64:

“I am not a Nascent Soul Cultivator,” Xiao Feng replied, his tone not concealing the bafflement he felt at Beast Master Zen’s ask.

“No, you’re not,” Beast Master Zen nodded along in agreement, seeming amused by the assertion. “And?”

“Interacting with souls is supposed to fall in the territory of Nascent Soul stage cultivators,” Xiao Feng explained, reasonably certain in his own assertion. His predecessor would not have left such a unique and possibly useful avenue untouched in his pursuit of power otherwise.

“Wrong,” Beast Master Zen replied with a shake of his head. “Reaching the Nascent Soul stage only means that your soul has become powerful enough to gain a physical form. Do you think mortals do not have souls?” He asked in a knowing tone.

Xiao Feng blinked.

His predecessor, for all his hunger for growth, had not considered that question in much depth at all. When a peak layer Core Formation cultivator was at the verge of ascension, they would shatter the core they had spent decades refining, to use it as fuel for the creation of the Nascent Soul.

Nothing in the process explained where the soul came from. It had to be more than mere qi, yet it made no sense for its presence to be linked to the shattering of a core. If that were the case, then core formation cultivators that failed their tribulations or had their core shattered in the midst of battle by an enemy would ascend to the Nascent Soul stage as well.

The answer was as simple as it seemed. All living beings had souls, whether that be mortals, cultivators or spiritual beasts. But then, why had the Frontier Sect not instructed Xiao Feng in seeking mastery over his soul?

“Why was I not taught this?” Xiao Feng asked, sounding a little unnerved by the realisation.

“The advantages you would gain in comparison to the effort are limited,” Beast Master Zen admitted. “Gaining enlightenment over your soul will grant you great control over your dantian, meridians and qi flow, but there is no guarantee you will be able to reach that state. And even then, raw power is much more valuable on the battlefield. Though, admittedly, that is not the entire truth,” He admitted, his expression betraying a flicker of distaste.

“What is?” Xiao Feng asked.

“Not a truth that will be to your liking,” Beast Master Zen replied, before letting a soft sigh escape him.

“If I still wished to know?” Xiao Feng asked.

“Then I would have no choice but to tell you, only because she seems to value you so much,” Beast Master Zen replied, as he massaged his forehead with his free hand. “Try and use that against me and I will let you experience first hand why an umbral fang is a Tier 3 spiritual beast.”

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“I wouldn’t dare,” Xiao Feng hurriedly replied, not entirely sure if the good natured beast master was jesting with him or if he actually intended to follow through with that threat. “But yes, I would be interested in knowing.”

“Look around you then,” Beast Master Zen replied. “Do you really believe that the Azure Lotus sect sends their future elders to the Frontier Sect? To die in an endless war that has been waged since time immemorial?” He asked.

“I don’t understand,” Xiao Feng replied, his expression seeming lost. “Only the most talented amongst my batch were selected to be transferred to the Frontier Sect,” He explained from his predecessor’s bank of memories.

“Which pavilion did you hail from?” Beast Master Zen asked.

“The Whispering Gale Pavilion,” Xiao Feng replied.

“Ah yes,” Beast Master Zen replied. “One of their outer sects. You most likely were amongst the most talented from that particular pavilion, but that is only a kinder way of saying that you were fodder worth training for the war,” He revealed.

“I see,” Xiao Feng replied through pursed lips, not having expected the situation to take such a turn.

“Are you not angered?” Beast Master Zen probed.

“I was the one who wished to fight in the war,” Xiao Feng replied in a matter-of-fact tone. “I will admit that this is not a particularly comforting realisation to come across, but I would much rather pay the price for truth over living a lie. Thank you.”

“You are not like most martial cultivators I’ve met,” Beast Master Zen replied, his expression distant. “But that is not necessarily a bad thing. The reason why your Frontier Sect does not teach you how to seek enlightenment over your soul is because, besides it’s use in beast taming, the greatest advantage it offers is to those who are being trained to become future Elders.”

“Nascent Soul,” Xiao Feng replied, his eyes widening in realisation. “I suppose I was never expected to reach that stage, then?” He rhetorically asked, for the answer was too obvious to seek clarification over.

He, or rather, his predecessor, had not been expected to reach the Nascent Soul stage.

“No,” Beast Tamer Zen replied. “And I would not publicise this information if I were you, even though it is more of an open secret for those of us in the know.”

“I won’t,” Xiao Feng replied. “I came here to cultivate, not fight.”

Beast Master Zen nodded, evidently satisfied by the response before he continued, “That honor is reserved for their core disciples, the true future of the Azure Lotus Sect. In the tournaments you might have attended over the years, they would not have fielded core disciples, no, inner disciples at best. A decent number of them are relatives and scions of Elders, while the rest climbed their way up from the outer sects. Opponents that the frontier sect are expected to defeat because of the experience they have amassed from life and death battles.”

“Why?” Xiao Feng asked.

“Because their goal is not to crush your morale,” Beast Master Zen revealed. “It is to raise them.”

“Are the core disciples that strong?” Xiao Feng asked, his tone burning with curiosity.

“Unreasonably so,” Beast Master Zen replied. “Though I am not at liberty to tell you anything more.”

“I understand,” Xiao Feng replied.

Beast Master Zen patted him on the shoulder, before saying, “Come now. If you are truly serious about taming a beast, then give meditation a try before resorting to the inferior method.”

Xiao Feng walked over to a tree that was lacking any resident, be it a coiled worm or the energetic bunny-like creatures that liked to bounce around from tree to tree, seating himself in a cross-legged posture with his chest pressed against it’s trunk.

“So, um, how do I find my soul again?” He asked.

“I don’t know,” Beast Master Zen replied in a whimsical tone. “It’s your soul, not mine.”