Protected

After looting everything there was to take, my Brothers and I gained quite a haul of goodies. I collected all the swords since most kills were mine anyway, and nobody seemed to complain. The rest split up the bits and pieces such as pills, potions, various gear, tools, and money. I didn't need any Spirit Stones and I already took the most valuable stuff anyway.I had gained just over twenty swords, bringing me up to a grand total of 54 Spirit Swords, plus four which were named blades and worth much more. The common blades went for between 100 and 300 Spirit Stones each, depending on quality. Not that I would ever sell them, of course.I also had 15 daggers made from the same Spirit Metal, but they weren't worth mentioning. If I ever needed money, those would be the first to go.***The corpse of the deceased enemy Elder was quickly found and I heard people shouting. A few of us followed and saw it in a small crater lying on the ground. One of his swords was stabbed in the soil not far away while the rest were missing."What should we do with…?" A guy gestured at the corpse.The answer was obvious. We should eat it. But I guess that seemed a bit barbaric to some people. There was also another, easier choice. Get someone else to do the dirty work.[Take him to the Elder. He'll know what's to be done with high-ranking enemy Elders.] I said. A few people looked at me and then at the other peak Golden Core Cultivators, seemingly expecting a confirmation."Do as he says. Take him to the Elder." One of the men in question said.One of the guys grabbed the Elder's leg and tried to pull. His eyes went wide and he flexed his muscles, to no avail."Damn! This thing is heavy!"Three other guys jumped to help him, barely managing to drag the corpse out of the crater. I mean, what did they expect? The guy was centuries old, probably in the middle of Spirit Realm, if I had to guess. With a body that didn't even reach three meters, his density had to be insane. Still not as dense as mine, was my guess, but impressive nonetheless.As they dragged the guy across the ground, leaving a trail of broken soil behind them, I scanned the area with Arcane Eyes in search of the lost swords. I already pocketed the one stuck in the ground nearby and was just looking for the remaining five.One of them was not too far away and I took it with ease. They were all bound weapons, meaning a tiny fragment of the owner's Soul was still in them, allowing for greater ease of use. They also prevented anyone who wasn't the owner from freely using the weapon, unless the one to whom the swords were bound to allowed it.There existed techniques to strike directly at a Cultivator by destroying this connection, but such damage was small and often not worth pursuing.The lingering will of the owner still remained on the weapons though, even after his death. And that lingering fragment of his Soul, though not even worth mentioning in terms of Soul Essence, was still enough to allow me to detect it at a great distance. Any Spirit Realm Soul was like a beacon of light in the darkness. With the owner dead it became especially dazzling in a place devoid of Qi.The generator finally seemed to come online and began sucking in even greater amounts of Qi. Soon the area around it became a wasteland, with only the spikes of the swords remaining. I collected the remaining four swords, putting me to a grand total of 64.My collection of trophies was getting impressive. I would soon need a new ring. Mine was getting tight on space.That reminded me of something and I quickly ran back just in time to see a barrier rising from the ground just outside the wall's reach and encase the bunker in a sphere of protection.I touched the barrier and my hand passed straight through. The Elder wasn't kidding when he said our badges served as more than just identification.Just in case that was a fluke, though, I went back out and tested the barrier again, only with the badge hidden in my ring. An impenetrable wall blocked my path, and as I tried to push harder, a pulse of energy struck my hand in the form of lightning.I pulled back and shook my numb, aching hand. I got the message. I put on the badge and once more, the barrier posed no problem anymore.[Neat.]I entered the bunker and saw most people were gathered in the command room. The Elder there was doing stuff on the main console with the rest of them simply watching with fascination. The corpse was off to the side, seemingly untouched.I crouched beside it and placed my hand over the various rings the man carried. Even in death, they were securely locked by layers of energy. But, seeing that the owner was already dead, I shattered and absorbed the fragments of his will left behind.A connection appeared in my mind and I examined the insides.[Uff…]A sound escaped my mouth as my mind's eye saw the mountain of stuff. It was paper. Documents, books, and scrolls containing all manner of bureaucratic nonsense. Away from me!I severed the connection quickly, sweat pouring down my back. That was not for me. That was hell if I had ever seen one, reminding me of the headaches I had whenever I had to get a few papers from the government back at home. The agony of dealing with slow and incompetent bureaucracy, the countless hours of waiting and stress, the laws that made no sense…No, thank you!I examined the other rings, but most of them contained nothing of real value. Sure, everything together might come to a few hundred Spirit Stones, but those were mountains of stuff. Only one ring contained the valuables, the hard cash, and the relics of the Elder.He had quite a few life-saving treasures, too bad he thought he was the strongest, never having a chance to use them as he died. He went from 100% to 0 in an instant."What are you doing?" I heard the Elder's voice and snapped out of it. The man was standing over me.[Ah, just looking.]I frowned on the inside. I knew I never would have had the chance to shoot the guy if it wasn't for Elder Fa distracting him, but still, surely some of the loot belonged to me, right?The Elder gestured for the others to leave the room and closed the door behind them, before turning back to me. He stared for a moment and then pressed something on the console and a chair grew from the ground. He sat down and sighed."I guess I should thank you for your help in… killing the enemy." He glanced over at the corpse, the large hole where the arrow pierced through his chest bloodier than ever.[Well… I can't take all the credit. If he wasn't so distracted fighting, I don't think I would have ever been able to do it.]I was not arrogant enough to think I could beat an Elder in a fair fight. He was distracted and overconfident, thinking he had everything under control. That gave me a tiny window of opportunity to strike.The Elder chuckled. "Yeah… To be fair, I also thought you were dead. I prepared myself to fight with my life on the line and was wholly focused on that. That probably helped." He then sighed. "I am no warrior, and though there was just one level of difference between us, I could have never beaten the man. In fact, I was about to risk it all and probably join you in death, when the arrow hit."I saw a small smirk form on the Elder's face. "I guess what they say about your abilities is true…"[What abilities?]The Elder gave me a long, meaningful look. "Your… immortality."I opened my mouth to argue, but he lifted his hand. "You think we didn't know? Before you say anything, let me just tell you, the strike you sustained should have killed you. Heck, I bet it would have killed an early Spirit Realm Cultivator as well."He pointed at himself, at his fresh scars that didn't properly heal. "Those attacks carried Soul-rending properties. While my body seems healed on the surface, it is not, and neither is my Soul. The wounds I sustained are deep and also cursed and will most likely take years to fully heal."He gazed into my eyes again. "I'm telling you this so you understand… That strike should cripple you at the least, yet you just stood back up like nothing ever happened. That is not normal."I bit my lip as I listened to the Elder. I vaguely remembered my Soul being cut, but the strings of Divine Essence held it together and then I just… merged it back together. Probably. I was too angry to be fully aware of everything that was going on.I tried to speak but Elder Fa, once again, cut me off."You understand we knew all about you for a long time? Ever wondered why nobody came to bother you?"[What do you mean?]"Your abilities… How many Elders do you think would love to dissect you, seeing what makes you tick?"Elder Fa leaned back in his chair. "The Brilliant Sword Sect has spies in our midst, but just as they do, we also have our own informants in their Sect. When your face appeared on the kill list for the first time, we didn't think much of it, but when we discovered you were the one responsible for the destruction of their Portal Nexus, things changed. Our people found the relevant information, even the memory of your demise…"He leaned forward. "Gerald, we watched you die. All of us, every single Elder not in closed-door Cultivation. There was nothing left of you in the end, nothing but charred bones and ash. Yet here you are…"[Here I am.] I replied, still not understanding why exactly he was telling me that."Do you understand how brazen you have to be to be walking around the Sect like that? Not a care in the world? Do you know how many would kill to have your power? To mend a seemingly mortal wound in a matter of seconds?"Elder Fa snorted. "But… As long as the Sect Master wills it, nobody can touch you, I guess. What a shame."[Sect Master is protecting me?] I asked. I had no idea.The Elder stared intently at me and then his eyebrows shot up. "Oh, wow. You really didn't know? That just makes it worse!"[Why would the Sect Master want to protect me?] I asked, not bothering to reply to the question."Beats me. Maybe he's trying to make you his insurance plan for after he retires?"I cocked my head to the side. [Sect Master is going to retire? But he looks too… young?] Well, maybe not young young, but he certainly wasn't anywhere near the end of his lifespan."Well, no, he still has a few decades left of his turn, but after…"