The Three Walls

We moved into Area 5,845, the headquarters of the Black Pillar Alliance.

True to its name, the zone was defined by three massive walls — enormous barriers rising in a circle, as if standing guard over the heart of the territory.

I didn't know much about Area 5,845. It never appeared in the original God's Atlantis, and the setting materials had nothing on it either. I'd done what digging I could, but nothing useful had turned up.

Li Mei didn't know much about the place either.

"According to the people who cleared this zone with the Black Pillar Lord back in the early days… it wasn't a particularly hard clear."

"I've heard there were a few freebie zones in the early days of Atlantis. Looks like this was one of them."

The difficulty of clearing Atlantis zones varied wildly. Some were half-cleared the moment you stepped inside. Others were so brutal you could barely even enter.

"Right. The clear condition for this zone was… just get past the three walls and reach the center."

"Walls are about fifty meters high. Any gates?"

"One on the west side, one on the east. But when they cleared it, they just flew over instead of using the gates — and that still counted."

"They freeloaded an entire zone. I'm jealous."

Li Mei and I popped the items we'd prepared into our mouths and chewed.

They were green leaves. Despite looking tough and fibrous, they crunched like savory crackers and tasted just as rich.

Our bodies lifted gently into the air. We drifted over the fifty-meter walls without effort and headed for the center. Glancing down, I saw the space inside the first wall was completely empty.

"Nothing here. I figured there'd be a village or something."

"There were monsters in the early days. Everything's been cleared out now, so it's safe. And like you said, the Black Pillar Lord tried to build a settlement inside the walls — more accurately, he wanted to fortify the place."

I looked down again. Not a single trace of people.

"Nobody's here."

"Supply was the problem. The zone sits in the middle of nowhere, it's not big enough to be self-sufficient, and it had zero other advantages."

We crossed the second wall. Inside that one, at least, there were signs people had once lived there — crude wooden shacks and piles of trash heaped off to one side.

"They used it as a hideout in the early days. Once the Black Pillar Alliance grew, there was no real reason to stay."

We crossed the third wall. At the center of the zone stood a massive five-story building — a palace built in the Chinese style. The exterior was fairly imposing. Unlike the empty spaces inside the first and second walls, I could sense people here.

"So why is the Black Pillar Alliance so hung up on this zone? They could move their headquarters somewhere else."

They controlled plenty of other territories besides this one.

"Who knows. I don't know that much either. Maybe the Black Pillar Lord is attached to it because it was the first place he ever conquered?"

"Yeah, that could be it."

Li Mei and I touched down. Armed men swarmed in and surrounded us.

"It's Li Mei!"

"I heard she betrayed us — and she just shows up like nothing happened?"

"Come crawling back to apologize and beg the Lord's forgiveness?"

"Been a while, but she's still a looker. Even Li Mei's going to have to offer herself up to the Lord this time."

"That clown mask… isn't that the Heavenly Demon who's been making noise out west lately?"

Chinese fighters crowded in. They made plenty of noise among themselves, but nobody stepped forward. No one in charge.

I rested a hand on Li Mei's shoulder.

"Li Mei. Popular, aren't ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you?"

"Not something I particularly asked for…"

She clicked her tongue. Even under the weight of countless male stares, she didn't flinch. I kept my hand on her shoulder. If things went south, I needed to be ready to protect her ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠— and showing her off to these men was pretty entertaining on its own. Some of the jealous looks aimed at me even carried killing intent.

Then the man in charge appeared. Black armor, a massive glaive. One ear missing. He planted himself ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠squarely in our path.

"Commander of the Shaon Corps. It's been a while. We're here to see the Lord. Would you mind stepping aside?"

The Shaon Corps — the Black Pillar Lord's personal guard.

"That won't be possible. I've received no word from the Lord. I've already sent a messenger, so wait. And the masked man beside you — who is he? Your lover?"

"And if he is?"

"Don't be so sensitive, Li Mei. You're a smart woman. I don't believe you actually betrayed the Alliance."

"I appreciate the faith. I'd return it if you weren't holding a weapon. And the man beside me… you already have a guess, don't you? Masked operators. They're famous enough."

"Hrm…"

The Shaon Corps Commander eyed me and made a low sound in his throat. Setting aside the Heavenly Demon's reputation, any Black Pillar cadre would have heard of Helten. Helten officers operated in masks as a matter of course.

He shut his mouth. A quiet standoff settled over us.

If they don't clear out in ten minutes, we force our way in. This Shaon Corps Commander isn't ordinary, and there are plenty of grunts — but I don't see myself losing.

Before the ten minutes were up, one of his subordinates appeared and whispered something in his ear.

"The Lord has granted you audience. I'll escort you myself. Follow me."

He turned. The men surrounding us lowered their weapons. Li Mei and I followed him into the palace.

"'Audience,' huh. Does the Black Pillar Lord think he's a king?"

"Maybe not a king, but he probably figures he qualifies as nobility."

I couldn't speak ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for anyone else, but you couldn't fool the eyes of someone who was actually nobility in the Baekhwan world. The interior of the palace was lacking.

Looks decent from the outside, but the inside is poorly maintained. A few servants milling around, but they're clumsy. Proof nobody trained them properly.

This palace was all surface and no substance — pure bluster.

We arrived in a broad chamber. Judging by the atmosphere, it was an audience hall.

A man sat in a large chair. Severely obese — well over a hundred and thirty kilos, easy. Short black hair hung down over the flesh of his cheeks. The smile at the corners of his mouth gave him a surprisingly pleasant first impression.

This was Wang Xuan, Lord of the Black Pillar Alliance.

"Welcome, Heavenly Demon. I never imagined the Heavenly Demon of the west would be affiliated with Helten."

"You know me?"

"You're rather well-known."

I'd been dominating part of the western desert for some time now, so it wasn't strange for word to have reached this far. Especially for the head of an organization — people like him were always sensitive to information.

"I've prepared a banquet in your honor."

"You think I came here to enjoy a meal?"

"…I had hoped to introduce you to the essence of Chinese cuisine. A pity."

"I'll be direct. From this moment, the seat of Black Pillar Lord belongs to Li Mei. Get down from that chair and leave quietly."

The Shaon Corps Commander's body twitched. I kept my guard up on him while I waited for Wang Xuan's answer.

"And why should I obey that?"

"Let's keep this simple. You don't want to die either."

"…Frankly, I doubt whether you are truly a Helten officer at all."

"The one who used to handle the Black Pillar Alliance was Mirror."

"…Yes. Mirror Mask. Where did that inscrutable woman go, and why are you here instead?"

"I've taken over Black Pillar. Don't doubt it. You know perfectly well what happens to people who impersonate Helten."

"……"

Wang Xuan let out a sigh. He glanced around once.

"…The Black Pillar Alliance grew with Helten's help. It was an unavoidable choice for rapid expansion and stability. Looking back now, it was also our only stain."

"So. What are you trying to say?"

"I intend to correct that stain. The Black Pillar Alliance will remain the Black Pillar Alliance alone."

I let out a short laugh.

"You don't know a damn thing about Helten."

Why was Helten called a legend? Because no force in Atlantis could handle them. Even the Yustia Empire had tried to wipe them out and failed.

"I'll return those words to you. You know nothing about the Black Pillar Alliance."

Kiiiiiiiiiiiiing—!

A sharp sound like steel scraping steel rang out.

"Kyaaaaaaah!"

Li Mei clutched her head beside me, screaming as she collapsed to the floor. Her face twisted in agony.

A full course of debuffs. Watching Li Mei writhe on the floor in pain, it was clear the formation included a mental assault as well.

Kiiiiiiing. Kiiiiiiing.

I scanned the surroundings. Something embedded in the ceiling, the floor, the pillars was pulsing with waves of energy. That had to be the core of the Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation.

"Truly impressive. You haven't so much as flinched. But you are already at the heart of the formation. Shaon Corps Commander — kill him. Leave Li Mei. She will pay for her betrayal separately."

"As you command."

The Shaon Corps Commander charged. I summoned Stormbreaker in sword form and caught his glaive. Clang. The sheer force behind the blow shoved me backward.

…I'm losing in raw strength?

That was shocking. I was in Heavenly Demon form right now — Heavenly Demon Physique, Heavenly Demon Divine Art, the whole suite of physical corrections. Getting pushed back this easily made no sense.

"Surprised, are you? Let me share something. The Shaon Corps Commander's contracted divine seat is the Hegemon-King of Western Chu."

The Hegemon-King of Western Chu meant Xiang Yu. His contractors were fairly well-known in Atlantis. Xiang Yu granted his contractors exactly one skill.

Force to Uproot Mountains, Spirit to Cover the World. Doubles the Strength stat and grants additional Strength during combat — a broken skill.

It had a downside, too. Other stats dropped during combat.

Even with that penalty, it's the ultimate skill for warriors.

I abandoned any thought of overpowering him with strength and focused on technique.

I stamped down hard.

An invisible wave of qi exploded outward in every direction. The formation shuddered.

A flinch.

The Shaon Corps Commander's momentum dipped slightly. Unlike the debuffs it laid on me, the formation was clearly buffing him.

I closed the distance and put rotational force into my blade as I swung.

The Shaon Corps Commander staggered back. A bead of sweat rolled down his cheek.

"Kh. Remarkable power and swordsmanship. What's your Strength stat?"

"You think I'd tell you?"

"No reason not to, is there? Combat isn't a numbers game — the strong one wins. Mine is 135. That's with the skill's boost applied."

"Fair enough. One-oh-six."

"…You're a monster."

He let out a groan of disbelief.

A thirty-point gap in stats.

That difference was absolute — closer to a child versus an adult. And yet, even with a thirty-point deficit, I wasn't losing ground. Factor in the Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation, and his shock was only natural.

His glaive came down at my head. I turned my blade sideways to catch it, then spun the sword. The glaive bounced off to the side. An opening. I started to exploit it — then sensed something dropping from the ceiling.

An assassin. The target isn't me — it's Li Mei!

I took the assassin's head clean off as he lunged for Li Mei.

"Foolish. What does some woman matter that much?"

From the Shaon Corps Commander, now at my back, I felt condensed killing intent and raw power coiling to strike.