In the wake of the inaugural Thundering Tortoise Sect Tactical Attack Session - as Jian Chen has retroactively named their three-person 5-minute planning session - it has become painfully apparent that they needed to somehow rope an elder into their fold.

The first step though, is for the trio to become an attractive prospect to entice an elder’s interest...

Now that all three know the guixigong to some extent, Jian Cheng feels confident he can safely elevate his friends... Yes, it is time to bring out the sacred beast blood essence!

Conveniently, he has left out a few minor details in his re-telling of the Kong Wang saga. It was Jian Cheng’s story to tell to be fair, and he had his reasons. Naturally, he’d glossed over several of the boring bits to maintain listener interest and in the interests of saving time. The painful parts - including two extended 10-minute screaming sequences - he felt lowered the tone too much. They had been edited down, shortened somewhat to an economical single word: “stoically.”

As in, the pain of the meridian healing shemozzle had been handled “stoically”. Likewise, with the holy beast blood debacle, also borne “stoically”. Essentially the truth... In essence...

It wasn’t so much that he was ashamed of his bawling and blubbering... No, he was more concerned that his so-called ‘friends’ would enjoy the recounting far too much. His very real fear was that it would become an oft-repeated anecdote, or worse he’d somehow earn a nickname from it... And nicknames are not nice names... Cry Baby Cheng?

Now where was that darned Fatty at?

Fen Ling has gone on one of her rare excursions with Xiao Ma, taking Yama to pig out at the commissary, which left him alone with his porcine friend... Hah!

He loves it when a plan comes together.

“Ah, there you are!” He finds his friend in the kitchen. Of all places...

“Fatty, remember when I said I could improve your cultivation future?”

“No, you said you could raise my tier up!”

“Well, I’m about to do both!” Jian Cheng announced with a flourish, retrieving a vial with one of Kong Wang’s essence drops of blood.

“Will it hurt?” Fatty asked suspiciously accepting the vial and sniffing it...

Jian Cheng can only sigh heavily, shaking his head sadly and slowly. Where is the trust?

However, he isn’t going to baldly lie to his friend’s face... Not if he didn’t have to...

“Possibly.”

“How much?”

’Remember that time you were walking in the forest and stubbed your little toe on that log.”

“How could I forget, I actually tripped afterwards and fell into a thorn bush, got torn to shreds--”

“So it should be like that time.”

“Oh, okay then,” Fatty wipes his sweaty brow, then promptly swallows the blood drop.

“I remember there were thousands of thorns... grandfather spent all night removing them, some got into the darnedest places I’ll tell you... Worse it turned out I was allergic and got an infection-- Wait, which bit were you talking about?”

Silence.

“The toe right? Tell me it was only the little toe!”

“We’ll see in a second or two won’t we....”

“Ahh, gahhh, aarghh, ahh!”

“Are you alright?” Jian Cheng appears puzzled... It is all an act of course!

“Uh-uh uhhh, aarghh!”

“What do you think I should do?” Ah, it was all coming back to him. All the words he’d heard during his agony.

“Ahh, ahhh, blaarghh, ahh!”

“What? You’re not sure?” He must have suppressed the painful memories somehow... Until now!

“Ahh, uh, gahhh!”

“Can’t you speak clearer?” But today each callous line is one to be treasured. Every one felt like a precious connection, a link through space and time, to his benefactor brother...

“Ahh, ahhh, uh-uh!”

“I’ll take that as a no.” Suddenly the recalled lines are instantly springing to mind, before dancing down his tongue and gleefully running out his mouth.

“Aghh, ugh, ahhh!”

“What to do… What to do…” This is brilliant! Hmm, it does beg the question though, had Big Brother Wang been similarly torturing him on purpose?

“I know, blink twice if you think I should step in and help.” Making fun of someone in the twisted throes of agony was truly too cruel... He just can’t ever see Benefactor Wang being so heartless...

“Arghh, uh, ahhhhhh!”

“Um, that’s too much blinking, I can’t tell if it’s twice or twenty…” He should probably stop too.... After the next line though, because it is a classic!

“Uh-uh, ahhh… Aargh…”

“It’s rather difficult to know exactly what you’re thinking. You definitely need to work on your communication skills.” Ha, ha! Pure gold...

“Ahh, uggh, ahhhhh!”

“Uh, I’m just going to jump in.” Promises, promises...

“Aarrghh….”

“Ready?” And one for luck!

“uh, ahhhhhh”

“On one, two, three...” Jian Cheng’s chest puffed up in pride. He’d added that last one himself. He felt like he’d made some small contribution to the Thundering Tortoise Clan's holy canon...

“Aaarrghhh….”

“Have you tried circulating your qi?”

“Uh? Ahhh...”

“There you go! That’s it... You probably should have thought of that a lot earlier. At least you’ve already been taught how to do it...”

As this world’s Thundering Tortoise Sect Senior Elder, Jian Cheng, has no sympathy whatsoever... Soft pork bun of a boy! Young people have it far too easy these days...

While he had been laying it on thick but, the boy had no real fear of repercussions. Fatty would forgive him in less than five minutes time... Because... Major sect announcement, thunderous drum roll please... Fatty is about to become eligible for the inner court!... No, scratch that.... Fatty is about to become eligible for free food for life!

Yes, that is a much better tack to take - always know your audience... Anyways, as the ancient saying maintains: "No pain; no gain!"

Jian Cheng actually had a theory - one he’ll later tout as a cold hard fact - that enduring the pain for as long as possible brought the most benefits out of the divine beast blood!. He feels that circulating qi from the get go would cut short the melding process, leading to less benefits, so not even an option...

------------------------

Two days later.

“Ahh, ahhh, aarghh, ahh!”

Fen Ling has also swallowed the sacred beastline blood too. And his whole story, hook, line and sinker...

She hadn’t even argued. Or even questioned him. Jian Cheng simply held out the vial, and she’d snatched it out of his hand. She believed him so much. Unlike that darned Fatty, who for some reason is always so strangely suspicious of Jian Cheng’s motives...

The contrast makes him truly treasure Fen-er’s trust! Plus, it will have further uses in the future...

He gazes down fondly at the shuddering little girl with a thousand thundering tortoises rampaging around her meridians... No thanks necessary Fen-er, what are friends for?

Snarky comments apparently...

“Harden up.” Fatty offered to help. It had been one of the main conditions of their wary truce...

“Uh-uh uhhh, aarghh!”

“Such a girl,” Fatty mutters, more than a little gleefully.

Such face. Jian Cheng snorts at the hypocrisy... Might as well begin...

“Ahh, ahhh, blaarghh, ahh!”

“Are you alright?” Jian Cheng appears puzzled... It’s all an act of course.

In the time it takes to make a cup of tea - he knows because Fatty has actually made and drunk one - later.

“Have you tried circulating your qi?”

“Uh? Ahhh...”

“There you go! That’s it...You probably should have thought of that a lot earlier...”

“Aargh, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!... Both of you.... Never talk to me again!” Fen Ling stands up and stomps off, albeit a bit unsteadily, into her bedroom and slams the door shut.

As is to be expected, Fen Ling’s first words after her infusion were a little more animated and dramatic than Fatty’s. At least she’d used her words...Fatty had just growled and tried to throttle him with those huge hands of his...

Jian Cheng isn’t too concerned about Little Ling-er. She’d come around soon, probably come a full circle as well... Especially once she’d hears the benefits’ speech he prepared earlier... Everyone loves benefits!