Talia, Gia and Jiang Xia entered their house and the smell of food being cooked wafted into their nostrils.
"Oh, you guys are back."
The girls saw Witney sitting on the couch while scrolling through her ManaPhone and Vasari in the kitchen wearing a pink apron over his sect robes. He had a content smile on his face while he stirred the food being cooked in the pot, the girls found themselves unable to take their eyes off the amazing sight of a handsome man cooking dinner.
Talia was the first to regain her senses and turned to face Witney with a frown on her face.
"You ditched me in class. I'm angry at you."
Looking up from her ManaPhone, Witney was left speechless at the face Talia was making. She had never seen her friend pout so adorably before, she looked so cute that she just wanted to pinch her cheeks and tease her.
"Sorry, but Vasari wasn't feeling well so I decided to stay with him for the day."
"Why couldn't you message me then."
"That's..." Witney didn't know what to say. She couldn't say that she was sleeping with Vasari since that will just cause a big misunderstanding.
Fortunately, Vasari came to her aid, "Food is ready!"
Jiang Xia and Gia who were still mindlessly staring at Vasari woke up from their daze and made their way to the dining table. Talia squinted her eyes before harrumphing and walked to her seat at the table. Witney knew Talia was not going to let this go but it wouldn't be for long, she was not the type to hold grudges.
The 4 girls eyed the food in front of them like hungry tigers. Since they started school they haven't had a proper meal mainly because they decided to save their cloud points instead of wasting them at the CloudBar.
The juicy meat of an adolescent stage polka cow is seasoned with rare spices that non-cultivators would not dare to eat unless they enjoy having their insides burnt to a crisp. An assortment of vegetables arranged neatly around the meat and a bottle of red wine that cost an extravagant 2 cloud points. Apparently having one glass a day will improve a cultivator's Qi flow by 5%. Although it might not seem like much but being able to circulate your Qi quicker than your opponent even by half a second could end up being the difference between life and death.
"Are you girls just going to stare at the food or are you going to eat?"
The girls needed no second invitation as they started filling their plates before filling their stomachs.
"Hmmm~ Vasari where did you learn how to cook? That was so delicious." Gia asked after eating her plate clean.
"It's not difficult really, all it takes is practice. I learnt to cook in the forest and back then I used whatever plants I could find to add extra flavour."
"Are you not going to eat?" All this time Vasari only stood to the side while they ate their fill. Jiang Xia felt bad considering that they left absolutely nothing for Vasari, it was just too delicious.
"I'm fine, I'm sure Timo is making dinner as we speak so I'll eat back at my house."
Vasari and the girls chatted for a few more minutes before he excused himself and walked back home. While walking home his thoughts drifted to one of the first memories he could clearly recall and a gentle yet fully genuine smile that could warm the soul of the coldest of people appeared on his face.
-----
"My dear, it's about time you learn how to cook for yourself." A voice oozing gentleness and affection sounded alongside the crackling of wood being burnt and a myriad of chirping echoing throughout the seemingly never-ending forest.
"Cook? Nana don't be silly, Vasari can't see so Vasari can't cook." Cute and innocent would be the best words to describe the voice of the young boy who looked no older than 6 years old. Young Vasari was sitting opposite the small fire with his back leaning on the body of the voice that just spoke to him.
Nana, the owner of the gentle voice, giggled and looked at the young boy that she practically raised from birth. She considered young Vasari to be like her very own son at this point and so she wanted to be the best mother she could be for him.
"Come, my dear, don't be so negative, all it takes is practice. You can do anything you put your mind to, don't let your disability rule over your life that is destined to be great and filled with so many amazing adventures. My dear, in the future, don't be afraid to ask for help because many times the strongest of men are too proud to ask for help and are often left helpless in the end."
Young Vasari could only nod his head in understanding but he would only understand the true meaning many years later.
And so, under the clear night sky and in the middle of an ever-reaching forest, a beast that seemed larger than the world itself and a blind boy whose only light in his world filled with constant darkness was a soothing voice infused with pure genuine affection, started a cooking class.
----
"Yo Vasari, you came home just in time. Dinner is nearly finished so take a seat so long."
Vasari nodded and went to the dining table and sat in his usual seat which was next to Asher who was seated opposite Timo and Hassan was seated opposite Vasari.
5 minutes later Timo finished cooking and served his roommates food. Although not as good as Vasari when it came to cooking, Timo is not too shabby in the ancient arts of culinary.
The 4 roommates enjoyed their dinner and went their separate ways. Vasari slept throughout most of the day so he decided to practice his control over his inner yang energies until it was time for school.
-----
A week later.
Standing outside a massive structure near the centre of the Outer Haven, 12 youths were currently queuing in a long line to enter this building. The atmosphere was electric and buzzing with good vibes, even though there were a lot of people standing in this queue it did very little to dampen the spirits of everyone there.
DT: "Man oh man, I'm so freaking hyped right now dude. I can't believe I'm going to watch my first League Rankings match. I have goosebumps, here, feel my arms."
Jett: "DT get your arm out of my face bro."
Jaxon: "I'm lowkey excited too. I mean it's not every day that we get an opportunity to watch the elites of the sect battle it out against each other."
Asher: "Well we only have Vasari to thank after winning that challenge Miss Covington gave him."
2 days prior, Miss Covington made a challenge to Vasari and if he won she would give him tickets to the next League Rankings match. The challenge was a simple one but at the same time difficult. Vasari had to defeat 3 training dummies similar to the ones in the entrance exam using only the basic hand-to-hand combat moves that they have learnt so far in class. The difficult part was that the dummies were set to have the physical strength of an average Mana body stage cultivator.
It was a hard-fought battle and although the dummies were not using any martial techniques or movement techniques it was still difficult to beat them using only basic hand-to-hand combat moves.
Miss Covington could only graciously accept defeat once Vasari managed to scrape a victory. She was quite generous to also give him tickets for his friends considering that a normal ticket cost 200 cloud points with the more expensive tickets ranging from 300 to 500 cloud points per seat.
Vasari: "You guys are pretty talented too, I'm sure you could've beat the challenge as well."
Witney: "No way. Maybe if we could use techniques we could, however using just basic combat moves would be basically impossible, but of course, my Vasari could do it~"
DT: "Yes yes we get it. Vasari is amazing and you are dating him. We already know so could you stop hanging on to him like a freaking koala."
Witney: "Heehee don't tell me DT is getting jealous. Do you want to hold his hand?"
DT: "Yes! I mean no! Shut up! The line is moving let's go."
Gia: "Witney, it's not good to tease a young man when it involves his first love."
Jiang Xia: "That's true. I heard young men, especially those in the Yin Yang control stage, are very emotional and often think with their lower bodies. Although I think they do that most of the time anyway."
DT: "Okay fuck you guys, next time I'm coming here alone."
Jiang Xia: "See..."
Jude: "C'mon leave my boy DT alone. He's had a rough week. First getting beat up by squirrels then confessing to his crush who accepted, only to find out that she used him to get closer to Vasari."
The group of youths glanced at each before finally someone (Timo) couldn't hold it in anymore and burst out laughing causing everyone else to explode into a fit of laughter. Even the usually distant and cold Talia was struggling to keep a straight face after recalling that memorable incident.
"I hate you guys." DT felt like digging a hole and staying there forever. It was such an embarrassing experience but he held no animosity towards Vasari for it. In a way, Vasari had nothing to do with it so it was hard for him to get angry at his new friend.
Asher: "DT you're better off without a girl like that bro. I could see from a mile away that she was a manipulator type."
Witney: "That bitch even dared to try and sneak into Vasari's room. Who knows what she would've done to my Vasari."
Talia: "I would've killed her if she did anything indecent to him."
Alex, who had been quiet all this time, frowned when he heard what Talia said. After finding out that Witney and Vasari became a couple, Alex thought that Talia would finally stop following Vasari everywhere like a pet dog but instead, the situation only seemed to worsen. Now she practically never left his side except for when she was asleep. It also did not help that the girls would invite Vasari over for dinner.
"The line is moving again!"
Soon the group was right in front of the entrance. There were over 10 security guards checking everyone's tickets, Vasari and the group showed their tickets to one of them and without any fuss, they entered the massive man-made structure that was discorectangled shaped. It was over 500 metres tall and a kilometre in length.
"...It is said to be able to seat more than 200 000 people at a time. This stadium is one of 3 in the Outer Haven and also the largest. It is also the stadium which hosts most of the League Rankings matches. This is Havenfield Stadium."
Jett displayed his knowledge as he lectured the group about one of, if not, the most popular buildings in Outer Haven. The group was currently walking towards the stands where their seats were booked. They were still 'outside' of the actual arena so the noise coming from the stands was not too loud but once they entered the actual arena, the noisy atmosphere caused them all to get goosebumps and their excitement went through the roof.
"Go LowClouds go!!"
"Come on NightSwordz!! Crush them!"
Different chants echoed throughout the stadium creating an electric atmosphere. This is what made the League Rankings so amazing and the reason everyone in the sect aspires to create or join a faction. Having hundreds of thousands of people cheering for you, having the younger generation look up to and aspire to be like you is an amazing feeling that not even 10 000 words would be enough to describe.
Vasari and the group eventually found their seats and arranged themselves. The seating plan went from left to right: Asher, Timo, DT, Jaxon, Jett, Jude, Alex, Talia, Jiang Xia, Gia, Witney, Vasari, and some random person.
Dt: "Man the stadium is almost filled!"
Jett: "Not surprising considering that rank 23 and rank 22 are competing against each other today."
Asher: "Wow so they must be pretty good then right?"
Jett: "Yep, there are a few disciples in the top 100 of the Inner Haven disciple rankings competing today."
*Ting* *Ting* *Ting*
"The League Ranking Match between rank 23 LowClouds and rank 22 NightSwordz will soon begin!"