Myriad Rivers to the Sea

The elders and the commanders dispersed in organized groups as they headed toward the distant mountain peaks to find their own secluded spots for reflection. Sect Master Ling Wuji and Elder Huo Zheng led the main contingent of veteran figures toward a grand temple carved into the side of the tallest mountain in the distance.

Li Yu remained with the younger generation in the lush valley below. The green grass swayed gently in the breeze and vibrant wildflowers dotted the landscape in shades of blue and gold. Clear streams wound their way through the rolling hills to create a soothing background melody that washed away the fatigue of their grueling training.

It was a sanctuary designed for peace and it did its job very well but it felt completely off from what was expected from the people of this sect and it showed. The air smelled of pine and fresh water while the dense ambient energy felt incredibly gentle against the skin.

Feng Tianyi directed his peers to set up their temporary camp in a wide clearing near the water. They did not erect elaborate pavilions or soft tents. They simply found flat sections of grass and placed woven mats on the ground. Their belongings were sparse and their focus was singular. Li Yu found a nice spot near a bubbling stream and set down his own items which seemed extravagant compared to what the others had brought. He watched the disciples arrange themselves with practiced precision as they moved in silence and treated every action with control.

Once the mats were laid out, the juniors did not sit down to rest. Feng Tianyi drew his unadorned straight sword and stepped into an open patch of grass. The other fifty disciples followed his lead as they drew their weapons and spread out across the valley floor. Li Yu sat on a smooth rock and expected them to unleash terrifying waves of sword Qi or practice devastating techniques to show off their prowess. Instead they did the exact opposite.

Feng Tianyi took a deep breath and began to move at a painfully slow pace. He raised his blade inch by inch and focused on the intricate mechanics of his own body. The rest of the disciples mirrored his movements in great unison. They practiced the most basic foundational forms of their sect but they executed them with a slowness that required incredible physical control.

They were not generating destructive power like what Li Yu had expected. They were seeking harmony with their surroundings and everyone seemed to know what they should be doing. Whether or not they agreed or understood was a completely different matter.

Lin Xue closed her eyes as she guided her sword through a slow horizontal sweep. She listened to the wind rustling through the leaves of a nearby spirit tree and adjusted the angle of her wrist to match the sound.

"Do you feel the edge of the breeze?" Lin Xue whispered to the disciple beside her. "It parts the tall grass without breaking the fragile stems. It is a yielding cut that preserves the life it touches."

Zhou Ming nodded slowly as he shifted his weight into a low stance. "The intent of nature is mysterious and deep. It does not force its way through the world. It flows around the obstacles and wears them down over time instead. We must incorporate this natural flow into our parries to conserve our own strength."

Li Yu found their discussion fascinating but he was utterly confused how they came to make such observations from what they were doing. It was like they were speaking in another language and were in a space completely different from his own. They were taking a vacation from their brutal training schedules but their version of relaxing was simply studying the world to find new ways to swing their sword.

Their minds were always working and analyzing. Li Yu felt they were completely missing the point of this place but if that were the case, the leadership of the sect would have done something about it right now or would have done something about much earlier.. He decided not to isolate himself as a silent observer because it just added confusion to his mind. He stood up from his rock and walked into the middle of their formation.

He did not draw a weapon though. He simply fell into rhythm with them and began to stretch his limbs using the same slow and deliberate pacing they did, hoping to learn something from it all. He moved his arms and legs to mimic their foundational stances while incorporating his own relaxed fluidity that he had developed over years of travel.

Feng Tianyi opened one eye and watched the Holy Son join their practice. He noted the way Li Yu shifted his weight without any wasted effort and was always under control. While the Holy Son was known as a carefree person, no one underestimated his strength. Now only was his cultivation above their own, he was also much younger than everyone here.

How he reached such levels at such an age was insanity to them and only made them hold him in high regard since he was technically one of their own. They also knew that his abilities in battle were nothing short of terrifying as he not only had the strength but also the wealth to support everything with.

'His stance is devoid of any rigid structure,' Feng Tianyi thought while continuing his slow upward thrust. 'Yet he remains exceptionally balanced and utterly in control. He is like the flowing water in the stream. If I were to strike him right now, my blade would find no solid resistance but I would face certain death. It would simply sink into an empty void or deep ocean never to rise again. This must be the formless state that the elders mentioned before. A manifestation of the second highest level sword intent only under the Sword Dao. How does one have that kind of aura but practice the dao of the sword?'

Li Yu was just stretching his back and trying to get the stiffness out of his joints after the long journey but he noticed the intense stares directed at him. He smiled and offered a friendly nod at each one of them. The disciples nodded back with respect and redoubled their efforts to mimic his relaxed demeanor, believing it was a secret training method.

They were mistaking a few different things since their level of understanding was still somewhat shallow and Li Yu was an anomaly. His Heavenly Leviathan Physique gave off a natural aura that they were mistaking for something else. His insane tribulation breakthrough had also imbued his body, Qi and soul with heavenly laws that also gave off an aura that they didn’t understand. A few other things were also being mistaken but the biggest one of all was his carefree nature that Li Yu naturally gave off that they didn’t understand at all.

The sun climbed higher into the azure sky and signaled the arrival of midday. The disciples concluded their slow practice and sheathed their weapons. They moved toward their woven mats and reached into their storage pouches to retrieve their flavorless nutritional pills to eat. It was flavorless but was packed with a lot of energy for them.

"Put those away," Li Yu called out as he walked over to the sandy edge of the stream. "I made a promise back at the plaza and I intend to keep it. We are having a proper meal today."

The juniors hesitated but they did not dare disobey the Holy Son. The instructions were clear that unless the Holy Son gave out ridiculous commands he was to be obeyed and honored. They stored their pills and gathered around as Li Yu began to construct his cooking station.

He utilized his Qi to gather several large flat stones from the riverbed and arranged them into a wide hearth. He then pulled a large iron cauldron and a thick grill grate from his spatial ring. He placed the heavy cookware over the stones and retrieved a vast assortment of ingredients to feed the large group. If there was one thing that Li Yu would never run out of, it was fresh ingredients to cook and eat. He made sure he was always fully stocked up.

He brought out the hindquarters of a type of beef, boar and deer, several bundles of fragrant spirit herbs, Silver Moon mushrooms and baskets of fresh root vegetables he had gathered during his travels. The disciples watched with wide eyes as the pile of ingredients grew bigger.

‘Is he some kind of traveling merchant that specializes in cooking ingredients or something? Why does he carry so many different kinds of things around like this?’ Was the singular thought on everyone’s mind.

Li Yu did not use a kitchen knife to prepare the ingredients like he normally would. He wanted to get this done quickly so he relied on his Qi control. He hovered the large cuts of meat in the air and sent thin threads of energy to cleanly slice the boar, vegetables and other meats into uniform pieces.

Lin Xue leaned over to Zhou Ming and pointed at the floating meat. "Look at the precision of his invisible edge. He is dividing the physical matter along its natural grain without disturbing the underlying spiritual energy. That is a masterful display of the hidden sword draw."

"Indeed," Zhou Ming whispered back with awe. "He is using the mundane act of food preparation to demonstrate the slicing of the void. We should take notes on his approach. Notice how he never uses more force than necessary to not waste Qi. Isn’t he known to not walk the sword path? How can he have such mastery?"

Li Yu ignored the whispering and focused on the fire. He summoned his natal flame to light the wood beneath the cauldron and kept it there to support the wood and have better control over the heat. The flames roared to life stunning the disciples around him. They did not hear that he had a natal flame and the natal flame he had was not simple at all.

Each of them felt the threat of death and destruction that radiated from that flame. They were especially wary of that tri color lightning that was dancing throughout that flame, that just looking at it threatened to kill them. They felt looking at it too long would destroy their very souls and they weren’t that far off in that instinctual observation either.

Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

‘With a flame like that… to be used for cooking? How can a flame like that not just destroy the entire cauldron above?’ They all thought again simultaneously.

Li Yu quickly suppressed the flame into a steady and even heat. He tossed the chopped meat onto the grill and threw the vegetables into the cauldron with a rich broth. The sizzling sound of roasting meat filled the valley as a mouthwatering aroma drifted through the air. The spices caramelized over the open flames and created a scent that was impossible to ignore.

The disciples had eaten mostly nothing but plain pills for years and their stomachs began to rumble loudly. A few of them blushed in embarrassment at the sound but they could not pull their eyes away from the cooking station. While some of them ate other things on occasion such as during travels, with guests or at banquets, their main nutrition source was indeed those pills.

Li Yu casually waved his hand to stir the broth and adjusted the heat into the embers below.

Feng Tianyi stepped closer and analyzed the dancing flames with a serious expression. "Your control over the fire element is extraordinary. You do not let the heat consume the target wildly and your control over it is incredible. You restrain the destructive nature of the fire and force it to yield to your will in a way that doesn’t seem possible. Is this how you also use the raw energy of your flying weapons during combat?"

Li Yu paused while holding a wooden spoon and looked at the top genius. He realized these zealots were filtering every single thing he did through the lens of martial arts and sword techniques. It was both funny and endearing since this is how they saw the world. While there was nothing wrong with that since that was what they enjoyed, it was also a bit hard to see things from their perspective as well. He decided to play along a little bit to keep them engaged and impart some genuine advice.

"You have a good eye," Li Yu smiled while flipping the cuts of meat on the grill. "Fire is chaotic by nature and usually destructive. If you let it burn without restraint, it will destroy the meat and leave you with bitter ashes. The same applies to your intent or Qi. If you swing your blade with unchecked fury, you will exhaust yourself and leave your defenses open. You must always command the energy rather than letting the energy command you."

The surrounding disciples nodded vigorously as they committed his words to memory. They viewed the cooking lesson as a lecture on Qi management and combat restraint. Some battles should be finished quickly to hold the advantage while some battles should be stretched out until an opportunity presents itself. Just like the flame before that threatened to end their lives was actually cooking the delicious food they were about to eat.

The meal was finally ready after careful preparation. Li Yu portioned the meats and the rich vegetable stew into the wooden bowls that he brought out. He passed them out to the waiting juniors and grabbed a bowl for himself.

"Eat," Li Yu instructed while taking a seat on the soft grass. "And remember my other rule for this trip. You must relax while you eat and stop thinking about swords during this time if possible. Do not sit there only looking towards the next training session, think of something else."

The disciples nodded and tried their best to follow his orders. They sat down on their woven mats and attempted to loosen their posture a bit while they prepared to eat. The result was highly comical and incredibly strained.

Feng Tianyi slumped his shoulders forward slightly but his spine remained rigidly straight. He held his wooden bowl with a white knuckled grip as if he expected the stew to jump out and attack him. Lin Xue crossed her legs in a casual manner but her free hand rested instinctively near the hilt of her sword. They looked unnatural and awkward while trying to force themselves to be comfortable.

Li Yu could not help but laugh at their strained expressions. "You all look like you are preparing to block a heavy strike with your faces. Just breathe and relax a bit. The sky is not going to fall if you slouch for ten minutes."

He took a large bite of the roasted meat and let out a satisfied sigh. The rich flavors burst across his tongue and the warm broth chased away the lingering mountain chill. He was quite pleased with this meal today and was thankful he could give them such a delicious meal on this occasion.

The disciples watched him eat and then cautiously took their first bites. Their eyes widened instantly as the incredible taste hit their senses. The spices mingled with the tender meat and provided a level of enjoyment they had never experienced. The nutritional pills they usually consumed tasted like chalk compared to this feast.

They had tasted royal feasts and such things before but the taste before them was something else entirely. They were not ignorant of food and knew how to enjoy food and drink but they just preferred to eat the pills to save time as they did not find much value in the taste. Li Yu’s level of cooking and his choice of ingredients had reached a level that few ever reached on the path of cooking and slightly changed their views.

"This is wonderful," Zhou Ming mumbled with his mouth full before catching himself and chewing properly. "The energy within the meat is preserved so well and over flowing. It flows warmly into the meridians and soothes the tension in my muscles even better than cultivation pills."

"The flavor is so bright," Lin Xue added with a happy smile that broke through her usual stoic mask. "It feels like standing in the warm sun after a long winter."

Another disciple named Wu Chen spoke up from the back. "I have been stuck at a minor bottleneck for three months. The stress was building up inside my core but this warm broth is actually helping my Qi flow more naturally and loosening that bottleneck. The knots in my chest are untangling and I feel like I can make an attempt soon in the future."

The amazing food worked its magic and the tension slowly began to melt away some more. The disciples stopped worrying about their posture and focused on enjoying the meal before. They ate quickly but politely as they scraped their bowls clean and eagerly accepted second helpings from the cauldron. While they enjoyed the food, their habit of just eating pills would not change so easily though. They were long lived enough to know that food of this caliber did not come easy and even if they wanted to eat like this moving forward, it would be difficult to replicate.

Li Yu poured cups of warm tea for everyone like a butler and settled back against a large tree trunk. He looked around the circle of youths and felt a sense of camaraderie forming between them as he saw a group of respectful people but just had their own way of doing things. There was nothing wrong with that and Li Yu respected their decision and path as everyone did things differently. The icy facade of the Heavenly Sword Sect was fading to reveal the young people underneath that he wouldn’t have imagined or gotten to know without this opportunity.

"Tell me about your lives before you joined the sect," Li Yu asked while sipping his tea. "Did you always want to take up the sword?"

Feng Tianyi set his empty bowl down and looked thoughtfully at the bubbling stream. "I was an orphan in a border city. A traveling elder saw me swinging a heavy stick to chase away stray dogs and brought me to the sect. The sword eventually gave me a purpose and a home. I do not remember much of my life before the training began now as it wasn’t that eventful. The sect is my family and I am forever thankful for the opportunity."

"My family were merchants," Lin Xue shared her story with a soft voice. "They wanted me to manage the trade caravans but I always felt drawn to the martial path instead. I ran away when I was young to join the sect. I wanted to forge my own destiny rather than counting coins for the rest of my days."

Other disciples began to speak up and they shared pieces of their past. Some came from noble houses while others came from the dirt streets of mortal towns. The sect took away their previous identities and united them under a single purpose that they themselves wanted. It did not matter if you were low born or even had no background at all, none of that mattered here. They were now a family forged in steel and discipline.

Li Yu listened intently to every story and was fully engaged in each one. He asked questions and encouraged them to speak freely as he loved to learn how everyone got their start. He did not judge their choices and he did not push them to change their ways. Li Yu simply wanted to understand the people behind the rigid masks and as he expected, they were simply just like everyone else that was living but were walking their own path.

The afternoon passed in a blur of warm tea and flowing conversation to the surprise of the disciples. The initial distance between the Holy Son and the junior disciples had shortened drastically during this time without people even realizing it. They no longer viewed him as an unapproachable treasure resting on a pedestal as the sect elders had instructed them that he was. They saw a kind and practical person who cared nothing for titles and understood the value of a good meal.

Li Yu watched Feng Tianyi and Zhou Ming debating the best way to roast a fish using their internal Qi and what kind of sword technique they would use to cut it. The topic was silly but they discussed it with the same intense passion they used in their training. It was a sign that they were opening up slightly and allowing their personalities to shine through the strict orthodox training.

'They are not just unfeeling weapons,' Li Yu thought while leaning back against the tree. 'They have passions and curiosities just like anyone else. They just channel all of that energy into a very narrow path but it is clearly a path they enjoy. If you learn how to speak their language and respect their dedication, you can reach the person underneath the armor.'

Li Yu then reflected on his own goals for this trip. He wanted to understand these orthodox minds so he could eventually connect with his own cousins in the Li Clan better. His family back at the estate practiced flowing arts rather than rigid dogma but the underlying mindset was very similar. They were all shaped by centuries of tradition and expectations.

If he could break the ice with the zealots of the Heavenly Sword Sect, he knew he could find a way to bond with his own blood relatives upon his return. He just needed to be patient and find common ground or perhaps approach it a different way. Food and honest conversation seemed to be a universal bridge across any cultural gap.

"Holy Son," Lin Xue spoke up and interrupted his thoughts. She held out her wooden cup with a hopeful expression. "Could I please have some more of that tea? It has a very calming effect on my meridians."

"Of course," Li Yu smiled brightly and reached for the teapot. "And please drop the title when we are just sitting around the fire. You can just call me Li Yu."

The disciples exchanged surprised looks but they quickly nodded in agreement.

"Thank you, Li Yu," Feng Tianyi said with a rare smile. "This has been a very enlightening afternoon."

The rest of the day in the Realm of the Whispering Blades passed with similar warmth. They helped Li Yu clean the cookware and pack away the supplies. However they returned to their slow foundational practice as the sun began to set over the western mountains but the atmosphere was noticeably different.

The movements were still precise and disciplined but the tension was mostly gone. They flowed with the evening breeze and seemed to truly embrace the peaceful nature of the sanctuary that seemed to go against their nature. Li Yu sat on his rock and watched them practice while feeling a sense of satisfaction as he was able to slightly alter their mood.

Li Yu didn’t just try to change them to more of what he was though. Li Yu also went out and met them in their own territories. He tried to practice their forms as well and did as they were doing. It always took a give and take for people to form connections with one another. It built understanding between people and there was a natural respect that formed. The retreat was turning out to be exactly what he needed and he was proud to call these dedicated swordsmen his budding friends.