The Elder And The Devil

Li Shen and Li Zian talked for quite a while. His older brother told him about how the sect worked. It was a long conversation, so Li Zian summarised it in a few points.

'There are three ranks of disciples:

Trial Disciples, who aren't official disciples. They're just people who failed the exam. They can retake the exam to become an outer disciple.

Outer Disciples. They make up most of the sect and are made up of those who passed the exam. They're generally at the Qi Condensing and Foundation Establishment Realm.

Inner Disciples are the most prestigious disciples and are the most powerful individuals in the sect other than the elders. There are two ranks amongst them- second rank and first rank inner disciples. Second rank inner disciples are at the Golden Core Realm. First rank inner disciples are at the Original Infant Realm.

The sect is truly powerful… The Li family was lucky to have connections with them.'

Li Zian thought for a while after being told all this information.

'I'm still extremely far away from being an inner disciple. Disciples who advance to the Deity Transformation realm can become elders, but the ten great elders are all at the Void Returning Realm.

It's said that the sect master is at the Mysterious Realm, attempting to break through the mythical Transcending Realm. That's why he's been in seclusion for so long.

I wonder what I'll do when I advance to the Deity Transformation Realm…'

The sun set in the horizon, casting golden and red rays across the sky. The day was at its end, and Li Zian exited his brother's mountain abode.

"Oh, right, I forgot to tell you. Don't call me Li Zian. I'm going by the name Yi Zian while in the Skyward Sect."

"Yi Zian… How original," Li Shen rolled his eyes.

"Shut up. I'm going," Li Zian turned around and walked down the mountain.

He reached into his robes and withdrew his iron medallion.

The Iron medallion was round with cloud symbols carved into it and strange runes around its edges.

Li Zian injected some qi into it, and felt a sudden attraction towards a certain place in the outer sect.

'That must be where my mountain abode is…'

He quickly made his way across the sect, up a small mountain to a cliff where his abode sat.

It appeared the exact same his as his brother's, with not a single difference.

He sent a small wave of his qi towards the fireplace, and suddenly it erupted into flames.

'There seems to be an array under the logs. Quite useful…'

He made his way to the cultivation room, where a stone bed sat on the ground and a large array was carved into the ground.

He injected his qi into the array, powering it for a few minutes.

"This spiritual energy…"

The spiritual energy in the room became so rich that he could see a slight blue and grey hue in the air. He could feel it rushing past his body constantly, and a smile spread across his face.

'This is definitely the best place for me to cultivate right now. Just how much better are the inner disciple abodes?'

He sat down and injected some more qi and began to cultivate until nightfall.

--

Deep in the shadows of the Skyward sect, a black and red ink rose from the darkness.

Its gooey form twisted and transformed into a humanoid shape and then solidified, becoming much more human in appearance.

His silver hair fell down his back and his black horns protruded up from his forehead. His eyes were filled with a strange darkness, and he released no aura.

The Devil Wyrm glanced around and then walked down the street through the night. None of the disciples roaming around seemed to notice him, and he soon arrived at a mountain abode.

He reached for the door handle, ready to open it when he heard a voice.

"How kind of you, taking a visit to our sect."

The Devil Wyrm jumped and spun around, waving his hand and releasing a wave of devilish black and red qi.

The qi transformed into a giant spear that smashed into the person that spoke.

Smoke and debris blew up into the air and the mountain shook violently.

From the smoke emerged Elder Yang, unharmed from the attack. "Who might you be?" He asked.

"That is none of your concern. Leave now," Devil Wyrm commanded.

"Hah, no. I won't allow you to harm my disciples."

Golden lightning descended from the sky, smashing into Elder Yang's body. However, instead of harming him it instead began to wrap around him.

He smiled and aimed his index finger at the Devil Wyrm, who instinctively felt danger and went to warp away.

But it wasn't fast enough- the golden lightning shot forwards, blowing a hole straight through the Devil Wyrm's left side.

His arm blew off and his innards twisted violently. Devil Wyrm coughed up a mouthful of blood and stumbled back.

"You…" He gasped. "How did you know I was here in the first place? I made sure I hid myself perfectly!"

"I didn't. I guess you could call it luck- I was merely checking on my beloved disciple's younger brother, but here you are attempting to kill him in the dead of night when he's busy cultivating."

"You…" Devil Wyrm hissed, when suddenly a voice sounded from above.

"Return, my loyal Devil Wyrm."

"Yes, master," Devil Wyrm bowed his head and warped away.

There was a moment of silence, but Elder Yang didn't let down his guard. Golden lightning continued to crackle around his body, constantly improving his power.

Then- BOOM!

A mighty force smashed into Elder Yang, shooting him across the sky.

He gasped for air as blood dribbled down his chin. Then his eyes widened as he witnessed flames manifesting all around him in small, concentrated points.

Then they exploded.

The disciples of the Skyward sect observed in horror that night as one of their elders was blown apart, at the dead of night above the sect.

Elder Yang fell through the sky and crashed down to the ground, his body soaked in blood.

He shook violently and seethed with rage.

The Elder barely managed to stand, and the voice entered his ears again. "You survived that? I congratulate you, you're quite tough."

"Who are you? How dare you attack our sect!" Elder Yang yelled out to the sky.

"Don't worry, this isn't a declaration of war. You merely got in the way of my beloved disciple."

Elder Yang clenched his fists and aimed his hand at the sky.

"Deity Spell, Summon 1000 Thunder Bolts!" He roared.

A thousand bolts of golden lightning materialised in the air around him and fired up at the sky from where the voice seemingly came.

They struck out at the darkness but met no enemy. There was nobody there.

Elder Yang huffed and looked around but couldn't see anybody around. "Why send your disciple if you're so strong?" He roared.

There was no response, and Elder Yang made an ugly grin.

"Oh, I see. You're afraid of him."

"You don't know what you're talking about."

"Hah… We'll see, we'll see."