Fia hiked the hem of her mummer’s robes as she raced through the densely packed streets of the Golden City. The trip down from the Pai Fang platform had taken much longer than expected, having to wait in line for nearly half an hour just to find a skiff that would ferry them to the surface.

Now little Bryce bounced on her back as she jogged quickly behind her father, Master Hei Dong, who was leading the charge. The Omni Gate connected to the planet Luxor was located in the heart of the court district, which was a good couple of miles away from the main Pai Fang hub that linked the core worlds to the rest of the empire across the stars.

Tu’lok and Kel Zhi acted as her retainers, shoving all manner of people out of the way as they pushed through the densely crowded streets. It was only when they finally reached the gate itself, did they realize why there were so many people present.

“You’ve got to be kidding,” Kel Zhi said, coming to a stop next to her. “All these people are trying to get to the planet too?”

The line ahead of them had to have over five hundred people in it alone. Most appeared to be high ranking nobles of well to do families. After living in the wilderness for so long, the sight of them looked alien to her and she felt immediately out of place, especially in her mummer’s garb.

“It will be fine,” Master Hei Dong said. “So long as we reach the gate before the battle concludes.”

“Concludes?” Fia said and her heart jumped with fright. “No, we need to get there now! Before it begins.”

She felt a hand on her shoulder and saw it was Tu’lok. “Rest easy. We are not here to support Max in his battle. He can weather that alone. Trust me. We only need be there when the battle concludes and the princess attempts to announce their engagement. We have time.”

Fia nodded but as the minutes wore on with the line barely moving, a growing sense of anxiety gnawed within her stomach. And then another thought occurred.

“What if he wins too quickly?” she said.

That caused everyone to pause and look back at her.

“You said it yourself, Tu’lok. Max is incredibly strong now, isn’t he? And he has to win this match. So he will. That’s just how Max is, we know this, even if he is up against a stronger opponent. But he’s just conquered an entire planet or something, right? What if he’s grown strong enough to kill this Rhe Su Long in one hit?”

That caused another pause of uncertainty.

Finally, her mother, Rhi Dong spoke. “You fret for nothing, child. Max is up against a strong opponent as you said. It will be a tough fight. And even if he could win in a single hit, surely, he would not be so foolish to do so, knowing that you may still be on your way.”

Fia nodded slowly. “Yes, I suppose that’s true.”

Kel Zhi then blurted out a laugh. “Yeah, because my brother is super known for his self-control and not being a chun, right?”

She said it as a joke and they all laughed.

But as the laughter slowly died down, everyone had the same look of grim realization on their face.

“You there!” Rhi Dong suddenly said to the group ahead of them. “Move out of the way. Official mummer troop coming through. We are part of the opening ceremony! Move!”

* * *

The guy Empress Revenah had selected as Lunalah’s new barrister was some high-ranking ex-judge from the core worlds. His name was Pai Koon, a short, middle-aged looking man with no hair and a long wispy white beard that made him look more like a sage than a practitioner of the law, but then again, he was a former judge.

For the last twenty minutes he had been going back and forth with the Princess Rheutera’s counsel, rehashing the backstory of Jei Su Long, his betrayal of the 28th Deployment of the Legionnaires and Princess Lunalah’s letter which allegedly had encouraged him to do so. From there they focused less on Jei Su Long and more on the letter itself, using it as evidence of Lunalah being a traitor to the throne.

Lunalah stood next to me in the defendant’s box and the amount of fear pouring off her was matched only by the flush of embarrassment on her face. She damn well deserved every second of it, but in front of a crowd like this, I could almost feel embarrassed with her, especially as I would have to soon defend her ass.

The upper platforms of the floating islands hovered over us like clouds, casting their shadows on the snow-packed ground far below. The dozen or so Qi-screens floating in between them, broadcasted the back and forth between the two barristers in real time, amping up the courtroom drama. Every so often they would focus on the three figures of the tribunal, where the single woman amongst them—tribunal Chair Yue Zhi Wen according to the title on the screen— would act as spokesperson after all three would huddle and confer.

“We have now heard evidence from both parties,” Chairwoman Yue Zhi Wen finally said. “Third Princess Lunalah of Terra, what is your defense in these allegations?”

The screens suddenly switched to a full-on shot of Lunalah to get her response. Her face was gaunt, her eyes wide and vacant with a deer-caught-in-headlights stare. The barrister, Pai Koon nudged her and she quickly re-animated, spitting out a clearly rehearsed phrase.

“I-I elect to exercise my right to elicit a martial defense!”

“Very well,” Chairwoman Yue Zhi Wen said. “And will you stand for yourself or by proxy.”

“By proxy.”

“And whom do you nominate to fight in your stead?”

That finally got her looking a bit more confident as she glanced over at me, a smile tugging at her lips. “I elect the Iron Bull to fight in my stead.”

As soon as she said it, the screens focused on me and I grimaced with [Indifference] as a wall of information began scrolling across the screen, listing my cultivation rank, aspect and various other attributes pulled from my dossier.

“I hereby acknowledge your proxy, one Max Chun, native of planet Terra, Graduate Legionnaire and currently ranked as Imperial Marshal. Senior Elder of the Furious Lightning Sect and a Ninth Tier Sacred Soul Realm cultivator of Lightning aspect.”

A drizzle of lemonade rained down from the spectators above as the chairwoman read out my credentials.

It was clear most had never heard of me before, but those in the know were perhaps intrigued by my status as an Imperial Marshal or perhaps had heard the rumors of my atomic level blast at the Fire Bird Headquarters. Either way the lemonade was more than welcome and I cultivated it in preparation for the fight to come.

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The Chairwoman then looked across the court. “And you, Second Princess Rheutera, will you meet this challenger by self or by proxy?”

“We have an objection to this challenger, your honor,” Rheutera’s counsel said.

“Oh? Upon what grounds?”

Rheutera’s counsel, a slim woman wearing spectacles, referred to a Qi-tablet as she spoke. “This man, Max Chun, has liberated a planet and is said to be granted a royal title by this council. That title was not mentioned in his introduction. A full disclosure of the challenger’s rank and title is required for him to serve as a proxy.”

“It was not mentioned, your honor, because said title does not exist,” Pai Koon retorted. “The Marshal Iron Bull’s credentials are current and fully disclosed.”

“But it is a matter before the council, is it not, your honor?” the woman argued. “There is evidence that this man liberated the planet Dokumu from an ancient curse and is said to receive a royal title as a reward according to the council’s schedule.”

Chairwoman Yue Zhi Wen lowered her brows. “It is a matter, not yet, before the council and I would encourage you to venture past this line of questioning counselor. I have no tolerance for it. The matters of the council are for the council.”

The woman bowed. “Understood, your honor, we withdraw the objection.”

Pai Koon harrumphed. “What a desperate ploy. Should have expected them to try to throw that in at the last minute.”

It was desperate I supposed, but totally true and it garnered me a bit more lemonade from above, so I wasn’t complaining.

“It matters not,” Lunalah said. “My Iron Bull can defeat whoever they send. Right, dear?”

Dear?

I glanced at her with a side eye. She was clearly getting ahead of her damn self.

“I ask again,” the chairwoman said. “Second Princess Rheutera, will you meet this challenger by self or by proxy?”

“By Proxy, your honor,” Princess Rheutera answered. “I nominate the Lady Rhe Su Long of the Twin River Clan to fight in my stead.”

As she said the name, an all too familiar figure stepped from behind Rheutera.

Barely four feet tall, blue hair in a long single braided ponytail and a set of sapphire eyes that seethed with venom as she glared at me. It had been a damn long time since I’d seen her. Six years by my measure and honestly, I could barely remember the beef we had had, save for throwing up on her after she kept coming on to me. But for her, clearly the wounds were still fresh and the hatred and anger pouring from her soul was enough to give me another headstart in the cultivation department.

“I hereby acknowledge your proxy, one Lady Rhe Su Long, lower royal of the Twin River Clan and a native of planet Lu Shui IV. An Elder of the Twin River Sect and a Ninth Tier Lesser Deity Realm cultivator of water aspect. The council notes the difference in cultivation level by an entire realm, however the plaintiff has successfully argued the challenger’s ranking as an Imperial Marshal, one who has survived three tours of a Hell World to be an equivalency factor in making them equal in this match.”

That sparked a huge murmur from the crowd along with a downpouring of lemonade, confirming my earlier suspicion that most people didn’t know what the hell being an Imperial Marshal truly meant. But now they sure did. I cultivated the free lemonade with gusto, as even more anger and hatred streamed from Rhe Su Long.

“Proxies approach the court.”

We both responded to the chairwoman’s command, taking center stage as our names lit up on the scoreboards along with the odds.

I grinned.

Even as an Imperial Marshal the [Odds were still Against Me].

Which was fine by me.

I cultivated the added Frenzy as the Chairwoman addressed us directly.

“Standard tournament rules will apply,” she said. “The match shall begin as soon as you touch down upon the surface below. While aerial combat is of course permitted, each of you must land at least initially after leaving the court platform. There are no boundaries to the arena. The entire planet may be used. Control of the match shall be now handed to the arena officials. Once an outcome is reached, whether by elimination or scoring, we shall declare the final verdict on that outcome. Good luck to you both.”

As she gave a bow, the cheesy voice of an announcer boomed through the air.

“A monumental match up for this enormous crowd at Luxor stadium. There is bad blood between these two, which should only heighten the spectacle here today. The Iron Marshal, a native newcomer, but a legend in his own right, being the first Imperial Marshal seen in over a century and opposite him, the far more well known ‘Little Princess’ of the Lu Shui system. A prodigy for reaching the Sacred Soul Realm at only 12 years old, but today she stands on the cusp of true godhood and I’m sure she’s not going to let the Iron Marshal stand in her way.”

“That’s right, Sakumo,” a second announcer joined in the conversation. “I’ve followed the short career of the Iron Marshal Max Chun and one thing that remains consistent, is his ability to punch above his bracket. As an Imperial Marshal he will be bringing a wildcard element never before seen in tournament combat. This shall be a treat indeed.”

“So true, Master Yang,” the announcer Sakumo said. “But still a realm difference is nothing to sneeze at, and taking into account the terrain, the Little Princess will have another advantage. Ice being within the Water aspect will certainly give her the edge when it comes to Qi affinity.”

Their banter on our match up continued, the odds slipping up and down with each comment pitting us against each other.

Rhe Su Long turned to look me up and down. “The day has finally come. You will pay for humiliating me, Bull Man.”

I huffed out a laugh. “Sorry to say, but the feeling is hardly mutual. You’re not the big fish I need to fry today, but I’ll enjoy kicking your little weirdo ass all the same.”

A spike of anger flared within her.

I was about to laugh it off with [Indifference] when I suddenly sensed something else.

Dark Frenzy.

She saw the look on my face and was the one to let out a laugh now instead.

“That’s right,” she said with a leer. “You can sense the strength of my Dantian. I’m about to become a god. And you’re about to taste the fires of hell.”

There was something way off about her.

Demonic cultivation?

Or were those traces of I’Xol’ukz I was sensing?

No…couldn’t be.

But it reeked of something familiar.

A hint of the stars perhaps?

“I’ve already tasted the fires of the Hell Worlds firsthand bitch. Ain’t nothing you can throw at me that I haven’t handled before. Even killing a damn god.”

As I said the words with [Struggler’s Resolve] and [Fear the Flame] it had the effect I had hoped for, wiping the shit eating grin right off her face as her insides trembled with uncertainty and fear.

“The proxy’s now have five minutes to make final preparations before the match begins. Each to your starting positions please.”

I huffed out a scoff. “See you on the surface, princess.”

I turned my back to her and headed to my side of the ring.

Five minutes.

Then the battle of my career would begin.

* * *

Fia sighed exasperatedly as her father Hei Dong went back and forth with the Imperial Guards. They had pushed their way successfully to the front of the line, but now they were paying the price in doing so, it seemed.

“There is no damn mummer performance scheduled,” the guard said. “Now for the last time move to the side! You’re not getting in here!”

“Please!” Fia cried. “We must get in!”

“Keep it up and I’ll have you all arrested!” he shouted. “Next!”

Fia’s insides unraveled as their entire plan came undone. She cursed herself inwardly. She should have been patient. The line was moving now, but they were no longer in it. They were pushed to the side and barred by a guard who eyed them with a mixture of distrust and disdain.

“What the hell are we going to do now?” Jian Yi said.

To hear Jian Yi, the eternal strategists say something like that caused her insides to double over again. A bell sounded and one of the guards shouted loudly for all to hear.

“One minute warning has been given. The match will soon begin!”

That caused a greater push from the crowd as people barreled forward, eager to get inside.

Fia watched them with a forlorn helplessness as her soul came undone.

She looked to her mother and father, but they seemed as lost for an answer as she was.

Bryce began to cry.

“It can’t end like this,” she said. “We need to find another way inside.”

Theya all looked at her, no doubt feeling the same way she was, yet having the same question lingering in their minds.

How?

* * *

“One minute!” the announcer cried.

I cycled my frenzy as I took a step towards the edge of the platform. They had lowered it some, bringing the planet’s surface to barely a hundred feet below now. I removed my outer robes and the cold chilled my red-painted skin. I donned my signature Bull’s helm which caused a disgusting swoon of delight from Lunalah.

“One last match,” she reminded me. “Win this, and I shall be your bride.”

“Thanks for the motivation,” I said with deadpanned [Indifference].

But inside I was burning with a conviction of my own.

It was down to this now.

One last match, just like she said.

One last match and I would be on the world stage, ready to reveal my true bride.

Don’t be late, Fia.

I manifested my Axe and Glaive as the seconds counted down, blue steeled fury forming with lightning in my hands. As the gong sounded, I stepped off the platform into the icy winds of destiny as the announcer’s voice echoed across the realm.

“Commence!”