Chapter 5: Recovery

The day after the procedure, Lys recorded several techniques and lectures about cultivation into eight technique slips for Astrid to use once she was fully recovered, both physically and mentally. Knowing the recovery process would take a while, Lys entrusted Astrid’s care to Bohn, paying him in advance for the food and pills she would need. Then Lys departed for the sect, as she had received a summons.

While at the sect, Lys planned on gathering some cultivation manuals for Astrid from both the sect’s archives and her private collection. She took a drop of Astrid’s blood with her to officially register her as a disciple, ensuring Astrid would have access to certain resources and methods. Lys had considerable authority within the sect, with the current heir being her former disciple, now the young lord and personal disciple of the Sect Master. Though she had declined a promotion to core elder as it felt like just more responsibilities, her increased authority allowed her to obtain what she needed. In her private stash were rare methods she hoped Astrid would choose, as they came without any binding vows. However, she intended to let Astrid decide on her own path, especially since body cultivation wasn’t Lys’s primary focus.

Lys planned on checking on her two older disciples who were in the Foundation Forging and Core Formation realms and spent a day at the sect before answering the summons. The entire trip—there and back—took her two months, plus five days spent handling Astrid’s registration and various tasks, not considering the summons. She also planned a short meeting with her former disciple, the young lord, to inform him about her taking in a new disciple and have a short catch-up session. With her plans decided, she left.

Meanwhile, Astrid woke up eight days after Lys’s departure. She blinked groggily, noticing that she was wearing fresh clothes and feeling remarkably better. She remembered being terribly sick but now found herself in a clean bed, feeling well-rested and, for the first time in a while, not hungry. However, her mood soured as she recalled the events that had just occurred, at least in her mind. Throwing off the blanket, she called out, “Lys! Where are you?”

A man entered the room, introducing himself with a grin. “Hello, I’m Doctor Bohn. Nice to meet you, kiddo.”

Startled, Astrid screamed. For a moment, Bohn’s face twisted with an annoyed expression before he sighed and returned to his usual calm demeanor. “I get it,” he said, “Lys can be a handful. She almost killed you in the process of helping you heal faster. Anyway, I’ve taken care of you, and you’re mostly healed now. But you’ve lost all of your innate divine strength. Don’t worry, though. It’ll come back once you start eating properly and training again.”

Astrid stared at him in shock, struggling to process what he was saying. After what felt like forever, she finally spoke, “Thank you for saving me. So... I assume Lys is the reason I arrived here in such bad shape and was consequently treated by you? And where exactly is this place? Are we in Violet Blos-Direstone City? Are there any instructions I need to follow? What’s that weird smell in the air?”

Her mind was racing as if it had been jump-started. The procedure had left her with an incredible clarity of thought she’d never experienced before. But her newfound sharpness came with a price. Her senses were now far more heightened than she could handle. She held her head and subsequently screamed as her mind was overwhelmed by the incremental sensory overload, which she felt now rather than earlier, unable to cope with the intensity. She fainted just a few seconds later, the pain too much for her to bear.

Bohn sighed, watching her collapse. “Well, she’s got some spirit, doesn’t she? I didn’t expect her to last that long. I’ll probably have to go through this about 20 more times. Well, back to more research.” He casually took out an energy pill and popped it into Astrid’s mouth before leaving the room.

Astrid repeated the cycle of waking up and fainting every six to eight hours. By the third time, she had stopped screaming, which surprised Bohn. Five days later—after the fifteenth time—Astrid no longer fainted, though she was left with a pounding headache from the overwhelming flood of information her mind was processing. Whatever procedure Bohn had performed had not only heightened her five senses but also significantly increased her ability to perceive and interpret the vast amount of data they provided. Her body was more responsive than she thought possible, and she could even sense the internal workings of her organs and muscles. Bohn kept her nourished with energy pills, ensuring she remained in top condition during the recovery process.

One morning, Bohn asked, “Ready to start going through the basics? The information your master left for you is not something you can currently handle.”

“Future master,” Astrid corrected, still lying in bed.

“Bah, same thing. She left you eight information slips to review in order when it’s possible. And you’re free to do what you want, but she specifically said no cultivation until you're fifteen.”

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“Fine by me. I expected her to pull something like this. But ditching me in a different city without so much as a warning—now that’s just rude,” Astrid muttered. “Anyway, where are the eight books she left?”

“Books?” Bohn laughed. “Oh, you really don’t know, do you? Cultivators rarely store cultivation techniques or martial arts in books. There’s too much information to include that way. That’s why they use information slips. They allow knowledge to be transferred directly into your memory. It’s efficient but painful, and the speed at which you can absorb the information depends on how strong your mind is.”

“So, it just zaps the info into my head? Seems lazy. They couldn’t write it all down?”

Bohn chuckled again. “Think of it like this: what you can write in a book is like a pebble compared to the mountain of knowledge stored in an information slip.”

“But isn’t there a risk of tainting the information?” Astrid asked, frowning. “If it’s not documented properly and tested, how do you know it’s correct?”

Bohn paused, caught off guard by the question. “Hmm, that’s... actually a good point. I hadn’t thought of it like that.”

“Well, it makes sense, right? You can’t consider something completely factual unless it’s been cross-verified. Even if an experiment works, it might not cover the whole picture. How do you know what you’ve learned is everything there is to know? You need a framework to measure the success or validity of information. Otherwise, what’s the point? The goal should be to get as close to the truth as possible, even if it’s a bit messy,” Astrid explained with surprising clarity.

Bohn looked at her thoughtfully. “What a fresh perspective, especially from a twelve-year-old.” He realized this kid had an intriguing way of thinking. If he could adopt even a fraction of her thought process, he might find new ways to approach problems, things others might overlook. He also recognized that even with his vast knowledge of medicine and alchemy, there were limitations—gaps he hadn’t previously considered. A bottleneck in his own thinking that he hadn’t realized until this moment was being dissolved by the words of a child.

“Let’s grab something to eat. I’m tired of being cooped up in this bed.”

Bohn chuckled, casting a [Cleanse] technique on Astrid as she got out of bed. She immediately felt refreshed.

“What was that?” Astrid asked, surprised.

“[Cleanse]. A technique to clean the body instantly,” Bohn explained casually.

“Wow! So cultivation can do things like that? I always thought it was just about fighting and gaining power.”

Bohn laughed heartily. “That’s true for many, but not for all. That’s where auxiliary techniques—like this one—come in.”

“Interesting... but how do cultivators make money? I get that doctors, alchemists, and blacksmiths can earn a living, but what about the rest? Aren’t cultivators just glorified super ban—”

Bohn quickly covered her mouth, his expression turning serious. “Some things,” he warned, “are better left unsaid. But they are more like... what do you call them? I can’t think of the right word, but anyway...”

“Seriously? What if someone’s listening in all the time and decides to act on what I just said?” Astrid joked, a playful glint in her eye. “Anyway, let’s go.”

Bohn’s face paled slightly. “Yeah, yeah, let’s go.” His tone was subdued, and he seemed reluctant to say anything more. He extended his hand, and Astrid took it.

They stepped out of the house in silence. After a moment, Astrid broke the quiet. “What’s that smell? It’s so... distinct.”

“Oh, that? It’s the scent that forms when a lot of alchemical pills are being made,” Bohn explained.

“What exactly are alchemists?” she asked, curiosity lighting up her face.

“Alchemy is the art of creating pills for cultivation or to achieve specific effects,” he said. “The energy pills you’ve been taking are designed to give you a temporary boost and keep you feeling full. But they don’t work as well for you because of your food requirements. You’re quite a handful, you know,” he added with a chuckle.

As they walked, Bohn pointed out the various buildings surrounding them. “These are the houses of the other members of the Medical Pavilion and the alchemists who produce the pills we use. Each place has its own specialties and focuses on different areas of medicine and alchemy.”

They continued along the path until they reached the edge of the mini living area. Bohn paused and turned to Astrid. “Can I pick you up for a minute? We need to pass through the Medical Pavilion on our way out.”

“Sure,” Astrid replied, nodding eagerly.

With a swift motion, Bohn scooped her up and settled her onto his shoulders. “Hold on tight!” he said with a grin.

Astrid smiled brightly, feeling exhilarated as they moved swiftly down the lush mountainside, the scenery blurring past them. They soon arrived at the Medical Pavilion, its imposing structure bustling with activity.

As they walked along a side path through the pavilion toward the gate leading to the city, several servants bowed respectfully as Bohn passed by. Astrid glanced around and asked, “Do you, like, own this place?”

Bohn chuckled. “No, but I’m one of the main doctors here. I’m not the best, but I mostly deal with body cultivators.”

“That woman told me my Body Cultivation talent is pretty good. But what even is Body Cultivation?”

“Well, Body Cultivation is really about reshaping your body and pushing it beyond what you think is possible,” Bohn said, his voice steady but enthusiastic.

“Like evolution?” Astrid asked, tilting her head in curiosity.

“Not quite, but it’s in the same ballpark. Imagine this: if you want to go beyond your body’s natural limits, just focusing on energy cultivation isn’t enough. Sure, that’ll make you strong, but you’ll still be held back by your physical form.”

“So...?” Astrid prompted, her interest piqued.

“So, Body Cultivation is your ticket to breaking through those natural barriers. But honestly, I’m more of an energy cultivator myself, so I can’t explain it as well as someone who specializes in Body Cultivation could. I get the gist of it, but you’d be better off hearing it from an expert.”