Chapter 20- The Evolution of Arts

Tian watched Liren race around the house with helpless amazement. It looked like he wouldn’t be able to repeat his race victory, though that probably wasn’t the most important thing at the moment. Liren, in addition to being ferociously strong, was now ferociously fast.

Until she tripped over her own feet, and lay sprawled in the dirt. It took her a few seconds to stand up, and when she did, she looked ready to fall right back down again.

“Zihao. Tea. Please.”

“Have a seat, I’ll fix you a cup or three. Let me guess, you can turn your fire qi into… what, energy in your legs that makes you go a lot faster?” Tian set out his tea set, deciding to celebrate their breakthrough with some recently acquired Heavenly Realm water and the last bit of Suneater’s white tea. He would have to source new leaves, now. A happy problem.

“I’m still not clear on the details, but I think that’s right.” She sat on the porch with a thump.

“And you forgot that while Yang qi is fast, it doesn’t last.”

“Yeah.”

“And that you just broke through, and your body is still converting your vital energy into qi and back again.”

“Is it doing that?”

“Yep.”

Liren nodded, managing to look sage as she was doing it. Then undercut the image by saying “I had no idea. I just thought you broke through and that was that.”

“Not so much, it seems.” He poured the wash over his tea pets, and nearly dropped the teapot when they seemed to shiver into life. It was only for a moment, then they were still again, firmly securing his tea tray. The tray, likewise, was a blaze of colors, rioting and brilliant.

“Did… did your tea pets just move?”

“Oh thank heavens. I thought I was going crazy, but it was just you.” Tian sighed with relief, then grinned and ignored Liren’s glower. “No idea what’s going on there, but apparently this is how you raise them. I guess we will just have to wait and see. Here. Your very first cup of Heavenly Realm tea. I’d like your opinion.”

She sniffed at him, smiled, took an appreciative sip, and spat the tea out in a violent mist over the grass.

“TIAN ZIHAO!”

“What? What did I do?!”

“You need to get yourself under control is what you need to do! You can’t just, just, just…” She was blushing furiously, refusing to look at him.

“Just what? I made it the way I always do.” Tian had a hangdog look on his face. He had been trying to do something nice, and now he was getting yelled at and his best tea got spat over the grass. That was the first cup he had served in the Heavenly Realm. The very first.

“You put your understanding of the elements in it. Which includes your emotions related to that element.”

“Yes?”

“YES?!” She swung around and stared. He stared back. Eventually she closed her eyes, still blushing.

“Fire. Passion. Love. When you think of fire, you think of me, now. And… and it seems that whatever was still broken in you is completely fixed. I noticed you got the rest of your fingers back. Sorry, I didn’t say something before and I should have. Congratulations, Zihao. I am so happy for you I could scream. But you were always so cool about everything, and it’s just a lot being hit by everything that had been building up inside of you.”

Tian smiled and bowed his head.

“Make me another cup, please. The exact same way.”

Much later, Tian did his own racing around the house. Faster, but not able to fly. He would need a special tool for that- a flying boat, or a raft, or, ugly thought, a sword. Flying on Burning Heaven was much, much better. Still. Might be wise to secure a flying tool, just in case she wasn’t around.

He switched over to Moon Crossing the Lake, and for a moment, he forgot how to think. How to breathe. He felt like he was the moon, and the grass swaying in the night wind was the lake. He drifted across, not leaving a footprint, or even bending a blade. Untraceable as the moon over the water.