Skyfire Avenue

Lan Jue chuckled. “I’m not a child, why would I be contrary? I’m a single person, and the best I can do is try to protect those who are important to me. Relax, I’m not upset. What about you? How have you been lately? Have you had any time to cultivate with all this going on? Don’t let me overtake you.”

Lan Qing actually managed a stiff smile. “If you didn’t get in touch with me I would have called you. You should make a trip to An Lun.”

Lan Jue’s heart felt tighter in his chest. “What is it? What’s going on?”

“It’s nothing,” Lan Qing confessed. “Nothing bad. You’ll understand when you come.”

Lan Jue relaxed. His worst fear was the alien planets appearing suddenly near An Lun. That would be a nightmare scenario. The forces stationed there were strong, but were they strong enough to defend against a universe-traversing alien planet that could eat other planets? It was hard to say.

“Wait a minute, I’ll get father,” Lan Qing said.

After a few moments, Jue Di appeared. He had a cigar clipped between two fingers. “It should be night on Skyfire about now. What do you need so late?”

The first thing Lan Jue noticed was that his father didn’t look quite himself.

“Dad, are you alright?” Lan Jue asked, concern evident in his voice.

The old Paragon grunted. “Of course I’m alright, what could possibly be bothering me? I’m just surprised you remembered you have a father! You have a mom now, I guess dad don’t count for shit.”

Suddenly it became clear to Lan Jue the source of his father’s irritation. It was the fact that he’d accepted Luo Xianni as his mother. Lan Jue choked down a fit of laughter. “Dad, in theory there could be no child without father, nor could there be a mother. So, if I have a father I must thereby have a mother! Look, she’s a good woman. Without her you might not have ever seen me again. At your age what are you trying to hide? You need company in old age!”

Jue Di narrowed his eyes. “Watch your mouth. I don’t need to be told how to handle by business by some uppity asshole. Now just tell me what the hell you want or leave me the hell alone.”

Lan Jue could see his father fuming, barely choking back the urge to wring the life out of him. He smirked. “That’s the dad I remember.”

Jue Di’s face froze, then suddenly the fury melted away like snow before the sun. His voice came thick with shame. “Was I terrible when you were children?”

Lan Jue shook his head. “Not terrible. You used to say, ‘spare the rod spoil the child. Success through hardships.’”

Jue Di perked up proudly. “And I was right! Now what is it.”

Lan Jue obliged. “Do you remember when I told you I found an adept with a taiyin thunderbolt Discipline...”

Lan Jue went on to describe the conundrum, explaining their wish to join their opposed Disciplines with Qianlin involved.

The corner of Jue Di’s eyes crinkled as he thought. “In theory, it shouldn’t be a major issue. Just make sure that you extract and employ the purest form of your thunderbolt Discipline when joining with his. The joining of yin and yang is the way of heaven and earth. 1 It is the beginning of the universe and all the myriad beasts within it. The natural way. Within it you will discover things of great benefit to your protogenia. The advantages would apply to all of you. This should apply especially to you and the girl. The Clairvoyant was clever – the jerk. People thought Queen of Heaven Discipline was extinct, but he found it one in a million. She can’t really use it to attack, but it’s the universal support. Her abilities are compatible with anyone’s. Because of this restriction, Adepts like her have to learn other ways to be useful in a fight. For instance, by learning martial arts like I taught you. It doesn’t matter how much energy is used, she should be fine. In addition, when you’re joined her power enters and empowers yours. When you join your thunderbolt with his, on an energy level her Discipline will be involved too. You don’t need to worry about her, but you do need to worry about getting it right.

“According to what you’ve told me, it sounds like your Discipline is stronger than the other guy’s. You’ll have to guide the cultivation process, use your knowledge of Taiji to manipulate the flow and bring them together. You mustn’t be impatient. Gradually guide the powers, adapt to them, and then apply what I’ve taught you to control the flow of yin and yang within you. From there, it’s all up to your level of control.”

Lan Jue was hesitant. “But father, for this to work I may need to teach the Driver the ways of Taiji. Otherwise, I’m afraid he won’t be able to work with me.”

Jue Di frowned. “Fine, teach him. I have no pedigree to protect. But teach him only the methods necessary for moving power.”

When he heard this, Lan Jue was very pleasantly surprised. Truth be told, he wasn’t wholly convinced Jue Di would let him teach the secrets of Taiji to the Driver. It was treasured family knowledge! Even in the old days, there was typically only a few families who knew the mysteries of Taiji. 2

“Alright, so it I,” Jue Di decided. “Oh, A-Jue’s told you I’m sure. Hurry to An Luo, and bring your little girlfriend. Ah, and that guy the Driver.”

“Alright, thank you father.” Jue Di hadn’t be straightforward, but of course Lan Jue understood his instruction. With his father’s help, the product of their experience was sure to produce great results.

The conversation concluded and the holographic projector was turned off. Lan Jue turned to Qianlin, and pressed his lips to hers. The beautiful young woman became white light and permeated into his chest.

In his mind’s eye, Lan Jue saw the aliens as a lofty mountain. The weight of impending extinction grew heavier by the day. He couldn’t delay getting stronger.

ζ

Planet Luo. Chu Family home.

“Father, A-Cheng’s been in there for days and doesn’t seem to have any interest of coming out. I went in to check on him and he was like a statue. I couldn’t even feel an aura from him. Do you think there’s a problem?” The Chu family monarch, Chu Dong, seemed uneasy.

Chu Yun huffed. “You good for nothing. I can’t tell you how happy I am A-Cheng has locked himself away for so long. Why would you go in and disturb him? He has immersed himself in the ghostly realm, the domain of our ancestors. It is a sign of his great chances to become a Paragon. No one can disturb him. He must be allowed to cultivate on his own. When he has achieved what he set out to gain, he will come out on his own. Who knows, it may be possible that he emerges as the new Hades.”

“That must be unlikely,” Chu Dong said incredulously. “Before locking himself away he was seventh rank. Still a long way to go.”

Chu Yun challenged his assertion. “Why should it be impossible? He is my grandson. A moment’s insight can bring more growth than ten years of laborious cultivation. It’s clear that the pendant he was given by His Majesty the Clairvoyant is of great benefit to him. So far it’s been a few months. If he remains like this for a year, then he has a chance.”

A fervent fire lit behind the old patriarch’s eyes when he thought of the possibility. For his grandson to break through so young, they really did have a chance to retake the Dark Citadel within his lifetime. Who could say, their young prodigy could grow to be as strong as the likes of Jue Di!

ζ

Poseidon’s Palace.

Hua Xu stood silently beside the dark blue column of light.

Within was Hua Li, suspended in air. He slowly raised his head, his arms outstretched to his sides. By now the singer’s signature blue hair went all the way down to his feet. The man looked like a crystal reflection of the light, otherwise.

Shimmering golden runes would appear occasionally on his forehead. They would shine and lift, only to face and disappear. Then they would show up somewhere else. They appeared to follow pathways like blood vessels. So far they extended down to his mid torso and back, creeping towards his waist.

Hua Li’s eyes were closed, he was the picture of serenity. Like a sleeping child. His long eyelashes seemed to undulate with unseen waves.

Mo Xiao stood behind Hua Xu. She was clad in a long white dress with embroidered gold runes that made her look holy and pure. Her big eyes were filled with fervor as she watched the change overcome Hua Li.

“When the script of Poseidon covers him from head to toe, that is when he is ready to accept the seed of the ocean. Perhaps another half a month. You should prepare yourself, there can be no mistakes.” Hua Xu warned.

“Yes,” Mo Xiao respectfully replied.

A smile crept into Hua Xu’s lips. “Once you have joined with the seed of the ocean, I will announce on behalf of the Poseidon group that you are man and wife.”

Mo Xiao hesitated. “This news will affect his business reputation.”

Hua Xu’s smile widened. “When has the Poseidon Group fretted over such things? This is your due title.”

Mo Xiao offered up no further protest, only nodding. On the contrary, she looked excited.

His wife? Although it’ll be in name only, I’m still happy. A-Li, will you see me for how much I love you, one day?

ζ

“Sorry for troubling you, mom,” Lan Jue said to Luo Xianni with a winning smile.

She waved him off. “Progress is always a good thing. No trouble at all. Oh, right, then you said you wanted to make a trip to An Lun to see that old pile of refuse, right? He didn’t say anything about me staying behind, did he?”

Lan Jue shook his head. “He did not, of course not. You know I see that he cares for you. I don’t know what his hang up is, but I called him out on it.”

Luo Xianni scowled, looking like a petulant young girl. “What does he have to be hung up about? The man’s practically bipolar. Life has value, but love is priceless. If it were free people would just throw it around, but he’s terrified of commitment. Does he think I’ll tie him down? Hmph! He’s an old fogey, it’s not like I have to worry about him picking up young women. Whatever, forget about it. You two get to it. I’ll watch over you and help. We’ll make sure you succeed before you head out. We have to make sure that old bastard knows what you’re worth!”

1. The phrase he uses means more than this when considering the theory of yin and yang. The Huang Di Nei Jing was one of the first books on Chinese yin-yang theory, and the first to collate the whole collected knowledge up to that point. In it, the combination of yin and yang is described as ‘the guiding principle of all living things; the bearer of change; the beginning and the end; the palace of the immortals; all treatments must take this into account.’ It is a central guiding precept in a lot of Chinese thought, especially medicine, along with the five elements.

2. Chen style 4 lyf