Author's Note:

Good news though, is that this little roadblock for me is finished, so the next few chapters should go more smoothly? Or at least maybe not take as long for me to write? I don't know.

Sorry about the rant. It's the tiredness talking, I swear!...But anywho, here's the chapter. :P

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Chapter XIII

It was late at night as Alex reached the front door of his family's house. A smile was on his face as he unlocked the door and walked inside. The moment he entered, he was greeted by his father's surprised voice. “Alex? You're back? Did you decide to give up?” Kaesan was seated next to Laylah on the couch in the living room.

Alex gave a wry smile as he responded, “No, I didn't give up...” He walked into the living room and carefully laid his backpack on the ground. Stretching, he said, “I completed all of yours and mother's requirements a lot sooner than I thought I would.” Kaesan looked his son over and a frown started to surface on his face as he noticed the bloodstains on his clothes. But seeing that Alex seemed to be in good spirits, he warmly smiled as he curiously asked, “You managed to complete everything already?...You got a Qi core and made three different medicines?”

Alex chuckled as he answered, “Dad, Mom. You won't believe it!” He reached down into his bag and pretended to dig through it for something. Stealthily, he took the Qi core out of his inventory while his hand was in the pack. When he pulled his hand out, he was holding a greyish-green marble.

Kaesan widened his eyes as he viewed what his son was holding. Laylah had a wry smile on her face as she looked at the Qi core. It was clear to Alex that she was happy yet sad at the same time. Mumbling, Laylah spoke in a slight disbelief, “You actually managed to get one...” Alex grinned. “Yep! And that's not all! This isn't an early-stage beginner rank Qi core...”

Kaesan rose an eyebrow as he inquired, “It's not? Just what rank profound beast did you manage to defeat?” A proud smile was on Alex's face as he answered. “It's a late-stage beginner rank profound beast's!” An amazed gasp escaped Kaesan's mouth. Laylah didn't react much though. Alex noticed this and was slightly confused.

However, before he could speak, his mother spoke out. “Alexander, based on the condition of your clothes it must have been a very tough and dangerous fight...Why would you do something so foolish as to fight a profound beast that was so much stronger than you?” Alex frowned. “Mom. At first, I thought I should run away and I tried to find a path to escape...”

A solemn expression emerged on his face as he continued. “But, if I did that....Could I really become a cultivator?” He stared at his mother. As he did so, Laylah could see a firm determination in the depths of his eyes. “As a cultivator, I'll have to face many dangers and even other cultivators in life or death battles...”

Alex looked to the ground for a moment. Lifting his head back up, in a solemn tone he said, “If it was the me from before...I would have run away at the first sight or hint of danger. But not anymore. I will become strong! I will become a cultivator! I will face challenges head-on. I won't shirk away!”

Laylah and Kaesan were both stunned as they gazed at their son. He had always been rather timid and placid. They never heard him talk of becoming a cultivator before. It was almost as if his personality had somewhat changed after that incident in the forest.

A warm and gentle smile surfaced on Laylah's face as she viewed her son. “Alright, fine. Promise me though, that if you ever encounter anyone or anything that is vastly stronger than you and you have no chance of coming out victorious, you'll run away without hesitation!” A grin spread across Alex's face as he responded. “I promise mom!...Then this means that I can become a cultivator, right!?”

Laylah chuckled and looked at Kaesan. “Well, you still need to pass your father's requirements.” Alex turned his attention towards Kaesan. Giving a slight cough and clearing his throat, Kaesan asked, “Okay Alex. You said you made three medicines already. Let's see them.” Alex nodded his head and began to rummage through his backpack.

After a few minutes he had taken out three flasks. “Alright dad. These are the medicines.” He handed the flasks one at a time to his father. As he did so, he told him what was in each. “This first one contains Blood Sealing Paste.” His father took the flask and uncorked it. He gave it a sniff.

He smiled and nodded. “Alright, that's one.” Alex handed him a second flask. “This one is Bruise Easing Ointment.” Kaesan repeated the same thing he did with the previous flask. After he was done, he nodded. “Alright, that's two.” Smiling, Alex handed him the third flask and excitedly told him what it was. “This one is some Lesser Wound Recovery Tonic.”

Just like the previous two flasks, Kaesan uncorked and sniffed the contents. After a few moments of silence a beaming grin spread across his face as he happily announced, “Alright son! You passed all of my requirements! You have your mother's and my approval.” Alex had a radiant smile as he heard his father's words.

Laylah let out a small sigh as she stood up and said, “For now, why don't you go to bed. You could probably use some rest...Tomorrow we'll discuss the sects and schools that are in the Kingdom of Wrurin.” When he heard this, Alex rushed forward and hugged his mother. “Thank you so much mom!” He then hugged Kaesan as well and thanked him. After which, he bid his parents goodnight and went upstairs to clean himself up before going to bed.

** ** ** **

As soon as Alex had gone upstairs, Kaesan whispered to Laylah, “You alright honey?” She sighed and slumped down onto the couch. “Yeah, I'm fine...” Kaesan patted her back as he asked, “Are you sure? I thought you would have been more opposed to Alex becoming a cultivator. Or at the least, not willing to let him go so soon.”

Laylah smiled wryly as she replied, “Dear...You should have seen him out there.” She let out a deep breath before she continued to speak. “His talent with the sword is incredible...If he can become a cultivator, even if he can only manage to become a low-rank one, he would probably be able to reach heights that I've never thought possible...”

She slowly shook her head. A gentle smile surfaced after she did so. “I'll support him wholeheartedly...In the future, he may just become someone great...”

** ** ** **

Alex was currently reclining in the bath tub with a silly grin on his face. Chuckling to himself, he was in deep thought. 'I knew it! These quests are amazing!' After he had shown his parents the Qi core and the medicines, a couple status windows had appeared. At the time, he didn't read them and had minimized them off to the side of his view. Now that he had a moment by himself, he was inspecting them.

Quest Complete

Meet your mother's requirements.

You have gained 50xp.

Quest Complete

Meet your father's requirements.

You have gained 50xp.

You have gained 1 Willpower (+1 WILL)

'If I can get and complete quests...Then I could level up so many times and get status points easily!!' He dismissed the windows and leaned his head back. A laugh couldn't help but escape his mouth. 'Honestly, this is amazing!' He let out a satisfied sigh. 'Tomorrow, I'll be able to learn about the sects and schools...Then, I'll be able to leave home and attempt to join one...' He shook his head and proceeded to finish cleaning himself. When Alex was finished he went to his room and laid down. Shortly after, he fell asleep.

** ** ** **

Morning swiftly arrived. Sunlight drifted in through the windows and landed on Alex's face. “Ugh” he groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. “It's morning already!” He grinned and hastily sat up. While rubbing his eyes, he stood up and got dressed. 'Today's the day!' He thought to himself as he proceeded downstairs.

As he entered the kitchen, he noticed that a large book was sitting on the table near the seat where he usually sits. He walked over and sat in his seat. 'This is the book that mom had when she came home that night.' He pulled the book closer to him and opened it up. He widened his eyes as he read the first page.

Chuckling to himself, he muttered, “Incredible!” On the first page was simply the table of contents. But what amazed Alex was the sheer number of sects and schools that were listed. From the looks of things, each sect or school had an entire page dedicated to themselves.

Grinning, he read through each listing in the table of contents, trying to memorize each sect and school. He was running his finger down along the page stopping at each name. However, not long after he started, he abruptly paused. Unknowingly, a scowl appeared on his face.

'Argent Viper Sect!' He thought in a menacing tone. 'Huh, why do they have three pages?' Noting the page numbers that this sect had, he flipped to the starting page. After a couple of minutes, he frowned once more. 'It says here that the Argent Viper Sect is extremely cruel and merciless. That most of their members are vicious and unforgiving...That about sums up what I've seen from them so far...' He let out a sigh and shook his head.

'This book says that this sect is rather powerful in the Kingdom of Wrurin. They're within the top fifty sects of the kingdom, sitting at position forty-nine.' He tilted his head for a moment while he was thinking. 'Forty-nine? Then if that elder of the Gallant Eagle Sect was willing to offend them, shouldn't his sect be strong too?...Let's see where it is.'

He flipped back to the first page and viewed the table of contents. After a few moments, he found what he was looking for. After turning through some pages, he stopped and smiled. 'There it is. Gallant Eagle Sect...I had a good impression of them.' He read through all of the contents on the sect. After a couple of minutes, he nodded his head.

'It says here that most of their members are tenacious and fearless...The senior members look after the younger and newer members...Hmm.' He brought his hand to his chin as he was in thought. 'So they nurture their younger members and expect them to do the same in the future...Sounds like a good sect to me...' After reading a little more he let out a surprised, “Whoa” as he continued to think. 'They're rank forty-five out of fifty in the kingdom.'

He chuckled to himself. 'No wonder those boys from the Argent Viper Sect chose to run away instead of facing that elder...What was his name?...' Alex was in deep thought as he pondered about the elder. 'Oh that's right, his name was Harvey Cote...' With his hand on his chin, he looked down at the table. 'Hmm, he did say that if I ever wanted to start on the path of cultivation to go to his sect and use his name...Hmm, maybe.' He shrugged and flipped the book back to the table of contents.

Alex sat there at the table browsing the various sects and schools for a little over an hour. He was so absorbed into the book that he didn't notice his parents walk into the kitchen and sit down at the table. Laylah spoke while staring at Alex, “Good morning. How long have you been reading that book?”

Alex jumped a little the moment he heard his mother's voice. Placing his hand on his chest, he replied in a surprised tone, “Geez mom, you scared the crap out of me!” Laylah and Kaesan both laughed as they heard his response. “Good morning mom, dad. When did you guys get here?”

Kaesan slightly shook his head. “A little bit ago son. You were really into reading that book, so we didn't want to disturb you.” Alex scratched his cheek as he responded, “Heh, sorry about that.” Laylah smiled as she inquired, “So you've been reading about all the sects and schools...Have you figured out which one you want to join?..Originally, I was planning on going through them with you. I didn't expect you to get up so early and already read about them all, haha.”

Alex wryly smiled. “Sorry about that mom.” Laylah shook her head. “It's okay. So, did you figure it out?” Alex nodded. “There are a lot of sects and schools...But the one I think I'm leaning towards would have to be the Gallant Eagle Sect.” Laylah tilted her head as she asked, “Why them? Any specific reason?”

Nodding, Alex answered, “I met some of their members and one of their elders. They were all really nice. I have a really good impression of them.” Laylah gave a slight nod in response but then quickly frowned. “The Gallant Eagle Sect is within the top fifty sects of the Kingdom...But they're located at the town of Brightwatch. That's practically at the other side of the kingdom.”

With a wry smile, Alex nodded. “I know...” Laylah let out a deep breath. A pained smile formed on her face as she stared at Alex. “If that's where you want to go, then so be it...Just promise your father and I that you'll come back home to visit.” Alex grinned while he looked between his mother and father. In an excited tone, he said, “I promise mom, dad. I'll come back to visit whenever I get the chance!”

Kaesan chuckled as he responded, “Alright then son. You're completely decided on the Gallant Eagle Sect?” Alex swiftly nodded. “Good...I'll see if I can get some of my friends from the Earthly Sword Sect to travel with you.” Alex tilted his head and curiously asked, “Eh? Why dad? I thought I'd travel by myself.”

Shaking his head, Kaesan replied in a pensive tone, “You're still a kid Alex. The world is fraught with danger. There are countless cultivators that turn to banditry and commit various malicious acts. If you travel by yourself, who knows what kind of perils you may face...I at least want you to arrive at the town of Brightwatch safely.”

A warm smile spread across Alex's face as he heard his father's concern for his well-being. He looked between Kaesan and Laylah. “Dad. Mom.” He took a breath and then spoke in a solemn tone. “I really, really appreciate your thought for my safety...But, I want to travel by myself...” Kaesan frowned and was about to say something, but immediately stopped when he heard what Alex said next.

Staring at his father and mother with a very determined look, he continued on. “I need to be able to do this...I can't continue to be sheltered. I need to experience the world...” Kaesan's frown faded away. He felt that if he didn't let his son go by himself, he'd be stifling his growth. However, Laylah wasn't happy. She scolded, “Do you think you're invincible!? There are plenty of existences stronger than you that could kill you as easily as lifting a finger!! I won't let you trav-”

“Dear, that's enough.” Kaesan's voice quickly cut off Laylah's rant. She paused and let out a confused, “Eh?” As she stared at him with a furious and confused look, Kaesan let out a deep sigh. He gave her a thoughtful look and then turned his attention towards Alex. “Son...Alright. You can travel by yourself.” Alex was surprised as he gazed at his father.

“Just promise us that you'll be careful.” Alex hurriedly nodded at his father's words and stated, “I promise! I'll be extra careful. I'll even stick to the roads for the whole trip! Thanks dad, I re-” Laylah was furious as she cut him off. “Kaesan! What are you saying!? How can you let our son go by himself!?” Kaesan calmly responded, “Honey, we can't keep babying him and sheltering him from the world. He's determined to go by himself...This will be a good experience for him. We shouldn't stand in his way.”

Laylah was flabbergasted. “But...” Kaesan had a genuine heart-felt smile on his face as he gazed at his wife. “He's growing up before our very eyes. Instead of trying to obstruct him, I think we should encourage and support him.” Laylah looked down at the table and frowned. After a few moments, she let out a deep breath and looked up at Alex. Resignedly, she said, “Fine...You can go by yourself...When do you plan on going?”

Alex grinned as he said, “I was thinking maybe tomorrow or the day after. I want to say goodbye to Sarah before I leave.” Laylah gave a slight nod as she replied, “Good idea. That girl likes you a lot you know. You're probably breaking her heart by leaving.” Alex tilted his head as he heard what his mother said.

'Breaking her heart? How? We're just friends...' He thought to himself as a bewildered expression floated onto his face. His mother chuckled as she saw this. She shook her head as she said, “Forget it. It's your business. I won't interfere...Just be gentle when you say goodbye, okay?” Alex slowly nodded his head. “Alright mom...I'll try?” She chuckled and then said, “Alright! How about I start making breakfast?”

The day quickly passed by as Alex spent the entire time with his parents. He felt as though this would probably be the last time in a long while that he would be able to be together with them.

** ** ** **

The following day swiftly arrived. Laylah made a hearty breakfast that they all enjoyed together. After spending the morning with his parents, Alex immediately set to packing for his journey to the town of Brightwatch. Once he was done, he brought his things downstairs and set them on the couch. His parents were sitting in the living room watching him.

“Alright mom, dad. I'm going to go say my farewells to Sarah, then I'll be back for my things.” They nodded and saw him off. As soon as he left the house, Laylah turned to Kaesan. Sadly, she said, “That boy is so oblivious sometimes. I really hope Sarah is okay afterwards.” Kaesan patted Laylah's back as he spoke. “I'm sure she'll be fine...After all, time heals all wounds...” As he said the latter part, a look of longing appeared while he glanced to where his left arm used to be located.

** ** ** **

Alex was currently waiting at the front door of the Collford's residence. He tilted his head and frowned. 'Huh, is no one home?' He had just knocked on the door, but received no response. Furrowing his brow, he knocked a second time. A few moments passed and yet he still received no response.

He checked the time in the corner of his vision. 'It's 12:14 right now...Surely they're home?' He knocked a third time. Five minutes swiftly passed. 'Guess no one's home.' He turned around and was about to walk away. But just as he was turning, he noticed there seemed to be a figure in the window. 'Eh? They're home?'

Alex turned to face the door again and knocked once more. Still being met with silence, he called out, “Sarah! It's me Alex!...I just wanted to talk to you for a minute!” No response. He let out a dejected sigh and looked towards the ground. 'Is she mad at me? Does she not want to see me?' He frowned and then yelled out, “Sarah, I'm sorry about the last time we talked...I just came over this time to say goodbye...I'll be leaving to join a sect so I probably won't be back for a while...”

When he still hadn't received a response, he turned around and started to walk back home. A quarter of an hour after he had left, Sarah was standing in the living room with her mother. “Are you sure you don't want to see him?” Asked Sarah's mother. “No! I hate him!” Her mother frowned as she replied, “Honey, this may be your last chance to see him for a long time. He said he was leaving to join a sect.”

Sarah went wide-eyed when she heard this. She sounded frustrated as she exclaimed, “Eh!? He's leaving to join a sect!?...Why didn't you tell me sooner!?” Sarah dashed to the door and opened it, hoping to see Alex still standing there. Though, to her chagrin, he wasn't there any longer.

“Mom! I'm going to Alex's house! I'll be back in a bit!” Sarah called out as she hastily ran out the door. Sarah's mother chuckled and shook her head as she watched her daughter run down the street. Shortly after, she frowned. “That foolish girl...”

** ** ** **

Alex had already arrived home and was grabbing his things. Kaesan and Laylah were standing in the doorway as Alex prepared to leave. “Remember, don't talk to strangers!...Don't accept rides in carriages from anyone that offers you candy!” Laylah warned him about many other things as he prepared to leave. “I know mom...Geeze, I'm not eight years old.”

Laylah wryly smiled. “I just want you to be safe honey.” Alex chuckled and nodded. “I know mom.” Alex was all prepared to leave as he walked towards the door and his parents. Kaesan stepped forward and patted Alex on the shoulder. “Son. You might not have a lot of talent for cultivation. But no matter what, don't give up. When you don't give up, you can't fail!” He smiled and then gave his son a bear hug.

“I love you son. You've made me proud.” As Alex was being smothered, he let out a muffled, “I love you too dad.” After he separated from his father's hug, Laylah stepped forward and embraced him in a hug as well. “I love you dear. No matter what you do, we're so proud of you.” After that, they said their farewells.

Alex walked out the front door and proceeded to travel down the street. It was rather busy, with many people coming and going. He turned around and viewed his parents who were waving to him one last time. He smiled and waved back as he thought to himself, 'I'll become strong! I'll become so strong that no one will dare to trample on our family. I'll get revenge for dad losing his arm! And for what those boys did to me!' After he finished his thoughts, he turned back around and continued down the street. Not long after, he disappeared into the crowd.

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