The morning after the trio’s experiments in cultivation, Boneroot had just woken up and changed into his sect robes when he turned toward the door and found a surprise waiting.

“Didya miss me?”

“AH!”

Why Venh felt the need to actually enter the bedroom to bother him, Boneroot didn’t know. He could guess, though.

“Is your cultivation art hinged on annoying people? Do you practice the Fist of Incessant Prodding? The Wail of Eternal Ire?”

“You’re clever in the morning. A rare quality.”

The average-looking man was leaning against the door frame, just to be as imposing as possible. Boneroot wasn’t pleased with the compliment, either.

“What do you want?”

“To check on my favorite young cultivator, of course!”

“You must not know many, then,” Boneroot said with rapidly dwindling patience.

“Correct, but that doesn’t make it less true. Besides, don’t you think you owe me some gratitude?”

Boneroot stared hard at the man for a moment before he realized the implication.

“Right, my team.” Boneroot exhaled and dipped his head with respect. “That is actually a big deal. Thank you Venh.”

“We’ve talked about this. You take the fun out of it when you act all sincere.”

“Well,” Boneroot rolled his eyes as he spoke. “I’d be more partial to letting you have your fun if you’d managed to get Zhi Zhen off the team. She’s a nightmare.”

“What?! Do you know how hard I had to lobby to get her on your team. Edri was going to stick her with her brother. How boring would that be?”

Boneroot swung at him. His anger was replaced with admiration when he noticed the cultivator standing on his outstretched fist. Just like in the stories. In the stories, of course, the immortal didn’t need to hunch over to avoid his head scraping the ceiling. Still, though.

“Cool, right?” Venh wiggled his eyebrows from on high.

“Very.”

“Anyway, how did yesterday go? I was busy with ‘responsibilities’ and such. Did you manage to fix their cultivation techniques?”

“If you already know that much, how do you not know how it went?”

“I do, obviously, but that’s hardly a conversation starter.”

Boneroot let out an agonized sigh. It was too early for Venh. It was always too early for Venh.

“Do you have any suggestions? Guang seemed to be improving by the end of the day, but Iris is still struggling. I don’t actually know how to help them. I’m just repeating what Kroshieshi told me when I was still in the Red realm.”

“Well, like you, Iris cultivates a personal art, so there’s no blueprint from which to work. Guang likely just had to make a few adjustments to the way he was taught to cultivate, even if it was by a complete buffoon in his father. I’ve been doing some research, you know. That’s beside the point, though. Iris will need to figure out for herself the best meditation technique for her cultivation art. From there, you can help iron out the inefficiencies like you did yesterday.”

After thinking over his words, Boneroot asked, “What about the Luminous Way, though? In that first class with Chih Yuto, he didn’t talk about the sect art at all. How do its practitioners learn its cycling, or combat techniques?”

“Ah,” Venh tilted his head back. “You’re, unfortunately, misinterpreting the purpose and composition of a sect art. They are, by design, incomplete. If a clan art is a blueprint to reach the Indigo, or even Violet realm, a sect art is one to reach the Yellow, or Green realm. The masters who’ve cultivated the Luminous Way into the Blue realm or beyond have done so largely with their own techniques. Can you guess why?”

The answer was obvious once the problem was pointed out.

“Oh, it’s because of the nobles, right?”

“Correct! Naturally, the sect can’t be allowed to provide commoners with a clearcut way to match the noble cultivation arts. Sect politics is tiring, as you’ll come to understand in time. More importantly, congratulations are order. You’ve uncovered the grand secret of Spatial techniques!”

“Wait, really?” Boneroot should have known better.

“No, but you figured out how to empower your Radiant Claw a few weeks earlier than I expected. Good job! Incorporating ambient essence into your techniques doesn’t often come naturally to cultivators with attunements outside of Fire, Water, Wind, and Earth.”

“I don’t really get why you couldn’t have just told me to do that, but thanks, I guess.”

“If I told you, you wouldn’t get it. Don’t lose sight of what cultivation is, Boneroot. You are on the path of the immortal and that means attempting to understand the nature of life, itself. Just like Iris will need to find her own meditation technique, you have to experiment with essence on your own. Arts and tutelage and sects can only take a cultivator so far.”

Boneroot realized his half-assed mentor was actually being serious for once. He turned his full attention to the man.

“Those who aren’t willing to prod the limits of what’s possible and experiment with what essence can and can’t be made to do will never make it out of the lower realms. All the strongest cultivators have one thing in common and it’s delusion. It’s the base audacity of a person dead set on breaking the rules of what a human should be able to do. If you’re not arrogant enough to try to make the very fabric of the world do your bidding, you’re doomed to fail.”

“That would have been a really powerful speech if you weren’t perched on my arm like an owl.”

“That enhances the speech! Owl’s are notoriously wise! I’ve met one in the Violet realm, for you information and—”

Venh cut off in the middle of his rant to disappear from the boy’s house. A few seconds later, Boneroot heard his two teammates entering his home. They had agreed to meet at Boneroot’s cottage to check in on their progress after Iris and Guang attended Basic Cultivation. Apparently Chih Yuto was even harsher the second day than the first. At the very least, they took it in relatively good spirits.

Kuroki had to be forcefully roused from sleep, but they were soon ready for more efficiency practice. Guang managed to go a full forty minutes without any drops in efficiency, but Iris was still struggling. To her credit, she was at least getting better at not physically expressing her frustration. However, she was also starting to doubt herself.

“Am I just not cut out for this? Do I just belong in the Red realm?”

“Do I need to bring up Bao again? No, you just need to get over this hurdle. Maybe your ki instructor can help? It’s Yun, right? She seems like one the Sect Experts actually taking the teaching part of their job seriously. She’s bound to know something about cultivating Lightning ki, right?”

Iris begrudgingly stopped beating herself up at the same time that the three of them realized they had no idea where they were supposed to go for their Ki Training classes. A quick foray into the world of begging for directions later, the group found themselves at a building in the dead center of the mountain plateau fittingly called Central. According to the older disciples who directed them to it, Central had a longer, full name, but nobody could remember it.

Central was the all-purpose hub of the Outer Sect. It was the place to go for information, spirit stone allowances, sect-point assignments, and medicinal aid. One might have thought that a pertinent building to include in either Master Bo’s or Grand Master Yan’s introductory addresses, but, apparently, it wasn’t memorable enough. Certainly, their speechwriters should reflect on that mistake.

It was at Central that Boneroot was informed he’d be with none other than Sect Expert Danh at Training field I, while Guang and Iris were to go to Training Fields G and B, with Experts Edri and Yun respectively.

Finding those fields, however, was a different matter. By the time the three of them managed to locate a map of the sect, there were only minutes to spare. The trio went their separate ways, qi cycling in their legs, pushing themselves to arrive on time.

Only to fail.

When Boneroot finally made it to Training Field I, he was surprised to see only five other disciples waiting for him. The only one he recognized was Yalwa Haske, the blonde girl from Hamagari. Her plus Venh, anyway.

“Disciple Boneroot! I’m glad to see you’ve deigned to grace us with your presence.”

Boneroot admonished himself for expecting anything less from the enigmatic Light cultivator who brought him to the Brightmoon Sect. He also glared at the man. Hard.

When the snickering among a couple of the other disciples died down, Venh began his lesson.

“This is Ki Training and you’re here because you are attuned to Light ki. While three of you cultivate standard Light ki, like myself, we also have two Spatial cultivators and one Solar cultivator. For this basic class, however, we’ll only be focusing on pure Light techniques, got it?”

Despite addressing them directly, Venh received no acknowledgement from Boneroot or the Solar cultivator, Yalwa Haske. Their expressions were equally uncaring, though only one was for a specific reason.

“Unlike your class with Expert Yuto, there won’t be many lectures here. The goal of these lessons is to improve your control, cultivation, and creativity with Light ki. That alliterated, which makes it extra true.”

Venh paused for someone to congratulate his verbal achievement. Nobody did, so he waited. And waited. Finally, Yalwa Haske giggled, much to Boneroot’s horror and the other disciples’ confusion. Mercifully, at least, Venh allowed things to move along.

“The most basic technique and frequently the most reliable is a beam. Whether you’re a close-range fighter, a Spatial cultivator, or a support specialist, the beam should be an integral part of your repertoire. This isn’t unique to Light ki, but we do need to keep some things in mind.”

“Disciple Boneroot, please show us your beam technique.”

After the day he’d had so far, Boneroot was immediately skeptical of Venh’s motives. He couldn’t exactly refuse a Sect Expert’s demand, however, so he shot a quick, single Mini Mega Beam from his index finger at a nearby target dummy.

The thin light stream pierced the shoulder of his inanimate opponent. Like the plant-based dummies with which he’d practiced in Felindei’s grove, these targets immediately reformed themselves after taking any damage. Boneroot found himself particularly intrigued with the specific technique, as it was much less intuitive than plant regrowth.

He didn’t have much time to ponder because Venh was addressing the group.

“As Light cultivators, we must dedicate more effort to this sort of technique than any of the similar ki types. Light ki is finicky and leaves little room for error, as I’m sure you’ve all come to realize. To produce an effective beam of Light ki requires more energy than Fire and more precision than Water. To that point, did everyone get a good look at Boneroot’s technique? Yes? Good. It’s terrible.”

Boneroot whipped his head toward the man. He wasn’t shocked, but he did feel a bit betrayed. Worse than that, he’d actually been confident in his Light technique. It didn’t help that a couple of the disciples he didn’t know found the exchange endlessly amusing.

“I wouldn’t be so quick to laugh, Disciple Na. You’re next.”

“My apologies, Sect Expert Danh, but my clan’s art is focused on close-range, Spatial materialization, so...”

The girl trailed off, clearly thinking the explanation more than sufficient.

“Yes, the Khei clan’s Endless Heart sounds wonderful! It’s still your turn, though, so do a beam.”

“I don’t see why—”

“Do a beam, or leave. Despite what my chipper attitude and devilish charm might suggest, I do not tolerate half-assed cultivators. If you think you can grow strong enough to remain at the Brightmoon Sect without my instruction, you are free to do so. Your attendance is only mandatory insofar as you become able to fight in the sect’s Martial Defense Force. Are you strong enough, Disciple Na? Do you have nothing to learn from me?”

Wisely, Na Khei kept her mouth shut. She raised her hand toward the training dummy, Light ki forming at her finger tips. The influence of her clan art was clear, though, because the ki immediately began to take the form of a fist. Face contorted in intense concentration, she tried to get her ki to become a beam, but it merely warped and wobbled for a moment before dissipating.

“Are you proud of the result, Disciple Na?”

Biting down hard on her lip, she replied, “No, Sect Expert.”

“Good. That means you will learn a lot here. Next, Disciple Yalwa.”

As the day went on, Boneroot felt a bit better about Venh’s assessment of his technique. It was hard not to when every other disciple was told they were just as bad if not worse. It was a different side of the man than Boneroot was used to. He was taking his job quite seriously for someone who’s real assignment was supposedly watching over Kuroki.

All told, the first Ki Training class was... boring. And frustrating. And tiresome. The six disciples spent approximately two hours shooting as much Light ki as they could at training dummies while Venh insulted each of them. His teaching style was confusing to Boneroot at first. He didn’t offer much in the way of concrete advice, aside from the occasional adjustments.

By the end of the two hours, however, Boneroot noticed a distinct difference in his own use of the technique. Venh had forced him to fire just one of his Mini Mega Beams over and over and over again, which had done quite a bit for his control and precision. While he wasn’t inaccurate before, he was primarily using the technique to pin opponents down. After just the first Ki Training class, however, Boneroot was feeling more confident about his ability to deal actual damage at a range outside his Radiant Claw. It would still be a long time in the making, but the progress was evident.

Though Boneroot was fairly tired, he was in great spirits. Seeing all the other disciples panting and wheezing after a couple hours of technique practice was a much needed morale boost. Even if Venh was strict when he got serious, it was nothing compared to a year of nursing whichever of his bones Kroshieshi had most recently fractured in their spars.

Boneroot made a quick stop at the canteen to grab some food and joined back up with Kuroki, who had spent the duration of the Ki Training class hunting for his own meals on the outskirts of the plateau. Upon returning home to his cottage to wait for his friends and teammates, he managed to squeeze in a solid hour of cultivation before he was interrupted. The stop and go style of meditation that Venh insisted he get used to was still bothersome, but he was starting to fully appreciate its merits.

“I just didn’t expect them to be so brazen about it,” Guang’s voice cut in as he entered the chamber where Boneroot was waiting.

“Well, you should have. They’re the worst. Has Boneroot told you about meeting them in Mountain’s Rest?”

Iris shuffled in behind the muscular boy and they sat down in a shoddy triangle.

“You’re talking about the Zhens, then?” Boneroot asked.

“Yeah,” Guang said without his usual cheer. “We were in the Ki Training class for metal and it went... poorly.”

Iris snorted, “Poorly? That’s all?”

Guang’s head drooped a bit further. He let out a long sigh and elaborated, “Do you know who He Edri is, Boneroot?”

“Not specifically. The Edri clan is a big deal, though, right?”

“To say the least. They’re the current retainer clan to the Emperor. Apparently, He Edri is the weakest Sect Expert by far, but nobody, except maybe Grand Master Yan, can really gainsay him on anything. He’s not even a particularly high-ranking member of the Edri clan, but it doesn’t matter.”

Iris took over, “Which means one of the few clans of comparable prominence is the Zhen.”

The Zhens, whose clan art is metal-attuned, Boneroot realized.

“They were already happily chatting away by the time I showed up,” Guang said. “Didn’t help that I was late. From then on out, it was just one comment after the other about my techniques, or their fancy void rings, or even our team. It was more distracting than insulting, yeah? I honestly think my ki is worse off for having gone. He Edri didn’t even spare me a single sentence of help. He was too busy gossiping with the Zhens.”

“Typical,” Iris muttered. “Just like that one from the Asa clan. I don’t see why the sect even brings them in if they’re not here to teach.”

Despite her words, she knew Sect Expert was a position largely used by the sect to secure ties with certain noble clans in return for funding, among other benefits. That would go doubly for a clan like the Edri.

Guang rolled his shoulders and actually laughed a bit.

“It’s not a big deal, really. It was just surprising. That kind of thing is one of the reasons I left the military, so I was disappointed to see more of the same here.”

Boneroot hadn’t realized Guang had actually served in the military, though he vaguely recalled Kroshieshi mentioning certain recruits being allowed to attend the sect. Still, it wasn’t the time to dig into that, so he tried to lighten the mood, instead.

“If it makes you feel any better, Guang, Wei Zhen said he’s going to challenge me as soon as he breaks into the Orange realm and I’ll make sure you’re there to see it.”

He cheered up some more at that. Boneroot relayed the happenings of his own afternoon, but they were hardly that eventful. Iris, on the other hand, had apparently pestered Sect Expert Yun so ardently for help with her cultivation that she was now forbidden from speaking during their Ki Training classes.

She grumbled for a little while before they did some more efficiency practice to round out the day. Though Guang continued to make progress, Iris was still languishing. As the trio parted, Boneroot was stumped as to help her catch up.