“Are you feeling tired?” Fu Kong asked.

“I was a little tired at first, but I’ve recovered mostly.” He bragged.

“Good, then I have a challenge to help you build your foundation.”

“Hmm?” Mareus gave her a blank but expecting look.

“I want you to draw out that sphere again and use it as a light to guide your way back to the main cave. Take your time and try to maintain a steady output.”

“Is that all?” He began drawing the energy out.

“For now, you’ll quickly find that it’s more of a challenge than you might think.” She smiled. “I’ll follow a ways behind you and I want you to try and produce enough light for the both of us.”

Mareus aggressively nodded before pouring all of his focus into his core and guiding it to his hands. It didn’t take long for the light to return, now that he knew how to do it.

It was a bit of a struggle for him at times and every now and then he noticed that the aura around it would grow darker and the light wasn’t able to reach as far.

So there’s a balance I have to maintain.

After stopping to realign his breathing with his focus it was able to return to normal and he could see roughly ten meters in front of them. By the time they reached the center room though, he was drenched in sweat and collapsed into the pile of fur.

“I’m, I’m sorry Mistress. I can’t go on anymore. I. I need. Rest.” He had no idea that simply providing a weak light would exhaust him more than an entire day of running around the village doing chores.

“I had you guide us so that you could see how draining using your own power can be. Though, with time and training something of this level can become as easy as breathing.”

She commanded the shadows to rearrange the room as she sat on her ledge. Mareus wanted to be in awe of her once again, but he was too busy wheezing.

“Take your time to recover, you’re still covered in minor injuries and haven’t eaten much for several days. While you rest I can go over the principles of your training.”

Rather than being understanding of his condition, she felt more distant as if she was lost in thought. Even her shadows were aimlessly floating through the air. At least until one drifted over to him and began to envelope his body.

“I suppose I should start with the basics of the Mortal Realm,” She started. “Most experts teach that the realm is divided into three stages with the first having you master breathing and gaining the ability to exert your will over your own body, personally I find that all to be a waste of effort.”

Fu Kong didn’t bother to hide her criticism. The shadow began to lift Mareus from his pile, the weightlessness both confusing and relaxing as he slowly twisted through the air.

“Long ago, I discovered an ancient practitioner's theories on condensing the three stages into one. Making it possible for them to grow by leaps and bounds compared to their peers.” Her shadows grew thicker, wrapping themselves around him like a blanket. “I find this to be a far better method for the beginning stages of cultivation to refine the body as a whole instead of in parts. Of course there are other benefits that you will discover with time.”

After he was turned head over heel several more times the shadows gently set him down on his feet. Almost all of his fatigue washed away, and in its place were new robes the same shade of black as his master’s hair.

Mareus spun in circles as he tried to examine every inch of his new clothes. They were incredibly thin and unimaginably light, but he couldn’t feel the cold air of the cave at all. And despite the apparent wear and tears they were the nicest set he had ever seen. Far above anything his elders would ever be able to afford.

What is this?

“Mistress, how did you-?”

He lost track of his words when meeting her eyes. Just like her hair, their deep darkness stood out in the dimly lit space. Her look wasn’t domineering though, rather she seemed to be enjoying herself.

“That’s another gift from me, another thing that you will learn more about with time.” She smirked.

Finally regaining some composure Mareus asked. “What kind of benefits am I supposed to discover? From how you’re talking it sounds like I’d have the opportunity to attempt the breakthrough within a few decades.”

“Hmm?” She feigned a thought while tapping her chin. “More like… a few years.”

“A few YEARS!” He gasped.

That can’t be true, if that were the case then why would anyone have trouble getting to the peak of body refinement?

Overwhelmed from his excitement he leaned against the wall and reached for some water his teacher had moved for him. “How is that possible?”

“The primary reason it takes so long is because practitioners spend years between stages ‘consolidating their foundation’. This technique simply removes those steps. Given three years I predict you’ll reach the peak of the Mortal Realm and you would even be safe to challenge most nascent immortals, depending on their bloodlines.”

“I could become that powerful in only three years?” He paused before saying. “In my village it took a party of over twenty warriors to hunt even a low level Shou Beast, and even then there was still a good chance of several people coming back injured or losing their life entirely.”

“Unfortunately, that is the result of poor knowledge. It doesn’t matter how hard you work, a trash technique will always be a trash technique. And in my experience, all it takes to break through to the level of an immortal is enough accumulated internal energy and a catalyst that varies person to person.”

‘Trash techniques’? He had to admit that his village wasn’t the most advanced even by the standards of this relatively peaceful region. But just outright insulting practices that had been passed down generation after generation had to be going too far.

“You’ll have to learn to better hide your thoughts now that you’re entering the world of Cultivators. I can practically read what you're thinking from your face alone.”

Mareus instinctively turned around to hide his face.

“It seems like we won’t be able to get started with the technique quite yet.” Fu Kong gracefully jumped down from the ledge. “It should be light out enough by now, come you must be famished. And there are some other things I’d like to gather while we continue our conversation.”

At that moment a low growl echoed through the cave. Mareus blushed and began to burrow himself in the pile of furs. “I think that would be fine.” How could he look her in the eyes?

From everything he’s heard, once you reach the level of an immortal, cultivators are able to go without food for years without any negative effects. Something about being nourished by heavenly energy, he assumed. And here he was, only several days without food and he’s left weakened and making embarrassing sounds.

His teacher took the initiative to guide him through the cave again, which he was grateful for. Mareus wasn’t sure if he could handle the anxiety of her judging him from behind. Though, having to focus on her silhouette in the darkness did help to keep his mind off his own embarrassment.

It was difficult for him not to admire her, she was tall and had an otherworldly elegance. Though she was no more than a head and a half taller than him, the way she carried herself felt as if he would never be able to match up to her scale.

As they excited the cave Mareus continued to study her every move, until he realized where he was. They were walking on her shadow. With nothing but air beneath them for almost a hundred meters. Immediately freezing mid-step, too afraid that his next step would sink through the thin floor. He stood there long enough for his legs to begin to tremble from the awkward balance.

“You won’t be able to fall through… unless I allow it.” She sounded as if she was making a joke. “Or of course you fall too far behind for me to keep the shadow stable.” She was making a joke! Or at least he hoped.

Mareus raced down to catch up with his teacher, and once he reached the halfway point the path behind him started to dissipate into a black vapor before completely vanishing. He covered the rest of the distance in a breath.

Fu Kong glanced back, her eyes smiling.

Did she, did she do that on purpose?

Mareus spent the rest of the descent eagerly watching the approaching ground.

“Do you know what is required to train the soul?” She continued forward.

“I didn’t receive any formal lessons.” He apologized, “But from what I can guess, I imagine that it involves connecting with the Dao and channeling heavenly energy to grow.”

“You’ve touched on the very surface of the basics.In truth all paths rely on the absorption of energies that are naturally present in the world. But your path determines various things like your breathing technique, how you circulate your energy, and the nature of your cultivation. Of course all of these and a few other factors will determine just how much potential you have.” She glanced back without stopping. “Though there are ways to supplement this training.”

“Supplement? Like a short cut?”

“Not quite. There are natural treasures, techniques, and pills that can all augment your innate talents. Though, while these are rare enough, there are truly heaven defying resources that will perfectly integrate with your soul. Providing much more benefit than simply meditating.”

“With something like that I could reach heaven defying heights in a matter of years!”

“Don’t be too excited, these resources are as rare as they are powerful. As well, most Divine Fruits only work the first time you eat them. So even if you found a grove, they would become no more than priceless treats. Because of this many powers hold territories like this with an iron fist.” She explained.

They finally stepped off the shadow and began to walk through the trees. The shade of their leaves providing them with a cool breeze in the still hot autumn sun.

Finally stopping at a tree that was wider across than ten well built warriors standing shoulder to shoulder. Fu Kong placed a palm on its bark and slowly stroked the smooth surface as she looked forward. Not so much at the wood, but through it.

Her palm stopped on the tree and it gently shook for a few moments before stopping. Not too long after a large glistening peach fell into both of her hands before she tucked it away in her sleeve.

“What was that fruit?” His body trembled.

“This is a treasure that you will use later. After we have built you a strong foundation. It has the ability to remove troublesome impurities in your body that are next to impossible to remove through ordinary means.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, how old are you? I can’t imagine that you could acquire all of your knowledge in a single lifetime.”

“Not what would be considered a normal lifetime, no. But, I am far older than I look.” Her smile told him that she wouldn’t be giving him a straight answer this time. “Now then, we’ve talked about ways you could strengthen your soul. But we should also touch on some methods that I would recommend you stay clear of, some taboos if you will.”

“Taboos?” Mareus said, acknowledging that the previous discussion was over.

They continued to walk through the thick forest of trees, no two looking as if they belonged to the same species. As they walked, he noticed some odd spots of color here and there that stood out against the green and brown. When Fu Kong knelt down and plucked a red grass before storing it away with the fruit.

“Yes, like I said, it’s more efficient to absorb energy from another source than to connect to the source yourself. Some practitioners across the various races have developed schools and techniques to drain the energy of others. Aside from the moral implications, there are also drawbacks to the techniques that damage the user in the long term.”

A sudden flash of black flew out from her sleeve and cut a normal looking flower from a vine before returning back to her. She tucked the flower away without a word.

“Generally there are two schools that are banned and another that is restricted. The Necro and Sanguine Cultists are seen as villains across the world. With one practicing death techniques that rely on absorbing the remaining soul of a powerful warrior or Immortal, and the other raising slaves like cattle to drink their soul infused blood.”

“That’s awful, why would anyone practice such things?” Appalled, he tried to look away in hopes that it would clear the image from his mind. In that moment though, he spotted a mushroom that had some red substance oozing from the pores on its cap. He fell to his knees and struggled to keep down whatever was left in his stomach.

“Oh? That’s a good find, this pale fellow has a great effect on purifying the blood and increasing its quality. Additionally, the effect remains regardless of how many you eat. I can add this to your next meal.”

Mareus’ face began to turn as pale as the mushroom.

“These are things you’ll have to grow accustomed to.” She advised. “This world is a hard one full of the strong controlling everything and taking advantage of the weak. That is the reason taboo techniques exist. And in their hunger for power, these cultists become corrupted. Thus sacrificing their immortality. This corruption goes on to twist their mind and body until they only know hunger.”

A rustling came from some bushes on the other side of the stream and Mareus fell back screaming until his voice gave out. Before anything emerged a black sphere appeared above the sound and came down faster than his eyes could follow. In the next breath a dark gray boulder covered in fur was carried out by Fu Kong’s shadows.

“Hmm, it was only an infant.”

The large mass was a rabbit type Shou, Mareus had never seen one before, but he remembered the older villagers often talking about wanting to have the beast’s meat at least once again in their life. Apparently they weren’t as strong or deadly as other types, but their speed made them exceptionally hard to successfully capture. However, she not only killed it in an instant, but her attack pierced its brain cleanly only leaving a small bubble of blood.

“Looks like we found you some meat, judging by the size it could probably last for several days even if you were to be greedy with your meals.” She smiled.

She acted as if what she had just done was as simple as breathing. But it was, wasn’t it, she was able to accomplish in less than a minute what her village took decades to do. All without looking up from the stream.

“Let’s go back. I’d rather not carry this thing around as we looked for more herbs.”

Instead of walking on the shadow this time, Fu Kong created a platform large enough for the three bodies and carried them back towards the cliff. They flew in silence until finally reaching the cave entrance.

“You should go in to rest, it’s not a good idea to let blood get all over the cave so I will process the meat out here. You are still recovering and we did a lot of walking today. I’ll call for you when your meal is ready and we can enjoy it under the night sky together.”

“I’ll be okay, I still have plenty of strength. And I’ve helped break down larger Shou than this one back in my village.” The thought tightened his chest.

Why do I feel like this now? This isn’t the first time I’ve thought about them today. Why do I only feel this pain now?

“Oh? If you still have strength enough to light your way to the center room and back, not only will I have you help me. I’ll even give you the fruit from earlier as a dessert.”

Without responding, Mareus had summoned the light between his hands and ran into the cave. Quickly he realized how tiring it was to keep it up and could only maintain a brisk walk while holding the light. So instead he kept track of the number of steps he took. This was a habit of his when traveling long distances for chores or heading to a new place for the first time.

Eight hundred and five. He thought to himself after wiping a pool of sweat from his face.Then that means it would probably take about ten minutes to go back. The light faded from his hands and he fell back onto the pile of furs, still moist from his earlier sweat. Although, I don’t think I can do that again right now.

It didn’t take him long to fall asleep.