The next few weeks were a mix of punishing body strengthening training, increasing proficiency with internal qi, and most importantly, progress with cultivation. During this period, his training sessions ended later and later, sometimes practising till the sun was almost out with only breaks taken to eat.

Thankfully, his cultivation seemed to be paying dividends and he could feel the noticeable increase to his endurance. He doubted he would have been able to keep pace with his Master’s punishing demands without it.

After two long weeks of practising the rooster strengthening art with little to show for it except smoother qi flows, something finally changed. He was pushing himself, twisting his body in the impossible ways that the stance required when he felt his qi start to flow. This was not particularly unusual, and he was already prepared to mentally protect the qi from the egg that was still in his body.

That was, at least, until the qi suddenly rushed out of his dantian faster than it had ever done before. It spread itself over his body fairly evenly, entering even the furthest places that he usually didn’t reach with qi enhancement. It took all of his now considerable mental fortitude to keep the qi from being stolen. Which was why he was of course caught unaware when a far larger wave of qi flooded his body from the outside. He lost control of the entire situation at that point, yet before he could start panicking, he noticed that the qi was not being sucked out. Perhaps it was because of how much he had weakened the egg, or because the process was something that could not be tampered with. Either way, he felt elated by the result.

And then came the pain.

In the months he had spent conscious, Xiao Ji had collected his fair share of injuries. Most were usually simple scrapes gained while exploring or in the rare fight he could not avoid. So he had lived a life largely isolated from true pain. In the brief period where his wing was broken by the shadow panther, he thought he had felt pain. That he had finally been brutally initiated into the world of true pain he had occasionally heard his uncle describe.

How ignorant he had been.

The qi entered his body and remade it into a better, more optimal version of itself, leaving every cell stronger than it previously was. Yet Xiao Ji did not care about any of that. Nor did he care about the fact that he had broken through and learnt the first step of such a high grade art in only two weeks.. An achievement he knew even his Master thought worthy of praise. None of that mattered to the chicken rolling and screaming on the ground. Nothing except a single sentence.

'Make it stop.'

Yet solace was not to be found and he spent the next few hours in the most terrible pain he could have ever imagined. And then it stopped. As abruptly as it had started, it simply left, like it had never been there to begin with. It was a sweet glorious release from a terrible pain that left no trace of its passing with two exceptions.

A body, whole and healthy, reforged in pure qi and made stronger for it.

And the permanent scar on the psyche of a young rooster who now knew pain.

----------------------------------------

Xiao Ji did not touch the body strengthening art for the rest of the day. Nor did he touch it for the next week after that. His Master ordered, threatened and even came close to pleading, yet the chicken said not even a single word in response, simply refusing to pick up the scroll. Two weeks after the incident, his Master stopped asking.

On the same week, he finally spoke again at the dinner table. It was only a few words, but he could see the relief on the faces of the disciples as plain as the day. He did not mind it, even though he was glad to be able to speak to them again.

At the end of that week, he resumed his spirit cultivation. He cultivated with fury, pushing his breathing technique to the maximum. He broke through to the third stage by the end of the day.

By the end of the week after that, he entered the fourth stage of the Qi Condensation Realm. It was on that day that he finally did what he had been avoiding for three weeks. He opened his System

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

He knew he had gotten a notification for learning the body strengthening art, but he had purposely put it off, not in the proper state of mind. Even now, the memory of the pain caused him to hesitate, but only for a moment. His cultivation was important.

[You have learnt the 1st step of the Rooster Body Strengthening Art(Beyond)]

[Status]

[Name: Xiao Ji]

[Race: Chicken]

[Cultivation Realm: Qi Condensation - 4th Stage]

[Trait: Force of Mind]

[Techniques: The Rooster Breathes(Beyond), Voice of the Wind(Sky), Rooster Body Strengthening - 1st Step(Beyond)]

[Cultivation Path: None]

[Titles: Against All Odds(I)]

[Spiritual Root: Locked]

He looked at his status for a few moments before closing it. So the body strengthening technique was Beyond grade. Perhaps that's why it was so painful. Not that it mattered. He had no plans of going through such torture again. He shuddered involuntarily at that.

The next day, he did a little exercise, just a little, to test his new cultivation. As he exercised, images of the body strengthening art filled his mind, and he ended up having to end it early. Still, at dinner, he made a conscious effort to say more than three words. He was improving in his cultivation, which improved his mood, if only a little. There was truly no reason to keep taking out his issues on his fellow disciples.

That night when he slept, the screams did not come.

***

Fan Mei, heir to the Divine Master Fan Guo, sat on a simple chair sipping a cup of tea. Opposite her, on the other side of the table, sat the man who was for all intents and purposes, her father.

“Your spirit grass tea continues to surprise me, Little Mei,” Master Guo praised. “To think even I feel its effects at my age. Mere cultivation is simply wasted on you. You could gain apprenticeship with Grand Alchemist Su any moment you choose to.”

“I could,” she agreed.

A sigh.

“But you will not. Stubborn as always, Little Mei.”

“I am merely as stubborn as the one who trained me.”

“Cheeky brat. Why do I always get the most stubborn disciples?”

“Perhaps because you give them Beyond grade body strengthening arts,” she said without missing a beat.

“Going straight for the jugular there, eh? I do admit that was perhaps a little rash.”

“Master Guo, that was too much, even for you. He has only been cultivating for a few months.”

“I know. It was quite reckless of me. But I believe it will turn out for the better. He will get over this phase soon and be all the better for it.”

Mei looked at the old man before her, the ancient Divine whose name could send entire clans scrambling, with something like sadness. He did not understand. Not that she expected otherwise, he never did.

“Xiao Ji is not Xie Sun, Master. He does not have nearly the same level of experience of willpower. You are dealing with what is essentially a sheltered child. This is not a phase. You have given him deep mental trauma.”

The old man, her father and master, stared at her for a long moment.

“Do you truly believe that, Little Mei?”

She nodded. Spending time with the disciples had various advantages, one of which was understanding their mental state and personalities.

“Then what do you suggest? You know these matters are not my forte.”

Oh, she knew very well. Master Guo was a lot more adept at bringing down cities than he was at forging ties. Part of why Xie Sun was loved across the Empire’s upper echelons was because he often lightened his Master’s wrath. Though they were in for a rude surprise soon, when Huo Lan made his debut as the new First Disciple. The image brought her great amusement.

“I believe your disciples are due for a break. Perhaps a simple delivery mission. Or a trip to The Settlement. Time away from you and cultivation will do him some good.”

“You said disciples. You wish to send all three of them away?”

“Of course,” she said. “Surely you don’t intend to send Xiao Ji alone on this journey. He needs the familiar faces of his fellow disciples. They have bonded remarkably well.”

It was not compulsory that they went together, of course, but it would be better for Ji that way. Plus, the other two had been pestering her for a break for a while now.

“Alright. If you say so, Little Mei, then it shall be done. I will break the news to them during dinner.”

He suddenly turned his sights to the window. The one that gave them a direct view of the courtyard from their position at the top floor of the main house. It was a useless gesture done mostly for Mei's benefit, she recognised. His spiritual senses were certainly good enough that he did not need his eyes to see the courtyard.

Down there, she noticed Ji doing exercises. They were light exercises, and he seemed to be testing his strength more than anything. Yet it was progress! Mei smiled at that. She was truly worried for the young rooster.

Halfway through the exercise, he froze and shuddered, and Mei could see the ghosts of terrible pain in his eyes. It hurt her heart. She ached to rush out there and comfort him. Yet she refrained.

For that was not her place.

Instead, she sat down on her seat, empty cup in front of her, and watched with a heavy heart. She had done her part. Now, she could only hope her intuition was right and a trip outside would do him good.