Zhao Gang returned to his secret room with calm deliberate steps. He was tempted to rush but to be seen rushing would likely panic his disciples. So he kept his pace even and walked with a smile, but his mind was already digesting what he had observed in the girl.

Upon entering the secret room he smiled, a familiar thought intruding. Now that I have no use for luxury while meditating I am surrounded by it, while when I was young it would have been a great boon and, more often than not, I meditated on hard rock in cold caves. The irony always made him shake his head. His beginnings had not been that humble, not exactly, but he had come a very, very long way since then. He set aside the familiar thoughts and settled himself in to meditate.

The questions that the girl posed were so numerous that he had no hope of answering them all in a reasonable time-frame. His first task, then, was to divide the questions into reasonable groups. The first group was those questions that he could confidently answer, reasonably confidently anyways, with the knowledge he had now. The second group was for questions that he had some hope of pursuing, ones that would be answerable with some research and investigation. The third were questions for which he had no hope of answering, not without experiment and trial anyways.

Of course, his quandary stemmed from the preeminent question of the third group – have we harmed the girl, or will we if we continue? Since, as far as he knew, the situation they found themselves in was utterly unique, there was no way to answer that question. Forget using the spirit pulse as they had, to Zhao Gang’s knowledge no one had ever successfully altered their fundamental aspect directly. It could be molded over time, this was true, but it took years of blood and pain to affect meaningful changes. The only time cultivators undertook such trials was to deepen their connection with specific ‘elements’ or, put another way, to strengthen facets of their aspects that aligned well with other aspects. The reason was complex in theory and simple in practice – these shared facets tended to be more easily understood and could thus carry meaning more easily. The infusion of meaning was fundamentally how one shaped Qi. The more clearly and precisely one could imprint meaning on their Qi, the more powerful the effects of that Qi; hence why cultivators trained to enhance those facets of their aspects.

But this girl could potentially skip all of that hardship and training. There were, fundamentally, three choices in front of him. First, he could leave her be and avoid the possibility of harming her or harming her further, as the case may be. This option was a coward’s option to Zhao Gang’s mind. Being a cultivator meant facing hard choices and taking risks. He didn’t even consider it.

Choosing between the other two paths was much harder. First, he could attempt to ‘purify’ her, essentially attempt to align her own Qi more closely with 'pure' natural essence. His first instinct, however, was that this would be a disaster. If he had to guess, it would rob her of any inherent affinities she might possess, replacing them with… what? Mediocrity? Or would she become a genius of every element? He had no way to know.

The second path was almost as risky to his mind. He could figure out what her natural elemental affinities were and use this process to enhance them, hopefully creating a genius of those particular affinities. The problem was that living beings were never, could never be, beings of just one or two elements. Their essence was always a mix of every facet, though one or two could, at times, dominate the others. The problem was that if he pushed her that direction he would likely cause her aspect to shift and lose its internal harmony. Such disharmony would cripple her at best, with the most likely outcome being her death.

No, the more he thought about it the more he realized that without some sort of guide, some sort of template, he would be foolishly consigning the girl to death. His meditations wandered after that, seeking some inspiration for how to find such a guide. His answer, when he thought of it, was obvious – innate constitutions. Some people were simply born with aspects that were objectively better than others. No one was quite sure why. Theories ranged from the luck of random chance to the emergence of some long-dormant bloodline to the will of the gods. None truly explained the phenomenon, though all were familiar with the results – an innate constitution gave a person an almost unfair advantage in cultivation, granting both extreme affinities to the elements and meridians that were uniquely suited to those affinities. Those with innate constitutions almost always related them to some beast or other, such as a ‘white dragon constitution’ or a ‘blue phoenix constitution’. What gave credence to this interpretation was the fact that many constitutions could manifest some visage of the creatures from which they took the names of these constitutions. Of course, this could be the influence of the name itself, binding the person to that particular image and thus pushing them to manifest their Qi in that way. After all, meaning was very important to how one used Qi.

Thinking of innate constitutions and their connection to animals of mystical and divine nature led Zhao Gang to a plan. It would be risky, crazy, and daring, but it could work. It was certainly a much better plan than trying to manipulate his student’s aspects blindly. Of course, if one of his students ended up dead now he would have to do quite a bit of work to cover it up, but the risk was worth it. If it worked it would change… everything.

He quickly called in his disciples and explained that he would be taking a trip. A day or two, no more, but they were to suspend the students' cultivation until he returned. He didn’t bother explaining where he was going or why; he simply gave his instructions and left. His destination was one of the high heavens, specifically a city by the name of Gulgarro. There he exerted his considerable influence to get a meeting with the city’s most renowned citizen – True Immortal Gian Ting. Unlike Zhao Gang, he had been a True Immortal for longer than any person could remember. His progress on the martial path had long since stalled and he had turned himself to other pursuits, primarily the gathering and raising of extraordinary beasts.

“Immortal Gian,” said Zhao Gang, cupping his hands and bowing respectfully. Technically they were equals, but Immortal Gian had a much higher status than Zhao Gang and, more importantly, he was here to beg a boon.

“Zhao Gang,” called Gian Ting boisterously. “It has been a small while since we last met. Congratulations on your advancement! It is a great day when us few True Immortals gain another brother.”

“Thank you, Immortal Gian. I would be honored to have you call me brother.” Zhao Gang was careful to avoid coming off as obsequious, but he didn’t want to insult Gian Ting by presenting himself as an equal either.

“Come in then, Brother Zhao, and have some tea with me.” Zhao Gang knew he could not refuse. After all, what immortal couldn’t afford the time to observe common courtesies? Resigned, he accepted. What followed was three hours of cordial verbal sparring. Little of import was said, though much was implied. Finally, Zhao Gang found an opening to address his true business.

“Brother Gian, I came to visit regarding a boon that I would like to ask of you. I have an opportunity to do something grand for several disciples of mine, but I fear I would need to borrow a beast or two from your menagerie. Would Brother Gian be willing to assist me?”

“Borrow members of my menagerie? What could you possibly need them for? I couldn’t possibly allow such a thing if they might come to harm.” Judging by his tone, Gian Ting was sensing a juicy story and wouldn’t be willing to cooperate without at least some idea of why.

“Brother, I do not mean to offend but this matter is quite sensitive. I would be willing to share my business with you if you would be willing to swear an oath to the heavens not to share it. I can promise that if my experiment is successful you would benefit greatly.” Zhao Gang said this boldly. He knew that asking for an oath of the heavens in such a straightforward manner could be viewed as an insult, but he hoped that the other Immortal’s curiosity would win out over his pride.

“You wish to bind me by the laws of heaven?” asked Gian Ting, a dangerous edge in his words. “Brother, such a request should not be made lightly.”

“I would not ask it at all,” Zhao Gang said quickly, “Save that what I am about could devastate the younger generations if it were widely known. Indeed, many might find their paths irrevocably damaged to learn they missed such an opportunity.”

“Truly?” asked Gian Ting.

“Truly,” said Zhao Gang. “This secret challenges the very foundations of what even we immortals understand about cultivation. Even more important, it is remarkably simple in application, despite its heaven-defying implications.”

“I must admit that you have me intrigued. Very well, I will swear an oath but it will be one of my choosing. If it does not satisfy you then our business will be at an end.” The danger had faded from Gian Ting’s voice but Zhao Gang wasn’t fooled. He was aware that he wasn’t out of the woods yet.

“I am sure that whatever oath Brother Gian swears will suffice,” Zhao Gang said with sincerity.

“Very well,” said Gian Ting. “I swear by the heavens that I will not share, through any means, what we discuss during this meeting, save if it represents a direct threat to the life or health of me or mine.”

Zhao Gang nodded. “That will indeed suffice, though I notice that it only covers this meeting. I hope that if you agree to assist me you might expand your oath to involve our business moving forward as well.”

“We shall see. Now, Brother Zhao, tell me what business is it that would have you risk offending me so?” The edge returned to Gian Ting’s voice, but Zhao Gang breathed a sigh of relief. He knew that his story would capture the other immortal’s interest.

Zhao Gang told a trimmed down version of the story, not mentioning Earth, his budding sect, the other students, or anything else that wasn’t immediately relevant. When he finished he asked Gian Ting simply, “Brother Gian if you were given the opportunity, how would you mold a disciple’s aspect?”

As expected, the question stumped Gian Ting for many minutes. Zhao Gang sat in silence and waited while the other immortal thought it through. “I must admit,” he said finally, “I haven’t the slightest clue.”

“Neither did I,” said Zhao Gang. “I meditated on it for many hours before I finally came up with a bit of inspiration – Innate constitutions.”

“Innate constitutions? How could that and this possibly be…” His words trailed off as he quickly connected the idea with Zhao Gang’s visit and his request. Zhao Gang could see when he did; Gian Ting’s eyes took on a spark and his face slowly split into a broad smile.

“Zhao Gang, that is either the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard or utterly brilliant. I can’t decide which. But it certainly sounds worth trying. If it works it would certainly make my little hobby much more relevant.” The smile hadn’t faded from Gian Ting’s face yet. “You wouldn’t be willing to share the results of this little experiment with me, would you? Might be that I would be interested in doing the same for a favored descendant or two if it works.”

“I wouldn’t consider otherwise,” said Zhao Gang. “It seems to me that since I require your assistance we should be partners in this endeavor, Brother Gian.”

“Yes, yes, I would very much appreciate being included. Now, to select a beast that might fit your needs. Hmm. It just so happens that I have a very interesting pair that just mated. Their offspring is still quite young, less than six months, but just old enough to be taken away for a short time. I think Brother Zhao will agree that using a fully matured beast would likely result in more harm than good.” Zhao Gang just nodded and said nothing, letting Gian Ting follow his logic. “In that case, this would be the perfect specimen, a newly born Denglong.”

Zhao Gang sucked in a breath, startled. One should know that beasts were divided into many categories by the strength and mystic nature – mortal, earth, sky, fiend, divine, and Godbeast. Even dragons and phoenixes were only considered divine beasts. Unlike the other classifications, Godbeasts weren’t any particular species but rather individuals of any species that had transcended the divine realm into true immortality, much like cultivators. It wasn’t that there weren’t differences between them beyond that demarcation, of course, but rather than making distinctions beyond the boundary of Godbeast was pointless since each one was enough to sunder creation within their domain.

The Denglong was an innately divine species, but one with a particularly brilliant lineage – of all the Godbeasts, the Denglong reigned supreme, with more members of the species crossing the boundary from Divine to Godbeast than any other. Their great ancestor ruled at the side of the Eternal Emperor, his word law among all the beasts of all the planes. For Gian Ting to have one in his menagerie was astounding. For him to have a mated pair? A miracle.

When Zhao Gang heard the news he vaguely felt the dual hands of Fate and Fortune guiding him. This child, if she succeeded, would truly be blessed of the heavens. Of course, she would not be borrowing their bloodline – such a thing was utterly forbidden by the Denglong and punishable by the death of nine generations – but rather the Denglong's aspect. Zhao Gang felt sure that if the Denglong knew such a thing was possible he would outlaw this as well, but since he did not there was nothing stopping Zhao Gang from doing so.

There was only one more hurdle. The Denglong were a divine species, not only able to speak like a human but take human form. They could not simply go in and take the child. The couple would have to agree. “How will we get the couple to agree?” asked Zhao Gang simply.

“They will not object,” said Gian Ting. “They have been my guests for a very long time. I am the one who helped them find each other. As long as we both are willing to swear that the child will come to no harm they will put up no resistance. The Denglong are not as attached to their children as we humans, of course, but they would not agree if they suspected it was possible for the child to come to harm. Let me speak with them.”

Gian Ting took his leave, bidding Zhao Gang to await his return. Zhao Gang meditated for some time, allowing the weight of what he was attempting to wash over him. If the Denglong Great Ancestor knew of this it was likely that he and all his disciples would be wiped from existence, immortal or not. Still, Zhao Gang couldn’t help but feel excitement bubble up in him. To even meet a Denglong was considered a great blessing. This would go well beyond that.

After a time Gian Ting returned with the couple, both in human form. The pair were beautiful beyond compare, imprinting their visages on Zhao Gang’s heart in an instant. He knew that no matter who else he met in this life their beauty would always pale next to these two. The woman held a bundle in her arms. There was not a human infant swathed therein, but rather a baby Denglong. The creature was cute but surprisingly mundane looking, with the head poking out resembling a camel with two baby horn stubs.

“You wish to take our child on a short trip?” asked the father.

“Indeed. I am willing to swear to their safety during this trip. Where we are going no one will find it and none there would dare offer harm.” Zhao Gang put as much sincerity in his tone as he could.

“Swear then that you will return our child in one month, unharmed. Further, you must swear that you will not attempt to steal the secrets of her blood or otherwise violate the laws of the Great Ancestor. If you do this, we shall allow it. This will negate any debt between us, Gian Ting.” The father’s voice was firm and uncompromising but not unkind. The Denglong were famed both for their righteousness and their grace; the father did not disappoint.

Zhao Gang quickly swore the oath before taking possession of the infant. If he was going to make this happen he had a lot of preparations to make.

It took Zhao Gang an extra two days to make the rest of the preparations. Given the value of the child he had been entrusted with, he did not even hint to his disciples what his preparations were, taking care to do them all himself. The child never left his side for all that time, though he used every trick he could think of to disguise its presence. None of his disciples even suspected the presence of the child.

Xinasa approached him on the third day. “Master, the child is getting anxious to continue and is afraid that she has somehow disappointed us. What should I tell her?”

“Tell her that she will be resuming her exercises tomorrow. The preparations will be completed by then.”

“Master, I’d be happy to offer assistance with any necessary preparations,” Xinasa said sincerely. Zhao Gang knew that the offer was double-edged; she wanted to help, true, but she also wanted to know exactly what he was preparing for the girl. Unfortunately for her, he wasn’t willing to share. The fewer people who knew the better. If the Denglong Great Ancestor caught even a hint of what he was doing there would be no escape.

“I have things well in hand, Xinasa, but thank you for the offer. If you will excuse me now, I must be sure to finish on time.” Zhao Gang’s dismissal caused a flash of hurt to cross Xinasa’s face but she covered it well, bowing and exiting without another word.

The next day Zhao Gang sat in a hidden chamber beneath the practice courtyard, the baby Denglong sequestered within a powerful formation in front of him. It had taken great effort to empty the formation of natural energy, then draw out the Qi of the Denglong. Finally, there was enough that the girl would have a hope of drawing in a sufficient amount to proceed. It had taken some small ingenuity to empty the formation then get the Denglong inside. He wouldn’t be able to remove it until the girl had either succeeded or failed.

Above him, the students were just filing into the courtyard. Tara, who had been waiting anxiously these past few days, was overjoyed that she was finally going to be allowed to continue her exercises. The fairy lady had told her it would be slightly different this time, but she didn’t care. As long as she got to play with the light again she was happy. She was sure that she had done something wrong and was being punished, no matter what the fairy lady said.

One of the funny men led her into a circle and told her to sit inside, though he didn’t sit down with her. Instead, he sat outside of the circle. Tara was so excited she didn’t wait for him to tell her to start. She quickly assumed the proper pose and started breathing then closed her eyes and imagined the light surrounding her. It took only a moment before she could feel it in the very air surrounding her. It didn’t feel like before though, when it pressed in on her, practically begging to enter. Instead, it felt thin and weak, requiring her to stretch out to it, reaching with all her might to connect with it.

Once she reached out and connected with it she had to coax it in slowly, where before it rushed. She was impatient and tried to force it, but every time she did it slipped from her grasp. Again and again, she had to force herself to slow down, to calm down and summon the light to her softly. It was hard, so hard, because she wanted it so bad. She wanted to feel the light inside her again, the joy and the rightness of it.

Eventually, she calmed enough that she managed to take in the first tiny little wisps but there was so little that it didn’t even start to pool before slipping away. Frustrated she opened her eyes.

“It’s too hard,” she pouted.

“I promise that if you keep with it, it will work. Just keep trying,” said the funny man.

“But it’s hard!” she cried. She just wanted it to work as it did before!

The fairy lady must have heard her because she came over and sat next to the funny man. “Little one,” she said once she was seated. “How is it that everyone else works hard, yet you cannot be asked to do so?”

“It’s just too hard,” grumped Tara.

“You tasted success too soon,” said the fairy lady. “It was too easy. Already you become spoiled.” The fairy lady paused for a moment before nodding. “Fine, come out of the circle. We will let others try.”

Tara stared at the fairy lady in shock. They were going to give up on her just like that? Tara had the feeling that if she came out of the circle she would never get to practice her exercises again, that they would send her away.

“No,” said Tara.

The fairy lady looked at her for a long moment before speaking. “Then you’ll do your exercises even though they are hard?” Tara nodded. “Without all this complaining and fuss? You’re disturbing the other students.” Tara nodded again.

“Good,” said the fairy lady. “Start over.”

Tara wasn’t sure she wanted to, but now she felt like she didn’t have a choice. If she gave up they would send her away and she would never get to do her exercises again. Her only other option was to try the exercises, no matter how hard they were. Biting her lip Tara waited for a long moment before finally nodding and closing her eyes. It was hard at first because she kept thinking about the fairy lady and how she was being so mean instead of thinking about her breathing and the light, but then someone started talking to her, telling her what to do. At first, she tried to ignore it but that only made it harder. Finally, she gave up and started following along. The voice was slow and calm, guiding her forward. It moved much slower than she had before, but it also kept her from trying too hard or moving too fast.

Golden light started to seep into Tara as she listened to the voice. Time lost meaning. Before she knew it, the golden light at her core gave her the feeling of wanting to be free. She didn’t hesitate, letting it out. The giddiness came again but that wasn’t the only feeling. Tara couldn’t describe it, didn’t have enough experience or vocabulary to even try, but she couldn’t say she didn’t like it. It wasn’t bad, just different. Together with the joy the light normally brought Tara was hard-pressed to stay focused. The only reason she tried to hang on at all was that she knew that if she didn’t these feelings would fade and she’d have to start all over to get them back. She wanted to bask in the light, sure, but if she did it would go away faster.

Despite knowing the consequences, Tara couldn’t just ignore her reward and keep on. Instead, she controlled herself just enough that she kept the proper pose and kept breathing in the proper pattern. She stopped trying to pull in more light entirely, instead just basking in the afterglow of the light flooding her and lighting her every nerve on fire with a peaceful euphoria that made her think of her bed first thing in the morning and puppies with soft fur.

This time the feelings lasted longer, which greatly pleased Tara. She told herself that in the future she would repeat this process, allowing her to wallow in her happiness while not having to start over completely. Once the light had faded enough, Tara set herself back to the task of gathering enough of the light again. It might have been her imagination, but to Tara, it felt ever so slightly easier this time. The thought disappeared as she once again let the light loose. Joy suffused her once more.

“Tara,” said the funny man. “Tara wake up.” She opened her eyes, a pout on her face. This funny man had interrupted her wallowing and she wasn’t at all happy about it. As soon as her eyes were open, however, sleepiness mixed itself with the joyful giddiness of the fading light. It was all Tara could do to avoid immediately lying down and going to sleep.

“Tara,” repeated the funny man, “I need you to come out of the circle and then you can go to sleep, alright?”

“Alright,” said Tara around a huge yawn. She got up slowly, feeling clumsy and sore, and stumbled toward the funny man. As soon as she crossed the circle he grabbed her and picked her up, putting her head on his shoulder. The last thought that crossed her mind was that he smelled kinda funny too. Then she was asleep.