at me. “How many handlers do you see standing there?”


    His mouth dropped open, his eyes darting back and forth as if it were a trick question.


    “Answer carefully,” she warned, her words sharp enough to draw blood. “You do know who the Warden of this province is…and which n she belongs to, yes?”


    The guard looked her up and down as if acknowledging the ck and silver of her robes, sweat beading on his brow.


    “I-I see two,” the guard said, shakily. “Two handlers, my Lady.”


    Silver Light smiled. “Clever boy.”


    She then turned to Sumatra and nodded. “I think we are good to go now, yes?”


    Sumatra nodded, looking as surprised as I was, but I wasn’tining.


    At least one of my friends’ lives would be spared today.


    “You there, handler,” Silver Light said, turning to me and a crafty smile spread across her ruby painted lips. “It seems you are at my service this day. Let us hope your attitude is well improved since thest time I addressed you.”


    The way she said it––seething with hate while spewing lemonade––had me wondering just what the hell she hade here for. Was this revenge for blowing her off, or her messed-up idea of a first date? I let my inner me speak for me as I gave her a grimace of [Struggler’s Resolve].


    “I guess I’ll have to give you some of that attitude for you to find out.”


    Her eyes widened in surprise, but from her soul all I sensed was more lemonade.


    “Lead on then,” Lady Silver Light said with a smirk, pointing towards the gate. “Take me to these Reaper ts. I want you to show me the very best of what your world has to offer.” And then her stare became more threatening, her tone ice cold. “And you had better not disappoint me.”