Three hours into the battle, I discovered that the human body has limits even infinite Qi can't overcome.
My sword arm felt like lead. Every breath sent sharp pains through my cracked ribs. The Infinite Tide Scripture kept my movements efficient, but efficiency meant nothing when my muscles were tearing themselves apart from overuse.
[STAMINA: 11%]
[QI RESERVES: 38%]
[PHYSICAL CONDITION: CRITICAL]
[RECOMMENDATION: TACTICAL RETREAT]
[SECONDARY RECOMMENDATION: ACCEPT THAT YOU'RE GOING TO DIE HERE]
"Not... helping," I gasped, blocking another attack.
The Blood Moon disciple, a Stage 5 with a spear, pressed his advantage. He could sense my exhaustion, smell blood in the water. His strikes came faster, more confident.
Then Yun Xia was there, her palm strike redirecting his spear aside while I drove my sword through his guard. He fell.
[KILL COUNT: 31 PERSONAL]
[AT THIS RATE, YOU'LL DIE BEFORE REACHING 40]
"Lin Tian, you need to rest," Yun Xia said urgently. Her face was pale, covered in blood and grime. One sleeve of her robe was torn, revealing a deep cut on her arm.
"Can't," I replied. "We're down to six people. If I stop—"
"Five," Li Feng interrupted, her voice hollow. She pointed toward the medical station where one of our unnamed team members lay motionless. "Jin just died from blood loss."
[TEAM STATUS: 5/10]
[50% CASUALTY RATE]
[MORALE: COLLAPSING]
I looked at what remained of Team Three. Li Feng looked ready to break down completely. The two remaining members whose names I'd never learned were practically swaying on their feet. Yun Xia stood strong, but I could see the exhaustion in her eyes.
We were done. We just hadn't admitted it yet.
"New plan," I said. "We hold for five more minutes. Then we fall back to the secondary defensive line. Agreed?"
"Elder Liu will have our heads," one of the unnamed members protested weakly.
"Elder Liu can have my head if I'm alive to give it to him," I shot back. "Five minutes. Then we retreat in order. Yun Xia and I cover while you three go first."
[TACTICAL RETREAT: SOUND DECISION]
[SURVIVAL PROBABILITY IF YOU STAY: 8%]
[SURVIVAL PROBABILITY IF YOU RETREAT: 34%]
[MATH SAYS RUN, BOSS]
Before anyone could respond, the entire battlefield shook.
A massive explosion erupted from the center of the sect, a pillar of light and fire that reached into the blood-red sky. The shockwave knocked several people off their feet.
[DETECTING: NASCENT SOUL QI SIGNATURE - UNSTABLE]
[SOURCE: SECT MASTER LIANG]
[ANALYSIS: FORBIDDEN TECHNIQUE ACTIVATION]
Above the battlefield, Sect Master Liang's body erupted with golden light. His voice boomed across the entire sect, amplified by Qi and desperation:
"Azure Peak disciples! I buy you time with my life! Use it well!"
"No," Yun Xia whispered. "He's using Soul Shattering Ascension. He's going to—"
The golden light exploded outward. Sect Master Liang's body dissolved into pure energy that crashed into the three Nascent Soul cultivators surrounding him. Blood Patriarch Xu and his companions were caught in the blast, their screams audible even from our position.
When the light faded, all four Nascent Soul cultivators were gone. Simply erased from existence.
The entire battlefield fell silent.
[SECT MASTER LIANG: DECEASED]
[BLOOD PATRIARCH XU: DECEASED]
[ENEMY NASCENT SOUL CULTIVATORS: ELIMINATED (3/5)]
[ENEMY LEADERSHIP: CRIPPLED]
[BLOOD MOON FORCES: DISORGANIZED]
For a moment, nobody moved. Then chaos erupted.
"The Patriarch is dead!"
"Retreat!"
"No, push forward!"
The Blood Moon forces descended into confusion, different factions receiving conflicting orders. Some tried to retreat. Others pushed forward even harder, driven by rage or bloodlust. The coordinated army fractured into a disorganized mob.
"Now!" an inner sect elder shouted. "Counterattack while they're broken!"
Azure Peak cultivators who'd been defending desperately suddenly surged forward with renewed vigor. The tide of battle shifted dramatically.
[ENEMY MORALE: SHATTERED]
[ENEMY COORDINATION: COLLAPSED]
[BATTLE OUTCOME: SHIFTED IN AZURE PEAK FAVOR]
[ESTIMATED TIME TO VICTORY: 2-3 HOURS]
[IF YOU CAN SURVIVE THAT LONG]
"Did we win?" Li Feng asked, hope creeping into her voice.
"Not yet," I said. "But we might actually survive this."
Then I heard it. A sound that made my blood run cold.
Clapping.
Slow, mocking applause coming from behind us.
I turned to see Mei Ling, Zhang Wei's cousin, the inner sect disciple who'd marked me as a target, standing on our section of wall. She wore pristine purple and gold robes, not a speck of blood on her. Her cultivation aura radiated Stage 8 power.
"Impressive," she said, still clapping. "The worthless outer sect trash actually managed to hold the line. How unexpected."
[WARNING: HOSTILE INTENT DETECTED]
[MEI LING: STAGE 8 CORE FORMATION]
[THREAT LEVEL: EXTREME]
[BOSS, THIS IS VERY BAD TIMING]
"Mei Ling," I said carefully. "Shouldn't you be fighting the actual enemy?"
"Oh, I did my part," she replied casually. "Killed dozens of Blood Moon dogs. But then I saw you here, still alive, and I thought, what a perfect opportunity." Her smile turned cruel. "My cousin Zhang Wei will never cultivate properly again because of you. His future is ruined. So I think it's only fair that yours ends today."
"The sect has rules against—"
"Against internal conflict during external threats?" She laughed. "Look around, Lin Tian. The battle's effectively over. The Blood Moon is broken. And in all this chaos, who's going to notice one outer sect disciple falling off the wall?" Her hands began glowing with purple Qi. "It'll be ruled a tragic casualty of war."
[SHE'S GOING TO KILL YOU]
[AND SHE'S STRONG ENOUGH TO DO IT]
[EVEN WITH YOUR CHEAT SYSTEM]
Yun Xia stepped forward. "You'll have to go through me first."
Mei Ling's eyes flicked to her dismissively. "Yun Xia. Stage 4, bottom-tier talent, no family connections. You think you can stop me?"
"No," Yun Xia admitted. "But I'll slow you down long enough for someone to notice."
"Yun Xia, don't—" I started.
"Both of you?" Mei Ling's smile widened. "Even better. Two tragic casualties instead of one."
She moved.
Stage 8 speed made her a blur. Her palm strike aimed for Yun Xia's chest, wreathed in purple Qi that would crush internal organs on contact.
[COMBAT ASSIST: MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE]
[INFINITE TIDE SCRIPTURE: EMERGENCY PROTOCOLS]
[BURNING REMAINING QI FOR SPEED BOOST]
My body moved faster than conscious thought. I intercepted Mei Ling's strike with my sword, and the impact sent shockwaves rippling across the wall. My arms screamed in protest, bones creaking under the pressure.
[DAMAGE: SIGNIFICANT]
[LEFT ARM: FRACTURED]
[YOU BLOCKED A STAGE 8 ATTACK]
[THAT SHOULDN'T BE POSSIBLE]
[YOUR INFINITE QI IS REALLY BROKEN]
Mei Ling's eyes widened. "You blocked that? A Stage 5 blocked my full-power strike?"
"Surprise," I grunted, though blood dripped from my mouth from internal injuries.
Her expression shifted from surprise to fury. "You freakish—"
"Mei Ling! Stand down!"
Elder Hu materialized on the wall, his Core Formation Stage 7 aura flooding the area. His face was carved from stone, expression murderous.
"This disciple attacked me first!" Mei Ling protested. "I was defending myself!"
"Lie to someone stupider," Elder Hu said coldly. "I watched the entire exchange. You initiated hostilities against outer sect disciples during active combat operations. That's a capital offense."
"My family will—"
"Your family," Elder Hu interrupted, "can take their complaints to the Sect Disciplinary Hall. After the battle." His hand moved to his sword. "Now. Stand. Down."
Mei Ling's face twisted with rage, but she wasn't stupid enough to fight an elder. She shot me a look of pure hatred. "This isn't over, Lin Tian."
"Looking forward to it," I replied, swaying on my feet.
She vanished in a blur of movement, retreating deeper into the sect.
Elder Hu turned to me, his expression unreadable. "You blocked a Stage 8 attack. At Stage 5. Explain."
[UH... ADRENALINE?]
[LUCK?]
[DIVINE INTERVENTION?]
"I have a strong survival instinct?" I offered weakly.
Elder Hu stared at me for a long moment, then shook his head. "You're either the luckiest disciple I've ever met, or you're hiding something that will get you killed. Possibly both." He glanced at the battlefield. "The Blood Moon is broken. Finish mopping up any stragglers, then report to the medical pavilion. That's an order."
"Yes, Elder."
He vanished as quickly as he'd appeared.
I finally let myself collapse against the wall, my sword clattering to the ground. Every part of my body screamed in pain.
[STAMINA: 3%]
[QI RESERVES: 12%]
[INJURIES: EXTENSIVE]
[CONGRATULATIONS ON NOT DYING]
[BARELY]
Yun Xia caught me before I fell completely. "You idiot. You beautiful, stupid idiot."
"Did you just call me beautiful?" I mumbled.
"Shut up." But she was crying. "You could have died. You should have died."
"Couldn't let him hurt you," I said. "Promised to keep you alive."
"You promised we'd both survive, remember?"
"Right. That too."
Li Feng and the two remaining team members approached cautiously. All of them looked at me with expressions of awe and disbelief.
"Lin Tian," Li Feng said quietly. "You blocked a Stage 8 attack. That's... that's impossible."
[SHE'S NOT WRONG]
[EVEN WITH MY HELP, THAT SHOULD HAVE KILLED YOU]
[YOUR INFINITE QI CONSTITUTION REALLY IS ABSURD]
Across the battlefield, the remaining Blood Moon forces were in full retreat. Azure Peak disciples pursued them, cutting down stragglers. The eastern wall still stood, battered but unbroken.
We'd won.
At terrible cost, but we'd won.
[FINAL BATTLE STATISTICS:]
[AZURE PEAK CASUALTIES: 312 KILLED, 267 WOUNDED]
[BLOOD MOON CASUALTIES: 1,847 KILLED, 400+ CAPTURED OR FLED]
[TEAM THREE: 5/10 SURVIVORS]
[YOUR SURVIVAL: AGAINST ALL ODDS]
"Come on," Yun Xia said gently, supporting my weight. "Medical pavilion. Now."
"Can't I just sleep here?"
"No."
"Worth a try."
As she helped me down from the wall, past bodies and blood and the wreckage of war, I couldn't help but think:
I'd survived my first real battle. Barely. At tremendous cost.
But I'd survived.
[ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: SURVIVED THE BLOOD MOON INVASION]
[REWARD: +2000 REPUTATION POINTS, +3 GACHA TICKETS, TITLE: "WALL BREAKER"]
[ADDITIONAL REWARD: YOU'RE NOW FAMOUS]
[CONGRATULATIONS ON LOSING YOUR ANONYMITY... AGAIN]
[SERIOUSLY THOUGH, GOOD JOB NOT DYING]
[I'M PROUD OF YOU, BOSS]
'Thanks, ACS.'
[ANYTIME. NOW REST.]
[YOU'VE EARNED IT.]
The last thing I saw before unconsciousness claimed me was the blood-red sky finally fading back to normal blue.
The Blood Moon had set.
And somehow, impossibly, I was still alive.