The time passed again, and as if in the blink of an eye the 'new' Jian had passed the one year mark of his transmigration. Mostly it had been a calm and quiet year besides the usual slap to the back of his head from his sister for saying of doing stupid and strange things, but mostly calm. During this time he had progressed much on his blacksmithing skills almost reaching the expertise of his sister who had been forging almost eight years , but that was just the tip of the iceberg. His previous scrawny frame had now almost doubled , and veins and defined muscles could be seen on his forearms as he forged. If he was in his old world it would definitely have been the result of steroids and freakish genetics, but here it was just the result of blacksmithing and good food, or at least that's what Jian thought.
*ting ting....tinkk....
As usual Jian was hammering away at the piece of metal when his sister barged in. She looked at the concentrated Jian who was making a hand sickle , and couldn't help but be somewhat envious of him. Not long ago he had been a useless brother, but in about a year he had become a model one, even surpassing her in the speed of creating tools. She knew it was to be expected as he was now strong and more resilient than her, but she was still his older sister. As he finished his work and cooled the sickle, he received a slap to the back of his head.
"Ouch...what was that for? Why did you slap me?"
"Hmph, because you're stupid that's why. It doesn't matter if I do it or not."
"That doesn't even make sense!" Grumbled Jian as he looked as his sister as she smiled deviously. It had been getting more and more frequent in the last months , but he wasn't that bothered by it as heblet on. The slaps at first had been somewhat hurtful, but after some time they seemed just like hard taps. He didn't want to spoil whatever fun his sister got from slapping him, so he played along with it.
"Hurry and clean yourself up, we have a guest waiting. He really seems eager to see you. "
"Guest...see me? What are you talking about? I'm not expecting anyone."
"Heeh, neither did I! In the past year you've changed for the better definitely , but you also have turned into a hermit. You rarely go out or mingle with the ones your age, you spend your time couped up in this forge, and your skin is covered with soot most of the time. I guarantee you that if you go out , most of the villagers will not recognize you ."
Jian frowned as he looked at himself but didn't think he had changed much. He definitely had grown some and become more muscular, but he didn't see the big difference his sister said.
"As I was saying someone has come to see you , a woman!"
"A woman....you're joking right? You're not joking?" Jian saw the serious face of his sister and begun to clean himself. As he did so he thought who could it be , but only someone from the Red Ginseng came to mind. He didn't know what someone from the Red Ginseng would want with him, but he was about to find out. He exited the forge , and slowly headed to the house. When he arrived at the kitchen \living room, he was surprised.
'What the....
"Amitabha Buddha."
Sitting on a chair and drinking some tea was not someone from the Red Ginseng, or even anyone he knew. The bald head, the brown robe, and the greeting immediately drove away his suspension, but the voice threw him of once again.
"You're, a nun?"
"Indeed I am. And you are Feng Jian, is that correct?" answered his unexpected guest. Her demeanor was calm, as if she had been doing this for a long time. This thought didn't seem to convince Jian as he looked at his guest from top to bottom, and he confirmed she was indeed female.
"Uhhh...sorry for losing myself in thought. You were saying...
"Are you Feng Jian?" repeated the nun once again as she took another sip of her tea. Hearing this Jian had a bad feeling, but he couldn't deny it, his sister was here after all. So, he sat down on another chair so they could be face to face.
"Yes, my name is Feng Jian, but I don't recall ever encountering you. Have we met somewhere before?"
"No, but I've come across some of your work. They are quite impressive if I say so myself."
"My work? What are you talking about?"
"Is this not your work?" said the nun as she grabbed something from the ground next to her, and put it on her lap. It was not anything to be afraid or awed at, but the hoe she had in her lap definitely belonged to him. The patterns on the metal were definitely something he remembered.
"...
"What, is this not yours? "
Jian didn't answer this time as he didn't like where she was going, so he glanced at his sister and saw that she also wasn't pleased with the conversation, but hadn't said anything.
'What is going on? Why is this nun asking me about a hoe I made, nothing is making sense. Am I in a dream?' As Jian thought about the situation, the nun suddenly grabbed his hand with the speed of lightning, and she was strong to. Jian tried to retract his hand , but he found out he couldn't, her grip was like a vice holding his hand in place.
"Let go of me!"With a burst of anger he finally managed to get his hand back, but he wasn't happy at all."Who are you?!"
"It's not that important as to who I am, but why I'm here, my dear boy. Sit, you will be more comfortable as I explain the situation to you."
The simblings looked at each other and Jian was about to cus at the nun when a wave of power passed by him.
"Sit!"
With that word all Jian's anger was washed away , and he looked at the nun with awe. Her look was the same as before, but her aura had completely changed. He couldn't help but swallow the spit that had accumulated in his mouth.