They were standing outside a small wooden house, though Orion doubted anyone lived in it. The lawn was overrun with weeds, and the boards of the house were rotting and dilapidated. The windows were either smashed or just holes in the walls, and the roof didn't even exist.
"Are you sure this is the right place?" "Of course. Go knock on the door."
Hesitantly, Orion walked over the broken gate and entered the lawn. There used to be a stone pathway to the door, but now it was cracked by the growth of weeds. Reaching the front door, Orion knocked on it… and the door fell inwards.
BANG!
As it landed, it raised a thick cloud of dust, causing Orion to violently cough. When the dust settled, he got a good look at the inside of the house.
If possible, the inside looked even worse than the outside. There wasn't a single piece of intact furniture. Pieces of them were scattered all around the floor, each under a thick layer of dust. The floorboards were rotting, insects were scurrying everywhere, and now that Orion was inside, he could see that the back wall was collapsing.
"I think he moved out," Orion voiced.
"He's become an eccentric," the cat muttered. Then leaping out of his arms and raising its voice, it yelled loudly, "NATHAN! THIS
EXALTED CAT IS HERE TO PAY YOU A VISIT!
Before Orion 's eyes, the broken armchair in the corner of the living room began to flicker, and then disappeared. Standing in its place was a large, round man with a bald head and bursting waistline.
"Old cat!" the man exclaimed. "Haha, if you told me you were coming, I would've prepared a nice welcome."
"Well, it was an emergency."
"Ah, no worries. Now, who are you?" he asked, turning to look at Orion.
And then he froze.
"Orion Stormblade?" he gasped.
"Hello," Orion said hesitantly, not expecting this… armchair man to recognize him.
"But - you -" the man seemed to be at a loss for words, so he just looked at the cat, who nodded back.
The two of them stared at each other for a full minute, while Orion stood there awkwardly. If he didn't know better, he'd think they were having a mental conversation. Then the man named Nathan broke eye contact and sucked in a big mouthful of air.
"Well," he muttered. Then as if looking at Orion in a fresh light, he beamed and held out his hand.
"Nathan Blackthorne, at your service," he said cheerfully.
"Orion Stormblade greets Nathan Blackthorne," Orion said respectfully, shaking the offered hand.
"Now, now, no need for that. Just call me Nathan, or Dr. Blackthorne if you must. Follow me, the actual house is downstairs."
He led Orion into the kitchen, past countless pieces of broken furniture and piles of dust, and revealed a hidden trapdoor, which opened to a stairway. The stairs seemed to stretch down forever, so far that Orion couldn't see the bottom. Yet in contrast to the dirty, decaying house, the stairs were polished and clean.
"You must be wondering how I recognized you, right?" Nathan asked as he descended the steps.
"I am curious," Orion admitted.
"I taught your mother," Blackthorne said simply. "She was one of my two direct disciples even. The moment I saw you, I thought I was looking at your father. But your eyes, as green as Eleanor's."
"Eleanor?"
Orion felt his heart pounding in his chest. All these years, he had desired to find his mother, yet he didn't even know her name.
"Hmm?"
"Eleanor? Was that that my mother's name?"
"What, did no one ever tell you?" Blackthorne stopped descending the stairs to look at Orion in disbelief.
' Tell me?' Orion wondered. ' Who the hell was supposed to tell me?'
"No, nobody ever did. What about my father?"
"Your father's name was James, James Stormblade. And your mother was called Eleanor Evans. You didn't know?"
James Stormblade… Eleanor Evans… James and Eleanor, James and Eleanor, Orion repeated those names over and over in his mind, committing them to memory.
"No one ever told me," Orion shrugged. "I was just told that my father died. And that my mother was missing… is she also dead?"
"Ah," Blackthorne sighed. "I'm sorry to bring this up on our first meeting. We are here."
They had finally arrived at the bottom of the long staircase. In front of them was a metal door, which Blackthorne unlocked and opened.
Ushering them inside, Blackthorne quickly closed the door behind them.
They were in a well-maintained office, clean and organized, completely different from how the rest of the house was kept. Books and all sorts of vials lined the walls, giving the appearance that someone actually lived here. Orion could see a furnished living room, and also a kitchen area. He would never have guessed that this room was under the broken-down house.
Blackthorne gestured towards some chairs around a table, so Orion sat on one of them. Blackthorne sat across from him, while the cat rested on the table.
"I am sorry to say that your father is indeed dead. And as for your mother, well, no body was found. It has been 15 long years since I
last saw my beloved disciple, and I believe that if she were alive, she would definitely come and find me. Orion, I'm very sorry. I wish our first meeting could have been on better terms."
Hearing that, Orion deflated.
His entire life, he had held onto the belief his mother was alive, and he was cultivating so that he could find her one day. It was this hope that had kept him going. Now, it was extinguished.
"Can you tell me about them?"
"Of course. Your father, James, he was a talented cultivator, he -" Blackthorne stopped, as if hesitating, and then continued.
"Just know that your father was a great man. Brave, and a powerful cultivator. He loved you and your mother very much."
Orion nodded.
"Your mother, well, I knew her much better than I knew your father. She was also a talented cultivator, but more than that, she was very talented at Alchemy. In fact, one of the most talented I've ever seen, so talented that I accepted her as a disciple, as I mentioned."
Orion was stunned to hear that. His mother was an Alchemist?
Alchemists were revered existences, respected by all and always in high demand. Why would she have been attacked?
And if his mother was Blackthrone's disciple, then did that mean
Blackthrone was also an Alchemist? Why would he be living under a trash dump of a house?
"Oh, I could spend the rest of the day describing Eleanor to you. She was a rare genius, talented at both cultivation and Alchemy. Simply brilliant with a cauldron. Actually, I have a portrait of your mother.
Give me a minute to find it."
Blackthrone walked off into another room, and returned a minute later holding a scroll. He unraveled it to reveal the drawing of a woman. She was beautiful, with dark red hair that fell to her shoulders and bright green eyes. She had fair, pale skin, and a soft smile that gave her a charming appearance.
He stared at the portrait for a long time. Needless to say, this was the first picture he had seen of his mother.
"I don't have a picture of James. But if you wish to know what he
looked like, just look into a mirror. You are the spitting image of him." But Orion barely heard him.
"Who?" he asked. "Who killed my parents?"
"I don't know," Blackthorne sighed. "I have asked myself that for 15 long years and searched for just as long, but still have no answer."
"Then, can you tell me about what happened that night?" Seeing Orion 's earnest expression, Blackthorne relented.
"Very well. I believe you have a right to know about your parents, so I will tell you. But this story starts a few years before that night. And I assure you, this is not a happy story."
"Around 20 years ago, your parents left the Scarlet Phoenix Empire. There are things you have yet to learn, but leaving the empire is no easy task, and also extremely dangerous. Yet, your parents did it."
"Two years later, they came back. I don't know what happened to them during those two years, as they never shared the details with me. But your parents returned because they were fleeing from something. To this day, I still don't know what that something was."
Orion felt his stomach drop. It seemed like the life of his parents hadn't been as peaceful as he had imagined.
"I'll never forget the day I opened my front door and saw their appearance. Your father had some of the worst injuries I've ever seen. I had to use dozens of precious pills and treasures to save his life. Your mother was pregnant with you. That was the first thing I noticed. But also, she had completely changed. Before she left the empire, she was energetic, so full of determination and ambition.
And when she came back, she looked defeated and in despair."
Blackthorne was looking at Orion as he spoke, but it also seemed like he was looking past him, looking into the past and recollecting a horrible memory.
"A few months later, you were born. I saw you when you were two days old, I think. So did the old cat."
Orion 's eyes widened, and he looked towards the Exalted Cat, who nodded back.
"All was back to normal, for about a year. Your parents got better, and we visited each other often. But and I will be honest with you, they lived as if constantly looking over their shoulder. Two days before that day, your mother visited me out of the blue, in the dead of the night, and gave me an item for safekeeping, along with a sealed
letter. She said she'd be back in a few days."
"Then two days later, the three of you were attacked. At this point, what you know is what I know. Your father was murdered, and your
mother disappeared. It was my other disciple, a good friend of Eleanor's, who found you in the ruins of your house, perfectly fine except for the lightning bolt on your forehead."
Absentmindedly, Orion traced the scar on his forehead. So, it was a relic from the night his parents had died.
"The letter turned out to be a will. It instructed that if you were alive, you were to be put with Eleanor's sister, who lived in Crystal Mine City."
"Her sister?" Orion asked incredulously. "I have an aunt?" "What? You haven't been living with Thalia Evans?"
"Thalia Evans?" Orion was baffled at this name. "Whose Thalia - wait, Thalia FLINT?"
Orion shot out of his seat, sending it clattering on the floor.
That's right, before Thalia had married Garret, her surname had been Evans!
"Thalia FLINT is my AUNT?"
That… that… that ugly, shrill, horrid, giraffe woman was his AUNT? Then… did that make Barty Flint his COUSIN?
Orion almost fainted at that revelation.
He couldn't help but look at Blackthorne's portrait again. How could his mother be so beautiful, but her sister be so ugly? The two of them didn't resemble each other at all!
Blackthorne and the Exalted Cat shared an uneasy look.
"Yes," Blackthorne said slowly. "According to your mother's wishes, Eleanor's friend dropped you off with Thalia Evans, who told him that she would take care of you."
"That - that - that woman sent me off to Zenith Orphanage! My own aunt!"
All these years, he had wondered who left him at Zenith Orphanage that night. He knew his parents weren't from Crystal Mine City, so it was a complete mystery how he could have ended up in Zenith Orphanage.
Never in his wildest dreams would he imagine that it was Thalia Flint.
"No wonder," he muttered. "No wonder."
And then he began to laugh. He laughed long and hard, until he ran out of breath and could only manage some chuckles and wheezes.
"Orion? What's so funny?" Blackthorne asked when he was done with his fit.
"My whole life," he chuckled, "besides the question of my parents, there were two things I wanted answers to. One was who dropped me off at the orphanage. And the other was why the Flints hated my guts. I would never have guessed the two questions were
related. Turns out, Thalia is my aunt. And Barty is my cousin. And Garret, that fat bastard, is my uncle!"
And he broke into a fit of laughter again.
"I'm not sure I understand the humor here."
"Exalted Cat, those injuries you saw were given to me by my cousin.
And the one who tried to kill me yesterday was my uncle. My whole life, I've been searching for my family. Who would've guessed that not only were they right there, they also wanted me dead? Tell me, if this isn't irony, then what is?"
Blackthorne and the Exalted Cat had no response. They only looked at Orion and each other with conflicting expressions.
"I'm very sorry," Blackthorne said. "I am also deeply ashamed. We should have checked on you, and made sure you were alright. It's just that…"
He trailed off at the end of his apology, "Just what?"
He knew he shouldn't be angry with Blackthorne, after all, Blackthorne
wasn't responsible for what Garret , Thalia and Barty had done. But right now, there was an easy target for him to pin the blame on.
"Believe me Orion, I wanted nothing other than you to have a happy childhood. But I was told to not visit you."
"Who told you to not visit me?" Orion asked skeptically.
Blackthrone took another deep breath, then looked back at Orion. "Eleanor did."
"My mother?" Orion asked in disbelief.
"I told you, this was no happy story," Blackthorne sighed. "In the last year of her life, we spoke and visited each other regularly. During that time, she told me many things."
"Like what?"
"She said that outside of the Scarlet Phoenix Empire were dangers we could not imagine. She said that she had enemies coming after her, more powerful than we could believe, who would stop at nothing to find her and her family. She told me to trust nobody, and that her
life, James' life, and your life were all in danger. She said that even my life could be in danger. I am ashamed to say that I paid little attention to that statement, well, not until the night of her death, until I realized everything, she warned me about was right."
"I was a fool then - I thought that she would be safe in the empire. Clearly, I was wrong. I underestimated her enemies."
"She wanted you to be raised in the obscure Crystal Mine City so that you would be away from danger. I guess she thought Thalia would take care of you… she told me that she and her sister didn't get along, but it seems she underestimated just how bad their relationship was. Finally, she told me that people were searching for
her and you, and that I wasn't to visit you, in order to avoid attracting attention. It pained me to do it, but I followed her wishes. I hope you can understand and forgive me."
Blackthorne finished his story, and Orion was left in silence.
He didn't know what to think. What could be so bad that his mother wanted him to grow up in obscurity?
"So… these people, are they still after me?" Orion finally asked.
"I think it is unlikely," Blackthorne quickly said. "It's been many years since that night, so I would assume they have moved on. Also, I doubt they would care so much for your life - you were just a baby, after all. Most likely they were after your parents."
Orion nodded, though that didn't make him feel relieved. Just recently, he had nearly been killed by Garret Flint, and saved from death at the very last second. Not even a full day had passed, and now his life may be in danger again.
"Could I have some time alone?" he finally asked. "To sort my thoughts out. But, thank you Dr. Blackthorne, for telling me about my parents. Please be assured that I don't blame you. I'm sure my mother had her reasons."
It seemed like a weight had been lifted off Blackthorne's chest.
"Thank you, my boy," he breathed. "You can stay in the guest room over there as long as you wish."
Orion nodded, and entered the room. When he left, Blackthorne turned to face the cat.
"Well? What are you looking at me like that for?"
"You shouldn't have lied about not knowing who did it." "I didn't lie."
"You're the only one who thinks that way."
"And I will think that way until the grave. Besides, what's the point of telling him? I won't set him off on an impossible quest of revenge."
The cat had no response.
Orion spent the rest of the day in Blackthorne's guest room, lying on the soft bed and deep in thought. He would never have imagined anything that Blackthorne had told him today.
To summarize, his parents had left the Scarlet Phoenix Empire, encountered danger, and returned to the empire. Their enemies had followed them here, and killed them. To protect Orion, his mother had sent him off to Crystal Mine City, where he was unlikely to be found.
No matter where, life was all the same.
The strong ruled, and controlled the lives of the weak. It had happened to Orion in Crystal Mine City, and it happened to his parents outside the Scarlet Phoenix Empire. The only difference was the scale.
' Strength,' he vowed. ' I need to become strong. I need to improve my cultivation. But…'
His cultivation was only the 2nd level of the Body Tempering Realm.
Even in Crystal Mine City, he was one of the weakest people. And
when considering the entire empire, Crystal Mine City was one of the weakest areas. It was no exaggeration to say that in the eyes of the experts in the empire, he was about as powerful as an ant.
' Maybe Blackthorne can help, or the Exalted Cat,' he thought to himself. ' They seem like powerful individuals.'
From last night's display with the wolves, Orion knew that the
Exalted Cat, at the very least, wasn't ordinary. Besides, it had given him a pill on their very first meeting, and acted as if the pill wasn't precious at all. From Blackthorne's story, it seemed that his parents
were quite powerful cultivators, and as his mother was Blackthorne's disciple, then surely Blackthorne must also be powerful.
' There's no harm in asking,' he supposed, as he got up and entered the living room. Blackthorne and the cat were there, sharing a meal and in a deep discussion about something. When they saw Orion,
Blackthrone beamed and waved him over.
"Ah, just in time, my boy. Come, I've prepared some dinner."
"Thank you," Orion replied. He sat down across from Blackthorne, and began to eat. Without a doubt, it was the best food he had ever had. Everything was a hundred times more delicious than the stale, bland food served at Zenith Orphanage.
"Dr. Blackthorne? I was wondering if I could ask you something." "What is it?"
"You're an Alchemist, right?"
"Yes, I am. Though I'm retired now - officially, at least."
"I hope this isn't presumptuous of me. But I was wondering if you could tell me if something is wrong with my body. I seem to have problems cultivating."
Although an Alchemist's job description was to make pills,
Alchemists also needed to possess knowledge of the human body in order to do so. Many Alchemists would also work as Healers and could diagnose medical conditions. That was why Orion risked the question.
"Of course. I'll take a look after we eat. How did you cultivate at Crystal Mine City?"
"Well, the orphanage required me to mine 20 Qi Crystals every day for food and shelter. When I finished that, I'd mine more and then refine the Qi inside to cultivate."
"I see, so you cultivated directly using Qi Crystals. The Qi in those crystals is difficult for the human body to absorb, as it has too much Metal Qi inside, you see. It's not compatible with the body, which is why most people cultivate using pills. Though I suppose you didn't have much of a choice."
"Before today, I've never even seen a pill," Orion confirmed.
"Right. In that case, I wouldn't worry too much. Your slow cultivation is probably due to the Qi Crystals, not that there's something wrong with your body."
"Well, it took me a year to open my Lung Meridian," Orion said "Is that normal?"
"What?! Did you say a year?"
"Yes, a whole year. And I cultivated nearly every day."
"That… that is not normal at all," Blackthorne frowned. "You're right to be worried. Can you describe your cultivation problems?"
Orion did so, and explained how his Qi didn't seem to flow through his meridians smoothly. After they finished the meal, Blackthorne ran over to his shelves and began pulling down vials of pills and medical equipment.
"Here," he said. "Refine this."
Blackthorne handed Orion a pill, who took it hesitantly. He couldn't help but feel rich - earlier, he had a healing pill above the Ordinary Grade, and now, he had another pill!
"What pill is this?"
"This is a high-quality Body Nourishing Pill. It is Ordinary Grade, and the standard pill for cultivating in the Body Tempering Realm. The Qi contained in this pill is much easier to assimilate into your body than those Qi Crystals you've been using - it is the equivalent of refining hundreds of Qi Crystals."
Orion 's mouth dropped open.
Hundreds of Qi Crystals? Condensed into this small pill? "Is it really ok for me to use this?"
"Boy, just swallow the pill," the Exalted Cat snapped.
He did so, and immediately felt streams of Qi flowing through his body. Blackthrone hadn't been exaggerating about the amount of Qi contained. This pill was smaller than the average Qi Crystal, but contained far more Qi than any. Someone who used these pills would cultivate far faster than someone who used Qi Crystals.
He guided the Qi through his open Lung Meridian, through his open Heart Meridian, and then into his Heart Protector Meridian. Just like usual, once the huge stream of Qi reached his Heart Protector Meridian, it slowed down, flowing through his body like glue. A few minutes later, Orion finished and looked up at Blackthrone, who was staring at him in puzzlement.
"Odd," Blackthrone mused. "Very odd. 2nd level of the Body Tempering Realm. No problems with the Lung Meridian. No problems with the Heart Meridian. Yet your Heart Protector Meridian is so abnormal."
"My Lung and Heart Meridians were like this too," Orion said. "Before they opened, I mean. It took me a year to open each."
Rubbing his forehead, Blackthrone plopped back down on his seat and stared at Orion like he was staring at a puzzle. The cat laid on the table, also looking at Orion curiously.
"Have you always refined Qi like that?" it asked. "Like what?"
"Boy, are you not aware of your own refining speed?" "What? Am I doing it wrong?"
The cat rolled its eyes, and nudged Blackthrone.
"Orion , do you know how long it would take someone at the high- level of the Body Tempering Realm to refine that pill?"
The Body Tempering Realm was divided into 9 levels. Levels 1-3
were known as the low-level, 4-6 as the middle-level, and 7-9 as the high-level. The higher the level, the harder it was to open the next meridian. More Qi was needed to do so, but as the cultivation level
increased, the body could also refine Qi faster.
Since Orion had spent about five minutes, and he was just at the low-level, Orion guessed something less.
"I don't know, a minute?"
"Wrong," the cat snorted. "More like two hours." "What?" Orion exclaimed.
"That was a high-quality pill. Even cultivators at the peak of the Body Tempering Realm would refine a single strand of Qi at a time because their bodies cannot handle all of it. It would take them hours to finish the pill, yet you did it in minutes. And you're only at the 2nd
level."
"Right," Blackthrone nodded, "if everyone refined pills like you did,
Alchemists would never be able to rest. No matter how quickly we made pills, we'd never keep up with the demand."
"Boy, do you know what's even more puzzling?" "What is it?"
"For a normal cultivator, the Qi in that pill would be enough to open their 3rd meridian!"
Orion just blankly stared at the cat. Was it saying that his Heart Protector Meridian should be open?
"I expected you to spend the rest of the day refining that pill, and for you to be in the 3rd level of the Body Tempering Realm by tomorrow. That would give me plenty of time to diagnose your condition. I certainly didn't expect you to finish in five minutes, and for your meridian to still be closed."
Orion didn't know what to say. Was he really that abnormal?
"Anyways, the problem is that Qi flows through your meridians extremely slowly. We call this problem a Meridian Restriction. I have treated hundreds of such cases before, and I have faith that I can diagnose yours. But, this is one of the most common cultivation
anomalies, with hundreds of possible causes. It'll take time to go through them all."
Blackthrone reached over and pulled out a book from his shelf.
"Meridian Restriction is very common, and entire books have been written about its diagnosis and treatment. Now, I'm going to ask you a series of questions. Respond to the best of your knowledge."
"Before you began cultivating, did you undergo any serious injuries to your chest area or major organs?"
"No," Orion replied. He had been beaten by Barty plenty of times, but those injuries hadn't been too serious. The beating from two days ago was an outlier.
"Have you been bitten by a werewolf? Does your body react strangely on nights with a full moon?"
"No."
"Have you ever eaten a bright pink fruit, the size of a cherry, that left a bitter taste in your mouth?"
"No."
On and on the questions came, Orion answering "no" to each one. He must have been questioned for at least an hour, with no end in sight. As the queries became more and more bizarre, Blackthrone's expression became more and more puzzled.
It wasn't until Blackthrone nearly reached the end of the book when Orion answered positively to a query.
"When pushing Qi through an unopened meridian, do you feel a pain during that time, like the meridian has been sealed with glue, and you are drilling it open? But only the first time Qi enters that meridian?"
"Yes," Orion said for the first time.
"In your childhood, were there days when you felt lightheaded, your muscles felt heavy and unable to support your body, and you suffered bouts of dizziness, vertigo, and nausea?"
"How did you know?" Orion asked, stunned. At this point, Blackthrone's face had turned a ghastly shade of white.
"No, no, no, no, this can't be. When you - "
But it seemed like Blackthrone couldn't bring himself to finish the next question, instead putting the book down and running to a drawer. He pulled open a cabinet of herbs, and rummaged through dozens of precious plants before running back. In his hands was a beautiful pale white flower, with seven leaves and a shade of pink undertone near the stem.
' Exquisite Pure Magnolia,' Orion thought. ' Can be used to detect poison.'
Then he frowned. How did he know that?
"Hold this," Blackthrone said urgently. "Push your Qi into this flower."
"Ok," Orion agreed, unsure why Blackthrone appeared so panicked. Taking the flower, he began circulating his Qi -
And the flower exploded into a shower of dust that floated towards the ground.
There was silence as the three of them stared at the ashes littering the floor, finally broken by Blackthrone's horrified voice.
"Oh Eleanor, what happened?"