Chương 13: The Eye of a Ruminator

Hao had long since learned that quiet was dangerous. When the birds and beasts fell silent, it meant something was stalking unseen which would happily eat Hao's face. Not to mention all the other delectable pieces of his anatomy. When the night went still, the Grey Hilt's whispers grew louder. When the campfire was burnt out and Hao tossed and turned on his small sleeping mat, the fears came. The regrets. Those were the most dangerous of all. Needless to say, silence made Hao want to stab something.

Luckily for him, 'silence' was a concept as foreign to Verdant Plains Town as 'humility' was to Yuchen. After more than a month of being on edge and shoving a spear into whatever went bump in the night, Hao glowed in the midst of civilization. Calling Verdant Plains Town civilization was overly generous, given that it was a small walled square which was home to perhaps a thousand residents, but Hao's bar was permanently lowered by a month traveling through the wilderness. How he missed West Lake City!

Millions of people bustling about their days, each with their own story, each interacting in a teeming mass of humanity whose chatter eased Hao's loneliness. An endless barrage of sensations: the smells of brothy noodles with meat simmering until it was so tender that it would melt in his mouth, the clash of White Rivers and Sacred Lotus cultivator blustering and dueling on the streets, the vast, glassy surface of the West Lake expanding on until the horizon to the east.

If nothing else, West Lake City was never boring. Was it any wonder that Hao grinned like an idiot as he took in all the sights and smells and sounds of civilization? A sensory flood swept him away, kindling his social side to life like puffing air upon a dying coal. The stench of trash and sweat was just as sweet as the greasy deliciousness wafting from the market.

Hundreds of people crowded the town's plaza, jostling and shoving and sliding through the masses as they fought their way back to the prime pavilions reserved for influential caravans, with all the arguments and laughter and haggling one would expect from this crowd of pampered merchants, rough warriors, and frantic townsfolk. It was a far cry from Hao's time in the wilds.

The most talking he'd done since leaving West Lake City was with a house-sized spirit bear that had taken a nap in front of the cave Hao had rested in. He'd had to lightly poke it in the ass with the Cheng Spear to wake it, then convince it not to eat him by trading away his best rations, a good handful of low-grade spirit stones, and a cultivation manual that the damned thing couldn't even use. Not to mention the yang pills that he'd stolen from Brother Li.

Why the bear was so insistent on those was a question that Hao didn't dare ponder. All he knew was that there was probably an enormous spirit bear wandering around the Corelands with an erection the size of the Cheng Spear. Some mysteries were better off unsolved. Hao pressed through the crowd effortlessly. The scorching heat pouring from his skin ensured the mortals gave him a wide berth, speeding his passage. Every last corner of the town was congested, but the plaza had the worst of it.

Over a thousand people and hundreds of stinking livestock were crammed into a space intended for perhaps five hundred. Grizzled men and merchants spat more bullshit than a demonic oxen at one another, each trying to convince their targets of certain convenient lies: this sacred fish oil will cure your cockrot, this half-broken spear could pierce a fortress wall, this mercenary wouldn't leave you to the buzzards…

Browbeaten guards patrolled in small units, constantly barking orders, and tossing around belligerent mortals who'd sated their boredom with a bottle of wine. Hao was amused by just how quickly those hard-faced men and women kowtoed to any sharp-eyed cultivator. Knocking heads one moment and on their knees the next. Keeping the peace was hard for the Verdant Plains Town guards when they didn't have a Distillator amongst their number. Only one stall drew Hao's eyes, demanding his attention as none other could.

Captain Gu's instructions and his own sharp nose guided him over to a rickety stand—bright red letters painted onto a wooden slat proudly proclaimed it as Granny Sun's Culinary Delights —attended to by a shriveled up prune of a woman who'd probably been ancient when the Emperor took his throne. Her gnarled fingers gripped the handle of an enormous wok.

She tossed some intoxicating concoction of dewdrop lentils, spicy solar pepper sauce, and some sizzling strips of fatty beef which left him wanting to moan in delight. A little vial of Xia's Lover's Delight appeared in Hao's free hand. The syrupy liquid sloshed in its container. Hao uncorked it and allowed a single drop to fall on his tongue, shuddering as the concoction coated his mouth, drenching him in preparation for an artillery barrage of sensations.

Sounds grew sharper: Hao heard the braying of donkeys and the grunts of oxen, the shrieks of playing children as they darted through the crowd, and the murmurs of merchants as they plotted their next routes. Scents turned thick and succulent, the good and the bad wafting together in a heady mix. But Granny Sun's cooking overwhelmed all else, leaving Hao aching to devour it all.

Even his sight grew clearer, though that wasn't necessarily a good thing when around a bunch of filthy, exhausted men and women stuffed into far too small an area.

"How much?" Hao's demand rose above the din of customers surrounding Granny Sun's stall. They took offense at first, but a kind and gentle smile from Hao (and the waggle of his spear) put those squawkings to rest. His pupils dilated as he peered down at the battalion's worth of food being tossed in that wok.

"Forget the rest of your orders. I'll pay for all of it!"

"Oh, I bet you can, dearie," Granny Sun crooned, flashing Hao a gummy smile. She scanned him up and down in a distinctly predatory way.

"I'll even cut you a special deal, Master Cultivator. It's been too long since a handsome young man brightened my humble little stand!" One of the hard-faced men that Hao had shoved past grimaced as Granny Sun waggled her eyebrows.

"Dirty old biddy…"

"And proud of it!" Granny Sun tossed her sizzling feast in the wok. Hao's eyes tracked it greedily.

"Thirty copper spears for a bowl, dearie. Just promise to stick around for a moment while you sample Granny Sun's delights."

"Thirty? You charged my company forty per bowl!" The hard-faced man protested.

"This is ridiculous! You practically robbed us blind."

"Supply and demand, sweetheart!" Granny Sun cackled. She appraised Hao again, who was perfectly content being objectified if it meant he got even a bite of her confections. He started as the audacious old crone reached out and squeezed his hard bicep.

"When you get arms like that, I'll charge you thirty coppers as well. Who here would deny an old woman her vices?" Granny Sun ignored the man's grumbling in favor of stirring the mouthwatering feast. She grinned up at Hao as she drizzled some divine-smelling sweet sauce over the sizzling beef, leaving it moist and dripping with the dark glaze. Every noodle in the mix greedily soaked up the sauce, as did the pok choi and bulbous mushrooms drenched in the deliciousness.

The whole mix combined in a heady aroma that left Hao's stomach roaring within. It might have just been mortal fare, but Hao would be damned if it didn't smell like the stuff of the Emperors! He ached to just devour it all, but he couldn't forget his secondary purpose in coming here. Stuffing his face was one thing, but Hao had long since learned that the best way to make friends was to bring snacks. Well, snacks and yang pills, if that enormous spirit bear was anything to go by.

"Forget the bowl, Granny. I want the whole pan!"

"Oh, how presumptuous you are. My, my, I haven't needed to fan myself like this—" Hao cut her off by stuffing a small pouch of silver taels from his pack into her hand. The coins were an unwilling donation from one of Yuchen's sycophants when Hao left the White Rivers, though he couldn't remember which he'd taken it from. Mortal money was more-or-less useless to cultivators, so he'd never bothered to count it.

Based on the way Granny Sun frantically warded off greedy onlookers, Hao suspected he might've overpaid by a tad.

"Away with you all. Away! Don't you dare ogle my goods, Old Bao. I'm not so withered that I can't see that hungry gleam in your eye. Oh, Old Bao, it's been a long time since this little granny's felt so desired…" Tossing treasure at mortals was ordinarily a great way to see them relieved of that burden in the span of minutes, but Hao thought the dirty old woman would be just fine. Her lecherous gaze would ward off any robbers just the same as his spear would, like how toads produced toxins to warn away predators.

Besides, a number of harried guardsman had already encircled Granny Sun, glaring at anyone watching her too closely. She must be well-loved in Verdant Plains Town. Hao put Granny Sun's sudden stroke of good fortune out of mind. He clutched the wok easily in his bare hand, ignoring the scalding heat. Mortals couldn't bear to touch it, but the hot metal felt pleasantly warm to him. There were benefits to adopting the Wildfire into his spirit.

The townsfolk and merchants gave him a wide berth, unwilling to stray too close to the madman carrying a steaming wok through the crowd. He stowed his spear away into the storage ring and flicked out with his jade chopsticks to shovel food into his mouth, barely managing to hold back his moans. There wasn't a drop of qi in the food, but Granny Sun must have channeled the divine! Hao was spoiled when it came to culinary pursuits.

West Lake City's huge population supported a glut of restaurants, diners, and chefs, many of whom practically begged to play host to the famous White River Sect's members. Granny Sun matched the best of them.

"I underpaid her," Hao muttered, wishing nothing more than to go back and throw a few low-grade spirit stones her way. He'd put up with a dozen creepy comments if it meant she cooked him another pan. But business came first.

"Now, where's Fairy Geng…" According to Captain Gu—who was hardly an unbiased source in this matter—Fairy Gu was a noble soul, a swordsman whose beauty matched her heroism. She cut down the wicked wherever they arose. Acquiring her aid wasn't a certain thing, especially if she was a Ruminator as Captain Gu suspected. Recruiting a Ruminator to his cause ensured that he and Sister Fu could slaughter Yuchen like the dog he was, but what would come next? A Ruminator complicated things.

Mighty Zhang's pavilion was dead ahead, resting in the center of the circle of housing for prominent merchant companies. Ordinary caravans had to make do outside the walls if they hoped to stay. Every company influential enough to claim a spot in the plaza had at least one Distillator amongst its number, though only a few were worthy of note. A Distillator was sufficient enough for the Lonely Plains; they'd earn enough respect from bandits and spirit beasts to passively ward off attacks.

Hao glanced ahead, briefly noting the presence of the stronger Distillators, most of whom glared at him. The strongest was a vicious-looking man wielding an enormous two-handed changdao sword that was almost as large as Hao was, though right now he was in terse negotiation with a reedy mortal who looked on the verge of pissing himself. Mighty Zhang. Hao's spiritual senses surreptitiously glanced him over. The bald cultivator burned with power.

He was truly at the peak of Distillation, just a hair away from ascension. Wildfire came ablaze, urging Hao to test him, to match his spear against the man's overly huge blade. There was a surly look to Mighty Zhang that made Hao's competitive instincts flare. The quality of Mighty Zhang's qi hinted that he wasn't compensating for anything with that grotesquely massive sword, but it wouldn't hurt to find out through a spar…

"Not yet," Hao whispered, distracting himself with a few more bites of Granny Sun's delicious concoction.

"Beautiful Fairy Geng first, the baldy second." He opened his senses, grimacing as he felt a dozen other cultivators scan him in turn. They retreated, scalded by the heat of his spirit, and Hao idly wandered in the direction of one of the strongest signatures. It was cold and sharp like a winter wind or glacial lake, yet there was a bend to it, a softness that spoke of a gentler soul than the outer armor presented— If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road.

Please report it. A signature suddenly flared to life at his side, weaker than the noble presence he'd just sniffed out. Hao didn't outwardly react beyond peering at the source: a sharp-featured woman with dark, watchful eyes and her pale fingers clasped around the hilt of her jian sword. She wasn't particularly remarkable. She certainly wasn't a Ruminator. But Hao was never one to let the initiative go.

"Fairy Geng?" Hao drawled, already knowing the answer would be ' no'. He paused in the midst of the marketplace with his hot wok at the ready. He plucked out another morsel and devoured it greedily.

"I brought lunch, if you'd like to share a bowl. Let me tell you, it is divine. I was hoping to discuss some business with you."

"Do I look like the honorable Fairy? My name is Xing Jia of the Last Road Trading Company," she said primly, never glancing away from him. Her fingers tightened around the hilt of her sword. Hao's Wildfire sang as his qi billowed through his meridians in anticipation of a fight.

"My Master Wan would speak with you, wanderer." Hao stiffened. Master Wan was the one Captain Gu had warned him about. The amiable guardsman said that the Ruminator was a reliable protector of the roads between Sun Wall City and the Corelands, but quite dangerous. One didn't survive for over two hundred years without attaining some sort of strength. He followed Xing Jia's glance back to the Last Road Trading Company's pavilion.

Dozens of mortals attended to their beasts there, cooking up food and arranging their belongings. Eight grim Calcinators watched Hao like a hawk, though he only had eyes for the ancient man sipping from a battered wine gourd atop a wagon. The old man met Hao's gaze unflinchingly. One of his eyes was an ordinary brown. The other was a prosthetic carved from brilliant green jade inlaid with tiny golden sigils. It spun frantically in its socket before settling onto Hao.

Most tellingly, the old man was utterly invisible to Hao's spiritual perception, standing out no more than one of the hundreds of mortals crowding the town square. That alone spoke volumes about his skill. An ugly feeling filled Hao's gut. This wasn't a man to take lightly.

"Join us, wanderer. Master Wan does not appreciate dallying." Xing Jia spun on her heel and marched off, not even checking to see if Hao had followed. He considered escaping into the crowd, but where would that leave him? Master Wan wouldn't have sent Xing Jia over for no reason. Ruminators weren't accustomed to being denied by Distillators, especially here in the Lonely Plains. The old man wouldn't just let Hao vanish from Verdant Plains Town without trouble. Xing Jia was nothing to worry about.

Nor were the Calcinators, who Hao was confident he could tear through. Even Master Wan alone might be survivable if he moved swiftly. But there was an intensity in Master Wan's mortal eye that expected obedience, promising swift reprisal if he was denied. Attempting an escape was a sure way to spark a fight. Hao really didn't need two Ruminators hunting him. If there was negotiation to be had, Hao would try to seek a peaceful arrangement. If not, perhaps he could recruit Fairy Geng to his aid.

A hero like her would surely step in to defend a poor, defenseless Distillator, right? What sealed his decision to follow Xing Jia was the simple fact that he'd done nothing worthy of offense. If worse came to worst… well, between the power of the Cheng Spear, his Ignition, and the Transient Burning Leaf, he should be able to escape.

It would've been nice to find some proper allies here in Verdant Plains Town before getting pulled into Master Wan's pavilion, but the calm expression worn by the old man suggested that this decision had been quite an intentional one. Xing Jia must have been dispatched to invite Hao over as soon as they detected Hao. Hao wore his friendliest smile as he approached, doing his best to restrain the Wildfire as it simmered within his spirit. Master Wan waved his hand once in greeting.

The mortals surrounding Master Wan's caravan retreated from the pavilion, leaving only the cultivators.

"Greetings, Master Wan! This humble wanderer is Xiao Hao. How can this little Distillator be of service to a protector of the Lonely Plains?" Master Wan reclined on his wagon-throne like a guardian lion watching over his caravan, garbed in white robes adorned with the image of a setting sun. Hints of powerful musculature bulged through the loose fabric. Though Master Wan was old, just a glance told Hao that he wasn't decrepit.

Light wrinkles crinkled across the Ruminator's face, especially around his eyes, and his skin was bronzed from long days on the open road. His great bushy eyebrows lent him the impression of a hawk, and his magnificent mustache and long beard were grey with streaks of white. If cultivation strength was determined by facial hair, then Master Wan would have been the mightiest of Emperors. All in all, Master Wan reminded Hao of a great old oak made strong and sturdy by the centuries.

His remaining eye looked clever and intense, piercing and colored a pale brown that seemed dotted with flecks of gold. Master Wan took a long drink from his wine gourd and smacked his lips, ignoring the pale orange stains left by the rice wine. Authority radiated from the old man despite his unkempt appearance.

"Welcome to the Last Road Trading Company's temporary home, Xiao Hao," Master Wan said. His lips twitched as he glanced down at the hot wok still in Hao's hand.

"Ah, you have good taste! That's Little Sun's work, yes? I'd recognize that aroma anywhere. Did you buy her whole day's stock?"

"How could I not? Granny Sun made a compelling case, though I could've done without her innuendos."

"A hazard which comes with the finest quality, I'm afraid. Little Sun always had a bawdy sense of humor. Why, I remember eighty years ago when she was just a young woman—" Xing Jia cleared her throat.

"Hmm. I digress," Master Wan said, shaking his head.

"Do you intend to eat it all?"

"I've been out on the road for well over a month," Hao said drily.

"We'll be lucky if I don't eat the whole town out of house and home."

"Such an appetite! You must have succumbed to the Curse of Distillation." Hao ignored the Calcinators subtly shifting around him. Xing Jia silently drifted from Master Wan's side to stand behind Hao, cutting off an easy escape route. The Wildfire simmered, aching to be unleashed, but he held it firm. Not yet, Hao whispered to the flame in his heart. We can't afford to lose another drop of distilled qi. It was best to play things out.

The longer this went on, the more likely it was that other cultivators would take interest in Master Wan's little court. Cultivators had long memories, knowing that revenge was best served cold. What kind of grudges could Master Wan have earned after spending two hundred years on the Lonely Road?

"I intended to share, actually. I'm headed west to Sun Wall City, you see. I hoped to meet with a few caravan leaders to join them on their way as a protector. It never hurts to negotiate with a full belly."

"Sun Wall City, hm?" Master Wan's eyes narrowed. His jade prosthetic practically burned a hole into Hao as it locked onto him.

"You're in luck, Xiao Hao. Our route takes us all the way from the Golden Capital in the east to Sun Wall City in the west. Fortune truly smiles upon you!" Hao snorted.

"Fortune? Hardly. Half of Sunbeam is fleeing west thanks to the Four Winds."

"Bah! Trust in the Emperor, boy. His Radiance will shield us all!" Master Wan barked, only to shake his head. His jade eye swirled in its socket, plainly agitated.

"The Four Winds dogs will pay for their greed, I promise you that. But enough! What business does a lone Distillator have in Sun Wall City?" Hao paused, feeling the Grey Hilt's foul presence pressing against the confines of the storage ring. At least the idiot artifact had the good sense not to release itself in Verdant Plains town. That kind of attention was a good way to end up killed.

"It's a long story," Hao drawled, raising up the wok to tempt Master Wan. A few of the Calcinators groaned as the fumes wafted over to them.

"Why don't we share a meal while we talk?" Master Wan gestured for Hao to set the wok down on a small stone table nearby. He descended from his throne to sit down across from Hao. All of his students continued to surround them, though Hao could see their envy as Master Wan plucked a few morsels from the steaming pan and smacked his lips.

"Ah, I still remember Little Sun in her dawn. She was a bright girl, always at her mother's side. She's been a talented cook since her first toddling steps, but she's only grown more refined with age. Mortals are such fleeting things, Xiao Hao, but all the more brilliant for it." Master Wan cocked his head at Hao like a predatory bird.

"Enough chatter. Speak truly, boy. This old man doesn't take kindly to lies." That was just perfect by Hao. Xing Jia's presence looming behind him didn't exactly put him at ease. His fingers itched. He'd feel much better with the Cheng Spear in his grip.

"I've run afoul of a Corelands sect. Sticking around would be…unwise," Hao said carefully.

"Sun Wall City is beyond their grasp. I'd like to travel with a caravan for security. I'm a good spear, but there's safety in numbers."

"You're making a poor case for yourself." Master Wan arched his bushy eyebrows.

"Why would I invite a sect's wrath onto my little caravan? I will not put my people at risk, Distillator." Hao scowled.

"I'm not without talents."

"Perhaps if you could cook like Little Sun," Master Wan chortled, though he soon grew serious. His good eye searched Hao, seeming to scrape layer after layer away.

"What could you offer that would compensate us for such danger?" Master Wan's words might have been dismissive, but he would have just sent Hao away if he wasn't at least somewhat curious. There was an opportunity here if Hao could prove his value. His father hadn't taught Hao much of merchantry before he'd been snatched up by Master Bolin, but he'd left one lesson firmly entrenched: everything could be negotiated. Hao paused, choosing his words carefully.

"You say half of Sunbeam is trawling west to escape the Four Winds. How many predators do they invite? The Lonely Plains isn't the safe, simple route it once was. Vultures are everywhere," Hao said, shuddering as he felt the Grey Hilt's influence press against the boundaries of the storage ring.

"I had to put down a group of bandits just a few days ago. They were led by a Distillator. I'm no master chef, but I am quite good at killing things."

"A valuable skill in these troubled times. Yes, I have no doubt that you're a good hand in a fight," Master Wan said.

"I'm old, not blind. Your foundation is masterfully laid, boy. Your master must be very proud." Hao's jaw clenched. His Wildfire raged.

"Yes." Master Wan's jade eye burned golden as the sigils flared. The White Rivers ensured all their disciples had a basic foundation in scripting, but the complexity of the prosthetic's scripts was far beyond Hao's elementary knowledge. It spoke volumes about Master Wan's abilities that he could not only attain such a treasure, but keep it.

"No, Xiao Hao, one doesn't just stumble onto a foundation as flawless as yours. That flickering thing inside you…the Wildfire Physique, yes? And tempered quite well, fully awakened." Hao's jaw tightened. Just how keen was that jade eye?

"You must've consumed trove upon trove of treasures," Master Wan murmured.

"A cultivator at the peak of Distillation with an awakened Physique, a small lake of distilled qi sitting in your core, and not one, but two storage rings. What sect do you belong to, boy?" The Ruminator leaned forward an inch.

"More importantly, why are they hunting you? I can only think of a few reasons…" As if Hao would just share that information! He rose with a scoff, leaving his precious wok behind. He flared his Wildfire, ensuring the eyes of other cultivators fell upon them, and allowed his qi to saturate the storage ring which held the Cheng Spear. A normal spear wouldn't do for what came next.

"We're done here," Hao said with a scowl.

"Good day to you, Master Wan. May fortune shine upon you." Qi flared behind him as soon as the words left his tongue. Hao had suspected as much. Xing Jia lunged, blade reaching for his back. Hao snatched the hot wok with incredible speed, spinning to smash Xing Jia's thrust away. He flung the wok at two of the Calcinators, who leapt aside, and manifested the Cheng Spear to catch Xing Jia's follow up overhead strike, grimacing as he was forced into using the fine weapon.

Xing Jia braced herself, leveraging her fine blade against the Cheng Spear's spiritwood shaft, but Hao's strength dwarfed hers thanks to his Wildfire Physique. He shoved her back, ignoring the sudden gasps that sounded around the pavilion at the sight of the Cheng Spear.

"Enough, Junior Xing." Master Wan raised one hand.

"There will be no violence today." Xing Jia did as her master commanded and stepped obediently back into the circle of Master Wan's students. Every shred of killing intent vanished, sheathed just as surely as her blade was.

"A little late for that!" Hao spat, Wildfire raging through him. He ached to thrust his spear through Xing Jia's heart, to unleash his flames and burn this whole damn town to ashes! He leveled the spear at Master Wan instead.

"Explain yourself!"

"Put that away, Cultivator Xiao. A princely weapon like that doesn't belong in the Lonely Plains! You'll attract greedy eyes."

"I don't appreciate tricks." Hao didn't return the Cheng Spear to his storage ring. It was his best defense against a superior cultivator, though Master Wan wasn't wrong. More and more cultivators turned to watch the confrontation, greed filling their eyes. Master Wan simply cocked his head at Hao.

"Neither do I. Heavenly jade at your level? Preposterous. I see the callouses on your hands. You carry yourself like a feral dog, hungry for every scrap. You're no clan heir." Heat poured from Hao. As soon as Master Wan or Xing Jia shifted, he'd explode into motion.

"I remember those hungry days of wrestling with the Curse of Distillation, of feeling myself become a bottomless pit yearning for anything to fill it. Endless greed! Tell me, Cultivator Xiao, whose tomb did you rob? Whose blood did you shed?" The Ruminator's eye burned.

"What piece of yourself did you trade away for that weapon?"

"I'm no murderer!" Hao snarled, slowly losing control as the Wildfire billowed within him, stoked hotter and hotter by his frustration. It urged him to lash out, to take his spear and demonstrate his superiority to these fools. How dare they question him. Him!

"Not a murderer, then. What about a thief?" Hao's lips thinned.

"There it is! A thief can still cling to honor. But there's something else about you, Xiao Hao. I smelled it before you ever stepped into town. Theft and murder are simply the ways of this harsh world. But there are other sins. Sins which can't be forgiven."

"And what sin would that be?" Hao challenged. The tip of the Cheng Spear burnt with fiery qi. The Grey Hilt crooned, beckoning Hao to reach for it, to feel the sands of time slip through his soul.

"You're so eager to punish me. Name my offense!"

"Gladly," Master Wan whispered, suddenly as cold as a winter gale. A naked jian sword appeared in his hand. A thin layer of heavenly jade lined the edge.

"I smell the rancid sorcery clinging to you, Xiao Hao. The foulness of the Dark. There is only one cure for such an affliction." The students bared their blades. Hao's muscles coiled. The Grey Hilt's foul choir shrieked in his ears.

"Our world is troubled enough without your kind, heretic."