Chapter 396: Daddy’s Back! (1/2)

Chapter 396: Daddy’s Back!

Lan Jue had no recourse but to lifts his hand to block. Bang! His hand met the spiked shoulder piece to push it away, even grabbing one of the spines.

1724 stopped dead in his tracks in mid-air.

Lan Jue didn’t give him an opportunity to react. The moment his grip tightened around the spine, an explosion of electric energy raced through the Convert’s body. 1724 lit up like a purple holiday lantern.

Of course Lan Jue had been judging his opponent the same way he himself had been judged. Taking the laser blast to the shoulder was the only way he’d get close. Not the only way, of course – there were other methods – but he didn’t want to reveal too much of his abilities in the opening round of the tournament.

Waves of diffuse electric energy poured from 1724’s body as the current tore through him. The metallic half of his body was particularly susceptible. After a moment Lan Jue let the bulk of his Discipline recede to conserve energy.

With an imperious wave of his hand, 1724 was smashed violently to the ground. His metal construction sizzles, burned black from the electricity. The rest of him twitched uncontrollably.

Lan Jue brushed a hand along his right shoulder, where no trace of the Convert’s laser strike was visible. It was foolish to assume his electric net had had but one layer.

“Competitor 310: Victory.” The surrounding shields vanished and Lan Jue walked back to the waiting area like he was out for an afternoon stroll.

In the audience, Jun’er clapped her hands so ferociously she threatened to fall over. “Daddy won! Daddy won! My daddy’s so strong!” She spoke to the Terminator as though she were instructing him of some truth.

The Paragon gave her a sheepish smirk. “Are you sure big Uncle isn’t allowed to know who your daddy is? You can tell me…” There were a hundred battle going on below him, and he couldn’t keep his eyes on all of them. Jun’er wasn’t using her own to watch, so he couldn’t tell by her gaze. For all his knowledge and experience, the Terminator could not discover what he wanted to know in this moment – foiled by a little girl.

Jun’er tittered playfully. “Nope! You shouldn’t ask people to talk about the things they aren’t supposed to talk about, big Uncle.”

“Ehm…” The Terminator’s guilty grin deepened, faced with a simultaneously amusing and irritating quandary. “You’re quite the clever little thing.”

“I have to take my helmet off,” Jun’er announced. “Mommy doesn’t let me wear it for too long. I’ll be back tomorrow though, big uncle. Remember my present!”

The Terminator gave her a grandfatherly smile. “Oh, I won’t forget. I promise.”

“Ok, I have to go now. Gourmet uncle, is mommy back?” Jun’er turned her face back to the Avenue’s own Paragon.

The Pharmacist – who’d been carefully watching from a few rows back – rose to her feet and approached. Jun’er picked her out right away.

“Mommy you were great!” The little girl lung her tiny arms around her mother’s waist.

The Pharmacist lifted her up in to her arms. She gave the Terminator an appreciative and respectful curtsy. “I’m sorry for the trouble, Your Majesty.”

The massive Convert answered with a smile. “No trouble at all. She’s an adorable little one, we connected well. Her eyesight’s been lost since birth, I imagine.”

The Pharmacist couldn’t bring herself to talk, but nodded her head.

The Terminator nodded. “Medical technology can fix this, but there are significant risks. Find an Adept skilled in bio-electric Discipline that can help stimulate the nerves and tissue over the long term. I imagine it’ll have some good results. If there’s some traction, a minimally invasive surgery might be considered – a specialty here in the North.”

The Pharmacist’s usually stoic features broke in to a smile. Lan Jue was doing just as the Paragon recommended already. For such an illustrious Paragon to make the same suggestion, it must mean she was on the right track. The Terminator hadn’t made any promises, but she knew that if she did bring Jun’er here she would get the best medical care the North had to offer. This man was more powerful than the Pontiff and Satan put together, and not just in Discipline.

This man, nor fourth among the ten Paragons, was once a military man. A marshal, in fact. Now the entire army was effectively under his command. Even the upper echelons of Northern politics didn’t dare disturb him – oly the President, and only on certain occasions.

“Thank you very much, Your Majesty.” She curtsied again, this time lower and more formal.

“Bye-bye big Uncle!” Jun’er cooed, waving her tiny hand.

The Pharmacist hugged her little prize close and returned to her seat. The Terminator watched them go for a minute before returning his eyes to the field.

“Your Avenue has had a wealth of talent coming through lately, Gourmet,” the large man noted. “I couldn’t learn much from the Pharmacist’s fight either. Her cultivation method must have been a unique one. Limitless potential, though there are hidden scars that prevent her advancement.”

The Gourmet nodded knowingly. “That’s probable. At her level of power she was tapped for a position on the council, but she refused. She was only interested in running her shop, and in fact she wouldn’t even be here except that a councilor convinced her to.”