Fighting to be Kind in a Cultivation World

While heading over to the rooms that Gong setup for us, I can’t help but feel a growing ominous feeling.

Not one of doom and destruction, but of mischievous plans made within hushed whispers. Specifically, from the ladies I came here with.

Wait a second.

It’s been a bit since we last discussed it, but I know they were planning on doing ‘something’ soon, when we had a chance.

This is the perfect chance for them, given that this is safe territory, with both Gong and Sister Nuan here.

Instantly, I can feel anxiousness (and another feeling) flow through my system, as I consider the best way to approach this situation. Because there’s only one thing that will come of this.

Sister Nuan and Gong glance over at me, likely having sensed my change in demeanor.

However, the moment Gong's nose twitches, I instinctively pause.

My qi aura is up, right? Yeah, it is.

…

Well, maybe she could tell.

This is only confirmed when I see a huge smirk cover her face. Sister Nuan, with her superior spiritual sense and deduction skills, naturally catches on quickly.

And it is her that actually says something first.

“Hahahaha, don’t get too excited over there, James. We still have quite a bit to do and plan for tonight.”

She gives a side-look at Gong, adding a few more words with a nearly hidden smile.

“There’ll be plenty of time for that later.”

Well, that’s both reassuring and makes it even crazier than I thought.

Looks like everyone might be involved with it.

As I think this, we can hear the sound of everyone still moving things around ahead.

Looking ahead with my scan, I find that, much to my astonishment, the next area we are heading into is the very same forum that we originally stayed in. Complete with the walls and pillars covered with designs structured through web and artwork on the walls, depicting Ai and Lin’s journey.

As well as the abuse they suffered at the hands of their father, Rong.

When we enter that space, I can see Sister Nuan's eyes travel across the paintings, with only a half second before she grimaces. Recognizing it for what it is.

Considering all the time we’ve spent in this area, it’s nearly impossible that Ai and Lin don’t know what it represents. Since it’s still here, I assuming they are okay with it and already resolved that as part of their secret conversations before, when I was away.

Gong surprises me a little when she continues

“I’ve kept these areas the same since you’ve last been here, except for some reinforcing. You may notice that some areas have some of your stuff in it, but they’re only being used for storage. You can follow me to see where the others are actually staying.”

She leads us down one of the other tunnels, with everyone’s voice become louder as we get closer and letting us see the back of Ai, Lin, and the others, who all seem to go back for more stuff.

Looks like they had quite a bit to carry around from the carriages.

Which kind of makes sense. We brought a lot of contingency items and agreed to bring some stuff for Gong to use as well. Likely, they are also doing some sorting, between what Gong will be keeping and we’ll be taking back.

“Hey guys, we’re back! You might want to hear what we discovered, though there isn’t anything you need to worry about.”

Probably.

The group slows to a stop and even with my words, I can see the worry on some of their faces. Luckily for us, it doesn’t take long to convey the situation regarding the giant fish spirit beast.

Predictably, they are a little peeved by us not telling them.

“WHY THE HELL DIDN’T YOU TELL US, JAMES?”

Just a little peeved.

 That one came from Lin, but Ai, fills in the blanks.

“Lin. They clearly did it to isolate us, even a bit from whatever they were going to try in investigating the issue. Am I right?”

Sister Nuan nods her head with many of the older cultivators realizing it immediately.

When dealing with a higher realm cultivator, only bring your strongest and those directly involved. It leaves the slight potential of mercy from a higher realm of not pursuing those outside of that group.

That doesn’t always apply to spirit beasts, but the higher the realm with them, the more they’ll respect common understandings. Though, at that level of power, likely the country would be wiped away as easily as a fly would be swatted.

Lin deflates after hearing from the rest of the group.

“I don’t blame you for not knowing, Lin. I didn’t know either, without my abilities.”

She nods a bit, still a little embarrassed but hopefully feeling a little better.

There’s a tad bit of silence before He Wen speaks up. A rare occurrence, in a few ways.

“So, does that mean we should keep moving the stuff?”

Ah, yeah. That’s a good idea.

We soon shuffle along with everyone else, arriving at a nearby larger tunnel, where the carriages sit.

Unsurprisingly, there isn’t much more to move, considering that they’ve already been moving things for a while now. As we move the last of the things into the rooms, a silence overtakes us all.

Once again, He Wen is the one to break the silence.

“Well, I’ll get some sleep, as it’s a bit late, if that’s okay with you, Master James?”

Of course, I give a nod, realizing that a battle of another sort might be on its way.

Mei Lin, Yalei, and Jin Chin all look at each other and also say their goodbyes, so that they can get some sleep. Though, Jin Chin and Yalei pause to look at me again, before they leave for their room. Longing in their eyes, that is swiftly suppressed.

Knowing their situation and that they suspect what we are about to do, I can see the guilt in all the rest of the girls' eyes. Currently, though, they aren’t close enough to do that yet, though. Even Sister Nuan leaves soon after, likely because of her position as my master.

Leaving just Lin, Ai, Shi, Gong and I.

We stand there in silence, and the sexual tension rises in the room. Gong speaks.

“Okay… I’ve been waiting for this for a while now, so can we get to the room? I’m going to go crazy.”

This jolts us out of the daze and gets us moving to Gong’s new room, quite a distance away.

And when we enter it, I’m surprised by how overwhelmingly large it is, along with the bed. With massive ceilings and giant pillars covered in web art and stone figures, the entire place looks like a spider themed ancient art gallery. In the middle of it all, a huge bed lays, raised up with designs all around the room leading to it, each stair having slightly different one on them, like a shrine of sorts.

… she must have been eager for this moment.

I’m not the only that notices all the work put into this, as Ai, Lin, and Shi gasp beside me… likely not having seen the extent of her artwork before. Something I was lucky to see in the early days with her, deep within her caverns. No innuendo intended.

The bed, however, as seen by my scan, is the most remarkable thing, having been handcrafted by Gong herself. Every micro-strand, every piece of wood and metal, made by her. And it’s massive, too. Able to fit her AND 16 other people comfortably.

… wait. Why 16? How many people does she expect us to have in bed at a time?!

For her part, Gong is staring at me with a hunger that reminds me of an important fact.

Giant spider lady gets what she wants…eventually.

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