Heavenly Shae

Shae was nearly finished her second cup of tea when she sensed a wisp of familiar water qi pass through the room. She reflexively checked her pose and wiped crumbs off her robes. She had found a pack of small tea cookies in the sideboard cabinet. They paired quite well with the refreshing citrus tea.

She glanced down at the cup and swirled it while considering another sip. Two leaves had slipped past the filter and spun around each other in the liquid. Hearing footsteps, she set the cup down and stood as Master Long rounded the corner.

"Glad to see you made it, Master Long." She bowed respectfully.

"Junior Shae. I see you've made yourself comfortable." He nodded back.

"Of course. Researcher Colorful Koi suggested I do so. A good thing, I would have been rather bored. There's some tea left, though it's probably a bit strong by now." She pointed to the sideboard.

He walked over and looked down at the cup she had set for him. "Looks a bit weak if anything."

"Ah, that was-"

He raised a hand. "Just teasing, I understand and appreciate the thought. Next time I suggest you don't assume the other person will want tea. I hope you didn't pick out this blend for me either?" He asked and winced as he sniffed the teapot.

"Ah, no. Miss Koi suggested I try it... And that you would prefer something more traditional." Shae rubbed at her ear and looked into the nearest corner of the room.

"Hmph. I should have expected as much. Though, don't call them miss. I believe they prefer anything more generic."

"Ah, thanks for telling me." She dipped her head forwards in thanks.

"Did you enjoy this blend?" He lifted the lid off the pot and swirled it. "Tsk, the filter fell."

"Ah, yes, it was pleasantly refreshing."

"Even while brewed so strongly?"

She shrugged. "The first cup was better, this one hasn't become foul or astringent. Not sure how it is now, though."

Long retrieved a small waste bucket from the cupboard, dumped most of his cup into it, then blew into the cup, releasing a gust of steam as the remaining water was quickly heated. Using a stir stick, he carefully repositioned the filter in the teapot, then poured a small splash into his cup.

With a certain air of ceremony, he replaced the tools he used across the sideboard. Then swirled his cup and smelled it deeply; this time he refrained from wincing. Shae thought he looked more like a wine taster as he sipped the tea, sloshed it around in his mouth then spat it into the waste bucket.

"Apologies for the unsightly behavior, Junior Shae." He nodded and gestured to the bucket. "Lemongrass doesn't sit well with me on an empty stomach."

"Ah, not a problem. Oh, but there are tea biscuits in the cabinet. Although, feel free to dump it and make something else. I trust your expertise to pick something pleasant."

"Hmph. Now she trusts me," he said with a smirk and head shake.

She opened her mouth, then snapped it shut and shifted her weight from foot to foot. Glancing down, she spotted her cup. She scooped it up and tried to dump it in the water bucket only for Long to reach a hand out to stop her.

"No need to be wasteful. This is excellent quality tea, and it hasn't oversteeped. Since you liked it, we can save the rest for you to enjoy later." He took her cup and plucked the leaves out using two stir sticks as chopsticks. Adding a splash of hot water, he handed it back. "This blend can be diluted without ruining it. The extra water even lets different flavors bloom a little. Try it."

She accepted the cup and carefully sipped, expecting it to be hot. "Hmm! Ah! Well done. It's almost like how it was when first brewed."

"Heh," he chuckled while his hands worked. "That just proves your taste has a long way to grow. You are young though, would you prefer it with sugar or spice?" He asked and presented a pair of ceramic dishes. One with sugar or honey, Shae hadn't checked, the other with ground cinnamon and a very tiny measuring spoon. A unique addition compared to her village life.

"Ah, no thanks." She hadn't indulged in sweets in this life, and didn't really want to start now. Honey and fresh milk from oxen or goats were the common options for mortals. She had been somewhat surprised to discover milk wasn't used much outside of peasant life. The more wealthy folk favored using refined sugar and adding strong spices like cinnamon. A merchant had told her those were more practical because they didn't spoil and were easier to transport.

"Miss Shae?" Long asked.

"Hmm? Oh, sorry, my mind wandered into my past."

"Not a problem." He tapped a tall bamboo cup with a cork stopper sealing the top. "Here's the remainder of the tea, diluted and chilled slightly. If you don't reheat it, I'd suggest adding a pinch of sugar or salt." His hand moved across to another teapot, brought out from the sideboard while Shae was distracted. "This is a more traditional blend of black tea. One of my favorites, though I'm only making enough for two cups." He poured in hot water and gestured to the chairs.

Shae nodded and took the lead in sitting down.

"I've asked you here today for two reasons. Though it's really because you agreed to previously: to explain your intent use when we struck down that mud elemental, the rot dog."

Shae's eyebrows jumped a little. "Ah, yes. That feels like it was forever ago."

"The second is more of a favor to you, and is about that talisman you have." He raised a hand to forestall interruptions. "As I suggested when it was revealed, it is a rather valuable thing. Talismans are fairly stable, but we normally prefer to preserve valuable things. Placing them in special boxes or other containers to preserve their essence, and to protect them."

Shae nodded along, her hand drifted up to her robes before she pulled it away to drink her tea again. "Protect it from what?"

"I'll freely admit that I'm being rather paranoid here." He offered both hands with palms up. "Talismans rarely leak enough qi to be easily noticed. From what I've read, that qi type is hard to discern. However, those who are looking for it will be more sensitive to it."

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She nodded slowly. "So it's simply to protect it from discovery? Won't that affect my ability to use it?"

He nodded. "Certainly. Yet, here in the sect, you shouldn't need to use it, and you still have that earth qi shield, yes?"

She nodded again, and tapped a different inside pocket in her robes.

"I'd like to say that the sect is a perfectly safe place, yet here in the lowest tier, we see guests and travelers far more often. Some individuals would be willing to damage their reputation for such an opportunity."

Shae tilted her head. "I find it odd that one monk can produce something so valuable, yet his monastery is still considered poor and less capable of raising cultivators."

"It's valuable because he doesn't produce many of them. You asked me about the qi conversion speed in your Dantian, didn't you? He can't simply produce that qi endlessly."

Shae's eyes slowly grew wider as she understood. "So, even if he is making it, it's a limited resource. And I suppose it's better for him to keep it and research, err- contemplate it himself."

"Heh, research is a good word choice. Ah, speaking of understanding qi." He reached in his robes and revealed a vial of clear liquid. "Would you mind offering up another sample? I understand you've taken great strides in assimilating your own qi."

She flashed him half a frown. "Would this count as a valuable and unique qi sample?"

"Heh heh. Smart question. I believe this will aid the sect in finding you a compatible cultivation manual."

"Hmm," she hummed and accepted the vial. Closing her eyes, she looked at her own Dantian, seeing only a foggy impression without meditation. Her small qi planet hadn't really changed in the last few days since her enlightenment in Gatewash. Super dense qi stayed in the center, layers of less and less dense qi stacked up until it was a thin fog at the surface. She hadn't found any changes at the center, but the outer layers were being converted. Neutral qi was slowly changing into pure and pure into her strange pure-tribulation-lightning qi blend.

Her eyes snapped open to ask, "Does the density matter? I've a bit of range to select from."

Long raised an eyebrow. "I suppose it doesn't, the spiritual water can only absorb so much. Hmm. Is that from your own attempts, or another side effect of the enlightenment?"

"Wasn't me, not intentionally. I'm not even sure how to change it like that. Aside from jamming more enlightenment qi into it, I suppose. It's mostly from doing that: I was too distracted contemplating the enlightenment itself to balance it out properly."

Long nodded. "A common enough occurrence. I believe the library will have instructions on correcting it, if it's minor."

She frowned briefly. "And if it's not minor?"

"Time should resolve it. Another enlightenment to balance the weaker qi, or you can forcibly dilute it to go the other way." He let his free hand drift back and forth while sipping his tea. "If that feels like wasted effort, you can try to save the densest qi, but early cultivators rarely have the space in their Dantian to do so. You'll likely use it up during cleansing."

"Hmm. Okay. So about that intent... ?"

Long raised one finger while sipping, then pointed to the vial.

"Ah, right, one thing at a time." Shae nodded.

They sat in silence as she transferred qi into the vial. The slow process of it leaking through her skin was accompanied by the pair slowly draining their tea. Shae had finished her own quickly and Long poured her the black tea after rinsing out her cup.

She tried it and didn't have much to say. It was tea, well made, she assumed. She paused just after to switch which finger was stuck in the vial because the spiritual water had finally started to sting slightly.

"The resiliency of that skin is quite surprising." Long shook his head. "We usually don't see that until after core formation."

She shrugged. "Well, that makes sense, since a tribulation was involved."

"Involved in what?" Koi said as they rounded the corner with a tray.

Long frowned at them. "Researcher Koi, I'm sure you heard the previous sentence, don't play dumb just because Miss Shae is new to cultivators."

They walked over and placed the tray down. A single red envelope sat on it. "Of course, Master Long, yet I like to hear the story from the one who experienced it." They turned back to Shae and nodded. "Wise Shae, you should know that I'm not simply the receptionist but part of the main research team here. I'll be conducting the interview about the core disruption. Would you like to do that now?"

Shae reflexively glanced at Master Long, yet he just sipped his tea. "Uhm. I suppose so. Were you planning to be here the whole time, Master Long."

"I was." He nodded, then flicked a finger towards the vial of spiritual water.

"Ah." Shae flinched, she had forgotten about the vial and nearly spilled it. Carefully she adjusted her grip, then checked how full it was. Discerning how much qi had dissolved was a little tricky. The fluid mixed freely when disturbed, only separating into two layers when left to settle. Even carefully holding it still, it refused to settle while her finger was in it.

Long produced a small stand for it and set it on the table. "Cap it and let it settle, that's likely enough."

Koi nodded as Shae did so. "I'll go fetch a recording formation, then we can begin."

Long raised a finger. "I can do it, if you'd prefer."

"Hmm," they hummed out a low pitch, "do you know the standard formatting?"

"I know how the sect logs a conversation. Though, the research team's requirements change every year, so no, I couldn't know those."

"Hmm? Very well. I'll probably want to rewrite it with my own notes anyway." They shrugged and pulled up another chair, but didn't sit in it. Instead they walked to the sideboard and looked over the tea selection. "Ah, saved some for later? Excellent choice. May I?" They asked while smiling at Shae.

"Oh, sure. It's just the leftovers of the lemongrass I made."

She reached for the cinnamon pot. "Yet it has the distinct touch of Master Long's fastidiousness. I'm sure it's turned out quite nicely if he didn't dump it."

Long harrumphed, covering it slightly by retrieving a large case from his spatial storage. "I'd prefer more room for my full scribe's table."

"Pssh, you don't need it. Write tightly and small, none of that flourishing you nobles like." Koi waved a loose hand at him.

He frowned and grunted in response, then unfolded the case into a small lap-top writing desk.

Shae raised a hand, then pointed between the two others. "Uhm. If I may ask, what's the dynamic here? I expected Master Long to be in charge?"

Long seemed ready to answer but looked to Koi and gestured with an open palm, instead taking the opportunity to set up his writing space.

Koi smiled and nodded while adding entirely too much cinnamon to a teacup. "You may not be able to sense my stage, but here, in this building, it's not really important anyway." They walked back to their chair with a steaming cup of Shae's tea. The cinnamon discolored the tea to a muddy brown and Shae nearly winced at the smell when it was brought closer. "We researchers are provided with a rather privileged position when it comes to our research subjects. It's important that we have the authority to conduct our research and experimentation without accidents or intentional interference from other sect members."

Shae nodded as she understood the idea. "So you can order around higher stage cultivators?"

"So long as they don't abuse it, and it relates directly to their research." Long added. "I'm ready."

"Yes, exactly." Koi nodded to him. "Does that explain it, Shae? And are you ready to begin?"

"Ah, yes... and yes." She nodded twice and sat up straighter in her chair.