Many changes happened swiftly for Lind and his mother. They remained in their courtyard but now there were far more visitors than before. Lind gathered his mother had passed her own tests the few days she was gone. He gleaned that from people referring to her as 'mid-Grade 2 alchemist' many times.
Lind was unsure what that meant by his old memories, but likely it was the difference between a budding amateur and a seasoned veteran. The former could get lucky, but the latter only came about from experience and opportunity. He had seen his mother working hard on several pills that had resulted in slag, so likely that was her pushing her boundaries to the next level.
Lind was happy about that, but he was stunned by what happened to him.
He was no longer cleaning or maintaining things for the trainees, instead he was given a slim manual to study and a routine to begin practicing by Garnt. It was similar to what Lind had seen every day in the practice yard. He was being included!
A warm feeling had flooded his body at that thought back then, but now he was covered in sweat and wishing fervently for the old smiling Garnt. The indulgent boss had been replaced with a slave driver. Apparently, Lind should have already been doing this for the last year and was considered behind.
What was weird, was Garnt kept correcting Lind's posture and breathing times but Lind felt Garnt was wrong. He could not tell why, but Lind felt the timing of breathing was off and his posture was not quite right. The manual stated it was 'Beginning Body Refining' but Lind assumed that was some kind of way to sell a workout routine. It had great results from what he could tell, but the details did not seem right to Lind.
His old world knew about this. A plan for a work out was fine, but trying to get everybody to conform was foolish. Nobody had the exact same body or ability. Some were born with flexible bodies where others could train it to an extent. Some were born to swim like champions where others made do with only recreation. The main thrust was, the idea behind the manual was fine, but Lind realized his body did not match up to whoever it was designed for.
Thus, Lind insisted that he got it and Garnt let him train on his own. It went much better. Lind still ended the day wishing for his muscles to not hate him, but he felt far more energized and less sore the next day.
His mornings were spent with training, but his afternoons were spent with his mom or Granny depending on who was available.
These were the strangest part of his new life as it was teaching him about something called cultivation and how humans can become more powerful following it. It also included some introductions on the wildlife Lind had yet to see outside of birds.
Lind tried very hard not to fall asleep sometimes but these lessons reminded him of history or social studies classes. The beasts were mildly interesting, but this world's belief that humans could somehow absorb energy, they called it elemental Qi, and become stronger was beyond acceptable to his modern knowledge.
He could grasp results, absolutely. It was even possible they were explaining things like ancient humans on Earth with Gods and myths to translate natural phenomena, but there was one sticking point. Lind was a reincarnated human. He had met powerful beings, so he did not dismiss them out of hand.
It was just incredibly boring!
The main thrust was just to get him caught up on the basics and while it was somewhat interesting to know what was outside the clan, the large part was spent on how to recognize breakthroughs and to consolidate a person's foundation. Lind could compare that to good exercise easily
It was one thing to have quick results and see improvements, but to keep the results and have a good body for years took a lot of effort and stable work. Lind thought it was a lot to cram into his head in less than a month before his next birthday.
Even with his contrary opinions, Lind found the results of the training interesting. He used to have to take breaks often when gathering herbs but now he could spend his day off doing it without any breaks if he pushed it. It was still delicate work, so his speed did not increase by much.
The last major change came in the form of his punishment from his mother. She learned what he had done and scolded him harshly. Even though she confirmed the young mistress had recovered nicely, Lind had taken a massive risk that could have had dire consequences. It had been 3 days before he was allowed out at all! The one oddity of that incident was his mother could not replicate the soup at all. Lind took her through the steps but each time her brew came to nothing while his always worked. What was the difference between them?
The mystery was tabled as his mother looked deeper into it. The result of that adventure was a new guest for Lind for the first time in his life.
"Little Brother Lind! Are you busy training again?" Lind glanced up and saw 2 young people coming into the herb garden as he filled the basket. If not for the clear distinction of hair, they could be twins. Lind noticed the boy of the pair was starting to fill out in the broad shoulders and wisp of beard on his face, but the girl's features were as delicate as the first time he had seen her.
"Junior Lind greets Young Mistress and Young Master Frey," Lind stood immediately and performed the greeting as he was taught to do. He saw the girl frown and her gold tinged eyes were displeased but the similar colored eyes of the boy were full of mirth.
"I have told you to call me Big Sister!" Mistress Teyla Frey was clear on her displeasure of being addressed formally by the younger Lind. They had had the conversation several times in the last few weeks but Lind had seen the marked disapproval on the faces of the adult servants and kept to this greeting. The fact her brother, Teylin, found it funny did not help matters. He too, however, insisted on being called Big Brother.
"I would not dare to dishonor anyone, Young Mistress." Lind knew it made her angry but his own mother had confirmed that in this instance, the children could not get their way. Even so, Lind realized there was someone else with the 2 today.
"Granny!" Lind's face lit up and he had called out before he realized it. Now true displeasure showed on both twins' faces as Lind ran up and hugged the old woman behind them. Lind then turned beat red as he realized what he had done. "I-I mean, w-welcom–"
Laughter filled the air as Granny patted Lind's head gently and shushed him. She would not bend on the term of endearment and looked with pride at her 2 grandchildren. Granny had learned from Mia about the strange broth Lind had created and replicated more than once, but Mia could not. It was a mystery. How could a Grade 2 alchemist not make a broth a mortal could make?
"I know you have been admonished about this Lind, but I am here to tell you, that if you want to call your friends what you want, then I approve of it." Lind felt a weight fall off his shoulders. He quickly turned around to call out the twins' names but froze at the weird looks on their faces. They looked stunned. Why were they stunned?
"Big Sis and Big Bro, why are you looking like that?" Lind had shortened it greatly and his voice broke the spell the twins were under. Teylin looked embarrassed for a moment before smiling. Teyla, on the other hand, swept Lind into a hug where he could barely breathe.
"Yay! Lind finally called me Big Sis!" Was this a reason to nearly choke him to death? Lind was beginning to get light headed before the tight grip was loosened. Lind looked up and saw true happiness in those gild tinged eyes. He looked over to Teylin and saw the boy was trying to catch his breath from laughing. Clearly, he had seen the distress in Lind's situation but had enjoyed it rather than stop it!
"I was just finishing collecting my herbs for the day. I am free after that. Did you want to hang out?" Lind had spent time with both twins, albeit the mood had been dampened by the blue eyed elder servant often. The older servant was grateful, but did not want his wards getting close to someone of the outer clan. Lind kind of understood that might seem like favoritism but he had saved Teyla from her illness. The broth had been brought to several other children as well that had caught the disease and had similar results.
That part made Lind happy but frustrated. Apparently, none of the alchemists of the clan could replicate it. He did not understand why. It was easily accessible herbs and then a warming process.
The mystery was put on hold as Lind enjoyed an afternoon with the twins. He learned they had similar lives with training in the mornings and lessons in the afternoon. Their evenings mystified him though. They were doing some kind of meditation for a major breakthrough. They were doing this cultivating thing?
There was one subject, however, that Lind stayed away from, parents. His mother had warned him repeatedly never to bring it up. It did not take a genius to realize something bad must have happened, but Lind never broached the details with his mother and certainly not with Granny as he had learned it was her daughter that birthed the twins.
The strange arrangement in the garden with the bush now held a somber place in Lind's heart. He had put together it was a memorial of some kind but as there were no names on it, he was not sure who it was for. He had confirmed he was not directly related to the twins, thus why Granny came to this garden to cry that day was odd.
Regardless, this was like an early birthday present for Lind. He got to be relaxed around the twins and have some fun. They surely thought he was odd at times as he mostly talked about herbs and puzzles, but that was still fun for them. They had to leave shortly to get back to their meditation but looked forward to his results when he began cultivation next week.
****
The Grand Mistress Yue looked over her grandchildren with pride. They were reaching the peak of Body Refining Realm so quickly. One of their foolish adventures outside the clan had resulted in Teyla contracting that terrible lung illness. It had never had a sure cure before unless a Grade 3 Alchemist created a Purging Pill.
It would expel all foreign elements in a body and was useful for body cultivators as well. Unfortunately, Teyla was both too young and still in mid-Body Refining Realm so that pill would have been highly dangerous. A first tier Soul Realm was the safest time for that pill.
What stunned her was little Lind's broth. It was clearly an alchemic mix but he had no cultivation. He might have stumbled into the first tier of Body Refining, many mortals do, but even then, it did not explain what he had made. The servants confirmed, they only lit the fire while young Lind had mixed the herbal broth. It had changed color just like a cream would when mixed correctly.
Further, he, as a mortal, had passed the potential test beyond anyone's belief. It was considered good if you could solve it partially in 3 to 4 days. It was considered fantastic if you could mostly solve it in a week. To the best of her knowledge, no one in the Southern District, let alone the Lotus Empire, had completely solved the puzzle in a few hours!
Grand Master Fu had been deeply impressed and grateful to little Lind. Although he usually kept himself aloof from the lives of the twins, they were also his grandchildren through his lost son. Both Grand Masters were of the iron tier in the World Realm, but only just. Even with all they had seen and experienced, the potential of young Lind was far beyond this Southern District.
The only concern was how much Lind would learn of his origins. It was also very concerning if others learned exactly who he was and what he could become. They had enjoyed peace in the last decade. This could stir it all up again. As such, for now, the potential of young Lind would be hidden from all save Garnt. The instructor had already pointed out the quick progress of Lind in grasping the basics.
The Grand Mistress offered up a prayer to the spirits of Heaven and Earth to watch over Lind. He was innocent and deserved to live free for as long as possible.