Assasination

An unknown amount of time passed for Lin Tao. When he finally awoke his entire being felt refreshed. He was back in the real world sitting on his bed in a meditative position. Looking around Lin Tao felt he had opened his eyes for the first time.

Explaining it perfectly was impossible but if he had to put it to words. It was as if he could see the very foundations of the world around him. He could see the elements that made up the walls of the room and see how complex their structures were. He could even see the air around him as it flowed.

There was also something else moving along with the air, it was a lot calmer and more fluid. It stood out compared to the other things he could see. It took him a moment before realizing that what he was looking at was Profound Energy in its natural state.

'This… These must be the Spirit's Subhuti was talking about.' Though it seemed strange to call them Spirits. They were more like an Automated System, they managed things within the Universe and beyond. If one could manipulate them then those building blocks temporarily become an extension of oneself

Looking down at his own body, Lin Tao felt there were changes there as well. He could feel his inner workings even better than when he was a Nascent Realm Cultivator. Strange energy flowed through his body, it was different from Profound Energy or anything else for that matter.

It flowed from the very core of his Dantian, where a small pearl-like object had taken root. It was as large as a raisin but shined with undeniable luster. The energy flowed up to his brain being refined before dispersing through his body. It sank into his veins, his blood, his very organs.

This process continued to repeat itself and each time the purity of the energy would increase and so would the refinement process of his body.

'This is Qi!' The power that Sun Wukong wielded to utilize his abilities. Lin Tao immediately got to his feet and walked over to the mirror in the room. He had learned the basics of the 72 Earthy Transformations. A technique he managed to learn from the scattered memories of Sun Wukong's mind.

He used an edited and downgraded version to make it work with his Profound Energy. But ever since he fused with Sun Wukong he couldn't use it at all. But what about now?

Attempting to manipulate his Qi he followed the steps he remembered of the 72 Earthy Transformations. He played them out from memory and the Qi in his body began to react. Lin Tao realized just how difficult this was after only a few seconds. The control it took to manipulate Qi was on a different level than normal Profound Energy.

After nearly thirty minutes of trial and error, he finally managed it. His entire body became enveloped in smoke taking the form of a young boy. His clothes, face, and size had all changed, the only thing that remained was his tail that had been tucked away. Even his voice had changed along with his mannerisms.

After looking at himself for a bit Lin Tao was engulfed in smoke once more returning him to normal. It was taxing to do, but the results were worth it. A little practice and he could turn into anyone he's seen before within seconds.

A few minutes later Lin Tao heard a knock on the door downstairs. Going down he opened the door to find an Honorable Disciple. They were disciples of the Purple Raven Sect but were more servants than anything due to their lack of talent. This one told him that someone was requesting to meet with him outside of the sect.

Lin Tao didn't know who would want to meet with him but that question was answered when he left the Purple Raven Sect. Walking out he saw Lai Wen standing there. An air of guilt lingered around here and her eyes were sorrowful when she spotted Lin Tao.

"I- Grandfather has requested your help." Lin Tao realized what she was here for and nodded, letting her lead the way. As they walked, Lai Wen kept looking as if she wanted to say something before stopping herself. Repeating this song and dance a few times she eventually said something.

"I- I'm sorry about all of this. I didn't know he was going to threaten you. He said he was just going to request your help… If I knew I-" Lin Tao cut her off.

"Like I said Lai Wen, I don't blame you. Whether you spoke up about it or not he was going to do it either way. I'm a rogue factor and he wants me under control. Besides the fact you're apologizing for shows you're not as bad as you're imagining yourself." Lin Tao smiled at her while saying that.

Lai Wen still felt guilty despite Lin Tao's forgiveness but nodded and went along with it. The two of them were walking towards The Request Pavillion until they noticed something strange. The Imperial City was large, but it was also bustling.

That's why it was so easy to tell something had gone wrong. Eventually, they stopped walking and stood in the middle of the street. There wasn't a soul in sight, every building seemed empty, and not a sound echoed out.

"What's going on?" Lin Tao frowned, he didn't know what was going on either. In that moment he felt his instincts scream out at him. The Profound Energy in the air suddenly shifted unnaturally. Reaching for Ruyi Bang he turned around and swung it in an arc. A sharp ring was followed by the glint of metal.

A small throwing knife radiating Profound Energy stabbed into the wall of a nearby building. It cut through the stone as if it was just air. Seeing that the two of them immediately knew what this was. It was an assassination!

That throwing knife wasn't the end of it either. In nearly a three hundred and sixty degree arc, the throwing knife flew towards Lin Tao. He was their target that much was clear, not a single one was aimed at Lai Wen. Ruyi Bang extended itself as Lin Tao began deflecting each knife.

His moves became blurry and sparks flew through the air. It was a perfect dome of defense, not a single knife passed through. Striking down the last one, he took a breath and heard a voice.

"Impressive. We were aware you were quite strong, but those attacks would have killed even a Seventh Stage Spirit Profound Realm Cultivator." Lin Tao searched for the voice but found no one.

"Who are you?" This time a different voice answered him echoing out in every direction.

"You do not need to know who we are. Just know you have been declared a hazard by our Master. As such you will now die." That was all the information he was going to get out of them, Lin Tao was sure about that much.

"Lai Wen, you need to go, you have an artifact for quick escapes right?" Lai Wen looked at him and hesitantly nodded.

"I do but what about you? These guys might be at the peak of the Spirit Profound Realm or maybe even in the Earth Profound Realm. They'll kill you."

"They'll try, but I can't fight at my best with you around. Get out of here and find your grandfather." She was hesitant but she realized she would be in the way if she stayed. Biting her lip she removed a Talisman from her Spatial Ring. The void around her cracked when it was activated, swallowing her whole and causing her to disappear.

"Hmm, how naive we'll deal with her as soon as we're done with you. If you were smart you should have escaped with her. We've sealed this space, running now is impossible." All of the voice's Lin Tao had heard sounded old and rough. Multiple black shadows appeared around him, six in total.

All of them were dressed the same, had the same height, and wielded two daggers as weapons. The only way to tell them apart was their voices. With no more words to be spoken they attacked. They were fast, much faster than anyone Lin Tao had fought before.

If not for his ability to predict their path of attack through Profound Energy, his head would roll. Flipping back he dodged two of the assassins' attacks. While he was still in the air three more leaped at him. Their blades were coated in thick Profound Energy that manipulated the wind itself.

His body was pushed to the limits as all three assassins struck out at him. Ruyi Bang trembled in his hands sending vibrations through his body. He was sent flying down the street crashing through multiple stalls until slamming into a building. The whole building collapsed on top of him.

'There strong and fast, plus they work together well. Looks like I need to play things smart.' Gathering his strength he jumped from the rubble of the building. Debris was sent flying into the air as he leaped thirty meters high. Using Ruyi Bang he hit each piece of debris in the air around him like arrows from a bow.

They flew towards the assassins who scoffed at such an attack. To Cultivators of their level rocks were like clouds, easy to dismiss. Each one of them moved at a speed faster than sound. Cutting the rubble. It temporarily distracted them as Lin Tao grinned.

"Grow!" Ruyi Bang shook and shined with a golden hue. It grew up into the sky being longer than a mile while also growing in size to the point it took up the entire street in length. The Assassins had never seen such a weapon before. They were shocked as Lin Tao grit his teeth swinging Ruyi Bang downwards.

"He's trying to crush us, the rocks were a distraction!"

"Disperse!"

They acted quickly, each one running into crossroads and down alleys to avoid the attack. Ruyi Bang was like a meteor, when it hit the earth the entire area seemed to quake. The surrounding buildings nearly crumbled in on themselves and the ground split.

An incredible amount of dust was launched into the air completely ruining vision. Cultivators could use their Profound Energy to sense their surroundings, but in the end, people were reliant on vision. Landing back on the grand Ruyi Bang shrunk back to its normal size.

Hiding in the rubble he began to focus.

...

Dashing through the streets one of the assassins was searching for Lin Tao. A few minutes in they sensed someone. He put up his guard as he approached but saw it was one of his own.

"Have you found any trace of him yet?" The other assassin shook his head.

"No, I've completely lost track of him. He's sneakier than we thought he would be." He agreed, this mission was supposed to be simple, but this boy is causing them a lot of trouble. They can only keep this space sealed for so long, any more and it would attract too much attention.

"I already searched southwards, you and your eye can go northeast and west. He can't conceal his presence and find him if we were thorough." The other assassin nodded, but midway he suddenly called out.

"Behind you!" Hearing the warning he turned around expecting some kind of attack. But there was nothing, the dust made it visibly impossible to see. That's when he felt someone grab him from behind. His neck was put into a chokehold when he heard a familiar voice.

"You know for an assassin you let your guard down pretty easily." Although using their Profound Energy with their attacks made them stronger than Lin Tao, physically he was superior.

"You… How…" Realizing it was Lin Tao, he couldn't believe it. He had perfectly mimicked one of them, even down to their Profound Energy and speech pattern.

"Don't worry about it, everyone makes mistakes. It's just this one that is going to cost you your life." Grabbing the top of the assassin's head he tensed his body up and quickly grabbed his chin. With one quick pull, he snapped the assassin's neck before he could react.

The assassin's body fell limply to the ground as Lin Tao looked around. One down five more he needed to deal with.