Contrary to Ren's expectations they did not just, 'away', but instead Darkhaven walked slowly, with his hands crossed behind his back, beckoning Ren to follow. And so an old man and a young boy walked side by side, one clad in white, the other in black, looking like a grandfather and his grandson.

As the two of them meandered through the gardens, occasionally a disciple would cross their path and respectfully greet them, but it was mostly a silent affair with no obscene paying of respect happening.

They crossed a good many paths, and encounters with disciples grew ever more scarce. Ren, in the meantime, observed the surroundings and focused on the Master's spirit in even more detail, having seen that the man could, at least to some extent, hide himself from his senses.

Darkhaven's spirit was again as Ren had seen him a month ago, thick, dark, and sticky like molasses, but he could now look even further. Delving into the details of the Master's spirit.

What he found, was something that almost made him lose his step. Darkhaven's spirit was roiling around in spirals, with each consequent one devouring the next. Over and over, looking like schools of fish in an ocean. They mesmerized Ren with their complexity. Multiple patterns working in accord, where before he could not make out nearly all of it.

But what really disturbed Ren was a hole in the Master's chest. Not a real hole mind you, but it might as well be, for there was simply no spirit he could sense, a complete white spot, gaping and garish now that he had seen it. One had to understand that Ren had up until now never seen anything or anyone that just did not have any spirit. The smallest children and every inch of the stones they were walking upon had spirit in them. Some places might not be as thick with it, but there was no absence of it. Never!

Ren was baffled with how something like this could ever have happened. A place of total isolation. A void in a storm. Ren immediately had the urge to ask the Master about it, but as no one on Ren's level seemed to have a perception of spirit and the world around them of even close to his level, Ren wanted to keep it to himself. At least to some extent. He thus kept the question that was burning on his tongue to himself.

Though considering his early acquisition of Intent, some might already have concluded that other aspects of Ren might stand out as well.

Darkhaven looked at him askance, raising one of his eyebrows as Ren barely caught himself from stumbling. Ren could do nothing but look a little sheepish.

"I think that we walked in silence for long enough now. Tell me Initiate, Ren, how did you like your first month?" The man asked him with a soothing voice, all the while still walking and not fully turning to him.

Ren had to think about his answer for a while, and not only because he was still shocked. There were a few things to consider.

On one hand, Ren had started his journey on the road of cultivation, opening countless doors to himself. The other disciples were not malicious but neither were they overly friendly, and while he did meet both Ai and Daiyu and got to know the rest of his class over the course of the day, he still felt lonely from time to time. Lin and Aya were on the other side of the mountain, having their own first month without him.

Stolen novel; please report.

Outwardly, he just shrugged. "I guess it was fine. I learned a lot and the classes are easy, but I would still like to meet my friends again." Ren didn't want to appear too interested in reuniting with his friends, but his voice still turned hopeful, and this did not escape Darkhaven's notice.

"Just fine, huh? You should not take the instruction for granted, young one." He smiled, but still said it with a weighty voice. Ren nodded seriously. A world of wonder and magic was opened to him, and a few boring or even miserable months were not worth his consideration. They might still sting, but he could live with it.

Feigning a cough, the Master continued. "That is still all well and good, let me motivate you a little, though. Reach the required levels of spirit of a Novice, your control should be good enough from what I heard, master at least the basic levels of the movement and body arts of your manual, and complete one mission of my choosing. Complete all of this, and you can visit the elementary division, even multiple times a week if you so desire." Darkhaven looked quite satisfied with himself. "I will also teach you personally, once every two weeks. Does that sound agreeable?"

The old man looked at him, as if he had made the offer of a century, while Ren could only goggle at the transition he made, as well as the amount of time such an undertaking would consume. A year was already extremely fast if you wanted to just reach Novice, but to also reach basic mastery over two arts meant for Adepts and complete a mission of indeterminable difficulty? It was easier said than done, and Ren didn't want to wait a year, or even longer.

"Could we maybe cut down the conditions somehow? This will likely take at least a year to complete." Ren asked pleadingly, as he didn't want to sound too demanding, though he was less than pleased with this arrangement. Darkhaven was adamant nonetheless and would not budge, though he graciously added that Ren would also receive a bag of holding upon his mission completion.

The two of them continued their walk through the gardens. Ren deep in thought as to how he would accomplish the prerequisites put forth by the old codger, while Darkhaven enjoyed the slight breeze upon his face and the peaceful ambiance of the ancient gardens. They walked over beautiful stone bridges lined with fitting lanterns in an ancient style. Lush trees lined both sides, and you could really see that spring was turning into summer.

"In our lessons, we will also cover the darker aspects of cultivation." Darkhaven stopped as they could look upon a small fountain to their right and turned to him.

"Ren, you may not have been confronted with it yet, but to elevate ourselves on the path of cultivation, our Intent, arts, spirit, our very being, we have to strive to compete. For only in competition lies advancement. The earlier you ingrain the harsh truths of the world into your being, the faster you will learn from them. I am harsh, but I believe that I am also fair, and while you are still young in the world of cultivation it does not excuse ignorance." Darkhaven told Ren with a gravitas befitting of a Master. All joy and games had left his eyes, and therein was only reflected the harshness of his statement.

Ren could do nought but nod his assent, dumbfounded by the turn of their conversation.

"It is good that you try to understand. You do not yet, but how could you? A child closed off from the wider world. But you will, oh you definitely will." Darkhaven looked wistfully into the distance, as if he remembered something of the distant past, then looked at Ren with sad eyes, but they almost immediately lost all semblance of melancholy and were instead replaced by a kind of steely determination and something else, that Ren could not place.

"We will see each other again, Initiate Ren." And with these words and his prior ominous message, Master Darkhaven left Ren stranded in the gardens, vanishing in a flicker of movement and an explosion of spirit.

Ren sighed, feeling like he did quite a bit of it lately. 'I just have to complete everything I set out to do, just as fast as possible. I will meet you again, Lin, Aya, and everyone back home even. I will make it happen.' With these determined thoughts and the determination to try and incorporate the other arts of the manual into his constant routine, even though he was not yet even a Novice, he set out.

Leaving the gardens to hasten for his residence. The training arc was about to begin, and Ren welcomed it with determination.