[Challenge Auto-Locked: Rank #6,999,999 — Disciple Wei San]
[Combat Countdown: 00:59]
I stared at the glowing text hovering over the burning archive, blood still dripping from my back.
The System was no longer asking. It was forcing.
A name blinked into existence, followed by a location: Herb Pavilion, East Courtyard. A pulse of power tugged at my core, yanking my limbs forward.
It was pulling me to him.
"System, cancel challenge."
[Challenge Lock Enabled. Passive Instability Detected.]
[Rogue Variables may not decline challenges.]
I clenched my teeth. So this was the curse of the Gambit. The higher I climbed, the less freedom I had. The System wanted a fight.
And I'd give it one.
The Second Kill
Wei San was lounging on a marble bench when I arrived, his robe soaked in expensive perfume, a book of Daoist poetry in his hand.
His rank glowed in the air above him like a badge: #6,999,999. A smug elite of the outer sect, with nothing but pills and praise for effort.
He didn't even look up.
"Who the hell are you?"
The challenge activated.
[Challenge Accepted]
[Combat Locked: Life or Death Engagement]
[Victory Reward: Rank Increase + Passive: "Qi-Linked Reflex"]
[Defeat Penalty: Complete Annihilation]
Wei San jumped back as the message flashed in front of his face. "What the—? Wait! I don't accept—!"
I lunged.
He wasn't like Teng. He moved. Fast.
His palm shot forward, glowing with golden light—Golden Body Palm, a basic but brutal technique. It cracked the tiles where I'd just stood.
I ducked under it, feeling wind slice past my cheek. My old janitor's blade clanged uselessly against his Qi armor.
He smirked. "You're nothing. Just another trash dog pretending to be a wolf."
He lashed out again. My ribs fractured. Pain bloomed.
Then I remembered Teng's passive. Herb-Scented Soul. The medicinal gardens behind him… I could smell Fire Orchid Root. Explosive when bruised.
I rolled to the right, grabbed a cluster, and shoved it into his mouth mid-punch.
Boom.
Wei San's head exploded into a fountain of fire and bone.
The System screamed in my skull:
[Unauthorized Technique Synergy Detected]
[Admin Tracking Enhanced]
[Rank Updated: #6,999,999]
[New Passive Acquired: Qi-Linked Reflex]
My spine snapped upright. My nerves twitched. The world slowed. I could feel the Qi paths of everything around me—like threads in a spider's web.
Wei San's final thought whispered through me, venomous and pathetic.
"My father… will kill you…"
The Truth Beneath
After the body was cleared by a panic-stricken sect enforcer, I slipped into the back courtyard. No one dared stop me now. My eyes glowed faintly. My voice cracked with stolen Qi.
Behind the herb pavilion was a hidden entrance—one I'd discovered cleaning latrines for three years. It led not to a treasure vault, but something worse:
A Seer's Cell.
Inside was a prisoner. Blindfolded. Chained. Skin translucent. Veins glowing faintly with starlight.
She turned her head the moment I stepped inside.
"You smell like broken laws," she whispered. "Like someone who stole their name back."
"What are you?"
She smiled, teeth black with ink. "I'm what happens when the Ranking eats its own."
I approached cautiously. "What do you know about the System?"
She leaned in. "You think it just ranks mortals? No. It ranks souls. Across lifetimes. Across timelines. Across dimensions."
My breath caught.
She continued, "The top 100? They're not cultivators. They're immortal concepts wearing human skin."
"…What's #1?"
Her smile died.
"The first loser."
The ground trembled. Something ancient shifted above the clouds.
Then the System roared in my mind again:
[Corruption Threshold: 15%]
[WARNING: Incoming Administrator Presence]
New Quest: Survive the Next 24 Hours