It had been a week since Shen Yu’s arrival at the farm.

Shen Yu sat upon the roof of Jin’s house, staring out at the gentle, rolling hills. He had seen most members of Jin’s household come up here at one point or another, and he had to admit that it was a good place to sit and meditate. It was at the intersection of the heavens and the Earth where the golden power welling up from below touched the air, while the Pure Yang Energy from the sun and Pure Yin energy from the moon mixed and swirled like the taijitu.

A week since his arrival, and three days since Hong Yaowu.

In that time there had been… surprises.

Even now he could feel the pulsing heartbeat below his feet as Qi began to rise into the air with the world’s exhalation. He could almost see the shimmering Qi rising off the land, growing in this Qi deprived void.

The visit to the little village had been amusing. Hong Xian was quite intelligent, for a mortal; he could see where little Meiling had received her wits from. The man knew politicking and drove a hard bargain. A bargain that Shen Yu had only been too happy to accept—he would call on Lu Ri to assemble a proper guard detail soon.

As for the formation… in the end, Shen Yu decided to treat them like a sect. Their secrets were theirs, unless they wished to allow the forces of the Empire to use them freely. In that case… well. Who better than him to put in good word, to see that the mortals were rewarded properly? Hong Xian had requested leave to think on the matter, and Shen Yu had granted it.

What had been even more fascinating than the formation was that the mortals had grown Lowly Spiritual Herbs. Mortals! Shen Yu remembered his time growing the damnable things. He had hated how delicate they were. It had been even more surprising when Meiling’s little brother came, and danced for the plants. The boy was still just a mortal with a burgeoning well of Qi, but the Qi beneath the earth responded as he moved, nurturing the lowly Spiritual Herbs. They were of poor quality; but they existed. Their healing powers would be enough to cure nearly any mortal wound.

It was a bit strange, though, seeing such hard-earned knowledge spread so easily. It just… it just was not done. Why would one give up their advantages so easily, and help potential enemies?

Yet instead Jin gave. He gave without hesitation, and Shen Yu found it foolish. And yet, each and every person who could, gave their Qi to the ground. They followed the path he laid out, and in turn, enriched Jin.

Even Shen Yu had attempted to, out of curiosity. He was met with a distant voice shouting a half-heard litany of curses and then had his Qi rebound back into his body.

It appeared that there was more to the process than he first thought.

Jin’s home was an adventure in itself, filled with the unexpected.

He took a breath of the air, and exhaled it.

============================

Shen Yu took part in a family gathering in the green house where they were attending to the Spiritual Herbs Jin grew. When compared to the way the spiritual herbs were grown in Hong Yaowu, the difference in the process was as vast as the difference between the Azure Hills and Raging Waterfall Gorge.

The Spiritual Herbs were vibrant and healthy, reaching for the sun and potted in soil as black as pitch. The leaves were covered with a thin, iridescent film that shone and sparkled like the finest jewels. They released a fine, nearly invisible scent that carried seven soft fragrances.

The finest Seven Fragrance Jewel herbs that Shen Yu had encountered before this point had only a small sheen, and their fragrances were faint. Here, in the greenhouse it was positively heady, stimulating his salivary glands. Shen Yu allowed a slight lapse in control, as he took a deep breath, remembering the delicious dish Jin had made with them.

“Meimei uses these ones for her medicine, and then Wa Shi gives them a good blast.” Jin explained, as he picked up a watering can, and added his Qi to it. He gestured to the thickest, and most robust leaves, looking more like the petals of succulents than the normally thin sprigs. They were filled with potent Qi, a draconic blessing, and the Qi of Chun Ke a healthy, potent energy, producing a Spirit Herb far more vital than Shen Yu thought possible.

Shen Yu, standing beside Jin him, concentrated on an adjacent plant. He pushed some of his Qi into it, guided by the notes he had found in the library of the Cloudy Sword Sect.

“I never did say this before, but this is quite the technique, my boy.” Shen Yu would not say the formation was perfect, for nothing ever truly was, in his opinion. But it was still a masterpiece. It would, however, require intuition and extensive training for a lesser cultivator to use properly. There were many variables to be accounted for.

Shen Yu, of course, required but two attempts for success.

“Yeah. It took forever in the library to get it right, and another month to get it actually working. But what can I say? I like gardening.” Jin scratched his cheek and flushed slightly, still not used to Shen Yu’s praise.

The old man turned his head away, careful not to show his grimace. He was not used to praise… and Shen Yu would slowly rectify that. Best not to overcompensate.

Instead, he looked back around the room. Meiling sneezed as she worked, her babe tied to her back. It was an odd sight. Most cultivator women would have their babes safely ensconced behind seals, placed within Qi-rich chambers to hopefully fuel their cultivation.

Yet the air here was equal to those chambers. The child took in the pure, sweet air and the mist off the herbs, assimilating the Qi all around them with every breath.

It worried Shen Yu just a bit. It was a powerful thing, to have such a boon at birth. Slime might say too powerful…. He pushed the thought away. He would have a chat with Jin about coddling, lest the boy turn out like Shen Yu’s own son—

He shook his head. No, it was wrong to think that. That would not happen again.

The others were tending to their own herbs beside her, their own Qi mixing and blending into an interesting whole. Other herbs too were in here, as well as a gaggle of bees who had flown in through the open door. The little creatures were wagging their rears furiously. Shen Yu considered them. Were they perhaps awake too? Jin hadn’t mentioned anything, so they might not be—

Meiling sneezed again. “Jin! Your weird root thing is getting annoying!” Meiling complained.

Jin turned from where he was watering another plant and sighed. “Sorry love.” Jin sighed, moving over to one of the tubs that Shen Yu hadn’t really looked at too closely. It had nothing but a bare stem sticking out of the dirt—Shen Yu hadn’t paid it much attention, as it was just a bare stem, but now he focused his senses on it.

He felt a Qi that was potent and fiery. At first he had just thought it residue from the rabbit, but no, its quality was far different.

He idly sorted through his memories for such a plant, then paused.

He didn’t recognise it. He, Shen Yu, did not recognise it.

“Jin. What is that?” Shen Yu demanded.

His grandson paused. “You know, I was actually gonna ask you that. I know it's safe and fire aspected, but I don’t really get a name.”

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Shen Yu stepped closer, examining the woody stem. It looked like a sapling.

“Hmm. We can perform a few tests to find out how it can be used,” Shen Yu said, quite eager. He had memorized millions of plants in the libraries of a thousand sects. Something new was always fascinating. It would use quite a bit of the Spirit Herb up, but it could still be useful for cultivation—

“If I can find another one, maybe. But for now? I’m just going to let it grow,” Jin replied.

Shen Yu raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

“I’ve been taking care of it for two years now, and I think I’ll keep at it. If it's a tree, or just a pretty flower… I think I’ll be happy with it all the same.”

======================================

Shen Yu took another breath and let it out, smiling slightly at the thought of something he had never seen.

He could see the merit in trying to preserve the stem. Honestly, he had let curiosity get the better of himself.

Cultivators lived so long, and yet even he was so impatient sometimes. Jin preferred to wait until he had found and grew another specimen, to see if he could get more later.

It was a long view. But Jin had gone into detail about the Spirit Herbs he was breeding and experimenting with, and Shen Yu could see the shape of his argument.

He was wholly consumed with improving the earth.

Very few of those on the farm were dedicated to the path of cultivation. He had been curious about what drove the people of the farm. Shen Yu had spoken to the humans, to see what they had desired to do with their lives.

Hong Meiling wished to advance medical knowledge.

Cai Xiulan had offhandedly mentioned uniting the sects of the Azure Hills to Xianghua and Tigu.

Gou Ren had shown him scrolls full of architecture.

Yun Ren had said he wished to experience the world, and show it to everybody who would care to see it.

Xianghua had proclaimed that she would wipe the dishonour from her family name, which could have been the most understandable out of all of them.

But it was the mortal who had surprised Shen Yu the most and, at the same time, the least.

==========================

Shen Yu entered into the mortal’s workshop. It was neat and well organized. There were two half assembled seed drills and a completed pill furnace.

He found Liu Bowu elbow deep in the guts of another furnace, screwing something in. The boy turned around as he heard the door open, seeming surprised—but not fearful—as Shen Yu’s presence.

“Uh… can I help you?” Bowu asked after a moment.

Shen Yu considered the question as he examined the room, approaching a schematic that looked familiar.

“Hmmm. I have seen contraptions similar to these in the heartlands,” Shen Yu said, as he examined the depiction of a pill furnace being used to power a machine of reaping blades. “Of course, such things are normally the treasures of sects or the City’s rulers. How did you come to design such things, Liu Bowu?”

The boy paused at the question before answering. “Big Bro Jin had some ideas and drawings, and said something about steam being able to move objects…and well, I went from there.”

Oh? Jin had had the idea? That was quite interesting, but Shen Yu had seen his grandson’s drawings. They were… chicken scrawls to be honest, light on detail; these were fully flushed out blueprints with notes crammed into the margins. He turned his eyes back to Bowu.

“I hear that you are a mortal, despite being the Young Master of the Misty Lake Sect. Is that common in these hills?”

The boy’s face tightened. “No. Not even in the Azure Hills is it common,” Bowu replied. “My meridians are broken.”

“Oh?” Shen Yu stepped forwards and placed his hand on the boy's shoulder. He felt within then grimaced at the state of Bowu’s pathways. To be able to improve but unwilling to do so was a sin. To be born willing to strive, but unable due to the designs of the Heavens? A tragedy. “I’m afraid broken meridians is an understatement,” he said without letting his voice betray his emotions.

Bowu took in a sharp breath. “Auntie Meimei says she’s working on it… but the Heavens have their plan. Us mortals just have to make the best of it.”

“I suppose that is not a bad way of looking at the world, when you lack the ability to change your circumstances,” Shen Yu mused. The boy knew his place in the world, which was natural, if a bit uninspired. “So, what are your plans for the future, young man?”

Liu Bowu looked at him and smirked.

“Immortality.”

Shen Yu paused at the audacious statement before letting off a chuckle. The mortal, out of all of them, saying immortality was his main goal? “Immortality?” he asked, and Liu Bowu shrugged.

“I may not ever be able to ascend to the heavens. I may never be able to live forever. But this?” Bowu tapped his notes and diagrams. “This is my path to immortality. My body may fade, but some things, like the works of the ancients? They last forever.”

Now that… that was interesting. Jade Armors, the piloted artifacts the Imperial army used to turn mortals into beings that could stand against Demons, required enormous amounts of resources to run and maintain. The works of the ancients were inscrutable.

A Pill Furnace-powered harvester.

“The memories of mortals are short, Liu Bowu,” Shen Yu said after a moment.

“Then I just have to make something so amazing that they can’t forget me,” he replied, mortal eyes full of defiance.

Shen Yu couldn’t help but… approve.

============================

They all had their own ambitions; ambitions that they followed with all of their hearts. Even the mortal.

The humans, however, were only one half of the equation that formed this place. The other half… had been far more confusing and equally as intriguing.

When Shen Yu opened his eyes from his meditations, he looked down at the farm from the roof. The moon had risen, and he could see Bi De, and the rest of the disciples waiting for him near the rice fields.

“Those who call themselves Disciples of Jin Rou who has named himself Rou Jin.” he intoned, staring around at the beasts.

“Honoured Grandfather,” the rooster replied, and the assembled Spirit Beasts bowed in greeting. Shen Yu had asked for this meeting. He had observed them all enough. Now, it was time to directly question these Spirit Beasts.

“These past nights, we have spoken of cultivation; of the moon and of the stars. Of the way you intend to be righteous. But tonight, I would pose a question to all of you. In all my years, I have not seen awakened animals such as yourselves. So I have pondered this question deeply. Bi De. Why do you and your fellows follow my grandson?”

The animals paused at the question and muttered amongst themselves… but one by one, they went silent. Tigu looked like she wanted to say something, but in the end, she too went silent and turned her head to Bi De.

The rooster nodded at the question and stroked his wattles. He stood slightly in front of the rest of the Spirit Beasts taking the lead as “First Disciple”.

“At first, we served him simply because he provided us with our home. We thought of him as being akin to a god; he was wise beyond my comprehension and generous with his gifts. We ate Spiritual Herbs, which I called the Heavenly Herbs at that time, and those improved us,” Bi De began slowly. “As we became more and our understanding of the world grew, he was no longer the godlike figure we had believed him to be, but he was still our Great Master. He imparted his wisdom into us. He treated us with respect and valued our existence, which, as I have traveled the world, I have come to understand is a rare thing for Spirit Beasts. In other places, we would have been eaten or just killed; harvested for our parts by our ‘Master.’ ”

The other Disciples remained silent, as Bi De spoke, though several grimaced at the statement. The rooster turned to look at them, and at their nods, he continued.

“But he did not. I do not think it ever occurred to him, even though we have brought him our own troubles. We were mouths to feed. We were students to teach. We caused chaos and were clumsy children, stumbling around in the world. And yet he guided us all the same. He enlightened us. As we were enlightened, as we understood more… We saw that though he was our Great Master he is not all powerful nor almighty. He is, in the end, just a man. He has his own weaknesses and doubts. I have seen his anguish and torment over doing right by us, by all of us.”

“He does not demand our obedience, or think of us as slaves. We would have accepted that. We all would do it in a moment, if he asked… and yet he never will.. I would speak for each of us when I say our Master is our father. And that… that is why we follow him.”

“He may be our God no longer. But he is still worthy of our devotion. This I believe.”

Shen Yu considered the rooster’s words. Those, more than anything, proved that Bi De… Bi De was truly intelligent. Truly… not just a chicken. Not some Spirit Beast mimicking human life, but a creature that had thought deeply upon his connections with the world. He looked at the other beasts. All of them nodded their heads at the First Disciple’s words, as Shen Yu stroked his beard.

“Jin is your master and father. But then, I ask what all are you? What do you believe yourself to be? A son? A disciple? A servant?”

“I do believe that Brother Wa Shi and Sister Tigu say it the best,” the rooster said, turning to smile at his fellow disciples. ”Tigu is a girl, Master’s Daughter, a cultivator, and a cat. Wa Shi is a dragon and a carp. I, too, am everything you have said I am. I am a son, a disciple, and a servant. We cannot be defined by any one single concept. In the end, all we are—are ourselves.”

Bi De turned back to Shen Yu. The words… the words resonated with Shen Yu.

Indeed, what could a true man be but himself?

“Does the First Disciple speak for all of you?” Shen Yu asked.

Tigu scoffed. The dragon and boar snorted. The pig harrumphed. The rabbit glared as the snake rolled his good eye. The Ox nodded his head slowly, and the monkey yawned and crossed his arms.

‘I can get you something, if you can’t hear properly,’ Ri Zu squeaked. She was a cheeky brat…. Just like her Master.

Shen Yu closed his eyes. Out of everything… this was the most novel. A rooster who would challenge the very heavens, for the sake of what lived on the earth.

“Bi De. You asked to learn from this Shen Yu, so that you may protect your Master and my grandson. I shall accept this. You shall forthwith be a disciple of Shen Yu, as your Master was before you. You shall see the world and fight in battles beyond your imagination. You shall challenge the heavens itself. What say you, Bi De?”

The rest of the disciples looked on at the rooster with concern.

“Whatever it takes to defend my home.”

Shen Yu nodded solemnly.

“Then all your enemies in this world shall learn: Beware of Chicken.”