Chương 410: The Warmth of Life

Another two weeks passed. The floating fortress, "Crater's Edge," was now fully functional. It was an imposing and beautiful island of pale white stone. The aquatic pens below it teemed with the new life of freshly stocked spiritual fish and aquatic beasts. The floating memorial altar over the sect's old location was already made and set up to be a place of pilgrimage for those remembering the Green Mountain Sect.

The new massive inland sea was even beginning to find its way onto new maps, ominously labeled by the public as the "Lonely Crater Sea." Li Yu had stopped his wasteful and high-resource cultivation but the engine of his rage had not. He walked the new stone halls of his fortress in a state of restless, simmering obsession. He would stand on the walls for hours and stare into the water. His second mind was still a whirlwind of activity.

The Pillar of the Mind's Eye in his Ocean of Qi was slowly solidifying, its faint golden-red light growing a fraction stronger each day. It was bringing an analytical clarity to his thoughts towards his techniques. His work on the Soul-Shear Javelin was progressing, the theoretical principles becoming dangerously sharp. He was deconstructing the Four-Armed War-Body with a terrifying focus as well. His primary consciousness, however, was still quite a bit void.

He was a man driven and the drive was to get stronger, faster. Everything else was now viewed as a distraction to that singular goal. Become stronger, enough to even get to know more about his enemies. Cyra, who stayed with him the most, saw this and knew it was a problem. This was not the Li Yu who had saved her. That Li Yu was kind, yes, but he was also curious, sometimes silly and possessed an insatiable appetite for life and all its new experiences.

This new Li Yu was a cold, sharp and seemingly an empty shell, housing a burning core of vengeance. It was exactly what Fengliu was and exactly what Fengliu had warned against. She decided to act, not just through words but through reintroducing the things that Li Yu liked to do before. She began to manage his life which was something he was now neglecting. One afternoon as he was pacing the central courtyard deep in thoughts about his new techniques, she appeared.

"Young Master, it is time for your meal."

"I'm not hungry right now," he said, not even looking at her. He continued on with figuring out his avatar with one mind and the other was figuring out how to get more high level resources to advance himself further.

"It is a new dish," she said, her voice serene and unbothered by being ignored. She was carrying a lacquered tray.

"A Silver-Stripe Trout from the new lake, steamed with a mature Snow-Root and other ingredients. It is a dish from the north, said to enhance clarity." He stopped for a second but then went back to his own thoughts.

"It will help you figure out your techniques better so eat up and then you can go back to what you were doing." Crya spoke to him again. Li Yu paused again and looked at the dish. The aroma... it was complex and the dish itself looked delicious. It cut through his cold thoughts. He sat down and he ate. He didn't taste it. But he ate. She did this every day. She stopped letting him eat delicious meals, something he enjoyed so much before.

She brewed him different types of teas that he had not had a chance to try before. She found strange star-shaped fruits that exploded with a dozen different flavors from one of the markets in the area. The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. She was not just feeding him; she was reminding his senses that they were alive. The rest of his followers, sensing a change in the wind, followed her lead.

When Kui came to report on the Guild's logistics, he also brought a crate of the finest and most expensive wines from the capital for him to try. When Mo Ling came to report on western operations, she brought a set of exquisitely carved light-as-air toys from a craftsman she had discovered. Fat Pig sent an entire ice-packed snow-bear, with a detailed twenty-step recipe on how to roast it to perfection. It was an unspoken but coordinated conspiracy of comfort. It took a week but the ice began to crack.

One evening, Cyra brought him a simple bowl of congee. It was a rice-porridge but it was imbued with delicious vegetables and herbs. Li Yu took a spoonful. The warmth of delicious home made food spread through his body. But more than that, he tasted it for the first time since the tragedy. He tasted the rice. He tasted the faint sweet energy from the vegetables and herbs. He tasted the simple profound warmth of the meal. He looked up at Cyra.

She was standing patiently, her skin glowing in the moonlight, her face betraying nothing but serene duty. But he saw it. He saw the weeks of effort. He saw the concern. He saw the life he had been ignoring. His gaze fell to the bowl and his shoulders, which had been knotted with tension this entire time finally began to settle.

"It's... good," he said, his voice quiet.

"Thank you, Cyra. For… everything you've done for me this entire time." Cyra's expression did not change but he sensed an immense relief from her.

"No problem at all, Young Master. You must remember " The push to get stronger didn't lessen. It would never lessen. But it would no longer be the only thing. He began to sleep more. The food and drinks began to taste better. A week later he called for all of the people that had helped him through this. Kui, Cyra, Mo Ling, Fat Pig, Xylia and others. He gathered them for a feast. It was a celebration and a thank you.

"For all of your work," Li Yu said, raising a cup of Kui's finest wine.

"And... for putting up with me. I know I have been... troublesome."

"Nonsense, Wise Host!" Kui boomed, his good-natured business-like persona finally back in full force.

"A leader must grieve! It is only proper. Now, drink!" They ate. They drank. They laughed. Kui told a hilarious story about a rival merchant. Fat Pig complained about the cold but described a new delicious and incredibly fatty fish he had discovered. He had brought back several crates of it for the Guild to raise themselves. They all brought back several crates of various different aquatic beasts that they have found. Kui presented his vast quantities of turtles and the rest followed suit as well.

Li Yu took the moment in, enjoying everyone's company and what he had been missing out on. It brought back incredible memories of his journey up till now.

'How could I forget everything and be so obsessed like that?! I even completely forgot about my own messages to myself, enjoy life. I will get my revenge but they will not rule over my life this entire time. I will honor the dead by living my life the best I can, in a joyous manner for all to see. I am so fortunate to have such good people around me in my life… thank you everyone.' Li Yu thought to himself. What he didn't realize was that he needed the time he took to grieve.

It wasn't a weakness or something that was wrong to do. He wouldn't have the kind of clarity he had now if he didn't. He looked at everyone around him. They were alive. They were here and he should be enjoying their company. He lifted his cup, not just to them but to the empty seats they had made as well. He took a deep drink. It wouldn't be easy. It would take time. But he was getting better. Li Yu decided that he needed to reconnect with the simple things that he enjoyed doing before.

He was going to help others and their beasts again.