RM Wrath Farmer CH7 Diary Fragments 3 and 4

My feet felt heavy, and the path forward narrowed more with each step. The chi in my core was a finite resource without my amulet. Greed had won even if the décor failed to tempt me. Books, tomes, and data drives littered the room in great piles half-covered in dust. I saw one and knew it held secrets of cultivation. All I had to do was take it and turn back, and I could learn so much. Jewels containing skills of all kinds with secrets I couldn’t imagine were hundreds of feet in the air just off the path. Things with my face scavenged the piles searching for the secrets to the universe without understanding. I raised my eagle and opened fire, killing them as they reached out for me.

I wanted those treasures. Cynicism kept me on the path cultivated my entire life.

“I found it; I have the answer.”

A shot rang out, and I lowered my weapon.

“I hate hearing the sound of my own voice,” I said.

“Remind me not to get on your bad side.” My inner demon said.

There was a question on my mind. Was this place a product of the demon or the dungeon itself?

The higher in rank a dungeon, the less directly it controlled its domain. Dungeons often assigned dungeon masters or monster lords on their floors to ensure their floors followed a theme or path. The rumors were fact. Dungeons made divers take the roles of heroes to balance the scales if a monster lord or dungeon master rebelled.

Golden miracle pills with pink wings flew through the sky, filling the gloomy tunnel with medicinal power. What did this place take me for a moron? Even if I could trust the items, I wouldn’t take them. I wasn’t here for cultivation offered by a demon. Dungeon rewards alone were trustworthy.

“What if they are real?” My inner demon asked.

“Then I’ve lost out on an opportunity. There will be others.” I said.

“In Easton, this would be the treasure room. All that you see would be trustworthy.”

“That is there, and this is here. Nothing off the path can be trusted. We are far from safe.” I said.

Shining long before I reached, it was nectar glowing golden. A waterfall of nectar appeared in front of me as I passed into the tunnel’s exit, I saw its source.

 A massive caterpillar clung to the ceiling, bleeding from uncountable wounds. It consumed the leaves of a golden plant. Golden blood poured from its body as fully formed gem spiders tore at it, feeding on a rainbow fluid before releasing the golden nectar. As the blood spilled, the monster regenerated, restarting the process.

My attention turned away from the worm larger than Count Lee’s castle. I found the third diary fragment.

Sitting on a simple wooden chair was a blackened skeleton wearing nothing, not even a plaque to name it. On its femur were the half-burned, tattered remains of a page from Alex Mercer’s diary.

“I met a man dressed in orange leaning against a cane. This man revealed secrets to me about a taboo. Jacinta betrayed me, and as expected, I was the last to learn about it. She has been sneaking off for months at a time to sleep with the barbarian leader Lee. Jacinta doesn’t know I caught on. Every time she returns, she gives herself to me, and I smell the barbarian on her. Her pregnancy and talk about giving our child my father’s name sickens me. I convinced her that if it’s a girl, she should name her Kahlua after the drink. Naming her after a drink was the right thing to do. I’ve found green paint and began writing texts from Mammon into the walls. Lee and his band of Gols have come after the riches I transmuted from the mountain’s bountiful lead veins. The trap has been baited, and my men are giving their lives for the cause. I don’t care about our country any longer. All I want is revenge.”

A trick I couldn’t see it this place was obviously a cathedral to a demon of greed, Mammon. I was missing something. The green texts were written by Alex Mercer, not the demon. Orange wasn’t the demon of greed’s colors. It was the demon of taboos, but that didn’t make any sense.

Dungeon history in the Canite territory wasn’t something I had an interest in. My thoughts were interrupted when a cold, bony hand gripped my arm, and golden light filled the eye sockets of the skeleton. I tried to pull my arm away, but the skeleton held it fast.

“Hello, stranger. Care to play a game. I’m quite partial to cards.” The creature’s golden orbs settled on me. “You will be my sacrifice.” The creature cackled. “You are worth a pull or two in the pool of nectar. I’m willing to bet what I have against you. Since you’re caught, you must gamble for your freedom.”

Chains rose from the sandy ground and encircled my wrists before pulling me back. A table rose as the skeleton chattered. “I hope you like cards.”

A deck appeared on the table in front of the skeleton. “What if I refuse?” I asked.

“Then you can stay here until you starve to death, and I’ll toss your corpse in for less profit.” The skeleton said.

“Are you Alex Mercer?” I asked.  

A cigar appeared between its fingertips and it took a long drag from it. “Do you see that pool?”  Behind the skeleton was the pool where blood seeped like a waterfall from the massive worm. “You will be my trade for anything. The more you give to me, the more pulls I will get from the pool. You have eyes, ears, skin, blood, heart, lungs, and so much more. I will get something legendary this time. I know it, and then I will finally leave this place. Of course, nothing is freely given here. You can only give what you’ve won in a bet.”

“Die,” I said, drew my eagle, and fired. The bullet missed its target by inches, and I fired again. I could feel the chi from touching the bullet when I loaded it. Every action left a slight fingerprint on the objects. From that sense I could tell some force was turning my bullets.

The monster’s skull chattered. “You can’t hurt me with that paltry power. Only an SRR pull can get through my SR perk. I’m going to get another perk, and soon I will see the sun.”

I grit my teeth. “Are you Alex Mercer?” I asked.

The skeleton chattered again. “Alex was lucky he understood before anyone the great power Mammon gave us and what the pool is worth. I can’t drink until I give, or I’ll be cursed worse than I already am.”

“No, ok that is good to know. Then who are you and why are you telling me this?” I asked.

“I have no name. There are rules to this game we are playing, and I must follow them.” The skeleton chuckled. “We are playing poker. Do you know how to play I might feel like a bully if you didn’t.” The skeleton said.

I opened my mouth to say I knew but didn’t he just mention he had to inform me of the rules. What if saying I knew let him circumvent most of those limitations?

“No, explain everything to me.” The creature turned its head to the side. “How are bets placed?” I asked.

“What are you, a child? Make an offering to the tabel, and it will become chips like for instance, your freedom.” A black chip appeared, and the skeleton placed it on the table. Of course, we have yet to begin. This is only an example. As the challenger, I can’t lie about the rules. Chips at the end of the match can be exchanged for anything either user offered, and nothing can be taken until after the game ends. My perk can be exchanged for chips but I won’t lose it until the end of the game. Of course, unless I anti up your freedom, even if you win, you won’t be able to exchange your chips for it.” The skeleton said.

This game wouldn’t go how he expected. I tapped my finger against the table and sent a small ripple of chi through it. There was no destroying it through force but that wasn’t the point.    

Playing fair was out the window from the moment the rules were presented. I had a plan, and it would only work if I played right.

“Do you understand the rules?”

“No, give them to me.” I heard grinding and knew I made the right decision. This monster was all about verbal traps before the game even began. “What’s wrong? Were you trying to cheat me? Give me the deck. I want to shuffle it to make sure you aren’t cheating.” I said.

“I will warn you now: cheating isn’t possible. This deck is tamper-proof. Mana won’t stick to it no matter what you try.” The skeleton said.

The deck shifted across the table to me, and I went through it, making sure I touched each and every card and forcing my chi to work overtime. This was important. I couldn’t let this opportunity pass me by. Once I was sure I had seen every care in the deck, I shuffled it and passed it back. The table moved it, but I was able to ensure it was the same deck.

“This table is special it deals for us. You might have thought you were clever with your shuffling.” I watched the deck shift and felt every card exchange places. “You have a terrible poker face. Did you think you could count cards here? Mammon wouldn’t allow it.” The skeleton rubbed its blackened skull. “We each get five cards, anti up, exchange cards with the deck, fold, call, or raise and reveal our hands. The game continues until one of us surrenders or has nothing left to lose.”

The skeleton cackled. “You are the challenged so you decide the minimum of this round.”

Cards flew out of the deck until we each had five. I could feel them and even tell the difference by how long ago I touched them. My mind struggled to put the pieces together. I thought about the nature of poker and what it meant to come to a casino with only the clothes on my back.

My eyes widened as I realized what the deal was and why this challenge was worth so many points. It wasn’t the corruption of wealth. It was betting against this creature with limited funds. If I had my bag of holding, I could simply bury the skeleton under my wealth and force him to concede each hand. Eventually, he would have to surrender.

“Darci was tricking me when she told me to leave my wealth behind,” I said.

“You fell for it. Everyone thinks she is just some simple girl. Lucky for me, she thinks I’m her father.”

“So, you are not Alex Mercer,” I said.

“That should be obvious. Place your bet we don’t have all day.” The skeleton said.

Fire Chi was the first thing to come to mind, and a single black chip appeared. I held up the chip. It was my progress and potential to use fire chi. With a thought, the table made the chip turn into 5 white chips, 5 yellow chips, 3 red chips, 3 blue chips, and 2 gray chips.

“What did you give up your vision?”

“Something that will destroy you if you win,” I said.

“Good joke. I know you don’t have something like that.”

“When you win and then lose, will all my stuff return, or does it vanish?” I asked.

I turned my cultivation into 5 blue chips. “Losing is an interesting strategy. I’m assuming you have a nasty curse that you think is going to get me.” The skeleton said.

With every chi technique I added, I gained a few more chips of orange, green, gray, and black. Wealth was a weapon, and I wasn’t going to trick this guy into eating poison by not playing. I tapped the table again.

“Anything made into chips must be bought back from the table at the end. If you give something important to the table you won’t get it back if you have too few chips at the end.” The skeleton said.

“You’re only trying to throw me off my game,” I said.

I placed a red chip on the table, and it appeared in the center. The skeleton added its own and turned its head to the side. “You should know I’m great at reading people. I’ve been playing this game for hundreds of years, and few have beaten me.” I exchanged a single card and tried not to show any facial expressions. “Too bad was that not the card you were looking for.” Well, I’ll raise two black. Are you going to fold? I will tell you this: if you anti up two black and surrender, I’ll release you from those chains and let you walk out of here only a few skills and attributes short.” The skeleton said.

My hand shook as I stared at the chips on the table and my almost flush. I had two of a kind and no idea what the skeleton had. There wasn’t enough familiarity or chi to know his hand. I had to save my reserves for the boss.

I placed my cards down and folded. “Too bad I have nothing. You could have gotten two black from me that would have been a nice buffer.” The skeleton raised its hand, and four stacks of black chips appeared.

“I like my games long. It makes it easier to predict my opponents. You wanted to lose, right. Why didn’t you go for it? Are you scared to lose if a mere two black chips are too rich for you?” The skeleton said.

The skeleton cackled. “Why did you come here? Most greedy they think we keep the shiniest things here. Did you figure out the trick, or are you the type that needs every fragment?”

“Three was enough, but I will collect all four,” I said.

“You’re confident you’ll walk away from this.” The cards passed between us. “It's my turn to declare the minimum. Lucky for you, it can only be a single chip.” A black chip found its way in the middle.

I could barely see the cards when I focused. I met the minimum to play with a black chip of my own. “Careful, you were too scared before to even try before. What changed you could have taken my offer?” I tapped my finger against the table.

“You know I came here because I wanted a quiet place to use some items, but after finding the first page of the diary, I was curious.” When I focused, I could practically see the cards atop the deck. Even knowing the cards could only help me so much. I was not very familiar with them. I tapped the table, letting my chi flow through it. “You know I’m not an adventurer; I’m actually an enchanter,” I said.

“That’s interesting. This table must be quite interesting. Too bad you can’t see the runes Mammon hid them well. You aren’t my first enchanter they all died thinking they could divide their attention. Once you understand you’ll lose everything, the sunk cost will become too much, and you’ll start giving up parts of your body. I’ve been in the market for a new sac of flesh for a while.”

“The game isn’t close to over.”

“I’m hundreds of years old with more to spend than you can imagine. What do you have to offer that can match me?” I exchanged three cards and raised  2 gray chips. “You don’t understand the game we’re playing. It's not about the cards in your hand. It's about the person holding them. I can tell you’re impulsive.” The skeleton called and raised 1 black chip.

I called and stared at my hand. My opponent’s cards were hard to determine. I knew he had an ace and a king. If he had a straight, I was doomed. My three-of-a-kind wouldn’t hold up.

“A pair of sixes,” The skeleton said.

My heart pounded in my chest as I sighed in relief. “I placed three of a kind all 10s on the table, and the chips returned to me.”

“Was that so bad? Gambling is fun, and I think I’m beginning to figure you out. You are so focused on what I might have that you aren’t focused on me. It's your turn to place the minimum bet.” The skeleton said.

I tapped the table as my cards came to hand. There was so much fading chi to pay attention to, but when I focused, certain cards appeared in my mind’s eye, and I knew where they were on the table. Cultivation seemed to be a blind spot for it.

That was good. I placed a green chip on the table and wanted to curse at my terrible hand. At most, I could try and go for a flush or exchange my whole hand for something else. The skeleton had no tells I could decipher and it raised after exchanging its whole hand.

“What are you going to do?” The skeleton said.

I tapped the table, pushing all my stress into my taps. My strategy was only in its infancy, and I couldn’t let the monster know what I was planning. I gave a hint and a red herring to test the waters. The skeleton was completely unreadable. There was a good chance it lied about something or everything. I had no way of knowing what the consequences of my actions were or the true power of the table. But the skeleton was right about something. I was having fun. This was a battle I could really lose if I was careless.  

I managed to get a good hand and the skeleton placed his hand down on the table. “I fold,” I blinked.

…

My fingers continued tapping against the table as I tried to get my nerves out of me. I won two hands before the skeleton got serious. After that, the monster folded it almost seemed like it could guess my every move. It wasn’t that I had bad hands, but the skeleton knew when I had them or when I was bluffing. My body language gave me away to the centuries-old skeleton with no poker face.

“You are terrible at hiding your hand. I almost feel sorry for you. I tell you what, surrender now, and I’ll let you go. But if you keep playing from here on out, I’ll take everything from you.” The skeleton said.

I stared at the creature made of blackened bone. My chi sense had an almost 70% accuracy of what cards were in the deck. I knew what hand either of us would have, and it was time to use that information. The skeleton had more chips, so if this became a game of attrition, he could slowly wear me down by betting black chips for me to continue playing. So, I decided to cheat a little.

At the beginning of the game, before we could even look at our cards, I placed 2 black chips on the table for the minimal payment. I smiled at that monster. The creature turned its head to the side.

“I’ve decided that I had better odds with random chance than playing. So don’t worry, I won’t look at my cards anymore.” I said.

“So, neither of us will know what you have until the final round. Sounds like fun I did feel bad about bullying you.” The skeleton said.

I removed two cards and exchanged them. Then the skeleton added two black chips, and I called.

When I turned them over, and the chips appeared on my side of the table, the skeleton ground its teeth. “Be careful, or you won’t have those for much longer. How does your deflect skill not stop your teeth from grinding?” I asked.

“It’s a perk, not a skill.” The skeleton said.

I raised an eyebrow. “Don’t worry about it not like you’ll be able to get one after this.”

Speed was key, and certainty. I decided that I would lose hands but ultimately win the game. When we were dealt I exchanged my hand before or after the monster. Most of the time, it was to ensure that his hands were always the worse, and I presented my cards after the last bet.

“How,” The skeleton said. It slammed its fist down on the table. Then it calmed itself down. “It doesn’t matter how you’re cheating. Those chains aren’t coming off. Win this game or lose. You’ll be stuck here until I figure it out, and we’ll play again.” I had the majority of chips.

I raised an eyebrow. “Don’t look so smug. Once I surrender, I’ll beat you within an inch of your life while you struggle to buy back your abilities and forfeit mine to the table.”

I tapped the table again, and when the skeleton made a move that signaled his surrender, nothing happened.

The skeleton tried to get out of his seat but couldn’t get up. “This is a complicated piece of enchantment you have here. It must have taken a lot of sacrifice to power it.” I said.

My hand lashed out, shrouded in darkness, sending chains to hold the skeleton in place.

“How no one can see the runes?”

“I guessed,”

“Liar,” The skeleton said.

“The wooden resin placed within the frame was hard to decipher. It matched the color of the table perfectly. You know, I almost ran out of time and thought I was cutting it close. When you started winning, I got nervous you were catching on, so I made it obvious I was cheating. There is nothing that a cheater hates more than someone else cheating them. Didn’t I tell you I’m an enchanter?” I asked.

The skeleton ground its teeth together before raising its head and laughing. “It doesn’t matter because you failed to ask the most important question.” My eyebrow rose at that. “Can you afford to buy back the skills and attributes you trade for chips? Even if you control the table, its nature hasn’t changed. When this game ends, the house takes the collateral and gives us chips. Do you think I’m here because I want to be?” The skeleton said.

I focused on the table and saw hands of green reaching for my soul. Win or lose, the table was going to collect.

“There is a secret that we enchanters don’t tell regular people.” The skeleton leaned in. “Enchantments placed on wood is a dead art form for a good reason. At the end of the day, enchantments are only stitched together runes acting as circuits manipulating energy through crystal or, in this case, wood. With a little effort, an enchanter can impart numerous effects on an item that makes it appear supernatural. They can appear like a standing army when facing a single direction.”

I tapped the table, and the felt lining catch fire. “When flanked, even the tallest tree can be felled by an ax,” I said.

“Others have tried to destroy the table, but none succeeded.” I tapped the table, causing a ripple to shoot through it, jostling the carved enchantments. The hands reaching for my soul faltered. “There is nothing you can do but wait and try to play the next game.” I tapped the table, and parts of the enchantment winked out as my chi caused blockages in the mana flow. Everyone knew mana and chi were like oil and water. The two systems were incompatible with the modern man. Only people in the age of gods could survive harnessing both systems. A table with some squiggles carved into it was not a god. “Don’t do this. This table is all I’ve got.” The skeleton said.

A final tap caused a catastrophic failure. I caused what in a human could be called a stroke. Or, in this case, a mana-powered engine had chi added to the gas tank. A skill, spell, or mana manipulation would have only empowered the table more. The dungeon hadn’t altered the table to deal with me. That was the duty of its dungeon master, Mammon.

The chains turned to sand and fell away. I gathered my chips onto my side of the table before crossing over before the skeleton’s chains disintegrated. I pulled my eagle and pulled the trigger. Bullets deflected, and the skeleton cackled.

“I have all my perks and skills too fool.” The skeleton said.

I slammed my fist against its seated position, watching as my fist slid past its skull each time. The monster didn’t bother defending itself as I threw punch after punch. White aura gathered around my fist, but it didn’t make much difference. The monster couldn’t be hit by me.

“You’re a joke and a cheat at cards.” The skeleton said.

So, what? Even if the monster had an effective gimmick, that didn’t mean I was powerless.

Its main weapon was destroyed, and it focused on perception and constitution, if I wasn’t mistaken.

The monster grunted. “It doesn’t matter. I  have enough chips for one pull from the nectar pool. I slowly jammed my fingers into its eye sockets and pulled, forcing the monster to bend backward as the chains dissolved. The monster’s claw-tipped fingers dug into my skin as I pulled and forced my foot on its spine, snapping the back of the chair. Grapples didn’t trigger the deflection perk.

I picked my leg up, and the monster fell backward. When I landed on my back, I wrapped my legs around the monster’s shoulders and placed my other hand on its jaw. The black skeleton's composure finally cracked, and it panicked.

I slowly pulled at its head. The eye sockets warped, and the skull gave before the head came off. I rolled backward with the skull in my hands and jumped to my feet. Pain raced from my arms to my thighs, where the monster tore hunks of flesh away.

Blood dripped down my hands from deep wounds. The body of the monster stood up and turned to me, so I placed the skull on the ground. Fire lit in the monster’s eyes. “Give up. You can’t kill me. No matter how hard you throw me against something, it’ll be deflected. Forget about using brute force. I have a constitution of 200,” The skeleton said.

I placed a hand dripped with blood on the skeleton’s head, and a white aura spread around it. My spirit art activated in full, increasing my strength exponentially at the cost of my finite chi supply. I pressed down as hard as I could while ramping up the power slowly.

“200 or 2000, you aren’t getting away with this. You are the only thing around here, which means you killed everyone else who made it.” I glared down at the skull and pressed down.

“I see, you are a simpleton that doesn’t understand.” My hand shook as my spirit art glowed brighter and brighter as I concentrated on the muscles that mattered most. “There is nothing you can do but struggle until Mammon turns up, and then we’ll play another game.”

Crack!

A fault line opened, running through the skull.

My chi cycled through my channels, powering my technique while never letting my chi leave my body. That was an important difference. I couldn’t let my chi escape because I had no way to replenish it.

The body shot in my direction in a full tackle. White light surrounded my arm for a split second before the blow connected. The monster’s body rolled on the floor.

“I surrender, you win, release me, and we can play as a team against anyone who shows up. There is so much I can teach you about the nectar pool. I know secrets about this place that no one else knows.”

Crack!

My arm glowed brighter as I committed.

“I know all about the requirements for reaching rank 2. Most focus on what they’re best at. When they get the chance, they use skills to shore up their weaknesses or make their strengths stronger. For me, it's easy to reach rank 2. I’m not worried about the next rank but the ranks after it. My teacher taught me that the more I trained in each rank, the stronger I would be in the ranks after. This time, crushing rank 2s at rank 1 is an investment.” I said.

“I’ll kill you.” The skeleton shrieked.

Its body moved at incredible speeds, charging me. Each time, I waved my offhand and knocked the monster’s body away. When it committed to charging, it moved fast enough to activate its deflection. All I had to do was wave my hand with the intention to attack and its body was deflected. None of my blows connected with its body. Since I weighed more, it moved away. It seemed its perk cut both ways when it came to deflection.

Crack!

“This is it, after everything. Alex, you took my name, my wife. In this life or the next, I’ll have my revenge.” The skeleton’s body slumped to the ground as more cracks appeared across its skull.

Its statement was interesting to think that Alex took this man’s name and escaped here. The plot thickened.

That was interesting to think the monsters knew each other. I assumed Alex was a monster. If he was human, he wouldn’t be able to live centuries. Alchemy could turn people into human-adjacent creatures with long lifespans. They were still classified as monsters.

“Can I finally rest?”

The skull exploded, and my palm touched the stone beneath. I stared down at the bone ash on the ground and then looked over at the headless body. Then I looked at the pool, a golden liquid that could grant perks dependent on what the drinker traded it. Crazy things like deflecting high-speed attacks were possible, making my eagle obsolete.

Something flowed into me, a tiny shard of something from the skeleton. It felt like I had hit a milestone, and within my mindscape, something congealed. A tiny white star of chi settled down below in the reservoir of blood chi. Just a seed filled with potential it soaked in the blood chi within.

Spirit Art: Wrath

Rank: 1

Stage: 2

A crazy thought entered my head after I recovered from my little fight. I had three of four dairy scraps.

I stood up and walked up to the nectar pool, unbuttoned my pants, and pissed into it. The only thing the pool deserved was my scorn and disrespect. I shook the last drops and made my way away from the pool down the narrow path. There was barely a footstep left to follow beyond the distractions.

…

The path led me down to a black stone cathedral covered in statues of spider demons breathing was hard; the air was cold enough to chill my lungs. My wounds stung from the biting wind blowing toward the stone temple. Old mummified remains littered the place along with green texts.

“It's easier for a camel to cross the eye of a needle than for a rich man to find happiness.” I didn’t understand why a lord of greed would propagate such except to insult his customers. There were no longer jewels littering the floor, piles of lost knowledge, or anything but old bones and skin stitched together to make the archways, pillars, and walls of the black cathedral. Even the bones were blackened.

In the center of the cathedral, there was a brazier with no flame burning. The darkness was so complete not even my chi could penetrate it. My eyes only saw the darkness within. I stopped my approach as the path shrank further, leading into what I could only call the boss chamber. An aura permeated the place and it didn’t feel like greed.

From what I understood, the spider theme was on point, but the riches and temptation should have grown as we descended. At this point, everything felt off. The saying about the camel and eye of a needle felt more desert demon than the temperate climate here. I didn’t want to go further. Something smelled if that was the right word.

In the darkness that not even my eyes could pierce, I smelled something wrong. Spiders seemed to be the theme, but what if that caterpillar wasn’t actually a caterpillar.

I heard a coin flip.

A feminine voice echoed through the temple. “You broke my table.” Yellow eyes pierced the darkness and focused entirely on me. At first, there were two, then six, and more. Then I knew what smelled so wrong. It was the breath of a demon lord. I smelled something completely distinct that stood out among the rotting stink from endless desecrated corpses.

Something was here whether it was the true demon lord itself remained to be seen. I held up my fist, and it glowed with white light.

“Did you think I would use inspiration in a cave full of monsters? Destroying you all was just common sense.” I said.

“You were supposed to take my table after you beat Kahn Lee and use it against others. Your hunger for power should have driven you to extract chip after chip to trade in my nectar pools. Instead, you stepped off my path and destroyed it. How could you do it? What makes you so special?” The demon demanded.

I was 15 it wasn’t hard to figure out how to get my attention. Did this demon know nothing? I shook my head.

“Are we going to fight, or are you going to bitch?” I asked.

“You’re so impatient to die.” The demon said.

Ever since my spirit art reached stage 2, it felt like I could do a little more with it. Small white plates appeared on my hands and feet. A moment after I summoned the spirit art, I had a pair of shiny metallic white boots and metallic white gauntlets. I smashed my fists together creating white sparks and flashing bits of aura around.

I bent my knees, limbering up. Spirit arts were multipliers. Enhance, Aura, and Kinetic Manifestation were each stage 8 pulled up a stage each by increasing my spirit art. That was something to think about. If I individually practiced my techniques up to stage 9 or prestige, then using them in spirit art and increasing the stage of that spirit art could bring my individual techniques to the next rank.

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll get that written down.” My inner demon said.

“I’m going to beat you to death,” I said.

The largest eyes in the darkness winked out, and I heard a massive sigh. “If only I had the time. The dungeon mind has suggested I reward you for finding a unique method to avoid my trap and waste years of campaign planning with numerous NPCs you might never meet. Are you planning to participate in all 7 floors of the scenario?”

I nodded slowly to the towering, moving shadow with too many eyes. All of them watched me with alien intelligence.

“Good. I can use the second floor’s blank slate and dump some of my plot points onto it. Mammon won’t mind, just like I didn’t mind when I was the one doing all the work for our joint campaign. I will blame the fact it didn’t take on his lack of involvement. How I wish I could laze about and use lieutenants to do my work for me.” The entity focused on me. “You will face my boss monster, and if you win, I will automatically clear out all other monsters. You can take this place as your immortal cave during this scenario if you desire. The point exchange will be open within this place within reason.” The monster said.

“How generous, you aren’t Mammon then. So, which demon are you?”

The demon glared down at me with all the hate of a DM whose campaign fell off the rails.

“The train is gone. I’m afraid finding the rails is useless,” I said.

The wolf snorted. “Don’t bother apologizing. You did what any diver would if they had the opportunity. A cultivator shouldn’t have been able to just send their power into my table.”

I kept my mouth shut. Only an idiot tells their opponent how they did something. Chi wasn’t the deciding factor. It was knowledge of enchanting. Not the skill-based stuff that uses the system to skip steps. I mapped the table, located the runes, figured out the setup, and added myself as an administrator. This was the kind of exploit I might be able to use a few more times before the demon figures it out and puts in more security than merely obscuring the runes.

“I suppose it will stay a mystery,” I said.

The demon snarled and stretched out of the darkness. Or, more accurately, the darkness stretched out in the form of a giant wolf shape made of drones with yellow eyes. There were tens of thousands of them, wiggling tentacles latched together, watching me from many eyes.

I bent my knees and felt like I was standing on a bomb waiting to go off. The manifested kinetic energy projected me forward at breakneck speeds. The world narrowed as I struggled to right myself. I flew through one of the drones and felt it flatten on my chest, dying on the spot.

When I managed to slow and turn the massive boss monster had fully stepped out of the darkness. My free hit had been wasted because I had no experience using stage 2 spirit art. In shows, powerups and transformations were incredible and helped the hero win. Back in reality, it was like going from a skateboard to a crotch rocket. There was almost no experience turnover.

Drones flicked off the great beast pointed at me and their eyes flashed. I managed to put my arms up before a powerful paw smacked me across the cathedral grounds. My skin scraped against limestone twice before I smashed into a wall. The creature howled and bounded in my direction. My vision cleared as it pounced, mouth agape.

I drew my eagle and fired killing a single drone. The monster was made of tens of thousands of them. I did less damage than a flea bite.

My hands shot out, and I spread my feet into a stance. The boss lashed out as I grabbed its canines before it could bite me in two. I twisted with the force and lifted. The monster followed its head and couldn’t stop its paws from leaving the ground. I laughed as all of the monster’s eyes widened.

The monster was rising in the air. I was about to deliver the smackdown on it. Only I wasn’t dealing with a single monster. It fought like a cohesive unit, but reality and what the monster presented weren’t the same. It broke off into an endless swarm, leaving my hands holding an ancient canine skull.

I launched myself forward and smashed the nearest monster, bursting it.

The eyes all locked onto me. “So what we are legion.” They fell upon me like a raging river. Bodies upon bodies piled as I struggled against them. Tentacles stretched to grapple me as the colony of monsters formed again into something else. “Your flesh will replace what we have lost with interest.”

“You’re trying to eat me,” I yelled.

I had never felt fury like I had at that moment. I struggled and tried to fight the bodies restraining me. They ripped at my spirit art, attempting to rip away my only way of fighting them. I pulled at my core, drawing out every drop of power I could muster.

“Resistance is futile. We have you. There is no escape.” The glow of my spirit art dimmed as a black sea of yellow eyes stared me down. My body burned, and I knew it was their stomach acid breaking me down.

The blood chi waterfalls stopped flowing within my core, and I could feel the sun overhead burn hotter, drying up the chi within. The pool at the bottom of my inner world dried out quickly, and the ground cracked.

I needed all of it. My body was moved by numerous tentacles, crushing me into a ball as acids poured over me.

Channels burned as every scrap of power was taken and devoted. If this failed, then I wouldn’t get a second chance. The glow of my spirit art faded, but the gauntlets remained only containing the barest power needed. I couldn’t breathe or move as the monsters crushed me from all sides, gathering to use their bodies as massive organs.

My bones creaked as the monsters pressed down on me, forcing the acids into my skin, messaging and crushing like an uncaring machine.

With all the chi gathered and my body at the brink, my lungs burning, and the darkness swallowing my consciousness, I pivoted and hoped I was right.

A flash was all I felt and then the rushing of wind. I fell into a crater in the ground.

“There is no escape; resistance is futile,” I said.

A single yellow eyeball floated down through the smoke. “You tricked us.” Its tentacles waved through the air. “A final gambit that has failed. So long as one of us exists, we will rebuild.” I moved my hand and felt it brush against my eagle. How did a handgun barely rated for slowing rank 2 monsters manage to survive?

I mentally shrugged and raised the gun. The massive yellow eye widened before I pulled the trigger.

The eyeball exploded into black goo raining down around me.

Boss Slain

Extreme Challenge: Complete

Rewarded:

10,000pts

Rank 2 Inspiration Rolls x 5

Rank 2 Core Expansion Pills x 5

Rank 2 Spirit Art Rolls x 5

I promised myself then that this would be the last extreme challenge.

Bonus rewards

Rank 2 Pathway Expansion Pills x 5

Rank 1 Alchemy Recipe Book

Rank 1 Pill Cauldron

Maybe promises were meant to be broken. I let my hand fall to my side and realized I couldn’t get up. My channels and core weren’t destroyed, but they were empty. I used everything in my last attack. There was also a crack in my core that scared me a little. A pill cauldron and a 5-inch thick recipe book fell beside my head.

I felt a headache coming on and couldn’t rub my temples to soothe it. This was the worst. Didn’t the demon say if I won, I would have access to the dungeon shop while I was here? I had just over 15,000pts to spend.

Dungeon Shop

Guest Access

Rank 1 Cultivator Privilege detected.

Filtering items for purchase

Immortal’s Cave Builder: Alpha Stage

Cave Purchase options.

Privilege Upgrade 5000pts

Description: Upgrade to Rank 1.2 privilage

Transformation 1000pts

Description: Transform the mana leaking into the cave into pure chi.

Customizable 5000pts

Description: Alter the transformed chi into a particular type.

Formations 250pts

Description: Add protective formations to keep out monsters while you use the cave.

Continuity 10,000pts

Description: Whenever the user enters the dungeon, this cave will appear at the nearest mountain all purchases are maintained.

Formation Vent 15,000

Description: A concentrated formation used to gather chi into a single location for cultivation.

Cave of Inspiration 20,000pts

Description: All objects of inspiration have increased effects on the user. Rolls within the immortal cave have a +2 to outcomes that do not affect 1 or 20.

Thank You for Testing Immortal’s Cave Builder: Alpha Stage

1250pts later and the formations covered everything instead of enchantments. None of the small scripts were familiar to me and there was a feeling of chi in the air. It filled me like water on dry ground. I wasn’t back to normal; my body ached, but it was enough to jumpstart the recovery process. A percentage of the chi filled in the crack and vanished.

“Nothing we can do but feed it enough, and the injury will heal.” My inner demon said.

I stared down at the eagle a stainless-steel weapon that I enchanted myself. Metal could easily hold an enchantment thanks to its crystalized structure. I only added a few basic enchantments like upkeep and quality of life. My eagle’s rubber grip felt as right as when I purchased the surplus arms from a diver ranking up. That’s what happened when someone ranked up the gear that they used was sold off.

The gun found its way into my waistband, and I struggled to crawl out of the crater. Acid burns covered my body, and they were slow to heal. I walked mostly barefoot through burnt limestone. Ash covered the ground up to my ankle and continued to rain down all around me. Aura could be used to repulse and framework, enhance strengthened, and kinetic manifestation created motion. Combine that with careful control, it made a good empowerment spirit art. Tweak it and it became a solid explosion so long as there was enough chi to sustain it.

Explosions were normally quick, but I made mine last for several heartbeats. That’s probably why I named the spirit art Wrath. While the gauntlets and boots were cool its true power was explosive force. I was lucky the monster got so close to me and committed. My range wasn’t good and aura couldn’t be thrown away from the body.

I made my way back and reclaimed my amulet and bag. My wounds healed rapidly after that, leaving me time to think about the only thing that mattered in this situation. Should I purchase Continuity?

That was the question burning in my mind and heart. Instead of making a decision I quickly read the last diary fragment.

Challenge: In the Pursuit of Madness

Find and read the 4 lost diary fragments.

Rewarded

200pts

Rank 2 Meridian Expanding Pill x 3

Difficulty Bumped

Rewards Upgraded

Rewarded

2,200pts

Rank 2 Meridian Expanding Pill x 5

Challenge: Immortal Cave Builder

Purchase Continuity and permanently claim this cave.

Reward

1000pts

Privilege Upgrade  

Dungeon Secret

I snatched the pills out of the air and threw back one of them. I felt my pathways grow and shrink. The feeling was uncomfortable on a level I hadn’t felt before. The result was worth it. A single pill increased my pathway size by 50%.

“I think Rank 2 pills mean they raise your pathways until they equal a Rank 2 cultivator, or maybe they increase it by a percentage based on a Rank 2 cultivator.” My inner demon said.

I knocked another one back. The same phenomenon happened and I knew I grew stronger for it.

“What does this do for me exactly? I’m having trouble remembering after that explosion.” I said.

“Pathways determine how much chi you can channel at any given time. Whether that is in drawing chi in or unleashing techniques or spirit arts, they limit output and input.” My inner demon said.

“Maybe I should give you a name,” I said.

“I haven’t needed one before.” My demon said.

“Yeah, but I thought you were going to betray me before. I don’t feel that way anymore. So how does Dark Atom sound?” I asked.

“Like the explosion robbed you of all your creativity. Why not just call me demon?” My inner demon asked.

“Well, if that’s what you want?”

“No,”

“Alright, how about Satan,” I said.

“Satan, I like it. You should know giving me a name will give me some freedoms I didn’t have before. Are you sure you want to do this?” Satan asked.

I was out of chi, and Satan had helped me by sharing the pain. When it counted, I preferred to have the devil in my corner.  

“Are you going to make this your immortal’s cave? It would be good to have a place away from your parents that no one knows about. I’ve rarely heard of a dungeon allowing this kind of system in their enclosed worlds.”

“What was that about enclosed worlds? Are you confirming something about dungeons?”

“No dungeons are an enigma to me and all but the gods themselves. My own creator, the Jade Emperor, can only manipulate them. He can not create them and doesn’t dare destroy them. They are as much treasures as they are enigmas. For a head of state, the size of the Easton Empire, mysteries are things to be disliked. Much like your opinion on the blood synthesizer.” Satan said.

“I don’t want to talk about that. Melony might have her blood supply cut soon.” I said.

“I expected you to worry about your favorite idol,” Satan said.

I shrugged on my amulet and changed clothes to a new set in my bag of holding.

I read the final scrap of the diary and then read it again.

“Well, I can’t say I’m surprised,” Satan said.

I holstered my eagle and took out the twisted sword. “Vampires are weak against sunlight and fire. This and the pill are my best bets to put the bastard down early. I hope Gabriel doesn’t decide to take on the serpent. It’s the only thing keeping Count Lee in check.” I said.

“You should leave this cave and warn them,” Satan said.

“There is time I can get stronger and take the bastard out,” I said.

“You should use the day to your advantage and take the girls and flee,” Satan said.

“I’m not a coward,” I said.

“Is it cowardly to retreat when your opponent is strong and attack when they are weak?” Satan said.

“No, it's good tactics. When they think they have you and you can’t do a thing to stop them is when they're most open to a counterattack.” I said.

“Is the Count weak or strong?” Satan asked.

I turned away from the devil on my shoulder. The moment the serpent died, sunlight would no longer weaken the Count or any vampire here. It was a problem because I discovered this place and altered the scenario.

“How do you know?” Satan asked.

“When this kind of incident is called an event and some of the limits dungeon masters play by are lifted. The four demons will be able to interfere and retcon history to fix a boss’s weaknesses. Say a boss has an aversion to fire in the initial scenario, finds a certain ritual from a lore area, and suddenly, a boss’s backstory changes, and fire empowers them. Dungeons present these scenarios as events and greatly increase rewards to compensate. My mother is who Dis relies on in those situations.” I said.

“Would fulfilling that role in another territory grants you the right to vote?” Satan asked.

“No, only monster tamers and their evolved classes can vote. You know that.”

I didn’t want to get into it. Voting was an act that Michael hadn’t gotten to enjoy yet, either. Rank 4 was another hurdle on the path to political power. Even if I had the right class, it would be far away.

Back to the Count, killing him was more difficult. If this was a true retcon then the castle was going to be a very different situation when I returned. Raven, Kahlua, and Claudia might not exist.

My scouter fit back comfortably on my head. There was no reason to leave it behind in the inspiration. I activated the sword and felt myself get drawn into the weapon.

…

I coughed out a lungful of ash as I climbed to my feet. The ground was burned, and the air was thin. Each breath felt like a struggle. I wasn’t naked. Everything I wore came with me. The world darkened, and I looked up to see black scales like armor, claws like swords, and wings large enough to darken the sky. Flames licked my heels as I ran. This was the inspiration world, a place that only existed in my mind.

My feet pounded the ground as I picked up speed through a field aflame. Wheat, as far as the eye could see, was on fire, and knights on horses charged through rows, killing their horses. As they fell, I continued running, following the dragon.

With my amulet, there was no chi limit to worry about, and my spirit art multiplied the force behind my steps. The beast changed direction and dive-bombed a knight riding in full plate. Talons crushed man and horse together as the winged monster tossed its meal in the air before unleashing a concentrated jet of flame.

The dragon consumed both with no trouble and continued on its way. I increased my pace. I knew where the dragon was going, and I had a plan. This dragon’s name was Tyrian The Black, a known princess thief. It was also getting on in years and partially blind from a few lucky blows from mounted knights.

It was obvious the dragon was my inspiration, and I was a part of this story. Where else would my knowledge of this land come from?

The dragon chose to hit the castle stable and dine on horse flesh giving me enough time to climb the half-abandoned wall and enter the castle proper.

I turned a corner and saw a knight wearing the crest of bravery on his shield. Only when I saw it did I gain the knowledge.

“Spy, you’ve chosen a bad time to show yourself before me.”

“I’m not a spy I know how we can beat the dragon.”

“For hundreds of years, knights have tried what can a peasant do? I am the knight of courage, Fernando. What is your name, fool.” I stared the man up and down. His orange plate mail was shiny, and the stood out. “Speak quickly, or my sword will become your conversation partner.”

“The dragon is almost blind. Have someone strong dress as the princess and let the dragon take him after giving a token jester of defense.”

“Tried it. It’s mating season for those monsters. They consider it a great sport to gift a princess to their seasonal mate for eating. The dragoness figured it out, and they burned over 20 hamlets in revenge. Anything you can possibly come up with we’ve tried before.”

“I’m still doing it.” I flashed forward and smashed my fist into his armored gut. The metal screeched and bent inward on itself. “Its hard to get inspired from watching something through a screen. Sometimes experience is best.” I said.

A roar rattled the walls as I tossed the knight of courage into a broom closet before running up the spiraling stairs. Soldiers barely saw me as I dashed past them. My body never felt so light. It was incredible.

The door to the princess’s chambers was guarded by two other knights. One in blue armor and the other in pink. “Halt assassin, we are the knights of comradery and hope you shall not pass us.” I pulled my eagle and shot both of them in the leg. Since this was a rank 1 inspiration the rounds punched through the armor.

“No, we won’t be defeated so easily.” The knight of hope called.

Frost covered the comrade knight’s armor, and his wound stopped bleeding. I fired twice more, taking out the man’s legs.

The knight of hope raised his spear, and pink light the same color as his armor gathered around its tip. I flashed over and kicked him in the side of the head gently. The knight fell over, completely knocked out.

I dusted off my hands and opened the door to see a blonde-haired, green-eyed woman in her late teens glaring at me. She had a clear potion in her offhand that must have been poison or maybe a powerful painkiller. Then again, this was a low-tech world the farming equipment, so it might have been clean water a rarity.

I drew finger guns and pointed them at her. “Well, princess, it's your lucky day. Give me your clothes and perfume, then head downstairs. I’m going to be your body double today.”

“That was the first thing I suggested it’s been tried. I’ve accepted my fate. One life is a small price to pay for the well-being of my people.” The princess said.

The castle shook. “You know I expected you to be happy since you didn’t have to die. While this might have been everyone’s first thought, I can make it work.” I said.

“I can’t risk it.” Claws ripped open the castle wall and left tumbling bricks in its wake. Half-cloudy yellow eyes thick with feet of cataracts stared down, looking between us.

“Naughty prey. While my sight isn’t what it once was, my nose is as sharp as ever. The princess is the cleanest in the kingdom.”

The dragon’s claws wrapped around me, and the princess blinked, looked relieved, and then panicked. “No, great Tyrian, it's me you want. I’m the princess.”

“You can’t fool me, prey. I can smell that this one is far cleaner than you. When was the last time you bathed days ago? This one still has faint traces of soap upon his skin a delicious fruity scent. No, you may trick my eyes, but my nose is sharp as ever.”

“What,” The princess said.

The dragon shoved itself off the castle wall and flew quickly toward its lair. I was jostled slightly but relaxed in the monster’s grip. I was sure this was going to be fun. Even if it was an inspirational vision I hadn’t killed anyone.

We entered a cave, and the dragon dropped me off on a large hill of gold coins.

“Pick something out nice. My mate will be here soon. Kori the Hungry likes her gifts wrapped in gold.” The dragon let flames flare up around his teeth. “Remember, this is for your people.”

I stared at the dragon and clicked my scouter.

Tyrian

Monster: Dragon

Rank: 1

EAP 10/10

DEAP (Database Estimated Attack Potency) 5/10

Out of everything I’ve scanned with my scouter so far, Tyrian was in the middle percentile. I shook my head. DEAP was a new feature I added to put things into perspective. While the dragon was definitely stronger than me, it wasn’t stronger than me. Attributes worked off of effectiveness. A dragon’s attributes, while harder to gain, were all much more impactful. While I was around 60% more effective thanks to my boiling ambrosia bath, I wasn’t at dragon levels of effectiveness.

My scouter compared monsters based on their effect on the local manasphere. So it was most likely more dangerous.

Did that mean I couldn’t win? No, especially in an enclosed space with the speed advantage. Still, I grabbed a crown, tossed a silk dress over my clothes, and grabbed a gaudy gold and ruby-encrusted staff. I stared at the thing until I saw small flames within the rubies shifting into various runes. That gave me more an idea a new path of enchantment to follow.

I didn’t know fire could do that. Fire was used in alchemy but to make shifting enchantments was something else.

“A good choice that’s the staff of the archmage of fire, Frodo Burnside. I defeated him and took the staff as my trophy.” Tyrian said.

I swung the gaudy gold staff a few times. The item had to weigh almost a hundred pounds, and the metal wasn’t soft to the touch. When I thought I made an indention with my thumb I pulled my digit away to see a smooth surface.

“She’s coming quickly. Climb atop my hoard and turn around. I want her to see how tasty you look.”

I wanted to look but the dragon built his cave in a winding tunnel leading to a massive antechamber. A casual onlooker couldn’t see what was inside. I stood atop the hill of gold and thought about killing the big lizard but held back. Not because I couldn’t kill them but because I wanted to see some inspiration.

Maybe it was them setting the entire kingdom alight. This was obviously a low roll. Inspiration was here, but I couldn’t tell where it was going to come from.

The cave shook as not one but two dragons landed. “Tyrian, my favorite mate. This is my cousin Komonder. We heard there were twin princesses born to the kingdom in your territory.”  Kori said.

“Maybe you should try this one together, and we can go and capture the other one together,” Tyrian said.

“Males, all they want is to see two females touch snouts.”

“I can’t see it, but knowing it happened would be good enough,” Tyrian said.

Two massive heads poked around the corner to see me on a pile of gold. “This princess looks far less soft than I expected. I don’t see a lot of meat. Don’t they normally have wide hips? Her hips are too narrow. Have you overhunted your princesses?” Komonder asked.

The lead dragon licked her chops. “I don’t see what the problem is. There is still plenty of meat on her.”

“Well, Tyrian has attacked our kingdom every generation since anyone can remember,” I said.

“Oh, you heard us what a naughty mating gift you are. Talking to us like we’re equals as well. You make me want to swallow you up alive so I can hear you scream and beg.”

These were the kind of monsters it was a pleasure to destroy. They deserved all the evils I could unleash upon them.

I moved, and the dragon’s eyes narrowed. Her mouth opened, and flames billowed out, but it was far too late. I paused to get my feet in place just under her. I jumped and delivered a powerful punch at the junction where her chin connected. Dragons scales were strong, but my blow launched its head up, slamming it against the ceiling.

Tyrian turned in my direction and I drew my eagle and fired twice. The dragon’s eyes exploded. I moved just as Komonder’s jaws snapped where I stood. My foot connected flat with the side of the cave, giving me the perfect leverage to kick off. I smashed into the side of the dragon’s head and delivered an elbow hard enough to concuss the monster.

Fire gathered around Tyrian’s jaws as he prepared to unleash a river of flames. I decided that dragon scales were probably the only protection in the cave. I braced a foot against Kori’s gums and deadlifted her jaws open. She was still knocked out, and I used that moment to leap into her maw and let the teeth shut. The dragon’s body rattled as the flames hit.