Journey Towards Dao

“You touched her.” The handsome young man’s voice was restrained, even gentle.

If judging by the volume and rhythm of his short statement, one may have assumed the young man to be as relaxed as he initially sounded.

However, if one listened carefully, faint undertones of cold-hearted callousness were being conveyed. If one watched carefully, the speed at which his brunette hair lashed outwards had increased by a magnitude. Whether it was the wrenching movement of his jaw muscles, the nearly undetectable tint of red infecting the whites of his eyes, or even by the way he chose to stand here talking instead of rushing away to treat the woman so clearly precious to him…

Auslen was not ignorant. He didn’t need to be able to sense cultivation realms to ascertain that the man in front of him was a True Core cultivator, a realm notoriously characterized by the extreme mental suppression and instability it often generated.

And from his experience and knowledge, he understood that this man was very, very angry with the two of them.

Auslen frowned.

Despite the cultivation disparity, he was not afraid. He just had subtle suspicions that something about this current situation was not natural.

Regardless, he stepped in front of Vincent, who was looking at him with unspoken questions flying through his silver eyes.

But from the way Auslen gripped his arm, Vincent knew that he was to keep silent.

At this time, Auslen’s amulet grew warmer.

Tobias’ laughter echoed inside Auslen’s head. “Would you like a bit of assistance, my dear grandson?”

Auslen suddenly felt tired. He knew what his grandfather meant by “assistance.”

He couldn’t help but feel a bit sympathetic for this mentally challenged young man.

“Only if he makes the first move, Grandfather.”

…

Out of nowhere, the handsome young man facing the two children felt goosebumps rising. The faint sensation of peril tingled up and down his spine.

‘Danger…?’ His confused thoughts were just as emotionless as his vacant expression. ‘I’m in danger.’ This time, he was certain.

His True Core thrummed, and an instant later, he forgot about everything else.

He no longer considered cutting away the fingers of the children who touched his Junior Sister’s naked body. He even failed to remember that very same Junior Sister, who he was still carrying in his arms.

Every thought was now like cold steel, utterly concentrated on locating and eliminating the danger he sensed.

His Soul Force flooded the mountainside in seconds, inspecting everything within a 500 meter radius with cold, calculated precision.

For several moments, the growing scent of danger continued to elude him. Until…

‘It’s… him.’ He gathered his Soul Force back into his True Core. His eyes fell back on the two children before focusing on the smaller child standing in front, who was smiling at him with peaceful intentions.

After confirming the source, the handsome young man walked towards the boy at an unhurried pace, his easygoing attitude in peculiar conflict with the bloody and unconscious figure in his arms. He arrived directly in front of the boy, whose face began to reveal signs of discomfort from their proximity.

He tilted his head down.

Within his green irises, his pupils fluctuated as his gaze ran up and down the child’s short frame. The unique golden hair and casual flaunting of jewelry-type Mystic Artifacts sent sparks of caution cutting through his frayed consciousness.

Then, just as a wisp of his Soul Force happened to graze against the amulet hidden underneath the boy’s Outer Sect robe, the scorching sensation of being watched erupted in his chest.

Reflexively, he jerked away his probing Soul Force.

For the first time, fearful hesitation bled into his features. Before he was aware of his own actions, he had backed away from the child by two entire steps.

“I don’t think we’ve met.” Once the toneless words were out of his mouth, only then did the burning pain lessen.

His thin lips lifted into a stilted smile. “I’ve been in closed door cultivation for a few years, so I’m afraid I haven’t had the chance to hear of such a young talent. You can call me Senior Brother Samuel. What’s your name, Junior Brother?”

...

Is he finally thinking clearly enough to question my identity?

Seeing Samuel’s absentminded retreat, Auslen’s smile carried traces of amusement. He may have loathed the regular attention, but in times like these, his background truly came in handy.

Auslen filled his blinking eyes with an appropriate amount of meekness as he introduced himself. “Auslen Rinaldi Lawrence, Prince of the Western Empyrean Continent’s Bright Forest Kingdom. Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Senior Brother Samuel.”

Samuel fell silent as his repeated flickers of irrational anger lengthened to nonexistence. His emerald irises darkened before relaxing to emotionlessness. And it wasn’t until then that he calmly looked down, as if just now remembering his injured companion was within his grasp.

Auslen only gazed upon the man in silence, seeing the irrationality draining from his features. Only now could Auslen glimpse similarities between him and the only other True Core disciple he had witnessed walking freely within the Outer Sect, Xue Yimeng.

Quickly glancing at the servant’s uneasy expression, Samuel’s gaze returned to Auslen, voice steely and curt. “You both have my gratitude for watching over my Junior Sister until I could arrive. I’ll send her to properly give her thanks once she’s recovered.”

I’d rather you didn’t.

Without further ado, Samuel leaped back onto his still-levitating sword. Both his and the bloody woman’s bodies were shrouded by ethereal light before shooting off into the distance, leaves and tree branches raining to the ground in their wake.

…

Standing not too far a distance away was a frail, feeble old man. Shadows engulfed his bony body as his eyes glistened with growing interest, observing Auslen carefully, who was plodding back up the mountain path with his servant.

This was Elder Lu, the Head Elder of the Palace of Outer Sect Affairs, as well as the Peak Master of this Outer Sect mountain.

He had naturally sensed the first Inner Sect Disciple long before she arrived on the mountain, but Elder Lu couldn't be bothered to help, outside of casually deterring the few Demons hunting her down. Among his many responsibilities, the obligation of ensuring her life beyond that fell onto others.

However, after sensing the arrival of the second Inner Sect Disciple, as well as their meeting with a certain child, he felt he had no choice but to make an appearance.

Voice hoarse with age, he slowly spoke.

“Tell me, Patrol Manager Sun, how did information received by your patrol units so quickly leak back to the Sword Controlling Peak? How exactly could an Inner Sect Disciple, one who should have been in closed-door cultivation, arrive even earlier than the patrol disciples of my Outer Sect mountain?”

A voice answered from behind a neighboring tree. “Investigations are already underway, Elder Lu.”

Then, a maroon-robed figure appeared. His stature was average, but his frame was noticeably muscular. A thick and curly black beard accented his serious expression. He appeared to be within his thirties.

Old Lu slowly shook his head before averting his eyes from the children.

Boredom was interlaced in his withered tone. “Just bring me the patrol disciple who replied to the child's request. I’ll handle the rest. But whatever the reason may be, Patrol Manager Sun…”

Hands clasped to his front, Elder Lu slowly turned.

Patrol Manager Sun’s heart trembled. He bowed his head in haste, not daring to look back up to meet Elder Lu’s gaze.

Frisson quaking through the air, the uneven sounds of footsteps didn’t cease until Patrol Manager Sun saw the hems of Elder Lu’s black robe. An undeniable pressure weighed down on him heavily, painfully sinking him deeper into his bow.

At this moment, Elder Lu’s voice was no longer hoarse and feeble. Only cold and terrifyingly sharp, resonating with overwhelming oppression.

“I don’t like it when others play games on my mountain, with my Outer Sect Disciples. Do you understand, Sun?”

“Yes, Elder Lu!” Cold sweat arose at the back of Patrol Manager Sun’s neck, frightening him so much that he refrained from lifting his head back up until Elder Lu had long departed from the premises.

…

“Was I in the wrong?” Vincent asked nervously.

Freshly washed and changed, as he sat on the couch in the cave abode’s front hall, staring with uncertainty at Auslen, who was enjoying a cup of iced tea in a chair adjacent to him.

You weren’t necessarily wrong, under normal circumstances…

After swallowing the refreshing mouthful of tea that Vincent brewed, Auslen smiled and answered sincerely. “It depends.”

He sat his cup aside and asked, “Why were you so concerned with that injured woman?”

Vincent’s brows scrunched together, thinking far harder for an answer than Auslen intended.

“It’s merely a simple question, Vincent.” Auslen laughed softly. “Just say the first thing that comes to mind.”

“I just… wanted to lend a helping hand. She was hurt really badly,” Vincent answered while fiddling with his fingers.

“That’s admirable, Vincent.” Auslen smiled gently. “You’ve always been kindhearted, so I understand your actions. And if we were in a peaceful environment, what you tried to do today would even be commendable.”

Placing his hands in his lap, Auslen’s smile faded slightly and his voice grew more serious. “But despite how simple our routine has been in the Outer Sect during this past year, the Five Profound Elements Sect is not a safe place. It's full of powerful cultivators and is rife with internal conflict.

“Today, you failed to consider several important things from the very moment you made contact with that injured disciple.”

Vincent's heart dropped, but he forced himself to sit up straighter as Auslen continued.

Auslen held up one finger. “First, you lack both power and ability. If you wish to help someone, you should initially consider whether you are capable enough to do so without relying on others. If you can't help someone, don't immediately expect for others to do so in your place.

“Yes, I have healing-type Mystic Artifacts, but those were given to me to protect my life, Vincent, not for resuscitating pitiful strangers.”

Auslen continued his harsh words, ignoring the shame flushing through Vincent’s face as he raised his second finger.

“Secondly, you severely lacked information. Disregarding how you were unaware of her identity, more importantly, you had absolutely no idea who injured her or why they injured her.

“And If, for instance, a powerful cultivator severely injured this young woman due to some irreconcilable grudge, and it was revealed that you were the one who gave her a helping hand, you would have been implicated! Now tell me, what would happen if you were implicated in a conflict between cultivators?”

Vincent’s nervous fidgeting froze before he frowned. “I could die?”

“No, Vincent.” Auslen shook his head, raising another finger. “You’re my servant. If you’re in trouble, I will be the first and perhaps the only person to help you overcome it. Everything that you have and everything that you do leads back to your connection with me. So, if you ever were implicated in conflict between cultivators, in reality, I would be the one who was implicated. As my servant, that’s the third, and most important consideration you failed to keep in regard today.”

Pleased upon witnessing Vincent’s visible panic, Auslen waved his hand nonchalantly.

“Don’t worry about the incident back there. From her injuries, she was almost surely injured by a Demonic beast of some kind. The Outer Sect was probably the farthest she could manage in her escape. And even if a powerful cultivator was involved, we still have my family to ask for help.

“But you should remember that I did not come to Five Profound Elements Sect to become embroiled with disputes that could be easily avoided by turning our heads at times.

“And sometimes, as we saw back there, even the simple act of calling for help in this place could be a troublesome matter, which even I failed to properly take into account.

“Our priority is ourselves, first and foremost. Helping a normal human is one thing, but please keep these words in mind the next time you think of involving yourself in the matters of an unknown cultivator. Do you understand?”

Seeing Vincent nod with solemn understanding, Auslen smiled brightly, even chuckling a little in his heart.

Auslen picked back up his cup of tea. Just as he noticed that his ice had melted, watering down the tea, Vincent had already grabbed the cup from his hands, swapping it for a new cup he had just freshly prepared.

“I’m sorry, for today.” Vincent’s voice was serious, with a touch of timidity.

“It’s alright,” Auslen sighed happily as he smelled the fresh cup of tea.

A good cup of tea was always enough to wash away the day’s annoyances. In the grand scheme of this new life of his, today’s events were not enough to cause him stress.

As long as Vincent took his words to heart, then this little hiccup in their calm daily life would have been more than worth it.