— Wind Waver —
The day had finally come. Waver always knew it would. Rose was leaving the tribe, leaving Chy'a-kit entirely. Waver had to go with her. She'd forget all the little, important things otherwise! Like eating! Or sleeping! Or the most terrible prospect of all…! She'd forget how to laugh the rare little laughs that only he seemed able to get from her…
Waver knew Rose better than she knew herself. She'd get all serious and responsible and determined until she stopped living altogether. Power and cultivation, her dreams and ambitions, always seeking more. It was what made Rose so special, but it couldn't be all there was for her. Waver wouldn't allow it.
So he couldn't bear to let her go alone into the wider world. Even just the thought made his skin crawl with disgust and self-loathing. What kind of man would he be if he let Rose forget the little qualities of life?
She returned from her tribute hunt with strangers-… No, strange beings. They seemed to defy any sense set against them. Even by Ember of Sunlight — Rose's father and leader of the tribe. At the peak of the Sky Realm, not even he couldn't make Heaven or Earth out of the strangers Rose returned with.
They were impossible. Unknowable. And just so fascinating to Waver as a result. Death and her Prince Consort, they claimed. No one dared disbelieve them. Somehow, they made the truth of their beings as plain and clear as the trees and leaves and the wind rushing between. They weren't mere cultivators, weren't mere hidden masters… They were facts and facets of Life itself.
'Just call us Sean and Didi,' They insisted. No one dared to be so familiar. Even Ember of Sunlight and the tribe's elders bowed their heads respectfully. Wisdom thankfully reigned in that regard.
For all their strength, for all that the tribe as a whole could match nearly any other sect in the Empire, it was plain to see that they were ants before the strangers — so caught up in their society, their level beneath Heaven and on Earth that they could never comprehend the ascendant beings now walking among them.
Rose declared her intention to accompany Death and her Prince out into the wider world. No one protested. Not even Waver, not truly. It was a day long in the making. When Rose would inevitably set out to pursue her dreams of more. Even the tribe's Elders and Shamans expected it at some point. And Waver knew it was coming more than most, knew Rose's secrets and the path chosen for her. So his shock was short-lived, and quickly overtaken by determination to not be left behind.
He snuck away to begin gathering his things as Rose introduced the Deathly Strangers to her father and the other Elders. Already, plans sprung to Waver's mind. He'd 'lock himself' in his sanctum workshop and claim to create one last thing for Rose to take with her. No one would bother him then. They never did…
But instead of remaining complacent, instead of accepting the sudden shift of fate, Waver would sneak aboard Death's strange and fascinating carriage. Rose would miss him when the tribe saw her off… But that was fine! 'Cause he'd simply surprise her with his presence when they were too far along the road to bring him back to the tribe!
At that point, Rose wouldn't have any choice but to take him along. Waver couldn't bear to let her leave alone… so he wouldn't. She'd forgive him. She had to. It was just the best outcome all around. Rose wouldn't embark on her fateful journey alone. And though his desires were currently playing second fiddle to Rose's needs in his mind, Waver would still be able to see the wider world as he'd always wanted to.
Waver… knew he was strange like that. He'd never been satisfied with just Chy'a-kit. There was too much to see, too much to understand beyond her borders. He'd learned everything he could from the tribe's Shamans, Waver felt. He'd surpassed their understanding, their ancestral knowledge taken for granted.
His alchemy, formation work, and smithing were the best in the tribe, only comparable to the other Shamans where his cultivation base fell short. He grasped all of the concepts and quandaries that the tribe had to offer. He knew the Totem Spirits better than the clans who claimed them. And while Chy'a-kit would always have something else to teach, always have something else to see, Waver knew…
More awaited him now. Even more 'More' than he'd ever anticipated, too, for Death and her Prince could open his eyes ever wider. Outward, elsewhere, and deeper all at once. It was time he took his Dao of Knowledge and Understanding into his own hands. Rose reached ever upward. Waver would reach all around, forming a stable foundation of profound comprehension to lift her, to help her in whatever ways he could.
It was a choice he made easily. Rose needed him. That was all the motivation and determination he required to set aside everything he was familiar with. It was a terrifying prospect… setting aside his comfortable routines and his peacefully profound existence… But for Rose? Waver barely even hesitated. He'd adjust. Eventually… Probably…
Waver set about packing everything he had in… well, certainly not record time. There was so much to consider, so much to take! His tools and brushes, of course. They went into the storage formation on his pouch before even his clothes. The Qi furnace went next, though he had to dismantle and deactivate it temporarily. It wouldn't do to have it trying to refine the storage space from within the pocket dimension…
He packed what materials he could carry. Formation inks he'd mixed himself. Various powders and liquids he'd been the first to discover and refine. Spirit Beast parts and cores, hunted by Rose and himself (Rose, more often than not…). Spiritual herbs and seeds and even whole logs he'd yet to process.
After his tools and supplies, Waver had to quickly craft a whole new storage pouch to bring along his clothes (plus a few Rose always seemed to leave with him for some reason) and all of the food he wanted to bring. Knowing Rose, she'd forget food entirely. So Waver overcompensated there. At the end of his packing, Waver had just about his whole home in a series of unassuming dimensional storage pouches on his person.
Seeing the barren living space he left, reality really set in. Waver paused but shook the moment off quickly. For Rose, he'd carry his whole life on his back. She would need him to, so he would. It was as simple as that in his mind. He gave his now-empty sanctum workshop a reverential bow and let the only chapter of his life he'd ever known… close.
Only something chillingly and thrillingly new awaited him now. But Rose would be there. She'd always be a constant for Waver to ground himself upon. Now, all he had to do to join her was… sneak aboard Death's carriage… He… might not have thought this plan all the way through…
Still, he was committed. If his plan failed, he wouldn't hesitate to sink to his knees and kowtow without shame. Begging, groveling, kissing ass, whatever it took to join Rose… He'd never been one for pride. And for Rose, for profound understanding, he'd throw what little he had away in a heartbeat.
The tribe was seeing Rose off at the base of the Great Tree. It wasn't technically a ceremony, but certainly an event. Waver snuck past them all. He was only in the Fourth Stage of the Profound Realm but his profound understanding of the world allowed him to do miraculous things with formations. Not even his grandfather Wind Dancer — the best tracker in the tribe — could find Waver if he was trying.
When he came to the carriage, he looked for a way inside. As much as he wished to pour over it, that would have to wait. He should've expected it but, Waver found no entrance. Until that is, a door swung open on the side of the carriage facing away from everyone gathered.
It was a purposeful gesture. It had to be. Death and her Prince knew about him, knew he was trying to stow away. But… they approved? Waver didn't allow himself to consider the implications then. He just threw himself into the carriage and closed the door behind him.
Outside, Ember of Sunlight was saying the tribe's parting words to Rose, "Be well, Daughter. Grow. Thrive. Live. You will always have a place in our tribe. And when you return to us, let it be in the flesh, not in words of remembrance."
"I shall, Father," Rose answered. "Think of me not with worry, but with pride. I shall carry all of our names to both Heaven and Earth."
"She'll come back just fine," Prince Consort Sean said. "Better, even. She is being watched over by Death, after all."
"We'll look after her and make sure she doesn't return as an obituary," Death reassured.
As one, Ember of Sunlight, the Elders, and the whole rest of the tribe bowed to Death and her Prince. As if rehearsed, they all proclaimed an echoing tribute, "OUR THANKS, EXALTED ONES!"
But Rose, Waver saw, seemed distracted. Frantic, almost, though none but Waver and her father would notice the emotion behind her perfect mask. She looked around at the gathered tribe pointedly.
"Where is Wind Waver? Has my oldest companion not come to see me off?" Rose asked.
Ember of Sunlight sadly shook his head, "I am sorry, Daughter. From last I heard, he has locked himself within his sanctum in an attempt to create one last gift for you. It seems he will not manage to do so in time."
"Then-!" Rose began. It was slight but her perfect composure fractured. She recovered instantly, exhaling the flaw with a small breath, "Then someone will just have to fetch him."
"Ah, ah, no time for that," Prince Consort Sean shot her down, visibly amused as he pushed her toward the carriage.
Rose straightened her back and Waver knew she was about to go against Death itself for him… Thankfully, Death Herself stopped her, "It's already taken care of, Rose, I promise. Just trust us."
Rose settled onto the bench in front of Waver while he kept himself hidden. She composed herself once more with a breath, and calmly raised her concerns with Death and her Prince, "This lowly Young Mistress must humbly protest, Exalted Ones. This is not the agreement we had in place. Waver must join us. I will not-…"
Waver couldn't help himself from popping his head up curiously, cutting her off, "You made an agreement with Death and her Prince for me?"
Rose spun on the spot, her eyes wide and her perfect mask nowhere to be found for once, "Waver?! You-! What-?! How-?! Fool! Scroll-sniffing, pill-and-formation-brained, INCONSIDERATE, OBLIVIOUS FOOL!"
Waver blinked, but quickly, he paid her insults back with a happy smile. She knew him so well! "I couldn't let you go alone, Rose! So here I am, coming along! If Lord and Lady Death will allow it, of course…"
"We did have an agreement," Sean said, smirking. "But I doubt Rose would appreciate me sharing the specifics of it now. It's hardly relevant anymore."
Rose nodded quickly, "Yes. Hardly relevant at all. Because this fool thought it a good idea to stow away aboard Death's carriage!"
She was glaring at him again. Waver just shrugged, "They opened the door for me."
"Good sense does not retroactively apply based on unprecedented results you could not have predicted!"
"Shouldn't it? Expect the unexpected, no? An open mind and no clue what's going on are often my greatest tools when comprehending the profound. Shouldn't this qualify for the same?"
"NO! For I know you've learned NOTHING! Fool! Fool, fool, fool! Also, that confession explains too much about you! A fool, even when you're being smart!"
"Oh, this should be fun," Didi chortled.
Sean shared a conspiratorial glance with her, "He makes her the most lively we've seen so far."
"Yes, I suspect they're very good for each other…"
"Well, with how long we'll have to travel in the same vehicle as each other, I'm sure we'll know for certain very soon. Nothing to it, though. Back on the road, my Death?"
"Back on the road, indeed, my Prince."
IIIII
— Sean —
Seeing the native cultivators' first reaction to radio was amusing. Recorded music was far from impossible here. But the cultural whiplash? That was impossible to get anywhere else, priceless and maybe even profound. Rose's honest, genuinely taken gasps when she first heard Hozier were adorable, and I'm pretty sure her cultivation even got a small boost from the utterly new experience.
That along with… many other things… seemed to fill Waver with questions. So many questions. And since we would be driving for a good long while still, it was only natural that he'd begin to ask those questions. His hunger for knowledge — large or small, profound or mundane — was insatiable. But Didi and I made sure to give him and Rose quite a bit to think about.
Waver started with the 'essentials'… "Who are you? What are you? HOW are you?"
"Waver!" Rose gasped, apologizing profusely. "Forgive him, Lady Didi, Prince Sean! His common sense and common manners are sorely lacking…!"
"It's a fair question, though," I said, making a show of considering it all. "People always ask 'How could Death-?!', never 'How IS Death?'…"
"Err, yes…" Waver paused. "That too, I suppose."
"Well, how are you doing, my Death?" I asked Didi.
Playing along, she answered with an appreciative sigh, "Oh, I'm having a grand time so far. Thank you for asking, Waver."
Clearly not what he meant by his question, Waver just cocked his head, "You're… welcome…?"
"To answer your actual question, though," I chuckled. "We're people. Just like you or Rose. We have our needs and desires. We love, we laugh, we Live — more than most for that last quality. Reaching Endless conceptual enlightenment can change just about everything, but paradoxically, nothing at all as well."
Didi picked up where I left off, "I am Death. But also Conception. Two sides to the coin, like all of my Endless siblings. We have always been and always will be. From Creation to the ultimate Quietus. In our home, my domain is truly Endless. I oversee every Death and every Conception. But here, I am merely a woman like any other on vacation with her lover. Meanwhile, my Prince is-…"
Waver and Rose alike stared at Didi with wide, humbled eyes. Her explanation echoed with the usual TRUTH. And here, a profoundness that was unmatched. Cultivators studied concepts and Daos like science anywhere else. They were knowledge. Wisdom. Experience in everything that ever was or ever could be. And the more one understood of the profound, the more whole and in tune with reality they became. An essential facet of life for those who reach for the Heavens with their own power.
I smirked as Didi trailed off back to me, "I'm just one lucky schmuck."
My frankness startled the two cultivators. Rose just blinked. Waver leaned forward in his seat, "Luck…?"
Didi rolled her eyes, "He's underselling himself, of course."
"You don't think I'm the luckiest man to ever live and die and live again?" I asked, amusement raising a brow on my face.
"Without a doubt," Didi sniffed. "Just as I am the luckiest Death who ever 'lived' since you drifted into my lap, Sean. But that's hardly all we are. I'd even go so far as to say that most of the things you've grasped or done were manifested so on your own merit. Here, for example. You ascended to the highest echelon of this reality when you lived here-…"
"Terrible example," I teased. "Cultivator Luck is notoriously bullshit."
Didi let out a fond sigh, "Oh, you're just being purposefully difficult now."
"Very well," I put on a sigh as well. "You win. I'll admit that I'm not solely defined by my luck. Luck alone could hardly carry someone through the 69 lives I've lived. That's 'Who, what, and how' I am, Waver. A serial reincarnator to match Didi's Endless Death."
Rose bowed her head reverentially, "Truly, we are but frogs in the well before you both, Exalted Ones…"
Waver just cocked his head to the other side, his natural curiosity far from sated, "… Did you ever live in Hell?"
"Several times," I confirmed. "Each time was different. And each time was fun-… well, interesting, at least. The Demons this world knows are far from the only brand out there."
"I… see…" Waver said, visibly trying to wrap his head around the concepts Didi and I spoke of.
Our drive lapsed into silence for a while after that. TRUTH and Luck… beings of Heaven and Hell… Worlds upon worlds… Endless Death and Endless lives…
Already, there was enough profound material there to keep them entertained for the rest of the drive. Likely enough to spark an entire Dao or two… But Waver proved himself to be as insatiable as a starving man when it came to the profound. Soon enough, he came back for another round of questions.
"Do you cultivate?"
"Always, in some form or another — Magic, Prana, Aura, Ki, Haki, Chakra, Demonic Energy, or even just pure skill," I shrugged. "To seek power — any power — is to cultivate, in a way. To live is to cultivate, in another. And I've lived many lives over. But in the manner you're referring to… only once."
"When you lived… here?" Waver clarified. "Beneath this Heaven and on this Earth?"
Rose shook her head in awe, "The truth you place in front of us is almost impossible to believe, yet I can refute it no easier than I could stop breathing altogether."
"You'll get used to it," Didi reassured. "More close-minded people have. Saying the TRUTH so plainly that your Soul can't help but recognize it as such certainly helps."
I chuckled at the moment of pause her words gave the young cultivators before continuing, "Here, I was born into an utterly lackluster existence in the Empire's capital, in the 'Phoenix Nest'. Right beneath the Emperor's nose, yet as far from his notice as Heaven is from Earth. I was a cripple. And an orphan. Doomed to mortality more than any other, even my fellow rats on the streets thought so. They kept faith that they might eventually work and claw their way into a sect, any sect, no matter how minor. A cripple doesn't even have that slim hope."
"Oh, dear," Didi sighed sympathetically.
"I can hardly imagine you crippled, Prince Sean," Rose declared breathlessly.
"Just the cruel luck of the cosmic draw," I explained. "Your birth can define so much about you… But it will never fully define your final fate. It's a beginning, yes. A beginning to everything you are. But it's hardly the only beginning you'll have in life. It's never the journey. And certainly never the End."
Rose bowed her head until she almost — comically — hit her forehead on the dashboard, "I shall strive evermore to make your wisdom my own."
"Yeah, yeah, of course!" Waver nodded along easily. But his attention was clearly on something else, practically vibrating to hear more. "But then-?! What's the capital like? Would living on the streets be like living on the paths in the Deep Woods? I can't even imagine-… how does that even work?"
I smiled at his enthusiasm, "Not at all. You're confusing 'street' with 'path', thinking of them both as routes from one place to another. But that completely ignores the environment surrounding the 'routes'. On your paths through the Deep Woods, you're typically alone, yes? On the streets of a city, you're never alone. And that is where the danger comes from."
"Danger from Man, not Beast?" Rose shuddered slightly. "How… foreign…"
"The Phoenix Nest is spectacular," I continued. "It's also a unique iteration of Hell. Picture living in a place where everything you think of can be found… yet you still starve. A place bustling with people from every walk of life… yet you're constantly alone in a sea of them all. A place the very Heavens smile down upon… yet you remain forgotten-… no, purposefully ignored. That is living on the streets. Community is rare. Competition is fierce. And your very existence is a tragic comedy, satire put on by civilization itself."
I didn't mind putting the horror of city life into the two tribal cultivators one bit. Living as they had, there was no concept of it in their mind. Best to tear that bandage off quick and early. A single district of the Phoenix Nest could surpass their tribe's population a dozen times over, without any of the comradery they were used to. I wanted them to know they couldn't expect something like their tribal village scaled up when we got to the capital.
From their looks of incomprehension and wariness, they got the message. I continued.
"But the capital is far from all misery, woe, and struggle. As I said, the Phoenix Nest can be truly spectacular. The strong thrive there, more than anywhere else. It's essentially the center of the known world. And the city itself is a work of art. A testament to architecture, culture, and progress, to civilization at its best.
"The Mountains of Heavenly Triumph overlook the city in eternal vigil. An entire mountain range, carved and painted in a scene of final victory that pushed back the Age of Darkness. From the capital, history is still alive on the horizon in those mountains. And the Seven Coloured Flames of the Phoenix burn forever over the city, a second sun brought to Earth from the Heavens. Then there are the floating islands, chained to the Earth with sects and stadiums atop. The five hills of Virtue, Duty, Propriety, Credibility, and Mercy. The Phoenix Tears River. The Great Forges. And the Imperial Palace, of course…
"It's a magnificent city. Larger than life. But to an orphan and a cripple… it's all just a painting in the background."
"It does sound beautiful. All of those masterpieces and wonders to be proud of… But at what cost?" Waver considered aloud.
"Yes, I struggle to fathom how anyone could call toiling under such mortal trials and tribulations 'more civilized' than living as we do with the tribe, sharing our whole lives with kin and peers and Chy'a-kit," Rose clicked her tongue. *TCH* "but I suppose I'll reserve my final judgment for now…"
"You'll see it for yourselves soon enough. You can decide then if the heights are worth the pain," I said. "For me, then, they certainly weren't. I struggled through my days, barely scraping by. No friend or family in sight. No one stooped low enough to peek into the gutters where I slept. It was no surprise I took up drinking and wasting away. Anything to numb myself while lying, stealing, and cheating my way to the next bottle."
"My condolences, Prince Sean," Rose bowed to me. "For your painfully inauspicious beginnings. That you have risen so high regardless is something to be celebrated."
"Perhaps," I smirked. "Or perhaps it was blind luck. Or perhaps even a joke played by the cosmos. Whatever the cause, I eventually stumbled my way into greatness without even realizing it."
"Without realizing…? What do you mean?" Waver asked.
"Well, I was on a bender, you see?" I began. "Blindingly, deafeningly, deathly drunk. And somehow — drunk as I was, I still don't know how I managed it… — I entered myself in the premier tournament of the decade. In the Imperial Capital, no less.
"I didn't sober up one bit by the time my first match rolled around. Yet still, drunk and 'crippled'… I beat my opponent so badly that he destroyed his own cultivation in shame. Without ever realizing it, I had drunken myself out of cripple-hood and into cultivation, igniting my Qi. My way — my Dao — was the Drunken Fist in the beginning, and it was certainly a first step to be remembered."
Rose looked as if she didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Ah, that age-old trope here. Non-cultivators never got the sweet and sour, scrunched-up expression quite right. Meanwhile, Waver was grinning widely, vindictive and vicarious as I spoke of the victory that started my cultivating journey.
He certainly knew what side of the age-old trope he was on, laughing loudly, "Haha! Spectacular, Prince Sean! I've heard of nothing like it! What made you so unique? What enabled you to do the impossible?"
"Several things," I explained. "But the most key of all, I embodied impurity. I was civilization's chaff and dregs. I was the exact opposite of the usual cultivators. Instead of purging myself of everything mortal, I reveled in it. Found solace within it. A numbing peace, at first. But a sort of peace all the same.
"Now, there's nothing wrong with the usual method of cultivating. If it works, it works. But it never would've worked for me. So I forged a whole new path. To note, you and Rose shouldn't try to follow in my footsteps. It only worked for me because of my inauspicious beginnings. The Heavens respond best to cultivators who are true to themselves. You'll each find your own ways, ever forward, ever upward.
"Impurities can be just more fuel for refinement. IF you know what you're doing, and IF that Dao suits you. It's a way of recycling waste — from your own to the waste of Heaven and Earth. Most cultivators don't bother for good reason. For almost everyone other than me, it's hardly worth the trouble for such mediocre gains and the potential for deviation. But to an orphan from the gutter? Waste and tainted Qi were my bread and butter."
"Like a trash panda," Didi giggled. "The mental image suits you surprisingly well, Dear."
"Truly, anyone or anything can ascend to the Heavens above," Rose froze immediately after muttering the words. "Err… That is to say-… I don't mean to imply-… No shame or slapped face-… I believe I shall just apologize and stay silent now."
"How does one turn waste and impurity into Heavenly ascension?" Waver curiously asked. "I can hardly imagine it's a sustainable Dao."
"You'd be surprised," I chuckled. "Waste is everywhere. Plentiful and without any competition to speak of. Poison and venom, tainted and Demonic Qi, in Life and after Death, so on and so on. But you're right in that it's not a wholly sustainable Dao. I was forced to spend much longer than usual on my foundation, refining and re-refining the impurities I took in. My cultivation was slow to start, but heavy and dense with potential. All of that mortality gathered like weight behind an avalanche. And once it got rolling, there was no stopping it.
"I went through the rest of that first tournament still drunk, still almost unaware of myself and my surroundings. The drink guided my fists and loosened my tongue. I made many, many enemies that day — crushing Young Masters and seducing Young Mistresses. But I just… seemed unable to stop winning. I dueled my way through Initiates, and then Profounds, and then Spirituals, until I reached a final, utterly humiliating victory over the whole event.
"Outmatched, overpowered, and drunk as hell… I still triumphed. And then immediately made with the 'disappearing' as some semblance of sobriety returned to me. I didn't want to be around when the Seniors decided to pay back the face-slapping I'd given their Juniors. With no background and no sect to tie me down — or support me… — I made myself scarce rather well.
"I spend the next hundred years wandering the Empire, drinking and brewing to cultivate, dodging blood feuds like it was a career, slapping more faces — of course, and just generally leaving chaos in my wake. During that time, I never reached above the middle of the Profound Realm… in theory. In practice, I punched well above my weight. By then, my foundation was built up enough that the aforementioned 'avalanche' began. The next hundred years shot me straight to ascension at an absurd rate that would be impossible to recreate. It took me 200-some years to ascend for the first time. And reality itself seemed to be left scratching its head as to how.
"Once ascended, it started all over again. Just with a bit of a headstart. Heavenly cultivators here are roughly equivalent to the Spiritual Realm 'up' there. It's a whole new stage, but the play remains remarkably similar. Time and continuity get… wonky between worlds, but I continued progressing. Eventually, my Dao changed and I adopted Change and something rare in this reality that I have much prior experience with: Magic. That Dao took me all the way to the Great Endgame in the Stars…"
I trailed off my heavily summarized story. Thankfully, Didi picked up for me, nodding, "And the rest — as they say — is history. I saw his End here. It was beautiful. But hearing about it while you're still so fresh and malleable would influence you unduly. Sean had his way, his journey, his 'Daos'. You two will have to find your own."
Rose stared at me with wide, intent eyes, "It… starts all over again…?"
I nodded, confirming, "Heavenly ascension here is just the first rung of the ladder. But the foundation you build here will be the most important. The other worlds between this Earth and the last are… largely just filler. Filler with fully realized peoples and histories, of course. But it's best if you worry about all of that when it comes."
Rose fell silent. Shocked. Struggling for composure but contemplative all the same. The whole van quietly settled. Even Waver's insatiable questions had ceased. Didi and I were happy to leave them to their thoughts. We shared amused looks and she came to rest her head on my shoulder as we drove.
During the conversation, we'd passed through the entirety of Chy'a-kit's Deep Woods. No small journey. But the Vacay Vessel and Deathly Transit made distance rather trivial. An Earth Realm cultivator would've run for days what we crossed in less than one.
Now, sunlight in the Mortal Woods greeted us once more. Rose gasped as it hit her. Immediately, she began to cultivate intensely. Practically throwing around her internal Qi as she drank deeply of the sunlight, not so much taking in new Qi as she was attuning what she already had to the 'flavor' her clan's cultivation method suited best. I don't think she realized she'd be seeing much more sunlight than she was used to as we continued.
In the Mortal Woods of North Chy'a-kit, roads began to appear. It was still clearly frontier territory, but steadily grew more traditionally civilized and settled. There were even cleared spaces for farms, logging camps, and towns. And at the border of the province, Rose and Waver encountered their first city. Hardly something to compare to the Phoenix Nest, but still the most densely populated place they'd ever seen.
Frontier-Shì sat on a river to match the Mississipi. The majority of its build-up was on the river's south side, leading into Chy'a-kit. But a district or two of commercial outposts, company compounds, and stockpiles dedicated to trade were accessible by a great bridge to the north side. It was the Empire's foothold and gate into the province and saw decent traffic as a result.
First and foremost, it was a city of trade, as I understood it. Chy'a-kit was rich with valuable resources for export. That was kinda the entire point of the Empire settling the northern tenth. That small slice of the pie was able to stimulate a prosperous economy, even if input and interaction from the tribes of the Deep Woods were relatively rare compared to the trade between the Phoenix settlers and the rest of the Empire.
We drew quite a few odd looks — and quite a bit of wary respect — as we drove through the city. People likely mistook the Vacay Vessel for the strange carriage of a powerful cultivator or rich noble. Me and Didi happily waving out the window as we passed might've thrown that thought process for a loop. Meanwhile, Rose and Waver simply stared out the windows, trying to take it all in.
"So many people…" Waver muttered. "So many… mortals…?"
"In places that aren't as stupidly Qi-dense as the Deep Woods, mortals are by far the norm and majority," I pointed out.
Both Waver and Rose seemed shocked by that information. Which was fair. Everyone in their tribe had at least ignited their Qi. They had no reference for how absurdly potent their home, people, and ways of life would be considered by the rest of the Empire's standards. Ironically, the same could be said for the Empire about them…
Waver — whose Fourth Stage Profound cultivation was considered mediocre in the tribe — would be a significant, but not Heavenly, prodigy in any sect. Rose — who achieved the Third Stage Spiritual by 27… — would be considered a generational talent even by the Big Three Sects. And the idea that a tribe of 150 people — max — could boast a master at the peak of the Sky Realm was just absurd by local standards. The smallest sects still had dozens of Outer Disciples and hundreds more mortal servants, all within a wider civilization. Chy'a-kit's Deep Woods tribes may have been isolated… but they were kinda bullshit in that isolation.
Personally, I couldn't wait for the reactions that their special brand of isolated bullshit would inspire. In fact… "Why don't we stop for a drink while we're here? A toast to celebrate your first steps into the wider world?"
Didi glanced at me like she knew I was plotting something, didn't know what, and was still more than happy to go along with it anyway, "And I suppose you'll be our expert guide to the local drinks?"
"We'll see what they have in stock," I shrugged. "The important part is that we go to a tavern. Preferably a bustling and popular establishment. Without announcing ourselves. And then we simply wait for the fireworks to start."
Waver perked up at that word, "Fireworks? There will be fireworks? Is there a local festival going on?"
"Oh, you sweet summer child," I chuckled ominiously. "When it comes to popular drinking establishments and arrogant cultivators, there are always fireworks."
IIIII
— Didi —
"You dare?!"
"Do YOU dare?!"
"Come! I, your young father, will show your simple face the back of this hand!"
"Fath-?! GAH! You will die a dog's death!"
"Shall we take this outside?! I would not sully the noble owner's floor with your putrid blood and fetid death!"
"Behold!" Sean declared, grinning as he gestured at the scenes around them. "Fireworks."
"This is common?" Didi asked.
"Common~?" Sean just chuckled. "Baby, this is the norm. You can't enjoy a single drink or meal without cultivators doing what cultivators do in the background. Dinner and a show is a fact of life in this reality."
Rose and Waver — those adorable unorthodox cultivators they'd picked up on their trip — were visibly baffled by the dramatic scenes of cultivator disagreement. For good reason. As Didi watched, a second iteration of it sprang up as soon as the first bickering pair vacated the bar to fight outside. She couldn't help but giggle at their expression, though. They certainly added something sorely needed to their trip, more grounded perspectives to live vicariously through.
"What… even is the meaning of this…?" Rose asked, her face almost but not quite scrunching up cutely.
"Face," Sean answered. "When in doubt, it'll always come back to face. Face leads to a very specific kind of idiocy. Face leads to arrogance and ego. Face leads to grudges and insults and the inability to let even the littlest thing go. Wanna give it a try?"
Rose seemed to be building a head of steam over how pointless that was, but Sean's ending question brought her up short. She blinked, "Give it a try…?"
"Sure," Sean encouraged. "You're a Young Mistress. It's practically your Heaven-given right. You don't even have to pick the first fight. Just go stand by the bar and someone will inevitably pick it for you."
"Well…" Rose considered. "I suppose it is important to see how my strength measures up in the Empire…"
"That's the spirit! Go get 'em, Rose! And try not to kill or cripple anyone in the process!" Sean practically shoved her out of her seat.
Rose gasped but quickly gathered herself. She set her back straight and went to follow Sean's instructions for picking a cultivator fight. Immediately, quite a few eyes in the tavern focused on her. Rose noticed but pretended not to. Soon enough, a 'Young Master' was approaching her.
"Is this necessary?" Didi amusedly asked Sean. "Because I know it's not a good idea."
"Oh, she'll have a grand old time," Sean assured. "It's in the air here."
A moment later, the 'picking' of Rose's fight reached their ears. The Young Master was painfully plain in his extravagance. 'Perfect' silks, 'perfect' looks, and 'perfect' composure. It all came together to make him utterly mediocre, utterly boring. Yet he held himself as if he was Heaven's gift to Earth.
"What is a savage beauty doing here without an escort? Worry not, Flower, this Young Master will ensure you are kept well!"
"Oh…" Sean winced before raising his voice for Rose to hear. "I take it back! This one, you can kill, Rose! Didi, hold Waver down, will you? I don't think he realizes he's trying to get up and rush to her side."
Didi gave an indulgent sigh, putting a hand on Waver's shoulder. His expression was terribly offended on Rose's behalf, even if he didn't seem to know why he was seeing red. Adorable, those two. Simply adorable.
The Young Master coming onto Rose spun at Sean's voice, rage painted across his 'perfect' face. Or… he began to spin, at least. Rose interrupted him before he could even lay eyes upon the 'fool who dared?!'. Her expression was one of cutting disgust and an open palm landed on the Young Master's cheek with a shattering crack.
Surprisingly… that was it. The fight was over before it could begin. The Young Master — for all his perfection and arrogance — couldn't even stand up to a single slap from Rose. His head spun around on his neck. Twice. Shock bloomed in his eyes… just for the light within them to Die instantly. Rose didn't even look back at the body as she stomped back over to their table. The energy and happenings of the tavern didn't even pause for a moment with the Young Master's pathetic demise.
"I believe my appetite for this type of entertainment has been sorely ruined," She declared.
Sean sighed, "That's fair. Usually, it's all in decently good fun but there will always be assholes who take it too far. I suppose we'll just have to find some other show for the evening. Any thoughts there, Waver?"
Waver seemed surprised to be addressed, but his eyes darted to one corner of the tavern, "Err, perhaps…?"
Following his gaze, Didi saw a pitiful scene. A young man tried and utterly failed to drink away his sorrows. His once-fine silk robes were dirty and ruined. His expression — the dim light in his eyes — was lost, utterly lost. From him, Didi sensed the Death of a Dream.
Sean seemed to as well, grinning, "Oh, yes, I smell a side quest in the making. Should we see what brought that poor soul so low?"
Getting up, Sean walked over and slid into the ruined young man's booth as if he belonged there. Waver was following him instantly, curiosity getting the better. Didi held for a moment to share a certain look with Rose, commiserating over their chosen fools. Then, they too joined the 'side quest in the making'.
The ruined young man's name was Gong Shoushan. His cultivation had been sent back to Foundation in a spontaneous, unexplained, and unexcused attack by someone he called a friend. While he wasn't completely crippled, Gong Shoushan knew he'd never reach the heights he would've before Cheng Aiguo's seeming betrayal ruined him.
And yes, that one meeting did start something of a side quest. One that followed them out of the Wishing Woods province and through their journey in the Phoenix Rest Plains that began the next day. The home city that Gong Shoushan fled in shame happened to be on their path north. It cost them nothing but a bit of time — and even gave them something to do — to check in on this Cheng Aiguo for an explanation.
From there, the story only deepened. And deepened… and kept deepening some more! Didi would readily admit that she quickly grew invested, if only for curiosity's sake. Cheng Aiguo was filled with rage when they met him. But it wasn't directed at the friend he ruined.
Sitting him down and getting him to talk, they learned that his sister Cheng Huan had been stolen by the Fang Clan and he'd lashed out in his loss. From there, Waver insisted they seek out the Fang Clan to get their side of the story. His insatiable mind was stimulated like never before, and watching him work through the mystery was just as entertaining as the mystery itself.
At the Fang Clan compound, they discovered Cheng Huan. Rose outright gasped at the twist that came with meeting her. She hadn't been stolen by the Fang Clan, instead willingly eloping with its Young Master Fang Shi. But she only did so because Fang Shi's fiance Luo Zhu was actually stolen by a spider of a woman named Yin Li! To use Luo Zhu's special Yin-Yang-Something-Something body (Didi didn't pay much attention to the specific name) as a cultivation resource of all things! How far did this one rabbit hole go?
They continued on the trail of the side quest to the other side of the city. The Luos were a small, relatively poor family. Their daughter falling in love with Young Master Fang Shi was going to be their big break. But by the point things had developed so unfortunately to, they honestly cared more about getting her back safely.
To that end, Uncle Luo ran to the local Twisted Peaks Sect to call in old favors. Invested as they were, Waver and Rose naturally wanted to keep unraveling the story, and Didi and Sean were happy to indulge them. Really, it was 'their side quest,' Sean said. The first adventure for them in the wider world. 'Something to be treasured'. But it also helped that the trail continued to lead north, coincidentally going the same way they were already headed.
At the Twisted Peaks Sect, they found Uncle Luo. He was on the verge of losing hope. The sect had no time or resources to spare towards helping him take on a potentially powerful hidden mistress cultivator like Yin Li. For they were already engaged in a fierce struggle for cultivation resources with another hidden cultivator, a master this time!
The Twisted Peaks Sect was competing with Master Hu Yongnian for a 'classic hidden realm', as Sean called it. It was the kind of resource that could utterly change a sect's fate and trajectory in the world. So of course, Master Hu wanted it for himself. He was powerful for what essentially amounted to the countryside of the Empire, standing in the First Stage Sky. But that also meant he didn't necessarily need the resources as much as the Twisted Peaks Sect did.
Meeting him offered a change of pace for the side quest. Every other cultivator they'd met so far was at most a peer to Rose's cultivation, and usually below her on the cosmic ladder of power. Rose and Waver had no such claim to authority over Master Hu. So that was where Didi and Sean stepped in to give them that authority.
It was a simple thing, just expressing a portion of Endless displeasure when Master Hu tried to dismiss Rose and Waver's quest outright. Yet just that fraction of a fraction of Endless might made Master Hu cough up blood. Didi found herself bemused by that turn of events, but Sean claimed it was rather typical. That Master Hu 'had eyes but couldn't see Mount Tai' — whatever that meant — and his sudden, dramatic internal bleeding was just the price he paid for that arrogance.
Still, their Endless authority allowed Rose and Waver to continue unraveling the story. They learned Master Hu's side of things. He was in hiding to avoid his troublesome descendants, the Treasured Gourds Sect. They then left Master Hu on proverbial ice to see what was inevitably troubling his troublesome descendants.
That 'troubling' seemed to come in the form of oppression from an Elder. Tian Song of the Hidden Grove was an old rival of Master Hu… and an old lover. Finally, they found the source of the side quest, like following a river through its many twists and turns. It was — of all possibilities — a lovers' spat over child support.
Following that discovery, Rose and Waver began to retrace their steps, setting things right all along the way. Through Sean and Didi's influence, Tian Song and Master Hu were convinced to sit down and actually talk to each other. An alien concept to cultivators, to be sure…
That freed the Treasured Gourds Sect from oppression. It also distracted Master Hu from the cultivation resources he didn't actually need. The Twisted Peaks Sect triumphed in that battle and finally had the wherewithal to address Uncle Luo's concerns. The sect sent a party to rescue Luo Zhu from Yin Li's clutches. When the hidden mistress turned out to be a Demonic cultivator, she was annihilated outright.
Luo Zhu returned to her family, traumatized but ultimately whole. She was certainly not interested in marriage anymore, however. Still, Fang Shi was satisfied that the young woman was safe. His elopement with Cheng Huan was officialized and he made peace with Cheng Aiguo after everything was explained.
Suddenly Cheng Aiguo found the sense to see the error of his ways. He kowtowed and swore an apology to the brother he'd ruined in his rage. 'If it is the last thing I do, brother, I shall help you reclaim what I have taken from you,' he promised. Gong Shoushan was given a new lease on life, a new hope that he might return to what he once was.
After the side quest was completely resolved, the Vacay Vessel… simply continued on their way northward. Waver was practically giddy with all of the intellectual stimulation he'd gotten. Both he and Rose got to see how wide the world truly was. And Didi had to admit that the not-quite-detour was certainly entertaining.
"Just One Small Feud," Sean chuckled to himself as they got back on the road in earnest. "Oh, I missed cultivator shenanigans."
"I counted ten layers to that whole mess, Dear," Didi pointed out, unable to keep the amusement from her voice.
"As I said," Sean simply nodded. "Small."
The 'One Small Feud' side quest added a few days to their journey north. But it'd also stimulated Waver enough that he rose to the Fifth and final Stage of the Profound Realm. Thankfully, the rest of the trip wasn't nearly as eventful. So in just a week — that would've been a month or more for anyone else — they came to arrive in the Imperial Capital.
From a distance, it was everything Sean promised it would be. Didi had seen many cities come and go. Few — if any at all — measured up to the Phoenix Nest. Massive, just massive — enough to surpass any modern city. And magnificent. It sprawled on and over the five hills Sean had mentioned, around a great, essential intersection of rivers. Islands flew in the evening sky. A seven-colored beacon burned above the city, seeming to stream down from the Heavens to a great, bowl-shaped brazier atop the Imperial Palace.
The Mountains of Heavenly Triumph monument overlooked the city from the west, painted in the colors of sunset as they arrived. Even Didi had to stop and appreciate them. At the center of the monument — of the mountain range — the Big Three forces of the Empire were represented. A man who embodied the calm chill of clouds, even statuesque as his depiction was. A woman of heavenly composure, with rage and loss burning in her stone eyes. And one last man between them with a phoenix mask and the weight of Heaven and Earth on his shoulders.
"The First Phoenix," Sean named them in reverse. "The spark who ignited an Empire, who led the push back against the Age of Darkness. Without him, none of this… would be at all.
"Admiral Qiu Qingge of the Soaring Heaven's Isle. That massive godship is hers. And yes, it's true to size. She was a simple artist before the Demons came to the Soaring Heaven's Isle. She lost everything to them. They killed her husband, her sons, her daughters, and even her, in a way. But she found the strength to do what needed to be done, despite the rage, despite the anguish, and despite the sacrifices she bore until the end of her days.
"And finally, the First Founder of the Cloudy Sword Sect, Zemin. His founding ideals are noble, perhaps the most so in the Empire. It's said that even the Emperor stopped and engaged the Cloudy Sword Sect's Founders in noble debate. Even now, his sect's descendants try to live up to their Founder. They venerate their ancestors, their brothers and sisters, the peace and independence they carved from the Crimson Crucible, and even… especially the mortals who look to them for protection.
"Those three were the backbone of the Phoenix Empire as it rose from the Age of Darkness. Even now, the two principal sects are considered pillars almost equal to the Emperor. They have only themselves and the Emperor's Sovereign Sword Sect as peers. And they're honored as such, as you can see."
Rose bowed her head toward the distant mountain monument, "A truly awesome way to never forget the heroes, sacrifices, and ideals of the past. I can only hope their stories are still told from mouth to ear as is most proper."
"Mouth to ear to scroll and formation," Sean laughed. "The Empire might not have as much of an oral tradition as your tribe, but they certainly don't forget their history. The Emperor's Library is the largest in the known world by far."
Waver stared out at the massive palace at the center of the capital with its eternally burning beacon on top, almost drooling, "Oh… Oh, I can hardly imagine…"
Entering the capital, their strange vehicle drew much fewer eyes. Not when cultivators flew on swords and thrones and carpets, rode Spirit Beast steeds, or even walked around on impractically towering stilts. Crystals shining with pseudo-Life provided basic and advanced utilities to the people of the capital — anything a modern city needed and more. The streets and buildings were pristine and beautiful, decorated with extravagant murals of paint and tile, banners of silk and even Qi, and artworks built into their very architecture.
Along the streets, the hustle and bustle of Human Life was ever-present. Carriages, wagons, and litters. Merchants and their wares. Citizens — mortal and cultivator, humble and noble alike. Guards policing and patrolling the main thoroughfare into the capital. And if one looked into certain alleyways, glimpses of the city's darker side — the side Sean had lived… — peeked through.
The Vacay Vessel rolled along the main street with the windows down so they could appreciate the sights. And through those open windows, a crier's announcements could be heard…
"Hear ye, hear ye! The Rising Stars Tournament shall begin its 333rd iteration two days hence! Come see the Heavenly talents of the Immortal Empire and its Infinite Sects! From wide and far, they come to test their skills and provide pointers to their peers! Who — just who! — shall emerge victorious? Inner Disciple Shen Yu, the Rising Blade, or Core Disciple Ge, both of the Cloudy Sword Sect? The Ethereal Beauties Han Song, Baishi Lili, or Tianzhe Minyan of the Soaring Heaven's Isle? The Phoenix Prince, leading his Sovereign Swords? Or even some hidden talent, waiting to be discovered!"
The van slowed to hear the crier, Rose nodding, "I believe I would like to enter this tournament."
But Didi's eyes were only on Sean. She watched him slow, stop, and blink as a bemused realization came over him, "I-… huh. Just… huh."
"What is it, Sean?" She asked him.
"Our arrival seems to have displaced us in the timeline I know slightly," He answered.
"Oh?" Didi was far from concerned about matters of time travel but she was certainly extra intrigued now. "How so?"
"Well…" Sean explained. "The Rising Stars Tournament is the one I entered, the event of the decade. Only… My tournament was the 420th iteration of it — fitting for an inebriated victor, I know. Yet the crier just announced the 333rd Rising Stars Tournament, along with mentioning quite a few names I recognize… as exalted elders in my life here."
Didi felt her eyes start to sparkle with amusement and excitement. "Oh, how fun~… You just have to introduce me to your old friends who haven't met you yet, Dear~…"
"Oh, yes," Sean chuckled. "This should be… amusing, at the very least…"
IIIII
[AN: Dun dun dun… THE TWIST! Sean and Didi arrived 8-900 years before Sean ever lived there. That's just a vague (and probably not completely accurate) guess as to when Shen Yu and the other Elders' generation was. So we won't be getting any Fa Ram stuff… BUT we will get a young Shen Yu, Jin Rou's Gramps. Also Elder Ge (and maybe other CSS Elders), Minyan (and the other SHI Elders from the BoC SHI AU (great read if you missed that)), and the future Phoenix Emperor. All in their primes of youthful cultivating adventure, too.
The lack of Fa Ram stuff is on purpose. I didn't want to trample over CasualFarmer's main characters like that. Cameos like Bi De in the Companion Piece chapter are fine but I like them too much to risk fucking up their characterization or 'intruding' on the main BoC story (if that makes sense). Shen Yu's generation is my way of making up for that. All for the small, small price of having to bullshit my way through timey-wimey fuckery lol. But I'm not going to stop a little thing like paradox stop me.
That said, the OCs from the Companion Piece Endgame chapter are still going to show up at the end of this arc. 'Heavenly Visitors' essentially. That special chaos (likely seen from Shen Yu and the Phoenix Prince's POVs) should be very fun.]