A week passed.

  Master Yan stood side by side with Disciple Ji-eun watching the East Gate slowly pull open. Two colossal chains rattled against their counterweights as guards posted atop the walls hoisted their terrific weight.

  “Beyond this gate lies the wilderness of our mountain, Disciple,” he began explaining. “It is a partial spiritual realm; qi runs thick in the environment. Thus, it is a bounty of spiritual herbs, for both us and opportunistic spiritual beasts.”

  “Yes, Master Yan,” the Disciple said. He didn’t miss the slight tensing of her shoulders.

  “There is no need for concern. Several hunting parties raided quite deep into the mountainside only recently. No beast stronger than the foundation realm will remain in the outskirts we shall travel.”

  The near-deafening rattling of chains ceased and the East Gate settled into place. Beyond, a dense woodland stretched out. To the naked eye, it looked all the same as any forest in the lower realm would. But the old Master’s qi sense prickled as they approached the tree line.

  It was several minutes of walking later that Master Yan had them stop in a small clearing. He glanced around and extended his senses. He could feel the slight force of spiritual herbs qi around him. Low grade, but present all the same.

  “You have already demonstrated an aptitude for projecting your qi, Disciple Ji-eun. Today I would like to test your ability to detect qi as well.”

  The Disciple bowed slightly at his words.

  “These two abilities do not go hand in hand. Sharp senses are required to detect qi, even uncloaked or environmental. Sit down and we may begin.”

  Disciple Ji-eun made herself comfortable on a nearby rock. It was a tad displeasing to see the mortal so readily dirty the Sect’s robes, but he supposed it could be trained out of her. She had only recently been removed from he Savage North, after all. Central dispositions took time to properly learn.

  Master Yan placed the stump of his wrist against her back, just below where the cervical vertebra met the thoracic. With a slight push, energy left his corse and travelled through the tenuous connection into the Disciple. There was an immediate buzz in the air. Curious.

  For an Outer Disciple at the Foundation Realm, or even a mortal attempting to enter it, their qi should be — would be — tightly spooled in their chest, growing in density. It would continue to grow, until it reaches critical mass, and ignites in the dantian. The next realm, the Initiate Realm, would lie beyond from there. Disciple Ji-eun was between the two: not truly in the Foundation Realm, but not truly a mortal reaching for greater heights either. Her body readily drank qi from its surroundings, and yet it found no purchase in her body. With a slight exertion of effort, Master Yan checked her meridians. All clean, no blockages, practically waiting to ignite. She was no heavenly talent, but there was nothing stopping her either. Apart from whatever poisons still settled in her mortal organs, that is. But his medicine was having an effect. Another question for his steadily growing collection, then: how could a mortal in limbo of the Foundation Realm so easily feel environmental qi? Or perhaps it was projection of her own.

  “What do you feel, Disciple?”

  “I’m not sure,” she said after a moment of consideration. The old Master did like that about her. “It’s like there’s extra blood in my veins, but it’s flowing out and coating what’s around me.”

  “Astute. That is your qi. It’s unrefined, but has a strong presence.”

  Projection it is. What little qi the Disciple had mingled with that around her, freeing her senses. An innate talent for projection aligned with what the old Master had seen so far. Though Master Yan had to admit, her qi felt odd against his own. Sharp almost. Not in the way a true Disciple of the Sect refined their qi into a sharp blade, but… no, it was hard to place.

  “I see. It feels different when I eat the pill. Warmer? Like fire, but across my body.”

  “Oh? You can even distinguish elements. Yes, pills - unless refined specifically otherwise - all have a slight alignment to fire. It’s a consequence of the pill baking process. Likely, the fire in the pill contrasts strongly against an element you are innate with, perhaps water. The air alignment of a Sky Blue pill bolsters the fire, so the sensation is more pronounced.”

  “Thank you for your enlightenment, Master Yan.”

  “Focus on the flowing feeling you described. The way your qi washes over our surroundings. Try and direct it, like feeling the texture of an item between your fingers.”

  Several seconds passed in silence.

  “What am I looking for?” Disciple Ji-eun asked under her breath. He was probably not meant to hear that.

  “Right now, you are looking for anything. I don’t expect you to detect qi signatures immediately, just to comprehend the general method of qi sense.”

  Her back stiffened slightly at his answer. Silence overtook the clearing. Master Yan felt the minute shifts in her muscles as the Disciple shifted into each movement of qi around her. He kept his own qi still, not letting it disturb the natural flow of the woods. Slowly, truly painfully slowly, the Disciple’s own qi began to shift. It wriggled against the flow of the world and shuddered at its passing.

  “I think I feel something?”

  —

  It was difficult, but not for the reasons Ji-eun expected. There was simply too much. When Master Yan first did whatever he did, she felt like her eyes had opened for the first time in years. Or, a year, she supposed.

  The world around her was blinding even with her eyes closed. Things brushed against her senses, her qi, in a confusing mess. Behind her was a sharp blade, stiff against the winds that blew through the clearing, bringing the sensation of trees and deep roots to her. It was a sixth sense in every meaning of the term. It was unlike anything she was used to.

  Ji-eun thought back to the days she had spent crafting talismans with spiritual ink. The idle thought of taking up calligraphy floated through her mind, but she dismissed it for now. She tried to remember the sensation of controlling the ink. How she fed it her intent. She tried the same with her qi, following pathways the warmth of the Blue Sky pills had followed time and time again. Slowly, she felt energy snake its way throughout her body, sluggish and jittery as it went. It was a great effort to snake that tendril out of her and into the whirlwind around her. The qi quickly faded, spent on the wind.

  She tried again, taking hold of larger and larger portions of energy each time, twisting them against the flow of environmental qi. A nebulous array of currents began to form around her. And then, something new tried to divert the stream. It was faint, so faint she almost mistook it for another passing mote of wood qi. But it was just subtly different somehow. With a slight push, she wriggled some of her qi free to touch it. Sure enough, there was something there. Physically distant. Somehow she could tell that.

  “I think I feel something?” She said hesitantly.

  “Describe it. It’s feel under your qi, and if possible, its location.”

  Oh, so that was a feature, not a bug, she thought.

  “It’s rough. A bit prickly I guess. It feels wet, I guess? Like really runny sap. It’s think whatever it is its to my left a few paces away.”

  Master Yan silent for a moment before Ji-eun heard — or maybe felt — him turn his head to the side.

  “Milk thistle, approximately to your left a few paces away. For your first attempt at qi sense, it’s a passing grade, Disciple Ji-eun. Well done.”

  This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  Ji-eun cooled her features as pride welled in her chest. She had done it! Something cultivator-y, to do with qi! The ink counted, she supposed, but this felt more real. More definitely magical.

  “Thank you, Master Yan.”

  They rose from the ground. Ji-eun dusted off the back of her robe as dignified as she could. Master Yan looked about ready to scold her for something like ‘ignoring the sanctity of Sect robes’, but Ji-eun was just happy she did something magic.

  “It’s been three hours, so we should get to our true task,” Master Yan said with a sigh.

  “Three hours, Master Yan?”

  “Yes, Disciple. You have impressive focus, to last in an incomplete state of qi sense for so long.”

  “… I see. We came to gather spiritual herbs, right? What would you like me to do?”

  Master Yan smiled slightly and brandished the stumps of his fists.

  “I will find what herbs we need, but will leave the gathering part to you.”

  —

  Ji-eun was led by Master Yan through the forest. He demonstrated qi sense in depth, using his skill to locate spiritual herbs by their unique qi signatures alone. Some looked no different from mundane plants, just green leaves and sometimes a flower. Others were much easier to tell apart. One such herb sat firmly in the ground before Ji-eun. A white bulbous sack stood upright atop four peculiarly straight leaves, like a lightbulb. It even glowed slightly from within.

  “This particular herb is known for its oddly shaped white flower, and to those interested in gathering it, its stubborn roots. We just need to take the flower, so that will be of no concern. Twist counter clockwise until you feel a snap, then pull at a right angle to the left.”

  She followed Master Yan’s instructions, and the flower came away without a drop of sap being spilled.

  The day continued in this pattern for many hours. Master Yan would point out a herb or flower, give Ji-eun a small lesson about it, and instruct her how to best collect it. Whatever part of the plant was taken would be put into a spatial bag Master Yan had slung over his shoulder.

  It was as they wandered towards another patch of herbs that Master Yan spoke.

  “Disciple Ji-eun, I have a question for you, if you would answer.”

  “Yes, Master Yan?”

  “Why do you wish to become a cultivator?”

  The question made her pause. None had ever asked her before. Frankly, she liked it that way.

  “I’m not sure I understand what you mean. No, I don’t understand what you’re truly asking.”

  Master Yan stopped as well and considered his words for a moment.

  “All others you have met in the Sect, or perhaps most others for I cannot speak for all, came following a dream that has been instilled in them since birth. To reach the heavens. To stand above the world as we know it, mortal and mundane, and be something greater. All the strength that comes with the path is for this single goal. I imagine this dream exists in you too.”

  Ji-eun kept quiet. She watched as Master Yan paced slightly around her.

  “But the destination is not the only part of a journey. When I was a young man, I was of the impression that everybody simply strived for the heavens and that alone. I am not a young man anymore. Some seek power for power’s sake, others have a use for it, whatever it may be. I have known men who want strength in order to protect and those who want to exact their will upon the world, willing or not. All cultivators strive to reach the heavens, but why they want to reach them is different for each and every one.”

  He paused in his meandering wander and turned to face her. His face was serene, as though asking about the weather. Ji-eun had the gut feeling this was anything but a casual question.

  —

  Master Yan came to a realisation as he watched Disciple Ji-eun. She was truly ready to ignite her dantian. If it were not for the lingering poisons still within her, he had no doubt it would have happened months ago.

  This should have been a good thing. Another Disciple for the Sworn Sword Sect. A gift, anda. Task, from the Emperor come to fruition. And yet something gave him pause.

  This girl was from the Savage North. A land of frost and ancient scars. They were not truly of the Great Yan Empire. They paid taxes. They served the Emperor. But did they really? There was a reason no cultivator had truly risen from the Savage North in over a thousand years. What reason, Yan Dao did not know. But everything in the Empire happened for a reason. Everything happened because the heavens willed it.

  And here he was trying to raise up a Savage from the North. Under the eye of the Emperor, yes. But again. For what reason? He had his orders, but he also had his curiosity. And of course, his pride. He had to know.

  “All cultivators strive to reach the heavens, but why they want to reach them is different for each and every one. So I ask; why do you want to reach the heavens, Disciple Ji-eun?”

  Like a beast caught under qi pressure, the Disciple froze. Curious. He hadn’t even let out any intent. Perhaps she was embarrassed by her reasoning? Certainly, some he had met in his long life could have done with more self awareness. But to be a cultivator one had to become infallible. It was a bit of a paradox, worth thought later on.

  Master Yan watched the Disciple’s thoughts flash across her face. Like always, she was taking her time with her answer. It was a respectable habit. A look of determination, or perhaps acceptance, passed across Disciple Ji-eun’s features.

  “May I speak candidly, Master Yan?”

  “Yes, I suppose.”

  “I want to be me.”

  “… a puzzling answer, I will admit. Would you care to elaborate?”

  “I don’t want anybody else to decide who I am, or what I can or can’t do, or when I kneel or stand, for me. I want to make those decisions for myself. I guess I want to be free.”

  “Free. Yes, that makes more sense. A noble aspiration, and one shared by many. Though only an aspiration that can be fulfilled once you reach the very pinnacle of power in this world, and perhaps even the next.”

  “Yes, Master Yan,” she said with a bow.

  He considered her answer. He felt no deception from her. Certainly, there was more to it. There always was; no single question could scour the depths of a persons soul. But it was a good answer. And fitting for a Savage, he supposed. It made sense that one from the North, where the influence of Great Yan was least felt, would be unwilling to submit even to the heavens.

  “Very well. The path to heaven is a solitary one, Disciple. We all must face it alone. Your aspiration to ‘be yourself’ will find no struggle in such a world, I assure you,” he said with a hint of amusement. “Cultivators spend their lives carving out a slice of the world just for themselves. This is the easy part. The hard part is keeping it all for yourself; there is no lack of people who would covet your power, your place, your wealth, or even your experience. The Demons are an embodiment of this principle, though perhaps the vilest embodiment one could find. You know this firsthand, Disciple. That experience will serve you well.”

  Master Yan resumed his walk towards their next destination, a patch of Blue Spider-eating Berries. He felt the Disciple stand still for several moments behind him. Perhaps she was contemplating his meaningful insight into the path of cultivation. It was always good to follow the advice of your betters.

  It took quite some time for her to catch up to him.

  —

  Despite their terrifying name, Blue Spider-eating Berries were quite pretty, Ji-eun mused.

  “They are named for their long, needle-like leaves, much resembling the discarded legs of a spider,” Master Yan explained as she plucked small blue berries from between prickly clusters of leaves.

  If she squinted, it really did look like the bush was covered in dead blue spiders. Creepy.

  “Come along now Disciple, there are still a few more reagents to collect before the daylight fades. Being near so many qi charged ingredients is likely doing wonders for your qi sense as well.”

  It was as Master Yan said. Ji-eun had been prodding each and every herb she collected with what qi she could muster on short notice. It was slight, but she could tell the difference already. Each herb had a slightly different feel to it. It wasn’t a smell, or a taste, just a general sense of… presence, only available to her young sixth sense.

  With a twig Blue Spider-eater in her hand, she extended her qi sense to touch it. The leaves had a definite weight amongst the environmental qi flowing around her. The unseen wind flowed around the plant like it did her and Master Yan, and a third presence quickly approaching through the trees. It was heavy, like a harsh breeze even through the storm of wood qi surrounding her.

  “Huh?” She opened her eyes and glanced to her right. A chill shot down her back.

  A hand reached out and clutched at the back of her robe. Ji-eun was thrown back. Air was forced from her lungs.

  “Run back to the Sect and inform the gate guards. The hunting parties missed a beast.”

  The presence, the beast — whatever it was — had gotten closer. Ji-eun felt something pressing down on her. It was getting hard to breathe, let alone stand.

  “Go!”

  Master Yan’s qi washed over her. Adrenaline flooded her body. Ji-eun shot to her feet and dashed towards the Sect. The qi behind her continued to grow denser. Cold sweat dripped down her back.

  BOOM!

  The ground shuddered, and Ji-eun was thrown into the air. She landed in an undignified heap. Sparing a glance back, between the trees, Master Yan’s form blurred in and out of sight. It clashed against a hulking mass of brown fur and twisting wood. Like a bear overtaken by ancient vines. For a moment, she forgot to breathe. The Spirit Beast’s roar quickly reminded her.

  She didn’t know how long her legs carried her at dangerous speeds, but it couldn’t have been long. Each step took her further from the heavy presence of qi and made her sprint a little easier. Finally, the East Gate came into view. Throwing her hands in the air wildly, Ji-eun yelled as loud as he exhausted lungs could.

  “Spirit Beast attack! Master Yan is — is still in the forest!”

  A guard jumped down from the towering wall and landed a few dozen feet in front of her. With faltering steps, Ji-eun slowed and managed to avoid crumpling to the ground.

  “There was a — was a Spirit Beast in the woods. Master Yan is fighting it now. He sent me back to…”

  To get her out of the way. Ji-eun’s hands tightened around her robes.

  “What rank?” The guard asked.

  “I don’t know. He didn’t say.”

  “Alright. Thank you, Disciple. Men! Half with me!”

  Another three men jumped from the wall and landed beside their leader. Swords drawn, they charged into the forest.

  Ji-eun took heavy breaths and steadied herself. She tried to extend her qi sense, to feel what was happening deep in the forest, but she couldn’t muster it. With a resigned sigh, she turned to the slowly opening East Gate. She hoped it would be over soon.

  Something began to bubble within her chest.