CHAPTER 161: BACK TO SCHOOL
Zen walked through the acdemy. Though he had been gone for nearly a month, it felt like an eternity since he was here. It felt a little alien. He stopped when it hit him. He wished he was home. He had been beaten, electrocuted, burned but he missed it. That’s where his family was, his close servants and most of his friends. He took a final depe breath and continued walking.
He reached the dorm room where he found his roomates Deng Ai and Li Ao.
“Hey, Wang Zen is back!” Li Ao said, while brushing his hair.
“Hey guys.” Zen said.
“You’ve been away for quite some time, Wang Zen.“ Deng Ai said, looking up from the book he was reading at Zen. “You’ve missed quite a lot of work.”
Shibi leapt off Zen’s shoulder and onto his bed. Zen followed him and sat beside him. “I’ll catch up somehow.” He said. “So, anything change since I’ve been gone?”
Ai and Ao exchanged looks.
Zen looked between them. “What?”
Night had fallen. Zen and Ao walked out in the filed. It was a rare moment where Zen spent any considerable amount of time with any of his roomates out. They had decided to go on a food run to celebrate Zen being back.
“Argh, I hate this wind!” Ao complained. “It’s bad for my beautiful hair.”
“How come I got stuck with you?” Zen said.
“Because we were all hungry and no one wanted to go.” Ao said. “So we decided the two that would go by whoever could name the least Overlords in history.”
Zen rolled his eyes. “That was a dumb bet considering we were up against Deng Ai. How come you can only name 2 Overlords?”
“Everyone knows the 8th Overlord and I named the Overlord with the best hair, the 11th Overlord.” Ao explained. “His hair almost rivals mine… almost. And I guess Shibi is here because he does not know any Overlords, the direct opposite of Deng Ai who knows all 13.”
Zen sighed while shaking his head. He stopped and looked up the mountain that was within the academy grounds. “Aw man, this is usually the time train with my cousin.”
Li Ao followed his line of sight. “You have a cousin that lives in the condo areas?” he said in surprise.
“Yeah, Jao Cong.”
“Jao?” Ao tapped his lip in thought. “Jao. Jao. Jao. Deng Ai likes to speak about a Jao. Jao Fuu! Yeah, that was her name.”
“That’s my other more annoying cousin.” He said. “I probably need to see him, tell him I’m back.”
“Ooo, lets go!”
“What?”
“I’ve never seen one of those fancy condos before.” Ao said. “Lets go see your cousin’s condo… I mean your cousin.” Ao said, gently shoving him in the direction of the condos.
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“What about the food?”
“We can get that after.” Ao said.
Zen rolled his eyes and looked to Shibi. “Shibi, I think we’re being used.”
The gate to the condo opened. Jao Cong smiled when Zen entered followed by Ao Li.
“Wang Zen! You’re back!” he said. “You didn’t tell me you were leaving. I waited for you for 2 nights, you know.”
“Sorry, I was needed back home.”
“Of course,” Jao Cong said. “How is Uncle Wang?”
“Better.” Zen smiled.
Ao whistled as he walked around the yard. “This is fine living.”
Cong tilted his head in confusion. “Who… is this?”
“Ao Li!” he introduced himself as he walked closer to him. “Roomate to your cousin. This is a nice place you have.”
“Thanks?” Cong said.
“Wanna duel for it?” he said, his face close to Cong’s.
Zen was about to reprimand him when another did.
“He will not be dueling for anything.”
They looked back as Jao Fuu entered the compound.
“But your more than welcometo challenge me.” She said.
“Uh… its fine.” Ao said, backing away with his hands raised.
“Welcome back Wang Zen.” She said. “I see you’re already bothering my brother.”
“Nice to see you too, Jao Fuu.” Zen said.
“Why have you brought his kind here?” Fuu said, squinting at Ao Li.
“His kind?” Zen said.
“Good looking. Gorgeous hair.” Ao chimed in, running his fingers across his quif.
Jao Fuu walked closer to Zen and looked at his attire. “What are you wearing?”
Zen raised his arms. He still wore the brown attire he had gotten from his friend Yin Zheng. “You like it? Its really comfortable.”
“I won’t judge your fashion sense.” Jao Fuu said.
“Tch, I will.” Li Ao said. “The last time brown was in fashion was… actually never.”
Jao Fuu giggled at that.
“Joy, Jao Fuu is getting along with his kind.” Zen said under his breath in annoyance. “Anyways coz, I wanted to speak to you about the Wolf Cultivation.” Zen said as he pulled Cong away from the group.
“Wolf Cultivation?” Cong said when they stopped a bit away.
“Uhm… Half Step to Completion, I renamed it remember.”
“Okay.”
“Its weird, the first time I did it, I was absorbing and refining more mana into ki but after that first night it seems to have stopped.” Zen said. “What’s that about? Is like a virgin thing? The first time I do it, its great but the rest of the time its not.”
“What do you know about the ‘virgin thing’?” Cong tilted his head in amusement.
“A lot!” Zen said. “No, I mean, not that much. I mean… oh you know what I mean coz!”
Cong was visibly trying not to laugh.
“Anywyas, is there anything you can tell me about why the speed slowed down?”
Cong tapped his chin in thought. “In cultivation class, we were taught that some of the earliest and powerful cultivation techniques given to man by the Ancient Ones were made based on astrology and underwhat stars the man was born under.”
“Ancient Ones?”
“You know about the Ancient Ones, right?”
“Yeah, The First God split himself to create the universe and distilled his energy into the Four Ancient Ones, a Pheionix, a Dragon, a Winged Serpent and a Nine Tailed Fox. And these Ancient Ones filled the world and universe with life and gave all that drew breath the chance to become gods themselves.” Zen recited. “I honestly don’t believe in that fairytal stuff.”
“Well, whether you believe it or not, there is some wisdom in the fairytale stuff.” Cong said. “Its said that the Ancient Ones gave man cultivation techniques by the star they were under and man created off shoot and inferior cultivation techniques.”
“I don’t see whatthat has to do wth anything.” Zen said. “I was born in the Year of the Monkey. How does that explain why the cultivation technique doesn’t worklike it first did?”
“Its not about that.” Cong said. “I think your cultivation technique might be effected by astrological events. When you began practicing, I believe the Northern star wandered into the Bear Constellation. They call that formation, Fish in the Bear’s Jaws, that’s probably when the power of your Wolf Cultivation becomes stronger.”
“Great! So all I have to do is cultivate during that time again!” Zen pumped a fist in excitement. “So when is this Fish in Bear’s Jaw formation happening again?”
“In the next 3 years.”
“What?” Zen looked deflated.
“Sorry Zen, it only happens once every 3 years.”
“I can’t be OP for one second.”
“Wang Zen,” Fuu said walking to them. “What are you whispering with my brother about? I hope you are not trying to influence him badly.”
“Huh, you say that as if I’m abad influence.”
She nodded. “You are.” She then pointed at Ao Li. “And don’t leave me with your friend again. He talks way too much about his hair.”
The three family members looked at Ao Li, who ran a comb through his hair and winked at them.
Zen sighed, “He does, doesn’t he.”