They left that day. Ming carried Jie in his arms as they flew through the jungle, allowing them to move at incredible speeds while Jie sat cultivating.

When she'd cultivated for as long as she usually would, they stopped.

"Alright, kiddo," Ming said, "I promised to teach you a new skill and I will. Then you can practice and train it along with your dragonfist technique."

Jie smiled. "What are you teaching me this time? Maybe something defensive?" she asked with eager eyes.

Ming smiled and patted her on the head. "Why would I waste your time with defensive techniques? No, this is a movement skill. Although, I suppose you could say it's somewhat defensive as it'll help you to evade attacks. And perhaps to escape from more powerful experts.

"Unless of course, they're too far above your cultivation, or they have movement skills of their own..." he said thoughtfully before waving his hand as though dismissing such thoughts and returning to the topic at hand, "The movement skill I'm giving you is exceptionally rare and powerful. It isn't simple in the slightest, but with how quickly you learned the dragonfist skill... I doubt that'll be a problem."

He opened the box and fished around inside it for a bit. "Ah, here we go," he said.

He pulled out another scroll and laid it out for her.

There were far more diagrams and instructions for this scroll and multiple tiers of complexity to it. Just from glancing at it for a second, Jie understood that with each layer of understanding, the skill would become vastly more powerful and more of its potential would be unlocked.

It was far more difficult than the Dragonfist skill, and that made her salivate at the thought of it.

At the top of the scroll, in neat calligraphy was the name: Lightning Step.

Jie memorized the contents of the scroll, which took her twice as long as the dragonfist skill.

When she had it memorized down to every letter of the fine print, she closed her eyes and meditated on it.

She revolved it within her mind. Not attempting to perform the skill just yet, but rather seeking to understand its many complexities.

This skill was far more internal than the dragonfist technique, and it could be activated without revealing it. It was complex but the basic premise was simple, she could use this technique to reinforce her body with qi in a way that improved her speed.

There was far more to it, and the scroll had seven tiers of understanding. With each tier, the skill became more powerful.

The latter tiers even allowed her to create copies of herself that would explode on contact.

But, to get there, she would first have to master what came before. She revolved it all in her mind, calmly studying the technique over and over again and unraveling its secrets.

Jie opened her eyes, stood up, and dusted herself off.

"Remember, kiddo. Don't be sad if you don't get it the first time, okay? This technique is incredibly difficult, and it's only the second one you're learning. Don't be too hard on yourself," Ming said.

Jie nodded and willed her qi to flow in the pattern she memorized.

It filled her body with its crackling energy, and she let out a slow, deep breath.

She tensed and then dashed forward, rushing through the jungle at a speed that far outstripped anything she'd experienced with her own two legs.

Branches, leaves and the wind whipped her face, and she let out a whooping cry.

Jie ran straight at a tree and jumped, running up the side of it and then somersaulting the other way onto a tree behind her.

"This is awesome!" she squealed as she balanced on one of the tree's many branches.

Ming appeared in the air next to her so quickly it was as though he'd teleported. He held the body of a massive cat that looked something like a saber-toothed tiger, only as big as a car, by the scruff of its neck.

"Try not to attract so much attention in future. If I weren't around, our feline friend here would've made you his lunch," Ming admonished.

Jie swallowed hard as the hairs of her nape prickled at how close to death she'd come yet again and how utterly oblivious she'd been to the danger. "Oh... I'm sorry," she said.

Ming chuckled. "I'm still impressed that you were able to do so well with your technique and on the first try. Was that the third layer of understanding I saw?" he asked.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

She smiled sheepishly.

"You're a monster's monster, kiddo," he said.

Jie continued training with all her exercises and her two new martial skills, though now she was far more careful with her surroundings.

When she was done, she and Ming ate the saber-tooth tiger that Ming called a blood lynx. Apparently, named after the color of its fur.

They traveled like this for days, and Jie continued to improve and grow stronger, but the first star of the Adept rank was taking a frustratingly long time.

Ming had warned her that each star needed exponentially more qi to break through than the one before, but experiencing it firsthand was vastly more infuriating than being told about it.

Every second, she felt the pressure of Fang Zhuyu's impending freedom and the bargain she'd made with Ming hanging over her, and yet advancing was painfully slow.

Eventually, they reached the edge of the jungle, and Ming set her on the ground.

"You'll have to walk from here as I will hide my presence entirely, and a cultivator of your rank flying through empty air would be strange indeed. We don't want to attract any attention until we're strong enough to deal with Fang Zhuyu's followers.

"As long as we don't meet anyone too strong, they shouldn't have a clue that I'm with you. I'll talk to you through telepathy as I did on Earth. I'll guide you and protect you if you come against something you have no hope of defeating. But, if you encounter a challenge you can overcome alone, I want you to do it from here on out. It'll help temper you and give you experience," he said.

"Okay," Jie said.

She waited, but Ming was still there. "So when are you going to hide?" she asked.

"I already am," Ming said.

"But I can see you. Oh, wait I forgot you could do it like that," she said.

Ming puffed out his chest. "But, of course, I can choose who can see me. I am a genius after all," he said.

"Arrogant snake," she said.

"I am not a snake!" Ming said.

"That's what an arrogant snake would say," Jie said with a smirk.

Ming puffed out his chest and looked away. "You're just jealous of my awesomeness," he said.

She giggled. "You wish," she said.

"Humph! You're the arrogant one here you brat," he said.

Jie gave him a big hug though her little arms didn't even wrap around him.

He stroked her hair. "Yeah, yeah. You're a cute little brat, but you look like you're hugging air right now so..." he said.

Jie shrugged. "I don't care, but you're right. We should get moving. Okay... here I go," she said.

She started walking and then stopped. The surrounding area was just empty fields and hills as far as she could see.

Ming chuckled. "Something wrong?" he asked.

She glared at him. "You know I have no idea where I'm going. Tell me where to go," she said.

"Really? You need me to be awesome and help you?" he said.

She huffed.

"I can't heaaaar yooouuu," Ming said with a smug grin on his face.

"Fine... I need your help," Jie said.

He raised an eyebrow.

"Please help me, oh great and mighty Ming! Savior of little girls on distant planets and generally awesome dragon with exceptional grooming habits," she said.

Ming preened. "That's more like it. Alright, wait just a moment," he said.

He shot up into the air like a rocket and came back down again in the blink of an eye.

"There's a village in the direction you're heading in actually," Ming said, "they aren't far. Just over that hill."

"So I was going the right way already is what you're saying?" she said.

"Yeah you were-- hey! You still needed me!" he said.

Jie giggled and continued walking.

"Hey! You did! You totally did!" Ming said.

"Totally?" Jie asked, "You sound like a teenage girl."

"Really? I flew through this one building, and lots of people were talking like that. I'm good at picking up such things," he said.

"Did the building have rows of desks and hallways with lockers?" Jie asked.

"Yes, it did... why?" he asked.

Jie giggled. "That's a school," she said, "you were copying the speech patterns of teenage girls."

"No! I... well what can I say? I'm a ladies' man," he said.

Jie turned bright red.

"Aww is somebody embarrassed?" Ming teased.

"Shush you! I'm trying to focus. This is my first time dealing with people in this world. I doubt they're all as crazy as you!" she said.

Jie crested the hill and looked down at the village.

Calling it a village seemed kind.

It was a series of shacks made from whatever the people could find. The villagers wore ragged clothes that looked like burlap sacks with holes cut in them, and they walked barefooted on the muddy streets.

Jie's lips curved downward, and she looked down at her own clothes.

"Why do they live like this?" Jie asked, "I thought this was a world of magic, or Essence and cultivation rather? They look so poor..."

"My world is filled with Essence, but I can sense they're all weak," Ming said.

"So?" Jie asked.

"The strong take what they want, and the weak suffer and scrounge for scraps," Ming said, "it's the way of every world."

"Not mine!" Jie snapped, "This isn't right! Somebody should help them!"

"You know that isn't true. You're a smart girl, but don't delude yourself into thinking that your world is much different. I've seen your world. I've seen the way you were shuffled to one side and that they only cared for you because of the money from that thing called insurance.

"People are people no matter what world you go to, and the strong in your world take what they want from the weak. Perhaps physical strength isn't as important as it once was in your world, but it makes little difference.

"Strength comes in many forms, and those without it cannot do anything to stop that," Ming said, "why do you think they're in such a secluded place? Surrounded by hills rather than at the top of one? They do not wish to be found. A single cultivator with a shred of power could take anything they wished from this village."

"Don't you have police or something? People here just sit around and let these things happen?" Jie asked.

Ming smiled. "You mean... isn't there anyone with the strength to protect the weak, and right the wrongs? Not everyone is evil, but in the end, if you want to make the world a better place, you'll have to become strong enough to do so.

"Until then, your words are meaningless moaning. If you hate the way the world works, gain the power to change it," he said.