Silver Fox & The Western Hero: Warrior’s Path

by Johnson, M. H.

  Alex felt a cold chill with the way Bang Jiao was looking at him, forced to wonder just how much the elder cultivator had deduced as he spoke on.

  “But today, all of our library’s secrets are available to any Gold and the strongest Silvers, merit alone the measure which we use to judge an Aspirant’s worth. Today, even kitsune and Ruidians may wander freely within these halls. With all the opportunity before you and your friends, to complain about such a small triviality would be beneath any student of mine.” Bang Jiao flashed a wicked smile. “And it’s not like your kitsune friend will be studying without her lover by her side, securing the room for both of them, should she need to leave.”

  Alex forced a chuckle. “Fair point.” And it was. He needed to stop looking at things through a twenty-first century lens and instead appreciate this culture, this reality, for what it was. Compared to the prejudice and outright loathing which he and his friends had suffered in Yidushi, this school was a bastion of open-mindedness and equality. Except, of course, for the Silver who enjoyed whispering vicious taunts about all the ways he would break the Ruidian who had dared make his clan of thugs lose face.

  “Well then, I will leave you to your studies,” Bang Jiao said, making it clear that their conversation was over.

  “This aspirant is grateful for your counsel." Alex solemnly bowed before turning around, a solitary fingertip idly tapping upon the tomes as he wandered thoughtfully between the stacks, formulating a plan and keeping an eye out for his friends.

  He hadn't originally been planning on it, but the pressure he now felt was growing increasingly uncomfortable. It was becoming painfully clear that he wouldn't be allowed the freedom of personal movement, let alone leaving the school grounds entirely, until after he had graduated from the Aspirant's Quarter. And with the Spirit Wolves out for his blood... he'd be a fool not to take advantage of his master's largesse to finally do what he should have done, weeks ago.

  But when had he ever had the time?

  He had been pushed and pulled relentlessly. One demand after another, one restriction after another, such that his saturated potency had become as much a curse as a blessing. An irony that would no doubt please his enemies to no end, should they discover it. And Alex was increasingly sure that they had.

  "The hell with that. About time I turned that weakness into a strength," Alex promised himself, eagerly grasping the opportunity Master Bang Jiao had, perhaps unwittingly, made available to him.

  At this moment, he was now free to remain in the library for as long as he wished in the pursuit of any breakthrough he might be on the cusp of, so long as he had the means and wherewithal to take care of his own needs while he was inside.

  He allowed himself a brief smile.

  Library credits? He had a positive fortune. And now was the perfect time to make use of them.

  Perhaps, if he could find study chambers secure enough... he might finally be in a safe position to level up.

  So long as they were truly secure.

  But first, he would take full advantage of the opportunity to peruse the library to the utmost, while avoiding all suspicion. It was an opportunity that might not come again for a very long time.

  Later, he would make a serious examination of whatever Silver tomes were secured upstairs that potentially hid the secrets of White Crane kung fu that he hungered for. And if all went well there, he would dare to strive for that which would surely get him into trouble as fast as anything else. But perhaps, with a sufficiently large tip for discretion’s sake… he just might ask if there were any Silver Swan tomes at all that he might be able to peruse, even if it came at an exorbitant cost.

  But more than anything else, as a matter of sheer survival, he needed a body strengthening technique, and he could think of only one path forward that would not interfere with Silver Swan or Eternal Fox. But to ask the question directly… no. He had to be circumspect. He knew that. He would simply have to let one line of questioning flow smoothly into another and see if there was any chance it might lead in the direction he hoped.

  But before anything else… before him were countless shelves full of tomes free for the taking, sealed by no case of glass, crystal, or metal. It was an opportunity to add to his World Seed's library to a profound degree.

  He would be an absolute fool not to prioritize taking advantage of this opportunity.

  And if he played his cards right, his actions here would help his line of questioning later.

  So, wasting no further time and doing his best to tune out the smirks and curious stares of his fellow Aspirants, among a handful of other browsers, Alex made his way to the backmost shelves and began running his fingers along every book spine within each row, eyes furrowed in concentration as if he were determined to find what he sought by going through every book in the library, one title at a time.

  “What is that fool doing?”

  “Look at him, furrowing his brow and muttering. It’s like he barely even knows how to read!”

  “Is he truly so stupid that he can’t even ask a librarian for assistance?”

  “Must he mutter every title aloud like a fool?”

  Alex allowed the contemptuous looks and hostile whispers to wash over him. He recognized only a few of the voices, and he was careful to meet none of their gazes. As long as they thought him an odd fool, that served his purposes as well as if they were ignoring him entirely.

  He made a point of first scanning each book-lined marble corridor before seeking the abandoned stacks at the outermost edges of the library, feeling an odd mixture of boredom and excitement as he flicked his fingers over the spines of books so rapidly that he couldn’t even make out their titles, only slowing down his pace, rubbing his brow, and muttering thoughtfully when disdainful glances were sent his way.

  And much to his fierce satisfaction, he had managed to run his fingers across the spine of each and every tome, treatise, and manual, both those radiating the faintest auras of spiritual energy and those as mundane as could be, within the outermost ring of bookshelves in just under an hour, only then beginning to work his way inward.

  Before feeling a tightness in his chest that he didn’t let jolt his focus, his fingers dancing across book spines faster and faster as his Qi Perception picked up deliberate footsteps radiating from a cultivator who was at least Deep Bronze and certainly no one who belonged in these stacks, heading his way.

  Timing his movements as adroitly as he could, he got up from his crouch with a melodramatic sigh and made his way to the end of the bookshelf, turning just before the stronger presence could catch sight of him, or worse, initiate eye contact, as he quickly made a beeline for shelves two rows distant.

  Skipping ahead so fast, it was almost a run, despite no one in sight… he sensed his pursuer picking up their own pace… before his eyes caught the tome he was looking for, one of the very few titles he had happened to pay attention to. Grabbing it up, he opened the covers with a frown the moment he felt the cultivator’s intense glare upon his back.

  But he didn’t twitch or cast furtive glances when they bore down upon him, merely giving a frustrated shake of his head as he snapped the tome shut, only then looking up.

  To behold the hard gaze of a librarian he had already met once before.

  “You.”

  Alex smiled at the young woman’s furrowed brow. “Me.”

  She scowled at him, having lost the smirk she had worn when informing him of all the ways her fellow librarian Guan had been playing him for a fool. “I’ve heard several cultivators reporting a Ruidian wandering around the stacks like a lost sheep. Of course, it had to be you.”

  Alex winked. “Right on the money.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “Sorry, old expression.”

  “Care to explain why you’re embarrassing yourself by muttering over every single title in the whole damned library?” She frowned down at the book in his hand. “Unless you actually managed to find what you are looking for, purely by chance? Or
by actually making the effort to ask someone for assistance, or perhaps even learning how our school categorizes its tomes?”

  Alex sighed. “If only I had. It’s interesting enough, for a fairy tale, speaking of cultivators’ experiences exploring a dungeon…”

  “It’s no fairy tale. You’re in the bookshelf dedicated to historical accounts. Tomes which a wise aspirant studies every bit as intently as his cultivation manuals, knowing that a grasp of history, a study of others’ triumphs and failures in whatever pursuit he or she would follow, will be at least as useful to their long-term success as a slightly more powerful elemental strike.”

  She peered intently at him. “And you would be wise to study that tome and learn whatever lessons you can from the cultivators who dared the nearby rifts and survived.”

  Alex nodded. “That may be so. Still, what I need are cultivation manuals, not historical accounts.”

  Her gaze hardened. “Then you are a fool indeed, if you can’t appreciate what is before you.”

  Alex bowed his head. “Truly, I mean no offense.” He regarded her displeased countenance thoughtfully. “And you’re right. I am wandering around here like a fool, when perhaps I should be asking a qualified librarian for assistance. Perhaps one who was gracious enough to help me before, despite my obvious failings?”

  She arched an opportunistic smile at him. “For the same rate as before, Ruidian?” Her tone made it clear that she had overcharged him before, he knew it, and she knew he knew it.

  Alex chuckled softly. “At five times the normal rate? Sure. Why not?” His smile sharpened. “So long as you give your cultivator’s oath to aid me in your capacity as a librarian as best you can and to convey to no one, directly or indirectly, the nature of either our conversation or my pursuit.” His smile widened at her surprised blink and stiffening spine. “As much as I may look the fool to you, you’ll note that my purse is still heavy, in part because I’m wise enough to focus on what matters, and that means not giving my fellow Aspirants any clue as to what I’m really after.”

  Her indignation turned to amusement. “Sure, Ruidian. Ten credits, and I, Peng Jin, promise to serve as your librarian for the next hour and keep your petty little secrets that you actually think will give you an edge against children as foolish as yourself.”

  Alex smiled wordlessly and handed her a ten-credit coin. She scoffed but nodded, after palming the silver token. “You’re a fool, but you know it, and there’s wisdom in that alone. Alright, Supplicant, you’ve bought a glass’s worth of my time, and by Long Wang’s Hammer, I’d be surprised if it takes me more than ten minutes to find whatever you’re looking for. What is it; a specialized Bronze striking technique beyond the most basic treatises that your master insists you all learn for the sake of your foundations? A more powerful Qi shield? Perhaps a movement discipline for mobility in the dueling ring?” She furrowed her brow. “Or are you looking for a body strengthening technique? You do have the build of a strength cultivator who hasn’t forsaken speed, but you radiate no protective ward that I can sense.”

  Alex blinked, genuinely surprised. “You can sense spiritual energy flows?”

  She smirked. “I can sense a touch of residue around a body cultivator well-versed in his strengthening technique, if I’ve conversed with them for as long as I have with you, and I can tell when a cultivation manual radiates true spiritual energy that will aid the genuinely gifted in learning the nature of the secrets within, or whether it is a lifeless copy that will allow only whatever growth a powerful intellect and a hundred hours of diligent study can grant a desperate student unable to afford a proper teacher.” Her expression hardened. “Do you think the greatest school in the entire kingdom would hire a librarian who could do any less? Of course I can sense spiritual energy residue. Why do you think librarians like myself are so highly prized?”

  Alex bowed his head in mute apology, suspecting she had a weaker version of his own Qi Perception and Artificer skills, and why should he be so surprised by that? Still, it seemed such gifts were rare. A good thing, for his sake.

  “Now quit wasting my time, Ruidian. Tell me what you’re after, so I can get back to my real job.”

  Alex took a deep breath, ignoring the hammering in his chest as he locked gazes with Peng Jin. Not another soul remained in sight, or within range of his Spiritual Sense.

  “I’m looking for whatever tomes this library has regarding Waste Qi.”

  The librarian blinked. “You mean like Golden Dawn Meridian Restoration technique?” She chuckled softly. “Fortunately for you, our school has the best techniques for wicking away waste Qi and repairing polluted channels that you will find in the entire kingdom.” She actually flashed an approving smile. “So, you already sense what’s next for you and your fellows, and you’re taking preventive steps. Perhaps you’re not such a fool, after all. Come, this way.”

  But Alex didn’t budge as she turned around and hurried off, finally spinning back and glaring at him. “Well, come on! I promised to assist, not waste my time.”

  Alex just held her gaze. “You misunderstand. I’m not looking for tomes on how to wick away Dark Qi.”

  She froze at those words. He stepped closer, sensing her sudden spike in anxiety when he encroached upon her space, his voice dropping down to a whisper. “I’m looking for tomes discussing how to use it.”

  She visibly paled. “Are you insane? You want tomes written by mad fools glorying in their own destruction?”

  Alex maintained his placid expression. “I seek tomes discussing how best to use Dark Qi, or Waste Qi, if you like, for one’s own ends. You can’t tell me that in a school this large, with so much effort being used to wick away and dispose of waste Qi, that no one, absolutely no one, has ever researched ways to use it for other purposes?”

  She gulped and lowered her head, hands clenching into tight fists.

  Alex felt a tingle of apprehension, Qi Perception revealing the flood of spiritual energy roaring inside her as she struggled with herself before ultimately flashing him a glare of absolute hate.

  “You damned fatherless dung beetle! You set me up!”

  Alex kept his features perfectly neutral. “All I did was ask a question and pay you good credits for the privilege.”

  “While making sure I can tell no one!” She chuckled bitterly. “Clever bastard.”

  “Hardly that,” Alex sighed. “But considering how much you absolutely despise me for a simple question, it was probably a good thing that I did just that.”

  Enraged eyes speared into his own. He was surprised to find himself taking a step back under the pressure of her murderous glare.

  “You don’t even know what you’re asking!”

  “I’m asking for nothing more than materials to study, to see if there’s anything to glean that might help me along my own path.”

  “All that messing with Waste Qi will bring you is your own destruction! It will corrode your base, drive you insane, warp you body and soul, and very likely turn you into a mad, tortured wreck who will butcher all his friends!”

  Alex met her ire with a merciless smile. “I have no problem promising you that if I sense even the tiniest iota of danger, I will think very carefully before reading a single sentence further.”

  She shuddered violently, inexorable gaze turning to a desperate plea. “Please… take your coin back.”

  Alex sighed and shook his head. “I’m afraid I can’t do that.”

  Bitter, tittering laughter slipped from lips bitten so hard that blood leaked down her chin. Hands like claws pulled open her own purse, and Alex’s eyes widened at the sight of so many credits. “Oh, you played me like a bard’s lute, damn Ruidian. Laughing like your fox god as I find myself wearing the fool’s cap!” Wild eyes glared into his own. “Take the coin, and never speak to me again!”

  Alex slowly shook his head. “Keep your coin and show me those tomes.”

  She flashed one final, helpless, hate-filled glare before storming down the b
ookshelves at a clip so fast, it was almost a run. Alex did his best to keep up, more certain than ever that she was trying to lose him, and he was almost positive she had used an Earth-based movement technique at least once. And how shocked and bitter she looked to find herself walking right into him when Qi Perception, Bullrush, and empty bookshelves allowed him to blink to her side so unexpectedly that she actually jerked away in surprise.

  “How did you…”

  Alex pinned her his coldest smile. “I would hate to think that you were deliberately trying to lose me. One would almost think that might be a violation of your—”

  “Please!”

  The desperate plea caused Alex to freeze, remembering all too well the fate of a certain Bronze body cultivator whose foundation crumbled so quickly that he was caught utterly off guard, after daring to betray an oath at this school. And Jidihu had made it so clear that normally a broken oath caused only mild impairment, the first time. Not a destruction almost as fast as if Alex had been forcing Dark Qi into his enemy’s veins…

  Alex winced, bowing his head. “I apologize for my misunderstanding and my… need for a slower pace. I consider your oath to be in good standing. Now, if you would be so kind?”

  Her sigh was an odd mixture of relief and bitter regret. Still, she wasted no time on words, and her movements were no longer aided by techniques meant to lose him. Alex wasn’t surprised to find himself on the second floor once more, a quick shake of her head immediately placating the armed guardians who glared at Alex for a few moments from the Bronze door they patrolled, and Alex had to fight to hold back a dark smile as Guan glanced their way with a savage glare.

  “Peng Jin, what’s the meaning of this?”

  “Shut up, Guan. Mind your own concerns.”

  He furrowed his brow, then blanched at what he saw in her gaze, seating himself back at the table where he was compiling documents, but not before flashing Alex a hate-filled glower.