Chapter 37: Another Year // Succeeding
Another year had passed as Zed and Meixiang turned fifteen years old while Lan'er became ten and Jingfei became eleven years old.
All the young girls' bodies were beginning to show the curves of a woman. Like budding flowers slowly blossoming to their fresh and fragrant mature state.
Lan'er and Jingfei were showing more growth than normal girls their age. Accompanied by the unnatural beauty they had, they could easily be mistaken for fairies.
Especially Lan'er, she was already breathtaking when she was a child, and now that she was transcending to her teens, she exuded more charming beauty that would only capture the hearts of many.
Even Meixiang and Jingfei had to admit that their younger sister truly possessed covetous beauty.
Meixiang on the other hand was very well endowed for a teenager. She was not only tall and physically fit, but she also had several curves in the right places, making her seem more like a young woman rather than a teenager.
She was no doubt, a charming young woman with a strong dominating aura. It was also worth noting that she was taller than Zed.
As for Jingfei, she retained that spring-like youth aura that gave one the feeling of freshness and innocence. Her small bright smile would warm even the coldest hearts and her golden eyes could make people feel at ease.
Lastly, Zed had recovered to the extent where he could run for several minutes without the help of others. As a result, his body received enough exercise with no excess fat.
With his slim physique and chiseled muscles accompanied by his handsome face, he could be one of the greatest charmers if he put his mind to it.
Sadly, picking up women was one of the least priorities in his mind as he hardly noticed that he was a very handsome person.
Sword-shaped brows, a cold piercing gaze, small budding jawline, jade skin, and a perfectly thin nose and mouth.
His handsome features were truly wasted as he maintained a stone cold expression most of the time. However, Zed's unexpressive self was charming in its own way.
So much so that even women of unimaginable ages would find him attractive.
Zed was unaware of how attractive he was, even though Jingfei, Meixiang, and mostly Lan'er would constantly compliment him about his looks.
He didn't think too much of it, since he thought they were simply flattering him.
As for how handsome he truly was... He would be aware of it in the future.
Jingfei, Lan'er, and Meixiang on the other hand, very much appreciated Zed's heavenly face as they would blankly stare and admire his face from time to time.
They had seen many men in their life, most were young masters from noble families, and yet, they could not hold a candle to Zed's handsomeness.
Aside from their appearances, another noteworthy event that happened within this year was Meixiang's cultivation stage level.
She had actually reached the peak core formation stage!
Even Tang Xiurong, the teacher of this generational monster was trembling at the thought of an Immortal who hadn't even reached her twenties.
Sure, although there were still many stages in the Immortal realm and Meixiang would just reach the beginning, what was really frightening was her potential.
She was gifted with the talent of comprehension. With a single glance, she was able to dissect and identify the nature of a technique.
Tang Xiurong had been imparting her several Unique martial arts, but Meixiang did not stop to simply learn.
She understood the essence of those techniques and made her own technique. What was really surprising was that she even managed to incorporate the principle of Tang Xiurong's [Empress's Conquest] Supreme martial arts.
Tang Xiuromg trembled at the terrifying talent of Meixiang.
She could tell that Meixiang was already making her own Supreme martial arts, and she was eager to see its completion.
As for Jingfei, Tang Xiurong also imparted Unique martial arts to her, but she did not possess the same talent as Meixiang.
There was something missing and unfortunately, Tang Xiurong did not possess the right martial arts to guide her to the path that fits Jingfei.
However, she did her best to teach Jingfei so that she would possess the right amount of skills to ensure her own survival.
Meanwhile, Zed had yet to start practicing any particular martial arts. Though he had been observing them long enough to make several simulations in his mind.
Though at best, all the techniques he came up with were theoretical.
Also another thing worth noting was that Zed had fully explored the island/peak of the eagle-beak mountain.
Just as he had expected, for unknown reasons, the natural environment was bountiful to the point where it affected almost everything. The plants life, beasts, insects, and even the weather.
After all, it made no sense for winter to occur when they are situated above the sea of clouds.
In rare cases, there had even been a season of downpour where it rained continuously for thirty days.
Zed guessed that the source of all this mutation was due to the Qi.
He could not sense nor interact with it so he didn't have the slightest idea of what it could do, but he speculated that this Qi shared similarities with Mana.
Especially on how they affect their environment. Though he didn't notice it, because they had been living near the Immortal Rank Tree, their bodies constantly improved.
This was another factor that helped Zed's recovery, however, only Tang Xiurong was aware of this fact.
Zed had also resumed cultivating his mana circle level and hoped to reach the 4th level by next year.
As for becoming a cultivator of Qi, he had great anticipation while waiting for Meixiang to reach the Nascent soul stage.
To be honest, all of them were underestimating the hardships of cultivation, but Meixiang's current achievements made it hard to not underestimate the path of cultivation.
They knew that Meixiang was a genius, but they didn't know that she was a one of a kind genius.
Of course, Tang Xiurong is aware that her two disciples; Lan'er and Jingfei, were slowly underestimating the hardship of cultivation, but she wasn't worried.
At best, they would be humbled and even admired their eldest sister for managing to accomplish such feats at her age.
Tang Xiurong was glad that they would have a role model in the future. She knew her disciples well enough to know that they would never stop competing with each other.
The thinking, "If she can do it then so can I" was deeply rooted in their mentality.
Tang Xiurong had no involvement with it as they had simply decided their rivalry on their own which is why Tang Xiurong found their relationship precious.
They were sisters while also rivals in terms of personal improvement and rivals in love.
Apart from resuming his cultivation, Zed also spent his free time studying and examining the rarities of the island.
After learning the names and properties of the rare materials they gathered, Zed began to curiously study them.
Sometimes, he would even perform experiments and mix different ingredients to see what effect they would bring.
In other words, Zed had begun studying alchemy by himself.
Aside from that, he also tried replicating several delicacies from his previous life such as ice cream and pudding.
They became a success as the girls started requesting for them every time they returned successfully from a subjugation.
Apparently, they got more motivated to finish the mission with Zed's treats as a reward.
So in short, Zed had not stagnated these past years as his skills in alchemy, culinary, herbal studies, and more auxiliary skills continued to grow.
-
There was half a year left until the Cleansing Jade Sect came down to recruit in the Xia Kingdom. Zed and co. remained isolated and had not once received a single piece of news from the outside world.
Needless to say that Meixiang grew worried, but every time she was, she would get reminded of her father's words.
"Become stronger."
With that single line, she continued to be motivated and determined to advance in her cultivation resulting in-
Boom!
A loud explosion occurred on top of the Immortal Tree's big roots. It was enough to send a strong gust of wind from the top of the lone mountain.
Woosh!
The cottage trembled as the crops in their field became ruined due to the strong wind pressure. Eventually, the wind stopped as a large amount of sapphire-blue aura gathered towards Meixiang.
Jingfei and Lan'er immediately stopped their spar and rushed towards Meixiang. Zed too, also stopped what he was doing inside the house and went outside.
The three of them almost simultaneously arrived beneath the large root where Meixiang was sitting.
Sitting in a lotus position, Meixiang continued to breath calmly as wild qi was raging around her. If she failed to control the qi, she would fail and suffer a setback, but if she succeeded, she would breakthrough to the Nascent soul stage.
Her long blonde hair scattered to the skies as tremendous pressure laid on her surroundings. This affected Zed and the others since they were only mortals.
Meixiang noticed their arrival, but did not have time to worry about them as the wild qi continued to break free from her control.
Tang Xiurong who was with them had one of the widest grins she ever had. She was sure... that she saw the birth of a future Immortal expert, one that was sure to reach the apex.
As for her two other disciples... they were monsters of their own. Though Jingfei slightly fell behind them, it wouldn't be a problem once she found her own path.
Honestly speaking, Tang Xiurong thought that Meixiang was a better inheritor for her supreme arts due to the strong authoritative demeanor she possessed. She was, after all, a princess of royalty, so she naturally had the characteristics of an Empress.
Unfortunately, she had already passed on her skills to Lan'er and did not plan to pass her supreme martial arts to a second disciple.
She did not think too much of it since it was by fate that Tang Xiurong and Lan'er met. Besides, Lan'er had already proved herself multiple times that she was worthy to inherit her supreme martial arts.
Tang Xiurong was also interested to see Lan'er pave her own path while using the supreme martial arts she had imparted.
After three full hours, the moon had reached the mid skies. Stars shone brightly around the spacious firmament as the area around them calmed down.
Zed, Lan'er, and Jingfei dropped to the ground while heavily gasping for air. They had to give their everything just to remain conscious as the pressure was just too suffocating.
Sweat dripped down their forehead, but nonetheless, they were joyful to see that Meixiang successfully broke through.
As for why they didn't escape from the terrifying pressure, it was simple. They couldn't. The Qi of a Nascent soul master was that powerful. A single whiff of it could cause such pressure throughout the entire lone mountain.
Naturally, this also meant that the creatures living within the trees and the fishes underneath the stream within the lone mountain were also affected.
The three of them struggled to stand back up, especially Zed and so he cast a spell in order to hold themselves upwards.
After recomposing themselves, they noticed that Meixiang was focused on meditating so they did not bother her and patiently waited for her to finish.
After another hour, Meixiang finally opened her eyes and looked around her surroundings.
The feeling of the nascent soul stage was... different. She could see, hear, and even smell better.
She could perceive things that were a hundred kilometers away from her and nothing could get away from her sight. It was as if she had became one with nature, being able to perceive many things at once.
Meixiang smiled as she felt joy in succeeding. Her fists trembled in excitement as she was curious to see how strong she had become.
'I feel.... I feel like I've been reborn....' Out of excitement, she punched towards the skies.
WOOSH!
A strong force shot to the skies, making Lan'er, Zed, and Jingfei completely stupefied.
They had never seen a nascent soul cultivator before, so this was their first time seeing one, and... They had to admit that they were still underestimating the capabilities of a cultivator in the nascent soul realm.
Jingfei and Lan'er thought, 'Sister Mei grew stronger again...'
Contrary to what one would expect, they did not seem demoralized nor envious. Their shoulders trembled in excitement while trying to hide the smiles they were subconsciously making.
They were much more excited to see the mountain grow higher.
Lan'er and Jingfei's burning competitive spirit was ignited as they stared at Meixiang
Similarly, Meixiang was smiling at them from the top of the big root. She had a provoking expression that said, "Can you catch up?"
Seeing the determined looks between the girls, Zed wryly smiled while shaking his head.
It seems that no matter the distance nor the difference between them, they would always be competitive sisters.
Suddenly, Lan'er's expression changed from an excited smirk into a cold unfeeling face.
Their hot headed atmosphere changed as they noticed that the temperature dropped to a considerable degree.
Meixiang immediately dropped down from the big root and bowed in front of Lan'er. Similarly, Jingfei didn't delay and bowed beside her sister Mei.
Zed didn't react and remained silent while observing them.
A cold grin appeared on Lan'er's face as she spoke.
"Congratulations, Disciple. You have wonderfully met my expectations."
Meixiang continued to bow. "It is all thanks to master's guidance."
"Well, I won't deny that, but you need to give credit to your endurance and willpower. If not for those, it didn't matter if you were a genius with talent or not."
"Only those who are determined can ever reach the apex. Only they can become strong and rule from the top."
"As for the others? Well..." Her voice trails off.
Tang Xiurong continued with a harsh and cold voice.
"They are nothing but trash!"
Edited By: WorthyAdversary