Depthless Hunger

In the two days after the duel, Kai eagerly explored the Pits of Strength and discovered the possibilities. He'd been concerned at first that there might be retaliation, but since he hadn't killed or maimed the champions, his victory seemed to be respected. Most cultivators gave him a wide berth, so the biggest obstacle was actually getting people to talk to him.

He trotted out toward the central area he hadn't yet explored, barely glancing at the pits to either side because they weren't worth it. The one to his right, for example, was filled with concentrated qi and only guarded by a pair of Body Refinement cultivators... the qi in it wasn't worth the time it would take to beat them. The lesser pits might be useful for weaker cultivators, not those with direct access to a significant faction like the Bloodcoral sect.

Once he got to the more powerful pits there were Thundering Scorpion guards nearby, but they were all lower stage cultivators than him - when they glared, he just stared back at them and they'd look away. Since he'd won access for the Bloodcoral sect there should be nothing stopping him from exploring anyway, so he didn't think it could cause a problem.

An intense source of mana caught his attention and he ran across the empty space to investigate the next pit. Narrower and deeper than most, with an intense source of mana burning at the bottom. It was good enough to have been a Class awakening pool for any city in Goralia, actually quite a powerful one. Such gathered sources of mana just developed naturally here.

The only people nearby were a pair of cultivators floating on a hovering sword near the mana pool. A man had his upper robes off to bare his shoulder, while a woman dipped a needle into the mana and pressed it into his skin. Kai realized that he was seeing one of the mana tattoos being created and observed eagerly.

Instantly the couple reacted, the woman smothering the mana on the needle and the man pulling up his robe as if embarrassed. Kai had gotten a good look at the work, though, and saw blurry symbols that seemed to be forming into "Heavenly Sands Tattoo" in the man's soul.

"You have no business here!" The man flew their sword up to the surface level, scowling fiercely, while the woman shifted to a sturdy needle that could be used as a weapon. That just reminded him of his wives - the needle was like Omilaena's, and the scowl was a bit like Zae Zin Nim.

"I'm not here to challenge for your pit," Kai said with a polite bow. "In fact, if you're willing to give me some information about those tattoos, I'd be happy to help you challenge for another pit."

"Cultivation tattoos are great secrets of sects and tribes," the woman insisted. "We will never give them up, even on pain of death."

That seemed a bit extreme. The couple had both achieved Nascent Foundation, so they were strong enough to defend a powerful pit like this, but he could take them on and they probably knew it. Kai sighed and took a step back, just raising his hands.

"I'm really not here to fight you," he said. "Are you sure we can't work together?"

"I don't know what tribe you're spying for, but they should send someone more subtle!" The man took another step forward to the edge of his flying sword.

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Since he didn't want to start a fight for no reason, Kai headed on to scout the remaining pits. If he really needed access to that mana, he could just challenge them for it. Acquiring the knowledge of the cultivation tattoos would be the more powerful boost, so no sense in creating animosity. What he needed was to find a tribe that was more willing to cooperate with him, then see if he could earn their secrets without actually joining.

As he explored the heart of the Pits of Strength, Kai noted a few valuable pits, but none leapt out at him until almost the end. He was turning around, arcing back toward the town, when suddenly he felt a pulse of power. It was subtle, not as overwhelming as the others, but it was the combination that struck him.

A perfect balance of pure qi and cool mana.

On instinct Kai started moving toward it, hungry for the power. Taking it himself would only provide a small boost, but it felt perfect for Zae Zin Nim. She needed a strong source of mana that would match her qi, and this seemed far closer than anything he'd seen before. Fixated on the source, Kai almost ran into the pair of burly tribesmen guarding it.

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When he got close, he immediately reconsidered. The two wore the purple robes of the Thundering Scorpion tribe and they were both Earth Souls - this pair was comparable to the champions, no doubt some of the strongest few people in the entire tribe. Clearly they understand the value of the pit just as well as he did.

"Move along now," one of them said gruffly. "The Bloodcoral sect may have the right to be here, but you can't just take what you want."

"Is that pit being used?" Kai asked. "It doesn't feel like anyone's draining it."

"We're holding it in reserve. If you think you can take it for yourself, you'll find out just how wrong you are."

"Easy now." Kai saw that the two were edging into scorpion position and didn't want to provoke them. "I'm not here to steal anything, just challenge fairly. There's no rule against us challenging for this pit, is there?"

"Only if you think you could beat us," the other tribal champion said.

"Could one person challenge you both?"

Immediately the tribal cultivators stiffened, eyes widening in anger. Kai realized that he was implicitly insulting them by even suggesting that one person could beat them both, even though he could. Everyone here was so touchy...

"All challenges must be in pairs!" the first tribesman practically shouted.

"Alright then, have a nice day." Kai decided not to turn his back on the pair, more to avoid angering them than because he was really worried, and instead backed away from the pit.

Now that he'd explored all the possibilities, he had several targets. There were no Sky Souls in this part of the Western Wilds, so the greatest challenge he would face would be a pair of Earth Souls - all he needed to do was grab Cor Li Xan and they could take care of those. Presumably the Bloodcoral sect would want to claim some of the weaker pits for their other disciples, but Kai had no problem helping them win some challenges if it gained him access to such powerful resources.

Cor Li Xan had pulled a grandiose tent out of his spatial item, easy to find due to its bright red and blue coloring. When Kai returned to it, however, he immediately got the sense that something was wrong. Not an attack, exactly, just a new presence within the tent and some instinct that something had changed...

When he ducked his head enough to get inside, Kai saw that Cor Li Xan was speaking with another Bloodcoral cultivator. It was an older man, his hair white and receding but his body still strong. This should have been a relief, yet Kai only found himself more on edge... it was something about the way they immediately turned to look at him.

"Is everything alright?" Cor Li Xan asked.

"Just fine." Kai bowed to both of them, deeper to the old man. "I've found a pit I want to claim, and I think we can win a challenge without too much trouble if-"

"Ah, that... is a bit of a problem." Cor Li Xan gave him a thin smile. "You see, we need to consider local politics carefully and not seize too much. You've done us a great service, but it's time for you to return to the sect headquarters. We'll handle things from here."

Kai stiffened as he realized that he was being pushed out but didn't want to believe it. "I helped you return to the Pits of Strength. Shouldn't you support me now?"

"We can only challenge once during every month," Cor Li Xan said with a shake of his head. "We need to be as confident as possible that we'll win. Here, let me introduce you... this is Cor Yan Wei, my elder brother in the sect. He and I have the best chance to lay claim to the strongest pits."

The old man lowered his shroud enough for Kai to get a glimpse of his soul.

Name: Cor Yan Wei

Total Power: 621

Cultivation: Earth Soul 41% (446)

Bloodcoral Qi (+70)

Physique Level: E-0 (80)

Soul Level: 5 (25)

>

It was interesting that Cor Yan Wei had a new power called "Bloodcoral Qi" but Kai couldn't analyze it, not while his mind was churning over what exactly had happened. There was a positive interpretation to this: without knowledge of his monstrous soul, Kai looked slightly weaker than the old man's 621 power. Maybe they really did just want what was best for the sect.

But Kai didn't believe it, not for a second. It seemed more likely that Cor Li Xan had just used him for his poison resistance to defeat the champions and gain access. The limitations on challenges had intentionally not been explained to him beforehand, and perhaps that was the reason he had been given the information so late.

"You'll join us here soon enough," Cor Li Xan said with a smile. It didn't even look false, like he didn't consider this a betrayal, just the way of things. "We've been discussing our policies, and the rule will be that any Bloodcoral cultivator with at least five marks will be able to participate in the challenges."

"Leaving me two short." Kai gripped his medallion by the band and held it up. He kept his voice calm, but the muscles in his arm flexed and the cultivators seemed to sense his tension.

"No, of course you deserve a reward for your contribution." The old man reached out and touched Kai's medallion, adding a fourth crystalline mark. "You could be a pillar of our sect, young man. But leave the delicate politics to your elders."

"Of course." Kai doubted his smile looked very pleasant, but he smiled and stepped out.

Back in the wastes he paced beside the tent, considering his options. The conventional choice would be to go back to the sect headquarters and earn his way to a fifth mark. Once he had that, he could grab almost anyone in the sect as a "partner" and win duels on his own. Unless they twisted the rules and insisted that both participants needed five marks.

No, screw the conventional path. Kai didn't care about the Bloodcoral sect except as a step to his real goals. He had what he needed, so it was time to meet up with the others and take what they wanted.