"I plan to be gone for several months," Wu Ling said, placing his first stone on the board. "During that time, I should pursue more than one objective. The highest priority is for my sworn sister to break through, the second highest priority is my own breakthrough," he began, following each of Mu Shien's moves with one of his own. At the moment, he played conservatively, allowing the game to develop without pursuing a specific goal. He'd come for advice, not to pick up a years-old contest of skill.
"Those two objectives, however, don't provide a specific direction," he continued. "They're the most important but also the most flexible. That's why I wanted to talk to you about other objectives," Wu Ling explained.
"We'll be accompanied by at least one other Brawler, Zhang Buyan of the Golden Tide Martial Sect, and he intends to seek his own opportunities hunting spirit beasts. I believe that there are things we can hunt or resources we can find in the mountains that would be useful to the sect in general, and to me or my close ones specifically," Wu Ling explained.
"So your goal is to obtain resources for the sect rather than providing services for the sect?" Mu Shien asked, adopting a slightly more aggressive strategy in their chess game. If Wu Ling was content to be passive, she wanted to see how the young lady would respond to more pressure. "You should know that such things are posted in the Mission Hall, you don't need to see me if you want to draw a few resource collection missions to try your hand at while you train in the mountains."
"If I'd been in the sect all these years as a disciple, that might be true," Wu Ling responded, letting his moves on the board flow as naturally as the conversation. "I've never done this before. I went on an expedition to the mountains with a group of scholars recently and we were constantly fighting against things we weren't prepared for," he admitted without an ounce of shame.
He'd done his part on that expedition to sniff out additional threats but the planning had been someone else's responsibility and he wouldn't hold himself accountable for the struggles they face because that planning was insufficient. What that poor planning had done, however, was to demonstrate for him just how vital adequate planning could be.
"Warden Mu," Wu Ling said as he placed another stone on the board. "You're one of the best strategists in the sect," he said directly, looking up from the board game to meet the older woman's appraising gaze. "Rather than fumble my way forward, I ask for a lesson in planning and guidance on how my actions can best benefit the sect."
"Spoken like an Artist close to becoming an Understudy," Mu Shien said with a smile. "Do you know what separates an Aesthete from an Understudy, Disciple Wu?"
"I haven't given it much thought," Wu Ling said truthfully. "Most things have come very naturally to me, I've tried taking things one step at a time, learning what I need to keep advancing but I've never given much thought to anything beyond the next few steps and techniques that would be beneficial to learn."
"What you've done in coming to me for guidance is the sign that you're leaving behind the world of Aesthetes for the much more difficult world of Understudies," Mu Shien said, pausing their chess game to put full attention on the lesson.
"Aesthetes have a sense of artistry and beauty, but ultimately, at most can be regarded as dabblers in the arts with good taste," Mu Shien explained. "People who rely on their natural talents and personal aesthetics are doomed to stay forever in the first stage."
"So I've been advancing by relying on natural talents?" Wu Ling questioned. The idea somehow disturbed him. He'd spent so many years studying and practicing that the idea that he was relying on some inborn gift rather than the fruits of his hard work offended him on a level he couldn't quite explain.
"To an extent," Mu Shien said. "You're advancing quickly because you already understand things that must be learned to become an Understudy. As an Understudy, you need to allow yourself to be guided by others in their unique strengths. The time will come for you to develop a personal artistic expression but right now, to become an Understudy, you need to put aside much of the ego and personal pride that defines emerging artists so that you can fully internalize the skills taught by those who have gone before you."
"Only when you can acknowledge how long the road is and how few steps even the most talented of Aesthetes has taken can you progress past the first major hurdle in your cultivation," she said in sage tones.
"So I've made rapid progress, at least in part, because I invested so much in being a student at the Pure Virtue Musician's Hall," Wu Ling observed. Once he said it that way, pieces fell into place one after the next in his mind.
He hadn't advanced rapidly because the Pure Virtue Musician's Hall taught high-level techniques or because the training was especially efficient at setting up young cultivators for success. Rather, in order to ensure that his charade was never exposed, he'd poured tremendous effort into being a model student.
Again and again, he'd set his own perspectives aside and adopted the perspectives of his teachers so that he wouldn't stand out in ways that risked exposing his gender.
"I can see that you're beginning to recognize how you came to this point," Mu Shien said with a smile. "What becomes important for you to accomplish while on your expedition is to dedicate yourself to learning."
"It is a good time to expand your techniques with the intention of understanding the essence of why the person who developed the technique did so," the Warden continued. "What were their goals? How did they intend for it to be used? Rather than emphasizing how you will use knowledge, try to build your understanding of the person who originated it."
"I see," Wu Ling said hesitantly. When he considered Warden Mu's words he realized that his existing approach had been shallow. He didn't try to understand why, for example, Immortal Empress Hua Jue had created a technique like the Guardian Beast painting. It seemed like a good solution for his immediate problems and he embraced it readily, but were there elements of the technique he was missing because he'd never considered the creator's intentions? He didn't know, but Mu Shien's words gave him a starting point for finding an answer.
"I thank Warden Mu for her lesson," Wu Ling said as he came out of his thoughts, bowing once again. "Does that mean you're willing to help me plan an expedition?"
"It does, though the lesson isn't free," Warden Mu said, resuming their chess game. "I'm going to set one of your objectives for my own benefit. I trust that you're willing to repay my kindness by hunting a specific spirit beast for me while you're in the mountains?"
"Of course," Wu Ling said readily. "The lesson is priceless and will pay dividends my entire life. Next to that, hunting for something to repay a teacher's kindness is not unreasonable."
"Good, in that case, pay attention," Warden Mu said. "There are several things you need to be aware of before you leave Silver Sword City. There is, however, one other question I need to ask you as we begin our planning."
"What question does Warden Mu have?" Wu Ling said, noting that his teacher's tone had become much sharper than it was just moments ago.
"If you're leaving the city," the Warden said, her eyes looking deeply into Wu Ling's silvery gaze. "There are people we've tried to kill who have escaped our nets and fled to the Waystations and wilderness. I'll prepare a list of people to be on the look out for, but there's one in particular I'd like you to consider taking as a mission that you commit to completing."
"You've only just awakened," Warden Mu said, pausing their game to put all of her attention on Wu Ling's response. "You don't have to follow so quickly in your mother's footsteps. But, the person I'd like you to kill was targeted by a senior sister you know well," she said, her eyes hardening as she recalled the face of the man who had escaped their grasp just over a year ago.
"Nalan Jiang did worse than kill your senior sister Xuan Lu when she failed to assassinate him," Mu Shien said darkly. "I know the two of you were close. So tell me, are you willing to avenge your Senior Sister? Will you kill this man?"