The Cloud Brawler 3 - (Pre-Honkai Star Rail, MartialArtist!SI)

I believe I forgot to mention one thing when it comes to this sort of missions. Due to the longevity of the Xianzhou locals' lifespans, it is predictable that such hurdle could end up taking a very long time.

In my case, this mission was by far one of the highest in 'developing difficulty' as it relied on a lengthy amount of time put away from home. Not months and not a few years- the best prediction I had was for a decade to pass before I could return home.

Which is why I told Baiheng that I was going to be busy with a few years of an 'important and boring' scout mission, and then told the full truth to my parents. Neither was happy, and even the Foxian could tell I was up to something else. She didn't inquire, but she did prod for info- that I couldn't give.

At the end of the four days, I was off to the Xianzhou Yuque and then I boarded the small dropship that left me on Ketu Mirage. And as I landed there and spent a week or so finding a stable survivable situation for myself as I delved into the 'living planet', I was quick to realize that Ketu Mirage was not the same as Rahu in terms of its planetary composition.

Rahu was still a 'dead' planet despite being a'live' as it lacked any living entities on it, while Ketu Mirage held several Abundance-loyal species in there. And I was grimacing over the presence of bases all over the planetary surface.

I thought that my mentor had just wanted the planet gone 'why not', but the truth was a bit worse than that: this wasn't just a stronghold, it was a staging ground. One that was getting prepared for a major offensive that could really trouble the flagships in the long run.

Tales of the Disciples' Invasions are nothing new, but the scope of this one may be enough to match some of the uglier stories Teng Xiao had told me about. Times where a lot of people would die because of the vehemence of the Abundance's loyalists.

It was frustrating how, despite my best efforts to not be too involved in this, I felt extremely 'motivated' to get this mission wrapped up as quickly as I could get it done. But I was nowhere near strong enough to face Shuhu or even destroy the planet.

My ki control was far from handling powerful beams, and my skills were reliant on weaknesses present in humanoids- not bipedal or other monsters. I had to 'learn' the planet's treacherous lifestyle and master it within the first two years.

The presence of food that wasn't contaminated by the Abundance helped me to sustain myself without requiring a constant supply from the nearby flagship. The least the bastards knew of my presence here, the easier it was going to be for me to catch them by surprise.

So, I continued to train while also trying to 'reach out' for Aha. At the time, I thought it would have gone either 'too good' or 'too bad'. There was nothing in between when it comes to an Aeon as chaotic as Aha, but I was surprised when my 'bond with The Elation' was established in one of the weirdest dreams possible.

All I could recollect from it was being the sole spectator of a circus spectacle, one of those old-fashioned entertainment bits, and then I got someone humming beside me. I couldn't turn to see who it was, and I only heard them speak.

"Yes, yes. That sounds. Reasonable for... a lot of fun you are going to make by merely existing. Hehe, let's piss off a few people, shall we~?"

It didn't look like much, and I hadn't been clued in that I had just 'met' Aha like that. I couldn't see it, but I heard the Aeon. But I had confirmation of the dream being what I had been waiting for when the raid I launched the next day, which should have been the same as usual, bore a new distinction that stuck to me for the duration of my stay in the planet: I could no longer feel the influence of the Mara when attacking corrupted entities.

It felt like I was fighting normal foes rather than the corrupted monsters, which meant that one of my major worries was for the time being set aside. I could train in peace, while still targetting small fishes before picking up bigger slices of the invasion force. This 'warm up' process lasted for two long years, and I guess that the 'Broly method' was working as intended: my stay in such a hostile planet meant that I could hardly spend much time feeling safe.

It was one of the reason why I had created a 'mobile' base that I could wrap up and carry around rather than create a static one: I couldn't afford to lose resources, not when some of those could be corrupted by those I was trying to eradicate.

Moving around was a must, and I did so once every few days. I had to remove my armor at a certain point as it was easily breaking down due to the weather and the clothes I had were being constantly patched up the best I could.

The first year was dreadful- but it was a learning experience: I taught myself sewing, I started to put an effort in keeping track of my meals by shifting the kind of recipes I could try and even did a few experimental ones (at the risk of getting myself some shitty meal at times).

It wasn't just about 'learning how to fight', but also 'learning how to live my life'. It was the sort of education that felt both jarring on a more modern outlook, but overall pleasant as I felt 'unshackled' as I handled the chores of surviving and thriving.

It got so 'mind-dulling' that I started to 'forget' what I was doing on individual days after a certain moment around the end of my first year in Ketu Mirage. I kept track of time on a daily basis, but nothing much changed from the usual.

I would wake up, follow my usual routine involving hunting for food, training, meditating and destroying bases around, and then I would get some rest. It was around the second year that I realized how deeply-entrenched this mindset was due to a rather odd event.

It was around the time of meditation, I was busy delving into my core energy when I felt my camp surrounded by hounds. I wasn't sure how they tracked me down, maybe they were able to catch my scent due to my sweat but... oh well, I decided to switch up to 'training time' earlier than usual.

The ensuing brawl was a brief reminder that things were now different when compared to two years early. My body snapped in reaction to the various approaches, moving by instinct alone as I mauled and wrecked the pseudo-dogs with vicious ease.

This kept happening for three whole days, and I decided to outright stop hunting down foes for a solid week. I washed more frequently and selected distant areas for my base. It had the intended effect of getting the mutts off the chase, but I realized that I had to pick up my training some more if I wanted to get even better.

I had somewhat perfected the precision of my attacks, but I needed to forge my body to handle more strain: I had to start using weights with my clothes while training, while also trying to keep all that energy within me without causing any dispersion. To master control of my Ki meant having an early access to Instant Transmission but also an easier time handling the troublesome depletion of energy that went unused when mustered.

So, I meditated under the strain of more weights, sharpening my focus over my energy-manipulation and reinforcing my core some more with the goal of getting more destructive in the long run against the hostile environment I was bound to deal for another eight or so years.

And, as two years in Ketu Mirage went by and my 'silent exile' continued, things at home seemed to go on as usual...


"You look distracted."

Baiheng blinked at that sharp comment, a sheepish look appearing on the foxian's face as she turned to her current companion. It was night, the stars were wonderful, and a trip by boat by the water felt like an oddly pleasant way to spend time with Jingliu.

"I am. A bit," She admitted, the white-haired woman beside her. "Nothing worrisome, just wondering what happened to someone I haven't seen in a while."

There was a sigh at that as Baiheng truly wondered what happened to Chenny. What happened to her sidekick? Her valiant 'minder'? One could even think he took that mission to get away from her but she would never believe it to be the case.

Scout missions happen, supposedly. And the fact this one would take years was... also fair, just uncommon. Considering their constant state of war against the Abundance, it made sense that some of those important but boring missions would demand so much. He told her this much, but... there was more to it.

Something he said didn't add up to her. It was fine and official, but why did it feel like there was something big that he had purposely not told her about?

"And who is the unlucky one that caught your fixation?"

The foxian rolled her eyes at the Sword Champion's archaic speech. "Do you remember Chenny?"

"The one that fights without weapons?" Jingliu guessed and, at Baiheng's nod, the older woman hummed. "He is busy with a mission from what I remember."

"Yes, but... I can't help but feel like he isn't really doing scouting stuff. I know scouting, and I definitely know that scouts can send letters to their parents or family from time to time."

Jingliu nodded in agreement. "That is the case. Why? Has he not done that?"

"No," Baiheng confirmed, bowing her head. "Which is why this is odd. I know I can be a nag at times, but Chenny saw me as a friend too. I just don't get why he is not sending any letters."

"Has he sent letters to his family?" Jingliu inquired, and Baiheng shook her head which caused the friend to frown at this. "Then it's- Actually, how long has he been in that mission?"

"I think... two years now."

Jingliu's frown deepened at hearing this. "It makes no sense then. He should be back at this point."

"What do you mean?"

"Scouting missions have been limited to a year for all Cloud Knights. There is a rotation to follow, which means that he either is already back or-"

"He is taking an entirely different mission," Baiheng interjected, her guess nodded at by Jingliu. "Then we have to know what is going on. Can you help-"

"Only if you tell me he is not your boyfriend."

Baiheng snorted at that bout of jealousy from her close friend. "Jingliu, I think I would be the one jealous because you and Chenny would hit it off quite well since you both are combat-nuts."

Nonetheless, the foxian leaned in to plant a soft kiss on Jingliu's closest cheek.

"So, don't make me jelly when you two met, got it?"

Jingliu snorted, a mixture of amusement and annoyance.

Despite that, she did feel a bit intrigued by this novelty. It wasn't, after all, that common for a knight known to fight by fists to become the apprentice of a Arbiter-General without some fair amount of potential.


AN

First two years go by and... training is picking up slowly. With his body slowly