Jintian only allowed himself a second to watch the man burn, his screams joining the chorus of despair around him. Then, he turned to where the Second Circle caravan guard was battling his bandit counterpart.
The two seemed evenly matched. Where the bandit was savage ferocity, the caravan guard was controlled discipline. He met each one of the bandit's wild strikes with practiced blocks, and when their Sword Qi clashed in the air, they were both deflected to the earth below it, cutting deeply into the ground and dissipating.
Despite the fact that they were both equal, Jintian thought that freeing the Second Circle cultivator to handle the rest of the bandits would be of most help. In his spiritual sense he sensed that three of the First Circle bandits had joined their leader in attacking the Third Circle caravan guard, so he had only seconds to act.
Taking a deep breath, Shen Jintian raised a finger, a Strike spell punching through the air as it was released. The bandit seemed to notice the attack coming, concentrating his Qi around himself to defend against the attack. He managed to avoid being blown off of his feet, but it did push him backwards a step or two, which the caravan guard immediately seized to leave a nasty laceration on his opponent's sword arm.
The bandit winced, and Jintian nodded to himself, satisfied with the advantage he had given the Second Circle guard. He then charged towards the battle between the two other Third Circle cultivators present, and the three First Circle bandits that were assisting their leader.
The caravan guard was clearly on the backfoot, bleeding profusely from small wounds that had been marked along his arms and chest. He kicked a First Circle bandit away, twisting around and blasting another with a spell. He then flipped backward, narrowly dodging a flash of Sword Qi from the bandit leader, but was unable to avoid the cut that the last bandit left along his thigh because of it.
The man was clearly more skilled than all four combatants combined, but due to their sheer number, he couldn't find any opportunity to make a real counter attack. What's more, it was only a matter of time until more of the bandits joined their fight. It was a battle of attrition, and one that he was very quickly losing.
That was, until Shen Jintian arrived.
He came crashing into the skirmish with the fury of a rabid animal, steel flashing as in the second the confusion of his presence brought, he slit the throat of one of the First Circle bandits. The rest reacted almost immediately, three flashes of Sword Qi converging upon him. Jintian leapt backward, dodging one of the strikes while sending an arc of Qi of his own to clash against the bandit leader's. The third, however, found its mark, leaving a long gash along his left arm and causing him to hiss with pain. He skipped backwards, standing next to the caravan guard who met his presence with a nod.
There were no words exchanged between them. Instead, the bandit leader's expression darkened considerably, his grip tightening on his sword before he gnashed his teeth.
"TO ME!" He bellowed, and Jintian cursed as he sensed the remaining four bandits immediately halt their wanton slaughter to join the fray. There were seconds now before they would arrive and complicate the fight.
Jintian exchanged a glance with the guard, and both nodded as they immediately jumped backwards. The guard raised their hands, incantation signs flashing in an instant. Jintian merely pointed his finger, not towards the bandit leader, but one of the lackeys beside him.
Magical combat was both complex, and simple. As Kang Shanxi had explained before, spells were typically divided into two archetypes, affliction and projection. Projection spells, like his Strike and Dancing Flame Serpent spells, could be defended against with Qi, but not completely nullified unless one's own Qi was notably stronger than the one who cast it. However, they could be dodged or nullified in a clash with a spell of similar power, which Kang Shanxi had explained was what experienced cultivators did.
Affliction spells, however, could not be dodged. But so long as one protected themselves with Qi, they could be nullified completely, so long as the person casting it was not significantly stronger than the person it was cast on. Unfortunately for the bandit…
Jintian was in the Third Circle, while he was only in the First. The gulf in their power was wider than the gulf between a mortal and a Second Circle cultivator.
And Jintian had just the affliction spell to deal with a wide array of combatants.
Blooming Frost Lotus!
The bandit screamed as ice immediately cracked on top of his chest, a flower of terrible beauty sprouting from the flesh that was quickly turning black with frostbite. The bandit leader yelped in alarm, eyes widening as he shot backwards. He began to shout a warning towards the approaching bandits, but he was too late.
The lotus exploded, shredding apart the bandit it had bloomed from while foot-long icicles tore through the air. Several shot into the trees surrounding them, exploding in a shower of ice and splintered wood, while the rest punched fist sized holes through the approaching bandits. Jintian had ensured there were no mortals nearby when he had cast the spell, but seeing its brutal effectiveness still made his stomach squeeze painfully.
There was a symphony of agonized screams, while the guard beside him finished his incantation signs. Lightning crackled between his hands, which he clenched and drew them apart. The air around them quivered with raw energy, until a three-feet long spear made of lightning was grasped tightly in his fists. The guard then launched it forward, and it screamed through the air as it flew faster than Jintian could see towards the bandit leader. The bandit could not dodge, or even form a protective barrier of Qi in time. He had only the second that the spear left the guard's hands for his eyes to widen before it hit him in the chest.
There was a flash of light which caused Jintian to squeeze his eyes shut, and a deafening BOOOM that sent a shockwave kicking a cloud of dirt and ash into the air, the flames extinguished by its force. When Jintian opened his eyes again, his ears ringing painfully in the aftermath of the spell, the forest was completely dark save for the glowing embers of the caravan. The bandit leader was a smoking corpse, scorched black and broken on the ground. The rest of the bandits were dead or dying, the sole exception ironically being the first bandit that Jintian had attacked, though they were too injured to flee or fight.
In his spiritual sense, Jintian felt the Second Circle guard extinguish the life of the bandit he had been fighting, and he let out a shaky breath.
It's… over. He thought, weakness suddenly flushing through him. His Qi reserves had fallen dangerously low. From his repeated casts of the Strike spell to his final Blooming Frost Lotus, he had less than a quarter of his Qi left. But more than that…
He cast his gaze over the wreckage of the caravan. There were over two dozen corpses strewn about the area, and he himself had added to that number by nearly a half. He felt his stomach drop, and as the adrenaline flushed through him, he staggered weakly to lean against a tree.
The cultivators were now tending to the wounded mortals, bolstering their Qi to help heal injuries. Most of the caravan's number had survived, but that fact was of little consolation to these people he was sure.
He watched the proceedings for a time, until finally most of the wounded had been tended to and the dead had been gathered. Jintian heaved a breath, before standing as the Third Circle cultivator approached him, with another man beside him.
They were both older, though the cultivator's mortal counterpart sported a healthy belly and a long beard. He wore a golden necklace and two golden rings, and though they didn't scream wealth, they were certainly attractive to look at. The cultivator was handsome, and powerfully built, not dissimilar to how Jintian had appeared before his crippling injury.
They were both injured, though the mortal's injury seemed to have been healed mostly. His chest and arm were bandaged, while the cultivator's injuries Jintian knew would heal in the next few days without aid.
Jintian bowed to them both as they approached. "Seniors." He greeted quietly, his voice weak even to his own ears. The jeweled man immediately looked flustered, placing a hand on his back and raising him out of his bow.
"Please, young man, there is no need for such formality. You have done us a great service. Me in particular…" He trailed off, his voice thick with emotion, and Jintian's brows furrowed.
"You saved his wife and son." The cultivator explained, which caused the man to nod emphatically.
"They told me how you leapt to action. I was fighting off one of the bastards, but another slipped past me." He said, tears in his eyes as he gripped Jintian's shoulders tightly. "If you hadn't arrived, then I can only imagine what would have…" He trailed off again, pulling Jintian tightly into a hug.
The youth stiffened awkwardly, unsure of what to do. The cultivator smiled and pulled the man back, before nodding towards him. "You arrived at exactly the right time. Heavens know what would have become of us if you hadn't. You saved our lives, young man." He said, and Jintian cleared his throat, rubbing the back of his head.
"Oh, well… I just…" He mumbled, unsure of what to say. The cultivator smiled understandingly, before patting the other man on the back.
"This is He Ruiqi, and I am Liang Rensong. He Ruiqi is the master of this caravan." Liang Rengsong introduced, and Jintian nodded, finally offering a weak smile.
"Ah, nice to meet you. I am Shen Jintian." He said, bowing again, and the other two bowed back. This prompted Jintian to bow further, which caused the other two to make awkward expressions and bow even deeper. Jintian was about to continue, before Liang Rensong interrupted.
"If you make us bow any further, my injuries will open again." He chided, and Jintian laughed awkwardly, straightening out of his bow with reluctance.
"Forgive me, Senior. It is just customary in my village for elders to be given more respect." He said, and He Ruiqi nodded at that, beaming.
"Ai, what good parents you must have. Tell me, what brings you all the way here?" He asked, though if he noticed the shadow that briefly crossed Jintian's expression, he did not show it.
Clearing his throat again, Jintian smiled and pointed northward. "I am heading towards Shan'an, for the Sect Recruitment trials there." He explained, and at that the man's expression brightened considerably.
"Well, it just so happens that that is where we are headed. Please, will you join us? It would be our honor to take you there. We still have a few carts you could ride in." He said, and Jintian shook his head.
"Oh no, I wouldn't want to impose upon you." He said, and He Ruiqi hurriedly waved his hand.
"You wouldn't be imposing at all! In fact, it would bring us great peace of mind to know that a cultivator as powerful as yourself would be joining us." He said. Seeing that Jintian was clearly about to refuse again, he cut in before the youth could. "And I would pay you for your time, of course. Liang Rensong tells me you are a cultivator of the Third Circle. Would one hundred spirit stones be fair compensation?"
Jintian, already opening his mouth to refuse, closed it with a snap as his eyes widened. I didn't mishear that, right? He said one hundred spirit stones, right?
Seeing his expression, Liang Rensong chuckled, leaning in to whisper in his ear.
"It's ten more spirit stones than I'm getting paid for." He confirmed quietly, and Jintian's hesitance blew away like dust in the wind. He hurriedly grabbed He Ruiqi's hand and shook it, bowing.
"It would of course be my honor to travel with you to Shan'an, Senior!" He exclaimed, and He Ruiqi laughed brightly at that. Nodding to the both of them, he then waved a hand towards some of the people in his caravan. Several members approached, smiling and bowing as introductions were made. Jintian learned that He Ruiqi's wife, as well as his son, were resting on one of the carts. The people he was being introduced to were his deputy, assistant, and caravan master, all of which bowed to him with a smile.
After introductions were complete, He Ruiqi's assistant produced ten pouches. Jintian's gaze passed them over briefly, before training fully on them. If he wasn't mistaken, those were…
"These are the bags of holding that belonged to the bandits. Not all of them carried one, but as per the contract of your employment, any bags of holding found while in defense of the caravan belong to you. These eight belong to cultivators who were slain by your hand, Shen Jintian, while these two may be claimed by you, Liang Rensong." He Ruiqi explained, while their assistant separated the bags of holding accordingly. "Xie Haochuan's portion has already been given to him."
Jintian stared at the bags of holding in the assistant's grasp, a sudden bitterness filling him as his gaze rose to look at the row of bodies that were to be buried soon. He felt sudden revulsion at the thought of taking them. It felt like a perversion of not only the lives that had been lost, but the ones he had taken as well.
Liang Rensong must have noticed his expression, because he nodded to the group before whispering something to He Ruiqi. The merchant leader nodded understandingly, and Liang Rensong scooped up all of the bags of holding as the group took their leave, leaving the two cultivators alone.
Jintian was pulled from his darker thoughts by Rensong's firm hand being placed on his shoulder. He looked at the man questioningly, and Rensong sighed before stroking his beard.
The two cultivators did not know each other well enough to bare the darkest parts of themselves to one another. But Liang Rensong owed this young man his life. That was a debt that could not be repaid, but… perhaps he could offer him some solace, in this moment.
"The first time I killed a man, I heaved myself empty until all that came up from my stomach was bile." He said quietly, gesturing to a stump a short distance away. Jintian obliged him, the width of the stump enough for both to sit comfortably together. "I wasn't much older than you are now, and i wasn't a cultivator yet either. He had laid hands on my sister, his wife, and I knew he would do it again. When I confronted him, he pulled out a knife. Only one of us walked away from his actions that day."
Liang Rensong sighed again, his gaze training on something far, far in the distance. Jintian glanced at him, before following that stare into something only they both could see.
"Today was your first time killing a man, wasn't it?" Rensong asked quietly, and Jintian hesitated for a few moments before nodding. "I thought it might be. I know you probably are aware of this, but these were bad men, aiming to accomplish bad things. If they had killed us, they would have taken all of our possessions, and most likely a few of the women. Perhaps even He Ruiqi's wife, the woman that you saved."
Jintian nodded. "I know." He admitted. "I know that I was right in what I did. But…" He trailed off, suddenly unsure of himself. In his mind, the only thing he could see was the nightmare he had a week ago, following the play. And the only thing he could hear, were Xingyue's words.
Mountains of corpses. Oceans of blood.
He did not regret the lives he had taken.
He regretted the fact that he did not regret it. And he was afraid. Because somewhere, in the deepest, darkest corner of his wounded heart… he had felt proud of it. That all of his training, the months upon months of preparation, had been fruitful.
Killing them had been easy. Too easily, he had reaped the lives of nearly ten men. He hadn't even been injured.
That's what he was afraid of. That it would only become easier.
Liang Rensong sensed that Jintian had retreated into his own thoughts. He sighed, before gently placing the bags of holding between them. "You don't have to take them, but they are yours, young man." He said quietly. "You saved our lives, but the cost of that is that you needed to kill men to do so. But these bags of holding aren't your reward for that action. They are simply a consequence of it. Whether or not you can live with that consequence, with that cost… only you can decide."
And with that, Liang Rensong rose from his seat, glancing down at Jintian as he bowed his head. "We'll be burying the bodies of friends and family here, so that they don't attract Demonic Beasts on our journey. It isn't what they deserve… but it's better than what they would have gotten, if you hadn't been here." He finally said, before taking his leave.
Jintian watched him walk away for a few moments, before his gaze slid down to the bags of holding. And after staring at them for a long, long time…
He picked them up and tucked them into his robe.