“Good day, I am the sixth Earth Pavilion’s elder, Jonatan Tina.” Jonatan greeted Eleanor Dreadingham, gracing the woman with an amicable smile.
“Good—” A Friend? Elder Dread paled, her jaw froze half way into mouthing a mechanical introduction. She took a moment to process the thought, then moved to bow as her heart pounded.
However, Jonatan grabbed her arm, holding her fast. “No need for formalities. I’m from a distant branch family, simply fortunate enough that my mother could trace a pure female lineage all the way to our illustrious ancestor. Families much closer to the Tinas aren’t as lucky.”
Regular folk might not know it, but an unwritten law demands cultivators to bow before the Friends, but he says he isn’t one, yet a Friend’s blood runs through his veins. Eleanor found herself at a loss. Luckily, a moment later, she came up with a solution.
“Please,” she asked, jerking her arm, but failing to escape Jonatan’s grip. “I’m not bowing to you, Sir, but to the Grand Mistress Tina.”
Jonatan grimaced, but released her. To his shock, Eleanor kowtowed instead of bending her back. A mere bow was disrespectful towards a Friend, the Glorious Tyrant’s former companion, and an immortal from the bygone era.
“I’m here on business,” Jonatan said, breaking the awkward silence and helping Eleanor up, lest she stays prone the whole while. “My Pavilion Master ordered me to make the transaction in her stead and escort your core disciple, Wolf Hillman.”
“Here’s your payment.” He produced a holdingring and handed it to Eleanor. “Have you drafted the transfer documents?”
Elder Dread nodded. She stored the ring without checking it, and four furled sets of documents appeared in her hand.
“These are disciple Hillman’s.” She gave one furl of papers to Jonatan, then motioned with the remaining three. “These are for his retainers. Pavilion Master said he might appreciate taking them with him, in case he had formed an emotional attachment.”
Eleanor fidgeted in silence as Jonatan read each of Wolf’s documents twice. Finally, he nodded and stored them. The rest of the papers he glanced through, hardly paying attention to their contents.
“He knows about the transfer?” he asked, and Elder Dread bobbed her head.
“Yes, Sir.”
Jonatan rolled his eyes. “No need for honorifics. You might have more Friend blood in you than I do.”
Despite doubting the statement, Eleanor nodded, afraid she would say, ‘Sir’ once more.
Several awkward seconds passed before Jonatan spoke again. “We have four and a half more months until this secluded world closes. Are his retainers inside?”
“One of them, the other two are back at the Earth Pavilion.” Eleanor paused. “Right. I forgot to introduce myself. Sorry, Sir.”
Jonatan sighed, and Eleanor bit her lip.
“Sorry,” she repeated. “I am the fifty-fifth Earth Pavilion’s elder, Eleanor Dreadingham.”
“Nice to meet you, Eleanor,” Jonatan flashed her a smile before continuing. “And where are the rest of his retainers?”
“They are back at the pavilion, S—” Eleanor replied, swallowing the last word.
Ten, I’m so afraid I’ll say something stupid, I’m acting like a five-year-old.
“Do you mind contacting someone to escort them over? I wouldn’t want to wait for them after the secluded world closes.”
“Yes, s—ertainly,” Eleanor stopped herself in time, stuttering. “I’ll do that now.”
Her head spun. The deal was going smoothly, but she hardly paid attention to their success. Her thoughts kept drifting towards one question - who had the audacity to use someone with a Friend surname as an errand boy?
***
Wolf sat high in the tree’s crown, cultivating. He took over two weeks to consolidate his realm and attain the first stage of Blood Saturating. Then, despite his effort, he had to trudge through the second stage, taking an entire month to reach it.
He finally understood the difficulty of progressing with twelve stages per realm. His Qi capacity was much greater, which was a great boon in battles. However, advancing the stages was proportionally more difficult.
What Lena Daseldoff achieved in three days, Wolf took two weeks to reproduce.
“Cultivation is such a bothersome, time-consuming activity.” The second Mental Aspect commented, but the primary one remained immersed in absorbing the solid World Energy from the air, converting it into Qi, and dissipating it into his hungry blood.
“I’ve never before noticed how energy starved my body is. I mean, there were times I suffered from Vis deficiency, but that’s different. Back then I felt like I had a limited reservoir to fill, but now, it feels like chucking pebbles into an abyss.”
Wolf reconsidered the horrible metaphor while feeling the Qi course through his body and merge into the currents of blood. He imagined himself like a mountain, the Qi was dribbling rain, forming rivulets, which then joined the rivers flowing through his veins and arteries.
“I bet I could’ve done this faster if I could’ve gotten closer to the center.”
Wolf was fifty kilometers from Corpsewood’s heart, stopped by yet another moat the apes had dug. Within the water, Mind Clearing Lotuses grew, their leaves overlapping and blanketing the water. Around the channel’s banks, Gilded Apes raised several types of fruit trees, making for a three kilometer wide clearing which Wolf had to cross before moving deeper into their territory.
“I never expected there would be this many Gilded Apes, and they seem intent on further growing their population. They are using Mind Clearing Lotuses to enhance their intelligence, and they produce enough food to feed a thousand of them. Based on what I’ve seen they are planning to take over their world. What will happen then? Will they kill and devour intruding disciples, using them as nutrients?”
Weeks passed in stillness and cultivation. Wolf’s incapacitated Mental Aspects stirred, but did not rouse fully. Two months after entering Corpsewood, Wolf had reached the second stage of Blood Saturating, and two months later he reached the third.
He opened his eyes, and after months of sitting and moving only to eat and drink, Wolf stretched to crack his back, but his spine made no sound. His joints and muscles were loose, his body full of energy. Even his mind was as well as he could expect, South’s tonic helping him produce enough Anima to sustain his cultivation.
This mental strain slowed the recovery of my Palace of Echos.
Wolf’s gut growled, and the hunger kept at bay by minimal provisions and surging Qi returned with a vengeance. He ate a sumptuous meal of Whiteflame Honeyeater’s honey, and various dried fruits and meats.
I’ve already eaten five kilos of food, but there’s no heaviness. My stomach dissolves everything I eat in no time.
“I should stop. My hunger is sated, and my muscles feel weird from all the nutrients rushing into them. If I keep this up, I might wind up creating fat stores.”
That doesn’t sound that bad, actually. Then, instead of eating all the time, my body would burn the fat on its own whenever it needs it.
“Stop thinking about nonsense. I have to collect lianas, I need at least several kilometers’ worth to make ropes thick enough for my plan.”
Wolf donned his camouflage cloak and began harvesting vines. Half a day later, he spliced them into three thick, rough ropes, each about one hundred meters long.
Next came the more challenging part. Wolf took one rope and formed a circular seal hanging from the canopy six hundred meters away from the plantation. Unlike the Spell Formation he used against Marie’s camp, Wolf set this one up vertically, starting from the tallest branches, and hanging almost all the way to the ground.
Instead of using the prepared runes scribed on paper, Wolf etched new ones into the branches and filled them with thick sap he harvested from the trees. Gilded Apes proved frighteningly intelligent, and Wolf feared what might happen if they discovered they had an intruder in their territory.
My realm has risen by three stages, and with the support of my Star Body I can contest them with physical might alone. However, that’s one on one, maybe even one on ten. But there are hundreds of workers on this island, and I don’t know how many live near the crux. What if they developed a warrior caste, which is even stronger than the random apes on patrol duty and tending to plants and livestock?
Wolf did not wish to take foolish chances when an elegant, albeit time-consuming, solution existed. He finished his preparations in three days and set the Spell Formation to activate only once it had stored enough energy to function perpetually.
Wolf estimated the Spell Formation would start after an hour and crept his way back to the boughs at the edge of the jungle. He had underestimated the World Energy concentration, and thirty minutes ahead of schedule, the jungle echoed with squeals and roars.
Thunder of feet slapping soil and bodies slamming against each other made the Gilded Apes tending to the orchard jump. Three pairs of them stared towards the jungle with surprise, then rage filled their wide-open eyes. They screeched and thumped their chests before dashing forward, summoning their clubs to meet the insolent Monster Beast who dared intrude so deep into their territory.
“Good day, I am the sixth Earth Pavilion’s elder, Jonatan Tina.” Jonatan greeted Eleanor Dreadingham, gracing the woman with an amicable smile.
“Good—” A Friend? Elder Dread paled, her jaw froze half way into mouthing a mechanical introduction. She took a moment to process the thought, then moved to bow as her heart pounded.
However, Jonatan grabbed her arm, holding her fast. “No need for formalities. I’m from a distant branch family, simply fortunate enough that my mother could trace a pure female lineage all the way to our illustrious ancestor. Families much closer to the Tinas aren’t as lucky.”
Regular folk might not know it, but an unwritten law demands cultivators to bow before the Friends, but he says he isn’t one, yet a Friend’s blood runs through his veins. Eleanor found herself at a loss. Luckily, a moment later, she came up with a solution.
“Please,” she asked, jerking her arm, but failing to escape Jonatan’s grip. “I’m not bowing to you, Sir, but to the Grand Mistress Tina.”
Jonatan grimaced, but released her. To his shock, Eleanor kowtowed instead of bending her back. A mere bow was disrespectful towards a Friend, the Glorious Tyrant’s former companion, and an immortal from the bygone era.
“I’m here on business,” Jonatan said, breaking the awkward silence and helping Eleanor up, lest she stays prone the whole while. “My Pavilion Master ordered me to make the transaction in her stead and escort your core disciple, Wolf Hillman.”
“Here’s your payment.” He produced a holdingring and handed it to Eleanor. “Have you drafted the transfer documents?”
Elder Dread nodded. She stored the ring without checking it, and four furled sets of documents appeared in her hand.
“These are disciple Hillman’s.” She gave one furl of papers to Jonatan, then motioned with the remaining three. “These are for his retainers. Pavilion Master said he might appreciate taking them with him, in case he had formed an emotional attachment.”
Eleanor fidgeted in silence as Jonatan read each of Wolf’s documents twice. Finally, he nodded and stored them. The rest of the papers he glanced through, hardly paying attention to their contents.
“He knows about the transfer?” he asked, and Elder Dread bobbed her head.
“Yes, Sir.”
Jonatan rolled his eyes. “No need for honorifics. You might have more Friend blood in you than I do.”
Despite doubting the statement, Eleanor nodded, afraid she would say, ‘Sir’ once more.
Several awkward seconds passed before Jonatan spoke again. “We have four and a half more months until this secluded world closes. Are his retainers inside?”
“One of them, the other two are back at the Earth Pavilion.” Eleanor paused. “Right. I forgot to introduce myself. Sorry, Sir.”
Jonatan sighed, and Eleanor bit her lip.
“Sorry,” she repeated. “I am the fifty-fifth Earth Pavilion’s elder, Eleanor Dreadingham.”
“Nice to meet you, Eleanor,” Jonatan flashed her a smile before continuing. “And where are the rest of his retainers?”
“They are back at the pavilion, S—” Eleanor replied, swallowing the last word.
Ten, I’m so afraid I’ll say something stupid, I’m acting like a five-year-old.
“Do you mind contacting someone to escort them over? I wouldn’t want to wait for them after the secluded world closes.”
“Yes, s—ertainly,” Eleanor stopped herself in time, stuttering. “I’ll do that now.”
Her head spun. The deal was going smoothly, but she hardly paid attention to their success. Her thoughts kept drifting towards one question - who had the audacity to use someone with a Friend surname as an errand boy?
***
Wolf sat high in the tree’s crown, cultivating. He took over two weeks to consolidate his realm and attain the first stage of Blood Saturating. Then, despite his effort, he had to trudge through the second stage, taking an entire month to reach it.
He finally understood the difficulty of progressing with twelve stages per realm. His Qi capacity was much greater, which was a great boon in battles. However, advancing the stages was proportionally more difficult.
What Lena Daseldoff achieved in three days, Wolf took two weeks to reproduce.
“Cultivation is such a bothersome, time-consuming activity.” The second Mental Aspect commented, but the primary one remained immersed in absorbing the solid World Energy from the air, converting it into Qi, and dissipating it into his hungry blood.
“I’ve never before noticed how energy starved my body is. I mean, there were times I suffered from Vis deficiency, but that’s different. Back then I felt like I had a limited reservoir to fill, but now, it feels like chucking pebbles into an abyss.”
Wolf reconsidered the horrible metaphor while feeling the Qi course through his body and merge into the currents of blood. He imagined himself like a mountain, the Qi was dribbling rain, forming rivulets, which then joined the rivers flowing through his veins and arteries.
“I bet I could’ve done this faster if I could’ve gotten closer to the center.”
Wolf was fifty kilometers from Corpsewood’s heart, stopped by yet another moat the apes had dug. Within the water, Mind Clearing Lotuses grew, their leaves overlapping and blanketing the water. Around the channel’s banks, Gilded Apes raised several types of fruit trees, making for a three kilometer wide clearing which Wolf had to cross before moving deeper into their territory.
“I never expected there would be this many Gilded Apes, and they seem intent on further growing their population. They are using Mind Clearing Lotuses to enhance their intelligence, and they produce enough food to feed a thousand of them. Based on what I’ve seen they are planning to take over their world. What will happen then? Will they kill and devour intruding disciples, using them as nutrients?”
Weeks passed in stillness and cultivation. Wolf’s incapacitated Mental Aspects stirred, but did not rouse fully. Two months after entering Corpsewood, Wolf had reached the second stage of Blood Saturating, and two months later he reached the third.
He opened his eyes, and after months of sitting and moving only to eat and drink, Wolf stretched to crack his back, but his spine made no sound. His joints and muscles were loose, his body full of energy. Even his mind was as well as he could expect, South’s tonic helping him produce enough Anima to sustain his cultivation.
This mental strain slowed the recovery of my Palace of Echos.
Wolf’s gut growled, and the hunger kept at bay by minimal provisions and surging Qi returned with a vengeance. He ate a sumptuous meal of Whiteflame Honeyeater’s honey, and various dried fruits and meats.
I’ve already eaten five kilos of food, but there’s no heaviness. My stomach dissolves everything I eat in no time.
“I should stop. My hunger is sated, and my muscles feel weird from all the nutrients rushing into them. If I keep this up, I might wind up creating fat stores.”
That doesn’t sound that bad, actually. Then, instead of eating all the time, my body would burn the fat on its own whenever it needs it.
“Stop thinking about nonsense. I have to collect lianas, I need at least several kilometers’ worth to make ropes thick enough for my plan.”
Wolf donned his camouflage cloak and began harvesting vines. Half a day later, he spliced them into three thick, rough ropes, each about one hundred meters long.
Next came the more challenging part. Wolf took one rope and formed a circular seal hanging from the canopy six hundred meters away from the plantation. Unlike the Spell Formation he used against Marie’s camp, Wolf set this one up vertically, starting from the tallest branches, and hanging almost all the way to the ground.
Instead of using the prepared runes scribed on paper, Wolf etched new ones into the branches and filled them with thick sap he harvested from the trees. Gilded Apes proved frighteningly intelligent, and Wolf feared what might happen if they discovered they had an intruder in their territory.
My realm has risen by three stages, and with the support of my Star Body I can contest them with physical might alone. However, that’s one on one, maybe even one on ten. But there are hundreds of workers on this island, and I don’t know how many live near the crux. What if they developed a warrior caste, which is even stronger than the random apes on patrol duty and tending to plants and livestock?
Wolf did not wish to take foolish chances when an elegant, albeit time-consuming, solution existed. He finished his preparations in three days and set the Spell Formation to activate only once it had stored enough energy to function perpetually.
Wolf estimated the Spell Formation would start after an hour and crept his way back to the boughs at the edge of the jungle. He had underestimated the World Energy concentration, and thirty minutes ahead of schedule, the jungle echoed with squeals and roars.
Thunder of feet slapping soil and bodies slamming against each other made the Gilded Apes tending to the orchard jump. Three pairs of them stared towards the jungle with surprise, then rage filled their wide-open eyes. They screeched and thumped their chests before dashing forward, summoning their clubs to meet the insolent Monster Beast who dared intrude so deep into their territory.
