Seth had gotten used to sneaking around when he was homeless, and that skill was proving invaluable. Every day he could hear fighting through the largely empty streets of the sect compound. Sometimes, he could hear initiates crying in pain as their bones snapped. He left playing the hero to those who had formed large groups. His primary focus was on conserving his qi and surviving. Not that he was having an easy time of that.

  One day, about a week after their initial testing, Seth was ambushed by a group of initiates on his way to the library from the cafeteria. It was on a cross-road that didn't have any good places for Seth to hide as he crossed. Fortunately, it was a a small group, with two blocking the road ahead, and two cutting off his escape route from behind.

  "Now, now, we don't want trouble, you see," said one of the men in front of him. The man was a large man who stood at least a head taller than Seth. Not bothering to reply to the man, Seth used his qi to empower his legs, racing toward the heavyset man. The man saw Seth's brass knuckles, and brought his hands up to defend his face. Seth didn't mind being blocked, opting to stomp his opponent's overextended knee. Before the man could start screaming, Seth then smashed the man's face, shattering his jaw and sending teeth flying. Before the other three could react, Seth wheeled around on the other three.

  "Anyone else want to try anything stupid?" asked Seth. Thankfully, the other three ran in response. Even if Seth was getting stronger, he wasn't confident in handling several attackers at once. Before he could leave, he saw a proper member of the sect approach, and Seth greeted him with the normal bow. The sect member looked down at the man, who had gone from screaming to quietly sobbing, and forced some kind of round pill into his mouth. Then, he turned to Seth.

  "You realize, initiate, that you came dangerously close to killing him?" The sect member's monotone made him sound both annoyed and bored.

  "No, senior brother."

  "Be more careful in the future."

  He swallowed his indignation and nodded. Seth had no illusions the sect cared that he was defending himself. He bowed deeply, only rising after the disciple had collected the large initiate, and left. He had blood splattered on him, and his brass knuckles were caked in it. He washed up at one of the washing stations scattered throughout the sect compound. His robes would have to wait, though. He had research to get to.

  The library was becoming more crowded these days. It still wasn't as popular as the various training facilities, but those were dominated by a few large groups. Those who couldn't access the official facilities usually squatted in one of the many unoccupied buildings in the compound. More and more sect members were coming, but by Seth's estimates, this compound could comfortably house 100,000-200,000 people. He pushed the mystery to the back of his mind, as he had more pressing concerns.

  He hoped he would have some training opportunities soon. He made good progress with qi control exercises he found in the library. Some of them even produced small effects, though he had nowhere near enough qi to keep them going for long. Still, he feared that without guidance, he would hit a roadblock and fall behind.

  Today, he was taking a break from the research to see if there was some history of the current planet they were on. He was in luck, and the planet had a unique history of having changed hands several times over the last few millennia. The earliest record was of Sang Taiyi who created the outer layer. This allowed people to come and harvest the bountiful resources of this world. Millenia later, the world is now bare of resources and full of ruins.

  Around dinner time, Seth went to grab dinner for him and Therus. It seemed there was a group of nobles that weren't fond of Therus. He didn't pry, as he respected the kid...scratch that, the man's secrets. It sounded like some rich people drama that Seth wanted no part in.

  When Seth made it to the cafeteria, he was greeted by Johan, who looked like he was just leaving. As they passed, Johan reached out to shake Seth's hand in greeting.

  "Good day. Have you been doing well lately?" asked Johan, a polite smile on his face. Seth had no idea why the guy was so friendly to him. Considering the size of his group, Seth had no intentions of making an issue of it.

  "I've been doing fine, and you?" Seth answered.

  "Well enough. Some guys from lesser families have been creating minor issues. Nothing that's been seriously problematic, simply tiring" Johan said, letting his tiredness show on his face.

  "Sorry if this is rude, but how are they creating problems?" Seth asked. When he saw Johan's smile drop and his eyes narrow, he added, "I mean, please tell me more about the problems they're causing."

  Johan's smile returned as he added, "Some lesser nobles have refused to join hands with us. Normally, I wouldn't care about such slights, but there are limited seats for new members in the sect. For the sake of those who have supported me all, I will do whatever is necessary to cull the competition."

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  "That makes a depressing amount of sense," said Seth.

  "There are also noble houses that have publicly opposed our house. Imagine, for a second, that your family were here. Furthermore, imagine that their families have called for robbing and executing your own family. They may not have said the words themselves, but when your family's life is on the line, would you trust them?"

  Seth slowly shook his head. The more he heard, the more he felt for Johan, and the more he hated this whole situation. He tried to stay calm and keep his face neutral. It wasn't this guy's fault the sect's initiation process was profoundly screwed up. If his kids were part of this initiation, he was pretty sure he'd fight tooth and nail to give them every advantage he could.

  "Speaking of nobles whose houses have publicly opposed ours, I hear you have been spending a significant amount of time with Therus. Is that correct?" asked Johan.

  "Yes, what of it?"

  "Fifteen years ago his family publicly accused ours of abandoning our duty. They were a strong, rising family, who wanted to prove themselves. They practically begged us for an opportunity, so we gave them one. Even provided them resources to help them with their new charge. After all that, when they failed, they dared blame us for abandoning our duty!" Johan growled, now no longer smiling.

  Taking a second to compose himself, Johan continued. "Excuse me, that was unsightly. I let my emotions get the better of me, and I apologize for that. I just wanted to warn you to be careful. Also, I'd like to extend an invitation for you to join up with our group. From what I've heard, you're a competent fighter, and with some support could turn into a real asset. No need to answer now. Think about it and we'll discuss later," said Johan, hurrying along, his face red from either anger or embarrassment at losing his cool. Seth wasn't sure either way, and didn't waste more time thinking about it. He picked up two bowls of soup and went back to the library.

  After they finished eating, Seth and Therus went to their normal sparring spot. As they sparred, their growth during the past month became clear. Seth's qi-embued movement was more natural, though still not quite at the level of most initiates. Therus' growth, on the other hand, was more about mindset. His hesitant movements had become sure and crisp. He also no longer fell for stupid tricks, pushing Seth harder and harder.

  In the middle of their breaks, Seth also thought about what Johan told him earlier. Was Therus someone he should actually stick around with? They were friendly, but Seth wasn't sure they were "die for you," levels of friendly. A couple hours later, when they wrapped up their sparring, Seth wasn't any closer to an answer.

  On their way back, four initiates ambushed them from positions on a crossroad. From the way they moved, it was clear they were not the usual desperate initiates he was used to fighting. Their movements had a superhuman power and grace that Seth could only envy. Looking at Therus, they both nodded before sprinting toward the library.

  With qi enhanced steps, Seth and Therus kept ahead of their pursuers. As they approached the library, however, Seth could see a familiar translucent barrier snap into existence. Seth had doubted they would be allowed to flee into the library, so without missing a beat, he whipped around to face their attackers, brass knuckles already out. He called out, "I'm going left," to Therus mid-charge at the leftmost attacker of the encirclement.

  Seth kicked at his target's knee, hoping to quickly knock him out of the fight. His oppoent shifted their weight at the last second, avoiding the worst of the blow. Then, a qi enhanced strike slammed into his abdomen, forcing him to redirect his qi to protect himself. With the next exchange of blows, Seth felt his strike connect with their abdomen be partly absorbed by qi. Meanwhile, he ate another qi-infused strike. *He has enough qi to attack and defend at the same time? Not good."* A punch to the side knocked Seth out of his thoughts and into the wall.

  Reaching inside his robe, he grasped his bayonet. He had hesitated to pull this, as it could be seen as an attempt to murder a disciple. At this point, though, he was getting desperate. As he saw the initiates close in, he rushed the one who had come in to help, catching him off guard. Seth threw a punch at his face, which was deflected. The punch had distracted him from the bayonet, however, which pierced his upper thigh and cracked the bone.

  He used qi to re-enforce his brass-knuckles holding arm as he blocked a blow at his throat. The force of the blow slammed him back against the wall. Head swimming, he kept his eyes trained on his remaining opponent. The initiate across from Seth was being far more cautious now, seeing Seth's blade dripping with blood. Seth took advantage of the moment of indecision to see how Therus was doing, and was shocked.

  Therus was moving far faster than Seth had seen him move before, his body and staff a blur. One of the initiates who attacked him was trying to splint his broken arm the best he could. The other one was barely holding on, and looking around to see if he was getting backup soon. Realizing they were losing, the one facing Therus yelled, "Let's get out of here!" and both began to flee. Neither Seth nor Therus gave chase.

  Once the attackers left the area, the translucent barrier in front of the library dropped. They stood silent for a moment before Seth began talking,

  "You've....been holding back on me, haven't you?" complained Seth.

  "So...have you. You never used a knife in our fights."

  "True, but you were amazing with your staff."

  "Truly?"

  "Absolutely, I would like to ask you..."

  "I apologize, but I cannot share the secrets of this technique. My family..."

  "As I was saying, I would like to ask you to keep sparring with me."

  "That, I can do."

  "And stop going easy on me. Here I thought I was doing well, but apparently I still suck."

  Therus laughed and shook his head, saying, "Those of us with some backing have already done some cultivation."

  "Really? And this initiation is supposedly fair?"

  "There is a maximum level that is accepted. It's just that some of us came in at the maximum level..."

  "Which is bullshit," said Seth.

  "...while some came in with various methods to forcefully lower their cultivation level. Which is even more, what did you call it, bullshit?"

  Seth nodded, and asked, "Say, Therus, how many members of your family have been through this initiation before?"

  "Five."

  "And how many have survived?"

  Therus hesitated for a second, before looking down and saying, "None."