The days following Li Yu and Jian Xuan's initial conversation with Lord Zaltar settled into a strange routine. The containnt zone remained sealed, the demons confined but the initial raw hostility began to ease, replaced by a wary curiosity on both sides. The humans outside provided basic necessities while maintaining a strict periter. The demons inside, under Zaltar's pragmatic command largely kept to themselves.
Li Yu and Jian Xuan found themselves with ti. Jian Xuan, incapable of sitting still anymore, grew bored observing the demons.
"Brother Li," he announced one morning. "I wish to... test their fighting thods. For the glory of the Crab God of course!"
Li Yu who was contemplating the mystery of the shared language agreed readily. Direct interaction could yield more insights. "A spar," he suggested. "Perhaps Lord Zaltar would permit it? A controlled exchange with no killing. It could foster understanding between the two parties."
Jian Xuan's eyes lit up. "Excellent! A cultural exchange! Through the universal language of glorious combat!"
They approached Grand Elder Corvus. The Grand Elder was hesitant but ultimately agreed, communicating the terms to Zaltar. Zaltar, seeing an outlet for his restless troops and a chance to gauge the humans readily consented. Things were quickly put into motion with all the idle hands currently there.
The sparring sessions began the next day within the containnt zone. It was observed by both sides and betting stalls began to form on both sides. A way to kill so of the boredom that both sides had.
Jian Xuan went first. He suppressed his cultivation level drastically to bring himself down to the peak Core Formation realm. He stood facing his opponent, a slender shadow-wreathed demon nad Malix, a 9th-Level Core expert specializing in speed and stealth. Before the match began Jian Xuan clasped his hands together, his face alight with zealous fervor.
"Oh, Great Crab God!" he bood, his voice echoing loudly, making the nearby demons flinch. "Grant this humble servant strength! May my blade sing your praises as I demonstrate your divine might to these denizens of the Ashen Depths! Witness the glory of your chosen warrior! Praise be!"
Malix stared at this crazy man utterly bewildered. ‘Were all humans this crazy? No one told her about this,’ she thought to herself. The other demons murmured and were visibly disturbed. The human observers sighed collectively having heard of his madness before.
The match began. Malix quickly vanished, becoming a flicker of shadow. Jian Xuan simply closed his eyes to enhance his other senses and there was a faint smile on his face. His sword was held loosely. He began to hum. The air around him shimred faintly with his unique sword intent.
Malix appeared behind him, claws like razors aid at his neck. Jian Xuan didn't turn. His sword began to move like a blur of golden light guided purely by his senses and the principles of the 'Singing Blade.’ The sword intercepts the claws with a sharp clang. Jian Xuan flowed and spun. His movents are utterly free and unbound by stances. His blade was singing through the air, forcing Malix back.
The fight beca a beautiful and deadly dance. Malix was impossibly fast, striking from shadows whenever possible. Jian Xuan t it all with pure, joyful, instinctual swordsmanship. His suppressed cultivation ant he couldn't simply overpower Malix but his skill was subli. He parried claws with the flat of his blade, deflected shadow bolts with flicks of his wrist, his humming occasionally rising into a quiet verse as he flowed with his art.
The demons watched in stunned silence. They all respected power and skill. This level of skill with a sword was rare in their realm. Most relied on their innate demonic abilities and the weapons that were their own bodies. Swords existed, yes, as did other weapons. However, few demons dedicated themselves to such intricate mastery.
After several minutes of intense fighting that looked more like a painting than a fight, Jian Xuan found an opening. His sword beca a golden arc that bypassed Malix's guard and tapped the demon lightly on the chest. Malix froze at the sudden hit, recognizing defeat.
"Your... sword skill... is impressive," Malix hissed grudgingly, bowing slightly before retreating. There was no sha in losing to soone so skilled. There was only the honor of getting a chance to face such a powerful opponent and living to see the next day.
Jian Xuan smiled brightly and cheerfully. He offered a flourishing bow. "The Crab God guides my blade!"
Next up it was Li Yu's turn. He stepped forward. Lord Zaltar himself chose Li Yu's opponent: Gor'ath, the four-ard 7th-Level Core demon known for his brute strength.
"No tricks human," Gor'ath rumbled, cracking the knuckles on all four of his hands. "Let us test true strength. I can show you how strong the demon's physical prowess is."
Li Yu nodded at these comnts, setting his staff aside. This was exactly what he wanted. A pure test of his physical limits. He subtly suppressed his own cultivation, bringing his aura down from the 9th Stage to match Gor'ath's 7th Stage. He wanted a true comparison of physical prowess, not an overpowering based on cultivation level.
The match began. Gor'ath charged with calculated aggression, his four arms moving in a complex pattern aiming to grab, restrain and crush.
Li Yu t him head-on. He didn't use void movent. He t fist with fist, arm with arm wherever possible.
BAM! BAM! CRACK!
The sounds of impact echoed. Gor'ath's four arms gave him an advantage in grappling range. But Li Yu's strength, even suppressed, was simply monstrous. He caught punches and blocked grabs. Li Yu’s own fists lashing out with blurring speed and terrifying power. His refined physique absorbed the jarring impacts as well as his Tidal Aegis Art. While the effects weren’t as noticeable as when he first trained it, it still helped to absorb and redirect impacts taken by him.
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They exchanged dozens of blows in seconds. Gor'ath landed a heavy punch on Li Yu's shoulder, staggering him slightly to the side. Li Yu responded with a brutal elbow strike to the demon's ribs, eliciting a grunt of pain. It was a pure and savage brawl. Both combatants was savoring the mont as they were able to go all out.
The demons watched, quite stunned. Gor'ath was one of their strongest Core Formation warriors physically. Yet this human was suppressing himself down to the sa cultivation level and was eting him blow for blow. It even seems he was able to gain the upper hand several tis.
"His body..." Zaltar murmured from his observation point. "It is forged. Tempered. Far beyond normal human limits. He is a match for… no… stronger than many of the top geniuses from our race in terms of physical strength in the sa realm. Simply incredible."
Li Yu felt a thrill. His body could match a demon's strength, even when suppressing his cultivation advantage. He began to push harder, his movents becoming faster, his strikes heavier. He ducked under a four-ard grab and drove his shoulder into Gor'ath's chest. This sent the demon stumbling back and Li Yu followed with a rapid-fire combination of punches that hamred against Gor'ath's guard.
Gor'ath roared, bringing two arms down in a desperate crushing blow while the other two defended. Li Yu t it with both fists driving upwards. Another shockwave spread out as their fist collided. This ti Gor'ath was thrown back several steps with his arms going numb from the impact and fighting.
Before the demon could recover, Li Yu closed the distance and landed a clean and powerful punch directly on Gor'ath's jaw. The demon's eyes rolled back and he collapsed. He was hit unconscious.
Li Yu stood over him, breathing heavily. He had won purely through physical might and it felt amazing. First he was able to match up against the Primal Beasts in the ruins and now he was able to face against the demons. Both tis his body held its own which made him feel great. His Abyssal Leviathan Physique was the real deal.
A silence fell over the demon onlookers and was quickly followed by grudging murmurs of respect. This human was a beast. He fought savagely and was incredibly strong. They almost felt like he was more demon than they were.
Li Yu quickly walked back to the side. The sparring sessions continued sporadically over the next few days. Through these interactions and further conversations, Li Yu sought to understand demon cultivation more deeply.
He sat again with Zaltar one day with Jian Xuan listening nearby. "Lord Zaltar," Li Yu asked, "Gor'ath ntioned demon cores. How central are they to your cultivation?"
Zaltar regarded him thoughtfully. "Central," he confird. "When a demon falls, their core—the crystallization of their demonic Qi and life essence—remains. Consuming the core of a fallen foe or even a powerful demonic beast is a primary thod of advancent in Xul'Thar."
"Demonic beasts?" Jian Xuan asked.
"Of course," Zaltar said. "Xul'Thar teems with life of all kinds, though different from yours. Shadow Crawlers, Magma Hounds, Void Flayers. Their cores are also potent. We hunt them and absorb them. Weaker demons absorb weaker cores. Stronger demons hunt stronger beasts or... each other."
"So conflict is necessary for advancent?" Li Yu clarified.
"Conflict is constant," Zaltar corrected. "Resources are scarce. Power must be taken. Absorbing cores is the swiftest path. Kill, consu and grow stronger." He paused. "Sotis, if a core is compatible... say, from a demon with unique bloodline abilities... the absorber can inherit aspects of that power. A fire demon might gain shadow-walking. A brute might gain unnatural speed. A gamble but the rewards can be imnse."
Li Yu nodded slowly. Devouring cores. Potential inheritance. It sounded similar in principle to so thods used on his continent, though perhaps more direct.
"How else do you cultivate?" Li Yu asked. "Do you absorb energy from the environnt?"
"Naturally," Zaltar replied, looking slightly surprised at the question. "The ambient Demonic Qi of Xul'Thar perates everything. It is the air we breathe, the foundation of our power. We absorb it constantly, refining it within our demonic cores."
He gestured towards a fire demon who was ditating nearby. The fire demon was passively drawing in heat from the air. "Those like him, attuned to specific elents like fire or ice also draw strength directly from those elents where they gather."
"So ambient absorption plus consuming cores and other resources," Li Yu summarized. "It is... not so different from us in principle. Humans primarily absorb ambient spiritual Qi. But we also consu pills refined from herbs, beast cores processed into dicine and spirit stones can be used to speed our cultivation."
"Yes, yes, we know," Zaltar interrupted, waving a dismissive hand. "Absorbing 'spirit Qi,' forming 'cores,' ditating on ‘laws’ and 'Daos,' refining herbs into pills... Your thods are well-docunted in Xul'Thar."
Li Yu paused again. "You seem to possess considerably more knowledge of our realm and practices than we possess of yours."
Zaltar chuckled, a dry, grating sound. "The Void Storms are chaotic, human, but not entirely one-sided. Over the millennia, cultivators from your 'Human Realm,' texts, artifacts... they have appeared in Xul'Thar, torn from your world as we were torn from ours. We study them. Your thods are... slightly different. Often perceived as slow or overly complex. But effective. We have learned much from the fragnts that fall into our realm."
"Or perhaps," Li Yu countered himself thoughtfully, "it is simply that I lack this information. My holand was... relatively peaceful. It’s better to say it was isolated. Perhaps humans on other continents here, those in constant conflict possess this knowledge already."
Zaltar nodded slowly. "Most likely. What I have told you is common knowledge among the inford in Xul'Thar. Just part of history. Not so closely guarded secret. We assud your kind already knew. That’s why I am sharing it with you so openly."
Li Yu fell silent, contemplating the implications. He had been operating with incomplete information. The wider world, the connections between realms, the history of conflict... it was far more complex than he had imagined. The northern continent who was constantly warring with beast hordes and demons was likely to know far more.
His initial reflections returned. Different appearances, different energy types, different thods... yet, similarities kept erging. Ritual combat. Core absorption. Ambient energy cultivation. Even the shared language.
Did all life, all cultivation systems truly stem from a single ancient source? That then was diverging over ti and adapting to different environnts like Xul'Thar versus this continent?
Or was it simply convergent evolution, different paths leading to similar solutions for power and survival? They say that all Daos lead to the sa source, perhaps all of nature leads to the sa source as well when it cos to life and getting stronger. Different systems and thods but all aid at achieving the sa result.
He didn't know. Perhaps he would uncover this mystery with ti. He looked towards the rift, then back at the Demon Lord. He had co seeking answers about language and had stumbled upon questions about the very nature of existence across realms.
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