Aimless Ascension

Gale and co didn't wait ceremoniously after they were done with the negotiation. They crept out of the office without wasting time on the way back to the inn.

"Master, in one year's time, Han Xiao will undoubtedly be an iron ranker," Xiaolin said, her tone pensive. "Whereas as I'm now, I could barely be a copper ranker at that time, cultivating with pure crystal ingestion. You expect my constitution to change for the better as I rank up, but what if it doesn't? What if it leaks even more, as in copper rank I will be able to hold more Qi?"

The concern in her voice was genuine. But Gale was thankful she was acting natural now. Linlin wasn't the same after she eavesdropped on him and Wang Li talking. Thankfully, the worry about the duel got her to act naturally again.

"Then we lose, wouldn't we?" Gale said as they crept down the road to the Inn.

Xiaolin's face went aghast hearing about losing.

"What? Unacceptable?" Gale smirked.

Xiaolin nodded. "I don't want to lose to Han Xiao," she said. "I know my chances of me winning are slim, but I will do everything to beat him. For you, for my father, uncle Shan, grandma Wang, elder sister and everyone else."

"You're right about your chances of winning being slim the way you are right now, but you're wrong about other things. For example, the advancement metamorphosis didn't make it worse, instead, it made the body more capable of cycling and holding Qi. As you rank up to copper, I expect you to cycle Qi four times. Considering your natural speed, the augmentation would leave you almost comparable to any common iron ranker."

Of course, that wouldn't give her any edge over Han Xiao, save for the cultivation speed. Unless Xiaolin could reverse the perks of her constitution as well.

"But what if Qi still leaks out of my body?" Xiaolin questioned. Even though she didn't want to be pessimistic, she couldn't help but worry.

"That is a genuine concern," Gale said, frowning. "Of course, I meant to solve that issue with a Qi storage-type fate lock after you're ready, which you'd be in a couple of weeks. However, as I'm seeing things, I think we should wait until you break into copper."

"Why?" A knit appeared on her brows.

"I have a hypothesis, and I think only after examining the changes after you advance will I come to a conclusion."

"What kind of hypothesis?" Xiaolin asked, interested. The old woman was silent on the whole journey, listening to them talking with a contemplative look.

"I'll tell you if I'm right," Gale said. Honestly, if he was right, it would complicate things for his disciple and he didn't know if it was for the better or worse.

Well, the path of spirit arts is full of uncertainty, even though clear paths were established. Gale had to fight all sort of uncertainties after being summoned to this realm, and it was about the same for his disciple as well.

"So I should train the way I was doing?" Xiaolin asked, biting her lips.

"Obviously, though, in addition, we'll lean to give you more field experiments," Gale said. "So expect to work on your physical and Qi application more."

Gale had got a few locations of low-level dungeons from Sun Ziang, which were located in the mountain range. The noble scion had found middle-ranked ones too, but they weren't useful for Linlin currently.

Of course, those low-level dungeons were still too much for his disciple. Even when she ranked up to copper, there was no way she could clear a low-grade dungeon on her own.

That didn't mean he should just leave her until she made it big in spirit arts. Gale was planning to practise her in the dungeon under his supervision from next month, of course, before that he would have to teach her a crucial thing.

"Master," Xiaolin said after a while, "even though I asked for you to let me stay in the inn for some time, I think I should leave with you tomorrow. I shouldn't waste time since my elder sister is holding up well."

Gale nodded, finding no fault in her request. "Or you can ask your elder sister to come with you," Gale told her with a laugh. "Remember how her cooking lets you recover faster?"

Xiaolin's face brightened after hearing that. She really wanted her Elder Sister with her, even though she wasn't sure if her elder sister would agree to come with her. Of course, her master could teach Wang Li too, but she had other things to be concerned about as well.

"That reminded me," Gale said, remembering the smug look Wang Li gave him after they met Qing'e in the tailor shop. The innkeeper clearly knew that the girl was the mayor's daughter, yet she played him in. Thankfully, Gale made no mistake, or else.

"Linlin, do you want to play a prank on your elder sister?"

"What prank?" Linlin clearly wanted to say no, but she decided to reflect on the option for once.

"Well, nothing too big," Gale said. "You don't have to do anything. Just act on with me with a pensive expression. Leave everything to your master."

"But what will you do?" Xiaolin asked, still wasn't convinced. While the older woman frowned.

"Just give her a big scare," Gale said. "But don't worry, this will increase the chances of her coming with us to help you cultivate."

"Master, you seriously can't hurt her," Xiaolin reminded him.

"Of course," Gale said and came closer to her. "Just listen to what I am planning. . . ."

_______

A question for Privilege buyers.

Which of the two options would you like better about the privilege tier?

Option 1: A high tier with a 99% discount so that you won't have to pay much for the rest of the month.

Option 2: A relatively cheaper tier with 0 or less discount.

Please answer them in the comments as your answer will reflect in next month's privilege tier.