Chapter 279 – Depths of Shadow
Zou Tian hesitated before he stepped into the Trials Pagoda, still feeling worried about what would happen. One possibility was greatly positive—he'd be given a trial, and he'd pass it. Two possibilities were as greatly negative. Either he'd be given a trial and fail, or the pagoda would determine that his requested modification did not meet the criteria for offered upgrades.
Basically, he had a one in three chance of a good outcome.
The problem was that so much rode on the result. The Jade Chameleon Sect was surely planning an attack against his sect at the tournament, and while Master said that it was his responsibility to deal with the enemies, Zou Tian knew that only he had a real chance at discovering the details of the Jade Chameleon's plans.
But he could only accomplish that result if he could hide his cultivation.
He'd gone over his options with Senior Brother Yuan Yaozu. The Nascent Soul had been impressed by how well Zou Tian's presence was already hidden by Shadow.
That obscuration was not complete, however. Even those in the Foundation Establishment realm only found it difficult to detect him, not impossible. If he added a technique to improve the effect, a Golden Core who had worked hard to develop their spiritual sense would probably still detect him, as would just about any Nascent Soul.
It was possible that a device could help with the situation, and it was likely that Master could create such a thing. Senior Brother Yuan Yaozu, however, had never heard of any device being so good that it would hide a cultivator's presence from literally anyone.
When asked if Master might shatter those expectations, Senior Brother Yuan Yaozu had shrugged. "The sect leader is an amazing craftsman in addition to his other talents. Those swords he created were masterworks. If I had to put my life in anyone's hands to conceal my cultivation, it would be his."
At that point, Zou Tian had been much relieved, thinking that, regardless of what happened with the pagoda, he had a solid backup plan.
But Senior Brother Yuan Yaozu had continued. "The problem is that I don't know if such a device can be created by anyone, not even the sect leader. Devices run on qi. No matter how well hidden those emanations are, it's possible that someone you encounter might detect it. That possibility is probably low, but it's there."
Because Master had associated with Zou Tian while they were in Sixth Flawless Flowing City, he'd be under suspicion the moment he walked through the gates. Sect cultivators, partially due to their massive egos and partially because they were constrained by societal convention, would likely overlook a mortal associate of the Rising Tide Sect, but if he were proven to be a cultivator as well, it was likely his death sentence.
Master didn't want Zou Tian to risk himself in that manner, and honestly, he didn't want to die, either. As a street rat, he'd faced the possibility of violence every day, and there were times when his circumstances were so bad that he would have been okay with it had he experienced that fate.
His life was not like that anymore. No longer a street rat, he was a valued member of the sect. Even more importantly, he had friends. Most importantly, he had a loved one.
If something happened to him, he couldn't bear the thought of how Wan Ai would react.
Thus, Zou Tian was left with the Trials Pagoda as his one option to save his fellow sect members without putting himself in an unreasonable amount of danger. It all came down to what happened inside that unfathomable treasure.
He took a calming breath to center himself and entered, striding purposely to the white pedestal and placing his hand on it.
A familiar blue box popped up in front of his eyes.
Welcome to the Trials Pagoda, Disciple Zou Tian. You have the choice of one of the following three trials:
Advance Cultivation or Technique
Add or Modify Qi Aspect
Improve Spiritual Roots
Zou Tian tensed. The moment of truth was upon him. "Esteemed Trials Pagoda, this lowly one requests a trial to modify my qi aspect."
Disciple Zou Tian, please state the modification you seek to make to your qi aspect.Luckily, he'd talked to Xun Wu about his experience with a similar trial and was ready for that question.
"Esteemed Trials Pagoda, the lowly one wishes to deepen my affinity with the qi element of Shadow."
Selection to increase affinity of a qi element requires expenditure of sect resources and approval from Sect Leader Chao Su.
Contacting Sect Leader Chao Su.
Well versed with the process by that point, Zou Tian expected that blue box as well.
Actually, he'd expected a blue box. That the specific blue box had appeared was cause for great celebration. The Trials Pagoda could increase his affinity!
One big potential barrier in his way had been passed.
Sect Leader Chao Su says, "Ouch. Increasing affinity is twice as expensive as when Xun Wu modified his aspect. I'll accept the cost once, though. Good luck."Master's words had left Zou Tian with a huge decision to make. From past experience, the pagoda gave the trial taker an instant to read the message. No one had ever tried backing out at that point, but he thought that, presumably, he could. He had to consider his options quickly, though, before the pagoda's magic whisked him away.
The issue raised by Master's message was that failure didn't only mean that Zou Tian might have more problems passing the next time. It meant he was wasting sect resources and that he might not get a second opportunity.
Should he continue and risk those mysterious and limited resources that Master was so concerned about, or should he back out?
The fact that Master was willing to spend something so presumably valuable on a former street rat was not lost on Zou Tian. His main reason for wanting to take the trial in the first place was to begin paying Master back for all that he had done.
Instead, Zou Tian was going further into debt.
At that point, his only chance of climbing out of the hole was to keep going. If he could just increase his affinity, he might find out enough about the Jade Chameleon Sect to thwart their plans. He'd still owe Master and his sect more than he could ever repay, but those results would be a start.
Definitely a start.
Zou Tian made his choice—to remain silent as he was transported to the world or dimension or wherever it was that trial takers went.
He soon found himself in the same room with the spongy floor and a mirrored wall that he'd arrived in the previous time. And the same unkempt man with the dirty gray robe was also there.
The man waved his arm. An inky patch of blackness appeared on the floor. When Zou Tian looked at it closer, he saw that the oval was actually different shades of gray, starting very light in the part nearest him and turning to black at the far end.
"Advance into the field as far as you are able," the old man said. "You may stop and rest whenever you wish. Stopping will halt the experience, but you can re-start simply by continuing forward. A single even partial step backward, however, ends the trial."
That explanation was, by quite some amount, the most lengthy and comprehensive of all the ones received by trial takers thus far. That difference wasn't the only one, though, and not the more important. No, that honor went to the fact that his current trial would not give apparently infinite chances. If he stepped back for any reason, it was over.
Failure didn't depend solely on not giving up. A momentary slip would cause a disastrous result.
Perhaps that was why the explanation was so much more detailed.
With the message given, the old cultivator disappeared, leaving Zou Tian on his own to face the trial. He stared at the oval.
There didn't appear to be much to it—simply an oval on the floor with a gradient grayscale painted on it. The old man had referred to it as a field, but it wasn't any longer than Zou Tian was tall.
He should be able to cross it in two or three strides at most, maybe one if he really exaggerated how far he thrust his leg out.
One didn't have to have much experience with a Trials Pagoda to understand that passing probably wouldn't be that easy, and when one had gathered stories from literally everyone in the sect that had tried the pagoda so far like he had, there was absolutely no doubt that it wouldn't be so easy.
Thus, he approached the oval cautiously, barely extending just the tip of his toe into it initially.
Instantly, he was transported to a different world, one of light and shadow. All around him was bright yellow light. It warmed him, feeling just like being in the sun on a warm summer day.
Before him was a field of shadow, light at first and descending into blackness as dark as a cloudy night. The end could have been a matter of mere yards away or miles. Tens of miles. There was no way to tell, no scale, at least from the outside looking in.
As he stared into the distance trying to figure out how far it might be, the darkness called to him. Resonated with him.
Maybe the trial wouldn't be too difficult after all.
His first step into the lightly shadowed space was simple. There was no resistance. Nothing hindered him at all. He simply stepped as if walking on a regular level grass field.
Zou Tian took several more steps with the same results, each bolstering his confidence. After his sixth step, he stopped, though he wasn't sure why he did so. Where he was just felt … right. Something about the amount of light remaining.
No. Not the amount of light. The amount of shadow. The amount of Shadow.
Yes. That was exactly what he was feeling. His current affinity. Thus far, he'd only been transversing the amount of affinity he already possessed.
Once he'd stepped inside the Shadowed zone, the scale grew somewhat easier to discern, and by looking back and comparing that distance to what was ahead, he believed he'd thus far made it maybe twenty percent of the way. Twenty-five at the utmost.
When he started his next step, he knew things would change. There would be resistance of some kind, but there would also be an accompanying increase in his affinity.
He just needed to hold fast and keep advancing as far as he could into the depths of Shadow.
Zou Tian was right. Things did change. There was resistance.
First came the pressure. It was like a weight pressing down on his body, much like the experience of being in Master's Gravity field.
It wasn't physical, though. His robe wasn't affected. Nor his hair. The pressure was real just the same.
As the sole of his foot came to a rest, the good news was that the pressure disappeared. The bad news was that was when the pain hit. It felt like something was penetrating his skin all over his body, and it hurt. A lot. He'd experienced the increase in his spiritual roots that Master awarded after the beast tide. The current level of pain had nothing on that agony.
If that initial level of pain was to be the extent of what would be experienced, Zou Tian could handle it. Easy.
Once again, he seriously doubted it would be anywhere near that simple. And unfortunately, he was again right.
When he stepped forward again, the pressure reappeared, and as he'd expected, it was more intense, harder to push through. And when his foot reached a resting point, the pain was that much more intense as well.
With each step, the pressure and the pain grew. By his fourth step, he raised his right hand close to his eye. From what he was feeling, he expected to see a bloody mess as something was surely penetrating his flesh and must have been tearing it to shreds.
There was no blood, though. The only change was that his skin appeared … darker, maybe? It was difficult to tell with the lack of light.
After another two steps of pushing through almost impossible pressure and enduring excruciating pain, he felt he was maybe halfway through the field. Maybe a little less. Definitely not more.
If he was right, he probably just doubled his affinity. That was a good result. He could quit, right?
But would that much Shadow absolutely shield him even from a Nascent Soul cultivator? He didn't know. To be safe, he should keep advancing until he literally couldn't move a step further.
One more step. Two. Three.
The pressure was like one of the sect's big pavilions had been dropped on his shoulders, and he had to carry it with him. The pain had eclipsed increasing his roots two steps ago.
He was surely at two and a half times his original affinity. No one, not even Senior Brother Yuan Yaozu, would fault him for stopping.
But Zou Tian would fault himself.
Another step. And another.
He had to face facts. There was no possible way he was reaching the end. Such was not achievable by the current him. Even if he could somehow will himself to endure the ridiculous level of pain, the pressure was becoming more than his body could physically push through.
Most of the trials that sect members went through were designed to teach them a lesson. Once they learned the lesson, they passed.
He was almost positive the current one was different. It wasn't trying to teach him how to endure pain. There was no lesson about Shadow qi.
If he was right, the trial was actually cramming an affinity for Shadow into him somehow. The pressure was overcoming the resistance to push into the next percent increase. The pain was the actual reward for overcoming the pressure as the Shadow entered him to increase that affinity.
His body couldn't withstand much more. It was truly impossible for him to reach the end.
That thinking gave him the out he needed. Since he couldn't go all the way, surely almost tripling his original affinity was fine.
Great. Since that thought had crossed his mind, he couldn't quit there. It would be giving up.
One more step…
Chapter 280 – The Problem with Delegating
Benton had a nice vacation watching the kiddos playing with the spirit beasts. He loved that the older ones had really focused on making sure that Jin LiJuan got the most out of the trip and decided that the three of them needed to be rewarded for their kindness and consideration.
He also liked that Yang Ru seemed to have come up with a new use for one of his techniques, one that should suit him well for the upcoming tournament. Yang Xiu, on the other hand, seemed a bit more stagnate. Benton would have to discuss preparations with them.
With all three of them, though, or just the twins? Kang Lin was his disciple, and he'd always gone out of his way to include her just like she was a sect member. But she wasn't. She'd be fighting for the honor of the Poison Claw Sect, not for him.
He gave the situation a mental shrug. As her master, it was incumbent upon him to help her, so that was what he would do. If help required a massive outlay of resources, that was one thing. There was no requirement that he bankrupt his sect for her. For example, he was not planning on creating a Lightning qi source, a treasure that would benefit only her as far as his sect members and disciples went.
Actually, he felt really bad about that and suspected that he might end up changing his mind down the road.
Anyway, the point was that he wanted to help her and he would, but he might not put quite as much oomph into what he gave her as into what he gave the others.
Did that make him a bad master? He hoped not.
Speaking of choices he'd prefer not to make, Jin LiJuan was the other problem child. She simply was not far enough along with her techniques to put up a good showing at the tournament. If she didn't improve significantly before then, she might have to stay behind.
She'd be devastated, of course, and having to stay home would probably negatively impact her confidence. He had to think, though, that getting trounced in the tournament would be an even bigger blow.
Regardless, with morning of the last day of the expedtion having arrived and the kids looking like they'd reached a good stopping point, he Teleported to them. "Ready to head back?"
Not a one of them appeared even the slightest bit surprised that he'd suddenly appeared right in their midst. He would have to come up with a flashier trick. Maybe he could make everything except his head invisible? Or trigger Lightning or something when he arrived?
He'd have to think about it.
The three older ones looked at each other before nodding, and Benton was amused to note that the twins' glance communicating had somehow folded in Kang Lin. They all turned to Jin LiJuan.
She sighed. "This area is beyond my comfort zone, Master. I struggle with the rank threes and can't handle the rank fours at all. Ganzou and I are ready."
"It's good to know your limits," Benton said. "That's a sign of maturity."
All four of the Foundation Establishment cultivators pulled their gliders from their respective storage rings, and soon, they were back at the sect, landing in front of the Administration Hall.
"Li'er, you're free to go about whatever it is you want to do. The rest of you come see me in my office in about…" Benton paused. They'd all just spent a week roughing it with only mountain streams to use for washing. He bet all of them would want a long shower and a good, hot meal. "About two hours."
With that, he teleported into his office. Sun Hua immediately knocked on the door, entering quickly at his acknowledgement. As soon as Benton saw her face, he knew something was wrong.
"What happened?" he said.
"Three lights on the rock went out, Sect Leader."
When Benton had created the sect tokens and linked one of them to each sect member, he'd set up signal lights on a rock in the Administration Hall lobby. The light burned continuously and would only go out if a sect member lost their token. Or their life.
Sun Hua looked upset but not horribly so. The upset part meant that she knew or at least suspected that the latter loss was the issue. That she wasn't more upset probably meant she didn't know the people who might be dead.
"In Vermillion Incomparable Rain Town?" he said.
"Yes, Sect Leader."
He almost asked her for the names associated with each light and when it had happened, but honestly, he'd rather get it straight from the source.
"I'll be back," he said, Teleporting directly to the palace. "Fatty Ren! What happened?"
The man looked shocked to see him, like the visit wasn't expected at all.
"The lights for three of your members went out." Benton was quickly getting agitated. The person in charge of the branch sect surely must know if three of his members died. "What happened?"
Fatty Ren's eyes widened. "This one had them executed, Sect Leader."
On the list of tragedies that might have befallen the deceased sect members, an attack by a rival sect was at the top. Following closely was some sort of training accident. That the sect branch's leader might have had them killed was not even a consideration.
"Executed! Why?"
"They were spies, Sect Leader."
"And?"
"I hunted them down as we had discussed, Sect Leader, and then I did as you told me to do."
Benton was quite sure he'd never instructed for anyone to be killed. He'd simply told the man to … handle it as he saw fit. As a sect cultivator, he would obviously think that spies must be executed.
Ugh. It was Benton's fault. He hadn't thought it through when giving those instructions. Instead, he should have told the Town Lord to…
What exactly?
Sects executed spies for a reason. Joining a sect represented an obligation on the part of the sect and on the part of the member. Initiates gained access to resources and secrets. Anyone who broke faith in such a manner arguably deserved death.
Still, it would have been nice to have known about the situation beforehand. At the very least, Benton would have made sure that the accused had a fair trial. What was done was done, though.
That was the problem with delegating, though. At some point, one had to place actual trust in the abilities of one's subordinates, even if they didn't handle a situation in the same way that you might have.
He sighed. "Understood. Maybe message me first next time? I thought some tragedy had befallen them. In fact, let's make it a standing order to report any serious incidents. I'm only a message dragon away, okay?"
Fatty Ren cupped his hands. "Of course, Sect Leader. Apologies for not doing so."
"It's fine. Growing pains are to be expected. You don't know what I want, and I don't fully understand how you govern yet. Time and experience will fix everything."
The Town Lord cupped his hands again. "Gratitude, Friend Su."
"Do you need anything while I'm here?"
"No, Friend Su."
"Alright. I'll stop in before heading to the auction. See you in a couple of days." With that, Benton teleported back to the main branch.
His first action was to summon Sun Hua to his office. After telling her what happened with the three traitors, he asked for a status report.
"There were no major problems or disruptions while you were away, Sect Leader. There was a minor problem with one of the arrays in the Martial Pavilion that resulted in an injury. The sect member involved was quickly healed, though, and the Formations Pavilion head repaired the malfunction."
"He diagnosed and fixed the problem? Really? What was wrong?"
"Apologies, Sect Leader. This lowly Assistant is not well versed enough in arrays to understand the description provided. Something about a buffer?" The girl looked positively upset that she wasn't able to answer his question.
"That's fine. I'll check with Xiang Da. He really got it running, though?" Benton hadn't realized that any of that pavilion's members were far enough along to figure something new out on their own.
"Yes, Sect Leader. Guard Captain Huang Yimun and one of his guards did thorough testing of the room at Elder Xiang Da's insistence. They were unable to replicate the initial failure."
Cool. Go Xiang Da.
"Okay," Benton said. "Anything else of interest?"
"No, Sect Leader."
"Good deal, then. The twins and Kang Lin will stop by after a while. Please show them in when they get here, and please stay for the meeting."
"Yes, Sect Leader."
After she left, he took a moment just to enjoy being back in the place that was rapidly becoming home for him, settling into a lotus position and just relaxing. As he was wont to do, however, he eventually reached out with his spiritual sense to examine the sect grounds, the village, and the surroundings.
His first observation was that there was nothing out of place, as in no spirit beast or enemy cultivators nearby. Everyone seemed to be going about their business naturally.
Something didn't feel right, though. Something was … missing. Yes. Not something, though. Someone.
It took only a few seconds for his enhanced mind to compare the qi signature of every person in his memory to all those he sensed. Zou Tian was missing.
Strange.
Benton had gotten a notification just yesterday that the boy was entering his trial. Surely, he wasn't still inside. In fact, it wasn't possible for him to still be inside, as Benton had gotten a notification of another member entering earlier in the morning.
Could it be? Surely not.
The Trials Pagoda had been provided by the System, though. So maybe…
Benton Teleported to the Alchemy Pavilion, appearing just outside Wan Ai's personal lab. As far as his spiritual sense could determine—and he took his time with the scan—she was alone inside.
He knocked on the door. When she opened it, sure enough, he saw Zou Tian.
"Either you have suddenly lost all your cultivation, or your trial was very successful," Benton said.
"You can't sense me, Master?"
"I can't sense you."
Zou Tian grinned wide.
"That is so amazing, kid. Congratulations!"
"He'll be safe going on the mission, then, Sect Leader?" Wan Ai said.
Benton tried to remember any time when the girl had voluntarily spoken in his presence and couldn't come up with a single occasion. The poor thing must be quite worried about her boyfriend.
"I am not exaggerating in the slightest when I say that, if I can't sense him, no one on this entire continent can," Benton said. "Between that and his contingency ring, he should be fine. Especially since I've ordered him not to take any risks. He's basically just going to spend a week or two going to taverns and restaurants and listening to rumors. It shouldn't be dangerous at all."
It better not be, anyway. Benton made a mental note to admonish the boy again right before the mission.
That plan was for the future, though. For now, he just wanted to take a few moments and bask in the glory of how awesome his disciples were.
Chapter 281 – Worries, Leadership, Rewards, and Gratitude
Kang Lin was quite curious about why Master had called for her and the twins to meet with him. If it was about the tournament, why was she being included, and if it concerned the expedition, why hadn't Jin LiJuan been invited?
Either way, Kang Lin would find out soon enough. After a luxurious bath and a not quite as decadent meal from the cafeteria, she definitely felt much better. Roughing it in the wilds was an accepted part of being a cultivator, and with her elevated realm and the convenience of a storage ring, a lot of the downsides were much easier to handle.
That being the case, it was called roughing it for a reason. Just the ability to get truly clean again was an enormous boon. She almost felt pleased. Until she again considered the results of the expedition.
Yang Ru has surpassed her once again. His new use of his Momentum Transfer technique was sure to make him a star in the tournament. He wouldn't win the lower Foundation Establishment division, of course, since he was just in the first minor realm, but only the best of the best from the other sects would defeat him.
A membership in which she was definitely not included.
Though Yang Xiu hadn't made any obvious advancements, the casual manner in which she dealt with even peak rank fours left no doubt that she was much stronger than Kang Lin.
She was falling further behind. The twins would eclipse her soon, and that wasn't even counting what would happen when they gained access to the qi sources that Master was creating.
Not for the first time, she wondered why anyone was still even giving lip service to her and Yang Ru marrying. Sure, Master and Yang Ru offered assurances that it would all work out okay, but that wasn't how sects worked. With her roots upgraded to B-, her use of Lightning qi, and the status of her family within her sect, she would normally be a good match for just about anyone.
The problem was that Yang Ru wasn't just anyone. Not only was he one of the heirs apparent of a sect that, though small at the moment, had a profound future ahead of it, but he had A ranked talent. Once he showed himself to be a powerhouse at the tournament, his pedigree would be firmly established.
Kang Lin should never have been considered a proper match for him in the first place.
In contrast to her doubts were those assurances provided by Master. Just thinking about the solution to how she might keep up with Yang Ru, Dual Cultivation, triggered many emotions in her. The actual mechanism made her blush, and she couldn't help but be a little curious about the process. And she also couldn't help but give in somewhat to her most greedy impulses at the thought of her cultivation progress being eased. Cultivators routinely killed for resources that provided lesser benefits than what she imagined.
Mostly, though, she didn't know whether she was flattered that Yang Ru would consider sacrificing so much of his own advancement for her or if she should be disgusted at herself for the need. She mostly settled on both simultaneously.
Then there were the practicalities. Such a method only worked with small differences. The gap between A and B- should qualify in that regard, but what happened when he began using the qi source to accelerate his cultivation. She'd never be able to keep up then, no matter how often they practiced the method.
Her face reddened at the thought.
She firmed her resolve. Once the qi sources were created, she'd observe their actual impact. If it exceeded a reasonable amount, she'd return to the Poison Claw Sect and leave behind the absurd notion of marrying Yang Ru.
The decision made her much more melancholy than she had thought it would, and she had to school her face so the twins didn't detect her mood when she rejoined them. Instead, she exchanged cheerful greetings with the two and launched into a discussion about what Master could possibly want as they made the short journey to the Administration Hall.
Sun Hua met them at the entrance and escorted them to Master's office, joining them inside.
"Greetings, all," Master said. "I have two topics for today. The first is that I wish to express my extreme gratitude to the three of you who accompanied Jin LiJuan on the expedition. I had meant for it to be a training opportunity for all of you, but I saw that you spent a lot of effort focusing on the weakest member of the group. That kind of caring for your fellow sect members is what I want the Rising Tide Sect to exemplify, and thus it is an action that I want to reward. Gratitude."
Master cupped his hands and bowed slightly to each of the three. "I've decided to grant each of you a new technique."
That announcement lifted Kang Lin's mood. As a member of an allied sect, she didn't earn contribution points aside from that one mission, and Master had already given her so much that asking for another technique felt greedy to her. But with both newest ones at Large Success, it would be a good time for her to add another one.
"The main reason for this meeting, however, is to discuss tournament preparations," Master said. "Kang Lin, I included you because you have actual experience with the tournament in question. Do you mind lending us some of your wisdom?"
Saying she had experience with the tournament was overstating matters a bit. She'd only been eleven years old the last time it was held. Though she'd attended, it was as a child, and she didn't exactly have any great insights about the event. Still, giving them her opinion was the least she owed him.
"Of course, Master."
"Excellent. First of all, we need to address the elephant in the room."
Kang Lin vaguely knew what an elephant was, though she'd never seen one. To her understanding, they were enormous creatures. Why would there be one in a room? She had no idea.
"Though I left determining participation up to the pavilion heads," Master said, "I can't help but be concerned about Jin LiJuan. As one of our few Foundation Establishment cultivators, I'm assuming you've considered automatically awarding her a place?"
Yang Xiu nodded.
"You noticed the problem, right?" Master said.
"She's not ready, Master," Yang Xiu said, "and I don't know if she'll get ready in time, either. The advancement of her skills is too slow."
Master grimaced. "I hate to take the opportunity away from her, but I suppose we must. Maybe that message would be best coming from me instead of one of you three."
"Maybe none of us need to tell her, Master?" Kang Lin said.
"Explain."
"We give her the opportunity. Yang Xiu is already planning a tournament. Why would there be an expectation on her part that she had automatic entrance? She'll have to showcase her abilities to earn a spot."
Master stroked his chin. "I see. Interesting. Yang Xiu? Yang Ru?"
"I like the idea, Master," Yang Xiu said. "I wouldn't expect her to have to beat any of the three of us to be allowed to go, but we should be able to come up with something that makes sense."
Yang Ru grunted his assent.
"Great! That was a much better solution than I anticipated," Master said. "Next subject, I think that one sect member other than me should be designated to be the overall person in charge of the tournament for our sect. Four of the five best candidates are in this room, and Zou Tian has other concerns he needs to deal with."
He looked at Sun Hua. "I doubt you're even considering participating, right?"
"Correct, Master."
"Normally, I'd still consider you as probably my top resource for something like this. Your organizational and logistic skills are top notch. Unfortunately, I think a better use of your abilities is to continue what you're doing running the sect while I'm otherwise occupied, which is much too heavy a burden to give you additional responsibilities on top of."
She swallowed hard. "Yes, Master."
He turned to Kang Lin. "You'd be an excellent choice to lead the effort. Between your knowledge of the event and the players and your overall competence, any sect would be happy to have you in charge."
She knew a "but" was coming. At least, she hoped there was.
Master didn't disappoint. "But you're not a member of my sect. I don't think the optics are right. What's your opinion?"
Kang Lin wasn't sure exactly what he meant by optics, but she got the general gist. "If your desire is to show that the Poison Claw Sect and the Rising Tide Sect are close allies, having me run your participation in the tournament sends that message, but I'm almost positive your goal is to take advantage of the boost to your reputation that the invitation is providing. Choosing me would do serious damage to that objective."
"Exactly my thoughts. Which means you're out." Master turned to the twins. "You two are both great, but I wish you were more seasoned in regard to organization and logistics. This will just have to serve as a learning experience for one of you. Until after the tournament is over, one of you will lead that effort while the other will serve as the sole head of the Martial Pavilion. Can I leave it to you two to decide which is which?"
The two stared at each other. If anyone had ever given off "pick me, pick me" energy, it was Yang Xiu. Her brother, typically, grunted his consent. He could be more stubborn than anyone Kang Lin ever met if he truly had an opinion about something, but if he didn't care, he really didn't care.
"I'll run our tournament entry, Master," Yang Xiu said.
"Works," Master said. "Yang Ru, all you need to do is select the martial members attending the tournament."
"Yes, Master."
"Sun Hua, please give Yang Xiu all the administrative and logistical help you can manage but remember that your first job is running the sect. If you're unable to help her with something, let her know that."
"Yes, Sect Leader."
"Kang Lin, I'd really appreciate it if you could advise Yang Xiu as much as you feel comfortable doing. This is one of those areas, though, where it's not something I'm comfortable asking as your master, so it truly is your call."
Kang Lin almost snorted. Of course, she'd help. For one thing, the amount she felt she'd gained from her master and his sect was well in excess of anything she'd contributed. For another, she still loved Yang Xiu like a sister even as the possibility of that becoming a reality became dimmer by the day.
"Understood, Master."
"Great, gratitude to all of you once again," Master said. "Sun Hua, all that I have left is distributing techniques to these three, so no need for you to stick around if you don't want."
"Yes, Master." And with that, the assistant and sometimes sect leader left the room.
"Who's first?" Master said.
One person obviously volunteered for the position.
"A while back, we talked about me modifying my qi aspect, Master," Yang Xiu said. "Can I still do that?"
"The same conditions apply."
She explained a minor change she wanted to make that would give her access to Razor Edge Sharpness as a qi element. Kang Lin was pretty impressed, thinking the solution offered maximum effectiveness with minimal impact. Master agreed, giving Yang Xiu the permission she sought.
"I'm assuming that boon was in lieu of the offered technique?" Master said.
"Well… uh, actually…"
"Spit it out, Yang Xiu," Master said.
"Having access to the new element won't do me much good if I don't have a technique to apply it, right Master? What do you think about modifying my Slippery Arrow technique to make it the Slippery Sharp Arrow technique?"
Master did that thing with his eyes like he was reading something no one but him could see. "It's not full price, but I still have to pay half." He sighed. "I forgot how expensive teenage daughters could be."
Kang Lin didn't think that he even realized that he'd essentially called Yang Xiu his daughter, but the girl certainly did. She actually teared up.
"What?" Master said, obviously noticing the glistening eyes. "Really. What happened?"
"Nothing, Master. Thank you, Master."
He frowned but moved past it. "Okay, then. I'll give you your new technique after you pass your trial."
She cupped her hands. "Gratitude, Master."
He turned to Kang Lin. "Any thoughts on what you might want?"
Her first thought was to refuse the offer. After all, she hadn't felt that she'd actually done anything to warrant such a reward. The value of a top heaven grade technique far, far eclipsed the minor help she provided to the young beast tamer. But Kang Lin's pragmatic side won out. That and knowing that her grandfather would ream her out good for passing up such an opportunity.
Since she already had a weapon technique and a shield technique, the two most obvious choices were a movement technique or a ranged qi attack. The latter was a nice to have, though. The former would be incorporated into every fight. Besides, she hadn't even reached Mastery with her Foundation Establishment level spear attack yet. The choice was obvious.
She cupped her hands. "Gratitude, Master. This lowly one requests an upgrade to Lightning Dash, the movement technique that I mastered in the Qi Gathering realm."
"Good choice." After a few more of those eye movements, he pulled a jade slip from his ring and tossed it to her.
She immediately dove her consciousness into the slip and was astounded by the new technique. It was called Path of Lightning, and it was everything she wanted and more. Whereas her old movement skill had simply boosted her straight line speed, the new one built on the same patterns of activating internal qi to use her muscles for acceleration to allow her to move quickly in any direction she chose.
It also went so much farther than that, though,
The technique, when she chose, wrapped her in pure Lightning and propelled her from one spot to another. She'd have to test the results, but she guessed that the movement would be faster than the eye could see. Such a powerful technique would automatically catapult her fighting prowess to near the top of her tier in the tournament, assuming she got it to at least Large Success prior to the matches starting.
Of course, a technique that powerful came with a downside—moving so fast by manifesting pure Lightning cost a good portion of her qi. She'd have to use it sparingly. Still, even just a single step at that speed would make her spear thrust almost impossible to defend against.
Kang Lin smiled wide. She had a lot of practicing to do, but she knew she would love the results!
If not for the huge breach in decorum it would be, she would have hugged him. Instead, she settled for cupping her hands again.
Chapter 282 - Advice
Yang Ru wasn't great with emotions, not in expressing them and definitely not in being terribly observant when the women in his life experienced them. He couldn't help but seeing that his sister was near tears, though, and even he could figure out the reason for that one. More mysterious to him was why it seemed like Kang Lin was a bit distant lately.
He might be imagining that one, though.
In the unlikely event that he was actually right, he probably should do something about it. Which meant another talk.
He sighed. Best to get it over with. As soon as Master dismissed them, he'd pull her aside. Besides, she seemed to be in a good mood after Master awarded her that new movement technique.
After she examined the jade slip, she cupped her hands to Master.
"Yang Ru," he said, "Your turn. Know what you want?"
Overall, Yang Ru was quite happy with his combat build. Stone Skin and his shield protected him from attacks, allowing him to get close to his opponents with impunity. His spear skill, movement technique, and Momentum Transfer combined to power an absolutely devastating blow. He could even use his skills to defend himself and speed his movements.
He absolutely felt good about his ability to fight opponents in a higher realm than him, an ability not shared by many cultivators. Taken all together, he had no complaints.
That being said, he'd be an idiot to pass up the opportunity to add another skill to his repertoire.
One possibility was a ranged attack. He liked that it would give him an added dimension that he didn't currently possess. What if a cultivator could hover outside of his range and pelt him with attacks? Sure, such an ability was rare for the lower stages of Foundation Establishment, but Master advocated the belief that literally nothing was impossible.
Yang Ru was sorely tempted to go with that option without even considering any others. After all, his understanding was that he couldn't use any devices in the tournament that utilized qi unless he crafted it himself. Thus, no glider. A flying opponent could wear him down and cause him to lose.
On the other hand, he did have a bow in his ring, even if he was still dreadful with it. A bit of practice would help shore up that weakness. Besides, it would be stupid to focus on a possibility that was unlikely to come true.
An option that appealed to him greatly was an improved spear technique. He felt great about having mastered the Qi Gathering foundation knowledge spear skill, but according to Kang Lin, the competition was likely to be even more masterful with their weapons than he was.
That one was more enhancing a strength, though, rather than eliminating a weakness. Honestly, he felt like he could fight almost as well without the spear. Between his Body Cultivation, Stone Skin, and his shield, he was confident that he could absorb a blow or two from anybody in his realm—an ability that Kang Lin grudgingly acknowledged—so he didn't need the weapon for defense. Likewise, he could just as easily transfer Momentum through a punch or even a single finger.
A third option, one that might be more difficult to learn, would be to utilize his aspect to add an attack from a different qi element. Right now, his sole attack and defense mechanisms depended on Momentum. If his opponent had a way to counter that element, Yang Ru would have little chance of winning.
Would it be rare to come across someone with an ability or qi element that countered his? Yes. Was it possible? Yes. How much emphasis should he put on covering that weakness? He wasn't sure. It was an option worth considering, though.
His aspect was low viscosity lava flowing down Mount Burning Thunder. According to Master, low viscosity simply meant that the lava wasn't very thick, enabling it to flow faster. Not much potential there that Yang Ru could see. Lava was basically burning, melted rock, which held a lot of promise. Flowing was where he got Momentum. And honestly he didn't know what to do with Mount Burning Thunder.
Kang Lin said that it was an actual mountain on a different continent, but how that translated to a qi element was beyond him.
By process of elimination, that left him with Lava, but that option wasn't exactly limiting. Burning, melted rock sounded pretty darn dangerous to him.
That option, adding a new element to his attack and/or defense, seemed like the clearly best one. How best to integrate it into his existing techniques, though, was a bit beyond his current level of understanding.
He explained his choice and his reasoning to Master. "Do you have any advice for me on a specific technique?"
Master smiled widely. "That is honestly the smartest thing I've heard in a long time. You should never take someone else's advice if it doesn't resonate with you, but if you have access to someone with a lot more knowledge and experience than you, it's a fantastic idea to take advantage of their wisdom."
Both girls grimaced at the fact Yang Ru was being praised at their expense. He grimaced, too, sure that he would pay for that later.
"My first impulse is Lava Skin, an upgrade for Stone Skin," Master said, "but honestly, I don't think it's a good fit. Your shield is a lot more efficient in using external qi than a layer of Lava could ever be. The upside is that it would be very dramatic. Very. And you shouldn't underestimate the value of making a spectacle."
Yang Ru was, if anything, very much anti-spectacle. He'd leave that to his sister. Quiet and dependable was more his thing.
"Yeah, I get it. That wouldn't fit you at all. Let's see…" Master stroked his chin a couple of times. Honestly, something clean and simple like Lava Burst would probably be the best bet. We could link it to a spear skill, allowing you to generate a ball of Lava from the tip. You could simply coat your spear with it to give you an extra option for causing damage, or you could launch it from the end, giving you the ranged option you were thinking about. Or if you're willing to put in the time to practice it, we could make you one that could do either based on your intent."
That option really resonated with Yang Ru. It gave him the added versatility of both a new qi element and a ranged attack. And he never would have thought of it.
He cupped his hands. "Lava Burst is perfect, Master."
"Are you sure? Think of how cool you'd look literally coated in burning Lava? Armor that was mostly black rock with growing orange streaks through it would be absolutely striking. Kang Lin would have some competition when the girls saw you like that."
Yang Ru didn't even respond, not even to grunt. If there was an argument less likely to sway him, for multiple reasons, he didn't know what it was.
Master sighed. "Okay. Fine." His eyes moved all about at random, and a moment later, he produced a jade slip. "Here you go."
After that, the three were soon dismissed. As they walked out of the Administration Hall, Yang Ru opened his mouth to ask Kang Lin to walk with him somewhere private so they could talk.
Instead, Yang Xiu grabbed Kang Lin's hand and practically drug her away.
Huh?
Yang Xiu could hardly concentrate on anything after Master said what he did. She needed to talk about it. As soon as they were clear of the Administration Hall doors, she drug Kang Lin to the Martial Pavilion and into one of the private sparring rooms.
After locking the door, Yang Xiu spun around. "You heard it, too, didn't you?"
"Yes."
"What do you think he meant by it?"
"What do you think he meant by it?"
Yang Xiu grew a bit frustrated. She needed input, not to have her question thrown back at her. "I don't know!" After taking a deep breath, she continued. "I don't even know what I wanted him to mean by it. I mean, after losing my parents, the thought of someone else filling their shoes… I mean, I'm an adult, but… You know!"
"I do, Yang Xiu. I really do. Family is important."
"Did he mean it? Tell me your opinion. Please!"
Kang Lin sighed. "He's always treated both of you like he's your father. He's stated many times that you're his heirs, for all the good that does for someone who's probably immortal. I don't see how this is any different."
"He treats just about everybody like they're his kids, though. Especially Jin LiJuan."
"He doesn't treat everyone like he treats you two. You're obviously special to him. It feels to me like he thinks of himself as your father and Jin LiJuan's grandfather."
"What do I do about it?" Yang Xiu said.
"That really depends on what you want."
That was the problem. Yang Xiu simply didn't know. "Am I dishonoring my parents by accepting someone else, replacing them?"
That wasn't the real problem, though. Her parents were dead because of her. She didn't deserve another parent, another father.
Her vision blurred as tears formed.
Suddenly, she was being hugged by Kang Lin.
"It's okay." She patted Yang Xiu's back. "No one is asking you to make a big declaration or even a decision. Master clearly meant what he said, but he also clearly didn't mean it as a formal announcement. He didn't even realize the importance. Take your time. Meditate on it. When you figure out what you want, talk to Yang Ru. Then the two of you should talk to Master."
Yang Xiu forcibly calmed herself. Her sister's advice was good. Taking time to process would be perfect.
Chapter 283 – As Expected
Benton had about a day and a half left before the morning of the auction arrived, and he'd accomplished all his major objectives. Which meant he was free to move onto minor ones.
He believed that the training sword he'd created to sell could end up being a tremendous boon for whatever faction ended up buying it, and he'd frankly be a horrible sect leader if he didn't provide similar resources for his members.
Spears should be easy. To save money on building them, he'd forego the all-metal haft design and use Orange Vigor Spirit Wood, which had the dual benefits of being almost as good as metal and basically free for him. The woodworkers and former village alchemists had already cut and treated plenty of correctly sized branches just for that future purpose.
All Benton had to do was forge the spear tips and inscribe the formations. No problem. Ten of the practice weapons should be enough to get things started.
The sect's other primary weapon was the bow. Two former villagers turned sect members were bowyers, and while the Qi Gathering realm archers were all still using weapons purchased from merchants, the craftsmen were already preparing for the day Benton would want to award new Foundation Establishment members with bows made from Orange Vigor Spirit Wood.
But there was a problem. As far as he knew, they'd only made three of them so far, having been concentrating on other general woodcrafting needs instead.
For an instant, he was tempted to spend the points necessary to become a Master Bowyer, but that expenditure seemed wasteful. While he enjoyed crafting, it was silly for him to take on literally every job. The sect could get by with three training bows for a while. He'd add more as soon as the raw versions became available.
The sect had branched out some from his original thought of everyone using both those weapons and only those weapons. Many of his members, especially the crafters, used a dagger, which made a ton of sense for the alchemists. And it also made sense for the blacksmiths to use a hammer.
Luckily, those were easy enough to forge. Since there were far fewer using daggers or hammers than spears or bows, he'd start with two training weapons each.
As soon as he came to that conclusion, though, a thought occurred to him. The crafters used them as both a weapon and a tool, and while he probably could cram teaching functions for both into a single device, it would be far easier to simply separate the two uses, meaning making eight total devices instead of four.
Finally, came his hardest choice—a sword. Currently, he only had one sect member training with it, but he had to believe others would come along eventually. Besides, Pan Jiang could also use it while he was at the sect.
Why not? Making one of them wouldn't take up too much of his time.
Thus, Benton spent the next full day of objective time, some while accelerated and some while not, making training weapons and tools.
When finished, he almost Teleported directly into the Martial Pavilion to hand most of them over to Yang Ru, but he stopped himself. First of all, he really didn't want to explain the purpose of the devices multiple times. Second and perhaps more importantly, he needed to treat the Rising Tide like a true sect, and in a true sect, the members were summoned to the sect leader. He didn't go to them.
Which made sense to the part of Benton who'd spent most of his career as a middle manager back on Earth. Optics mattered. Once a company got large enough, the employees should see the CEO as a visionary leader, not some random guy who wanders around the building running errands.
He sent message dragons to Yang Ru, currently the sole head of the Martial Pavilion; Xun Wu, the expert blacksmith; Wan Ai, reluctant leader of the Alchemy Pavilion; Zou Tian, who used the dagger as his weapon of choice; and of course Sun Hua, the assistant sect leader.
Shortly after Benton teleported back to his office, the five joined him.
Benton removed one of each weapon type from his ring and placed them on a table. "These devices are something that will improve the rate of gaining Mastery with weapon and tool techniques. Each is inscribed with formations that allow it to sense when a basic movement is correct and guide the user appropriately."
He looked out and saw blank looks on most of the faces, the exceptions being Xun Wu and Zou Tian who both looked thoughtful. More explanation was definitely needed.
Benton picked up the spear. "The basic moves for a spear are thrust, slash, block, and parry." He demonstrated each one he named the action. "Since I perfectly executed the moves at a novice level, the spear didn't react. When I do it incorrectly, however…"
He changed his hold on the haft so that his hands were out of position, and when he slowly thrust forward, he made sure to mess up his footwork. The tip went well askew of where it should have ended up. The spear fought him the entire way, trying to force him into the correct form.
"Did you see how the spear jerked against me?" Benton said.
The others nodded.
"The idea is that novices practicing with it will get immediate input on whether they are executing the basic moves correctly and even be guided into the proper form. Note that the spear formations are not trying to teach a specific technique. The goal is simply to help novices master the basics. The effects of that mastery should be quite profound in speeding up learning their techniques."
Xun Wu was the first to react by cupping his hands. "Gratitude for thinking of crafting separately, Sect Leader. Truly mastering the basic forms will be an immense benefit to my apprentices."
Benton deposited the rest of the devices on the table. "Each of the Pavilion heads should take their respective weapons with them. Yang Ru, these are all the bows that were ready. Sun Hua, please get with Guang Yin and see if we can increase production."
The ones addressed all hurried to note their understanding.
"If this works as well as I expect," Benton said, "I'll make another round for intermediate and later expert training. Please pay attention to the progress of your pavilion members and report back to Sun Hua in a week or two about the effectiveness. Any questions?"
There were none, and as he dismissed the group, he felt pretty good about the small boost the weapons were likely to provide to his sect. Every little bit helped.
Yang Ru called Huang Yimun, the guard captain; Hou Yazhu, the leader of the second guard team; and Zi Delan, the head of the attack squad into one of the private sparring rooms and explained the purpose of the new spears.
"I gave it a try, but it didn't seem to work." Yang Ru had honestly been a bit distracted during the demonstration. Kang Lin had definitely grown more distant lately, and he didn't know what to do about it. "Maybe I did it wrong?"
"You're probably too good at the basic moves since you've already mastered your skill," Huang Yimun said. "It sounds like this is for beginners. Zi Delan, what's your status?"
"Large Success, Senior Brother."
Huang Yimun nodded. "It would be better to find someone at Small Success, but it's worth a try." He grabbed one of the spears and tossed it to the attack squad leader.
"Just go through the basic moves, Senior Brother?" Zi Delan said.
"Start with a thrust," Huang Yimun said.
Zi Delan looked doubtful, but he did as instructed, stepping forward with his right foot and lunging the spear in front of him. The weapon jerked him to the side. "Whoa! Did you see that?"
"That's because you—"
"Wait," Huang Yimun said, cutting Yang Ru off. "Don't tell him what he did wrong. The spear is supposed to correct him on its own. Keep trying."
"Yes, Senior Brother." Zi Delan lunged forward again but much slower, trying to avoid the jerk. It didn't help. "The spear is pulling me to the left, which means it's trying to tell me I'm going too far to the right." He stepped forward and back again with his right foot but without using the spear. "I think my footwork was wrong?"
The next time he tried the thrust, the weapon still jerked but with noticeably less force.
"Yeah!" Zi Delan said. "I think I understand how this works. May this one have some time to practice with it, Senior Brothers?"
"Do it," Yang Ru said. "Report back to me on your progress."
With permission granted, the younger cultivator left, and Yang Ru turned to the two remaining pavilion members. "Want to spar? Two on one?"
Haung Yimun was nearly as skilled as Yang Ru as far as technique went but was no match for the Foundation Establishment cultivator in terms of power and speed. The addition of Hou Yazhu, who was not a naturally gifted fighter but who'd reached Mastery with his spear technique due to sheer time spent practicing, to the spar evened things out a lot.
The next couple of hours were good practice for all three of them.
"We should do that more often," Yang Ru said when they finally halted.
"Agreed, Senior Brother," Huang Yimun said. "Just have to find the time when we're not cultivating or practicing our other techniques or instructing our juniors or carrying out the administrative responsibilities of our positions."
"Agreed, but it's important."
"The tournament?" Huang Yimun said.
Yang Ru grunted.
Huang Yimun sighed. "I'll shift some things around and find the time. Most of the guards are interested in participating. Which is good. There will definitely be plenty of need for them to protect the regular members during the tournament, but I wonder if it's a good idea to leave the sect unprotected."
Yang Ru almost snorted. The sect was protected by both Master's formations and by a Nascent Soul cultivator. What exactly were a group of Qi Gathering realm guards supposed to do if a threat bypassed those two defenses? There was no need to disparage the man's efforts, though.
"The sect leader will make that decision," Yang Ru said instead.
Oh. Or maybe his sister would actually be the one to make the call given that she was leading the tournament preparations. He decided that there was no need to mention that fact.
"Zi Delan should have reported back," Yang Ru said.
"Agreed, Senior Brother," Huang Yimun said. "Let's go find him."
The search wasn't difficult as it turned out the young cultivator had simply gone to the room next door, but when the three entered, Zi Delan didn't even acknowledge them. He simply kept shifting the spear into a blocking position, muttering to himself, and repeating the action. Bemused, the seniors observed him for a while.
Eventually, their presence registered to the young man, who jumped and almost dropped his spear. "Senior Brothers! This one apologizes."
Yang Ru wasn't the slightest bit annoyed at Zi Delan's not immediately greeting them. The junior cultivator was quite intelligent and somewhat diligent, but he had a hard time focusing on a task. The fact that he had apparently been practicing for hours on his own and was so engrossed that he hadn't even realized he was no longer alone in the room was interesting.
"Report," Yang Ru said.
"Give me a few more hours with this spear, Senior Brother," Zi Delan said confidently, "and I'll reach Mastery with my spear technique."
Of all the words that Yang Ru might have expected to hear, those particular ones weren't among them.
"I didn't realize you were that close," Huang Yimun said.
"I wasn't, Senior Brother! This device is incredible for correcting my faults. It took about thirty to forty-five minutes to perfect my thrust, but once I did, my understanding of my spear technique increased greatly. Then, I proceeded to the slash, and the same thing happened. I am positive that, once I finish with the block and the parry, I'll reach Mastery soon after."
Yang Ru simply nodded. Such was to be expected from something produced by Master.
Chapter 284 – A True Nightmare
Benton was quite excited to see dawn break for a couple of reasons. The first, primary one was that it was finally auction day. He hadn't been to one for years, not since Evelyn forbade him from going to any more just because he'd overspent by just a tad that one time.
And okay, maybe he'd paid a little more than the painting was worth. Only a little though. A thousand dollars. Max. Two thousand at the outside. How could one put a price on art? Especially since the artistic merit of the piece was unquestionable. He simply couldn't understand why she couldn't see the value in it. Instead of hanging it in the living room where it belongs, she relegated it to the basement storage room, and he wasn't allowed to go to any more auctions.
Hopefully, one of his kids treasured it as part of their inheritance. They probably fought over it.
Anyway, he was definitely looking forward to going not to just a regular auction, but a cultivator auction. It was sure to be a hoot and a half.
The second reason for his excitement was that he could quit making greater spirit coins for a while. He'd been spending entire nights using his Time Aura and making piles of the stupid things. The thought of not having enough cash to buy something he really wanted had compelled him to put in the effort, but man, was spending hour after hour after hour on that task boring as all get out.
Since he wasn't bringing any of his sect members with him—too dangerous!—he could leave any time he wanted, and his understanding was that the auction house opened first thing in the morning to accept late submissions. Dawn was first thing in the morning as far as he was concerned, so he dashed off a message about his imminent departure to Yuan Yaozu.
Benton knew that, if he asked Kang Ya-Ting for advice, the elder would advise caution and for all dealings with the auction house to be run through the Poison Claw Sect. And honestly, there was quite a bit of wisdom to that approach.
On the other hand, since reaching Nascent Soul, Benton no longer needed to hide behind an allied sect. He had no desire to invite attacks, but it was time for him to stand on his own two feet.
Of course, there was wisdom, and there was bravery. And the two usually didn't intersect. At the very least, he could take the simple precaution of not drawing too much attention to himself, starting with his appearance. Not that he planned on using a disguise or altering his face with Illusion, but wearing something other than his Rising Tide Sect robes wasn't exactly a bridge too far.
He had a set of plain brown ones in his ring that he'd picked up from somewhere, and he quickly donned those before setting off.
Unfortunately, his Teleport technique had one minor, sometimes inconvenient, restriction—he couldn't Teleport to a location he'd never visited. And since he'd never been to the auction house, he couldn't just pop directly into its courtyard.
So he did the next best thing. He Teleported to the sky above Sixth Flawless Flowing City and held himself there while he located his target. Which was made much easier by Kang Lin having described its location.
A second was all it took for his enhanced eyes to find the location, the Premiere Jade Treasures Auction House, and he popped down, striding inside a second later.
A young woman, no older than twenty-five, with very poor cultivation staffed the lobby from behind a counter. "Greetings … sir. How may I help you?"
Benton almost laughed at the lack of respect in her words and tone. The plain brown robes were something a wandering cultivator might wear, and a poor one at that. "A friend told me that you are still accepting items for the auction today."
"With respect, sir, representatives for all the major factions and many wealthy merchants will attend the auction. We only accept the highest quality materials. I can direct you to a general store that should be willing to pay you a reasonable price for your merchandise."
Benton decided that it would be fun to play along. If he were lucky, he might even be able to get a reaction out of her that was even better than one of Kang Lin's. "This one understands. I'm not sure that a general store would be the absolute best place, though. Would you mind looking at one of my swords and directing me to an establishment that might give me a fair price for it?"
The woman looked at the door behind him. "I suppose I have time since no one else has yet arrived. You must promise to leave quickly, though, once I have given you my advice. No arguing."
"This one wouldn't dream of it." He cupped his hands. "Gratitude."
Benton felt the ends of his lips curl up, and as much as he wanted to hide his mirth, he just couldn't help it. He pulled the Wind sword from the first set he made from his ring.
The woman cocked her head to the side when it appeared in midair, evidence that the wandering cultivator in front of her possessed a storage device. When the sword simply hovered there instead of falling, her eyes widened as she surely realized that she'd misjudged him. She hesitated, clearly stuck as to what to do, until finally reaching out to take the sword.
Forged starsteel had a unique look to it, and she clearly recognized the material. She brought it closer to her eyes and examined the details from hilt to tip. Next, she pulled a thin block of metal that Benton didn't recognize from underneath the counter and gently ran it over the blade. The edge cut the block asunder.
When she looked up at him, it was clear that she one, knew she'd screwed up, and two, didn't know either exactly how badly or what to do to fix it. She swallowed hard and cupped her hands. "Honored Cultivator, this lowly one would happily accept your blade for this house's auction today."
"Oh, really? Gratitude. Can you estimate the price?"
"The sword demonstrates exceptional craftsmanship, created by an expert bladesmith. This lowly one projects a price in the range of ten thousand to twenty thousand greater spirit coins."
Benton frowned. Expert? "Really? I thought it might go for more, considering the three formations."
"Formations, Esteemed Cultivator?"
"Self-repair, sharpness, and a Wind attack."
The young woman swallowed hard again. "Perhaps this lowly one should summon a manager, Esteemed Cultivator. Pricing such a treasure is beyond this lowly one's abilities."
Benton nodded. "Maybe that would be for the best." He summoned the other twenty-four swords from his ring and had them all hover in the air. "I'd really appreciate it if I could enter these in the auction as well."
It took every bit of self-control that he possessed not to burst out laughing at the look on the poor woman's face. He'd been entirely correct. Even better than Kang Lin!
Jia Xueqin loved auction day. His branch of the Premiere Jade Treasures Auction House would make more than a quarter of its profits for the entire year at that single event. At the same time, he absolutely loathed auction day. Instead of quietly appraising objects in the privacy of his study, he was pulled hither and yon answering questions, overseeing subordinates who shouldn't need his oversight, and worst of all, dealing with so many arrogant sect cultivators.
He sipped his tea, enjoying a moment of solitude before the craziness of the day began in earnest. Before he was even halfway through his cup, though, there was a knock on the door.
"Come!" he yelled, aggravated at the interruption.
Yan Chunhua entered. If memory served, she'd already assumed her duty staffing the front desk that morning, meaning that an emissary from one of the sects had probably arrived and demanded to be served by him personally. Whoever it was must have scared the girl terribly because she looked as white as a sheet.
He sighed. "Who is it?"
"Esteemed Manager, this lowly one has erred horribly."
Jia Xueqin hung his head. Somehow the girl must have insulted the sect cultivator. That was a disaster.
As bad as it was, it was also equally confusing. She'd been chosen for that position for a reason as she had much experience dealing with entitled cultivators. No one could do obsequious like her.
"Explain," he said.
The tale tumbled out of her quickly. What appeared to be a poor, wandering cultivator had walked in. It wasn't even apparent at first that he was a cultivator at all as he didn't register to her sense or to the device they had installed. She believed him to be a random mortal.
Then came the realization. First, he'd used a spatial device, meaning that he was at least a Foundation Establishment cultivator and that he was relatively wealthy as not everyone could afford such a valuable piece of equipment. Worse, the sword he'd pulled from the device floated in the air. His casual display of qi control meant he was surely a Golden Core cultivator.
By that point, though, the damage was done. She'd already insulted him. All she could hope for was that he didn't represent any organization that was all that important.
After shifting her attitude to be much more polite, she examined the sword. As a clerk, she only had rudimentary training in appraising, but she did have years of experience at the auction house.
"The blade, Esteemed Manager… It was of the finest quality this lowly one has ever examined."
That actually wasn't saying too much. As someone who mainly handled walk-ins, she typically didn't see the top quality merchandise. Still, to impress someone who'd worked so long at the auction house said something.
"Is that all?" he said.
If so, the situation didn't seem unsalvageable. The lack of sect robes indicated that the cultivator was likely not affiliated with any major faction. One cultivator, even a Golden Core, wasn't powerful enough to challenge their entire house. Jia Xueqin was positive that a little kowtowing and assigning the man a private viewing room for the auction along with a bit of personal attention would be all that would be required to smooth things over.
"No, Esteemed Manager. The Esteemed Cultivator indicated that the blade has three formations." She paused. "And then he pulled at least a couple dozen more out of his ring. They were still hovering in the air, tips pointed toward me, when I fled the room."
A cultivator with that many swords, assuming they were all of similar quality to the one Yan Chunhua had examined, could not possibly belong to a lone operator. Meaning he had backing of unknowable strength.
Jia Xueqin closed his eyes. Dealing with that man would be a true nightmare.