Jing Ma stood at the base of Million Flowers Celestial Peak, just beyond the stone gate which we’d raised a few days earlier. Wang Ren and I stood with him to offer our final farewells.

  He’d said goodbye to the others before we descended the mountain and they were all busy with their own tasks. “Your visit was unexpected, but most welcome. I would be happy to have you as a guest in future, if your travels bring you this way again, Brother Jing,” I said with a nod of my head.

  “Indeed. You made a great sparring partner. Zhao Dan isn’t half bad but it does wonders experiencing the techniques of a master,” Wang Ren added with a shallow bow.

  He’d been most suspicious of Jing Ma when he first arrived, but after a single spar with the Foundation Building cultivator he’d been convinced the man could do no wrong. It was endearing, in a way.

  Some men spoke with words and others with their blades. Neither was more profound, it simply depended on what the other person understood best.

  “You are a gracious host, Sect Leader Zhao,” he replied, his hands clasped inside his sleeves as he bowed back. “I don’t often visit the same place twice, but perhaps I will make an exception for your little disciple’s delicious cooking.”

  That made me smile. Xiao Cui would be pleased to hear it. Cultivators didn’t need to eat when they reached Jing Ma’s realm, but she’d figured out a way to infuse the energy of the herbs into her dishes such that even cultivators would receive a boost.

  To a Foundation Building master it had to have been a negligible trickle, but if she continued to hone her skills who knew what heights she would one day reach? I would share his praise in the hopes it would motivate her to reach those heights.

  With our farewells said, Jing Ma left and continued his endless journey. As Wang Ren and I returned to the peak of the mountain, it was time to share my plans for the future.

  This short visit had been insightful and a strangely cathartic few days, but it was time to truly put in the work to develop the Grasping Life Sect from a gathering of a few buildings and people into the Celestial Jade Empire’s foremost place of healing, herbalism, and the medicinal arts.

  Perhaps even alchemy, if I could find the time. However, that would be a tall order. To begin with, there were only a few things I needed to focus on.

  The first was spreading news of our sect. There would be people living nearby who could come here for healing and once word got out it would only grow.

  To that end, I’d asked Jing Ma if he would tell everyone he met of our sect’s location. That might have been risky, but he’d not done us any wrong and I felt as though it was a safe gamble.

  The second step of that plan was the task I had in mind for my Senior Brother Wang. I wanted him to explore the local area and try to map it out, in order to give us an idea of the territory we might lay claim to.

  Knowing the local forces, if there were any that we needed to put in our eyes, was essential. Additionally, I trusted him implicitly to spread the word that healing was available to those who needed it.

  “Wang Ren, I need you to scout the surroundings and report back what you find. I trust you know what to take note of. Clans, local forces, towns and cities. Knowing the lay of the land is of utmost priority. You are the only one I trust to do this,” I told him.

  His eyes were resolute and he stared at me with a determined expression. “I will not let you down, Sect Leader Zhao,” he replied.

  I chuckled and waved my sleeve dismissively. “I told you there’s no need to call me that. Especially when it’s just the two of us.”

  “You are wrong. It is important to maintain the hierarchy in a sect. If I don’t give you face as the patriarch, why would anyone else do so? It might not matter as much now, when it is just us and your friends, but what about when we start to recruit others? Having a clear authority is essential to maintaining order and showing a powerful face to the world,” he said, voice brimming with seriousness.

  I almost wanted to laugh, but I knew deep down that he was right. At first I’d decided to found a sect on a whim, but this was real. I was building an organisation that needed to stand the test of time.

  That wouldn’t be done by being flippant and ignoring order. There was a reason sects had ancestors, a leader, and elders. You couldn’t just throw a thousand cultivators together and give them all equal power.

  It would be a bloodbath.

  “You are right, Wang Ren. Thank you for being the voice of reason. This is why you will be the sect’s Prime Guardian. Maybe the First Elder?” I teased.

  “Elder? I am a mere Qi Gathering cultivator. Don’t speak nonsense.”

  “So am I, you fool! Yet I am the leader of this sect. We have to start somewhere.”

  “Hmph. Whatever you say. I owe you my life, so I will follow your wishes.”

  “Pah! Fool,” I retorted, but my grin told the truth. “You don’t have to leave now, but the sooner the better.”

  “I will depart tonight. There is nothing I need to do other than prepare supplies and complete my cultivation and training with the glaive,” he replied.

  His rippling muscles gleamed in the light of the sun. It had always been his signature to tear the sleeves off of his robes as if he were a character from Street Fighter.

  Then again, if I had biceps that impressive I’d want to show them off. I couldn’t blame him.

  “Good. There is one other thing you must know before you leave. I won’t share it with the others, because even if I decide to go, they won’t be coming with me.”

  “Go where?”

  “Jing Ma told me an interesting story. Apparently every three thousand years is known as a complete era,” I began.

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  “Everyone knows that,” Wang Ren interrupted.

  “Well, I didn’t. I was never as studious as you, you serious bastard,” I said, lightly punching him on the arm before continuing. “He said that as the era approaches its zenith in the final centuries, terrifying dangers will arise along with equally fortuitous opportunities. The first of those is a secret realm known as the Blossoming Heavens and according to common consensus, it will be opening soon.”

  “A secret realm!? Those are only whispered about in legends and stories. There was one inner disciple who claimed to have stumbled into one while travelling outside the sect, but no one ever believed him,” Wang Ren exclaimed.

  “Indeed, I had never heard of them until Jing Ma told me about the Blossoming Heavens. Anyway, this secret realm is supposed to be one of the largest in the entire world. Supposedly every sect and clan from the empire, as well as those from other continents will be fighting to claim a spot.”

  “From the entire world? What makes this secret realm so amazing?”

  “I’m getting there you hot headed fool. Stop interrupting. He said only cultivators below the Core Forging Realm can enter the Blossoming Heavens, making it a unique opportunity for the younger generation. However, elders and ancestors from every organisation will surely fight to ensure their descendants and disciples can enter. The reason for that is the treasures and opportunities inside.”

  “Obviously! Hurry up and get to the good part already, you agonising bastard. You’re a terrible storyteller,” Wang Ren whined.

  I burst into laughter, making him shove me off balance. “Or an incredible storyteller, depending on your perspective. Tension is everything,” I said with a wink and a tap on the side of my nose.

  He snorted as I finished the tale. “Lost arts and artifacts, sky grade and above. Herbs and pills that are lost to history or cannot grow in the outside world. Techniques that let you cross realms and smite the heavens. In the heart of the Blossoming Heavens, there is supposedly even an inheritance from an ancient master.”

  “What!? That’s incredible. We have to go, it’s a perfect opportunity to claim a foundation and an inheritance for our sect. Not everyone will be able to follow your healing arts and having a wide array of techniques and resources will do that.”

  I shook my head despondently. “I disagree. It is a fantastic opportunity, but it is too great a risk. We only just founded the sect and the others are too weak to defend themselves. Hell, even we would be powerless if Jing Ma had turned out to be a villain. We have the spirit stone mine and that natural treasure, I think we should sit this opportunity out. It’s far too dangerous.”

  Wang Ren didn’t respond straight away. His face twisted as he fell deep in thought. It was a funny sight, given his brawny build, but despite his looks Wang Ren had always been equally as wise.

  “I don’t know. You have a point, but it seems to me that no opportunity comes without risk. We have a meagre foundation and the spirit stones are a meat pie from the sky, but they will only go so far. What you want to achieve goes beyond an ordinary sect. Who knows, if what Jing Ma says is true you might find a lost legacy of healing arts or the very answers you need to create the methods you’ve been struggling with,” he eventually said, making my eyebrows shoot to the sky.

  Fuck, he was right. Why was he always right? I wasn’t necessarily wrong in saying that it was a colossal risk, but he made too much sense to refute.

  I’d not seen any existing legacy of healing arts in this world or heard of a sect or clan in the Celestial Jade Empire which specialised in healing or medicine. However, if the Blossoming Heavens truly did contain lost techniques and inheritances, the answers I sought could be hidden within.

  With that said, was it truly worth taking such a gamble? I would be staking all of our futures on a single throw of the dice without even knowing the odds. Without even knowing if the prize was real.

  “That is true,” I replied with a sigh. “We can discuss it at length when you return. There is no immediate rush. Jing Ma said it wasn’t due to open for another three years. It would take six months to travel there, so we have plenty of time. Perhaps by then our situation will have changed.”

  “As you say, Sect Leader. A lot can happen in three years. Less than a year ago you were my stagnant four-star Body Tempering Junior Brother. Look at us now,” he chuckled.

  “Look at us now, indeed. Together we are invincible. We shall tear open the heavens and see what lies beyond, my friend.”

  ****

  With Wang Ren gone to explore the local area, it was time for me to get serious about developing the sect. I would start by harvesting some more spirit stones and then I would find Teng Sheng to begin guiding his cultivation—hopefully learning something useful in the process.

  I wanted to hurry to the cave and grab a handful of spirit stones to bring back and experiment with, but before I could rush off I was stopped by Teng Sheng and Xiao Cui.

  They stood in the flowers, shared a strange look and then approached me with beaming smiles plastered on their faces. I was a little suspicious at this sudden friendship, but I was glad that the others were forming bonds beyond what they had with me.

  “Master, we want to see the natural treasure. Would you take us?” Xiao Cui asked, eyes wide and sparkling in the light of the sun.

  How could I resist my cute disciple? Teng Sheng seemed to want to add more, but when he saw Xiao Cui practically shaking with eagerness he held his tongue.

  “Of course, but it is a dangerous climb down for a mortal,” I replied. “I can carry you if you’d like?”

  She leapt into the air and pumped her fists into the sky with a whoop of joy. Had they believed I wanted to keep the cavern a secret?

  There was nothing I would keep from these five. After everything we’d been through we were family. A sect.

  Du Wen was the least familiar to me, but I’d saved his life. That formed a special connection between us—the bond between healer and the healed.

  In a way, I was connected to everyone and everything I’d healed during my journey. Even if I never saw them again, we would forever be tied through that moment.

  Xiao Cui followed after me as I made my way towards the forest, but Teng Sheng stayed rooted on the spot. Foolish child.

  A lifetime of sickness had not only ravaged his body but made him a nervous wreck. He seemed incapable of asking for anything, only admiring from afar in silence.

  “Sheng! What are you doing? We’ll leave you behind at this rate,” I called out to the frozen boy, startling him.

  After he settled he raced after the pair of us as if we might truly leave him behind. It didn’t take long to reach the steep cliffs at the edge of the forest, descending to the earth below, forming a night impenetrable natural bastion against any who might dare strike the mountain.

  “Woah! That is dangerous,” Xiao Cui exclaimed, falling to her knees as she peeked over the edge of the cliff. A few stones tumbled down as she caught her balance.

  Teng Sheng was nervous at first, not even advancing as far as my mortal disciple. However, he soon found his feet and grew daring, leaning forty-five degrees over the precipice while standing tall.

  “It’s beautiful,” he remarked, staring out across the endless rolling plains that surrounded Million Flowers Celestial Peak. “The world is so… vast.”

  The simple words of a boy, yet they were profound. I was reminded of how truly large this new world was. Earth had been vast, but compared to the Celestial Jade Empire and the world beyond it was barely worth mentioning.

  So many things to see and I had barely scratched the surface. Although, I had seen and experienced many wondrous phenomena already. One of which I was about to share with these two rowdy kids.

  “It is beautiful indeed, little Sheng,” I said, scooping Xiao Cui up and slinging her over my shoulder. She yelped and giggled. “Just wait until you see the cave. Can you climb down yourself?” I asked, slipping over the edge.

  “I think so,” the boy answered, gingerly sliding down while keeping a firm grasp on the ledge and refusing to look down, save to find a foothold. “Go slowly and I can keep up.”

  I nodded and began my own descent. Xiao Cui kept laughing as we went, though she had wide eyes and a gentle tremor in her hands. A sudden yelp and the clatter of rocks preceded a heavy weight smashing into my chest and knocking the wind from my lungs.