~~~

Pan Qiu wakes up with a groan. He blinks a few times to clear his hazy vision and sees it is not the open sky above him but a rather familiar ceiling

He’s no longer outside the Inner Disciple’s mansion.

“Good. You are awake. I was beginning to wonder if I should leave you here.”

That voice!

Pan Qiu is on his feet in a flash, his Qi rising around him as the memories of what happened before losing consciousness rush through his mind. Standing in front of him is the root of all his troubles.

Qing Jin.

He looks at him with a bored expression that is completely at odds with the fierce red of his hair and eyes. However, that is just a mask. Pan Qiu knows that to be true. He had seen what lies beneath it when—some time after being humiliated by him and that harlot in the Sparring Hall—Pan Qiu had challenged Qing Jin to another match. There he felt Qing Jin’s true menacing intent. His will to fight had been broken without Qing Jin even needing to lift a finger. That is how dangerous this man is.

No, Qing Jin is not a man.

He’s a beast. A monster.

“What did you do to me?” He asks, doing his best to keep his voice from trembling.

To think he had been shouting at him!

The ordeal in the Summer Forest had been more than enough to convince Pan Qiu he should never involve himself with this person ever again. Just how unbalanced from the poison had he been to do such a thing?!

“Well, you fainted right in front of me, so I brought you in. I considered leaving you out there, but that would just make you a bother to others.”

“Only that?” Pan Qiu frowns. No, it cannot be just that. It is already late at night. They are the only two disciples out in the lobby. That means Qing Jin has been waiting for him to get up for hours. Just the knowledge that he has been completely helpless in the presence of this snake for so long is enough to make Pan Qiu’s skin crawl! “What else happened?’

“You seemed to be suffering from the after-effects of whatever poison you ate, so I decided to do something about that.” Qing Jin shrugs. “That is all.”

“Something about that?” Pan Qiu’s heart leaps inside his chest. His face goes white with terror. “What did you do to me?”

His body has already taken a combat stance. Useless though it may be, he will not go down meekly!

“I just said it. You were suffering from the effects of poison, so I did something about that.” Qing Jin raises an eyebrow. “Are you not satisfied with the results?”

Pan Qiu frowns. Satisfied with the results? What does he mean-

Suddenly, it hits him.

The ache in his muscles that had been his constant companion for the past several weeks is nowhere to be found. His mouth no longer feels dry. His eyes no longer feel heavy. It is as if an oppressive weight has been lifted from him, leaving the air sweeter and the world warmer.

Pan Qiu feels fine. Well, and truly fine.

“You… healed me?”

No. Surely not? The person in front of him is a vicious, cruel monster. Pan Qiu had felt it. He had seen the cold look in those terrifying red eyes. That was the look of someone who did not see people as people!

“Would you rather I hadn't?”

“No!” Pan Qiu immediately holds his hands up and takes a step back. There is absolutely no way he wants to go back to how he was before! “That’s not what I meant! It’s just… why?”

Again, Qing Jin looks at him with the same damnable expression. His red eyes almost seem to glow in the darkness.

“You were poisoned. Do I need another reason? I understand you are being punished, but you clearly left the Medical Pavillion before your treatment was finished. I could hardly be expected to do nothing.”

Left before…?

No, that’s not it. Pan Qiu had been told it was fine if he left for the day. That’s how it had been every day since Elder Cheung had settled on his punishment for the fight in the Summer Forest. Always poisons. Never antidotes. However, he refrains from pointing that out. His skin crawls just from being near Qing Jin. He has no desire to prolong such a thing.

Besides...

“You could hardly be expected to do nothing?” He echoes. “What is that supposed to mean?”

Qing Jin’s red eyes narrow. Pan Qiu takes another step back.

“It means what it means. It seems to me you have recovered from your little episode. Do be sure to follow your doctors’ instructions in the future. Good night.”

Qing Jin turns his back to him and makes his way up the stairs. As he does, some part of Pan Qiu wants to stop him, to call out to him.

He doesn’t.

He stays rooted in place. Alone with his thoughts.

~~~

Feng Hao attacks Liu Jin with a flurry of punches and kicks.

He always aims low, trying to use his short height to his advantage. However, Liu Jin makes sure to keep him at least one arm’s length away from him. The few times Feng Hao gets close, Liu Jin easily bats aside his hits. Throughout it all, Liu Jin never once counters. He never once goes on the offensive. He dodges and deflects, giving ground when necessary and leading Feng Hao around in circles.

Eventually, the child tires himself out.

“H-Ho…” Feng Hao coughs. He’s laid out on the floor, panting. Liu Jin’s eagle is currently on top of his chest. “How?”

The two are in a big, empty room beneath the Sparring Pavillion, one that Liu Jin hadn’t known existed until today. Liu Jin had mentioned that he and Feng Hao may end up attracting too much attention if they kept meeting in public. He had meant it as a way to decrease the frequency of his meetings with Feng Hao, but this had completely escaped the young boy’s notice. Thinking the only problem was that they were meeting out in the open, Feng Hao had instantly suggested this place.

“Young Master, my limbs are much longer than yours,” Liu Jin points out. He lifts his forearm and taps it for emphasis. “In a purely physical confrontation, it is obvious the reach difference will manifest itself.”

Feng Hao had wanted to use long-ranged techniques as well, but Liu Jin had managed to warn him against doing so. Certainly, the wooden floor beneath his feet boasts sturdy endurance, but there’s no telling how well it will hold up against the fire wielded by a prodigy of Feng Hao’s caliber.

“Additionally, you must also consider our cultivation levels.”

Feng Hao is in the Seventh Level of the Nascent Realm. For his age, that is a staggering achievement that marks him as a prodigy among prodigies. However, that’s just the thing. It is a staggering achievement for someone who is only eight-years-old.

Liu Jin is fourteen years old.

He is in the First Level of the Spirit Realm.

Feng Hao may be a prodigy with greater natural talent than even Xiao Nan, but he is not yet Liu Jin’s match in either power or skill.

“I am… aware… but…”

The dejected look on Feng Hao’s face says it all. He never once expected to do so poorly against him.

Most likely, Feng Hao has defeated people who are both older and have higher levels of cultivation than him. Just by sparring with him, Liu Jin can tell Feng Hao’s foundation as a cultivator has been well-established. No doubt, his father has invested many resources into helping him realize his potential: cultivation aids, knowledgeable tutors, and more.

Even among people who are stronger than their level of cultivation would suggest, Feng Hao can be said to be a special case. He is easily stronger than quite a few Inner Disciples.

However, the same goes for Liu Jin.

“In the first place, it was overly ambitious for Young Master to try to fight me while disguising his Qi just because he has gotten a little better at doing so.”

Feng Hao had cited the skill would be of no use if he could not use it during combat situations. Liu Jin had been able to see the folly of such thinking right away but had allowed Feng Hao to act on it, knowing that would help the lesson sink in faster.

“Think about it a little, Young Master. To hide your Qi is a skill used to avoid combat or to launch a surprise attack. From the beginning, using it while fighting misses the point.”

That is not entirely true. [Art of the Roaming Thief] is supposed to allow for that. However, trying to explain that right now would just confuse Feng Hao.

“I thought… I thought I could do it…” Feng Hao mutters. His face is red and not just from the spar.

“Clearly, you could not. You can fight me, or you can hide your Qi. Trying to do both at the same time put you where you are right now. In the future, do avoid overreaching. Young Master is talented, but it is because Young Master is talented that he must be aware of his limits.”

He pokes the fallen Feng Hao with his foot. His eagle chirps as if agreeing with his words.

“Understood?”

“I am sorry,” Feng Hao says. His voice sounds so pitifully sad that Liu Jin instantly feels like apologizing. “I thought I could… impress Elder Brother Jin. I didn’t mean to waste Elder Brother Jin’s time.”

Liu Jin’s reply is quick and decisive.

“You do not need to impress me, and you did not waste my time.”

“But I-”

“Young Master seems to be under the mistaken impression that what he is learning from me is easy or simple. Rest assured, it is neither. Young Master’s progress so far leaves nothing to be desired.”

Feng Hao blinks. “But I-”

“Young Master is used to progressing at a much faster pace,” Liu Jin interrupts him once more. “I understand. However, as I said, this is neither simple nor easy. Do not overthink it, Young Master. You are not failing. You are just not progressing as fast as you’re used to. That, in and of itself, is a lesson for you.”

“A lesson? In what?”

Liu Jin raises an eyebrow. “Patience, Young Master. It pleases me that I’m in a position to teach Young Master something so important.”

“I am not used to being talked like this.” Then, perhaps realizing how it may sound, Feng Hao quickly adds, “I am not complaining! I am not complaining at all! The way Elder Brother Jin teaches me… it is nice.”

“I am quite sure I cannot compete with Young Master’s tutors, but the thought is appreciated.”

“I mean it!” Feng Hao says, rising, so he’s sitting down. His breathing is still a little heavy, his cheeks still pink. “When my tutors teach me, it’s always the same exercises. Then they praise me for doing them well even though it’s what they always see me do! It is… frustrating. I know I can do more, so it always feels like they are... coddling me.”

He puffs his cheeks at the end, likely unintentionally. It would embarrass him to know doing so just makes him look more like a kid.

“Your tutors are moving you through the basic exercises because that is what you need right now, Young Master,” Liu Jin says. It will not do if Feng Hao walks away with a negative impression of his tutors because of him. “You are still young. There will be plenty of time for you to learn more advanced techniques later.”

“Elder Brother is teaching me something advanced.”

“I am teaching you something advanced because I know other people are making sure Young Master will grow into a splendid cultivator. Don’t misunderstand things.”

Chirp. Chirp.

“He apparently agrees,” Liu Jin adds as his eagle chooses that moment to speak out. Feng Hao laughs.

“Thank you, Elder Brother. By the way, can we still…?” Feng Hao makes a vague gesture with his hands. Liu Jin sighs.

“I don’t recall saying I’d ever stop teaching you.”

Feng Hao tweedles his fingers. “And the sparring?”

“On the condition that you don’t try to disguise your Qi while we do it.”

Feng Hao’s eyes shine.

“I won’t let you down!”

~~~

“I heard some disciples talking the other day,” Lu Mei says as she chops some roots. Once again, she and Liu Jin are making some simple medicines in the Medical Pavilion. They are even using the same room as before; the same charmed disciple sits in the corner, taking care of placing temporal seals on the jars with the finished ointment.

“Is that so?” Liu Jin asks, working with mortar and pestle in his hands.

Lu Mei hums in affirmative while masterfully cutting the roots in same-sized pieces.

“It seems you are doing something dangerous.”

“I am not sure what you mean.”

“I am not sure I appreciate being lied to so poorly. It is quite unkind to force a lady to be so blunt.”

Lu Mei’s knife stops.

“You are meeting Feng Zhi’s brother. You are meeting one of the most polarizing figures in the Eternal Flame Clan right now.” Her eyes narrow. “Do you not realize how dangerous it is to associate with that child?!”

Liu Jin keeps working. “I do.”

“I don’t think you do. If you did, you’d want nothing to do with him. I could understand if your paths happened to cross once by chance, but you seem to have met him several times already. You have not been subtle, Jin. If I know, so do others. At this rate, your name will appear in conversations between people you are better off not involving yourself with.”

Liu Jin nods. “I am aware of that.”

Lu Mei takes a deep breath.

At that moment, all the air is sucked out of the room. The charmed disciple starts hacking and coughing. Liu Jin immediately turns to his eagle, but he finds the bird completely at ease.

“Most of the time, I find your quiet nature charming,” Lu Mei says coldly. “Today, it tries my patience. I do not appreciate having my concerns dismissed.”

Irritation rises within him; his hand tightens around the mortar. Liu Jin opens his mouth and…

Stops.

He forces himself to swallow his words and forces his grip to relax. Lu Mei is not privy to the dozens of times he has had this argument with himself. Lu Mei is not his enemy right now. She’s just...

“You are worried about me…”

“I have hardly hidden that. Of course, I am worried about you!” She rises, the chair behind her clattering to the floor as she does. “You are not an idiot, so why are you doing something so obviously foolish?! Have you… Have you been ordered to by Elder Xue?”

“No,” Liu Jin immediately answers. She had mentioned Feng Hao, but she had never told Liu Jin to approach him. He doubted she’d foreseen he would end up meeting him by coincidence so quickly. “I did not mean to brush aside your concerns. I apologize, Mei.”

Her name, without any titles or honorifics, comes out rolling from his lips in a way that feels both too intimate and just right. Lu Mei’s eyes widen by the smallest fraction, surprised and unguarded but only for an instant. The simmering tension in the room slowly fades away, though there is still a small frown on Lu Mei’s face.

“You say the right words, yet from your tone, I sense I won’t like what you’ll say next.”

“Feng Hao…” Liu Jin sighs. “He is lonely. That is the impression I get from him. To abandon him when he obviously seeks company… it feels wrong.”

Lu Mei stares at him.

“You frustrate me sometimes.”

“If it makes you feel better, I frustrate myself.”

“No. No, it does not. You will regret this. You realize that, don’t you?”

Liu Jin sighs.

“I do.”

~~~