Even as the monster bunched its legs to follow Chao Kun, Tou He, thus far ignored, thrust his quarterstaff at the monster’s hide, making the monster stutter to a stop again. The monk caught the staff as it rebounded and spun the weapon around in a rising blow that caught the lunging monster as it recovered. As the monster flipped over, Tou He slid backward, his feet digging furrows in the earth as the energy of the attack dissipated. Tou He’s style, the Mountain Resides, might not be particularly powerful, but it excelled at defense.
Even as the three cultivators fought to trade off on attracting the demon’s attention, the other cultivators arrived on its flanks. A dao-wielder brought his sabre down on its back thigh, cutting a long furrow. Another, using a halberd, missed his strike and lopped off a horn instead. As the taotei whirled on them, Tou He pounded on its body and sides with his staff, attracting its attention again—only to watch his precious staff get bitten in half. Before the monster could finish the job, Li Yao was there with her staff, threatening its eyes with her point.
The cultivators fought and distracted the monster like the highly trained martial artists they were. Without the element of surprise, the taotei found dealing with the martial specialists more difficult. Left behind, Wu Ying, Liu Tsong, and Elder Wei watched the fight.
“They are doing well,” Wu Ying said, to break the silence.
“For now. They are burning their chi at an astounding rate to keep up with the taotei,” Elder Wei commented coldly. “Your friend, the monk, is even burning his life force.”
Wu Ying jerked at her words, narrowing his eyes on Tou He. His friend was engulfed in a shimmering heatwave. Burning one’s life force should have only been possible at the Energy Storage stage—but those who were fire-aspected had the ability to do so even at the lowest level. After all, burning was what fire did.
“You idiot,” Wu Ying whispered in horror.
Life force, lifeblood, was something individuals had a limited amount of. Some herbs, some medicines, could recover the lifeblood to some degree, but it could never be entirely replaced. Mortals had a limited lifespan. Burning one’s lifeblood was tantamount to reducing one’s time on earth, cutting short one’s chance of immortality.
“He is right,” Liu Tsong said as she placed her hand on Wu Ying’s shoulder. “This is no time for half-measures. If we do not buy the Elders enough time, we will all fall.”
Even as Liu Tsong spoke, Wu Ying saw another weapon shatter. The unlucky cultivator was saved by a last-minute explosion of air, one formed by a timely fist from Chao Kun. That further exhausted the tired cultivator, making him stumble. Only the intervention of another cultivator striking the taotei with a flame-covered mace saved Chao Kun as he pulled back, cradling his fist. The now-swordless guard recovered and drew another weapon from his storage ring, jumping back into the fight as the taotei focused on another cultivator. Even from this distance, Wu Ying could tell the new weapon was less powerful, less sharp. A backup weapon.
“When it breaks through, I shall assault it with my cauldron,” Elder Wei said, her voice still dispassionate as if she were detailing a pill formula. “The attack should allow us some modicum of protection. Liu Tsong and Wu Ying, you must do your best to finish it.”
Wu Ying winced. Winning the fight seemed impossible. After all, if the nearly dozen martial specialists, working together, could do little but harass and lightly injure the taotei, what could the three of them do?
“Elder, perhaps we should be the distraction?” Liu Tsong offered.
“No. My cauldron can suffer more damage than you can,” Elder Wei said. “While I can control the pill cauldron to defend and attack, its attacks are less powerful and concentrated. Sufficient for my purposes most times, but against the taotei, unlikely to be sufficient.”
Even as the group spoke, the battle between the martial specialists and the monster was coming to a close. A sudden twist of the creature’s back as it planted its front legs threw the demon’s spike-ridden hindquarters into an unsuspecting cultivator. Impaled, the martial specialist plunged his short jian into the creature’s hindlegs before expiring.
In the distance, a pair of martial specialists helped each other retreat. One limped on a shattered leg, the other’s face covered with blood with a strip of flesh hanging off his side. Of the twelve initial cultivators, seven still stood, the final two lying still on the churned earth. As a cultivator fell, the taotei unleashed a howl, filling the clearing with its unwashed, malodorous breath.
“Tou He, Jin Ya, Ou Shen, fall back. We four will use the Green Yin Leaf formation,” Chao Kun ordered, re-ordering the remnant group.
Even as he spoke, Chao Kun dashed forward to meet the taotei’s charge, a well-timed uppercut catching the lunging bite. The wind-boosted attack threw back the monster, forcing it to wiggle on its sloped back to regain its feet. As Chao Kun retreated, he shook his right fist. Dripping blood flew upward and around his fist, staining the swirling tornado around his hand with blood.
As the named cultivators retreated, Wu Ying turned his gaze to the still Elders. Both sat in silence, the chi in the atmosphere around them so thick it was visible. Around Elder Po, a silver-white halo of power twisted, emerging from the ground and sky. Elder Li was likewise covered by the darker brown-and-yellow chi of the earth. In the glow of the concentrated atmospheric chi, Wu Ying could not help but notice the pair’s auric presence had increased even further.
“Wu Ying.”
“Yes, Elder Wei?” Wu Ying said, turning his gaze back to the woman.
“Your aura control. Exert it to the maximum. Hold yourself back and launch your attack when you are given the opportunity. If you have no aura, the creature might ignore you,” Elder Wei said.
“Yes, Elder.”
Liu Tsong offered Wu Ying a half-smile as he stepped away from them. If he was going to launch a sneak attack, it would be better for him to give himself more space. Next, Wu Ying steadied his breathing, drawing his aura tight along his body and closing off the leaks as best he could.
Tou He, retreating with the others, offered Wu Ying a frown as he passed his friend. The ex-monk was pale, as if he had been lying at the bottom of an ice-cold lake for hours. Eyes which were often filled with laughter and life looked dead, unfocused, as Tou He stumbled to a stop, one hand gesturing futilely. Tou He looked at his empty hand blankly before he took a proffered staff without a word.
Another roar and Wu Ying turned around to watch with horror as Li Yao was bashed aside. Snow that had gathered around her body escaped as Li Yao lost control of her chi, the green-robed cultivator tumbling through shrubs and dirt before coming to a sudden rest. The taotei roared in triumph and shook its body. Accumulated ice, formed from a strike right below its rib, shattered and the pieces ejected. Doing so left a gaping wound that poured blood, the first effective strike of the battle.
A flicker of motion in the sky. As Chao Kun dropped, he sheathed his fist in a spike of air and blood. Glimpses of wood could be seen beneath as the bracers he wore extended under the control of his chi. He landed the blow above the taotei’s sloping forehead, his air-powered chi dispersing as it met hardened skin, the wood spike shattering on the bone beneath. But behind the initial attack, Chao Kun’s fist continued forward. Under the blow, the earth beneath the taotei crumpled, grass and plants exploding upward from around the monster. The resulting impact and rebound threw Chao Kun’s limp body gracelessly through the air.
Forced into the ground, the taotei blinked beady, confused eyes. The monster moved its front feet, pulling one foot out of the sucking ground before flopping it bonelessly back on the churned earth. A low, pitiful whine erupted from its mouth. From its nose, a slow trickle of blood appeared.