The saltwater wasn't all that concentrated, not that I knew what was normal. My whole bucket had evaporated after two whole days.

And that was with me getting impatient and setting it down next to the fire in the night. All in all there wasn't much salt gathered on the strong, though more than I'd feared in my worst case predictions.

Still, any business relying on salt would need quite some time to take off. And if I used the same methods as we did back home - just letting the water dry out in the sun - it wouldn't take long until someone copied my methods, and my monopoly would be broken.

Which meant I'd need to do something in the meantime. I could just move into the forest, but I was a creature of the modern world still, and living without any amenities, even the very basic ones this town had, meant I had to stay.

Well, working as a seamstress wasn't all that bad. It was kinda fun by now actually. Which meant I'd need to make a decision. Did I want to sell qi enhanced clothes, or stay a normal seamstress? Both had their advantages, though I'd likely have to move if I wanted to stay a normal seamstress, seeing as the captain hadn't even considered that possibility.

Which meant it was too strange to consider and thus not worth trying to convince him of. It was tough! I didn't know what to do!

And I had no one left who I could ask for advice.

After getting myself back together, and freshened up a bit more, I headed out once again, on my way to the shopkeeper of my trust. I knew the fox better, but he had even less knowledge of humans and their professions than I did. And he probably wouldn't understand my sadness, seeing where he came from and what he was.

"Hello again. How can I help you today?" The shopkeep asked with a friendly smile, the shop itself once again empty apart from the two of us. How his shop was ways empty, I didn't know.

"I'm here for one thing." I said, pausing for dramatic effect. "A little advice. You're one of the only people I can ask. And the oldest."

"It always warms my heart, helping youngsters. Ask you question girl. And I will do my best to answer." He said.

"It's Triss now." I corrected. "But that doesn't matter. So, what's a spirit seamstress?"

"Holt it right there Triss. I will be right back." The shopkeep said, and vanished in the back for a moment, returning with two glasses and a bottle a moment later. Actual glass!

"Doesn't matter she says. You are wrong young Triss, advancing your cultivation is always a reason to celebrate. Now drink up." He said.

I pouted at him. Once again an irresponsible adult, children shouldn't be allowed to drink alcohol this young. Or someone in mourning! I took the glass of wine nonetheless, and glared at the old man. If that drink wasn't significantly better than mom's I wouldn't drink more than a sip!

I gingerly brought the glass up to my mouth, and took a quick sip. I'll be damned. That was one good wine. At least compared to mom's. I took another sip, feeling it burn down my throat only slightly.

Quite some alcohol in there then. Good.

"What?" I asked, seeing as the old man was looking at me strangely.

"That's not how you drink wine with another person young lady." He said.

Before continuing to explain me basic rules I knew, but decided to forgo in the heat of the moment.

"Old men and their rules." I complained nonetheless.

The shopkeeper in front of me only laughed, taking a sip himself.

"So. You want to know about spirit seamstresses or tailors then." He mused. "I guess the mayor's lackey offered you to work as one. It's a good job. Lots of different things you can do as one too.

The easiest is probably just making normal clothes, and imbusing them with qi. It's quite the unpopular method though, seeing as you have to sacrifice a part of your own cultivation to do so.

No most spirit tailors use rare, naturally qi filled materials to achieve the same effect. I don't really know how either does their stuff, but you're a smart girl and sure to figure it out." He explained.

We clinked out glasses, and both took another sip.

"It's quite the prosperous profession, as cultivators generally have more money to spend than mortals do, and are doing so quite frivolously, seeing as they are only one fortuitous encounter from gathering more." He continued.

Be took another sip, and looking down, I saw my glass was nearly half empty.

"You will have problems getting your revenge that way though. Spirit tailors aren't all that powerful, and while rich they are not that rich. Sure, you could give all enemies of your enemies a discount, and not sell to them, but that'd be very unlikely to work.

Now I am sure you have things to do, being an important cultivator like you are now, not some gossiping old man like me, so drink up and get to it. No rest for the wicked." He commanded.

I glared at him. And I was going to gleefully tell him what he just told me. In detail.

"It's rude to drink a big gulp of wine. And so obviously throwing someone out. It's simply not something you do." I explained with a shiteating grin, took a small sip, and opened my mouth to continue.

"Now, now. I apologize for my previous lecture. But it would really be for the best were you to return to you activities now." He stressed.

"Fine. Thanks for the drink, it was delicious." I said, gulping the rest of my glass down in a single turn, turned on my heels, and marched out of the shop.

Now, what was he alluding to? Probably the mayor returning soon. Which meant I should be out of the barracks by then, or have my aura under control, one way or the other.

I did not know how long I would take to get my aura under control, and didn't feel close to a breakthrough too. Which meant I should move out.

Easy enough.

I entered the barracks, and made my way over the to captain's office, knocking on the door the moment I arrived.

"Enter." He called.

"Hello there Triss, what can I help you with today?" He asked. "Did you make a decision?"

"I did." I answered. "I'm going to be a spirit seamstresses, for better or worse I am no fighter, nor do I want to be."

He didn't need to know my plans after all. My nice life was over, my cultivation exposed to the wrong people. Really, how could my plans have changed that much over such a short amount of time. Regardless, my eyes focused back on my opposite.

"Very good, I am happy to see you made the right decision. You can move back in your house until better accommodations have been found. Anything else?" He said with a smile.

I huffed. What an oblivious idiot.

"I don't need a new house mine is just fine! What about my mother though?" I asked.

"You can find her at the chapel. She has already been prepared, so you just need to go there, to release her soul from its mortal bonds and gift it back to the heavens." He said.

"Thank you. Where do I find the chapel?" I asked.

"It's on your side of the town, furthest from the ocean. A really big building, can't miss it." He said.

"I'll be off then, thank you for taking care of me." I said.

I turned around and marched out if the door. A short detour had my clothes and bucket returning in my possession, and I was off.

I remembered that I did have some formal clothing, a robe a all things, so I'd wash, change and go see my mother's soul off.

I stood in front of the chapel, it really couldn't be missed, and hesitated.

"And who might you be child?" An old voice asked.

I looked up from the speck of dirt I had been staring at for the last few minutes, and saw an old person. They were so old in fact I couldn't discern any gender, though they looked quite fit for that.

"I am Triss. And you are?" I answered.

"I am but a servant of the heavens. What brings you here, to my doorstep?"

"I am here for my mother." I said. "To send her soul to join the heavens."

"Ah yes, that poor woman is your mother then." The priest person said. "Come on in then. Do you know what you have to do?"

"No. I have never been here." I answered. "And no offense, but I'd rather not be here right now."

"None taken young Triss. Now, mourning the dead is hard, especially when their soul still lingers in the mortal plane.

Her body is already prepared, as is the pyre. I see you already wear mourning clothes, so you are set.

You will have to carry your mother's corpse, and walk the hall of mourning, letting all your feelings of sadness, of regret, of bitterness, of rage and anger flow into your clothes. First you will place your mother on the pyre, and add your clothes on top of her.

The heavens will ignite the pyre, and cleanse your mother's soul, free you of the heavy weight her death left you with, and allow you to move forwards. And allow you to smile when you remember her again." They explained.

"I'll need a second pair of clothes?" I asked, already turning around to fetch one. "I didn't know, sorry!"

"Don't worry child, you will not. The heavens will only cleanse your robe, not destroy it." They said.

Soon enough I was standing next to my mother' body, and her soul apparently. She looked just like she was sleeping, now that I couldn't see the terrible injury that killed her anymore.

I spike of sadness and anger shot through me, but I suppressed it, picked her up very carefully, and moved through the now open door next to me.

I walked, and felt myself. I felt my soul, stronger than I ever did before, how it was still in turmoil, how my emotions affected me still. And I examined them, one by one, and pushed those pertaining my mother's death out, to be caught by my clothes.

All my grief, my sadness, my refret about never having a chance to tell her the whole truth, the anger at her murder. Everything.

Just as I finished the feeling faded, I was back in my body, though it somehow felt lighter, easier to walk now.

I respectfully placed my mother's body upon the pyre in the middle of the round garden surrounding me, stripped out of my clothes, and carefully draped them over my mother's form, taking a single step back.

A moment later the whole pyre burst into flames, flames that ate and consumed the whole pyre at once, before forming into an image of my mother.

"I love you child." She said, and her form exploded into light with a flash.

When I could see again nothing was left in the middle. Nothing but my robe, perfectly clean and ready to be born again.

I quickly dressed, and followed the new way out of the garden that appeared once I finished.

I arrived next to the priest again, with no door behind my back.

"How do you fe child?" They asked.

I took stock of myself, and i did feel better. It seemed the suffocating feeling of sadness and rage that had accompanied me for the last days had been washed away.

I still missed her dearly, but wouldn't collapse in tears the moment I stopped doing something, or thought about her for a moment.

"I feel better." I said. "Thank you for your help."

"I am but a servant of the heavens, you can always seek me out for advice child, I am here, will always be here, and have been here since this building existed."

They said, and vanished.

Time to go back home. I had work to do, plans to make and a revenge to plot. After all I still felt the burning desire for vengeance. Though that desire mostly stemmed from the fact that I did not want to be known as a cultivator, and now was.