Runes

-FROZEN LAKE SECT'S MAIN HALL-

I'm fucked...

"6 months from now, you will be executed by the ranked 1 inner disciple in the upcoming rank tournament. Your death will not only boost everyone's morale against evil-doers but also let them know that it's not easy to get away with murder." Shit... That's savage...

"We'll see about that." How can you talk big like that, master? They aim to kill me, with an inner disciple too!

I looked around and found a familiar face. I've seen him once and I am sure that he's the Liu Family's Elder. He didn't even try to stop them nor lessen my sentence... He's an elder but he has no power to protect a family member.

/Liu Xia, 68

Elder of Frozen Lake Sect and Flow Peak Leader

8th Layer of Body Refining Realm

4th Layer of Spirit Core Refining Realm/

"Well, at least they have given you 6 months. That's long enough to prepare." My problem is that even the other elders didn't even bat an eye after saying the verdict. They could have even shown me mercy.

"They're too old for this shit, you know. I can tell that people don't die here every day or maybe they do it without a trace, even so, you gotta suck it up." How did my life turn into this...

I was dragged by the guards out of the main hall while covering my whole face with something while tying my hands with ropes. I couldn't see where they were taking me.

-Frozen Lake Sect Dungeon-

Somehow, we stopped. They finally removed the cover on my face and I can tell that this place is where they take criminals.

"So, you were the criminal they were talking about. Hei An from the Liu Family, at such a young age, huh. It will be a long 6 months for you before the execution, it won't be a pleasant show." It must be the warden. I don't really care anymore.

They removed my Peak Training Uniform and they've given me white robes. But it seems they were interested in the ring I was wearing as a necklace.

"Is that a storage ring? Could you check it?" Shit... what should I do?!

"Sir, it doesn't do anything. This could be just a normal ring." Phew...

"Don't worry, it only works with its owner. Make sure they don't confiscate it, though. You will be needing that as it would be the key to your escape." Of course!

"Please! Not my mother's ring! That's the only ring my mother left me before my parents left me... please..." I'll show you my fake tears technique!

"Sir, it seems, his parents are also..."

"I know, I know. Let him keep it. He will die soon anyway." He was cut off before he could tell more. There must be more that I don't know about my parents.

They dragged and pushed me around to the furthest cell. A bed made of hay on the ground and a dirty wooden plate and cup... they should invest more to make their dungeon a little bit more pleasant.

"If they do that, then it won't be a dungeon, right?" When you're right, you're right. So since this is my new home for the next 6 months. What's the plan... really, master?

"I was thinking of an escape but somehow, I changed my mind. I took an interest in your little sect leader." Do you mean, our young sect leader who hasn't even join earlier with the elder's decision?

"You fool! If you think she's a young innocent girl, then you're mistaken! Someone in the Peak of the Void realm has too much energy that her life is prolonged, she can also change the way she looks based on her age so, that kid might already be 200 to 300 years old or even more." Really?! What the hell?! Then I guess you can't really judge someone by their appearance, huh... /Power of makeup!/

"That's right. That's why the elders are fools for underestimating you just because of your training progress. They didn't know that you have a master strong enough to wipe an entire sect with just his fingers." Really? Can you do it now?

"Get me a new body and I'll show you." Yeah, yeah. So what am I supposed to do now?

"Since you can already create a fragment of your soul, we have a way to leave this place without alerting suspicions." Everyone knows that the moment I leave this place, they will hunt me down.

"That is why we need another Hei An inside the cell while your real body roams around the city." Wow! That would be a great idea. Do you know what's a better idea? If it's freaking possible, master!

"Jeez... this kid doesn't even believe his master. Empty your mind. I'll teach you a new technique. It's called Soul Transfer. This ability lets you control a corpse by putting a fragment of your soul into it making it a soul puppet. You also have to transfer a large amount of energy for it to gain life. Though, since only a fragment of the soul can be transferred, there are limitations to it. Like the corpse won't be able to speak and more but when it gathers enough energy, it would break these limitations." Wow! Then what are you waiting for! Let me learn it!

"Don't be such an idiot. Techniques of this caliber have a catch. The corpse must not die before you could get your soul fragment back or else all the energy and the soul you put in will be wasted. Using this technique will greatly weaken your soul but since you already reached the middle shapeless form, by using this technique, you will be back at early shapeless form. Still enough to use your Soul Energy Gathering Cultivation." Hey, since we're talking about souls, why haven't you use it yourself when you were still alive?

"Well, I already did. Before I died, I was betrayed. I won't go into details about my past but while I was escaping, I left my soul puppet as a decoy while leaving the place but then they caught up to me. I was trapped. I managed to kill all of them but was gravely wounded after using most of my energy. My body couldn't handle it. I used the realm gateway and was teleported to your realm. Since I was in an unfamiliar place, I created a defensive illusion array but my wounds can't be cure anymore by any means. My body was collapsing by itself, energy depleting fast, and my weak soul is the only thing I have left, I decided to use my remaining energy to preserve my soul and left my body. After a thousand years, you found me." Then maybe your puppet soul survived?

"No, I've felt it. They've killed it. Unfortunately, the soul puppet can't have higher cultivation than his owner and always have lower 5 layer realms than from the owner. So that means if you manage to create a soul puppet now since you are at 1st Layer of Innate Energy Realm, your puppet will be stuck at 1st Layer till you reach higher realms." That's why they were able to kill it since my master was gravely injured by them.

"Now, do you still want to learn it?" Giving up a fragment of my soul for a puppet, need you ask? All I have to do is train my soul and reach that form again.

"It's easier said than done, but since you want to learn the technique, you know the drill." Right... empty my mind.

...

Once again, memories flow through my mind. I now understand some of the fragments of memories he's transferring... is this his sole puppet? It looks like a middle-aged woman. She must be someone important to him.

"Transferring techniques somehow tire me down. Before I go to rest, you need a corpse to control. Fortunately, before I die, I was able to gather some corpses thinking I might use one to create another soul puppet. Unfortunately, I ran out of energy and my soul became weaker to possess one. All we need is enough energy-" Master, I think we know who has enough energy here...

"This child... you're a scheming bastard you know? I have already given you lots of-" Isn't this all your fault anyway? If I wasn't lost due to your defensive array, we won't be having these problems.

"Still, you would be dead by the hands of the 7th Layer Innate Realm. *Sigh* Fine. I'll am absorbing energy from you anyway. It's a good investment for later. For now, let me set up an illusion array in this cell so anyone outside would see you just sleeping on the hay bed while you can do anything you want inside." Wow! That's a good thing!

"You can check the rune room in your storage ring. You can find a brush there and dark ink." Uhhh, okay, let me just check. Found it!

I used the storage ring to pull out the brush and the dark ink.

"Since I can't use it. You have to do it on your own." That's a great idea. Ever since I was a kid, I draw like an idiot.

"Empty your mind, dimwit." Why can't masters of the Sect just transfer their techniques to people, isn't that easier?

"It's called Memory Transfer. I'm not just teaching you techniques, I'm also giving you fragments of my memory. If not because I trust you, I won't even use this technique. I'm also doing this because you're my last hope to get a new body so just take it. and it would take years before you even learn these skills." Once again, I received memories of him practicing the brush with strokes over and over again. Just like that, I was able to learn different kinds of runes! It felt like he practiced for every single day of his life! His will and perseverance is nothing compared to anyone I knew! He didn't reach this kind of power by talent alone, it was his dedication!

"Had a good view of my past? Better not talk about it. Now, I'm quite sure you can now use the brush and since you have a good soul power, you will be able to draw strokes like a master." You're right master, it felt like I know thousands of strokes to create runes!

"Runes are like characters made from brush strokes. Its effectiveness depends on your soul power and the quality of ink. Higher soul form gains more effectiveness. As of now, you're at Middle Shapeless Form, the best rune you can create is Tier 2 with the ink I have in storage but the rate is quite low. The rarity of Runes starts with poor, good, and master quality. These rarities depend on the perfectness of strokes alone. Once a master rune was not just created with strokes but also infused with soul power, tier 1 will be created, and just like I said, higher tiers require higher soul forms. The sect's defensive arrays are at Tier 1 making it good enough in this realm but still need improvement." Let me try and create the illusion rune.

"You have to draw four runes since we are going to create a formation array. Each edge of the room." Right. Thankfully, my cell is at the end of the dungeon for committing a grave crime. No one's at the other cells to see what I was doing.

Now let me create the first rune. I picked up the brush and dip it in the dark ink. Focus... use soul power... I can feel it!

"Not bad! Drawing power from your soul. I taught you the technique but I didn't expect that you can manage to use soul power. I'll be honest, I underestimated you but I can say that your comprehension skill is way above genius level." No need to flatter me, master.

Though, drawing lines and trying to make the perfect stroke is harder than it looks. Drawing soul power is making the brush heavier. Any moment, I might lose my grip and ruin what I started and this is even just the first freaking rune!

"Calm down. when the brush is getting heavier, that means you are losing the link between the brush and your soul. Focus and draw more power from your soul. Your soul will guide every stroke you make and since you have a good soul form, it would definitely guide you to make better runes." Concentrate... I got this!

...

After a few breaths, I managed to create my first rune! Finally!

"For your first try, you were able to create a tier 2 rune! For an illusion array, that's overkill..." Really?! Shit! That was worth it!