John found himself back at the Emerging Bamboo Sect. “It is a pleasure to see you once more, Chandra.”

  The woman who had previously been a promising disciple in the late Soul Expansion Phase had reached the peak of the Consolidated Soul Phase. Somewhere along the way, she had become the Sect Head.

  She inclined her head. “You as well. Welcome to the Emerging Bamboo Sect.” She looked around. “Your daughter is not with you. A shame.”

  John shrugged. “She’s not a disciple of my sect, but the Amber Heart. Not that she often remains on sect grounds there either. At any time, she could be stomping around the Viridia Wildlands or the Rolling Dunes as much as the Stone Conglomerate.”

  While various disciples were responsible for the rest of the Six Elements Crossroads, John merited Chandra’s personal attention. After all, his cultivation was significantly ahead of her, the sect head.

  Besides, John had fond memories of her instructive efforts. Perhaps he might learn more of the Emerging Bamboo Sect’s style, but he also intended to teach as well. “Have you had the opportunity to visit the Succulent League?”

  “I don’t believe I am aware of their location,” Chandra admitted.

  “They’re a new sect in the Rolling Hills. They are not yet firmly established, but there is much potential to be had. Furthermore, they are quite open with their methods. I’m certain your sects could learn much from each other.”

  More than just how to manipulate plants in both wet and dry climates, though that by itself was a valuable area of study.

  -----

  Chandra hadn’t expected the founder of the Six Elements Crossroads to recall the details of their first meetings. It had been sufficient that she had been remembered later, upon attending the tournaments.

  The man had changed his name after the death of his wife. He wasn’t the first cultivator to sever old ties after a traumatic moment, nor would he be the last. Chandra had merely been surprised at how simple of a name he took, instead of picking one filled with grand meaning. Or perhaps she simply did not understand it.

  A cultivator like him needn’t have bothered to remember the details of every encounter he had with others. However, he surprised her by bringing up something particular.

  “How have you kept up with your training for sensing darkness cultivators?” John asked.

  “As much as it is possible, given our location,” Chandra said.

  “We’ll have to put that to the test,” John said.

  Before she could even agree, he disappeared right in the middle of the pathway. Chandra immediately extended her senses to where he had been standing, trying to determine if he was going to pull a similar trick to the past.

  Just because her senses couldn’t pick out anything didn’t mean he wasn’t there, but she couldn’t make any declaration with certainty. She followed every ripple through the leaves of the trees, the movement of the fallen bamboo husks, and everything that could be a sign of John’s presence.

  The man had five elements now. That gust of wind could have been him, but it didn’t show signs of spiritual energy. Then again, nothing did. And unlike before, her natural senses didn’t feel dulled at all. Chandra wasn’t sure how to tell whether that was true.

  She strode forward confidently, walking through the space he had been standing in. Or at least she thought she did. When she took a moment to assess her position, she had ended up behind where she thought she started.

  Determining she wouldn’t find anything standing still, Chandra began to move. Perhaps she would break out of the area of John’s control and find some perspective. Except even as she broke into a run, the path looped around on itself.

  “No need to rush. I’m not far,” John’s voice came from behind her. She reached out her arm to grab him, not expecting him to actually be there. And he wasn’t.

  Chandra was stronger now. Even if her senses weren’t able to pick him out directly, she should detect some signs. An imbalance in the local water and earth from where a person stood, for example.

  She felt something, for a moment. A void, like the local ground spiders left. Chandra lunged, propelling herself extra distance with a projection of a bamboo shoot. However, when she reached the area she felt herself splashing into a balance of various spiritual elements, no physical form.

  She knew the trick those spiders used, and he knew that she knew about them. They were common here, and they must have encountered them on his visit. He used her talents against her.

  Chandra took a step, trying to get closer to something. Her foot refused to move, as if hooked to the ground somehow. Had that always been the case, or had it happened just now? She didn’t know which was worse.

  She thought for a moment, then threw herself forward, allowing her feet to remain planted. She managed to grab a handful of cloth, though she could barely feel it. “I got you.” She sighed. “You didn’t move, did you?”

  If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  “An interesting question, isn’t it?” John said as the world returned to normal around her- though she hadn’t noticed most of the inconsistencies in the moment. “When you were running around earlier, where was I? I think revealing my tricks would be too much.”

  “... Maybe I should have shaken the whole area.”

  “Or filled it with thorns,” John said. “There are plenty of good thorns to be had as examples. You could make cute little cacti.”

  “I doubt it would have helped much,” Chandra said. “Given the gap in our cultivations.”

  “You presume I used my maximum power. Just one last question… how many elements do I have?”

  Chandra frowned. He had five totems, right? Or had he somehow fooled the whole world and already reached the Exalted Soul Phase? No, his cultivation was almost certainly as he revealed. Chandra felt five totems, with elements mixed together in a way that made them feel like nothing at all. However, there was something missing. Was the balance slightly towards darkness? Yet not completely, which meant there was actually some light. She thought.

  She still wanted to say five. “Six,” she declared.

  “Correct. But five is also correct, in its own way,” John said. “Either way, the light is there. You likely weren’t expecting additive illusions. You could likely spot most darkness element cultivators, unless they were specialized against earth element seekers. But the Silver Haze Sect might be difficult for you. I might add them to a future journey. The western Muted Crags aren’t so unfriendly as the rest.”

  “I will take that into consideration.”

  “It’s not far from the Succulent League, so it would be fairly convenient. You wouldn’t have to walk around the whole continent.”

  “Should I?” Chandra asked. That was what he was doing, after all.

  “Not unless you have a good reason. Stick with the element you train, then any areas of weakness you want to cover.” John shrugged, “I simply happen to have all the elements, so I need to see everything.”

  -----

  This time, John was able to grow himself his own bamboo home. It wasn’t just his greater power. Indeed, if that had been the case he would have done it just fine the previous time. He had the necessary power, but hadn’t been able to put it to good use.

  Now he had a full cycle of elements, able to feed each element into the next. Growth was natural, even if plants were only a small portion of his training- though they’d been unusually heavy in the latest journey. Then again, he hadn’t needed much in the way of traditional soil and stone based methods, since both he and the disciples in Astrein were never terribly far away from the Stone Conglomerate.

  Despite the insane speed that the bamboo grew, it wasn’t sufficient to complete it in one session unless he wanted to accept that the bamboo wouldn’t reach its full potential. In one afternoon it was a meter and a half wide and easily three meters high. That was more than sufficient to carve out for use… but it would forevermore be just a small hut. However, it had surpassed the necessary standard to continue growth into the next day.

  John found that constantly monitoring the bamboo was unnecessary. He could spend a few minutes providing spiritual energy and encouragement, then spend an hour or more elsewhere while the bamboo greedily drank up the spiritual energy. He added earth element, of course, but also air. It was going to be a physical plant, so it needed to pull in far ranging carbon dioxide. Once he had two elements, John figured he might as well complete the cycle. Water and fire were the last, feeding into the others to end at earth.

  There wasn’t any actual fire, of course. Just a source of heat. Living plants didn’t burn easily and the Viridia Wildlands were soaked through, but it was still better to keep proper control over things.

  “Not bad,” Chandra commented when she saw John looking at his work of several days, a bamboo cane large enough to house a half dozen people, at least according to the standards of the Emerging Bamboo Sect. “Are you looking for a job? We could use more people with your talents.”

  John grinned. “I’m just a hobbyist, actually. And you don’t seem to be particularly lacking.” The borders of the Emerging Bamboo Sect had widened considerably, and the number of disciples swelled. They weren’t a massive sect, but they had enough people to fill a small city. Even with the rapid growth of the Six Elements Crossroads, they didn’t have as many people as a long established and stable sect like them.

  “It would be a waste of your talent anyway,” Chandra shook her head. “An Ascending Soul Phase cultivator shouldn’t be tied down to a remote place like this.”

  “Perhaps. Though if you grew one of your own…” He looked at her meaningfully.

  “You really think I can?”

  “Who knows?” John shrugged. “I’m not going to say it’s an easy task. Nor will I exaggerate and say I can pick out people with the necessary talent at a glance. But I can say you have sufficient potential. It’s just difficult to make that last step, isn’t it?”

  “I’m afraid,” Chandra admitted. “What happens to the sect if I’m gone?”

  “I imagine they continue to grow,” John smiled. “But if it bothers you, make sure you have someone to take over for you.” Everyone he knew who’d been successful had a stable sect or clan to help ease their worries. Except for himself on his first attempt, during which he’d been in a time of turmoil and nearly killed himself. It had been a half success.

  The resources from a stable base would obviously also be helpful, so John couldn’t say that was the only reason for the successes. Ultimately, everything built together towards the result. Maybe once the continent had another couple centuries of history they might have better insights on reaching the Ascending Soul Phase.

  “Alternatively,” John said, “There’s nothing wrong with accepting the life you have now. Not everyone has to reach for the peak of cultivation.”

  “So why do you strive for it?” Chandra asked. “If it’s not too much.”

  “If you asked me that question at different times of my life, I would have given different answers.” At first, he just wanted to see what came next in cultivation. After ending up in this world, it only seemed natural to explore the possibilities. “I needed power, for family and friends. Now I have responsibilities to a wider group.”

  “I see,” Chandra nodded. “Do you think… that you might reach the Exalted Soul Phase?”

  “It’s a bit too early to say,” John said. “I’m not even in the late Ascending Soul Phase yet. But… I intend to make the attempt.”

  He would. But if he didn’t know why, he might not survive. Somehow, that rang more true than whether or not he had sufficient control of light.