Chapter 87: A Heady Feeling
Wan Ai had just had the best three months of her life. Growing up in the orphanage, she’d mostly been praised by Mistress Zhong for being a helpful and obedient child.
Mostly.
When Wan Ai did get into trouble it was for hiding away from the other children in the house. It wasn’t that she was bullied or teased or anything like that. It was just that they were so loud. And she liked quiet. She liked to be alone.
For the last three months, she’d basically confined herself to a room, alone, and cultivated. For ten to twelve blessed hours a day, she experienced complete peace. Breathe in. Circulate qi as the jade slip instructed. Breathe out. Repeat.
Both the solitude and the improvements to her body and mind appealed to her. She found the cultivation method Master had given her nourishing to a fundamental part of her, which was weird because she hadn’t previously realized that part existed. He’d told her she had a fire and nature aspect, and the more time she spent meditating, the more in tune she felt with those elements.
It was glorious.
At night, when Wan Ai emerged from the room to eat, she was not criticized or told to spend more time with the others. Instead, she was praised for her diligence by Mistress Zhong.
Glorious.
When the second month went by and Master did not re-appear, Wan Ai did not know what to think. The man had changed the entire course of her life in a day, but she had no idea how to feel about him. He was so strange and so powerful.
The bad thing was that he expected much from her. To become a great alchemist. To be an important part of his sect.
She just wanted to sit in her room and cultivate.
And then, out of nowhere, he reappeared.