The next day, Wu Ling once again dressed up in one of the elegant outfits prepared by Alchemist Huang Yeyan, this time in rich red brocade patterned with flames and accented by the red-tinged golden fur of the Burning Yang Sun Bear.
Looking in a polished bronze mirror at the smokey eye makeup and dark red lip stain he'd applied, Wu Ling tried to see if he could detect the signs of reshaping his face that the Hall Master had spoken of but no matter how hard he looked, nothing stood out as 'different' from his normal face.
Perhaps it was because this was the face he expected to see reflected in the mirror when he dressed up like this, but nothing felt out of place about his appearance. Sweeping his long, dark hair to one side, he set the simple arrangement with a gold and garnet hair comb before smiling darkly at his reflection in the mirror. "Perfect," he said with an even wider grin.
His trip to the sect yesterday made it clear that his mother's fearsome reputation clung to him like oil paints to an old brush. No matter what he did, people in the sect would view him as a dangerous person to offend.
At the moment, that reputation came entirely from his mother but he had no doubt that he would build his own accomplishments to further the dangerous reputation. Since that was the case, rather than fight against it, he decided to lean into the image of a dark and dangerous beauty within the sect.
"Hou," Wu Ling called out to his guardian. "Thank you for helping yesterday," he said, feeding the preening bird a spirit crystal. "I need you to help me when I'm moving around the city. I don't want to hire a guard but I want to discourage people from getting too close. Can you look a little menacing for me when we're outside? Just enough to discourage people from getting too close."
"I don't want you burning anyone," he said pointedly so the young bird would understand. "But if they're afraid you might, that's a good thing. Think you can do that for me?"
CAW!
"Good boy," Wu Ling said, gently stroking Hou's beak. "Next time we visit Yeyan I'll ask her to help find me some new treats for you," he said with a smile as Hou settled on his shoulder like a fierce guardian.
The aura of fiery danger that the Golden Crow emitted chased off the early morning chill from the spring air even as it added a hint of danger to Wu Ling's normally calm aura as he left the Wu family's humble home.
This time, while he still felt many lecherous stares from passersby on his way to the sect, most people looked away quickly as soon as they realized their stare had been noticed. Mortals clearly recognized that only a cultivator could command such a fearsome beast and gave him plenty of room, parting like water before the bow of a boat as he walked gracefully through the crowd.
Most importantly, however, no one stepped forward to harass him the way a group of men from the Red Tiger's Den once had. Instead, he enjoyed a peaceful stroll through the busy streets all the way from his home to the gates of the Bamboo Silk House.
This time, he said nothing to the workers attending the gates of the sect. Instead, when he entered, he passed his identity jade over one of the formations at the front of the sect and strode through the gates without sparing a single glance at the mortal attendants and junior disciples working there. Behind him, he could hear a ripple of whispers about his sudden appearance but he ignored them and set his feet firmly on the path toward the back half of the sect.
Eventually, his graceful footsteps brought him back to the Twilight Pavilion and the office of Warden Mu Shien. It had only been a day since he last wandered through the protective stands of dark bamboo, but so much had changed in that single day that he felt like a different person than he'd been the last time. After all, last time, he came with uncertainty as someone who had been summoned. This time, however, he had come with a purpose and a mission he needed help to accomplish.
"Back again so soon? Have you come to see the Hall Master again or should I set up a chessboard?" Mu Shien asked when Wu Ling appeared before her. She didn't have to be an artist to notice Wu Ling's changed demeanor but rather than comment on it, she greeted the young woman like the old friend she was, willing to let Wu Ling bring matters up on her own time.
"I came to see you, Warden Mu," Wu Ling replied with a polite bow. "I understand very well what the Hall Master desires from me. Now, I find that I cannot afford to be as passive as I thought. I need to plan an expedition outside of the city and I need to stay out of the city long enough for my sworn sister to complete her breakthrough to the second stage," he explained.
Strictly speaking, asking the sect to help with the advancement of a disciple in another sect wasn't appropriate. While it was possible to take on missions to tutor someone else's disciple or to assist with a breakthrough that had requirements that the Bamboo Silk House was well suited for, what Wu Ling was asking for was well outside the norm. That didn't mean it would be forbidden, however, only that there would be a price to be paid if he wanted to obtain the sect's help.
"I see," the older woman said, setting up a chessboard and gesturing for Wu Ling to join her. "Why come see me?" While she could make a number of assumptions, she wanted to hear directly from the young lady what she had in mind. If she adopted the right mindset in asking for help, Mu Shien didn't mind extending a hand to help Wu Ling, just because the young woman sought her out to ask.
If Wu Ling hadn't come with the right intentions and willingness to meet the sect's needs, however, Mu Shien was prepared to do her part to correct any deficiencies in her young student's mindset.