Path of the Berserker

Chapter 74

I stared at the writhing horror before me and was filled with an inexplicable fear and dread. The Dark Frenzy pulsating from it was so intense that it threatened to once again poison my Flame. It was as if it were utilizing its own version of [Fear the Flame] against me.

I’d never seen or even heard of anything like this creature before.

Not even on that night in the wild did I see such a being.

I knew then what my fear was born from.

The deepest and darkest of all fears.

The fear of the unknown.

Surely against such a thing the [Odds were Against Me].

As I held onto that notion my technique fueled me with new Frenzy, my fear flash converting into strength that heightened my resolve.

Whatever this thing was. I would kill it.

The creature undulated as it made that horrid sound again, a shriek that pierced my soul.

~Think thou can lay folly to our aims, oh Demon of the cur-sed Flame? By thy defiance, I’xol’ukz is not deterred. The King of the Moon shall walk the firmament and not even the cur-sed gleam that guards the citadels shall prevail against him. The legions shall feast upon the flesh of the weak.~

What the hell…?

The thing suddenly jetted to the side like an octopus, tentacles flailing. I immediately went on the defensive, spinning about to thwart a sneak attack.

Seconds passed.

Nothing came.

Not being able to see the creature was even more unnerving. I focused on what I could sense from it instead. The Dark Frenzy. It was so intense now that I could barely pinpoint a center. Fear rose up inside of me, further increasing my Frenzy as it touched my Flame.

“I don’t know what you are, asshole,” I said as I readied my axe. “But I will erase your creepy octopus ass from freakin’ existence!”

~Thou knoweth not what thou dost proclaim. Thy husk blinds thee, foul Demon. Thou cannot slay what stands not before thee.~

What the hell did that mean?

Ah, screw it. I was sick of this thing playing mind games.

It was time to strike.

I channeled my Frenzy towards my Jing, performing the same technique I had just made up a few moments ago.

“[Wrath of a Thousand Slain Souls]!”

Arcs of blue lightning radiated from all side of my body, illuminating the darkness with a resounding volley of thunder. The thing emerged then, hissing and squealing as it was struck by one of the bolts.

I leapt forward with my Beast-heightened reflexes and cleaved into the mass of tentacles with a [Three-Log Chop]. It felt like cutting through stone, my blade barely managing to cut into one of the eye-ridden appendages.

With a twirl the thing whipped back at me and my skin ignited with pain as what felt like a thousand razor blades raked across my skin. The force from the hit was enough to knock me backwards into one of the steel girders, causing a plume of dust to fall down upon my head.

The thing writhed before me, looking like an octopus again but with horrid human eyes instead of suckers. It was tough. Whatever its tentacles were made of, they were far tougher than when they were connected to Hong Feng.

It came at me again and I rolled to the side and out of its path.

A strange sound filled the air, like another shriek but only louder.

It was as if the sound itself were attacking my soul.

I cried out in pain as something cut into me, surpassing all my defenses.

But there was no blade; the tentacles didn’t even touch me.

In my mind’s eye I saw my Flame flicker, like being blown by a strong gust of wind.

Holy shit…this thing could attack my very soul?

The thought filled me with panic and the need for its quick demise.

I raged back at it with a series of axe technique, my Demon form heightening the lightning-infused charge of my attacks. To my amazement, the beast twirled and spun, meeting every strike with one of its own, parrying and blocking me with its tentacles.

But I was chipping away at it as well.

It made that sound again and I winced as my Flame took another hit, disrupting my flow of Frenzy. In that split second the creature leapt at me with a speed unimaginable, engulfing me with its tentacles.

Searing-hot pain filled my body as the eyes pressed in on me, the strength of its tentacles crushing me like a vice. I struggled to fortify my body with [Iron Skin] and [Iron Core] but the attack was more than just physical. Dark Frenzy pressed against my Flame with the same intensity as its limbs against my body.

Dark visions filled my mind.

Endless plains of demons, writhing en masse.

~Oh, how I did covet this vessel through the eyes of that weak husk. Thou shall dwell in it no longer, foul Demon of the cur-sed Flame~

What the hell?

This thing didn’t want to kill me.

It wanted to possess me!

More than that, it wasn’t even talking to me…it saw me only as my Flame.

The Dark Frenzy pressed in on me even harder, my Flame growing darker and starting to exude thick black smoke.

No, not again. You won’t choke my soul!

I struggled against the dark forces surrounding me, but the more it invaded my Flame, the less Frenzy I could use to keep it from crushing my body. I was in a desperate spiral towards darkness. Whatever this thing was it was far more powerful than I was. Even as a Core Realm cultivator I felt weak.

Then it suddenly occurred to me.

I can’t fight this...

This dark god or whatever the hell it was, I was no match for it.

It possessed powers I couldn’t comprehend, much less withstand.

But there was one thing I did know.

It did not fear me, but it did [Fear the Flame].

I pulled the Struggler from the wheel and let the Demon take full control, my vision shrinking to a pinprick. My Flame exploded with white-hot fury, pushing the Dark Frenzy back with a roar. The monster recoiled in the physical world, stunned by the attack, the same way I’d been stunned by its spiritual attack as well.

~Such strength…impossible!~

I willed the Struggler to take back a portion of control as I leapt into the air, high above the writhing mass of darkness and terror. I tapped into the Frenzy of my heightening Flame, enough to fill an ocean. I channeled it all into a single attack, my Dantian swelling to capacity.

“[Lightning Splits the Towering Oak]!”

I came crashing down axe first with a single column of white lightning.

The air shattered with a resounding boom! reverberating with the roll of thunder.

The Corrupted Steel of my axe held firm, delivering every ounce of my strength as I cleaved through the monster’s hardened flesh like butter. It fell apart in two halves, writhing and squealing as its shrieks of anguish filled my mind.

~Foul, cur-sed Flame… Thou doth use thy husk as an apostle? Foul, foul, foul…~

The writhing stopped and slowly the tentacles began to dissolve into tar-black goo.

The oppressive Dark Frenzy left with it, and I could feel myself able to breathe again.

I collapsed to my knees as the Struggler quickly regained control.

I still wasn’t sure what the hell I’d just fought against or even experienced, but one thing was certain. There were forces far darker and more powerful than I ever could have imagined at work here. But I didn’t have time to comprehend it all now.

Hong Feng and whatever he’d become was now dead.

That’s all that mattered.

Slowly I rose to my feet and left the dark crypt of the unknown creature far behind.

* * *

I rushed through what was left of the Fire Bird headquarters, the building living up to its name literally as timber and stone alike burned in a raging inferno. I couldn’t feel the heat of the flames—normal fire no match for my base conditioning even without my augmented forms—but I ran with purpose regardless.

I reached the outer entranceway and saw Du Mak and Ju Gong still passed out under the pile of rubble. I sighed. I couldn’t just leave them here to die now, could I? I supposed not. They’d proven fairly harmless compared to the rest of the bunch—mere doormen not involved in the darkest of the sect’s activities.

But more than that, they’d kind of grown on me as well, Du Mak especially.

I sighed again.

I’ll probably end up paying for this later, I thought. But where would my humanity be if not firmly in the Struggler’s grasp. I grabbed them both by their collars and dragged them out of the burning building and into the alleyway. As I looked down at them, sleeping like babies, a new thought occurred.

Perhaps saving them could serve a greater purpose as well.

I reached into what was left of my robes and withdrew the single silver quill I’d retrieved from my locker at the arena. I smiled at the inscription once more.

‘I regret nothing.’

I wished the words could ring as true for me as it did for Fia, but I had new burdens to bear now.

“I’m sorry, Fia,” I whispered as I removed her inscription from the metal surface with a flick of my thumbnail. “This one is against your family, not you.”

I dropped the quill into Ju Gong’s lap. Of the two of them, he’d be smart enough to put two and two together. I was fairly certain I hadn’t given either of them a chance to see exactly who had busted the door in on their faces, but this clue would seal the deal on which clan was responsible for Hong Feng and his sect’s demise.

Or at least I hoped so anyway.

Perhaps it was fitting that the sect Hong Feng targeted would be the one to exact vengeance. Or maybe I was just making excuses and shifting blame. Although I’m sure if Fia and her family had indeed learned the truth of the Fire Birds’ plot against her, the shitstorm I had caused would look like a birthday party in comparison.

I left the burning building behind me as I edged along the alleyway.

Screams of panic and commotion stirred as I neared the main streets. Members of the fire brigade were responding with a hand-drawn cart filled with several large barrels of water. I stopped to watch for a moment while the team of ten or so cultivators clad in blue robes dove into action to quell the flames. They used the barrels to augment their techniques, funneling torrents of water through the smoke-belching windows of the burning building.

I moved on then, leaving them to put out the blaze that both Hong Feng and I had caused. I went in the opposite direction of the gathering crowd, moving as far away from the scene as possible.

I got about a block away before my own reality began sinking in again.

With my thirst for revenge quelled I had only my failure left to contend with.

Yu Li and Su Ling.

My family and friends.

What had become of them?

My thoughts soured, turning dark as that strange being I’d just fought returned to my mind as well. How could I ever hope to defend them against a horror like that, when I couldn’t even protect them against the likes of Hein and the damn law?

The Struggler tore at my soul.

Everything I had worked so hard for lost in an instant.

I suppose I had no choice now but to finally face the consequences of my decisions. To see what had ultimately become of my friends. Or perhaps the Flame was telling me to move on. To accept the loss and seek only revenge. Perhaps the community in the wild would be lost just the same, devoured by creatures like the dark being or worse.

Perhaps my only purpose was as a tool of vengeance for the Flame.

I had asked Threja in my vision if I could do both—to be both protector and avenger.

Her answer was clear.

“Seek not an answer for what you know is true…”

The truth was clear now.

“Chun?”

I stiffened at the call of my name and spun to whoever was behind me.

I almost expected it to be Du Mak or Ju Gong, but there standing in the alleyway was a small, hunched-over figure I didn’t recognize.

“It’s you, isn’t it?” the figure said and an old man rushed out of the shadows towards me. “Thank the heavens! He said I might find you around these parts.”

“What? Who are you?”

And then the recognition finally hit like a freight train. It was the old guy from the square. The one with the hat. My first true believer.

“Old man?” I said, staring at him in disbelief. “What are you doing here?”

“Looking for you, of course!” It was then that I noticed he was bathed in sweat and panting, looking like he’d just run a marathon.

“You’ve got to come quick!” he said breathlessly. “All hell’s breaking loose in the square.”

“I know,” I said, feeling the Struggler taking control again. “I was too late. I failed everyone. Hein’s won and I’ve lost all hope of restoring my tribe. At least the one here.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” he snapped. “There’s still time! Come on!”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “What do you mean? The duel was at noon. I didn’t make it. I forfeited by default.”

“No.” He shook his head. “Jian Yi went and fetched some fancy magistrate from the Imperial City. You’ve got until midnight now, but Gui Zu volunteered to act as your second. He’s the one who said to come look for you around here.”

“What?” My Flame suddenly reignited with both hope and concern. “Gui Zu is fighting Hein?”

“No, the other girl,” he said. “The one with one hand, but he’s getting his ass kicked all the same. You need to hurry!”

His words lifted a thousand-ton boulder from off of my soul.

I couldn’t believe it.

I could almost cry.

There was still time!

“Thank you, old man!” I said, shaking him and pulling him into an embrace. “Thank you! Thank you!”

“Enough of all that!” he said pushing me away. “Go quickly now! We’re all depending on you, Chun! Go now! Go!”

He didn’t have to tell me again. Frenzy surged as I took off in a sprint, moving faster than ever before. Threja’s words returned to answer my question, but in a different light now. The Flame had indeed guided me to do both.

I had delivered justice and vengeance.

And now…it was leading me to protect my friends.

Hang in there, Gui Zu, I’m coming.

My speed increased as I soared through the air with a bolt of Frenzied lightning.

I would not be late again.