Aimless Ascension

The figure emerged out of the high bush with a lofty lunge, the silver sword glowering in his arm, ready to make a move. The youth hardly had any injuries, but the sheer arrogance he showed at first was replaced by vigilance as he peered at the dog next to Gale.

Good, at least he had some sense, Gale thought. Let's see if he makes it even more difficult for him or not.

"Woof!"

A volatile pressure crashed solely onto the young practitioner, hinting at what he got himself into.

The youth gritted his teeth and stepped forward, and did something Gale hadn't considered. The youth bowed at a perfect right angle, displaying complete deference. "Senior," he said, not lifting his head. "This junior has eyes, but he couldn't see his own mistake."

"Well, that was quick," Gale muttered. "See Vale, what a good headbutt can do? You need to start doing that before starting a conversation."

"Senior, is there any way we can forget all these and talk this through?"

Xiaolin blinked at the youth, who totally turned one-eighty in his approach. They could see the youth stealing glances at Vale.

"So now you want to talk." Gale moved to the wooden veranda outside the house and sat down. Vale stood next to him, enjoying the caresses. "Alright, let's start with who you are and why you're here?"

The youth lifted his head and considered the questions. "This ill-fated junior is called Shi Fan. As for what I'm doing here--" the youth probably considered shouting, 'is minding my business, you buffoon who only knows to bully junior with numbers'. Instead, he stated, "I was cycling in my humble shed in seclusion when suspicious individuals showed up in my place and disturbed my training. The recent breakthrough may have caused a little impairment in my control. I acted on my impulses. I'm deeply sorry about that."

Shi Fan's phrases were full of respect and excuses, but he made a mistake there. Gale turned to Xiaolin. "He says this is his property. Do you have anything to say about that?"

"That is wrong," Xiaolin said, trying hard to not offend the practitioner. "Senior, this land was owned by my father. I inherited it entirely after coming of age six months ago in his absence."

Shi Fan's exterior paled hearing her, and it turned only uglier, hearing the slow growling from the hound. It was directed right at him. He bent down again, further than before. "Senior, forgive this Junior's insolence. I came across this place under circumstances worse than now and found the natural earthly Qi nourishing to my body. It was presumptuous of me to call this my property. If you wish, this Shi will scuttle right at this very moment."

Gale nuzzled his buddy as Vale stopped growling, much to Shi Fan's relief. Gale couldn't help but smile. He didn't know which one of the two faces Shi Fan showed was fake. That was how brilliant his acting skills were. Or both could be fake.

Well, at least the kid wasn't half bad. He just made some unhealthy mistakes. Who was he to judge, considering his own mistakes were far graver than this?

Still, he couldn't just let this kid go. He needed to teach him some lessons, lest he take things for granted. It might be something small now, but if this kid grows to a Silver, gold or even higher ranker, the things he would take for granted would be worse.

"You can calm down now, boy. Vale won't bite you."

"Thank you, senior. It's your--"

"And lose that formality. I can clearly see your respect is anything but sincere."

Shi Fan was flustered. "Senior, I--"

Gale waved his arm to silence him. "How long have you been living in this house? Tell me truthfully, Vale can detect the truth from the hearts of men."

Shi fan swallowed. "It will be three months at the end of this moon cycle."

"Who put you on this? What was that kid's name again, Han Xiao? Did he put you up for this?"

"No one, senior. I came across this place by happenstance. I'm not from this region and know no Han Xiao."

"So you have no ill intent, save for the wrong you've done already?"

"None." The boy shook his head heavily. "Senior, I merely wanted a quiet place to rest and cycle."

"Don't we all," Gale sighed. "But I can't look away from the fact that you're living on someone else's property for almost three months without their permission and decided to attack innocent bystanders on sight. This is not healthy behaviour."

"I ask for forgiveness for this insolence." Shi Fan's voice was just the right tone for apologising, as if he had practised this countless times already.

"It's not me who you should apologise to." Gale directed him towards Xiaolin, the owner of this place.

Shi Fan turned to Xiaolin and bowed with high respect. Truly, this kid would have been killing it if he was in showbiz on earth. "Sister, I didn't know this place had any owners. I went to the mountains for exploration and needed some place to rest. I thought this place was abandoned and decided nobody would care if I reside inside for some time. I have ruined none of your property, but if it's remuneration, you ask, I'll provide you with a handsome number. Either way, forgive this brother for crashing into your place without consent."

"No, no," Xiaolin almost jolted from her place, finding a practitioner apologising to her, an iron ranker at that. "There's no need to apologise. I . . ."

"Talking about remuneration," Gale intoned. "You will provide her with a good sum, right this moment. You've been here for three months, hmm. We haven't checked for any damage. Give or take, give her 30 iron marks for each month. A total of 90 marks. As for Uncle Feng, apologise to him too and offer something."

Shi Fan groaned after hearing that, but exchanging a look with which the furry dog, he reconsidered. "Senior, 90 marks for a place like this, seems a bit excessive."

"You should've thought that before attacking innocent people. Now, apologise to Uncle Feng."

"I'm deeply ashamed, Uncle Feng. I only wanted to scare you away, but didn't think you'd still stand in the way. Either way, I'm deeply ashamed that I used my superior strength on you. I apologise for my impudence."

Well, look at that. How many practitioners apologise to mortal men for their faults? Moreover, this time, it felt more genuine.

Gale turned to Vale, who nodded.

Alright, that's passable behaviour, he decided.

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