After their little snack, Mrs. Chuu moved into the hall, as was customary. Rin waited for his presence to be made known before stepping through.
It wasn't anything fancy; he didn’t have any titles, except maybe for the birthday boy. Some, like his mother's moniker, the Silver Fairy, were ones he took pride in, but for him, he had none. The announcer summarily shouted, "Introducing Young Master Rin in tonight's festivities!" Rin couldn't see who made the announcement, but it was most likely one of the guards roped into doing the job.
With the introduction over, he stepped through to the gazes of everyone gathered. Some clapped, as was customary; others simply looked on. Many of them were here for him as personal guests of his mother, such as the medicinal hall elder and Mei Mei's parents and grandfather. The others were here to see what progress he had made in his cultivation—or, in his case, the absence of it.
Mother had said that Young Master Ryuha would be coming tonight. With his help, Rin was sure he would be able to—
He was pulled from his musings as his mother hugged him.
“I’m glad to see you’re awake! I was worried that I would need to send the Medicinal Hall elder to check if you were still okay. I’m relieved Mrs. Chuu finally got you awake and ready,” she said, releasing him from her embrace.
Rin narrowed his eyes at her, a sneaking suspicion creeping in. He looked back at Mrs. Chuu, who smiled warmly at him.
Mom wouldn’t, would she?
“Now, let’s get this celebration started, shall we?” Mother said next to him, which he hadn’t been expecting. She wasn’t usually one for major gatherings like this, especially with the wolf-like elders and nobles waiting to see them despair—which certainly wouldn’t happen, he was sure of it. Seeing the expression that must have been on his face, she smiled.
“First, let’s introduce you to everyone present. Remember what I taught you in etiquette class?”
He nodded and replied, “Greet those with higher status with a fist and bow accordingly.”
“Excellent!” she smiled at him and at Mrs. Chuu. “Let’s begin.” She took him by the arm and led him to all the prominent people currently there for his birthday. He wondered where Mei Mei was.
First, Mother brought him to a hawkish-looking man with no facial hair at all—no eyebrows, nothing. It was quite unsettling. “This is Elder Huang, the head of the Alchemy Division,” she said, gesturing to the odd-looking man.
He bowed deeply. “Honored Elder Huang, it is a privilege to meet you.”
“Ah, Rin, my boy! Happy birthday! I hope you are able to join the sect this year. I have quite the alchemy class running, and I would be delighted if you could join. For some reason, I don’t have many students, and I can’t fathom why,” the man said. His facial expressions were odd, to say the least; he looked quite like a bald snake, which was very strange.
“Of course, Elder, I will keep that in mind,” Rin said.
“Excellent!”
“I have to greet some others. I will see you later, Elder,” his mother said as she took Rin to another group. She leaned in close to whisper to him, “Elder Huang has a tendency to make his reagents explode on occasion, and we’re not a hundred percent sure when his facial hair just stopped growing back.” She chuckled.
“So that’s why he looks so odd,” he replied.
“Yes, and the reason why he doesn’t have many students is that they worry they, too, will have the same fate.” Yikes. Yeah, no. He didn’t think he would be joining the alchemy class—unless the sect worked differently from mortal schools. For now, let’s just try to keep all his facial hair intact, thank you.
“Now, the next person you’re going to meet is someone very difficult to get a hold of, and he is here at a personal request of Master Ryuha. I expect you to show him respect.” Rin was caught off guard by his mother’s sudden tense words.
“Yes, of course,” he replied, nodding as she brought him to a man standing some distance away from most of the other guests. He was a hulking figure, with muscles much larger than your average cultivator—who preferred more lithe and deadly physiques rather than brutish strength. This man was a giant, not just in width but in height; he could probably arm-wrestle a snow yeti alpha all on his own.
The man turned to them as they approached. His face was surprising; it was not the pristine countenance one would expect of cultivators, but instead had an aged quality to it, as if he had spent a lot of time exposed to the sun. Perhaps he had been a farm boy or one of those who assisted caravans.
But how could that be? It was evident that he was a cultivator, simply by the clothes he was wearing. He was dressed in the customary robes of the sect, and Rin didn’t think they took too kindly to impersonators, which meant this man was indeed a cultivator.
He looked at his mom to see if he could glean some information, but she was as inscrutable as ever she introduced him once they got close enough.
“This is Grandmaster Feng,” she said, gesturing to the behemoth of a man.
Rin took a deep breath and bowed to the man. “Esteemed Grandmaster Feng, it is an honor to meet you,” he said as respectfully as he could.
The man simply smiled brightly as he turned to Rin’s mother. “Ah, great to see you, Silver Fairy.” Mom bowed as well. “It has been a while, Grandmaster Feng—or should I call you Elder Feng now?” she said with a sly smirk on her face.
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Grandmaster Feng scrunched up his face as if he tasted something sour. “Bah, don’t remind me! If it wasn’t for this obelisk business, I could be spared all the sect politics and focus solely on my disciples and my own training. Now I have to deal with sniveling sycophants and other elders eyeing my position. Even with everything happening in the world, it’s very, very frustrating!” Rin was certain he saw billows of steam coming out of his nose, but surely that was just the trick of the light, right?
“It’s because of the state of the world and that ominous message that the sect leader chose you as the first elder, Grandmaster Feng, so you can tutor the up-and-coming disciples. With all the resources the Young Master is pumping from his own coffers, the young ones need a stern and expert hand to mold them into righteous and honorable cultivators.”
“Hmph! Well, I never cared for the sect politics. Now I have to worry about flowery words trying to make me look stupid.”
“That might be the case, but you are the best at what you do, Grandmaster. I am proof of that, no?” Mother asked.
“Indeed. Well enough about that. I think young Rin here might enjoy it if we did not speak as if he weren’t here,” the giant said, smiling warmly once again.
“Ah, yes, that’s true. I just wanted him to meet you as well. I’m sure you’ve heard of his…” Mom trailed off. Rin was shocked; his mother was so open about speaking of his lack of cultivation. Like Mei, she did not like to bring it up much.
“His deficiency, yes. I have heard.” Elder Feng looked down at Rin. Was that pity or something else? He knelt and placed a hand on Rin's shoulder, making eye contact with him.
“I once stood in your shoes, feeling the weight of uncertainty pressing down on me. I, too, struggled to sense and manage my Qi, lost in a sea of frustration and self-doubt for years. I lamented my worth, convinced that I would never rise above my limitations. But then, a wandering sage crossed my path, and everything changed. He showed me that with the right tools and guidance, even someone like me could aspire to reach the heavens. I believe the same for you. After tonight, I am certain you will find your way, just as I did.” The larger man spoke, his warm smile radiating a deep understanding, as if he could feel the echoes of Rin’s own struggles in his heart.
A lump formed in Rin's throat, and all he could do was nod as he straightened his shoulders. The bigger man smiled even brighter. “Good! That is what it takes—resolve! Don’t ever forget how this feeling makes you feel. It is great fuel for the fire in your heart to push through the stages of cultivation. How do you think I became what I am so quickly?”
He turned to Rin's mother, who also just smiled. “I thank you, Grandmaster Feng—” Mom started to say, but the larger man waved it off.
“Enough of that! Now it is a birthday celebration, after all.”
With that said, Mom bowed, Rin bowed, and they returned to the party and introductions. Mom, having a greater pep in her step, went through the introductions with more fervor. He knew how she felt; the words of the Grandmaster had surely made that small hope just a little bigger.
I can do it. No, I will do it.
But like all good things—including feelings—it must come to an end eventually.
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As the celebration continued, laughter and chatter filled the hall, creating a lively atmosphere. But suddenly, the mood shifted when Elder Chu rose from his seat, his expression darkening ominously. “A moment, if you please!” His voice sliced through the noise like a blade, demanding immediate attention.
All eyes turned to him, the jovial ambiance fading into a tense silence. Elder Chu, arms crossed, glared at Rin, who stood at the center of the gathering. There had always been tension between them; Elder Chu seemed to take particular delight in reminding Rin of his shortcomings. The man's disdain was palpable, and Rin's heart sank as he realized he was about to be subjected to another one of Elder Chu's public tirades. His sons, now smugly advanced in their cultivation, often exploited Rin’s struggles, and it seemed that not even on his birthday would he be spared their judgment.
“Rin,” Elder Chu began, his tone dripping with dissatisfaction, “I trust you’ve enjoyed your little skirmish with the twins and that insufferable young master from the Crimson Lotus Sect. It must feel wonderful to humiliate cultivators in front of their peers.”
Rin swallowed hard, caught off guard. “Elder Chu, it was just a misunderstanding—”
“Misunderstanding?” Elder Chu interjected, his voice rising with anger. “You took it upon yourself to confront them, making a spectacle of their failure! Is this how you honor our sect?”
The weight of Elder Chu's words hung heavy in the air, and Rin felt heat rise in his cheeks. He glanced down, his hand subconsciously moving to the bracer that Mei had gifted him—a beautiful piece originally intended as a bridal gift. Just the thought of it brought a mix of warmth and embarrassment, but Elder Chu had noticed and smirked as he continued.
"And to top it all off, Young Mistress Mei thought it prudent to gift you a bracer meant for a bride! What a mockery you make of our traditions! Do you even comprehend the implications of such a gesture?”
Laughter erupted from a few onlookers, the weight of Elder Chu's words stinging. Rin’s heart raced as he felt their judgment weigh down on him like a shroud. He wanted to defend himself, to explain that he hadn’t sought out the confrontation, but the words caught in his throat, silenced by the elder’s powerful presence. In that moment, all the joy of the celebration felt like it was being crushed under Elder Chu’s relentless glare.
"Nothing to say, Rin?" he said.
His eyes darted around, trying to find Mom; she would be able to put this man in his place—elder be damned. But to his dismay, she must have left, or someone important had arrived, and she needed to attend to them personally.
"It was jus—just..." he stammered, all eyes on him now. The lump in his throat ached as embarrassment burned across his cheeks.
"Exactly nothing! What did I expect from an outsider's child, one not even able to cultivate at that? Worthless." An audible gasp rang through the hall. Rin's heart fell, and his eyes started getting moist.
It’s not like I asked for this—any of this!!
"And let’s not mention the boy's father—" Elder Chu tried to say but was cut off by an immeasurable amount of Qi descending onto the main hall. It felt as if the world itself was rejecting the words coming out of the elder's mouth.
"Now, now! Who wants to say something bad about my good friend?" A man's voice rang through the hall. It was neither harsh nor soft, but perfect—almost angelic.
Rin looked up, surprised; the Qi pressure was so profound that even he, with no cultivation, could feel it—like the earth’s pull had been cranked up a hundredfold. It was suffocating, yes, but not malicious; it simply made its presence known, an undeniable weight pressing down on him. He tried to scan the crowd around him, but faces blurred together, obscured by a haze of confusion and unease.
Eventually, he glanced back to where Elder Chu stood, and a wave of concern washed over him. The man was pale—too pale—as if he had suddenly come down with the blight flu. He looked like a corpse; or at least, what Rin imagined a corpse would look like. His features were sunken, and the veins beneath his skin stood out starkly, a sickly blue against the wan complexion. The Elder’s usually commanding presence was diminished, replaced by a frailness that left Rin feeling unsettled.
With each passing moment, the atmosphere thickened, the pressure coiling tighter around them. Elder Chu's hands trembled slightly at his sides, betraying the strength he usually projected. A bead of sweat trickled down his forehead, glistening like a solitary jewel, before it disappeared into the hollow of his robes. The elder’s eyes darted around, scanning the crowd as if searching for a lifeline.
That’s when his eyes landed on Rin—or something behind him—as he muttered, “Young Master Ryuha?” almost questioning his own eyes