Xiaomeng was feeling more energized than ever the next morning. Her stomach grumbled loudly, signaling its need to be filled. She got up from her bed, picked up the plate she had used yesterday, and went out the door. The courtyard was as good as new compared to the devastation she had observed yesterday.
Xiaomeng exited the courtyard and, for the first time, took in her surroundings. The day before, with the disciples crowding her route, she hadn't even known where she was walking. But with the current landscape, she was completely flabbergasted. It was huge. The roads themselves were twice as wide as she was accustomed to. The buildings also seemed bigger and sturdier than any she had seen here before. Now she understood why Senior Sister Lan always complained and compared their peak to the First Peak.
A few disciples were up and about in the early morning. Xiaomeng asked two for directions to the peak's dining hall. The disciples politely pointed her in the right direction. They were more polite than she had imagined. She thought that since the First Peak was known for its disciples' battle-hungry nature, they would be rougher. However, unbeknownst to her, the disciples she had interacted with had felt a sense of keen danger from her and became docile.
After reaching the sects dining area in a while, Xiaomeng saw several disciples coming in and going out. Since her spiritual sense had not yet developed, she couldn't tell their actual cultivation level, but just from their behavior and posture, she guessed that they were all Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Seeing her enter the mess, all the disciples' made way for her, as if a spell had been cast on them. When did I become so famous? This thought echoed in Xiaomeng's mind, whereas all the disciples remembered the words spoken by the Nascent Soul elders two days ago.
The First Elder had conceded some rights to the mine in order to bring a caretaker for Tian Yao. If something happened to this expensive caretaker, they would have to bear the consequences of their actions.
This was enough to bring all the disciples in line. And Xiaomeng's portrait had been secretly circulated throughout the whole peak just the night before. Making her a small celebrity of sorts.
The first thing Xiaomeng did after entering the dining hall was make her way to the serving counters. She took a combination of spiritual rice, spicy tofu, and a few mixed vegetables in between. Sitting at a corner, her meal was very peaceful, with nobody willing to disturb her, but it felt very lonely to any bystander observing from afar.
Feeling her stomach getting full and returning the plate, Xiaomeng came back to her dwelling. By now more and more disciples could be seen around, bustling about and doing their business. Returning to the courtyard, she saw Tian Yao practicing beneath the large tree at the center. This was the only one that had somehow survived the battle from yesterday.
Xiaomeng approached Tian Yao, but with the ongoing practice, she didn't get a chance to get a word in. So, she had to wait and observe until the practice finished. From Tian Yao's movements, she observed that there was not even a single wasted motion. Everything was as perfect as it could be: the simple punches she was practicing which tore the air, the simple kicks which nearly shattered the ground, and even the simple swing which cut a single fallen leaf into dozens of pieces. Even she couldn't do that so perfectly at the same cultivation realm. That included her original body in the upper realm.
After about the time it takes an incense stick to burn, Tian Yao stopped. She gave Xiaomeng a questioning look. Xiaomeng got up from the stone table and said, "What exactly am I supposed to do here?"
Tian Yao thought for a moment. Would it actually be better to have a caretaker, or not? Then she remembered the many times she had had to travel around the sect for her tasks since she did not have a personal maid or servant until now. The idea of having someone undertake those mundane tasks and give her more time to cultivate seemed pretty appealing right now. But she had to somehow make sure that she would not lose this one person. Right, wasn't this little girl from the Medicine Peak? she thought.
Alas, Tian Yao was unaware that bringing this single person here had cost more than a year's worth of her cultivation resources. She simply brought her hand forward and gestured for Xiaomeng to look at it.
Xiaomeng took the soft, jade-like hand and observed it. At first, she thought that everything was completely okay. But then she noticed the very minute mismatch of bones. If she had to put it into words, it seemed like someone had broken their bones and properly put them back together. The mending process had also been done properly. The only problem was the lack of medicinal support to provide the excess nutrition for complete recovery. This led to them not completely mending and leaving small gaps behind. Of course, that was not a big problem for a cultivator who had broken bones all the time. But sometimes these minute details could be the difference between life and death.
Xiaomeng looked at Tian Yao in utter bafflement. Was the First Peak so poor that they could not even afford to take care of even one person? Didn't the First Elder get the lion's share of the new mine? She didn't know that Tian Yao had actually spent her medicine allowance on cultivation only. That was the primary reason of First Elder for bringing her here: to somehow help this cultivation maniac survive from her own self.
"Do you have any place with fire here?" Xiaomeng probed. Tian Yao simply unsheathed her sword and slashed at the poor tree that had somehow survived yesterday's conflict. In an instant the tree was broken down into multiple evenly chopped wooden sticks. Tian Yao looked at Xiaomeng, asking if it was enough.
Xiaomeng made a bitter face and nodded, praying for the departed tree. Even after reaching the same major realm, she could somehow find nine hundred and ninety-nine ways in which Tian Yao could beat her. In her mind she chanted, "There is only one Tian Yao in the world. There is only one Tian Yao in the world," and went inside her small room, returning with a small cauldron and a small pouch of herbs. Then she began making the healing brew.
Xiaomeng first brought the stone bench from the other corner of the garden and, with the one in the middle, formed a standing platform, leaving a small gap between the two benches for the fire to come out. Then she placed the small cauldron balanced between the two gaps. Starting the fire using the cut-down tree beneath the benches, she began to brew the medicinal concoction.
Time passed, and herbs were added one after another. The water boiled them and drew out their medicinal properties, coalescing them together. The color of the brew changed from clear to blue, then to a faint green. The boiling heat rose from the top of the cauldron. Xiaomeng smiled, looking at her creation. She gestured for Tian Yao to come forward.
Tian Yao went ahead and followed what she was told. "Try to see if you can coat your hand in Qi and dip it in the brew," Xiaomeng said. Tian Yao did exactly as she was told and began soaking her right hand in the boiling brew. A warm feeling spread through her hand and traveled from her shoulder throughout her body. Her body began to relax, and her strained muscles, which she had ignored until now, also began to be rejuvenated. She silently stood there for around the time of two incense stick before the healing effect diminished and she had to pull her hand back.
She gazed at Xiaomeng and asked, "Why didn't you do this in the alchemy room?"
Xiaomeng was confused. "Alchemy room?"
"Yes," Tian Yao nodded. "We have several on the First Peak."
Xiaomeng's eyes went wide, and pointing at Tian Yao, she stuttered, "You... you... didn't tell me."
Tian Yao tilted her head. "You never asked."
Xiaomeng's eyes then went to the still-boiling cauldron. Suddenly she felt that instead of alchemy, she was just playing a small game. Before intrusive thoughts could creep into her mind, the courtyard door burst open and a large group of disciples came inside. "Today we will end you!" the leader shouted while glaring at Tian Yao, and the group charged.
Unluckily for them, Tian Yao, now fully rejuvenated, dispatched them in just half the time she would normally take. She found it easier to move around and her precision had also improved a little. Now she was able to give a more thorough treatment to them. On that day, all the 'challengers' who had made their way to the First Peak got a taste of some bitter medicine.
Xiaomeng just sat there at the side and counted the number of sheep sending themselves to the wolf's mouth. Her mind questioned her own intelligence. Had her original parents pampered her so much that even a girl not even a quarter her age was able to take advantage of her so easily?
But unbeknownst to Xiaomeng, that was just the beginning of her hardships. In the coming days she had to take care of Tian Yao's training injuries, bring her food from the dining hall, and even clean the large room while the room's original owner sat cross-legged and cultivated just beside her. She was more like a nanny by now.
But Xiaomeng held on for a month. She worked by day and cultivated by night. The money she had gotten helped her buy some expensive herbs and make a few alchemical pills that helped her break through to the second layer of Foundation Establishment very easily.
However, now she had enough. Giving a final glare to the nonchalant Tian Yao, she stormed into the disciplinary hall of the First Peak asking for her return. And the answer she got in return was... a pouch filled with spirit stones.
Xiaomeng hesitated. She thought. She fought with herself. And ultimately her greed won over her. Extending her hand, she took the spirit stone bag. This was twice as much as she would receive by working under Senior Sister Lan. As she turned to leave, the disciple sitting behind called out. Xiaomeng turned around and was presented with a bag three times her own.
"Please give this to Tian Yao when you go back," the disciple said. Xiaomeng absentmindedly took the bag and went to her dwelling. It was evening, and being the last day of the month, nobody came to disturb Tian Yao, so she was busy cultivating under the newly rooted tree in the courtyard. A cold wind blowing under its shade even in this hot weather.
Xiaomeng entered the enclosure and gazed at her ward, who had opened her eyes and was staring back. She walked toward Tian Yao and presented her with the large bag. Tian Yao took the bag and, taking out a few stones, extended them toward her personal servant.
Xiaomeng pointed at herself. "Are you giving this to me?" Confusion was evident in her voice.
Tian Yao nodded. How could she not give proper payment to her servant? She didn't want this diligent worker to get away anytime soon.
Tears formed at the edges of Xiaomeng's eyes. She didn't know that the girl who was always causing trouble for her was so sensible as to appreciate her. It was really good that Xiaomeng did not have the ability to read minds, or else even if it meant losing all the wealth, she would definitely have run away from here. But now she could only get dragged further into the quagmire.
Seeing the happy expression on Xiaomeng's face after receiving the spirit stones, Tian Yao thought that she should thank those senior brothers whose books on taming a young maid had helped her.