"Are you able to use Qi Force?" Abbot asked Ezio, sitting across from him.
After the fight, Abbot called him to his hut. Ezio, of course, went right away. He was prepared to be asked when he used the Qi Force.
"Yes, I am," Ezio answered. He already knew that when he used the Qi Force, the higher-ups would feel it. But to justify the use of the Seventh Wind of the Golden Roc, he had to use the Qi Force instead of the Mana Force.
"How can you?" Abbot asked with a smile. It wasn't that hard to activate Qi Force before breaking through the Qi Force Opening Realm. There were pills, herbs, and many other things that could awaken the Qi Force, but there was also a natural early awakening. Since Ezio already awakened early and experienced Signium Plane, he could just say it was related to it, but he instead said: "When I went hunting Fire Tiger for Elder Jie, I found a herb in its cave. The fruit wasn't ripped yet, but I couldn't have left it behind. Thus I pluck it and eat it. My Force Qi awakened after I digested the fruit."
"Oh, what kind of herb was it?" Abbot asked, seeming intrigued. "I heard from Elder Solon there was a Fire Iron mine in the cave. Was the herb also fire attributed?"
"Yes. I don't know the name of the herb, but it was able to absorb the light in the cave. It was glowing like the sun in the sky, illuminating the cave." Ezio told honestly.
"Scarlet Fire Peach!" Abbot exclaimed excitedly! "What happened to the herb?"
"After I pluck the fruit, it withered and dissolved," Ezio said without change on his face.
"What a shame. Such a treasure has been wasted!" Abbot lamented for a while then looked at Ezio, "If you brought it back, with a pill cultivated from that fruit, you could break through to the next stage. What a shame."
He knew Abbot wasn't lusting over fruit, but lamenting the waste of precious material. Even if he brought it back, Abbot would let Elder Jie make a pill for Ezio.
"But you did the right thing. Even if you let me know with a talisman, I couldn't guarantee that there wouldn't be another beast taking it until I made my way to the cave."
"Thank you, Abbot!" Ezio said and sat silently.
"You don't have to worry about the Tian Family. I was watching the fight, and I saw how Tian Huang attacked you." Abbot said after a while. "If there was a danger to your life, I would have stopped it right away, but thankfully you were strong enough to win."
"I am grateful for your care."
"Now, the reason why Tian Xu was so angry was that with the injury you have caused to Tian Huang, it would take a few months to heal. And precisely in three months, there is the Three Sect Tournament." Abbot said with a frown. "The Three Sect Tournament has been held by three sects of the Royal Forest for centuries.
As you know the three sects surrounding the Royal Forest are responsible for protecting the cities behind them. We are protecting Azure Sky City, and the other two sects are protecting their respective cities. And the kingdom is giving our sects some allowances for our services.
But every 5 years, we are holding the Three Sect Tournament to let our disciples below the Qi Solidification Realm enter the forest and hunt down the monster to manage the beast population. Otherwise, the stampede of the beast would give the sects a hard time. Also, it is a good way to nurture new cultivators.
But according to rules, what happens in the forest, stays in the forest. Meaning, that we are not allowed to intervene in disciples when they are fighting in the forest. I am afraid there might be people targeting you because you have acquired the Seamless Body. I ordered everybody not to divulge it to outsiders, but I am sure it is already known by the other two sects. They will try to poach you or will kill you.
I personally don't want you to go. But I don't want to hinder your growth by protecting you all the time. You have to face hardships to grow up, but the disciples that will target you will be at Peak of the Qi Force Opening realm, and their numbers won't be small." Abbot explained calmly.
"To go or not to go is your choice."
Ezio started to think about what Abbot had said. He knew they would target him when he showed his Seamless Body. But he had no other choice. Even though he could alter the probings and hide his powers, the clamor he had caused when he broke through wasn't something he could hide.
When he was 9 years old, he started to gather Qi as soon as he had tried, and he didn't know about the Seamless Body at that time, and only did it to laze around. But later, Abbot forced him to make a breakthrough in the sacred cave, giving him no chance to hide his Seamless Body. Since he couldn't hide it, he had decided to make full use of it, but the trouble followed with the perks.
"I am willing to go," Ezio answered after thinking for a long time. He wasn't going to shirk from this opportunity just because he was being targeted.
Abbot explained at length but he already knew what the Three Sect Tournament meant. It was a one-time chance for all disciples. If Ezio was in Qi Force Opening Realm he could guarantee his safety, but unfortunately, he was not. But the tournament was too important to walk away.
There were countless beasts in the Royal Forest and countless treasures born every five years. In normal times, cultivators couldn't walk too deep inside the forest because it would be dangerous to walk alone, but during the tournament, there would be hundreds of disciples wandering in the forest. With the support of his Senior Brothers and Sister, Ezio could hunt and find as he wished.
The richness wasn't the only reason why he wanted to go. Some treasures were a lot more precious than gold. Such as Scarlet Fire Peach. If Ezio wanted, he could buy the fruit itself. It would be really hard, but gold still could buy it. But to find a herb that was nurturing the fruit, no one would sell it.
Botanist Ezio asked him to find more plants so he could crossbreed them and nurture unique herbs. And Royal Forest was the best place he could go at the moment.
--------
Hello you all. I hope you are enjoying the novel! Please drop a comment and review to let me know!
***
Join my Discord for Daddy!
https://discord.gg/PbzZga4948