Author's Preface
For the next week and a half the boys trained day and night. "No matter how much I cultivate. I can't cross into Master territory." Ilho threw his butterfly swords down.
"Hanjo already reached it, if I fall behind too much, I'll never hear the end of it." Jinhu threw a punch and shattered a dummy.
Blue watched them both for a moment. "You guys realize, you've gone from third-rates to almost masters in basically six months. That's insanely fast. I wish I was some guru who could give you advice and tell you what to do." Blue walked forward and bent down to pick up Ilho's swords. "But, you have to keep moving forward, you will get there. You don't have a choice if you are going to stick with me." Blue chuckled as he handed the swords back to Ilho.
"Coming from the guy with a system. Seriously, did it just help you reach master in the middle of that fight. Because if so, I want one too." Ilho grabbed the swords, twirled them into his sheaths.
"Ooohhh. Me too, I want a system. I want to clear gates and jump stars in an instant." Jinhu kept pummeling on the training dummies.
Blue sighed. "I don't know how it works. I know that my system is different. I've worked with hunters on Earth, I've seen their system screens. It's nothing like mine. There is too much I don't know about my system," He looked between the two boys. "and sometimes, it says the weirdest shit. Like something you'd hear from some old wise man who speaks in riddles."
"So what you're saying is, you are some super special person." Jinhu roared laughing. "There's a better chance that I'm smarter than your sister."
"It did call me champion." Jinhu stopped laughing and rolling around immediately.
"Champion? What the fuck does that mean?" Ilho asked.
"The more you three spend time together, the more foul your mouths become." A voice whispered in Ilho's ear.
"Son of a bitch!" Ilho jumped and fell over pieces of the dummy Jinhu destroyed. He landed on the ground. "Seriously, can we tie a bell around your neck?"
Jinhu gripped his stomach and laughed uncontrollably. Blue shook his head. "Let me guess Sa Gwan, the Sect Leader wants us?"
Sa Gwan nodded his head and vanished.
Blue, Ilho, and Jinhu walked into Wu Jin's office. Ryul, Hanjo, Yeol and Cheng stood to one side.
"Good, you're all here. I know you're going to beg to go to the gate with Blue. I will allow it. So long as you promise to listen to Cheng and Yeol." Wu Jin stood. "You guys are strong, no doubt. But you're still inexperienced. Also you four," Wu Jin pointed his rod at Hanjo, Ilho, Jinhu and Ryul. "are on the verge of breakthroughs. Going from first-rate to Master inside the gate could be dangerous. If you're told to retreat. You do just that." Wu Jin began tapping his rod. "Silent Edge owes alot to you three." He stopped in front of Blue, Ilho, and Jinhu. "But the rod isn't finished with you yet. You do not have its permission to die. Am I clear?"
The boys bowed. Cheng stepped forward. "The Heavenly Demon will be coming with us as well. So mind your tone."
Yeol stepped forward. "He may not be on my level, but he is still a 2 star Ascendant nonetheless."
"Ryul, Hanjo." Wu Jin stepped in front of them. "You are both now Silent Edge, you are not visitors, nor are you stray dogs. I want you to know this fact since I've never said it outloud."
A knock came at the door of Wu Jin's office. Seori stepped through with two boxes. "Here you are sir, the sizes should be perfect." Seori bowed.
"Thank you, strategist." Wu Jin grabbed the boxes and handed them to Ryul and Hanjo. "These are uniforms of Silent Edge. Wear them with pride." Ryul and Hanjo bowed. Both boys opened the box. They looked at each other and smiled.
"Now, we will leave tomorrow morning for the gate in the west. Go and rest, I hope this gate will help each of you return here no longer first-rates, but Masters. Oh one more thing, I am coming with as well. This office is pissing me off. I need to kill something."
The red gate shimmered in front of Murim’s morning sun. Yeol, Wu Jin and Cheng stood arms crossed in front of the boys, waiting for Yong Ma and his forces to show up. "Do demons not know about being on time?" Jinhu whispered to Ilho.
"I'm pretty sure he just does whatever he wants, he is the Heavenly Demon." Ilho shrugged his shoulders.
At that moment two figures appeared through the fog and dust. Behind them marched two lines of men, ten in each line, in unison. "So eager to fight i see." Yong Ma tapped Yeol's arm as he approached. "Are they ready though?" Yeol nodded. "Good, shall we see how strong they really are then?" Yong Ma gestured for his men to march forward through the gate.
"So your little brother came huh?" Jinhu asked.
"He did, so please don't be stupid and piss him off Jinhu." Blue put Jinhu in a headlock. "Or else he may burn you to death." He looked at Ryul. "You okay?"
"I will be, it's good to see him." Ryul smiled. The boys all followed Wu Jin, Yeol and Cheng into the gate.
As they stepped through the gate Blue mumbled under his breath. "Oh, we are definitely not in Kansas anymore Toto."
As he looked forward, it was an endless sky of clouds stretching in every direction. Above the clouds, islands floated. Hundreds of jagged landmasses hung suspended in the sky. The undersides glowed orange as magma dripped off. Some were vast enough to hold the entirety of Chengdu. Others barely the size of a hut. Each swayed and moved with every gust of wind.
On the nearest island something screamed. As everyone looked, it rose into the air. Its wings massive, a body like a dragon, with a face similar to that of a man. Its shriek was loud enough to make everyone cover their ears. The sound was a call, a dozen became two dozen. By the time the echo was gone, the sky was full of the winged beasts.
Wu Jin unsheathed his blade. "They are coming. Form up."
Yong Ma’s face grew a wide grin. "Time to see if this Jiung is worth the hype."
Blue side eyed the Heavenly Demon. "Sir, Jiung is dead. I am Blue."
Haejin shifted uncomfortably a few paces away. Ryul put a hand in Haejin’s head. "Don't worry. His name doesn't change the fact he is our big brother."
Haejin nodded. "Hi, Ryul. I'm happy to see you too, and you're right. It's jus-"
"Weird right? What's weirder is now your our brother too!" Jinhu smacked Haejin’s back and sent him stumbling a few feet forward.
The first wave of wyverns descended. The demons moved as one. The Heavenly Demon, and Yeol alongside Wu Jin and Cheng carved a line through. Blue and the boys followed striking any stragglers that made it through. Yong Ma's hands cut black arcs through the air, shredding wyverns mid flight and burning their corpses as they fell through the sky. Wu Jin, Cheng and Yeol moved beside him, Silent Edge techniques and Tang posion cut through the monsters. All three elders had huge smiles on their faces as they tore through the first wave.
Up ahead a larger island loomed, well over a hundred meters away.
"The first-rates will never make that jump." Wu Jin said without looking back.
Blue chuckled. "See you there losers!" He took off sprinting. The rock beneath his feet cracked as he leapt. He landed on the island, tumbled and stood up. "Let's go." He waved his arm.
Ilho looked at Jinhu. "I'm going to kill him."
"I'm going to make sure Mu Jang knows how much Blue loves his door."
"Amitabha... our leader knows how to push buttons. I shall pray to Buddha for vengeance." Hanjo said with his palms pressed together.
"Yeah, he's getting a little cocky." Ryul looked at Haejin. "Care to knock him down a peg?"
Haejin smiled and bent down. The next second he vanished and appeared half away across the chasm, 50 feet in the air. As he descended Blue hit the ground. Haejin stood over him. "The big brother i knew, was more humble. You're far too weak to be so cocky."
"Seriously? What the fuck man." Blue slid from under Haejin and stood.
Across the chasm, Yeol grabbed Ilho. "You're light, and I'm old. Let's hope this works. "Wait... what the fuck do mean HOOOOOO." Yeol landed with Ilho next to Blue. "There is something wrong with you people, give me a damn warning next time." Ilho shoved Yeol's arm away.
Cheng grabbed Ryul nodded to Hanjo and they both made the same jump. Yong Ma approached Jinhu who put his hands to his mouth and screamed. "I HATE ALL OF YOU!" Yong Ma picked him up and threw him across the chasm. Jinhu screamed the entire way, stopping at Ilho's feet. He looked up face full of dirt. "Seriously who invited the fucking maniac?"
Yong Ma landed. "Well that was exhilarating. Been a while since I tossed someone on purpose like that." He smiled as he clapped his hands.
As Blue turned his system pinged.
[Anchor Identified: 2,500 meters - northwest]
Blue looked in that direction. A massive island floated in the distance. It was ringed by smaller islands like moons around a planet. Blue pointed. "The anchor is there."
"Then," Yong Ma stood beside him. "that is where the real fight begins. We rest here and move forward after."