Chương 53: Divine Sense Breakthrough

"You two young lords must be new to the open road," remarked a man with a sharp, opportunistic glint in his eyes.

"To set out without so much as a scrap of dry rations… we're still dozens of miles from the next outpost. If you don't reach it by nightfall, your stomachs will be singing a bitter tune before the moon is high. A man's constitution can only take so much." The speaker was a cargo hand for the Four Seas Merchant House, the very caravan they had joined for the journey. Reyn blinked, momentarily pulled from his thoughts.

At his current level of cultivation, while he had not yet reached the stage of Inedia—the state of fasting granted by Foundation Establishment—going without food or water for ten days or a fortnight was a trivial matter. He caught the worker's drift and turned to his companion with a knowing smile.

"Brother Li, it seems our conversation this morning was far too engrossing. We've completely neglected our provisions. Whatever shall we do?"

"Alas, the thought only just occurred to me as well," Li Xiumei replied, a look of exaggerated distress crossing her delicate features as she shook her head.

"It seems we brothers are in for a long, hungry day." Seated nearby was another passenger, a middle-aged man with the weathered skin and calloused hands of a simple laborer. Hearing their plight, he offered a bashful, honest grin.

"If you young masters don't find it too beneath you, I've got a few extra grain cakes. They aren't fancy—just something my wife packed for the trip—but they'll fill a belly." The merchant hand rolled his eyes, his face souring instantly. He had been eyeing Reyn and Li Xiumei since they arrived; their refined bearing and expensive attire marked them as prime targets for a little price-gouging. He had a stash of rations he'd bought for a few copper bits, intending to flip them for a tidy profit in silver.

Now, this rustic fool was ruining his play.

"You think lords like these, raised on silk and jade, would want your tasteless birdseed?" the worker sneered, his voice dripping with condescension.

"Keep your scraps to yourself before you embarrass us all." He then turned back to Reyn, his face instantly rearranging itself into a fawning mask of servitude. Reaching into a hidden compartment, he produced a polished food box.

"Young masters, I have six exquisite dishes here—chicken, duck, fish, and prime cuts of meat. It's been kept perfectly warm. Would you care for a taste?" The laborer's face flushed a deep, humiliated crimson. He opened his mouth to apologize, but the words died in his throat. Reyn cast a cold, indifferent glance at the merchant hand, offering no reply. Li Xiumei, however, didn't hide her distaste. Though her expression remained calm, a spark of anger flickered in her eyes.

"Actually, we find ourselves with a sudden craving for coarse grain cakes," she said icily.

"Take your fancy box and sell it elsewhere. We have no need for it." The worker's face turned a mottled shade of pale and green. Seeing their unmistakable aura of authority, he didn't dare press further. He lingered for a moment, then scurried off toward another carriage, likely hoping to find a more gullible victim for his overpriced wares.

"Brother, if you're willing, we'd like to buy those cakes from you. How does one silver mace per cake sound?" Li Xiumei asked, her voice softening as she turned back to the honest laborer.

"No, no! That's far too much!" The man waved his hands frantically, though his eyes shone with profound gratitude.

"They're just homemade. They aren't worth anything."

"If we ask you to take it, then take it," Reyn added with a chuckle, his eyes gleaming with a strange light.

"We aren't the sort to live off the charity of others." This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.

"My brother is right," Li Xiumei chirped. She pulled out a silver ingot—an amount that could have purchased an entire wagon-load of such cakes—and tossed it casually to the man before he could protest further. The laborer's lips trembled with shock. He tucked the silver deep into the inner pocket of his tunic, securing it against his chest as if it were a holy relic. With hurried movements, he unwrapped his small bundle, keeping only two or three cakes for himself and pushing the rest toward the two youths.

He even produced a skin of home-brewed liquor, its aroma sharp and rustic. Reyn took a long pull from the wineskin, the harsh, burning liquid pairing surprisingly well with the dry, earthy flavor of the grain cakes. It was a grounded, visceral experience he hadn't felt in a long time.

"Brother Li, give it a try. This brew has quite the character."

"I… well…" Li Xiumei hesitated, a faint blush creeping up her neck. She looked at the wineskin with visible uncertainty.

"What? Is Brother Li unwilling to share a drink with me?" Reyn feigned a frown, his tone sharpening with mock displeasure.

"Not at all! It's just… I rarely indulge. I fear I might speak nonsense and make a fool of myself before you, Brother Reyn. But since you've asked, I shall play the part of the gentleman and join you!" She took the skin, tilted her head back, and took a large gulp. Immediately, she broke into a fit of violent coughing, her face turning a vivid scarlet. Reyn burst into hearty laughter.

He looked at his companion, thinking to himself that this 'lad' was so pretty that if he ever dressed as a woman, he would surely be a beauty capable of toppling kingdoms. As they ate and drank, chatting idly with the laborer, Reyn felt a rare sense of peace. The tension that had gripped his nerves for months began to unravel. His soul felt warm, as if bathed in the gentle radiance of a midday sun.

Within his sea of consciousness, his Divine Sense began to stir and ripple, vibrating with a sudden, surging intensity. It was the unmistakable herald of a breakthrough. With a faint smile, Reyn leaned back against the wooden frame of the carriage. His gaze became unfocused, appearing to wander aimlessly over the passing scenery. But internally, a metamorphosis was underway. His spiritual energy was refining itself, condensing into something far more potent.

'My Divine Sense has expanded significantly, and its purity is on another level,' Reyn thought a moment later, a surge of satisfaction washing over him.

'In terms of raw mental power, I likely rival a cultivator at the Late Foundation Establishment stage now.'

"Brother Reyn? Is something wrong?" Li Xiumei asked, having watched him closely during his brief trance.

"It's nothing. Just lost in a few memories," Reyn replied smoothly. The secrets of his cultivation were not for the ears of strangers, no matter how pleasant the company.

"Bandits! Horse bandits!" The cry erupted from the front of the caravan, shattering the peaceful atmosphere. Panic rippled through the line like a wildfire, the screams of the terrified echoing across the plains.

"Hmm?" Reyn's brow furrowed. He stood up, his gaze piercing the distance. At the head of the column, the guards from the five merchant houses had already drawn their blades, forming a desperate line of steel. A few of the more capable solo travelers joined them, knowing full well that if the bandits broke the line, no one would be spared. Hundreds of yards away, a massive cloud of dust billowed toward them.

Through the haze, the silhouettes of hundreds of riders appeared, their mounts thundering across the earth, their faces twisted into masks of predatory hunger.

"Don't panic! Form a circle!" shouted the caravan leader, an elder named Gu Tianbei. Despite the cold sweat on his brow, his voice remained steady.

"Wagons to the front! Guards behind them! Women, children, and the elderly to the center!" The guards and workers, seasoned by years on the road, shook off their initial shock and began maneuvering the heavy carriages into a defensive ring. The bandits were fast. Within seconds, they had closed the gap to a few hundred meters.

"Halt!" a thunderous voice commanded. With terrifying discipline, the horde of hundreds skidded to a stop just a hundred paces from the caravan. They raised their curved sabers in unison, the steel glinting menacingly in the sun. A palpable aura of slaughter and malice rolled off them, causing the faces of many travelers to turn ash-white.

"I am Gu Tianbei," the elder shouted, stepping to the front of the line.

"I have walked these roads for forty years and have maintained good relations with many chieftains. Our tributes are never late. Is there perhaps a misunderstanding today? Which chief leads this band? Step forward and speak. We are willing to offer a thousand silver taels as a gesture of goodwill for your brothers' wine money."