The next month went by quickly. My disciples and I spent most of our time cultivating, training, or in lessons. There were many aspects of cultivation that they needed to learn, not just the martial ones, and I spent afternoons holding lectures for them.
In addition to that, I also taught them fighting styles from the Blossoming Lotus Sect in general, not just Sky Piercer Peak. This was easiest with Leroy, since I taught him the fighting style I favored, the Celestial Sword Style.
With the others, it wasn’t as easy. I had only used my fists when I needed to, back on Spirit Earth, and I rarely used the bow. That said, I knew enough that I could get them started on their own paths. After that, however, they would have to learn and figure things out on their own. I could give them advice and guidance, but that was it.
For Lorelei, I taught her the Sky Breaker Style. It was a fighting style that focused on aggression and overwhelming one’s opponent with raw strength. Once a practitioner of the Sky Breaker Style built up momentum, it was hard to stop them.
I figured that she would be fine with the basics of the Sky Breaker Style, since she had her own fighting style as well. She and her mother, Guildmaster Sinclair, were both fist fighters after all. It wasn’t like Lorelei needed me to teach her everything.
That didn’t stop me from writing down some fist techniques and giving them to her. She could study them in her own time.
As for Corie, it was actually easier to teach her than Lorelei. This was because her cultivation technique, Path of the Great Archer, also had a supplementary fighting style with the same name. Luckily, I had memorized both. So while I hadn’t practiced this particular fighting style, I could still teach it to her. Not only that, but the manual for Path of the Great Archer included bow techniques and such. As long as she studied the manual on her own and diligently practiced, she would be fine.
Near the end of this month-long period, Lorelei and Corie also formed their dantians. We celebrated by holding a small feast. After that, I began teaching my disciples some of the more common techniques that every cultivator should know, including the cleaning technique that I developed.
They all liked the body enhancement cultivators used. While they were all used to the internal magic of their respective elemental affinities, body enhancement was just better overall. Well, not for Leroy. At the Second Circle, Earth internal magic was pretty powerful.
Still, he and Lorelei were amazed that they could now move as fast as an Air wizard using internal magic, albeit a weak one. The speed boost would help them a lot. Corie marveled at the increase to her strength.
In other good news, Andrew Quick finished the Fire jian near the end of this month long period. Rather than wait for him to send it over, I decided to pick up myself. When I first saw it, I had marveled at its beauty and felt its power thrumming. It was an exemplary example of its kind, and I wasn’t saying that just because I designed it. Andrew Quick’s skill at crafting brought my design to life. He deserved most of the credit.
It was a mid-ranked Second Circle sword. While I wouldn’t be able to use it to its full potential for a while yet, it was still the most powerful magical item in my possession. I decided to name it Crimson Fang.
I also designed it so that if I ever came across a material used to create flying magical items, I could modify Crimson Fang to become a flying sword. Even when I outgrew it, I could use it to fly around.
Holding it in my hands made me want to give it to Leroy even less. I was determined to find some other magical item that I could give him. If nothing else, I wanted to use it in battle a few times at the very least.
Despite how busy I was, I made sure not to neglect my own cultivation and training. My cultivation had slowed somewhat, since I didn’t have any more mana cores or mana stones to consume. I could have gone out to get some, but I decided not to. I was doing fine on my own, and I didn’t want to take away time that could be spent teaching my disciples. Right now, they were my main focus.
Still, I made good progress.
I also reached the third “small realm” of the First Rank of my Divine Storm Dragon body refining technique during this time period. Unlike with spiritual cultivation, or other body refining techniques, I couldn’t use external aids to speed things along. Rather, I couldn’t get my hands on any external aids that would actually help me.
The other forms of body cultivation could use special herbs, the blood and flesh of magic beasts, rare materials, or special environments to help temper and refine the body. For celestial body cultivation, this was limited to external aids related to the chosen celestial body, but it was still doable.
However, since I practiced a divine body cultivation technique, my options were severely limited. If I could go to the heavens, this wouldn’t be a problem, since there were plenty of things there I could use as external aids. However, that wasn’t the case here in the mortal realm. Unless I had a fortuitous encounter, I was stuck doing it the slow and steady way.
Actually, that wasn’t quite true. My body cultivation technique was also a bloodline body cultivation technique. Anything that would strengthen the storm dragon blood in my veins would also strengthen my physique and speed up my body cultivation. The problem was, there was only one thing that I knew of that could do that.
Storm dragon blood.
If I got my hands on that, I could use it to boost the speed of my body cultivation and strengthen the storm dragon blood already running through my veins. I was already doing that with my divine energy, but getting my hands on storm dragon blood would speed things along.
This would also have the benefit of increasing my magical aptitude.
To do that, I would need to find a storm dragon, which wouldn’t be easy. They were rare and powerful creatures. I could spend several lifetimes searching for one, and never find one. Even if I did find one, I would have to take their blood by force. Storm dragons were proud creatures, the sovereigns of the sky. The chances of any of them giving up their blood willingly were slim.
Well, there was my storm dragon ancestor. Maybe they would give me their blood. Maybe. However, I had no idea who that was.
In short, while there was one thing I could think of that I could use to boost my body cultivation, the chances of me getting my hands on it were near zero.
In addition to cultivation, training, and teaching, I worked on the defensive formation for Sturm Hill Hall. It took me an entire afternoon, but I felt better after I finished with it.
I also spent some time dabbling in alchemy. Not as much as I would have liked, since I was so busy all the time, but enough to feel that I hadn’t wasted my mana stones on buying all the expensive equipment. While reading about alchemy was a good start, I needed to practice alchemy if I wanted to progress further than that.
Alchemy was a messy business, especially in the beginning, when I kept making mistakes. In my mind, I kept defaulting to Spirit Earth alchemy, so I had to train myself to think like a Luminan alchemist. This took me some time, as well as several failed experiments.
One time, I accidentally made a stink bomb that filled the entirety of Sturm Hill Hall with a foul smell that lasted for several days. Everyone, including the servants, gave me dirty looks for an entire week after that. From that point on, I conducted most of my experiments in a well ventilated room.
I also drew up plans for a pill furnace. Since I couldn’t buy one, I would either have to make one myself or commission it. Likely the latter, since a pill furnace was a magical item in and of itself.
Despite how busy we all were, we didn’t ignore the outside world altogether. Lorelei and Corie visited Icefall City several times. They had friends and family, after all, and becoming my disciples hadn’t changed that.
I made sure to draw Spiritblood Hidden Lamp Seals over their dantian regions before they left, in order to hide their cultivation bases. I also did the same for Leroy.
From Lorelei and Corie, I learned that nothing had changed regarding the Black Wolf Gang. They kept raiding and attacking several settlements in the Icefall Region. House Icefall did what it could, but its power was limited.
Either the “package” we delivered hadn’t worked, or the Black Wolf Gang hadn’t opened it yet. Maybe Lord Icefall should have put a timer on it, so the “package” would open on its own after a certain amount of time.
I made one trip to Icefall City, so I could fulfill my guild obligations. I was still just a Copper adventurer after all. Like before, I decided to just collect medicinal herbs. I also decided to collect some herbs for my own alchemy. Being able to make my own healing potions appealed to me. Plus, perhaps there were some concoctions I could make that Luminan alchemists couldn’t.
It was during this trip that I learned about how Lorelei managed to convince her parents to let her live at Sturm Hill Hall. She told them about her status as Terra’s Chosen, and said that Terra tasked me with teaching her. However, Lorelei didn’t specify what I would teach her.
Because of this, Guildmaster Sinclair straight up just asked me about it when I turned in the job for collecting medicinal herbs. I kept things vague, but I told her that I would teach her daughter how to use the “strange magic” I had. Honest enough to get her off my back, but nothing beyond that.
This pleased Guildmaster Sinclair, since she had some idea of how powerful this “strange magic” was, thanks to her nose. That didn’t stop her from threatening to castrate me should I even think about putting my hands on her daughter. I promised her that I had nothing but honorable intentions towards Lorelei.
She was my disciple. That alone would have prevented me from thinking impure thoughts. Not only that, but my heart belonged to another.
During this month, my mind kept wandering to Annabelle. Sometimes this happened at inopportune times, like when I was in the middle of an alchemical experiment. This may or may not have been the cause behind the stink bomb incident.
This was quite embarrassing, really. Here I was, a reincarnated Immortal with thousands of years of life experience, acting like a lovestruck teenager.
It had been easier to avoid thinking of her, back when I just called her the Otherworlder in my mind, but that wasn’t the case anymore. After seeing her in Rosewood City, this was now impossible.
I missed the warmth of her body, the taste of her lips, the smell of her vanilla perfume, the sight of her blue eyes. Most of all, I missed the sound of her voice.
Back on Earth, when I was Brandon Norwood, Annabelle spent a lot of our time together. While we were quite physical, as hormonal teenagers tended to be, we also spent a lot of time just talking with each other. I missed those moments of companionship.
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While she knew who I was, and had forgiven me for the way I bullied and tormented her, that didn’t mean I had forgiven myself just yet. Her forgiveness helped, like a balm to the soul, but this was something I needed to work through myself.
Once I did, maybe then we could figure out where things stood between us. I wouldn’t make any assumptions just yet.
Of course, Annabelle might get impatient and come up to the Icefall Region herself. Back on Earth, she was always the assertive and pushy one. That was one of the things I loved about her back then, and still did.
However, there were other things we needed to take into consideration. Chiefly, her family. I knew I wasn’t their favorite person in the world, and they would oppose any sort of relationship between me and Annabelle. This wasn’t anything new to me, since we had faced the same problem back on Earth. It was quite funny, now that I thought about it.
I wasn’t sure how my family would react, though I doubted they would oppose any relationship between me and Annabelle. If they did, I would change their minds. Simple as that.
Four weeks and several days after we returned from Rosewood City, a message from my parents arrived.
----------------------------------------
That night, I sat atop the roof of Sturm Hill Hall. We were at the transition point where summer ended and autumn began. While the weather was still hot and sunny, the days were already growing colder. The trees hadn’t changed color yet, but that was just a matter of time.
It was funny. I arrived here at Sturm Hill Hall when summer began, and my time here would end just after summer ended as well. I mean, it wasn’t exactly the same, but the timing was close. Despite my relatively short time here, I had grown fond of Sturm Hill Hall. I would miss it.
Maybe my parents would let me stay here, but I doubted it. Their message, which arrived via courier, just contained a single sentence.
“We will be there soon.”
That meant that anything they had to say to me, they would say in person rather than risk putting it on paper. I doubted it would be anything good for me. Still, I was lucky that they hadn’t ordered me to come back to Sturm Manor, which meant I could stay here for a little while longer.
How much longer depended on when they would arrive. Assuming they sent the courier the day they received my message, or the day after, then they could arrive within a few days at the earliest, to a week and a half at the latest. It all depended on when my parents left Sturm Manor, and how fast they decided to travel. I took it easy when I came to the Icefall Region, but that didn’t mean they would.
Anxiety and dread thrummed through my veins.
Do you want to talk about it? Aurora asked.
‘What is there to talk about?’ I responded. ‘My parents are coming, and I will have to answer for everything I’ve done. I lied to them about why I came up here, and I became an adventurer. Those acts alone would get me in serious trouble.’
But you’re afraid for another reason, aren’t you? she said.
I nodded.
Aurora was the only one I could open up to about this, since we were one now. Well, her and Annabelle. However, Annabelle wasn’t here. Not only that, but I would have to explain to her the full context of the situation first.
That was another conversation that I didn’t look forward to. How did you tell the love of your previous life that you used to be an Immortal from another world? She would think I was crazy. Even if she believed me, what then?
Ugh, my head hurt just thinking about it.
‘I’m afraid that my parents will hate me,’ I whispered. ‘I’m afraid that they’ll reject me. I’m not the Gabriel Sturm that they knew. He was an arrogant and cruel asshole, but he was still their son. I’m still him, but remembering my past two lives changed me. What if they don’t accept me because of that? I’m not the son they knew.’
The thought of losing my parents, of losing my family, terrified me. It was like losing a limb. I could survive it, but that wouldn’t make it any less painful. I loved them.
Would they love me in return? Or would they think me a monster?
I didn’t know, and that scared me the most. The uncertainty of it all just made it worse. Still, I derived some peace from knowing that it would end sooner rather than later. One way or another, I wouldn’t have to worry about it anymore. Either my parents would accept me as I was now, or they wouldn’t.
I don’t think they would hate you, Aurora said. They don’t seem like the type that would.
I scoffed.
‘And how would you know that?’ I asked. ‘You’ve never met them before, and I don’t talk about them all that often. Did you go digging through my memories?’
What? No. Of course not. If I could, I would have already done so, just so I could witness your most embarrassing moments.
Despite her words, from her facetious tone, I could tell that she didn’t mean it.
Your parents love you, Gabe, Aurora said. I know this because they sent you up here rather than cast you out of your House, or kill you. That’s what others in their position would have done. While my memories are still sealed away, I know that much about House society.
She had a point. I damaged my House’s reputation and prestige, pissed away a lot of resources, and endangered our position. More than that, as far as my parents knew, I was crippled.
In another House, I might have been kicked out, or even killed, as a result. Instead, my parents just exiled me for a time. Hell, I was still technically the heir to House Sturm. They hadn’t officially stripped me of my status, at least as far as I knew. That could have changed in the months I’ve been gone.
Even so, I doubted that anyone considered me the heir to House Sturm anymore, official or not. A magicless cripple could not become Patriarch. This didn’t really bother me. Hell, becoming Patriarch of House Sturm would get in the way of my cultivation. At the end of the day, petty politics mattered less than becoming an Immortal again.
‘I don’t know if that makes things better or not,’ I said. ‘Love can turn into hate, after all. The greater the love, the greater the hate.’
I had seen this happen more than once during my life as Immortal Celestial Thunder. When love went bad, it went really bad. People who once thought the world of each other became sworn enemies. Hell, it happened to me.
My best friend stabbed me in the back and killed me. I loved that son of a bitch more than anyone else in the world, and he fucking betrayed me. Now I wanted nothing more than to make him suffer a thousand lifetimes worth of pain.
Goddamn traitor.
Have faith in your parents, Aurora said. And have faith in yourself. As you said, you are still Gabriel Sturm. Remembering your past two lives helped mature you, but you are still the same person. I believe that you and your parents will be able to work things through.
‘I think mature is a strong word here,’ I said in a dry tone, expecting her to make a smart comment.
I don’t know. You have your moments. The way you look after your disciples is admirable.
That caught me off guard, and I didn’t respond right away.
‘Thank you,’ I said, genuinely touched by her words.
You’re welcome, Aurora said.
The conversation trailed off there. I spent the next few minutes staring at the night sky. However, a sound caught my attention, and I searched about with my divine sense. I saw Corie climbing onto the roof of Sturm Hill Hall. I turned to face her.
“What are you doing up so late?” I asked as she made her onto the roof.
Corie ambled over to me and plopped herself down before answering.
“I couldn’t sleep so I decided to take a walk,” she said. “I noticed you with my spirit sense, so I decided to come up and ask why you’re brooding by yourself up here.”
I snorted.
“I’m not brooding,” I said. “And I’m never by myself. Aurora is always with me. I was talking with her.”
At the mention of her name, Aurora popped her head out of my shoulder. While she resided within my dantian, she could emerge from anywhere within my body. Anywhere.
I found this out one morning when she popped out while I was in the bathroom and scared the daylights out of me.
“He was totally brooding,” Aurora said to Corie.
I gave Aurora a mental glare, warning her to keep her mouth shut. She grinned at me, but remained silent. Good. If she hadn’t, I would have yanked her back with my divine energy.
“Is this about the message your parents sent?” Corie asked.
We were in the middle of training when the courier arrived, so it would’ve been difficult to keep the news a secret from my disciples. Not that I wanted to. My parents’ arrival affected them as well, so I told them the truth about the situation.
“Yes,” I said, letting out a sigh. “I’m worried about how they’ll react when I tell them the truth about…everything, I guess.”
Aurora nuzzled my cheek to comfort me. I smiled at the affectionate gesture, and scratched her chin. The dragon spirit let out a satisfied purr.
“What do you think will happen?” Corie asked.
She pulled her legs in and hugged her knees.
“At worst,” I said. “They’ll lock me up and summon inquisitors from the Church of the Sun to come take me. If I’m lucky, they’ll bring me to the Tower of Magic instead.” I shrugged. “If I’m really lucky, they’ll just kick me out and disown me.”
“As you can see,” Aurora said. “Gabe here is feeling a bit pessimistic.”
Corie took a moment before answering.
“No matter what happens,” she said. “We have your back. All of us.” She paused before continuing. “I know that you and I haven’t had the best relationship, especially when we first met. However, after living with you over the past month, I can now admit that I misjudged you in the beginning.”
I raised an eyebrow at her.
“Really now?” I asked in a dry tone.
“Yeah. You went from House brat to annoying little brother.”
“You know that I have several thousands years of life experience over you, right?”
Corie shrugged.
“Yeah, but you look younger than me so that doesn’t matter.”
“Truly, your logic is astounding.” I snorted. “Back on my original home world, one’s master was like one’s parent. Still, I suppose I should consider myself lucky that you consider me family at all.”
Corie gave me a mischievous grin.
“If you want, I can call you Daddy.”
I gagged at that.
“Please don’t,” I said. “I think I just threw up in my mouth.”
Aurora and Corie both laughed. However, after a minute, Corie’s expression grew serious.
“Seriously though,” she said, putting a hand on my shoulder. “Whatever happens, we’re with you. If your parents lock you up, we’ll break you out. If they kick you out of your House, we’ll take you in. I know I give you a lot of shit, but I am grateful for everything you’ve done for us. Thank you, Master Celestial Thunder. I mean it.”
I smiled, before I reached over and ruffled Corie’s hair. She grumbled at this, but I saw the smile on her lips.
After that, we watched the stars together. Neither one of us said anything for several minutes, so her next question caught me off guard.
“So, do you have feelings for Lady Annabelle?” Corie asked.
I slowly turned my head towards her and just stared. Aurora grinned and opened her mouth to say something, but I yanked her back into my body with my divine energy before she could utter a single fucking word.
“Why would you ask that?” I said in an even voice, keeping my face straight.
“You get a funny look on your face whenever you hear her name,” Corie asked. “It was the same look I saw on my mom’s face whenever I asked her about my father. She hated him, but she also loved him at the same time.”
She had a point there. Despite their short time with her, Lorelei and Corie talked fondly about the day that they spent with Annabelle. Whenever I heard them, a remnant of my lingering jealousy and envy would raise its ugly head.
It annoyed me that Annabelle was able to make friends with them right away. They were my disciples, damn it! It didn’t help that as far as my disciples knew, Annabelle was the Otherworlder who beat me in a duel.
That was when the logical part of my mind would point out that they hadn’t known who Annabelle was at the time, so I should stop being petty. Even if they had known, I shouldn’t complain. Annabelle and I had no enmity between us at that point, and my disciples could befriend whoever they wanted.
The jealousy and envy grew a little weaker after that. Soon, it would disappear altogether.
“My relationship with Lady Annabelle is none of your business, disciple,” I said in a cold voice. “Don’t meddle in matters that don’t concern you.”
Instead of looking chastised, Corie just gave me a mischievous and knowing grin.
“Yeah, you have feelings for her,” she said. “Otherwise, you wouldn’t react like this.” She leaned in and spoke in a conspiratorial whisper. “Don’t worry. Your secret is safe with me.”
I looked at her, looked at the ground below, and then looked back at her.
“I believe you’re strong enough to survive a two-story fall,” I said. “Let’s test that theory, shall we?”
I reached for her, but Corie shot to her feet and dashed away.
“You know what,” she said. “It’s getting late. I should head back to bed.”
She then scurried away. Given the difference in our strength, I could have easily caught her, but I let her go.
After Corie left, I looked at the sky for a few more minutes before heading off to bed myself.