The day after Ellen tortured Darian, Astra watched as her charge woke up and stumbled out of bed. He dressed himself with a blank look on his face, his movements stiff and mechanical, before leaving his bedroom. Instead of heading to the dining room for breakfast, as was his habit, he made his way outside of the estate and headed towards the spot where he liked to sit and watch the sunset.
If Astra hadn't sensed what was going on with him, she would've feared that he would try to kill himself by throwing himself off the edge of the cliff. Not that it would have worked. Senior Sister Nova had set things up to prevent something like that from happening.
The others, however, couldn't sense what Astra sensed. His two friends, Cultivators Lucius and Vera, had kept an eye out for him, worried about his well being after what had happened yesterday. They panicked when they saw his destination, and tried to rush over to stop him from going over the edge. Astra, in her feline form, stopped them from interfering by growing to her full size and pinning them to the ground with her paws.
"What are you doing?" Cultivator Lucius said, struggling to remove her paw and failing. "Look at him! Darian isn't in his right mind! He's going to jump off the edge!"
Astra didn't blame him for thinking that. Darian seemed as if he were lost in his own little world, unaware of his surroundings. Given what Darian had gone through, of his own volition, no wonder that his friends assumed that he had been out of his mind and possibly suicidal.
"Let us go!" Cultivator Vera demanded.
Their shouting attracted the attention of the others. Soon, they all gathered outside to watch as Darian made his way towards the cliff's edge.
"Quiet," Astra hissed, before giving the others a glare. "If any of you ruin this for him, I will punish you myself."
Everyone wore concerned expressions on their faces. Well, everyone except Darren and the mortal servant, Bella. Darren likely sensed what Astra had sensed, though to a lesser same degree, because of his cultivation stage. As for Bella, well, she had made her feelings regarding Darian quite clear.
"What are you talking about?" Lucius said.
He used several techniques to try and escape, but it was futile. Astra's level was leagues above his. The difference in power between them was like the difference between the heavens and the earth. She didn't even need to create a shield using her spirit energy. Her body's constitution was enough to resist his attacks.
"Darian is gaining insights into the laws and principles behind his technique," Cultivator Darren said, his tone a mix of awe and concern.
When he said that, Ellen and Elliot relaxed. The others, however, remained worried.
"What do you mean?" Cultivator Vera asked.
She stopped struggling when she saw Darian reach the edge of the cliff and sit down. It took a moment for Cultivator Lucius to notice this as well.
"When a cultivator reaches the Element Collection stage," Astra said. "They begin to understand the laws and principles that govern the universe, specifically the ones that their technique is based on. It's how they collect the elements needed to form their Golden Core." She glanced at Darian. "Sometimes, however, a cultivator will catch an early glimpse of these laws and principles, which will boost their cultivation significantly. I wouldn't be surprised if Darian's cultivation went up a small realm or two from this."
Since Astra was at a higher level, and practiced a variation of the same technique, she had sensed what was going on with Darian the moment he woke up. He was absorbing insights from the universe, the same way a sponge might absorb water. She wouldn't be surprised if a visual manifestation of the laws and principles behind The Nine Gates of Destruction appeared.
As if her thoughts had summoned it, a translucent black flame appeared all around Darian. It encompassed him, but did not burn him, nor did it burn the area around him. It took on a flower-like shape, or maybe it would be more appropriate to call it cocoon-like.
Everyone watched this with varying looks of amazement on their faces. Astra removed her paws from Cultivators Lucius and Vera. She trusted that they wouldn't do something stupid.
"What do we do now?" Lucius asked as he stood up.
He studied what was happening to Darian with rapt interest. Astra suspected that Cultivator Lucius would gain some insights from just studying the process as it happened to Darian. Cultivator Vera was less likely to gain any benefits, since she practiced a technique that opposed Darian's on two fronts; hers was a water-based healing technique, while his was a fire-based technique that focused on destruction. Still, she might gain something.
"We do nothing," Astra said. "Darian will finish in his own time. You can say what you have to say to him then."
Everyone continued to watch Darian for a while, but as time passed, they all left to go about their business. Every now and again, one of them would come by to observe for a while, before leaving again. The only ones who didn't leave at all were Astra and Darren. Neither needed to eat, drink, or sleep after all. They could watch over Darian for as long as necessary.
Astra shook her head. Most people, after enduring torture, needed healing and time to mend. Darian, on the other hand, gained enlightenment. Sometimes life just wasn't fair.
***
Darian stared straight ahead. From the moment he had woken up, and he remembered what had happened to him yesterday, he fell into some sort of trance-like state. He couldn't quite describe it in words. It felt like something in him had opened up, and the secrets of the universe were pouring in. It wasn't his mind, or rather, it wasn't just his mind. His soul had opened up as well.
Somehow he managed to dress himself, and stumbled his way over to Sunset View to sit down and collect his thoughts. He heard the others as he walked, but their words were just a buzzing noise in his ears. A distraction. He focused on his own thoughts, on the pathways and connections his mind was making. Bits and pieces of knowledge he had collected over the years were clicking together, connecting with the insights pouring into him.
A warmth enveloped Darian. It surrounded him, but it did not harm him. Rather, it felt nurturing, in a way. No. That wasn't right. Purifying. Yes, the flame was purifying him of ignorance.
Yesterday, Ellen had taken him apart. She had broken him in body, mind, and spirit. Afterwards, Vera had put him back together and healed him. As this all happened, Darian had observed it with his mind sense, with what little cognizance he had left by the end. It was the only way he could witness what had happened to him. His other senses had been too limited to perceive the full picture, so to speak.
When Vera had healed him and put his body back together, she had strengthened his physical constitution in the process. His body had become stronger and tougher. It had become more.
The same thing had happened with his mind and spirit.
No. It wasn't just Vera's healing. That had only been half of it. Both parts of the process had been necessary. Ellen's efforts had been just as important as the healing. Darian hadn't realized it at the time, but Ellen had damaged him the way she had for a reason. Like a refining flame, she had cut away the impurities in his body. Or perhaps her efforts allowed his body to purge those impurities on its own, with Vera's healing enhancing the process.
The impurities weren't just physical and mental in nature. They were spiritual. It was as if the damage to his body and mind had affected his soul, and so had the healing. The three were interlinked, after all. Body. Mind. Soul. What affected one, affected the others. What purified one, purified the others, though to a lesser degree.
If that had been all, Darian would have been satisfied. However, when he woke up and remembered what had happened, looking back on the process had triggered something in him, allowing him to reach the state he was in now.
Destruction. Creation.
The two were intrinsically linked. They contrasted each other, defined each other, and gave each other purpose. What was Creation without anything to oppose it? It would be just chaos. Formless chaos. And what was Destruction if there was nothing to destroy? It would be purposeless. Meaningless.
Working in harmony, these two forces drove change. Sometimes this change was positive, like growth. Sometimes this change was negative, like decay. Yet, each contained a hint of the other. That which grew would eventually die and decay. That which decayed would nurture new life and new growth.
The end of one thing was the beginning of another.
Dawn. Dusk.
Dawn was the end of night and the beginning of day. Dusk was the end of day and the beginning of night. They were also liminal points in time, the transition from one thing to another. For a single moment, however, they were both night and day, and they were neither. These liminal points were the in-between spaces, the in-between times, that hovered between what was and what will be.
Gates were also liminal points. They marked the boundaries between spaces, but also marked the way through those boundaries. When a person stepped through a gate, they hovered in the space between where they had been, and where they were going.
It was in these liminal points where the greatest changes were possible. The key for Darian was to direct the change, to go in the right direction in order to achieve his goals.
Directed change.
The Nine Gates of Destruction marked the end of who Darian had been, and the beginning of who he would become. With each step, he achieved a higher state of being. Each step, each transition, brought him away from mortality and brought him closer to immortality.
The Nine Gates of Destruction were the guide posts that marked the path he needed to walk in order to achieve this. The flame of destruction was the means he used, the method by which he walked this path. The fire burned away his past self, so his future self could emerge. He was the one destroyed, the one destroying, and the flame itself.
Darian began taking in spirit energy and circulating it through his meridians. Even though he wasn't performing the Fist of the Mortal Flame, that didn't matter right now. The spirit energy mingled with the flame that encompassed him, taking on its aspects. The fiery spirit energy coursed through him, and he directed it to his Nose Aperture. He observed as the fiery spirit energy burned away his impurities, his mortality, bringing him one step closer to becoming an Immortal.
For three days and two nights, Darian cultivated. In that time, he neither ate nor drank nor slept. He focused on nothing but purifying his body, mind, and soul, bringing his entire being one step closer towards his goal. Impurities oozed out of his pores and his nostrils.
In that time, he opened his Nose Aperture and made significant progress towards refining his bones. They hurt as they burned, but with each cycle, they grew stronger, tougher, and purer. They became more.
However, Darian couldn't ignore his physical needs forever. He had only walked through the first Gate of Destruction, after all. There were many more to go.
Eventually, Darian collapsed and fell backwards. The trance-like state ended, and he lay there in a daze. He came to when something pressed against his dry, cracked lips. Cool and refreshing water touched his tongue, and he drank. Thirst overwhelmed him, and he ended up drinking too much. He choked, coughing the water back up.
"Careful, son," his father said in a gentle voice. "Drink slowly. There's no need to rush. I have plenty of water here for you."
Following his father's advice, Darian took small sips. Little by little, the thirst eased. It no longer overwhelmed him. He didn't know how long he laid there in his father's arms, drinking the water. It felt like hours, but it could have been only minutes. His sense of time was skewed.
After a while, Darian found the energy to open his eyes. Until that moment, he hadn't realized they were closed. His father looked down at him, concern and pride in his gaze. He held a clay jug to Darian's lips.
"It's good of you to join us back in the land of the living, my son," his father said. "I was worried that you would push yourself too hard, and end up dying."
"You worry too much, Cultivator Darren," Astra said. Her head popped into view. "I told you that he would be fine."
"You said no such thing. In fact, if I recall, you were even more worried than I was."
Astra looked away with a huff.
"Hmmph, you must be imagining things."
Darian let out a soft chuckle. It was all he could manage in his weakened state.
"Would you help me sit up, Father?"
His father nodded and helped Darian sit upright. Darian noticed that he was still at Sunset View. The sun had almost set, and it was now dusk. The world hovered between day and night. A few stars had even made their presence known, though the moon was nowhere in sight.
He smiled. Perhaps it was just coincidence, or maybe it was fate, that he finished with whatever he had been doing just before this moment in time. It all felt a bit fuzzy to him. While he only remembered a fraction of what he had learned, it was still significant. He also remembered that he had opened his Nose Aperture, and was halfway towards refining his bones.
"How do you feel, Darian?" his father asked.
"Tired," Darian replied. "Hungry. A little thirsty." He paused. "Euphoric. I caught a glimpse of…I'm not sure how to describe it. The true meaning of the flame of destruction?"
He looked at Astra, who sat off to the side. She nodded.
"You, my favorite nephew, were in a state of enlightenment. It seems that your idea to torture yourself worked even better than I had imagined. You caught a glimpse of Fire itself."
As she spoke, Astra summoned a small flame with her paw. It wasn't a regular flame, however. This flame contained whispers and traces of the truths Darian had glimpsed.
Darian found himself even more fired up to cultivate. If that was what he had to look forward to, he couldn't wait to achieve it. However, while his mind and spirit were willing, his body was weak.
Maybe that was why some cultivators focused more on body refining, so their physical form wouldn't hold them back.
"I'm gonna need some rest," he said. "I don't think I'm good for much of anything right now."
His father and his auntie both nodded.
"Prepare for some harsh words for when you wake up," Astra said. "Your friends are not happy with you right now."
Darian nodded.
"They're right to be angry. I misled them." He frowned. "I also need to talk with Ellen. Something tells me she needs it."
Ellen was in pain. Where he got that idea, Darian didn't know. He just knew that she was in pain, and he wanted to ease that pain.
"At least you're aware of it," his father said. "Let's get you cleaned up and then off to bed."
Darian's father picked him up and carried him like a child, something Darian had never experienced with his father before. While he would have preferred to walk, he was too weak to do so. Before they had even reached the estate, he fell asleep.
***
Vera slapped Darian across the face with a blow that would have killed a mortal. The sound rang out across the training courtyard. She barely held back too. Darian's face exploded with pain and he stumbled back, his head spinning. Somehow, his jaw didn't break. He fell on his ass, a little dazed.
I deserved that, he thought to himself.
"You lying, ungrateful, scheming son of a whore," Vera said, marching over to him.
She looked ready to hit him again. If she did, Darian wouldn't resist. He could take another blow. Maybe.
"Do you know how worried I was for you?" she continued. "Do you know how scared I was when I saw that bloody…thing that snake had turned you into?" She hit him again, this time slapping his other cheek. This blow contained less power, however. Otherwise, she might have broken his jaw that time. "You said you needed help with 'intense physical training'. That wasn't training. That was torture. You lied to me! You lied to us!"
Vera gestured to Lucius, who crossed his arms and glared at Darian with a cold expression on his face.
It was late afternoon of the next day. Darian had slept all night, and almost the entire day. While he felt better when he woke up, he still felt a little weak. And hungry. His stomach had gnawed at him, demanding sustenance. Thankfully, he had found a large meal prepared by Ellen waiting for him. He fell upon the food like a starving wolf, devouring everything in record time. The food did more than nourish his body, however. It nourished his mind and soul.
One of the benefits of having an immortal chef as a servant.
After he had finished eating, Darian dressed himself and went in search of his friends. He had a lot to apologize for. They were in the training courtyard, practicing their forms. The moment he had made his appearance, Vera marched over to him and let her displeasure known.
Astra hovered nearby, looking amused.
"Well?" Vera asked, crossing her arms. "Do you have anything to say for yourself?"
Darian blinked and shook his head to clear his thoughts. It seemed that Vera had hit him harder than he first thought.
"If I try to stand up, will you hit me again?"
Vera snorted, her nostrils flaring.
"You'll just have to find out."
Darian took the risk. She didn't hit him again, but she did poke him hard in the chest.
"What were you thinking, you idiot?" she asked.
She opened her mouth, to continue berating him no doubt, but Darian spoke first.
"I'm sorry," he said, interrupting her. "I lied to you." He glanced at Lucius. "To both of you. I kept the full truth from you, since I knew you would never agree to help if I told you what I had planned, so I told a half-truth instead. I deceived you, and for that I am sorry. I promise to make it up to you both."
Vera wore a conflicted expression on her face. She looked like she wanted to stay angry, but his apology had cut her anger off at the knees.
"Ugh!" she said, throwing her hands up in the air. She stalked away from him, turned around, and pointed a finger at him. "That's playing dirty, Darian. I hate it when you apologize like that, all sincere and earnest. It makes it difficult to be angry with you, because you genuinely mean it. It's-…Aaaah!"
She choked the air in front of her. Lucius remained silent, coldly glaring at Darian. It seemed he was content to let Vera do the talking for the both of them.
"Well?" she asked when she calmed down a little. "Aren't you going to finish? Apologize for making me heal you after that snake had tortured you?"
At this, Darian shook his head.
"I can't."
Vera blinked at him. Even Lucius seemed surprised by this.
"Why not?" she asked.
"Because I'm not sorry about that part," Darian said. "I'm sorry for lying to you, for tricking you into healing me, but I'm not sorry for the actual torture. It was necessary for my cultivation."
His friends stared at him, stunned.
"How was that necessary to your cultivation?" Vera sputtered. "Darian, I…I barely recognized you. You didn't look like a person anymore." She shuddered in revulsion. "You looked like a slab of meat, just hanging there."
Lucius narrowed his eyes.
"It's because of the technique you practice," he said, speaking up for the first time since Darian had entered the training courtyard.
"Yes," Darian said, looking back at his friend. "My technique is fire based and leans towards body refining. It was never going to be a pleasant path to follow. I mean, it's called The Nine Gates of Destruction for a reason."
"So, you're going to do more things like that to yourself?"
Darian shrugged.
"Not just that. It is a combat technique after all. Fighting others will help."
Destroying others would give him insights into the flame of destruction as well.
"And you want me to help you," Vera said, looking away from him. She hugged herself. "You want me to enable this…self destruction of yours."
"Yes," Darian said. "And Lucius as well. With the combat part, not the self destruction part. I can handle that myself."
Vera shook her head.
"No. I can't. Not after what I saw. I love you too much to watch you do that to yourself. You're like a little brother to me."
While he didn't say so, the expression on Lucius' face told Darian that his friend felt the same.
Darian stepped forward and reached a hand out towards Vera. For a moment, he thought she wouldn't reach back. However, after some hesitation, she did.
"Vera," he said as he clasped her hand. "Just as the Dancing Wind technique is Lucius' path to immortality, and your technique is your path, becoming the flame of destruction is mine. It is who I am, and who I choose to be."
Vera looked at him, worry and concern in her eyes.
"It is not an easy path, nor a painless one," Darian continued. "I know you don't like it, but it requires me to sometimes harm myself, to destroy parts of myself, to progress. This is something I have to do, and I will do so with or without your help. However, there is no one I would rather trust to help me put myself back together, to rebuild myself, than you two. Will you help me?"
He let go of Vera's hand.
"However, I won't try to force you to help me. Neither will I try to trick you. Not again." He gestured towards his estate. "I know we had a deal, but feel free to stay here for as long as you'd like. Consider that part of my apology."
Neither of his friends said anything for several long minutes.
"I'm still angry with you," Lucius said. "You mistreated us, and I am furious for what you put Vera through. It would be one thing if you had told us the truth, and she knew what she was getting into, but you didn't. What you did was wrong, Darian."
Darian nodded. He knew as much, and was prepared to pay the price to make things right with his friends.
"However," Lucius continued, letting out a sigh. "I'll help you. Someone needs to keep you from going too far, and I don't trust Cultivator Astra to be the one to do it."
He glanced at Astra. She didn't say anything, and continued to observe things with an amused expression on her feline face.
"Thank you," Darian said in a quiet voice.
"I'll even keep to the original deal," Lucius said. "I already have the technique scrolls, so I might as well give them to you." His gaze hardened. "That said, to make it up to me, you'll help me train our juniors. Not just for one day, or one week, or even one month. You'll help me for six full months. Understand?"
Darian grimaced at this. He couldn't think of anything he'd like less, which he guessed was the point. Helping Junior Sister Clarissa had been surprisingly enjoyable, but that didn't mean that Darian wanted to mingle with the rest of his kin.
Still, he had told himself that he was prepared to pay any price.
"I understand," he said with great reluctance.
"Good."
They both turned towards Vera, who looked unsure.
"I still don't think this is a good idea," she said. "What if you go too far? My healing has limits, and if you injure yourself beyond my capabilities…"
She stopped talking, but Darian understood her point. If it had been before his training with Ellen, he might have brushed off her concerns. He knew his limits, or so he had thought.
However, he knew better now. Ellen's ministrations taught him just what would happen if he pushed himself too far. He could cripple himself and never reach immortality.
More than that, the training had taught him what would happen if he pushed his friends too far. Even now, he could see the pain and unease in their eyes. Pain that he had caused.
How close had he come to losing Vera and Lucius as his friends?
Darian didn't know, and didn't intend to find out. For their sake, he would keep himself in check. As much as he wanted to become an Immortal, he didn't wish to do so by losing his friends in the process. Some things are just not worth the price.
"I won't go too far," Darian said. "Your friendship means more to me than any gain I might make."
"You could have fooled me," Vera said under her breath. Thanks to his enhanced hearing, he heard her anyway. He guessed that was intentional on her part. She let out a sigh. "Fine, I'll help you with this hare-brained scheme of yours. It's not like I didn't gain any benefit from it." She grimaced. "I made a breakthrough last night."
For some reason, Vera did not look excited about this. Darian guessed it was because she had broken through from healing him after he had tortured himself. He imagined that she had conflicted feelings about it, to say the least.
"Thank you," Darian said.
"Don't think this means that I forgive you," Vera said, pointing a finger at him. "I am still furious at you." She placed her hands on her hips. "And don't think my forgiveness can be bought by simply helping me out with my duties. Unlike some people, I'm not so cheap. I have higher standards."
Darian resisted the urge to glance at Lucius and see what his reaction was to Vera's words.
"What would you like?" Darian asked. "A dress from the Gold Weaver Sect?"
He knew that she liked dresses, which was why he had ordered one from the Goodwins. They made quality dresses, for mortals at least. If that was the case, why not get Vera a dress made by an immortal seamstress?
Since he didn't know of any, he mentioned the first name that came to his mind, which was the Gold Weaver Sect. Thank the ancestors for Elena. Otherwise, he wouldn't have known about them.
"Yes!" Vera said, excitement wiping away her anger and unease. "That'll do it!"
Lucius turned his head to the side and snickered. Darian looked between the two of them with a sinking feeling in his heart.
"Am I missing something?" he asked.
"The Gold Weaver Sect is the premier weaving sect in the Myriad Rivers region," Astra said, speaking up for the first time since Darian had entered the training courtyard. She sounded even more amused than she looked. "A dress made by one of their immortal seamstresses will cost you several thousand spirit stones, and that is on the lower end of things."
Darian blanched at this. He received one Spirit Energy Pill and one spirit stone as part of his monthly stipend from the clan. It would take him several decades to accumulate enough spirit stones to afford a dress that cost of several thousand, and that was if he was conservative about it.
Vera crossed her arms and arched an eyebrow at him, as if daring him to go back on his word. With great reluctance, Darian swallowed his pride.
"Auntie," he said, turning to Astra. "Did Master Nova le-…"
"Nope!" Astra said with excessive cheerfulness. "The only resources that she left for you are those that can only be used to advance your cultivation. This did not include any spirit stones. Even if it did, I wouldn't give them to you for something like this. If you want spirit stones, you'll have to earn them yourself." She pointed a paw at him. "And don't even think of asking me for any. My answer is no."
Darian rubbed his forehead. It turned out that forgiveness was expensive. Compared to Vera, Lucius' demand was downright reasonable.
"It's fine," he said, muttering to himself. "I can figure out how to make spirit stones later. It can't be that hard."
When he looked at his friends again, Vera's expression had softened.
"It's fine, Darian," she said. "You don't have-…"
Darian cut her off with a wave of his hand.
"No. I said I would get you a dress from the Gold Weaver Sect, and I meant it. I can't go back on my word now. Rather, I won't." He gave her a pleading look. "Just, be a little patient. It might take me a while."
At that, Vera let out a chuckle and gave him a soft smile.
"I can wait. Don't take too long, however, or I'll double the price of my forgiveness."
Darian's heart felt lighter, despite Vera's threat. While his relationship with his friends was still strained, he had hope for the future. He hadn't taken things too far. Not yet, and not at all, if he had anything to say about it.