Cult of the Sacred Runes

Chapter 45 – It’s Not Fair

Contrary to the Ye family’s elated mood, Du Yuan Ming, Zhou Wu, and Dong Ho were feeling unsettled and frightened.

The Du Patriarch perniciously looked at the Ye camp. He was so close to getting rid of them, and now they were about to get away as if nothing happened. The feeling of being stopped one step away from eradicating a threat was like nothing else, especially when they were going to come back stronger, and be protected by someone like Master Yi!

Most of the Ye youngsters had now woken up. They didn’t think too much about Ye Zhong’s condition, as he had endured the most injuries. It was reasonable if he woke up last.

Master Yi was relieved the moment he learned Ye Wei was fine, but he was still curious about why Ye Zhong was not moving. He frowned and narrowed his eyes. A golden flash appeared in his eyes after which he then cast his penetrating gaze onto Ye Zhong, checking his Qi flow and body condition.

He stared at the motionless body for ten seconds, looking worried and mournful.

“This child was gifted, it’s such a shame...” He broke the silence after a thorough assessment. He shook his head resentfully and then a long, sad sigh followed.

Ye Zhong’s name was the first thing that left Ye Wei’s lips after he woke up. Master Yi could tell from his observations that the cousins occupied a large place in each other’s hearts. Due to that, he would do anything within his abilities to revive his apprentice’s cousin from his coma.

But, sadly, this was not the case. Without the aid of a Welkin Leaf, Ye Zhong might never again see the sun due to his shattered Sentient!

Getting ahold of the rare herb would be just the first step. It could wake him, but the chance of his Sentient completely recovering was less than ten percent.

Ye Wei’s heart dropped when he heard Master Yi’s sigh; he asked anxiously, “Master Yi, is my cousin okay?” He nervously clenched his fists while waiting for his master’s answer.

“Why is he not waking up?”

Ye Hai asked. The family was getting restless as they too heard the long sigh. Being a five star Warrior at the age of twenty-two, Ye Zhong was well on his way to overtake Ye Zheng Qing’s cultivation, and he was the most likely candidate to the patriarch’s position.

“This child’s Sentient is shattered; he won’t be waking up for the rest of his life.” Master Yi did not fabricate facts; he did not know how to.

Master Yi’s words struck the Ye’s like a bolt of lightning that sent shivers down the group’s spines. The patriarch and Ye Hai staggered and almost fell.

“But what do you mean? The Green Mizzle didn’t save him?!” Ye Hai couldn’t accept his son, the strongest youngster, and future of the Ye family was in a vegetative state.

“Shattered Sentient?” Master Yi voice echoed in Ye Wei’s head. “Won’t be waking up the rest of his life?” He was stupefied, standing still like a soulless being.

‘He did that for me... He was fighting an impossible fight against the general for me...’

With a bottomless sense of guilt stabbing at his heart, Ye Wei had severe chest pain. He could hardly breathe.

“Is there any other ways?” Ye Wei’s face showed determination, but his trembling voice told otherwise. He clenched his fist, and raised his head to look at Master Yi, “I will do anything for my cousin’s recovery, even if it means I have to go through hell.”

Inspired by Ye Wei’s stubbornness, Master Yi found the answer to the question. “If, a big if... If I can get ahold of some Welkin leaves, I should be able to restore his consciousness with a fancy stance. But that plant is extremely rare. With it, I will see what I can do!”

“Thanks, Master!” Ye Wei’s mood lightened slightly. ‘If master can’t find it, I will.’ He bowed to Master Yi again.

Du Yuan Ming, Zhou Wu, and Dong Ho knew they were going to be in trouble as they were responsible for every bit of Ye Zhong’s injuries. They tried to sneak away from the scene quietly as the Ye’s started talking about the youngster who was now in a vegetative state.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Master Yi grunted, their sneakiness did not escape his cold gaze.

“Master Yi...” The three were shivering in fear. They would not be able to fight their way out of this situation, not alone, and not together.

“There were some misunderstandings between our family and the Ye’s, but I realize now that we took it a bit too far due to our hotheadedness, and for that we apologize. We didn’t do anything wrong, please just let us go!” Du Yuan Ming said with a trembling voice as he spoke quieter and quieter trying to excuse himself and his crew. He even put down his pride as a patriarch in front of Master Yi.

What Du Yuan Ming said opened Ye Wei’s eyes. ‘You did all this! You shamed, and harmed our family, and you dare say it’s a misunderstanding? If Master is not going to make this right, I will revenge for my family when I am strong enough!’

Master Yi saw Ye Wei’s hateful stare, and it just confirmed the Du family’s wrongdoings. Without a second thought, he started moving his right hand. A long string of runes flew out of his fingertips, and a wave of Qi came crashing like high tide reaching the shore.

Golden Arhat Palm was one of Master Yi’s powerful creations. For most people it was an honor to see his stances two times in one day, but not for these three.

Knowing its power, Du Yuan Ming quickly used the Onyx Tortoise stance. Raw primal energy stuck onto his body forming a thick black armor that covered every inch of his skin. Zhou Wu roared like a lion and quickly finished a rune sequence, “Primal Blockade!” The runes in his palm grew around themselves; eventually, they dug into and shook the ground forming a hefty Qi wall that stood tall in front of him. ‘Glacial Casket!’ Dong Ho grunted. His fat was shaking as he channeled Qi. Four sheets of dense ice froze around his body forming a large coffin, shining blue and seemingly impenetrable.

They were not going to fight back to further anger the most powerful man in this corner of the land; therefore, they opted to defend themselves the best they could.

Master Yi grunted and continued channeling his ruthless attack. The golden palms viciously landed on the three’s defenses.

Soon as the palms hit, Du Yuan Ming’s armors frayed; Zhou Wu’s wall disintegrated and the ice of Dong Ho’s shattered.

Dong Ho got hit the hardest as his defense was completely irrelevant, it only took one golden palm to get him out of the picture. He was sent flying and fell twenty meters away from the point of impact. He screamed on the ground in pain when he was not puking blood.

It wasn’t much better for the general and the patriarch despite their defense being more solid due to their cultivation, the palms were therefore slowed, but they still left dents on their bodies and damaged their meridians which obstructed Qi flow in their systems causing intolerable pain.

Karma bites, sometimes sooner than people expect. It had been a while since the three feared death.

Master Yi stared down onto the Du patriarch and said coldly: “I don’t think there is a place for the Du family in this city.” His sharp voice petrified the Du family members, and they were aware the Runemaster could squeeze them like ants.

“Greetings Master Yi! I am not one of them. I am from the Lu family in Ning City! Please don’t harm a civilian!” The stern-faced teenager was scared too; he never thought things would go bad with the Du’s.

‘Humm he’s pretty talented better than the kid in a coma, but nothing comparing to Ye Wei, and he sounds like a two faced punk!’ Master Yi looked at him with a penetrating stare and thought. “What are you doing here then? Piss off!” He flicked his sleeve intensely at the Lu teen.

The teenager’s talent and gestures were not going to save him today. Master Yi’s invisible strike lashed at him quicker than he could blink, and he didn’t have time to use a defensive stance, all he could do was raising his arms which broke like twigs from the pressure wave. He flew like a small rock skipping a lake’s surface; after bouncing off the ground a few times, he was stopped by a side wall in the arena. He bled from his mouth and laid motionless on the ground twisted like a tangled string puppet.

Only barely conscious, he decided to pretend he was dead and hope someone from his family would save him when the dust settled.

Master Yi’s strange temper horrified everyone at the scene, even the Ye’s. They were now his friends, but they would have to be on their best behavior if they were going to keep contact with this loose cannon.

One minute he was smiling, the next he was breaking bones like it was nothing. Seeing Master Yi’s wrath was more vivid than fearing the Grim Reaper.

Out of the silence came a voice. “Master Yi, this is not fair!” Du Yuan Ming was on his knees, taking what might be his last chance to speak his mind.