Entering the house posed a brief dilemma, confronted and resolved in complete silence. They had their bedrooms, plural, but did their new status as dao companions change their sleeping arrangements? And on an entirely related point, both of them slept in beds just big enough to fit their bodies alone. How would they share a bed? And if they weren’t going to be getting physical, why would they share a bed?
“Though Liren is really warm. Being held by her was nice. I think I would very much like to do that again. I wonder what it would be like to hold her?” Tian thought. Then shook his head. He and Liren shared a wry look, and went to their respective rooms.
Nothing had changed, except in some indefinable way, everything had. Tian worried at the feeling, picking at it, trying to decide how he felt about all this. Happy, mostly. Worried, confused, excited, his heart seemed to blaze with joy, but he still didn’t understand what he was supposed to do. He had been utterly disinterested in romance, and his instincts weren’t being much help.
He just really liked Liren. She was his best friend, and something more than a friend, and he didn’t want a life without her. So… what? What does a humble little daoist do with that?
He stared up at the ceiling and stroked his chin. He wasn’t without any leads. She mentioned matching bangles. That sounded nice. And learning a special song on the flute just for her. That sounded nice too. There was the minor problem of not having any money, but it really was a minor problem. There was a whole magic mountain right here. There would be jades or other precious stones around somewhere. He even had a guide book on where to look for them. Then he could try to figure out a song as he went. Perfect!
Tian smiled, and snuggled into his cot. All things considered, it had been a very good day, and full of excitement. He would sleep well, and begin a new adventure tomorrow.
Morning came, and with it, silly questions.
“What do you mean you are running off?! Did you think I was joking about breaking your legs if you did that?” Liren was being unreasonable and excessively dramatic, in Tian’s humble opinion.
“I’m not running off. I’m not even going alone. I’m taking the crane with me.”
“To go run around the mountain.”
“Yes.”
“Looking for…”
“Shiny rocks.”
Liren looked at him for a while longer, then muttered “They must have frog brains in the hospital. Maybe I can have you prescribed some.”
Tian shrugged. “I don’t have a steady job, and I’m not planning on being gone for more than a couple of days. Maybe even less. It would defeat the purpose if I dragged you along with me. So. You know. Off I go.”
She slapped a hand to her forehead. “This is because I said I wanted you to make a fuss and court me, isn’t it.”
“It is, yes.” Tian nodded.
“Zihao-”
“I also decided it was a good idea, though, which is why I’m doing it. I don’t know how any of this works, Liren, and honestly, most of my brothers have relationships that ended miserably. I’m kind of lacking good examples to imitate here. All the great lovers in my books wind up stabbed to death or poisoned or with three hundred women building bunk beds in their harem or whatever, none of which sounds like anything I want.”
He spread his hands helplessly. “The right way is to bring you shiny things. Okay, that makes sense, I’ve seen birds do that and you are part sparrow so this all adds up. I have a plan now, and behavior to imitate. So it’s all good, and off I go.”
She slowly blinked at him. “It’s a family legend. It’s a story passed down from the ancestors. I shouldn’t have to explain that I am not actually a bird.”
“Dunno, when you were younger, you thought you were a swan. Looking back on it, I may have judged you too harshly. After all, what is the point of having ancestors if they don’t communicate completely accurate, useful information?” Tian nodded wisely. “Anyway, I’ll just pop up to the Monastery, let the Mission Hall know I’m heading out, and then be on my way.”
“This isn’t because I wanted you to make a fuss. This is because I called you a delicate beauty, isn’t it?”
“Absolutely not!”
“Oh Ancestors, it is.”
“Now you believe your ancestors.” Tian shook his head and tsked. Then smiled. “Hey, Liren? Truthfully? I want to do this because it gives me something I can do. I’m not mad, or scared, or frustrated, or angry. I just want to do it because it will make you happy. That really seems like the best thing in the world, right now. And it won’t be the same if you come with me. So, please?”
She slumped. “That’s just cheating. You know I wouldn’t ever actually break your legs. It’s a figure of speech.”
“It’s not a very nice one. But… if you were the sort of person who would hit me, you wouldn’t be the person I want to spend eternity with. And you are.”
Tian found the climb up to the Monastery unusually easy. Maybe it was the body reforging or the extra yang, or the unbearable might of a complete left hand. Whatever it was, it saw him leaping up the mountain like a white haired ape, moving from rock to rock with casual fearlessness and an air of utter ease. He felt strong. Maybe the sun was shining particularly pleasingly today.
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“Or it could be that Liren likes me the way I like her. I have no idea what our relationship is going to be like, but she likes me the way I like her and that is awesome!”
It was a brief moment to check in with the Mission Hall, just to let them know he was heading out of the Monastery (a very broadly defined concept these days) to go look for shiny rocks.
“Shiny? As a gift?”
“Yes.”
“Then you will want a pickaxe. And perhaps some chisels, sledge hammers, a long iron pry bar, and iron wedges. ”
“Ah, yes. Thank you.”
“Here, one merit point for a six month rental, refundable if you return them within that period. It comes with a small pamphlet describing the basic methods of hand-quarrying. Please do pay special attention to the diagrams, as they have been carefully drawn to show both the safest and most effective way to split off stones. We also strongly encourage you to not dig up any jades or jadeite you may think you have found, as it requires considerable skill to extract them intact. Simply report the location, and once it has been verified, you will receive the full merit value of the retrieved stones.”
“So cheap? And… such a good deal?”
“We are encouraging people to take up mining and quarrying. We hope gathering tools will become standard equipment, like tents. Everyone can quarry a bit of block or stones when they go out, and turn them in for merits. Just slowly building up the stock pile of materials in the sect. A real labor of love, as it were.”
He was tempted to investigate further, but the clerk was grinning a little too wide, and the number of people acting conspicuously casual in close earshot encouraged him to, instead, turn on his heel and head out the door.
He cast his mind out to the crane, and she agreed to carry him out of the sect. He got the impression she was cranky after missing out on the trial ground. She was some way out, so he loitered around the practice squares for a while. He had half a mind to try out the Dragon Suppressing Palms, but didn’t want to spend ages on it. Tian felt the blue sky calling and the mountain’s mysteries whispering to him.
Two little kids grabbed his attention instead- Jin Treasure and Xiao Ming, the two youngest cultivators in the sect.
“Senior Brother Tian!”
“Brother Immortal!”
“Hello, both of you! How have you been?”
“Good!” They chorused. Tian noticed with silent disapproval that they both sported little swords at their waists. Clearly, Brother Tang had brainwashed them. Him, and the other "Gallant Swordsmen” of the sect. If only they had started cultivating a sensible weapon! Ah well.
“I only have a few minutes, but why don’t you show me how you have developed. You are… level two and level three?”
They nodded, Xiao Ming looking a little frustrated. Tian had a sneaking suspicion that Little Treasure’s body was particularly well suited for cultivation. He hid a smile. The trial grounds at the foot of the mountain were treasure lands of body refining treasures for those at the earthly realm, and the earlier they used them, the greater the long term benefits would be. It seemed that he might be able to give them some good news. After he checked on their progress.
“Let’s start with Junior Brother Xiao. Draw your sword and attack!” Tian smiled and stepped lightly out onto the practice square.
“Aren’t you going to draw your weapon?” Xiao Ming asked. Tian just chuckled and waved him on. Xiao nodded, and drew his sword. “Prepare yourself!” Then lunged.
Tian frowned. “Hey, Junior, that won’t do. Try again.”
Xiao Ming lunged again, and Tian once again shook his head. “I know Senior Brother Tang didn’t tell you to thrust like that. Once more.”
Xiao repeated it for a third time, nerves making his footwork sloppy, and the point of his sword drifted erratically off target.
“Brother, look down at the practice square. Look at your footsteps, and then look at mine.” Tian pointed. There was a mess of steps behind Xiao Ming, and Tian’s feet hadn’t shifted at all. The thrusts had been avoided with a slight twist of the body.
“Please, instruct me!” Xiao Ming bowed, hands clasped.
“Your mind was full of noise, not thinking about hitting me. You were afraid that if you did hit me, you would hurt me. Your blows lacked any commitment, and as such, your body lacked coordination and explosive power.” Tian pulled out a stick from his storage ring. “I have never trained with a sword. Not even for a single day. I don’t know footwork, technique, breathing, timing, nothing.”
He spun the stick in a circle. “I can show you what I see you missing, though. Little Treasure, you watch closely too.”
He dropped into a rough approximation of a swordsman’s guard. “Defend yourself.”
Xiao Ming brought his sword up. Tian focused on the spot between the boy’s brows, then lunged. He did it quite slowly, extending the sword first, then pushing off the back foot. He stopped two inches from the boy’s glabella. It was still enough to see Xiao Ming collapse, then scramble back to his feet.
“I… Apologies Senior Brother, your technique-”
“Is non existent. Look at Senior Brother Kong over there. Does he look like someone pleased with my technique? It’s not a technique, and it’s certainly not an art. Little Treasure, you are up. Xiao Ming, you watch from the side.”
Tian repeated his lunge, and while Jin didn’t completely sprawl in the dirt, he did scramble backwards and fell onto one knee.
“Killing intent?” Jin asked.
“I can understand why you would think that, but it’s just intent, no killing. Believe me, you would know the difference. If you were properly focused, this level of intent wouldn’t bring a ripple to your heart.”
Tian paused, trying to find the words for something he had been doing his whole life.
“No irrelevant thoughts. No thinking at all, really. My body is well trained, and I know how to poke something with a stick. What is there to think about? I didn’t poke you, of course, because I’m not trying to hurt you. But that’s down to my self control, stopping myself at the last moment. When the lunge started, I was going to stab you with this stick. No other thoughts. Just that. Which you can call ‘Intent,’ I suppose, but it’s a pretentious way of saying ‘giving my attack and my opponent my complete focus.’ Your mind was full of thoughts, so how could you focus on hitting me?”
Tian smiled. “Let me show you what proper focus looks like on defense. Come at me together. Use your swords. If you manage to touch my clothes, I’ll get you a treat when I come back down the mountain. Touch my skin, and I’ll tell you a very interesting thing that you don’t know about yet, but boy do you want to know about it!”
When the Crane landed on the practice square, she was treated to the sight of Tian drifting around the square, chased by two furious children waving swords. The watching brothers were laughing their heads off and yelling encouragement. No matter how fast they were, the boys never quite reached him. Like a pair of young monkeys, trying to scoop the moon from the river’s surface.
“Keep practicing. Focus! If I see some progress, I’ll tell you the secret when I get back.” He laughed and leapt into the air. The crane transformed, turning large just in time for Tian to land on her back. With a mighty beating of wings and a few running steps, they were off, soaring into the sky. An immortal crane with a red face and sun-gold eyes, and a blue robed hero, laughing as his cloud-white hair fell out of his bun and fluttered behind him.