Our arrival at Dragon Spire Sect was met with frenzied chaos. We were not the first to arrive, and the Sect's staff swarmed each new group. More and more Sects had been arriving and the servants, outer and inner sect members both had been drafted to deal with the influx. Even a few Senior Sect Members had been conscripted to meet the Elders that were arriving.
There was no way an event like this could take place at Flowing Water Sect, we simply didn't have the infrastructure or space to house the immense influx of people. And although Dragon Spire didn't have enough permanent housing to hold so many people either, they had a vast network of caves that could be conscripted. Using that space, they had created and placed spatial arrays in strategic areas, arrays that could house an entire Sects contingent.
"Honored Guests, this humble servant is named Tibes," a young servant, clearly not a cultivator, said greeting Patriarch Amaya with a deep bow. "I have been assigned as liaison and escort. If you would follow, I will escort you to your quarters."
I wasn't sure if assigning our Sect, a servant instead of an outer or inner member as liaison was an insult or appropriate for a Mid-Tier Sect, but the Elders' didn't seem bothered by Tibes status. They continued to project an aura of calm indifference as we were led through a branching network of tunnels to a side cave that was steeped in Water Qi.
The stalactites that had formed were ancient, time allowing the slowly dripping of the water to form massive behemoths before falling into a pool of black water. The cave had been brightened with light sources, but those artificial constructs paled next to the shimmering shoal of lights that swarmed beneath the water. Fish that had adapted to the darkness darted around, their bodies glowing with fluorescent lights.
"There will be a welcoming ceremony tomorrow after breakfast," the Sect servant that had been escorting us said. "Attendance is required because the Emperor himself will be addressing this convocation of Sects."
"The Emperor?" Patriarch Amaya said trading glances with the other Sect Elders. "Flowing Water is honored. Be assured we will be ready."
"The tunnels and caves are open if you would like to explore," the Dragon Spire sect member continued after acknowledging the Patriarch's words with a bow. "But be advised, some of the more remote areas are untamed, beasts proliferate and can become quite powerful.
"Dragon Sect cannot guarantee your safety if you choose to explore these areas. But the passages and caves that are safe are many and can be easily identified. Any safe cave entrance has an emerald beacon," he explained pointing out the design affixed to the cave's wall.
"There will be a person appointed to remind you of the morning's event and escort your Sect to the meeting. In the meantime, if there are any problems or issues you would like to bring to Patriarch Doyle's attention, any of the servants will be happy to serve as message bearer."
The rest of us kept our thoughts to ourselves until Tibes had left. Even then, we remained quiet as we entered the array that had been created for our benefit, to house our Sect during this event. What greeted us was an impressive reproduction of Flowing Water Sect. The same buildings, grounds, even the raging Waterfall were all reproduced in exacting detail. Someone had gone to a lot of work to recreate our home.
The array master that had created this was a genius. He had even managed to replicate the ambient Qi of water and air that Flowing Water was steeped in. The buildings, the ground, even the spray of mist from the waterfall had substance and texture. I could feel it, smell it, even taste the water. How something like this could be created using a few lines of inscription and Dharmic spells did leave me with some jealousy.
Alchemy was profitable, even powerful when you considered the pills that helped a cultivator breakthrough realm, but this was art. And it spoke to my soul as much as dance and acrobats did with [Tessenjutsu].
The quiet discipline we'd maintained ever since our arrival broke, voices increasing in volume interposed with those still whispering in confusion. The same disbelief existed no matter your position, from the Outer Sect members amazement or the appreciation by the Inner Sect, everyone was moved by what had been created. The Elders managed to maintain their facades of neutral indifference, but I didn't believe it for one second. Even they had to be impressed at the detail that had been used in creating this illusion.
"You are free to explore," Patriarch Amaya announced, "the day is yours. But remember, you represent the Flowing Water Sect. I do not want to hear that any of our members have been so ill-mannered as to engage in combat or insult. Treat our hosts or any of the other Sects that are in attendance with respect and deference.
"If I find anyone who has broken the peace or orchestrated and maneuvered another of your Sect brethren to break the peace, then I will personally destroy your cultivation and exile you.
"I don't care who you are," she made clear without mentioning anyone by name. Braun blanched at that warning. Without his brother here, his main support system was weakened. Elder An could and would intervene, if necessary, but he and his faction had already been damaged. Braun and his brother's attack on another Sect member were so egregious that Nero, once a rising star for the Sect, found himself much diminished. How he was included in this event was easy to understand. The rules didn't apply to his family.
I decided against exploring the Dragon Spire Sect territory immediately. Tibes pronouncement that the Emperor himself would be speaking to the gathered Sects only gave further weight to the hints that we had been given that this tournament had hidden undercurrents. Issues that were being kept from us.
I was probably safe if I chose to explore, but that wasn't certain, and the tunnels and cave systems would offer Braun and his people another opportunity for confrontation. A dispute that I was unwilling to engage in this place. I wouldn't put it past them to try to cripple me so that I could not compete.
Instead, I visited Alchemist Hall, or this illusions version of the Hall to find out how realistic the building might be, and if there was an attendant at the front desk that could and would supply herbs if I wanted to spend the rest of the day focusing on solidifying my Pill creation abilities.
The building's realism went so far as to mimic a badly fitted floorboard. It had been seated incorrectly, slightly out of position. I'd wondered why it had never been repaired, the Sect was almost fanatical in upkeep and maintenance, but I had been informed, politely, that I should mind my own business when I'd inquired.
The only reason I could think of was that the board was purposely misaligned. No matter the reason, it had become part of the culture, that slight imperfection a symbol of what Alchemical Hall embraced and what Elder Tye tried to instill in every lesson he gave. Perfection was impossible, but the small imperfections could make the whole so much more.
That out of position board had me re-examining my memories of what I was experiencing in finer detail. I found to my surprise that there was at least one small imperfection within each Hall that didn't match what I remembered. They went unnoticeable for the most part, and I began to think the only reason for their existence was to break the symmetry of perfection that the Sect worked toward. Perhaps these small imperfections were allowed to exist had an impact on how Qi gathered and flowed.
I hadn't taken any lessons in arrays or formations, I'd had no time, but I would once I was safely ensconced as a Core Disciple and an Inner Sect member. Perhaps then I would find that these imperfections actually existed at Flowing Water and were positioned strategically to create a larger array. I could envision a last line of defense in the event the Sect was attacked, hidden in plain sight. It would explain why I was told to leave the question alone when I'd asked about the floorboard in Alchemical Hall.
The Hall was empty, the silence eerie when compared to the arguments and explosions that were common in the real Alchemical Hall. There was no one stationed at the desk, no herbs or equipment available to check out, but the rooms themselves were equipped with the tools any Alchemist might use, as well as the runes of protection that had been inscribed into walls and cauldrons.
I wouldn't be able to purchase any herbs, but my spatial device was well-stocked, at least with enough herbs to last me a few days if I wanted to immerse myself in the Alchemical arts. The door that opened to my assigned lab responded to my Qi, and although the room looked the same, there were differences.
None of the herbs I had left waiting to be processed were evident. The jade tokens I had aligned on the available shelf were absent, and the smells of herbs, spices, potions, and creams that I had worked with over the year was missing. It was the lack of odor, the scent of herbs that had seeped into the walls and floor, that obliterated the surreal aspects of my exploration.
Grounded, once again, in reality, I decided it might be better to leave pill creation until I was engaged in the competition. I would spend the rest of the day in cultivation and deepening the connection between Storm's beast nodules and my meridian channels.