31 Anna Awakens

  In Anna's shack, the beleaguered woman stirs. "Mom!" Franklin yells as his mother's eyes slowly open. Arron, who is fetching a fresh wet rag, stops what he's doing to runs over. "You're awake," he says happily.

  "Are you feeling better, mom?" Franklin asks as he clutches the hem of his mother's dress tightly. Anna wraps her arms around her son, giving him a big hug. "Your arm is healed!" Arron exclaims while grabbing her once broken arm.

  "So it seems," Anna replies with a gentle smile. "Thanks for looking after us. It seems like we are always causing you trouble," Anna graciously thanks the reliable man. "It's not a problem at all," Arron responds with embarrassment while rubbing his head.

  Franklin looks up at his mother with a strange expression. "You look a bit different?" he asks inquisitively, tilting his head in confusion. "Oh, I feel a bit different," Anna says in shock. She slowly reaches towards her face. They don't have any mirrors, so she can't be sure. It does feel a bit unusual, though. Arron begins to examine the mother. Indeed it feels like things have tightened up. It isn't that her facial features have changed. It is more like the years have disappeared.

  "Here, let me get up," Anna speaks while patting her son's shoulder. "Are you sure? You've just gone through an ordeal," Arron asks with a face full of worry. "It's fine. I don't feel any pain at all," She replies as she swings her legs off the bed. She gingerly stands up just in case. She looks at her body with a perplexed face. It feels like her anatomy has changed.

  "Is something wrong?" Arron asks, grabbing her arm just in case she loses her balance. Anna shakes her head and explains, "it's hard to explain, but it's as if my muscles have been rearranged."

  While everyone is contemplating this strange turn of events, the door slams open. "You're up! Good for you," Elanor says from the doorway. "Get out here. It's time to start your training!" The young female cultivator says while pointing over her shoulder to the outside with her thumb.

  "Training?" Anna asks the flamboyant cultivator curiously. "That's right, I've been roped into training everyone. So get your butts out here!" Elanor says while rubbing her head roughly, sending her glittering golden hair flying.

  "Let's go!" Franklin says with stars in his eyes. He grabs his mom's hand and pulls her towards the door. "Franklin, your mom, just recovered. Don't be too rough," Arron warns the impatient boy. "I feel fine, don't worry," Anna replies with a smile. "Hurry up, you don't want to miss out," she continues waving for the farmhand to join them.

  As they walk out, Elanor glances at the mother with a smile. "So that's what my master did. Lucky you," she says, giggling. "What do you mean?" Anna asks cautiously. She stops next to Elanor, pulling her son to a halt. "It's nothing bad," Elanor answers while waving her hand coyly. "It's just a technique from my clan. It reshapes a woman's body completely. I just thought about how she must have learned the technique when she was with my mother, and it made me laugh," she reveals with a wink and nudge.

  "Oh, what clan are you a part of?" Anna asks while feeling around her body. It did feel like every part of her has been regenerated and given a lift. It's like her body has returned to her early 20s again.

  "Normally, I wouldn't tell anyone. Too much trouble," Elanor says, waving her hand in front of her face as if something smells. "But... It's not like you guys would know anyways. So it's fine, I guess," she continues. Elanor Then moves over and grabs Anna by the shoulder, pulling her in close. Anna can't help but feel content with her shoulder being encompassed by this fairy's bosom. Arron looks on with mixed feelings. He doesn't know who he should be jealous of, Anna for being in this unattainable beauty embrace or Elanor for walking hand in hand with Anna.

  Elanor pulls the mother along as she whispers in her ear, "I won't tell you my family name. That will only cause you trouble." Anna nods slowly, a bit worried that she asked something she shouldn't have. Seeing Anna's anxious face Elanor headbutts the mother's forehead. "Ouch," Anna groans as she tries to back away from Elanor only to find she can't escape the grip of the beauty's embrace. "You'll get wrinkles if you worry about every little thing," Elanor says with a smirk.

  "Alright, my clan is made up of only women. So it's special. It has all kinds of techniques just for women," Elanor says secretly. "What? how can that be!?" Anna yelps in surprise. Laughing, the fairy replies, "it's true. Apparently, a very long time ago, our founder was a beautiful and powerful cultivator." Elanor covers her mouth while giggling, "she liked women, you see," she then shakes her head with delight as she continues, "not just a little, you know. A lot. So much that by the time she left us to ascend to godhood, the number of women in her harem outnumbered her old clan. So she formed an offshoot clan."

  Anna doesn't know where to begin questioning this fantastic story, 'ascending to godhood? Offshoot clan?.' She shakes her head to focus. "Truly she ascended to godhood? Is that even possible?" She inquires with a hushed voice. Elanor is having too much fun, so she no longer bothers with secrecy. She responds to the question while laughing loudly, "I don't know for sure. That's what the nerds say, though. I don't want to waste time in the library. I heard she went and ascended with her good friend from the Emerald family." Elanor nods her head enthusiastically. She is now so close to Anna that they look like they are fusing together. Elanor is just having too much fun chatting.

  Anna can't hide her shock from hearing her family name in the story. Thankfully Elanor didn't seem to notice as she continues gossiping, "speaking of nerds. Kendra, my fellow disciple, got so mad when I told her I didn't care about the ancient library of my clan!" Elanor shakes Anna joyously as she rambles on, "She's still angry about it even now. What a petty woman, right?" "Well, I haven't met her... So," Anna replies vaguely. Elanor Shakes her head while poking the mother's stomach playfully. "Don't be so serious," she says, chuckling.

  "How can a clan of only women even survive?" Anna asks curiously. "Oh, that's easy," Elanor says with disinterest. "There are plenty of cultivators who want dual cultivation partners. Men just want to focus on cultivating. So they tend to leave women and children behind. Since neither side wants any strings attached, it's easy to find partners. Of course, no one is forced to stay in the clan. You can marry into a different clan if you want. The boys, once they grow up, can choose to join the old clan or go off on their own," Elanor rattles off the speech in a bland voice. She's clearly been asked this question too many times.

  "Sorry, I didn't mean to ask something I shouldn't," Anna says with an apologetic smile. Sighing, Elanor gives the woman one last squeeze before releasing her. "Don't worry about it. Everyone asks," She responds with a smile. They'd long reached the group of villagers. It is quite a spectacle for them to see Elanor clinging to the mother. "It's easy to join my clan if you're a woman, though," Elanor teases while laughing. She then winks at the mother.