I took a final shower once the sun had risen. The changes to my body had not been limited to my skin and meridian channels. Those small twinges of creaking bone and stiff muscles that you normally woke with were also gone or at least diminished enough that I didn't notice them. It was already strange enough living in a body that was so young; I had become inured to the aches and pain of old age, but to have even the small twinges that a youthful, healthy body could be expected to have also been eliminated was a blessing I hadn't considered.
I hadn't started honing my muscles, organs, or bones yet, the only changes internally had been the etching of grooves into my spine that Transcend the Heavenly Footpath required. But even taking this first step and entering the Body Refinement realm had made such a noticeable difference, it left me wondering just what was in store as I progressed. The reality was so much more than anything I'd read in fiction.
The changes to my skin from this first session of honing had left me hyper-sensitive. I could feel even the slightest variable in temperature. Normally I would notice temperature changes, going from a cool room to the head of outdoors, but now, whether it was my understanding and ability to use Qi to perceive the world around me or a function of honing, I could actually feel the temperature variation as my body heat was released. My head expending a much greater amount of excess heat than the rest of my body.
The sensation of wind, the small eddies of random breeze had become an almost sensual experience. It was like cloaking my body in fine silk or satin. That decadent feeling as the cloth slid across your skin. My skin was softer, all small imperfections and blemishes gone.
The knock at my door had me dressing hurriedly and rushing to answer, Tarrah and I had made plans to meet in the dining hall for breakfast, so I wasn't sure who would be here this early in the morning. A servant informed me that all new Sect members would be receiving a restorative potion each morning, but that Healer Hall had ordered a broth steeped with higher realm beast bones to supplement the potion. Normally, I would have received this bounty at the cafeteria, but because of yesterday's injuries, Braun and Nero would have to pay the contribution points for delivery service.
I had to report to the Beast taming trainer first thing this morning, so I made quick work of finishing both the broth and the potion. I noticed the change instantly. The cells of my body filled to capacity with Qi had been lacking in nutrients. The process of honing my skin requiring me to break down the individual cells and rebuild them, replacing the nucleus and DNA matrix with a more robust system that replaced the mitochondria to provide power. It was what made cultivators so powerful, this slow evolution of every part of the body so that Qi subsumed most of the process that provided energy.
Today's lessons would be conducted in the stables or hatchery, that was located behind Beast Hall. It was a demonstration and tutorial for a more hands-on approach than theoretical or class lectures. I was looking forward to this class because I'd always wanted a pet. My parents from both lives had never agreed, but as an adult, I'd kept and trained Spaniel Terriers. Taming a beast companion wouldn't be the same, these creatures were more powerful, more intelligent than pets.
That thought had me realizing just how well the memories of Jay Myche's life were integrated. There was no fumbling search for memories. Nothing like when you are first trying to learn a foreign language and you have to actually take the time to process and translate. The memories were simply mine. I just knew that my parents wouldn't allow us to have a pet. I could even remember the tantrums and begging I'd resorted to, in an effort to change their minds.
It did make me worry that if my memories could be modified so easily than what I remembered, my experiences, could be so easily controlled. What was to stop the AI from altering my personality completely? There was nothing I could do about it now, but acceptance was another concern, I knew it was a question that I would continue to consider. Even now, were my emotions being influenced, so that I was more accepting of those things related to Digi-verse and what they had tried to do to me?
The map that the Sect had issued was easy to follow, and I arrived at the Taming Hall with no issues. The smells were what alerted me that I was where I was supposed to be. The mix of manure, fresh fodder, and sun. I wondered if the grasses and silage that were used for feedstock were highly concentrated spirit grasses. The fact that recently mowed grass heavily perfumed the air suggested that the Taming Hall had a large selection of herbivores and omnivores.
There was also a slight odor of iron and decay. Blood and carcasses that would be used to feed those beast companions that needed meat or were scavengers and preferred food that had been left for them to find.
Most acolytes that chose not to specialize in beast taming selected a riding mount to fill the one companion bond they would be able to form. I thought this short-sighted. Even for those members who planned on concentrating on secondary professions, you never knew when you might be attacked by bandits or beasts while traveling. Having a companion that could help you fight, especially if the number of those attacking were overwhelming may be the only difference between life and death.
Even as early as I was, arriving soon after the Sun had risen, I wasn't the first person to arrive. Elves were careful about what emotion they displayed in public, laughter, fondness, even anger was socially acceptable, but any emotion that might be taken as weakness was carefully restrained. This individual was obviously nervous, fidgeting, sitting, and then standing immediately as he craned his neck towards the coral gate that enclosed a training arena, an area where beast and trainer could work safely.
The elf, when he finally noticed my arrival, smiled at me, his enthusiasm and happiness at the day's event practically vibrating with pleasure and anticipation. He was young, but then so was I, but he was immature, full of expectation, not yet aware of the ugliness the world could throw at him. His love of animals was obvious and going to define his development. If he didn't become a beast tamer, I would be shocked.
"Hello. You must want to learn to be a beast tamer too. My ma is a tamer. I just know I'll get a powerful stable. I want to be the world's best beast tamer. Sorry, you probably want to be the best too. Don't worry, you can be the best girl beast tamer and I'll be the best boy. I wonder when the Elder will arrive. Do you think we'll get to work with the animals today? I hope they have one of the big cat species. My ma's main beast is a cat. A saber-tooth. She named him Snagglepuss. Isn't that a funny name? It's because his mane is always getting tangled and needs to be brushed."
He really wasn't going to stop talking. His ability to have a complete conversation without any input from me was impressive. So was his ability to spew so much information without taking a breath. His verbal vomit was amusing if nothing else, and my smile grew as wide as his as he continued.
"Hello," I said managing to speak when he finally took a breath, "my name is Jay."
I ignored the rest of his questions and observations to ask a question of my own, "Did did you sleep here last night?" I wondered. I thought it likely considering his rumpled Hanfu and uncombed hair. I doubt he slept much, yet he managed to exude a freshness that only the very young, excited at the day's events could project.
He had to be eighteen, that was the youngest age any Sect would accept new members, but he looked much younger. I would guess he was twelve, on the cusp of puberty but not quite there. His looks fostered a kind of innocence and naivety that those that have not yet been damaged or jaded by the world were cloaked in.
"Oh," he said dejectedly as if I'd burst his bubble.
"I didn't sleep here," he assured me, "I was too excited to sleep." His words confirming my suspicion that he'd spent the night in anticipation.
"I should have introduced myself first, shouldn't I?" He asked. "Ma always says that I have the manners of Snagglepuss. I wonder why she thinks that is bad. Snagglepuss is amazing!"
"I'm sure he is," I agreed my amusement evident.
"Name," he muttered, "I forgot my manners again," he apologized. "My name is Justin, and I want to be a great beast tamer!"
Others had begun to arrive as Justin, and I spoke. People seemed pretty evenly divided between the sexes, which was unremarkable. Cultivation was not gender-biased, and women of this world did not have the physical inequalities to overcome that humans had. We were just as strong, fast, and agile as men. Our physiologies didn't have the huge disparity in bone and muscle mass that female humans were forced to compete against. Elf men and women were uniformly tall, slender, and lithe, with none of the bulky muscles that humans could develop.
And the only affect gender had on Qi occurred during pregnancy, women had to pay attention when circulating Qi and limit the amount that flooded the uterus. Qi was not harmful, on the contrary children born of Cultivators were healthier and had an increased ability to process Qi naturally before the spirit root was opened, but the fetus was fragile, intense bursts of Qi could trigger honing. This technique could actually be used as an abortive procedure, honing the lining of the uterus would result in miscarriage.
I recognized most of the faces for those that were now awaiting the arrival of the Elder. We hadn't really chatted or introduced ourselves before this, even though most of them were of the same induction class as me. For me, there had just been no time. Between orientation, Tarrah's help, and the attack, yesterday had had no room for social interactions. I had watched some of them the day we had awakened and resonated with our affinities.
I recognized a few who had been witness to the confrontation between Braun and me. Celial, the only new members I was on a first-name basis with wasn't among the students, I wondered why. I knew she was planning to partner with a beast, but perhaps she would be in the evening class.
I was hoping to meet up with her. She was my first friend, and I wanted to get her perspective on events. Tarrah's advice seemed sound, but I'd still like a second opinion. If it was best I leave and become a wandering cultivator, that my safety here was always going to be at risk, I would need to leave as soon as leaving wasn't a death sentence.