Chương 94: Chapter 93: BREAK AND BEAT

CHAPTER 93 BREAK AND BEAT —∞—"And these," Feihuan said, gesturing with an arm toward the three residences in front of them, "are your humble abodes." Jieyuan, Meiyao, and Daojue stepped off the platform of materialized yellow chroma Feihuan had flown them over on. As soon as they were off it, the chroma vanished out of sight. Unmaterialized, Jieyuan suspected, and returned to Feihuan's soul.

Chroma platforms, it turned out, were what Yellowsouls used instead of cloudcrafts when transporting others distances too short to warrant a skyshuttle. It was only the four of them now; the original group from the Ardent Light Sect had stayed behind at the temple. It had only been a few minutes since they'd wrapped up the initiation and apprenticeship rites, which had only taken a couple of hours.

Feihuan had mentioned, at a quiet point during the apprenticeship proceedings, how these rites were actually supposed to last days and they were getting an abridged version. That had been followed by a comment that she'd never cared for such stuffy formalities. His master—now officially so, though Feihuan had made it clear she didn't expect him to call her as such except in formal settings—hadn't said it outright, but Jieyuan was confident they had her to thank for the shortened rites.

Jieyuan eyed the abodes in question. Humble wasn't really the word that came to mind. The residential district of the Ardent Light Sect's inner court spanned a vast, sprawling mountain range, and Feihuan had taken them to a low and isolated mountain peak. They'd flown on a cloudcraft. The residences themselves were arranged in a semi-circle and cast from the same mold: white marble, with tall pillars and ornate facades.

They didn't look as fancy as the temple where they'd taken their rites earlier, but they shared the same distinctive, opulent architecture. Elaborate crimson designs decorated the facade of the three two-story buildings. Three residences, Jieyuan noted. This was something he'd wondered about on the way over. Meiyao and Daojue hadn't taken a master, so they were only prime disciples; he, on the other hand, had apprenticed himself to Feihuan, which made him a core disciple.

The attires they'd been given reflected that; white-and-crimson robes for Meiyao and Daojue, white-and-gold ones for him. And as Feihuan's apprentice, from what he'd been given to understand, he was supposed to live with her in the core court.

"They're all the same, so feel free to pick whichever you want," Feihuan said, turning back to them. The air around her hand warped briefly, and then three small, golden cubes appeared in her grasp. In each of them was a different number. Jieyuan glanced up and noticed that over the doorway of each residence was a plaque with a corresponding number.

"Those are the ward keys. They're linked to all the inscribed fields in each residence." Again the air warped over her hand, and again she was holding three small cubes, except these ones were jade. She tossed them to Jieyuan and said, "Those explain what each of the inscribed fields does."

"Got it," Jieyuan said. But Feihuan wasn't done yet. Two more jadebooks appeared, manifested in her hands. She tossed one to Meiyao and the other to Daojue.

"Orangerealm hymn sets, aligned with Metal and Wood. I'd go for your breakthroughs now, if possible. Before the banquet starts." Though it was slight, Jieyuan saw how Daojue's expression flickered as he gripped the jadebook in his hand tighter. Meiyao had a bigger reaction. She offered Feihuan a smile.

"Thank you." Jieyuan caught a flash of surprise on Feihuan's face, and he realized this was probably the first time Meiyao had smiled at someone else after they'd been reunited in the Xiyunfeng Palace. The older—but just as young-looking—woman offered Meiyao a polite smile in return before turning her attention to Jieyuan.

"I still have some matters to handle, so I'll be leaving for now, but I'll be back in a few hours to take you three to the banquet. Now, I'm confident I already know your answer, but I must at least extend the invitation. Would you rather live with me in the core court? You'd be living in my residence, but it's bigger than these three together; you could have an entire wing for yourself."

"I appreciate it," Jieyuan said, honestly, "but I'd rather stay here." It wasn't just so he could stay around Meiyao and Daojue; if that had been the issue, with an entire wing to himself, he could've easily found space for them. Meiyao herself probably wouldn't even want a space of her own. But it was a question of privacy. He'd already trusted Feihuan with a lot, but some of the secrets they carried were simply far too serious. Even in these residences, on their own, they would have to be discreet. Just in case.

A Yellowsoul's means of spying on someone else should be normally undetectable even to other Yellowsouls, never mind mere Orangesouls. So far, Jieyuan had gotten the impression that the Ardent Light Sect leaned heavily into being straightforward and righteous, but Feihuan had already warned them about the New Nobles. He didn't think they'd try anything overt, but spying should be well within the bounds of possibility.

He considered asking Feihuan to take a look at their residences just in case but dismissed the idea after some thought. There wasn't much of a point; even if she didn't notice anything, they wouldn't be letting down their guards. He trusted Feihuan, but only to a certain extent; it still hadn't even been half a month since they met.

"Then I'm off," Feihuan said, before turning into a white blur that streaked upward into the skies. She was out of sight from one blink to the next. I wonder how it feels to fly on your own power. He suspected it was very different from a cloudcraft. It'd still be a while before he could find out. His breakthrough to Orangerealm had really only changed his Law and the color of his chroma; his mantle-augmentation and soulforce hadn't improved at all. They would be doubled at his next breakthrough, though.

Which was when his soulforce would become strong enough for him to lift himself. Jieyuan turned to Daojue and tossed him two cubes, one gold and one jade. Daojue glanced at the cube, then back at the three residences, before heading toward his assigned one. The one to their left. Jieyuan turned to Meiyao.

"Would you…" She scoffed.

"We're sharing residences, obviously." She then grabbed his hand—she'd let go when Feihuan had tossed him the cubes—and pulled him toward the center residence. Jieyuan was only too happy to comply. —∞— Jieyuan sat in front of Meiyao. For once, they weren't in physical contact. Rather, Meiyao had her hands pooled on her lap; they were both cross-legged, on cultivation mats. Her back was straight, posture perfect. Eyes closed. Chest rising and falling in steady rhythm. Expression carefully neutral.

Xiaohu was cradled in his lap, the little beast's beady green eyes fixed on her master. Meiyao was preparing for her breakthrough to Orangerealm. Bracing herself for it. The new robes really suit her, Jieyuan thought, not for the first time, as he watched Meiyao.

The robes of the Ardent Light Sect were particularly form-fitting; from what he'd seen so far, it was a particularly martial sect, and its outfits reflected that, though he'd really only noticed it after he'd seen Meiyao in it and the things it did to her figure. More than the cut of the robes, though, it was the color that drew Jieyuan's eyes. Though she normally favored green, he'd seen her in a number of different colors before. But not white. And she wore it well. Gave her a more proper, refined air.

Untouchable, almost, but in a good way. Then again, Jieyuan doubted there was a color in the world Meiyao wouldn't wear well. Meiyao took another breath, deeper this time. She was almost done readying herself, Jieyuan reckoned. She'd never faced the Third Pain before and wasn't taking any chances. Jieyuan couldn't help but recall the early days, when he'd be filled with envy toward Meiyao's and Daojue's ability to endure the Pains.

When the Second Pain had already been enough to tear his mind apart and rid him of all semblance of conscious thought. Heavens, how things have changed, Jieyuan mused. Now it was Meiyao who had to steel herself to face the Third Pain. The same Third Pain that the day before had been little more than an annoyance to him.

Just now, Jieyuan had even offered to use Absolute Spirit Command on her to stop her from feeling it, but she'd refused; he'd then offered the opposite, to simulate it first briefly to get her a taste of what it was like, but she also shot it down. He wasn't surprised. Meiyao had always been proud. And for all that pain was a cultivator's curse, it was also their blessing. It purified them, honed their will. There was no such thing as a weak-willed cultivator. At least not one who'd broken through more than once.

Jieyuan gave it a few moments, but Meiyao didn't go for it yet, remaining in meditation, and he decided he might as well do something while he waited. Jieyuan had never been one for idleness, and there were simply too many things he wanted to do besides. His gaze drifted off her to the rest of the room. It was all spotless white marble. They were in the residence's meditation room. There wasn't much in it besides the meditation mats in the middle.

Jieyuan had proposed the bedroom for this, but Meiyao had insisted on doing this properly, no distractions. Glowing white lines on the ceiling powered by an inscribed field provided the lighting. That was the only outward sign that they were in a cultivator's residence. But there were signs that went beyond sight. Jieyuan focused on his soulsenses; his vision rippled, and then he was seeing so much more. An orange haze, almost like a mantle, permeated the room. Tenth-step orange. An inscribed field.

Several inscribed fields, in fact, though they weren't easy to pick apart. Even when he focused on their songs, he could only glean vague impressions. At least not with just his soulsenses. Jieyuan reached inside him and flexed Natural Symphony Insight. His vision distorted again before crystallizing. The orange haze around him was replaced by a sea of strings. They were all around him and of all sorts of colors. Hundreds, if not thousands, of them.

He had an intuitive sense of which ones went together, forming which fields. Just a glance gave him an idea of the properties at play. One set was proximity and alert. Another: protection and radiance. The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. He'd already given all the fields a brief scan with Natural Symphony Insight to confirm they were as described in the jadebook, but now he took his time to look them over more closely.

Both to ensure there really was nothing wrong with them and also to get some practice in with his Lawgift. Jieyuan had put Natural Symphony Insight to work against Taishou's corpse-fiends, using it to figure out the creature's properties. If he kept practicing with it, there might come a day when he'd be able to tell all an artifact's properties and powers at a glance—which would be a massive advantage.

The unknown was always the biggest threat in any given fight, and the spiritskills of an enemy's artifacts could be just as dangerous as their bondskills, if not more. He was busy inspecting the alert field when he heard Meiyao speak: " Renewal eternal." He let go of Natural Symphony Insight, his focus snapping to Meiyao. He drew closer but didn't touch her, taking in the way her body trembled and the lines of her face warped in a grimace.

That was already the strongest reaction he'd ever seen from Meiyao under the Pains. Her skin rapidly reddened, beads of sweat pooling on her brow. It was over suddenly, Meiyao's eyes opening wide as she took in a sharp breath. Jieyuan was embracing her the next moment, pulling her stiff body against his. Breakthrough lasted only a few seconds, for all they might feel like an eternity. Her breath came quickly. She hadn't stopped trembling; he was perfectly aware of every vibration of her body as he held her.

He could feel her racing heart, its rapid beats conveyed from her chest to his even through the robes they wore. A few seconds passed before Meiyao let out a light gasp, and only then did she fully relax, her body melding against his. Neither of them said anything for a long while before he finally pulled away, though he kept his hands on her shoulders. For a moment she stared at him, perfect green eyes unblinking, her face unreadable.

Then a smile bloomed on her face, and nothing in the world could've stopped him from smiling back. Heavens, but she was radiant. Jieyuan's soulsenses picked up on her soul and mantle. First-shade orange, both.

"How are you feeling?" Jieyuan asked. Meiyao nodded, about to answer, before her gaze grew distant, unfocused.

"Meiyao?" Jieyuan drew closer, alarmed. She focused back on him.

"Sorry. I was just…" She paused, and he felt a mind-link reach out to him. He accepted, and Meiyao's voice rang in his head. I sensed the second form of my bondskill. Eternal Viridescence Ruin. Jieyuan wasn't surprised at all by the change in medium; it'd been him who had told her earlier, in fact, that any sensitive communication should be done over mind-link. What's it called? Jieyuan sent back. What can it do?

Its first form had already been a fairly flexible bondskill, letting her sprout a cloud of spores that could inflict a negative effect on a target. Corrosive Viridescence Ruin, she answered. I can now keep two Ruin Seeds sprouted into Ruin Clouds, and the clouds can affect inorganic matter now, too. She paused, eyes closing, brow furrowing, clearly puzzling out her newly unlocked power. And… the clouds can have two effects now. First one, then the other. Successive infection phases. So...

it doubled in range, effect, and applicability? he sent back. That's quite the improvement. All right. I can already think of a couple of experiments we— I can also choose a new skillseed to sprout now. Jieyuan froze. Meiyao had been born with six Violetrealm bondskills. Eternal Viridescence Ruin was one of them. According to her, she couldn't tell anything about their properties, so she'd sprouted it at random after she became a cultivator. Can you still not tell anything about them? There was a pause.

her frown returned, and she closed her eyes again. Then: No. Then you should probably just go for… An idea occurred to him as he recalled one of his Lawgifts. Path Glimpse Divination. It hadn't been since he'd left the Absolute Sword Trials. It took way longer to manage a glimpse of the future, and the glimpses themselves were shorter, unstable. But maybe… Meiyao, your skillseeds, they're in different positions inside your soul, right? Assign each of them a number, one to five. All right?

Now, I want you to pick the one I tell you to. Meiyao gave him a puzzled look but nodded. Jieyuan then thought about telling her to pick the first before reaching for that vague sense of the passage of time, reaching for it, grasping for it. Several seconds passed. A pressure began to build in his head. And then he saw himself sending Meiyao a mind-link: Sprout the first one. And tell me whatever you find out about it as soon as you can. Vision-Meiyao frowned's deepened. Suddenly her expression slackened.

Vision-him eyed vision-her closely. In the vision, Meiyao would be experiencing a vision of her own, the same one that had come to him when he bonded Absolute Will Command. A glimpse of the Heavenly Vault: yourself in a void, under an infinite starry sky, and a tree of light blooming within you, its crown the very stars—the Laws, the Concept—that your bondskill had been derived from. Seconds passed, and the vision started growing faint, fraying at the edges.

Just as vision-Meiyao's eyes regained focus, the vision slipped away from Jieyuan.

"Rot," he murmured. Meiyao was giving him an odd look. He briefly explained to her what he was trying to do before he tried it again. And again. And again. After the tenth attempt, where the vision ended in the same place, he had no choice but to give up. Clearly Path Glimpse Divination wouldn't be of much help here. It'd been worth a shot, anyway. Resigned, Jieyuan sent to Meiyao: Never mind. Just pick one at random. She nodded.

It was just like he'd seen in the vision: her expression slackened for a few moments before her eyes regained their focus. Only, this wasn't a vision, so it didn't end there. Meiyao closed her eyes. Concentrating on her new bondskill, no doubt. Her voice soon sounded in his head again: Eternal Viridescence Bastion. It creates… Bastion Seeds, which can sprout into constructs. The second form's Vigorous Viridescence Bastion.

I can sprout two Bastion Seeds into constructs, and they can have healing and augmentative properties. Jieyuan saw a pattern there, if not an outright theme. Ruin Seeds, Bastion Seeds. Properties-based. Only, the Ruin Seeds were fixed in terms of form but flexible in terms of properties, whereas, if he'd understood correctly, Bastion Seeds were the opposite. These constructs… can they take any form? Yes, but it's fixed once sprouted. Though I can manipulate them.

Meaning that you can essentially create two artifacts that can both augment and heal its user, Jieyuan surmised. I think so, Meiyao responded. I'll have to test it, but… yes. They'd have to test it, all right. Though discretion would still be necessary. Maybe they could do it out of sight, within a holder pouch? Jieyuan reckoned it'd have to do. All right, Jieyuan sent to her, first things first… —∞— Feihuan led the way down the corridor.

It'd been just a few minutes since she'd picked them up and brought them to this massive, sprawling compound that spanned an entire mountain peak. Golden patterns filled the white walls of the corridor in elaborate designs. The ceiling was more than thrice over Jieyuan's height. Feihuan was unusually quiet; she hadn't said much when she picked them up. She'd worn a faintly annoyed expression then, and it hadn't left her face since. She looked almost sullen.

Jieyuan had asked if something was wrong, but she'd have waved it off. He'd given it some time, but he reckoned they were getting closer to their destination; there were some things he'd like to know before they arrived.

"Master?" he asked. It felt strange to call her—call anyone —like that, and he very glad that Feihuan had made it clear to him he didn't have to call her that normally; so far, he'd only had to address her like that during the apprenticeship rites. But he reckoned this would catch her attention. It had the desired effect: Feihuan blinked, focusing on him.

"Apprentice?" she replied with unusual, almost awkward formality.

"This banquet," he said.

"What exactly can we expect from it?" Feihuan's thin, sharp brows bunched together, her eyes faintly shimmering.

"It's meant as a celebration, but in practice, it's about politics. And about you three. Especially you, Jieyuan." He didn't need to ask why. Three fourth-orders—supposedly, at any rate—and he was Feihuan's apprentice on top of that.

"Who'll be participating?'

"Everyone that matters in the sect," Feihuan said, her voice still very quiet.

"Both factions. Royalists and New Nobles. Disciples stick with disciples, and elders with elders, in events like this. Yellowrealm and Orangerealm tables." She scowled.

"Expect plenty of politicking. Everyone will be trying to pry information from you three."

"Right," Jieyuan said. This didn't seem much different from some of the functions his old man would often drag him to when he was younger. He absentmindedly raised his free hand—the other being in Meiyao's grasp—and ran it through Xiaohu's fur; the little Xiaohu was draped lazily over his shoulders.

"I've got a couple of questions, then. This conflict between the Royalists and the New Nobles, is it just a power struggle? Or is there more to it?" Feihuan hadn't been willing to share a lot of details so far about the situation between the factions. He got the impression she was rather embarrassed about it, if not ashamed. But now that he was about to get in the middle of it all, he really couldn't just leave it at that.

"It's about authority, yes," Feihuan said, slowly, clearly considering her words. Her discomfort was clear to him. She really didn't like the subject.

"But also about… vision. The Royalists, we're fine with things as they are. The status quo, especially in relation to our Yellowrealm neighbors. The New Nobles are of a different mind."

"The status quo?" Jieyuan asked, frowning.

"I'll get you some jadebooks on it," Feihuan said, setting a steady but slow pace as they turned into another corridor, "but basically, we're all in a truce of sorts. That whole blood price thing with the Obscuring Shadows Sect earlier? It's part of an agreement between the four sects. The Coexistence Accord. The idea is to keep any conflicts between the sects from growing larger. To maintain the peace in the region…" Feihuan shrugged.

"And ensure our Greenrealm suzerain, the Silent Saber Sect, isn't given a reason to take a greater interest in us. This treaty was proposed tens of thousands of years ago by the Immaculate Blood Cult." Meiyao tensed visibly. Daojue also seemed to be paying more attention.

"The Immaculate Blood Cult?"

"Yes," Feihuan said.

"They are by far the strongest of the four sects. But I'll tell you about that tomorrow. What you need to know for the moment is that the New Nobles are too ambitious for their own good." Jieyuan gave a slow nod. He was still very interested in that matter about the Immaculate Blood Cult, but Feihuan was right; it didn't matter much at the moment.

"So be careful with the New Nobles?"

"Yes," Feihuan said.

"Keep to yourself, don't give anything away. Not that anything will happen, mind you. I do have my issues with the new New Nobles, but they aren't too bad. Not all like cultivators from the Obscuring Shadows Sect. In their own way, they do believe they serve the interests of the sect. Unless their hand is really forced, they won't go too far." Like me being revealed to be a soulburner, Jieyuan thought.

Feihuan had warned them, over a week ago, that she wasn't sure how the New Nobles would react to that particular piece of news. Whether they'd do their best to kill him or protect him. If that wasn't forcing their hand, he didn't know what was.

"All right," Jieyuan said.

"One last question. What's the deal with Yaojianhui Tianxin?"

"Tianxin?" Feihuan frowned, seemingly confused, but then her expression cleared up.

"Ahh. This is because he was glaring at you before, isn't it?"

"Yes. I'm assuming he'll be at the banquet? I'd like to know just what I did to draw his enmity like that."" Enmity is a rather strong word," Feihuan said. She slowed her pace even more. They were nearing the end of this corridor; Jieyuan guessed they should be close to the banquet hall.

"Tianxin… He's the son of a cousin of mine. I told you before how in your current generation we have two cultivators with third-order heavenly affinity. He's one of them." Jieyuan nodded, unsurprised. Tianxin was the apprentice of the sect's sovereign protector. He'd have to have at least third-order heavenly affinity to warrant that status.

"I was often around when Tianxin was growing up. I was close to his parents, and with his heavenly affinity… I was thinking about taking him as an apprentice. But he took a little too well to my attention. He grew… infatuated with me. I thought it'd pass in time, that it was a child's whims, but when it didn't even after he'd reached his teenage years, I dropped the idea and distanced myself." Jieyuan narrowed his eyes as he put it all together.

"So he doesn't like me because he thinks I took his place as your apprentice? He's envious? Jealous?"

"Something like that, I think," Feihuan said.

"Tianxin's a good kid. Just a little… passionate. He's a Firesoul. You'd know…" She paused, gave him a longer look.

"Or rather, you should know. You're very little like your standard Firesoul. Anyway, just ignore Tianxin. He might be jealous of you, but he respects me. He won't do anything stupid. He also respects his master, Ruoqing; he won't do anything to embarrass her." Jieyuan recalled the glaring man from earlier that day. He found that he didn't put that much stock in Feihuan's words. They turned a corner, and then the time for chatting was over. The corridor opened into a large, massive hall.

Hundreds of heads turned towards them.