63 – Field Trip Continues
At night, somewhere in the middle of the Southern Mountain Range.
“I think it went well, all things considered.” I said, eating chips as I watched Huiran work on his latest painting while I held a lamp for him. Apparently it was a tradition of his to paint a nude portrait every time he survived a major battle.
“Brother, we slaughtered them,” Huiran reminded me. Wendao nodded in agreement.
“Well, if you put it like that…” I admitted. We had worked together far better than expected.
Currently we were camping somewhere within the mountain range to recover our Qi, and for both me and Wendao to clear the side effects of taking too many Qi Recovery pills in succession. But that wasn’t the only reason for the quiet atmosphere.
“Waaah!” A crying sound came from the other side of the camp. Wanxia and Ningguang were with the nine disciples of the Jiushuang sect. The one crying was a Qi Refining outer disciple, weeping over the thin horizontal scar line now running across her legs. The other eight disciples had similar thin scars. Because of my decision to withhold healing pills until the matter with the remaining cultivators who wanted me dead was resolved, their legs had reattached with faint scarring.
Because of that, the nine disciples were none too pleased with me. The same went for Huiran and Wendao, since both had supported my decision at the time. Hence the clear segregation in the camp.
“Like this?” Huiran showed me the half-finished portrait.
“Yes, just like that. Use her hair to cover the nipples.” I reminded him. The portrait depicted a nude woman with long blonde hair. An open robe hung loosely from her lower arms and back. Around her neck was a golden necklace decorated with diamond-shaped rubies that trailed down through her cleavage to her stomach. Wèndào watched along, nodding in approval as he appraised each curve and brushstroke.
“Hehehehe.” Huiran laughed like a true pervert. “This will be one of my best works,” he admitted honestly.
Of course, this drew glares from the women on the other side of the camp, but we ignored them. The painting was finished within an hour. Huiran made it float a short distance away so that I, Huiran, and Wendao could properly appraise the finished piece like professional art connoisseurs.
“Do you sell these too?” I asked as Huiran stored the painting in his storage ring.
“What? No.” He quickly refuted. “This is for my personal collection. That way, when I’m depressed or feel like giving up, I can take out all these paintings one by one. They remind me of every fight I’ve survived and the art that came from it. After that, I can keep going. After all, it would be a miserable day if I could no longer paint more beautiful women.”
“Well, that’s certainly one way to keep your spirits.” I noted. A shame I didn’t have the same feeling toward the personal gallery on my old phone.
“Brother, if you don’t mind me asking...” Huiran paused.
“Sure, go ahead.”
“I heard some rumors that you were just a mortal before Elder Luochen found you. Is that true?” Huiran asked with genuine curiosity. Wendai looked at me for the answer as well. Even the women on the other side of the camp had gone quiet, though they tried not to show how interested they were.
“That is correct.” I admitted it honestly.
“I must say, you fit in quite perfectly. Even disciples who just joined the sect take much longer to adjust, and the stories I heard about how you are… Well, they’re quite wild.” Huiran noted.
Ah. That made sense. I had never really thought about it before since it hadn’t seemed particularly relevant. I looked down at my hand. Clearly not human, covered in black fur and scales, ending in sharp claws. Then at my feet inside the leather boots. I was already used to transforming my hooves into this shape. Even the body dysmorphia hadn’t lasted more than a few days.
“Well, I think I can explain why.” I shrugged, trying to figure out how to explain VR games. “Back in my homeworld, we have these games. When I explained how they worked to my father, he said they were quite similar to illusion arrays. Inside those games, we could change how we looked however we wanted, depending on the game.”
“The ones where you said you reenacted the worst wars in your history? Then demons and gods?” Wendao asked, referencing what I had said after my spar with Hanhua.
“Yes. Which is why I don’t exactly want to get too used to killing people.” I admitted honestly.
“Why? Because it will remind you too much of your games?” Wendao asked sharply.
The camp went quiet. Everyone was waiting for my answer. For some it was genuine curiosity. For those on the other side of the camp, it was more morbid… and frankly terrifying.
“Yes.” I simply said. “It became… something like a sport. It’s… one of the very few things left for people back in my homeworld that we could still interact with.” I admitted the uncomfortable truth. It was generally considered polite to just assume everyone speaking in game forums was a real person and not a bot, since the developers had long given up trying to make that distinction.
“Why are these games made in the first place?” Huiran asked. He was clearly uncomfortable with the idea of such games and how people interacted with them back home. Which made sense when viewed from an outside perspective.
“Well, I could explain the entire history of these games. From how it started as little more than advanced puppeteering. But to answer your question…” I thought for a moment. “I guess people just needed something to do while waiting for the end of times.”
“The what?” Huiran asked incredulously.
“It’s a… not exactly a good story to tell. I’ve already made you guys uncomfortable enough. Maybe next time.” I stood up and headed toward the bus first.
—
The next day, I was back in the driver’s seat, navigating the increasingly uneven and narrower roads of the Southern Mountain Range. The bus had also been extended slightly to accommodate the nine Jiushuang Sect disciples. Apparently this was the least I could do after cutting their legs. Though I was certain they appreciated the comfort of the bus regardless.
“You know, I never asked before.” I said to Huiran, who sat in the passenger seat beside me reading the same book from yesterday. “Jiushuang sect is a water or ice oriented sect correct?”
“You’re asking me why their sect is this far south and built on top of a volcano?” Huiran already knew what I was going to ask.
“Precisely.”
“It’s one of the cultivation training philosophies. Tempering against the direct opposite. The constant extreme heat forces the Ice Qi to become purer and stronger in order to resist the environment. Their techniques similarly become more powerful as they are constantly tempered against fire. Additionally, this contrast helps with the comprehension of Yin-Yang balance.” Huiran explained eloquently.
“So not only Calculation Arts, you’re also quite well-informed. What’s your secret?” I asked.
“He is frequently thrown into the isolation cave,” Wendao answered. He was sitting on the new passenger seat I had placed in the middle, immediately returning to meditation after saying only what was necessary.
“Well, you know my proclivities,” Huiran admitted sheepishly. “After some time, I can’t paint anymore because I’ve exhausted my inspiration. Then there’s a long stretch with nothing to do. So I started stocking up on books to read after the second time.”
“Fascinating.” So it was like only being allowed to read in prison. Of course he would end up reading a lot of books. “So, is there any other sect using the same philosophy?”
“There is one. The Jiǔyáng (九陽|Nine Suns) sect up in the north. It’s built on top of a glacier and is the brother sect of Jiushuang. But that’s about the extent of what I know. There aren’t many of them, as it requires not only an auspicious location and spiritual vein, but also the corresponding geographical feature.” Huiran pointed out.
I nod along. The logic makes sense. “I guess that’s why we’re escorting Ningguang to Jiushuang?”
“Yes, I heard Elder Guyue frequently take Ningguang to the sect for more training.” Huiran nodded.
“Well, let’s hope there’s no more complications on our way.” I extended my Divine Sense along the winding road. There had been an increase in traffic from both mortals and rogue cultivators along the path. That was a good sign. It meant trade was finally returning to the south. Something the Kingdom of Jin needs to recover. So I spent more Qi to make the bus fly higher.
“How long do you reckon we will arrive in?” I asked Huiran, remembering that the map I had lacked any proper scale.
“Well, we take a one week detour to Houtu, two weeks from Houtu to Jin and the Southern Mountain Range. With our current speed, we should be arriving at Jiushuang sect in a month or two. A little slower than our own flying treasure.” Huiran answered.
“Oh, and just in time for the new year.” He then added.
“New year? Already? Is there no winter here?” I noted the complete lack of snow. Was the south in an equatorial zone?
“Winter is rare. There’s a certain fire-based sect up north.”
Was Huiran saying what I thought he was saying? That there was no real winter because the Jiuyang Sect was situated in the north and either blocked the cold or used the winter for their cultivation? So that kind of thing was normal here too, huh?
I thought for a moment as I drove. Then something came to mind.
“Ningguang.” I called out toward the back.
The girls were having fun with the kitchen after a quick guide on how to use the appliances. The smell of whatever they were cooking was quite enticing, but I couldn’t exactly ask for some. Meanwhile, the others were lounging at the counters, reading or doing whatever else they could within the limited space.
“Yes?” Ningguang answered.
“The mission said we need to escort you home after a short visit. How short is that visit?” I asked.
“It’s… not exactly a short visit,” Ningguang admitted. “I’m going for closed-door cultivation. Depending on the circumstances, it could last anywhere from half a year to a few years.”
I looked around in surprise. Huiran and Wendao’s expressions didn’t change at all. So they had already expected this? I was the only one not in the know!? That was quite a long time. This felt more like taking a girl to her new university as an exchange student.
What made me uncomfortable was that she would be staying for that long. Which meant half a year to a few years of possible unforeseen troubles. I already felt bad for endangering the group, and that amount of time practically guaranteed more problems.
I took out the map from my storage ring to check. “Since we might be staying out of our sect for quite a while, any recommendations on where we can visit?” I asked Huiran and Wendao.
The question immediately soured the atmosphere.
“I don’t know. Previously I would have requested that we visit the Tianjian Sect.” Wendao answered. Though strangely and fortunately we hadn’t come to blows, it was of course no longer an option since they had been part of the group trying to kill me. I didn’t like the prospect of seeing Gujian as an enemy after we had protected the Kingdom of Jin together.
“I know a certain city we can visit,” Huiran answered. “But it is better to visit that city last.” he added, already grinning from his own thoughts.
I pored over the map as I drove. Well, most of the sects here were a no go then. The independent cities weren’t exactly enticing either, since I didn’t know which ones didn’t have a noble family that was hostile toward me. Should we stay at the Jiushuang Sect while waiting for Ningguang? That sounded boring.
“Oh? Here’s Cílían (慈蓮|Merciful Lotus) temple.” I noted the familiar name. It was referred to as a good place by the author of the Fundamentals of Soul Arts. Then I noticed. Huiran and Wendao trying to peek at my map. Though both don't say anything.
“What? Should we visit the Cilian temple?” I offered.
Then I heard a collective gasp and pause from the back. Huiran and Wendao smirked wickedly, as if I had just done something very naughty.
“Well, since young master Danxing have offered, of course we should visit.” Huiran chuckled and agreed.
“Indeed indeed. Never thought young master Danxing had quite such an excellent taste. Of course we must visit.” Wendao chuckled.
“What? What!? What is in the Cilian temple? What are you not telling me?” I asked around incredulously in panic.
“You cannot claim innocence at this point. So just admit it.” Huiran nodded sagely.
“Admit what!?”
Though of course, no one told me anything other than Huiran and Wendao chuckling at my mistake.
~ Valarion