Truthful Transmigration

There wasn’t some sort of magical connection that formed between John and Sitora now that they both knew about the other’s transmigration. They had only been allies of opportunity during the Leviathan incident, and Sitora interfering with the Third Peak had most likely been in her own best interests. Even so, knowing that they could work together was a significant step in the right direction.

John had dealt with people he liked less that were now part of the regional alliance. The woman had spent far longer as a cultivator than she had as a person of Earth, so for the most part he could expect certain kinds of responses from her. That meant taking advantage of her power to her benefit, wherever she could. Of course, people on Earth did that as well- John just didn’t know exactly how much, since he wasn’t part of the world of the powerful.

He could hope she was better than the locals, but that meant nothing unless she actually was. Frankly, the chances of her being trustworthy were more or less the same as everyone else, so it would take time. In the short term, however, John could take advantage of where their interests were aligned.

Clearly there was some tension between the peaks. While Morana of the Third Peak couldn’t stand up to Sitora on her own, clearly she had some connections to the First Peak. Sitora seemed to have control over her own people, so that was the only real option. John wasn’t quite certain how he could shift the balance of power, or if he even wanted to, but it seemed Sitora was content with him continuing his challenges.

He doubted she expected him to defeat Abritt of the First Peak. That was extremely unlikely considering that Sitora herself was in the Mid Ascending Soul Phase and he probably couldn’t even defeat her. But just putting on a good showing might be all that was necessary. John doubted that Sitora cared about the prestige of the continentals, but if Abritt thought of them as lesser than properly standing up to her might be the best result. Of course, it might also anger her.

He had to consider the risks. If he angered Abritt enough to want to kill him, it would be difficult to avoid death. It didn’t matter what sort of consequences might follow for her, because even if John knew that his friends would avenge him that wouldn’t bring him back. And he wasn’t going to bet on being lucky enough to live again. If specific cultivators came back repeatedly, they would have been far more famous and world shattering.

John spent some time forming a plan. It might be a bit ambitious, but it shouldn’t have too much risk if he failed.

-----

The opponents chosen by Sitora for Viriato, Ayhan, and Lir were more appropriate than the Third Peak’s choices. However, that didn’t mean they had a better chance of victory. Just because they were better matched in cultivation time didn’t mean they were any weaker than the others. Indeed, John determined that they were probably of greater talent than the previous foes as their cultivations still outmatched his disciples.

Not that he was terribly surprised. The early days of the Six Elements Crossroads had been somewhat rocky as he learned how to best instruct others in multi-elemental training. Even now he couldn’t say it was a perfectly refined technique, but they were certainly better. That said, their early growth was a bit slower than it might have been and there had been fewer opportunities for them to engage in practical expeditions because of their lower cultivations.

Viriato’s opponent was similarly advantaged, as he had been stuck in the Foundation Phase for quite some time. He’d advanced rapidly once he was properly able to, but that still left him a bit behind.

John wasn’t surprised nor upset when they lost. Frankly, they were shown proper respect with Sitora picking her best disciples. They didn’t win solely on the merit of higher cultivations but instead displayed wondrous technique.

Viriato had a hard time because the arena was even more favored for those who could fly. Fewer platforms further apart, though the way they moved around still provided opportunities. The key thing that led to his loss was that his opponent actually seemed to have prior experience fighting against all of the different elements. Viriato’s particular combination of light and darkness certainly put the man on his back foot briefly, but he adapted quickly.

Just once did Viriato manage to strike the man with a beam of twisted light and darkness. After that, the man rapidly closed the gap between them, lightning coiled around him as he boxed in Viriato with his earth element. Fire wasn’t able to save Viriato, as the Second Peak cultivator swept away the heat from the shell of earth with a constant breeze.

Ultimately, it became a total victory for the Second Peak, with their contestant standing strong, Viriato fallen.

Neither Ayhan nor Lir fared better against their opponents. Alone, each of them had deficiencies they couldn’t yet overcome. Yet John didn’t take that as a sign of weakness, instead considering how he could shape their growth in the future.

Unfortunately, none of them qualified to ascend- but they learned some areas of weakness. Viriato was poor in close combat. The other two would fare far better once they had a full cycle of core elements, but additional experience was relevant as well.

-----

After his disciples, it was John’s turn to face Sitora. His ascension could hardly be predicated on his victory, since she had centuries of experience on him. There was no other opponent able to match him, however, as the Second Peak had no other Ascending Soul Phase cultivators. John sensed some who were at the threshold, but whether they would actually advance or not was a difficult question. If they did, would one of them take over the Fifth Peak, or was it more prestigious to remain a disciple in the Second Peak?

Those were all matters John didn’t know, and wasn’t planning to stay long enough to find out. Perhaps in the future it would be relevant, if they remained in contact with the Sky Islands like he hoped.

The most John knew about Sitora’s fighting style was that she was partial to lightning. A sensible option for air and earth cultivators, in John’s opinion. He had to be careful of the flow of elements, lest he open himself up to critical strikes. He doubted Sitora would let him pass on if he would embarrass her with his weakness.

His powers of flight were put to the test immediately, as she blasted the platform he was standing on. It didn’t matter if she used excess spiritual energy with her advantage in cultivation, as she could probably keep up the pace for quite some time. The bolt came almost immediately as they began, crackling through the sky.

If he hadn’t moved, he might have been instantly defeated. A clear warning, but John’s reactions were up to the task. He couldn’t quite say he had finished refining his body in that regard- he didn’t even know if there was an actual limit- but he’d seen tangible improvements.

A swirling chain of earth energy was launched for the direction he dodged, and Sitora twisted it to chase after him as he carried himself up into the air. When it caught him, however, John didn’t try to resist it. Instead, he sent his own energy to ‘bolster’ it… attaching it to Sitora, who was flying towards him. When he dropped, she fell with him- and he used her to pull himself up for a few moments before she shattered the construct of energy.

Another streak of lightning, his hair standing on end before it manifested. John used the tip of his sword to redirect its path, twisting his elements together to create an enticing path while also lowering Sitora’s control.

There was never a moment where he wasn’t reacting in some way to Sitora’s attacks, but he didn’t just float around dodging. He doubted he could cause any serious damage with his throwing daggers, but he tossed them as he cycled through elements, using them when one element surged naturally. While Sitora’s energy deflected his attacks, he was getting a sense of how her defenses worked. Winds and lightning with an almost undetectable trace of earth increasing its durability.

He couldn’t find any easy flaws in its patterns, and he hadn’t seen any weaknesses when Sitora fought Gesine. It had been a large and chaotic battle, and Matayal only managed to change the tides of the battle with the Leviathan’s overwhelming power. She’d used skill and technique as well, but that wasn’t enough. Sitora was pushed against Gesine, but they were of similar cultivation.

John clearly hadn’t caught up yet. But against his most powerful opponent yet, he put the thought of his loss out of his mind, instead focusing on how best to fight. With Sitora having two elements, John couldn’t make use of an absolute elemental advantage. Even so, he combined water and fire- one weak and one strong.

Appearing mainly as a bolt of water, his energy lanced towards Sitora and struck her barrier of wind and lightning. Rather than letting the air annihilate his water, he released the energy of the flames to change its shape causing a burst of steam that was swept up in the winds. Against an equal rank opponent, John figured he would have caused at least some minor burns.

Sitora appeared to be uninjured, but he was at least gifted with her expression becoming more serious. Meanwhile, John pulled off his best maneuvering to try to reach a better position. He wanted to get above her, and had to make liberal use of fire to prevent another earth technique from pulling him down.

He barely got above Sitora when she directed another bolt of lightning at him. He was prepared, making use of his earth element to connect to an anchor of the energy he’d left behind. His body trembled as he managed to redirect the lightning back down and through Sitora. Using her own attack was probably the most powerful force he could draw upon.

It trickled along her skin as it flowed around her, leaving her nearly unharmed once more.

“Seen that before, huh?” John shrugged.

“Every few decades people think it’s a good idea.”

She charged upwards towards him, and John only had a couple moments to gather as much energy as he could, sweeping his sword down towards her. She caught his sword in her bare hand as she punched him in the gut. The arena’s formations activated, leaving John with only a smaller shock through his spiritual energy instead of serious wounds.

“How serious was that?” John asked as he floated down towards the island below.

“It contained my full intent,” Sitora said.

John was pleased. Both that she’d attacked seriously… and that he was fairly certain he wouldn’t die from just one attack. Of course, she could probably do that again, but that wasn’t the point. A couple centuries of experience and five ranks of cultivation wasn’t something he’d ever actually expected to overcome anyway.

“Thank you for the match,” John said. “What is your judgment?”

“You did well enough to ascend to the First Peak… though you should expect nothing but harsh judgment from them as you are.” She narrowed her eyes, looking at him. “Especially if you continue to hold back.”

John held up his hands. “I wasn’t really holding back, honest. It’s just… I figured it was better to save it.”

“For what, if not this?” Sitora asked.

“For the First Peak. I doubt they can fully condemn me if my rank improves during my match.”

Sitora pondered, her age showing in her wrinkles. “If you can truly be certain you will achieve that, I would be pleased. However, I still believe you need some more experience.”

“Clearly,” John said. “But that’s something I can only get with time.”

“Or proper pointers,” Sitora said. “Your flight has several inefficiencies. Furthermore, you telegraph your movements.”

John frowned. “I thought I was doing a pretty good job hiding that.”

“Not enough, if you’re facing those of higher cultivation. But why hide it when it can be unknowable?”

“It makes me faster,” John said. “And…” he could also give false paths, if they expected his movements to be visible beforehand. He injected air element ahead of him to ‘loosen up’ the air.

“Still…” Sitora said. “You will do well to stay here for a short time. Perhaps a week to allow things to settle.”

“Will I have the opportunity to learn from you again?” John asked.

“In part. Though I will also ask you to spar with my own disciples in turn.”