Wisdom in Death

Since meeting Csar Zhou in Hebei, I traveled with Lao Jin to several more provinces. We visited the Chin clan in Shandong, the Yang in Jiangsu, and the Huang in Anhui. All of the chosen were willing to come willingly after conversation and persuasion. After completing the visit to the Huang; we headed to Hangzhou in Zheijang province, the homeland of the Liu clan. Along the way, Luo Jian warned me that the path will only get harder from this point onward. Many of the remaining clans are adversarial with the “light of the path” and will not willingly depart from the earthly realm. Their chosen must be subdued. The Liu clan would be the first of these.
 
He told me that "there is an ancient spirit realm ritual whereby Chosen Ones test their strength and learn wisdom and submission. The ritual is a single combat, called ‘Sǐwáng zhìhuì’ which means ‘Wisdom in Death’"'. I needed to perform that ritual to challenge these hostile chosen. His warned that the contest would be a battle to the death, with the victor claiming the other's soul. Knowing that I had no choice, I replied that I was ready to handle the challenge. Ghost met us when we arrived in the city, having flown there once she get my request for assistance after battling Dr. Wu's soldiers. She told me that she was sorry she was late, but she had to deal with a bunch of issues back over in the former USA and even space.
 
We found the Liu chosen in an outdoor market in downtown Hangzhou, whereupon I challenged him to the Wisdom in Death combat. Just before I stated the challenge, Luo told me that upon defeating the Liu chosen I would commit his spirit to the spirit world even if he was unwilling- he'd thank me later. I transformed into my Dragon Lady costume and he ordered his clansmen to stand back. Suddenly the Ancestor appeared, performing the ritual to bring forth the arches of battle from the spirit realm. This cut us fighters from the material realm, leaving Ghost to keep an eye on the Liu clan to prevent them from interfering. The Liu Chosen and I heard a ghostly court of ancestral spirits call out the consequences of winning or losing, and then ordering us to fight.
 
I started the fight by leaping to the heavens and performing a Kung Fu flying kick upon my opponent. He attempted to block, but he was too slow and my kick landed. My blow was powerful enough to crack a bone, transforming him into an ogre-like being with flamethrowers in the shape of bears for hands. I swept his leg to knock him to the ground, but he staggered back up and opened fire with his flamethrower fists at me. Thankfully, my Pakua dodge kept me safe and minimized his damage to me. His attack was intimidating, but his execution was highly flawed. This poor execution left an opening for me, which I exploited by using a Hsing-I Eagle Claw move to grab him. He failed to break free, which set me up to crush him with Kung Fu Dragon Claw. This knocked him out, finishing the fight.
 
Unsure if I had the approval to finish him, I knelt and asked the ancestral court for permission. They gave it to me, but my hesitation gave the Liu Chosen the opportunity to recover enough to fire his flamethrowers at me for one last time. Unfortunately for him, I noticed his clumsy attempt at a sneak attack- first blocking it, then grabbing his neck and finishing him with a Tai Ch'i Joint Break. It was the first time since I met the New Champions that I had killed a man. The Americans on that team had a reluctance to kill. I didn't understand it, but I respected it while I fought with them. Now that I was in China, this reluctance was happily gone and I snapped his neck.
 
I sent his spirit into the spirit world, joining with the other chosen and ancestors. His last look at me was one of fury, which I responded with a shrug. "You had your duty to your ancestors. You failed, so I made you do it." With that, I walked out of the arches of battle and back into the world of man. My next challenge, the Zhang clan, awaits.