027 Disgust

The lessons I received from my teachers were invaluable, each filling gaps in my understanding, shaping the way I viewed not only the world but myself.

And yet…

Something still felt incomplete.

Visiting Zhen Ai helped. Her lake had become a place of pause for me, separate from the structured teachings of Willow and Old Black, and the relentless intensity of Roo. With her, things were… different.

Sometimes, we talked.

Sometimes, we didn’t.

There were days when she would take to the skies, her massive form cutting through the clouds while I followed alongside, with Willow gliding not far behind. Other times, she would remain in her human shape, and we would simply share a meal in silence.

Willow had been the one to suggest it.

A dragon’s wisdom, she said, was worth its weight in gold.

So I kept going, hoping the mysterious dragon would offer me some.

It was like every other day. Dappled sunlight fell across my face as I walked the familiar beaten path. This time, though, I didn’t come empty-handed.

Through Guo Yimu, I had acquired several storage rings from Leafhome, the nearest settlement. I had distributed the storage rings among my teachers, each containing a few items I thought they might find useful, or at the very least… interesting.

I also have one for Zhen Ai, filled with carefully selected clothes, considering how often she preferred her human form.

Oh, also a few baby supplies.

I wasn’t entirely sure why I felt the need to include those, but hopefully, it would mean something. I mean, she was carrying, so it kind of made sense to me. I didn’t know if a dragon would appreciate them, though.

My steps slowed as I approached the clearing, my gaze immediately drawn to the figures gathered near the water.

There were five of them. All of them were cultivators. Four stood slightly behind, their auras steady at Core Formation. The fifth was an old man with Nascent Soul cultivation. And in his grasp was Zhen Ai. His hand was wrapped tightly around her throat, lifting her slightly off the ground as if she weighed nothing. Her expression was strained, her usual composure fractured under the pressure of his grip.

I raised my voice.

“What is the meaning of this?”

The old man did not loosen his grip on Zhen Ai. His fingers remained coiled around her throat as though they had grown there, immovable and absolute, while his gaze shifted toward me with the weight of someone long accustomed to being obeyed.

“This matter does not concern you. Leave now, and you may yet keep your life.”

I let out a slow breath and thumped my staff against the ground. The sound echoed, low and heavy, as if the forest itself acknowledged the gesture. My will spread outward, threading through roots, vines, and soil that had long since become extensions of myself.

“Thorn Whips,” I commanded. “Rise.”

They surged upward in response, tearing through the earth with controlled violence before arching high above us. Countless vine-like tendrils twisted together, weaving a living canopy that swallowed the open sky. Only fragments of sunlight filtered through, scattering dim flickers of gold across the clearing.

The thorny vines had embedded themselves deep into the ground for some time already, settling into a strange harmony with the surrounding plant life. Nothing resisted them. Nothing rejected them. After all this time, the forest and I had already reached an understanding.

I lifted my gaze and met the old man’s eyes.

“Zhen Ai is under my protection, and no harm shall come to her unless I permit it.”

For a brief moment, there was silence.

Then the old man covered his face with one hand, and laughter spilled out from behind his fingers, unrestrained and sharp.

“A mere beast dares to claim a name? Zhen Ai, you say? How amusing.”

His laughter deepened, turning cruel as his eyes narrowed at both of us.

“And you… what are you? Some delusional fool who picked up a stray and mistook it for something precious? Perhaps, you thought taking her in as a pet might have been entertaining, but unfortunately for you, she already belongs to someone.”

I blinked, the words settling in my mind without quite fitting into place.

Belongs?

Pet?

What was wrong with this old man?

Before I could even begin to unpack the layers of absurdity in that statement, his expression turned cold, all traces of amusement vanishing like mist.

“Kill him.”

The four Core Formation cultivators moved immediately. Steel rang as their swords were drawn in unison, their auras flaring outward with practiced coordination.

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“An ignorant fool who does not know his place.”

“You should have crawled away when Elder showed mercy.”

“Now, you will learn what it means to offend the wrong people.”

One of them vanished from his position and reappeared before me in an instant, his blade already descending. His speed exceeded the Core Formation cultivators I had faced before, refined and sharpened through better techniques and experience.

Still, he was not faster than a Nascent Soul cultivator.

And certainly not beyond my reach.

“Entanglement,” I uttered.

Roots erupted from the ground beneath him, twisting around his limbs and torso before he could complete his strike. The momentum of his attack halted abruptly, his body locked in place as the roots tightened.

Shock overtook his expression, quickly followed by fear.

I stepped forward and placed a hand against his face.

“Slumber Pollen,” I cast.

A faint shimmer passed between us. His struggles weakened almost instantly, his eyes losing focus before rolling back entirely as his body went limp within the grasp of the roots.

This spell had always been unreliable at range, frustratingly so, failing more often than it succeeded against those at or above Core Formation. However, direct contact changed everything. With touch, innate resistance became the only deciding factor.

And his was not enough.

The remaining cultivators surrounded, seemingly frustrated that one of their own was taken down just like that.

“Damn it, he dropped like a moth to the flame!”

“What kind of trick was that?!”

“Stay focused, do not underestimate him!”

Three of them remained, and this time they did not hesitate. They moved together, converging from different directions with precise timing as they declared their technique.

“Formation: Severing Wheel!”

Their qi surged and intertwined, forming a rotating pattern around them as they advanced. Blades aligned, movements synchronized, their presence transforming into something resembling a spinning wheel of steel, intent on crushing anything caught within.

It was a single decisive strike coming from three directions.

That was what it looked like.

“Wild Shape: Primal Nature Elemental.”