3. Differences between Peers

Sirius stretched her limbs, welcoming the morning sun, before stepping outside her small courtyard in the Inner Sect.

Unlike the Outer Sect, the Inner Sect dwellings, all of which could be called small manors, weren’t squeezed together. Instead, the estates were scattered across Purple Gem Mountain, with paths, some short, some long, leading to the wide staircase that led up and down the mountain.

Walking down the staircase, Sirius rubbed her side, where she had taken the claws of a spirit beast due to a moment of distraction in the last mission. “Maaan… These two losers who couldn’t listen to simple advice. Whether it be from Faust or me…” She complained.

Mue Dian and Persius’s estates were close to the mountain’s base, Sirius wasn’t worried about the two of them hearing. She still went on basic missions with the two, but their poor, rushed foundations were showing their weaknesses. She had to constantly keep an eye on the two.

“Fine Morning, Junior Sister.” A voice called from behind. Sirius whipped around.

“Senior Brother, Satheon!” Sirius responded happily. “It’s a great morning! You must be even better since I heard you managed to kill a beast rivaling someone at the peak of the Open Palace realm!”

The man, with a lion’s mane of black hair and sapphire earrings, robes loose enough to see his gleaming abs, smiled wide in response. “Of course! Naturally! With my level of body refinement! No beast could match me in the same realm!” He patted his chest, pointing his nose to the sky.

“Wow! No wonder! It’s just as the rumors say!” Sirius responded, letting Satheon catch up before bouncing down the stairs a bit behind him. She actually enjoyed Satheon as a teammate. He was an idiot that only needed some praise to stay motivated and would gladly lose an arm before putting his team in danger. With potential for the Golden Core realm, he was a much better prospect to the other two.

For a while, Sirius conversed with Satheon, who began talking non stop about his most recent mission where he fought a powerful beast alone, offering all sorts of praise and encouragement.

Soon, the pair reached the bottom of the Purple Gem mountain stairs, leading to a massive courtyard surrounded by peach trees and plum blossoms, with several benches and pavilions dotted around.

In the distance, Sirius saw Persius and Dian dawdling, while to the side, sat several groups of Inner Disciples chatting away in the late morning.

“Oh!” Sirius noticed two specific Inner Sect disciples she knew and bounded forward a few steps before turning her heel to give Satheon a slightly exaggerated bow. “I look forward to working with Senior Brother again!”

“Haha! You as well Junior Sister!” Satheon responded, happily continuing through the courtyard, probably towards the Mission Hall on Diamond Mountain.

“Good Morning! Junior Sister Sue Jane! Senior Brother Damarius!” Sirius greeted two people to the side of the large courtyard, skipping over.

“Sirius! Good Morning!” Sue Jane, a woman with long black hair and gold painted lips, jumped up to greet Sirius, the two clasping their hands together like longtime friends.

“Hmpf.” Damarius snorted in acknowledgment, sitting cross-legged atop a stone, a pitch black spear resting across his legs that matched his long hair that almost covered his face.

“Are you alright! I heard you were injured on your last mission!” Sue Jane asked.

“It’s fine Junior Sister! No need to worry about me!” Sirius put her hands on her hip and declared. “Just a minor injury saving a teammate!”

“Wow! The mission was against a spirit beast pack who were only equal to Peak Meridian opening wasn’t it? How did your teammate nearly get injured?” Sue Jane asked, with her eyes betraying a complete lack of sincerity in her smile.

Sirius resisted rolling her eyes. If Sue Jane wasn’t always hanging around Damarius, who most considered the strongest disciple in the Inner Sect right now, she wouldn’t even bother with her.

Still, Sirius kept up the enthusiasm, acting as if she had no idea what she was saying. “Well! Persius and Mue Dian are both spear users, but they aren’t as good as Senior Brother Damarius!” She paused.

“Naturally.” Damarius spoke from his perch atop the large boulder, eyes still closed as if uninterested in the conversation happening right in front of him.

Sirius smiled wider. This broody senior brother of hers loved any opportunity to accept praise despite putting on an act of being low profile. “So the two had to disengage and jump back. To let them make distance I had to jump from my fight to stall the beasts they were facing, but I got surrounded because they retreated so far! My Spirit Qi shield broke and I got a minor injury on my side.” She put on a pitiful face.

“That’s horrible! How could Inner Sect disciples have such poor vision and leave you to suffer like that!” Sue Jane made a show of hugging Sirius, her far superior height making Sirius look like a child who only came up to her chest.

“It’s disappointing for Inner Sect disciples to make such a low level mistake.” Damarius affirmed, still with his eyes closed, still feigning disinterest.

At the same time, Sirius felt two presences approaching.

Freeing herself from Sue Jane’s hug, Sirius turned to see Persius and Dian approaching. They evidently heard what was said, not surprising considering their level of cultivation and the complete lack of subtlety between her and Sue Jane.

Dian was glaring at Sue Jane, while Persius was looking away guiltily.

Sirius sighed in her heart. She had been casually making conversation like this in order to set up this exact situation. Despite her feelings, she wasn’t risking her future for the sake of being Dian and Persius’s friend and teammate.

“Oh? Glaring so fiercely after struggling against some minor beasts, not even considered as strong as an Open Palace cultivator?” Sue Jane pulled Sirius back into a hug.

At the Mid Stage of the Open Palace realm, Sirius could have resisted being pulled in, but since the situation she had been aiming for had happened, she played along. Since Dian and Persius had ignored advice from Senior Brother, advice that took him countless years and diligent effort to obtain, given to them for free, they would eventually suffer the consequences regardless of what she did. In her opinion, letting the two realise while in a safe environment like the sect, was the final thing she could do for them as a friend.

“…Our spear skills were lacking…” Persius bowed in apology. Damarius snorted on the side.

“You think that’s an excuse for letting a fellow sect member get surrounded by vicious beasts!” Sue Jane sneered, goading the two loudly. “Commoners like you who got lucky should at least have virtue if not talent.”

“It’s not their fault! They did their best!” Sirius protested, trying to push away from Sue Jane. But she didn’t use much strength, letting herself get pulled back in. So far, it was going according to plan, Sue Jane wouldn’t miss an opportunity to belittle those she saw as beneath her, purely for the fun of it. As far as Sirius could tell.

Dian’s glare turned into a snarl, her mouth and eyes twitching.

“That’s even worse! If they can’t even cover their teammates properly when trying their best, they should have stayed in the Outer Sect, where such inadequacy is tolerated.”

By now, the whole courtyard had gone quiet. The sharpened senses of those at the Open Palace realm could hear a fly from all the way across the massive courtyard, let alone an unveiled argument.

“…I have no excuse…” Persius, who avoided conflict like the plague, bowed even more while Dian’s expression became increasingly ugly.

“Tch! At least one of you knows your place. Unlike this mute. I suppose it was her fault then for letting your martial sister be injured then?” Sue Jane directed her question to Persius, who was sweating so much Sirius could see it dripping down his face.

“…” Persius didn’t answer Sue Jane, clearly determined to defuse the situation at all costs. It was the safest move in Sirius’s opinion— but not the wisest.

“Hmpf!” Sue Jane turned to Dian. “Mute Dian Is it? Are you not even going to apologise to your martial sister? Would she have to be crippled or die before you admit your mistake? Did you inherit your parent’s black hearts?”

Her whole body trembling, Dian spoke, “It is… Mue Dian… Junior Sister.” She spoke through gritted teeth, in a voice so quiet one could tell she didn’t speak much if at all.

“Haha.” Sue Jane chuckled hollowly, ”How amusing.”

Sirius saw Dian’s knuckle going white. She was always the emotional type.

“Perhaps your mother—”

Clang!

Silver flashed and a silver Spear had appeared in Dian’s hands, thrust at Sue Jane.

With a deceased father and raised by a single mother among nine siblings, Sirius understood Dian’s feelings. But that didn’t make her actions wise. Far from it.

Sue Jane smiled widely as she held a pale golden fan in one hand that deflected the spear to the side.

ZING!

Dian leapt back, landing in a well trained stance— of a common farmer’s spear technique… She truly hadn’t taken any of Sirius or Faust’s advice.

Persius also leapt away, only he was clearly trying to disconnect himself from the situation rather than assist.

Damarius didn’t react, but his ears perked up and one eye cracked open to observe the fight.

Sirius, now released from Sue Jane’s grasp, quickly inserted herself between Sue Jane and Dian. “Hey! Hey! Lets not fight! I’m sure Sue Jane didn’t mean it!” She tried to say, defusing the situation as ineffectually as possible. Besides, Sue Jane’s wicked smile and Dian’s snarl said it all.

Sue Jane walked forward, gently moving Sirius out of the way with her fan.

Before, all the disciples in the courtyard had been looking away, pretending not to be eavesdropping, but now, they had dropped any pretence and watched the unfolding scene intently.

Sirius covered her face with a sleeve and sighed deeply. Without using any arrays or external items to reinforce or help form their foundations, Dian and Persius were about to see the results. Something Senior Brother Faust was too soft to demonstrate to them.

It was for their own good, Sirius told herself, subtly stepping back from the fight.

…

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…

“Hmmm…” Clementine, the overseer of the Administration Hall, looked Faust up and down, before eventually nodding. “Good work, disciple Faust.” He eventually spoke.

“I’m unworthy of praise.” Faust bowed in thanks, cupping a fist in one hand.

“Hmmm… Hardly… Here, consider this a bonus…” The elder tossed something out his sleeve and Faust caught it, then, his eyes widened.

“Overseer! This is too valuable!” Faust offered the small blue pouch, embroidered with intricate golden patterns, back.

The overseer shook his head. “It is the duty of the Merit and Administrative Halls to appropriately invest in disciples with potential… Your efforts have not gone unnoticed by the sect.”

Faust felt something catch in his throat and took a sharp breath. He withdrew his hands slowly. “I will remember the sect’s kindness.” He eventually said.

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“I look forward to when you eventually reach the Golden Core realm.” The old man waved Faust off.

“I will do my best not to disappoint!” Faust responded.

“…Now…” The old man turned his gaze to the other person in the room.

Rozaline looked worse for wear. Hair out of place, missing earrings and with no Red Jade Fan in her hands. Yet despite that, she had a victorious smile on her lips.

“While there were some… Complications… You have also done well, disciple Rozaline…”

The person in question, still with the haughty air she had the last time Faust had met her, let her shoulders droop a bit, exhaling deeply.

“Thank you, Overseer Clementine.” Rozaline bowed as well.

“For breaking through and managing to incorporate a 4th level fire spirit into your foundation. Your family has sent you some rewards.” The overseer, Clementine tossed another pouch, one made of red and black fabric, with golden embroidery.

A fire spirit? Faust couldn’t help but think. Of the 4th level moreover? Rozaline was truly worthy of being from a powerful clan. A 4th level fire spirit was around as powerful as someone in the Golden Core realm. Even if it was heavily injured, suppressed to the limit by arrays and formations and contained by much more powerful cultivators— to be able to use such a thing to forge a foundation…

Faust suddenly felt inadequate. His own efforts paled in comparison. With no other cultivators in his family to rely on, he couldn’t even imagine using such powerful external items to establish his foundation. He smiled bitterly, subtly shaking his head. No amount of his effort would match a family with thousands of years of history.

Clementine waved his hand, shooing the two off. With a bow, the two obliged, turning to leave.

Outside of the frigid and freezing Administration Hall, Faust took a deep breath to collect himself. He had finally joined the Inner Sect. Now he had 20 more years to develop his inner palace and research the Golden Core realm.