Ken's group had already returned to the sect, leaving behind an instruction for George to appear in front of them within 2 weeks; the time when the airships would start the trip to the competition.
The Martial Arts Summit was held in the same place every fifty years, ironically, in a valley north of the Peaceful Demon Sect.
'Intent, huh. I've been waiting to be at the fifth stage before trying to cultivate one, but now it's time to stop delaying it,' Ken thought to himself as he produced a few marbles from his storage ring.
The moment Ken released the marbles from his storage ring, a stifling, oppressive atmosphere engulfed the room. It was as if a heavy cloud of death hung in the air, every breath he took tasted of iron and dread. The shadows in the room seemed to deepen, almost writhing with a life of their own as the Murderous Intent stones emitted an eerie, dark glow.
Those were the Murderous Intent stones he had received as a reward for clearing one of the challenges in the Bloodthirst Sect's secret realm. They were created by the seven elders' combined effort.
The training room was covered in Concealing formations whose purpose was to block the intent he knew would be emitted as soon as he brought the stones out of his storage ring.
Sensing the intent crawling on his skin as if someone caressed him with icy fingers filled with malicious intentions, Ken took a deep breath and savored the sensation, trying to grasp the essence of murder. He remembered the elder's example about how a man with Sword Intent could cut through solid objects with his hand without Qi.
'To be the embodiment of the sword, or now, to be the embodiment of bloodlust and murder,' Ken thought to himself as he replayed in his mind the many times he had killed others.
He sat without moving for hours, trying to find the meaning of murder and the intent one should have to perform one.
'To gain riches? To take what I desire? No, that's robbing and stealing.'
Ken thought of all the reasons he had killed so far. Sometimes it was to keep his secrets hidden, at other times because he needed money. There were instances where he did it because he had to in order to survive or to eliminate competition. He had used murder as a tool to blackmail and threaten others. He even used murder to train himself and improve his techniques quickly.
'I did commit quite a lot of murder. It's not out of any specific reason all the time, so what is the meaning of murder?' Ken pondered.
He could feel something on the tip of his mind as if just waiting for him to unveil it and discover the answer.
He remembered the first time he had murdered someone. Ron, a young man from the branch of the Phoenix Feather Sect where Ken was born. Ron was just unlucky to stumble upon Ken's training session while he was trying to understand a sword technique, a technique that was inevitably made for the purpose of killing.
At the time, he did not feel any remorse about killing Ron, and he still did not feel any. It was a defining moment in his cultivation; the moment that led him to the decision to cultivate Bloodlust Qi. He recalled the moment he killed Ron on an impulse back then and knew he'd do it again if it helped him gain strength.
Next, he had killed a group of other disciples to develop his killing intent and bloodlust to a point that'd leave an impression on his soul and body, enough to affect his core when he broke through and formed one.
He had killed countless people since then. Including the ones he had killed only in his mind by replaying scenes and running 'simulations' based on his memories, the number surpassed a million humans.
'I did it all for one goal, to grow stronger, to stand at the peak, to be the best. Murder is a tool used to achieve standing at the top, intimidating others is meant to put others underneath you, killing is employed when I want to clear obstacles.'
Ken felt a bottleneck turn loose as if it were removed, and a strong pressure resembling the one emanating from the stones came out of his body. If a mortal was there, they'd be terrified out of their senses, filled with the belief they're going to die in the next few seconds. Older people might have had their hearts stop working from the fear, literally dying.
He looked around him with new profound red light in his eyes, his gaze seemed to be that of a king upon his rivals when knowing all their little schemes and games. It was penetrating scrutiny that would make one feel like all their secrets were laid bare, like they were now standing in a trial where their life or death would be determined.
"Murderous Intent."
Ken said with a smile as he got up and stretched, satisfied by the results of his training session. In the end, his comprehensive abilities were his most useful strengths, allowing him to grasp within a day something that other cultivators needed years for, and even then, not all of them succeeded.
He was slowly containing his new power to avoid pulling attention when he left the room and interacted with others until he finally found a way to completely suppress it.
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Two weeks passed quickly, and Ken used them mainly to adjust to his new Murderous intent. Alaric and Tiara did the same with their own inheritances, while Henry was working on improving his nascent soul with the goal of breaking through to the next sub-stage.
"Shall we go?"
There were five of them at the entrance to Ken's house. He hired a babysitter for Emrys in his absence, paying the woman a handsome sum for the job. He still thought she was going to regret it when she found out she had to wrestle with the young wolf half of the day.
'I wonder if he is going to hump everything when he is older, or the extra intelligence would allow him to restrain himself,' Ken thought.
Ken and his four companions, George included, set out to the designed spot, soon arriving at the ladders of the airships. However, nobody climbed up, but instead assembled on the ground and waited for a briefing.
"Disciples, we will embark in 30 minutes. The rules of the competition were set by a committee consisting of 20 members; an elder from each top 20 sect. They all had sworn not to reveal the content of the model of the Martial Arts Summit, so nobody prepared for it. As the leading sect of the continent, we expect you to excel above the others and bring glory to our sect," an elder whom Ken did not know levitated in the air and announced the news.
"This time, we expect the competition to be… heated. We have some disagreements with many other sects, and they will aim to kill our young generation and maim our future. However, they are going to find out that as serene as our sect normally is, this lotus can also turn into a carnivorous plant when needed."
Her words stirred the hearts of the disciples on the ground. The core disciples had already heard from their masters that the competition would be fiercer than usual and hence, more dangerous. The inner disciples also knew; although they did not have personal guidance, they still had lessons that Ken and his friends never attended.
"Our sect would not send its precious disciples to danger without proper reward. Inner disciples will receive a month of personal instruction from an elder of their choice for every enemy they kill, while core disciples will be eligible to choose out of many prizes including a ninth-rank weapon, Heaven-rank techniques, high Qi Stones, and more."
The disciples' eyes widened when they heard the enticing rewards, while Ken's expression seemed to ponder about a certain idea.
"Do not forget, every strike of your blade carries the honor and the fury of our sect. We are not just participants in this competition, we are the predators. Our adversaries should quake at the mention of our name, they should leave with a single thought – to never target us again! The battle ahead is not only about defending our legacy, but expanding it. Spill their blood, crush their hopes, and show the entire realm the fearsome force of our Serene Lotus Sect! KILL WITHOUT MERCY"
"KILL WITHOUT MERCY!"
The elder's words cut through the morning mist, igniting a fervor among the disciples that resonated through the valley. The sound of hundreds chanting "Kill Without Mercy!" echoed against the mountain ranges, sending a chill down the spines of those who heard it, knowing well the storm that was brewing.
"KILL WITHOUT MERCY!" Ken heard George shouting with the crowd next to them.
"You won't be killing anyone," Alaric reminded the man, "Instead, do your best to stay behind us and not get yourself killed."
George coughed and cleared his throat in embarrassment when he realized he got caught in the heat of the moment and forgot his real role there.
"Good, now, go to register your names with your tokens at the reception before you get onboard. Top inner disciples and core disciples who do not participate can expect a penalty and having their status revoked."
The elder gave one last announcement, adding a layer of threat to deter the disciples from thinking about deserting the battle.
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