Rise of The Abandoned Husband

Gene Mercer's challenge hung in the air between us. I could feel the intensity of his gaze, the weight of his qi pressing against me like a physical force.

"I have no interest in fighting you," I said, keeping my voice level. "We came here seeking knowledge, not conflict."

"All outsiders say that," Gene spat, his scar twisting as his face contorted with anger. "Yet they all want the same thing—to steal what remains of our city's power."

Clarissa stepped forward. "Gene, you know the Covenant—"

"I know exactly what the Covenant wants," he cut her off. "The same thing your new friend here wants—access to the Mystic Realm that lies beneath Gyeon City."

That caught my attention. "Beneath the city?"

Gene's eyes narrowed. "Don't pretend ignorance. The legends say whoever controls the entrance can seize Gyeon's fortune—its past glory and future potential."

I exchanged a quick glance with Clarissa. This was more information than she had shared with me.

"Is that why your father attempted his experiment?" I asked carefully. "To seize the city's fortune?"

Gene's face darkened, and his qi flared violently. "My father tried to save this city!"

Without warning, he lunged forward, his hand forming a claw aimed directly at my throat. The attack was blindingly fast—Military Marquis speed that would have caught most opponents off guard.

But I wasn't most opponents.

I shifted slightly, letting his attack brush past my neck. The air crackled with energy where his fingers passed.

"I don't want to hurt you," I warned, stepping back.

"You?" Gene laughed bitterly. "Hurt me? In my own territory?"

He attacked again, this time with a combination of strikes infused with a strange, murky qi that seemed to distort the air around his hands.

"Gyeon Shadow Arts," Clarissa warned from the sideline. "Don't let it touch you directly."

I dodged the first two strikes, then caught the third with my palm, channeling my own qi to neutralize the shadow energy. Gene's eyes widened in surprise.

"Impossible," he muttered. "You countered it completely."

"I told you," I said calmly. "We're not here to fight."

But Gene wasn't listening. With a growl of frustration, he leaped back, then thrust both hands forward. The shadow qi gathered around him suddenly coalesced into dozens of needle-like projectiles that shot toward me from multiple angles.

"Mercer Shadow Needles," he shouted. "Let's see you counter this!"

The attack was impressive—designed to be overwhelming rather than precise. Against most opponents, it would have been devastatingly effective.

I didn't move. Instead, I released a controlled pulse of my own qi, creating a barrier that disintegrated the shadow needles on contact. The resulting clash of energies sent ripples through the air.

"How?" Gene demanded, his confidence visibly shaken.

"Your technique relies on overwhelming your opponent's ability to perceive and counter multiple attacks," I explained. "But your shadow qi has a single source—you. Once I identified its signature, neutralizing it became straightforward."

Gene's expression shifted from shock to rage. "Then try this!"

He slammed his palm into the ground, sending a wave of shadow energy rippling through the earth toward me. The stones of the alleyway cracked and buckled.

"Gyeon Earth Swallower," Clarissa called out in warning. "Liam, move!"

Instead, I stomped once, hard. My own energy countered his, stopping the shadow wave in its tracks. The collision sent a shockwave through the alley, shattering several nearby windows.

"Enough," I said firmly. "This is pointless."

Gene stared at the ground where our energies had collided, disbelief written across his face. Then his expression hardened.

"I see," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "You're holding back. You think I'm not worth your full strength."

"That's not—"

"Fight me seriously!" he roared, gathering shadow qi around both arms. "Shadow Dragon Form!"

His qi transformed, taking on a semi-solid appearance—two dragon-like shapes extending from his shoulders.

"This is bad," Clarissa murmured. "That's the Mercer family's killing technique."

Gene charged, the shadow dragons leading his attack. This was no longer about testing my strength—this was a lethal assault.

My patience ended.

I stepped forward to meet his charge, my own qi surging. As the shadow dragons descended toward me, I struck with a single, precise palm strike aimed at Gene's center mass.

Our energies collided with a thunderous crack. The shadow dragons dissolved instantly, and Gene flew backward as if struck by a battering ram. He slammed into the wall at the end of the alley, crumpling to the ground.

But I wasn't finished. In a flash, I closed the distance between us, gripping his throat and lifting him off his feet.

"You attacked with killing intent," I said, my voice cold. "That was your mistake."

Gene struggled against my grip, his eyes wide with fear now. "What... are you?" he gasped.

I didn't answer. Instead, I slammed him back against the wall, sending cracks radiating outward from the impact point.

"Liam," Clarissa called, her voice cautious. "We need him alive."

I loosened my grip slightly, allowing Gene to breathe. "The next time you challenge someone," I told him quietly, "make sure you understand what you're facing."

"My father..." he wheezed. "You don't understand what he sacrificed for this city."

"Then explain it," I suggested, releasing him completely.

Gene slumped to the ground, coughing. When he looked up, there was something different in his eyes—not just fear, but a grudging recognition.

"My father didn't curse this city," he said hoarsely. "He tried to save it when the Mystic Realm started collapsing. The experiment everyone blames him for was an attempt to stabilize the connection."

"And it failed," Clarissa concluded.

Gene shook his head. "It half-succeeded. It prevented complete collapse but couldn't restore the flow of fortune. That's why Gyeon is frozen in this state—neither thriving nor fully dead."

I considered this new information. "And you've been guarding what remains of the connection."

"For twenty years," Gene confirmed, slowly getting to his feet. "Against treasure hunters, opportunists, and organizations like the Umbral Covenant."

He tried to put weight on his left leg and winced sharply, nearly collapsing again. I caught him by the arm.

"Both your leg bones are broken," I informed him after a quick diagnostic pulse of qi. "Clean breaks, though."

Gene's face paled. "You did that with a single strike?"

"You attacked with killing intent," I reminded him. "Be grateful it's only broken bones."

Clarissa approached cautiously. "Gene, the Covenant doesn't want to exploit the Mystic Realm. We want to understand it—and possibly repair what was damaged."

"Impossible," Gene muttered. "My father was the foremost expert on Gyeon's Mystic Realm, and even he couldn't fix it."

"Times change," I said. "Knowledge advances."

I sent a careful stream of healing qi into his injured legs—not enough to heal them completely, but sufficient to ease the pain and start the recovery process.

Gene looked up at me in surprise. "Why help me after I attacked you?"

"Because despite your methods, your intentions seem genuine," I replied. "You're protecting what you believe is yours to protect."

Clarissa signaled to someone at the end of the alley—likely Covenant members who had been watching our confrontation.

"We should continue our investigation," she suggested. "Gene can be treated by our medical team."

I nodded, turning my attention back to the shrine. Now that the fight was over, I could sense something I hadn't noticed before—a subtle pulsation beneath the ground, as if the earth itself were breathing.

"There's definitely something significant here," I confirmed. "The qi concentration is unlike anything I've encountered before."

Two Covenant members arrived to help Gene. As they supported him away, he called back to me.

"Knight! Be careful what you seek here. My father spent his life studying the Mystic Realm, and in the end, it consumed him."

With those ominous words hanging in the air, Gene was helped around the corner and out of sight.

"Charming local welcome," I remarked dryly to Clarissa.

She smiled thinly. "The Mercers have always been protective of Gyeon's secrets. Though I've never seen Gene so thoroughly defeated before."

I turned my full attention to the shrine. "Let's focus on why we're here. How do we access this Mystic Realm?"

"That's the complicated part," Clarissa admitted. "The Covenant has identified this location, but the actual entrance mechanism has eluded us."

I placed my hand on the shrine again, this time sending a more focused probe of qi. The energy beneath pulsed in response, almost like a heartbeat.

"It's responsive to qi," I noted. "But seems to be waiting for something specific."

Clarissa nodded. "Our researchers believe it requires a specific qi signature or technique to activate."

I continued exploring the shrine with my senses, following the flow of energy. It seemed to spiral downward, creating a vortex-like pattern beneath us.

"Let's try something," I suggested, stepping back from the shrine. "Stand clear."

I gathered my qi, focusing it into a concentrated ball of energy. Then, following the pattern I'd observed, I sent it spiraling into the shrine in the same vortex formation.

For a moment, nothing happened. Then, the ground beneath us trembled slightly.

"It's responding," Clarissa whispered, excitement creeping into her voice.

I increased the power of my qi projection, maintaining the spiral pattern. The trembling intensified, and the air around the shrine began to shimmer.

"Something's happening," I said, maintaining my focus.

The space around the shrine rippled like water, distorting our view of the alley beyond. The ripples spread outward, creating an opening in the very fabric of reality.

From within this distortion, a figure emerged. A man in dark robes, his face severe and bearing the insignia of the Umbral Covenant. His power level was substantial—easily Military Marquis, possibly approaching Military Count.

"Who dares attempt unauthorized entry?" he demanded, his voice resonating with power.

Clarissa stepped forward quickly. "Lowell Pauley, it's me, Clarissa Johnson. I've brought the alchemist as requested."

The man—Lowell—turned his cold gaze on me. His eyes narrowed as he assessed my strength.

"This is the one?" he asked, skepticism dripping from every word. "He looks ordinary."

I felt my temper flare at his dismissive tone. After everything I'd accomplished, after all the battles I'd won and enemies I'd defeated, to be dismissed as "ordinary" by some gatekeeper was insulting.

"Liam Knight," Clarissa introduced formally. "As the Covenant requested, I've brought him to examine the Mystic Realm disturbance."

Lowell circled me slowly, his expression unimpressed. "I expected someone more... imposing. The reports of your abilities must be exaggerated."

I remained silent, but inside, my anger was building. This man knew nothing of me, yet he presumed to judge my worth based on appearance alone.

"The Covenant doesn't have time for those without true power," Lowell continued. "If you wish to enter the Mystic Realm, you'll need to prove your worth."

"I don't need to prove anything to you," I replied coldly.

Lowell's eyebrows shot up. "Arrogance without demonstration is merely empty posturing. Perhaps the famous Liam Knight is nothing but inflated reputation."

Clarissa stepped between us. "Lowell, there's no need for this. The Covenant leadership specifically requested Liam's assistance."

"The leadership requests many things," Lowell replied dismissively. "It falls to those of us who guard the thresholds to ensure only the worthy enter."

I'd had enough. "I didn't come here to be insulted by a gatekeeper."

Lowell's face darkened. "Watch your tongue, alchemist. You stand before a senior member of the Umbral Covenant."

"And you stand before someone who doesn't care about your titles or your attitude," I replied evenly. "I came here as a courtesy to investigate your problem. But I see no reason to help people who can't show basic respect."

"Liam," Clarissa cautioned quietly.

Lowell's lips curled into a sneer. "So easily offended. Perhaps it's best you don't enter. The challenges within would likely overwhelm you."

I turned to Clarissa. "I'm leaving. The Umbral Covenant can solve their own problems."

"Please reconsider," she urged. "Lowell doesn't speak for the entire organization."

"He speaks loudly enough," I replied. I looked back at Lowell. "When your leadership wonders why I declined to help, you can explain that your arrogance cost them their opportunity."

Lowell laughed coldly. "There are a hundred alchemists who would kill for this chance. Your refusal means nothing."

"Then find one of them," I said, turning to leave. "I'm sure they'll be more willing to tolerate your disrespect."

As I walked away, Clarissa hurried after me. "Liam, please. The Covenant truly needs your expertise. Lowell is difficult, but—"

"But nothing," I cut her off. "I've fought too hard to earn my position to be treated like an untested novice. If the Covenant wants my help, they can send someone who understands the concept of mutual respect."

I continued walking, my decision made. Behind us, I sensed Lowell's qi signature retreating as the dimensional ripple closed.

"What will you do now?" Clarissa asked, still following me.

"Find my own way," I replied. "There's more than one path to knowledge."

Once we were back in the main part of the Ancient Quarter, I pulled out my phone and dialed a familiar number.

"Emerson," I said when he answered. "It's Liam. I need information."

"Always glad to help," Emerson Holmes replied cheerfully. "What's the topic this time?"

I glanced back toward the alley where the shrine stood, my resolve hardening.

"Emerson, do you know how to open the Mystic Realm?"