Ellen left early the next morning. She didn’t want to risk angering Sidra, so she left just before dawn. However, before she did, she left a manual with me.

“This contains the method to unseal your memories.” Ellen said, giving me a sad smile. “I know it isn’t much of a parting gift, but I wanted you to take it, Darian.”

I just kissed her in response and said: “Thank you. Safe travels.”

Ellen left after that. When she was gone, the world seemed like a different place in her absence; duller and less colorful. I sat there for a while, wallowing in self pity. While she would only be gone for five years, a short time in the grand scheme of things according to both Ellen and Sidra, it felt like an eternity to me. Perhaps it was because of my youth. Unlike them, I hadn’t lived for even a century. Hells, I wasn’t even twenty years of age.

At mid morning, a disciple of Rainbow Healer Hall came by to check on me. He examined my wounds, ensured that they healed properly, and removed the cast from my right arm. I thanked him, and started to get out of the bed, before he cleared his throat.

“Here.” he said, handing me a manual.

I gave him a questioning look.

“Rainbow Healer Hall developed a technique to clean and sanitize the area around us.” He explained. “It can also be applied to one’s body, if one doesn’t have the time or the facilities to take a bath.”

When he said that last part, he gave me a pointed look. I looked down and realized that I still bore the marks of last night’s lovemaking. Anyone who smelled me would know what had happened. Ellen also left love bites all over the upper half of my body, including the fang marks along the side of my neck. My face flushed with embarrassment.

“You may want to use it before you leave, Junior Brother Darian.” The disciple said.

He gave me a knowing smile, before he left the room. I read the manual. Thankfully, the cleaning technique described therein wasn’t difficult to learn. It took me a few tries, but I mastered it in less than an hour. When I used it on myself, it felt like someone scoured me with a brush made of fire. It didn’t hurt, but it wasn’t pleasant either. Still, it worked, though I would have preferred to take a bath. The love bites and the fang marks remained, however. It would take time for those to fade away.

After I cleaned myself up, I headed out. The Martial Idiot Clinic turned out to be a large three-story building. At first I thought it seemed excessive, but then I thought about how many disciples there were in Flame Fiend Hall and how often they fought with each other. With that in mind, I realized that maybe Martial Idiot Clinic wasn’t large enough.

The third floor consisted of private rooms for patients with high status or who needed specialized treatment. The first and second floors consisted of wards, with curtains in place to give the patients some semblance of privacy. Like my room, the clinic was sparsely decorated and furnished with the bare minimum necessary. Disciples of Rainbow Healer Hall hurried about, tending to their patients. Incense burned on each floor, letting out smoke that smelled medicinal in nature. The smoke contained faint traces of qi. I assumed this was to help promote healing.

When I reached the second floor, I saw several disciples from Flame Fiend Hall being treated. They sported all sorts of injuries. Some were minor, like a few broken bones, while others looked horrific. I saw one man who was so battered and bruised that bones were sticking out from all over his body. It was a wonder that he was still alive.

I saw a similar scene when I reached the first floor. However, I also noticed a familiar duo: Senior Brother Kayden and Senior Sister Eliana, Senior Sister Zenia’s underlings and drinking buddies. The two of them occupied a pair of beds next to each and chatted with one another. Senior Brother Kayden sported two broken arms, while Senior Sister Eliana’s face looked like someone took a hammer to it. She also had a broken leg.

Curious, I decided to head over to them, weaving my way around the disciples from Rainbow Healer Hall. Senior Sister Kayden and Senior Sister Eliana noticed me just as I reached them. They seemed happy to see me.

“Junior Brother Darian!” Senior Brother Kayden said. “This is a pleasant surprise. We haven’t seen you in some time.”

“Yes.” Senior Sister Eliana said. “I think the last time we saw you was when we drank together at Senior Sister Zenia’s abode.”

“Yes.” I said. “I have been practicing qi refinement at Celestial Warrior Hall over the past several months.”

Senior Brother Kayden nodded.

“I can tell,” he said. “It seems you’ve made a breakthrough. Congratulations!”

I nodded. As much as his praise would have pleased me on any other occasion, I was still feeling melancholic at Ellen’s departure.

“Thank you.” I said, before deciding to change the subject. “What happened to you two? Those injuries look serious.”

Senior Brother Kayden and Senior Sister Eliana glanced at each other before looking back at me. They chuckled.

“Our injuries aren’t as serious as they look.” Senior Sister Eliana said, smiling. “Something like this is rather normal for us.”

“To answer your question,” Senior Brother Kayden said, “We received these injuries while sparring with one another.”

Oh. Now I felt a bit foolish. I needed to adjust my way of thinking. For mortals, injuries like what these two sported were serious, fatal even. However, to cultivators, they were negligible.

“What about you?” Senior Brother Kayden asked. “Why are you here?”

“I dueled a disciple from Celestial Warrior Hall yesterday.” I said. “I had to stay here overnight to heal.”

“Did you win?” Senior Sister Eliana asked.

I scoffed.

“Of course.” I said.

Senior Brother Kayden chuckled.

“As expected of the young master of Flame Fiend Hall.” He said.

His words elicited a smile from me, but it faded away soon enough. The two of them gave me worried looks, but neither one asked what was wrong. That was fine by me. I wouldn’t have answered even if they had asked. While we were fellow disciples of Flame Fiend Hall, and Senior Sister Zenia’s drinking buddies, we weren’t close. Perhaps that would change in time, but for now, I wasn’t willing to share my personal troubles with them.

“It was good to see you two again,” I said, “But it’s time for me to head back to Celestial Warrior Hall. I wish you a swift recovery.”

They nodded.

“Come back to Flame Fiend Hall some time soon, Junior Brother Darian.” Senior Brother Kayden said. “Senior Sister Zenia purchased a new kind of spirit wine and she wants to share it with all of us.”

“It’s made from spirit fruits grown by Spirit Farmer Hall.” Senior Sister Eliana added.

Ooh, that piqued my interest.

“I will,” I said, smiling, “Thank you for inviting me.”

With that, I left Martial Idiot Clinic. After I made it outside, I took a look at the surrounding area. Marital Idiot Clinic occupied the base of a mountain called Rainbow Healer Peak, the home of Rainbow Healer Hall. Like Celestial Warrior Peak, it was a paradise. Thanks to the abundance of qi, life flourished all over the mountain. Plants, flowers, and trees of all kinds covered the face of the mountain, most of which I didn’t recognize. An herbal smell filled the air, reminding me of the medicinal smoke from inside the clinic.

However, the most prominent feature was the mist that occupied the upper half of Rainbow Healer Peak. It remained in place, blanketing the top of the mountain, as if unaffected by the wind or the sun. The mist shimmered like an iridescent rainbow. A part of me wanted to climb up the mountain to take a closer look, but I refrained. I was a guest here. It would be rude to just wander about in someone else’s home.

As I looked about, I saw several disciples flying to and from Rainbow Healer Peak. Most belonged to Rainbow Healer Hall, but I noticed a few that belonged to other halls as well. While I recognized most of the halls that these disciples belonged to, there were a few I didn’t.

I realized, not for the first time, how vast the Dawn and Dusk Sect was. It had a little bit of everything. Warriors, healers, alchemists, farmers, etc. The various halls seemed like smaller sects united under the aegis of the Dawn and Dusk Sect as a whole. Each one had its own cultivation techniques, mystic arts, and martial arts.

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Once I reached Foundation Establishment, maybe I should travel to the other halls and see what they were like in person. That could be fun. However, it would have to wait until after I reunited with Ellen.

After I had my fill of looking around, I decided to head back to Celestial Warrior Peak. However, there was one problem. How did I get there? I relied on the snake twins to ferry me around, since I wasn’t at Foundation Establishment and couldn’t use flying magic treasures. Without them, I was stuck walking around on foot. Not only that, but I didn’t know the way back to Celestial Warrior Peak.

As I pondered my situation, I considered seeking out Cultivator Harlow. I knew she was a disciple of Rainbow Healer Hall. Maybe she could help me out. However, after giving it some thought, I decided against it. I didn’t know where to find her and… Well, I wasn’t in the mood to meet with her. I had a romantic interest in her, and I suspected she returned that interest. Yet, my heart still felt heavy after separating from Ellen. I just wanted to head back home and be alone for a time.

Maybe I could ask another disciple to ferry me back home. Not for free of course. I could offer them some spirit stones or contribution points. However, just before I called out to one of the disciples flying through the air, a voice called out to me.

“Darian.”

I looked up to find Second Master heading in my direction atop a flying boat. He landed it right in front of me.

“Good.” He said. “I arrived just in time. Hop in. I’ll take you back to Celestial Warrior Peak.”

“Thank you, Second Master.” I said, giving him a bow.

I boarded the flying boat and we took off. As we flew towards Celestial Warrior Peak, I sat near the bow of the flying boat and stared off into the distance. The sun shone bright in the sky and the rushing wind felt refreshing against my skin. However, I barely noticed either. Ellen occupied all of my thoughts. Her absence left a gaping hole in my heart, leaving me in a dour mood. I never knew it was possible to grow so attached to someone in such a short amount of time.

“Darian,” Second Master said, pulling me out of my thoughts, “I wanted to talk with you about your actions yesterday. Do you know what you did wrong?”

I looked back at him and frowned.

“What do you mean?” I asked. “Cultivator Byron challenged me.” I paused. “Unless I injured him more than I realized.”

Second Master sighed and shook his head.

“No, that isn’t the problem.” He said. “While Martial Nephew Byron’s injuries were severe, the healers at Rainbow Healer Hall were more than capable of dealing with them.”

“Then what did I do wrong?”

Second Master gave me a stern look.

“Have you considered how your actions would affect Martial Niece Aneira’s reputation?” he asked.

My eyes widened as I considered the ramifications of his words.

“I see from your reaction that you haven’t.” Second Master said. “From what I heard yesterday, you know about Martial Niece Aneira’s Pure Yin Physique.”

I stiffened for a moment, before nodding.

“She endured a lot of suffering because of it.” Second Master continued. “Even without that, she is a beautiful woman. For someone like her, without any backing or the strength to protect herself, beauty is more of a curse than a blessing. When she was an outer disciple, she attracted too much attention from the other outer disciples as well as from several inner disciples. That was why Elder Celine made Martial Niece Aneira an honorary disciple, to hide her and keep her safe.”

“If that was the case,” I asked, “Why didn’t Elder Celine just take her as a personal disciple right away?”

Second Master shook his head.

“Elder Celine wishes to keep Martial Niece Aneira’s Pure Yin Physique a secret for as long as possible.” He said. “Even among the elders, only a few know about it. If Elder Celine took Martial Niece Aneira as a personal disciple before the latter reached Foundation Establishment, it would attract far too much attention. People would wonder why that was, and start to suspect that there was something special about Martial Niece Aneira.” He sighed. “Elder Celine’s plan worked for a time. People were starting to forget about Martial Niece Aneira.”

I let out a groan.

“Until Cultivator Byron and I ruined everything,” I said.

Second Master nodded.

“While Elder Celine and I tried our best to keep things quiet, people like to talk.” He said. “It won’t be long before rumors spread of how a young master of Clan Gold Flame and the young master of Flame Fiend Hall fought each other over Martial Niece Aneira.”

I buried my face in my hands.

“That wasn’t my intention.” I said. “When Cultivator Byron challenged, I accepted because I wanted to win a reward from him.”

“I know.” Second Master said. “From what Elder Celine and I uncovered, you have no interest in Martial Niece Aneira beyond friendship. Otherwise Elder Celine would have already threatened you into leaving her future disciple alone.”

I looked up at him. His expression was a mix of amused and grim.

“As it was,” Second Master continued, “I had a difficult time convincing Elder Celine to leave you be.” He glanced at me. “I suspect that she still harbors doubts about your intentions towards Martial Niece Aneira.”

“I have none.” I said. “While Cultivator Aneira is beautiful and has a Pure Yin Physique, I harbor no dishonorable intentions towards her. She is my friend and my neighbor, but nothing more.”

Second Master chuckled.

“I believe you.” He said. “And in time, I know your sincerity will reach Elder Celine.” His amusement faded away. “However, my point is that you need to consider the long-term consequences of your actions. What you do can and will affect others in ways you might not realize at first thought. I’m not saying to overthink things to the point where you don’t act at all, but be more aware going forward.”

I sighed.

“I owe Cultivator Aneira an apology.” I said.

“It wouldn’t hurt.” Second Master agreed. “That said, she received the scales of an Icefang Serpent thanks to you, so I don’t think she’ll be too angry.”

Oh right, that was one of the terms of my duel with Cultivator Byron. I had almost forgotten about that. I hoped that was enough to mitigate Cultivator Aneira’s anger, at least enough to let me apologize to her. Speaking of terms…

“Did Cultivator Byron and his bodyguards keep quiet about Cultivator Aneira’s secret?” I asked. “That was one of the terms of my duel with him, but he might reveal it anyway out of petty revenge.”

Second Master shook his head.

“No.” He said. “While Martial Nephew Byron might seem like a typical arrogant young master, and he is most of the time, he is an honorable one. When he gives his word, he keeps it. We don’t have to worry about him revealing Martial Niece Aneira’s secret.” He paused. “Besides, even if he tried, Elder Celine would silence him.”

I sighed with relief.

“Good.” I said. “And I’m sorry, Second Master. I’ll do better next time.”

He nodded.

“See that you do.”

After that, I leaned back against the side of the boat and stared up at the sky. Second Master and I remained silent for a while as we flew towards Celestial Warrior Peak, though I let out the occasional sigh.

“Is something the matter, Darian?” Second Master asked, breaking the silence. “From all the sighing you’ve done, it sounds like something is troubling you, something other than Martial Niece Aneira’s situation. Do you wish to speak about it?”

I considered Second Master’s offer. My first thought was to keep the situation with Ellen a secret from him. However, the more I considered it the more I realized that maybe confiding in him was a good idea. He was older and more experienced than me. Besides, it wasn’t as if I had anyone else to talk to at the moment. Also, he was my second master. If I couldn’t talk with him about this, who could I talk to?

After some hesitation, I started telling Second Master about my troubles. At first I was nervous, but I grew more comfortable and relaxed as I spoke. When I finished, Second Master wore a thoughtful expression on his face.

“Ah, youth.” He said. “I know this may not help you feel better, but when you grow older, you’ll realize that the troubles you face now are not as important or dire as you think.”

I glared at him.

“You’re right,” I said, “That doesn’t make me feel better.”

Second Master chuckled, before his expression grew somber.

“While you may not want to hear this, I believe that Vice Hall Master Sidra was right in her actions.” He said. “Rushing into a serious relationship before you’ve matured and gained more experience is a poor idea. You’re not even twenty years of age and you’re already considering marriage.”

I stared at Second Master in dismay. When I decided to confide in him about my problems, I thought he would have words of wisdom or advice that would help me. Instead, he agreed with Sidra’s decision! Was no one on my side?

“Plenty of people marry and have children by the time they’re my age!” I protested.

“Plenty of mortals your age marry and have children.” Second Master pointed out. “For cultivators like us, it’s different. With our longer lifespans, we have no need to rush. We can afford to take our time and think things through. In fact, cultivators need to put more thought into who they marry because of our longer lifespans. Marrying someone is a lifelong commitment, and when both parties can live for centuries, that is a long time indeed.” He shrugged. “Many cultivators don’t bother with romance at all. They focus on other pursuits. Take me, for example. I have no interest in marriage. Walking the path towards immortality and contemplating the mysteries of the universe take precedence.”

I found that I had no rebuttal to his words, so I crossed my arms and scowled at him.

“Think of it like this, Darian,” Second Master said, sounding amused, “At least you only have to wait five years. Vice Hall Master Sidra could have made it much longer than that.”

I didn’t respond and just kept scowling.

“Not only that,” Second Master continued, “But she gave you a means to see your Ellen sooner. You just have to reach Foundation Establishment before the five years are over.” He paused. “In fact, perhaps this was Vice Hall Master Sidra’s primary purpose in separating you two. I speculate that she wanted to motivate you to reach Foundation Establishment as soon as possible.”

I looked back at him.

“What do you mean?” I asked. “Why would she do that?”

It wasn’t as if there was any urgency to the matter. Yes, reaching Foundation Establishment as soon as possible was ideal, but still. It took the average cultivator ten or so years to reach that realm, among those that reached it at all that was. I had only been cultivating for a year and a half.

“While I can’t say for certain,” Second Master said, “I believe Vice Hall Master Sidra wants you to participate in the Rising Heroes Tournament.”

“The Rising Heroes Tournament? What’s that?”

Despite my foul mood, I found myself interested.

“It’s a tournament held every fifteen years or so.” He said. “Up and coming cultivators from all over the Northern Region, including those from the other two continents, gather together in order to participate. It is one of the largest events held in the Northern Region.”

I leaned forward.

“Tell me more.” I demanded.

Second Master laughed.

“Very well, my disciple.” He said. “However, since we’ve almost reached our destination, I’ll hold off for now. We’ll continue this discussion over a cup of tea.”