Chapter 65 - Roll with the Punches
Benton let out a deep breath. The fight with the Chameleon Jade Sect member had been too close. If the spear had been a fraction of an inch off, the tip might not have penetrated the cultivator's brain. After an unsuccessful attack against a powerful foe, the outcome would have been in doubt.
That had been entirely too close.
Benton shook his head. He needed to grow stronger. He needed to stop letting the needs of the moment cause him to draw too heavily on his available Sect Points.
But in the end, he had won.
He breathed back in. And nearly gagged from the stench.
Without a word, he rushed into the woods, his newly advanced body propelling him at speeds dwarfing what had been possible in the Qi Gathering realm, speeds he'd previously only reached in Su's memories. Once he judged himself far enough from the caravan, he quickly doffed his clothes, up to and including his shoes. The entire outfit was a total loss. It would need to be burned.
Benton removed a luffa from his spatial storage and held his ring hand over his head before letting a significant quantity of pond water pour out to wash over him. He rubbed his tough skin so hard that his old body would have been bloodied and rinsed off the residue. Then, he repeated the process.
It took many cycles before he felt clean enough to return to civilized society—or what served as such at the camp his followers had settled at for the night.
After stepping several yards away from the nasty remnants of the purge, he pulled a bit of the most masculine smelling perfume he'd found back in the city from his ring. With that applied and a fully new set of clothes put on, he felt almost human—well, superhuman—again.
That experience had been the nastiest of his life. Unclogging toilets and changing diapers just didn't compare.
Benton stared at the disgusting pile of materials that had been purged from his body. There wasn't even all that much of it. Su's body had been cleansed at the beginning of Foundation Establishment not all that long before he died, and Benton had spent less than six months in Qi Gathering.
Su's first experience advancing had been after sixteen years of gunk building up in his body. Yikes.
It didn't feel right to Benton to just leave the putrid mess for animals or anyone else to discover. Luckily, he was no longer in the weak Qi Gathering stage.
There were several differences that separated a cultivator in the second major realm from one in the first. The three most obvious distinctions were the sheer increase in physical toughness and might, a tenfold growth in available qi, and, perhaps most important, the ability to manipulate qi outside the body.
That last advantage came with a significant caveat. External manipulation was much more difficult than internal manipulation. Whereas Qi Gathering cultivators could learn to replicate most skills granted by techniques simply by practicing hard enough, it was nearly impossible to do the same in the Foundation Establishment realm.
Stated more simply, Qi Gathering cultivators could do a lot without using techniques; Foundation Establishment cultivators couldn't. And since Benton had just spent another two points that he hadn't yet allocated to himself in order to advance, he wouldn't obtain a new skill anytime in the near future.
Which meant, as a practical matter, he had to manually bury his clothes and the goop left on the ground instead of burning it with a fiery blast of qi. Oh well, he possessed superhuman strength, speed, and endurance. With a shovel from his ring, he quickly covered the mess with enough dirt to conceal, if not eliminate, the smell.
That task accomplished, Benton pulled up his status.
Sect Name:Not ChosenSect Members:0Disciples:16Sect Points:8Shop Points:20Host Cultivation:Foundation Establishment - Minor Realm OneQi Available:1,110Host Body Cultivation:Bronze - Minor Realm TwoHost Techniques:Analysis - Large SuccessBasic Archery - Large SuccessBasic Spear Combat - Large SuccessPill Basics - Large SuccessMenus:[Cultivation Method][Technique][Quest][Perk][Advancement][Shop - LOCKED]He did not like seeing his available Sect Points in the single digits, and spending two of them to get to Foundation Establishment left him owing himself earning five for his personal use before he would feel good about using any more. Those negatives were the only real downsides he saw on his status, though.
The good things outweighed the bad. First of all, he was much more powerful now. Even his senses had improved. He had run through the forest without any light other than what of the moonlight filtered through the overhead trees, and he was seeing just fine. Not like it was daylight or anything, but he had no trouble making out where trees and objects were. And he really liked seeing that huge pool of available qi.
Comparatively, the negatives were quite temporary annoyances rather than long term problems. Turning his guards and drivers into disciples would help with those low numbers, and he thought about rushing back to the path and doing the ceremony immediately. With seventeen people, though, it would take hours, and it was already late. Mortals needed to sleep much longer than cultivators, and the need for points wasn't so urgent he couldn't wait until they stopped tomorrow night.
Of course, the real issues with what had just happened had nothing to do with remaining Sect Points. His thoughts turned to the ramifications of killing a cultivator from the Chameleon Jade Sect.
Benton feared he'd just made an enemy of one of the three most powerful cultivating entities in the area. He sincerely hoped he hadn't, but he didn't know. On one hand, sects tending to react rather badly to having one of their members killed, and claiming self-defense wasn't likely to do anything to deter their wrath.
On the other hand, Benton's affiliation with the Poison Claw Sect might just be all the protection he needed. A member of one sect killing a rival sect member happened all the time. There might be some risk of personal retribution involving the friends or family of the deceased, but the entire organization didn't go to war over it.
Benton would have no choice but to deal with anyone who came seeking vengeance for the unnamed cultivator, but he might not have to handle the whole sect turning against him. He needed to reach out to Elder Kang.
Obviously, he wasn't going to go running back to the city. Such an event would be noticed and draw the attention of the Chameleon Jade Sect immediately.
No, his best bet was to continue on the road like nothing happened and use one of the merchants heading toward Sixth Flawless Flowing City to send the letter to the elder.
Yes. Let Kang Ya-Ting know what happened. Bury the body. Move on. Pretend it never happened. If anything ever came of it, deal with it then.
There wasn't much else he could do, so Benton decided not to waste any more time worrying about it.
The other issue was that he had advanced to Foundation Establishment right in front of his four disciples and seventeen soon to be disciples. And he was supposed to already be in the Nascent Soul realm or higher. The signs of that advancement had been quite unmistakable.
Unless or until one of the people contacted someone in the city, it wasn't really much of an issue, but Benton wasn't naïve enough to think that some or all of the guards and drivers weren't being paid by various sects or other organizations to spy on him. The information of the signs of his sudden advancement before combat with a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator would get out. Even if the people reporting the incident didn't understand the importance, the people they reported it to would.
That was going to make bluffing a whole lot harder in the future.
He only saw three ways to deal with the issue. The first, simply killing all of the mortals when they reached the village, was out. That was not his way. Even if other cultivators would view him as weak for not doing it, he didn't care.
The second method was a lot riskier but a lot more palatable. He had to win the loyalty of each of the mortals so they wouldn't accept whatever bribes they'd been promised.
The third method was the most likely to be successful but was probably the hardest to achieve—simply gain power fast enough that the sects finding out he'd just reached Foundation Establishment wouldn't matter.
Well, he could only do what he could do, which was pursue both the second and third methods, and leave any further issues arising from the incident as a problem for future Benton.
The only positive step he could take at the moment was to write the letter to Elder Kang.
Though his eyes were much better, he still needed light to see ink on a page, so he pulled out another orb from his ring along with the paper and writing implement. He quickly composed a letter.
Friend Kang,
I hope this letter finds you well. Probably so, because I'm writing it a day after I left the city. I bet you're surprised to hear from me so quickly. :)
Anyway, a cultivator wearing the robes of the Chameleon Jade Sect tried to rob us. He knew I was a friend of your sect but thought I had somehow conned you into thinking I was powerful, as if you were that gullible.
He was only at the peak of the Foundation Establishment realm and looked to be about in his mid to late thirties, so I'm guessing he wasn't all that important.
Anyway, the guy threatened my disciples, so I had to kill him. I hope that doesn't cause you any problems.
I'm going to bury the body in the woods and mark a tree by the road with three horizontal lines to let you know how to find it if anyone wants it.
Thanks again for all your assistance in the city, and I hope my actions today don't cause you undue trouble. Send a letter to the Prosperous Gray Forest Village if you wish for more information. I look forward to catching up with you.
- Friend Su
Benton re-read it and really liked how it turned out. Light and friendly but still contained all the relevant details without going on too long. Exactly what he was going for.
That task accomplished, he returned to the path. His disciples appeared anxious, and the mortals milled around the area like it was a disturbed ant hill.
"It's about time for everyone to go to sleep, huh?" Benton said. "Morning will be here all too soon, and I want to break camp at sunrise."
All of them, even his disciples, appeared startled by his appearance at the camp. He hadn't realized how quickly and silently he moved now.
Ye Zan cupped his hands and bowed, looking terrified. "This lowly one will set a guard and get everyone else settled down."
Excellent. It was important to have subordinates who were good at their job, and that Ye Zan fellow appeared to know his business. The terror the man felt upon realizing how easy it was for his boss to kill all of them in seconds would eventually pass. Probably.
"Follow me, my disciples," Benton said.
Yang Xiu and Yang Ru immediately moved to do as instructed, but the other two hesitated. Benton paused for a moment. Zou Tian already knew a bunch of his secrets, but Shi Long was basically an outsider. And he would remain an outsider if that was how Benton treated him.
"I meant all my disciples." He cast a significant glance at Zou Tian and Shi Long.
The two hurried after the others.
Using qi orbs to light the way, the five walked out of earshot of the mortals and sat in a circle.
"I haven't figured out exactly how I want to organize my sect, but you represent four of my most talented five disciples. Eventually, my hope is that all of you serve as leaders in the sect along with, so far, Wan Ai and Mistress Zhong. Note that Mistress Zhong does not share your talent, but I value her experience and wisdom. She will be in charge of the outer sect." Benton paused for a moment to let his words sink in. "As leaders in the sect, you need to know what is going on, so this meeting is to brief you."
The siblings accepted his statements as a matter of course. Zou Tian nodded like he was putting pieces of a puzzle together in his head. Only Shi Long looked lost. But that was okay. The boy was being thrown into the deep end. Benton was willing to give him time to figure out the whole making himself stay afloat thing.
"Zou Tian," Benton said, "will you give us your take on what happened?"
"Yes, Master. A member of the Jade Chameleon Sect attacked us, and Master killed him, in a single strike this one notes. This one doesn't have much wisdom or experience regarding the inner workings of sects, but it would be logical to guess that the Jade Chameleon Sect member had been instructed to observe us only, but seeing what he perceived as weakness, his greed got the better of him. Since Master is a verified friend of the Poison Claw Sect, this one doesn't expect any major ramifications in response."
"Excellent," Benton said. "That's what I thought as well. That doesn't mean the guy won't have friends show up in the meantime, so I'll be on the lookout for that. All in all, I don't think we have to worry about it too much at the moment."
All four of them nodded, Shi Long after the others.
"I bet that there's another question all of you have," Benton said.
"Yes, Master," the twins chorused.
"When one advances between Qi Gathering and Foundation Establishment and from Foundation Establishment to Golden Core, the body expels all impurities inside it in the form of smelly gunk. During the battle, I was forced to advance, hence the smell."
That explanation was sufficient for the siblings and Shi Long, but it made Zou Tian visibly puzzled.
"I am not a normal cultivator, so rules that apply to others simply don't to me. For one thing, if the highest cultivator possible, a Celestial Being, were in front of me, I would be able to use my spiritual senses to detect him and to determine his cultivation realm. Even the strongest cultivator on this continent, including the sect leaders of the three sects, would not be able to do the same. By the same token, not even that Celestial Being could determine my cultivation realm."
At least, that was what Benton thought. There could be limits to the System's power that he didn't know about yet. He could only hope he didn't discover any at the worst possible time.
"Those qualities of mine are my closest held secrets," Benton said. "Over time, you'll learn more about them and others that I have. For the moment, you only have to know two things. One, my power level is not easily determined by normal cultivators, and it benefits you personally and our entire sect if any rival sects were not ever to learn this secret. Two, I will use every bit of my ability to protect my disciples and my sect, and that ability is not to be underestimated."
While three of the disciples nodded, the other looked like he was about to burst with the need to ask a question.
"It's okay, Shi Long," Benton said. "You can ask any question you want. No one will get mad at you."
"It's just … why? Why would … uh, Master share such information with this lowly one. A little over a week ago, this lowly one was a simple clerk in a store."
"And now you're an important cultivator who is destined to be a leader in an about to be formed sect. It's a cultivation world, Shi Long. Anything can happen. The sooner you accept that and learn to roll with the punches, the happier you'll be."
The boy appeared deep in thought, so Benton left him to mull things over.
Zou Tian, on the other hand, looked like he'd just reached an important realization. "Are you a demonic cultivator?"
Yang Ru immediately jumped to his feet and pointed his spear at the younger disciple. At the same time, Yang Xiu rose as well and nocked an arrow.
Well, that conversation sure devolved fast.
Chapter 66 - Righteous as Surfing the EAC
Benton was more than a little bemused at how quickly the twins had jumped to his defense from mere words when they'd been perfectly fine with him facing a Foundation Establishment cultivator alone.
"Everyone calm down!" he yelled. "Yang Xiu, Yang Ru, sit down. Put away your weapons. Zou Tian did nothing wrong."
They both complied, but neither looked happy.
"Master, he spoke without using any honorific," Yang Xiu said. "He disrespected Master with a horrible accusation."
"Okay, point taken," Benton said. "Zou Tian was a little rude in his speech, but I'm the last person who can throw stones at someone for that particular sin."
The twins and Shi Long looked shocked, Zou Tian wary.
"For the record, I am not now nor have I ever been a demonic cultivator." Benton turned to Zou Tian. "Normally, I would have you explain the reason for your question to the others, but they're a little tense right now. I think it's best if I do it. You can correct me if I misstate your views."
The boy nodded.
"To the best of everyone's knowledge, including me up until just over five months ago, there are only two types of cultivators in this world," Benton said. "Righteous cultivators are the type you all are learning to be. You learn a cultivation method, draw in and cycle qi using that method much of the day, slowly accumulate qi, and breakthrough realms minor and major. Do not ever mistake righteous cultivators for being good, though. Much evil has been committed by those claiming to be righteous cultivators. You'll find some to behave a lot better than others, but generally speaking, righteous cultivators do have some ethics. Mostly, though, the term is used in comparison to the techniques or methods associated with the other type of cultivators."
Benton made sure that each of the four was following his explanation and most importantly that Zou Tian didn't appear to have any objections before continuing.
"Demonic cultivators are the other type. I honestly know relatively little about them, but what I do know does not paint a pretty picture. These people do not cultivate in the same manner you do, advancing through realms by their own efforts. These people—I hesitate to call them cultivators—can only grow more powerful by absorbing the cultivation base of another cultivator, be it a righteous one or a demonic one. Due to this fact, righteous sects consider demonic cultivators to be evil and will kill any they find."
"Why did he think you might be one of those, Master?" Yang Xiu said.
"Two reasons. One, he's never seen me actually cultivate, which is a trait that a demonic cultivator would have. Of course, if I were a demonic cultivator impersonating a righteous one, I personally feel that I would be smart enough to pretend to cultivate normally, so his suspicion was a little bit of a dig at my intelligence."
Zou Tian had the decency to look a little sheepish.
"Two, and this is the reason he came to that conclusion at the time he did, I basically admitted it."
As Benton had anticipated, that statement stunned all four of them.
He laughed. "Oh man, you should totally see your faces right now. Hilarious. But let me restate, from Zou Tian's perspective, he felt justified in thinking that I admitted to being one. Hear the difference?"
Benton had to wait a moment, but each of the four eventually nodded.
"Now the answer to why he made that conclusion," Benton said, "I'll leave as an exercise to the student. Can anyone besides Zou Tian tell me?"
After a long pause, it was Shi Long who finally spoke up. "If there are only two types of cultivators and you're not a normal one as you said, meaning a righteous one, you have to be demonic."
Benton had thought Yang Xiu would be the first to get it. She must have been too shocked by the entire conversation.
"Exactly! Great job, Shi Long," Benton said. "But I'm definitely not demonic, and you all saw the proof of that earlier tonight. Can anyone tell me what proof that was? Zou Tian, you can answer this time if you want."
The boy thought for a moment before literally slapping his head. "This lowly one is an idiot, Master. Master clearly advanced during the battle just before killing the rival cultivator. My understanding of demonic cultivators is that the draining technique they use takes some amount of time, probably only seconds, but it is reportedly not instantaneous. It is also known that the technique's use is felt by the target. Master obviously had no time to use a drain technique before he died, and employing the technique would have alerted the Jade Chameleon cultivator. A demonic cultivator cannot advance without first draining an enemy. Thus, Master cannot be a demonic cultivator."
"Excellent work, Zou Tian, though the obvious flaw in your logic is the assumption that your knowledge of demonic cultivators is accurate. However, all the particulars you stated were just as the sects teach them to be." Benton paused to let everyone consider his and Zou Tian's words. "Now, onto the next exercise for the student. Since I'm not lying about not being a demonic cultivator, what does that imply?"
"It implies that Master either lied about not being a righteous cultivator or Master is a third type of cultivator." Zou Tian kowtowed, bending his face all the way down to the dirt. "This lowly one apologizes, Master. This lowly one did not consider all the evidence or that another option existed. This lowly one has shamed Master with an unjust accusation and was rude. This lowly one understands if Master no longer wants him as a disciple."
"Rise, Zou Tian. Please. I'm not mad, and I definitely still want you to be my disciple. That trait of yours to analyze everything is one of the things I value most about you. And coming to me with your concerns was absolutely the right thing to do." Benton paused, rethinking what he'd just said. "Well, actually it was monumentally stupid. If I were a demonic cultivator, I probably would have killed all four of you right here and now. I'd prefer that you try not to risk anyone's lives, including your own, if you can help it."
"Understood Master. This lowly one apologizes again, Master."
"It's a good learning experience. Besides, hopefully it teaches you that you can tell me anything at all without me getting mad. If you're acting as a spy slash scout for me in the future, there will probably come a time when you need to bring me bad news. I want to make sure you know that I will never shoot the messenger, so you don't have to fear telling me the truth."
"Gratitude, Master."
Benton turned to the twins. "You two are both smart and capable and powerful. At some point, you may be in charge of the sect while I am handling something elsewhere. If that ever occurs, I advise you to ask for and consider Zou Tian's counsel. I know that he upset you just now, but please realize that his skill is a valuable tool."
Both looked conflicted by their anger on one hand versus their desire to follow their Master absolutely on the other.
"Look," Benton said. "You two grew up with a family before losing them. I suspect that Zou Tian had no one. He had to fend for himself. If he made the wrong move or stole from the wrong person, he didn't get to eat and risked having his hand or head chopped off by the City Watch, so he adapted by learning to read people and situations. He's not always right—case in point tonight—but he will absolutely consider angles that the two of you will never think of. Understood?"
"Yes, Master," the two chorused.
"We have adequately covered the topic of whether I'm a demonic cultivator to everyone's satisfaction, I think."
"Yes, Master," all four answered.
"Good, but before I consider that particular dead horse well and truly beaten, there are a couple more points about demonic cultivators that you all should think about. Demonic cultivators certainly sound powerful. All they need to do to advance is drain other cultivators with a simple attack, even punching above their weight multiple major realms, right? My understanding is that their spiritual roots don't even matter. An F is just as likely to rise as an S. Why, then, don't demonic cultivators rule the world?"
"There must be a limitation on their attack, Master," Zou Tian said.
"That's one reason. The draining attack is presumably just like any other one that uses qi. Attacks can be blocked or dodged. It is still an extremely powerful offense, however. If it penetrates, the defender is irrevocably damaged. It is also my belief that the amount of qi required to project it is quite high, but I have no evidence to support that theory," Benton said. "Why else might they not be as prevalent as we would think given their power?"
"Because the righteous cultivators outnumber them and kill them on sight, Master?" Zou Tian said.
"Yeah, I'll kind of give you that one, but why haven't they slowly taken over an area and just kept expanding, setting up a domain where no righteous cultivator can survive?"
It was Shi Long who had the ah-ha moment and answered. "They gain power by killing each other, Master."
"Ding ding. We have a winner. Great job Shi Long. Yes, how can you, as a demonic cultivator, ever trust your companions? How can you go to sleep next to them knowing they might kill you to advance themselves? The answer is that such trust is difficult to build," Benton said. "That's why the one threat in this world that scares me more than any other is the thought of enough demonic cultivators banding together to be able to destroy righteous sects in ambush attacks."
Hopefully, it would be a long time before his yet to be founded sect had to face such a threat because it was definitely out there and they were nowhere near ready for it.
Chapter 67 - Biggest Leap Forward Yet
Benton decided to stay up all night. The four guards on duty each shift were fine to deal with any mortal concerns such as raising an alarm if bandits approached or scaring off wild animals, but he wanted to make sure no cultivators appeared in range of his spiritual sense.
The night passed quietly, however, and he found himself really wishing he had the internet. He had managed to find some scrolls of what passed for fiction back in the city, basically short stories involving ghosts for some reason, and a couple of books of compiled stories about cultivators. Those last were amusing at least, but he'd already churned through everything he'd found.
As morning neared, he figured it was time to get some work done. First, he made his way quietly into the woods about fifty yards from the dirt cart path—he refused to call it a road—and buried the Jade Chameleon Sect member's body.
The man had a storage ring, and it was accessible. Benton didn't know if it unlocked upon the man's death or if anyone could have accessed contents at any time; both types were in common use with the latter being much less expensive. Only the costliest ones remained locked after death.
Neither he nor Su's memories had any idea how to create a device that detected a user's death and reacted to the input, but Benton hoped to learn one day. Making objects seemed like a good, productive way to pass the time since he couldn't cultivate.
The contents of the sect member's ring were okay but not exactly a financial windfall. There were less than a hundred silver taels, which according to Su's memories most cultivators kept handy if they might have occasion to frequent mortal inns and such. The actual prizes in the ring were five spirit coins and several weapons, all suitable for use by a Foundation Establishment cultivator, including three swords, a half dozen knives, and nineteen of those throwing blades the man had used to try to kill Zou Tian.
Benton extracted anything that seemed like personal effects—clothes, toiletries, personal letters, etc.—and buried those with the body. The loot he transferred to his personal storage and looped the man's ring on the cord that went around his neck with the others.
That grisly task reminded Benton about the other nineteen bodies he had stored. How crazy was the world when he could actually forget about all the corpses he was carrying around with him. Yikes.
Benton debated just making a mass grave nearby for them until deciding against it. He planned on marking the location for the cultivator's body, so it was possible that people might search the area. Everyone knew he killed them all, obviously, but finding the bodies would essentially tell them he'd kept them in his ring, meaning his ring was large enough inside for nineteen cadavers plus all the other stuff they knew he put in there.
Ugh. He'd have to wait longer to dispose of them, probably somewhere near the village. Maybe he could feed them to the spirit beasts. It was a little gross to think about, but he wondered if it would benefit the beasts in any way. An interesting experiment.
For a moment, he considered that essentially desecrating the bodies of his foes set a bad precedent, but he was living in a cultivation world. He was too soft and knew he was having trouble developing the toughness he needed to be a sect leader. Being less than kind to enemies remains was the least he could do.
If they didn't want their bodies to end up in the stomachs of spirit beasts, they shouldn't have tried to steal his stuff.
Yeah. That sounded like a more appropriate amount of toughness.
Benton's next task was much less gruesome. He wanted to create a mobile cultivating platform for his disciples, a fancy way of saying he was going to clear out half of one of the wagons and put a couple of layers of bolts of fabric down for the kids to sit on. By layering herbs up to the full depth of the wagon in one half of the bed, removing the fabric needed from the miscellaneous items wagon, placing some of the herbs where the fabric had been, and storing more than a little bit of herbs in his ring, he was able to both create the space he wanted while hiding that he'd stored any.
Kind of. If no one was too observant.
He shrugged, wondering if it really mattered. It was going to be very difficult if not impossible to keep secrets from the people he traveled with, and they already knew about his advancement. Besides, how was he going to keep his secret after he pulled endless hot meals from his ring?
If any of them betrayed him, he'd just have to cross that bridge when he came to it.
The only reason he didn't just store everything in his ring was that, for all he knew, message talismans were flying back and forth between Sixth Flawless Flowing City and Vermillion Incomparable Rain Town. Every merchant that passed might be spies detailing everything they saw to report back to the sects.
Yikes, living in a cultivation world sure was making him paranoid.
Finally, the sky started to lighten, and he had the guards wake everyone up. Benton told them to get in the wagons without breakfast. There were some groans at the order, but after his display of power the previous night, everyone jumped to comply. In less than thirty minutes, camp was broken, and the caravan was off.
Benton started with Ye Zan, walking beside the man. "Tell me, what was your favorite street vendor food for breakfast back in the city?"
The man surely thought Benton was playing a mean trick on him, first ordering him to skip breakfast and then asking about his favorite food.
Ye Zan's stomach growled. "Steamed pancakes with mutton or goose, Esteemed Master Cultivator."
"No, you have to choose—mutton or goose."
"Mutton, Esteemed Master Cultivator."
"Alright, one order of steamed pancakes with mutton coming right up." Benton pulled that exact dish from his ring and presented it to the man.
As its name implied, steam rose from the meal, indicating it was still hot. The man did a double take.
"Esteemed Master Cultivator, this meal is for this lowly one?"
"Of course, you didn't think I'd let you go hungry did you? Only the best for my retainers. I have more than enough hot meals to serve all of us for breakfast and lunch until we reach the village."
As he left Ye Zan, sputtering out thanks, behind and moved to the next guard, Benton once again congratulated himself on how clever he was. He bet none of the protagonists in stories like Greg's ever figured out that particular use for a spatial ring.
It was late in the morning, well after everyone had finished eating, when they saw the first merchant train of the day passing the opposite direction. As they neared, Benton got off the wagon, telling his caravan to keep moving—he wouldn't even have to jog to catch up—and slowly approached the other carriages.
The merchants and their guards were understandably nervous about seeing a stranger come near.
"Apologies, Esteemed Merchants, this one needs a service." Benton pulled a wax-sealed letter from his ring and held it up. "This letter goes to Elder Kang Ya-Ting of the Poison Claw Sect in Sixth Flawless Flowing City. How much would the Esteemed Merchants charge to deliver this missive?"
Seeing that the stranger had a service he needed to purchase and was offering money, the merchants perked right up. They, of course, started the negotiation by saying they couldn't possibly accept money from an Esteemed Cultivator. He insisted. They hemmed and hawed. He insisted again. They suggested a hundred taels. He intimated that he should destroy their entire wagon train. They eventually settled on ten taels, still a ridiculous sum, but it wasn't like he was worried about the money.
After the laborious process of goodbyes was completed, Benton sauntered to catch up with his caravan, and the rest of the day passed without incident.
Knowing his planned evening activity was likely to take a while, he had the drivers make camp a little earlier than the previous day. Once dinner had been eaten, he had one of the drivers start a large quantity of water boiling before he addressed all the mortals.
"The village we're heading to is besieged by spirit beasts," Benton said. "You don't have to worry. Yang Xiu, Yang Ru, and I are more than powerful enough to protect all of you, and when we're ready to take the next shipment of Orange Vigor Spirit Wood back to Sixth Flawless Flowing City, you can all return with payment just as we agreed. However, I do have a different deal, a different path, that is open to you."
Benton watched all of them to gauge their reactions. Some seemed interested, others wary.
"One of the ways I'm helping the village is to create a sect and teaching some of them how to cultivate in order to be able to protect themselves and their families from the beasts, but it will be several months after we arrive before any of the villagers are strong enough to take on the defense themselves. The two months we're spending in these wagons is thus being used very inefficiently. If I could get a bunch of guards trained and cultivating as we travel, those guards will be ready—or close to ready—by the time we arrive. Instead of a delay, I can have the harvesters start immediately, saving me time. For this reason, I am willing to teach any or all of you to cultivate. Questions?"
As expected, it was Ye Zan who spoke. "That sounds like an amazing opportunity, Esteemed Master Cultivator, but this lowly one thought that most people are too untalented to teach to cultivate."
"Very, very, very few people can't learn at all. It's just that some have a much easier time than others. Sects typically prefer to concentrate their resources on members who have the best chance of reaching Golden Core or higher. My situation is different. I believe that any diligent student I teach, regardless of that student's talent level, can reach Foundation Establishment, and that realm is high enough to accomplish my needs." Benton paused for a moment, deciding to level with them somewhat. "To be clear, the likelihood is that each of you have little talent." He pointed at his disciples, all cultivating in the back of the wagon. "They all have good talent and will be treated differently than you. That is not to say that you will be treated poorly, however. For example, you will have access to more money than you've had before and never want for food. And there are many other benefits to being a cultivator. You will no longer be vulnerable to mortal ailments. Your lifespan will increase immediately. Upon reaching Foundation Establishment, you will likely live one hundred and fifty years and be much healthier overall. You'll be capable of superhuman feats."
Most of the mortals were nodding, already envisioning themselves riding flying swords. A couple, like Ye Zan, were thinking hard.
"I'm guessing that some of you are thinking, what's the catch?" Benton said.
Ye Zan nodded. "Apologies, Esteemed Master Cultivator. This lowly one has been burned in the past by empty promises from an employer."
"No, I understand and respect that. There is a catch. You will be required to do my bidding. I am the sect leader. What I say is law. I need guards, so if the eleven of you who signed up for that task aren't prepared to fill that role for the long term, that's a problem. For the drivers, we'll talk, but I need guards. Any function you seek to fulfill would have to benefit the sect just as much or more than you becoming a guard to sway me."
There was one of the drivers whose qi aspect intrigued Benton. It was earth aspected but with a flavor of tending to animals instead of plants. The really big, important sects had pavilions devoted to animals.
"You also will no longer be paid in silver," Benton said. "You'll instead receive contribution points for performing tasks for the sect. At this point in time, those contribution points are essentially worthless, and you have only my word that they will become valuable in the future."
One of the driver's timidly met Benton's eyes. "This lowly one accepts the offer, Esteemed Master Cultivator. Whether what is paid to us has value or not doesn't matter if this lowly one can truly learn to cultivate. This lowly one has watched too many friends and family succumb to sickness when an epidemic sweeps through the slums. Even if the Esteemed Master Cultivator spends this lowly one's life easily, well, how much shorter could it possibly be?"
"Thank you..." Benton struggled for a moment to pull the man's name from his memory. "Hou Yazhu. I will gladly accept your service. And your life will not be spent easily. If you have to sacrifice your life to save the lives of other sect members, then I appreciate the choice you made. Do not sacrifice yourself for anything short of a life and definitely not for the sect's honor or to save face or some other such nonsense. You, Hou Yazhu, will be a valuable addition to my sect. Your corpse is worthless. Remember that when choosing to risk your life."
The man kowtowed deeply.
After that, one after the other kowtowed, including Ye Zan. A long, long bai-si tea ceremony followed, and Benton tried not to let his impatience show. He found it another good reason to get his sect founded as soon as possible.
As long and drawn out as the ceremony was, though, the fact he'd gained seventeen new disciples was amazing. The amount exceeded his current roll by one. His future sect had just taken a giant leap forward, the biggest one yet.
With the last of the mortals inducted into discipleship, he pulled the silly quartz orb from his ring and proceeded to pretend to use it to determine each's talent and spiritual roots, all of them ranging from F- to F+ and of various aspects. Since none of them were nature aspected, he quickly handed each a jade slip with the Supreme Foundations of Heaven Cultivation Method and a rank one spirit beast core. A relatively short time later, and they were all officially cultivators.
Benton pulled up his status.
Sect Name:Not ChosenSect Members:0Disciples:33Sect Points:25Shop Points:37Host Cultivation:Foundation Establishment - Minor Realm OneQi Available:1,110Host Body Cultivation:Bronze - Minor Realm TwoHost Techniques:Analysis - Large SuccessBasic Archery - Large SuccessBasic Spear Combat - Large SuccessPill Basics - Large SuccessMenus:[Cultivation Method][Technique][Quest][Perk][Advancement][Shop - LOCKED]Adding seventeen to each of three pools made Benton feel a lot better. Twenty-five was a reasonable number of Sect Points, especially with no major foreseeable expenditures on the horizon and nineteen new disciples who should advance a minor realm in the next week to twelve days. The increase even meant he'd paid himself back two of the points he'd used for advancement, leaving only four remaining. Benton would be back to increasing his personal power before he knew it.
He just needed a few more days like today.
Chapter 68 - A Hard Decision Made Easy
The next twelve days passed with excruciating slowness as the wagons creaked slowly along the rutted dirt path. On a positive note, all nineteen of Benton's newest disciples advanced from Qi Gathering minor realm one to minor realm two in that time, earning him nineteen more points.
Benton spent much time viewing his status and watching those Sect Points tick up as various disciples reached that milestone. There was, after all, little else to do. Even running through the forest hunting game got boring after a while.
Making a mental note to somehow use qi to invent the internet as soon as possible, he pulled up the blue box once again.
Sect Name:Not ChosenSect Members:0Disciples:33Sect Points:44Shop Points:37Host Cultivation:Foundation Establishment - Minor Realm OneQi Available:1,110Host Body Cultivation:Bronze - Minor Realm TwoHost Techniques:Analysis - Large SuccessBasic Archery - Large SuccessBasic Spear Combat - Large SuccessPill Basics - Large SuccessMenus:[Cultivation Method][Technique][Quest][Perk][Advancement][Shop - LOCKED]As he'd anticipated, his Sect Point total had rapidly ascended, and he expected another nineteen points in the next few weeks or so just from his new inductees. On top of that, it was starting to get close to time to see another round of increases from the disciples back at the village.
"I'm in the money. I'm in the money," he sang quietly.
The fact he was rapidly increasing his total was a really good thing. For one, he needed techniques to be able to truly make use of being in the Foundation Establishment Realm, and he was still two points in the negative for personal use.
The more major issue, though, was that he needed, at minimum, twenty-five points for a general body cultivation method that any of his disciples could use and twenty more for personalized ones for Yang Xiu and Yang Ru. That was already one more point than Benton currently had.
In an ideal world, he'd give individual methods to each of his talented disciples, but that would be another thirty points, which he honestly didn't know if he could afford. Moreso, he didn't know if the benefit would be worth it. Body cultivation shined when a cultivator fought. Yang Xiu and Yang Ru definitely would be the sect's main method of projecting force. Shi Long and Wan Ai, on the other hand, would only ever be put in any real danger in the direst of circumstances.
Zou Tian presented a more interesting question. A body cultivation method restricted to shadow qi would probably make it easier for him to manifest his qi, and he was more likely to be in enemy territory where enhanced stamina and toughness might save his life.
Yeah. Benton really needed fifty-five Sect Points to spend.
Of course, if things worked out the way he hoped, he'd get those points back relatively quickly.
Besides spending a lot of time those twelve days counting unhatched chickens, Benton gained quite a bit of appreciation for Ye Zan and Hou Yazhu, who'd taken leadership of the drivers. The men had established a schedule that allowed each of the seventeen guards, counting the former drivers, to rotate duties in a way that allowed each of them to cultivate ten hours a day.
Of course, it helped that Benton told Ye Zan that the guards walking next to the wagons weren't necessary. Any cultivator nearing would be spotted miles away, and any mortal threat just didn't concern Benton all that much.
About every other day or so, the caravan passed an abandoned village. Having been told about their mission in advance by Kang Ya-Ting, Ye Zan had researched the route to Vermillion Incomparable Rain Town. Before the Righteous Rain Sect had been destroyed, there had been a lot of trade between the town and Sixth Flawless Flowing City.
With the sect gone, the town was rapidly devolving into lawless slums, and trade was drying up. There was only one village left to cater to what traffic still remained. It, at least, still had a rather large inn left over from the glory days.
The caravan would reach it later in the afternoon.
Though none of his newest disciples would dare make any requests of their master, the all-powerful monster who could destroy a member of a rival sect in a single strike, Benton could tell everyone hoped they'd spend the night at the inn. Even the twins, as used to camping in the forest as they were, seemed to perk up at the idea.
Missing out on a few hours of travel wouldn't kill anyone, so Benton acceded to the desires of his subordinates, which was why they found themselves stopping with the sun still high on the horizon.
The village honestly wasn't much. The inn, a general mercantile with fabrics and food and other various sundries, a blacksmith's forge, and a couple dozen houses and farms were the only buildings present. There were obvious signs that other buildings had been present, but those had probably been scavenged for building materials to repair the ones left. Or for firewood or something. Benton really had no idea.
Of course, there was one thing the village offered that Benton really needed—relief from the drudgery of slowly creaking along with only trees to look at. He got down from the wagon before it had even stopped, having instructed Ye Zan and Zou Tian to arrange for lodging for everyone and for the twins to keep watch to make sure none of the villagers had any ill intentions.
If he had been low on food stocks or had forgotten something important before leaving the city, the mercantile would have been useful, but neither of those conditions applied to him. After browsing for a while, he moved on to the only other interesting place in the village besides the inn.
At first, the blacksmith shop was exactly what he expected. A small bell rung as he opened the door to a relatively small room with a wood counter near the back. A few well-made but mortal grade weapons hung alongside many equally well-made farm tools in the area in front of the counter, and heat and the sound of a pounding hammer came from the back.
Benton was actually quite surprised by the quality goods on display in such a depressed village. He used Analyze on a shovel.
Object:ShovelQi Rank:NoneGrade:MortalUse:DiggingValue:25 Silver TaelsOther:An excellently crafted tool from an expert blacksmith on the cusp of mastery in his craftNice. And really unexpected. The shovel was orders of magnitude better than the one Benton had stored in his ring.
"I'll be out in a second," a voice called from the back.
"Take your time," Benton yelled back. "I'm just browsing."
When the man, who was huge and sweating and wearing a leather apron over his clothes, came from the back, he immediately cupped his hands and bowed low. "Esteemed Cultivator, please forgive this lowly one's rudeness. This lowly one did not realize the shop had such a distinguished visitor."
Benton took a moment to respond. Not because he was offended, though, but because of the results of the scan he'd performed as a matter of course.
Age:41Affiliation:North Red Cloudy Forest VillageCultivation:NoneTechniques:NoneSpiritual Roots:B+Qi Aspect:Fiery coal in the middle of the forgeThe blacksmith, like Shi Long, was destined to perform his job but with even better roots. Of course, Shi Long's fire and metal dual qi aspect was slightly more optimal than the villager's fire only one. And the blacksmith was old for a peasant in a cultivation world at forty-one.
None of that really mattered to Benton. The guy had the highest ranked talent of anyone he'd seen outside a sect member besides the twins. Benton wanted him.
"Think nothing of it, Master Blacksmith," Benton said.
"This lowly one can only be called an expert, not a master, Esteemed Cultivator."
Benton had known that from the popup but flattering the blacksmith was hopefully a good way to gain his favor. "I was actually just stretching my legs after a long day sitting in a wagon and hadn't expected to find anything to buy. The quality of tools on display has changed my mind, however. Could I buy several of these tools from you? Definitely the shovel, maybe two rakes, and four hoes?"
His people were going to need farming implements to grow the herbs, and these tools were better than the ones he'd already purchased. If there was one thing that Benton was learning about life in a medieval cultivation world, it was to buy quality products when he ran across them because he might not ever find the like again.
"Of course, Esteemed Cultivator. This one would normally charge ten taels each, but this one can do a volume discount and let all of it go for sixty?"
"That seems low. I would expect each to go for twenty-five."
The blacksmith gave him a weird look.
Benton smiled. "Yes, I know that I am a dreadful negotiator."
The man grinned in return, relaxing slightly at the friendly turn to the conversation. "Well, this one must be equally bad at it because the price of sixty stands, Esteemed Cultivator."
"We have a deal then."
Benton pulled the necessary amount from his ring and stored his new tools. "I was actually quite surprised to see the work of such an accomplished smith in a village that is obviously on its last legs."
"This one was born in this village, Esteemed Cultivator, and was reluctant to leave it, especially with having a young child. Then family in Vermillion Incomparable Rain Town told this lowly one of the conditions there, and as bad as things are here, there is enough food and little in the way of violence."
"And you had no connections in the Sixth Flawless Flowing City," Benton said.
"Correct, Esteemed Cultivator. Hard to start a new shop without much in the way of savings and no backing."
"What if an opportunity presented itself? Would you be willing to move your family?"
The blacksmith appeared skeptical. "Possibly. Depends on the opportunity."
"I can respect that. It just so happens that I've accepted a young blacksmith apprentice to become one of my disciples. I will, of course, be providing him with techniques to utilize qi in his craft, but things would go a lot smoother if he had an expert smith to teach him the basics as he was early into his apprenticeship when I bought it out."
Yeah, there was a little bit of truth stretching going on there, but it was for a good cause. Besides, Benton truly believed that the blacksmith joining the sect would be good for both him and his family.
"What would happen after this lowly one taught the Esteemed Cultivator's disciple?"
"Honestly, I'd like for you to stay on as a member of the sect I'm starting." Benton went on to tell him about the village and about not caring about talent levels just like he had with the guards. "I could use an experienced blacksmith, and I'm willing to teach cultivation to your family members as well."
It actually took a little bit of convincing for the blacksmith, Xun Wu, to agree to come along. He wasn't a young man seeking fame and fortune and adventure, after all. He had a family to think about. In the end, he'd seen many children die from disease, and having access to healing pills if his got sick sealed the deal.
That night was frantic for Xun Wu and his family as they tried to pack everything. With his guidance on who to talk to, Benton was able to purchase a cart with a horse for their family and all their meager possessions.
The wife, an F rank, was somewhat taken aback by how quickly things were happening, but she'd apparently been on her husband's back to move for quite some time.
It was Benton's first chance to observe the offspring of a talented person, so he was interested to see if Xun Wu's children had similar spirit roots. Only the oldest son of the three children had developed spirit roots capable of being scanned, though, and he was just an E+. He also had fire roots, though.
Before retiring to the inn for the night, Benton performed the bai-si tea ceremony with the dad, mom, and eldest son, bringing his total number of disciples to thirty-six and his Shop Points to forty.
He then repeated the whole rigamarole with quartz orb and told them all their rank and qi aspect, exclaiming how fortunate he was to have met and recruited Xun Wu and how the blacksmith would become a leader of their sect.
"There is a big decision you have to make right now, Xun Wu. I have given the best of the best of my disciples a pill that improves their spirit roots, which is a huge benefit to their cultivation and even to learning techniques. If I had one on me, I'd give it to you right now because you are that extraordinary. The problem is that I don't have any left. When we get to the village in six weeks or so, I might—repeat, might—be able to acquire more. Are you willing to forego six weeks of cultivation time on the chance I might be able to acquire one for you?"
"Master, this one has not cultivated for the entire forty-one years of my life so far. This one expects that six weeks won't make much difference to me at all."
Thus, Benton taught two new disciples to cultivate that night, bringing his total Sect Points to forty-six.
Chapter 69 – Is It Still a Round Table if There's No Table?
Benton was pleased to see that everyone was packed up and ready to go at dawn the next morning, all having already eaten breakfast in the inn. The caravan hit the road on time to continue its slow journey. Ye Zan estimated about two weeks to Vermillion Incomparable Rain Town and another month from there to the village, so they had another six weeks total to travel, though Benton hoped to shave some of that off.
The blacksmith's family had been placed in the middle of the procession for protection since their cart carried little children.
As a grandfather, Benton had a natural aversion to anything that presented a danger to kids, and he couldn't help but worry seeing Xun Wu's restless two-year-old and six-year-old moving around the tiny cart they were crammed onto. Not only would a fall from a moving vehicle, albeit a slow one, hurt them, but they'd be at real risk of getting stomped by the trailing team of oxen.
He spent the morning getting down from his wagon to go check on them before returning to sit, soon to repeat the process again. And again. And…
Obviously, the problem wasn't the kids' fault. At such a young age, it was difficult for them to be confined to a small area for so long, especially considering the excitement of the sudden move. There was no way he could reasonably expect them to simply sit still.
He needed another solution. Maybe just move their cart to the last position? Nope. That placement wouldn't work. It would solve the whole being trampled by animals that weigh more than a ton each problem, but the trailing vehicle was the most vulnerable from an attack from the rear.
No, he needed more space for the kids to move around.
Benton had already cleared out half the herb wagon for cultivating. He could store most of the rest in his ring and just put a few layers on top of the miscellaneous stuff. Any spies on the lookout for him either in the town or passing on the road wouldn't know how deep the herbs went, and there could be multiple explanations for missing some like dumping them to save space or, crap, using them to season the rabbit stew.
Of course, putting most of the herbs in his ring meant his disciples would learn another of his secrets, but honestly, they already knew a lot. Not only that, but there was no way he was traveling with a long wagon train from the town to the village. It would be too hard to protect everyone from spirit beasts if they were that spread out, and he seriously doubted there were spies in the village. Besides, if there were spies among the village's inhabitants, he was screwed anyway.
If they had a way to get messages out, that was.
But if they had that ability, one would have thought they would have called someone for help, considering that the town was beset by beasts and many risked starvation over the winter.
The conclusion he drew was that hiding the ring's storage space from his disciples was pointless. He'd just have to make sure all of them were unable to pass along any messages while in town, and he'd be as safe as he could be.
Benton made his decision. He'd expand his mobile cultivation platform to serve the dual purpose of a mobile playpen. Evelyn would have been proud of him because that was totally something she would have done. Besides, there was even an additional benefit. Storing the herbs in the ring would keep them fresher.
Uh, if already dried herbs could be kept fresher? Or did it matter since they were dried, or would they last practically forever?
He had no idea. Regardless, surely rain would be bad for the dried plants if they encountered any, right?
No one save the blacksmith and his family reacted much to Benton sweeping the herbs into his ring, and the kids sure did appreciate the extra room to squirm.
Near the middle of the day, Shi Long reached minor realm three and was able to consolidate his gains by the time the caravan stopped for the night. His success brought Benton to forty-five Sect Points and forced him to make a decision.
Because he'd really liked collaborating with the council he'd formed from his most talented disciples, he brought them together again along with a few others. In addition to Yang Xiu, Yang Ru, Zou Tian, and Shi Long, he asked Ye Zan, Hou Yazhu, and Xun Wu to join him in the woods for a meeting.
"When it comes to sect business," Benton told the group after they'd all seated themselves in a circle around a qi orb, "I am the ultimate decision maker. No man, not even one with my experience, knows everything, though, and each of you certainly has a perspective that I don't. From here on out, when possible, I'll include the seven of you in my decision-making process."
Ye Zan and Hou Yazhu looked at each other, clearly wondering why they had been included.
"Talent is important to my sect just like it is any other sect," Benton said, "but we need leaders, too. Both of you have shown yourselves to be capable at keeping the caravan moving forward. You've earned your place in this circle. Note that Wan Ai and Mistress Zhong, who will be a normal part of this council, are absent, being still in the village."
Benton really wanted to ask someone to read the minutes from the last meeting, but nobody would have gotten the humor of referencing such official proceedings in such a non-official environment. And that was just a darn shame. There was nothing in the world worse than coming up with an amusing aside and having no one to share it with.
"When Yang Xiu and Yang Ru reached minor realm three, I gave them each a pill." Benton pulled one from his ring. "This is a Qi Condensing Pill. Consuming one will allow a cultivator in the Qi Gathering realm to advance a minor realm or more, especially when taken early. Minor realm three, as it turns out, is the perfect time to take one."
Shi Long looked excited, understanding at once what Benton was saying.
"These pills are somewhat rare, and I doubt I would have been able to find as many excellent examples as I did had I not become a friend of the sect with the best alchemists in Sixth Flawless Flowing City. Even with that benefit, I was only able to acquire six I felt were high enough quality to use. Which leads us to the decisions I must make and the reason we're sitting out here in the forest right now."
He could tell that each of them understood the question—who got the pills?
"Before we get to that discussion, there are three facts that you need to know," Benton said. "One, pill toxicity is a Bad Thing. Every pill that you take between now and the time you reach Nascent Soul will leave tiny traces of toxicity in your body. Some of this will be expelled when you reach Foundation Establishment and Golden Core but not all. If too much toxicity builds up, the act of cultivation will begin to burn up your meridians and your pathways, ending your advancement forever. Two, the pills I gave the twins were much, much higher quality than these, containing enough qi to advance them a full minor realm and a half and being one hundred percent pure. Three, I might or might not be able to obtain more of the perfect pills after we reach the village."
Everyone took a moment to digest what he said.
"Are the pills you have now dangerous, Master?" Yang Xiu said.
"These aren't actually too bad, ranging from ninety-seven to ninety-nine percent purity. That number means that one to three percent of the pill, depending on which one you take, possibly contains toxins. The actual amount is usually far less, but the higher the impurity, the more likely it is that it has a higher concentration of toxins. Consuming three pills of this purity per major realm should be absolutely safe, but any quantity over that amount increases your chance of having problems, as does taking higher toxicity pills. Note, though, that I didn't say you could consume three Qi Condensing pills per major realm. I said three pills. Of any type. If you've taking three Qi Condensing pills, which is a bad idea anyway, and then have an injury that requires a healing pill, you're taking a risk."
He met the eyes of each person in the circle. "And never, ever take a pill if you don't know the purity unless your life literally depends on it."
"If this lowly one were offered a pill, this lowly one's preference would be to take it now, Master," Shi Long said.
"Which brings us back to who should be offered the pills," Benton said. "Let's go around the circle in order of becoming my disciple."
"I think all five disciples in this circle, not counting Yang Ru or myself, should have them, Master," Yang Xiu, the first official disciple, said.
"Really?" Benton said. "Even Ye Zan and Hou Yazhu, who would be considered no more than gutter trash by any other sect? You'd waste a valuable, limited resource on them?"
If Yang Xiu had been a teenager on Earth, Benton was sure she would have rolled her eyes.
"My sect values leaders, Master. To raise up a cultivator who has that intrinsic talent is not a waste."
Benton laughed. "Well said, but who gets the last one."
Yang Xiu looked conflicted. "Save it for Wan Ai just in case Master can't get any more of the good stuff."
"Okay. Next."
Yang Ru grunted.
"Two votes for giving out pills to the five here and saving the last one till we get back to the village. Next."
Some of the newer members looked confused at Benton's interpretation of Yang Ru's grunt, but it really was like "I am Groot." Once you got to know the kid, you could totally figure out what he meant. And if you interpreted him wrong, he'd let you know. Probably with another grunt, but still.
"This one thinks Master should give it only to Master's best talents, Shi Long and Xun Wu," Zou Tian said. "Save the rest just in case it's a long time until Master can get more."
"Want to defend your point of view?" Benton said.
"What is best for the sect is best for each of us individually, Master. Giving the best resources to the best talents will result in a stronger sect."
"That is very conservative viewpoint, but I can't say you're wrong. Next."
"This lowly one very much wants a pill, Master," Shi Long said, "so this lowly one cannot be objective."
"Who says I value objectivity? Besides, in both cases put forth so far, you'd get a pill."
"In that case, this lowly one would feel bad if the rest of my fellow disciples in the circle didn't receive one, Master. This lowly one chooses to vote with Senior Sister and Senior Brother."
"Understood," Benton said. "Next."
"This one doesn't want to appear greedy by saying give the pills to all of us, Master," Ye Zan said, "but this one also doesn't want to appear to be currying favor by voting to save them."
"The whole point of this council is for me to hear honest opinions from each of you. Obviously, trust like that has to be earned, but my goal is for all of you to become comfortable speaking your minds and for none of you to hold opinions voiced here against the speaker."
Ye Zan still looked conflicted, and Benton could understand the issue. For Ye Zan's entire life, he'd had no standing, no right to an opinion or a voice. All of a sudden, he was not only elevated to being a cultivator but was being asked to give advice to his Master when he was in the lowest tier of the disciples.
"If this one must be completely open and honest, this one has to vote with Zou Tian, Master. It's simply the most logical choice."
"Thank you for making your voice heard. Next."
"Uh, this one votes with Senior Sister, Master," Hou Yazhu said.
"And your reasoning?"
"It's the only one of the choices that allows this one to get a pill, Master."
Benton chuckled. "Fair enough. Last but not least…"
"This one can't help but notice that some disciples are more casual than others, Master. It's difficult for this newcomer to understand the correct form of address."
"Whatever makes you feel comfortable, really. The whole not using personal pronouns thing makes sentences tedious, but I get that some of you aren't ready to be that casual yet. I really don't care, truthfully. Though, the twins tend to get a mite upset if there's any outright disrespect."
They both nodded their heads. Vigorously.
"Well, then, Master, if you truly don't mind, I'll talk plainly."
Benton nodded. "Continue."
"I hated it when I had something special like a bite of sweet cake and had to choose one of my children to give it to, and it seems like this is a similar situation. I always wanted to treat them as equally as possible, so my choice would be not to give the pills to anyone. Maybe save them for the sect store to be bought with contribution points or something."
"Great point. That's an option I hadn't even considered and exactly why we're having these discussions."
"Does that mean my idea wins, Master?" Yang Xiu said. "It had the most votes."
"Fortunately or unfortunately, this is not a democracy. Let me take a moment to consider before I make my decision."
Chapter 70 - Games Cultivators Play
Benton really liked the whole knights of the round table thing he had going on, even if there was a clear king instead of everyone actually being equal. Lips were certainly loosening, and the disciples were starting to feel more comfortable around him and around each other.
That result was a win in and of itself.
But he still had a decision to make.
"Each of you made really good points," Benton said. "Zou Tian, I always like hearing your thought process. You never disappoint. And Ye Zan, you struggled voice your opinion, so I appreciate your bravery. Xun Wu, that was an interesting choice, one I hadn't considered. Thank you for that.
"In the end, though, there are considerations most of you don't know. It is my belief that getting more people to advance as fast as possible is the best thing for the sect. To that end, I'll be distributing the five pills to the people around this circle as discussed and give the final pill to the first person among the other disciples who reaches minor realm three."
Benton studied each person carefully. No one seemed upset at all about him overriding all of them to make his decision. If he would have pulled something like that back on Earth, he guaranteed someone in the group would have been upset.
"Next topic. I introduced the twins to their weapons upon reaching minor realm two. For the rest of you, I'm going to wait until minor realm three—four for those taking pills. In retrospect, I think that the small amount of practice you'd get in that interim period isn't worth the effort compared to how much easier it is to learn weapons with your stronger body, higher stamina, and bigger qi pool at the higher minor realm.
"All that to say, Shi Long, it's time to pick a weapon."
Benton pulled both a spear and a bow from his ring. Both were relatively poor-quality weapons compared to the red spears or what the twins used, but they should serve fine for training.
From Shi Long's expression, the former weapon shop attendant knew exactly how inferior the equipment was.
"This is temporary," Benton said. "No reason to give a fresh trainee a great weapon. In fact, I plan to give every spear wielding sect member one of the Orange Vigor Spirit Wood spears once they reach Foundation Establishment."
Shi Long frowned.
"C'mon. The equipment isn't that bad."
"Please excuse this lowly one, Master, but what if this lowly one wanted to pursue a different weapon?"
Having to create a new technique definitely wasn't optimal, as the spear and bow techniques were sunk costs and every sect member that learned either weapon returned pure profit. The least Benton could do was hear the kid out, though. He gestured for him to continue.
"This lowly one was thinking that using the hammer as a weapon might complement this lowly one's blacksmithing?"
Hmm. Interesting point. In Su's memories, the blacksmiths in his sect didn't actually fight much, if at all, so he wasn't sure what weapon they used. Unfortunately, with only thirty-six current disciples, Benton didn't have the luxury of sparing anyone from combat training.
He turned to Xun Wu and raised his eyebrows.
"I don't know, Master. I've never trained with a weapon, but it makes sense in theory. Swinging at a person and swinging at an anvil probably uses the same muscles and take similar skills as far as accuracy and strength."
Well, that argument made way too much sense, unfortunately. Benton had no desire to force everyone to use either a bow and/or a spear. The downside was spending more points, though. He certainly didn't feel flush with System resources by any means, but he had a lot of points coming in and more on the horizon. Certainly, some could be spared for what he suspected would be a benefit in the long run.
The question was to spend three, to make an individual technique for Shi Long; eight, to make a technique for all fire users since Xun Wu was also one; or ten, so anyone could use it.
Benton made a snap decision. If the hammer worked for Shi Long as expected, he'd encourage all blacksmiths to use one, but since blacksmiths were only slightly less likely to have metal roots instead of fire, it made sense to create a universal technique.
The System was the ultimate cheat, though, and Benton was able to tell it to create a technique that improved all hammer use, bettering its users both at the forge and on the battlefield.
"Fine, a hammer technique it is." Benton handed the boy a jade slip with Hammer Time – Break It Down on it.
Another joke no one would ever get.
He sighed.
And he'd been so excited to go over forty points once again only to see the total drop back down to thirty-five. Ugh.
He felt like he'd done the right thing, though. And hey, he only needed three blacksmiths to master the technique to make a profit.
Benton sighed again.
He did get two of those points back the next day when Shi Long reached minor realm four with the aid of the Qi Gathering Pill and Small Success with the technique. Learning a technique for a weapon one already had experience with sped the process greatly.
Benton and twins began taking turns teaching Shi Long to internally manipulate his qi by taking him on runs through the woods, often having to sprint long distances to catch up with the caravan.
Three days later, Zou Tian reached minor realm three, triggering a whole new round of decisions for Benton. No council that time, though, as he felt decisions that solely effected an individual were best dealt with between him and that disciple.
"Is it time for this one to choose a weapon, Master?"
"That's what I'm trying to figure out. On one hand, I need everyone to be able to fight, but on the other, I need you to be a scout. Sticking a bow or spear or anything else in your hand isn't nearly as valuable as you being able to use your natural talents, so maybe our best bet is to give you a shadow technique to begin with."
"That sounds … logical, Master."
Benton thought about it for a moment, and the more he considered the idea, the more he liked it, especially when he remembered the game he'd previously imagined using as a training method.
There were a lot of different kinds of techniques, and qi aspect played into each of them differently. One type were techniques that purely improved knowledge, such as Herbology. The technique would teach a disciple a lot about herbs, including how to care for them, recognize them, and harvest them.
Qi aspect didn't flavor such an aspect much. Whether you had fire or ice aspected qi didn't impact your knowledge of herbs, especially in the Qi Gathering realm where one couldn't manipulate qi outside their bodies.
Similar to knowledge-based techniques were martial techniques. In the Foundation Establishment realm, a sword technique for fire-aspected cultivators differed greatly from one for those whose aspect was ice. But again, in the Qi Gathering realm, such differences mattered a lot less, though some advantages could potentially be gained depending on the cultivator and the weapon.
A technique like the one Benton was considering for Zou Tian was a different matter. He had the ability to externally manifest his qi and needed a technique to strengthen that ability and guide him in its use and that technique had to be incredibly specific to shadow qi. Thus, whether or not to make the technique widely or narrowly applicable was a no brainer. Benton was quite interested to see how good the kid's aspect could manifest when he had a technique literally attuned specifically to him.
After using yet another three Sect Points, Benton presented Zou Tian with Hide Presence. At least the return on investment would be much quicker than with Hammer Time.
The next day, Zou Tian reached minor realm four and the day after that achieved Small Success with his technique, which was also phenomenally quick. Benton attributed the speed of the advancement to the boy's natural qi manifestation.
As soon as Benton got that notification, he called both the boy and Yang Xiu to him. "Have either of you ever heard of a game called Hide and Seek?"
They both shook their heads.
"It's a simple children's game. One kid is the seeker and waits while all the other kids hide. The seeker then has to find the hiders. See, simple."
Both disciples understood immediately.
"Remember, the idea isn't to win the game; it's to improve your technique. Zou Tian, if you are able to hide your presence so well that Yang Xiu can't find you, you should narrow the area you hide in until she can. Yang Xiu, if you're finding him easily, tell him how, be it smell or sound or footprints or whatever, so he can work on minimizing that aspect of his trail or presence. Understood?"
"Yes, Master." It wasn't quite the in-unison chorus of the twins, but it was close.
"Excellent. Get to it."
Things were going great. Once Shi Long got a little bit better at his internal qi manipulation, it would be time for him to start sparring, both with the guards who were the best with their spears and with Yang Ru. Or maybe just with the guards until he advanced his technique a little better. Yang Ru wasn't well known for his restraint, which mattered a lot more with a low realm Qi Gathering cultivator than with his similarly advanced sister or Benton.
And he needed to balance Zou Tian's Hide and Seek training with the same internal qi manipulation lessons the others got.
Lots to do. Lots to do. Which was so much better than boredom.
Almost out of habit by that point, he pulled up his status.
Sect Name:Not ChosenSect Members:0Disciples:36Sect Points:37Shop Points:40Host Cultivation:Foundation Establishment - Minor Realm OneQi Available:1,110Host Body Cultivation:Bronze - Minor Realm TwoHost Techniques:Analysis - Large SuccessBasic Archery - Large SuccessBasic Spear Combat - Large SuccessPill Basics - Large SuccessMenus:[Cultivation Method][Technique][Quest][Perk][Advancement][Shop - LOCKED]Considering he'd just used thirteen Sect Points on techniques he hadn't planned on spending, thirty-seven wasn't a horrendous number. And bonus, he'd reached his two hundredth point earned, which meant he'd made five since he'd borrowed six from himself. Only ten more Sect Points to go until he was out of the hole.
The forty Shop Points wasn't bad, either. Maybe. Actually, he had no idea. One point might be enough for one pill or a dozen heaven-shattering weapons. Unlocking the Shop was another reason he couldn't wait to found his sect.
Of course, his favorite part of his status was the number of disciples. He'd went from fourteen to thirty-six in a quite short amount of time. And the caravan was approaching Vermillion Incomparable Rain Town. If he could just pick up another fourteen disciples there…
He didn't even care about talent level at all, just seeing that number go up, and fifty was so nice and even.
Benton sighed as he continued counting unhatched chickens, his new favorite game.