I Was Called A Demon

“… pain.”

“Bianca, I really don’t think it was worse than-”

“Pain~…”

“… Bianca, I know you two have been fighting one another, but you’ve barely been hurt in the process. Are you really that exhausted?”

“YEEES!”

Song Ming sighed, patting Bianca’s head that rested on her thighs, “Well, do tell me, then.”

 

The smoky barrier shattered, and a sword struck Bianca’s skin, though it was far slower than it had been initially. It hit her bare body, but it only dug into her skin a little before almost bouncing off, leaving her with a red mark on her upper left arm.

“You truly are durable. That body cultivation technique is an incredible one, all things considered,” Xue Yaling muttered, glancing at her blade for a moment, “The same, of course, can’t be said about your skills and control. Nothing about your movements is good, apart from when you’re executing specific skills.”

After taking a step back, the kitsune narrowed her eyes and began her explanation – one of many.

“First of all, your combat skill provides you with immense versatility in comparison to quite a number of others, and yet you are using it extremely poorly. You’re almost exclusively focusing on your knife, even though you’ve previously demonstrated that you can use your hand just as well, though you’re completely forgetting about your legs and feet. There is no requirement for you to focus the offensive energy on a sharp edge or anything of the sort, so experiment more with it.”

“It’s just… hard-”

“Try not to get too hard while you’re fighting, you need the blood that would be wasted down there to stay in your head.”

“… it’s difficult. There’s just way too much to think about.”

“How about you don’t? Just let your instincts guide you – advice I’d generally not give anyone I’d want to help, but in your case, it seems to be preferable. Also, your stance is all wrong, your responsive times are shit, your ability to stop vital parts from being hit – your arms count as vital in combat situations, in case you didn’t realise – is beyond awful, and even now, you seem terrible at controlling the intensity of your attacks.”

“Well…”

“When I anger you, your offensive abilities become so much more effective, so this coincides with my previous advice of letting yourself fight using your instincts more.”

“But wait, isn’t this completely contrary to me controlling myself?”

“Somewhat. The wilder you are, the harder it would be to make informed, wise decisions upon a battlefield,” Xue Yaling nodded, “However, your instincts are quite a bit better than your typical, rational mind in all cases but who to kill or not kill. If you were able to make proper use of them in a fight while controlling your intent, you would be a… barely passable combatant.”

“Yeah, thanks…” Bianca couldn’t exactly be happy at that sort of praise, but she had to acknowledge that it was better than most of what the kitsune had said before.

It was true that no matter what Xue Yaling might try to teach her, Bianca struggled to properly grasp it. However, as she had seen a number of times before, whatever natural instincts she had proved rather decent when combined with the Demonic Tyrant’s guidance of her attacks. Most of the time she fought with anyone, it only worked out because she happened to avoid any lethal strikes and block most of the rest, a miracle that she didn’t expect to continue forever.

From that perspective, letting her body do whatever it seemed to want to do looked to be a far superior option. It might even be possible for her to do a decent job for once, though she wasn’t too keen on finding out any time soon. Ideally, she’d never have to find out, but she’d not been especially lucky so far.

“So, the first thing you should do is unleash your instincts, then we can work on getting them under control, and after that, you can try to actually learn these things properly, so that you’re able to act both consciously and unconsciously, greatly enhancing your overall abilities. I expect this to take decades, but if your memory isn’t coming back any time soon, it won’t matter – and even if it does, I imagine you might not have a place to go back to,” the kitsune said, looking Bianca straight in the eyes as she was wont to do on occasion.

Once again, it felt as if she was seeing into her, perceiving all kinds of things that Bianca tried to keep hidden, or perhaps didn’t even know herself. Considering the topic in question, it felt rather terrifying as a concept, since someone that figured out the truth – or guessed a worse conclusion – clearly excelled at the power of deduction, at least in comparison to Bianca’s own abilities.

‘Though, if I say anything odd, I will make myself that much more obvious… and there’s no way she knows, right? So, I should just pretend that I don’t get anything from it… besides, she thinks I’m dumb anyway, and she is mostly correct.’

“Ready? I’d suggest you throw out the knife and fight me bare handed to reduce your reliance on it, but… actually, hand it over for a moment.”

Bianca complied while she was still in thought, realising what she did only after Xue Yaling was already holding it in both hands, staring at it intently and examining every miniscule detail that Bianca likely never imagined. It took her quite a while to look away, though she kept it in her possession even after that.

“This is a high quality knife… How lucky that, of all the knives that a village’s cook must have had, you chose to take this one,” she muttered, finally letting go of the handle and handing it over while holding onto the blade, “That being said, it’s no artefact, nor was it ever supposed to be used for battle by cultivators. The fact that it’s endured this well is more a testament to your own energy – and, unfortunately, not your control over it – and its innate durability than its suitability for combat.”

“So, basically, it’s a really good kitchen knife.”

“Yup. That’s by no means a bad thing, but you ought to consider switching it to something else soon and not getting too focused on learning how to use it specifically. In general, versatility is useful for anyone that doesn’t decide to dedicate themselves to a single path at the cost of all others.”

“Would that even be a good thing? Not specifically for me, just… in general.”

“Those that have the talent for it manage to surpass all of their peers, especially once they’ve figured out the deeper mysteries of their chosen approach. Sometimes, having thousands of different skills to use on a whim is not as effective as having mastered but a single one to such a point that all your foes fear to ever challenge you,” Xue Yaling replied, lifting her own weapon again as she distanced herself from Bianca, “Now, let’s actually begin our fight. Ready…”

 

A tall, lone figure stood within an underground training ground, illuminated only by rays of moonlight entering through a small opening within the ceiling. As of this moment, it hit the very centre of the training ground, exposing that the floor was coated in a thin layer of glistening, crystal-clear water, leaving the silvery light to scatter all around.

It illuminated the focused, golden eyes of the man that used this ground almost every single day, and who slowly entered it now, having removed his shoes mere moments ago.

The water splashed with every step, breaking up the silence of this dark cave and echoing for many seconds.

His gaze remained forward-facing and unblinking until he stood directly beneath the moonlight, finally moving more than just his legs in order to look up into the moon and drink in its glow. Even then, the gold of his eyes overpowered the silver light, seeming to cut through it regardless of what perspective one looked at them from. Furthermore, they seemed sharp, unnaturally so, akin to two blades that were ready to strike.

As the man took a break, his chest rose and fell, shifting the cloth of his pure white robes. They were entirely pure and devoid of decoration, as if all such things were far beyond him, a totally pointless extravagance.

“The path of the heavens is beyond mortal comprehension… but we may still grasp onto a thread.”

He reached out to the side with his right hand, opening it and beginning to shut it around a seemingly imaginary blade. And yet, as his hand shut, a smooth hilt manifested from naught, a narrow and plain guard following after, and the glistening light of the moon solidified into a silver blade exactly 73cm long, balanced and weighted in such a manner that it landed perfectly within his hand.

It appeared just as his hand grasped it, allowing him to bring the weapon to his front, holding it straight up and gazing at the blade for a moment.

“I do wonder if this isn’t some entirely different thread, however,” he pondered out loud, his voice echoing within the dim chamber while he continued to gaze upon the weapon, many thoughts going through his head in the process.

Even he wasn’t sure how long he spent in his contemplation, but eventually he knew that he had devoted enough of his time to it. With a smooth motion, he swung the blade back to his side, slicing through the water countless steps away as if the tip of his weapon has been many metres further from the hilt than it seemed.

This time, he did not linger and instead raised and thrust it forward, assuming a combat stance before beginning his training.

His swings were simple, aimed at a foe only he could see, but each one captured attention, seeming to trap anyone that was foolish enough to look. Furthermore, despite never stepping away from the centre of the training grounds, a space so wide that a thousand people could fit in without too much difficulty, the sound of metal striking stone sounded every now and then, slicing through walls with an unseen blade.

Slowly, his swings and strikes grew faster, and the power within each one also increased. From plain attacks to proper skills, the sword began to glow with pure white light, akin to the glow of the heavens.

Once it had built up enough, he finished his last swing and raised the weapon into the air, the light shooting up and reaching towards the distant skies, cutting through the moonlight. A spark of heavenly lightning illuminated the chamber for the moment in which it existed, and then, all of a sudden, the blade was lowered once more.

The light dimmed nearly to the point of extinguishing as he turned his head slightly, “Lei Kai Lian. I hope you have a good reason to interrupt me.”

“Master, I apologise,” the young disciple entered, moonlight just barely illuminating her blue eyes, “I have just returned from my meeting with the Blazing Skies. They’ve shared with me the news of a new demon, a low-realm but threatening one.”

“That isn’t the full extent of the story, is it? I imagine that the methods used were not ones I would approve of,” he said, shaking his head just a little, “You must recall that you are a disciple, and there is much you have yet to learn. Amongst those things is the basic humility you ought to have before the heavens, the understanding that you are their servant, and will never be anything else.”

“M-Master, I’m not sure… What are you referring to?” Lei Kai Lian’s tone was almost calm and genuine, but her gaze struggled to remain on her master, resting mainly on a random spot in the water.

“You believe yourself to have superior judgement and comprehension to myself, though that is not especially egregious. To reach a teacher’s understanding and surpass it should be the goal of all students, so I cannot blame you for it. However, you have much to learn, and more importantly, you believe yourself to be superior not only to myself, but also the heavens. That is your mistake, and if you wish to question it, then it just proves that you are not wishing to admit fault.”

“Master Hua, I… I simply commended the sect’s disciples for wishing to hunt down a demon. Is this not the will of the heavens?”

“Child, you are not even close to comprehending that will. That peak of the universe, the Grand Dao, the ultimate destination. No mortal will ever reach it, regardless of talent, so you ought to abandon the folly.”

“I never said-”

“Over in the west, there was a figure that some called the Child of Heaven, a strand of Heaven’s Will descended unto the mortal realm. That figure was among the greatest in all of our recorded history… and where did they end up?” Hua Jun shook his head, sighing ever so softly, “Even a figure so renowned that they are better known here than most figures of the Eastern Continent vanished. Their name and identity was lost, and now all we have is a few titles.”

Lei Kai Lian found herself clenching her teeth involuntarily, holding back whatever complaints her tongue felt like spitting out.

“I know that you hold yourself in high regard. However, pride must be balanced with humility. Boldness must be balanced with caution. One that stands too firmly at any extreme will inevitably fall, whether they attempt to follow the heavens or stand against them.”

“I… will keep that in mind, Master Hua.”

Although Hua Jun knew that her words were far form sincere, he dropped the topic and raised his weapon again, looking into the darkness of the training grounds. He shut his eyes, took a deep breath, then addressed her again.

“Describe the traits of the demon to me. Only the absolute truths.”

“There… isn’t that much to tell, if that’s what you wish for. She uses energy that radiates a demonic aura – an intimidating one of malice, hatred and anger. When applied to her weapon, a kitchen knife stolen from Xi Village, it turns to crimson, arcs of it appearing over the weapon’s edge and amplifying its strikes.”

“What realm did they fight her in?”

“The first.”

“Externalised energy in the first realm?”

“A-Ah, my apologies, I forgot to clarify that it was mere illusion. However, it is likely that she will have advanced to the second realm at her current pace, so those illusory phenomena will become true.”

“Not necessarily. There are many paths to take with planar energy, and it would be foolish to assume that all will follow the same one. This is especially true of demons, whether we merely see them as such or if they have heart and minds so dark that they would not hesitate to devastate the land for minor convenience, if they had the chance.”

“Yes, Master. She might have a body cultivation technique, but the exact effects are uncertain. However, she does have a movement skill that permits her to accelerate her movement to a significant degree, though the acceleration is less prominent when used to clear greater distances,” Lei Kai Lian continued, “There was no use of a defensive skill, so we cannot confirm whether she has one. The Blazing Skies also didn’t witness any other combat skills, nor did they have the time – or forethought – to examine the energy and cultivation technique, meaning that any unique traits are also unknown to me.”

“Hm… A scared young woman with just a few skills.”

“She’s no scared girl, she-”

“I was testing you. I have ways of learning the same information, and I wanted to confirm that you would not allow a certain mistake to reoccur. Fortunately, you appear to have learnt your lesson this time, if only in regards to techniques and skills,” Hua Jun said, finally opening his eyes, “A scared woman who only displayed true intent to kill once another’s life was threatened. More ought to be learned about this situation before any conclusions are made, though her deeds so far cannot be forgotten or forgiven regardless of her circumstances.”

“Then…”

“The sects have made their wish to see her dead known. I will not stop this, though it is also important to remember that unlike the first time she had been observed killing, if any more fall as a result of this, it would have been done in self-defence.”

“But-”

“Later. I have heard all this too many times already. For now, I must contemplate.”

He didn’t wait for her to speak and got to it immediately, returning to a combat stance and gazing at a very certain point before him, where the vague silhouette of a young woman appeared within his mind’s eye, wielding a kitchen knife. Her posture was all wrong, her grip was unsteady, her footing moments away from being lost.

It wasn’t the stance of a combatant, but of someone who had never touched a weapon before.

‘Indeed, such a person couldn’t be an ordinary demon, certainly not in this state. Perhaps she had been once, leading to her particular energy, but it may be impossible to confirm this if the traces of her past have been erased well enough,’ he thought, gazing into the space where the silhouette’s eyes would have been, ‘However, she may yet become one, for I cannot imagine her circumstances will prove accommodating to traits we see as good and virtuous…’