Back at Camp

Hong Wu returned to camp to begin her attempt at breaking through to the fourth layer of Qi Condensation. Wearing the new pendant Hu Huan gave her, Hong Wu sat on the black rock and tested her Coldmist Breathing Technique. 'It really is more effective than before. Where did Hu Huan get such a magnificent item?'

Her spirits raised by pendant's now proven ability, Hong Wu immersed herself in a deep state of meditation. Hong Wu had come a long way from when she first started cultivating. Hong Wu could now spend a full day immersing herself in cultivation. She still needed to eat and drink like any mortal, but her endurance had improved. Hong Wu had always been frail. This had not changed, but she felt less like the powerless servant girl of the Red Veil each and every day.

Yan returned to camp after searching through that day's section of the mountain. Tossing a pair of conies to Hong Wu, Yan flopped down on a log to take a load off while Hong Wu skinned and prepped the meal. "Find anything?" queried Hong Wu.

"Nothin. It has been over a month and we ain't found nothin worth trading. I'm startin to think that findin this bag was a fluke."

"Don't get discouraged we'll find something soon enough."

Yan scoffed lightly, "Hope yer right."

The two girls had agreed that running around the mountain haphazardly was not the smartest way to locate anything of value, so they created a system for their scavenging. The most obvious tactic was to first go back to the location where they found the first bag of holding and see if they could scrounge up any other loot. Finding nothing, the girls then decided they would make their way out from camp one square kilometer at a time. The girls would both make one comprehensive search together of a new section each day. After that search was finished, one of the two would stay behind to do a second sweep of the new area as well as the area they had search the day prior. The other would return to camp to cultivate.

Trading off each day, they developed a routine that quickly became familiar. Each morning they would set out together, and later that day the one continuing the search would return with dinner for the two. The two would sit together by the fire for a meal and discuss their day's progress. These bonfire sessions were the part of the day Hong Wu enjoyed the most. Talking with Yan about cultivation, life back at the Red Veil, and other miscellaneous topics was often the highlight of Hong Wu's day. Yan hardly spoke like the open book Hong Wu was, but she did opened up a lot in comparison since Hong Wu's return from isolation. At the very least, she responded to most of what Hong Wu said. The only thing Yan would not talk about was her life back in Heishan City. Hong Wu was curious, but respected Yan's privacy. She didn't want to pry and end up pushing Yan away.

Ignoring that one taboo subject, Hong Wu felt like she could talk with Yan about anything. Hong Wu often wondered if spending time together like this was what it felt like to have a family. Looking out for one another, supporting each other, sharing what little they have all made Hong Wu feel a deep sense of connection with Yan. These thoughts inevitably brought Hong Wu back to her mother. She wanted to believe that if her mother still lived, she would have felt the same sense of connection she did with Yan.

Yan inquired about Hong Wu's day "Any breakthroughs?"

Hong Wu could not help but grow a mischievous smile, "No, no. Nothing like that."

Seeing Hong Wu's self-satisfied grin, Yan continued her inquiry, "Then why does it look like ya just woke up next to a pile o gold?"

"I didn't wake up next to one, someone offered their riches up to me."

Seeing Yan's curious expression, Hong Wu stopped leaving her in suspense. "I beat Cang Rong half to death," Hong Wu chirped.

The color drained from Yan's face as she hissed, "How could ya be so stupid? Do ya want to be locked away again? Of all the moronic things ya could do, ya had to go pick a fight with the number one person to avoid!"

"Relax, it was totally by the books this time. I challenged her to an official battle in the Roaring Tigers Arena, plenty of witnesses. Besides, I owed her for last time."

Yan was unconvinced, "Ya think that this will be the end of it? The other girls won't forget this. They will find a way to get back at ya. It's eleven against two, we have to stay inconspicuous for as long as possible. If they can take us out before we are strong enough to stop them we're screwed."

"Come on, it isn't like they are going to all gang up on us. The sect wouldn't allow it, and I don't think Lady Lan would either."

Yan scowled hearing Lan Cixi's name, "The sect didn't stop them from ganging up on ya last time. As for that woman, ya have no idea what she was truly capable of."

Every time Lan Cixi's name came up Yan would tighten up and not bother to hide her disgust. Hong Wu tried to prod at the reason for her disdain, but that would only ever make Yan shut down even more.

Seeing Yan was starting to fall into a sour mood, Hong Wu tactfully changed the subject to cultivation. "How goes learning the new techniques?"

Hearing this new line of questioning, Yan's demeanor improved. "Pretty good actually. I think I'm starting to get the hang of the flyin sword. I can already make it float without droppin it now, and can even cut down branches off some of the younger trees. The Frozen Blade is still more practical for now, but I think with a bit more practice my control of the flyin sword will be even better than the Frozen Blade."

"What about the Combustion Configuration?"

Yan's expression changed yet again, this time showing a slight disappointment. "I spent half the day yesterday tryin to make some progress on that, but I don't notice any change. I have no idea why, but it just ain't workin."

The Combustion Configuration Technique was like the Coldmist Breathing Technique. It wasn't as spell so much as it was an entirely different way to use spiritual qi. If the Coldmist Technique gathered spiritual qi in the lower dantian and circulated it throughout the body within the meridians, then using Combustion Configuration drew the spiritual qi directly into the flesh and blood of the body. The two means of cultivation, spirit and body, seemed similar in theory, but were vastly different in practice. Yan had yet to unlock its mysteries, and Hong Wu was unable to read the technique to offer her perspective.

"Don't worry about that too much. Focus on your Flying Sword Technique for now. That is the most reliable way to quickly raise your strength until we can figure out this Combustion Configuration Technique."

Hong Wu finished preparing the food and passed on the information on the Young Dragons Competition Hu Huan shared with her while the rabbits cooked. Yan sat quietly absorbing everything Hong Wu said. Showing deep thought Yan made her conjectures. "Participatin in this competition will definitely be helpful if we can place in the top ten. Earnin a place in the top five would be even better. As luck would have it, we still have time to prepare, but I don't think we should rest easy just cause of that. We have only been outer sect disciples for a few months. Some of our competitors have probably been training for years. We can't hope to compete at the level we are now. We need to keep improvin as much as possible."

"Agreed," Hong Wu concurred.

Pulling one of the rabbits out of the fire, Hong Wu handed it over to Yan. "Food's ready here you go."

The two ate their meal quickly, both wanting to go back to their cultivation as soon as possible.