Book 2: Chapter 52: Old Business

Book 2: Chapter 52: Old Business

“So, just like that, you own half of this place?” Lifen asked.

She gave the run-down alchemist’s shop they had just exited a sidelong glance. Sen followed her eyes and gave her a half smile.

“Yeah, something like that.”

Lifen sighed. “The other two places were better.”

“No,” disagreed Sen, “they were nicer, which is another way of saying that they didn’t need the resources quite as badly as this place. Plus, the couple who runs this place are the best alchemists of the lot. They’ll make better stuff out of those beast cores I gave them, which means that they’ll make more money from them. Besides, I did give them some money to fix the place up.”

Lifen lifted an eyebrow at him. “I noticed. Where does a wandering cultivator get enough gold that they can afford to give some of it away.’

“Invest, my lovely Lifen. Invest.”

“It’s only an investment if you actually get something back from it someday.”

Sen considered that for a moment before conceding the point. “That’s true enough. Although, I suspect that this will turn out to be profitable for me in the long run.”

Lifen gave him a smirk. “You dodged the question.”

“Did I? Forgive me. Yes, you are truly as beautiful as an orchid blooming beneath the moon.”

Lifen actually stumbled a little bit at that, before she shot him a look. “Stop trying to distract me. I didn’t ask for compliments.”

“How fortunate for me that I didn’t give you any.”

That seemed to leave the young woman mute for a few moments. She tried to give him a glare, but the corners of her mouth kept creeping upward, ruining the effect.

“You could have just said it’s a secret.”

“Secret might be a strong word. Let’s just say that I’m not announcing it. It’s not good for people to assume that wandering cultivators are carrying around a lot of wealth.”

It had been a profound relief for Sen to hand over better than half of the beast cores he had to the alchemists. In reality, he’d probably grossly overpaid for his stake in the alchemist shop. On the other hand, not having a fortune in beast cores in his storage ring eased a worry in his chest that had been lingering for months. Of course, having a pouch full of gold had taken the place of that worry, but he’d have to address that another day. He hadn’t even looked inside all of the storage rings he’d collected from the Soaring Skies members he’d killed yet. The idea felt morbid to him, so he kept putting it off, but he’d have to deal with it sooner than later. Having a few spare storage rings would be nice but wandering around a collection of them seemed like asking for trouble.

“Are you, though?”

“Am I what?” asked Sen.

“Are you really just a wandering cultivator now? I mean, aren’t you Judgment’s Gale, hero of the people, bane of sects?”

Sen groaned, “Not you too.”Ñøv€lRapture marked the initial hosting of this chapter on Ñôv€lß¡n.

Lifen burst into laughter. “To think, I met a legend and didn’t even know it.”

“I am not a legend or a hero for that matter.”

Lifen peered at him from the corner of her eye and said, “You saved the mortals. You opposed a powerful sect. You lived to tell the tale. What do you imagine heroes and legends are?”

Sen had no answer for that, so he looked for some other subject to discuss. “Did you see that basket of invitations I got?”

“I did. Are you going to take any of them?”

“I don’t know. I’m kind of tempted to just ignore them and hope it all goes away.”

“Indeed,” said Sen. “I suppose that there are amends to be made, but I’m not sure I know how to portion it out. So, I will not ask you for some impossible thing. I will not require that you do anything that will embarrass your sect. I will ask only this. Put a stop to the practice of hounding wandering cultivators from the moment they enter your city. I know it won’t stop every challenge. Nothing will do that. But if wandering cultivators wish to conduct their business and leave without the burden of challenges, they should have at least a chance to do so.”

He Mingze looked both startled and very relieved by Sen’s words. “That can be done, but do you wish nothing else? A lost moment of enlightenment is no small matter. There are punishments that might be doled out. Compensations that might be provided.”

That urge to lash out and punish tried to rear up again, and Sen ruthlessly pushed it down. “Punishing those girls won’t accomplish anything. They were foolish, irresponsible, and, all too likely, following the advice given them by those who should have known better.”

Elder He grimaced. “I fear that you probably have the right of it.”

An idea struck Sen then. “Instead of punishing them, tell them this. That when the wind next blows Judgment’s Gale through Tide’s Rest, I will test their characters and hope they aren’t found wanting.”

Elder He frowned. “What does that mean?”

“I don’t have the faintest idea,” admitted Sen. “And neither will they. But it certainly sounds ominous, doesn’t it?”

“Oh,” said Elder He, chuckling a little. “A prod to force them to search within and burn away that which is unworthy. What a terrible, devious thing to do to them.”

“Devious and terrible, but only to their own betterment.”

Feeling that they had accomplished all that they were going to accomplish, Sen stood to leave. Elder He raised a hand to stop him.

“A personal question, if I might?” asked Elder He.

“Alright,” said Sen, suddenly wary.

“Are you a student of Kho Jaw-Long?”

An impish impulse took Sen, and he shook his head. “No.”

“Oh, I see. It was a matter of some speculation.”

“No, Uncle Kho only taught me the spear. My true master is Feng Ming.”

Elder He blanched at those words and Sen felt a little bad about his joke. He was starting to understand just what a bogeyman his master was to other cultivators.

“Actually,” said Sen, something occurring to him.

“Yes?” asked Elder He, his voice a little shaky.

“I thought of something you could do for me. I need cultivation manuals.”

“Cultivation manuals for one at your level of advancement,” said Elder He, “are often closely guarded sect resources.”

“Oh, no, not for me. I need ones that are appropriate for a qi condensing stage cultivator. They’re difficult to come by here, but I thought you might have a more liberal policy.”

Elder He visibly relaxed. “Yes, I expect we have any number of manuals appropriate for cultivators at that stage. Any affinity in particular?”

“Water and metal,” said Sen.

He wasn’t completely sure that those were right for Lifen, but those seemed the most likely affinities for her based on what he’d seen of her qi usage.

“I’ll have them sent as soon as possible. Where should they go?”

“You can have them delivered to the Silver Crane. I fear I’ll be stuck here for a time yet.”