[Tian] 1:06 (Patreon)

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LIUFAN TIAN STOOD BEFORE HER MOTHER.

The girl wore a worried look on her face, clasping the wooden tray tightly against her chest. Her cloth wraps were disheveled— torn and loosely hanging around her thin frame. She was not well-dressed like the other children of her sect.

It was no secret that her mother was poor. Liufan Tiao had barely anything to her name. Even this ramshackle hut the pair lived in was not theirs: it was provided by the patriarch himself, out of pity for the sick woman’s condition.

She erupted into a fit of coughs, drawing Tian forward to the bed with a worried look. The girl hurriedly picked up the cup of tea and gave it to her mother. Tiao gratefully accepted it.

“Thank you, my daughter,” she said, sipping from the glass.

Liufan Tian placed the tray on the side table, next to the medicine she had laid out just earlier. “Did it work?” the girl asked in a small voice.

“Things like this take time.” Her mother shook her head, face ashened. “Do not worry, my Qi will return.”

She did not look old— at least, not to Tian. However, the ailment that had befallen her turned her hair gray. Her skin grew more wrinkled as the days passed. Age was catching up to Tiao, and Tian was afraid of what that meant.

The girl felt something rest on her head. The warm hand of her mother rustled her jade-green hair. Liufan Tian looked up, blinking away the tears dripping down the sides of her face. It was like a dam had been burst, and no one told her. How long had she even been crying?

Tiao’s finger brushed against her rosy cheeks, wiping away the sadness, and speaking in a kind voice.

“Tian, you will soon reach your first decade. I know you are afraid, but I have lived many decades. More than your father. And more than the Patriarch himself.” She gave Tian a weak smile, and yet the girl found strength from it. “I can live to see at least one more.”

***

Tian went to check on her mother one more time after she finished cleaning the house. It was still afternoon. Night had not yet set— the Heavens shone brilliantly overhead. All seven arched gateways floated in their seven different spots in the green sky. They were like a watchful guard. A sentinel in the palace walls.

They cast their light upon the world. While they might grow dim— while their presence might falter— turning the day into night, they would never disappear. Especially the Sixth Heaven.

It was the heaven that hung closest to the Liufan sect. Its garish blue light was sometimes too bright for Tian to even gaze at. And yet, when she was studying her scrolls, learning techniques of cultivation, martial arts, and of the various legendary pills out there, she would often find her eyes drifting in its direction.

I wonder what it’s like, up there, she thought as she brought a hand up to shield her eyes. She sat underneath a blossoming zakra tree. Its white petals slowly flitted down around her. It was peaceful, here. There was the soothing sound of splashing water from the nearby stream. A bridge arched over the running water, connecting to the gray, cobbled path which crossed just ahead of Tian. She stood up, laying a piece of parchment with an illustration on it down on the azure grass.

It depicted a man taking a wide stance, before thrusting out with a clawed hand. Words were inscribed below it. Words which Tian found herself repeating as she brought a hand out. “Liufan Basic Technique: Tiger’s Fist!”

Nothing happened.

She sighed and collapsed to the ground. Her eyes were fixed on her hand. Her nails were not especially sharp, however she still bent her fingers like she had the nails of a tiger. It’s supposed to cut through the air, the dejected thought crossed through her mind. She lowered her hand and watched the zakra petals continue their descent, undisturbed. But I can’t even move the air.

Tian lay there, feeling her motivation drain from her soul. No, she told herself and sat up. She formed a circle with her hands, overlaying it with her chest, and began to concentrate. I can do this. I can do this. I can…

Her thoughts were cut off. “Look, it’s Tian,” a voice called out just loudly enough for her to hear.

Tian glanced back up, turning towards the three girl’s huddled at the wooden bridge, hands held up to their mouths and covering it with their sleeves as if in shock. A girl with red hair shook her head. “Be careful around her, haven’t you heard?” she said, as if worried.

“What is it?” the second girl asked. She had emerald-colored hair, just like Tian. However, while Tian’s hair was tied into a braid and reaching down to her back, the girl had hers neatly wrapped up into a bun as if it were some kind of large jewel. “Is there something I must know about her?” Her voice was over exaggerated— clearly feigning ignorance.

“Oh, it’s nothing.” The last girl stepped forward. Her face was twisted into a sneer, not bothering to hide any animosity. “Her mother has the phoenix plague.” She spoke knowingly as she adjusted the pin holding together her sable hair, before pulling out a fan and unfurling it. “So, if you get too close to her, you might catch it too.”

The other two gasped— as if they did not lead the conversation in that direction. Tian wanted to ignore them. She really did. Yet, she found herself standing up and facing them. “Mother does not have the phoenix plague! Her meridian is just blocked because her Qi is poisoned from—”

A glare from the black-haired girl cut her off. “I’m sorry, but were we talking to you?”

Tian flinched. “I apologize, Lihua.” She instinctively bowed. However, her fist clenched into tight balls as she looked up. “However, I will not have you spreading lies about my mother.”

Liufan Lihua raised a brow, turning to the other two girls accompanying her. “Do you hear this, Xiaomei, Chun? A mere Bud is talking as if she has any authority over me, a Bloom.”

“Is the Seventh Heaven fooling me? She really is trying to order you around, Lihua.”

“The brute thinks her martial arts gives her strength. How pathetic.”

The posse of girls approached Tian, their leader snapping her fan shut. The beady-green eyes of Lihua rested on the lone girl. “Don’t you know, Tian?” she asked, stopping a single pace away. “You are not a boy. You can never open your core to the world around you just through martial arts.” She waved a hand, gesturing at herself. “And a lady should never get her hands dirty with such boorish things. Maybe if you try learning from me, you’ll be able to grow to a Bloom after a decade of meditation.”

Sweat trickled down Tian’s back. What about the legendary Nalum? she retorted mentally. But she knew that she had to agree with Lihua, else she would see a beating. But she did not want to. So, she acted. “Liufan Basic Technique...”

Lihua’s eyes grew wide as Tian raised a fist— before spinning around. The lone girl tried to make a break for it. She ran past the zakra tree, only to be caught by its roots. The wooden stem of the tree broke free from the earth and wrapped around her ankles.

The black-haired girl stepped forward, shaking her head. “Nice try, but you can’t run from me.” Her followers laughed behind her, their faces mocking Tian as she stared up at them from the grass. Liufan Lihua inhaled deeply, and flowers sprouted around the fallen girl. “This is what a real Cultivator looks like, Tian. No matter how hard you try, you cannot pry open your core through force alone. You need elegance. A reason to cultivate. Something both you and your mother lack.”

Tian was willing to accept whatever insult Lihua would throw her way, but when Tiao was brought up, she could only see red. She got up, screaming and flailing at the three girls. And when she was finished, she was lying on a bed of flowers.

Her body was bruised— the thorns around the petals poked at her skin. She had thrown many punches, but none of them landed. She could only sob as she picked herself up, bringing herself home in shame.

***

“What’s wrong, Tian?” Tiao asked the girl in a worried voice.

Liufan Tian did not want to answer. She stood over a wooden pail of water, wiping her face with a washcloth. “...it’s nothing.” The girl did not want to speak. She did not want to face her mother in her current state.

There was a cloth wall separating them— a thin, tattered curtain which was drawn over Tiao’s bed. Tian would prefer if that veil was not pierced. But the sounds of heavy footsteps landing on the wooden floorboards drew her attention towards that veil.

The curtains fluttered as they were pushed aside. Tiao stumbled through them and leaned against the side wall. She stared at Tian as the girl stood, frozen, unable to react. “What happened?” she asked, in shock.

Liufan Tian’s feet shifted. “I-I… got into a fight with Lihua and her friends.” The girl felt her jaw clench, dreading the impending question. She spoke up before Tiao could ask why a Bud would attack a Bloom. “She said you’re not a real Cultivator! Even though you’re a Florescence! The only one in our sect other than the Patriarch himself!”

The golden-eyed gaze of Tiao washed over Tian. They fluttered briefly as she bent over and placed an unsteady hand on the girl’s shoulder. “I was a Florescence,” she said softly. “Not anymore.”

“But you were one!” Tian sputtered.

“Perhaps…” Her mother nodded, a sorrowful look on her face. “The School of Divination. The School of Invocation. The School of Abjuration. The School of Transmutation. The School of Summoning. The School of Enchantment. And the School of Phantasm. All seven Essences were within my power. I was one of the few dozen in the Middle Realm who could tap into the power of all the Heavens. A Florescence.”

“Exactly! So, why don’t they respect you? Isn’t that why… how…” the girl trailed off. She stared down at her hands. They were covered in cuts. Her arms were bruised.

“Here.” Tiao placed a hand on the purple mark, causing Tian to wince. “You have taken good care of me, my daughter. I will take care of you now.”

“What are you…?”

Tian’s mother got to her feet and began opening and closing cupboards. She pulled out a few ingredients— serene seeds, sacred grass, senbun leaves— and put them all into a wooden bowl. The girl peered up at Tiao.

“What are you doing?” she repeated herself.

Tiao began crushing the ingredients. “I may not be as proficient in medicine as your father had been, but something as simple as curing a few scrapes is within my power.”

Liufan Tian watched with round eyes as her mother turned the powder into a brown sludge, before spreading it across a thin strip of cloth. “A-are you going to put that on me?”

“It will make you feel better.” Tiao smiled reassuringly.

Grimacing, the girl closed her eyes as those odd bandages were applied to her injuries. A stinging sensation ran through her body. She knew that meditation would help her bear with the pain, but she found it so remarkably dull. So, Tian just groaned until her mother was finished.

“There we go,” Tiao said, drawing back and patting her hands on her wraps. “You’ll be fully healed before the morrow arrives.”

Tian gave her a small nod. “Thank you, mother.”

“Anything for my precious daughter.”

Liufan Tian hesitated. She followed her mother back to her bed, but those words hung in her mind. As did the words of Lihua. Once Tiao was back lying under a blanket, the girl mustered up the courage to speak.

“Mother… if I may ask, why did you cultivate?” That was a stupid question. Tian quickly corrected herself. “I mean, what was your reason for cultivating?”

Tiao cocked her head. “Why do you ask?”

“Lihua said I can’t open up my core to cycle Qi because I don’t have a reason for it.”

Tapping a finger on her chin, her gaze bore into Tian. “Do you have a reason?”

“I… don’t know?” The girl realized that meant her answer was ‘no’, and her shoulders sagged. “I mean— I want to gain the respect of my peers.

“Why?”

“Because they all look down on us. And that’s wrong!”

“I see.” Tiao spoke simply.

Liufan Tian found herself biting her lower lip. Was that the wrong answer? Her mother’s expression did not change, so it certainly was not a bad response.

Tiao sat up, facing the girl with a soft gaze. “If you desire to know why I cultivated, it was for a simple reason: to become immortal. To fully perceive the Dao. That was my drive as a Cultivator.”

Blinking, Tian gave her a curious look. “Is that it?”

“Yes.”

“But… why?” The girl did not understand— she could not wrap her mind around it. Why would you dedicate your life to something… that was so unattainable? Everyone died. Everyone except for the five Springs. Were they really something to strive towards?

Tiao chuckled. “Why do the Patriarch’s court physicians labor so hard over the phoenix plague?” she asked, a knowing look on her face.

Tian paused, thinking for a moment. “Because it’s bad?” she gave a noncommittal answer. “It’s a disease that kills people before they should die.”

“But why should we even have to die in the first place?”

This question struck harder than Lihua’s beating. It was like the Patriarch himself slapped her across the face with a thin cane. The answer felt so glaringly obvious, and yet, when she opened her mouth, she had no response.

“Death is a disease, Tian,” Tiao continued, staring out of the window and towards the Heavens. “And immortality is its only cure.”

Liufan Tian remained silent for a moment. Was that really a reason for one to cultivate? She was unsure. Yet, her eyes flickered. Her gaze turned towards her bedridden mother. Someone who was once a Florescence. And she found the courage she had been lacking for so long to finally speak.

“Teach me, mother,” she said in a determined voice. “Help me find a reason to cultivate. So that I can become a true Cultivator.”

Tiao gently ran a hand through the girl’s hair. “I told you, didn’t I? Anything for my precious daughter.” She smiled.

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Author's Note:

I'm very curious to hear your guys' thoughts about this chapter. Let me know what you think!