Poor Cultivation (The Slayer of Heaven Book 1): A LitRPG Wuxia Series

by Alan Bard

  “Bojan, shall we search the body? It might have a weapon on it. This looks like the corpse of a soldier, doesn’t it?”

  Did I just get some linguistic skill? How can I understand her so well?

  “She was a player,” I said. “I mean, this girl was like us. Her name’s right there, don’t you see it?”

  Everyone shook their heads. Bojan approached the corpse, turned it onto its back with his foot, and began to search the jacket’s pockets.

  “Nothing, someone must’ve already searched her.”

  “It says that she was a Recruit. She was at the bottom of the ranking system,” I said.

  I don’t like the ease and indifference with which Bojan handled the corpse. He’s a really shady guy, Zeta muttered.

  I couldn’t help but wonder what the twins had been doing prior to coming here. They seemed to be cold-blooded killers, not your regular teens.

  “I’d take the jacket if that’s okay with everyone,” Jelena said, hugging her shoulders. She was shivering.

  I then realized that no one had noticed my new jacket, though that wasn’t all that surprising. Green’s looked old and worn, but it did have a lot of pockets.

  Bojan turned to his sister and shrugged. “Take it.”

  Cursing softly, Jelena crouched by the corpse and began to unzip the jacket.

  “Give me a hand. Christ!” she hissed at her brother.

  The entire scene rubbed me the wrong way so I turned around and left, not wishing to watch anymore. Eli and Rio followed me.

  The twins caught up with us soon enough and Bojan, wishing to demonstrate that he was in charge, went ahead.

  Within a minute, his leadership was put to a test. He froze and swore under his breath when something jumped out from under his feet and disappeared in the bamboo. Stalks swayed, rubbing against each other, and it seemed that there was a whole herd of things hiding in the thicket. Drawing our knives, we huddled together.

  “What the hell was that?!” I asked, mentally asking the system to tell us what to be afraid of. But the thing refused to cooperate, showing only a cloud floating over the bamboo. I thought that the Research Mode would switch on, but it seemed that seeing the creature’s silhouette disabled any hints. The system did say that both the Research and Hunting Mode wouldn’t be accompanied by hints.

  “I didn’t see shit,” Bojan grumbled. “Must’ve been a dog of some sort. Or a wolf the size of a large dog. Probably the same Hyenas that attacked you.”

  Eli shook his head. “Nah... It walked upright, like a monkey.”

  “Our knives are useless,” Bojan said. “They won’t do shit in a fight. We might manage to fight off these things, but we’re screwed if something serious attacks us.”

  “Let’s hope it won’t, then,” I whispered, thinking how it’d be nice to have a good weapon, and what a pity it was that Green hadn’t left me a pistol, or at least a dagger.

  A sudden wave of heat overcame me, and my wrist twitched.

  Solution: [Spear]

  Components: bamboo stalk, knife.

  A gun, a knife, a spear... they're not weapons, they're just tools to get a job done.

  The bamboo stalks among which the unknown creature had hidden were highlighted with a bluish light. I just needed to cut one stalk and attach a knife to it. I said nothing and went into the thicket, in the opposite direction of the creature. I looked around and started cutting the thickest stalk.

  “What are you doing?” Eli asked.

  “Bojan’s right, our knives suck. We need a long-range weapon. A spear seems like a good option, don’t you think? Let’s try and make a couple, see how it goes.”

  I was bursting with energy. I couldn’t remember the last time my mind worked so clearly. Ideas seemed to come to me at the speed of light. The effect of the Elixir should’ve worn off by now, so I assumed that this was the normal state of Cultivator’s altered psyche. In all honesty, I kinda liked it.

  “Seems like a good plan.” Eli nodded. “But how will we attach a knife to it?”

  “That corpse had long shoelaces,” I said.

  “Jeco, do you want a knife or a spear?”

  “I just want to die, all right?” she said and draped her shoulders with her new jacket.

  “Take it easy, Jeco. Don’t relax. Keep your guard up.”

  She sighed and sat on the ground, her eyes wistful.

  Rio hesitated, looked at her, and made a wry face. He cut off two long stalks, sharpened them, and twisted them. He did it all so quickly that I could barely follow.

  Looking around, I thought about the creature and whether it’d be smart to go away alone. As I gave it a second thought, I thought up a way to stay on the safe side.

  “Eli, let’s go back to the corpse.”

  He nodded and followed me without a word. Having retrieved the shoelaces, I tried to tie the knife to the stalk. Unfortunately, it turned out to be too slippery. Stubborn as I was, I persisted, but didn’t manage to do anything. Giving up, I let out a frustrated sigh. Fortunately, I immediately came up with a couple of new ideas: I could cut the corpse’s pants and wrap the slippery stalk with fabric, or split the bamboo, insert the knife handle in it, and tie it with a lace.

  I was glad that it was me, and not the artifact, that came up with these ideas. Although, it was hard not to pay attention to the fact that the neural network had affected me. Even without the Cultivator, my brain worked faster from the very beginning of this adventure, absorbing information like a sponge, processing it, and spitting out new ideas.

  In the end, I decided to go with the second option. The stalk was flexible so it didn’t break when I split it. Having managed to jam the knife in it and fix it with the laces, I tested the spear by throwing it at a tree. The result was satisfactory.

  When we returned, I threw a lace to Bojan. He had also started working on a spear, but he wasn’t very successful at attaching the knife either. He was swearing under his breath, but he refused to give up. He wanted to be the boss so bad that I knew there was no point in offering to help him. He’d take it as an insult.

  “Hey, man, how long are you gonna sit there?” Eli asked in a bored tone. Bojan looked at him from under his brows and kept working on his spear.

  Once we were done crafting our weapons, we continued on our way, moving in groups. Looking around, I was thinking about Alicia.

  I hope everyone noticed that someone crushed that girl’s head, Alpha said.

  Yes, there was a bloodied stone nearby. Without a doubt, this was done by a human, Beta said in a low, calm tone.

  How long does it take for a body to decompose? Zeta asked.

  I thought it wouldn’t take more than a few years in this climate, but did it matter?

  The sound of bamboo cracking was following us—something was stalking us nearby. We stopped and whatever was after us stopped as well.

  “Something’s in there,” Eli whispered. “What are we gonna do? Should we not give a fuck and carry on, or should we give a fuck and try to face this... thing?”

  I focused on the undergrowth so that the system would give me a hint as to what was hiding there, but nothing happened.

  “I say we face it,” Rio said in a dry voice. “What if it killed that girl?”

  “Let me be level with you, guys. You’re all a bunch of pussies,” Bojan said contemptuously. “Watch and learn.”

  Spear at the ready and eyes burning with amusement, he approached the thicket. For a moment, he stood still, as if thinking of a plan, and then he dived into it. A few seconds later, we heard a cry of joy followed by a shrill scream.

  “Gotcha!”

  Victorious smile on his face, Bojan strode back to the clearing, dragging a twelve-year-old girl by her hair. She was wrapped in a hide and screaming wildly. The only thing I could make out were yelps of pain.

  “Look who scared you!” Bojan grinned.

  The girl twisted and bit his arm.

  “You bitch!” he shouted and grabbed a spear
to strike her.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Eli yelled, ready to throw his knife at him. “That’s a child.”

  “It’s a wild animal!” he argued and pointed at the teeth marks on his forearm.

  The girl broke away and ran into the thicket, where she hid, loudly puffing. Eli crouched in front of her shelter and held out his hand.

  “Hey, what’s your name? Come on, get out of there. We won’t hurt you, don’t worry.”

  A brown eye appeared between the stalks of bamboo.

  “Ow?” she asked, using the only word she knew.

  “She’s an animal, you idiot! There ain’t a single brain cell in that noggin’ of hers,” Bojan hissed. Furious, he examined his wounds. “I’m full of bite marks!”

  “She’s just scared... Aren’t you?” Eli said. “What do you say, Shorty?”

  The nickname he had given her made me grimace, but I stayed silent as the girl peeked out of her shelter. She had either understood him, or she liked his soothing tone. Slowly and cautiously, she poked her head out of the thicket but almost immediately drew it back.

  “Are you afraid, Shorty? What’s your name? Ow? Yeah? All right, follow us, Ow. We’ll protect you.”

  The gentleness and patience with which he interacted with the poor girl made me think that Eli had a younger sister. I didn’t expect something like that from the big punk.

  “This team is full of spineless twats. At least Jelena has some balls... Up north, that is,” Bojan said with a wink and chuckled. No one else laughed, and Jelena ignored the stupid joke.

  After a while, we were back on the move, tossing occasional glances at the shadow following us. Ow made me uncomfortable. She was a local and not particularly intelligent, which made me wonder if her mother, a large, menacing Ow, was wandering somewhere nearby. Would she consider us a threat and pounce at us, protecting her cub?

  What are you talking about? The girl is either Mowgli, or, like us, a victim that had run away from the University and into the woods.

  About ten minutes later, Ow stopped hiding and followed us, walking like a monkey. Whatever she was, she was definitely more animal than human. As soon as we’d slow down, she’d squat and start gnawing on her finger. And even though her hair was shaggy and unkempt, nails broken, and feet covered with curly hair, she looked like a cute kid with large eyes and a button nose.

  I felt both regret and disgust for her—she was like a sick beggar showing her deformities.

  “What should we do with her?” Jelena asked. “Is she stuck with us forever?”

  “Let’s bring her to The Base, let them decide,” Eli suggested.

  “We don’t know what’s in her head. She’s an animal, even if she’s only a cub.”

  “It’s very simple, I assure you.” Bojan swung, pretending that he was going to throw a spear. Ow reacted instantly and hid in the thicket. “That’s right, run! And don’t come back or I’ll kill you!”

  “Shut up or I’ll punch you so hard you’ll be shitting your own teeth for a week,” Eli said.

  “Yeah? Let’s see you try!”

  The two were about to have a go at one another when a siren suddenly sounded inside my head, and I could tell from everyone’s reaction that they had heard it, too.

  Attention!

  [Wave of Ice] has been cast.

  All units are recommended to stay under the protection of the Totems or find shelter!

  Fly, you fools!

  “Oh, shit!” Rio said. “How did we forget about this? You two, stop it! Now’s not a good time for a fight! Look at that!”

  Chapter 10

  ICE

  Rio was looking ahead. Following his gaze, I noticed something strange in the sky, far above the center of the island.

  That particular bit of the sky was cloudy and gray, although everywhere else it was light-blue with white clouds. Something was flying out of this murk toward us.

  I couldn’t make out the details, but it seemed like ice shards. The object’s color changed, and the unnatural blue glow made my eyes water. And then the sky lit up. Following the brilliant flashes of light was the formation of a huge fireball in the sky. What the hell? I couldn’t figure out what a fireball had to do with a Wave of Ice.

  “Guys, it... It’s moving toward us,” Rio whispered.

  “Geez, what the hell is that thing?” Jelena asked, pointing to the right.

  I turned and saw trees being wrapped in a thick mist that smelled of trouble. Luckily for us, the system decided to give us a hint.

  You have entered a level 2 Totem zone.

  Class: [Low Chaos]

  Features: [Energy Umbrella]

  Stick with logic, kids. All else is dreary chaos!

  Ow ran closer to us, seemingly more afraid of flashes than any of us. Shaking her head and stomping her feet, she pointed at the flashes in the sky. She let out a long moan, so full of horror that it made us feel scared, too. Not giving it a second thought, I stepped into the mist. Nothing happened. I slowly went around the trees and stepped out onto a circular opening with a stone of about my height in its center. Incomprehensible writing and drawings of strange creatures were carved on its surface.

  “Hey, is it just me or is it very strange that this thing is supposed to protect us?” Eli asked incredulously.

  We came closer, observing the unusual stone. I had a strange feeling, as if someone was looking out of it. As if the stone was watching us.

  Ow moaned, fell, covered her head with her hands, and then jumped up and started running around.

  High above, a dot of light appeared in the sky. It didn’t look like lightning, but like needles of icy-blue light. Rio cautiously touched the Totem. The stone began to glow, and he pulled his hand away. It was incredible, almost alien—stones weren’t supposed to be like that. Its surface was gray and hard, and yet radiant, as if a heart was beating in its depths, pushing out the light.

  “What the fuck is that?” Bojan asked. “What the—?”

  The Totem is not activated and cannot serve as a shelter.

  Perform the necessary ritual to activate the Totem.

  The ritual can only be performed by a mage.

  A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.

  “Damn it, not only are we looking for protection from a stone, but this thing isn’t even working,” Eli mumbled.

  Bojan got angry and kicked the Totem with all his might.

  “OW!” the little girl screamed in horror, as if trying to warn him.

  I expected the guy to be hit by lightning or some kind of discharge from the Totem, but nothing happened—the light just slowly faded away.

  “Is there a chance that one of us has become a mage recently?” I asked.

  Everyone was silent. Either choosing a class was something that could be done at a later stage of the game, or one of us had decided to keep their class a secret even though we were in mortal danger.

  Or they can see that they can’t activate it, even though they’re a mage, a voice said.

  “Shit! Let’s get out of here, Jeco! Seek shelter, quickly!” Bojan shouted, looking at the sky.

  The neural network no longer sent us messages, but the icy lights were getting brighter and brighter—a dozen strange objects were spinning wildly toward us from the center of the island at an incredible speed.

  We ran, leaving the Totem behind, which seemed to follow us with its cold, attentive gaze. Ow was howling, often looking back at the stone. I noticed that she was trying to stay close to Eli and me. She even grabbed the big guy by his arm and tried to pull him along. Jelena almost fell, and I had to support her. I was surprised to see how little her brother cared for her well-being.

  The clearing with the Totem was now behind us, as were the bamboo grooves. Now there were just piles of rocks all around. More precisely, ruins of an old settlement. Vines and creepers had swallowed the barely standing walls and houses.

  “Like an Aztec city, but without
pyramids,” Rio said, breathing hard.

  “You’ll find a shelter wherever there’s a city.” Bojan seemed pleased.

  Attention!

  You are within the [Wave of Ice’s] reach!

  Stay inside a shelter and away from windows.

  All the streets led to a square in the middle of which was a cracked granite bowl the size of a small pool. On either side of the bowl were four thick columns, the lower parts of which had been dug into the ground. A big slab lay on top, forming a canopy.

  I pointed to the square and shouted, “Get in there, fast!”

  “No, that way,” Bojan roared. He waved his hand toward huge burrows that led under the buildings.

  The lights were becoming brighter.

  “Fuck that, dude. There could be someone living underground,” Eli said, his voice dry but loud.

  “Look, it’s very close!” Jelena screamed, looking at the sky. For a moment, she hesitated and then she ran to the bowl. We followed and hid behind the columns.

  The ringing turned into an ominous, monotonous hum. Something was approaching us, and everyone was thinking about the same thing—whether this place was strong enough to protect us.

  Ow got inside one of the burrows but quickly got out in horror and ran to us. It seemed there was no better place to hide.

  “It’s ice, isn’t it?!” Eli hissed, insanity slowly appearing in his eyes. “Big chunks of ice!”

  Peering out, I saw a number of meteorites.

  “A wave, they said? It’s freaking Doomsday!” I cursed under my breath.

  “Ice would’ve melted. There’s no way that’s ice,” Rio chimed in.

  Not if these ice shards were launched from here, from this island, Alpha remarked. Someone or something has done this in that murk.

  Shield your eyes with your hands and look intently, Beta said sternly.

  I did so but didn’t see anything. I wasn’t sure what it meant. What was I supposed to look for?

  “Huge icicles, like bullets...” I froze, and then shouted, “Get down!”

  I knocked the horror-stricken Rio off his feet. Getting down, I saw Bojan kicking Ow out from under the stone roof. I fell facedown to the ground and was unable to see what happened to the girl. Both twins were crouched behind the same column.