"Check out this technique and try to cast it. I think we can boost each other's technique by using it."
Ken was sparring with Henry outside. It was a good opportunity for Ken to duel someone slightly stronger than him, and a good opportunity for Henry to try his new techniques on someone slightly weaker than him.
"Mind Agitation?" Henry asked. After Ken's insistence, he began expressing himself with words while interacting with Ken, but always with a minimal amount.
"Yes, I have a technique that can affect others' minds. One turns them crazed and bloodthirsty while the other strikes them with primordial fear," Ken explained the basics of his Mind-Poisoning technique.
"We are what we think. With our thoughts, we make the world," Henry said, quoting another one of his scriptures.
"Amitabha."
"Amitabha."
Ken shook his head when the monk ignored his sarcasm and swung his sword again, meeting the hardened arm of the monk. The two practiced their fighting styles for another hour before returning to the house.
Ken finished writing the new combined inheritance for Henry, and the latter was slowly adjusting to the new techniques. It'd take him a while until his mastery of the new ones catches up with his previous techniques.
Creating teamwork was one of the newer topics on Ken's agenda, thus he tried to create techniques that could complement each other while keeping in mind the inheritances Tiara and Alaric had.
"Young Master, you have a guest waiting in the living room," Soleil notified him as soon as he entered.
"Who is it?"
"Elodie Aspis, she said she's your friend," Soleil gave him the details.
"Oh, her. She can wait until I finish my bath."
Ken walked down the hall to his bathroom. He disliked remaining sweaty after training, and he preferred getting clean and changing into clean robes first. Because of his modern world standards, Soleil found herself washing relatively clean robes often with nobody to complain to.
"Sister Elodie, I apologize for making you wait."
Ken sat in front of the older girl and took a grape from a bowl Soleil prepared for the guest. Elodie's tanned skin and yellow eyes gave her an exotic look that was only complemented by her graceful flexible body. One would instantly see the image of a snake when looking into her slit pupils.
"I'm imposing by arriving without notifying first, I should be the one who is sorry."
Elodie smiled and followed Ken's lead to enjoy the fruits served. They were all third-rank delicacies, and the taste was great.
"I've been curious, were you born with these eyes?" Ken asked, refusing to enter a loop of self-blaming and pleasantries in the name of politeness.
"They're a product of the inheritance I'm practicing. Does Brother Ken like them?"
"They're… unique," Ken gave a vague answer and moved on, "what did you come for?"
"Do I always need a reason to drink tea with you? You're treating me like a stranger," she teased him a little, unwilling to go straight to the point.
"Of course not, we can just drink. Soleil, serve the best tea and fruits we have."
Ken sighed inwardly as he let himself be dragged into the mud called social norms. Since they identified as "friends", it'd be embarrassing for Elodie to come out with her real agenda before having a casual conversation, especially since their friendship was not deep enough.
"Although, Brother Ken, I do have a special offer for you," Elodie finally said after they chatted for a few minutes.
"I'm all ears."
"My grandfather, Senior Elder Raziel of the Alchemy division, got a copy of your research paper. He gave it to me after he finished reading it, and we were both impressed by the ingenuity of your research. We even tried the techniques described and produced some results."
"Thank you, I'm glad that my work is appreciated by the Aspis Clan, known for their proficiency in Alchemy. However, I cannot take full credit; some of it was derived from an incomplete inheritance I found in the central zone. A few lines I managed to read enlightened me and spared me many years of experimentations."
He wanted to have the credit of a genius, but he had to tread carefully on the delicate line between genius and too genius.
"No matter what helped you in your journey, it's part of your luck and fortune. We believe that your findings will propel our whole sect forward, as it's going to allow us to concoct pills only the Infinite Wisdom Sect could concoct before."
Elodie spoke in a serious tone, showcasing her admiration for Ken's achievements. However, Ken still did not know what she wanted from him.
"What is your offer then?"
"Right, I was getting to it. My grandfather is fighting for you to help you gain as many prizes and recognition as possible. After discussing it with his uncle, Grand Elder Typhon, they are interested in offering you to be a direct disciple of my great-uncle. He is one of the few grand elders of the Alchemy division and it can be a great chance for you."
Elodie elaborated on the offer. It was indeed promising, but it was not as simple as having a grand elder as a teacher; it meant having his fate intertwined with the Aspis clan, and he'd be expected to marry one of their daughters, presumably Elodie, in the future.
"I'm honored to be offered such a deal by Grand Elder Typhon, but I can't take a decision that would affect my clan without consulting with my grandfather first. Additionally, I lately got a master from my clan, Grand Elder Fernando."
Ken used someone with the same weight as Typhon to hold the elder back. In the sect, there were a few types of elders, and one could achieve these titles through different achievements.
First were the normal Elders, and one could achieve this status by being a fifth-rank master of a craft such as Alchemy, Formation Mastery, Runology, or any other craft. Another way was to be at the seventh stage. The fact that fifth-rank masters held the same authority as seventh-stage cultivators only showed their special value.
Next in line of authority were the Senior Elders who were sixth-rank masters of their crafts, and there was no equivalent title for the normal cultivators. They held authority over fifth-rank masters, albeit not ever seventh-stage cultivators.
Above Senior Elders were the Grand Elders who were either seventh-rank grandmasters or eighth-stage cultivators, and at the top of the sect were the supreme elders, a selected few that managed to become eighth-rank grandmasters or ninth-stage cultivators.
The supreme elders' words were almost absolute, and only those with equal standing could speak against them. Unfortunately, the Alchemy division did not hail such a genius for a long while, and the grand elders held the highest power in their division.
"Grand Elder Fernando…" she repeated after him quietly, "it's all right, please discuss it with your clan and let me know. Would you like to have lunch with me at the Heavenly Snake Restaurant next week?"
It was a restaurant belonging to the Aspis clan, meaning she invited him to dine on her bill. While it might not sound much, the fifth-rank dishes there cost a pretty penny.
"Of course, I will have my answer by then."
"Don't be so straightforward, Brother Ken," Elodie sighed as he explicitly turned it into a business meeting instead of having a meal with a friend.
Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freew𝒆bnov𝒆l.c(o)m