Chapter 51: Beast Tide

Chapter 51: Beast Tide

I was killing a beast every half minute or so, and that time was decreasing as more beasts rushed into the area. I had lost track of the pursuing cultivators, but I wasnt about to just leave the area. I had no doubt that my pursuers were attempting to surround me and would attack the moment I attempted to leave the area.

That was why I needed to circle around more to lose any type of pursuit. A large amount of clouds had swept in across the sky as well, blocking any attempts I had at navigating without the sun. I swung out with my blade once more, killing another beast.

It pained me to leave behind all the spirit stones, but there was no time to even think about gathering them up. I was also getting tired. While my blade was a high rank, and my cultivation gave me a tremendous amount of strength and endurance, I had been cutting down beasts constantly, while having to keep moving.

I had been circling around the beast tide in a counter clockwise fashion, so I had been constantly turning to my left. It was time to take a big chance. I could tell where the center of the beast tide was, due to the growing number of beasts in that area. It was constantly moving and adjusting. A beast tide wasnt a tea party where the participants all gathered in one place.

In preparation for killing beasts and gathering spirit stones while I had been in the second stage, I had read quite a bit about the beasts and beast tides were a part of that knowledge. They were described as living things unto themselves. There was also a lot of chaos involved in how they acted while not under the command of a higher ranked beast. Even then, it was more about pointing the beast tide in a direction, than giving specific commands.

I was about to be overwhelmed as the number of beasts rushing to the area kept increasing. I made a sharp right turn to begin putting distance between myself and the beast tide. I cut down another beast in my path, while looking around.

Without my experience killing beasts in the wilderness before, there would be no way I could have handled them so efficiently. The real challenge was to face them one at a time. I had been managing so far, but there were five beasts behind me and another three rushing towards me in the direction I was heading.

While they were staggered, I could easily think through how the fights would play out. I would kill four, but then be pincered by the fifth and sixth at the same time. Unlike cultivators, their mindlessness made this fight one I would prefer, which was why I had started a beast tide.nove(l)bi(n.)com

I heard a loud explosion in the distance and felt a blast of hot air. Some other cultivator had used a technique most likely. While the beasts turned their heads slightly, that didnt stop or divert the nearby ones from rushing at me.

One after another, I cut the beasts down, while trying to escape. When I killed the fourth beast that was part of this wave, I pulled out my gun and shot the fifth one, put my gun away, and cut down the sixth beast. I winced at the expense of a rank 4 bullet, but there was no other option. It wasnt wasted, but it was one less bullet I would have on me going forward.

I spun in the air and cut horizontally, cutting the head open of a beast chasing me. I spun back around as I touched the ground and kicked off again. I was putting distance between the core of the beast tide and myself, but the deaths would drag the beast tide after me.

That was the biggest reason why cultivators did not start up beast tides. They would get dragged down, and escape was difficult. While I could have tried to dodge, the beasts would have quickly turned around and chased me. The dead bodies of their fellow beasts would slow many of them down to gorge themselves on their fallen comrades.

Even with my level of cultivation, I was about the speed of a rank 3 beast, and they had far more stamina than I did. I was also exhausted from staying up for so long. I had escaped the immediate wave, but more beasts were headed in my direction.

I pulled out scent concealer, repulsion, and bait. I used the concealer on myself, tossed the vials of beast bait to the sides after opening them. I did the same with the repulsion, but in front of me. The beasts rushing for me began to divert. In the next minute, I used up my entire stock of alchemic beast products in order to divert the beasts to my flanks, so I didnt have to kill any more as I escaped.

Getting away from all the beasts was the immediate priority. I had cut it very close to my limit of how many beasts I could handle. Any longer, and I could have been easily overwhelmed. One serious hit and I would get swarmed as I slowed down. I had to keep moving, and timing my engagements, so I didnt get piled on by the beasts.

I raced away from the growing beast tide, adjusting my course to try and avoid running into any more beasts. I had to kill a few while rushing by them, but I had escaped the vortex. Looking up at the sky through the trees, it was still all a gray mess and a light drizzle had started as well.

Shaking my head, I kept moving in as straight a line as possible. It didnt matter too much which direction I was headed, just that I needed to put as much space between me and the enemy cultivators as possible. The beast tide would move in a direction, but there was a very small chance it would head the way I had gone.

I took the chance to reload my gun as I kept retreating. Hopefully the beast tide didnt head in the direction of a city. That would be a complete mess if it did occur. The outer wall would hopefully divert the beasts to either side, while the inner wall would be for protection as people fled inside the city. That was if there were no cultivators to handle the defenses and stomp the beast tide out, which wasnt easy. The more beasts that were killed the more that would be drawn to an area.

If a city was lost, that would actually generate a lot more drama and attention than the Cloudy Moon Sect being destroyed. The high sects wanted the mortal and cultivator aspects of civilization to be separate, and not overlap. Also, it was a pain rebuilding an entire city.

There were stories in the past and it did happen. The high-ranking sect would assign a mid-ranking sect in the nearby area to take over the citys management and defense. The sect that lost a city, would get a lot of negative attention.

The Cloudy Moon Sect had been attacked, and there was no way all these demonic cultivators could escape attention. While my sect might get looked at, the negative attention would fall on the demonic sect much more. It wasnt like they could go and complain about me setting off the beast tide.

Still, it wasnt something I would want known. As the sky grew dark, my eyelids began to sag and my body felt even more tired, but I kept running through the forest, and over a couple large hills. No one intercepted me throughout the night. The drizzle turned into rain, making everything more miserable.

It was hard to tell when dawn arrived, as the sky had become much more overcast. I eventually found and collapsed in a small crevice in an oversized rock. I closed my eyes and went to sleep. Water was pouring down in front of me, and everything was damp. I didnt dare light a fire, and this was the best I had found in the last hour or so, since I had started looking.

I pulled out some food from my spatial ring. I ate and drank before falling asleep as the storm got worse, there was lightning in the distance.

When I woke up, it was still raining heavily, cold, and my neck was stiff. I hadnt been ambushed in the night and at least some of my exhaustion was gone. The biggest issue now was, that I had no idea where I was.

It would add time onto the time needed to get to Imperial City, but at least I had escaped the enemy cultivators and the beast tide. I stretched a bit while looking out of the crevice. It was miserable to travel in the rain, but I had done it many times in the past.

I set out from my crevice, trying to pick the direction I had been traveling the night before. If I kept heading in a straight line, eventually I would run into road, which would lead to a city. I thought about the general layout of the nearby cities and frowned as I traveled up a small mountain.

I carefully checked the door, and after a couple of minutes of not spotting anything, I decided to try and open it. It opened easily. It wasnt locked and there was no trap. The safety was in obscurity with the actual traps and locks being closer to the main base, which was hidden under the Blood Forest. It was a clever way to avoid detection.

The stone the entrance and the walls of the tunnel were made of, blocked my sight. A passive kind of defense, which was most likely incredibly expensive. But for someone of Aoyins rank it wouldnt be impossible. I also had no idea how big the Demonic Blood Sect actually was, but you didnt last for millennia as a demonic sect by being weak and not having members.

That was enough information for now. I could visit this place again once I got stronger. I had enough answers. The group that I had followed, were returning to their base, they werent pursuing me or leading me into a trap for this encounter.

I began to close the door, when I noticed four more figures rapidly approaching from a distance. I would have to retreat towards the Blood Forest, but I saw two people, approaching from opposite directions. Why?! I left the door ajar and quickly raced down the stone steps and into the tunnel scanning ahead of me. There were glowing lights created by formations lining the tunnel.

I must have triggered something. Perhaps a purely mechanical trap. That would make sense. I could have easily missed a trigger or procedure of some kind. The group of four was probably returning from trying to entrap me and the beast tide. The other two individuals were probably monitoring the area. A demonic sect would have less chores and more people keeping an eye out on the surroundings, ready to send up an alarm if attacked.

There might not have even been anything mechanical, but a prearranged signal to give, so they didnt come investigate. After the initial stairs, the tunnel was sloped downwards. There were no turnoffs and continued for a long time. In fact, I could see the group of three in the far distance, if barely.

That meant the people coming in behind me would spot me. The tunnel only had the occasional indentation for a light source, nothing else. There was just enough light I could barely see. So even if the group behind me entered the tunnel, they wouldnt be able to easily make out who I was at a distance. I wished I had some kind of bomb or trap.

I could turn around. In a narrow tunnel, my gun would reign supreme. I didnt want to go into a base controlled by a demonic sect. I should have never investigated. I let my curiosity get the best of me. The most important thing now was to avoid detection, escape, and not die.

With how the stone making the tunnel blocked off my energy sight, it was hard to tell when I arrived under the Blood Forest. The group of three in front of me went through a door that was covered in arrays and formations. A glance over my shoulder, showed the group of four was behind me in the incredibly long tunnel.

Reaching the end of the tunnel, I was confronted with a trap door. Thankfully I had been watching the group ahead of me carefully, and they hadnt been careful. I could also spot the scuff marks. I pulled out three rank 1 spirit stones and quickly put them in the appropriate slots. Certain formations activated and the door swung open.

The spirit stones were consumed, and I quickly entered before the door could close while looking around. I was on an upper level of a five level cylindrical cavern. The middle of the cavern was open, with a walkway around each level. I noted other doors like the one I had come through at other locations around the cavern. There were also other doors built into each level. I also noted that there were roots at the top of the cavern. One was pointing downwards and dripping red fluid.

Probably the main tree of the Blood Forest. Looking around, there werent many people either. I quickly turned to the side and began walking around the top walkway towards one of the other doorways. I should be able to open them from the inside without much of an issue. These kinds of doors and locks were quite strong in one direction, but easily opened from the other direction.

At least there was no one on my path or anyone staring in my direction. It made sense that a Demonic Sect wasnt big about greeting people or friendships. If I hadnt entered between two groups, I most likely would have been caught as well by the watchers outside. I didnt know if I was lucky or unlucky, entering this place without being caught. Now I needed to get out right away before I was found out.

I circled the top walkway to reach one of the paths to leave. But just as I was about to reach it. I had put my sword away to not draw attention. There was a loud gong that resounded throughout the base before a voice followed after it.

We will be performing another large scale tracking technique. All cultivators gather on the main floor to witness and support, the voice called out. A dark robed cultivator came of the room I was just going by and looked over at me.

New member or from another branch? he asked me.

Another branch, you? I asked.

Assigned here. Lets get going, the Master doesnt like people keeping him waiting, the demonic cultivator said.

Of course, I replied without hesitation and mentally winced.

You can change your robes later. Everything is a mess, since we raided that sect. And we dont have a spare in your size. Were you part of the battle?

Only near the end, I replied since I couldnt know if there was a passive truth telling technique. What about you? I asked, so I didnt have to keep answering questions as we made our way to a staircase.

No unfortunately. I was left on guard duty. Now there is another operation going on. There hasnt been this much activity in decades, the man said.

I heard it was some cultivator we are after? I asked.

Maybe. One thing you learn here, is that most people dont share important information easily, he replied.

I get it, I replied as we walked down the stairs as other cultivators all moved to the bottom floor and to the central pool of thick red liquid that looked like blood, had a lot of energy stored in it, but was some unholy concoction made from the sap from the trees above.

Well we will stay in the back, and watch, the man said. I nodded at this. I counted at least 40 cultivators, with 5 of them being rank 5 or rank 6. The big shots gathered near the pool while the rest of us hung back. I cant believe no one recognized me. But I spotted other cultivators in dirty robes, who looked worn down.

Everyone quickly became silent once we had all assembled. I could only wonder what craziness would happen now.