Chapter 6

There was a very brief introduction that occurred once dinner was finished cooking. Tren had been taking a bath while the others worked and emerged cleaner and in finer clothes than she’d seen him earlier, but still not the grandmaster’s attire that she’d first met him in. Rather, these looked like clothes that a peasant might wear on a holiday.

The children lined up from youngest to oldest, and they each introduced themselves.

“I’m Pao, I’m fifteen, and I’m an earth cultivator of the eighth stage of the initiate’s realm,” the oldest boy, who had the height of a man but retained boyish features otherwise. Except for his muscles, she noticed. He was dressed in fine black clothes with the word for “Earth Initiate” embroidered upon them.

The twins went next, with the girl going first. “I’m Ko, and I’m a water cultivator, like Mistress Wensho Shen. My brother and I recently broke through into the seventh stage of the initiate’s realm, but I’ll let him introduce himself.”

The boy nodded at his sister. “I’m Won. I’m a fire cultivator,” he said. “Seventh stage, like she said. I thought I’d be stronger than you when you arrived since I heard you were weak two years ago, but whatever. You’re older, so I guess that means that it was easier for you to catch up.”

His sister elbowed him and he elbowed her back. They stepped back, and suddenly Safron stepped forward. She was wearing a little dress with the word for “Fire” embroidered on it. “I’m Safron and we met but I wanted to say and I have fire magic too,” the little girl declared before stepping back.

Tan rolled his eyes at his sister’s antics, then shrugged. “You know who I am and what I cultivate already, since I’m the entire reason you’re here. I’m in the first stage of the Foundation Realm, although I think I’m going to break through into the next stage any day now,” he said. She noticed that he was wearing the same clothes that he had been wearing when they first met, loose blue pants and a shirt that had a front flap that went down over his thighs. On his chest was the word for “Wind Student of Two Grandmasters.”

Kora nodded. “It’s a pleasure to meet you all, and to see you again, Tan. I’ve been looking forward to this visit since our last encounter.”

“Why?” Tan asked. “Didn’t I nearly screw up your cultivation and almost kill you?”

“I, well, yes you did. But it also freed my spirit, Slake, and we have been growing closer thanks to the destruction of the subsumation bonding technique. If you hadn’t destroyed that technique, then my best friend would have lost her mind before I ever knew her,” Kora explained.

“I hate you so much,” her spirit whispered in her ear.

Tan frowned at her, then shrugged. “Whatever. You’re not my girlfriend. My parents say that I have to be nice to you, but that doesn’t mean we’re getting married,” he said flatly.

She bit her lip at the blunt dismissal of her ambitions. “I’m not asking you to love me right now, Tan, only for an opportunity to get to know each other. That’s all.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Tan said. “Come on, let’s eat.”

So they all sat at the table. Kora waited a moment to be served, but quickly saw her mistake as the other children all speared the best food they could with their silverware and began loading up their plates and bowls. She quickly realized that if she didn’t help herself soon, there wouldn’t be much left, so she got in on the action.

Several of the dumplings that she’d wrapped herself made it onto her bowl, with only one of the ones that Lady Wensho had wrapped. She got plenty of rice, but not as much of the fried pork and vegetables as the other children claimed. Even the adults got in on the game. Only little Safron was immune to the competition for the best bits of the dinner. And only because she was apparently allowed to pick whatever she wanted off the plates of the older children.

Soon, the center of the table was empty of food, and the family was eating while guarding their food from the others. This was necessary, Kora realized, because if you didn’t watch it the other children would ruthlessly steal from you.

It wasn’t that there wasn’t enough to go around. Especially the rice; half the pot remained ready for anyone who hadn’t gotten enough of the other food to fill their bellies with. There was plenty for everyone, and she wondered what the competition was about. Was it some sort of ritual that she didn’t understand? What purpose did it serve? Was it competition just for competitions sake?

As she struggled to keep her selections from the other children, suddenly Tren speared one of Wensho’s dumplings from Kora’s plate. Kora shot him a surprised look, but he just grinned and popped the dumpling into her mouth.

She was amazed at the familiarity they were showing. What was this? Was every meal going to be a competition? Was everything going to be a competition? Was that the secret to their strength?

Across the table, Tan shot his not-girlfriend a glare. Why was she being weird? She looked absolutely stunned when his dad had stolen her last good dumpling, but why wouldn’t he have done that? It was practically a tradition at every table that he’d ever eaten at to squabble for the tastiest bits before they were eaten.

He frowned. At least, everywhere except when he’d been in Mosanatas, but that city had been weird on multiple levels. Maybe she came from someplace like that? Where adults watched the kids eat without disturbing them for some reason?

That was fine, but he preferred the fun of stealing from the others.

Once most of the food was gone, everyone settled back and began to cultivate. Kora was no exception. She had thought that the rice that Tremble had cooked was rich in Qi, but it was nothing compared to this banquet. Even little Safron closed her eyes and meditated briefly.

However, after less than ten minutes, the others had finished their contemplations and began chatting, disturbing Kora’s careful manipulations of the energy within her. She looked up. Had they finished already? With a bounty like this, she could spend hours absorbing the spiritual energy in her belly.

The twins were bickering about something that Kora didn’t understand. They were talking about someone called “the Red Rooster” and whether or not his latest letter home had been dishonest about his progress or not. This “Red Rooster” claimed to have reached the sixth stage of the initiate’s realm.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

Ko thought that he was being honest, while Won was insisting that the man was lying. Then eventually Won decided that maybe the Rooster was telling the truth, and abruptly Ko was insistent that the man was full of horse dung.

“You’ve made surprising progress since we saw you last, Kora,” Lady Wensho said overtop the bickering. “Congratulations on your advancement.”

“Thank you. It was the boon of the emperor that pushed me this far. I received an invitation for an audience. We didn’t know why at all, but apparently I got his attention. I’m not certain if you’ve ever been there, but it’s customary to bathe before meeting the emperor at the hotsprings. I broke through into the seventh stage of the initiate’s realm in the bath. It’s kind of embarrassing, really, since it caused a delay and I guess there’s sort of a taboo against cultivating in the hot springs, but then…”

She glanced around realized that everyone was staring at her.

“ You met the emperor? ” Tan asked, incredulous.

“Well, not really? Sort of? He was behind a screen, so I didn’t see his face or anything. He tested me with his intent, which was so strong that I almost fainted. Then he said that he was pleased with me and gave me three gifts. A Treatise that is helping me change my Dao into one of a higher path, a bush of Everburning Blackberries for my family’s estate, and a week with a master fire cultivator beyond compare. You might know him, I believe he’s a member of your family. His name is Renton Shen.”

“Uncle Renton is stupid. He talks stupid and doesn’t make sense,” Safron chimed in.

“I’m eternally grateful for the tutelage he gave me,” Safron said earnestly. “With his guidance and the Emperor’s gifts, I have swiftly ascended three stages in as many months. I am continuing to follow the cultivation plan he has set out for me, and I am grateful for it for it has greatly exceeded what I could have achieved on my own.”

“And how exactly does Renton’s method compare to the Zang family’s methods?” Tren inquired, a smile upon his face.

Kora frowned, but she realized that the Shen family methods were clearly superior, so such a question was less probing for secrets and more … humble bragging? She was uncertain, but she decided upon honestly answering.

“Were it not for his guidance, I would have consumed every fruit that the Everburning Blackberry Bush produced within a few days, instead of slowly spreading them out over the last few weeks. I would have made great progress at first, but then slowly died out, like a bonfire that burns brightly at first but dims as it runs through the fuel. With his guidance, I have been consuming only a few of the berries at a time, and processing them slowly to get the greatest benefits. The fire that burns hottest does not burn nearly as long as one that is carefully shepherded through the night.”

“Ugh, another one,” Tan said.

Kora blinked. “Another what?”

“Another cultivator who tries to make themselves sound profound by making analogies using their element. Were those your words or Uncle Renton’s?” he asked.

Kora frowned. “They’re my own, but they’re based upon his wisdom. Do you have a problem with—”

‎ “Be not a bonfire but a lantern,” he said. He nodded. “There. I said what you said in way fewer words, and I’m a wind cultivator. So there.”

She cocked her head to the side. Was this some sort of competition she wasn’t aware of? Then she studied his words and realized that he had indeed encapsulated the wisdom she’d attempted to share in fewer words.

“A lantern has more control over the flame it burns than a bonfire,” she admitted. “It gives off the same amount of heat and the same amount of light, perhaps, but it preserves its fuel for longer and only burns when it is needed. Your insight is—”

“Whatever,” Tan said, interrupting her. “So you met Uncle Renton, huh? We planted the orchard together. I helped.”

Kora blinked. “The orchard?”

“We have a newly planted orchard of cherry trees,” Lady Wensho said. “We’re looking forward to their first harvest. They promise to be most delicious, and quite good for the children’s cultivation. Unfortunately it doesn’t look like they’ll bear fruit for some time, possibly not until next year.”

“Oh,” Kora said. “I hear that blossoming cherry trees are beautiful.”

“Indeed they are,” Lord Tren said, a wistful smile on his face. He glanced at Wensho and said “I can’t wait to kiss my wife beneath one once more.”

Lady Wensho swatted him playfully, while Tan groaned like he’d seen something disgusting. He turned back to Kora. “Can you fight?” he asked.

She blinked. “What?”

“Can. You. Fight. Mom, dad, we should have another tournament tomorrow. To see who’s strongest now that she’s here.”

“If we get done with the chores in time,” Lord Tren said. “And she agrees to it of course.”

Tan shot a challenging glare at her, and she felt a sudden burst of intent. Anger and annoyance and a desire to … prove himself? She frowned. That’s what she got from the burst. Had that been intentional, or…

“You flinched,” he said. “You lose.”

She blinked. “What?”

“I made you flinch with my intent. You lose,” he repeated. “It’s a game we play. If you flinch when someone uses their intent on you, you lose. You lost. That means you have to—”

“Kora’s doesn’t have to play this game unless she wants to,” Lady Wensho said, quickly interjecting herself in the conversation. She looked at Kora and shrugged helplessly. “The children have been training their intent for the last few months, since they got back from Mosanatas. The game they play, and the stakes they put on it, are motivation to improve. But you weren’t aware of it, so you’re exempt.”

“No, that’s okay,” Kora said, wishing to integrate into the Shen household while she was here. “What do I have to do, since I flinched.”

Tan thought about it for a minute, then grinned. “Clean the chicken coop,” he declared.

“You do not have to do that, Kora,” Lord Tren said emphatically. “Pick something else Tan.”

“No, it’s okay. He’s right, I did flinch,” Kora said. And besides, how hard could it be? “I’ll just need someone to show me what to do, and then I’ll do the rest.”

Tan grinned, and she felt another burst of malicious pleasure from him. She didn’t flinch this time.

Perhaps she would have if she’d realize what cleaning a chicken coop actually entailed.

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