Unintended Cultivator

Sen had found the last few weeks very odd. The arrival of Li Yi Nuo, while perhaps foreseeable, had caught him off guard. Bringing along her master had been even more perplexing. Not that either of them had done anything specific to disrupt his life. Sen had brought Li Yi Nuo to see Uncle Kho. The man had been deeply amused by the story of how the sect cultivator had gone all the way to Orchard’s Reach to find him, only to have to turn around and come all the way back. Uncle Kho probably would have agreed to teach her a few things out of pure pity even if Sen hadn’t suggested that she showed some faint glimmers of hope with the spear. Of course, dealing with her had been the easy part. Putting her and Uncle Kho together in a room had fulfilled any and all obligations he might have had to the woman, self-imposed or not.

Bahn Huizhong was another matter entirely. Sen truly hadn’t known what to expect from the man. Or, rather, he’d based his expectations on previous encounters with sect elders, none of which ever appeared. He’d thought that the man would demand his time since he was a powerful and important elder. He’d imagined that the man would make himself a problem in town, expecting to be given whatever he wanted without paying for it. He’d predicted the man would try to recruit away the best students or at least a few of the core formation students who had come from other sects.

None of it happened, which left Sen feeling off balance and out of sorts. He knew how to deal with cultivators who insisted on acting like bastards. Bahn Huizhong had opted to behave like a guest ought to behave. He visited shops in town where he paid for the things he wanted. He interacted with some of the students but generally only when they approached him first. He had refrained from entering the buildings where teaching or crafts were done, even going so far as to restrain his spiritual sense to open areas. He had politely asked for some of Sen’s time, but only when the Patriarch was not occupied with other duties. The man had even raced off to fetch an injured child at a nearby farm before Sen had even been made aware that such help was needed.

By the time Sen arrived at what had slowly evolved into a sort of healing center attached to the alchemy workshop, the injured boy who had been trampled by a startled animal was already being tended. He’d found Bahn Huizhong leaning against a wall, observing the work with curious eyes.

“Thank you for helping,” said Sen.

“Of course,” answered Bahn Huizhong.

“Do you mind if I ask why you did it?”

“I’m no healer, but I’ve seen enough injuries to know that seconds and minutes matter. Especially for mortals.”

“True,” agreed Sen, “but that’s just a reason for someone to act quickly. I’m curious why you, specifically, chose to act. It has not been my experience that sect elders or cultivators in general are burdened with much compassion for mortals.”