The Great Master had given him the name Bi De. He knew not what it meant, but he knew the name was his. He knew it was powerful.

But he was not.

Not yet.

Awareness was a fickle thing. It came, and it went. But he knew during those times. He thought. And he was elevated above those who were beneath him. His senses were sharper to better combat the foul demons, the interlopers, that dared to sup upon his crops. They were tiny things, and his instincts screamed that they were his natural prey—yet it took all his might to slay even the least of them, their shells resisting his beak and spurs.

But the battle was always worth it, for the mightier the beast, the tastier his prize. He ate of their essence, and they strengthened him, so that he could better keep watch.

It was a job he took great pride in, and accomplished each night without fail. His Great Master always praised him for his efforts, and stroked his wattles in a most pleasing manner.

During the day he had the privilege of riding upon his Lord’s shoulder as he worked, tending to the land with sublime grace. It was an honour to witness him in action, taming this floating world with his mighty spur, infusing their food with his very essence.

And so he sought to improve himself. He ran through the Great Master’s Lands. He did battle with countless interlopers, and he too gave his energy to the growing plants. His Qi swirled around him in arcs as he worked, growing stronger and smarter each day.

For indeed, strength, as he had learned, was not everything.

His Great Master’s hens had might that boggled Bi De’s mind—yet they were foolish creatures. The clucking females failed at simple tasks routinely, exploding the Great Master’s plants, and cratering the land with their petty squabbles!

Truly, they were best to be yoked and commanded by his Lord, because they could not use their own strength properly!

Bi De huffed and shook his head to clear the visions of the fools from his head. They had been especially rowdy yesterday.

Instead he watched the glorious sun rise, filling the land with its warmth and glory—but more importantly he felt the shift in the air, as the wind began to change. Such a subtle, yet powerful thing, wind. Flowing and changing direction at the command of the sun and the moon—yet smaller actions could change its course.

Mercurial and ever changing—yet he tried to make sense of it anyway.

He basked in the warmth and the currents, and lifted his voice in greeting to the star, as was right and proper.

And then, his duty done, he set off to bask in the comfort of his Great Master. At this time in the morning, he would get to slip under the covers, and be tended to most tenderly by his Lord.

He was in a good mood as he leapt up to the window—but there he froze, fury filling his heart at the scene before him. He was nearly to the point of spitting blood.

The foolish hens dared?!

Bi De glared at the females who had invaded his Great Master’s nest, and stolen Bi De’s rightful place. They were draped over His Great Master, their ugly, fleshy bodies pressed tight. The purple one had the audacity to drool on him, and sully his body with her fluids, while the blue one was squeezing tightly enough that his Lord was frowning and squirming.

A man’s nest was sacred! And these… these…. Harlots dared disturb him in his own private quarters?!

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Bi De’s fury could be contained no longer. With a mighty crow he descended upon them in his full glory, his voice thunderous in his chastisement.

The females shrieked as he beat them about their head and shoulders. He unleashed a devastating twenty-five hit combination onto the blue one. To his chagrin, even his spurs left not a mark upon her flesh, but his overwhelming intent had her fall, flailing from the nest.

The purple one next received his ire as he latched onto her nose with his beak. She jerked her head back and forth with almighty strength—but Bi De held on, and she could not dislodge him. Only when she too fell out of the nest did he let go, and leap protectively to stand before his Great Master.

The two hens glared at him, growls building in their throat. Their eyes narrowed, as they stalked forward. Bi De hissed at them, crouching low and puffing himself up.

They could slay him effortlessly, he knew—but he was his Great Master’s favoured servant, and thus higher in the pecking order.

They dared not raise their hands against him.

Indeed, their advance stopped, as his Great Master placed his hand on Bi De’s back.

“Well. looks like we slept in a bit, so we should get ready for today.” he said.

The females backed down, and Bi De once more insulted them for their impropriety as they fled.

“Thanks for the save, buddy.” his Great Master said, and stroked Bi De’s wattles.

He preened, and pressed himself into the loving touch, glad he was of use to his Master.

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

Despite being woken by that bastard of a bird, Seiyu was still in a good mood as she watched over her Aruji as he diligently cultivated his strength. He was doing well, she saw—some manner of inspiration had struck, and already he was at the Second Stage of the Profound Realm despite the injuries inflicted upon him.

She felt a small smile come to her face as she looked on. He truly was worthy of the title Aruji. Her Lord. He had first spared her life, and yesterday, he had stopped her from doing something truly foolish. She nearly pushed her nakama Bailu away over a stupid little argument…. And yet her Aruji had stepped in. He took the helm of their ship with confidence, and guided them safely through the storm-wracked seas.

He would look good in a proper ship lord’s raiment. A katana, a fan, and sailing the high seas. His voice when he had commanded her to spill some of her secrets had also been very nice.

Sure, it was kind of his fault he had revealed Seiyu’s little deception, but that was water under the bridge! He knew some Wako! Not just some of the words, but he had made her sushi! At first she had just thought it an odd quirk of cuisine from where he had been from, to have a dish so similar to her home, but he had done it on purpose, specifically for her!

Seiyu blushed slightly, as her eyes traced her Aruji’s strong back.

She had to admit, his appearance was growing on her too.

At first she hadn’t thought much of how big and muscled he was. He didn’t look l.like a proper, handsome cultivator… but the feeling of falling asleep on such a large, firm pillow had been nice. She was also beginning to see that he had a bit of charm; his reactions were cute. Especially when he tried to flee from his rightful reward! Why, he nearly had steam coming out of his ears as she and Bailu had washed his back!

‘Fufufufu.’ she giggled to herself. He reminded her of her cousin, back when she had been on Wa. The little fool had been cute as a button, and called her Onee-chan!

She paused, and her eyes began to shine, before she cut the thought off. No, her Aruji calling her Onee-Chan would be too much! She could feel her breath coming faster, as she imagined her Aruji looking up at her with a smile—!

Something slammed into the side of her head, and distracted as she was, her foot moved a step to the right to balance herself. She whipped around to glare at Bailu, who was the only one who dared to do such a thing… but it wasn’t Bailu.

Bi De stood before her, and he screeched angrily at her.

Seiyu’s face flushed at the sheer shame. She had just been forced to take a step because of a rooster—she paused, as she felt his meager strength. The Initiate’s Realm? A Spirit Beast? This little bastard had glutted himself on so much Qi he had ascended?

Her Qi flexed, as she prepared to obliterate the little annoyance—

“Oh, hey Bi De,” her lord said fondly, reaching out for the bird. Seiyuu felt her anger fizzle out as she looked at that smile. It was so boyishly charming. A smile worth protecting.

Seiyu carefully banked her strength. He brought her Lord joy. It was not her place to dispose of his servants. She instead calmed herself by looking at Rou’s smiling face as he pet his rooster—

And… and was that little piece of shit smirking at her?! He had a beak! How was he smirking at her?

Seiyu felt like she was going to explode. Bailu, however, intervened, the dragon fool grappling her, locking her limbs, and shooting off to the other side of the island.

“I’m gonna kill it! I’m going to stick it in a soup pot and make broth from his bones! Anata o korosu tsumorida!” Seiyu raged, lapsing into her native tongue.

Bailu started laughing, which only made her angrier. She slammed her head back into Bailu’s nose.

Her friend yelped, then slammed her head back into Seiyu’s.

To Seiyu’s eternal shame, that was how her Aruji found them—taking turns headbutting each other.

“Uh… can you prepare the ship? We need to go to a forest on the main island…” he ventured.

“Of course, Young Master!” They shouted, bowing.