The moment stretched as the guards were inspecting me, measuring me closely, if I was some kind of bandit or madman.

One of them walked to the guard station to confirm if they were expecting me. The guards let me through, but my hope of making a quiet entrance was gone. I walked through the first courtyard and already I could see my mother running towards me followed by my father. They must have paid the guards, so they would inform them about my arrival, even before the Clan head.

“Mei, you are home already!,” my mother embraced me in a tight hug squeezing life out of me. She was never someone who dwelled on formality. My father on the other hand stood aside and waited for a proper welcome.

Finally, my mother let me go and I could get the formalities out of the way, “Mother, Father. have returned to my home, from now on I entrust myself to your care once more,”

“Welcome home, our daughter. Let’s enjoy our time together as a family once more,” he said and then promptly hugged me.

My mother rolled her eyes at our greeting, but it took some time before my father let go of me.

“So tell us what happened. Your letter was rather vague on details,” he asked me as he finally let me go.

I considered what to tell them. In the end it would be better to be economical with truth. My parents did not need to know the entire story. It would just make them needlessly worry and I did not want to cause them distress.

“An opponent seriously injured me during a fight. The injury shattered my cultivation and stopped any chance of progression on the path of immortality,” I explained keeping the specifics to myself.

Both of my parents looked distraught at this revelation. I knew they would be disappointed.

“Are you still hurt?” my father asked, while my mother scrutinized me.

“I am on the road to recovery, but returning to full health will take some time still,” I answered and hoped they would not recognize this little modification of truth. It was not even a lie, if the manual in my hand worked out.

“So that is why you are so pale, my mother wiped something on my face,” Do not fret. I am sure we will get you a healthy color soon enough.”

I had the same pale shade as her. It was a fact my body refused to take on any color despite how many missions outside of the sect. It was more likely to turn red and flake despite the cultivation level I attained, but I guessed she needed something to fret about.

“You will need plenty of rest then. Let us eat dinner and you can then retire and sleep after a long day of travel.,” my father suggested.

I let go of the ball of anxiety in my gut. My parents were not prying further, which was rather good. I even considered my father’s offer, but I still had a duty before myself.

“I would like to, but I still have to present myself before the head of the clan. It is my duty.”

“Clan head is still working, as is his custom, but I am sure you do not have to present yourself to him immediately. It is something, which will wait until morning.” my mother insisted.

“It would be impolite to not at least try. He is the head of our clan and Mei is returning after a long absence.” My father, the source of logic and reason in our family, opposed my mother.

“Exactly. I have to inform Clan head Xuegang about my failure as a cultivator. It was clan resources, which propelled me on my path to immortality. I had failed, before I could repay the kindness of the clan and so I have to apologize and seek another way to recompense my family.”

My father and mother looked at each other for a moment and my father reassured me, “I am sure the clan head will be merciful with you.”

I nodded doubtfully. I received a lot of cultivation resources across the years and even the rich Silverhand clan had to feel the cost.

“Go with your father and try your luck with the clan head. I will prepare dinner,” my mother said and left us alone.

I looked at my father for a long moment in silence, “Father, I am sorry.” I finally said.

“Why are you apologizing?” he asked me looking puzzled.

“I failed on my path of immortality and brought shame to you and mother. You had so many hopes in my success and invested your hopes in me, yet they were all in vain. I failed you,” I explained while tears crept out of my eyes.

My father embraced me, ”It is okay. You did nothing wrong Mei. Fate and ancestors have their whims and no one can predict the direction they take. We are not angry or disappointed with you. Your mother and I are happy to have you back alive and unharmed. This is all we ever wished for,” my father whispered to me as I stood there weeping into his arms.

“If you wish we can go to dinner and forget about the clan for the evening,” he offered me once I stopped and pulled myself together. I thanked him as I was crying and he just stood there being warm and strong.

I shook my head, ”No I need to get this over as quickly as possible,” I said. My father nodded.

I quickly dried my tears and went to the main house of our clan compound. No one barred my way now, for an esteemed member of the clan was now accompanying me.

It was a grand building as befits one of the prominent clans of Jiaomay city, but compared to the welcome hall of cultivar Li it was pedestrian. There was no gold or silver and only bronze statues lined the walls. The tapestries were of lower quality weave and depicted significant moments in history of the clan. It was a great reminder of the difference between even the simplest of cultivators and the eminent mortal clan.

It was this difference, which let to sending scions of clans and noble houses int sects without a moment of hesitation. Even the mightiest of clans pursued an alliance with even one sect would ensure the future of the clan for many years to come and bring untold wealth to all of its members, of course such alliances were fleeting, dependent on family ties of cultivators and mortals, which would rarely last long, but it was worth it even for a short time.

It was with this hope I could go to the Fiery Peak sect. The hope which turned hollow. I was milling this as I waited before the doors to the clan head’s office.

The door in the decorated wall opened, and I walked in. It was a simple room, but exquisitely decorated with wood carvings depicting the foundation of the clan and a map of trade routes stretching from one end of the Empire to the other.

I bowed before the leader of my clan and waited for his judgment, while my father made his own introduction.

“Raise your head Mei Silverhand and tell me what brings you to my office in this late hour,” Xuegang the clan head said to me. I looked up.

The clan head was old, although not looking as old as cultivator Li the age lines were much more apparent on his face.

He was sitting at a table writing something accompanied by his manservant Huy, who was ready to serve as a messenger or carry anything my great uncle could require. Clan head did not have any firm expression on his face; he was just looking at me waiting for me to speak, while he was still writing down his words.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“Clan head I bring grave news. Circumstances beyond my control cut off my journey to immortality. I shall not be able to repay the clan the resources it invested in me and thus would ask for permission to contribute to the clan in some way to help with the losses my failure incurred.” I said and waited for the judgment.

“I had heard of your loss. Elder Baran had already sent me a message informing me of your failures,” he did not smile or frown as he put down his pen and looked directly into my eyes.

“It is unfortunate, but you do not have to worry about the cost the clan amassed thanks to you, such a small trifle can be easily forgotten.” He said to me while I was looking at him like he was crazy. I knew how much these cultivation resources cost. You could dispatch several very rich caravans for the price of those resources and still have enough to build a delightful house. To say it was a trifle was ridiculous.

“How? The price of the cultivation pills itself is ruinous for even the wealthy merchant,” I asked, still unable to comprehend.

Clan head looked at me closely, ”It matters not. The Silverhand clan is rich and can suffer losses. If you worry about it, be a dutiful daughter to your parents and help them as you should. I am sure they will appreciate it.”

“We thank you for your generosity and I am sure our daughter will honor your request,” my father said, interrupting my train of thought.

“I do not think your daughter is able to quite collect herself,” the clan head said with a mild disapproving tone as I kept watching him. This whole situation was surreal. I felt something rising in my neck, but I suppressed it.

“I was expecting you would be more upset,” I blurted out.

Clan head frowned at my outburst, ”It would serve you well to keep your thoughts to yourself as a proper clan daughter, but to answer your question. Fate is immutable and set in stone. While your failure is not fortunate, it was something this clan considered before you departed and thus the solution was prepared for,” he explained to me. It was clear I still had a lot to learn.

Clan head also smiled for a moment, ”Not to mention Fate also rewarded us in kind. Your cousin Zhelan has written me a letter informing me he successfully became an inner disciple of the Heavenly storm sect. The clan is indeed fortunate.”

I remembered little Zhe. He was about five years younger than me and for the first few years listened with near rapture to my stories, when I returned home. The clan dispatched him with great fanfare to the Heavenly storm sect at the age seven, same as me, as was traditional. I learned about when I returned home and have not seen him since. It was a great boon to the clan because, heavenly storm sect was not from the Land of Three rivers. its seat of power lay deeper in the Empire, where the Qi was thicker and thus cultivators could prosper much more.

I smiled, “It is good to hear about his success. I hope his path towards immortality will be fortuitous and much happier than mine,” I said.It was nice to know someone from my clan would follow the cultivators way.

“He undoubtedly will. Is there anything else you wish to tell me about?” the Clan head asked me. I did not want to waste any time of such a busy man. I was just one of many now and had to act like it.

“I do not wish to impose on you any further Clan head Xuegang. I shall leave with your permission,” I bowed.

He dismissed both of us.

“That went significantly better than I was expecting,” I said to my father once we were on the courtyard.

“It went as well as we could have hoped. The clan head is a very understanding leader, but it surprised me that he already knew about your situation. He told me nothing about it,” father pointed out. He looked intrigued at this development.

I knew nothing about my father’s relationship with the clan head, but I was rather happy he told my parents nothing about my condition. Of course I knew not of the letter elder Baran wrote to him, but It would not surprise me, if the letter would not mention my condition at all, because Elder Baran might have considered this my personal affair. I was thankful to the old disciplinarian. I would not have to worry my parents with my true condition and hopefully they would not discover it.

We walked along the courtyard and to our quarters as the sun was setting. My father was making idle chat asking about the journey or criticizing my choice of clothing. I wisely kept shut about the bandit attack and vigorously defended my choice of clothing when we arrived at our rooms. My father went first, and I followed.

Our rooms have changed a lot since I visited last year. They were now decorated with tasteful wooden inlays and simple clay statues. The bronze and tapestries I remembered were gone. I liked it because it allowed the room to breathe, instead of being filled with bronze and heavy cloth.

We arrived at our family table where my mother was already arranging dishes.

“How was the visit with the clan head?” she asked me.

“It went much better than I was expecting,” I said. There was something strange about that cultivation, but I could not pin what it was down.

“Great, now let's have dinner and celebrate your return to us, my little pearl,” my mother smiled and beckoned me to sit at the table.

I sat down and watched as my mother poured a delicious soup into a simple earthenware dish. It smelled heavenly. Its spices intertwined with the delicious pork and perfectly prepared vegetables. It was truly a miracle.

I did not waste any time in indulging myself and ate my dish with fervor. My mother smiled as she saw me eating. Both of my parents joined me and for a moment I was back in my childhood as we sat around the table together. There was no splendor of the old days. The dishes were not embossed with gold, and the cutlery was not silver, but it still flooded me with happy memories.

It was happiness which allowed me to ignore the rising feeling in my belly.

“So what are you planning on doing now?” my mother asked, while my father looked at me curious about my answer.

I looked up from my empty plate and considered the future I have not thought about for a long time, “I do not know.” I said truthfully. My plans were to read the cultivation manual, which was given to me and follow the instructions contained within, if I found them worthwhile, but I did not know what to do besides that.

My parents looked at me in disbelief. It was a surprise to them, without a doubt. I always had a plan to follow and often a very detailed one, but all my plans now laid in ruins.

“I guess I did not have the time to think about it,” I said especially if I thought I had only months to live just two days ago but I did not mention that part.

“I am sure you will fit right into the clan as quickly as you became a glorious cultivator. I will arrange a few small meetings to get you acquainted with the people of your age and soon you will attend the best parties and make connections with the best of them. We will get you some new clothes and you can show them off around the town,” my mother offered.

I smiled. She was correct. I was now a clan daughter and as a clan daughter I should act. It was time I contributed to the life of the clan and the sooner I started with reintegration to the social net of the clan the easier time I would have in the future. I tried to remember the details of the proper etiquette my old maid drilled into me, when I was younger, but it was foggy.

“I think I will need some pointers on how to act. I seem to have forgotten most of the actual rules,” I said. Better to come clean to prevent problems down the line.

My father chuckled, ”It would be a true tragedy, if you used the wrong napkin after the wrong food?” he looked me into my eyes, ”You do not have to worry, most of the youth louts of the clan have not the slightest idea about the proper etiquette and you had conducted yourself well before the elder. You do not have to fear our acceptance to the clan, my little star. YOu already bring valuable experience to the clan,” he said.

“What kind of experience?” I asked and searched for water, my throat was getting parched. I found some in a simple earthen cup and drank as my father explained.

“You lived in a sect for some time therefore You know how cultivators think and what interests them. You will advise on how to approach them about offers of trade and deals. This will be a great boon to the Silverhand clan,” my father explained.

I put my cup down, ”There is not much guile involved, if you have access to cultivation resources, you will make a deal with a sect to sell them those resources. The more resources you can provide, the more money the sect will pay you. It is a remarkably simple arrangement,” I explained to my father. One of my duties was helping with the accounting books, thanks to my education and the fact I was from a merchant clan. It was not a well-liked duty, but the books were interesting to read, if monotonous.

“There must be more to it. What about loans, or investments? The sects receive a huge amount of money from the cities and villages of the Empire. They must have an incredible amount of money?” my father said, puzzled.

It was a common belief among the mortals of the Empire. Sects received a tithe from the Empire for their services in elimination of Beasts and Spirits who threatened civilization in the area guarded by the sect plus many gifts for swift consideration of these matters offered by the affected parties. Many saw what should be vast amounts of wealths flowing into the sects, so it was a fair assumption and in a way it was not wrong.

“Sects prefer, if we paid their tithe in cultivation resources to begin with ,only sects of low importance are given money directly as it is vulgar to pay cultivators for their services. so sects rarely receive that much money and what money they receive they immediately used to buy more cultivation resources. Ironically this means, that-”

An attack of cough stopped my explanation cold. I was there at my family table writhing as my lungs tried to leave my body and my parents watched horrified.

The cough finally stopped, and as I removed my hand from my mouth, it was bloody.