Benton was pleased to see that everyone was packed up and ready to go at dawn the next morning, all having already eaten breakfast in the inn. The caravan hit the road on time to continue its slow journey. Ye Zan estimated about two weeks to Vermillion Incomparable Rain Town and another month from there to the village, so they had another six weeks total to travel, though Benton hoped to shave some of that off.
The blacksmith’s family had been placed in the middle of the procession for protection since their cart carried little children.
As a grandfather, Benton had a natural aversion to anything that presented a danger to kids, and he couldn’t help but worry seeing Xun Wu’s restless two-year-old and six-year-old moving around the tiny cart they were crammed onto. Not only would a fall from a moving vehicle, albeit a slow one, hurt them, but they’d be at real risk of getting stomped by the trailing team of oxen.
He spent the morning getting down from his wagon to go check on them before returning to sit, soon to repeat the process again. And again. And…
Obviously, the problem wasn’t the kids’ fault. At such a young age, it was difficult for them to be confined to a small area for so long, especially considering the excitement of the sudden move. There was no way he could reasonably expect them to simply sit still.
He needed another solution. Maybe just move their cart to the last position? Nope. That placement wouldn’t work. It would solve the whole being trampled by animals that weigh more than a ton each problem, but the trailing vehicle was the most vulnerable from an attack from the rear.
No, he needed more space for the kids to move around.
Benton had already cleared out half the herb wagon for cultivating. He could store most of the rest in his ring and just put a few layers on top of the miscellaneous stuff. Any spies on the lookout for him either in the town or passing on the road wouldn’t know how deep the herbs went, and there could be multiple explanations for missing some like dumping them to save space or, crap, using them to season the rabbit stew.
Of course, putting most of the herbs in his ring meant his disciples would learn another of his secrets, but honestly, they already knew a lot. Not only that, but there was no way he was traveling with a long wagon train from the town to the village. It would be too hard to protect everyone from spirit beasts if they were that spread out, and he seriously doubted there were spies in the village. Besides, if there were spies among the village’s inhabitants, he was screwed anyway.
If they had a way to get messages out, that was.
But if they had that ability, one would have thought they would have called someone for help, considering that the town was beset by beasts and many risked starvation over the winter.
The conclusion he drew was that hiding the ring’s storage space from his disciples was pointless. He’d just have to make sure all of them were unable to pass along any messages while in town, and he’d be as safe as he could be.
Benton made his decision. He’d expand his mobile cultivation platform to serve the dual purpose of a mobile playpen. Evelyn would have been proud of him because that was totally something she would have done. Besides, there was even an additional benefit. Storing the herbs in the ring would keep them fresher.
Uh, if already dried herbs could be kept fresher? Or did it matter since they were dried, or would they last practically forever?
He had no idea. Regardless, surely rain would be bad for the dried plants if they encountered any, right?
No one save the blacksmith and his family reacted much to Benton sweeping the herbs into his ring, and the kids sure did appreciate the extra room to squirm.
Near the middle of the day, Shi Long reached minor realm three and was able to consolidate his gains by the time the caravan stopped for the night. His success brought Benton to forty-five Sect Points and forced him to make a decision.
Because he’d really liked collaborating with the council he’d formed from his most talented disciples, he brought them together again along with a few others. In addition to Yang Xiu, Yang Ru, Zou Tian, and Shi Long, he asked Ye Zan, Hou Yazhu, and Xun Wu to join him in the woods for a meeting.
“When it comes to sect business,” Benton told the group after they’d all seated themselves in a circle around a qi orb, “I am the ultimate decision maker. No man, not even one with my experience, knows everything, though, and each of you certainly has a perspective that I don’t. From here on out, when possible, I’ll include the seven of you in my decision-making process.”
Ye Zan and Hou Yazhu looked at each other, clearly wondering why they had been included.
“Talent is important to my sect just like it is any other sect,” Benton said, “but we need leaders, too. Both of you have shown yourselves to be capable at keeping the caravan moving forward. You’ve earned your place in this circle. Note that Wan Ai and Mistress Zhong, who will be a normal part of this council, are absent, being still in the village.”
Benton really wanted to ask someone to read the minutes from the last meeting, but nobody would have gotten the humor of referencing such official proceedings in such a non-official environment. And that was just a darn shame. There was nothing in the world worse than coming up with an amusing aside and having no one to share it with.
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“When Yang Xiu and Yang Ru reached minor realm three, I gave them each a pill.” Benton pulled one from his ring. “This is a Qi Condensing Pill. Consuming one will allow a cultivator in the Qi Gathering realm to advance a minor realm or more, especially when taken early. Minor realm three, as it turns out, is the perfect time to take one.”
Shi Long looked excited, understanding at once what Benton was saying.
“These pills are somewhat rare, and I doubt I would have been able to find as many excellent examples as I did had I not become a friend of the sect with the best alchemists in Sixth Flawless Flowing City. Even with that benefit, I was only able to acquire six I felt were high enough quality to use. Which leads us to the decisions I must make and the reason we’re sitting out here in the forest right now.”
He could tell that each of them understood the question—who got the pills?
“Before we get to that discussion, there are three facts that you need to know,” Benton said. “One, pill toxicity is a Bad Thing. Every pill that you take between now and the time you reach Nascent Soul will leave tiny traces of toxicity in your body. Some of this will be expelled when you reach Foundation Establishment and Golden Core but not all. If too much toxicity builds up, the act of cultivation will begin to burn up your meridians and your pathways, ending your advancement forever. Two, the pills I gave the twins were much, much higher quality than these, containing enough qi to advance them a full minor realm and a half and being one hundred percent pure. Three, I might or might not be able to obtain more of the perfect pills after we reach the village.”
Everyone took a moment to digest what he said.
“Are the pills you have now dangerous, Master?” Yang Xiu said.
“These aren’t actually too bad, ranging from ninety-seven to ninety-nine percent purity. That number means that one to three percent of the pill, depending on which one you take, possibly contains toxins. The actual amount is usually far less, but the higher the impurity, the more likely it is that it has a higher concentration of toxins. Consuming three pills of this purity per major realm should be absolutely safe, but any quantity over that amount increases your chance of having problems, as does taking higher toxicity pills. Note, though, that I didn’t say you could consume three Qi Condensing pills per major realm. I said three pills. Of any type. If you’ve taking three Qi Condensing pills, which is a bad idea anyway, and then have an injury that requires a healing pill, you’re taking a risk.”
He met the eyes of each person in the circle. “And never, ever take a pill if you don’t know the purity unless your life literally depends on it.”
“If this lowly one were offered a pill, this lowly one’s preference would be to take it now, Master,” Shi Long said.
“Which brings us back to who should be offered the pills,” Benton said. “Let’s go around the circle in order of becoming my disciple.”
“I think all five disciples in this circle, not counting Yang Ru or myself, should have them, Master,” Yang Xiu, the first official disciple, said.
“Really?” Benton said. “Even Ye Zan and Hou Yazhu, who would be considered no more than gutter trash by any other sect? You’d waste a valuable, limited resource on them?”
If Yang Xiu had been a teenager on Earth, Benton was sure she would have rolled her eyes.
“My sect values leaders, Master. To raise up a cultivator who has that intrinsic talent is not a waste.”
Benton laughed. “Well said, but who gets the last one.”
Yang Xiu looked conflicted. “Save it for Wan Ai just in case Master can’t get any more of the good stuff.”
“Okay. Next.”
Yang Ru grunted.
“Two votes for giving out pills to the five here and saving the last one till we get back to the village. Next.”
Some of the newer members looked confused at Benton’s interpretation of Yang Ru’s grunt, but it really was like “I am Groot.” Once you got to know the kid, you could totally figure out what he meant. And if you interpreted him wrong, he’d let you know. Probably with another grunt, but still.
“This one thinks Master should give it only to Master’s best talents, Shi Long and Xun Wu,” Zou Tian said. “Save the rest just in case it’s a long time until Master can get more.”
“Want to defend your point of view?” Benton said.
“What is best for the sect is best for each of us individually, Master. Giving the best resources to the best talents will result in a stronger sect.”
“That is very conservative viewpoint, but I can’t say you’re wrong. Next.”
“This lowly one very much wants a pill, Master,” Shi Long said, “so this lowly one cannot be objective.”
“Who says I value objectivity? Besides, in both cases put forth so far, you’d get a pill.”
“In that case, this lowly one would feel bad if the rest of my fellow disciples in the circle didn’t receive one, Master. This lowly one chooses to vote with Senior Sister and Senior Brother.”
“Understood,” Benton said. “Next.”
“This one doesn’t want to appear greedy by saying give the pills to all of us, Master,” Ye Zan said, “but this one also doesn’t want to appear to be currying favor by voting to save them.”
“The whole point of this council is for me to hear honest opinions from each of you. Obviously, trust like that has to be earned, but my goal is for all of you to become comfortable speaking your minds and for none of you to hold opinions voiced here against the speaker.”
Ye Zan still looked conflicted, and Benton could understand the issue. For Ye Zan’s entire life, he’d had no standing, no right to an opinion or a voice. All of a sudden, he was not only elevated to being a cultivator but was being asked to give advice to his Master when he was in the lowest tier of the disciples.
“If this one must be completely open and honest, this one has to vote with Zou Tian, Master. It’s simply the most logical choice.”
“Thank you for making your voice heard. Next.”
“Uh, this one votes with Senior Sister, Master,” Hou Yazhu said.
“And your reasoning?”
“It’s the only one of the choices that allows this one to get a pill, Master.”
Benton chuckled. “Fair enough. Last but not least…”
“This one can’t help but notice that some disciples are more casual than others, Master. It’s difficult for this newcomer to understand the correct form of address.”
“Whatever makes you feel comfortable, really. The whole not using personal pronouns thing makes sentences tedious, but I get that some of you aren’t ready to be that casual yet. I really don’t care, truthfully. Though, the twins tend to get a mite upset if there’s any outright disrespect.”
They both nodded their heads. Vigorously.
“Well, then, Master, if you truly don’t mind, I’ll talk plainly.”
Benton nodded. “Continue.”
“I hated it when I had something special like a bite of sweet cake and had to choose one of my children to give it to, and it seems like this is a similar situation. I always wanted to treat them as equally as possible, so my choice would be not to give the pills to anyone. Maybe save them for the sect store to be bought with contribution points or something.”
“Great point. That’s an option I hadn’t even considered and exactly why we’re having these discussions.”
“Does that mean my idea wins, Master?” Yang Xiu said. “It had the most votes.”
“Fortunately or unfortunately, this is not a democracy. Let me take a moment to consider before I make my decision.”