Han Jianyu calmly walked through the manor, his sword seal held firm.
The clan members, mostly the children, had taken to asking him about the strange way he kept his left hand.
He brushed them off most of the time, but when they crowded him or when they pressed him a bit too much, he would simply say that it was a religious symbol.
So, some of the children and young adults, and even the ladies, had taken to calling him nicknames like 'Buddhist' and 'Monk.'
Walking steadily toward Xiao Lingxi's abode, Han Jianyu came by a grouo of kids playing tag.
One of them was struggling to catch his friends, and was being made fun of.
When he saw Han Jianyu, he smiled and ran over, his tongue sticking out of his mouth for a split second.
"Ha! Got you, silly Monk! You're too slow." The child laughed triumphantly.
"I wasn't running, Xiao Gan," Han Jianyu sighed and kept walking.
The other children saw what Xiao Gan did and came over, all smiles.
"Haha, Xiao Gan tagged the monk, guys!"
"Was the monk even playing?"
"I dunno."
"Come play with us, monk!"
And so they swarmed him, irritating him to no end. Regardless of however irritated he got, Han Jianyu just reluctantly went along with their whims.
He ended up playing one game of tag where he was 'it,' and pretended to struggle with tagging one of them.
He made sure not to tag Xiao Gan.
Eventually, he was back on his way to Xiao Lingxi's abode, leaving the kids waving and the onlooking adults smiling.
"That Buddhist has a good heart, even if he tries to hide it."
"I have a feeling he won't remain a servant. I've seen him meditating, something only those old mages do."
"I heard that he practices nature magic, and can cause the wind and trees to change."
"Well I heard he has no talent at all. Heh!"
The bickering chatter continued, as did the children's games.
Han Jianyu approached the home of the First Elder, and nodded at the servants who were hanging about the outside.
One of them was positioned at the front door, and when she saw Han Jianyu approaching, she slipped inside.
Xiao Lingxi was sitting near the waters of a pond within her home, calmly breathing. One of the sliding doors opened behind her, and the servant announced herself.
"What is it?" Xiao Lingxi asked softly.
"That servant is here."
"Grey Hair?" Xiao Lingxi's eyes opened.
"Yes, First Elder."
She stood, her robes falling to her feet, and adjusted her hair. "I shall see him."
In the moments that followed, Han Jianyu was welcomed into the abode and brought before Xiao Lingxi.
She sat on one end of a somewhat long table, lined with empty plates, and he sat on the other.
At first, they greeted each other wordlessly. Then, the servants brought out something to offer to him.
"No thanks," Han Jianyu declined with a small nod. "I'm steering clear of mortal food."
Xiao Lingxi's eyes widened slightly, which he caught on to, smirking inwardly.
"Tea?" A servant offered, and he gave it some thought before nodding.
"Why not? Thank you."
Xiao Lingxi watched the servant fill his cup and depart before she spoke. "Steering clear of mortal food? So you mean to say you've not eaten in all this time?"
Han Jianyu nodded, inhaling the scent of the tea. "That's right."
She scoffed, snapping her fingers for a servant to fill her cup. "Impossible. You haven't even completed the foundational levels of mana cultivation."
"You shouldn't be able to survive without food."
"Ha," Han Jianyu grinned, "And yet, I thrive."
"How?" She pressed, in a tone that did not sound like she was asking.
Han Jianyu sipped the warm tea, savored the taste, and gently placed the cup down. "I am not what you think I am. This 'mana cultivation' you speak of is secondary to my path- a trifle, at best."
"The path I walk is one of the utmost importance not only to my body, but to my soul. A Paramount Path." Han Jianyu explained, a steady gaze trained on her.
"Paramount?" Xiao Lingxi raised a brow.
"Indeed. I have rectified the flaws in my cultivation quite easily. The way forward has never been clearer than it is now."
Xiao Lingxi groaned into her cup.
"You mention cultivation, but claim that it is also secondary. Are you trying to annoy me with puzzles, or will you get to the point?"
Han Jianyu raised his left hand, bringing the sword seal to level with his eyes. "There is more than one way to cultivate. More than one thing that can be cultivated."
"However, there is only one path that aligns perfectly with the soul- with my soul."
Han Jianyu extended his right hand, grabbing at empty air. At the same time, an illusory sword appeared in hand.
Xiao Lingxi's eyes went wide, and the observing servants grew uneasy. A handful of them at Xiao Lingxi's back readied themselves, the green glow of mana filling their eyes.
Xiao Lingxi raised her hand, halting any action.
Han Jianyu brought the sword out over the table, pointing it at Xiao Lingxi. "I am Han Jianyu, and I walk the Path of the Sword."
"I am a sword cultivator."
The First Elder took a moment to collect herself. "You mean to say," she sipped some tea, "that this... isn't conjuration magic?"
"Not at all," he shook his head.
"Why does the sword look as if it is not truly here?" She leaned a bit closer.
"Sword intent allows my sword will to take shape, but these are not tangible concepts. Therefore, they cannot truly become a tangible thing."
He let go, and the illusory sword vanished.
"If I had a real sword, one that was tethered to my existence, then I would be able to pour that will and intent into that sword, thus making it far more powerful."
The woman gulped, "An expression of the soul. It seems I was wrong. I hadn't considered the possibility, so forgive me if I'm a tad flustered."
He shrugged, "It's fine. It happens."
Affording her some time, Han Jianyu finished his tea. In the silence, he unwittingly recalled the vision of Jin Huang he had seen.
He wondered if it was a sign of his mind slipping somehow.
He felt that in refusing to embrace everything that came to him that day in the chamber, he was also refusing to return to true soundness of mind.
He would need to, or else he would never be able to attain the 'One With the Sword' state.
Xiao Lingxi's voice snapped him out of it.
"You hesitated to reveal too much to us when we first met. Yellow Hair did the same. I believe I know why."
Now it was Han Jianyu's turn to be surprised. "You do?"
"Yes," she nodded, finishing her tea and silently requesting more. "You hesitated to say too much regarding where you both came from. That nameless sect."
"You came from the Nine Hells Monastery, did you not? The sect that once studied the ways of the demons, and created an unorthodox cultivation path."
Staring deep into his eyes, Xiao Lingxi seemed convinced she was right.
Han Jianyu was momentarily stumped; she took that to mean something else.
"I knew it. I had heard that the unorthodox path they gleaned was related to the cultivation of swords, but I never believed it was possible."
"Until now."
She stood, adjusting her clothes and nodding a few times at him.
"Path of the Sword. Sword Cultivation."
Han Jianyu stood as well, waiting for her to arrive at wherever she was going with this.
"So it seems that, in studying the demons, Sword Cultivation was born. No wonder the Vermillion Gate Sect eradicated your Nine Hells Monastery."
"Fear not. Although we are technically ruled by the Scarlet Dominion, we do not share their views. If the power of the demons can be used against them, there is no reason not to do so."
Han Jianyu nodded, "You are so right."
"Well then," she continued, gesturing for him to walk with her. "I thought you had some magical talent, and was willing to train you. However, it seems that fate had something else in store for you."
"Being what?" He asked as they exited the room and walked the corridor outside, looking out at the interior garden and pond.
"A short while ago, during the whole 'Cloth Demon' fiasco that Yellow Hair and Fatty Bao caused-"
"Cough! Cough!" Han Jianyu stumbled slightly. "You knew?"
The older woman laughed, "Of course I did. I'm the First Elder. Bao Ren has been 'stealing' food for months, unaware that I have always known."
"Why allow him to continue?" He asked, genuinely curious.
"It's only food. I can always get more for my guests."
"Huh..." Han Jianyu nodded as he wrapped his head around the notion.
"Back to the topic at hand. I had some visitors at that time, and they were telling me about the Nine Hells Monastery."
"Apparently, further east past the mountains and even the Wildlands, there is a point on this world that almost touches the Bedrock of Existence."
Han Jianyu stiffened. It was a name he had heard before, from people with nothing good to say about it.
"Apparently, the Nine Hells Monastery survived the attack. They rebuilt their sect on the Bedrock itself. My guests believe it still thrives, somehow, in spite of the demon hordes."
Han Jianyu put some thought into that. As he did, his feelings pertaining to how he had even begun to walk the Path of the Sword returned to him.
He turned them away.
"I'm guessing they were planning some sort of expedition?"
Xiao Lingxi laughed, "Them? Oh, not at all! They would never journey to the Bedrock itself."
However, she soon stopped laughing and turned rather solemn.
"They were planning to gather evidence without engaging, and then report their findings to the Scarlet Emperor himself."
"The Scarlet Emperor is the Vice-Sect Master of the Vermillion Gate Sect, undoubtedly the most powerful sect around. If they find anything, and report it to him, there's a good chance that the Vermillion Gate Sect will mount an assault on the Nine Hells Monastery once more."
Han Jianyu sighed, "Why? Is it fear that leads to their rejection of sword cultivation?"
"Perhaps," Xiao Lingxi frowned. "They mask their true intentions by claiming a power begotten of demons can never be allowed to exist alongside them."
"Oh? Then what are their true intentions?" He paused as they reached the end of the corridor.
Xiao Lingxi was at his side, and she slowly leaned onto the divider. "Do you know what this world was once called?"
He shook his head.
"This world is comprised of nine separate provinces, each of which are fraught with cracks through which the demons invade."
"The source of those cracks was an attack, long ago, that created a massive hole in the very center of the continent. One that pierced through the planet from beneath."
"From the Bedrock of Existence."
Han Jianyu took a breath. "The demons."
Nodding, she continued.
"The Nine Hells Monastery appeared near that massive hole, called the Great Chasm, and was the first line of defence against the invading demons."
"Other rose up, and defended the demon incursions that were rampant across the continent."
"Then, one day, a group of powerful mages appeared, descended into the Great Chasm, and cast the greatest defensive spell anyone has ever deen."
"That spell created the Vermillion Gate, which is a barrier at the very bottom of the Great Chasm, blocking the demons from coming through almost entirely."
"Only the few that are able to breach the cracks in the rest of the planet are able to bypass the Vermillion Gate's defenses, but in doing so they suffer a great backlash."
"That is why no demon below the Sea Expansion Realm ever attempts to come through the cracks."
Xiao Lingxi breathed. "This world was once known as the Nine Hells Star. Then, the Vermillion Gate Sect appeared, cast their spell, and made an enemy of our first protectors."
"They demonized them, and turned against. The Nine Hells Monastery was destroyed, and the Vermillion Gate Sect replaced it."
"This world has since been called the Vermillion Gate World."