When they returned to the central plaza, they found Tan Xiaoling standing before the path leading up to the men’s living area. It wasn’t exactly a surprise that she’d achieved Body Refining while they’d been gone. She’d been half a step into the Third Realm when she entered the sect and had secluded herself immediately after Xiao Jun and his followers had ambushed her. What was a surprise was that she’d already reached the middle stage.
Physically, she was no different than before. At least not in any way He Yu could tell. She was, as always, the absolute picture of a noble lady. Her hair was pinned back with expensive ornaments. Her robes were of the finest silk, deep green with patterns worked in gold thread. A black sash encircled her waist, and her hands were folded before her within her billowing sleeves. No, nothing physical was all that different.
However, even with her spirit restrained, that sense of sharp danger that had always clung to her seemed amplified. It was almost as if He Yu could feel the cold press of a naked razor on the back of his neck. He wasn’t the only one, as many of the disciples coming and going in the main plaza gave her a wide berth.
As the two of them approached, Tan Xiaoling inclined her head in their direction. “Sect Brother Li, Sect Brother He. It is good to see you again.”
They both saluted and bowed as was appropriate. While Tan Xiaoling preferred they treat her more as a sect sibling in private, she was a princess—if a foreign one. Certain appearances needed to be maintained.
“Congratulations on your breakthrough, Princess Tan,” He Yu said.
The now-familiar half-smirk tugged at one corner of her lips. “Congratulations on yours. We should exchange pointers if we’ve the chance before the tournament. I would be most interested to see what the disciple of Senior Sister Zhang has managed to achieve since he came to my aid.”
There was no trace of malice in her words. In fact, she seemed genuinely grateful.
“Of course,” He Yu said, doing his best to keep the edge of nerves from his voice. Even without any ill will, she was still monstrously strong for her advancement. Li Heng had mentioned she’d been dueling against second and third-year disciples while He Yu had been in seclusion. It seemed, based on her rapid advancement to middle Body Refining, that her bouts had gone well for her.
Tan Xiaoling gave a perfunctory nod, indicating the formalities had concluded. “I had hoped to catch you two. Sister Chen will be emerging from her seclusion soon. When she does I had hoped we could all go on a bit of a treasure hunt together.”
That certainly got He Yu’s attention. That Chen Fei was in seclusion meant she’d be breaking into Body Refining as well. Almost as importantly, the prospect of a treasure hunt wasn’t anything he’d turn down. With the tournament on its way, he’d no doubt burn through a large amount of his wealth on advancement resources.
Then there was the issue of his weapon. It was still holding up for the time being, but back when he’d purchased it he knew that it wouldn’t survive long once he advanced to Body Refining. Even by the end of his adventure and his training with Old Guo, it had begun to show signs of wear.
“What did you have in mind?” Li Heng asked.
“The cave at the waterfall,” she said. “I’ve gone a bit deeper inside than we’ve explored before and could sense strong qi within. Strong enough that I thought we could all benefit once we’d reached the Third Realm. No doubt whatever we find down there will be of some use.”
She didn’t need to specify. They all knew the tournament was coming, and that more disciples would be breaking through to Body Refining in the coming months. Any advantage they had now would be short-lived. They needed to make sure they made the most of it while they could.
“We should bring Yan Shirong along,” He Yu said.
Tan Xiaoling arched an eyebrow. “The shadow cultivator? He didn’t seem all that talented when I last met him.”
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“He’s had a change of attitude recently,” Li Heng said. “He’s also likely in seclusion if he hasn’t managed to enter the Third Realm already.”
Princess Tan’s second eyebrow joined the first. “Is that so? I hadn’t thought him for the motivated type.”
“He came along with us on our sect assignment,” He Yu said. “I think it opened his eyes somewhat.”
“I see,” she said. “You’ll have to tell me about your adventure when you get the chance. I’d not expected to hear that the both of you would return half a step into the Third Realm and then immediately seclude yourselves. Nor had I expected either of you to break through so quickly. It seems you encountered great fortune in your time away.”
The details were worked out quickly enough. He Yu and Li Heng excused themselves and returned to their shared home. When asked, Yan Shirong agreed to join them easily enough, his eyes lighting up at the prospect of whatever treasures the Jade Princess thought to find in a cave she was reluctant to explore without the company of additional Third Realm cultivators.
Several days later, word came that Chen Fei had broken through. With all of them now at the Body Refining stage, they agreed on a day to venture up into the higher reaches of the outer sect mountain and explore the cave. In the meantime, He Yu and Li Heng fell into a pattern of near-constant training and cultivation.
Neither of them spoke of it, but He Yu could tell that Li Heng was just as disturbed as he was by the presence that had taken hold of King Hao. Not to mention the arrival of the cultivator who later arrived to do battle with Zhang Lifen.
On the agreed day, the five of them met at the path leading towards the waterfall and the cave. When He Yu caught sight of Chen Fei, he couldn’t help but grin. She had indeed broken through. There was a sense of solid power that infused even her most casual movements.
While he didn’t know what aspects her family art carried with it, he did know that she’d been mostly cultivating the White Mountain Body Art since arriving at the sect. Her qi was strongly aligned to both earth and metal, and as she advanced she had begun to cultivate mountain at some point as well.
She still wore the clothes that many would say marked her as a barbarian—a wool felt coat trimmed with fur thrown over a practical set of trousers, with sturdy leather boots. The only real adornment she wore came in the form of her bear-pelt mantle, and a pair of leather vambraces reinforced with formation etched metal strips. The ensemble fit her well, and given her advancement to Body Refining, He Yu couldn’t imagine anyone daring to call her barbarian or to question her place in the sect.
Yan Shirong still had his characteristic arrogance as he strode up to the rest of them, but he was appropriately deferential to Tan Xiaoling. Although he’d said that he had broken into the Third Realm while He Yu was still in seclusion, there was very little that was immediately different about his appearance or his spirit. The only real indication of his advancement was hard to notice—his shadow was darker than theirs, and somehow more solid. He Yu supposed it made sense, given Yan Shirong’s family lineage and the arts he cultivated.
They headed up the path, making astonishing time compared to the first trips they’d made to the waterfall. He Yu didn’t allow himself to think too much about the fact that he had been the whole reason it had always taken them most of the morning. Now they moved quickly, without really even having to exert themselves.
When they arrived at the waterfall Yan Shirong shook his head. “Your fortune is peerless to have had access to a spot like this. The qi here is some of the most potent I’ve come across on the mountain. No wonder you all have managed to advance so quickly.”
“It grew stronger the further in I went when I came here on my own,” Tan Xiaoling said. “I’ve no idea what awaits us beyond the point I turned back, so we should be on our guard.”
“I suspect whatever lies inside is meant to both challenge and reward outer sect disciples. Princess Tan’s advice of caution is wise,” Li Heng said.
“How deep do we need to go?” Chen Fei asked. While she seemed to have lost a good deal of the clear apprehension she’d brought with her to the mountain, a measure of it had returned with their immanent descent into the unknown.
Tan Xiaoling gave her a reassuring smile. “As deep as we need. I doubt there will be anything down there that would give a group of five Body Refining cultivators any trouble, though.”
Chen Fei took a deep breath and nodded.
“We’ll find out soon enough,” He Yu said. He was beginning to get antsy. The promise of rich qi and the possibility of treasure was almost too much, and he was eager to test out what his new body could do for him. While only a shadow of what it would be by the time he reached the peak of the Third Realm, the breakthrough to Body Refining had already washed away all the lingering traces of his mortal weakness. Every step until this point had seen him grow stronger than he’d ever imagined he could be, but entering the Third Realm had dwarfed all his previous achievements.
Sure, he’d sparred with Li Heng enough since his breakthrough, but that wasn’t the same. They had to hold back—there was only so much the formations in their home could deal with. Maybe Tan Xiaoling was being overly cautious and there wasn’t anything of note to challenge them further inside. He certainly hoped not.
Tan Xiaoling shot one of her half-smirks in his direction. “Alright, let’s get inside, then.”