Rooftop Rumble

"Well, go on then. Remember, there's no pressure." Chief Li smiled.

Wuxian fought the urge to roll his eyes.

'As if I'd believe you.'

Letting out a somewhat defeated sigh, Wuxian spoke.

"I'll accept. As long as I'm taught how to speak common. Also, I will leave when my debt to you is repaid- when I've worked off the money you lent me." 

Chief Li's eyes narrowed as he smiled even wider.

"Good, good." Then he dispelled the wall of earthen light that blocked the doors.

"You may leave now. You start work on the first of the next month- that's in two days. When you come back, you'll receive your uniform and badge. You will also be expected to do some training, by the way."

Chief Li paused for a moment.

"Also, that money there is your three month's salary. So no wages until then."

Wuxian nodded, halfheartedly cupping his fists before leaving the room.

He ignored Wan Qiushou's intense stare as he left, not bothering to speak to the man.

Once Wuxian exited the building, normally this time, Qiushou's demeanour took a swift change. Before, he was argumentative, rude and abrasive. Now, he had suddenly become calculating and rational.

Qiushou stepped into the prefecture chief's office, saluting chief Li's turned back.

"You heard everything he said?" Chief Li asked faintly.

Qiushou nodded, dropping the salute.

"He was lying about the memory loss." He stated.

Chief Li gave no response, looking out through the window instead.

"Chief?"

"Mn, I was just thinking." Came the reply.

"Should I bring him in for interrogation? He's an extremely suspicious character." Qiushou asked.

Chief Li shook his head.

"Anomalies are safest when we can keep an eye on them at all times. I have decided to pair you two together- using your talents, you'll be able to intercept him should he decide to make the first move."

"Aye." Qiushou said. Then, he looked up in confusion. "Chief, you just sent him away for two days."

Chief Li turned around with a blank look, though he retained his slight smile as usual.

"I did?"

"Yes chief, you did."

"Really?"

Chief Li looked at Qiushou's expression. He then turned away with a sigh.

"Must have been habitual." He explained.

"Definitely." Qiushou affirmed, though he came across as sarcastic.

Knowing that Qiushou did not do so deliberately, chief Li remained unaffected. After a brief moment of thought, he spoke again.

"Qiushou, follow him. If he comes into contact with anyone suspicious these next two days, follow the contact and gather information. Make sure to immediately call for backup if you do so."

"Aye, chief." Qiushou saluted.

He turned to leave, but was stopped by the chief.

"And Qiushou?"

"Yes chief?"

"I do not want a repeat of the last incident. The garrison is not to know about this. For security reasons… I want only golden badge Nightwatchers at the ready."

"Aye… I'll leave now then."

Chief Li responded with a nasal sound. Qiushou, slightly shaken, left quickly and quietly.

After a few moments, chief Li's body began to melt into sand. The sand then dissolved into yellowy wisps of light that vanished into the air.

———

Now that he was familiar with the route, it took Wuxian only half an hour to make it back to the guesthouse.

Opening the door, he noticed that the decorations in the front room had been stripped down, only heavier things like potted plants and furniture remaining.

Due to the bareness of the room, a folded note which sat upon the counter became incredibly conspicuous. Wuxian picked it up, giving it a brief read before placing it back down with a strange expression on his face.

He scratched his head before turning and going to his room to cultivate.

A few seconds later, a hooded figure appeared. It was slim, measuring up to 1.7 metres tall. Its robe was a pristine white and was clearly made of some special material, as light appeared to bend around it.

A wisp of blue energy drifted out from under its right sleeve, lifting the letter up like a gust of wind lifting a fallen leaf.

The hooded figure seemed to read the letter in under a second, vanishing as abruptly as it had appeared. 

The letter fell slowly and daintily through the air. Just as it was about to land on the counter, a black-gloved hand picked it up. After a brief moment, the letter was scrunched up into a ball. 

The black-gloved hand clenched into a fist. When it reopened, all that was left was powdered dust, scattered along the counter.

———

Sitting on his bed, Wuxian was too distracted to cultivate. Thinking back to the letter that had been sitting on the counter, he felt that the world had become weird.

The general gist of it was this; the innkeeper had thought that he had offended Wuxian, a 'mass-murderer' and decided to run off. Taking all his valuables and whatnot with him.

'All I did was nod a few times, what is wrong with these modern people? What about the other guests- did the innkeeper really just run off without notifying the authorities? At the very least, he refunded the remaining guests before running, right?'

Wuxian rubbed his chin with a tired grin. 

'Though, I suppose the mass-murderer he's afraid of has infiltrated the Nightwatch, so to speak.'

After some time, his mood gradually settled. Surprisingly, the 'conscription' that had just taken place with chief Li did not disturb Wuxian as much as it should have.

Perhaps it was because he had already been conscripted once in 'ancient times'. Speaking of which, he was still getting his head over the fact that he had been magically transported to the future, for seemingly no rhyme nor reason.

But strange things kept on happening to him, the only way to stay sane and move forward was to accept the circumstances with an open-mind and stay dauntless.

'In the end, the reason why others are able to push me about so easily is down to my cultivation realm. Despite having begun Foundation Building, I am merely half a step into the Yellow Minor realm.

I am at the bottom of the food chain. For my predicaments, I have nobody to blame but myself. Now, I have but one goal; to improve.'

Wuxian closed his eyes. His next target of refinement would be the pericardium meridian and its collaterals.

———

A white-robed figure stood on the roof tiles of the guesthouse overlooking the pond. With its hands behind its back, it appeared to be very calm, observing everything from under its shadowy hood.

Then, a black-clothed person appeared on the roof opposite it. Sporting tight-fitting attire and a combat ready aura, he wasted no time in engaging the opponent.

The black-clothed person drew in a deep breath, before stomping down, sending terracotta shards flying in all directions.

In response, the white-robed figure remained there, unmoving, only a faint blue energy wandering out from both of its long sleeves.

The ceramic shards whistled through the air. Blue energy intercepted them, indiscriminately turning them to dust as it passed through them.

The black-clothed man followed close behind the shards, moving swiftly but silently across the nearby tiled roof. He seemed to be like a shadow, stealthy in the dark, but conspicuous in broad-daylight.

The last of the terracotta shards had been pulverised and the white-robed figure began to move. Long-aware of the black-clothed man's closing trajectory, it jumped backwards onto another roof, blue energy supporting it from beneath.

At the same time, more blue energy wafted out of the figure's robes. They engulfed the many dust particles and terracotta shards in the area.

As the black-clothed man closed in, he acutely noticed that he was in danger.

The moment he realised this, he turned to face the direction of the pond. 

Invisible specs of dust and shards, finely crushed and surrounded with dim blue light whisked through the air.

Rather, they hovered a few inches above the ground, travelling silently but speedily.

Facing the incoming dust cloud, the black-clothed man drew in a quick breath, his chest expanding.

"Ha!" He shouted, projecting the air in his lungs forwards in a triangular cone.

The dust cloud was disturbed and the blue light flickered once before evaporating into the air.

That settled, the black-clothed man marched forward again, albeit with hints of fatigue emanating from every movement.

———

"Ha!"

Wuxian's eyes flitted open and he sprung into action. From his ring, a metal mask appeared, quickly wrapped over his face.

At the same time, the Northern Dark Edge automatically unwound itself, landing in Wuxian's grasp.

Though he'd have liked to also wear his armour, he was doubtful that he'd have enough time to do so.

Big North appeared, standing behind Wuxian.

"Junior, there are two presences outside. One is a low-level cultivator, the other is a pure martial practitioner. The cultivator, unless I am being deceived, is a Qi Condenser- be very careful.

Unlike Foundation Building and Qi Refining, their techniques are powerful. Not only do they possess a level of expertise you've not yet been exposed to, but they have access to condensed qi, which is a level above singularly refined qi." He cautioned.

"Understood." 

After a split second of contemplation, Wuxian did not directly charge in the direction of the shout, but stealthily left his room instead, opting to creep down the corridor.

In his hand, two pills appeared.

One was a defence-boosting pill, increasing the consumer's resistance to qi of all five elements, while the other was an attack-enhancing pill, allowing more qi to be committed to attacks, resulting in more lethal attacks overall.

'The defence pill has a duration of twenty breaths, while the offensive pill has a duration of merely ten. I must be careful with their usage, as once they wear off, I will experience minor pill-poisoning.'

Wuxian carefully stashed these into his robe's inner pocket, ensuring that they would not fall out when he moved vigorously, but would also be easy to retrieve.

Hearing the sounds of exertion from above, Wuxian tracked them as they moved along the ceiling.

"Senior North, who is my foe and who is my enemy?" He asked quietly.

"The martial artist is the man you met previously at the office. The cultivator is someone who has been lingering in the area for a while, but has not made any major moves until now."

Wuxian raised a brow, though, Big North probably couldn't see it.

"Why didn't you tell me that there was a cultivator in the area this whole time?" He asked.

"I am still not used to cultivators below the Golden Core stage being a threat, apologies, Junior. The cultivator slipped under my radar."

Despite the dangerous situation, Wuxian felt calm enough to smile. Perhaps chief Li had rubbed off a little on him.

"Then, the martial practitioner is Wan Qiushou, while the cultivator is likely somebody intending to do me harm." Wuxian thought aloud.

Big North did not respond, acquiescing in silence.

He heard the sound of rushed footsteps further down the corridor, as well as the shattering of what was most likely roof tiles.

Wuxian traced the steps, waiting for his chance.

As he followed them, he heard a muffled sound of something blunt impacting something soft.

"Junior, the Qi Condenser is likely hovering using their immortal arts. The longer the battle above lasts, the more advantageous it will be for us." Big North advised.

Wuxian nodded, but then frowned.

"But the other combatant is Wan Qiushou. He's a Nightwatcher."

They stopped talking and Wuxian continued to follow the sound of steps above him. After a minute passed, Big North spoke again.

"He was most likely sent here to follow and monitor you, junior. Having him injured if not mortally wounded in this fight will no doubt be of great use in your escape from this city."

"Despite that, he was willing to risk his life to take on the Qi Condenser above and engage them in combat." Wuxian replied.

"But not necessarily to save you. He's a Nightwatcher, a law enforcer. This is his job."

Wuxian nodded, agreeing with Big North's words.

"The reason why he was sent to monitor me was because they cannot trust me." He paused, as the steps above him did. When they continued, he followed and spoke again.

"I will give them a reason to trust me."

Big North sighed.

"These sorts of hidden guards often carry portable communication devices. It is likely that this Wan Qiushou has contacted reinforcements. Rather than risk your own life against an adversary who is most likely significantly stronger and more experienced than yourself, it would be wiser to stay put."

"I understand, but still. I need practical experience- what better way to learn than to actually fight?"

"Wuxian, you haven't had enough time to consolidate your cultivation base."

"I know."

"You haven't had time to familiarise yourself with your techniques, nor your artifact weapon."

"I know."

Big North sighed again. Once again, the footsteps above had halted, as did Wuxian.

"Move ten paces forward and give me a continuous supply of qi from your Shen dantian." 

Slightly surprised, Wuxian obliged.

The moment he reached the position, Big North spoke.

"Using the wall, bound upwards and pierce through the ceiling, using me to do so. If we cannot kill this Qi Condenser in a single strike, the following battle will be difficult."

Wuxian responded with his actions. He first placed the Northern Dark Edge's butt against the floor, using this leverage to jump onto the outstretched windowsill.

Then, he pushed the artifact upwards, towards the centre of the ceiling, sending refined wood qi towards the weapon.

Big North's projection hung in the air above Wuxian, his movements mimicking his master's. The moment the Northern Dark Edge's tip made contact with the ceiling, Big North's body seemed to glow with green light.

But the sounds of footsteps and fighting resumed above them. Wuxian even wondered if the mystic art had been successfully cast or not.

As he second-guessed Big North, the ceiling covering the entire corridor trembled, directly bursting into a thousand pieces of debris. Between each piece of wrecked material were flickering lines of green light, shooting upwards and outwards.

A high pitched clanging sound rang out from the tip of the weapon!