Chapter 80: & Announcement: Cultivation


    Be trailed off and fell silent. Her hands tightened on the sheets at her sides, bunching them up. Chance waited for a few seconds to see if she would say anything else, but she didnt. He let a few moments pass before speaking.


    What happened next? Chance asked softly.


    I failed, Be replied. I wasnt strong enough to keep from passing out. My dad died next to me, and I found my mothers corpse outside the door when I woke up.


    You cant me yourself for that. You were a kid!


    I know that, Be said, her eyes firmly fixed on the wooden floor. But I could have saved them nheless.


    The person that showed up  it was Vex, wasnt it? Chance asked.


    Be nodded. Yes. It took me far longer than it should have to realize that he was the one that actually killed my parents, and that the other cultivator that had been fighting was probably my mom trying to stop him from attacking the vige. He must have convinced her that hed fled or was defeated, then followed her back to our house.


    What a piece of shit. Chance put a hand on Bes shoulder. None of that is your fault, though. Expecting a child to be able to do anything against a cultivator of that strength is ridiculous. Its not fair to yourself.


    Except that, if I hadnt taken Vexs offer, I probably could have used my Essence to save them. Preservation, remember?


    Did you know you had it at the time?


    Be gave a small shrug. Not really. I hadnt started cultivating yet, but people can gain ess to their abilities early if theyre in a life or death situation. By taking Vexs deal, I ensured I wouldnt be able to save them.


    Which is probably why he offered it, Chance said firmly. Vex looks like he actively tries to hurt people. There was no reason for him to ever even offer you that deal. If he had the power to save your parents, he would have. You were manipted. It would have happened to anyone.


    Be finally peeled her eyes away from the ground. She gave Chance a small smile. Thanks. It feels a little better now that Ive actually told someone about it. Now that Ive put everything into words, they feel a bit stupid. It <em>is </em>pretty ridiculous to hold yourself ountable for something like that.


    Nobody said feelings are rational. But what happened next? I dont understand why Vex kept you around.


    Be grimaced. Im not sure about that part myself. He spent some time training me, then got me into Gleam and basically vanished aside from periodic checkups. It was like hed gotten bored, but he wanted to make sure he could keep screwing my life up in case it ever got better.


    Does he cultivate being an asshole?


    A snort ofughter slipped out of Bes lips. Honestly, maybe. It would fit. He never actually told me what his Essence was, but that cant be too far from it.


    Well, whatever it is, well deal with him eventually, Chance promised. He took his hand off Bes shoulder and rose to his feet. He walked over to the window and nodded out it. Look how far youvee. Before long, well be more than strong enough to kill Vex and avenge your parents.


    Be joined Chance. They stood quietly for a while. Be finally nodded, setting her jaw in determination before turning away from the window and heading back over to her side of the room. Youre right. Thanks, Chance. Im d I ran into you. I dont know what would have happened if I didnt.


    A grin crossed Chances lips. I guess you can call it luck.


    Be rolled her eyes. Thats going to get old at some point. Im feeling a bit motivated right now, though. Unless you want to go do another job, Im going to get some cultivation in.


    Same here. Ive been cking off a little recently, Chance said. He hopped back onto his bed and crossed his legs, leaning against the back wall and settling infortably. Good luck.


    You too, Be said.


    They both closed their eyes. Chance slowed his breathing, easily slipping into meditation. His Gate warmed as Essence pumped through his body and he swam deeper into the insides of his mind.


    The peace came quickly. After months of practice on Centurion, he was quite pleased with how quickly hed picked up meditation, especially after how insurmountable it had seemed at first.


    Gentle warmth enveloped Chances body as he pulled the vision of the massive golden being to the front of his mind. It was nearly impossible to remember the entire thing at once  there was simply too much toprehend.


    Instead, he focused on smaller pieces, trying to put them together like an imaginary jigsaw puzzle. Chance pictured the golden beings hands. The glowing light that poured off them, and the infinite sense of power and peace that exuded from it. A tiny frown tugged at the corners of his lips.


    <em>This isnt it. It looks like what I saw, but its not the same thing. Its empty. Missing something. Just like my fighting style before Wren helped me. But what is it?</em>


    Chance turned the image around in his mind, trying to figure out what it was that hed missed in his visualization. It wasnt the appearance of the golden being  of that much, he was certain. Its majesty was forever etched into his mind. He was pretty sure he couldnt have forgotten it, even if hed wanted to.


    But, when Chance pictured what hed seen, it was nothing inparison to the actual experience of seeing it. There was always the possibility that recreating the vision perfectly was impossible and that was what he felt was missing, but something told him that wasnt the case.


    <em>Maybe its because I need to reform everything rather than just a few pieces, and it wont feel right until the whole visiones to me naturally?</em>


    That didnt feel right either. Chance didnt have any reasoning or exnation for it, but something just told him with absolute certainty that he was wrong. The golden being was who it was, and it picturing it incorrectly wasnt going to do him any favors.


    Hours ticked by. The room was silent aside from their gentle breathing. Chance continued to cultivate, pouring all his attention into his task. He idly pulled some cultivation pills out of his case and tossed one of the mid-level ones into his mouth.


    Energy flooded his body and coursed through his Gate as he cycled it. It felt like hed been dropped into a bath of cold ice, but the feeling quickly vanished as he greedily absorbed everything that the pill had to offer.


    It didnt take long until thest vestiges of the pill had beenpletely consumed, but he didnt feel stronger by any significant margin. Chance ate another pill once he was certain the effects of the first one had faded.


    He continued in a simr manner. Chance wasnt sure how much time passed, but his eyes eventually slipped back open. He stretched his arms above his head and a series of relieving pops rang out from his back.


    An instantter, he realized that Be was still cultivating. He winced and froze. Be didnt react. Chance let out a silent breath of relief and lowered his arms, mentally scolding himself for nearly interrupting her.


    The bed let out a soft creak as Chance straightened his legs and rose to his feet. He sent another nce at Be, but she was luckily still deep within her cultivation. Chance took a bottle of the lower level cultivation aids from his case and padded across the room,ing to a stop before Be as silently as he could.


    Her chest rose and fell with deep, soft breaths. She looked serene andpletely at peace. Chance paused in front of her, realizing that this was the first time hed ever actually seen someone so deeply in meditation. It felt much more intimate than Chance had expected.


    <em>I guess thats why everyone shuts themselves up in their rooms on their own when they meditate.</em>


    Chance set the vial of pills next to Be, taking care not to disturb her. He backed away and, spotting the room key on the bed beside Be, picked it up and slipped out the door. Chance locked it as quietly as he could, then pressed his ear to it and waited for a moment to make sure he hadnt mistakenly woken Be up.


    When no sound came from the room and he was certain that she hadnt been disturbed, Chance tucked the key into his pocket and headed out of the building. Even though cultivation had kept his body sustained, he was starving.


    He stepped out into the sunlight, wincing slightly and raising a hand to block his eyes.


    I wonder what day it is, Chance said to himself. The sun was directly overhead, so it had been at least a night. He suspected it was probably longer, but by how much he wasnt sure.


    He shrugged to himself and headed off, wandering through the city. A thin cloak of golden mist trailed him as he called on his Essence. Chance closed his eyes and walked at random, taking turns whenever the fancy struck him.


    After around ten minutes of walking, he opened his eyes again. Hed made his way into a small square, surrounded on all sides by tall stone buildings. Several small food stalls had been set up along their edges, and the center of the square was full of tables. A dozen men and women sat at them, talking and eating.


    Chance grinned and chose one of the stalls at random. He walked up to it and got into the short line. It only took a minute until he was standing before a cheerful looking man wearing a stained apron. His ears stuck up on either side of his floppy chefs hat, tapering to long points.


    Young one, you are, the chef said, giving Chance a once-over. Need more meat on your bones. Youe to the right ce.


    Thats what I was hoping, Chance said. Uh do you take gold? I dont have any contribution points on me.


    The chef pped the wooden counter. No pay! You are too skinny.


    He grabbed a round loaf of bread from arge basket and pped it down. A serrated knife leapt to his hands and he carved the top of the bread open, expertly removing its center before pouring a thick, brown stew into it from a pot. He plopped a wooden spoon into it, then slid it over to Chance.


    Oh, wow. Thank you! Chance said, taking the bowl. He paused, then pulled a gold coin out and handed it to the chef.


    The man shook his head firmly. No pay.


    Not pay. A tip.


    A grin passed over the chefs face and he inclined his head, taking the coin and slipping it into a pocket. Chance picked the bowl of bread up and tasted the stew. His eyes lit up and it took a significant amount of willpower to keep himself from shoveling the rest of it into his gullet.


    This is fantastic! Could I buy another?


    That good, eh? the chef chuckled and gave him a knowing grin. Its more filling than you think!


    Oh, not for me, Chance said. For a friend.


    The cook wordlessly prepared a second bowl and pushed it over the counter. Chance went for his pockets and the chef shot him a sharp look, narrowing his eyes to slits and pointing his knife at him.


    No.


    Chance raised his hand with augh. Okay, okay. Thank you.


    Eat well. Come back.


    I will, and Ill bring my friend, Chance promised. He took the second bowl of stew and jogged back off toward their rooms, using his luck to retrace his steps.