Before Lowen and the others left the mountain range, Lowen had to stop by one place first. Lowen had been in such a hurry and had been caught up in the moment, that he completely forgot to pay old man Sid for letting him borrow the statues. Lowen felt slightly embarrassed, telling Nia and Ben he forgot something but in the end, he went back and got the desired payment, Mammoth Boar Hairs. Running over to old man Sid's place, Lowen arrived in only a few seconds. After giving Sid his payment, Sid grinned from ear to ear. Lowen handed over the 3 cores he borrowed with hesitation, only after a few seconds could he actually release them.
"Sid, would you be willing to part with these cores?"
Sid snatched his cores from Lowen and smiled wider.
"Now why in the hell would I go and do something like that, hehe."
Lowen reached into his chest pocket and pulled out a pouch he had found in Rize's cave. Opening it up, he showed Sid 300 bright pieces of gold as well as a handful of colorful jewels.
"Those cores really helped me and I'd gladly give you all of this for them, so what do you say?"
To this response, Sid snapped his fingers and a statue walked over with a huge chest. The statue then dropped the chest in front of Lowen and swung open the lid. Inside, it was completely filled with huge chunks of gold, crystals and even bigger jewels then what Lowen had offered. Sid cranked his head back and laughed wildly.
"Hehehe, what do you think I've been doing in this mountain beside making statues, hehe. My wealth can last several lifetimes and then some, so your measly bit of gold, hmph you can keep it, I'm not trading."
Lowen stared with wide eyes, he had only seen this much wealth a few times in his past life as a royal guard but never was it his own wealth. Lowen couldn't help but gulp down a bit of saliva that had built up within his mouth. Lowen and Sid made eye contact and Sid could see the desire in Lowen's eyes and was a bit surprised.
(This kid, he's practically drooling, hehehe.)
Lowen noticed his thoughts wondering and quickly regained his composure.
"So there's nothing you would trade for them?"
Old man Sid rubbed his chin for a moment before his eyes flashed with a tinge of greed and said.
"Your technique, are you still being stingy with it or do you actually want to make a deal?"
Lowen immediately shook his head in refusal, that was one thing he would not bargain with. Lowen could see the two were not going to reach an agreement and turned to leave. Sid raised his voice a bit as Lowen was halfway out the door.
"You still won't share your technique with me, well fine then. Next time you're in trouble, don't come running to me for help you ungrateful brat.....Do you know why I won't give you any of my cores..."
Lowen was still leaving when Sid's words intrigued him but still, he kept walking.
"Hmph, you'll know soon enough. You saw the inscriptions on my cores. Just wait till you get to any city and you try to buy a statue core, then you'll know why mine can't be bought. At that time you'll thank me that I didn't sell you anything, hehe."
Lowen didn't understand what Sid meant by that and he didn't really care. If Sid didn't want to sell then he didn't want to sell. Beyond that, it was a waste of Lowen's time and energy.
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Lowen quickly caught up with everyone and their journey soon continued. No one asked Lowen what his business was but seeing the curious looks on both Nia and Ben's face, Lowen told them about the statue cores he wanted and how Sid refused. Ben then chimed in.
"Big bro, you should have beat him up and taken them, that stinky old man was so mean last time and took our meat, damn that meat thief."
Everyone looked at Ben and started laughing. This kid was still caught up on the meat that was stolen from them when they had first visited old man Sid. Lowen remembered that time and couldn't help but think.
(Hahaha, when it comes to food, little Ben sure will hold a grudge. I better remember to never take any food from him, hahaha.)
Nia gave Ben a punch on the head.
"Ben, you can't beat someone over every little grievance. With that kind of attitude, you'll be no better than a thug."
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Ben rubbed the top of his head painfully before he whispered out his own grievances.
"But big sis, you just hit me over something little, doesn't that make you a thug."
Even though these words were whispered, everyone still heard it and Benjamin, Lowen, and Luna once more broke out into a burst of loud laughter. Nia's cheeks flushed red in embarrassment and using her snake fist, she threw a punch at little Ben, once more aiming for his head but how could he not see the same move coming twice. With his shadow steps, Ben's feet pivoted and his body jumped sideways, easily avoiding Nia's attack. Nia used her own shadow steps and quickly gave chase, in this way, two children were seen moving around at an incredible speed, one in which children should clearly not be capable of.
Benjamin saw this and he was surprised, to say the least. He knew that his children were stronger but he didn't know they were fast as well and looking at their moves, they were clearly an imitation of what he had seen Lowen use.
(What the hell are those moves. So this brat really did do something to my babies but how can I be upset that they can do these things. Damn, should I just ask?)
Benjamin shook that thought away though. This was obviously some secret that Lowen had taught them and he couldn't ask his kids, that would put them under undue pressure and after Benjamin was freed from Rize's cave, he told himself he would never again be a detriment to his children. The other side of that would be to ask Lowen. To Benjamin though, his pride as a man wouldn't allow it. With these conflicting thoughts, Benjamin could only remain quiet. If Lowen ever trusted him enough to tell him then although that was annoying, that was simply the way it goes.
Luna saw these kids moving like shadows and inhaled a deep breath, this was truly amazing. She had seen it many times before but still, to see children do this was quite the unique experience. She wondered if she could learn such moves and then she too got rid of such thoughts. For a woman in her 40's to be hopping around like a rabbit, the behavior seemed almost shameful to her.
As the two continued to move, Lowen nodded in admiration. These two siblings, with the help of Lowen, were progressing at a rapid rate. With the help of Lowen, he was sure that he could get them to the second stage within a few years. To reach the aura body stage they would not only need to deal with excruciating pain but they would also have to be able to control their ki at a masterful level. In Lowen's previous world, usually a master would help you along with this process but Lowen had to do it by himself. With him here to help, he could pressure their ki seeds condensing and crushing it, quickening their advancement.
Looking at the way Nia moved, Lowen felt a tinge of pride. Although her movements were elegant, the power she could produce with her strikes were splendid, making her snake fist quite destructive. Ben though was the opposite, his movements were more agitated but with his instincts at such a high level, it made his shadow steps unbelievably quick. When it came to the two, little Ben's speed was faster then Nia in every way but Nia was both stronger and her body's defense was tougher. Nia moved with thought and planning, while Ben moved instinctually. Lowen wondered how the two would fare against each other when they both reach their full potential.
After a day of the two siblings running around playing cat and mouse, the group had reached an empty clearing where they could camp for the night. It was at this time when Luna went into action. Luna walked into the forest with Lowen, Nia, and Ben in tow and started to search. Looking high and low, Luna began grabbing ingredients. Sometimes she would pick a few pieces of grass and give it a quick sniff before throwing it away. After doing this several times, she seemed to find the correct one. Giving it a small sniff, she then nodded her head in delight and stuffed it into a basket she carried. Grabbing a few red leaves here and a brown flower there, In this way, Luna gathered more and more ingredients until she finally showed a satisfied expression. Turning to the three followers, she said.
"Lets cook."
At first, Lowen didn't understand what she would do with flowers and grass and stuff but as Luna started cooking, it became all too clear.
"So after you crush these pieces of grass, a bit of its juice can be extracted which gives this soup a nice base. After that, you put these red raja leaves in and allow your soup to boil. After 15 minutes you quell the flames a bit, which will reduce the heat to a nice simmer. That's when you cover it with a lid and let it cook down for another 10 minutes. Once that's done, you then remove it from the heat and with a spoon or a ladle, you remove the remains of the red raja leaves and its done. Piping hot and ready to eat."
Lowen and Ben both became curious.
"Hmm, you don't eat the leaves, then why add them in?"
"Yea, yea, why do you even need them then?"
Having these kids be so curious about her cooking, made her heart grow warm and her expression brightened.
"Well, the leaves when cooked release a deep flavor into the soup but the leaves themselves are actually bitter in taste. Leaving them adds nothing and if you were to take a bite of one during a meal, well, that could only end in disappointment."
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After a delicious meal, everyone sat around the campfire patting their stomachs in satisfaction. Benjamin was about to ask his kids how they were doing when he noticed their strange behavior. Nia and Ben were both sitting with legs crossed and eyes shut, almost as though they were asleep. Benjamin wanted to say something but Lowen quickly stopped him and whispered.
"Their practicing right now and they need focus, so let's not disturb them."
Benjamin was a little annoyed with Lowen.
(Who is he to tell me when I can or can't speak to my kids?)
But noticing that they really did seem to be focusing, Benjamin grumbled a few times before finally sitting down and glaring at Lowen with displeasure.
Lowen, however, could care less, instead, since he wasn't busy, he'd much rather be going over Rize's notes. Lowen reached into one of his chest pockets and pulled a few pieces of worn parchment out. Earlier, Lowen had no chance to read any of these notes due to the situation and the fact that so much was going on all at once. Because of this, he had only caught a few glimpses at what was written. Now, however, he was completely free. Reading Rize's first few words, Lowen became intrigued.
[The gods laughed when they created goblins, I'm sure of it..... but now I have a chance.....no we have a chance. With this purple stone, will it be my fortune or my downfall?]