22. True Cultivator (II)

Old Wu charged with his machete raised high. Colorless spiritual energy gathered in his arm as he hacked the blade towards Gray's head. Old Wu was strong, one of the best in the village even. But he wasn't Gray, he didn't have the raw physique that Gray possessed or the speed.

Even before entering cultivation, Gray could have probably bested Old Wu one on one after a long fight. Now, it was like a chicken trying to fight a fox. This was the difference in talent.

Gray raised a leg into the air and took aim

Ping!

The machete was kicked into the air. The force of the impact left Old Wu with several obviously broken fingers.

"Ahhh, fuck!"

Old Wu screamed in pain but he reacted quickly. He pulled back his mangled right hand and swung a wild punch with his left.

Gray didn't bother to dodge and lazily caught it with his right hand. Fist met palm and they went into a momentary deadlock, each trying to push the other away in a contest of raw strength

"You…" Old Wu gritted out.

Spiritual energy poured out of the old man's spiritual sea and into his left arm. With renewed vigor, he managed to push Gray back a few hairs but that was as far he managed.

"Too weak," Gray muttered.

He called upon a tiny strand of golden spiritual energy from his spiritual sea, a mere fraction of the endless bounty stored within his visualized internal world. His right arm strengthened and he squeezed hard.

Several cracks were heard as bones give way.

"Stop! Let go!" Old Wu wailed miserably.

Gray didn't let go and instead started to punch the ugly man's face with his free hand. It was payback. It was payback for making him suffer the first loss in three years. It was payback for making him look weak in front of Xueling. He was the strongest man of these mountains and he was here to prove it.

"Old Wu!"

"Boss, let go of our boss!"

The other men finally woke up from their stupor and jumped at Gray, forcing him to let go of Old Wu and defend himself. At the same time, more reinforcements arrived. They included the rest of the Road Gang as well as the Ming's group. Everyone that Gray needed to beat up was here and it was finally time for a good fight!

"Come here!" Gray let out a roar and threw himself at the nearest bunch.

A chaotic brawl erupted. The bystanders retreated far away, not willing to get involved. They didn't know who would win so they continued to watch from a safe distance. Old Li was also among them, looking a little worried.

"Bastard!"

"Get him!"

"Fuck him up!"

The cultivators within the group gathered their spiritual energy and charged at him. They summoned their myriad of trashy cultivation arts, none of which were even in the same world as the Tome of Glorious Fortune. Their combined spiritual aura could not compare to Gray's lonely ferocity.

This was Gray's first battle as a cultivator and his blood boiled in excitement. He engaged with the closest enemy, dodging a vicious spear thrust and barreling into the man with his shoulder. The man tumbled to the ground with a crunch and Gray was left with the iron spear.

Now with a weapon in hand, Gray started to wreak havoc. His opponents fell one by one as he rushed through them. They were left with cracked skulls, broken bones, or fresh gaping wounds from his inexperienced spear thrusts. He weaved his way through and found the archers that had wounded him before. He didn't give them a chance to do so again and took them out before continuing his rampage.

"Ahhh!"

"Stop him!"

"Mommy!"

Almost twenty men came to fight him. Considering the state of the affairs of the village, such a force had almost no equal. If he had not met Xueling, he would have stood no chance. But now, he was a completely changed man. He was a true cultivator. He was an unstoppable bull. He had no equal and he brutally beat down anyone that stood in his way.

"Hahaha, refreshing!" Gray yelled as the last man fell.

He found Old Wu who was holding onto his broken arm and trying to look small. Gray walked beside him and kicked his side.

"Ow… ow! Gray, spare me!" Old Wu begged.

"There is no meteorite, so don't ever ask about it again. You get me?" Gray said.

"Yes! We won't! We won't!" Old Wu promised.

He went around the sobbing, wailing enemies on the ground and gave each of them few more kicks for good measure, especially Ming who caused all the trouble.

"I guess I can be counted as a person of Blue Lake Village so I will simply leave you with some broken bones. Your injuries will heal but you get to keep your lives." Gray said while surveying his victory, "I am not out to kill people; I am simply making a statement. I am Gray, I am the strongest of the King's Mountains!"

He then turned and pointed to all the bystanders. "This goes for all of you! There is no meteorite. There never has been. Do not mess with me or else!"

The crowd nodded and dispersed. Nobody tried to help the defeated men on the ground. The winners were right, the losers were dogs. This was the rule of the village and the valley. From this day forth, Gray's reputation was firm as the mountains.

Gray didn't stay long either. He found Old Li and they walked together. The crafty shopkeeper was eager to be openly associated with Gray after such a show of strength.

"You've gotten quite strong. Congratulations again." Old Li said, patting his back.

He was a little too proud even though he didn't contribute anything. Gray scoffed but didn't say anything.

Back in the shop, Gray grabbed his stuff and prepared to leave, "Old man, if these guys try to find trouble with you, let me know. I'll deal with them again."

"Heh… look at you. Just with a little cultivation and your head is already full. With the loss they suffered, they won't be so arrogant anymore. They'll be more worried about other gangs than you or me." Old Li said, "All you need to worry about is continuing to train hard with whatever cultivation method you found. And don't reveal it to anyone else!"

"You…" Gray was speechless.

"Me what? I'm not an idiot and others aren't either. Anybody can tell that you managed to stumble upon some good fortune." Old Li said, "This isn't something uncommon in this world of cultivation. How do you think famous figures of legend and history came about? Many people have lucky encounters but not all succeed in the end. The cultivation road is long and dangerous. You have to work hard."

"I understand… Thanks." Gray said and left.

Gray appreciated Old Li's advice but he couldn't quite take someone who only knew Flame Palm that seriously. His thoughts returned to his reliable and beautiful fairy sister. She was the one who gave him his current strength and he needed to reward her.

He went around the shops buying up as much food as he could. He left the village with a brand-new wooden cart filled with sacks of bread, cornmeal, flour, rice, pickled vegetables, dried meat, and dried fish. He even bought expensive treats such as honey and salt. He spent all of his money and didn't save a single copper. After all, he had to keep his wife fed so that she would teach him more about cultivation!