"Here, Yun Feng! Have a piece of my new pastry!"
"I've got a bag of carrots and other fresh vegetables."
"Please accept my gift. It's a secret, so you can't open it until you get home!"
Yun Feng was surrounded by a crowd of villagers, each pushing presents towards him, forcing him to accept them.
Over the past few days, Yun Feng had begun helping the farmers gather the crops while also cultivating the fields and planting new seeds. Although the help of one man did not seem like much, Yun Feng was a cultivator. Manipulating the air and plants was but child's play for him, allowing him to complete the entire village's month of work in a few days.
Stacks of wheat and other produce were stored neatly into the silos, set into portions for daily use and the rest to sell to other villages or communal markets. Not only that, but Yun Feng had even organised the entire village, reshaping the houses and making them more structurally stable and cosy.
Of course to him, these were just menial tasks. Alice had set him these tasks as a 'test' so he had no real reason not to do so. In any case, even without Alice's orders, the simple praise and love the villagers showed him warmed his heart, boosting his eagerness to work even more.
Slowly, the crowd began to clear away, leaving him in the centre of the village holding hundreds of presents of different shapes and sizes. Yun Feng wiped the sweat away with his free hand before depositing the items into his spacial ring.
Feeling an approaching presence, Yun Feng turned, only to see Alice with her full demeanour, smiling broadly at him.
"Well aren't you the popular man around these parts?"
Yun Feng blushed with embarrassment, "Please Alice, even with this I am still nothing compared to you. It would take me years to be able to fly."
Alice nodded, pursing her lips slightly before asking, "I've been meaning to ask you. What do you mean by cultivation? I've never encountered this term before in my life and it confuses me."
Yun Feng widened his eyes in surprise. Such a powerful being did not even know what cultivation was? Did that mean she had never read any cultivation manuals or listened to any lessons? Did that mean that she had trained all the way to the Sky Realm without even realising what she was doing?
Yun Feng gasped in surprise and defeat, he had worked hard for many years, received the best type of help from family and listened to one of the greatest teachers of his clan throughout his entire childhood and yet could not even compare to this girl? He sighed in disappointment, talented geniuses were truly worlds apart from mere commoners like himself.
"Cultivation is the fundamentals of one's body, it allows you to harness power and..."
Yun Feng began to explain the basic definition of cultivation and the most important points that a person would need to know in order to cultivate. Although he was engrossed in talking about cultivation, Yun Feng was still attentive enough to catch the fascinated look that Alice showed throughout his entire explanation.
Now that he thought about it, Alice was truly a beauty. Her flawless jade like skin contrasted nicely against the slightly rugged clothing, creating a calming aura of an innocent farmer. Alice was not tall, reaching a height of only 158 centimetres, and yet her presence seemed large and caused everyone near her to feel at ease.
Now coupled with those puffy cheeks, the pouting mouth and last but not least, the attractive expression of interest, she would become the most beautiful girl Yun Feng had ever met.
Yun Feng flung away the thoughts before continuing, "Although I am much younger and currently possess a weaker cultivation, I do have some knowledge upon the topic of cultivation. If you would like, I could impart it to you."
Alice's eyes glowed with anticipation, "Really, do you not need any special circumstances to begin cultivating?"
Yun Feng smiled and shook his head.
Alice stared at Yun Feng, "Then would it be possible for you to teach the people of this village? Consider it a request as I know it's quite a large job to take on."
Yun Feng spread his arms wide, as if the most benevolent person to exist, before answering, "Of course! If Alice wants me to complete this task, I will put my all into it!"
This time Alice smiled brilliantly towards Yun Feng. A coincidental ray of light passed through the thicket of the canopy, shining its holy light upon her figure. Her dazzling looks accompanied by this sudden smile was shattering for Yun Feng's heart. His emotional defences instantly melted as he stared, mouth agape, at the beauty. There were too many words to describe Alice currently, however the most appropriate would be 'enchanting'.
Alice soon realised that Yun Feng had been staring at her the entire time. She blushed slightly, averting her eyes towards the floor while muttering in an almost inaudible tone.
"Thank you"
Yun Feng, realising that his action may have been slightly inappropriate, also gazed long and hard at the ground. As seconds, then minutes flew by, each person unwilling to break the awkward silence, a score of village children rounded the corner and began tugging on Yun Feng's robes.
"Mister! Come play with us!"
"Yeah, let's go to the fields!"
"Lady Alice, you should come with us."
The two stared at each other, seeing each other's reddened face, before bursting into a fit of laughter.
'That's right, how could this powerful master have any feelings for me? I was truly dreaming just then.'
'This man. He's nice, compassionate, enjoys life... What was that intense beating in my chest just then?'
Each keeping their thoughts to themselves, the two walked side by side with the children towards the open plains in the clearing. The kids raced excitedly around them.
"Mister! Let's play tag!"
"No, we should play hide and seek."
"I don't mind..."
Yun Feng nodded his head lightly at each suggestion, before contemplating on the best activity for the children. Suddenly, inspiration struck him, "Hey kids, would you like to learn a new game that I enjoy playing a lot?"
The children responded eagerly.
"It's a fun game, something that can be played even when you're adults." Yun Feng grinned at the innocent children.
"What is it, Mister?
Yun Feng turned his attention to the boy who had shouted the question. He knelt down on to on knee, facing the boy directly before whispering in a soft voice.
"It's called cultivation."