The next few days were extremely boring, I was kept in bed due to ‘recuperating’, but really it was because they weren’t sure what they are supposed to do to with me, as when trying to make me take an oath to keep their cultivation secret, it wouldn’t stick. In the sense that it was obvious I was still free to tell others about it. So, I am in this limbo where I want to go explore but they can’t trust me with their secrets, but also, they can’t let me go as I am because If others find out I have been reincarnated then I will likely be caught and used, they described it somewhat like a battery, as if I could help cultivators with their Dao. I don’t really understand what that means and really how that would motivate putting someone into slavery, but it seems that it is accepted here.

  Which then got me onto the whole cultivating thing. Bearing in mind that I woke up almost dying in a cultivation bath. Where the previous owner did die. I am understandably skittish. Especially as it doesn’t seem like I have gained anything from it. Maybe that was due to the assassination attempt. Which is what is being bandied around from what Elder Shen has advised me.

  I have this feeling that it is this important thing, and I am massively missing the point of it. I wasn’t much of a fiction reader in my previous life, and I think this lack of creativity is affecting my mentality on this or maybe it’s the lack of understanding of what the creativity could be.

  This is also getting back to my point, why would I tell anyone. Elder Shen advised that there were ways of seeing if someone was truthful, he called it a technique. Which roughly means a way of using Qi to see if someone's heart races or breathing changes etc. Not dis-similar to how it is done in my old world. It didn’t seem that special seeing as people could do that in my previous life.

  Weird, I am a human and we are generally built to quickly adapt to situations, but I catch myself sometimes already talking about moving forward. As if I didn't just die and come back, and that being completely normal and now I'm talking about learning techniques with Qi. It makes me realise that I am getting itchy feet and I want, no NEED to be doing something. I resolve to come to an understanding with Elder Shen when he gets back, so that I can get my freedom. Whilst thinking on this, I also ruminate on the information overload he gave me of the local area.

  Elder Shen came to me and explained that we were in a Kingdom called Ruhn. Within this there are areas or mini states that each sect controls under this kingdom.

  There are areas where there are no sects but are used for farming for the whole kingdom, ruled by the Monarchy. It is looked after by a certifiable army of cultivators and soldiers due to the fact that it also keeps in line some of the local wildlife that also feeds on the Qi in the area. That's where the cultivators come in supposedly, as this wildlife that have Qi can and would blow through a contingent of soldiers. The soldiers are there mainly to stop us from accidentally getting ourselves killed in these more rural areas.

  Which brings up two things for me, coming from a westernized culture, I couldn't really understand an area so rural that soldiers were having to patrol an area of any decent size, because creatures would affect their citizens safety, and secondly why has it been accepted that this is ok for people to accidentally die every year to incidents with creatures that are stronger with Qi, that have attacked a village and ransacked it. I can’t really understand how otherwise logical people from what I have seen so far would say its ok to allow this to happen.

  I am not an idiot and have seen that the era they are in is clearly from a more medieval time comparative to when I am from, this is clear from the food they have brought me is simple food. Mainly rice and meat and vegetables. Some potato-based stuff, but the variety is small and simple.

  The clothes I have seen them wear although the quality seems good, is again simple, I am not a particularly fashionable person, but it seems again that there is some things that I could ask to be made that would suit me better.

  So, with this, I can only assume and extrapolate that their culture and therefore decisions they have made is based off this, I am not sure I could abide a culture that just allows people to die due to creatures that can just run roughshod over humans, when, as I understand that cultivators be stopping these Qi enhanced creatures.

  So, as I said I have been stewing in my thoughts over several days, without a clear resolution as to how I feel and what I should do.

  I was interrupted of my musings on my 4th day. Elder Shen came in and checked me over, this was a cursory thing, there was somebody that came in and had me checked me twice a day for the last 3 days, any time I tried to interact with them was met with stony silence and just a quiet demand for me to breath in and out, move my arms etc

  He spent 15minutes doing this examination, it wasn’t intrusive and if anything was nice. I hadn’t realised but I had craved some conversation and human contact, and he so obviously wasn’t trying to harm me that I realised I was almost impatiently waiting for him to say something and break the silence.

  Which was definitely deliberate, he walked in and made no indication to speak UNTIL he had made his ministrations. I couldn’t decide if it was a cultural thing or an Elder Shen thing. So, I waited and reined in my emotions. I had a goal and that was to get out. If they wouldn’t let me cultivate with them, or at least learn more about it then I would go my own way.

  Elder Shen broke the silence with a statement that definitely shook me out of my thoughts.

  ‘I am 356 years old.’

  ‘huh’. I blurt out without really thinking, and then follow it up with; ‘Is that like a good exercise or diet thing, who do you go to for your medicine, cos signs me up’. Again, this wasn’t my best work but what was I supposed to say to that?

  ‘Are you implying that I am lying?’ He responds with calmly, his mouth slightly curves up as if he is almost amused by my sarcastic comment.

  I have no clear idea what I think but I am definitely thirsty for more information, so I decide to just accept it for what it is and try and figure that out later and reconcile with my own ideals of age and how it works.

  ‘Honestly, yes, it’s a revelation but I feel like we have said bigger revelations to each other over the last few days. So, I guess overall I can accept it. I mean I literally have memories of another life so hearing that you can be as old as my grandfather to 11th generation or something isn’t that crazy anymore.’ I try and pass it off a little as I want to move on and get to what is actually important to me. Learning about cultivation, and then making a decision on cultivation, these are my goals.

  ‘How much wisdom do you think I accrued in those years?’ Elder Shen asked.

  Another question that was also a statement, and again he ignored that I thought he was lying, as I don’t think he thinks it’s the truth, which I guess now that I think about it is true. The likelihood is that he probably is that age. Why lie? It would be so easily found out later and would just cause me to have less respect for him.

  I lamely say, ‘I guess a lot’. I don’t understand this line of thought process, but can feel he is coming to a point. It feels like my old Maths professors and more specifically when I am missing something glaringly obvious that I should see and they shouldn’t have to explain. Which I am not and its irritating, and now I can see why he is slightly smirking.

  I now regret answering like I did. It gives away something. I am not sure what yet. But it has done. I can feel it.

  Elder Shen by this point has stopped all ministrations and now looks me in the eye, and states ‘We are having royal visitors coming in 4 weeks. I am sorry that I haven’t spoken to you for a few days but we have been speaking about you. It has been decided that we should allow you to learn our cultivation methods, but we ask as would do of all people of your age to stay here for a period of a few years. This is for 2 major reasons. The first being that it would be very abnormal if we allowed you to act differently to all the other young people of your age. Who are just starting their cultivation path. It would further bring eyes to you that you wouldn’t want, eyes that you wouldn’t even consider warranting a worry about but could actually later cause your problems.’

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  He stops for a breath and ponders over his words; I am not sure if I can speak up or if he would prefer for me to wait. So, I decide on waiting.

  ‘The second being that you clearly have no idea of life here. Whatever and whenever you came from is, so clearly different, from the way you speak to how you phrase things, to even just your outlook is different. You obviously aren’t 12, as the body you are in suggests to anyone that meets you, but also your mentality will cause a disconnect with people who will expect a 12-year-old, but you will clearly be speaking and thinking like an adult. It's going to cause you problems in so many ways, but also and this is the distressing point for me, could also be a means for you to influence the way your peers of a similar physical age view the world, it could very easily affect their cultivation. Do we want a whole generation of people thinking like you do?

  Elder Shen deliberately lets the question linger and sit in the room. I can feel the challenge in his question, he gets to the heart of a problem I hadn’t considered. I had thought about myself because of all that has happened, but he recognised that the world has to go on, and also, he has responsibility to others.

  I am not his only concern and if I am going to be a problem, he is telling me that whatever I think is a normal resolution to that, won't be here. It would be different and this insight hits me all of sudden. If I am a problem then it could be decided that they just kill me out of hand. That would be a more just reason than letting me pollute a generation of their cultivators. Which could cause a great host of issues down the line.

  The cold sweat in my lower back has never ever been more prevalent than it is now. This discussion has become a lot more serious than I realised, the stakes are now my life and my freedom. As I am thinking these thoughts, he carries on to what seems to be an ending to his thoughts.

  ‘In essence you are currently a problem for others around you because you won’t be able to act like their age, as you are not. And, also you are a problem for yourself as you don’t have any information on a way to live in our world and as such aren’t really an adult either, if we were to leave you as you are currently you would be a sheep amongst wolves.

  So, we propose that you stay here, and learn of cultivation methods specifically the ones we use. This provides you with an umbrella to learn our methods of cultivation which I would argue are amongst the best in the kingdom, but also gives you the opportunity to learn for yourself how things work within our Sect, which will give you an idea of how the greater world will work. With any mistakes made here being less impactful on your future. I am not going to ask you to make that decision now, I want you to spend a few days walking around the sect. There is the funeral for the young ones that died the other day in that tragic way. I can see that you don’t have any real feelings for them and that is ok as you don’t know them, I would not expect you to. However, people who don’t know you, would expect you to be very saddened by their loss. I hope in time you will become a valuable member of our sect and will want to defend it, in the same way that cultivators came to help you out of those baths, defended you and got you out so that you can live.

  I understand that as it is currently that is a long way off, but it will be something I strive for. I will guide you as best I can. I ask that you trust me when I say that there are things you don’t know and as such if I ask something of you that you trust it is for a good reason.’

  Towards the end of this ultimatum/statement I am not sure what to call it, he had I can see he started to ramble a little and this was definitely due to the emotional ties he had with the kids that died, and also with the fact that an attack on his sect occurred. It seems to me that this is almost looked at like a large family and as such an attack on them is an attack on you. This dedication to sect is new to me. I haven’t really seen this tribalism before but I can see the comfort and safety in having others look out for you. I didn’t really have that in my previous life, and it was something I thought about often.

  I ponder his words, and his meaning behind his words. I think about what I want, and realise that learning and becoming more educated under a blanket of safety of learning the world is what I want. Yes, it is a little stifling that I cannot leave until I guess will be a sufficient time that it is obvious I am integrated. But he isn’t wrong in his points, I am in a child's body but am an adult, that disconnect is going to confuse people. And I am aware that unusual things or the unknown cause fear in others. So is this trade really that bad. It’s not like I can go out and just become a mercantile king bringing concepts from my world to this one. I have no money and no way to stop cultivators or adult's physically just using me if I ever let slip who I am. Also, I have no idea where any cities are. And in those cities do they have a class system, would I find myself in prison or whatever if I spoke to someone in the wrong way or to the wrong person.

  ‘I have also considered some of what you said, I hadn’t realised all of the points you made, but I want to learn about cultivation, and also possibly learn it and taking into account what you have asked of me, I can see the positives, yes it will be somewhat weird going from being an adult and essentially free to do whatever I want in my world, to being back to a set routine here where I will expected to do things. But if that is the trade for what I would need to know. Then it is acceptable one for me. I also truly will try and trust you when you ask things of me, but and this is the only real thing I ask in response. I am not a child and as such I ask that you explain yourself when you ask for that trust. If you can’t do it in the moment that's fine, but I am not going to be willingly ignorant of things. It would go against me learning the world as you have stated, and more importantly would go against who I am as a person.’ The end of this statement is somewhat forceful, I am willing to admit I wasn't aware of everything, but he needs to be aware of what I will accept as well.

  Elder Shen has calmed from his slight crack in his facade and it smoothed back to what it was before.

  ‘This is good to hear, unfortunately I do have some more things to say off the back of this. It is more information for you that is part of the pact we just made. The body you inherited has a grandmother who is still alive and is part of the sect, she is currently in long term meditation. Your parents were killed when you were a young child, around the age of 3. Before this point you seemed to be a happy child. They were killed by a qi creature and you were hurt as well. The previous body never fully recovered and were mentally not the same age as your physically age, you were bodily 12, but still acted like a young child. We couldn’t find any reason physically as to why this was the case. No medicine worked and your grandmother obsessively over the years looked for a resolution, it ended when she decided that the only way she could find a way to resolve it was to go into the next stage in her cultivation path. It is extremely risky and could end in her death.

  This in itself wouldn’t be a problem, and is something that we could resolve in house and also help you and her speak and figure out your relationship, as she has a right to know. Having seen her pain over the last 10 years it would be a disservice to do otherwise.

  The bigger issue is that your also in a relationship with a 12year old. Your grandmother, is also the godmother to the princess of Kingdom of Ruhn. She is 12 years old, and for all intents and purposes is a gentle child. Neither of you were aware that you were betrothed. It hasn’t been broken off out of respect of your grandmother and her attempts at saving you. It was decided that if you didn’t change at 18, then it would be nullified so that the kingdom could find a suitable replacement for the Princess. I understand that this is a lot, but it is the situation as it stands and will mean you will need to act accordingly.

  I can’t help but laugh out loud at this, the situation is so ridiculous that I genuinely only believe it because I don’t think I have the ability to make something like this up. I don’t have the creative capacity to think this up. So, with that I look up and reflexively had put my head in my hands. I can see he is looking slightly startled; I hadn’t laughed in his presence before and he isn’t sure if it's a genuine laugh, or if my mind is breaking from all this crazy and let's fall back into the dark whole and hide, or the laughter of someone who is laughing because the other option is crying. To be honest I am not 100percent either.

  Fuck it, let's ride this punch she is a kid, and I am sure as she gets older, I can piss her off enough that we won’t get married. By that point I will be 30 something and she will be 18, that is absolutely not something I am interested in.

  I swing my legs round, and stand up in front of him, I hold out my arm and try to shake his hand in an offer and confirmation of all that has been said.

  He looks at me weird and takes my hand to look at it as if I am asking for medical help.

  Well, this is awkward. ‘From my world if we shake each other's hands, its used as a way of affirming our commitments that we have with each other. It is also used for other things, but in this instance, it is used for this, hence why I held out my hand to you. To confirm of what we spoke about and to confirm that I will pursue it to the best of my abilities, and if you shake my hand back then you will be tacitly confirming what you said as well.

  He looked at my hand, ‘I think its best if we drink some tea, this is how we confirm it here and will be one of your first lessons’.

  My hand is still hanging. Dam it's just as painful in this world as it was in the previous.

  I slowly put it down. Well at least I can learn what cultivation is.