“You’ll be fine after a few days, so long as you let your body heal itself. Don’t take any more healing pills,” Elder Harmony ordered the bedridden Shuren.

  She had come to the Evening Clouds hospice by the request of Elder Kuveiros to check up on Wu Ming, since he was a vital witness to demonic faction remnants. The Sect Leader gave the order to pay attention to those incidents, especially when they were so close to finally unveiling the Unhallowed Monolith.

  This was the perfect opportunity for other factions to stall the Seven Clouds Sect.

  She didn’t expect to walk in on a disciple who collapsed at the sight of her. Let alone the brat of her respected senior sister.

  “You’re lucky none of those demonic filth poisoned their weapons, otherwise you’d be in a worse situation. If you took up the medical arts as your vocation, you wouldn’t need to fear these consequences so much.” Elder Harmony hinted to Shuren. Unfortunately he didn’t pick up on it, opting to clasp his hands to pay his respects.

  “My sincerest gratitudes to Elder Harmony for helping me. I will repay this debt by working hard as a loyal disciple of our great sect,” Shuren said with an almost puppet-like tone. He really just wanted to fall asleep and recuperate.

  The injuries weren’t that much of an issue in comparison. Though he kind of wanted to take another healing pill and just get back to training the next day. Elder Harmony could get a sense of that thought.

  Battle maniacs loved drugging themselves up just to get back to keep fighting. But those at Rank 1 were the worst at it, since they never understood the long term effects of this habit. Akin to fixing a shattered gourd with resin, it created disharmony and chaos in one’s body.

  Until one could reach Path Foundation and learn healing arts relevant to their Path, when they would improve not only on healing their external injuries, but also internal injuries and affected meridians.

  Without harmony, one’s path would be chaotic and full of obstacles. Purity and order was the best method to improve oneself.

  “Do not be rash. You already used two healing pills in a single day, even though you’re Rank 1. Sit tight. If you truly don’t understand the benefits, then enlist in a course at Sensority Peak,” Elder Harmony scolded Shuren then walked away. She couldn’t help but click her tongue, and the door opened on its own.

  If I don’t get a disciple that specialises in superb martial prowess, I can’t test the limits of my techniques. To think I finally got someone worthy thanks to elder sister, only for his idiocy to make him useless. None of those mindless fighters know what’s good for them, I swear.

  She didn’t even bother considering Wu Ming. That man wasn’t the type to even stay at this sect for long, rather dying than being constrained to one place. Her disciple, wearing a white mask and bouffant cap, waited patiently outside of Shuren’s room, waiting for the elder to command her.

  “Sei, I’ll let you be the one to take care of Wu Ming. I won’t be overlooking you this time,” Elder Harmony commanded as clouds covered her visage, disappearing from the hospice ward in a breath.

  Sei nodded her head in acknowledgement, moving towards the other room. She stretched the white healer’s gloves on her hands, and the pouch by her side shimmered as it readied to take out its contents.

  And at the perimeters of the Evening Clouds, Elder Harmony flew back to Sensority Peak. She had a scowl on her face, narrowing her eyebrows as they pulsated with old memories. “Just you wait, Blade Healing Sect bastards. I’ll prove that my Path is far superior to your dogshit methods.”

  //////////////////////////////////////////////////////

  After resting until the next day, scabs had already formed on Shuren’s wounds, and even the deep cut on his calf was indiscernible. “Exactly how fast would my body regenerate if I managed to form a Silver Talisbody? I suppose I can only find out when I break through to Path Foundation,” Shuren thought back to Elder Harmony’s words.

  Bronze Talisbody was the bare minimum to even touch upon Rank 1. Iron Talisbody was reachable for some mortals that lived in jobs or lifestyles that pushed their bodies to the limit for years.

  But everything above that, Silver Talisbody and above, were strictly within the realm of cultivators. Not only would your body have inhuman regeneration speed for minor injuries, your damaged spirit meridians and even internal injuries would recover faster, and all external martial techniques or path skills would be strengthened. At that point, the definition of a fatal wound changed completely.

  Life would still be within one’s grasp unless your entire brain or heart had been completely destroyed. And even those vital weaknesses could be worked on the higher you stepped through the ranks.

  Shuren wasn’t an idiot, clearly understanding the underlying message of Elder harmony. Maybe I misunderstood the words of my mother. The elders here don’t just randomly pick disciples, especially if they’re not compatible in the long term.

  Especially after facing a near-death encounter, the prospects of delving into the healing arts as a vocation grew even more desirable. But he had to choose which was more valuable in the long-run, between learning from the Spiritual Alchemists or the Life Healers.

  “Once I become an External Elder, or reach Path Foundation, I won’t be spending as much time doing battle missives, if at all. My options will open up considerably, and as a core disciple, the elders would support my cultivation to Rank 3; Core Genesis.”

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  Shuren began stretching all his muscles, feeling for any more lingering pain. “By then, being under Elder Harmony would have diminishing benefits to me, but being under Elder Spiritweaver will allow me to discover a niche and step into the economy of cultivators, while supporting the family’s business. It’ll open me up to more connections to others as well,” Shuren said as he cycled his Qi throughout his body. The spirit meridians near his injuries still weren’t completely healed, so the cycling was weakened there. Shuren raised an eyebrow as he stared at the door of his room, sensing someone coming.

  The door to his room opened, and a pair of men walked in. The tallest had purple silky hair, tied with a hairpin. His crimson eyes almost glowed a tinge, and his dark robes were woven with complex formations. A Zeal Artifact. His backing was clearly not simple.

  “Brother Shuren, it’s been long. Too long, I dare say!” he said as if he were announcing it to the world, walking towards Shuren with his arms outstretched.

  “You’re… Su Kang? It’s been a few years and you’ve already gotten this tall. I didn’t expect your sect to send you here as a delegate,” Shuren naturally embraced his childhood friend, and he smelled the scent of womanly perfume and alcohol. He even noticed a hickey on his neck.

  “Looks like you’ve been having fun in Cloud City,” Shuren said, before greeting the second person. A man with black hair and blue eyes similar to his own.

  “Cousin Wei, I hear you’ve also joined the Seven Clouds Sect. You should’ve let me know. You know you have my support.”

  “I wanted to take the advice you gave me back then, and try doing things my own way. I can’t be coddled by the clan all the time,” Liu Wei chuckled, also giving his cousin a short embrace.

  It had been a few years since they had all met each other. Once they all tread on the path to become cultivators, all in their own sects or clans, meeting each other was difficult. It wasn’t absurd to say that the Qidense Realm took nearly all of your time, since you were lacking in power to travel far. Only at Rank 2 Path Foundation, would opportunities open up, forcing you to participate in the world of cultivators.

  A silver ring on Su Kang’s hand flashed with a runic sigil, and a table with three red-cushioned chairs as well as a set of hot dishes were on display.

  “Su Kang, you already achieved Rank 2?!” Shuren was surprised, and even a hint of embarrassment spawned deep in his heart. To think the little kid that followed him around with his elder sister ended up surpassing him.

  “It’s more surprising if I didn’t. Unlike you, I have the support of my Unchained Crown Sect. Honestly, father would’ve beat me to death if I kept wasting time playing around,” Su Kang said, and he sat down at the table, beckoning his old friends.

  Though they were all of differing stages and ranks, none let it stifle their relationship. They had all sworn to be lifelong brothers long ago.

  Su Kang took out a translucent jar from his spatial ring, placing it on the table. “Here, I bought Crimsol Roc Wine. It’ll give you a… kick,” he said with a smile. “You know, get a lot of energy. Don’t take too much, it’s the blood of a Rank 2 Deviant Beast,” he said, pouring himself a large wine glass.

  Shuren waved his palms in rejection, “Now’s not the time to celebrate, I can’t be at the sect drunk. Father’s planning on holding a banquet in a few months, so I’ll save it for then.”

  Liu Wei didn’t hold himself back, grabbing a small shot. “Cousin Shuren, you should’ve told me Cloud City was this fun, I would’ve come earlier as well.”

  “Indeed. Unlike back home, no one here recognises me just from my face. It’s freeing, getting to experience my life. For a mere Rank 5 region, they sure get an assortment of people coming in,” Su Kang said, drinking a bit of wine. “Your Sect Leader’s too restrictive for my liking though. As a delegate, I feel too stifled in your sect, so I’m always roaming about.”

  Shuren sighed when he thought back to the encounter he had once with that other delegate. “Right. You ever meet the other delegates? Have you seen a girl with orange eyes? She has white hair with a hue of violet.”

  Su Kang leaned back in his chair, thinking back to those he met. “Hmm, not at all. You take a liking on someone?”

  “No, she only tried to curse my soul. Was quite the headache.”

  Su Kang grit his teeth, the cup in his hands almost shaking. “That bitch, does she dare to antagonise the Liu Clan for nothing?” He reigned his emotions in, his anger submerged below tranquillity once more. “Forgive me brother Shuren, I don’t know this wench. Well, I suppose I understand why your Sect Leader has those rules.”

  With those words, he swirled the wine in his cup, staring at it for a moment. “Su An has reached beyond Core Genesis. ”

  Shuren didn’t respond, taking a bite out of a sauce-drizzled steak with a fork. “Impressive, as expected of her. She always had talent in the Conqueror’s Path.”

  “Don’t try to play coy, you know what I’m getting at. Look at you, you’re still stuck in Rank 1, all because you refused to listen to your Liu Clan. If you just tied yourself to my sect, my father would’ve supported you as his son-in-law.”

  Shuren didn’t get to appreciate the taste of the piece of steak, thinking of an appropriate response to Su Kang. He knew Su An was using him to get his answer. His grandfather had a strong friendship with the Unchained Crown Sect Leader, and they suggested an arrangement to tie their lineage, in order to secure a strong alliance.

  But the seasons changed, and the seeds refused to bloom. His grandfather died, his uncle was killed, and his parents were discreetly exiled from the Liu Clan’s inner circle.

  All of Shuren’s plans were to ensure he could solidify his own position using the Seven Clouds Sect, slowly making his way back up the hierarchy. Becoming the puppet of the Unchained Crown Sect or swearing off his right to become a successor to gain a pittance from the Liu Clan wasn’t worth it. Just being a mere young master of the Liu Clan wasn’t enough.

  He would become the patriarch of the Liu Clan, whether through might or right.

  If that girl still won’t let me go, then it’s fine. If she still has that ridiculous obsession, I’ll make sure to use it in the future once I make my own force in the Liu Clan. But the power imbalance is too much, so it’s not worth acquiescing now.

  “Su An needs to understand. The gap between our Ranks and status is like the endless abyss beyond the Worldfalls. She must know it even more than I do, having reached Rank 4. This will be my busiest time, too occupied with forging my own path to consider that option.”

  Liu Wei quietly drank his glass, letting his two brothers speak. It wasn’t his place to make a comment.

  Su Kang let out a long sigh. The headache he’d get from telling his sister the answer wasn’t something he was looking forward to. He shot a glance to Liu Wei, the one he’d been messing around with the most in Cloud City, trying out all of their Entertainment District. “I understand. Just a bit disappointed.”

  Shuren has failed to cut his mortal ties, and so he has stagnated. To think he was once expected to succeed the Sword Saint himself. Just copying his footsteps won’t be enough to attain that glory you seek.

  Su Kang held the wine glass in his hand, and it formed a whirlpool through the influence of his Qi. He ruminated as he looked at his glass, the blood of a beast churning. And his thumb continued to tap on the southern edge of the glass.

  A storm brewing.

  It’s time for me to do my part here.