Mystique Soul: A Cultivator's Flame

The leaves rustled as they swayed in the winds. Howls not just from animals sounded throughout the night.

Feng Jiao Xue perched on a tree branch by the side of her camp. Yin Xiao snores peacefully beneath her tree branch while Huang Jin De went back to the space ring to continue cultivation.

As much as Feng Jiao Xue wanted to follow either of their lead, she vigilantly stayed on guard until the next batch of vigils arrived.

As if summoned by her though, a guard approached her.

"Miss, it's time to change shifts. Please rest up for tomorrow" He informed her before moving into another area to patrol.

With a leap, Feng Jiao Xue landed gracefully on the ground.

"Ngou?" Bleary doe eyes peered up at her.

"Go back to sleep, don't worry" She gently caressed his head with a soft smile. Rare as it might be, she does know how.

"Ngou?" Yin Xiao still asked. 'Where are you going?' it translated in her mind through their bond. 

It was something she later realized. While Yin Xiao spoke to her normally in the imperial language, his lips never moved in the same way that the words should have been sounded. Their contract allowed them to cross the barrier but to others, aside from beast kind as well that is, everything is grunts, neighs or growls. At least, until he cultivates to a certain extent.

Patting his head between his antler, Feng Jiao Xue added her magic into him. Though she has not trained in it as well as she had with her Qi, that doesn't mean she neglected it at all. 

"Stay here, I'm just going for a walk" She explained before she turned to walk away.

Pure and naive doe eyes followed her figure as her silhouette slowly merged with the shadows between the woods. Yin Xiao grunted and used a hoof to curiously rub the spot where her magical signature remains on the crown of his head.

While both energy powers seem so similar and yet so different at the same time, Feng Jiao Xue had already grasped the general concept between the two.

Qi Cultivation is about the internal force, the energy of life itself. It focuses more on strength, speed and resilience while Qi can be shaped into techniques as well like sword auras, energy blasts or defensive barriers. It can also be combined with external objects such as weapons or just your body.

Magic on the other hand relies on external forces like the elemental energy or spiritual sources. Magicians serve as conduits for this energy known as mana. Those who wield magic often focus on long range battles, using their control over the environment and their versatility to gain the upper hand.

Cultivators are admired for their physical strength, endurance, and discipline. They focus on martial techniques and are formidable in one-on-one combat.

Magicians are renowned for their power, versatility, and intellectual mastery. They excel in manipulating their surroundings and can handle multiple enemies or large-scale threats.

For both a person to be able to be both a magician and a cultivator...

Feng Jiao Xue looked up and saw the moonlight peaking through the trees.

Raising a hand, light bent to her will, tendrils of moonlight wrapping around her palm and wrist.

The towering trees arched above her like ancient sentinels, their leaves shimmering faintly under the pale glow of the moonlight that pierced through the canopy in scattered beams. Above, the night sky shimmered through gaps in the canopy, stars twinkling like shattered diamonds scattered across black velvet. The song of a distant brook mingled with the soft chirping of crickets, the natural melody soothing yet haunting.S

The air carried a strange, ethereal stillness, broken only by the occasional rustle of unseen creatures and the soft hum of the wind weaving through the branches. 

Silver mist curled around the roots of the trees, giving the ground an otherworldly appearance, as though she were treading on clouds. Around her, the ancient trees swayed slightly, their gnarled roots twisting out of the earth like skeletal hands frozen mid-reach. A faint luminescence clung to the mist that pooled at their bases, shifting with an almost sentient rhythm as if the forest itself were breathing.

Fireflies blinked sporadically, their golden light dancing amidst the darkness, casting fleeting reflections in a shallow, crystal-clear stream that snaked its way beside her.

The shadows seemed alive, shifting in her periphery like silent watchers, and the distant calls of nocturnal creatures echoed eerily through the trees. Feng Jiao Xue's sharp senses prickled, alert to every sound and movement. The path ahead glimmered faintly with dew, drawing her onward into the unknown.

Feng Jiao Xue took a deep breath, the cool air greeting her, it wasn't harsh nor biting, but soft and soothing, brushing against her skin with the familiarity of a long-lost friend and for the previous her that thrives under the veil of the night, it brought to her what is akin to the comfort of a warm hug.

Slowly exhaling, her vision fogged by her breath before walking before she continued to walk, not a sound to her steps despite the fallen branches and leaves.

A cold smirk formed on her lips as she could feel the eyes on her, still she walked farther and farther from camp before stopping.

Closing her eyes, her hands fell limb by her side as her stance relaxed.

Low growls sounded and hisses sounded all around her as killing intent and bloodthirsty beasts appeared from the shadows.

As she has thought, the beasts here are not as mindless as others think. They waited for an opportunity to strike,allowing her to leave the camp to make sure that others would not be able to help her.

"Heh" she sneered before she took out her needles, and with a swift flick from her hand, threw Qi infused needles at the beast around her.

She went in her fighting stance, brandishing her weapon when the needles failed to penetrate the defences of the beats.

1,2,3,4....11. She can see 11 magical beasts in total. Razorhide Boar, Hulking beast with tusks as long as swords, jagged and covered in dried blood. Its bristling hide is lined with sharp, metallic spines that shimmer like steel, ready to impale anything that comes too close. Its glowing red eyes burn with an unrelenting rage, and its breath comes out in snorts of black smoke. 

"Clack!, clack!, clack!" 

Feng Jiao Xue looked behind her at the sound of sharp metal banging together. Starving gazes met her eyes. Its body gleaming under the moonlight. A monstrous scorpion with a dark, chitinous body that seems to absorb the light around it. Its barbed tail is twice the length of its body, dripping with a glowing, violet poison. Its pincers are large enough to crush boulders, and its many eyes glitter like shards of black glass, emotionless and deadly.

"A wraithspike scorpion" Feng Jiao Xe grinned in excitement. Its shell will do nicely for an armor but it's not the one she's looking for. "You may do"

She dodges as the Razorhide boars lunge at her. The Wraithspike Scorpion backing away for now. Waiting for its prey to tire themselves against each other before leaping back for a meal.

The razorhide boars charges at her with their tusks, their hooves making dusts with every stomp.

As Feng Jiao Xue leaped to the side, a Razorhide boar crashed into a tree, causing the humongous branch to crack and tear apart. 

The boar shook its head to shake the dizziness away while Feng Jiao Xue slashed her sword towards its neck but was intercepted by another boar, it was too late to dodge.

Blood seeped out of her side as the tusk managed to pierce her slightly as she jumped to the side to avoid the blow before Feng Jiao Xue plunged her sword on its back. 

"Grrraowll!!!" the razorhide boar growl and howled in pain before its misery was cut short as its head rolled on the ground while the others charged more fiercely. Fast as lighting, Feng Jiao Xue killed the other disoriented boar as her sword pierced through its skull as her Qi reinforced the blade.

She evaded their attacks as they charged at her one after another, her sword constantly slashing through their hide. 

Surrounded, Feng Jiao Xue looked for a weak spot to dodge but the boars are getting faster and faster as they are more desperate to win.

As they charged all together once more, Feng Jiao Xue jumped on the head of one of the boars as they crashed on each other. Walls out of the land beneath their feet rised up and caged them. It appears that her theory was right. Though magic requires spells, incantations and other things to be learned, it can also be wielded without them. However, it was like trying to mold water into a solid object.

She knew that she could not hold it together for long so, with a cold gaze, she lifted her arms and formed a giant ball out of rock.

The razorhide boars all lost their aggression as they desperately tried to break the wall before the ball of rock crushed into them. 

Looking towards the wraithspike scorpion, she noticed how it had already dug through the ground and escaped. 

"Pity" She thought before taking low level healing pills to heal herself. 

As much as she feels it was wasted on injuries she can bear, it's best if no one suspects what happened tonight. 

Lifting the rock and throwing it to the side, she calmly gazed at the ghastly sight. 

"Don't worry, I'll take care of it" Huang Jin De puffed out beside her and manipulated his qi to easily take whatever valuable parts were left from the boars. 

"Good job, Xiao Xue~" He beamed, ruffling her hair before going back into the space ring proudly humming as he cleaned the materials up.