NOVEL NEXT Chapter 44: Fair assessment
They were seated at an enormous dining table, one long enough to fit twenty people aside and with a width three metres long. It was often only used to host guests numbering in the dozens. With only four of them occupying the vulgarly large furniture, it made for a somewhat comical sight.
Rather than sitting at the end of the table — as was typical of his position — Patriarch Shang had chosen instead a place along its length with his guests. Feng, Lingyu, and Lianshi were on the other side, with Feng in the middle and the Chen sisters beside him.
The room was adorned in the typical colours of the Sect: red, gold, and black in abundance. Opulent tapestries and large vases of rich Spirit flora filled the sides of the large dining hall, lending a fragrant aroma to the room. Ornate ceiling hangings of bronze and dark wood served as lighting fixtures with their assortment of decorative lanterns, brightening the hall with their flames.
The ambience was equal parts cheery and grand, and it helped ease the mood of the three cultivator youths. The fact that Patriarch Shang had significantly restrained the strength of his aura also spoke of a notable consideration for them — especially Lingyu, who would have struggled to maintain poise within the overwhelming presence of a Spirit Realm cultivator.
Patriarch Shang himself was a handsome man — as expected of a cultivator at his level of advancement — but his attractiveness was more of a mundane variety, unlike the unearthly beauty that Lianshi possessed. Like Feng, he had fierce black hair and pale sapphire eyes, but aside from those two features, their facial structure held few similarities.
The more noticeable aspect of the man was his cultivation. Even when reined in, the strength of his presence was clear for all to sense.
Spirit Realm, Fourth Step. One of the strongest individuals within the Province.
"It is good to finally meet you two." The Patriarch spoke softly, but his rich voice reverberated clearly through the entire hall. "I apologise for the sudden invitation, but with the wedding now so close, and opportunities to converse slim, I figured now was as good a time as any for us to meet and talk candidly."
"We thank the Patriarch for his generosity," Lianshi said as she bowed respectfully, as did Lingyu. "However, this lowly one confesses some confusion. It is not the first time we have met in person, Father-in-law."
Lingyu, despite her best efforts, could not hold back a small choking sound at Lianshi's boldness. Patriarch Shang gave a slight chuckle.
For Lianshi to already call the Patriarch 'Father-in-law'...
"You are as my son said: a prodigy who does not lack for daring. Yet, one may say that you are tempting fate with such a statement. The wedding has yet to occur, after all. "
"I will marry Hei Feng," Lianshi declared, her tone absolute and edging right on the threshold of disrespect. "Unless he disagrees, neither Heaven nor Earth will stop me from making your son my husband. Since the Heavens are dead, and none among the Sects may challenge my verdict, I would say that the outcome of my wedding is already guaranteed. In the face of such certainty, surely there is nothing wrong with me addressing the esteemed Patriarch through the lens of our future familial relations?"
Lingyu was now openly glaring at her sister with horrified shock. Even Feng could not help but stare wide-eyed at her. To announce her intentions with such forceful resolution — and to the Patriarch of all people! In his own home! — the trite expression of her 'courting death' came to mind.
For one dreadful moment, Feng thought he might see the results of a battle between his father and Fiancée after all.
Yet, rather than becoming angered at such blatant disrespect, Patriarch Shang instead burst into open laughter.
"Well said! A cultivator should be, above all else, greedy! And I can see that your greed is strong, Young Miss of the Chen Clan. Little wonder your cultivation is so advanced. It seems I need not worry about Feng's future, after all."
Feng watched in amazement as his father bowed slightly to Lianshi. Even to the Elders of the Sect, he rarely showed this much deferential respect. "I thank you for choosing my son as your husband. Despite all earlier arrangements made ten years ago, it would not have been shocking for you to break off the engagement."
"It is I who must thank you, Father-in-law," Lianshi said as she bowed back. "Ten years ago, my value was worth little. My cultivation was stagnant, and my position as Heiress fragile. Despite that, you had chosen to entrust your beloved son's future to me in marriage. For that, you have my eternal gratitude."
The Patriarch shook his head. "Please think nothing of it. As you are well aware, the decision made at the time was purely political. Your mother, Matriarch Chen, would have never agreed otherwise had it not been for the Decaying Greyroots Sect's sudden rise to power."
Under normal circumstances, for the two Head Heirs of opposing Sects to marry would have been a scandalous affair. While it was not uncommon for cultivators of different paths to form brief, illicit relationships with each other, anything beyond that was rare and heavily frowned upon.
Such matters endanger the secrecy of Sect techniques and bloodlines. While marital ties between differing Sects were not unprecedented, they were often heavily overseen and scrutinised by the Sect, and almost never allowed by those within important positions such as Clan Heirs or Elders.
That Lianshi and Feng's marriage was not only permitted but even deemed necessary by most of the members of both the Beheaded Phoenix and Split-headed Carnivore Sect spoke of how dire the situation was.
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
The delicate balance of power within the Province was soon to undergo significant change, and those who cannot adapt will be left behind.
"However, I must confess," the Patriarch continued. "Part of me had thought that your Matriarch would have forced you to break off the engagement by now. The Split-headed Carnivores Sect would have had to make financial concessions to us, of course, but given the value of your hand, such a cost would be paltry compared to the potential gains from other prospective suitors."
"My mother did make attempts to alter the details of my engagement," Lianshi evenly said, though her eyes turned dark. A mocking smile appeared on her face, one that made the hairs on Feng's neck stand. "I have since informed her, however, that the matter of my hand is no longer her concern."
"You… what?" The words blurted from the Young Master's lips before he could stop them. Even the usually controlled expression on his Father's face momentarily turned to shock at Lianshi's ludicrous proclamation.
"You have defied your Matriarch's edict?" Patriarch Shang asked seriously.
"She tried to enforce her authority on me to consider alternative spouses," the Young Miss replied, voice calm and unaffected. "I have since made several strong arguments in the favour of maintaining my engagement. The Matriarch — in her infinite empathy and love for her daughter — eventually understood my reasoning and hence since stopped interfering with my happiness."
There were many words to describe Matriarch Chen. 'Loving' and 'Empathetic' were not any of them. Feng did not need to be a genius to see the underlying meaning of Lianshi's words.
Her mother had tried to force Lianshi to marry someone else. When words failed, and the Matriarch turned to force, Lianshi had not only somehow survived the ensuing conflict, but emerged as the victor.
She had just openly admitted to defeating the leader of her Sect, a cultivator centuries her senior and in the revered standing of the Spirit Realm. Feng looked towards Lingyu, his eyes conveying the urgent question. The younger sister's expression was grim, but she still met his eyes and gave a tiny nod.
That was… Impossible.
Matriarch Chen could be considered the weakest of the four leaders within the Four Mountain Sects Group. Last he heard, the woman was only in the First Step of the Spirit Realm, and had been as such for the last several decades. For Lianshi, who was a Step away from the Spirit Realm herself, the difference in power might not be considered much.
But that was only considering their cultivation level. Matriarch Chen was still the leader of a Sect known for great internal violence and conflict. The stories claimed she had clawed her way to her position after defeating and devouring six of her older siblings in that bloody battle for dominance, and has since ruled her Sect with a bloody fist. Her strength and experience cannot be denied.
And Lianshi, who had not even seen two decades of life, had defeated her.
"I must confess some disbelief," Patriarch Sheng finally said after a length of silence. "But such a feat would explain a few things recently. In truth, I had been in communication with Matriarch Chen Zijing for the last few years. Most of them were simple demands from her for greater concessions to maintain the plans for our turbulent union. However, she had mentioned more than a few times her intent on breaking this engagement, even going so far as to imply that arrangements had been made for you to marry Inner Province cultivators of considerable standing and prestige."
Feng watched his father smile warily at Lianshi. "A year ago, she had ceased all attempts to derail this wedding. Not once since did she even try asking for greater compromises in this union, or threaten the safety of my son. I assume that was your doing?"
Lianshi only grinned viciously in return.
"It seems I must re-evaluate my odds of victory in a duel against you, then," his father admitted, only half in jest. "Perhaps three-to-one would be a fairer assessment?"
The Young Miss laughed in genuine amusement. "Father-in-law, you are being too harsh on yourself. Five-to-one would be the best I could hope for."
Feng felt numb even as the two laughed and talked. He was not aware of the extent of Lianshi's action, nor the political manoeuvres made by Matriarch Chen to have her prodigious daughter married to greater heights. He turned to look at Lingyu, whose expression had similarly gone as vacant as his.
"Those cultivators from the Inner Province that came for Lianshi's hand," he whispered. "What happened to them?"
Lingyu grimaced. "They did not take to rejection well, especially since it was Mother who had brought them there with promises of concubinage. The Clan Heirs were the worst, since they thought of Lianshi's origins as an Outer Province cultivator beneath them in the first place, even as a lesser spouse."
Clan Heirs. Some of the most influential and powerful sons of the Inner Province had come for Lianshi's hand, and she had rejected them. For him.
"The insults were bad enough, what with them calling us subhuman animals unfit to lick their boots. But some of them were bold enough to try and force Lianshi into their beds or to follow them back to their Clans. The more idiotic ones actually threatened to come after you, once they heard who she was engaged to." Lingyu's face turned slightly green. "Lianshi left those to return to their Clans in pieces."
"She killed them?"
"No. But I bet they wished she did as they were carted back home in boxes."
Feng processed all this information. Then he looked at his Fiancée. Somewhere between her easy conversation with his Father, the Young Miss caught his gaze, and grinned happily at him.
The Basics of Cultivation Realms
Regardless of the Realm of Cultivation, practitioners of the Path will all reap several universal benefits with each Step of their advancement. The most basic boons include the development of greater spiritual meridians and qi reserves, the fortification of their physical bodies, and heightened intellectual acuity and mental resilience, among many others.
However, these are only the surface benefits afforded by the wellspring of cultivation enhancement. True growth comes from the focused refinement of certain key aspects ingrained within a cultivator's progression.
Each of the Cultivation Realms is tied to the development of one particular aspect revolving around the weight of the individual's existence. The nature of advancement is tailored such that it better readies the practitioner for the challenges and tribulations they shall face in the pursuit of a higher stage of Immortality. Breaking through to the next Realm of cultivation not only affords the cultivator more power, but also signifies the completion of a certain stage in the cultivator's metamorphosis into a true Immortal deity.
For example, the Foundation Realm is directed towards the expulsion of base impurities within the body to prepare it for qi absorption. The Shaping Realm builds upon the budding meridians within the Spiritual System to expedite future cultivation rates. The Tempering Realm significantly strengthens the physical durability and endurance of the practitioner, so that they may withstand the punishing trials that await them in the next stage. Each of these Realms is specifically keyed to the growth and development of one aspect of the cultivator and prepares them for the tribulation they might face in the next.
– Excerpt from To Those Worthy of the Eternal Banquet