Hao was stuck walking under the noon sun, oppressing what little shadows remained.

the smell of hot stones tickled the back of his tongue as he breathed warm air.

Putting his head somewhere else always helped to ignore the discomfort.

So not having to wait for others to talk does have benefits.

His question would have been answered instantly if it was the Wu women or Taoyi he asked.

With a quick answer, he would have made it to the other building twenty minutes ago, before the sun was directly overhead.

Hao looked around, or tried to; The sun made the sect appear pristine. The path he was walking on had carved stone panels on their sides.

Truthfully, the start of summer was not bad here; one just had to keep their head level or lower and avoid looking at anything that reflected the sun.

Summer is easy here compared to the Island, maybe just a little warmer. I hope the storm season is mild.

A building half the size of the Grand Hall, short and stout, came into view, lucky its flat roof was not reflective.

I’ve never seen anyone fully flash-blinded. Hao had seen a few people caught off guard by the sun; a temporary blindness was common.

The stories are always people going completely blind from looking at the sun; Usually after not listening to the warnings of their elders.

Hao escaped the Sun, going into the building; the food hall.

The building itself was well-lit — unlike outside, the shadows remained.

Shadows cast by tables and chairs, mostly empty, a few people, fewer decorations.

Hao had to wander around dodging around things; the room was like a maze, eventually finding his way to the back of the room.

A smell pushed against him as he walked.

At the back of the room was a person sucking on a burning tube.

Hao tried to talk to them, but they had little interest, pointing Hao along through a series of doors.

Another room, another person, another door. This continued for a few too many rooms.

Finally, finding a set of double doors that closed slowly behind him.

He found himself in a large room; it was the size of all the rooms he passed combined.

Its ceiling reached high, to the roof’s peak, a large hole at the center, four chains hung down from the hole where the sun shone through.

The chains had a hook on their hand, their points going towards each other, their curved backs going to the four corners.

A sight that was something special, but it was the smell that got to Hao.

It was the source of stench that pushed against him the moment he pushed the food hall doors open.

A wretched smell, bloodier than the cage where Hao slayed the beast.

That exact beast was on its side, in the center of the room.

Insects flew around in, coming in from the open door to Hao’s left.

A door so large you would just think it was a missing wall.

Alongside the beast, in front of it, crouched, giving it a look was a man.

His robe was dark color compared to the rest Hao had seen, but still it shared that blue.

A blade was strapped to his back, oddly shaped, thick, too short to be a sword, larger than any normal knife.

Hao approached from behind the man; he had a burning smell around him, smoke rising from in front of his face.

“You are here for work and the beast?” A gruff voice came from the man.

Hao cupped his hands, “Yes, for work and reward.”

The man stood, he was shorter than Hao expected, “isn’t that what you are all here for?”

Hao was ready to explain himself further when the man spoke again.

“The blood that spilled before she was retrieved is contaminated. Whoever collected it was careless. I would sell it to the Sect.”

The man held his hand to his face for a second, blew more smoke, then turned.

He held a tube in his mouth, fire at the end of it, his hair was cut short, his face carrying an eternal apathy.

“Stand up straight; I don’t need formalities. Call me Hall Leader Li Tuzai if you must. Senior Tu, when we are in this room.”

The man disappeared, then was in front of Hao.

Hao felt a slight tap on his wrist.

He is faster than that silver guy. Hao thought, looking down at his arm, knowing nothing of the Cultivation world.

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“Hmmm. You are better than that, Ya said, but still not good enough to reach the bone-shaking bell.”

Analytical eyes began to deconstruct Hao.

A bone-chilling feeling cooled the room.

Hao could not guess the man’s intentions; he mentioned Senior Ya in a manner of regard, but every word lacked interest or emotion.

Hao felt his body was open in front of the man; Each of his bones, the placement of his organs, he was being studied. Could I ask him to stop?

The man called was a face amongst the eight elders.

Is he someone like Senior Ya, or a hall leader like Taoyi?

Hao didn’t have the gull to analyze the man back.

He wanted to keep his life; he had new promises to keep. He had to get one of those pills to take home to help his father. He had his own new ambitions.

Hao looked into the face of the man who had a burning tube in his mouth; his face was a mask.

Hao’s mask seemed silly when compared to the emptiness in the man’s face in front of him.

The eyes did not let up, inspecting Hao for a good minute.

Hao was getting close to a shiver as the temperature continued to drop in the once warm shed, the sun fighting back as light shined through to the roof.

The man lifted his hand up to his face, pulled the tube out of his mouth, and blew smoke into the air.

The smoke curved away from the beast, up towards the roof.

“Your aptitude is poor if you care for such things. Your body is young… I don’t know how you managed; perhaps the bell chose you or something.” The man called Li shrugged his shoulders with a snicker. The mockery was the most emotion he had shown.

Not hiding his doubt in the toneless words.

“But at the very least, you slayed the beast yourself,” Li Tuzai said, his face suddenly turning.

“Do not expect to eat the flesh of everything you kill. Abandon that sense of self-righteous pity.”

He pulled the sword out of its sheath on his back. The draw was silent, moving seamlessly in the air.

It was not as slender as one would think, cube-like at its base and twirling up to a sharp point. The tip flattened out like an arrowhead.

It reminded Hao more of a harpoon than a knife, just short.

Its metal was dark without any shine.

“Can I ask what Senior Tu means?”

The one called Tu turned towards the beast—“You know well what I mean. The Islands practice ‘harmony with nature’. Yet you force yourself in every part of that nature.”

“Death has its own part in nature without you. Flesh and organs feed the hungry. Blood seeps into the earth, feeding deep roots. Bones decay, decompose and turn soft.”

“The dark soil of death serves as a place for the next generation of seeds.”

“A new life grows and the World will continue.”

The blade flashed before returning to its sheath. Glimmering for only a second.

The one called Tu placed his hand on the beast; a wave colder yet spilled over the room.

“Drink! Be selfish if you wish, but forget your self-importance. Nature is death without you. All life is death equal until life means… Something more.”

Hao heard a clink, and the man named Li Tuzai, who revered death held two white cups used for drinking wine.

A syrup, red, began to pour from the neck of the dead beast. It bubbled, becoming a deeper red as it spilled from a tiny hold on its neck.

Hao approached and grabbed the cups. The chilling feeling dampened when the man turned back, but the unease never left.

The man’s words were enough to appall anyone from the Temple of Water to offend every person on the Islands.

The head of the beast was slightly lifted due to its own overgrown tusks.

Hao leaned down, with the cups in his hands, filling them both; the red liquid was still hot, and the beast was not cold itself; It was only dead for a few hours.

The cups filled slowly — The liquid got thicker as it dripped.

Globs were forming in the cup as he filled one after the other.

Neither was full to the rim when the bleeding stopped.

I’m not new to drinking strange things.

Hao took one cup to the man called Tu; The man was nothing like his great-uncle, but they both put Hao in a similar situation.

His great uncle once found a large six-legged creature dead, washed up on the mud flats. It bled black and blue. Hao was tempted by his great-uncle to drink both.

The black tasted better.

Hao watched as the man called Tu sipped down the red liquid. He did now show the slightest reaction. If anything, he was unimpressed.

Hao was not slow about it. He threw his head back and gulped.

The liquid coated his mouth, sticking to his teeth, and gripping his tongue and cheeks.

It did not go down smoothly, rolling down his throat in a clump. He could feel it stretch and turn to strands holding tight before it fell to his stomach.

The taste was sour, bitter, a sort of twisted sweet.

Once it was done, it left the normal taste of blood, but was overwhelmed by a unique burning.

It made Hao think of the pepper merchants brought, but if he put hundreds of kernels in his mouth at once.

The burning continued past his mouth to his stomach.

Hao stumbled around, falling on his back in pain, his hands gripping the air.

“Don’t you know a meditation posture?”

Hao heard a voice.

Hao knew of meditation, but the only posture he knew was from ‘Water Breaking Fist’.

His great-uncle was just on his mind; Hao remembered he was a few times he helped Hao into a sitting posture.

Hao’s great uncle was once the Island’s temple monk.

He often sat that way; even after he sank into ‘madness’, he would meditate.

Hao tried every posture he could think of.

None of them felt right to Hao.

His legs crossed, his hands at this side, the boiling threatened to pull away what little of his focus remained.

Hao began to control his breathing, and a little inspiration came to him.

He flung his hands to his side, then suddenly pulled them back. Palm to palm, they struck against each other, letting out a loud pop.

The pop echoed in the room and a wave rippled through Hao’s body, flowing in every direction.

He was expecting to spit out some blood when the wave reached his stomach, but the beast's blood, like glue, slowed down the wave.

It got dragged along as the wave returned to normal, going to his fingers and toes.

The beast’s blood seared away into the steam till the wave calmed.

“Either a genius or a fool.” Li Tuzai said, his voice as blank as before.

The burning was slowly going away as sweat escaped from Hao’s skin.

Hao stood, bright red from head to toe, his body tingling.

“Core-blood can stimulate vitality, improve blood flow and quality. It can also speed up the recovery of blood essence.”

“The bone-shaking bell brought you close to the third stage of Reclamation. This will help no matter what path you take.”

“Thank you, Senior.” Hao said.

He had nothing more to say about the tortuous experience. He did feel better. His head was clearer, he felt sharper, even the bruises from the trial only a few knew about felt better.

He seems to know more about me than I do.

Hao wondered if it was obvious that he used blood essence.

Or if there was something else the man could have seen while looking at him.

“No need. It was your beast. I gain little benefit, now I can welcome you to the food hall, and teach you to butcher…” Li Tuzai said. His voice is a canvas without color.