NOVEL NEXT Chapter 27 - Juice, Jugs, and Missteps
Chapter 27
Juice, Jugs, and Missteps
In two days that she spent in the forest with her new Master, Lan Yue learned that the man was very much honest when he warned her there wouldn't be much to do in here. Rather, she could surmise his day (and, in extension, hers) very quickly:
First, he'd wake up and make breakfast for all animals. This would usually take two-three hours at the very minimum. The first day she merely observed from the side, but on the second, she was tasked with fetching the ingredients which sped the process up somewhat.
Second, he'd take a quick bath at the pond, right after her.
Third, he'd make large amounts of the sweet liquid he called 'fruit juice' and leave it scattered in jugs and gourds; animals would then come and go at odd intervals, some drinking directly, some picking up the jugs and gourds and returning them empty later, and some seemingly ensuring that exact thing happened.
Fourth, he'd vanish for the next four to five hours, exploring the forest apparently, while she stayed behind to 'guard' the camp (as though there was a thing in the world that could threaten this place) and cultivate.
He'd return just before dusk and start preparing dinner.
That would take up the remainder of the night, and, at the end, he'd share a tale or a song with the animals before retreating into the mud and falling asleep.
It was... dull, to say the least. However, Yue, accustomed to the buzz of an active city, elected not to judge; she had all the time in the world to cultivate, and thanks to her new roots, she actually enjoyed it.
A change in the routine happened on the third day, however--rather than going out to explore, he actually had her meet him at the pond. He wasn't alone--as always, there was an entourage of animals following him. In more ways than one, it was somewhat adorable.
"Today," he said. "I will pass on a Cultivation Method to you," Yue felt her heart leap into her throat for a moment; her current Cultivation Method was merely at Low Earth Rank. While somewhat better than what most ordinary cultivators had access to, it was extremely limiting. Even if it paired well with her Spirit Roots beforehand, now that her talent had been reborn, it was the method holding her back. "You may choose to use it or not, I will not force you."
"..." she stayed silent as he rummaged in his robes for a moment and took out several 'papers'--rather, they were pieces of bark from the trees, thinned out and carved on top of. It looked like his 'exploration' of the forest was just an excuse. She held back from rolling her eyes, as she had papers and ink and quill in her ring, but perhaps these were simply the ways of her Master.
"It is merely the first part," he said. "Once you've mastered it--if you so choose--I will pass on the next part. At same time, I will pass on a basic footwork technique to you. It is extremely rudimentary, but it will at least help you with exercise a little bit. Watch."
Yue put away the bark paper to the side and looked up at her Master--there was expectation in her eyes that she tried to hide, though it vanished as she saw him move. The footwork displayed was simple yet oddly erratic; he kept moving in diagonal lines, and though it appeared excruciatingly slow, eerily, Yue was unable to glean past the footwork's secrets. On the surface, it appeared simple--so simple, in fact, that even children wouldn't bother learning it. But the more she observed, the queerer the entire technique seemed.
Eventually, she got up and tried replicating her Master's movements--however, within simply two sets, she felt her legs give out under her and she collapsed. Looking inwardly, she realized that all of her Qi had been drained within those few movements, and her muscles were wholly spent.
"Eh? Why are you lying down?" Master Leo asked as he finally noticed her.
"... I, I tried practicing..." Yue replied, embarrassed. She felt shame that she'd underestimated her Master's technique and judged it purely by appearances. It turned out, however, that she could barely tap into it before being wholly spent.
"Oh. Your legs gave out, huh?"
"... yes."
"Don't worry about it. It happened to me, too, when I first started practicing. However, despite this, if you want to see results, you will have to practice every day."
"O-of course, Master!"
"Let me help you up," he helped her sit up and fed her one of the sweet juices. The spent Qi was quickly replenished, and though she could move herself once again, it hurt... quite a bit. "The body gets accustomed to it, bit by bit."
"Yes, Master."
"Come back before dinner. Blackie, stay with her and keep her safe."
The black panther seemed to nod as it sat down by the pond's side and started licking itself. On the other hand, Yue watched her Master's figure fade into the forest, straining herself and ignoring the aching of the muscles as she picked up the bark papers lying on the ground.
Just like with the footwork technique, it appeared simple and almost worthless. However, having learned her lesson, there wasn't a doubt in her heart that there was something deeply profound in the cultivation method. She would study it thoroughly and relentlessly, and swore to herself she would have figured it out before dinner, to finally impress upon her Master that she was more than a helpless cultivator.
**
Leo was sweating bullets.
He wasn't actually planning on sharing any of the 'profound' methods and arts with Yue, and had intended on keeping her as a 'nominal' Disciple until she got bored and left. However, the system must have seen through his brilliant designs as it immediately warned him that, if he didn't teach her, it would punish him severely.
Though it never disclosed what the punishment would be, Leo was unwilling to find out. As it gave him everything, it could also take it all away.
Thus, he elected to teach her both
At the moment, he didn't have any active quests, he realized--well, aside from the main one that he was long ways away from completing. Though he was tempted by the idea of meditation, he hesitated; he was close to the peak of the Qi Condensation Realm, and he still had that pill that would allow him to create 'perfect foundation' and whatnot.
Considering that Song and Lya were both at Foundation Establishment Realm and were sixteen-seventeen years old, he was well behind the curve. If he was going to continue playing the role of a secretive hermit and the like, perhaps he was better off staying at his current realm. But even if he had no world-conquering aspirations, Leo was a romantic at heart, still; he wanted to challenge himself and see how far he would be able to climb. Even if not that far, he still wanted to experience the journey just a tiny bit.
Sighing in determination, he chugged a jug of fruit juice and went into one of the huts, sitting down for a moment and closing his eyes. He visualized the most rudimentary aspects of the
Whilst in the position, he took a strand of Qi from within him and began circulating--he'd done it a few times before, but as he didn't really know what he was doing, he never pushed it too far. Following the pathways, he felt elated--though only for a second.
He barely managed to finish the full circulation through his meridians before he collapsed onto the ground, tired and spent. His entire body was aching, and he found his mind fogging up.
"Dammit," he swore just before his consciousness slipped. "Will everything you give me be this self-destructive...?"
What woke him up wasn't relaxed serenity but rather shooting pain within his mind; it was as though someone took a thousand needles and stuck them directly into his brain. He barely held back a scream as he snapped his eyes open and sat up. Luckily, the pain had faded almost immediately, but he couldn't relax for too long--something stank... and it stank bad.
"... yup, it's me," he mumbled. "Jesus, what the hell?! Did I... did I poop myself?!!"
Luckily, that wasn't it--the helpful window in front of him let him know that he hadn't committed a shameful act.
[Congratulations on breaking through to 9th Stage of Qi Condensation Realm!]
[You are somehow one step closer to crossing into Foundation Establishment, something children at the age of 13 accomplish rather easily!]
[You have purified accumulated toxins within you; it is suggested that you immediately take a bath. Immediately]
He quickly stepped out of the mud hut, finally realizing that there were no animals anywhere nearby--it seemed that his stench had driven them away. He spotted them, hiding in the bushes and on the trees, and smiled apologetically. Luckily, Yue hadn't come back yet; he swiftly took the buckets of water that he'd brought over and doused both himself and the robes.
The effect was almost instantaneous, as though the water made a protective membrane and suffocated all the stench at once. Sitting down, wet and depressed, he wondered what madness possessed him when he tried cultivating.
Then again, he did succeed--even if it came with an embarrassing side effect. As for whether he felt stronger... it was difficult to say. Leo had no frame of reference for his strength, at all. Though he could venture out deep into the woods and pick a fight with some other beast like that boar, he wasn't confident.
"I could ask Yue to spar--no, no, she'd just kick my ass and then kill me when she finds out I lied to her," he quickly dismissed the thought. "It's alright. I don't need to test my strength. I'll just keep cultivating--when I break through to Foundation Realm, I'll try to find another one of those boars at Qi Condensation Realm and test against them. Ah, right, dinner."
The lack of light startled him and prompted him to quickly begin preparing dinner. He wondered for a moment why Yue hadn't returned--and immediately paused his preparations. Glancing around, he spotted a few 'heavyweights' that would gather around meal time.
"Uhm, could, could I ask you guys a favor?" he said, awkwardly scratching the back of his head. "My, uh, my Disciple's probably lying down collapsed and weak by the pond. Probably a bit stinky, too. Could, could you fetch her while I prepare dinner?"
To his surprise, quite a few animals cawed and hooted and hollered before disappearing.
Even if the effect wouldn't be as harsh on her as it was on him, there was still a chance that the poor girl had drained her strength completely and was suspecting he'd given her poison. It was the system's fault, however; how was he to know that just doing the very first pose and the very first circulation would have caused him to collapse in exhaustion?
"Forget that, forget that," he said, tossing on the last few bits of the wood that Lya gave him before departing. It was quite a fire starter, and he wished he had a huge bulk. Alas... "Let's just focus on making dinner, for now." in part, it was a distraction--in part, a desperate heave, as he was feeling tremendously hungry. He even began to snack as the fire roared, signaling to the forest that the dinner was fast approaching.