Chapter 25 – The Ungiven Gift

Breaking through to the third layer of Qi Condensation meant two things for Lynn Naya: her five senses were sharper than before, and she could store twice as much spiritual energy. This meant she could sustain her cultivation for longer.

The only unfortunate thing was that she hadn’t learned any official martial arts and could only rely on her ‘Finger Flick’ to defend herself.

However, Lynn Naya was a realist. It was better to perfect one skill than to dabble in a hundred. If her ‘Finger Flick’ reached the pinnacle of perfection, it wouldn’t be any worse than a typical martial art.

Besides, she knew her personality. She would never face an enemy head-on unless it was a matter of life or death. In that case, her ‘Finger Flick’ might even be more useful than a sword or a saber.

After coming to this realization, Lynn Naya looked at the status panel. The ‘Finger Flick’ was stuck at the very end of the experience bar. So, she spent eight days practicing, and on the ninth day, her ‘Finger Flick’ reached the sixth level of perfection.

[Name: Lynn Naya]

[Cultivation: Qi Condensation Level 3 (0/100)]

[Martial Arts: Finger Flick: Pinnacle (0/100), Breath-Concealing Technique: Initiated (14/100)]

[Cultivation Method: Evergreen Technique: Initiated (45/100)]

[Skills: Medicinal Farming: Initiated (46/100), Healing: Beginner (9/100)]

[Exclusive Trait: Everlasting Life]

The moment she reached the pinnacle, Lynn Naya didn’t feel much. But when she walked into a crowd with a small stone in her hand, her mind would conjure up all sorts of ways to strike and kill her enemies with a single hit. The stone in her hand felt like a part of her body, and she could control it with perfect ease.

Is this the effect of perfecting a skill?

What if I replace the stone with a needle as fine as an ox’s hair? And what if I put some poison on it…? Hmm, worth a try.

Everything was peaceful now, but she had to be prepared for the worst. She never forgot that this was a world of cultivation where humanity was forced into a single corner. It was always a good idea to have more ways to protect herself.

However, if she wanted to play with poison, she would have to ask Scarface Qing to find her some poison-related books.

That night, Lynn Naya went to Scarface Qing’s house to ask for his help.

When she told him what she wanted, Scarface Qing also made a request.

“You want me to take your wife’s pulse?” Lynn Naya was surprised. As she sat down in front of Zhou Yuan and told her to put out her hand, she said, “I don’t know what I did to make you all think my medical skills are so great. To be honest, I’m only half-decent. I suggest you go to Healer Zhang if you’re really sick.”

She stopped talking as she felt something was off.

Zhou Yuan’s pulse was irregular, unlike a normal person’s. It was more like…

A sudden thought popped into her head. Lynn Naya put down Zhou Yuan’s hand and looked at them with a wry smile. “You two are waiting to ambush me, aren’t you?”

Zhou Yuan turned her head and smiled while Scarface Qing said excitedly, “Healer Zhang just left, and you came right after. I’m just worried about a misdiagnosis, so I’m sure you can understand the feelings of a man who is about to become a father. How about this, when my child has his one-month celebration, I’ll only ask for half the congratulatory money. Not too much, just a pound of gold ingots.”

“That’s fine,” Lynn Naya said magnanimously. “Put it on Xue Yong’s tab.”

Zhou Yuan burst out laughing, and Scarface Qing slapped his thigh. “That’s a great idea! I’ll do that next time too!”

Unaware of what was happening, the distant Xue Yong felt his pouch get nine-tenths lighter for no reason.

After their laughter subsided, Scarface Qing and his wife enthusiastically invited Lynn Naya to stay for dinner.

After the meal, Zhou Yuan took out two pairs of clothes, eight pairs of socks, four pairs of knee pads, and a letter for Lynn Naya to give to Zhou Feibai. “I made the clothes, the women’s socks, and two pairs of knee pads for you. The rest, you can give to my brother when you get a chance.”

Counting the clothes, most of what Lynn Naya was wearing was made by Zhou Yuan. Whatever Zhou Feibai had, she would have too. And whatever Zhou Feibai didn’t have, Zhou Yuan would also make for her.

Compared to Zhou Feibai, Lynn Naya liked Zhou Yuan a lot more. She was gentle and reserved, never taking anything for granted. She was subtle in her kindness.

Since she had promised Zhou Yuan, Lynn Naya would often check the cold pond. But Zhou Feibai never appeared again. The next time she saw him was on New Year’s Eve.

New Year’s Eve was a good day to test for spiritual roots. Lynn Naya didn’t want to get involved, so she hid on the mountain. She figured there wouldn’t be a lot of people today, so the cold pond would probably be empty. She could get closer to fetch the water.

After she broke through to the third layer of Qi Condensation, the initial cold pond water no longer had any effect on her. It took her about half a month to find the second stage of cold water, but that had also lost its effect. She planned to get water from an even closer spot.

As she was thinking about where to go, she saw Zhou Feibai alone in the water. From the aura around him, it was clear he had broken through to the second layer.

In the water, Zhou Feibai heard her approach and opened his eyes. He jumped out of the water, waved his hand, and his wet clothes immediately became dry. He then appeared in front of Lynn Naya.

“Long time no see.” he said.

If Lynn Naya was a cultivator in the open, she could have returned with a greeting like, “It’s been a while, and your cultivation has improved.” But she wasn’t, so she could only say, “It has been a while.”

“I was grounded by my master a while ago and couldn’t come out. It just so happens that today is New Year’s Eve, so my master let me out early. But I had nowhere to go, so I came here to see if I could run into you.” Zhou Feibai said. He was much more mature now and not as emotional as before. His tone was calm.

“Why were you grounded?” Lynn Naya frowned. In her mind, getting grounded meant you had made a serious mistake.

“My senior brother was trying to take my spirit stones again. I didn’t want to be bullied anymore, so I fought with him.”

“A fight shouldn’t be enough to get you grounded.” Besides, according to what Zhou Feibai had said before, his senior brother’s cultivation was higher than his. He wouldn’t have had the advantage, so why would he be grounded?

Zhou Feibai smiled when he heard her question. There was a hint of ruthlessness in his eyes. “Because I learned an insidious martial art. I took advantage of my senior brother’s carelessness and broke his hand and foot meridians.”

Hiss.

Lynn Naya gasped. If she remembered correctly, Zhou Feibai was only fourteen, not even fifteen yet.

Where there is oppression, there is resistance.

As she marveled at his ruthless action, Zhou Feibai was staring at her eyes. “Are you scared?”

“Not at all. You have to be ruthless to get anywhere.” If it were me, I might have done something even more extreme.

Zhou Feibai seemed to be happy with her answer. “Whether you’re really not scared or just pretending, at least my senior brother won’t bully me anymore. That’s enough.”

“That’s true. It sounds like you have a lot to celebrate.” Lynn Naya said, taking the letter, socks, and knee pads from her sleeve and giving them to him. “Your sister made these for you. Go ahead and open it. She misses you a lot.”

Zhou Feibai’s lips twitched, unimpressed. “There’s no way she has time to miss me.” But after he opened the letter and read it, his eyes lit up. “My sister is pregnant… She wants me to name the child!”

Lynn Naya knew what he was feeling. “Is that so? Usually, naming a child is left to the most important person. It seems you’re still the most important person in her heart.”

Perhaps Lynn Naya’s words had touched a part of his heart, because the corners of Zhou Feibai’s mouth turned up. There was a hint of youthfulness in his eyes.

He held the letter and racked his brain, coming up with seven or eight names, none of which he was satisfied with. In the end, he finally settled on two: “Changxi” for a boy, and “Changle” for a girl—the first meaning everlasting joy, the second, everlasting happiness.

“Alright, let’s settle on these for now. If you think of a better one later, you can always change it,” Lynn Naya said. “I should get back to my work. It’s New Year’s Eve today. You should go back and rest as well.”

After she finished, Lynn Naya thought for a moment and said to him, “Since you’re already fighting to the death, maybe you should try to do it openly. But make sure there’s a senior cultivator there to witness it.” No one liked a vicious person. Once a person was labeled as such, they would be despised and secretly tripped up even if they did nothing.

When he heard her words, a thoughtful look appeared in Zhou Feibai’s eyes.

This meeting was just a small interlude for Lynn Naya. Zhou Feibai’s path was up to him. What she thought was best for him might not be right for him. She could only give him advice.

Perhaps Zhou Feibai took her advice. When Lynn Naya saw him again a month later, she noticed his demeanor had changed. He was no longer sullen. He looked harmless and cheerful on the outside. But Lynn Naya could tell that it was all a façade. Deep in his eyes, he was still ruthless, but he had learned to hide it.

I wonder what kind of mental journey this child has gone through. Perhaps this is the best path for him.

The change in Zhou Feibai was obvious. At least he had become extremely sociable. Several times when Lynn Nayaentered the cold pond, she heard others affectionately call him “Junior Brother Feibai.” The Dao Palace disciple in charge of them even gave Zhou Feibai private lessons.

“I have to thank you for your reminder, Healer Lynn,” Zhou Feibai said during another moment when they were alone. “I did what you said. When they provoked me, I would go all out and fight them. Now, no one dares to mess with me anymore. Even my most confrontational senior brother thinks I’m genuine and honest. He likes me and takes care of me a lot now.”

“The way they treat me has changed from arrogant to respectful, and it’s all thanks to you, Healer Lynn. How can I repay you?”

Lynn Naya waved her hand, about to refuse, when he added, “Senior Brother said that once I reach the mid-stage of QiCondensation, I can recruit my own attendants. Healer Lynn, you can be my servant then.”

Servant?

Lynn Naya knew that to Zhou Feibai, this was a dream come true for countless mortals, but the word itself made her uncomfortable.

“No, thank you. I’m not willing.” she said, directly refusing.

“Why not?” Zhou Feibai was a little displeased.

“I don’t consider being a servant as a form of repayment. Maybe others are willing, but I am not.”

“Then how can I repay you? It’s not like I can marry you, is it?” Zhou Feibai’s words surprised Lynn Naya. What he said next shocked her even more. “That’s impossible. You’re just a mortal.”