Skyfire Avenue - Chapter 857

Chapter 857

Chapter 857: Li Ke

The turquoise light of Ultus shimmered along its length . Pulsing, like a living thing . As its aura spread Captus, Demortus, and Occisus hummed from within their bearer’s bodies .

Lan Qing had since recovered from the shock of the revelation . “Bringing your honored husband back should be considered a priority . He has knowledge pertaining to the Banishing Strategy . ”

Once he said the words, the Paragons and even a few of the Easterners instantly understood . They knew that Lan Jue, Qianlin and the Pharmacist had left for a secret mission, but now they knew what for . The Banishing Blades – legendary weapons that were capable of killing even the strongest immortals!

The Pharmacist’s lower lip quivered . All the way back from Monarch and up to this moment she had tried to commune with the spirit of her husband . Yet all she could feel was a hazy, impermanent sense of her lost love . She could not seem to speak with him .

The possibility of bringing Jue Di back rested on the fact that his soul was that of an immortal . In many ways he remained as the will of a god . His essence was complete, and wholly contained within the Compliance Rod . Her husband, however, relied entirely on the power of Ultus to keep his spirit intact and his will alive . The chances of bringing him back into the physical world were small beyond measure .

She knew this, but she had also seen what Qianlin could do . The faintest light of hope sparkled in her heart .

Suddenly Ultus began to hum, and as the light around it expanded the faint image of a man appeared within .

When she saw who it was the Pharmacist’s whole body shook uncontrollably, and tears streamed down her face . Jun’er, seated nearby, also seemed to feel something and turned toward them . She couldn’t see, but reached out with her perception .  

Lan Qing was also stunned when he saw who it was .

“You… You are Admiral Li Ke?” Clearly this man was important to Lan Qing .

Lan Jue fixed his eyes on them . This flickering spirit was not possessed of a solid body like Xuan Yuan Shishi or Jun Yongye . In fact he seemed only barely able to keep a recognizable form . Yet he could still make out the tall, lithe figure . He wasn’t the most heroic looking, but he held himself with a sense of wisdom and refinement . Scholarly . His presence was gentle, and though there were no eyes its attentions seemed deep and profound .  

“Hello, classmate . ” Li Ke sighed emotively as he ‘looked’ at Lan Qing . The admiral’s eyes were full of surprise, shocked to discover that the Pharmacist’s husband was actually this man .

Li Ke? When he heard the name a curious expression flit across Lan Jue’s face . He faintly remembered hearing the name from his brother before .

Being possessed of a fine memory, it took Lan Jue only a moment to recall . He cried out involuntarily . “You used to be called the East’s most talented commander . They made an exception to enroll you in the military… upperclassman Major Li Ke . ”

None of the others were familiar with the name, but at one point his name had caused a fervor in the East .

Li Ke was two grades older than Lan Qing, and exceptional as Lan Qing was his brilliance was overshadowed by Li Ke . He had a thorough knowledge of Eastern and foreign disciplines, especially when it came to ancient Chinese warfare . In his time Li Ke was the darling of the Eastern military establishment .

He had represented the East once in a mock battle meant to practice strategies . He went up against several illustrious commands from both the West and North, winning final victory against a Northern admiral . From that day forward he was considered the single greatest threat to Northern supremacy .

His performance was so impressive, in fact, the academy broke its own rules and graduated him early . He was enrolled in the military with the rank of Major, and after only a few years was awarded Colonel Commandant . Unfortunately it was as they say, and only the good die young . One day, during a routine patrol, he vanished . If he’d had come back he was on track to becoming the youngest Eastern commander in military history . Even younger than Lan Qing when he took that title .

Lan Jue had heard his brother mention the name before as a catalyst . Li Ke was his target in the academy, the opponent that made him work harder . He studiously examined every one of Li Ke’s theses . Later, as Lan Qing rose in fame and prominence, he was referred to as one of the East’s two rising stars .  

Lan Qing’s determination was that the Eastern army would be a full twenty percent more effective if Li Ke had lived to become a commander . He’d assumed his classmate’s disappearance was at the hands of the North or West, for who could have known back then that the alien planets lurked in the darkness of space .

There was a conflicted look in Li Ke’s eyes as well as he looked on Lan Qing . Especially when he saw the four golden stars on his shoulder bar . He’d achieved the goal Li Ke had set out to accomplish! Admiral in command of a bastion ship, the strongest power in all of human space .

But once he fell into the clutches of the aliens, his dreams were shattered . In the end he was forced to give up more than his dreams, but his body as well . Most of what the beasts knew of human military tactics they stole from his mind .

“Husband!” [1 . While this may seem like a formal way to regard one’s spouse, it is very typical for Chinese couples . It’s how my wife gets my attention, sort of like the equivalent of ‘sweetie’ in the way we use it, but more acceptable in public . ] The Pharmacist’s quavering voice rose and the spirit’s attention returned to her . The Pharmacist, choked with sobs, moved to hug him but grasped only air .

Pain and regret flashed in Li Ke’s eyes . However, without a body there was nothing he could do .

The other Paragons could guess what was happening . Lan Qing briefly explained the situation to them .

Li Ke took a few steady ‘breaths’ before speaking . “I’m sorry for the pain you’ve suffered . But right now it is more important that we deal with the alien planets . Soon they will complete their evolution, and when that happens they will no longer hold back . Beasts will appear in every corner of human space to destroy us . We must use what little time remains to establish the Banishing Strategy, and through it destroy them first . ”

Li Ke desperately wanted to speak with his wife, and to be with the little girl who was sixty percent the Pharmacist and forty percent him . Yet much as it pained him there were more pressing matters . Time was short, and the future of the species took precedence .

Zhou Qianlin supported the Pharmacist as she recovered her bearings .

Li Ke turned to Lan Qing . “The secrets of the strategy are hidden within Ultus . I discovered them when I was forced to become the sword’s spirit . I am familiar with the process, all that is needed are people to put it into motion . ”

Lan Qing nodded . “Are you capable of handling Ultus and enacting it yourself, commander? Occisus is still under your wife’s control . Lan Jue and Zhou Qianlin possess Captus and Demortus respectively . Each of them are Paragons – is this enough to summon the power of the strategy?”

Li Ke repudiated the admiral’s hope . “Impossible . The Banishing Strategy was one of the most taboo abilities, even in the ancient days . When the swords were first created, they were made with the intention of protecting the immortal realm . Before the strategy universal protogenia holds no power . But before its full strength can be drawn upon, it needs bearers who are immortals themselves . Immortals of the highest cast, Da Luo . Without an immortal realm such all-powerful beings cannot exist . ”

He paused for a moment, then continued . “However, that doesn’t mean we’re left without options to combat the aliens . We may not be able to summon the full power of the swords, but when the aliens complete their evolution they will still be far from the likes of Da Luo . If we can use even a fraction of the strategy, that should be enough to slay these monsters . If we want to achieve this then the bearers must be the best of humanity – meaning, they must have achieved the Infinite . Four immortal-level Paragons would be even better, raising our chances to perhaps thirty percent . If they are only the Infinite that number drops to ten . ”

The high demands of the Banishing Strategy caused everyone’s faces to darken . In all of humanity Luo Xianni was the only remaining Infinite-level Paragon . One out of four that were required . What’s more, three of the swords had already chosen new masters . Until Lan Jue, the Pharmacist, and Qianlin died these weapons would not be wielded by others . And they were still far from the Infinite .

Lan Qing’s solemn voice replied . “What if we can’t produce four? What if their cultivation level was lower, would we still have a chance?”

Li Ke shook his spectral head . “No such chance exists . In the moment when the Banishing Stance is summoned, it will release a staggering level of energy . If the bearer is not strong enough to control it the power will break free and cause untold devastation . The Infinite is the minimum to see it done . ”

Here the spirit turned its eyes to Lan Jue and Qianlin . “But there is another way, a special lineage that is similar to the Banishing Blades . It can increase the amount of power the bearers can support . Now, I must search the auras of those gathered and find the one who is most suitable to bear Ultus . ”