Chapter 7 - The Healing Pool

At breakneck pace, Li Kang propelled himself deeper and deeper into the dark cave. The ki energy circulating through his body providing him with limitless endurance. Suddenly he came upon a branch where the cave split into two paths. Knowing that he had no time to wait, he considered the proverb that his drunken father used to trot out often in order to sound wise. "A villain takes what is Left, while a true hero always does what is Right." With this in mind, Li Kang charged down the left path. After being cast out of my clan, the shameless path of villainy will make me strong. Only then can I reforge my image into that of a hero.

His father's wise words were soon proven useless as both paths converged into a massive cavern. Stalactites of glittering crystal dripped water into a large pool of shimmering water. Giant, majestic carp swam freely, growing to great size by feeding from the ki energy within the pool.

With no time to waste, and nearing meridian failure, Li Kang did not admire the tranquil scenery but instead violently threw himself into the pool, barely even taking the time to cast aside his rucksack. The second he hit the blessed water, he felt a cooling sensation rush over his body. His channels, hot and expanded with Suhn Jin's power, cooled, still at their enlarged size. His shining meridians also had their fire tempered. After exhaling in relief, Li Kang took in a sharp breath and began choking as dank cave water filled his lungs. Coughing and sputtering, he struggled his way to the surface and pulled himself out of the pool onto the smooth stone floor.

Despite nearly drowning, Li Kang felt incredible. By absorbing the Suhn Clan villains' power, he now had a spiritual reserve equal to that of a stage 3 bone tempering cultivator. On top of that, his ki channels had been rigorously expanded to a massive size. When comparing him to a normal stage 1 bone tempering cultivator, he was truly a monster! At his current level, it would not be unlikely that he could defeat even a stage 2 or 3 opponent. With the dagger in hand, Li Kang suddenly felt a surge of grandiose energy as he imagined himself standing atop the Wang mountain range's highest peak, proclaiming to the world that he had ascended.

Snapping back into reality, Li Kang pushed aside his impulse to greedily cultivate and rushed back out to the mouth of the cave. In order to secure his advantage, he would need to clean up the charred camp and camouflage the entrance. As he reached the cave entrance, Li Kang realized that the young scion's tent had not been damaged during the confrontation. Packing up the tent, he rummaged through the bag as well, finding some healing and ki elixirs as well as some food, clothes and other useful goods. Having these items stashed away, he cleared the rest of the burnt camp and made his way back to the spirit pool to get some rest after a long and fruitful day.