The dizzy spell lasted for just a few seconds before a strange wave of cold flushed through his body, starting at his scalp and rushing through to his feet.

 

It left him feeling refreshed and light on his feet. A glance at the manual in his hand revealed no changes, the pages were all still blank apart from the phrase on the first page.

 

Perhaps taking the technique would be a mistake, but no great hero made it to the pinnacle without taking risks. 

 

The other manuals had all been unsuitable anyway, so Kade didn’t feel particularly let down by the results of his all-nighter.

 

He took the 【Flowing River Art】to the front desk, returning the access jade to the librarian in charge, a different Junior Elder to the one who’d signed him in the day before.

 

“Are you sure this is the technique you wish to study? You can only receive this benefit once, there is no changing your mind once you leave,” the petite librarian warned.

 

Even if Kade didn’t achieve much with the manual in his hands, he wouldn’t regret his choice to take it as his reward for achieving the third stage of martial refinement.

 

With just the Resonant Echo Staff he could probably face no real obstacles all the way through the martial refinement realm and perhaps even against opponents in the early stages of the spiritual assimilation realm.

 

“Thank you for the warning Junior Elder, but I am sure of my decision. This is the manual I’d like to check out,” he replied.

 

The librarian simply nodded, noting down the name of the manual in the registry besides his name, in a column that listed the techniques every single outer sect disciple had received at the same stage.

 

A strand of auburn hair slipped from her bun and she delicately tucked it behind her ear before handing the manual back to Kade.

 

“You must return it within a week of today or the Internal Enforcement Hall will be paying you an unpleasant visit, Disciple Trelawney. Have a good day,” she said before returning to her work.

 

The disciple next to her hadn’t even turned his head to glance at Kade the entire time, intently focused on transcribing whichever manual was in front of him. 

 

He’d heard the assistants received payouts based on their output, so it made sense for them to be dedicated in order to receive the most cultivation resources to get an edge on their fellow disciples.

 

It was a beautiful morning, the sun shining brightly down onto the verdant peaks and valleys of the sect, the sky clear and blue, a wonderful view for Kade as he made his way back to Sunforge Peak.

 

He idly wondered if he would spot Aaron still crumpled by the path, but the pitiful sod would surely have recovered enough to drag himself to the Medicine Hall for treatment by now.

 

At the very least Kade hoped his overly rough treatment of the boy would dissuade him from picking on his fellow disciples in future, but bullies rarely changed their ways, only the methods they employed.

 

Moreso out of curiosity than studiousness, he began to recite the mantra of the 【Flowing River Art】to himself as he walked. 

 

Meditation did not always require one to be still or focus on emptiness, it was simply a method of focusing the mind and body to a particular task. A leisurely walk was a form of meditation in and of itself.

 

The strange dizziness and accompanying wave of cold didn’t occur again despite him repeating the phrase over and over again, mentally and even out loud to himself. 

 

Kade didn’t let it discourage him from trying, after all he knew what he had felt back in the library and truly believed the enigmatic manual held a deeper mystery.

 

Until he figured out how to unlock its secrets, he would have to polish his staff skills through the tried and tested method - repetition, repetition, repetition.

 

The outer sect training and sparring grounds weren’t far from the disciple accommodations, to ensure that all of the sect’s junior members were able to remain diligent without too much travel.

 

As the outer sect received the least resources compared to the inner sect and core disciples, the training hall was a rather basic affair - not in disrepair or of poor quality but lacking any of the more luxurious training equipment such as sparring dummies powered by qi crystals or regenerative punching bags properly forged training weapons.

 

Still, the only thing Kade required was some empty space and perhaps a totem pole in order to practise getting repeated strikes in the same spot with supreme accuracy.

 

He had felt it in the fight with Aaron, but the Resonant Echo Staff truly was a masterwork, King grade weapons were a rarity even in Mystic Solar Valley, with only the more powerful Junior Elders and Senior Elders along with the core disciples having access to such equipment.

 

The staff was weighted perfectly, to the point he could balance it on a single finger without it wobbling too much to one side or the other.

 

It was flexible enough to provide some variety in attacks and to hold his body weight for more advanced techniques, while still being heavy enough to have force behind each strike.

 

After finding a quiet spot in the sparring grounds, which were only half full - many disciples used the days with better weather to relax or socialise instead of train - he placed the staff on the ground and started warming up with some light stretches.

 

After a few laps running around the training hall, he was ready to begin. While he’d never had specific instruction with the staff, all disciples had a basic weapons training course from one of the Junior Elders that could be translated to any tool of their choosing.

 

First Kade just executed basic swings, starting with the staff held firmly in both hands, swinging in a wide arc, whipping the staff behind and above his head before slamming it to the ground in front of him. 

 

He repeated this one hundred times on each side, then one hundred times again while chanting the mantra of the 【Flowing River Art】in his mind. 

 

He figured it was a good idea to use it as a focus tool, given that it was a staff technique in the first place, or at least he hoped it was given that he found it in the section of the library dedicated to such techniques.

 

Having completed four hundred swings of the staff, Kade had begun to work up a sweat. Putting one’s full effort and strength into training was not just a surefire way to hone your skills, but in the martial refinement realm it was also a method of polishing one’s cultivation.

 

In the middle of his next exercise, in which he was working on thrusting with the staff, he noticed another disciple had approached and was observing his training. 

 

Seeing that the young man was wearing the robes of the inner sect - midnight blue with silver sun patterns embroidered around the neckline and a silver trim - Kade paused after completing a thrust to pay his respects.

 

“This disciple greets Senior Martial Brother, may I ask what brings you to the outer sect?” He queried.

 

The young man hopped down from his perch atop the wall he’d previously been resting on, a blade of grass held delicately between his pearly white teeth. 

 

His hair was long, deep black and shiny, so well kept that along with the man’s extraordinarily beautiful facial features Kade had almost mistaken him for a woman. It was only his robes that were tied loosely and flashing a powerfully built chest that revealed his true nature.

 

Inner sect disciples rarely came this far out, so it was rather nerve wracking for one to be so close. Kade wasn’t a particularly exceptional talent among his peers, so there shouldn’t be a reason for one to seek him out personally.

 

The man stopped just centimetres from Kade, flashing a wide and jovial smile that would make most people drop their guard, but he knew better than to trust the intentions of strangers.

 

“Well, grandfather has been moaning the last few days about that brat Byron going missing and how he suspects a particular disciple of the outer sect. To be honest, it was interfering with my beauty sleep, so I decided to pay Sunforge Peak a visit and see what all the fuss is about. From the looks of things, grandfather was simply overreacting. Byron might’ve been a weakling, but even he wouldn’t get taken out so easily by an untalented whelp like yourself. He probably just drank too much and got lost again. I wonder though. There’s a mysterious aura hanging around you, so perhaps there’s more to the story than a cursory glance would reveal. Frankly, I’m far too busy to waste my time harassing my juniors, so as long as you don’t do anything to attract unnecessary attention I’m sure grandfather will forget about it when Byron returns. Your staff technique is atrocious by the way, the poor imitation of a child. Try to be less rigid.”

 

After saying his piece, during most of which he seemed to be talking to himself rather than Kade, his eyes gazing into the far distance longingly, as if searching for a long lost passion, his figure flickered and vanished, appearing behind Kade and flicking the back of his head so hard he tripped and fell over his own feet, landing face first in the dirt. 

 

Scrambling back to his feet he looked around but the young man was already long gone. What a strange encounter. 

 

When he’d mentioned his grandfather, that had to be Senior Elder Fang. There was probably more than one Byron in the sect, but only one whose grandfather was a high ranking member of the sect. 

 

While Mystic Solar Valley allowed any member to achieve promotion to important roles through hard work and contribution, there were some dynastic families who had been the backbone of the sect for centuries, with many of the descendants filling influential roles within the various halls and areas of the sect, the Fang Family being one of the two most powerful.

 

Senior Elder Fang also held the title of ‘Shaman of the Sun’, one of the sect’s most influential roles that oversaw divination, sect formations including Mystic Solar Valley’s grand defensive formation and diplomacy.

 

Alongside the Sect Leader and the ‘Shooting Star General’ who oversaw all military activity and martial training of the disciples, the three were the backbone and ultimate leadership of the sect.

 

Junior Elder Rose had warned him to be careful but he hadn’t expected such immediate action. At least the one who first arrived seemed fairly laid back, yet his personality was quite strange.

 

As long as he laid low until the inner sect examinations there shouldn’t be any issues. Though time would tell if such a thing would be possible.

 

He resumed his practice, restarting from the beginning with one hundred thrusts, reciting the mantra all the while. 

 

‘Stillness without form, strength without limit.’

 

After around eighty thrusts of the staff, another wave of dizziness struck him and it was only his quick thinking and sturdiness of the staff that kept him upright.

 

The familiar coldness washed away the nausea almost immediately after, leaving his entire body cleansed and fighting fit. 

 

He felt that he was close to breaking through another stage in his cultivation despite having just reached the fourth stage the day before.

 

That wasn’t necessarily a good thing. It was important to stabilise one’s foundations, as the martial refinement realm was where one built the base upon which their entire future would rest.

 

As such it was important to take care at each stage to not rush through and leave behind impurities that could cause stagnation or even deviations at higher realms.

 

Another visitor interrupted him before he could re-establish a smooth rhythm. He really was popular today indeed.

 

“Yo, Lawney! You look like you’re in the mood for an ass kicking,” jeered a tall, slender girl with blonde hair falling down to her waist.