“I shall take my leave then.” Wu Ying said, bowing goodbye again and receiving a languid wave from Xi Qi.
With that, Wu Ying trotted down the stairs, stopping only long enough to turn around and stare at the pifang and the sect’s signboard. To think that he would be leaving after only a few months. Would he ever see the sect again? What kind of experiences would he have had by the time he came back?
Turning away, Wu Ying took the familiar route down the mountain, a little spring in his step. Well, it was time for this farmer’s son to see more of the world.
Chapter 11
“Time to stop, Wu Ying.” A hand came down on Wu Ying’s shoulder, shaking him from his stupor.
For most of the afternoon, Wu Ying had been at the oars, taking up an entire bench by himself as he worked an oar alone. A part of him had paid attention to the steady drum beat that kept the rowers in time, orders that were punctuated occasionally by the vocal orders of the captain. But mostly, Wu Ying focused on his cultivation, slowly gathering more and more chi into his dantian and reinforcing the small pool of energy within. Lastly, a very small portion of his attention was sent to his aura as he worked to contain the overflow of his chi.
The entire process was difficult enough that he’d had no time to pay attention to anything outside of those things. If the act of rowing was not so repetitive, Wu Ying would have had to give up on extending his consciousness to his aura or cultivating. As it was, the difficulty in separating his mind across these component parts had progressed his understanding of both Two Minds and the Aura Strengthening exercises significantly. While he could not personally tell how well he was doing, he was sure he achieved at least a novice understanding of both.
“Uncle[18],” Wu Ying said as he finished storing the oar. He slowly stretched as he turned to the man speaking to him. “Have we arrived?”
“We have. The tugs will guide us the rest of the way in,” the sailor said with a grin. “Exactly on time. And my men are more rested than ever, thanks to you. If all my passengers were willing to work the oars like this, travel would be so much easier!”
“Har, Uncle, it’s true.” Wu Ying chuckled. “Is dinner ready then?”
“Ah, you are terrible. Eating so much, you’ll eat away my profits,” the boat captain said with a pained smile.
Together, the pair ascended the steps to where the crew was already busy eating. Before he joined them, Wu Ying begged off to wash himself clean at the stern of the boat, as was his usual routine. After cultivating all day, even Wu Ying found his stench unacceptable, never mind the poor sailors who would have to sit next to him.
Shucking his robes, Wu Ying stood at the stern with only his pants on and pulled water from the river up with the bucket, washing himself and cleaning off his long hair as he did so. Idly, he glanced down at his body and the scar along his torso from the injury caused by Yin Xue. After all this time, the injury had fully healed, leaving only a diagonal scar.
What surprised Wu Ying more was the state of his body. Having spent so much time cultivating and working on technique, Wu Ying had not really paid attention to the changes. He no longer had a mild layer of fat across his torso, all of it burnt away by constant activity and revealing chiseled abdominal muscles, thighs that were as wide as a young girl’s waist, and calves that had doubled in size. In fact, looking downward, Wu Ying was surprised to note that his pants were riding a little higher than normal—barely covering his ankles now.
“Did I grow taller?” Wu Ying muttered, shaking his head. Well, he was still growing, barely having crossed sixteen years of age. But all this muscle was unsightly. He would certainly never be mistaken for a refined scholar if he looked like this. “Then again, what would I do with one of those scholarly women? It’s not as if I have much to speak with them about.”
Laughing, Wu Ying quickly dried himself and moved back to the group of sailors. He might have spent a little more time reading the classics than his classmates, but that did not make him a scholar. Far from it—he still had not finished even the four books and five classics[19].
A week of traveling had taken them across one county entirely. In town, Wu Ying would have to find another ship to ride on, as this one headed east now. Hopefully that task would not be too difficult. After all, the town was bustling with activity. Surely a boat or two would be going in the direction he needed.
“What do you mean there are no boats?” Wu Ying said incredulously as he stood before the administrative office the next morning.
While boat captains did not need to register where they were going, it was beneficial for them to do so. In this way, both correspondence and additional trade deals could reach the boats when necessary. Of course, most boats ran a fixed course—going back and forth on fixed schedules—but itinerant traders also made up a portion of the traffic on the rivers.
“You heard of Bandit Chao, yes?” the attendant said tersely.
“Of course,” Wu Ying replied.
“Well, he’s been very active lately, as all the river guards have been withdrawn west due to the war. Now, few merchants dare run that route unless they’re traveling together. You missed the last convoy by two days,” the attendant said.
“When will the next one leave?” Wu Ying said.
“Not for at least another week,” the attendant replied. “Many of the captains have already shifted their routes to other locations. It might be less profitable, but it’s better than losing your life.”
Wu Ying sighed and rubbed his head in frustration. He could not afford to wait two weeks for the ships to leave. Even though he had a little extra time, it was only a few days at most.
“If that is all, you can leave. Others are waiting!” the attendant snapped at Wu Ying, who apologized and left, frowning.
His only choice was to travel over land. But overland travel, especially if he went with a merchant, was slower. Much slower. Then his only choice…
“I’ll go myself!”
Saying and doing were obviously two different matters. For such a long journey, Wu Ying would need provisions. After all, he had not attained the state where he could subsist only on morning dew and sunlight. At this stage of his cultivation, Wu Ying needed food and a lot of it. Better then to purchase more and plan to buy even more at each of the villages he would pass.
In truth, Wu Ying would prefer to purchase everything he needed in one go and then cut across the land, using smaller trails and roads to speed up his travel. But strong as he was, carrying too much would slow him down. And he could not afford a horse. Never mind the fact that he had never learned to ride a horse.
Because of this, it took Wu Ying nearly the entire morning to purchase supplies, pack, and ready himself. Leaving through the east[20] gate of the town, Wu Ying once again marveled at how easy it was to travel as a sect member. He only needed to show his sect stamp, and formalities like the travel pass and the entrance fees were waived.
Still, Wu Ying considered, it was best if he hid his allegiance soon. Elder Lu’s advice resounded in Wu Ying’s mind. A cultivator could never be too careful, as those cultivators who had something to prove and those who wished to acquire unique knowledge or riches would target others of their kind. Violence in the martial world was a given. As such, once he was a decent distance away from the gates, Wu Ying found an empty clearing to exchange his robes for his peasant clothing. After hoisting his backpack and hiding his pouch inside his tunic, Wu Ying jogged.
Even though he was running, Wu Ying chose not to use this time to cultivate. For one thing, he no longer had the protection of Senior Yang. For another, the area around him was new and unknown, forcing Wu Ying to check his map and the directions each time he came to a crossroads. Rather than risk getting lost or being interrupted or attacked while cultivating, Wu Ying focused on improving his control of his aura.