Mage's Cultivation Journey 17

Yu Xing was the first one to speak, though looking shocked. “Steward, are you sure you want to teach her? Maybe I should —”

“No, your martial arts can’t be shared,” I said. “But, don’t worry, young master. I won’t be using any of our family arts.” I glanced around. “With so many caravans around, there should be a place where I could purchase a new style.”

That made Su Mi lose some of her enthusiasm, but she said nothing. “You have a problem with it. Speak,” I ordered.

“It’s not for me to argue with you, master —” she started, but I cut her off.

“I won’t punish you for the questions I ask,” I said. “Speak.”

She still took a deep breath before speaking. “It’s just that, most manuals that go around are fake or faulty. I … I can’t risk learning from them.”

“Don’t worry, girl,” I said. “I won’t teach you until I find a martial style that actually works.” I wasn’t lying. There was no point, not when I wanted to use it as an excuse to acquire martial arts. It was also why I spoke loudly enough that at least some of the people around the camp actually heard us.

Yu Xing looked at me, but I pointed at the symbol in front of him, jagged and messy. “Pay more attention to your work, young master,” I said. “You don’t have much time to learn properly.”

“Again,” Su Mi said, not unkindly. “Focus on the balance. Don’t rush the finish. Writing is like breathing. If you do it too fast, you lose the rhythm.” Yu Xing nodded.

I listened, feeling a bit doubtful. Her teaching style was weird, the kind I would be sure to be ineffective … Yet, somehow, Yu Xing was making great progress. Curious enough to tickle my mind, but I had more important things to figure out first.

Like how to develop martial arts skills.

Which meant, I needed to focus on reading comprehension rather than the process of teaching. The contextual meaning of the words meant that figuring out written techniques would be a trouble. Each stroke could be an instruction or a trap. Or, worse, if it was written by someone who didn’t fully understand, it could be a huge mistake.

So, I listened to her instructions carefully while keeping an eye on the environment. “This script is older than the empire,” she added at one point. “They say the immortal scholars created it to defend against demons of darkness.”

I closed my eyes briefly, pushing back the desire to question her about the word immortal; the way I arrived was still a stickler. But, once again, I had to let curiosity take the back seat. I continued to listen, the way Yu Xing’s brow furrowed with focus fun enough to keep the night entertaining.

They studied until midnight. In the process, I observed eight different martial artists trying to approach us while concealed, split between Initiate and Muscle Reinforcement, their presence distinct. It felt like a test.

At this point, I was committed to the role of a mysterious master, so I made a point of catching the gaze of every single one of them, which, thankfully, had been enough to send them scurrying back to where they had come from, afraid to confront a deadly ‘master’.

When it was just past midnight, the silver sheen of the moon covering the field we were in, a change occurred. Another martial artist approached the camp, but this time, it was different. He approached openly, his gait confident, but not confrontational.

A good thing, as I could feel hints of his internal energy infused not only to his muscles, but also his skin, implying that he might actually be in the Skin Refinement realm, marking him as a dangerous master.

Once he closed in, I gave him a nod; a carefully calculated gesture, the kind that a superior martial artist gave the weaker one. It was a silent declaration from me that I knew his martial stage, yet dismissed it.

That made him pause the slightest moment, examining me in return. He was likely assessing me in turn, and finding nothing, which only made them believe I was stronger. All thanks to one critical aspect of this world.

The greater the power difference, the easier for the stronger martial artist to hide their abilities from the weaker party. It helped me to sell the idea that I was much stronger. A beautiful house of cards that would collapse the moment someone challenged me directly, but until then…

“Tell me,” I said, preempting his declaration.

“Great master. We’re here to invite you to a small gathering of ours. We hope that you take a fancy to some of the inferior gatherings we have in our possession.

I let a flash of disdain pass through my face, like the idea that anything that I could purchase here was an affront to my whole being, which made him flinch. I would have enjoyed his fear more if it wasn’t for the fragile nature of my role.

I turned to Yu Xing. “It’ll be a good test for you, young master,” I said. “Go there, and show me how you will handle it.” I gestured toward the bag that held the more valuable medicinal plants we had unearthed during our journey.

The idea of going with them was tempting, but stepping into the crowd was too risky.

He stood up, but glanced at Su Mi. “You can take her as well if you think she can help,” I said. “Buy some books to help you learn how to read as well.”

“Are you sure, steward?” Yu King asked.

“Of course,” I said smoothly. “This is your challenge. You’ll act to show your abilities, and prove that you deserve master’s consideration to be an heir candidate. You might be born of a common woman, but you also carry the exalted blood of my master. It’s your chance to show that you also have his eye.”

I added a tone of fanatic fascination to my tone while I mentioned the imaginary master, like I was talking about someone far above me.

While they prepared to walk away, I caught the gaze of the Skin Refinement stage martial artist, who still seemed scared by the mention of my ‘master’. “I’ll hold your boss responsible if anything happens to them,” I declared, acting like I had the power to dismantle him and everyone he worked with.

It wasn’t hard to fake. I just needed to imagine I still had access to mana, giving me the power to erase the whole town out of existence.

I watched from a distance as he led the two kids to a nearby collection of carts. It wasn’t too far away, located on a sunken grove, and several tents lined the area. It wasn’t hidden. Most likely, it was a silent understanding between the Liao Family and the traveling merchants. The former let the market exist, and the latter didn’t interfere with the Liao family’s obvious ploy with the refugees.

I sighed, wishing that I had the chance to walk around the market. The things I would learn from merely observing the marketplace would have been enough to greatly raise my understanding. But, that was not an option. The more I interacted, the more I would lose control of their assumptions, risking a crisis.

Instead, I stayed in place, scribbling some of what had learned from listening to them on the ground, but even my enhanced mental acuity didn’t help me suddenly perfect the situation.

As I scribbled, I started to have a weird sensation, weirdly reminiscent of trying to cast a spell. However, not every attempt carried the same feedback. Some of the symbols had been written smoothly, with gentle feedback, while the others triggered a subtle sense of fear in me, making the hair on the back of my head rise.

For some words, the sensation was sharp enough to convince me to stop writing. Interestingly, the words for the four elements were the strongest source of the phenomenon.

Someone else might take that warning and decide to stay away forever. For me, it was only a temporary one. Eventually, I would return. What kind of mage would I make to leave such a situation alone?

Almost two hours passed before the kid and the girl returned, each carrying a large sack. The former looked excited, while the latter showed some tenseness.

A justified concern, it seemed, as even from a distance, I could see multiple people watching them, more than I expected. Their Skin Refinement escort was still with them, which seemed to dissuade the onlooker, but it was not a solution. I wondered about the source, curious whether they had revealed something, or something else happened in the marketplace.

Either way, I had a feeling I would be dealing with it sooner rather than later.