《The Laws of Cultivation: Qi = MC^2》


 Glossary

    Character Names


    Lu Jie - The main character, and a twenty year old boy stuck at the peak of the 3rd realm in the Cloudy Peaks outer sect.


    Lao Zhang (Old Man) - The Old Alchemist of the outer sect, who teaches the MC Alchemy.


    Labby (Lab Rat) - MC''s spirit rat.


    Sheldon - MC''s spirit turtle.


    Twilight - MC''s spirit plant.


    Nyan - Lu Jie''s cat.


    Su Lin - The thieving rat like older sect member still present in the outer sect. The MC''s drug trade partner, and the guy who''s brother was crippled.


    Zhang - Su Lin''s crippled brother.


    Silverlight - The lilly from the sect''s tournament, and Zhang''s bonded spirit.


    Cao Chen - Another one of Su Lin''s sworn brother.


    Yan Yun - The granddaughter of Elder Yan, a Jade Beauty of sixteen and a young prodigious cultivator who has a secret passion for Yaoi stories.


    Leiyu - Yan Yun''s spirit, and an arrogant and pompous thunder spirit bird


    Granny Lang - The Old Alchemist and the granny with whom Su Lin''s brothers live with in the Seventh Peak City.


    Elder Tian Feng - The Elder in the library who''d given Lu Jie his library pass, and the spirit bonding art. He has the Moon spirit.


    Xian Yue - The moon spirit that gave labby a pill and brought Yi Liuxiang to Lu Jie.


    Yi Liuxiang (Shie Liuxiang) - The snake bloodline boy who uses silver needles.


    Zhi Zhu - Liuxiang''s spider spirit.


    Yan Li and Yan Lei - The twins with the Phoenix bloodline that sparred with the original Lu Jie before the MC got transmigrated in.


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    Guo Yin (Yin): The daughter of the village head of Taizhou


    Guo Ran: Yin''s brother, and the son of the village head of Taizhou


    Zhou Fang: Lord Zhou''s eldest son, and the heir to the Seventh Celestial Peak.


    Locations


    Azure-Jade Empire - The Empire that spans the continents within which this story takes place.


    Seven Celestial Peaks - The Seven Peaks that contain the largest sects among the empire.


    Cloudy Peaks Sect - One of the largest sects from the seventh peak. Part of the seven celestial peaks.


    Seventh Peak City - The city near the Cloudy Peak sect, and the city next to the Seventh Peak among the seven celestial peaks.


    Taizhou - A Village near Cloudy Peak sect, set next to a Qi vein.


    Cultivation Realms


    First Circle:


    First Realm: Foundation


    Second Realm: Qi Gathering


    Third Realm: Qi Refining


    Second Circle:


    Fourth Realm: Core Formation


    Fifth Realm: Core Refining


    Sixth Realm: Golden Core


    Third Circle:


    Seventh Realm: Nascent Soul


    Eight Realm: Soul Foundation


    Fourth Circle:


    Ninth Realm: Domain Foundation


    Tenth Realm: Domain Establishment


    Fifth Circle:


    Eleventh Realm: Transendence


    Twelth Realm: Core Shattering


    Art


    Lu Jie:


    Yan Yun:

 1 — Beware of Cultivators

    The world spun around in circles as I stared at the wooden ceiling with a dimming gaze. A loud droning noise rang in my ears as someone shouted the end of the spar.


    ¡°Are you done already, Junior Brother? We still have many pointers to share,¡± the boy said, smirking. I could barely make out his face, as colors splashed around in my vision, but from the sound of him, he could not have been older than fourteen.


    ¡°Peh, that was pathetic. Barely managed to take five blows. Let us leave brother, this scum is not worth our time.¡±


    I heard murmurs all around me, words full of disgust and occasionally some of pity were thrown my way. The other boy walked out of the arena, but I remained where I lay staring at the roof above me.


    ¡°Someone take Lu Jie to the Old Man, he seems to have hit his head hard.¡± A man spoke, as a few people walked over. Two pairs of arms lifted me up, carrying me through my daze. I could barely register their voices as I started to gather my wits.


    Two questions burned in my mind.


    Where the fuck am I? And who¡¯s this Lu Jie?


    ***


    The smell of herbs and incense touched my nose, and I felt something warm prickle my skin. With a painful groan I opened my blurry eyes, taking a look at where I found myself.


    ¡°Keep lying down Lu Jie, your wounds haven¡¯t healed yet. The pill is working but you need to rest.¡±


    An old man stood beside me, wearing a plain white robe. His hair was white, long bushy eyebrows set on a face with more wrinkles than skin and a long beard seen in all those Kung-Fu movies.


    A boiling iron cauldron sat at the other end of the chamber, green smoke rising from it as it twirled in the air, floating around the old man¡¯s hand.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be making a Qi reinforcement pill, it will heal the damage to your dantian soon. You have nothing to worry about, you won¡¯t be crippled,¡± the old man said, patting my shoulder gently with a kind smile.


    I stared as the old man walked back towards his cauldron and let my head fall back onto the coarse and hard bed underneath me.


    Where am I? The last I remember was falling asleep as I was preparing for my Physics test paper and the next instant I was being slammed around by some kids throwing magic bullshit at me.


    I didn¡¯t have to wait long, as the answers started to come to me on their own. Lu Jie, a moderately talented kid from the Seven Rivers village who had found out he¡¯d been blessed with Qi. Like every other kid from a village, he decided to strike out his luck in the city, to try and become a cultivator.


    The rest went as typical Chinese cultivation stories go. But Lu Jie was no main character. He barely got into the sect on his talents and struggled to keep up with his peers as they moved further through the ranks. Years went by and he was now twenty, and still stuck at the third realm.


    He got the short end of the stick when he caught the eyes of the insane twin young masters recently, being dumb enough to accept their proposal to have them give him ¡°pointers¡±.


    Looking through his memories, it was obvious to me that the twins just loved to beat and bully those weaker than them, and used the spar as an opportunity to beat other disciples up. Lu Jie happened to be just exceptionally unlucky, dying from a hit to the head.


    And now I¡¯m Lu Jie.


    Fuck me.


    I tried to move but the pain shooting through my abdomen told me that any movement would make me regret all my choices so far. Stuck on the bed, I decided to go through the guy¡¯s memories. There was little else to do.


    There was no family that I could think of for Lu Jie. For all of his childhood he seemed to have been raised by a kind farmer who¡¯d taken him in. He hadn¡¯t left the sect in years. Outer disciples seem to be barely above servants in ranking here, and the only ranks Lu Jie had been rising in was that of age.


    The old man here seemed to be the only one who¡¯d ever cared for him, with his frequent beatings and injuries his visits to this place had been far more common than should be normal. I felt a bit bad about the old man, as I remember him telling Lu Jie of how he¡¯d lost his grandchild to a particularly nasty disease. It was clear that he¡¯d seen his grandson in him, and now the kid was dead too.


    I had some measures of pity for Lu Jie as well. He had been an arrogant guy, believing himself destined for greatness and the shattering of his dreams had been harsh. He had never said it out loud, or even muttered a word of thanks to the old man, but he had been the only support the boy had had in his life in the sect.


    It was a sad story. A death so pointless. Another nameless guy gone in a merciless world. But while I felt sad, I had no intentions of sticking around here. I had read enough cultivation novels to know how these went. Any young master could come in with a ¡®You dare??!¡¯ and I¡¯d meet the same fate that Lu Jie had.


    ¡°Open your mouth Lu Jie. Swallow the pill and let it mix with your Qi.¡± The old man said, as he placed a pill near my mouth. I opened my lips, stinging pain coursing through them at the movement.


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    I ignored the pain as I swallowed the pill, feeling it travel through my chest before it soon began to dissolve. A cool sensation formed in my gut as the Qi from the pill began to spill over, flooding what could only be my pathways. For a moment I panicked, the foreign sensation making me tense, but ingrained memory in my body began to circulate the energy on its own, moving it in circles through my dantian.


    A mint like smell tingled my nose as the energy started to dissipate throughout my body, my wounds starting to itch. I felt a surge of Qi pulse through as the pain I¡¯d been feeling began to fade.


    ¡°You should be able to walk soon, but don¡¯t channel your Qi or stress your Dantian for a couple of days. I will try and get the sect to let you take a leave for a couple of days,¡± the old man said with a gentle smile.


    I stared at the man, who saved me from death, or a life as a cripple, the only person who¡¯d been there for me. The words that I- Lu Jie had never said out loud, I felt them fill my chest. Perhaps it was his last wish, or whatever remained of him, but I felt compelled to give it voice.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    The old man stared at me, his brows rising in surprise for a brief moment before he laughed gently. ¡°No need to thank this old man Lu Jie, I am just doing my duties. You have a bright future in front of you, you should be careful not to squander it in quarrels.¡±


    My lips trembled as emotions not completely my own filled me. The grief of loss, the frustration of being insufficient. Anger at my own self. To have died like this. But then¡­ grateful. To be able to say what I had never had the heart to.


    I closed my eyes, feeling the Qi swirling in my dantian as the emotions passed by.


    May you find peace Lu Jie.


    ***


    ¡°Yeah this is bullshit¡± I muttered out loud. In whatever language the people spoke here. Azure-Jade script. The thought came to my mind, alongside the context behind why the language was named such. I was too busy marvelling over my body to care though.


    ¡°Fucking Qi magic bullshit. I know I had a concussion and at least a couple broken ribs. All healed in a few hours.¡± I said out loud, this time in English. Glad I hadn¡¯t forgotten how to speak it at least.


    The pill had sent me into a strange haze induced state, where my mind had drifted through my thoughts, as the Qi within me had silently cycled itself over and over. I felt my dantian, now healed from the pill¡¯s effect, and I sensed the Qi filling it.


    A meagre amount compared to all but the newest of disciples joining the sect. But even the weakest of cultivators were stronger than the average farmer. Super human strength and speed were just the beginning of their abilities.


    I was not going to stick around these murderous drug addicted supermen and women. That¡¯s just asking to get killed.


    I flexed my fingers, and moved my feet. The lack of pain was surreal. No medicine, no matter how advanced back home could have achieved what this simple low grade healing pill had done in hours.


    I shifted my feet back onto the wooden floor and pulled myself up. The small room I was in was filled with book shelves. A small cauldron sat at one corner of the room, the remnants of the contents of the concocted pill sitting in there.


    From what I could tell from Lu Jie¡¯s memories, Alchemy wasn¡¯t a noteworthy profession in this world. The alchemists, while respected by the lower end of society, worked mostly in service to some sort of lord or governor, and even the most famous alchemists were under the thumb of powerful cultivators.


    They needed to have Qi, yet they didn¡¯t use it to focus on cultivation but instead used it to hone a different set of skills. The very concept was foreign to most cultivators. Why wouldn¡¯t you chase the eternal heavens and immortality through trials and tribulations and be the big dick chad god?


    I walked up to the cauldron, picking up the little leather book lying on a table nearby. The script was foreign to me, but as with the language I could speak, I could also read these texts. It seems Lu Jie was an educated man.


    The book opened up to show a list of herbs, denoting their names, common locations and their properties. Flipping through the pages I found various texts explaining how to process these herbs, and various mixtures to form balms and salves to help heal wounds.


    The texts were somewhat primitive, yet the content within was still valuable. There were many plants that, I noticed, deviated from their natural properties. One plant was straight up made of fire. A Seven-Poison Flame grass that turned to fire when Qi flowed through it. There were several such strange spirit herbs listed in the book and quite quickly, I found myself sucked into the text books, as it guided me through the basics of Alchemy.


    Time flew by, as the further I read the more entranced I became by the things I saw. Everything in this book flew right in the face of all that I knew. It broke laws of physics and chemistry for breakfast, and would munch on the laws of Thermodynamics as a snack. Some pills had downright ridiculous procedures like, perform the dance of the Blood Lotus, and channel your spirit. The pill shall take the shape of your desires like what the fuck.


    Yet, the ideas sparked something in me. I¡¯d always enjoyed learning, it was one of the things that had stuck with me since my childhood. My desire to better understand the world around me. To discover the mysteries that may have been hidden right in front of our eyes. The harsh droning classes at university may have at times dulled that enthusiasm, but the desire had never really gone away completely.


    Now, it seemed to have returned stronger than ever before. I was in a fantasy world. A world with mythical forces and pills that could save hundreds of lives. From every cultivation novel I had read, the setting had been historical, and backward in technology, but there was no need for things to be that way.


    They already had medicine so advanced it could heal people in a day or two. If I could understand that, if I could find out what made this world tick, then perhaps I would not have to worry about some random young master being my doom. Afterall, science was just the understanding of the world around us. If the laws of my world did not apply, then I would just have to learn the laws of this one.


    Alchemy could also serve as a way to earn money and save enough up to live on my own outside the sect. And possibly find some quiet corner where I could try and break down the magic behind this world.


    It was as good a plan as I would have, of leaving behind the politics and cultivators and their squabbles. I did not want to live as a peasant. From what I could see in Lu Jie¡¯s memory, they had extremely simplistic lives, and lived in poverty. Not having the internet is bad enough, but having to work on some farm to survive may just kill me out of boredom. No, I¡¯d much rather get a quiet mansion in a town, and sell alchemical potions and live a comfortable life.


    I let out a breath, closing the book on my lap. The door creaked behind me, and I saw the Old Man, standing at the doorway, staring at me.


    ¡°W-what are you doing Lu Jie?¡± the old man said, a look of surprise on his face.


    ¡°I- umm. I just¡­¡± I murmured but my voice was caught in my throat. I paused for a moment, shuffling. Delaying would do nothing. This would have to be my chance. I took in a deep breath, as I looked up at the Old Man.


    ¡°I want to learn Alchemy.¡±

 2 — The Path of Alchemy

    I stared at the Old man, trying to keep my expression as sincere as I could.


    ¡°Why so suddenly, Lu Jie? What about your dream of rising in your cultivation?¡±


    I took in a breath, trying to emulate a dejected Lu Jie as best as I could. ¡°The spar has opened my eyes Elder. I had been trying to deny it all this time, hoping that effort would be enough, but the heavens do not grant blessings equally. I have been stuck at the third realm for months now, unable to break through to the second circle.¡± I sniffed once.


    ¡°I have seen the truth. I am talentless. And this is as far as I will ever go. I had despaired thinking there was no path in life that I could take. But, the pill you granted me made me feel a sense of purpose.¡±


    I paused for a moment, realising that I was almost being genuine here. Having the memories of Lu Jie, even though I could tell the memories were not mine, I still felt affected by them. His frustration and his defeat, and the realisation had all been true. He may have died, but I had lived through his memories, and I¡¯d felt those emotions. I continued speaking, trying not to stop suddenly.


    ¡°I wish to be of some use. And I wish to repay you for all the kindness you have shown me one day.¡± I turned around, pulling my knees together, as I bowed my head.


    ¡°Please take me as an apprentice.¡±


    Silence descended for a few moments, as I kept my head bent. The sound of footsteps sounded out as the old man walked closer.


    ¡°I am a bit disheartened to hear you give up on your dream Lu Jie. You may have had troubles, but I''d seen the resolve in your eyes. But the heavens have different plans for everyone. And it is the mark of youth to try and find your own path, and Dao. If you think it lies in this craft, then I would be glad to teach it to you.¡±


    I looked up at the old man, a frown sat on his wrinkly old face as he walked over to inspect his cauldron. ¡°It has been decades since anyone has asked this old man to teach them. Know that I am no talented master, but just a humble man who has been working his craft for a long time.¡± A pause descended as I sat for a moment.


    ¡°Think carefully, Lu Jie. The relationship of a Master and apprentice runs deeper than all but family. If this is truly the path you wish to take, then kowtow thrice and agree to take me as your master, and I will agree to teach what I know of Alchemy.¡±


    I exhaled, feeling partially relieved as I looked up. ¡°I agree, Master.¡± I replied, kowtowing thrice.


    ¡°I agree as well, apprentice, may the heavens be my witness.¡±I felt a pulse of Qi travel through the room at his words as the apprenticeship was made official.


    It had been partially a gamble to ask the old man, he really had no reason to accept me as a disciple. Officially I would still be a disciple of the sect. I would help him with his job, and do some chores, but outside of that, the old man was doing me a favour. I was a good deal nervous at being thrust in this position so randomly, but a part of me was also relieved as well.


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    Step 1 of plan ¡®Escape dumb cultivation sect¡¯ was a success.


    I bowed my head once more, as the old man stood in front of me.


    ¡°What do you know about alchemy Lu Jie?¡± the old man asked.


    I frowned for a moment, trying to dreg up a reply from Lu Jie¡¯s memories. ¡°Alchemy is the craft of refining. To refine various herbs and resources to form Elixirs and Pills that can help purify the dantian and bolster one¡¯s cultivation. As well as cure ailments and heal injuries.¡± I frowned at my reply. The Alchemy in this world may be primitive but it was still a field of study. The answer I¡¯d given had completely ignored the nature of alchemy to instead put it as a tool. I felt a different reply bubbling in me, and I spoke up.


    ¡°Alchemy is the study of nature. It''s the craft of understanding the body and the spirit, to create that which can heal and enhance both. It is the craft of medicine, and one of healing and conversion. A method to understand how the various herbs and essences work, and by extension, how everything under heaven does. It''s a Path of understanding.¡± I replied, and this time, the answer rang true, as my Qi swirled in my Dantian. This was my Path.


    ¡°My Dao will differ from yours. But all of them reside under the heavens as one, guided by its will. I had never felt it before Lu Jie, but now, I feel that the path of Alchemy may indeed be the one for you. That choice is not mine to make. All this old man can do is guide you along your Path.¡±


    I nodded in reply and the old man turned around. ¡°Let us start with the very first thing. The ranks by which an Alchemist is known. You have taken your first steps in Alchemy as an Alchemy apprentice. The next step for you would be one of a Junior Alchemist, capable of refining the simplest of pills and elixirs. The next would be a Senior Alchemist. The rank this old man had been for the majority of his life. You can call yourself a true Alchemist at this rank. At the end of my life, I have taken my last steps to be a Grand Alchemist.


    After Grand Alchemist, your path will take you to be a Master, a Grandmaster, a Saint, and at last an Alchemy Emperor. Such is the path in front of you.¡±


    I stared at the old man, seeing his passion as he spoke his words. The realisation of his old appearance dawned on me as well, and the time he had spent honing his craft. Few men looked old, the Qi in them keeping their appearances youthful even beyond a century. And the higher you cultivated, the slower you aged. Yet, Old Man looked older than any person I had ever encountered, he may not have a high cultivation, yet his skills and experience would be invaluable nonetheless.


    ¡°The first step in alchemy is the study of its ingredients. Which ingredient does what, and the potency of the herbs, the purity of the essence, and the time and technique involved in refining them.¡± Smoke rose from the cauldron, twirling around the old man¡¯s hand as his hands moved to an unseen rhythm. Seeing things straight out of a kung fu movie left me awed as I gaped, watching with bated breaths as the minty smell of herbs filled the chamber.


    ¡°Your first lesson will be on how to use the cauldron, and refine a pill¡± the old man said, as a fire lit up under the iron cauldron on its own. The old man picked several books from his shelves, as he laid them out on the ground in front of me.


    ¡®The Fundamentals of Alchemy Part 1¡¯ the book read. A jade slip also rested next to it and I stared at the old man for an answer.


    ¡°That contains the recipe for three basic pills. When you can brew all three, is when you can call yourself an Alchemist. They are not rare recipes, but all alchemists have their own details and touches, and they are all passed from master to apprentice.¡±


    I looked down at the jade slip, a slight pulse of Qi showing me all three pills and their recipes. I felt my heart beat with excitement at the prospective of learning the first magic since arriving here.


    It was time to make some cultivation drugs.

 3 — Old Man ‘Lao Zhang’

    Lao Zhang was old, his name quite literally meaning Old man. It had been ages since anyone had called him by his own name, and he preferred the name he¡¯d been given anyways. It represented the time he¡¯d spent at the sect here.


    Lao Zhang had been working as an Alchemist for several decades now. A large portion that time had been spent here at the Cloudy Peaks sect, ever since the Sect Elder had seen his skill and hired him as an alchemist. He had spent his life¡¯s workings here, and only a few now remained who remembered him, as he was in his youth.


    As he¡¯d crossed a century in age, he had been free to leave the sect with his earnings gaining a venerable Elder solely on his age. He had refused of course. What purpose would he have in life if he stopped working for his sect? Perhaps if his grandson had been alive¡­ Lao Zhang felt a pang of guilt at the memory, but the pain had dulled with time.


    No, his purpose was right here. Working under the sect as he lived the last of his days trying to reach the truth of his own Dao. His age had offered him wisdom, and there were some things that you only saw, when death approached closer, and your own physique turned against you. It had been a while since something had surprised Lao Zhang. But here, today, that fact seemed to have been occurring more than once.


    ¡°Why hasn''t anyone tried to test the original recipe? Or improve it?¡± the boy, Lu Jie asked, sitting crossed leg on the floor with text books opened all around him.


    Lao Zhang frowned, as he looked at the boy with a strange expression through narrowed eyes. ¡°These recipes were created by our Venerable ancestors, that too at the peak of their cultivation paths. To try and tamper with them would be folly.¡± he replied, as the boy turned back down to read through the texts, murmuring something under his breath.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean they¡¯re outdated?¡± Lu Jie asked once more. And once again, Lao Zhang found himself lacking words. He stood silently for a moment trying to think of a suitable way to guide Lu Jie but the boy had already lost track of his words, busy leafing through the text books once more as he occasionally muttered words Lao Zhang had a hard time placing.


    There had been something off about the boy ever since he¡¯d lost his spar. The way he¡¯d so easily chosen to give up had worried Lao Zhang that the defeat had been quite harsh and if his spirit may be in shambles. Yet Lu Jie appeared to be just fine, quite excited if anything to go by the smile that had crept on his face from time to time as he read the text books around him.


    Perhaps the treatment of the head injury was not complete. Lao Zhang was versed in medicine, but he was no healer. And injuries of the head are often tied to injuries to the spirit. Perhaps he should ask a healer to have a look at the child.


    Lao Zhang shook his head. This was not his grandchild, no matter what he thought at times. He shouldn¡¯t coddle Lu Jie, without tribulations, none would ever grow and find their Paths. All he should do is look after the child when he is about to fall. The same thing he¡¯d do for any other disciple in the sect.


    ¡°I¡¯ve memorised them,¡± Lu Jie said, closing the text books.


    ¡°Already?¡± Lao Zhang asked in surprise. The text only had a few basic herbs but he¡¯d still expected it to take a few days. It had barely been two hours. ¡°What is the use of the Glacial spirit poison then?¡±


    ¡°Glacial spirit poison. A poison that acts on the heart and the body, slowing down its beat, as the blood and body begin to turn cold, before the victim eventually dies of heart failure. It can be used as an ingredient to counteract potent spirit poisons as the decreased blood flow can prevent the poison from spreading while the glacial Qi can be used to mellow the fever.¡± The boy replied in a single breath.


    Lao Zhang exhaled, staring at Lu Jie. ¡°That¡­ is correct. You memorized all of them?¡± he asked, perhaps this was the boy¡¯s true blessing.


    A sheepish smile came onto his face as the boy looked down. ¡°I know most of them by their descriptions. I got lucky for this one as I remembered the properties and application as well.¡±


    ¡°Have you been taught Alchemy before Lu Jie?¡±


    ¡°No, Elder- err, master. This is my first time. But I had to memorise a lot of things as a kid, so I¡¯m good at memorizing names and descriptions,¡± Lu Jie replied, looking up at him.


    Lao Zhang coughed once, hiding his pleasure at being called master. He hadn¡¯t had many disciples, his talent was too meagre to teach many, and those that had been there were all old like him. To be called a master after so long was pleasing.


    ¡°Very well, then let us start learning how to use the Cauldron,¡± Lao Zhang said, as he watched Lu Jie¡¯s face light up with a smile. Ah, he was truly blessed to have such an enthusiastic disciple.


    ***


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    I once again thanked whatever god was listening for that video I¡¯d watched on a memorisation trick. It had saved my hide more than once when I¡¯d had to remember all the unholy reagent names and chemical formulas for multiple step chemical reactions, and it continued to give even here as I read the alchemy textbooks.


    Rote memorisation was not something I enjoyed. It was dull and tedious and it led to no new information outside of simple memory storage, which could easily be taken care of by computers. Here though, memory had a much higher value. The easiest way of storing information was texts, and these Jade slates. The slates were far too valuable to be used for anything but cultivation techniques and such, so most of the information was kept in the books which took time, thus increasing the worth of memorisation.


    Going through Lu Jie¡¯s memory, I couldn¡¯t find if printing technology was a thing here or not, but from the amount of books and their standardised text fonts I saw. They seemed to have some method of mass producing books.


    I quickly returned my attention to the old man as he began to speak, trying to keep my excitement in check about learning magic. My heart still trembled with joy despite my best attempts and I had to fight to keep the smile off of my face.


    ¡°Do you know why we use the cauldron to refine, Lu Jie?¡± The old man asked and I considered the question for a moment.


    ¡°Because its shape allows for even distribution of heat? And because it can hold a lot of things in it?¡±


    The old man nodded. ¡°Those are reasons too, but size matters little, more proficient Alchemists often use small cauldrons that are much larger on the inside. There is a greater reason as to why we use cauldrons and it lies in its ability to hone Qi.¡± The old man said, as he swept his hand out, his long sleeve billowing as Qi flowed around the chamber.


    Old man went all edgy mode eh?


    ¡°There are three things that define one¡¯s talent in Alchemy. One¡¯s sensitivity to Qi, the ability to manipulate Qi finely, and finally, luck.¡± I paused at the old man¡¯s words.


    ¡°A lot of luck is needed to get the right ingredients for a pill at times. Luck is also needed when refining the pill. The difference between a good alchemist and a poor one, is how often they fail. Even the most experienced of alchemists will have a chance of failing, and only the heavens can tell when they will favour you.¡±


    I frowned. I wanted to deny the old man¡¯s words, but even back home, experiments could often fail based on luck and no one could do anything about that. Yet, I felt that an awful lot of this was also simply due to the vague instructions in these elixirs and pills alongside the mystical approach of the heaven¡¯s favour may be why luck was such a factor in failure of success.


    If these pills worked similar to any chemical reaction, but just magic. Then there should be conditions with the optimal chances of success and the optimal chances of yield etc. Narrowing down on those factors will be all that¡¯s needed. At least in theory. In principle, I could be completely wrong and things did actually work on spiritual magic bullshit. Who could say, this is a cultivation world after all.


    ¡°Since luck is out of our hands. We focus on the remaining two things.¡± The old man continued, walking around the area as he picked up a few herbs from a nearby shelf. ¡°Qi sensitivity and Qi control are both, heaven gifted blessings as well. There are pills and elixirs that can help improve one¡¯s innate abilities a touch, but they are rare and are not always effective either.¡±


    ¡°Then is it all about being blessed then? To be a good alchemist, you need to be blessed?¡± I asked, and paused at the melancholic expression that passed over the old man¡¯s face.


    ¡°It is not all about being blessed, Lu Jie. The heavens turn a kind eye to those who work hard. Qi sensitivity and Qi control can both be trained to a certain extent. And it is with these two things, that the cauldron helps with. The cauldron is a tool to not only carry your herbs but also your Qi. A good cauldron allows for your Qi to pass smoothly without any interruptions, and it guides the essence inwards. A poor cauldron can contain impurities and deformities, disrupting the flow of Qi.¡±


    The old man put the herbs in the cauldron, the fire beneath it growing larger. ¡°Pay attention to my Qi Lu Jie, you¡¯ll try this next,¡± the old man said, as his Qi began to billow. I sat in surprise at the amount. I never really knew which circle or realm the Old man was, did I?


    Qi swirled within the cauldron as the herbs began to break down, releasing their essence. I felt multiple swirling patterns all combining within the cauldron as the essences were guided towards one another. The smell of herbs rose from the cauldron as smoke began to escape and I watched with bated breath as the delicate movement of the Qi started to merge the essence together. In a swift motion the fire blazed as all the Qi within the cauldron condensed to one spot. I felt Old Man¡¯s Qi pulsing one last time, before a singular pill formed within the cauldron.


    ¡°This is a simple Qi refilling pill. It will nourish you, when your Qi is running low, though consuming too much can cause your Qi to overstrain and damage your Dantian,¡± the old man said, showing the pill to me.


    ¡°Now you try, Lu Jie,¡± he said, and I nodded happily walking over to the cauldron.


    I picked up the herbs, sensing the Qi present inside them. Taking the needed amount, I put the herbs in the cauldron and then tried to send a pulse of my Qi.


    A few moments passed in silence as I stood in front of the quiet cauldron.


    ¡°Is something wrong Lu Jie?¡± The old man asked and I turned around trying to hide my embarrassment.


    ¡°How do you light the fire again?¡± I asked with an embarrassed smile, trying not to shrink under the quiet sigh of the Old man.


    The path of selling drugs seemed to be a long one.

 4 — Rat Dealings

    Alchemy was expensive. That was the first thing I¡¯d realised over the last few days of my stay here. Not only did the spiritual herbs cost money, but so did having to refill my Qi using pills because of the meagre amount I had. It was a vicious cycle where each herb I wasted would also require me to use up a Qi refilling pill, increasing the cost of waste a ton.


    Looking at the higher tier pills all of them could need a lot of expensive materials, and the more potent the pill, the higher its chances of failure increasing the costs of making the pill even higher.


    In short, I needed money.


    It was easier said than done. Outer disciples got paid a very small amount, as the sect itself provided for most of their needs as long as they remained in it. It would make me think that the disciples would be a burden seeing how few were ever kicked out of the sect, if I wasn¡¯t out here sweeping the ground for the past four hours. We were free labour. Wage slaves without any wage. It made sense they only kicked disciples out when they committed some crime that had been caught and brought to an Elder¡¯s attention. Pretty much never.


    Things got worse when I had a look at Lu Jie¡¯s finances, finding barely enough money to get food for a couple of weeks. The money would last me much longer if I took my leave and settled in some countryside farm but I refused to give up and turn to a life of labour so quickly. I can¡¯t start experimenting if I didn¡¯t have the resources, which would be far easier to find in the city.


    Thus the problem turned into a vicious cycle, where I needed money to learn Alchemy to earn money to leave the sect and strike it out on my own.


    ¡°¡®Eat something funny Lu Jie? Your face is all scrunched up like you got a nasty stomach ache.¡±


    I turned to look at the other boy, sweeping the ground next to me, his two crooked front teeth peeking from under his lips, almost like a rat. Su Lin was the boy¡¯s name, one of the few outer sect disciples to be both on a lower realm than me, and of an older age. It made me wonder how he got accepted into the sect in the first place.


    ¡°Just recovering from the spar,¡± I replied off handedly, as I returned my focus to sweeping the paths. There was a tinge of anger inside me, not an emotion I felt, but one born from Lu Jie¡¯s memories. He despised how Su Lin was content to live his life in the sect, and do menial labour with no hopes of ever rising through the ranks. It went against everything Lu Jie had believed in.


    ¡°I told ya, the young masters were trouble. They got the Thunder-phoenix bloodline, and the twin cultivation stuff. You can¡¯t beat em even if they¡¯re in the same realm as ya. That too not for long I reckon,¡± Su Lin said, snickering once about something as he continued to sweep.


    The jab at my bottleneck at the current realm was obvious, yet I couldn¡¯t care less. Perhaps if Lu Jie was here, he¡¯d have been fuming, but I found myself curious about the guy instead. I watched the lanky guy. He was clearly old, not the oldest outer sect disciple around, but then anyone who doesn¡¯t go past the first circle before turning twenty five usually ends up taking a job at the sect, or leaving. Yet for some reason, Su Lin seemed to stick around.


    An idea began to bud in my mind as I walked over to Su Lin.


    ¡°How long have you been in the sect?¡± I asked, as the lanky boy straightened a bit in surprise, his eyes scanning my face for any clues.


    ¡°Me? A decade? Dunno, been a while,¡± Su Lin said, with a slight frown as he looked down at me. He was taller, but not by much. I returned what I hoped was a friendly smile, as I walked closer.


    ¡°So you¡¯ve been here for a long time. You must know almost all the outer sect disciples then, perhaps even some inner sect ones?¡± I asked, trying to mask my question as idle curiosity.


    ¡°I do know a few I s¡¯pose. What about it?¡± Su Lin asked, eyeing me from the corner of his eyes, his two crooked teeth visible.


    Now was the difficult part. I had created a narrative in Su Lin¡¯s mind, without forcing the issue onto him. From an outsider¡¯s perspective, I¡¯d just lost a spar and had holed myself in for a couple of days, not talking to anyone. No one besides the Old Man really knew about my apprenticeship or the fact that I¡¯d been devouring Alchemy text books and trying to set up experiments in the Old Man¡¯s chamber. So to them, it¡¯d look like I¡¯d taken my defeat quite harshly.


    ¡°Nothing, nothing, no big deal. It¡¯s just¡­ I was wondering y¡¯know? You¡¯ve been here for so long, and even if we¡¯re both outer sect disciples, you must get some respect for the time you¡¯ve spent here serving the sect. The heavens may not bless us all equally, but hard work is valued equally.¡±


    I kept my voice even, looking at Su Lin¡¯s reaction. I was obviously trying to flatter him and I wasn¡¯t even trying to hide it at all.


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    What I said was total bullshit. Age meant next to nothing, and the only measure of respect people gained was strength. It was a typical survival of the fittest world of a cultivation novel. And thus, I suspected there were two ways Su Lin would react to this. The first, and the disappointing one would be where he just accepts the flattery thinking I genuinely am trying to flatter him and get a favour. Not optimal but I could still work with it.


    The second, the thing I¡¯d been aiming for, would be if Su Lin was not as dumb as he appeared. I had suspicions for his reasons for staying in the sect for next to no pay, working as a wage labour even when offered a job. This was my way of trying to prod him into confirming my suspicions.


    ¡°A bit. You do get to know people with time, and they know you instead,¡± Su Lin replied, returning to his work.


    A half answer then. Damn. At least this isn¡¯t the first option, so there¡¯s still a chance. I wasn¡¯t great at this subterfuge anyways, but I had to try this time. My future was hinged on this.


    ¡°So I was thinking. Do you know anyone who works in the spirit herbs garden?¡± I smiled as I watched Su Lin go still. The spirit herbs garden maintained by the sect was one of the most guarded locations in the outer sect. And one of the more difficult places to enter.


    ¡°And what if I do?¡± Su Lin said, setting his broom aside as he turned towards me, standing completely straight for once.


    I struggled to hold my smile back, as my guess was proved right.


    ¡°I may have something that could benefit both of us,¡± I said, digging into my pocket as I took out a single Qi refilling pill.


    I watched Su Lin¡¯s eyes shift towards the Qi refilling pill, as they widened in surprise. Outer sect disciples only got elixirs and pills for the first month. If they showed no signs of talent, then their support was cut off. Someone like me carrying pills around had a very specific image presented from an outsider¡¯s perspective.


    He thought I was stealing them.


    ¡°I¡¯ve got more. But I need spirit herbs. You bring me spirit herbs and I give you five of these. You get to keep one-fourth of the money. And if I can trust you, then I also have some more potent pills lying around,¡± I put the pill back in my pouch, tapping it lightly as I sent a pulse of Qi in it. A strong Qi presence similar to a high grade 1st circle pill drifted out, and I watched Su Lin¡¯s nose twitch. The bait was set.


    ¡°Near the second tree, next to the outer walls. Every seven days during the evening¡¯s work,¡± Su Lin said quickly, turning around as he began walking away without taking a single glance back.


    I stood at the same spot for a few more moments before I began to head towards my chamber, as I let out a sigh of relief.


    The pill had been a bluff. The Qi refilling pill was the only one I¡¯d successfully crafted in the last four days of work, out of the fourteen times I¡¯d tried making them. Manipulating Qi was ridiculously tough and I¡¯d still not found the optimal conditions required in making them. A lot more testing needed to be done.


    The single pill I did succeed in making though, had still made me break out even in the cost. I still took a loss, which I could not afford, but with time I should be able to narrow down on the reaction conditions and become able to sustainably churn out pills.


    The only problem with that had been gaining a sustainable supply of spirit herbs. And what the Old Man could afford to give me was very limited. Thus, this alternative method.


    I tapped my pouch, glad about the fact that I carried some of the wasted pills I¡¯d made. A pulse of Qi had broken them up, making them release their own Qi, which had briefly made it seem like I was carrying a high-grade pill on me.


    I was glad Su Lin hadn¡¯t attacked me, tried to steal my pills. I was a realm higher than him, but the difference would not be much seeing how he was more physically fit than me from his extended stay at the sect.


    It had been a gamble, seeing how I barely knew the guy. But the temptation of higher grade pills seemed to be large enough for him to not do anything rash. It was a good deal too. He got to triple what he would¡¯ve earned from simply selling spirit herbs at minimal risk.


    I let thoughts of Su Lin be as I walked into the somewhat familiar chamber, my notes spread all around with little parchments containing half scribbled notes in English and some in the language for words I failed to translate.


    Something chittered from under the notes and I frowned. A black figure peeked from under one of the books a portion of the page in its mouth. On instinct I moved ahead, jumping as I grabbed the little creature under the sheet of paper, before grabbing it in my fist.


    I stared at the little rat in my hand, as it tried to escape my grasp. But no matter how weak, I was still a cultivator and a rat couldn¡¯t free itself from my strength.


    ¡°So you¡¯re the one who was eating all those pills huh?¡± I said, glaring at the little pest as I finally realised who had been chewing up all my paper and eating all the residue from my Qi pills.


    The rat froze, shivering once as if it realised that it had messed up. I was about to let the creature go, not willing to kill it over just feeding itself when I noticed the tiny bead of Qi present at its core.


    My eyes widened in surprise as I stared at the rat. The black furred pest squeaked in terror and a chuckle escaped my mouth. It too seemed to have realised that I could sense what it was.


    A grin split my face in two as I stared at the little treasure in my hand.


    I¡®d just caught myself a spirit rat.

 5 — Gotta catch em all?

    ¡°What should I do with you now?¡± I asked as the little rat stared at me. I doubted it could understand my words. The creature had barely any Qi in it right now, nowhere enough to have a mind capable of thinking proper thoughts.


    Kneeling on the floor I set my hand with the rat in it down and the rat squeaked once, shivering in place as it stared at me. Perhaps in surprise that it was still alive. Making sure to not make any sudden movements, I took out my Qi refilling pill, and brought it near the rat.


    ¡°I know you like this, go ahead. Take a bite,¡± I said, despite knowing it could not understand me. But something about a fuzzy little creature being terrified of its life in my hand just made me wish to talk in a soothing manner to it.


    The little rat¡¯s nose twitched, as it inspected the pill for a while before it quickly began to nibble at it. I let the rat go, keeping my hand nearby to quickly grab it if it tried to escape.


    ¡°Stay there. Got it?¡± I said, infusing my words with Qi. A neat trick I¡¯d learnt while studying. The rat¡¯s Qi pulsed in response and I took that as an acknowledgement.


    I moved nearby. Going through the textbooks I¡¯d been given by the Old Man before I quickly found the one mentioning spirit animals. A quick read confirmed my thoughts to be true. The rat was a spirit animal.


    I stared at the little rat, still eating the pill. From what I knew, occasionally, animals could gather Qi and form a core in their bodies. The majority of spirit animals were born with Qi, but some could gain one further in their lives as well. And at a high enough cultivation realm, they could take human forms as well. Typical cultivation stuff.


    I didn¡¯t care much about the human part, though the process itself was something I¡¯d love to study, but my interest lay in another area entirely. Their ability to smell spirit herbs.


    Spirit animals were uncannily good at finding spirit herbs, usually found near areas filled with them. And the rat, being a, well, rat. I suspected if I could tame it then it could completely solve my spirit herb problem and remove my dependency on Su Lin.


    ¡°I wonder if you¡¯ll stick around,¡± I said out loud to the little creature, before digging out some of the other unfinished pills that had failed. They still contained qi in them and were made of herbs, nothing that would harm the creature. The rat¡¯s nose twitched once more as it shot towards the pill in my hand, grabbing it as it began to devour the treat.


    I smiled, petting the rat on its furry little head. It squeaked once, before it continued to devour the pill like the greedy rat it was.


    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t happen to know how to shoot lightning right?¡± I said to the rat, who turned towards me for a moment, and returned to its pill soon when it couldn¡¯t decide what I meant.


    I shook my head, setting my jokes about electric rats aside for the moment, as I turned my attention back to my notes.


    My little project that I¡¯d so far been working on was a standardised refining process to create a Qi refilling pill. The first goal was reducing the time of refining, which tended to be around fifteen minutes to half an hour of time. And that variation was nuts. You don¡¯t cook something for fifteen minutes more and get the same results, you just don¡¯t.


    So I looked away from the physical, and tried to delve into the magical. Here was where things got rough. To understand magic, I¡¯d first have to understand Qi. And I had no idea whatsoever about how Qi worked. I could feel the Qi in my dantian, and I could even draw it out and use it. The only technique to directly apply Qi that Lu Jie knew was the basic technique given to all outer sect disciples of the Cloudy Peaks sect.


    Serene Mist Arts, it was called, a lesser version of the Celestial Peak Arts. The technique was about all the martial arts kung fu jazz of sitting down and doing nothing while gaining powers. You¡¯d think with how much the stronger cultivators meditated they¡¯d be wise and shit, but here we are.


    The art was useless to me, as the technique was about light steps and martial arts and I sucked at those. The thing that was good for me was the ability to reinforce my body with Qi. That and the ability to reinforce other things with my own Qi.


    The former was very easy. I could easily use my Qi to run a bit faster, jump a bit higher, be more aware, all that jazz. It was fascinating and I planned to dissect how exactly a human body can generate superhuman strength like it doesn¡¯t make sense considering the muscle fibres should rip apart but then these guys can shoot light- the rat squeaked interrupting my thoughts as it walked closer with its eyes staring at me in anticipation. It stood on its back legs, extending both of its front legs out as if begging for more.


    Smart rat.


    I smiled and took out a spirit herb this time, and gave it one tiny leaf. That would be it for its treats today.


    Anyways, where was I? Right, Qi reinforcement. It was quite useful as it allowed me to study how exactly things worked when infused with my qi.


    I brought up the spirit herb in my hand, looking at the little plant. Outside of the Qi present in it, there was nothing special about it. It was just a small leaf. But, here was the interesting part. A pulse of Qi going through the plant made its leaves shimmer. There was a very thin layer of coating forming over the leaf itself that gave it the shimmer. If I added some more Qi, the plant would glow a bit brighter before it would reach a saturation point. If I pushed any further beyond that, then it would shrivel up and die as if drained of life.


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    It made no sense to me why it behaved this way. The shimmering may be due to the Qi agitating the plant into releasing some chemicals that shone in the light. Or it could be a layer of Qi itself. But why did the plant die out when excessive Qi was passed through it? Did the Qi burn its insides?


    In contrast to the spirit herb, normal plants seemed to barely react unless excessive Qi was passed through them. In which case they usually burst into pieces as if bloated from the inside. I did find that very careful application of Qi could make the plants grow faster, but I wasn¡¯t good enough to produce visible results from that. I didn¡¯t have the needed control. At least for now that is.


    Man I wish I had a microscope to shove all this under. Maybe I could make a simple one given time. Just another dream item for my quickly growing list.


    I was also testing if feeding a certain amount of Qi to a plant everyday would result in that plant turning into a spirit herb. It would be a massive waste of Qi even if it did. Unless, I managed to produce a completely new type of herb not seen before.


    That, and I wonder how cross pollination and or grafting etc would work for these plants. If there were spirit herbs, then surely there would be spirit bushes, and berries and trees out in the wild right? They¡¯d probably have a developed ecosystem that may have a whole hidden layer that was dependent on Qi, which may just be key - pun absolutely intended - in finding out how Qi interacted with living things.


    One thing was for sure, it wasn¡¯t any of the fundamental forces of nature that were found in my world. It did not depend on materials and particles and laws but people. I could manipulate it by thought. Perhaps there was some organ in this body¡¯s brain that could move the physical or energy form of Qi around but I doubted it. Then what I was challenging here was an honest to god super natural force that was layered on top of normal physics and could interact with it without breaking reality as we knew it.


    Magic.


    I scribbled down on my notes, trying to come up with theories and possibilities as I thought about other things I wanted to test.


    I returned to my notes on the Qi refining process going through the various factors I¡¯d listed out. There was the temperature, the properties of the herbs themselves that formed the pill. The time spent in the cauldron was the mixture of various ingredients which wasn¡¯t much like chemistry outside of herbology or just cooking. Just throw the herbs in, mesh and blend them together, and it was done.


    The problem I was facing was in narrowing down the factors that made the pill work. There was firstly the essence of the herbs themselves, that is to say, the Qi in them, which gave the pill its ability. The time spent in refining was solely focused on drawing the Qi out of these ingredients and melding them. The melding process was where things tended to get drastic. A small mistake in coaxing the Qi together could at times be explosive and make the Qi explode outwards.


    The interaction between the various Qi of the herbs and their bodies was dependent on both how I manipulated my Qi, and how well I maintained the flame and a Qi-pressure around them.


    The Qi-pressure was what I¡¯d named the process of surrounding the cauldron with my Qi and pushing from all sides uniformly. It sort of worked like an ideal gas in that sense where it followed the gas laws of pressure, though I doubt it did so as an ideal gas would. But the fact that pressure increased boiling point seemed to be true. There was a very fine margin of pressure under which I¡¯d found that the Qi seemed to mix together very well with one another, melding into a singular uniform solution that formed the pill.


    But so far, I¡¯d been unable to replicate my one time success.


    ¡°Maybe if I can find some sort of reactive reagent of Qi? Perhaps treating the Qi as a chemical reaction would be better. Treating each element¡¯s Qi as a separate chemical to be mixed in a reaction. I could try feeding some Qi to the rat to see how my Qi reacted with a spirit animal.¡±


    A chittering voice broke me from my thoughts as I saw the rat climbing up my leg as its nose sniffed around my pouch.


    ¡°Bad, bad rat. Stay put,¡± I said out loud, and to my surprise, it stopped, and climbed back down onto the ground. Perhaps it was smarter than I¡¯d thought.


    I was contemplating what to do with the rat, perhaps I could teach it to come to me for food every so often. I hummed to myself in thought about the little critter I¡¯d caught when it used the most ferocious move any creature could use.


    The cuteness attack.


    Its little pink nose twitched, as it let out the most pitiful squeak I¡¯d ever heard and my defences started to crumble. I steadied my heart looking it in the eye with a stern expression. Two black beady eyes stared at me as it lifted one paw, rubbing it against my leg.


    I felt my heart melt, as my cute meter exploded from overdose. I tried to resist, yet all was futile against those pitiful eyes, their cuteness surpassing all under the heavens.


    I dug out a little bit of my remaining pill residue, handing it over to the rat who gladly began to chomp down on its feast.


    ¡°You, you evil smart little creature. I¡¯d say you¡¯d make a fine assistant. I think I have just the name for you as well,¡± I said out loud.


    ¡°Lab Rat. That¡¯ll be your name. Labby for short,¡± I said, gently petting its head as Labby squeaked once more. Perhaps out of delight from the petting, or the pill I¡¯d given it.


    ¡°Got my first cultivation pet. Time to catch ''em all?¡± I smiled, snorting at my own lame reference.


    A horde of ideas began to flood me. The possibilities of being able to test on a spirit animal exciting me. I wouldn¡¯t harm Labby, he was too precious. And I wasn¡¯t cruel enough to be able to kill something I¡¯d named. No, Labby would live as my assistant as I broke down the mysteries behind his magic.


    I turned towards Labby, as he froze from my glance. I flashed a grin, that even I knew must¡¯ve looked quite evil.


    ¡°We¡¯re gonna have some fun times together, my new friend.¡±


    The little rat squeaked quietly and I cackled with all my mad scientist glory. I would untangle each mystery this world had to offer me.


    Beware ye secrets of magic, I come for you!

 6 — A Peaceful Day

    The sizzling of food filled my ears, as I stirred the large pot of vegetables around, occasionally picking up a couple of logs to throw into the campfire I¡¯d made.


    ¡°Got anything Labby?¡± I asked the little rat, and got a squeak as my reply. Labby ran closer, a little plant filled with Qi in its mouth.


    ¡°Good boy!¡± I praised Labby, petting him once before I let him back out again. I stored the herb into my pouch, as I put my attention back to my lunch.


    I¡¯d come out into the little forest area near the backside of the sect. The Cloudy Peak sect, quite aptly with its name, was situated on two cloudy hills. The smaller hill being the outer sect where I was, and the larger one being the inner sect compound.


    The amount of land combined under the sect¡¯s control was massive, spanning around both hills as it spread into a forest. All of which was within the Sect¡¯s premises. The city outside was a five minute walk away.


    I¡¯d decided to spend my ¡®Cultivation¡¯ time, to do something far more productive, and gather some spirit herbs. Labby had proven his worth as he¡¯d quickly sniffed out the spirit herbs among the regular plants and herbs.


    The spirit herbs I¡¯d gathered were not potent, unlike what the spirit garden would produce. These wild spirit plants had minimal Qi in them, and were quite weak, but they were also relatively easily found. Making them perfect for any testing I wanted to do.


    I stirred the vegetables and meat fry once more, as its scent filled my nostrils.


    ¡°Nothing quite like campfire food,¡± I muttered, smiling as I hummed some random song under my breath. I sprinkled some of the spirit herbs into the food. Any outer disciple would¡¯ve gasped in horror at that, but I found myself not caring too much. Labby had gotten me quite a few spirit herbs today, enough to create the needed pills for my deal with Su Lin and have a few spare for testing as well.


    I picked up my bowl, sitting next to me on the grass, as with a flick of my wrist I made the fire go away. I smiled smugly at the little trick I¡¯d learned from the Old Man for starting the fire under the cauldron.


    Starting the fire was quite simple, all I had to do was focus on where I wanted to concentrate my Qi, and envision it turning warm. The Qi would then provide enough energy to start combustion in whatever fuel you were providing it.


    The process made me wonder how exactly the energy transfer would work, and further questions on how people even controlled their Qi anyways, but I wasn¡¯t going to be solving all mysteries in one day was I?


    Putting out the flame had been a bit more tricky. I had to direct my Qi fast enough over the flames that a layer formed for an instant over the wood, cutting the oxygen supply as the fire died instantly.


    I served myself the fried meat and vegetables, taking a little bowl out for Labby as well. A gentle breeze blowing through the grassy plains brought a smile to my face. The air here was much fresher, and I could feel the Qi of the land around me. No doubt, the sect had been located here due to the Qi present in its environments.


    Labby ran closer with another squeak, carrying a cut off herb. I saw a few chewed leaves at the end, and shook my head as I took the herb from its mouth, and gave it a pet in thanks.


    ¡°You can eat the food too, if you want to,¡± I said, holding out another small bowl of my homemade recipe of stir-fry poor college student edition. His little nose twitched a couple times as he inspected the food, before Labby dug in.


    I sighed contently, as I ate my lunch out in the open. A couple of animals curiously walked by from the denser tree groves nearby, but none were curious enough to come out into the open grasslands.


    I ate my food, soaking in the sights around me, as I marvelled at the mystical magic of Qi that flowed all over this place. Following a whim, I took out my notes, taking a look under the section where I¡¯d tried to test on the spirit herbs, to see if I could make them grow faster with Qi or not.


    I stared at the problems, the drying leaves, the shimmering energy, and a whole bunch of messy notes that I¡¯d written. I leafed through the pages, my eyes wandering over the text yet not reading them.


    An instinct called out to me, and I began to channel my Qi. It swirled in my dantian, rotating in circles, the Qi of the land began to soak into my veins, as I kept reading through my notes. Idly making remarks on portions.


    Time flew by in a daze, as I heard the wind tell me something. There was something wrong with my Qi. I frowned, still lost in a strange trance, as the words faded across the wind. I absently held a quill in my hand, writing something down, as the answer became obvious.


    Two circles, one flowing into the other. Like an infinite never ending loop. I changed the pattern, and something shifted inside of me.


    One circle¡­ Two circles¡­


    The Qi swirled.


    Fifteen circles¡­ Sixteen circles¡­


    Something began to form in my dantian.


    Eighty circles¡­ Eighty one circles¡­


    With a pop, the Qi settled down, as my sight came back into focus. The Qi within my Dantian changed, and as if with a sigh, the Qi of the land began to flow into me. I sat there, letting the wind flow through my hair for a while before my mind finally broke free of the daze it had been stuck in.


    I looked down, and found Labby sleeping quietly on my lap. I smiled, gently petting his head as I put the rat into the herb basket. Stretching my limbs out, I stood up.


    I looked at the sky, noticing the high mid-day sun as I realised that it had been hours since I¡¯d started.


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    ¡°Must¡¯ve lost track of time¡­ I had felt that writing in my notes was strangely meditative but wow.¡± I heard Labby squeak, as he woke up, peeking over the basket.


    ¡°Yeah, little buddy. Sorry about the delay. Let¡¯s go now,¡± I said, packing my stuff up, and clearing up my little campfire, when something caught my attention.


    ¡°Is the grass longer here?¡± I said out loud, staring at the grass under my feet. For a few feet around me, the grass seemed marginally longer than everywhere else. I looked around once more, as the wind bent the grass, merging them all into a single green blanket. I shrugged once, chalking it up to an optical illusion of some kind.


    Labby chittered, playing with the spirit herbs as one sat on its head like a crown made from one single leaf. I laughed, feeling strangely at peace.


    A smile adorned my face as I looked at the basket of spirit herbs in my hand.


    It was time to do some Alchemy experiments.


    ***


    Qi stirred within the cauldron, its contents bubbling and frothing more like a witch¡¯s poison, than any life saving elixir. I stirred the liquid lightly, as I kept adding my own Qi to the mixture.


    The smoke from the potion stung my eyes as it started to gush forth, the herbs letting their essence out as they began to mix into the solution and turn homogenous. I continued my stirring, keeping my speed even.


    This was my sixth recipe to make a Qi Refilling elixir, as I''d shifted my focus from making pills to an elixir. I¡¯d found that the saturation point of water for Qi was much higher than that of spirit herbs. Which was a bit strange since herbs should naturally contain a lot of water in their cells, but leaving that aside for a moment. In just a cup worth of water, I could drain all of my Qi and the water would hold it, so long as I didn¡¯t boil it away.


    Unlike water, steam sucked at holding my Qi whatsoever. I didn¡¯t have any ice to test with, but I suspected the same was true with that as well. My theory so far was that Qi was an intermediate stage of Energy, a transition element of sorts where it was on me to guide how the energy was being applied. The reason why steam could not hold on to my Qi was due to the particles being far too excited, making the Qi excited as well, and unable to mesh properly.


    Similar to mixing sugar in hot water, the Qi could dissolve in hot water, but impossible to do so in steam. It was just a hypothesis for now, I¡¯d need to run a lot more tests before I could prove any of this, but I felt like I was moving in the right direction.


    With a bubbling noise, the Qi within the cauldron poured forth. The smoke coming out of the cauldron contained leftover Qi that had begun rising, and I knew that I¡¯d reached the saturation point.


    Taking out a couple of the spirit herbs from yesterday, I gently added them to the mixture, stirring evenly as I increased the Qi-pressure inside the cauldron. There was a light shimmer to the green potion now, as I mixed it, and I was starting to think that what the herb¡¯s shimmering glow was, was just the layer of water molecules on its leaves latching onto the Qi, as they evaporated through the pores.


    ¡°Labby! Can you get me that flower?¡± I called out, keeping my eyes on the cauldron as I pointed towards the flower on the nearby shelf. Labby chittered, climbing up the wooden shelf, as he grabbed the flower.


    Taking a small run, he leapt from his perch landing on my knee before he climbed up to my shoulders, the flower in its mouth. The best lab assistant ever.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± I said, gently petting Labby, as he jumped back down, going off to do whatever he was doing.


    I looked at the spirit lotus petals in my hand. This was the part that made me nervous. The alchemy book had called the spirit lotus to have Earth and Water Qi, similar to the muddy waters it grew in. The properties from those Qi, being the ability to sustain and coagulate Qi into them.


    The lotus petal was usually used in pills to bind the Qi together. It was a common ingredient. The regular method of brewing the Qi refilling elixir simply involved pouring in spirit herbs, and holding the solution at the right Qi pressure as I melded in my own Qi, waiting for it to dissolve into the mixture, and then boiling the excess water away slowly.


    My intention was to use the lotus petal, to increase its capacity. The Old Man would¡¯ve probably frowned had he been here, another reason why I¡¯d asked permission to get a small cauldron for my own chamber, where I could experiment freely.


    I took a breath and let the petals fall into the potion. I stood nervously waiting for the reaction to go horribly wrong and splash me with boiling water everywhere, but the petals simply floated in the bubbling solution, slowly starting to break down.


    The musty smell of earthy Qi hit my nose and I hurriedly started to churn my Qi through the solution. My heart began beating faster, as I felt my Qi turn thicker. I added more intensity to the flame under the cauldron, as the water began to boil faster.


    Labby chittered from behind me, almost as if sharing my nervous excitement and I smiled. This was the fun part.


    The Qi gushed forth,swirling on its own now, as a whirlpool of Qi formed. The earth essence was heavier than normal Qi, refusing to be moved by my meagre Qi as it started to form a lump at the centre. Panic began to grow in my heart, as the Cauldron started to turn hotter and hotter. The Qi was swirling, as the solution began to glow.


    I dimmed the flame, focusing all my attention on the cauldron as I tried to spread the Earthen Qi uniformly through the solution. The Qi spread under my will, mixing in with the essence of the spirit herbs. The energy began to focus, as I guided it all together. With a pop, the cauldron shuddered, a cloud of smoke spewing forth from the potion, as Qi gushed forth.


    I coughed, taking a step back as my eyes watered from the smoke, the Qi burning my nostrils and throat. I took a moment to clear my vision, before I walked closer and my heart dropped. Clumps floated in the potion, bobbing up and down in the now brown and murky potion.


    The earthen Qi hadn¡¯t spread properly, binding the solid particles of the solution into clumps. I let out a dejected sigh, about to drain all the potion into a bottle to store away when I heard Labby squeak.


    With a jump, the little rat stood on my shoulder, before leaping into the cauldron. I panicked, my hands shooting out to grab him when he expertly grabbed on to the cauldron¡¯s rim, as he dunked his little head into the potion while taking a drink.


    A happy chitter sounded out, as Labby sipped the potion and I walked closer. My heart fluttered as I saw the layer of brown gunk float away, as the underneath bright green potion became visible.


    Realisation hit me the very next moment as to what had happened. The Earthen Qi, had sucked out not the herbs, or their Qi, but the gunk from the Cauldron and the low grade spirit herbs instead.


    I skimmed the filth away, taking out a porcelain container, as I poured the light green potion in. I grabbed the elixir, swirling it once as I took a small sip. Qi rushed through my body, filling up my dantian as it swirled around.


    I grinned as I stared at my first successful experimental potion.


    ¡°Quest complete. Reward is a caffeine substitute,¡± I said out loud, snickering as Labby squeaked, licking his paws for the little remaining bits of elixir left on them.


    I shook my head, still smiling from my successful results as I turned back towards the cauldron. I needed to make notes on the process, and increase its success rate, but this was my first step towards making a working formula for the brewing, and even the refining process. There was no way I could stop smiling even if I tried.


    I took another sip from the elixir, feeling its refreshing energy travel through my body before I closed the bottle and put it away.


    It was time to crank out some cultivator energy drinks.

 An Alchemist and a Thiefs Untold Story - Chapter ??

    Since I was told that some people skip author notes. Here''s one inside the chapter. This is a scene from the fanfiction that Yan Yun wrote, written by a reader, so this is NOT canon. I think it''s hilarious, and so I decided to share.


    ***


    Su Lin entered Lu Jie''s laboratory, sweat-stained from a hard day''s work on the field. He smiled faintly at the sight of Lu Jie as he tinkered with strangely shaped glass containers. It was then that Lu Jie noticed Su Lin. He smiled, placing one container down on his workbench.


    "Su Lin," he said, affection deep in his voice and gaze. "You''re finally done."


    "Let''s just say I felt... more motivated than usual," Su Lin replied, a roguish grin creeping onto his face. "Do you want to guess why?"


    Lu Jie laughed in his sweet tenor, a genuine laugh with a cadence that went up and down. Su Lin found it adorable, and his grin crept higher up his cheeks.


    Finally, after what seemed like minutes, Lu Jie let his laugh die down as he wiped the tears from his eyes. He could have laughed for hours and Su Lin would have savored every moment.


    This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    "You''re always so indirect," Lu Jie heaved playfully. "After six months, you''d think you''d tell me what you want!"


    "Oh, you know me." Su Lin approached Lu Jie. "The handsome rogue, always keeps you second-guessing."


    Lu Jie could feel the heat radiating from Su Lin''s chest. He exhaled a breath he didn''t know he was holding.


    "I don''t need to guess a second time," Lu Jie cooed.


    "Oh? Well if you''re so smart, Mister Alchemist, why don''t you tell me what you think I want?"


    They stood inches apart now, Su Lin snaking his hand into Lu Jie''s. Lu Jie swore he could feel his partner-in-crime''s heartbeat from his palm. A grin came onto his face, but it could not hide the pink flush of Lu Jie'' s cheeks.


    "You know what you want," Lu Jie muttered, almost a whisper.


    "And how do you know?" Su Lin asked in mock confusion.


    "Because herbs aren''t the only thing I''m good at gro¡ª


    "Jesus Christ," Lu Jie muttered as he slammed An Alchemist and a Thief''s Untold Story shut.

 [B2] 1 — A New Start

    The cart rattled beneath me, jumping and clattering as it moved through the dirt paths. The Ox pulling the cart grunted in effort, as Cao Chen steered the cart. ¡°We¡¯re almost there. I think I can barely see it in the distance.¡±


    The sunlight warmed the back of my eyelids, making me open them. The sun was high up in the sky, approaching close to noon. Turning my sight ahead, beyond the rising and flowing grassland I saw the little river cutting through the landscape, near which lay the town of Taizhou, bustling with people.


    I took a moment to appreciate my newly enhanced eyesight as I noted the village head walking around in a rush. It was an odd sensation to be able to recognize faces, still far off in the distance.


    ¡°How much longer?¡± I asked, glancing at Cao Chen.


    ¡°About an hour or so,¡± Cao Chen replied, and I nodded.


    Labby rustled in my lap, turning over in her sleep as she pursed her lips, a frown on her face. I brushed a hand through her grey hair, looking at her child-like form sleeping peacefully as I wondered just what kind of dream she may be seeing.


    My hand drifted from her head, down to her abdomen briefly. I gently pressed my hand, feeling the little spirit root in her dantian, keeping the cracked pieces of her dantian together as she healed. Despite knowing she was not in pain any longer, the thought made my chest tighten with pain.


    ¡°I¡¯m¡­ sorry,¡± Yan Yun said, noticing my lingering gaze on Labby. ¡°I never should¡¯ve involved the two of you in this.¡±


    I felt a bit surprised when Yan Yun spoke up. She¡¯d been silent throughout the way. I''d noticed the tears that glistened her eyes. Seeing how I failed to even sense the base of her cultivation, it was not terribly difficult to imagine what may have happened with her grandfather.


    I sat in silence for a moment at Yan Yun¡¯s words. ¡°Li and Lei¡¯s actions are not your fault. I went of my own will. It was my fault to put even Labby at risk,¡± I said, clenching my fist. A hollow feeling lingered in my chest. I had taken my revenge, given in to anger, to the thing I had been trying not to become. What had it truly done? I had put Labby at risk, put myself at risk, letting her get injured and then lashed out because I was angry. It was childish. It was¡­ like me from before my spar with Li and Lei. The actions of an arrogant cultivator.


    I looked up to see words that yet lingered on Yan Yun¡¯s face, but neither of us spoke any further.


    We sat in silence, rocking along with the cart as the grasslands flew past us.


    ¡°Ah, here we go,¡± Cao Chen said, squinting into the distance. ¡°I see Taizhou. We¡¯ll arrive soon.¡±


    Yan Yun stirred in her seat, turning to look at the town in the distance. I noticed her eyes squinting as she looked towards the distance in confusion, before they widened a sliver as a realisation settled onto them. I followed soon after, realising what surprised her.


    She couldn¡¯t see the town. Her eyes were unable to see that far anymore.


    I turned my gaze away from Yan Yun before she noticed that I was watching her. Words hung in my chest, curiosity and concern jumbling together. She has lost her Path, that much I knew. And I knew her grandfather had something to do. Just what did her grandfather do to have something like this happen?


    Anger rose in me at the man, but I breathed the emotion back down. Actions and memories from Lu Jie still felt like a tangled mess within me. So much of me was vague now, unprocessed emotions bursting out at whim. I suspected it would take months before I could feel complete, but that didn¡¯t mean that I would allow my past self¡¯s faults to linger.


    With my breakthrough, my spirit had been forged anew. I would not squander it.


    ¡°Chii~¡± I hear Twilight chime, twirling as she climbs onto Su Lin¡¯s back, to stand atop his head. The sleeping boy¡¯s head bobbed, as he jerked and startled awake.


    ¡°Wha- what¡¯s happening?¡± Su Lin said, glancing around, arms raised up to his face. He glanced around, slowly taking in everything, before his eyes met mine.


    Laughter burst out of me, at his stupid expression, and I felt the swirl of emotions in my chest become lighter. Cao Chen joined me as well, and I noticed even Yan Yun had a small smile on her lips.


    Silverlight watched the laughing faces, before looking at Twilight standing on Su Lin¡¯s face. Following Twilight¡¯s lead, she jumped onto the boy¡¯s head chiming loudly as well. ¡°Sii!¡± the lilly plant said, raising her finger, looking around at everyone else for a reaction.


    ¡°Get off, you stupid plants,¡± Su Lin said, brushing off the two of them. Though the smile on his face betrayed his amusement.


    Labby stirred next to me. ¡°Master?¡± she murmured, rubbing her eyes as she got up.


    I patted her head lightly, smiling. ¡°Did you have a good sleep?¡± I asked Labby, as she looked up to me, still shrugging off the remnants of sleep from her eyes. Silently, the little girl nodded. My eyes drifted to her robes, marked with the sigil of the moon that brimmed with Lunar Qi. She would definitely need some new clothes.


    I felt Sheldon slowly wake up from our bond, as the little turtle blinked his eyes. Nyan continued to resist instead, curling even more tightly around the turtle¡¯s shell.


    With a crackle of lightning I saw Leiyu flying ahead, making his way to Taizhou before us by himself. In the distance I saw the people starting to gather, familiar faces and unfamiliar ones both mingling together as they saw the flying thunder eagle up in the skies.


    With a crackle of the reins, Cao Chen sped up the cart as the cart moved faster, rushing downhill to the entrance of the Taizhou. The village stood, waiting for us to arrive with the village head at the front.


    Slowly, we reached in front of the crowd as the cart settled to a stop an I jumped off. Guo Zou, the head, walked up to me. ¡°It is an honour to have you with us, cultivators,¡± the village head greeted. ¡°Please, allow us.¡±


    A few men, which I recognised to be the miners I¡¯d saved with Liuxiang walked to our cart, and began to pick up all the things we¡¯d carried on the cart.


    ¡°I hope we¡¯re not intruding too much. I really appreciate you allowing us to stay with you,¡± I said to the village head, lightly bowing my head in thanks.


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    ¡°Nonsense. I would shame my ancestor¡¯s spirits if I could ever be so ungrateful to our benefactor,¡± the head said, shaking his head.


    The others stepped off the cart as well, Cao Chen and Su Lin helping the miners take the things off, while Labby, my spirits and Yan Yun walked up to stand by my side.


    Leiyu crackled with lightning, settling on Yan Yun¡¯s shoulders and I saw the villagers staring at all of us. I couldn¡¯t blame them either. We made for quite the crowd. Labby was wearing celestial clothes from the lunar court itself while Yan Yun emanated her Jade beauty aura despite lacking a cultivation base. My spirits on the other hand made for quite the attraction simply due to their nature as spirits.


    ¡°What took you so long, boy?¡± a familiar old woman¡¯s voice reached me.


    I turned and saw a familiar wrinkled face heading towards me, a smoking pipe grasped in her other hand. ¡°Made a damn mess at the tournament too, what were you thinking?¡± Granny Lang said in a gruff voice.


    ¡°It¡¯s good to see you too granny Lang,¡± I said with a smile.


    The old woman snorted but did not pursue. ¡°That old bastard wouldn¡¯t have been happy if something had happened to you. I¡¯m glad to see you in one piece boy,¡± she added in a quieter voice.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure there¡¯s a lot to be discussed. So please, come and have some tea. The miners will see to your items, and put them at the place for you to stay at,¡± the Village head said, and I nodded, following inside.


    To my surprise, none of my spirits or friends followed me inside the village head¡¯s place, except Yan Yun, who trailed behind quietly with Leiyu on her shoulders. I turned to see Labby being prodded and pulled at curiously by the young children of the village. Many were fascinated by her sparkling dress that shifted and moved around as if defying gravity. My little spirit turned to me, her eyes confused and slightly scared.


    ¡°Go and have some fun with the kids, Labby,¡± I sent to her, and she nodded, going along with the children. A moment later, I glanced at Sheldon who understood my intention without me having to say anything.


    Silently, the turtle followed behind Labby, taking Twilight and Silverlight with him.


    Satisfied, I followed into the village head¡¯s home. Walking in, I took a seat in the guest chamber on little cushions set on the floor, next to Yan Yun who sat next to me. A small wooden table was in front of us, on the other side of which the village head sat, eyes narrowed and his portly belly larger than the last time I¡¯d seen him.


    ¡°I hope everything is going well?¡± I asked the village head.


    ¡°Oh, more than well. Old lady Lang has been an immense help, teaching many of the women about her craft. We have medicine to sell to the city now if we so wish, and there¡¯s been a lot fewer illnesses. The three brothers have also been immensely helpful, chasing off any stray spirits and pests trying to get into the herb storages. And now to have you here as well. It is truly a blessing.¡±


    I already knew about the little details from the letters from Zhang, but I still smiled regardless when I heard it from the village head¡¯s mouth.


    Footsteps moved towards us and I moved towards the door. A girl, roughly around Yan Yun¡¯s age, opened the door, carrying a tray with cups of tea. Walking closer, she gently placed the warm and still steaming tea down, nodding briefly to me once. I quickly recognised her to be the village head¡¯s daughter Yin. I nodded my head once to her in acknowledgement, noticing her gaze linger on me for a moment before she walked out of the chamber.


    Silently, I picked up the tea-cups, taking a sip of the warm tea. The taste felt a bit bland to me, given how used I¡¯d gotten to mixing in spirit herbs into food anytime I ate, which in itself was becoming less and less often.


    Yan Yun didn¡¯t touch hers, sitting next to me in silence.


    ¡°Is there something you wished to discuss, honoured cultivator?¡± the village head asked, looking at me with his typical nervous expression that made it seem like he was perpetually sweating.


    ¡°Please, call me Lu Jie. And in truth, I have a lot of things to discuss. Plans for this place, and what I will be doing as well. But seeing as we¡¯ve just arrived here, I¡¯ll leave those talks for later. For now, I just wanted to ask what the arrangements for our stay might be, and how I can pay you for them.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to do any such thing. We¡¯ve got enough room for all of you to stay comfortably. Please, allow us to do this much at the very least,¡± the village head said.


    ¡°Are you sure? Surely it will be an imposition if we have to stay with the other families, especially if it¡¯s for a longer period of time,¡± I asked, raising my eyebrow.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to be concerned over that. The young lady can stay with my daughter, who should be more than delighted to have a friend who would stay with her. I¡¯ve also arranged for a place for you,¡± the village head said.


    ¡°Oh, I- is that alright?¡± Yan Yun asked, looking at the village head.


    ¡°What are you saying, young lady? It is a great honour to have the granddaughter of Elder Yan live with us,¡± the village head said, and I saw Yan Yun¡¯s expression fall. She hid the brief lapse quickly, but not enough for it to go unnoticed by the village head.


    ¡°This can be a good experience for you too, Yan Yun. A change of perspective, among other things.¡±


    Yan Yun looked at me, returning a silent nod. Leiyu looked back at me, the eagle¡¯s eyes as critical as ever.


    ¡°Where would I be staying then?¡± I asked, trying to focus the conversation to a different topic.


    ¡°Uhh- that. I¡¯ll have to ask the villagers,¡± the village head replied. I¡¯d been ignoring the various tells for a while now, thinking he had just been more nervous than normal around me, perhaps sensing the change in my cultivation, or hearing some stupid rumour from the sect, but perhaps I was wrong.


    The door to the village head¡¯s chambers opened with a clatter, as she walked into the chamber, looking at me. ¡°Su Lin needs you boy. Something of yours that he needs help to move,¡± the Granny said.


    I nodded, getting up. Giving my gratitude to the village head one last time, I made my way out with the granny, as we began to walk to the other end of the village.


    We walked a bit further outside the homes that lined the perimeter of Taizhou, and I saw the surprise that the village head and granny Lang had been trying to hide. A section of the land near the western edge of the village, next to the Qi vein had been tilled. Little spirit herbs grew in small patches here and there, at what looked like failed attempts at growing them, yet enough were here to fill the air with Qi. A fence was erected around the perimeter of the garden, going all the way back and behind what was the real surprise, one that made my eyes widen in surprise when I saw it.


    A little home sat on the hill, made of cut stone and wood, looking snugly set on the landscape. Yet its features were not something I would expect to see here of all places. It was built with wood, its features a mix of the architecture of this world and mine.


    The granny turned towards me, as I stared at her in surprise. ¡°Among the various plans you''d given, Su Lin had taken the blueprints for the school. Using some connections in the city that he had, he¡¯d asked to see if he could get a home-made in the given design. It¡¯s not perfect, and neither did it come cheap, but Tian Feng had been willing to pay for it. The villagers also chipped in however they could. We''ll likely need you to take a look around, but this is our gift to you. For saving Zhang, and all the town folks here.¡±


    I didn¡¯t reply, silently walking towards the house. Reaching the door, I pressed my hand against the wood. I found it difficult to think. None of this felt real.


    ¡°Oi, he¡¯s here!¡± I heard a shout from inside, as Su Lin opened the door.


    ¡°Whatchu standing for gawking like an idiot? Come take a look!¡± Su Lin said, pulling me in.


    I felt both surprised and more than a little embarrassed by the tears that glistened in my eyes, as I hurriedly wiped them away, taking the place in. Walking through the rooms, I felt the tightness in my chest grow greater and greater.


    As I walked to the last room, Zhang greeted me, showing me a room made exactly in the design of the lab I had made. I walked in, feeling more than a little overwhelmed


    ¡°Welcome home, brother,¡± Zhang said, and I found a strange emotion well up in my chest, clamming my throat.


    How long has it been since I had a home? Since I belonged somewhere?


    I moved in, taking Zhang and Su Lin in a tight hug. With happy tears in my eyes, I whispered. ¡°I¡¯m home.¡±

 [B2] 2 — Settling In

    Moving into a new place was a lot of work. It always surprised me to realize how many things I owned when I¡¯d still been living with the sect. Nostalgia both new and old overcame me, at the various items I¡¯d found. A lot of the things my old self had owned before I¡¯d awakened were mixed in with things I¡¯d gotten in the few months that I¡¯d been there. It took a couple of days to sort everything out, and only now was I finally happy with where things belonged.


    I stood by my desk, sorting my notes one by one, before placing them on the new shelf that I¡¯d built. The move had caused me to go on a rampant sorting and cleaning frenzy as I began to order the chaotic mess I¡¯d been living in. It was difficult to believe how I¡¯d put up with it for so long.


    After placing the last one of my books onto my shelf, I walked back, taking a look at my new room. It was larger, with a desk by the window, and a shelf next to the walls. I¡¯d moved the spirit herbs to the garden outside for obvious reasons. They¡¯d still need to be planted and I would need to re-establish my spirit anchor to the new garden but that was work for later.


    Taking one last look, I walked out to check in on the other rooms.


    Right next to my room was Labby¡¯s, half the size with a smaller bed for her. I felt a little surprised to not find her sleeping in, given how early it was still. Walking in, I quickly sensed the little bag full of spirit herbs hiding under her bed. I shook my head, but decided to let her have her treats.


    Moving on from the room, I walked across the corridor into the section that excited me the most. My lab. Walking into the door, I saw a giant mess of wooden beams and counters made of carved stones lying around. The lab was still under work, with a large space dedicated for my shelves filled with spirit herbs. A heat retaining almost kiln like structure was partially set up around my cauldron for retaining heat, and the counter had some of my test projects for a new bunsen burner prototype that I was working on, alongside a bunch of porcelain bowls.


    I walked in, looking around as I mentally mapped everything that I would set up in here. It would be an ongoing process for a while yet, but the time factor only made me excited for when it would finally be completed.


    Moving on from my lab, I began to make my way out of my home. The spirit herb garden greeted me, still patchy and rough in places but starting to take shape. I could see tiny buds of spirit herbs starting to grow from the soil.


    I made my way around the garden, all the way behind the home. It didn¡¯t take long before I could sense Sheldon and Twilight nearby. A small pond lay behind my home, and I watched Sheldon splashing inside. Twilight sat on his back, riding the turtle like a boat as her chiming laughter echoed like ringing bells through the wind.


    ¡°Oh, Lu Jie. I didn¡¯t notice you coming,¡± Cao Chen said, the boy standing near the shore, watching my spirits play around.


    ¡°I¡¯ve learned to be more quiet,¡± I said to the boy. ¡°Thanks for doing all this by the way. Sheldon has been quite happy.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t even mention it. I enjoyed it just as much as your spirit did,¡± the boy replied, and I nodded in gratitude. He¡¯d helped Sheldon out in the process of digging a giant hole to create this small pond for him.


    ¡°Chii!¡±


    I heard Twilight chime, as she noticed me standing nearby. I waved towards her and she jumped up, waving back at me. Sheldon swam to the shore and Twilight jumped off his back, demanding to be held. I picked the little plant spirit, before placing her on my head, as per her demands.


    ¡°Done playing?¡± I asked Twilight.


    ¡°Done!¡± she replied, raising her hands in the air in excitement. Twilight had been getting better and better with speaking through words, though she still had a lot she needed to pick up on.


    ¡°By the way, have you seen Labby? And Zhang?¡± I asked Cao Chen.


    ¡°La Bi was playing with some children, if I remember right. Brother Zhang is in his training area as usual.¡±


    I nodded in thanks to Cao Chen, picking Sheldon up in my arms as well, before I began to make my way in search for the two.


    To my surprise, Labby was the first one I found. She was sleeping on the grass with a girl and a boy next to her. Siblings, if I remembered right. Both children of a miner I¡¯d saved from the Qi vein.


    I smiled watching Labby breathing easily as she slept, flowers and grass adorning her little head. There had been no one for her to play with besides me, Twilight and Sheldon in the sect, and seeing her playing with kids that were close to her age, at least in maturity, made me feel a strange warmth in my chest. As if at last, I was finally able to provide her what I should¡¯ve been able to from the start.


    ¡°Labby,¡± I whispered, moving closer. ¡°Hey, my little lightning girl. Get up.¡±


    Labby stirred awake at my voice, opening her blurry eyes to look at me. ¡°Master,¡± she muttered, rubbing her eyes as she got up.


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    ¡°Yup. We need to do a check-up, come on,¡± I said, patting Labby on her head. I could already sense her dantian¡¯s crack starting to mend. I¡¯d had Granny Lang check her after we¡¯d arrived, and she¡¯d given an all clear, with full recovery taking just a week or two.


    Labby slowly pulled up from the grass, sleep still lingering in her eyes. The two children next to her also rustled awake from their slumber, rising. The boy woke up first, his eyes widening when he saw my face.


    ¡°I need to go with Master,¡± Labby told the boy, grabbing onto my sleeve.


    ¡°Oh, okay¡­ see you La Bi!¡± The boy shouted, waving cheerfully. Labby waved back happily, before walking up to my side.


    ¡°Friends?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Mhm,¡± Labby replied, yawning. I pet her little head, plucking stands of grass off of it. ¡°It¡¯s still a bit strange that you¡¯re a human girl now. Feeling more used to it?¡±


    Labby gave me a lazy nod. ¡°Feels nice. And like Master, Labby can use her hands! With her weird strange fingers. Still not very used to them. But good,¡± Labby said, wiggling her fingers as she showed off her hands to me.


    I smiled before an idea came to me. ¡°Hold on, let me show you something cool we can do with our hands,¡± I said, before folding my thumb and presenting it in front of her.


    ¡°You see, if I focus just right, I can make this finger come off,¡± I said, as I pretended to pull off my thumb, before moving my hand away. To her, the thumb looked like it had been separated from my hand.


    ¡°Master!¡± Labby shouted in shock, but I continued.


    ¡°And now, I can just throw it back in and it reattaches,¡± I said, putting the thumb back in place, as I wiggled my fingers around to show her I was fine.


    Labby¡¯s mouth dropped, before she looked down at her own tiny hands. She tugged at her finger, moving it around, before looking up at me. ¡°Labby¡¯s fingers can¡¯t do that?¡±


    I laughed, patting her head. ¡°Maybe one day I¡¯ll show you how it¡¯s done,¡± I told Labby, before we continued to walk further.


    I walked around with Labby in tow for a few minutes, before I heard loud shouts and striking noises coming from nearby. Letting my senses guide me, I soon found Zhang with a wooden spear, as he swung it on a dummy target wrapped around a tree.


    ¡°Hey!¡± I called out, waving my hand. ¡°It¡¯s time.¡±


    The boy nodded at me, wiping the sweat dripping down his forehead. I gave Zhang a moment, as he changed out of his clothes, sorting his gear, before he followed me out into the clearing.


    ¡°Training your spear huh?¡± I asked, before holding back a snort as I realized how that sounded. But the boy didn¡¯t seem to pick up on it.


    ¡°Yes. Can¡¯t let myself get rusty. Even if I¡¯m not physically what I used to be, I still want to keep my skills sharp. It¡¯s why I¡¯ve been practicing my spear daily out here by myself,¡± Zhang replied.


    It was nothing short of a miracle that stopped me from laughing at Zhang¡¯s words. The laughter almost suffocated me as I pushed it down into my chest.


    ¡°Sounds like a good use of your time,¡± I said after a few long moments. Zhang nodded, and I decided to remain quiet as we walked back together.


    As we reached back to my place, I noticed Silverlight and Nyan playing in the garden. Little Silverlight exclaimed as she ran around being chased and pawed playfully at Nyan. Twilight chimed at the sight, ready to join in, but I held her in place.


    ¡°Settle down guys!¡± I shouted to the two. The little bugger stopped in her tracks, before rushing towards me with a jumble of chirps, and chimes. I suspected the reason for her excitement had more to do with Twilight than me, but I pretended otherwise anyway.


    I let Zhang pick Silverlight up, and before I could even say anything to Nyan, he was already gone off somewhere. Shrugging, I took Labby and Zhang further inside.


    Two little seats were put inside the chamber I took Labby and Zhang to. I beckoned the two to sit forward, before I took a seat opposite of them, letting Sheldon down next to me.


    ¡°It¡¯d been a while since I had looked at either of your cores. For Labby, I just need to see how the healing is working,¡± I said, glancing at Labby, who returned a nod to me. Though her attention still seemed to be on figuring out how to detach her thumb. ¡°Zhang, now that Silverlight is here, I¡¯ll be trying to see if we can fix your core or not.¡±


    The boy gave me a serious nod, and I returned one. ¡°I¡¯ll begin with Labby,¡± I said, before turning towards her.


    I pressed my hand against Labby¡¯s abdomen, a brief memory of the old man¡¯s soothing voice as he¡¯d done the same returning to me.


    ¡°Cycle the Qi through your core. Let it flow inside you,¡± I said, focusing my senses on Labby. Sheldon chirped, his voice somewhere far in the distance, as my spirit began to drift, flowing into Labby¡¯s.


    My awareness split, my mind sunken into her core as I let my senses take over. Reaching in my soul, I reached out for the tree growing inside, and let its roots spread. The spirit anchor moved within her core, as I felt my vitality being shared with hers. The cracks within her dantian had healed for the most part, as I pulsed my Qi into her core, cycling it, and filling in any gaps that remained. She would heal soon.


    I opened my eyes, and saw Labby sitting across me, her eyes pressed shut.


    ¡°How do you feel Labby?¡±


    ¡°Squeak!¡± Labby hiccuped, before catching herself. ¡°Umm, good! Labby feels better now.¡±


    I laughed, feeling relieved at her response.


    Done with that, I turned towards Zhang. I could hear the boy¡¯s heart, beating like a drum. Thud. Thud. Thud.


    I extended my hands towards Zhang, letting him grasp them. ¡°You need to form a bond with Silverlight,¡± I told Zhang. He nodded.


    ¡°Alright. Twilight, can you tell Silverlight to sit next to Sheldon. I¡¯ll need to take her with me for this,¡± I said, and Twilight chimed. Jumping off Zhang¡¯s shoulders, she ran up to Sheldon, and Silverlight followed her.


    I settled in my place, and closed my eyes.


    I reached out to Silverlight with my spirit, beckoning her closer. The little plant¡¯s spirit brushed against mine, as I felt a jumble of thoughts and concepts reach me.


    ¡°Chii!¡± Twilight chimed, encouragingly as Silverlight grasped onto my spirit.


    ¡°Chirp!¡± Sheldon¡¯s voice came, as I felt the tug at my spirit. Carrying the little spirit with him, he took us both away from our bodies, and into the darkness inside Zhang¡¯s core.

 [B2] 3 — Mending Cracks

    A lotus tree swayed in the darkness, sitting amidst a serene lake. I watched the calm waters lapping at the shore of unending nothingness, flowing in and then out. The light from the tree added life to the dreary void around me.


    ¡°Sii?¡± Silverlight called out. She was seated atop Sheldon¡¯s back, her silvery eyes taking everything in with a child¡¯s curiosity when taken to a new place, or given a new toy. I saw her gaze at the lotus with fascination, before her eyes moved upwards.


    Following her gaze, I looked up and saw a ring of silver, donning the sky. But what should¡¯ve been a brightly glowing ring of spirit and strength, lay dull, cracked and frayed, devoid of life. Roots spread throughout the ring, woven around its cracks. Essence coursed through them, into the little ring inside here, pulsating energy into them. I could feel the tie to the roots, from deep within my soul, a stop-gap, that held Zhang¡¯s spirit in place.


    A rumble took my attention to Sheldon, who stood next to me in his massive spirit form. So easy to forget that my small playful turtle was an Elder spirit beast, capable of so much destruction.


    ¡°Focus. The cycle needs mending,¡± Sheldon said, eyes moving upwards at the cracked ring.


    I nodded, and stepped towards the ring. Briefly, I reminded myself of the nature of this realm. Spirits had no gravity, no dimension, and no form. What was the ground beneath my feet may very well be air, and the air I stepped on, solid ground.


    I raised one foot awkwardly in the air, and let Chi pulse from beneath. I tried to push, like climbing a stair, and found my feet wobbling, the control on my Chi slipping.


    ¡°Too tied to the outside. Be free of the chains. And believe. The spirit defines this realm,¡± Sheldon said, calmly ascending up into the air with Twilight on his back.


    Trying not to be left behind, I took another step, this time keeping my eyes firmly on the glowing spirit ring in the sky. The step came, and then another. My feet wobbled less and less, as I climbed up into the air itself.


    Air stepping. A difficult technique to learn outside in the real world. But so simple in here. I let the sensation of exhilarating freedom take me, as I broke my chains that had held me to the ground all my life, and stepped up into the skies. Soon, I was walking high above into the darkness, watching the lotus sway with its gentle light amidst the lake that floated in the void.


    ¡°Must learn. We have carried Lu Jie so far. But now, must walk by himself,¡± Sheldon said, looking at me as he swam through the skies. His eyes closed for a brief moment, and I saw a stream of words resonate in my head, clearer than ever.


    ¡°When you leave behind the chains of the physical, they too forsake you. There will not be a ground for you to land on, do not let go of your focus, and lose your step, or you will plunge down into the depths of this spirit, lost forever in the void that separates the beyond from our souls.¡±


    I looked down, at the endless dark, before gulping. ¡°I feel like I should¡¯ve been informed of this before I took off into the skies.¡±


    ¡°Just don¡¯t fall,¡± Sheldon replied, letting out a low rumble, as I sensed his amusement. I rolled my eyes, before following behind the turtle.


    Steadily, we made our way to the circle, soon reaching the massive, ethereal ring of silver light. From this close, I could sense the little wisps of Qi coming off of the ring of what must be pure energy. Gently, I placed my hand upon the ring, feeling a cold sensation return back to me.


    ¡°Mysteries upon mysteries. And I merely keep being swallowed by them, pushed around and led on wild chases. Never any closer to the answer,¡± I said, watching the ring.


    ¡°The rings of cultivation. But if immortality was merely a lie formed by the Heavens, then what even is the goal? What lies at the end?¡± I asked, remembering the words told to me in my trial. Immortality came at a price. The price of Gu, and demons. But if the path I walk brings death back into the fold then¡­ What''s the goal?


    ¡°Unknown. Uncertain. But different. For you to find.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not necessarily better is it? The heavens created freedom from the cycle of death of rebirth? You know, enlightenment and whatnot, as you reach the heavens and become immortal. That sounds fairly nice.¡±


    Sheldon shook his head. ¡°They create, false life. They fear death. Freedom lies beyond life and death. Beyond the cycle. The cycle is a trap. One to be escaped. That is the purpose of our Paths.¡±


    I heard the turtle¡¯s booming words, and decided to ruminate on them at a later point.


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    Closing my eyes, I focused on my soul, on the little tree inside of it. I let the Chi from my core flood my body, as the roots tied around the spirit ring within Zhang¡¯s core, began to shift.


    My senses expanded, taking in every crack, every break in the ethereal ring. I sensed my own soul, tied together with Zhang¡¯s. Breathing in, I used my expanded senses to guide the Qi. I guided my Qi into the ring, guiding my essence into the cracks.


    The Gu in his spirit had corrupted the ring. Corroded it down. The lotus tree filled his core with Qi, yet the spirit that was supposed to channel it. The ring, the heart of his cultivation, was still broken.


    Letting the roots of the spirit tree inside me guide the Qi, I allowed it to flow into Zhang¡¯s. A glimmering light began to glow inside the darkness, energy once again flowing within his spirit. But the happiness didn¡¯t last. I sensed the Qi, flowing outwards, through the seems and cracks, and outside his spirit. This would not do.


    Changing my plans, I stopped the flow of Qi. Glancing down, I stepped towards the lotus tree instead. Sheldon following my lead, taking Silverlight with him.


    The lotus sat silently at the centre of the lake. No wind rustled its many petals, or swayed its odd branches as it bathed the darkness in its gentle light. It was like the sole star on a dark moonless night, guiding lost travellers.


    Stepping down through the void, I felt my feet touch the water, and my eyes widened in surprise. What I¡¯d expected to be a manifestation of water was instead Qi. Yet, not in any shape or form. It was as if the ethereal Qi had been slowly given a denser form, distilled into droplets like pure water that shimmered and glowed in the dark. The Qi-water stirred and rustled and crashed at the shore, reacting to my presence near it. Splashes flew up into the air and turned to mist, flowing around the lotus that sat in the middle.


    Moving closer, I let myself submerge partially into the water. Moving through, I set my palm against the trunk of the tree, upon which the lotus flower blossomed.


    I sensed the Qi that flowed inside of it, connected to the miniature tree growing inside my soul. The tree within my spirit was tied to this one, and the cycle of Qi it circulated in this dark expanse.


    ¡°Sii!¡± Silverlight exclaimed, jumping down into the water, as she splashed around, drinking in the Qi-water and giggling like she¡¯d just found a lake full of candy. In a way, she really had.


    ¡°I¡¯m assuming you have no idea what this is either,¡± I asked Sheldon.


    The turtle shook his head. ¡°Unknown and new.¡±


    I looked at the crashing surface of the Qi lake i in front of me, and the tree around, before my eyes went down to the submerged lotus tree, and it¡¯s roots spreading deep below.


    ¡°Wanna take a swim?¡± I asked Sheldon.


    My reply was a jet of water splashing me, before the giant turtle dipped in as well, picking up an ecstatic Silverlight on his back.


    I gasped for air, before remembering I had no need for something like that. It felt strange to let the Qi-water flow into my lungs, and stomach, alien, almost, and the sensation made me want to escape, but the feeling subsided within moments, as I began to swim through the water.


    Following the lotus tree, I swam further and further down, following it¡¯s twisting branches, before I found the base. Through the endless void, now rested land, dark, and unformed, it was like a word that was about to be spoken, not fully there, but not absent either.


    Gently, I let my feet settle onto the ground, as I watched the roots of the tree weave into the darkness, and carve a piece of reality into it. I looked up, and saw Sheldon, looking at the same thing.


    ¡°What do you think?¡± I asked the turtle.


    ¡°New Paths. Perhaps with the little Silver-lily-of-life,¡± Sheldon responded.


    ¡°Is that the name you have for her?¡± I asked, as the half name half concept flowed into my head. It was¡­ accurate. Far more than any name could ever hope to be. ¡°What¡¯s your name for me?¡± I asked, feeling curious.


    ¡°Asks-too-many-questions,¡± Sheldon replied, and I snorted at the turtle¡¯s snark. Finding content with what I¡¯d found, I swam around through the Qi water, letting it flow through my spirit, and soak into me as I made my way out.


    Stepping out into the lake, and above the Qi-water, I turned to face Silverlight.


    ¡°Can you bind this with that thing above?¡± I asked Silverlight, pointing my finger at the lotus tree first, and then up at the ring floating above.


    ¡°Sii?¡± The plant spirit asked, and I heard Sheldon¡¯s rumble. I followed up after the turtle, slowly distilling the concept to the spirit. It took her a bit, but soon, the little plant nodded her head.


    After making sure she understood, I reached out with my spirit, guiding the Qi water around, and towards Silverlight.


    ¡°I¡¯ll step in if I think there¡¯s a problem. But the rest is in your hands, Silverlight,¡± I said.


    ¡°Sii!¡± Silverlight explained, as she confidently patted her chest, the flower on her head bobbing around.


    Looking at the spirit once more, I nodded, before letting go of my hold over Zhang¡¯s soul. The roots from my spirit receded, as the world shuddered. Cracks appeared in darkness, stirring the lake below, as Zhang¡¯s core began to collapse once more.


    The lotus shuddered, lighting up, as the plant spirit began to glow. Qi flowed from her body, swirling through the tree, lighting up its petals as they flew around in a swirling wind.


    Tens, hundreds, thousands of shining leaves swirled around the tree. I stood mesmerized at the sight, watching the tree shudder, before it began to grow. The tree spread high up into the sky, branches reaching upwards. Little vines reached out to the ring in the dark sky, twirling around it.


    The tree rose higher and higher, encompassing the ring inside Zhang¡¯s core in the bosom of its branches. Silvery light from the ring flowed into the tree, and down into its root, before spreading throughout the core.


    I turned towards Sheldon, before nodding. I¡¯d done my job, the rest would be on Silverlight.


    With a rumble from Sheldon, the darkness swirled around me, dragging me out from Zhang¡¯s core.

 [B3] 1 — The Start of Winter

    Zhang watched the wind blow past him, carrying a chill with them. Snow would fall soon. He clutched his spear, Gravity Chi swirling around his body as he slowly descended from the skies.


    ¡°Senior Zhang. We¡¯ve scouted the area. No demonic beasts were found,¡± the disciple said, bowing to him. Zhang nodded, glancing behind the man within the sect walls. ¡°How¡¯s the training with the explosive arrows going?¡±


    ¡°Good. The elders proficient in archery have already taken up quick usage of the tool, while a bunch of morta- trainees are swiftly picking upon their usage. There is one group in particular, led by Xiao Lan which is nearly ready to be taken out into the forests,¡± the boy replied, as the two of them began to walk around the wall. Zhang nodded, taking a stock of the city beyond from the walls.


    Over the last month the city had seen more change than possibly in the last five years. The city walls were enforced, alongside the walls of the sect, the population of the seventh peak city had swelled to numbers never seen before as every village nearby had rushed to the city to take refuge from the demonic beasts in winter, as the tales of mortals awakening spread like wildfire among the empire.


    Given the increasing need to train the rising population of newly founded cultivators, and the upcoming winter, Zhang had been thrust into a position of commanding by Lu Jie. He¡¯d protested at first, not willing to leave Lu Jie¡¯s side and leave him vulnerable, but he¡¯d lost that argument rather quickly.


    ¡°What about the scouts?¡± Zhang asked the boy, glancing out into the forests beyond.


    ¡°Nothing, sir. We¡¯ve been searching deep into the forests now, and after the initial tremors, almost all signs of demonic activities have vanished without trace,¡± the boy replied.


    Zhang let out a breath, the vapours forming around his math. ¡°Alright, head back now. I¡¯ll make one final round.¡±


    Gravity Chi swept over his body as his feet left the ground, and he took to the skies. The world slowly fell away, as he rose into the skies, near the clouds and then beyond. He saw the world under him, taking in the sights of everything he knew and had known now be encompassed in this single glance.


    How truly insignificant were they all in front of nature? And yet. Resiliant enough to carve it to their own wills.


    Zhang¡¯s gaze swept around the area, his senses spreading out far beyond his own body as he took stock of anything unnatural. Slowly moving through the skies, looking down upon the city and then beyond, into the woods.


    The landscape was white, with patches of brown between. The leaves had fallen in the wake of winter, yet some life resisted, more resistant than others. Zhang took in the changes to his home, watching the city changing faster than he could keep up with, yet his focus was on the beyond.


    He could feel it, on the edge of his senses, beyond the domain of the Divine Tree. Something lurking beneath the earth, waiting. And he did not like it. He knew they were there, creatures of death and destruction, and he¡¯d much preferred them when they¡¯d simply been mindless beasts.


    Moving through the skies, Zhang flew over the village of Taizhou. The houses remained empty now, all the villagers having shifted into the city itself as winter arrived. Moving through the area, Zhang flew around till he found what he was looking for. Slowly descending from the skies, Zhang landed the lab, finding Yin inside, guiding her newer students.


    ¡°O-oh, Zhang,¡± Yin said, lightly bowing her head. The girls around her looked at him with wide eyes, some with reverence, others with fear. Zhang paid them no attention.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Brother Jie?¡± Zhang asked.


    ¡°Lu- Elder Jie is not here. He left a few hours ago.¡± Yin replied.


    Zhang nodded, ready to turn back around when his eyes caught what was in Yin¡¯s eyes. ¡°Is that¡­?¡±


    Yin looked down, and then gave a nod. ¡°Yup! We¡¯re working on the gun. I managed to make a working prototype with a slightly tuned up drugnade. Though some have been requesting that we pick easier to speak names for these.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll mention it to brother Jie,¡± Zhang said and then paused. ¡°Do you know where he might¡¯ve gone?¡±


    ¡°I think he went to check on the drug factory,¡± Yin replied.


    ¡°Thanks,¡± Zhang said, walking out of the lab as he took back to the air. Flying over the city, he found himself landing in an area on the outskirts of the outer city. A rather unassuming building from the outside, if you didn¡¯t know what existed within it.


    Stepping inside, the giant steel cauldrons greeted Zhang, with spirit crystals set in lattices underneath, generating flames as spirit herbs were being distilled inside. Steam escaped the lids of the giant cauldrons, formation arts and engravings carved upon them to assist in the flow of Qi through the metallic frame. Many alchemists worked here, running the equipment and making sure nothing went wrong with the production.


    ¡°What brings you here boy?¡± a familiar voice called from nearby.


    Zhang turned, greeting granny Lang. ¡°Greetings Granny. I¡¯m looking for Brother Jie.¡±


    The old Granny let out smoke from her mouth, holding her pipe in between her fingers. ¡°Ah, he left some time ago. Seemed to have headed to the market. Something to discuss with Su Lin. Leaving him aside, how¡¯ve you been doing boy? You¡¯ve been working hard for quite some time now.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m good, Granny. Just trying to make sure we aren¡¯t caught off guard with anything that¡¯s to come,¡± Zhang replied.


    The granny nodded at his words. ¡°Caution is good my boy, but make sure you take some time to rest too. Cultivators though we may be, we¡¯re not immortals.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll keep it in mind,¡± Zhang replied.


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    ¡°Somehow, I doubt you will. But I suppose that¡¯s why an old woman like me is here, to remind the younger generation to not forget things in their youthful vigor,¡± the old granny said, taking a breath from her smoking pipe.


    ¡°How¡¯s things been going on granny? I didn¡¯t know you were working here,¡± Zhang asked.


    ¡°I come around every now and then. Gotta check in on these kids, make sure they don¡¯t break anything. Even I don¡¯t understand all the process involved in developing this. The boy sure as hell doesn¡¯t. A bunch of formation artists and engravers worked on the cauldrons. But alchemy is still alchemy, and I can help with that much.¡±


    Zhang smiled. ¡°Your help has been invaluable.¡±


    ¡°You bet it has been. You kids are as blind as they come to any finesse. This right here? This isn¡¯t craft. It¡¯s fine to work towards progressing things, but that boy needs to remember the craft that goes within the soul of Alchemy.¡±


    Zhang bowed. ¡°I¡¯ll relay the message.¡±


    The granny snorted, clearly not as angry as she put on to be. ¡°Go, before you lose him again.¡±


    Raising his head, Zhang left the factory behind, taking back to the skies as he headed towards the market. The city, while still recovering, had nearly doubled in population with the influx of people. Normally the months of winter would be full of starving villagers trying to find shelter and food, but with the many ideas Brother Jie had brought forth, the city had begun rapidly expanding. The blessings of Chi kept everyone safer, more and more mortals now awakening to the energy and finding themselves walking upon an entirely new Path.


    With less mortals, food demands could be focused on other things, work could go on longer, and more people¡¯s needs were taken care of. It was still surreal to watch, as Zhang flew through the skies, to see how much the world around him was changing.


    Making his way across the Seventh Peak city, Zhang slowly landed near the market hub, sensing Su Lin present there, arguing with some men.


    ¡°Is something the matter?¡± Zhang asked, descending from the skies, as he eyed the men nearby.


    ¡°Nothing brother, just some old thugs that¡¯re having trouble accepting the new way things work. I¡¯ll get them in line soon,¡± Su Lin said, glancing sideways at the thugs. Zhang looked at the men- or rather, boys. None of them were older than twenty, and all in rough shape more or less.


    ¡°Ya can¡¯t just take over all this and expect us to sit around and do nothing,¡± one of the boys spat. ¡°We worked for Silver Fang. He¡¯s gonna bring ya down.¡±


    ¡°And where is this Silver Fang of yours? Ran to some other city when things started to go bad? Accept your reality you dumbasses. You¡¯re being given a chance to actually make something of your lives,¡± Su Lin said, glaring at them.


    ¡°What do ya know you backstabbing rat. Ya left us,¡± one of the boys said.


    ¡°I left ya cuz yer an idiot, and Silver Fang was no better than the louts in the sect. I wasn¡¯t gonna go from the thumb of one asshole to another,¡± Su Lin said, grabbing the collar of the boy.


    ¡°Who says this Lu Jie isn¡¯t just like them? He¡¯s some lord chosen prodigy, what¡¯s he to know of our problems?¡±


    Su Lin glared at the boy, ready to snap back when Zhang held them back.


    ¡°You don¡¯t trust Brother Jie, is that correct?¡± Zhang asked.


    The boy looked at him nervously, before giving him a nod. ¡°Very well, then take this token and head to the sect. Tell them to give you enough gold to be able to move to the sixth peak, and settle there for winter. You¡¯ll have enough to live through winter, and setup a new life for all of you.¡±


    The boy stared at the token, eyes wide.


    ¡°Or, you can take this token to the sect and tell them you want to work for them. Ask them what pay you¡¯ll get, and then make your own choice for yourself,¡± Zhang said, handing the token into the boy¡¯s hand.


    The boy stared at him, before glancing at Su Lin in surprise. A moment later, he turned, followed by the other kids, as they walked away.


    ¡°You¡¯re too nice on them,¡± Su Lin said.


    ¡°And you¡¯re too harsh,¡± Zhang replied.


    Su Lin clicked his tongue. ¡°Anyway, what brings you over. Aren¡¯t ya training a bunch of new recruits?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m looking for Brother Jie,¡± Zhang said.


    ¡°Ah, he¡¯s at the academy. Left a few minutes ago,¡± Su Lin added.


    Zhang sighed, before nodding. Su Lin laughed at his expression. ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s become quite busy hasn¡¯t he?¡±


    ¡°With his rank comes responsibilities. Many of them. But yes, he has,¡± Zhang said, a wry smile on his face.


    ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s gone and become a big man,¡± Su Lin added.


    ¡°Take care brother,¡± Zhang said, as gravity Chi flared around him and he went into the skies. Flying over the city, he reached the Lord¡¯s manor, upon rebuilding, which had been turned into an Academy for the entire Seventh Peak, at Lu Jie¡¯s request. Slowly descending down, he saw guards look at him warily for a moment, before they relaxed, sensing who he was.


    Nodding to the armed men, Zhang stepped inside, and found children running around everywhere. Many turned and looked at him, some with starry eyes, other with fear, as Zhang walked through, before reaching one of the classroom.


    ¡°Take a deep breath in. Let your Chi flow through you. Imagine it like a ball of warmth in your abdomen, collecting with your breath, before you release it out into the world.¡±


    Zhang watched Yan Yun seated inside, cross legged, as twenty children, all roughly the age of twelve or so sat in front of her, meditating.


    ¡°Could I have a moment?¡± Zhang asked, and Yan Yun opened her eyes.


    ¡°Oh Zhang. Kids, continue meditating, I¡¯ll be back,¡± Yan Yun said, standing up as she stepped outside. ¡°What brings you here?¡±


    ¡°Looking for Brother Jie.¡±


    ¡°Oh he just-¡°


    ¡°-left just now? Yeah that tracks,¡± Zhang said.


    Yan Yun giggled. ¡°Been looking for him a while huh?¡±


    Zhang gave a nod.


    ¡°Well, he¡¯ll be at the sect, some urgent task. Apparently the sect Patriarch is going to discuss his position as Elder of the seventh peak¡¯s cloudy peaks sect. They allowed him to take the role when everything was wrong but it seems like they¡¯re looking to strip him of the title now that the crisis has been averted,¡± Yan Yun said.


    ¡°The Patriarch?¡± Zhang asked.


    ¡°Yup. Grandfather was only an elder, the Patriarch lives in Azure city. He¡¯s really old,¡± Yan Yun said. ¡°Though Lu Jie also had a guest arrive from the Shie clan so he should be fine.¡±


    ¡°Is it Liuxiang?¡± Zhang asked.


    ¡°Unfortunately not. But one of his- or rather, her cousins,¡± Yan Yun said.


    Zhang nodded. ¡°Thank you.¡±


    ¡°No problem. And hey, if you find him, tell him the kids are looking to learn science again. I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll be happy to take another class.¡±


    Zhang smiled. ¡°I will.¡±


    With a flare of gravity Chi, he flew back up to the skies, using a little more than he¡¯d normally do as he moved towards the inner sect, passing through the wards easily. Flying to the central chambers, Zhang landed on the balcony, walking inside as he heard the voice he¡¯d been looking for.


    ¡°Damn old geezers. Making life hard for me.¡±


    ¡°Difficult though it may be, but with our support, the Patriarch should have no reason to hold you from your position,¡± the boy from the Shie clan said.


    ¡°I sure hope so,¡± Lu Jie replied.¡±


    ¡°Brother Jie,¡± Zhang called out.


    ¡°Oh Zhang, what brings you here?¡± Lu Jie asked, waving him in. Zhang followed, shutting the door behind, leaving the cold winds out as he stepped in.


    ¡°I have some concerning news,¡± Zhang said, giving a nod of acknowledgement to the Shie clan member before he turned to Lu Jie, and took a deep breath.


    ¡°The demons have vanished.¡±

 [B3] 2 — History of Demons

    I frowned at Zhang¡¯s words. ¡°All of them? What about the demonic beasts?¡± I asked.


    ¡°All of them brother, they have all vanished seemingly without a trace,¡± Zhang replied.


    ¡°That is¡­ unnatural,¡± Xi Shie¡ªthe diplomat from the Shie clan that had arrived here just a couple days ago¡ªremarked. Unlike Liuxiang, the boy did not possess the Shie bloodline and looked more or less like a normal person. It was startling how normal he was in fact, though some of the mannerisms I saw in Liuxiang were still definitely present in him.


    ¡°It¡¯d be great if they remained gone forever. The only issue is that I cannot bring myself to believe that¡¯s going to happen,¡± I replied.


    ¡°I appreciate the report, Zhang, it¡¯s something I¡¯ll need to discuss with Lord Zhou. For better or worse, I am lacking in knowledge and information about the demons.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not alone in that,¡± the Shie boy replied. ¡°The demons have been the eternal enemy, but for that fact, we know next to nothing about them.¡±


    I sighed. ¡°This is why I wanted access to the sect¡¯s resources. Those damned elders had to lock everything up before they left the sect.¡±


    ¡°We have managed to open up one of the treasuries within the inner sect, but the core vault is still locked. Elder Tian Feng is working on it as we speak,¡± Zhang replied.


    I nodded and Zhang¡¯s words, reminding myself to keep my internal thoughts quieter. What I said and what I did, now had more influence on other people than ever before. The thought made me hold back a sigh.


    ¡°Given our presence within the capital, we have had less interactions with demons than frontier settlements like the seventh peak. But the Shie clan still has warriors on the borders of the empire fighting demons so we aren¡¯t unaware of their abilities either. If the sect requires, our agreement could include helping provide information,¡± Xi Shie said.


    I looked at the boy, nodded, and gave a smile. ¡°That is a very generous offer, but I believe we will be able to obtain our own resources for now.¡±


    The boy¡¯s smile didn¡¯t slip an inch, as he maintained his even expression, continuing. ¡°Then I hope you will not mind if I just ramble about my knowledge regarding the demons.¡±


    I had a hard time rejecting that, and the boy knew it as he continued. I had to play their games. Diplomacy and politics was not something I was used to, while these clans had children learning it from the moment they could speak.


    I tried not to worry about the hidden price that this gift might bring. Despite my connection to Liuxiang, I had to treat the Shie as their own entity, separate from her. There was only one reason the clan was so willing to help me out.


    Heeding the fact that I could not take a favor at its face value anymore, I began to pay attention to the words being spoken.


    ¡°As you must be aware, the demonic activity is the highest in places near the borders of the Azure-Jade empire, places such as the seven celestial Peaks have always received and held back the brunt of the demonic movement. The mountain ranges of the peaks themselves allow for natural barriers to stop the demonic beasts from gaining ground,¡± Xi Shie said.


    I nodded at his words. That was basic history that everybody knew.


    ¡°This much is common knowledge. But what is not known, is what lies beyond the seven peaks,¡± Xi Shie said, glancing around the room, before picking up a brush and a piece of parchment as he began to draw.


    On the sheet, I saw seven mountains, forming a mountainous range that protected the empire¡¯s northern and western borders. Beyond it, mountains continued, rising ever higher into the skies.


    ¡°The seven celestial peaks are merely the start of the greater mountainous ranges that extend beyond the borders of the empire. Here, ancient elementals of snow and ice, and divine creatures from before the formation of the empire itself reside. It is they who protect our borders, killing most of the demons off. It is also within these places where many of the northern barbarians have formed settlements, beyond the mountain ranges and well into the plains that run across the greater continent beyond our empire. We know little of these people, besides their lack of societal structure, culture, and literacy. But if there¡¯s one thing they do not lack, it is strength, and the ability to fight,¡± Xi Shie said.


    I looked at the maps, intrigued by all this information. I had already known that the world was a large place, and our empire just a small piece of it, but this truly put into perspective just how much was out there.


    ¡°Our ancestor, the great Divine Serpent, had originally arrived from beyond these mountains. There are few who can match these creatures in strength, besides the Divinities,¡± Xi Shie said.


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    ¡°Do we not have any neighboring kingdoms to trade with?¡± I asked.


    ¡°There are certain Western kingdoms that trade through the Southern ocean, but beyond that, we are not aware of any besides the barbarians.¡±


    I hummed in thought to myself. That was one of the major differences between the history of my world and this one. The Azure-Jade empire was more or less isolated on the continent. Given the way it was cut off from both the North with the mountains and the South with the seas, it was more or less an island. That would explain the corruption, and the monolithic culture.


    Bringing my attention back to the map, I looked at where Xi is pointing.


    ¡°These are the southern borders, and beyond here are the lands that the demons have conquered. At the border is where the main front lines are, and the empire keeps a constant stream of cultivators and warriors standing at the front lines, engaging in an eternal war against them to hold back the invasion. Many young cultivators rise to prominence here at the frontlines, fighting against the demons. Many times we have tried to claim back the corrupted lands from the demons, but the miasma in the air prevents us from doing so. That¡¯s partly why holding these lines is so important to the existence of the empire. Any land that the demons can take from us, we will not be able to take back. These creatures corrupt everything they touch,¡± Xi said.


    I frowned, continuing to listen, as my mind went back to the images I had seen within the frame when bonding with Ash, and the deathless present there. Did the empire already know of their existence?


    ¡°Is there anything that we found when going to the demon lands,¡± I asked, looking at Xi.


    ¡°There were a few things we found out. The first was that demons did not like living above land. They do not like the sun, they do not like Qi, and thus their primary numbers exist underground, in caverns full of Gu where they can thrive easily. If not for that fact the empire would¡¯ve fallen ages ago.¡±


    I raised my eyebrow at the words. ¡°Don¡¯t we have a lot of powerful people of our own?¡±


    ¡°Indeed, we do. But strength is not the concern here,¡± Xi said, his expression shifting slightly, as he rolled up the map he¡¯d drawn. ¡°If the estimates we have are right¡­ for every cultivator we have, the demons outnumber us ten to one.¡±


    There was a moment of silence as both Zhang and I took in the number. A sprawling living empire, down underneath the earth that we knew nothing of.


    ¡°How have we held the battle lines so far?¡± Zhang asked.


    ¡°A combination of factors. Superior weaponry, better arts, better formations, and the demons are not a whole lot smarter than demonic beasts. This has allowed us to exploit their weaknesses. But¡­¡±


    I caught the trailing words. ¡°But now they¡¯re starting to become smarter.¡±


    Xi Shie gave me a nod.


    ¡°Do we know why they fight the empire? Is it even known when they first appeared? Or how, for that matter?¡± I asked.


    ¡°No... we know very little of their motives. We had, once upon a time, captured demons to try and interrogate them but those in our custody died rather quickly, without us being able to learn much. If they had been natural predators, it would¡¯ve been one thing. But the demonic beasts for the most part ignore other creatures and spirit animals, solely focusing on the empire,¡± Xi Shie said. ¡°As far as we know, demons have existed since before the empire itself and are its sworn enemies.¡±


    ¡°That is¡­ strange,¡± I said, thinking over what I knew. I could see some motives the demons may have had to try and destroy Qi or take down the heavens, but¡­ if so, why target the empire specifically? ¡°You said demons have existed since before the empire, do we know where or how they lived?¡±


    Xi Shie shook his head. ¡°There were some insights of an era preceding them, but we know next to nothing of it. Or didn¡¯t, until you arrived.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± I replied. I had not told him everything. Truthfully, I had not told him much. But the Shie knew of Chi now, and knew it¡¯s connected somehow to the Divine Tree. They knew less about my connection to it, but the knowledge was out there one way or another.


    ¡°And that is roughly the extent of what I know of the demons. And what most people do. There are more things, but most are kept within the royal family and within the emperor¡¯s command,¡± Xi said.


    I gave a nod. ¡°Let¡¯s shift topics to matters at hand. We need to figure a way out to protect the villages surrounding Taizhou for the winter, including Taizhou itself. Even if the demons have all vanished, we can¡¯t count on them staying that way.¡±


    ¡°What is the issue with simply doing what has always been done before?¡± Xi Shie asked.


    ¡°We lack people. A significant number of the more powerful cultivators left the sect when I took over, and we do not have access to all the wards and formations. Due to the change in power, villagers have begun rushing into the city itself to try and gain protection for winter, but we can¡¯t house that many people in such a short time span,¡± I said.


    Xi Shie thought over my words. ¡°And thus the talks with the Patriarch,¡± he said, and I nodded.


    ¡°If the talks go smoothly enough, I could potentially try and get enough resources to be able to protect people, and give the new cultivators the weapons they need to help add to that security.¡±


    ¡°Very well, in that case, let us discuss our propositions regarding co-operations after you¡¯ve spoken with the Patriarch,¡± the boy said, nodding his head as he bowed ever so slightly to me.


    I nodded as well, watching Xi step out of the chamber, before letting out one last sigh.


    Zhang looked at me with a concerned expression. ¡°Anything I can do for you, Brother Jie?¡±


    ¡°No, you should rest. You¡¯ve done enough already. This is something I more or less need to sort on my own,¡± I said.


    The boy ignored my words, as he so often did whenever I told him to take a break, and I shook my head. A moment later, there was a knock at the door before Qiao Ying stepped in, bowing to me.


    ¡°Elder, the preparations for the scrying formations have been completed. The Patriarch will be shortly awaiting the meeting.¡±

 [B3] 3 — Meeting

    I followed behind Qiao Ying making my way towards the chamber where the formation had been prepared for this scrying. I had been quite surprised to learn about the existence of long range communication like this, but in hindsight it shouldn¡¯t have been too much of a surprise. Given the kinds of various mystic arts that existed it wasn¡¯t a big stretch to imagine cultivators being capable of projecting their images across large distances.


    The thought only made me more excited and hopeful about what could be done in this world. What was possible if these resources and abilities were not limited to just a fraction of humanity. I was already on my Path to making the world this way. And naturally, those in power are not going to be happy about my actions.


    After we arrived at a chamber I wasn¡¯t familiar with, Qiao Ying stepped to the side. I stepped forward pushing the gates open, which opened with a slight creak.


    Inside I saw a small pool of water set within a circular section made of stone. I could see the lines of Qi running around, creating the formation art. Briefly the thought came in my mind whether the same could be replicated with Chi or if the different energies would react differently within the formation.


    The bad part about having access to a brand-new kind of energy was the fact that nobody knew how much could be done with it. Putting the thought aside, I walked into the chamber. Zhang followed behind me.


    ¡°Please establish a connection with this formation. When you do, the scrying art will activate, connecting you to the Patriarch,¡± Qiao Ying instructed me.


    ¡°Will Lord Zhou be attending as well?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Lord Zhou has some tasks to see to, but I will be here representing him. He has left the matters of the sect to you,¡± Qiao Ying replied smoothly.


    That made sense, but part of me also wondered if this was a test. To see if I could handle the sect on my own, or if someone else would perhaps be more suitable to take my place.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s start,¡± I said, sending a pulse of Chi into the pool of water. As I did, the formation arts lit up glowing with a silvery sheen as the still body of water began to form ripples within it. ¡°Please hold the connection,¡± Qiao Ying told me.


    I didn¡¯t reply, simply focus on the stream of Chi flowing into the body of water. After a minute of shaking, the waters surged, rising upwards to roughly be as tall as I was. A moment later a person¡¯s figure formed from the water, as the Patriarch now stood in front of me. The man was just about what I had expected, he looked to be in his fifties, with a few strands of white running through his long black hair as he wore pristine robes and stood tall and proud, with the arrogance that came with a stature like his. Qiao Ying bowed his head, I did not. Instead, I gave a nod of respect and acknowledgement.


    ¡°We had heard the rumors, but to think you really were just a child,¡± the man said, his eyes looking me up and down as if trying to seek for something.


    ¡°As the saying goes, revere not the elder by years alone, but whose visage betrays not the ages they''ve known,¡± I replied, smiling to myself for having read a few more books in the little free time I had found.


    The Patriarch snorted, Lu Jie noted the barest hints of a smile upon the man¡¯s stern face. ¡°We see that you possess sufficient amounts of arrogance. A quality befitting a young cultivator, and one with talent such as yours. Unlike the old fool Yan, we are not so blind to miss the things you represent. But remember boy, a young dragon though you may be, you step in a world filled with dragons older than yourself. It would do you well to learn humility, and gain allies. Even dragons do not live all on their own.¡±


    I nodded, not cutting back the Patriarch¡¯s words this time.


    ¡°Is that perhaps the purpose of this meeting? Talks of alliances?¡± I asked, looking at the Patriarch with a raised eyebrow.


    ¡°You get ahead of yourself. No, we are merely here to see which foolish child decided to take over, and whether you are worthy enough for the right to keep that position,¡± the Patriarch said.


    ¡°Am I?¡± I asked.


    ¡°That remains to be seen. What do you intend to do with the sect that you have obtained, what are your motives? The actions you take alienate many of the nobility and aristocracy. Ultimately you are but a provincial sect elder, and an extremely young one at that, how do you intend to gain the support and respect of those within the jade court,¡± the Patriarch asked.


    I stood silently for a moment. That was the question, wasn''t it? I had been thinking over that one for a while, gaining the support of the Lord was important if I truly wanted to pursue my goals. Part of me was tempted to just say that I could do it all on my own, rise without the help of anybody, what did it matter if the Lord did not care for my methods.


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    After all, I knew that my methods worked. Unfortunately, reality was different. And in reality, the empowerment of mortals was going to be seen as a threat by the cultivators.


    The very thing that made them special, I was trying to give to everybody. There was the point of the demons, and how having more cultivators could only be beneficial, and how it would allow us to beat them and reclaim their lands. After all, it was not just the heavens that I could break with my abilities.


    The second Law thrummed in my soul, I could feel its desire to unite heaven and earth back together. But that was not something that the nobility wanted.


    I¡¯m sure some of them would love to beat the demons. Lord Zhou would, his domain had to suffer their attacks every winter. But those within the capital? They sat far removed from the conflicts, feeding off of its profits and growing fatter. No, the only thing I could appeal to here was their greed.


    I looked up at the Patriarch. ¡°Respected Patriarch, if you do not mind me asking a question in return to your question, how many cultivators does your sect lose every year? To Raiders? To bandits? To Demons? Whether the Jade court would like to admit this or not, the empire is at war. And has been for over a thousand years. And perhaps it is because of that, that people have forgotten. But war costs money. Not only does it cost the lives of your cultivators, the sect members, it costs you resources, weapons, food, goods, and so on.


    The Patriarch raised an eyebrow, and I continued to throw my bait.


    ¡°Imagine a world where the mortals could fight. A world where mortals could be taught how to do simple Alchemy. How to create spirit weapons. If every farmer could break through and reach the first realm, they will not gain much significant strength, but they will become capable of working for more hours every day.


    The more hours they work the more they will be able to feed the Warriors. If the mortals could join and head towards the battlefield without falling sick from the miasma, they could carry resources, weapons and goods, if they could fight against the weaker demonic beasts, protecting them would be less of a hassle. Imagine a world, where every mortal within your territory can hold value, enough to support the cultivators,¡± I said, leaving out the unsaid half, that such a rapid development will only continue to grow them till there are no mortals or cultivators, only people.


    The Patriarch frowned. ¡°Even if we were to believe that mortals could learn such things and achieve them, it would pose the threat of them banding together and revolting. Why take such risks?¡±


    I shook my head. ¡°You fail to understand, honorable patriarch. They will not revolt. To them, we would be the gracious immortals, bringing to them a slice of the very heavens themselves. Every mortal would dream of things they had not dared to, and will work hard to try and achieve greatness. It is what we already see happen with children born of mortal parents and obtaining Qi. They flock to the sects, dreaming of reaching the heavens, and ultimately provide the foundation upon which the rest can rise,¡± I said, pushing down the bitterness in my voice.


    Though I did not lie, the truth did sting. Ultimately it was those who had been born with Fortune, that gained the most. And what I suggested, only served to present this false dream to everybody, instead of just a select few.


    I knew I would not let it end up that way, but even so, there had to be some truth within my words, for me to be able to sell them. I saw the Patriarch frowning in thought, and continued. Reaching within my pouch, I grabbed its contents, showing the man the dozen or so Qi gathering pills inside.


    ¡°Patriarch, if you were to get this many pills made for your cultivators, how long would it take you?¡± I asked.


    The man looked confused. ¡°Roughly a day, perhaps half a day of the disciples were talented.¡±


    I nodded, closing the pouch. ¡°It takes my mortal alchemist, a single day, to make ten times as much.¡±


    The man looked at me in disbelief, before his eyes went back down to my pouch.


    ¡°There is an untold amount of potential waiting to be extracted within these mortals. The very moment one chooses to remove the blindfold from their vision, one can see just how much can be gained.¡±


    The Patriarch heeded my words, before a smile came upon his face. ¡°We see why you gained Lord Zhou¡¯s support, child. Indeed, you have gained our intrigue.¡±


    I almost let a smile slip, but the man continued.


    ¡°But this is not enough. You must prove what you have said. The divine tree sect shall become a branch sect upon the seventh peak. But the position you hold within it is only granted to you temporarily. If you can show that you are truly worthy of leading, we will allow you to keep what you have gained.¡±


    I returned a brief nod. I had expected something more or less like this.


    ¡°For now, you may use the resources of the sect,¡± the man said, as part of the water flowed out, forming characters that would unlock the vault. I glanced sideways, as Qiao Ying hastily recorded them on a piece of parchment.


    ¡°Do not disappoint us,¡± the man said, as the water fell back down into its pool, with a splash.


    I sighed, feeling the tension finally vanish from my body. Glancing sideways, I saw Qiao Ying clutching the pieces of parchment with the characters. ¡°Well done, sir. With this, we have gained the support of the Patriarch.¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡± I replied. ¡°Although I don¡¯t quite feel very happy just yet. There¡¯s still a lot left to be done.¡±


    The boy nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll be doing as much as I can to support you in your path.¡±


    I gave Qiao Ying a nod, dismissing him to let him get to work, allocating and recording the resources we had finally managed to secure from the sect. Trying not to collapse into a puddle, I thought over what I had to do next, before remembering something.


    I looked at Zhang. ¡°Where the heck is the old man?¡±

 [B3] 4 — Heavens

    The old man sat in front of Lord Zhou sipping his cup of tea. It had been a long time since he had sat with the Lord like this.


    ¡°This makes us nostalgic. You used to sit here just like this when we were younger, teaching us. We still don¡¯t know why you kept refusing to work under us all those years. Was it something we did? Or perhaps our father?¡±


    The old man put down his cup of tea, looking at the lord. ¡°Neither, my lord. It was this old man¡¯s choice to settle into a quieter role. We had paid our debt to your father, he had grown into this splendid man. We felt content that you could handle things without us.¡±


    Lord Zhou did not reply, looking down at his own cup of tea, now growing cold. ¡°Perhaps you¡¯re right. He could have managed, and we did, for many years. But now¡­¡± the lord trailed off, drinking his tea, before looking up at the old man. "Sheng Ming, if we are right about this¡­¡±


    ¡°Despite what we hope, you''re most likely correct in your assumptions. And if my grandson- no, if that demon has truly reappeared, then perhaps the future that Tian Feng had warned us about, is closer than we had anticipated,¡± the old man said.


    ¡°Do you think he killed the elder from the Alchemy Hall?¡± Lord Zhou asked.


    ¡°Most likely, though this old man cannot say for sure. But if he did, they would use that against us as well,¡± the old man replied.


    Lord Zhou frowned, a single crack running in his teacup. Lord looked down in surprise at losing control of his strength, before he set the cup of tea down. ¡°Every step we seem to take is accompanied by two more setbacks.¡±


    ¡°Such are the ways of the heavens, trials and tribulations marked the Path of all the cultivators, even more so with burdens as great as you hold,¡± the old man said.


    Standing up from his seat, the lord walked to a cabinet, opening it before he took out a bottle. ¡°We had been saving this for a special occasion. But this seems as fitting as any,¡± lord said, walking closer. He then poured the contents into their cups.


    The old man looked down at the glistening liquor in his cup, shimmering with Qi. ¡°Let us have a drink.¡±


    ¡°Lord Zhou¡ª¡°


    ¡°We are not a Lord right now, Sheng Ming,¡± he said, raising his cup.


    The old man looked at him in surprise, before nodding his head in acceptance. ¡°As you say.¡±


    The lord smiled, raising his cup, as the two men drank. ¡°It has been a while since we sat together like this. You barely come to visit us anymore.¡±


    ¡°You have responsibilities, and so do we,¡± the old man replied.


    "That is true. But we still missed this,¡± Lord Zhou said, taking another sip. ¡°What made you pick Lu Jie as a disciple?¡±


    Old man frowned, thinking over it. ¡°Perhaps it was pity. This old man had not had a disciple in a long time, and the boy¡­ he had a burning curiosity. It reminded us of Yuan.¡±


    The Lord nodded. ¡°They are indeed similar in a strange way. When Sheng Yuan had been here, he had seemed no different from any other cultivator. Just peculiar. It is hard to think that he could even be a demon. It goes against everything we have seen with them. He was smart, calculating, and powerful. A far cry from the savagery and mindless slaughter those demons display. Even the ones who used to be cultivators that got consumed by demonic presences. It was almost like¡­ he was in control of whatever it is that turns those demons mad,¡± Lord said looking up.


    ¡°Do you think¡­ We might have been mistaken? About those demons? After learning the truth of the heavens¡­ it is difficult to say what is right and what is wrong anymore.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t know. Ultimately, none of us can judge. But if there is one thing this old man knows, it is that those demons cannot be allowed to exist. In this, I will not waver,¡± the old man said.


    The Lord sighed, taking one last sip from his drink. ¡°Perhaps so, perhaps we will end up finding a different way. Ultimately, it will come down to Lu Jie.¡±


    The old man nodded. ¡°The boy must be taught. We have been neglecting things too much. It is time for us to return to our previous Path once more, and to guide him to stand against the enemies he has made.¡±


    ¡°What do you intend to do? About Yan Shen? He has grown, since the last time we fought him, now¡­ we fear only the Divinities can rival him,¡± Lord Zhou asked.


    The old man looked down into his cup, seeing his reflection within it. More and more wrinkles covered his face with each passing year, he had lived too long, seen too much. ¡°We had hoped, in some corner of our heart, that he had survived. That our Yuan would return to us one day. This old man had allowed himself to be weak, but not anymore. We will do what we should have done ages ago,¡± the old man said, as he set his cup of tea down.


    ¡°It is a painful path, and we dare not ask it of you. You have already done a lot for us, and for our people. You do not have to further suffer through this. We will find a way to deal with the Yang Shen,¡± Lord Zhou said.


    ¡°No, this time it is not for you, my lord. It¡¯s something this old man must finish. We had raised him in our arms. It is our responsibility to see things to the end.¡±


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    ¡°We had dreaded the arrival of this day for a while now,¡± Lord Zhou said.


    The old man smiled wryly. ¡°The heavens can be cruel indeed.¡±


    ***


    I walked through the sect, trying to think over everything that I needed to do. The work was never-ending, all the more so after I had become Elder of the Sect. More and more responsibilities had been on my shoulders. Now, with managing all the new cultivators, running the Qi crystal workshop, and ensuring the production was maintained, to working on funding the research for better weapons to be able to fight back against the demonic beasts, who for some reason, were still gone without a trace. It was as if they had never even been there.


    A thousand thoughts went through my head as I made my way across the sect''s premises. Qiao Ying had been working on allocating and documenting the resources the sect had, which for some reason, had either not been documented at all, or the documents that had existed had been destroyed or removed.


    It was not a surprise to me to realize that the cultivators that had been in power were petty and would not have wanted to leave anything behind. But having to deal with it myself was still exhausting. Thankfully, a few had remained and helped carry and sort things properly, and get a good hold of the inventory that we had available to us.


    It should not have come as a surprise, but running something like the sect the size of the Cloudy Peak Sect had required a lot of management and bookkeeping. And when half of your personnel vanished in a day, the task just got a little bit more difficult.


    Trying not to worry too much about the problems, I continued my stroll, taking a glance at the changes happening within the sect itself. One of the things that made me the happiest was having free and full access to the library. Despite all the complaints that I made, obtaining the sect was a massive boon in every way, especially now that I could access the spirit herb garden within the sect.


    The hoard of Qi crystals that they had been stockpiling, likely a bunch from Taizhou as well, would also help create a bunch of Drugnades, and fund the factories for Qi crystals. Many of the buildings were now being repurposed, as I was planning to shift my lab from Taizhou over to the sect premises.


    I would likely keep people in both locations. The sect acting as the main laboratory grounds, and the building inside Taizhou being the secondary lab for research purposes that were more relevant to the location, such as the spirit anchor I''d created for cash and the demonic beasts.


    As I strolled through the sect, some shouts caught my attention. Stepping forward with a pulse of Qi, I moved towards the sound, coming from somewhere, moving silently so as not to draw attention. And I found myself looking at the young new cultivators who had joined the sect, training together in formations.


    Standing in neatly arranged rows, about fifty of them together, they slowly moved their bodies, channeling their Chi in unison through the various forms. A man stood before them, demonstrating numerous forms for the children to mimic.


    Their movements were mesmerizing¡ªno, that''s not quite the right word. They were somewhat clumsy, lacking the finesse and control of a seasoned cultivator. Yet, there was a unity in their clumsiness¡ªa harmony that permeated the Chi they manipulated, inhaling and exhaling as one, each breath moving in harmony. This unity, this flow of Chi that enveloped them captivated me, making something in my soul shiver.


    I could feel the roots from the tree within my soul reaching out to them. Their Chi was intertwined with mine, and mine with theirs. Still, the full meaning eluded me.


    I didn¡¯t know what breaking the chains of the heavens truly meant, what these roots symbolized as they intertwined with me, but what I did know was that they had become part of something I bore, a weight on my shoulders that, rather than crushing me under the burden, gave me the push to keep moving, giving me strength to fight and to protect them.


    I''d always struggled to ask for help, and I knew it wasn''t just me who struggled in doing so. But watching these children move through forms, transitioning seamlessly, and embracing new concepts, I realized how connected we were. How we were all part of the same world, part of something greater than any one of us could ever be.


    The realization relieved me somehow. It told me that I no longer had to face challenges alone, that I wasn''t the sole bearer of this burden. Even if I failed, someone else would continue what I had begun.


    After all, from the start, my goal wasn''t to revolutionize the world, but to ignite the spark of change, to be the catalyst of the flames lighting the potential that I saw in this world, of what could be done, and what was possible.


    Whether I''d live to see that happen? I didn¡¯t know. Lives of cultivators were long, yet also, surprisingly short. Conflict was the norm in our world, and no matter how long my natural lifespan may become, if someone killed me, none of it would matter. Yet¡­ somehow that didn¡¯t matter to me right now. In this moment, feeling the Chi moving in sync with mine, the souls harmonizing briefly, I knew I was no longer alone on my path, and I hadn''t been for a long time now.


    As I watched the kids practice their forms, something poked at the edge of my senses. I¡¯d grown sensitive to Chi, having felt its ties to me, and a part of that sense told me that there was something different in this group.


    I scanned the crowd, searching for what I felt, until suddenly I found the thing I was looking for. One girl in the center stood out.


    Approaching closer I let my presence be felt as the kids stopped their practice, looking at me with wide eyes and bowed.


    Besides them stood a cultivator from the Cloudy Peak Sect, one whose name I didn¡¯t know but had chosen to remain when I took over. As I walked up he bowed to me lightly in respect and I returned an acknowledging nod.


    ¡°Please continue, don¡¯t mind me,¡± I said, before turning to the children. I let my senses spread out, searching for the one whose core had shifted. Scanning the crowd, I quickly spotted her.


    Walking into their formation the kids moved aside to let me through. The girl looked around in surprise, stepping aside to let me pass as well but when I stopped right in front of her, she froze, fear taking over her face as she wondered if she¡¯d done something wrong.


    Looking up fearfully, she stammered but I stopped her words, placing my hand on her shoulder to confirm my suspicions.


    I looked down at the girl, trying to assess her a little, while she continued to sink further and further in fear.


    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± I asked.


    ¡°M-Mo Lin,¡± she said, almost biting her tongue in the process.


    ¡°Mo Lin, have you felt something different about your Chi?¡± I asked the girl.


    She looked up at me, then shook her head. I glanced behind the girl, noting her hiding something up her sleeve. Despite what she said, there was no doubting what I felt.


    She had unlocked a new kind of Chi, akin to Zhang''s and Yan Yun''s, but without my intervention.


    Smiling as warmly as I could, I said. "Come with me."

 [B4] 1 — Cradle of Dragons

    I stood in a room filled with the most powerful people of the empire. Yet that thought barely even came to my mind right now. With the death of the emperor and the loss of the Azure Dragon, the Azure-Jade empire was the closest it had ever been in its history to collapse.


    Around me stood the four Divinities. Closest to me was the Shie matriarch, and Liuxiang¡¯s great-great-great-grandmother. The young and sharp looking lady had a cold and tense expression drawn across her face. Next to her was the Yue clan head, the water divinity. I was told he had handed off all governing responsibilities to his heirs and did not participate in politics. The man stood scratching his head, as if unsure what to make of the situation.


    Next to him was the Huo patriarch. The clan the old man had belonged to.


    The clan Yang Shen had been born in.


    The Huo patriarch had a burning aura all around him, little gouts of fire bursting as his control slipped from bottled rage. His brow was creased so much, it seemed like it¡¯d leave wrinkles etched into his features. All of which was in stark contrast to the last divinity, the Tu clan head. The oldest cultivator I had ever seen, older than even the old man, with his body shrunk and back bent, and wrinkles covering all his features. He wore a simple orange cloth and had a bald head, much like a monk, simply seated nearby in meditation.


    And somehow, among these people, I stood there, gathered beside them across a map of the empire.


    Next to me, Elder Tian Feng stood, head bowed in respect to the Divinities.


    ¡°They¡¯re attacking from the north and west, which we¡¯d expected, given the demon stronghold over the lands in each of those directions. The celestial peaks are holding and resisting the attack from both of those fronts, and holding the lands,¡± the Huo patriarch said, circling the map.


    ¡°The problem is the southern front,¡± he added, highlighting an area to the south.


    ¡°The sea has always been a barrier, how have the demons breached it?¡± The Shia matriarch asked, raising an eyebrow in question.


    ¡°Ships. The demons do not swim well, but with guidance, it seems they¡¯re capable of managing ships. Half of them sink, drowning the army, but the half that survives is a problem,¡± the Yue patriarch said, scratching his chin in thought.


    ¡°We¡¯re not ready for this war,¡± the Huo patriarch said. ¡°They¡¯ve caught us off guard and landed a blow at our very heart¡­ I fear this time¡­¡±


    The Shie matriarch snorted. ¡°Is that all the courage you boast of? I, for one, do not intend to roll over and simply let the demons conquer our lands. I will protect my home even if I¡¯m the last one standing,¡± the Shie matriarch said, a phantom snake slithering around her neck which she gently caressed.


    ¡°You do not get to say that, Zhuihu. Not when we all know that you were the first who was ready to¡ª¡±


    ¡°Children. It is not the time to quarrel,¡± the Tu patriarch interrupted, speaking for the very first time. I faced the old monk, hearing his voice for the first time. ¡°The heavens require us. They ask for our aid. We must perform our duties.¡±


    To my surprise, the Divinities did not speak back, simply nodding at the words of the old man. The Tu patriarch opened his wrinkly eyes, enough that for the first time I could see his pupils, and found in them a brilliant golden glow that mesmerized me where I stood. There were deep secrets lurking in them, ones I could only hope to glimpse at from where I was.


    ¡°We have called upon the earth, and raised a barrier around the entire empire. It will hold the demons back, preventing them from burrowing into the earth and striking us from beneath. To continue this, we will need to return home and enter secluded meditation. Sea child, it shall be your task to hold the enemy lines from the south.¡±


    The Yue cracked his knuckles in response, grinning.


    ¡°Fire child, you protect the west. That is where the demon Yang Shen will most likely be leading his army from. He is your kin. You will be most suited to hold him back.¡±


    The Huo patriarch nodded at that.


    ¡°Poison child¡­ help the celestial lords in the north. They will require your assistance and cunning. Make sure they are supplied and prepared for what is to come.¡±


    The Shie matriarch gave silent acknowledgement.


    And then, to my surprise, the Tu patriarch turned to look at me.


    ¡°Vassal Child. Do you know your purpose?¡± The Tu Divinity asked me, making me freeze.


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    I did not know what he meant, and so I simply looked at him, unsure of how to answer.


    ¡°You possess the spirit of the Lord of North. Speak to the Divine Beast, they will guide you towards the location of the Azure Dragon,¡± the Tu Divinity said, before glancing at Elder Tian Feng.


    ¡°Dream Child, you must have seen this path. We have been plagued by similar mirages, but trying to alter these paths often leads to unintended outcomes. Who can alter fate, after all.¡±


    Elder Tian Feng bowed his head. ¡°But, this does not mean we must not try. Guide the child on his path. If¡­ this war is to be won, we will require him for it,¡± the Divinity said.


    ¡°Elder, your wisdom is grand, but should we really let the Azure Dragon in the hands of a child?¡± The Huo patriarch asked, glancing at me. ¡°He has proven that he is a talent seen only in centuries, blessed by one divine beast, but no matter how talented, he is still a mere child. Would it not be better for one of us to seek the Azure Dragon? If anything, the Xuanwu should come out and join strengths with one of us as well, bolstering our powers. The child has done his part, but this war is no game. The existence of the empire depends on it.¡±


    The Yue patriarch nodded as well.


    ¡°We have to concur with the Huo patriarch. We know the child and see his potential, but this is not the time to be staking the fate of our existence into the hands of children.¡± The Shie matriarch said.


    I looked down, clenching my fist. I did not like that. Having to give up Xuanwu, or sit by the side, but I understood the point. I was by no means anywhere close to their power. I could barely even channel Xuanwu¡¯s power on my own, much less bring out its full potential.


    ¡°You can try,¡± the Tu patriarch said, before glancing at me. ¡°Call upon the divine beast, child of old.¡±


    I looked at the divinity, gulping, before I gave a nod. I closed my eyes, reaching within myself as I found the familiar presence inside of me. I did not have to say anything, and Xuanwu manifested around me, through me.


    Power flooded me, harmony thrumming through my spirit as the power of a divine beast flooded my body. The silhouette of Xuanwu formed around me, the giant spirit turtle-snake looking down upon the divinities.


    ¡°Who seeks to command our strength?¡± Xuanwu asked.


    The three divinities regarded each other. ¡°Water is where I belong. I will be the most suited to do so,¡± the Yue patriarch said.


    The other two did not deny the claim, as the man stepped forward.


    ¡°Lord of the North, it is an honor,¡± the Divinity said, bowing.


    Xuanwu grunted, before his form began to flow into the man. Power rushed out of me, flooding the Divinity, as he stood, fists clenched, veins throbbing and a chilling cold spreading from him.


    Then, light began to leak from his body as cracks formed in his skin. The man visibly began to shake, teeth clenched hard, and I noticed his fists starting to tense hard enough to turn his knuckles white.


    The power continued, not stopping, flowing endlessly into the man. He gasped, falling to his knees and the flow stopped. Within a moment, Xuanwu returned to his spectral form, presiding over from above me, looking down upon the kneeling Yue Divinity.


    ¡°You are not suitable,¡± he claimed, looking down at the patriarch. His gaze traveled to the remaining two. ¡°None of you can hold us. Your spirits are tied to this empire, and to your own transcendence. We will break you.¡±


    The kneeling divinity slowly pulled up to his feet, bowing. ¡°Honored Divine Beast, apologies but¡­ how? How is a mere child¡­ holding all of that?¡±


    I watched in confusion, feeling rather surprised myself. I knew how vast Xuanwu¡¯s presence was. Like a tall mountain, or the crashing waves of the ocean, there was so much vastness to it. But somehow, I¡¯d never had to think about how I¡¯d managed to fit all that inside my own spirit.


    ¡°A child burdened with two spirits. It is his gift for having eternally carried another soul inside of him. And for the path he found within it. None of you would be able to hold the Azure Dragon. Not even Yang Shen could, he had to resort to distorting and capturing them. But Lu Jie can.¡±


    I simply stood, not in control of my own body or expressions, for which I was partly glad, but the surprise on the Divinities¡¯ faces would¡¯ve been multiplied ten times on mine.


    ¡°The emperor who held the power of the very heavens lost.¡±


    ¡°He was tricked,¡± Huo patriarch spat with anger.


    ¡°He was. But even in power, he was matched by Yang Shen. If we wish to win, there must be Harmony. Our sibling, we must go meet him directly. Bring him to his senses, and return together, in a singular vessel of power,¡± Xuanwu proclaimed.


    The Divinities looked at each other in surprise.


    ¡°We¡¯ve wasted enough time. The enemy approaches,¡± The Tu head said, glancing at the rest of them.


    ¡°Child, head to the Cradle of Dragons. In the valley between all celestial peaks, it is the birthplace of the Azure Dragons, and the seven celestial dragons. You will find him there. Find him, and bring him back. You are our only hope,¡± the Tu patriarch said.


    I felt Xuanwu¡¯s power return into me, regaining control as I simply looked at the old monk. After a little bit, I steeled my resolve and I gave him a nod.


    ¡°Let us depart then,¡± the Tu clan head said, and one after another, the divinities all left. Heading for battle, and to protect the empire.


    I glanced sideways, looking at Elder Tian Feng who stood next to me.


    ¡°The Tu clan head said you had seen visions¡­ is that why you helped me?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Not entirely. We had¡­ simply followed the visions of fate, and they had led us to you. But destiny is not predetermined. No one could have foreseen this outcome,¡± Elder Tian Feng said.


    I nodded, still feeling somewhat unsettled.


    I was not a huge fan of fate and destiny or what not. But it seemed that this battle and responsibility was impossible to escape.


    ¡°Let us make preparations. We will need to depart soon,¡± Elder Tian Feng said and I nodded, following behind him.


    For now, my path was decided.


    I needed to head to the Cradle of Dragons.

 [B4] 2 — Seventh Peak

    Things began happening rapidly. There was no time to despair or grieve the death of the emperor. In fact, there had not even been enough time for many to realize the emperor had died at all, and the news had been curbed down with terrifying swiftness, so for now, only those important enough to be at the castle at the time of his untimely demise, and those perceptive enough to feel the changes in the heavens, knew.


    But despite all that¡­ snow fell upon Azure city, the city of eternal spring, the beating heart of the empire. Not a single person in the empire could not have known, even if they were not aware of it consciously. We¡¯d all felt it. Every single person had felt the fall.


    And the timer to the end had begun ticking at that very moment.


    I tried not to grimace too much as I walked across the palace courtyard, heading towards the carriages. It¡¯d been decided that it was best that I headed back to the seventh peak first. To gather supplies and get anything I might need. There was also the matter of all the money I¡¯d earned in the auction. I¡¯d left a significant chunk of it in the care of the Lord and his manor in the capital.


    Zhou Fang, who¡¯d decided he¡¯d be staying in the capital due to the risk of a journey back, had agreed to take care of and manage it all for me. I was grateful. I needed to get back quick, and we were only taking as few people as needed with us. A lot of the lord¡¯s men were injured in the skirmish and attack recently and they¡¯d be staying back in the capital as well. Even my spirits were resting inside my core, including Ash which had never done that before, all to preserve their strengths and to reduce our burden back. They¡¯d both changed in the invasion, but especially Labby, who¡¯d even been able to change forms at will again. It was something I¡¯d not even had the time to address yet.


    I¡¯d been of half a mind to run back, and to my surprise, the Lord had almost agreed to it. It had been Elder Tian Feng who¡¯d dissuaded us, and told us to preserve our strengths for now.


    I had spent a moment being a little surprised how I just suggested to run the distance of effectively a small country casually, but at this point I knew I could and I¡¯d be faster than carriages and I could fly if necessary as well, so it only made sense. Really, the only reason not to was the threat of being ambushed by demons, and I wouldn¡¯t want to be entirely spent by the time I returned, as the journey to the Cradle was not going to be all that easy from what I was told, and I¡¯d ultimately ended up listening to reason.


    Lord Zhou stood nearby, noticing my arrival. The man looked tense as a taut string ready to snap, and exhausted like he hadn¡¯t slept in a week, but despite all that, the lord gave me an ever so slight smile upon my arrival.


    ¡°We were about to call for you. Are you prepared? There will be no time to rest in between,¡± the Lord asked me.


    ¡°I¡¯m still of half a mind to sprint back,¡± I replied, honestly.


    The lord¡¯s smile widened ever so slightly, as he put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°Let us not. Tian Feng would not let either of us hear the end of it.¡±


    I nodded at that.


    I glanced sideways at the others. Yan Yun was returning with us. In a meeting when making our plans, we¡¯d ended up deciding on a group of three people to head to the Cradle. It was Yan Yun, me and Zhang.


    The Lord had obviously offered his own men for my protection and to help us, but I¡¯d refused. The more people there were with us, the more we¡¯d slow down. The cradle was not an easy-to-travel-in place, and we didn¡¯t have the time.


    In truth, I felt a little uncomfortable bringing Yan Yun with me, but she¡¯d been the one who¡¯d said it¡¯d make sense to bring her. Despite no longer following a lightning path, she was the most familiar with it, and the most knowledgeable on dragons. Her grandfather had also told her of the existence of the Cradle before, so she had a rough idea on what was in store for us. And with Leiyu, she allowed us to communicate quickly and send letters without needing to set up and use complicated scrying formations. And Zhang was there, because there was no one else I trusted with my life more than him.


    I really wished I¡¯d had the time to try to think of or come up with a way to send messages over long distances, but unfortunately that just wasn¡¯t something I¡¯d had the time for, at least not for this journey. Though it was not like I¡¯d just given up. I was well aware that war times were the times where progress had often been made in the largest leaps and bounds. I recalled the meeting I¡¯d had with the five divinities yesterday and the decision we¡¯d come to that¡¯d be unprecedented otherwise.


    All four divinities and the royal court had agreed to allow craftsmen to use the divine texts I¡¯d given them collectively, to try and increase our advantages by creating more weapons and rapidly upscaling production of some really important things so that we could arm our mortals and allow them to contribute as well.


    It was grim, and it wasn¡¯t something I¡¯d actually hoped would happen, but that was the silver lining in all of this. More people than would ever otherwise be possible. Scholars, researchers, craftsmen and blacksmiths from all over the empire were gathering. Learning, and perfecting on my crude ideas and the front of knowledge I¡¯d brought into existence to create things, and make massive leaps in technological expertise. Already they¡¯d improved on the design of the weapons, but more importantly, they were working on how to improve defenses of carriages, how to maintain supply chains, how to build stronger walls and faster. Everything we¡¯d need to fight this war.


    Even the old man had ended up staying back. I knew he wanted to help, but given that he¡¯d lost his cultivation almost entirely, and was much more frail now, he had not insisted. I felt a little bad but I also felt glad knowing that he¡¯d be safe in the capital. It was one less person I¡¯d have to worry about.


    As I was about to step into my carriage, a presence stirred around me, making me pause. I turned around and, descending down from the skies, I saw Liuxiang. I stared, openly surprised at her arrival.


    ¡°Lu Jie, let us¡­ let me come with you,¡± Liuxiang spoke, looking at me with a determined expression.


    ¡°Liuxiang? Don¡¯t you have to stay with your grandmother?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I have already informed her. I¡¯d been listening to her all this time, but¡­ with everything that¡¯s happening¡­ I cannot wait anymore to help the people I had been working so hard to gain the ability to help,¡± she said, clenching her fist. It was the most emotion I¡¯d ever seen on her.


    ¡°So¡­ please, let us come with you,¡± she asked.


    ¡°Well, we do have just enough space to hold one more person,¡± the Lord said, looking towards me.


    Liuxiang looked at the lord happily, and I gathered myself. ¡°Alright, then¡­ I¡¯d be happy to have you with me on this journey, Liuxiang,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯d be like old times.¡±


    ¡°I find it a little hard to believe that was just one year ago,¡± Liuxiang said.


    I laughed at that. A frustrated and amused laugh.


    ¡°Old times?¡± Yan Yun asked, looking between the two of us with confusion.


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you on the way,¡± I said to Yan Yun, remembering our foray into the cave where we¡¯d first found Sheldon and saved the villagers.


    So much had happened since then. Despite everything going on, that memory managed to bring a smile to my face.


    It¡¯d be good to see Sheldon, and Twilight, and Zhang and Granny Lang, and everybody else. Though not the circumstances I¡¯d hoped for, I found myself longing to be back home.


    With that thought, I stepped inside the carriage alongside Liuxiang, Yan Yun and the Lord.


    The carriage whirred with power as the driver cracked the reins. Spectral steeds rose out of the carriage, and with a jerk we were off to the Seventh Peak.


    ***


    Xiao Ru cursed his luck, cursed the very heavens and the fates as he ran with all he had. His feet were sore and cuts and scrapes lined his ankles. He¡¯d been a fool. He¡¯d been such a fool to think that just because this winter things had been calmer, it¡¯d be different.


    He stumbled, almost falling and his heart leapt into his throat. He could hear it now. Hear the creature chasing him through the foliage. His heart thundered so hard, he felt it¡¯d shatter his chest and kill him just from that. He¡¯d prefer that too.


    A rumbling growl came from behind him and Xiao Ru¡¯s body stiffened. He could feel the creature behind him, feel its vile presence, the sickening aura of death that lingered around it. He ran harder than ever.


    He¡¯d heard of the seventh peak, heard tales of a new lord and elder at the sect, that he was giving protection to everybody. That the man could do miracles, a five fold Sage? A child who was as strong as Lord Zhou? He did not believe such nonsense.


    But now, Xiao Ru¡¯s feet carried him towards that direction, as he cursed himself for not thinking. Even if false, at least in the city he could¡¯ve been safe. Sure, he may have died while starving on the streets, but compared to being torn apart and eaten by that thing¡­ even that seemed better.


    He knew how things were. Every winter, the demons came. And every winter, the sect would strengthen its protections, if you paid their stupid amounts to satisfy the cultivators, and even then, sooner or later those would fail and you¡¯d be forced to flee to the city and scrape by ¡®til winter passed, and try not to starve in the crowded streets.


    He¡¯d lost more people than he could count to winter. So many that, long ago, Xiao Ru had known somewhere in his heart that his own fate would be a similar cold embrace of death somewhere on some street. It was his foolish arrogance and defiance to such a tragic fate that he¡¯d decided to refuse. For the past four or five years, he¡¯d build his defenses to fend off any beasts and survive through winter in his village.


    At first he¡¯d been mocked. But when the villagers returned, starved and exhausted and saw him still living¡­ they¡¯d changed their tune quickly. Soon, more and more people had been managing to survive on their own. They¡¯d dug holes, and made simple spears and traps for the mindless beast and stuck to the inside of their homes which they¡¯d also fortified.


    It¡¯d worked. It¡¯d worked! Xiao Ru had become a hero for the villagers.


    But of course not. When this year had rolled out, he¡¯d thought it was a blessing when he saw no demonic beasts coming. His village was small and they barely had anything for the beasts to come seeking them for, and he assumed they¡¯d just not bothered this year. He felt like a champion.


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    And the heavens struck him for his hubris. Now he would die in the maw of this beast.


    Xiao Ru¡¯s feet twisted, sticking on a root as he fell and rolled on the ground. His heart pounded, as he tried to pull himself up but found a sharp pain run through his ankle when he tried. He looked at his feet and saw it was twisted badly and starting to turn red already.


    He froze, fear filling his heart as his fate was well and truly sealed. Xiao Ru whimpered, tears filling his eyes as he felt the presence close in. The creature slowed down now too, as it closed in, its dark eyes glowing in the dark patch of the forest as it moved closer.


    Xiao Ru watched the twisted beast, a bear covered with scars and cuts, with miasma swirling all around it and arrows sticking out of his hide, and he knew he¡¯d seen the end.


    The demonic beast growled once more, its terrible aura flowing out and then with a rush it lunged towards Xiao Ru who closed his eyes, accepting his fate.


    Bang.


    The world shook, a loud explosion echoing through the forest.


    Bang. Bang. Bang.


    Three more shots followed. Xiao Ru opened his eyes, and looked in shock as the bear lay on the ground, alive but injured, blood flowing out of wounds.


    Crackle.


    An arrow shot towards the creature, bursting out in a swirl of fire that enveloped the beast. It roared, before turning around as it started to run the other way.


    Xiao Ru stared in shock. Just what had happened? Had he¡­ had he been saved by some cultivator who happened to be nearby? No matter who, he was beyond grateful. Just who was his savior? He wondered.


    He turned, upon hearing footsteps and looked behind. A boy stood there, rather young and his clothes¡­ is that what cultivators wore nowadays? Even Xiao Ru had clothes that were better than that.


    No, no that wouldn¡¯t do. This was his savior, and a powerful cultivator. Who knows, maybe they could hear his thoughts and then he¡¯d be losing his head after having just survived.


    ¡°O honored cultivator, thank you, thank you for saving this poor foolish mortal¡¯s life. May the heavens bless you,¡± Xiao Ru said, to the boy.


    ¡°Oh, um, sure. Can you stand?¡± The boy asked, glancing at his ankle.


    ¡°No¡­ I have sprained my ankle,¡± Xiao Ru said, before wondering if a cultivator even knew what a sprained ankle was.


    ¡°Yeah I see that. Well, either the Granny or Yin will fix you up pretty quick, I imagine. Hop on,¡± the boy said, lending a hand as he lifted Xiao Ru up.


    ¡°My apologies for inflicting myself on you honored cultivator. You are too kind,¡± Xiao Ru said, truly in disbelief.


    ¡°You can stop that. I¡¯m not a cultivator,¡± the boy replied.


    ¡°But¡­ then how did you take down that demonic beast¡­ and with such ease too. I saw that arrow of flames. Surely that was a cultivation art?¡± Xiao Ru asked.


    ¡°No, that¡¯s my fire arrow. Or exploding arrow. I used it because I didn¡¯t want to waste too many bullets, and also that demonic beast is probably just running from the demons too, and got hungry and decided to make you into its meal to have enough energy to escape. I didn¡¯t want to kill it,¡± the boy said.


    ¡°Exploding¡­ what? Bullets? And¡­ you didn¡¯t want to kill a demonic beast?¡± Xiao Ru asked, feeling truly confused.


    ¡°Yeah. Bullets, it¡¯s small pellets made of metal. The rifle on my back shoots them really fast and it can hurt even a demon beast pretty badly,¡± the boy said.


    Xiao Ru looked at the boy¡¯s back, seeing the wooden and metal pipe thing. He¡¯d just assumed it was some strange mystical instrument. He glanced at the bow hanging from the boy¡¯s shoulders and the quiver at his waist as well.


    ¡°So¡­ anyone can use these?¡± Xiao Ru asked once more, shocked.


    The boy glanced towards the man and then smiled. ¡°Yeah, Elder Jie made them. Everyone in the militia gets one. The senior soldiers get even better ones, those can shoot down beasts like that in one shot.¡±


    ¡°And they¡¯re all mortals?¡± Xiao Ru asked, his head spinning.


    ¡°Yup. All mortals. Though some of them have started to sense a little bit of Chi. But the ones who do get transferred to a different unit. So all the ones who remain are mortals,¡± the boy said, and then paused as they began to exit the forest.


    ¡°Ah, Yao Tei, you found him?¡± A man said, waving at the boy.


    Other boys, of roughly similar age and clothing walked closer. All of them had that strange pipe thing on their back. The rifle. And a bow with a quiver that had weird glowing things on it, clearly something mystical only a cultivator should have.


    ¡°Demonic bear, scared it away,¡± the boy said, glancing back.


    Another man inspected Xiao Ru¡¯s injuries, while one more kept an eye on the forest. ¡°Hope this is the last of them. Would like to fortify Taizhou¡¯s borders a bit more.¡±


    ¡°Taizhou? We¡¯re not going to the seventh peak?!¡± Xiao Ru asked in shock. Did these men have a death wish?


    ¡°No, not right now. We¡¯re keeping an extended border around the seventh peak, and Taizhou is one of the fortified villages. Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll be safe there. There¡¯s a lot of people who had to escape and rush through. A bunch of them are staying in Taizhou,¡± the boy said.


    ¡°Now head on, get healed. You seem like you only have a slight injury, so when it¡¯s done, we¡¯ll bring you to the captain and he¡¯ll enlist you in one of the militia units. All of us have to do our part to protect those who can¡¯t fend for themselves, right?¡± One of the other boys said.


    ¡°Against¡­ against demonic beasts?¡± Xiao Ru asked. He wanted to call them insane. How could a mortal stand against demonic beasts? And yet¡­ that was exactly what had happened.


    ¡°Would I also get that pipe?¡± Xiao Ru asked.


    ¡°Pipe? Oh, the rifle. Not immediately, you¡¯ll have to go through the firearm safety training first.¡±


    The other boys shuddered at the word. What was that, Xiao Ru wondered. Some kind of ritual?


    The boy holding him continued. ¡°It¡¯s fine, don¡¯t worry about it for now, let¡¯s get you in,¡± the boy said, pulling Xiao Ru. They continued to walk a little further, till Xiao Ru noted the walls spanning around the area. A large gate made of stone stood there, with wires and spikes stuck into them to prevent anyone from climbing. Guard stood watch as people moved in and out. Almost all of them had the ¡®rifle¡¯ on their back.


    ¡°Is¡­ is this Taizhou?¡± Xiao Ru asked in shock.


    ¡°Yup,¡± the boy replied. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll get used to it.¡±


    Xiao Ru highly doubted the boy¡¯s words. This¡­ this looked like a small city. How was this a village?


    And as they continued deeper inside, his shock only continued to grow.


    ¡°Who¡­ who did all this?¡± Xiao Ru asked. He¡¯d not been here often, but Taizhou had been a small village¡­ how had it become this in the blink of an eye?


    ¡°Elder Jie, of course. But also Elder Zhang and the others. They¡¯ve helped build all this and secure the villages nearby. So many people would¡¯ve died to the sudden demonic beast onslaught otherwise,¡± the boy said.


    Xiao Ru looked on in shock.


    This¡­ this was what they¡¯d been doing. Him and his village. But on such a large scale. With so much more strength and power. And¡­ all of this was done by one boy?


    Despite himself, Xiao Ru found himself wondering. Had the rumors truly not been exaggerated?


    He looked at the boy and gulped, before he asked. ¡°How can I get one of those rifles you have?¡±


    The boy smiled in response.


    ***


    Zhang flew over the seventh peak, watching over the city. Purple Chi flared around him, gravity itself bending to his will as his eyes scanned his surroundings. His senses spread all around the area, focused like a sharp blade.


    Something stirred near one of the walls perimeters, the sound of gunshots and explosions rising.


    Zhang gathered his power, spear shivering as he raised it. Eyes glowing purple, he focused on his target, before finding the demonic creature slamming against the wall, his spear thrummed as he shot it forward.


    The weapon¡¯s weight grew as it flew rapidly, before slamming into the creature, piercing through it like a ballista¡¯s shot, piercing and raising dirt into the air from the aftershock.


    The demonic creature roared, still not entirely dead and Zhang rushed in closer rapidly afterwards, slamming like a meteor shooting down as he crushed the beast into, leaving only a vague hint of toxic Gu and blood splattered around the crater next to him.


    Raising his spear, and making sure there were no other main threats, Zhang turned to look at the soldiers on the wall who all saluted upon seeing him.


    ¡°Call me if you¡¯re struggling,¡± he said.


    ¡°Yes, general!¡± They responded as one.


    Zhang let his gravity Chi flare as he took back to the skies once more, returning to his observation post in the skies.


    The people of the city, the sect and all the bordering areas were depending on them. Lu Jie was depending on him to keep this place.


    He¡¯d felt what had happened. The heavens had changed. There was no way to not feel it. And though he did not know what exactly had happened, he¡¯d almost shot towards the capital in that moment to make sure Lu Jie was alright. It was only his duty and responsibility that kept him.


    And his faith in Lu Jie.


    Despite his connection to Lu Jie almost fading out at one point, he sensed the boy¡¯s presence out there. That massive presence that only kept growing in Zhang¡¯s mind. So no matter what, at least he was fine.


    But there were worse things that could happen. And it was precisely why Zhang needed to continue to grow and continue to keep getting stronger.


    He¡¯d managed to push himself to the edge of the second circle. If he¡¯d still been a normal cultivator then he¡¯d be at the peak of the sixth stage, but that was not enough. Not nearly enough.


    This kind of growth was unprecedented for a normal cultivator, and Zhang knew even this would make him a massive prodigy across the empire in normal circumstances, but things were anything but, and he cared not for the status of the achievements, if it meant he was ultimately just not powerful enough to protect the people he needed to protect.


    He tensed his spear one more time, sensing another presence behind him. This one was flying and it raised Zhang¡¯s hackles as he turned and shot his spear forward rapidly.


    Lightning crackled and flashed and Zhang watched the creature dodge his strike. He stared in surprise for a moment, before a smile came upon his face as he realized who was heading towards him.


    Zhang recalled his spear, which arrived the moment the creature came, resting upon his shoulder and crackling with puffed feathers.


    ¡°You¡¯re lucky that Leiyu is forgiving.¡±


    ¡°It is good to see you, Leiyu. Apologies for attacking you, I thought you were a flying demon. We¡¯ve had some¡­ encounters with those,¡± Zhang said.


    ¡°Clearly. Anyway, Leiyu is here to give you a letter from Lu Jie. Now Leiyu will go, there are other messages for others to be handed out,¡± the bird said, before disappearing into a crackle of lightning.


    Zhang looked at the letter in his hand, and then gently pulled it open. As he read, his expression continued to darken.


    ¡°I hope you¡¯re alright, Zhang. And Sheldon and Twilight and everyone else. I¡¯m really sorry that I had to leave everything to you and put so much responsibility on you now. So much has happened here, I know Qiao Ying probably told you a little, but there¡¯s a lot to include in a letter. The demons attacked, Yang Shen is back and he struck a blow to the empire. The emperor is dead. The Divinities almost died. And the Azure Dragon is missing. If the Old Man had not been there¡­ I try not to think about it.


    But not all is lost. We¡¯re all okay. And I am returning quickly, alongside Yan Yun, Lord Zhou and Liuxiang. We¡¯ll be heading to the Cradle of Dragons to find the Azure Dragon, who¡¯s most likely to be hiding or resting there. And I¡¯ll need you for that journey.


    I am really sorry that I¡¯m coming back with yet another request, but if there¡¯s anyone I can rely on for this, it¡¯s you, Zhang.


    See you in three days.


    P.S: Tell Yin it¡¯s time to take that out. She¡¯ll know what I mean.¡±


    Zhang looked at the letter in his hand and despite all the bad news, he found himself smiling and taking a breath of relief. Closing the letter, Zhang looked down at the city below him, and the people in it, holding on against the onslaught of demonic beasts. He did not know what would come next, but he knew that they¡¯d be fine.


    And he didn¡¯t wish to be the only one to feel that sense of security and relief. So, taking a deep breath, Zhang gathered all his voice and screamed to the world.


    ¡°THE LORDS ARE RETURNING!¡±


    His voice echoed throughout the city, through the sect and beyond. For a moment there was a long silence.


    Then, he heard it, a rumbling, the sounds of gunshots, the screams and shouts, slowly and scattered at first and then collectively as one, enough to shake the heavens.


    ¡°The Lords are returning!¡± The city shouted in celebration, and Zhang looked down, before returning his focus to his task with renewed focus and vigor.


    He would not let them down.

 [B4] 3 — Travel Back

    A terrible quiet remained outside as snow continued to fall down from the skies. With the death of the emperor, and the escape of the Azure Dragon, the heavens themselves felt weaker now. Qi felt weaker, starting to strain and wither out in the grasp of cold wintery hands. It was hard to imagine that a war was going on.


    But such was the nature of war. The frontlines of this battle were being fought across all borders of the empire. It was not the kind of war that I¡¯d seen or heard of in history. It was closer to a disease. One that had spread across the lands, through the world at large and now it was coming for us.


    This wasn¡¯t a war for land, treasure, ideological disputes or the gain of those in power. No, it was something much simpler and much worse. It was a battle for survival. Perhaps for all of humanity at large.


    The scales had shifted in the balance of the eternal war, and for the first time¡­ the threat of humanity losing was starting to become real.


    I clenched my fists, feeling tensions rising. What we had to do was known, though that did not make the task ahead easier. But being forced to sit still at these times was even worse than that. Restlessness filled me and I struggled to distract myself from the constant thoughts.


    We¡¯d be facing an army. An army of demonic beasts, and demons at large. But worst of all was the threat that came from within. Of cultivators losing their path, spirits being overtaken by wraiths, the threats coming from the beyond, from that dark and cold place of nothingness that existed out there.


    I closed my eyes. I¡¯d found myself there at one point. That cold, seething anger that slowly built up underneath. With the protection of the Heavens fading¡­ more and more people would fall prey to those. Already, I¡¯d begun sensing the rise of miasma in the hearts of cultivators.


    It was subtle, and fine enough that they would not notice it, not ¡®til it grew and started to corrupt their minds and thoughts.


    They needed hope. The empire needed hope. Needed something or someone who could show them a path ahead, show them some way out of all of this.


    It was a great ask, a great responsibility. To lead the empire, to become their hope? But I knew what power such things had. I recalled the way my own sect members often looked at me.


    I was greater than just myself. My image is greater than the person that I am. It is a message, a messenger, a new path.


    Hope.


    Be the change you want to see in the world.


    It was a nice phrase, but I¡¯d always thought that it was shallow. It implied that just by changing yourself, you could change the world. If it was so easy, everyone would do it right? But I think I finally understood it a little better now.


    Be the change.


    You had to start somewhere. To begin and take the first steps on the path, nothing would ever begin if you do not. I recalled the vision I had seen upon waking up for a second time in this world. I had no memories of my life, no memories of who I was, only the knowledge that had inherently been inside of me, as if looking at a stranger¡¯s soul.


    But in that moment of confusion and fear, I¡¯d found a spark, I¡¯d found others, found the Old man, found Labby, Sheldon, Yan Yun, Su Lin, Zhang, Granny Lang, Yin. Everybody. And step by step, little by little, I¡¯d begun to change the world.


    And I wasn¡¯t alone.


    I looked at the ring on my finger. A small, almost innocuous looking ring, containing around a quarter of all the spirit jade I¡¯d received. This was the highest grade spatial storage they¡¯d had and even it had struggled to hold it all.


    Yu Lan, the auction house manager, had kindly given this to me without any cost. I was not surprised, after all I¡¯d made her a fortune. But even if not¡­ given the current circumstances, I think she would¡¯ve done so even without that. It¡¯s partly why I¡¯d asked for her help in managing all the money.


    Guoren, the Lord¡¯s estate manager in Azure city, had risen up to task to help me sort it all out and manage everything. Zhou Fang, who¡¯d remained behind, had decided to help him out and I¡¯d left all my fortune in their safeguarding and hands. Most of it was being used to fund research regarding the war-front and in all the logistics and protections that needed to be in place. A bunch of craftsmen and blacksmiths were already being employed by them, using the help of the five divinities and my divine texts and their more non-volatile and non-magical copies, alongside the patents that I¡¯d sold for different working modules, and a dozen more prototypes that were not fully functional just yet. Everybody was coming together to make this happen.


    The portion that I¡¯d personally taken¡­ there was a project I¡¯d left with Yin. After we¡¯d successfully developed a powerful weapon. An idea I¡¯d had, though one that¡¯d cost quite a lot of energy to fuel.


    Even this was not enough, but it¡¯d be a start.


    ¡°You seem deep in thought, Lu Jie,¡± the Lord asked and I looked up at him.


    ¡°A bit difficult not to be, with everything going on,¡± I said.


    He looked outside with a thoughtful expression on his face. ¡°We live in difficult times, that is true. There have been escalations in conflict before. But never to this extent, and never with such a threat. But that is precisely why we must focus ourselves, sharpen our wills and fight.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m ready to do what I need to. It is just¡­ difficult to sit still and do nothing while I¡¯m here. Even if I know that¡¯d be the best thing to do right now.¡±


    Lord Zhou looked at me, and then at Yan Yun and Liuxiang seated next to me. ¡°The journey ahead of you is going to be treacherous. A lot relies on your success. Far too much. These are not tasks we¡¯d want to ask of children, but our hands are tied. I understand your impatience, but it is imperative that you be calm and prepared for anything that may come next. Take this time to settle down, to prepare for what is to come. Meditate and think over what you must do to move ahead,¡± Lord Zhou said.


    Liuxiang glanced towards me. ¡°There is a technique in the Shie clan, where one can conjoin their spirits with others, allowing us to meditate together. I¡¯d actually looked into it after remembering what Lu Jie had done to cure Zhang¡¯s core and enter his spirit, and have made some adjustments to the art.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t see any harm in it. It¡¯s going to take a few days before we reach the Seventh Peak anyway,¡± Yan Yun said.


    I looked at the two of them and nodded in agreement. ¡°Let¡¯s do it then.¡±


    Liuxiang nodded, extending her hand, grabbing both mine and Yan Yun¡¯s. I felt her Qi flow into me, tugging at my spirit and pulling me inwards.


    I began to meditate, matching the flow of Liuxiang¡¯s Qi and a second later, I felt Yan Yun¡¯s spirit as well, mingling together as the three of us began to meld together.


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    And then, I was gone.


    ***


    I opened my eyes and found myself standing in familiar darkness. The only difference was that this time, I was not alone.


    The giant figure of the dragon-turtle-snake Xuanwu remained ahead of me. And just a little in front of him were both Labby and Ash. Labby jumped up as she saw me, running up to me and tackling me to the ground¡ªor the darkness that served as a ground¡ªwith a hug.


    ¡°Great Master!¡± She exclaimed happily, dark black and purple lightning crackling all around her.


    I looked up and saw Yan Yun and Liuxiang looking down at me as well, both present here inside my spirit.


    Ash walked closer, pulling Labby back and letting me get back up. The giant wolf was also in his human form.


    ¡°Hey there you two, hope you¡¯ve been alright,¡± I said. I knew they were alright. In here, I could sense them much better than when they remained on their own. But it felt appropriate to ask anyway.


    ¡°Good,¡± Ash said.


    ¡°Labby has been training! The big turtle has been teaching her how to focus her lightning more, and use it correctly.¡± I patted Labby¡¯s head at that.


    ¡°Labby wants to be of help against the demons,¡± Labby said, her expression quite serious and I gave her a nod.


    ¡°Too many people. This is not a place of gathering¡­¡± Xuanwu said, snorting as he looked down at all of us. glancing at Labby. ¡°Nor a nursery for children.¡±


    ¡°We can use your help,¡± I told Xuanwu, ignoring his comments¡ªthe turtle just didn¡¯t know how to not be grumpy anytime and I knew he didn¡¯t mean it as much as he put on¡ªas I walked closer to the divine beast. ¡°I¡¯d like to progress on my path. To take the next step and grow stronger. I know that things are not meant to proceed this quickly¡­ but I don¡¯t have the time to wait, or the luxury to do things the normal way.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯d abandoned the normal way the moment you¡¯d accepted Chi within yourself. There is nothing normal about the path you have followed from there onwards.¡±


    ¡°Fair enough,¡± I said. ¡°So how can I proceed on my path? I need to grow stronger, strong enough to contest Yang Shen if I have to. And clearly I¡¯m not his match right now.¡±


    ¡°The answer is obvious. You must seek what answers remain to be sought. The path you follow no longer has any realms or measures of strength. But that does not mean you do not possess strength. There is a bundle of Chi inside of you, which fuels you. It grows as the domain of the Chi you are connected to grows. That, combined with our strength, and the Azure Dragon¡¯s strength, and you¡¯d be on par with any of the Divinity in strength, even if you remain exactly where you are on your path.¡±


    I paused at that. I¡¯d noticed that by now, that my path was non-standard and a lot of my strength was external, owing to the power I could utilize from things tied to my spirit.


    ¡°Then¡­ what should I do? Will it be enough?¡± I asked.


    ¡°You must do what you have always done. Your path does not seek strength, and so it does not reward you with strength when you walk it. Not directly at least. But you believe knowledge is power, and so when you understand more, your power grows with your understanding. There are things that remain still for you to understand. And when you do, your ability will increase.¡±


    I thought about that. ¡°The fourth law¡­ I will need to find it. Whatever it is. But I don¡¯t know where to begin looking. And¡­ will that actually help me beat Yang Shen?¡±


    ¡°If your goal is purely to beat Yang Shen, then build weapons. Do not spend time searching for your path. Create tools and fight with them. You will have the required strength from us. And from others.


    But if you wish to match Yang Shen¡­ then seek what your truth is. Answer it, find where it lies, and that will give you the insight you require.¡±


    ¡°Will that let me create a domain?¡± I asked.


    Xuanwu laughed.


    He glanced towards Yan Yun and Liuxiang. ¡°These two need to build their domains. They too need to seek their own truths. They¡¯ve found some answers upon it already, but they need to seek what comes beyond them,¡± The divine beast turned back to face me again. ¡°But you already have yours. You have had yours for quite some time.¡±


    ¡°What? But¡­ I¡­ how?¡± I asked, confused.


    Xuanwu harrumphed. ¡°Child, you reach out and bind the world to yourself and then make it a part of you. You are connected to the tree of rebirth, life and death itself join together within your soul, you represent the cycle of souls and contain the legacy of an old era.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve spent decades in the expanse of the in-between, at the edge of darkness and found genesis inside of it. It was you who stopped our rampage. Who convinced us that this world could yet be saved, when we had decided to begin anew and give it a rebirth. No matter how fleeting, how ephemeral it had been, it had been real, and it still exists. It is a shadow, hidden inside of you. You had reached that realm, you had reached a realm beyond it. The memory palace you inhabit exists within that space, the souls of those you¡¯ve helped to yourself, all that is tied to you joins back together to this,¡± Xuanwu said, his voice rising in power as he continued, bringing his face close to me, almost as if angry.


    ¡°Do not be so blind. Look within yourself. Ask the right questions. Why when divinities fail, does your spirit hold us, hold the legacy of an entire era? Do you think of yourself as gifted? What you have is something born out of creation, and not something you simply possessed from the beginning. Recall those memories, the darkness, the world you had forged, remember what that meant, what it means to harbor this space that can hold us, that can hold life and death and rebirth, a world within a world and more.¡±


    I stared up at the dragon-turtle in surprise. I felt a little stupid for not thinking about all this earlier. Vague memories of a dream that spanned a lifetime passed in my mind. My memory of that period was¡­ suitably, forgotten and lost entirely within the dream itself. But pieces of it lingered, echoes in the darkness that reflected something that had once been. And what had once been in this place¡­ could be brought back to life with will.


    ¡°You seek at last. But we do not have enough time¡­ perhaps, some help will hasten your progress,¡± Xuanwu said.


    The world rippled all around me and I found myself sinking into that echo, into the shadows of a lost time and place within the darkness, beyond reality and timeless, a fraction of existence that had once embodied a whole other life.


    As I sank, I saw the three spirit rings in the sky.


    Unity. Genesis. Harmony.


    They shone like beacons, humming with power. A representation of my path. Together they spun, like planetary bodies looking upon this world of spirit, as if casting a spell to bring back the visions of the past.


    The darkness rose around me, flowing over my body and swallowing me whole.


    I watched Xuanwu¡¯s shadow flicker from underneath, before losing myself to the darkness within the darkness.


    ***


    The world shivered around Xuanwu, before settling once more as Lu Jie disappeared into the darkness.


    ¡°Is Great Master going to be okay?¡± Labby asked nervously, looking up at the divine beast.


    ¡°He will be alright. He is simply heading to a part of himself deeper still. There are layers to a spirit, and some are less easily accessible than others. When he has found the answers he needs, he will return to the surface,¡± Xuanwu said.


    ¡°Will he wake up in time?¡± Yan Yun asked, with some concern.


    ¡°If he does not, then we will wake him up. You need not be concerned. And it is not just him that must work. If you wish to support him and accompany him, then you two must also seek the truth within yourself,¡± Xuanwu said, turning towards Yan Yun.


    ¡°You, lost child. Your path is a different kind, but not unforeseen. But it lacks identity. It lacks your self. You wish to help others, without knowing how to help yourself. We can see the wounds on your spirit and the desires that have shaped you to be who you are, but your answer does not extend to yourself, and thus, is it truly whole? Seek the path you wish to pursue, seek who you are beyond those around you, do not look for your reflection, seek the you that exists outside of existence,¡± Xuanwu said, the world rippling once more.


    Yan Yun bowed her head, as mist rose around her, before taking her away. Xuanwu turned at last to Liuxiang.


    Liuxiang bowed respectfully.


    ¡°You simply need to stop lying to yourself. You broke one lie, the shell that protected you, the mask was taken off, but did you ever truly find yourself underneath that mask? Your past dictates your present, you are all that exists in the context of all you have been, but what are you if not a shadow of the hand which governs your fate? When you¡¯ve found the lie, then you will also find your truth, and the world will reflect it,¡± Xuanwu said as Liuxiang vanished as well.


    The divine beast paused as he saw Labby looking up at him with sparkles in her eyes.


    ¡°¡­it is still too early for you, child.¡±


    Labby deflated in disappointment, and Ash shook his head, transforming into a wolf before bringing her with him to train together once more.


    Xuanwu sighed to himself. There were far too many children to take care of.

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