Chapter 53: The Negotiations Begin (Patreon)

The negotiations with Clan Stone Pillar took place two days after Clan Wind Dance arrived in Crescent Moon City. As with the dinner, Clan River Heart acted as host, with Matriarch Carlisa mediating to ensure nothing got out of hand.

The meetings took place in a rather beautiful and spacious room. An entire wall had been replaced by a single giant window, which overlooked one of the many gardens within the River Heart compound. The room was decorated with paintings that depicted locations that Darian assumed within the Myriad Rivers region. They must have been painted by cultivators, because the artwork almost seemed to come alive.

One piece depicted a waterfall as it fell over the edge of a cliff into a river down below, throwing up mist in the process. The water in the painting gleamed. Not only that, but Darian thought he heard the roaring of the water, smelled the mist in the air, and felt it on his skin.

A long wooden table occupied the center of the room. It was large enough to seat over two dozen people. One side sat Clan Wind Dance, represented by Patriarch Darian, Elder Astoria, Elder Bryce, and Elder Dominic. There was also Darren Wind Dance, Astra in her feline form, and Darian himself.

On the other side sat Matriarch Ava, several elders from Clan Stone Pillar, and Willow.

Matriarch Carlisa sat at the head of the table and oversaw the proceedings. The woman wore a smirk on her face, as if she knew something that no one else did.

Each group had brought their own retainers, who waited outside the room.

The negotiations bored Darian. For some reason, he thought things would be more exciting, more dramatic, than they turned out to be. He had expected emotions to run high and for people to yell at each other. Instead, everyone talked about the finer points of the alliance and trade deal between their two clans.

Darian found it tedious and annoying. He stopped paying attention about half an hour in, and let his mind wander. Several times through the meeting, Darian caught Willow’s eye. Every time this happened, she glared at him, before blushing and looking away from him. Everyone noticed her actions, but no one commented. Yet.

Astra didn’t bother pretending to participate. Her only interest in this entire affair was Darian’s marriage. Nothing else mattered to her. Instead, she took a nap.

Her presence upset several members of Clan Stone Pillar, but none of them voiced their frustrations. After all, she was a mere spirit beast, and she wasn’t even a part of Clan Wind Dance. It didn’t help that while Astra had been introduced to the various members of Clan Stone Pillar, no one had explained to them her relationship to Darian or Clan Wind Dance. Neither had she revealed her cultivation strength. Darian suspected she was playing some kind of game with Clan Stone Pillar.

Several people, those who had seen Astra’s human form at least, looked between her and Darian with speculative gleams in their eyes.

Darian meditated using the Mind Flame technique. Since he wasn’t contributing to the meeting at all, he might as well do something more productive with his time than just sit there. Strictly speaking, he didn’t need to be there. His grandparents and the elders would handle most of the important details. However, as one of the two people getting married to make this alliance possible, his presence was required, even if he just sat there.

Not that Darian minded too much. The only thing he cared about was the marriage contract itself. He wanted to have multiple wives, and he wanted to ensure Willow received as much support from the clan as he did. That way, her cultivation wouldn’t suffer. While he would do his best to see that Willow’s received the cultivation resources she needed, there was a reason why he hadn’t left Clan Wind Dance. Even the minimal support it gave its members was better than nothing, and was more than what some of the lesser clans and sects provided to their members.

Over the past several months, Darian had grown more proficient with the Mind Flame technique. It wasn’t tied to his cultivation, so the only thing needed to do in order raise his proficiency was practice. At the moment, he neared the peak of the first level, the candle, and was approaching the second level, the torch.

An indeterminable amount of time later, Darian felt another mind brush against his own. It felt like Astra. Instead of sending him a telepathic message, she just gave him a mental tap and then withdrew her presence.

Darian opened his eyes. No one paid him any mind. If they had noticed his lapse, they either didn’t mind or kept it to themselves if they did. Instead, they continued to focus on the negotiations.

“Now,” Grandfather Darin said. “Regarding the marriage contract-…”

Matriarch Ava held up a hand, interrupting him. Darian’s kin looked surprised by her actions. Darian guessed that this wasn’t the usual way of doing things. The members of Clan Stone Pillar on the other hand seemed eager, as if they were looking forward to what happened next.

“Before we discuss that,” Matriarch Ava said. “We should discuss the worthiness of the groom.”

Frowns appeared on the faces of Clan Wind Dance.

“What do you mean?” Grandmother Astoria asked. “If you’re worried about your granddaughter’s wellbeing then let me reassure you, Clan Wind Dance is more than capable of supporting her and her cultivation.”

Matriarch Ava gave her a tight smile at this.

“I have no doubt about that,” she said. “However, I am concerned about the kind of man I will be handing my granddaughter off to. After all, you demanded that Willow prove herself by rushing her breakthrough into the Energy Gathering stage. I don’t see why we can’t demand that your grandson prove himself as well. It’s only fair, is it not?”

Tension filled the air as everyone listened to her words.

“What are you trying to pull, Matriarch Ava?” Grandmother Astoria asked through narrowed eyes.

The smile on the Stone Pillar Matriarch’s face morphed into a hard look.

“For months, you people played games with us while our people fought and died,” she said. “You didn’t really think we would just let that stand, did you?”

Savage smiles appeared on the faces of Clan Stone Pillar.

“You came to us,” Grandfather Darin said in a calm and quiet voice. “Not the other way around. Remember that.”

“I do remember Patriarch Darin,” Matriarch Ava said. “We need you in order to deal with the Pit Viper Sect. I don’t dispute that. However, that doesn’t mean we will let you trample over our pride and dignity. The price for this alliance is my granddaughter’s hand in marriage. My only granddaughter. The least I can do for her is ensure that she is married to someone I find worthy. As a grandfather yourself, you should understand how I feel. My granddaughter already proved herself, now it’s your grandson’s turn.”

Willow looked at her grandmother with a complicated look on her face.

“What did you have in mind?” Darian asked, speaking up for the first time.

Everyone looked at him, as if they had forgotten he was there. Matriarch Ava studied Darian with a cool assessing gaze.

“Simple,” she said, speaking to Darian directly. “I have two requirements. Fulfill these requirements, and I’ll accept this pairing. I’m even willing to offer concessions on the trade deal, depending on how well you do. Do you accept?”

When she mentioned making concessions on the trade deal, the members of Clan Wind Dance perked up. Darian just raised an eyebrow at her.

“Yes,” he said without hesitation.

He wasn’t afraid of a challenge.

“Good,” Matriarch Ava said with a smile. “I’ll start with the easiest one then. Can you provide for my granddaughter?” She nodded towards the other members of Clan Wind Dance. “I’m not asking if your clan can. I’m asking if you, Darian Wind Dance, can.”

Darian resisted the urge to smile at her question. This was something he had anticipated and discussed with several people, including Astra. At first he had intended to tell Clan Stone Pillar about his secret realm, but Astra had flicked his forehead and called him an idiot. Duskfall Hall was a valuable resource, and its existence shouldn’t be revealed to just anyone. Astra reminded him of what happened with Jaime to illustrate her point.

That left Darian at a loss, until he decided to give Willow one of his three items from the Energy Gathering stage. The rules his mother left behind didn’t prohibit it, though Astra argued that it went against the spirit of the rules, if not the letter. In short, he was borrowing against his future. However, after some cajoling on Darian’s part, she gave in.

Darian stood up and removed a bottle filled with pills from his holding bag. The pills emitted a faint purple glow. He walked over and held it out to Willow. She stared at him with suspicion, but took the bottle.

“What are these?” she asked him. “They look poisonous.”

“That’s because they are,” Darian said in a cheerful voice. “Those pills are the mixture for the Purple Poison Body Tempering Bath. They require little preparation. Just dissolve one pill in water and the bath is ready to go. It’s best to use spirit water, however.”

Everyone stared at the bottle, the members of Clan Stone Pillar in particular.

It turned out that body refiners could take body tempering baths in order to further refine their bodies. These baths weren’t necessary, but they certainly strengthened one’s constitution. The same way that blacksmiths tempered steel, these baths improved one’s body, reinforcing it and making it more powerful overall. The higher quality the ingredients used in the bath, the more effective it was.

How a body tempering bath worked was that it broke down the cultivator’s body on a minuscule scale, and built it back up again using the spirit energy contained within the ingredients used. By doing this, body refiners purified their bodies little by little, purging themselves of mortal weakness. In doing so, they created a vessel more worthy of an immortal soul.

One of the downsides to doing this was that body tempering baths required expensive ingredients. The higher the body cultivator’s realm, the more expensive the mixture. This was why most body refiners just focused on their cultivation technique instead. Energy refiners didn’t even bother. Why should they? They could supplement their physical weaknesses with spirit energy.

However, those who had the means to acquire these ingredients did so. The advantages were well worth the price.

Another downside was that most mixtures grew less effective with each use. Only the first bath was one hundred percent effective. After that, each use was about ten percent less effective than the one before it, until it stopped being effective altogether. That was compared to the original effectiveness. So the second path was ninety percent effective, the third was eighty percent effective, and so on.

After a certain point, the gain wasn’t worth the price.

The Purple Poison Body Tempering Bath was useful to Energy Gathering cultivators. If a Foundation Establishment cultivator like Darian tried it, they would melt.

Willow stared at the bottle in her hands, her eyes wide, before she looked up at Darian. He grinned at her.

“May I see that?” Matriarch Carlisa asked, a curious look on her face.

After a moment’s hesitation, Willow held the bottle out. It flew out of her hand and landed in Matriarch Carlisa’s. She opened the bottle. An acrid, sickening stench filled the air. Mortals would have vomited at the smell. Darian, as a Foundation Establishment cultivator, just felt nauseous. Everyone else was less affected, though based on the expressions on their faces, they all found the stench unpleasant.

The only one who seemed unaffected was Matriarch Carlisa. She poured a pill onto her hand and examined it. After a few moments, she looked at Matriarch Ava.

“This is a high-grade body tempering bath mixture,” she said. “It’s better than any mixture that you can find in the Myriad Rivers region, including the kinds Clan River Heart can make.” She held up the pill in her hand. “However, using this mixture is a poison, though a nonlethal one. Using it will be quite painful. It will be akin to torture.”

“Yes,” Darian said, speaking up again. “However, as long as Cultivator Willow waits a week between baths, it will only lose about five percent effectiveness with each use.”

Everyone stared at him again, before looking at the bottle of pills. There were twenty in total, enough for Willow to get the most out of the mixture, assuming she wanted to go through all that pain.

“Is this true?” Matriarch Ava demanded.

“I would need to conduct some tests,” Matriarch Carlisa said after some hesitation. “But nothing I saw contradicts his words.”

She placed the pill back in the bottle and resealed it. The stench disappeared and everyone sighed with relief.

The Purple Poison Body Tempering Bath was a specialty of the Dawn and Dusk Sect’s Rising Alchemy Peak. While the ingredients used weren’t that rare, the secret techniques Rising Alchemy Peak used to create them enhanced the mixture’s potency. Not just anyone could get their hands on some. The bottle Darian just gave to Willow was the only one his mother had left behind for him. If he wanted to get more, he would need to get them from the Dawn and Dusk Sect.

While his heart wept at the loss, he considered the price worth it. If all he cared about was impressing Clan Stone Pillar, he wouldn’t have bothered. However, he considered this part of his apology to Willow, and hoped it would help him win her over.

Darian sat back down again, projecting a confidence he in no way felt.

“Does this satisfy you, Matriarch Ava?” he asked with a smile.

The Stone Pillar Matriarch narrowed her eyes at him. His father and his grandparents on the other hand looked both amused and proud of him. Astra continued to nap, or pretended to at least.

“Yes,” Matriarch Ava said, though Darian couldn’t tell how she felt about that. “On to my second requirement. While your cultivation level is impressive for someone your age, it doesn’t tell me anything about your strength as a warrior. Clan Stone Pillar is a clan of warriors, and I will not allow my granddaughter to marry a weakling. She needs someone who can stand by her side. Are you that person, Cultivator Darian? Will you prove your strength to me and to my clan? More importantly, will you prove your strength to Willow?”

Darian felt excitement spark to life within him. Now this was something that interested him. He leaned forward.

“How exactly do you want me to do that?” he asked. “Do you want me to face one of your people in combat? If so, I am more than willing to do so.”

Matriarch Ava’s eyebrows rose a touch, and Darian saw a hint of approval in her eyes. From the corner of his eye, he noticed Willow focus on him.

“No,” she said, to Darian’s disappointment. “That had been my initial idea, but after discussing the matter with Matriarch Carlisa, something better came to mind.”

Everyone looked at the River Heart Matriarch, who wore an innocent expression on her face.

“You were supposed to be neutral in this matter, Matriarch Carlisa,” Grandfather Darin said.

“I am,” the River Heart Matriarch protested. “When Matriarch Ava asked me for some advice, I merely offered her some suggestions. Whether or not she listens to my suggestions is entirely on her.

From the looks on everyone’s faces, no one bought her words for a second. It was clear to everyone, including Darian, that the two Matriarchs worked on this scheme together. This didn’t seem to bother Matriarch Carlisa at all. She leaned back in her chair and produced a fan from somewhere, waving it to cool her face.

“While a duel would tell me much about your skills,” Matriarch Ava said. “Something like that is far too controlled and too tame. It’s far too safe. If I want to truly weigh your worth, then there needs to be an element of danger.”

As she spoke, the expressions on the faces of Darian’s kin grew grimmer.

“Get to the point, Matriarch Ava” Darian’s father said.

If this bothered the Stone Pillar Matriarch, she didn’t let it show.

“I want you to go through a trial by fire, Cultivator Darian,” Matriarch Ava said looking right at Darian.

When she mentioned a trial by fire, a thrill of fear ran down Darian’s spine. However, anticipation overshadowed it. A sort of manic energy filled him. He fixed Matriarch Ava with a look.

“What sort of trial by fire?”

To his surprise, she didn’t answer him. Matriarch Carlisa did.

“Clan River Heart has access to a hidden realm not too far from Crescent Moon Lake called Spiderwood Hollow,” she said. “It’s a small one, and only Foundation Establishment cultivators can enter it, so its value is limited. We mostly use it as a source of rare plants and reagents. However, we also use it as a proving ground for our Foundation Establishment cultivators. The realm is infested with Five Poison Spiders. I think it is the perfect place to hold this trial by fire. He would have to face it alone, of course. Otherwise, it’s not much of a test now, is it?” She smirked. “Assuming Cultivator Darian chooses to go through with it.”

Hidden realms were like secret realms, except they were naturally occurring instead of created. Some were small, while others rivaled the main world in terms of size. Plants, spirit beasts, and materials that couldn’t be found anywhere else could be found in hidden realms, and only in the hidden realm they were native to. Attempts to grow or raise plants and animals outside of their native hidden realm always ended in failure. Darian wasn’t sure why.

He had never heard of Five Poison Spiders before, but based on their name, he could guess what they were.

“Absolutely not,” Grandfather Darian retorted as soon as Matriarch Carlisa finished speaking. “You want my grandson to risk his life to satisfy your pride? Don’t be ridiculous. Yes, we asked your granddaughter to prove herself, but there is a world of difference between breaking through to the Energy Gathering stage and facing a trial by fire.”

“Unfortunately, my clan doesn’t have enough time to wait for your grandson to reach peak Foundation Establishment stage. Otherwise, I would make the same demand of him as you did of Willow. This seems like a reasonable alternative.”

Grandmother Astoria pointed a finger at Matriarch Ava.

“You call this reasonable?” she demanded.

One of the Clan Stone Pillar elders snorted.

“Are you sure we need these people?” he asked. “If their Young Master is too afraid to face some little spiders, then I don’t know if they’ll be any good against the Pit Viper Sect.”

Elder Bryce let out a derisive laugh

“Yes, we’re the cowards,” he said with a sneer. “How many times has the Pit Viper Sect attacked your territory? And what exactly have you done about it? Nothing, that’s what.”

“What did you say to me you twinkle toed little fairy?”

Oh, there was the yelling. Things started to get heated as the insults flew and people’s voices grew louder. The only ones who didn’t yell were Astra, Darian’s father, and Matriarch Carlisa. The latter observed all this with an amused expression on her face.

Throughout it all, Darian’s thoughts whirled. The idea of going into a hidden realm infested with venomous spiders should have scared Darian, and it did a little. If he accepted this challenge, he would have to go into this hidden realm by himself and face whatever dangers awaited him there. For the first time ever, he would have to risk his life.

While he had faced dire monsters before, in Silverwood Vale, he always had the feeling that Astra watched over him. His life had never actually been at risk. That wouldn’t be the case in this hidden realm. He would be alone, relying only on his strength and his preparations to see him through.

A sane person would have balked at this. After all, why risk his life for an alliance his clan didn’t need? Why risk his life to marry a virtual stranger?

Yet, in that moment, Darian was not a sane person. All he could think about was how this was his chance to let loose and truly challenge himself. He was a cultivator not a flower raised in a greenhouse, and a fire cultivator at that. What kind of fire cultivator would he be if he refused to face a trial by fire?

His eyes caught Willow, who studied him with an unreadable expression on her face. He grinned at her. She blinked at this.

“I’ll do it,” he said.

No one heard him, since the yelling drowned out his voice. Astra opened her eyes, however, and looked at him. A moment later, a grin that mirrored his own stretched across her feline face.

“I said I’ll do it!” Darian yelled.

Everyone stopped yelling and looked at him. A beat of silence followed his words.

“Darian, no,” Grandmother Astoria said. “It’s too dangerous.”

“You’re grandmother is right,” Grandfather Darin said. “There’s no reason to risk your life like this.”

He glared at Matriarch Ava as he said this.

“Why not?” Darian asked. He looked over at Matriarch Carlisa. “How dangerous is this hidden realm?”

She shrugged.

“Moderately so, for someone at your level,” she said. “The Five Poison Spiders are the biggest threat. They’re dire monsters that range from the mid to late Foundation Establishment stage. We harvest their poison as ingredients for various medicines and pills. A few, however, are at the peak Foundation Establishment stage. I suggest you avoid those ones.”

Darian looked back at his grandparents.

“There you go,” he said. “That doesn’t sound too dangerous to me.”

“But Darian, you’re not ready for something like this,” Grandmother Astoria said.

“We won’t know that until I give it a try,” Darian said. “I’m at the mid Foundation Establishment stage. This sounds like the perfect place to test myself.”

Darian caught his father’s eye. Darren studied him for a moment, before nodding.

“Let him go,” he said.

Grandfather Darin and Grandmother Astoria looked at him.

“Are you sure about this?” Grandfather Darin asked.

“Darian isn’t a child. If he says he wants to do it, I see no reason to hold him back.”

While his grandparents still looked conflicted, they relented. Darian looked at Matriarch Ava, who nodded in approval.

“Very well then,” she said. “We’ll head over to the hidden realm tomorrow. In the meantime, let’s discuss the details of the marriage contract.”

***

Willow looked at the bottle of pills in her hand. Their purple glow looked sinister against the light of the setting sun. The negotiations between Clan Stone Pillar and Clan Wind Dance had ended some time ago. While many details still needed to be worked out, the foundation for the alliance between their two clans had been laid out. Since Clan River Heart was already allied with Clan Stone Pillar, as soon as everything was finalized, they could bring the fight to the Pit Viper Sect.

Willow couldn’t wait.

It was evening now and Willow was in the Stone Pillar city estate. She stood on a veranda overlooking one of the gardens that dotted the estate, leaning against the railing. While the alliance with Clan Wind Dance weighed on her mind, it was overshadowed by thoughts of Darian Wind Dance.

She still hadn’t forgiven him for his…What could she call his crime? Preemptive unfaithfulness? Did that even apply? She was to join his household, and she knew he would have more than one wife. That was part of the marriage contract between them.

Regardless, Willow was angry and upset with him. He could have at least waited until they were married before finding his second wife.

Yet, she couldn’t forget the kiss they shared back at the River Heart compound. Just thinking about it caused her cheeks to heat up. Seeing him today hadn’t helped the turmoil in her heart. Darian was odd. He ignored most of the negotiations, and spent that time meditating. Willow knew because she watched him. This annoyed her, yet she couldn’t help but admire the way he rose to her grandmother’s challenge.

The bottle of pills in her hand, for example. After the negotiations, Willow asked Matriarch Carlisa about them. They were potent, and far more effective than any other body tempering bath mixture that could be found in the Myriad Rivers region. They were worth a small fortune, and Darian had just given them away to her.

In terms of value, it was one of the most expensive gifts anyone had ever given her.

And then there was the way he looked when Grandmother Ava told him about the trial by fire. Many cultivators in the mid Foundation Establishment stage would have balked at the idea of going into Spiderwood Hollow. Some might have even outright refused. For most, it would be their first real exposure to danger. Not Darian. He practically vibrated with excitement at the mention of the danger involved. Willow remembered the grin he wore as he accepted her grandmother’s challenge.

Darian was indeed odd, and something of a mystery. Instead of being repelled by this, Willow found herself drawn to him. Plus, she thought his grin was cute. If she wasn’t careful, she might end up falling for him. The thought scared her. What if he ended up disappointing her? What if he broke her heart? He had already hurt her on a deep level already. Who was to say he wouldn’t do so again?

She had expected her marriage to be a cold, lifeless thing. A political necessity. Now she had hope that maybe, just maybe, it could be something more. Losing that hope would hurt more than not having it in the first place.

Willow let out a sigh. Her emotions were a mess, and she wanted to throttle Darian for putting her through this. Regardless of how she felt, they were going to marry. Her only choice was to have faith in Darian, have faith that he was as sincere as he seemed to be.

Before that could happen, however, he needed to survive the dangers of Spiderwood Hollow. The thought of Darian losing his life in that place made Willow’s heart clench. She didn’t want him to die. A part of her wanted to go to her grandmother and ask her to rescind the challenge.

Yet, she didn’t. Something told her that Darian would go through with the challenge anyway. The grin on his face earlier had a manic edge to it.

All Willow could do was pray to her ancestors to watch over him.