19.2. The Faram Estate

Miu poked at some ants on the ground with a stick she had found.

They were the only things weaker than her in this place. Even the servants were all at the peak of Qi refining or in the Meridian Opening realm.

She stiffened.

A pressure pressed down on her, giving her a headache. This level of headache meant there was another Nascent Soul monster nearby.

Apart from that other one that obliterated her disguise technique with one finger.

All her savings for that technique so she could quietly leave the city.

All for nothing.

The old butler of the estate— the one the 4th princess had dragged her to— ran towards the front gate, pausing a moment before unlatching it and pushing it open.

“Welcome back, lord Faram.”

“Apologies for being late. I happened to be looking over my masterpiece around the Grand Archive when I met a man of similar mind. Please, prepare a room for him.”

“Of course my lord.”

“I would love to continue talking, but I have an appointment tonight that I should already be late for.”

“Apologies for distracting you from your work. Thank you once again for hosting me tonight.”

Miu saw a white robed, young looking scholar in a black and white yin yang robe, with long and thick silver hair, rush through the courtyard and towards the main building where she remembered the princess had been waiting impatiently.

“I’ll show you to the foyer first. Since you’re a guest personally invited by lord Faram, it will take a few minutes to prepare a room.”

“Thank you.”

Miu watched as the old butler escorted another young man in. They had long blond hair tied into a ponytail at the back, with a gold looking hair ornament that dangled down near their ear with some loose strands of hair. He was wearing purple and gold robes, with Clear Mirror Sect embroidered on the back and with some goldish bracers with intricate patterns.

And, as was the rule in this place the princess had dragged her too— The newcomer was naturally at the Open Palace realm as well.

Heavens forbid, someone with lower cultivation than her entered the estate. She sighed, looking back down to the ants, poking one with the stick.

One ant didn’t die when she poked it, so she poked it again.

The stick was snapped by a small, sudden surge in Qi, then the ant started trying to rush up her foot and Miu threw the stick across the path in surprise before she slapped the ant, hard, with her hand.

It died this time.

“Haaaahhh….” Miu groaned standing up. At this rate even the ants were going to be beating her up within a few more months.

So much for being the most talented and strongest person in her village.

Let alone higher realms, she had discovered she wasn’t even strong among her own realm, late stage of Qi gathering.

“Mountains beyond mountains… Heights beyond heights.” Miu recited the poem, before idly following the old butler and newcomer. She had nothing to do anyway.

The princess had said that since she didn’t come in the morning, she had to stay here until she took care of something— which she said could take a few days— before they returned to the Imperial Palace.

Miu wasn’t looking forward to that.

She turned her attention to Jung, who was poking his head out from beneath her outer robes, looking at the old butler and newcomer as well.

“What do you think, Jung?”

“Sssssss.”

“Yeah, that seems about right.” Miu agreed. The pressure around just this one person in purple robes was even stronger than the royal guards that accompanied the princess, holding her flag. Jung must feel it even clearer than herself.

Miu sighed.

She had accidentally made a new friend while exploring the capital like… as a country bumpkin. She thought they were just a well-mannered commoner, who didn’t mind showing a country bumpkin around the city for a bit.

Nope.

They turned out to be the fourth princess.

A fact Miu only discovered after she accepted visiting her home for a while. A maid at the Golden Core realm appeared out of thin air and gave her a token and a letter containing “directions.”

It was only at that moment that she realised.

She f#cked up.

She managed to do it again when she spent all her savings on a disguise technique and on an early return trip ticket.

It started when the ship’s captain said there was a delay. Then Jung had hid in her clothes, trembling.

The next moment, a voice announced the princess’s arrival and what must have been hundreds of thousands of people all bowed simultaneously.

Yet as the princess called her out, not only were the people bowing, but she could feel their gazes on her.

There were so many.

It was like she could feel them pressing against her.

The old butler led the newcomer to a foyer in one of the side buildings, before bowing slightly and leaving with swift steps.

A maid in a tight green cheongsam brought out tea and snacks, placing it on the bench beside the newcomer, before excusing herself.

“I’ll be nearby, please call out if you require anything sir.”

The maid disappeared while Miu peered in through the open doors, from the covered walkway that surrounded the single story buildings.

The newcomer looked around for a bit, sampled one of the snacks and then tried the tea.

Then, his gaze landed on Miu.

“Can I do something for you, miss?” He asked.

Miu wondered what she should say. She had just followed out of boredom. She sighed in her heart and supposed she should still be respectful.

“Miu, from Green Terrace Province.” Miu stepped into full view, giving a small bow. She hadn’t seen the princess bow ever and the cupped fist salute had seemed like a more militaristic form of respect, so she wasn’t sure if she was meant to do so or not.

The newcomer eyed her for a moment, before standing up, cupping a fist, but not bowing, “Faust, Inner Disciple of the Clear Mirror sect.” He introduced, before sitting back down.

It went silent for a moment. Miu looked around idly. The servants were… Well… Subservient. The guards were stone faced and the princess made very one sided conversation while those two maids, Rin and Lin didn’t speak much. Answering questions —or refusing to answer— as concisely as possible with no further room for small talk or anything else.

“Uh… What’s Clear Mirror Sect?” Miu struggled to find something to talk about.

“…” The newcomer, Faust, just stared at her.

I know it was a stupid question, but can you please not stare at me like that. It’s making it more embarrassing. Miu thought, bearing the gaze.

“Well…” Faust finally began, “…It’s a sect.”

“…” Miu felt her eyes twitch. Another terrible conversation partner.

“One of the six first rate sects in the empire. Far from the level of those independent sects.” He continued and Miu perked up. There was hope after all.

“Though, supposedly those independent sects have an agreement with the empire where the mortal population is still administered by the empire, just with a few caveats.” Faust finished.

“Can you tell me more? I’ve heard of the big sects, but I don’t think I’ve heard their names!” Miu jumped onto a nearby seat. He wasn’t the greatest conversation partner, but he was still better than anyone else she had found in the manor so far!

Faust looked at her strangely for a moment, before clearing his throat.

“Well— There’s the Holy Sea sect… Or church… If that’s what you want to call it… To the South of the empire.” He started. “Then, there’s the Divine Moon Sect… Or Cult, according to the Holy Sea. To the empires southwest. Up in the northwest is the Red Dragon sect. The Empire’s closest ally on the continent, basically a part of the empire since the current sect leader is from the royal family.”

Miu nodded along, trying to map it out in her head.

“What else is around the empire?” She urged.

“…The empire’s vassal, the Starry Skies Kingdom, is to the south, between the Holy Sea and Divine Moon sects. The barbarian tribes territory is to the west, between the Divine Moon and Red Dragon sects. Then the whole north is the continent’s Northern Wastelands.”

“The northern wastelands?”

“Two people above the Void Returning realm fought there.”

“Whats above the Void Returning realm?”

“I don’t know.” Faust sipped his tea calmly.

“…”

Wow. Miu thought. He must have been the first person she’d ever met who outright admitted he didn’t know something.

She thought about all those pretentious pricks she’d met, who’d dug themselves into the deepest holes and taken massive reputational hits when they could have just said their wrong and moved on.

Miu sighed, “Why can’t those heirs admit when they’re wrong?” She complained, melting into her seat.

“Authority is hard to maintain when you’re always wrong.” Faust answered simply.

“People will follow the man who’s never been wrong in their life over the one who’s made multiple mistakes.” He shrugged, “But that’s just my theory. We can never truly know.”

Miu almost teared up. Apart from his cultivation, he was a normal person. She almost didn’t think they existed in this city.

The old butler returned, “Your room is ready, Sir Faust.”

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Faust nodded and stood up to follow.

Miu wanted to follow and keep talking, but she felt like it would be strange if she followed someone to their room.

She watched as the two left then sighed, standing from the chair she had sat on before she reluctantly left.

“Ssssss!” Jung stuck his little green head out again, before curling around Miu’s neck from under her outer robes.

“I know! It’s a miracle. I wonder if I can talk him into helping me escape the capital? Surely the princess can’t follow me that far… Right?” She said excitedly, but she doubted he would cross the princess. His expression had been rather… resigned when the old butler told him the princess was here.

Miu sighed again, walking back through the courtyard to the other side on the east, passing through an interior boundary wall of the estate, where two royal guards stood at attention.

She had tried to get them to talk, or even react to her, but even when she attacked as hard as she could, they didn’t even flinch. Rather, she almost broke her hand against their armour.

The estate’s whole eastern courtyard was swarming with red uniformed officers that the princess had explained were from the imperial military’s Westoria garrison, where she held the strongest influence.

Coming up to the most heavily guarded building, surrounded by several royal guards, Miu entered the room given to her, under the scrutinising gaze of some of the guards.

Even closing the door and hearing a low thrum as formations and arrays activated, Miu could feel the pressure of another Nascent Soul monster, the princess’s personal bodyguard, from two rooms over.

Really, she couldn’t imagine having a bodyguard at the Nascent Soul realm. She dreamed of forming a Golden Core and being the strongest person in the town near her village— where the town lord was at the peak of the Open Palace realm.

Even now, slumping back against the room’s doors and sliding down, Miu felt the constantly shifting auras of peak Open Palace realm cultivators moving around the estate.

The uniformed soldiers were already strong, but the Royal Guard were on another level, the pressure around them easily doubled.

Then there was that guy, Faust. She was pretty sure he wasn’t even at the peak of the Open Palace realm, but the pressure around him was easily worth 8 or 10 of the royal guards.

Miu covered her face for a moment, sucking in a breath.

She stayed like that for a few moments, before standing up and moving to the bed, where she sat down cross legged.

Jung slithered down from around her neck and onto the bed, lying down.

Miu took a few deep breaths. Then, she began grabbing Qi from the surroundings with some of the Qi from her dan-tian. She twisted the Qi’s together, rotating them rapidly until different types of Qi started flying off.

She kept on spinning them until her Qi blended with the remaining Qi, which if done properly, should be relatively pure spirit Qi— according to the old man in the village who taught her that is.

Drawing the Spirit Qi into her body, Miu let it spread out, joining with the Spirit Qi she had managed to store in her body already. She meditated while she let the Spirit Qi in her body balance out.

Once the Spirit Qi stored in her body had balanced out, Miu didn’t rush to do anything. She waited until she felt ready before pulling some Spirit Qi from her body, to inside her dan-tian.

She had to be careful.

The old man at home had warned that any mistakes here could damage the dan-tian. When you were born with a strong enough dan-tian, it was your body’s only reference for your Innate Qi. If it was damaged, the old man said it became impossible to know what your own Innate Qi was like.

So, Miu carefully let the Spirit Qi pass through her dan-tian’s boundary. Once it was inside, she began rotating it slowly in a circle, then expanding the circle bit by bit.

As the circling Spirit Qi was close to touching the edge of her dan-tian, Miu slowed down even more, only just brushing its boundaries.

Then, Miu stayed like that.