Rising Above The Heavens

7

Chapter 7: Ambush at the River Dock

A rusted spear tip stopped inches from Hannah’s throat.

Caleb Conway stepped forward and placed his bare palm against the crude wooden shaft to push it aside. He had brought his new Chief Director of Operations to the River Dock Warehouse to finalize the transfer of the mercantile district seals. Instead of a bustling morning of cargo audits and ledger reviews, they found a literal barricade blocking the main entrance.

The River Dock Warehouse processed thousands of silver coins in trade volume every single day. Right now, dozens of merchant wagons sat idle on the muddy cobblestones. A squad of rogue mercenaries manned a makeshift wall of overturned shipping crates. They wore mismatched leather armor and gripped stolen steel swords. The local dockworkers huddled near the water, watching the armed thugs halt the city economy.

Hannah stepped behind Caleb and opened her leather folder. She quickly reviewed the sealed cargo manifests and recognized the insignia branded onto the mercenaries' wooden shields.

"These men work for the Dusthound Company," Hannah whispered. "Becker Harper must have hired them under a proxy account. He wants to choke our supply lines to force a renegotiation of the marriage pact. He thinks you will trade a piece of the docks just to get Grace back in your good graces."

"The grain ships are scheduled to depart before the tide turns," she added, pointing to the massive vessels anchored offshore. "If those ships miss the tide, the southern markets will default on our trade agreements. Harper knows this. He is weaponizing the clock against us."

Caleb looked at the idle wagons and calculated the hourly financial drain. A stalled merchant line was a bleeding wound to any prominent family. He did not intend to negotiate with bandits holding his property hostage. The Conway estate required a constant flow of capital to fund his upcoming journey to the Lunar Edge Sect.

"Becker operates under the delusion that martial threats dictate commerce," Caleb replied. "He forgets that commerce funds the martial world. We will remind him."

A tall man vaulted over the wooden barricade and landed heavily on the wet cobblestones. He wore a thick iron chest plate and carried a massive broadsword resting casually on his right shoulder. He projected the dense aura of a peak level three Qi Realm cultivator. The aggressive energy rippled through the damp morning air and forced the nearby dockworkers to take a collective step back.

The captain looked at Caleb and laughed out loud. He inspected Caleb’s simple gray linen tunic and plain leather boots with obvious disdain.

"You must be the crippled accountant," the captain said. "Harper told us the new clan head was a joke. Turn around and go back to your desk. These docks belong to the Harper clan until you sign a new trade treaty."

Caleb did not reach for a weapon. He stood with his hands resting easily at his sides.

"Remove the barricade," Caleb ordered calmly. "You are trespassing on Conway property. The delay you are causing has already cost my estate five hundred silver coins. Order your men to leave the docks and I will allow you to walk away with your lives."

The mercenary captain ignored the warning. He stepped forward and pointed his broadsword directly at Hannah. The steel tip hovered dangerously close to her face.

"I will toss your pretty clerk into the river if you speak to me again," the captain threatened. "We heard the rumors about you beating your little brother. Bribing the estate guards to spread a fake story does not make you a martial lord. I crush fake lords for a living."

Hannah swallowed hard but stood her ground. She knew running would only trigger a pursuit.

"Your employer is making a grave miscalculation," Hannah said to the captain. "Becker Harper is violating the core mercantile laws of the district. The city magistrates will strip him of his titles for orchestrating an armed blockade."

The captain scoffed and rested the sword back on his shoulder. "The magistrates answer to whoever holds the most silver and the sharpest swords. Right now, Harper holds both. Walk away before I decide to claim a bounty on your heads."

The mercenary captain flared his level three Qi Realm aura to end the conversation. A visible gust of wind swept across the muddy stones. He expected the overwhelming pressure to force the two merchants to their knees in submission.

Caleb did not flinch. He did not bother raising his voice to argue against the ignorant accusations. He accessed the crystalline root inside his chest and drew forth a surge of pure golden aura.

The golden light bled through his skin and coated his hands in a metallic sheen. The ambient air grew instantly heavy. He stepped past the wooden barricade and closed the distance before the captain could even blink.

The mercenary panicked upon feeling the raw power radiating from the gray clad merchant. He swung his broadsword in a desperate horizontal arc aimed directly at Caleb's neck. He put every ounce of his level three Qi Realm cultivation into the lethal strike.

Caleb did not dodge the incoming attack. He raised his right hand and executed the Iron Crushing Palm technique directly against the oncoming steel blade.

Flesh met forged iron. A deafening c***k echoed across the silent docks. The broadsword shattered into a dozen jagged pieces. Shrapnel rained down on the muddy stones like broken glass. The sheer kinetic shockwave traveling down the weapon shattered the captain's wrist instantly.

The captain stared at his empty hilt in sheer horror. He opened his mouth to scream.

Caleb did not hesitate. He stepped into the man's guard and drove his glowing golden palm directly into the center of the captain's iron chest plate.

The impact sounded like a sledgehammer striking a boulder. The kinetic force caved the thick metal plate inward. The captain was lifted off his feet and hurled backward through the air. He crashed into the overturned wooden crates and splintered them upon impact. He spat a mouthful of blood onto the ground and lay paralyzed in the mud. His level three cultivation core was severely fractured.

Silence fell over the River Dock Warehouse. The only sound was the gentle lapping of the river water against the wooden pylons.

The remaining Dusthound mercenaries dropped their weapons in unison. The metallic clatter echoed through the stagnant morning air. They stared at the broken body of their leader. They looked at the golden aura still radiating from Caleb's bare hands. The reality of the situation severed their bravado.

Caleb took one deliberate step forward.

The bandits broke rank and fled toward the city slums like frightened animals. They abandoned their barricades and their wounded captain without a single backward glance. They scrambled over each other in their desperate rush to escape the golden demon they had just provoked.

Caleb watched them vanish into the narrow city alleys. He exhaled slowly and retracted his aura. The metallic sheen faded from his skin. He turned back to Hannah and gestured toward the open warehouse doors.

The head dockmaster, an older man with calloused hands, approached Caleb with a hesitant bow.

"My Lord," the dockmaster said. "We halted the loading cranes when they arrived. We did not want to risk the cargo."

"You made the correct decision," Caleb said. "Resume operations. Double the shift rotation to make up for the lost time. Pay the workers a premium bonus out of the Harper penalty fee for their patience."

The dockmaster's eyes widened in surprise. He bowed deeper and shouted orders to his crews. The massive gears of the heavy wooden cranes began to grind back to life.

Caleb looked at Hannah. She clutched her leather folder and walked past the broken mercenary captain to assume command of the Conway shipping lines.

"Calculate the exact financial losses we incurred during this delay," Caleb instructed. "You will draft a formal invoice. Dock the mercenaries' wages from the Harper clan's seasonal tax rebate. Add a heavy penalty fee for trespassing on our sovereign territory. We will make Becker Harper bleed silver for every minute he wasted today."

Caleb stood at the edge of the river and watched the first cargo ship begin loading its haul. He had shattered the mercenary blockade with a single strike. He cemented his absolute martial dominance over the primary artery of his new empire. The city would soon learn that the new Conway Patriarch commanded both the ledgers and the blade.