The Laws of Cultivation: Qi = MC^2

Lord Zhou’s carriage moved through the fourth peak, carrying an entourage behind him, and what he saw made his chest tighten. They had arrived at a war camp, men and women, cultivators and mortals alike were wounded and injured and there was a general sense of loss in that air that he couldn’t shake.

Were things truly that bad? He quietly thanked the heavens in his heart for having sent Lu Jie to the Seventh Peak. Without that boy… his home could’ve been facing this as well, or worse.

Lord Zhou glanced to the side outside the window at one of his aides riding a horse by his carriage. “Tell the healers and alchemists to go help with the injured.”

“My lord- but the supplies are for our men. If we use them up—”

“These men are also ours today. If they fall, the empire falls. Give them the order,” Lord Zhou said.

The man bowed his head, and then went behind to give the order. Lord Zhou himself continued further as he continued to watch. The effect of his orders were immediate as the healers quickly began to head out and help out. They carried healing pills and balms in spades, far more than any other place could even afford, as they began to quickly take a look at those with injuries and in need of the most immediate help. Rather quickly, a sense of energy began to be restored, which was further amplified as the news of their arrival and what they brought began to spread.

Soon, the men were cheering as his carriage passed, the news spreading like a wildfire through the disheartened men, and Lord Zhou couldn’t help but smile. It did not take much to reignite the fire in these men. Just a spark of hope could be enough.

But he knew that the battles in front of them were not going to be that simple. He leaned back in his carriage and awaited to arrive to meet the Lord of the Fourth Peak.

His carriage continued through the camp, before stopping in front of a large tent. Lord Zhou stepped and found the lord of the fourth peak standing outside, waiting for him.

Zeng Shanyuan walked up, arms spread out as he quickly embraced Lord Zhou in a display of unlord-like behavior. Lord Zhou smiled and returned the embrace.

“Good to have you here brother, I truly cannot thank you enough,” the man said, his voice exhausted.

“We must stand together in our time of need. You need not mention it,” Lord Zhou said, taking note of the lord of the fourth peak.

The fourth lord had always had a fatherly look with his long beard and portly belly, and eternal jovial expression. It was a joke amongst the lords and a case of fun bantering, though some tried to use it as a manner of disrespect to the lord on occasion but the man had always taken it in good humor and let the insults slide like water off a carp’s back. There was little that brought down his good mood.

But today, he looked tired. His body seemed thinner and his eyes looked strained from exertion.

“It is my shame to not have time to entertain you brother, but times are truly desperate. The war council is gathered in this tent, we can discuss further inside,” the fourth lord said.

Lord Zhou nodded. “That is why I have arrived. You need not have any shame whatsoever.”

The fourth lord nodded, and Lord Zhou followed behind him as they entered the war camp. Inside, Lord Zhou noted two men and one woman standing, all of whom put their fists together and bowed in respect, but did not take too long to linger on courtesy.

“Lord Zhou, your aid is truly appreciated in these times,” the woman said.

“Brother Zhou, this is Zeng Yanmei, my eldest niece and the chief strategist for our army,” the fourth lord said.

Lord Zhou’s eyes widened in surprise for a moment, as he recalled a young girl he’d met some years ago, riding on the fourth lord’s shoulders.

“Is this Mei Mei?” Lord Zhou asked, looking towards the fourth lord.

The beautiful young woman blushed at the nickname, and the fourth lord burst into hearty laughter, the kind that the man was known for, some life returning to him, which made Lord Zhou feel better immediately.

“Indeed! It’s that little Mei Mei! She’s grown up to be a fine woman, the most cunning strategist. To have no one be able to accuse her of getting favors from me, she challenged all the top picks to war games and won each match till they all had no choice but to recognize her,” the fourth loud proudly said.

“You flatter me, uncle,” Zeng Yanmei said with a bow. “But let us not hold Lord Zhou for stories at this time.”

The man gave her a nod at that. “You’re right, can you inform Lord Zhou of all that is going on?”

Yanmei nodded and then focused on the map unfurled on the table they were all standing around.

“This is where the demon army is making their strike from. Unlike any previous attack, they’ve using formations and tactics that would not be normally expected of demons whatsoever. They’ve also stolen weapons and have been arming their soldiers, giving them swords, spears, bows and armor. It is unlike anything they’ve previously done before,” she said.

One of the other men—a soldier by attire—around the table nodded, continuing. “Our men have been fighting constantly, but the demons are tireless. And they have not lost all their savagery. They tear down their own men if they’re injured and ruthlessly cut down anyone that’s slowing their attack. It is making fighting them both demoralizing for our men and makes them a terrifyingly efficient army to beat,” the man said.

The lord followed after the man. “The weapons and pills you sent have helped us hold on, but things are looking difficult. There has not been a strike organized ever before. They barely act like demons at all. They fight with discipline, they follow orders and there is a clear hierarchy among them. Yang Shen… he has transformed these mindless demons into something truly terrifying.”

Lord Zhou frowned, looking over the map.

Yanmei pointed at the river, highlighting an area. “That is not all, they’re using dirty tactics. They’ve poisoned the river up here making the water unclean, so now we have to ration our usage of water and people are going thirsty. It is also killing the food we have and creating shortages. The demons are also destroying the fields they’re passing through, and burning houses and so on, so even if we reclaim any land, rebuilding would take too much time, and they’ve been relentlessly charging, slowly taking over inch by inch.

And… then there are their Deathless. Those immortal demons are sowing chaos, they do not die no matter how many times they are killed and are crumbling the morale of the soldiers. To fight an immortal enemy… it is difficult to maintain morale in front of such a thing.”

“Brother Zhou, like I mentioned, your help is truly appreciated here. I cannot state just how much it helps, and as you know, this land, it is my home, and I will stand here till my dying breath to protect it. But I fear I also do not see a path to victory in this situation. The Divinities are occupied with their own front and are waiting for Yang Shen to appear before they make a move. With the strike on the Tu clan, all the five clans are on high alert and keeping their guard up, so it would be difficult to call for their aid in the time of need as well,” the fourth lord said, glancing down. “I fear we were too complacent for far too long, and let our enemies get the better of us.”

Silence remained in the chamber, everyone standing as they took in the words.

Lord Zhou looked at Lord Zeng, and then patted the lord on his shoulder. “Do not be so disheartened brother. I have arrived, and I believe I have something that can help."

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He said, and then recalled the way Lu Jie would smile whenever he had something like this to reveal to him, a mischievous smile, but one that also invigorated those who were looking.

Lord Zhou found himself smiling as well.

***

Lord Zhou, Lord Zeng and Yanmei arrived on a cliff side, looking over the battle. The demons were coming in through a valley between cliffs, pouring through the crevices, carving through the earth and tearing a way through.

The cliffs were providing a natural defensive structure, which was helping keep the demons at bay, or the fourth peak would’ve been lost by now. The lord’s mens were on the cliffs and the lands had been caved in to block the path and create hurdles. Any normal army would’ve turned around already, but the demons were simply carving a way through the earth and pushing through like a bull headed spear.

Unfortunately for them, that would not work for much longer.

“Brother Zhou… what is all this?” The fourth lord asked. A young girl kept working on a strange spherical contraption, setting it up with formation sigils and characters all up on the cliff.

“A gift from Lu Jie to you,” Lord Zhou said.

“The five-fold sage?” Lord Zeng asked, looking again at the device behind him with a look of curiosity.

“Indeed, but that one is for the end. Let us start with the simpler ones,” Lord Zhou said, extending his hand as one of the men handed a bow almost as tall as him and an arrow with a red arrowhead.

“I have never been a good aim with the bow, I must admit,” Lord Zhou said, as he knocked the arrow against the bowstring and pulled. “Thankfully with this weapon, it matters little.”

Qi swirled around the lord’s bow, the bowstring visibly shivering from the tension on it, flames flickered on the arrow’s head as Lord Zhou took aim and then let the arrow loose.

The weapon shot through the air, curving around the hill as it flew over the army of the fourth peak and then landed amidst the demon army.

Bang!

An explosion swirled, fire spreading around as chaos reigned within the army.

“Those were exploding arrows. We’ve brought enough to arm the entire army. Just one shooting squad of those raining down upon the demons will cause hell for them,” Lord Zhou said, handing back the bow. “There are those and there are the rifles. We had sent a few before, but this time we’ve brought enough to arm even the mortals. These weapons, even they can use them and fight back with.”

Lord Zeng stared, impressed, but Lord Zhou continued, grabbing a small metal device.

“But what we hadn’t shown to you before, are these,” Lord Zhou said, showing the black metal device to the lord.

“What… is this thing brother Zhou?” The lord asked, staring dubiously at the round thing.

“A void bomb,” Lord Zhou said.

“My lord! A deathless is heading our way, having spotted the strike,” one of the men shouted.

Yanmei grabbed her sword, ready to engage. “We need to get out of here—”

Lord Zhou raised his hand, stopping them all. “Let it come.”

Yanmei stared at Lord Zhou in shock. “My Lord but we cannot—”

“—Mei Mei. If he says we are alright, then we are alright. Let this demon come. Your uncle did not become lord by being a pushover,” the fourth lord said, power swirling.

“You won’t need to do much brother. Just watch,” Lord Zhou said, as they waited.

The deathless flew through the sky, soon landing on the cliff side, and looked in surprise. The men all raised their weapons, Yanmei brandishing her sword, Qi swirling around her in a fury.

Lord Zhou stood in the front, watching the demon in silence.

The demon looked around in surprise. “You pathetic vermin have not turned tail and run? Well, suits me. This will make the task much much easier,” the beast said, as the earth began to twist around its body, turning its skin to stone.

“How peculiar for a corpse to be speaking,” Lord Zhou said, watching the demon.

“Precisely. And soon, you’ll stop when I tear a new mouth for you in your gut—”

“—Catch,” Lord Zhou said, interrupting the demon as he threw the grenade.

With a simple extension of his will, his Qi spread out creating a protective dome around all of them in an instant as he reinforced it.

The demon barely had time to blink as the metallic device clanked near its feat. By the time it could realize, it was too late. The creature’s face twisted in fear before a powerful light spread out.

The world shook as the explosion out-shone the sun for a long second. Lord Zhou stood unphased, watching silently, as the collision of Qi and Gu evaporated the creature into nothingness, alongside a portion of the cliffside itself.

As the explosion finally ended, Lord Zhou let go of the protective ward, silence now covering the cliffside.

“Brother Zhou…?” The lord stammered, watching his shock.

“Did that Deathless just… die?” Yanmei asked, walking forward to inspect the place of the cliffside that had simply been erased out of existence.

“My lord, there are four more coming this way. It seems they have sensed this one’s demise,” one of the men informed.

Yanmei turned. “My lord, I’m in awe of this weapon but these ones will be wary. Surely we should move to somewhere safer?”

“L-lord Zhou, it is ready,” the girl said, in a quiet voice.

“It will be alright, let us demonstrate to you the true extent of what this weapon can do,” Lord Zhou said, turning towards the girl.

“Momo, will it be enough?” Lord Zhou asked.

The girl seemed to sweat but gave him a nod. “Fifty percent should be enough.”

“Fifty percent? Of what?” Yanmei asked, clearly growing more and more agitated as the deathless got closer.

“Alright, then on our command, fire,” Lord Zhou said.

The deathless moved quickly, flying through the air with expressions of rage on their faces. They roared and screamed and cursed something as they began to get closer.

The weapon on the cliff side whined, a high pitched noise that rang as it charged and took aim down towards the demons and the army behind them.

Lord Zhou waited, and waited just a moment longer, till he could see the demons, and see their faces.

“Fire,” he commanded.

The weapon shot forward as a beam of light tore through the world. The deathless did not even get to scream, the weapon shot a concentrated ray of pure energy vaporizing the deathless in its path, carving a hole into the mountainside as it crashed into the army, burning apart demons by the hundreds. The cliff side it had torn through rumbled as the ground underneath it failed to support the weight and the entire mountain came crashing down onto the demons underneath, those who were still alive who tried to run away but found themselves stuck as an entire mountain fell upon them.

Nearly the entire demon army in this area was eradicated, the few stragglers now scrambling for their lives.

The soldiers did not even chase after them, too shocked to even continue.

Lord Zhou turned to see Yanmei standing with her jaw hanging open. Lord Zeng looked unsettled, almost afraid and Lord Zhou couldn’t help but wonder.

Was that how he appeared to Lu Jie when he made these grand displays? He could understand why the boy seemed to love them so much.

“Was that… made by the boy too?” Lord Zeng asked carefully.

“All of it,” Lord Zhou said.

“And he is on our side?”

“By heaven’s grace.”

Lord Zeng nodded solemnly, a resolute expression on his face as he walked past Lord Zhou, to the edge of the cliff and then called out to his soldiers below.

“Men! The heavens have blessed us today. For today we fight to win, we fight with the grace of victory behind us. Do not leave a single demon alive!” Lord Zeng shouted, his voice echoing to all of the fourth peak.

A smile hung on Lord Zhou’s face as he watched the entire fourth peak break out into cheers and roars.

***

“Your army is losing, Jinhai,” a woman said, leaning back on a rickety chair in a broken down shack.

The demon she spoke to paused in sharpening his claws, eyes moving up towards the woman. “What happened?” He asked through the wolf skull he wore on his red, deep red eyes glistening with hatred.

“Why should I be the one to tell you of such things? The task was given to you by Yang Shen, not me,” the woman said, thorny vines crawling over her skin as one bore a fruit she gently plucked and bit into. Poison dripped from her lips at her bite.

“The lord of the seventh peak has brought his strange weapons. It is yet again, the actions of that boy,” another demon spoke.

“Why is he not dead yet?” Jinhai asked, irritated.

“Because Yang Shen wants him alive for some reason. It is the only decision of his that I do not understand,” the demon replied.

“Annoying. So annoying,” Jinhai said, digging in his ears with his sharpened claw as he pulled out a worm he’d skewered from within. He tossed the bug away as it crumbled to dust.

“What a mess. Guess I’ll have to make a visit myself,” he said, clicking his tongue in dismay.

“Don’t get killed,” the woman said, chuckling to herself as the demonic man stood up and walked outside the tattered shack.

A sea of corpses of cultivators awaited him outside, turning the very soil red. He watched with disinterest, before leaping into the air as he took off.

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