Legend of the Heavenly Blade (Xianxia Isekai

[TDShadow]

Lin Xaio sat alone at the peak of the Yu mountain, her breathing slow and steady, every breath taking in the Qi that permeated the air.

How many centuries had it been since her last breakthrough? It had been so long that she could barely remember. It was not unexpected, at her levels of power even the largest sources of Qi were effectively irrelevant.

She released a breath as she noted the Qi in the air decreasing. It was time for her to end her session before she drained the entire mountain of the Qi vital to its functionality.

Shaking her head she rose from her meditative position, her body still perfectly relaxed despite spending over eight hours sitting in near perfect stillness.

Crack

Her eyes snapped to the air above her.

The sky was cracking, hairline fractures expanding, light of various colors emitted from them before the center of the crack opened up and an unfamiliar figure dropped out of it.

She could feel no Qi behind the fracture even as it repaired itself, leaving the sky unblemished.

No Qi… she frowned at that thought. For something to not have any Qi should be impossible.

Meaning wherever that gap had led was likely a completely foreign world to what she knew of.

Something unknown had just fallen from it, from a place that likely did not follow the same rules as the world she lived in.

At least she could take solace in the fact that if she couldn't handle whatever threat emerged, it would take the Emperor or one of his four generals to win.

With a single burst of speed she arrived at the landing place of whatever had fallen.

Looking at the object that had emerged from the rift, she was greeted by the sight of a young man, black of hair and with a short stubble gracing his jawline.

His build was rather bulky, his muscles resembling a blacksmith more than a warrior.

It was his clothing that was the strangest part of him however, some form of beast-hide coat, a black shirt and blue pants made of a durable material, along with a style of footwear she had never encountered before.

His breathing was ragged, a small stain of blood near a rock.

If hitting himself against a rock had made him bleed, then there was no way he was powerful enough to harm her at all.

Activating a diagnostic spell, she looked him over.

A couple of cracked ribs, a fracture in his skull and several points of internal bleeding.

She sighed as she started to heal the man, her attempts restricted by his lack of Cultivation.

He would need to be coherent if he was to answer any questions.

For now however, he would need to be placed somewhere warm, the freezing winds of Mount Yu were lethal to mortals.

***​

Fuck.

Lee Young woke with a start, his body screaming in pain. His breathing was labored, his ribs aching with each shallow intake, the air chilling him to his core.

But at least he was alive.

Getting crushed by a truck when a lift failed was not how he expected to die but it had nearly happened.

Hopefully he'd get a hefty insurance payout for that.

He coughed as his lungs once again betrayed him, the icy chill of the air practically burning them.

"Finally awake I see," a feminine voice said in a cold monotone, "drink this."

He was propped up to a seated position as a cup was pressed to his lips, the liquid inside warm to the touch.

He started to drink, the heat was pleasant, warming him up ever so slightly despite the freezing air.

The heat entered his body and flowed out, slowly but steadily spreading to his limbs and fighting away the chill, even as the pain in his ribs started to lessen, his muscles and bones relaxing as whatever painkiller she had given him worked its magic.

Eventually the drink was finished and he started to breathe again.

The chill creeped into his bones immediately.

He coughed again before opening his eyes and blinking.

Where the hell was he?

Surely he should be in a hospital room. Yet what he saw surrounding him looked more at home in some kung fu movie.

Red wallpaper and gold trim decorated the large room, pillars supporting what looked like a marble ceiling. Large drapes of crimson cloth hung between the pillars, tied up with golden ropes.

On proud display between the drapes were statues of dragons crafted from a green stone, racks of weapons of various types and several expensive looking pots.

He looked to his side and saw the woman that had given him the drink.

His throat dried and his breath caught.

God she was fucking gorgeous.

Pitch black hair tied into a bun, a single bang falling down the side of her face, a large pin holding the bun in place. Her skin was smooth, pale and lacking a single blemish, the sort of skin makeup artists spent hours trying to fake. Her eyes screamed that she was Asian, probably Chinese but he wasn't an expert.

And her clothes?

A Chinese dress made of black silk with gold trim that flowed into an Eastern Dragon.

"Uh… where am I?" he finally asked, trying to keep his breathing shallow.

"You are currently within the inner sanctum of the Storming Dragon Sect," the woman replied, her voice completely even.

Okay, so there were three options.

First was a practical joke. That was highly unlikely given what he remembered. He should be in a hospital, not the middle of a prank.

Second option was that he was delirious. That… was also unlikely. He remembered the last time he had been delirious and back then he had believed he was some sort of evil snake god getting pissed off at his cultists for taking so long summoning him.

And throughout it all, nothing had seemed strange, so the simple fact he was questioning things made that less likely.

And the third option, the one that should make the least sense, was that he'd gotten Isekai'd.

Admittedly getting Truck-kun'd by a stationary truck wasn't exactly something he had expected but at least he was seemingly alive.

"So what happened to me?" he asked before grimacing and clutching at his ribs.

It felt like one had just cracked.

The pain lessened rapidly but if it had broken-

Then the woman removed his hand from his chest before placing her own on it.

It burned.

He grimaced at the sudden sensation of heat that assaulted him before it vanished just as quickly as it came.

"Good, the medicine is working properly," the woman claimed.

"Then what the hell was that snap?"

She raised an eyebrow.

"I shall forgive your outburst given the circumstances," she declared and he frowned, "however should you refuse to mind your manners, I shall take corrective action."

Her tone was completely devoid of compassion as she said that.

"To answer your question," she continued, "that was the medicine setting your rib back in place so it can heal properly."

He frowned.

The medicine setting his rib? He considered it, his rib definitely was starting to feel better, no longer pounding, no longer pressing against his lung each time he breathed… he could certainly believe that it was healing.

The problem was the speed with which it was healing.

He glanced around the room again.

Fantasy world.

Probably fantasy China.

Which also probably meant magic.

He had likely been given some sort of health potion to heal whatever injuries he had.

He glanced at the woman who was currently in the process of picking up several things and placing them on a tray.

"Sorry," he said, causing her to look at him, her eyes narrowed, "I just, I have no idea where I am, what's going on or who you are."

Her eyes narrowed.

"I have already told you where you are," she proclaimed and he nodded.

"Yeah, Storming Dragon Sect right?" he asked before continuing, "but that means nothing to me."

She frowned.

"What is the last thing you remember?" she asked.

"Getting crushed by a truck after the ramp it was on collapsed," he deadpanned.

"A what?"

"A truck."

She looked confused.

"I have never heard of such a thing before," she acknowledged.

"Yeah, and that's how this whole situation is for me," he replied.

"Very well," she said, "then please explain what you know."

"The air is freezing," that was the first thing that came to mind.

She tilted her head before closing her eyes.

"Very well, then I shall inform Elder Lin of your awakening," she declared and he frowned.

"Why the sudden change of plan?" he asked.

"I was going to inform the Elder of your awakening before you apologized," she explained as she picked up the tray, "however, if you are claiming the air is freezing, then it would be better to move you somewhere more comfortable before continuing the conversation."

He nodded.

"Thanks… though you seem to be quite at home here yourself," he said.

"Because the air in here is not freezing," she declared.

He gave her a blank stare.

"The air is solidly a fifth of the way between water freezing and boiling," she explained and he blinked at her description, it definitely didn't feel like it, "the chill you are feeling is from the nature of the Qi in the air."

He had no idea what that meant.

"Then I shall take my leave," the woman declared before turning.

"Oh yeah," he called out, "my name is Lee Young, what's yours?"

The woman didn't even bother turning around.

"I am Mei, a core disciple of the Storming Dragon Sect."

She was out of the door before he could even register that he didn't understand what she had just told him.

Well, he supposed he could ask later.

For now, he really had to do something to make himself warm.

The sheet on the futon he was laid on was thin, ridiculously smooth and soft but still thin, so he doubled it up before curling into a ball and seeking refuge, doing his best to breathe shallowly to limit the air chilling his body.

He was pulled from his restlessness at the sound of the door opening.

Looking up, he was greeted by the sight of a girl, probably somewhere in the region of fifteen to seventeen years old, with blonde hair tied into twin-tails, a lotus flower decorating each tie.

Just like Mei, her skin was what he could only describe as perfect, lacking a single hint of acne that might have plagued a normal girl at her age.

Her eyes were a soft green, also possessing clear Asian features but her soft smile and a warmth in her eyes made the girl look far more approachable than Mei had.

Her clothes consisted of an emerald green silk, with golden dragons embroidered into the trim, coiling up the obviously Chinese robe before the head was hidden by a red mantle with golden trim.

"Hello Heavenly One," the girl said and he groaned.

"Are you flirting with me?"

She stopped, a single eyebrow raised.

"Whatever gave you that impression?" she asked, causing him to frown at her.

"You called me 'heavenly one'."

"Yes, because you fell from a crack in the sky at the top of the mountain," she answered calmly.

He blinked.

"Wait, really?" she nodded, "guess that means I definitely did get Isekai'd."

"So why are you here?" he asked the girl.

"I was the one that witnessed you enter this world," she said, causing him to nod before frowning.

"So you know I'm not from this world?" he asked, "how?"

"Your body only had the Qi from the mountain inside it, anyone from this world with such a lack of Qi would be dead," she explained.

"Okay, so that makes things easier," he admitted, "does this… Elder Lin know?"

The girl nodded.

"Yes, Elder Lin most certainly does know," she replied without hesitation.

"So what's your name anyway?" he asked, "mine is Lee Young."

"Mine is Lin Xiao," she said.

Well that explained why this Elder Lin would already know, this girl had to be his granddaughter or something… well, assuming the Chinese ordered their names like the Japanese anyway.

"Now, open your mouth," she commanded and he froze, "now."

Well, he supposed if he was going to be meeting the girls grandfather he probably shouldn't upset her.

He opened his mouth.

She placed a small round object that tasted mildly spicy inside.

"Now swallow," she commanded and he did so.

Almost immediately he felt a gentle warmth spread through his body, driving out the bone-deep chill and flowing up his throat, all the way to his nostrils where he took a breath.

The heat neutralized the freezing air.

He blinked.

"Ah, thank you," he said, moving his hand to rub the back of his head.

"I would recommend against touching there," she said and he froze, "when you fell from the sky, you cracked your head on a stone. It should be mostly healed, however it is safer to avoid aggravating it for another day if possible."

He lowered his hand.

After the pill the girl had just given him, he wasn't going to ignore her advise.

"So, how long will the pill last?" he asked the girl.

"Approximately a day," she answered, "normally it is not used for such a purpose but given the circumstances, I believe it was an acceptable use."

He looked at the girl.

"Not it's normal use?" he asked, "what is it normally used for?"

"It is normally used by beginners with a fire alignment to aid their cultivation," she answered casually, "though I doubt any of that makes sense to you."

He nodded.

"All I took from that is that it helps people breathe fire better," he admitted.

"Well, I suppose that is close enough for a basic explanation," she offered him a small smile, "had I given you a more powerful one, it would have unleashed enough fire Qi to cook your insides."

He looked at her, hoping she was joking.

"Do not fear," she said with a kind smile, "those levels of pills are for those who have already developed a resistance if not comfort with temperatures that would kill a mortal. What I gave you is designed for someone of your constitution to learn to assimilate such power."

Well that calmed him ever so slightly.

The door opened again, drawing his attention to the person entering.

It was once again Mei, carrying a freshly laid out tray with a teapot, a pair of cups and a small plate of biscuits.

"Your tea Elder Lin," Mei said while bowing her head to the blonde girl.

Wait, what?

"Hold on! You're Elder Lin?" he asked, his jaw slack at the mere idea.

The girl offered him an amused smile.

"Indeed, hence why I most certainly do know what I told you," she proclaimed, "now, would you like some refreshments?"

She gestured to the tray.

"Ah, yes please," he answered, earning a twitch from Mei's eye even as she moved to pour the tea into the cups.

Soon enough he held a cup of green tea in hand, the bitterness tinged with a hint of sourness and an accent of mint. He had no idea what blend it was. He had never been a tea person, coffee was his caffeinated beverage of choice.

But he was pretty damn thirsty.

"So, how is your name arranged and what cultural norms does your world have concerning using those names?" Lin said, prompting Mei to blink and look at her in surprise.

"Excuse me Elder Lin," she cut in, "but what do you mean 'his world'?"

"He came from a rift in the sky, lacking any hint of Qi," she explained, "the only rational explanation is that he is from another world that is completely devoid of Qi."

Mei simply bowed.

"Thank you for enlightening me, Honored Elder."

"Well, to answer your question," Lee said, "that depends on where exactly you're from. But from the country I'm from, we put our family names after our given names and people usually use their given names unless in a professional situation."

She nodded.

"So how do you wish for me to refer to you?" she asked and he blinked.

"Ah, you can just call me Lee," he said.

"Very well, then you may call me Xiao," she replied and he raised an eyebrow.

"Elder, with all due respect-"

"I am permitting him to speak casually with me due to his culture," Xiao cut Mei off calmly.

Lee looked at Mei.

"I don't think that's a good idea," he said, earning a raised eyebrow from the 'elder', "I mean, how many people even know Lee isn't my family name?"

"That is fine," she said, "I did say you may call me Xiao, not that you must call me that. If you are more comfortable with using a more formal means of address then that is acceptable."

Mei seemed to relax.

"So… what do you want to talk with me about?" he finally asked, "I doubt you just wanted to know my name."

Lin nodded.

"You fell from a rift in the sky before me," she stated firmly, "that is as close to a sign from the Heavens as is possible. Therefore it is my duty to look over you while you are here."

Well that was a relief.

The girl's expression morphed, her casual smile shifting into a stern stare.

"That is, assuming you choose to walk the path of immortality."

 

[TheAuraKing]

interesting first chapter, curious to see more.

 

[Nicohals J Westerberg]

Cool vool

 

[TDShadow]

Lee froze.

"What do you mean by that?"

"If you choose to become a Cultivator and strive for the heavens, I shall teach you," Lin declared, "if you choose to live as a mortal, then I shall simply give you a small amount of money to start your new life."

He frowned.

He didn't really have much context but it sounded like he was being asked if he wanted to learn the local magic system.

And in such a scenario, there was only one answer he could possibly give.

"I'd regret it if I didn't at least try," he said without hesitation.

"Good," the blonde said with a soft smile, "then the first thing we shall do is arrange some living quarters for you."

"Where do you intend to place him?" Mei asked, her expression remaining ice-cold.

Lin released a sigh.

"Where all applicants stay," she replied, earning a nod from the dark haired woman.

"Then I shall make the arrangements," with that said, Mei turned and left the room.

"So where will I be staying?" he asked.

"In a village at the foot of the mountain," she said, "it was built primarily for that purpose though it has expanded over the millennia."

He blinked.

"Is this place really that old?"

"My grandfather founded the Sect roughly five thousand years ago," she said, her tone so normal that it took Lee several seconds to process what she had just said.

"Wait! Your grandfather was alive that long ago?"

She offered him a soft smile.

"He is over six thousand years old," she declared and he swallowed.

She spoke of him in the present tense.

Suddenly her talk of 'the path of immortality' and 'mortals' made a lot more sense.

But that also raised a question in his mind.

She looked to be somewhere in the region of sixteen years old but if immortality was an actual thing here…

"How old are you exactly?"

"Two-thousand, one-hundred and seventy-three years old," she said calmly.

He swallowed.

"And Mei?"

"You can ask her that yourself."

Well he supposed that was a reasonable answer.

"Now, there are two ways down from the Sect compound," she continued, "the slow way and the quick way."

He narrowed his eyes.

"What's the slow way?"

"You can take the stairs," she answered easily, "that should take you several days."

"Hold on, just how high are we anyway?"

"Roughly a hundred Li."

"… I have no idea what that means," he admitted.

"That is unfortunate," she responded, "but we are roughly three quarters of the way up the mountain, with the lowest clouds reaching roughly three hundredths of the way up."

The blood drained from his face at that.

Fuck they were high up.

He considered what she had just said and suddenly had a bad feeling about the 'fast' way down.

"The fast way down, is to fly down," she stated, "I can make the journey in a couple of seconds if need be."

The mere thought of rocketing down a mountain at such speeds was not something he really felt like doing.

He blinked.

"And what about Mei?" he asked, "she said she would arrange accommodation for me-"

"Mei-er can make the journey in under a second," he froze.

"… What?"

Lin smiled.

"My own speed is generally greater than hers, however she can travel faster than anyone else I have known," she explained, "but in combat I greatly exceed her."

He swallowed.

It certainly sounded like these people were superhuman to a ludicrous degree.

"So, how long will it take for me to get to a reasonable speed for climbing up here?" he asked, wondering just how much work it would take.

"Once you have properly established your foundation and become a proper Cultivator, you should be capable of making it in less than an hour," she told him.

He froze.

"Are you joking?" he asked simply.

She shook her head.

"No, upon becoming a full Cultivator you will be capable of maintaining speeds greater than a mortal can achieve for hours at a time," she said, "while a mortal would have to climb at a sustainable pace, rest and deal with other inconveniences, a Cultivator can simply sprint all the way up in a single attempt."

He had not considered something as simple as sustained sprinting.

"Now, are you ready to leave?" she asked, causing him to swallow.

"Is there any other way to get down?" he asked, causing her to shake her head.

"No."

He swallowed again.

"Is there a problem?"

"I'm uh…" his face heated up, "kind of afraid of heights."

She blinked.

"I see," she responded calmly.

***​

Lee awoke groggily before opening his eyes.

He did not recognize the room he was in.

Wooden walls, a dirt floor, a straw bed, a small pit with a pot hanging above it and a chest in the corner.

"Finally awake," Lin's voice called from his side, prompting him to look at her in confusion.

"What happened?"

"Since you are afraid of heights and are already going to have to adapt to a new world, I decided it would be better if I simply rendered you unconscious and brought you down in that state."

"Oh, thank you."

"You're welcome," she replied with a small smile, "however you will have to overcome that fear at some point, now is simply not the appropriate time."

He nodded, that was fair. He may not like the idea of having to go so high up at any point, but it was fair.

"Now, since you are so unfamiliar with this world, I shall visit you each morning and give you some lessons on our cultural norms and other basic information an average person of your age would know," she told him.

"Thanks."

A small light flashed and he blinked as a small brown pouch appeared in her hand.

"This is for your first month here," she said as she handed it to him, "I will not be giving you more."

He blinked.

"Just enough for me to live off until I get a job?" he asked, prompting her to nod, "thanks."

She nodded.

"Now, for your first lesson," she spoke, her voice deadly serious, "weakness is a crime."

He froze.

"What?"

"If you show weakness, people will take advantage of it. Whether it is true or not, you must present a strong front to the public."

He released a sigh of relief.

So she didn't mean it literally.

"So don't let the sharks smell blood, got it,"

She blinked in confusion.

"Is that a proverb in your world?"

"Yeah. Sharks in the water can smell blood and swarm to eat the victim," he explained.

"Is that so," she looked put off by that, "they sound quite different to the sharks here."

"Really?"

"Yes, the sharks over here are generally rather nice people."

Lee blinked.

Nice people?

"Uh, where I come from sharks aren't people, they're sort of just really big carnivorous fish," he said.

"Is that so? Well, over here they're something of a cross between human and fish," she told him, "they are also some of the best blacksmiths in the world."

Well that was unexpected.

"Now, back on topic," she said, "do not show anyone weakness, that includes such things as kindness. That is not to say you cannot show any kindness, merely that you should be careful that you do so in a way where it is not misconstrued as weakness."

That certainly sounded like a pain in the ass.

"So how do I do that?"

She closed her eyes.

"Avoid giving charity unless doing so can prove your strength," she declared, "and even then, only give charity to those whom are desperate."

He frowned.

He didn't quite understand what she meant by that but he would figure it out eventually.

"So anything else?"

"Of course."

***​

An hour passed by quickly for Lee as he listened to Lin's explanations.

There wasn't much, mainly local customs such as the correct signs of respect, how much money was worth, the name of the province they were currently located in and the governmental structure of the Empire with a capital E.

Honestly, the most shocking part for him was learning that the Emperor was known as the Immortal Phoenix Emperor, could literally revive himself without end, was over ten thousand years old and had been the emperor for nearly half of that.

It really put into perspective just how serious this Cultivation business was.

And he was going to be learning it.

"So, when do I start learning to Cultivate?" he asked the Elder.

"Tomorrow," she said, "for now, you should get something to eat and get to know the village."

He nodded as she rose from her seated position.

"Now come, I shall give you a quick tour of the important aspects of the village and a meal before returning to my duties," she said.

He pushed himself to his feet as she walked to the door and opened it.

Following her, he emerged onto a dirt road surrounded by wooden shacks.

Thankfully it wasn't too cold and there wasn't a hint of snow on the ground.

Looking around, he saw people working, tending to laundry, pulling small carts, fixing walls and other such mundane tasks.

Everywhere he looked he saw people avoiding looking at Lin. Even someone that looked like a smug prick suddenly shifted his attention away upon seeing her.

"Now, in that direction is the road out of the village, it is recommended you avoid leaving the path and entering the forest until you have at least established your foundation," Lin declared, pointing down the street, "and this way," she said pointing the opposite direction, "is the path to the Storming Dragon Sect."

He looked in the direction she said before his breath caught in his lungs.

The town looked like a slum, at least until it reached a large white wall with a red tile roof with gold dragons decorating it. The gates were currently open revealing a large set of stairs that led to a far wealthier looking series of buildings inside, their walls crafted from stone and painted white, their roofs made up of the same red tiles that decorated the dividing wall.

And beyond that, he saw an absolutely enormous Japanese style gate that led to a massive set of stairs, which started climbing up and around the giant stone wall that appeared at the other side of the wealthier district.

He glanced to the sides, wondering how big the wall was before he noticed the natural look to it and his stomach dropped.

"Is… is that wall the mountain?" he asked.

"Yes," Lin replied without delay, "there is a reason it can take mortals days to climb even with the stairs carved into it."

He looked up and saw the massive structure barely narrowed by the time the clouds started hiding the rest.

"So what's the wealthier district?" he asked as he finally shook the awe enough to refocus on the tour.

"Come," she said, leading him towards it.

"Uh, is it actually okay for me to enter there?" he asked, sure it might have been fine for her to enter but he was nobody.

"There is no restriction on entry," she said, "the wall is there to protect those inside from potential demonic beast attacks. In such a scenario, the residents of the outer houses are provided shelter inside."

He swallowed at her casual mention of 'demonic beasts'.

"So who actually lives there?" he was guessing some form of nobility.

"Shopkeepers and craftsmen," she answered, "though only if they live in their stores or workshops."

"No nobility?"

"They live in towns or cities, never a village of this size," she replied with a shake of her head, "especially not with a Sect governing the area."

Soon enough they had taken the stairs up to the merchant district, onto properly paved roads and his eyes darted to take in the sights.

An old man selling cabbage from a cart, a blacksmith working his forge, a young woman manning a window with jars of pills lined up behind her.

The atmosphere reminded him of a farmers market despite the surprising cleanliness and organization.

"Come," Lin commanded and he obeyed as she took him down a street on the right before pushing a curtain aside and leading him into a small stall.

His stomach growled at the rich aroma of various spices filling the air.

There was only a single counter with four seats in the tiny space.

"Hello there lady Lin, the usual?" a little old woman asked. She looked to be less than five feet tall, with a distinct hunch, white hair tied into a bun and deep wrinkles permeating her skin. She looked like she had less than a decade left to live.

Lin nodded.

"And I shall be paying for this ones meal as well," she declared.

"Then can I take your order sir?" the old lady asked.

"Ah, do you do curry?" he asked, causing the woman to frown.

"I cannot say I have heard of such a thing," she replied.

He frowned.

"Pieces of meat in a thick spicy sauce served with rice?" he described.

The woman frowned again with a shake of her head.

"I can make you something spicy if you wish, but it wouldn't be what you described," the woman said..

"Well, was worth a shot," he said, "I'll just have the spiciest thing you have."

The old woman nodded before turning to her pans.

"So is this 'curry' normal where you come from?" Lin asked as he sat down, the blonde girl having already taken a seat when he was ordering.

"One of the most popular dishes in the world," he admitted.

"I'm guessing there is a wide variety of it given how vague your description of it was," she continued.

"Yep."

A silence fell between them as they waited for the food to be cooked.

Soon enough a dish was placed in front of Lin who clasped her hands together, thanked the old woman and then proceeded to eat.

It looked like a lightly spiced rice dish with prawns.

He blinked as his own meal was placed before him.

In his case it was a noodle dish with a thin aromatic sauce and pieces of beef.

"Thank you for the meal," he said as he clasped his own hands together how Lin had shown him to do earlier.

"You're welcome," the old lady said as he picked up a pair of chopsticks and took his first bite.

It was milder than he had hoped for, though the old woman clearly knew what she was doing when balancing the flavors.

He soon started to devour the meal, finishing before Lin herself did.

"I suppose that really proves you were starving," the blonde said with a wry smile.

"Honestly, it was just delicious," he said before he turned to give his compliments to the chef and froze.

Why did she look annoyed?

"D-did I do something wrong?" he asked.

"… The next time you come here, I will make you something even spicier," she declared.

He blinked.

"Oh, that's good, I thought it was a bit too mild to be the hottest thing you have," he admitted.

"It is the hottest thing on the menu," the old woman declared, "but with how easily you ate that, I think I'll invent something spicier just for you."

"Thanks," he had to admit, she was a nice lady.

Her eye twitched.

***​

Soon enough Lee was following Lin through the village once again.

They stopped before a large building with several pillars out front and red doors with golden dragons emblazoned on them.

"And this is the Pavilion," Lin declared, "there are often lessons held here by Outer Disciples of the Storming Dragon Sect to teach Cultivation."

She opened the door, revealing an amphitheater with nine tiers of benches and a large blackboard at the back of the room behind a marble pedestal.

"So I should come here when I can," he murmured.

"If you desire to," she said, "but you are in a different situation to the majority of people that would attend these sessions."

He looked at her.

"The disciples that teach here are given an incentive to teach students properly," she spoke, "as their ability to teach is one of the factors in their chances of being promoted to the Inner Sect."

"The exact method of their teaching is up to the disciple," she continued, "whether they limit themselves to lectures or if they take an official disciple of their own."

He nodded before realizing what she was getting at.

"I'm your disciple," he said.

"Yes," she acknowledged, "lectures held here are far more generalized than individual tutelage, with many of the applicants that gain a master taking significantly less time to progress."

He nodded.

"And as a disciple of an Elder, you should grow rapidly," she continued.

His heart beat harder at that.

So he was going to have a lot of pressure on him to progress quickly.

Deep breaths.

He forced himself to calm down. He was from another world. He had a lot of catching up to do. If he rushed himself then he would probably cause himself more problems down the line.

"I will grow at my own pace," he declared firmly, "I am not going to rush my progress just so you can save face."

It was probably a stupid thing to say to the girl but it was the simple reality.

Her lips quirked up.

"Good," she said, her satisfaction clear in her voice, "trying to force your growth can lead down a dark path… and if you do end up on such a path, I will end you myself."

He swallowed.

He had no intention of ending up on a 'dark path' as she put it. He just hoped he wouldn't accidentally end up on such a thing due to ignorance.

"So, where next?" he asked.

"Next I am returning to the Sect to complete my duties," she said, "I assume you can find your own way back to your shack?"

He nodded.

That shouldn't be too hard right?

 

[readsalot]

"I assume you can find your own way back to your shack?"

He nodded.

That shouldn't be too hard right?

Click to shrink...

this guy…you should have accepted the help back to your lovely safe shack….Now you will end up meeting a Young Master and quickly make enemies in the sect.

Also WATCHED.

Looking forward to the next chapter

 

[TDShadow]

Lee scratched the top of his head as he looked at the numerous shacks.

Which one was his again?

Shit.

Okay, he knew that his shack was facing the main road, so that really limited the number that it could be.

He walked, facing to his right as he tried to identify any markings of his shack he could.

He grimaced at the simple fact they didn't even have numbers.

Several people looked at him as he wandered, not like he could blame them, his clothes were completely out of place in this new world and he was wandering around suspiciously as well.

If anything he was more surprised he wasn't being dragged away and interrogated by whatever the towns equivalent of cops were.

He blinked as he looked down the street again.

A blue-eyed young woman with orange hair tied into a rough ponytail and wearing a simple set of linen clothes was walking up the street carrying something on her shoulders that made his jaw drop.

It certainly looked like a bear but it was fucking huge! It looked to be somewhere in the region of five times bigger than a polar bear!

And this girl was carrying it like it barely weighed anything.

"You know, you should probably close your mouth before something decides to build a nest there," she said with a wry grin as she noticed him gaping at her.

He did as she instructed, there was no way he was going to piss off anyone that could lift over two tons like that.

"S-sorry," he apologized before recalling Lin's lesson on etiquette.

"Don't worry 'bout it," she said, "I'm guessing you've never really seen a cultivator's strength before?"

He shook his head.

"Well, once you've reached the Initiate Realm you'll be able to do this too," she said easily enough, "I'm Zhou Lian by the way, haven't seen you around here before."

He shook himself out of his stupor even as she casually ignored the multiple tons resting on her shoulders.

"Lee Young," he said, earning a raised eyebrow from the girl.

"Nice to meet you Li," she said, "you come from far away?"

"Very far away," he admitted.

"Well, if ya need any help settling in, just let me know," she said with a toothy grin.

"I'll let you get back to… whatever you were doing," he said as he eyed the bear.

"It's fine," she said, "always happy to help out the new guys."

He watched as she proceeded to continue on her way, her walk completely relaxed.

He shook his head.

He had expected the people here to be superhuman but seeing it was something he wasn't ready for.

Sighing, he returned to his search for his new accommodation.

***​

Lee sighed in relief as he finally found his shack.

He would have to do something to distinguish it from the rest. Putting a number on it would probably be best.

First though, he had a chest to check.

He doubted there was anything inside but there was the possibility that he could be wrong.

Opening it he was greeted by a letter on top of some fabric. He pulled it out and discovered that there were several sets of grey linen Gi within.

He swallowed. Had he gotten the wrong shack after all?

Looking at the letter he started to read.

Hello Disciple.

Your clothes stand out quite a bit so I made the decision to provide you with a few sets to replace them.

Your Master

Lin Xiao

He blinked at the letter and then blinked again.

It was written entirely in Chinese.

How the fuck could he understand it!?

His brain started to work overtime as he considered every person he had spoken to since coming to this world.

Had he been speaking fluent Chinese all this time?

If he had then how?

He knew nothing of the Chinese language-

Actually…

He considered everything and now that he was actively focusing on it, he realized that the sounds were coming to him naturally.

… Had whatever transferred him just info-dumped the whole language into his skull?

He shook his head clear. No use worrying about it when it meant he didn't have to deal with the language barrier.

Taking a seat on the straw bed, he allowed himself to release a breath.

This was going to take some getting used to.

No TV, no Youtube, no Spotify... God, he'd need to get a hobby.

He collapsed onto his back.

That could wait. For now, he would just get some damn sleep that didn't involve getting knocked the fuck out.

***​

"Wake up," Lee opened his eyes at the command before blinking blearily.

He looked at the person that had decided to interrupt his sleep, struggling in the dark before eventually making out a familiar head of blonde hair.

"… What time is it?" he asked as he struggled to keep his eyes open in the lack of light.

"Nearly dawn," she declared, making him frown at her.

"… Ten more minutes," he said before closing his eyes again. "Ow!"

His eyes shot open as she pinched his cheek with far more force than was necessary.

"Wake up," she commanded again, "this is late for a Cultivator to awaken already."

"… I'm not a Cultivator yet," he pointed out, "and I'm still tired."

"You spent plenty of time asleep yesterday."

"There's a difference between being asleep and being concussed."

She sighed.

"Then for this morning and this morning alone, you may have this," she pulled out a red orb roughly one inch in diameter.

"Uh… thanks?" he said as he took the pill and placed it in his mouth, silently wondering if he would need to chew it, it was bigger than the last after all.

The moment it touched his tongue, the solid orb dissolved with an ease that reminded him of cotton candy, fizzling away to nothing even as a wave of warmth spread through his body and washed away the tiredness that plagued him.

Whatever that pill was, it was better than when he had tried energy drinks.

"Understand this," Lin spoke, her tone serious, "overusing those pills can have adverse effects on your body and they don't truly remove your tiredness, merely postpone it twelve hours."

He nodded.

So he would suffer a massive crash in twelve hours and need to sleep it off properly.

Then he frowned.

"Is there anything that does eliminate the need to sleep?" it was little more than a curiosity but surely magic medicine should be capable of something like that right?

"High levels of Cultivation can reduce the amount of sleep one requires," she said, "however doing so requires consistently refining away the impurities that attempt to build up through remaining awake too long and even then, the rate that the impurities appear will increase the longer one goes without sleep."

He blinked.

"Are impurities Cultivator stuff?"

She nodded.

"For now however, you have lessons to start," she declared, making him nod. He would probably learn what she meant sooner or later anyway.

He proceeded to sit cross-legged, ready to listen to what she had to say.

"The first and most important aspect of Cultivation, is forming your foundation," she said, "without a foundation, you are not considered a true Cultivator even if you have learned to feel and control your Qi."

"So how exactly does it work?" he asked, "I mean, if you can use the power of a Cultivator without one then why do you need one to be classed as a Cultivator?"

"Because those without a Foundation have no path to grow," she declared bluntly, "one who has failed to craft a proper foundation will always be weak."

"So what are the ingredients of a Foundation?" he asked, after all, even cement had a recipe.

She gave him a small smile.

"There are three aspects to a person's Foundation," she declared, "it is not possible for a mortal to complete a Foundation without all three aspects."

"First is the Spiritual Alignment," she said, "this is the core of your foundation, a concept that will define your Cultivation and the path you should take to grow. My own Spiritual Alignment is 'Dragon'."

Okay, that explained why she was a part of the 'Storming Dragon Sect'.

"Second is Elemental Alignment," she continued, "this defines what elements you are most attuned to."

"Is this like Fire, Water, Earth and Air?" Lee hoped it wasn't like the periodic table, figuring what was what was not something he could really do.

"There are the five major elements in the form of Fire, Water, Earth, Metal and Wood," she explained and he frowned, "however there are several minor elements independent of those five."

"For example, I possess dual elements in both the Major Element of Water and the Minor Element of Lightning," she explained.

Well he was guessing that the elements were going to take a little bit of instruction for him to properly understand.

"Okay, so what's the final aspect of a Foundation?"

"Celestial Alignment," she declared, "there are only four Celestial Alignments, Northern Tortoise, Eastern Dragon, Western Tiger and Southern Bird."

"Is yours Eastern Dragon?" he asked, earning a small smile from her.

"Indeed, though I have known some people with Dragon as a Spiritual Alignment that possessed other Celestial Alignments," she said, "it is merely that my Foundation possesses the perfect traits to maximize the power and efficiency of the Storming Dragon Formation, it is one of the reasons I have reached the position of Elder."

"I thought that was just because you were old," he admitted, earning a snort of amusement from the girl.

"The leadership of Sects is less to do with age and more to do with strength," she declared, "I am millennia younger than a couple of the Elders in the Sect but am far more powerful."

"Boasting much?" he asked.

"I am at the fourth stage of the Heavenly Realm, while they remain in the Imperial Realm," she declared.

"That means nothing to me."

"There are eleven known Realms of Cultivation," she started to explain, "Foundation, Initiate, Earth, Sky, Spirit, Profound, Incarnate, Imperial, Heavenly, Perfection and Transcendent."

"Those of the Foundation Realm are not yet acknowledged as Cultivators as that is the stage they exist in while attempting to craft their Foundation," she said, "it is almost never acknowledged as an official realm except by bureaucrats."

He frowned at that declaration.

"Why not?"

"Because it and the other Realms have nothing in common with how they are progressed," she said.

"Progression in the Foundation Realm is measured like this; the first stage, where they have learned to feel the Qi in their bodies. The second stage where they have learned to manipulate the Qi in their bodies. The third stage, where they have established the first aspect of their Foundation. The fourth stage, where they have established the second aspect of their Foundation and then once they have finished establishing the final aspect of their Foundation, they are acknowledged as having reached the first stage of the Initiate Realm," she explained.

"However, the official Realms each have eight stages which are progressed via refining and storing Qi… and importantly, opening your mansions so you can absorb and refine more Qi," she continued.

He raised an eyebrow at her explanation.

"Mansions?" he asked, he doubted she meant houses.

"We will discuss that once you've finalized your foundation," she declared.

He sighed.

"So what's the first thing I have to do?" he asked, ready to push through the initial headache of not understanding why their magic system worked the way it did.

"First, you must learn to detect the Qi in your body," she said, "that starts with meditation."

He grimaced.

"Do you have a problem with meditation?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Sorry, I've just never really been good at sitting still," he admitted.

"That is likely to be fixed upon reaching the status of a fully fledged cultivator," Lin declared, causing him to frown, "upon finalizing your foundation, the establishment of your Dantian and Meridians will push out a lot of impurities within your body and align your spirit and body in a way that will greatly increase your ability to manipulate your movement."

He blinked.

"So becoming a Cultivator will improve my hand-eye coordination?"

"Among other things."

He released a sigh. From everything he had been told so far, it was obvious that simply becoming a Cultivator would completely change everything about him.

"And is there any impact on my mind?" he asked.

She nodded.

"Nothing changes about your personality," she stated, "however with each increase in stage, the clarity of your mind will increase alongside your perception, memory and focus."

"So… no wandering thoughts?"

"Those are still possible, though only should you choose to allow your mind to wander," she explained.

He nodded.

Well that sounded handy.

"Now, make yourself comfortable," she commanded, "we shall be starting your first lesson on meditation now."

He nodded as he proceeded to cross his legs.

"… Is this okay?" he asked.

"Is it comfortable?" she asked in response, "being capable of remaining in said position for hours without being distracted by discomfort is the most important aspect of your posture."

He blinked.

"So I don't need to take a specific position?" she shook her head, "oh."

He considered his position for a few seconds before nodding to himself.

"I think this should be okay," he said, "never had to sit on the floor for so long though so I dunno for sure."

Lin nodded, "well, in that case I suggest experimenting with different sitting positions until you find one that works for you. If necessary you could also see about purchasing a chair or cushion if either of those are necessary."

He nodded.

"Now, for the first exercise, I simply want you to breathe deeply through your nose and focus on the changing heat," she commanded.

He nodded as he proceeded to do just what she commanded.

Breathe in.

The air was cool.

Breathe out.

The air was warm.

***​

Lee didn't know how long it had been since he had started the exercise but his mind was starting to wander.

Focusing on such a simple thing for so long was simply not something he was built for.

But he couldn't just quit already… maybe if he changed the focus of his attention he might be able to return to the focused state again?

Lin had said that he needed to learn how to feel and manipulate the Qi in his body; she had also claimed that Qi existed in the air itself.

So maybe he could try and focus on finding the Qi instead of the heat?

He focused on trying to feel the Qi in the air. If he had still been at the top of the mountain he would have been capable of identifying it easily enough, the freezing chill of the Qi up there was very noticeable. But down here? It was nowhere near as easy.

He kept his eyes closed as he tried to feel something flowing from the air into the rest of his body.

His focus shifted, no longer concerned for the heat in his nostrils and now intent upon the flow within his body.

In, out, in, out, in, out.

Waves on a beach, shifting with the tide in time with his breathing.

He visualized the scenery and with that visualization, he slowly but steadily started to identify the foreign flow within him.

It was subtle and he had no clue how to even start grasping it but he had at least found it.

He breathed in again and held his breath.

The waves stilled.

He reached out, to try and grasp them, imaginary hands scooping at the power futilely.

"Enough," he was jerked out of his trance by the voice of his new teacher, his breath finally being released.

His eyes opened and he looked at her, her face blank.

"You tried touching the Qi in your body," she declared.

He swallowed and nodded.

She looked at him, her gaze focused before she released a sigh.

"I was not expecting you to progress to that point so quickly," she said, "why did you shift away from my instructions?"

He grimaced.

"Sorry, I… well I lost focus," he admitted, "thought that if I started focusing on trying to find the Qi in myself that I might be able to continue but…"

She nodded.

"I should have made it clear that this was simply about acclimatizing you to meditation," she spoke calmly, "you should have simply informed me when you lost focus."

He winced.

"Though I shall praise you for progressing a step beyond what I had intended," she continued, "for now however, you should simply practice finding your Qi and reducing the time needed to do so."

He nodded.

"I guess I shouldn't try to touch it again," he said.

"It will not hurt for you to do so," she declared, "but focus on speed rather than pushing to the next stage."

He nodded.

"Okay," he accepted without hesitation.

First focus on being able to find the Qi in his body at a moment's notice, then focus on actually moving that Qi.

Rushing it would only cause problems further along the line, that was one of the first things he'd been taught in his apprenticeship at the garage.

So he closed his eyes and looked for his Qi once again.