Mortal Banquet

Yaan was welcomed into Tian Village by the mortal villagers with open arms. Not only did they lack all suspicion and apprehension towards him, an outsider, but they actually arranged and hosted a banquet to welcome him into the village on the very same day that he arrived.

To Yaan, who had lived amongst scheming cultivators for too long now, this sort of reception almost felt like a dream.

He sat there quietly as the adults chatted amongst themselves, laughing and enjoying their drinks and food. He watched as the children played, running around the village hall energetically without a care in the world.

Everyone made sure to include him in their conversation, asking him about himself, his past, his direction of travel, but without pushing the matter too far when he showed his desire to not speak too deeply of these matters.

He didn't want to reveal himself as a cultivator, so Yaan would prefer to simply not speak of these things. Otherwise, he would be forced to spin some false story.

As he took in this pleasant and happy atmosphere that felt so foreign to him, this warm and boisterous world of mortals, Yaan felt a peculiar sense of loss.

He had never lived such a life…he would never live such a life, not truly.

Yaan was under no delusion. His inclusion in this mortal world right now was merely a facade, this situation was only possible due to the false pretence he created where he was posing as a mortal child.

He was no mortal. He was only being treated warmly and kindly, welcomed into their village as one of them, because the villagers believed that he was an ordinary child, alone and travelling the world with great difficulty.

If the truth were to be made known, these mortals would not treat him with such openness and kindness. If Yaan were to reveal just a fraction of his power, they would all drop to their knees in reverence, taking care with each word they spoke to him, remaining cautious in their demeanour so as to avoid offending him.

Yaan had only a day and half of memory of a normal, simple mortal life like this, after which time, he was dragged into the world of cultivators. So, he felt a sense of loss and loneliness as the banquet went on, knowing that he would never truly have this life.

Mortals often daydreamed of becoming cultivators. They believed that cultivators all stood at the peak of this world, forever basking in power and glory. They saw cultivators as transcendent beings who had everything they could ever dream of; authority, power, respect, a superior life in general.

But in truth, a life of cultivation was a life lived in struggle, a life of adversity, loneliness and hardship. There was always someone stronger, someone with more authority, someone above you. Those around you did not truly respect you, they only competed and schemed against you.

A simple and warm life like this, was a distant memory for most cultivators.

"Yaan dear, is everything ok?"

Yaan was drawn out from his musings as a woman known to all in the village as Granny Ging turned to him and spoke with a concerned expression. Yaan glanced at the old woman and smiled slightly, giving a faint nod and reassuring her that he was fine.

"I'm fine, Missus Ging, I was simply lost in thought."

Granny Ging did not look convinced. She couldn't help but feel concerned for this child, this young boy who had clearly been travelling alone through the outside world.

How exactly could a child manage this, how could they survive…and just what would drive a child to this end?

'This boy must have been through a lot…' The old lady thought to herself with a sigh.

"I know you must have been through a lot, Yaan." Granny Ging spoke her thoughts aloud without hiding anything. "If you want to talk about it, just know that I'm here to lend you an ear. If there's anything you need, just let me know dear. And please, call me granny like everyone else."

Her intentions were kind, but Yaan did not feel warmed by her words, because these words were intended only for the false identity he had created for himself, not for the true, cultivator that he was.

"Thank you, granny, I appreciate your kind words." Yaan smiled again.

"Hahaha, you're still so formal Yaan!" An old man called Ginto laughed out loud.

"He's well spoken is all! Say, Yaan, are you really not a prince?" Another man called Runto, a bearded middle-aged man who had greeted Yaan soon after he arrived at the village, leaned in and asked him with a curious gaze.

"Dear! He said that he's not, so he's not! And didn't I tell you to stop prying into the boy's life? You've had too much to drink again, sigh…" Runto's wife Diane reprimanded him, shaking her head with a sigh.

"Bahaha, it's a party, why can I not drink?"

…

The feast went on, the good mood and chatter was maintained until late that night, at which point, many people began falling asleep at the table and on the floor. The children passed out after playing too excessively and tiring themselves, whilst many of the adults drank too much wine and fell asleep at their seats with rosy faces.

Yaan silently looked around at the now quiet surroundings, thinking that mortal parties were quite intense and brief. Comparatively, cultivators could maintain a banquet for days at a time, though they were naturally not so boisterous and rowdy, and there were often social and political schemes and undercurrents constantly travelling back and forth during the conversations between one another as the individuals attempted to build connections and increase their reputation.

Only a few people remained awake within the village hall now. When Yaan saw those people stand up, most of whom were older and more controlled in their actions during the banquet, he also got up and joined them in clearing up.

Granny Ging once again took notice of Yaan, looking surprised when she saw him clearing the tables and carrying the used dishes towards the kitchen.

'What a polite and diligent young boy, he is far too different compared to the children in the village…' Granny Ging thought to herself.

She never even considered the possibility that he might be a cultivator and not truly a child. Rather than that, like the others in the village, she also had the thought that he might be the prince of a recently fallen city.

Why else would he be out in the wilderness, travelling alone with no baggage, yet wearing the finest silk clothing their village had ever seen?

"Granny Ging…" Yaan approached the old woman, noticing that she was watching him. She smiled at him kindly, anticipating that he might be approaching her to consult her for advice. However, his actual question caught her off guard and left her feeling confused.

"Do you think that cultivators are impressive?"

"Cultivators?" Granny Ging blinked in surprise, immediately nodding. "Of course they are impressive! Qi masters can muster up incredible powers, some can even soar through the skies! Did you know Yaan, when I was younger, I also travelled through the outside world. I was truly lucky, I once witnessed such a cultivator flying above Danyo City! I will never forget the sight…sigh, Qi masters are truly incredible. To fly through the skies freely like a bird, what could be more impressive than that?"

Yaan smiled lightly.

Indeed, to mortals, the concept of a human being flying was truly an incredible thing.

More importantly, her answer told Yaan that this village likely had a decent understanding of the fundamentals regarding cultivators. Even if only Granny Ging herself had experienced this brief encounter with the cultivation world, she would have passed on her knowledge and experiences to everyone else in the village.

Perhaps he could still ask his question of dao here. Yaan intended to stay in this village for some time either way, but if he could ask his question to these mortals, that would be even better. Of course, he could not just come outright and ask 'what is dao' with no context, they would feel very confused by such a thing.

"Granny, I'm quite interested in the matters of cultivators." Yaan went on, speaking as he helped the old woman to wash the dishes from the banquet as others continued to bring more in.

The old woman chuckled lightly and smiled at Yaan amusedly.

"But of course, who isn't interested in those illusive beings? Would you like to learn more, dear?"

"Mm." Yaan nodded. "There's one matter in particular that interests me. I've heard that cultivators pursue something called dao…could you tell me…what is dao?"

"Dao, huh…it's been a while since I last heard someone use that term." Granny Ging muttered as a nostalgic look flashed across her face. She took another look at Yaan, now feeling increasingly convinced that he must be someone of high birth, for his education to even include things such as this.

In her mind, Yaan had definitely been taught about the wonders of the cultivation world as part of his noble upbringing. Perhaps, a member of his family had even been a cultivator themselves!

As she thought about the fact that this child was out here alone, still trying to learn more about matters that he must have been taught in his past, Granny Ging's expression softened. Perhaps, his family once taught him these things, but maybe now, he did not have a family anymore…

"Dao is one of the mysterious powers that cultivators use." Granny Ging explained to Yaan smilingly. "Most people think that cultivators only pursue power and authority, but that is actually not the case. Cultivators have a deep understanding of the world, and cultivation is all about furthering this understanding. Dao is that very understanding. Personally I think that cultivators are amazing not because of their strength, but because their understanding of life is so far beyond the comprehension of us mortals. To understand the world on their level, sigh, it must be such an incredible thing…"