BANG!

Ryan fell to the floor of his room.

[Prove yourself!] A cold, androgynous voice demanded. The sound was disembodied and thin, as if coming from a great distance.

Above Ryan's p.r.o.ne body, a silver half-mask hovered in the air. Metal qi buzzed on its surface.

Ryan gritted his teeth. Once more, his consciousness entered a strange dimension filled with silver lights and fearsome shadows.

The first blurry metal golem charged at him.

[Endure it!]

____

[A few hours later, in a grand mansion within Dragon City.]

Delphine's mouth gaped wide open as she looked at the person standing at her doorstep. She wondered if she was hallucinating.

"Did the guards let you in?"

"Nope."

Delphine crossed her arms, "Then how are you in here?"

A pause.

"Your grandfather let me in."

"What…!?" Delphine yelled. Shocked wouldn't even begin to describe her emotions now – her grandfather was Cloud River's most famed recluse. He disliked people in general and hated letting people into his home!

"Why!?" Delphine asked. She struggled to understand why her grandfather's personality suddenly did a one-eighty!

Van shrugged, "Dunno. He wouldn't, at first, but when I told him my name he seemed really happy to let me in."

Delphine became fl.u.s.tered.

[I tell granddad too much!]

After an awkward moment of internal struggle, she spoke again: "W-well, what do you want?"

Van explained his request.

Delphine was floored, "You want me to come with you to the Blizzard Plains? Do you understand how dangerous, cold, miserable and wretched that place is?" Her voice raised in pitch at the end.

"I'll be asking Ryan as well."

Delphine was still doubtful, "So we will have one 3rd level and two 4th level Qi Distillation cultivators? Somehow, I don't like our chances."

Van rolled his eyes, "There's one more person coming along. Don't worry."

Delphine's eyebrows rose, "Oh? Who?"

"My pet wolf, Blackie."

Delphine nearly fell down, "Your pet!?"

Van ignored her and continued, "Don't look down on Blackie, his strength is on par with the 4th level of Qi Distillation."

[And even better once he absorbs the ancient beast bloodline.]

"Oh, really…" Delphine said, scoffing, "Next you'll be telling me you're secretly in the 5th level of Qi Distillation!"

Van crossed his arms, imitating her posture, "Not secretly. But I will be, very shortly."

Delphine was surprised, "How? The Br.i.m.m.i.n.g Spirit pill? Don't tell me all five of the treasures you got were Br.i.m.m.i.n.g Spirit pills! That's cheating!"

Van shut his mouth and looked at her quietly.

Delphine became goggle-eyed, "All of them were Br.i.m.m.i.n.g Spirit pills!? You're joking!"

Van rolled his eyes, "So, will you come? We will leave in a week."

Delphine bit her lip, indecisive, "Let me ask my grandfather. If he agrees, I'll send you a message via fire-post."

"Wait a minute," Delphine realized something, "How did you find out where I live!?"

Van blinked, "The address of the only Royal Alchemist in Dragon City is hardly a well-kept secret…"

Delphine hmphed, "Anyway, if you don't get a fire-bird from me within three days, I'm not coming."

She slammed the door in his face.

Van shrugged and left. He felt that he had grown used to her strange ways already.

___

As soon as she closed the door, Delphine ran over to her grandfather's research room and saw him holding a set of binoculars. He was peering through the gap in the curtains.

"Grandfather! What are you doing!?"

Delphine ran forward and covered the binocular's line of sight.

Her grandfather turned to her with a twinkle in his eye, "Hm, not bad, not bad. Could well turn out to be a handsome lad in a few more years… I like the straightforwardness in his eyes, not a hint of deceitfulness…"

Delphine felt steam rising from the top of her head, she stomped her feet.

"Stop! He came here to ask me if I would go with him to the Blizzard Plains for a mission!"

Her grandfather turned his blue eyes to her and stroked his white moustache, "Oh? That is quite a dangerous area…but it should pose little danger to you. If you want to go, go!"

"Actually, there is a particular herb found there called the Winter Fairy Root that I would like to get my hands on, if you would be so kind my dear…"

"Fine, I'll get some. But stop teasing me!" Delphine said, ears red. She ran from the room.

Alvis, Cloud River's only Royal Alchemist, looked thoughtfully at his granddaughter's fleeing figure.

[From eavesdropping on their conversation, it seems as if the boy was able to identify pills even through ancient crust…? He might have some innate potential for pill-making or alchemy…]

___

[An hour later.]

Van knocked on Ryan's door but there was no response. When ten minutes pa.s.sed, Van punched the door in and rushed into the room.

He fount Ryan collapsed on the floor; dry heaving.

"Ryan!"

He seized his friend and dragged him to the bathtub.

Ryan leaned over the bathtub and vomited. Van pa.s.sed him a wooden cup of water and fed it to him so he could wash his mouth.

"What's going on? Why are you like this?" Van was worried by Ryan's pale complexion and the coldness of his hands.

Ryan looked at him; Van noticed the vigor in his eyes and relaxed.

"T-the treasure, Van. The treasure I found in the Mystery Object Sale…"

Ryan pressed a hand to his face. A silver mask bled out of his skin and covered his forehead and eyes.

"I can feel my control over the metal element increasing…The spirit within me…tells me that I should be able to learn the first skill…with a few more days of training…"

Van was genuinely happy for him, "Congratulations, Ryan!"

The grey-haired boy smiled.

Half an hour later, Ryan was in a fresh set of clothes and no longer smelt like puke. As he listened to Van describe the mission to the Blizzard Plains, his eyes became bright.

"Of course I will come. I only hope that I don't drag you down."

Van smiled, "We will leave in a week, train yourself well. The stronger we are before we go to the Blizzard Plains, the better."

Ryan nodded seriously.

_____

[Four days later.]

A powerful aura burst through the room.

Van furrowed his brow – it was the critical moment! He had just consumed the 4th Br.i.m.m.i.n.g Spirit pill and the surge of spiritual energy into his qi river was pus.h.i.+ng against the barrier to the 5th level of Qi Distillation.

After four days of cultivating sleeplessly, Van was finally knocking on the edge of success! The first three pills had increased his reserves of spiritual power. This fourth one had erupted, making a strong attempt to breach the barrier!

Van endured silently as the pressure built up. Time pa.s.sed.

The veins on Van's forehead swelled. Unbeknownst to him, the skin over his whole body turned an ugly puce.

Suddenly, the stream of power from the Br.i.m.m.i.n.g Spirit pill stuttered. The pressure dropped away.

Van clenched his fist.

[No!]

But no matter how much he pushed, the barrier to the next level wouldn't break. He had failed to level up to the 5th level of Qi Distillation!

Van sighed, [I will just have to work harder and be more cautious for this mission.]

[There is three more days before we leave for the Blizzard Plains in Lihnrest Country. I want to give Blackie the ancient beast bloodline, but I can't bring it out into the open. People would kill for it…]

[Plus, I need to make sure Blackie can withstand the effect of the bloodline. I should bathe him in the Body Strengthening Powder now.]

Van put on his robes and left his room with the packet of strengthening powder.

When he entered the forest, his wolves slowly trickled through the trees to meet him. Van was surprised to see that a few of the wolves had round bellies. Then he remembered that Jet had fed them all aphrodisiacs way back when, making them go at it like rabbits.

Blackie bounded out and s...o...b..red all over him. A shyer and smaller wolf with a round belly came towards Van and pushed its nose into Van's palm.

Van laughed, "Is this your lady, Blackie? You b.a.s.t.a.r.d. You're going to be a father soon!"

Blackie's tongue lolled out of his mouth. He tried to make an innocent expression.

Van rolled his eyes. He pressed his forehead onto the wolf's.

"Will come with me to the Blizzard Plains?" Van asked.

Blackie looked back into Van's eyes steadily. He gave a low woof and turned to look his lady in the eye. The she-wolf lowered her tail but nudged Blackie with her snout.

Blackie rubbed his giant head onto the front of Van's robes enthusiastically.

Van laughed, "I take that's a yes, then!"

The giant wolf barked.

Van warned him, "To go there, you will have to endure some pain, my friend. Only a strong wolf can come with me!"

Blackie looked at him, tail wagging, [Bring it on, Big Boss!]

____

Van snuck Blackie into the sect by placing him in the Myriad Light dimensional ring. He let the giant wolf out at the dilapidated bathhouse and filled up the largest bath with boiling hot water. Then he poured the strengthening powder in.

"Well, it's now or never," Van told the giant wolf.

Blackie showed a nonchalant expression and dipped a white paw into the water. The wolf yelped. Shrinking back, he saw Van's expression and made big puppy eyes.

Once more, he was showing his cowardly and black side!

"In!" Van kicked the wolf's backside.

Arp!

The big wolf fell into the steaming bathwater.

Van folded his arms, "You already agreed to this, you rascal. Just endure it!"

Blackie felt depressed. He struggled for a few moments in the water but finally started to feel the strengthening effects of the powder above the pain. The wolf endured.

Two hours later, the wolf was happily paddling in the cooled down bathwater. Van had to wade in and physically drag the puppy-like wolf out. It was clear that the powder's effect had been consumed a while ago, Blackie just didn't want to stop playing in the water.

Van began to wonder when he began to live the life of a dog trainer.

"Bad wolf!"

Blackie barked joyously. He felt the newfound strength within his body and howled, [Me strong!].

Van face palmed.

_____

As Van was practicing his Dark Seas Palm skills the next day in the martial field, a red paper bird circled in the air above him. He stopped to look at it – there was a letter in its claws.

The moment the red paper bird dropped the letter into his hands, it tried to combust into flames.

Van immediately s.n.a.t.c.hed it from the air and blasted it with some icy cold water. The flames were extinguished.

The folded paper bird squawked indignantly in his grasp.

Van ignored it and opened the letter.

[Grandfather says yes.]

Van returned to his room to find a quill and some ink. He scribbled some words on the other side of the paper and gave it to the red paper bird.

"Well, go on!"

The red paper bird wobbled and then took off.

On the other side, Delphine received his letter.

[Good. You're an apprentice alchemist right? Bring some healing solutions.]

Black lines ran down Delphine's face.

[Am I a cash cow?]

Still, she resigned herself to brewing some medicinal solutions.

Delphine saw the paper bird still sitting there. It still hadn't combusted?

[Hm? Why does this one look exactly the same as the paper bird I sent out? They're single-use items - how did he get it to do a return journey?]

Delphine inspected the bird and saw that it looked a bit soggy.

"He forcefully stopped a one-use fire-bird it from combusting?" Delphine was surprised, "The old guys in the post office will be frothing with anger if they found out about the loophole in their product!"

____

[Two days later.]

Three figures and a wolf met just outside Dragon City. Each wore different clothes from the usual.

Van had purchased grey travelers robes and st.u.r.dy boots for both he and Ryan. Once more, they wore their village's tunic and trousers underneath. Their outer disciple's jade tags tied to their waist and the signal amulet was tucked underneath their s.h.i.+rts.

Delphine wore a soft silk travelling robe in pink. Her hair was in the customary double-bun style. There was a small pouch on her waist that Van had not seen before. He surmised it would be a dimensional treasure that had a large s.p.a.ce within it like his Myriad Light Dimensional ring.

They greeted each other.

"Are we ready to head off?" Van asked.

Ryan nodded solemnly.

Delphine was excited for an adventure, "Yeah!" she enthused.

Van summoned a large object from his dimensional ring that made his companions lost for words.