Chapter 46- Attacked With Cakes

Tian thought Level Ten of the array might be his limit, which was irritating. It really shouldn’t be this hard, teamwork or not. There was blatantly a trick to it, but his hosts didn’t volunteer what it might be. He just kept dodging and trying to use the techniques Lin had provided to keep the crane engaged.

It was the crane that inadvertently discovered the secret. Beams of fire and water qi were coming at her head from two directions. She ducked at the last minute, and the beams collided, then vanished.

“Cycle of generation and restraint! Aha!” Tian grinned.

“Oh well done! I was quite worried for a while there.” Oily greased at him, but his itchy words couldn’t shake Tian’s happy mood. The discovery opened up so many options. Getting beams to cancel each other out was an obvious one, but he could see the number of beams only increasing at higher levels. Using metal to generate water to block fire, or wood to fuel fire and melt metal, were potential options. The real test would be doing that while pushing the beams of qi around and into each other, rather than relying on footwork.

“Oh, that’s why over Level Fifteen is Heavenly Person only. It’s not that the attacks get stronger, it’s because you need to control and redirect the energy to pass the levels. Something you can’t really do without external qi manipulation. A sort of high speed puzzle, getting more complicated the further you advance. Fun.”

Oily’s look changed from patronizing to startled, before quickly settling back. Doughy remained stoic, but nodded slightly. “Yep.”

Tian rubbed his hands. “On to Level Eleven. I am curious to see how far I can go.”

Oily sneered while he made the adjustments. “Yes, Level Ten is a bit embarrassing for a Daoist of your… notable accomplishments.”

Tian let the barb hang out in the air. He had noticed the young cultivator had been fiddling with his compass while he was struggling in the field. Manipulation of the beams seemed an obvious possibility. He was probably tasked with humiliating Tian and “blunting his momentum” or some other overly complicated nonsense.

And if that was the case, then Doughy was here for the same purpose. He didn’t seem to be involved in this challenge, so he was probably setting up for whatever came next.

Tian ran the possibilities as he guided the crane, the two working together to turn the rays against each other. It took careful timing and sharp dodging, but that was the point of all this- coordination and training. He hid a smile. The harder they went at him, the more intensely they trained him. He really couldn’t ask for better.

“Level Twelve, please.” The Snow Grace Crane was picking up on what he was communicating better than ever. It was to the point where he was becoming a little irritated and defensive. Was he really so bad at the games in the manual that she didn’t want to play along? He was using those super high quality fruits and fish meat too.

The crane spun around him, wings wide, providing just a hint of pressure downward to let her ungainly feet move quickly over the sand. The flashing red face at the end of the long, white neck reminded him of the red tassel that hung just below the spearhead on Liren’s spear.

“Oh DAMN IT ALL!” He stomped furiously, not stopping his dodging.

“Is there a problem, Daoist Tian?” Oily inquired, malice seeping through the paper thin politeness of his tone.

“Yes, I finally figured out why I was partnered with this specific crane.”

“Oh? And why is that?”

“Because we have similar temperaments.”

“Is that so?”

Tian didn’t elaborate. Of course the crane played the games for the food. The food was delicious. Of course it didn’t bond much with him while they were doing it. It was too simple. Too peaceful. One of Tian’s very favorite things in the whole world was sparring with his senior brothers. It seemed that the crane followed the implicit teachings of the West Town Outer Court. Eat Well, Trust Your Brothers, and Never Duck a Fight You Can Win.

They really were well suited.

“It could have been a gentle crane. A spirit of wild freedom moving in harmony with the world. Perhaps it wishes to become human to better understand laughter, or the joys of art.”

Did you really think that was possible? Did you really?

Tian sighed. When the bolts of energy started twisting like snakes and slashing like sabers, he could feel the crane’s simple happiness. Tian glanced up at the brilliant blue sky. The color seemed a little different up here, so high in the mountains. He should leave the bird to her fun and find a quiet rock to sit on. He could teach himself how to play a bamboo flute with seven fingers. He would get by swapping tea for food and more tea. A quiet life. Yes, a quiet, peaceful life.