The Magistrate: Chapter 63

Chapter 63

Core Realm Tribulation

Despite Tobias increasing his divinity and the size of his energy meridians, he still couldn’t hold a candle to Xu Ling when it came to cultivating. She wasn’t one or two steps ahead of him, but dozens. And Peace Master So’s valley was the perfect place for any cultivator to cultivate. There was every type of elemental chi spirit garden you could imagine within his Forgotten Valley. Each one was united by his dao of peace, but that influence didn’t negatively affect their ability to cultivate safely.

Surrounded by numerous extinct spirit herbs and spirit beasts that kept breaking through realms, Tobias could do more than ever before, but so could Xu Ling. Watching how quickly she progressed showed Tobias how great the gulf between their divinity truly was. There was no envy as he watched her race ahead, only a deep curiosity about the limitations of divinity and talent.

In the middle of Summer, Tobias stood beside Peace Master So’s boulder, watching Xu Ling confront her core realm tribulation in the skies above the valley. The constant refinement of spiritual energy had made a noticeable difference in how many droplets she could hold in her lower, middle, and upper dantian. Initially, it had been ten, which was considered on the high side even for prodigies, but over the months it had expanded to eleven and then twelve, something usually only reserved for nascent soul realm cultivators. The speed at which she created and compressed spiritual energy into droplets had also increased, opening another field of study for him.

Tobias had seen similar changes as he refined spiritual energy droplets, but not to the same degree. His maximum number had started at four and was currently five. No matter what he did, the strength of his dao would never be as strong as hers, so the final improvements to his body would be significantly less. Considering how much trouble Xu Ling was having with the tribulation, Tobias found this concerning.

Peace Master So seemed to sense his unease. “Your first disciple is fine, Senior. Her wounds are superficial, and her will unwavering. You’ve taught her well.”

“She’s struggling more than your first disciple did with his nascent soul realm ascension.”

“When the dao of peace is properly applied, it makes ascension easier, causing the heavens to choose peace over destruction.”

Tobias knew that.

“I still don’t like how injured she is.”

“That’s because you have unrealistically high standards, Senior.”

“She’s a prodigy with a deeper understanding of cultivation than any before her.”

“Your disciple is experiencing the smoothest tribulation I’ve ever witnessed outside of my disciples, and that is without an outside dao to support her.”

Tobias turned to Peace Master So shocked. “Are you certain?”

He nodded.

“Have you witnessed a lot?”

Peace Master So gave him a bored eye roll. “Hundreds. They were a public spectacle before the Great Plague. I was very good at betting on who would succeed. It's how I started my garden.”

“Would you bet on her?”

Peace Master So laughed. “With everything I have. You can stop fretting, Senior.”

“My apologies, but this is my first time witnessing a cultivator face a core realm tribulation. I may have overestimated how safe my first disciple would be.”

Tobias knew becoming a core realm cultivator required you to be injured, but the number of burns he could see across Xu Ling’s body scared him. She had been his closest friend for over a decade, and watching her sustain so many injuries was not easy.

Peace Master So looked at him and frowned. “Did you think my first disciple’s nascent soul realm tribulation was normal, Senior?”

“I assumed it was a little less dangerous than a typical tribulation, but not by much.”

Tobias had watched the First Disciple Chi’s body literally explode, only to reform out of chi. This didn’t make him think tribulations were safe, but it did make him think they weren’t as dangerous as he had been led to believe.

Peace Master So threw his head back and laughed.

“The written accounts I’ve read of core realm ascension all lacked detail,” Tobias admitted.

“If trash manuals are all you have to go by, I’m not surprised you don’t understand what you’re seeing. None of those fools would ever admit how close they came to death.”

“Would you enlighten me?”

Peace Master So stopped laughing and chewed his bottom lip. “Will you start studying my collection?”

Tobias would have said no only a few days ago. He’d been putting it off because further study was unnecessary for him and his first disciple to reach the core realm. However, seeing how severely injured Xu Ling had already become from her tribulation, Tobias realised this was a mistake. He needed to understand the core realm and tribulations better before he attempted to form his core. His ascension would not go half as smoothly as Xu Ling’s.

“I will.” Tobias paused and then added, “If what you share is helpful.”

Peace Master So was a truly terrible teacher when it came to explaining cultivation. However, Tobias had learned that he was incredibly patient. He was willing to perform techniques, spells, or cultivation methods as many times as you needed him to, just so you could understand what he was trying to teach.

Peace Master So gave a brief scowl at the ultimatum. “Senior should view forming a core as the first step to immortality. Everything that comes before this is something that cultivators are capable of naturally. Everything that comes after is something they can only achieve by walking the path the heavens have laid out.”

Tobias was surprised by the clarity of his answer, but it was still vague. “I’m not sure I follow.”

“When we are born, our lower, middle, and upper dantian are incapable of compressing spiritual energy beyond a liquid state. Nothing we do can change this fact. Your first disciple is currently attempting to do something which is physically and spiritually impossible.”

“Why is it impossible?”

“The dao of all living beings is constantly changing. Sometimes there are large changes, sometimes there are small changes, but there are always changes. The spiritual energy droplets we gather in the foundation realm change with us. They can do this because they exist in a state which is capable of change. However, a core is solid. Unmoving. Unyielding. It does not change or allow the dao within it to change. Its existence goes against the nature of our existence, so compressing spiritual energy droplets into a core is impossible without the heavens intervening.”

Much of what he’d just said went against what Tobias knew, but Tobias had already learned that he could not trust his own understanding. There were too many gaps and misconceptions in the manuals he’d read. “You make it sound like the heavens are assisting us.”

Peace Master So nodded. “I believe they are. Everyone will disagree with me, though.”

Tobias considered the other sage’s statement. “Why do you think everyone’s wrong?”

Peace Master So turned his gaze to the tribulation above. “Because it took two attempts for me to reach the core realm.”

As far as Tobias knew, a failed attempt to form a core was often fatal. When it wasn’t, the cultivator rarely progressed further. They certainly didn’t progress to the next realm. “How did you survive?”

“Easily. I experienced dao enlightenment while in the initiate realm, so by the time I reached the foundation realm, my control over the dao of peace was strong enough to shield me from my core realm tribulation. The tribulation lightning never touched me, but I kept my defences tight, not letting any of the tribulation’s chi near me. The tribulation lasted for half a day, and when it was over, the spiritual droplets that I’d gathered dissipated. I wasn’t injured. I didn’t experience a chi deviation. I stood through a tribulation while trying to form my core and failed without any adverse effects. However, I did notice that the chi from my tribulation lightning was different to any chi I’d sensed before. So, once I’d gathered enough spiritual energy droplets, I did it again. However, this time I cycled the chi from my tribulation. My core formed effortlessly.”

 Tobias didn’t believe that last part for a second. Peace Master So tended to exaggerate. However, Tobias did believe that his core formed properly. If it had been effortless, Peace Master So would have formed a golden core. The perfect core spoken of in legends.

“So, because of this, you believe the heavens are trying to help us, not hinder.”

Peace Master So nodded.

“Most people die from their help.”

“Most people fail the magistrate’s exam the first time, but that doesn’t make it the fault of those who test them.”

Tobias considered his statement and couldn’t argue with his logic. “In your opinion, what’s happening to Xu Ling right now?”

“In my opinion, tribulation lightning contains chi influenced by two daos. There is the dao of heavenly destruction that must be blocked and the dao of heavenly transformation that cannot be, which is why injuries must be sustained, unless you practice my cultivation method. Walking the line between blocking the first and allowing the second is a test of will, focus, and power. The dao of heavenly transformation changes the lower dantian from something that cannot compress spiritual energy into a physical form into something that can, allowing for the formation of a core. It would be accurate to say your first disciple is undergoing a violent heavenly transformation.”

Tobias wanted to see if he missed something. “What happens if you block too much of the heavenly transformational dao?”

“Then your lower dantian only experiences a partial transformation, like you have experienced in the past. The chi deviation this causes is usually fatal. In very rare cases, the cultivator can refine more spiritual energy droplets and make a second attempt. This second tribulation often goes more smoothly, but the injuries sustained by then means they cannot progress further and form a second layer.”

Tobias cupped his hands behind his back. “Will you allow my first disciple to stay here and continue cultivating when this is over?”

Peace Master So shook his head. “My valley is a nascent soul realm. A foundation realm cultivator cannot influence its dao alignment. A core realm cultivator can. However, she may return once I’ve ascended to the sage realm in Autumn. Her cultivation will no longer influence my realm after it ascends with me and becomes a hidden realm.”

Tobias had read a few firsthand accounts of hidden realms. They were locations with such a strong cultivation foundation that reality warped, creating an environment capable of supporting a level of chi saturation that could not exist anywhere else.

Hidden realms were out of touch with the world around them and impossible for anyone below the nascent soul realm to sense. You couldn’t enter one without their assistance either. Tobias only knew the location of one hidden realm, and that was in the Sword Garden, hidden in Imperial Gardens in the Capitol. Its presence was what allowed the Han Clan to maintain their grip on power and raise so many sage realm cultivators.

Tobias respected Peace Master So's confidence in being able to create a hidden realm and didn’t think it was unreasonable. Everything he’d seen since entering the Forgotten Valley spoke of someone who understood how to grow and nourish the cultivation world. Peace Master So did not grow spirit herbs or raise spirit beasts just to fuel his cultivation, but to improve his valley.

Peace Master So didn’t care about wealth or power, so any spirit herb which did not help his valley grow was removed with brutal efficiency. Tobias had seen him treat nascent soul realm spirit herbs like weeds, uprooting them merely because they had become problematic. However, only by creating a place of abundance was it possible to be so ruthlessly efficient. It was proof, in Tobias’s mind, that The Three Kingdoms had gone about restoring the cultivator world the wrong way.      

Tobias pushed those thoughts out of his head. “How will Xu Ling return to Cloud City?”

“Patriarch Lee will summon her to his side. She can return from there. I can bring her back the same way.”

Tobias decided to change the subject to a question that had been bothering him. “Is your first disciple's progress typical of those in the nascent soul realm?”

First Disciple Chi had already reached the foundation realm and hadn’t shown any sign of slowing. Tobias expected that he would form his core in less than a month. As he was already in the nascent soul realm, there would be no tribulation, no assistance from the heavens. Tobias was very curious about what that would look like.

Peace Master So smirked. “No. But then, many who reach this realm do not have the support of such a wise and benevolent master. My first disciple has every resource he needs, and while he may not have had the benefit of your exercises, I have made a habit of watching over my disciples and making sure they practice my cultivation method flawlessly.”

 “So nascent soul realm cultivators do not find it easier to open and cleanse meridians or gather spiritual energy?”

“It depends on the cultivator. The materials from pills can accumulate in your core. These contaminants can make meridians much harder to open and cleanse the second time. The pills my disciple consumed to reach the nascent soul realm accounted for this. His meridians were more difficult to open and cleanse than they were in the past, but he is significantly more experienced.”

“That makes his progress even more fascinating.”

Peace Master So sighed and chewed his bottom lip. “The more I meditate on your teachings about the limitations of prodigies, the more I believe you’re right, Senior. Those like myself do not struggle. Cultivation comes effortlessly to us. However, effortlessly is not the same as naturally. Disciple Chi is one whom I believe cultivation comes to naturally. He is less than a century old, and yet he is a nascent soul realm cultivator. Had I not witnessed his progress with my own eyes, I would find myself doubting his achievements. Had I not witnessed his current progress, I would not believe it.”

“Would you allow me to speak with him if he is willing? I believe he will be able to give insights into how effective practice is.”

“I will mention it to him the next time he wishes to speak with me. He can seek you out at his leisure, but I would not expect that to be soon. He is burning with the enthusiasm of one who sees their cultivation grow daily.”

***

Tobias handed Xu Ling a cup of spirit water as she soaked in the herbal bath. She was covered in burns and the tattered shreds of her dress. Under any other circumstance, this would be considered scandalous, but caring for a disciple after their tribulation was a master’s responsibility. It would also be his last. When she left the bath, they would go to a glade and perform the final ceremony, releasing her from her obligations and the bet they had made all those years ago.

Xu Ling drained the cup and handed it back. Some of the skin on her arm peels off with the movement. She’d redirected the tribulation lightning away from her vital organs, meridians, dantian, and face, so there was no permanent damage. The network of burns might have looked crippling, but she had walked to the bath unaided, so Tobias wasn’t concerned. Core realm cultivators could shrug off injuries that would kill foundation realm cultivators.

Xu Ling reached for the burn on her arm and wiped away the damaged skin, exposing a pink layer beneath, leaving the melted skin to float in the bathwater. “Did Peace Master So allow me to stay?”

Tobias shook his head. “I spoke to him about it, but he said no. As a core realm cultivator, your dao is strong enough to influence his realm, so he cannot allow you to cultivate here. However, after he has ascended to the sage realm, you are welcome to return. He believes his tribulation will cause his valley to finish its transformation into a hidden realm, and your presence will no longer cause issues. How are you feeling?”

Xu Ling smiled. “I’ve never felt worse, but I can’t wait to see the look on my father’s face when he sees I’ve reached the core realm.”

Tobias returned the smile. “What’s it like?”

“I can see, hear, and smell everything within ten paces of me with my aura. There is no struggle or disorientation. It’s like it’s always been this way. However, I can only hear dao whispers when I look at something with my eyes. I don’t need to focus anymore. You don’t have those whispers, though.”

“I don’t?”

“No. When I look at you, I just see you and hear nothing. You are the same as you always have been. You are you, and you are moving through a world that is less than you. It’s like you’re real and the world is an illusion.”

“Does Peace Master So make you hear whispers?”

“Yes, but what I hear is beyond my comprehension. Do you know why he didn’t warn us about this?”

“He’s never met a cultivator who walked their dao path. Everything he knows about it comes from ancient accounts he was taught in his youth. Even before the Great Plague, no one chose to do this.”

“I can understand why. The amount of spiritual energy I’ll need to form the second layer of my core will take months of cultivation here. Years anywhere else.”

“Then there is the matter of creating the spiritual pills we’ll need to strengthen our dao foundation further.”

Xu Ling groaned.

Tobias chuckled as he poured her another cup of spirit water and handed it over. Xu Ling drank and handed it back. There was little else Tobias could do besides keep her hydrated and monitor her condition. It was better to leave her to recover on her own than use pills with her transformation stabilising. However, her condition could change and make them necessary, so he continued to watch over her.

“What do you plan to do when you go back?” Tobias asked.

Xu Ling yawned. “I’m going to continue studying the gatherers’ techniques. I was making a lot of progress in my research before Peace Master So brought me here, and I believe your methods for disassembling cultivation methods and techniques do apply. There is so much overlap that I don’t see much difference between the two. The problem is no one has ever approached it the way you do.”

Tobias smiled. “Any thoughts on what you will call your manual?”

“The Gathering Prodigy and the cover will be green, otherwise cultivators may not know it’s about plants.”

Tobias chuckled.

“Master, may I make a request?”

Tobias nodded. “I do believe it’s appropriate for me to give you a gift under these circumstances, so make your request.”

“Don’t release me for a year and a day.”

Tobias frowned. “Why not?”

“I believe it’s in your best interest not to. Peace Master So informed me that divine dao must be earned. When Peace Master So gave me the divine beauty pill to assist my cultivation, you bore the weight of heaven’s attention for his actions. This weight would be lifted when I earn back the cost of that divine dao in service of you. I have done nothing to earn what you have given me, and if you release me from the debt, it can never be repaid. The heavens will show you their wrath when you attempt to form your core.”

Tobias didn’t disagree with her reasoning and hadn’t considered the ramifications of his actions that day or releasing her now that she had fulfilled the terms of their bet. “Why a year and a day?”

“That’s more than enough time for me to create that manual on behalf of your academy.”

“That’s not how it works. You repay the debt not by doing something you want, but by doing something I need.”

“You said you need me to study gatherers.”

“I do. It will be very helpful. However, in this moment, I actually have a far more pressing need from my first disciple.”

Xu Ling raised an eyebrow. “Some might consider those words as improper, considering my state of undress.”

Tobias snorted. “You are covered in burns from the shoulders down. This is not a romantic situation.”

“Yes, but until moments ago, you thought that you were free to finally pursue one of The Three Kingdoms fairies.”

Tobias rolled his eyes. “What I need right now is someone to teach my academy’s disciples. They’ve long since finished their closed-door cultivation and are likely approaching the end of what they can learn on their own by reading my work and studying my library. Someone needs to guide them through the next step.”

“I hate teaching.”

“You’ve never taught before.”

“If it's anything like trying to explain things to my father, I know I’m going to hate it.”

“It’s nothing like that. Trying to teach your parents is a nightmare.”

Xu Ling sighed. “Fine. I’ll try. But only until I can come back.”

“Thank you.”

“And I’m only remaining your first disciple for a year and a day.”

“Your time cultivating here doesn’t count.”

“Says who?”

“The heavens.”

***

When not making pills for Tobias or Xu Ling, Peace Master So had been tending to his valley. Trying to control the transformation the space had undergone due to multiple nascent realm tribulations. Many spirit herbs were relocated according to a pattern and layout only he understood, but some had to be culled. There were either too many or their cultivation was so immense that there was no way to reestablish balance.

Tobias had watched dozens of spirit beasts mourn after Peace Master So had plucked their favourite spirit herbs from where they had sat for centuries. On many occasions, he replaced them with a younger version of the same spirit herb, which settled the docile spirit beasts, but sometimes this did not.

The results from his efforts were now sitting in Xu Ling’s pack. The pills were far too powerful to place in her storage ring, forcing her to carry them around. She looked like she was ready to go on an adventure, but was afraid of leaving something behind.

The pills were a bribe.

Not just to the Great Clans and sects, but to numerous old monsters who had been in hiding for centuries. Peace Master So was buying security for his ascension. The moment he began to ascend, the khans would attempt to intervene. Peace Master So needed cultivators to stop them, and he wasn’t willing to wait for his first disciple to assist.

His enlightenment tribulation wouldn’t have gone unnoticed, and neither would his disciple’s ascension. Cultivators moved slowly, but they did move, and the khans would eventually come to investigate. In Peace Master So’s opinion, his home was now filled with too many riches for them to walk away. And with the 2nd Emperor dead, they could be as foolish as they liked.

 Xu Ling adjusted her pack.

Peace Master So adjusted his position on his boulder. “What do you do the moment you arrive?”

“Give my pack to Patriarch Lee,” Xu Ling replied.

“What do you do if those old monsters tell you not to?”

“Ignore them. Patriarch Lee will kill them and their family to the third generation for me.”

“What do you say if one of those old monsters asks you to visit their realm?”

“Inform them politely that my master is your senior and that I am managing his affairs while he assists you, so I could not possibly visit at this time.”

“What do you do if they ask you why you lack a dao aura?”

“Inform them that my master and I walk the true cultivation path. Those who understand why I do not have an aura will not ask the question. Those who do will find my answer too intimidating to ask another question. Those who do understand will not explain for several decades because they will find the situation too amusing.”

“What do you do after you have given Patriarch Lee the pack and introduced yourself?”

“I empty the contents of my storage ring and give Patriarch Lee the additional weaker pills before returning everything to the ring. And I also hand over the Three Pigeon treasure, so they do not come after me for it. Patriarch Lee will return it before the end of Summer.”

“Excellent.”

“That was patronising,” Tobias said.

Peace Master So glared at him. “The pills your first disciple is carrying are more valuable than the combined wealth of the second-tier noble clans from your homeland, Senior. Forgive me if I’m a little concerned.”

“It is acceptable for you to be concerned. It is not acceptable for you to treat her like a child.”

“She’s not even thirty.”

“She’s a core realm cultivator.”

“A core realm child.”

“Will you both stop worrying about me?” Xu Ling snapped. “My father is well-connected with all the Great Clans. He is also their only reliable source of information from beyond The Three Kingdoms. The Great Clans will not allow me to come to harm or allow this distribution of pills to be compromised. They want Peace Master So to ascend to the sage realm as much as he does.”

Peace Master So was one of the few cultivators who had no interest in ruling the world. His dao also prevented him from killing or seriously harming others, so the chance of him chasing down old enemies to end their lives was non-existent. He might annoy them mercilessly, but that was the limit of what he could do.

Peace Master So leaned over. “Your first disciple is yelling at me, Senior.”

“I believe she is yelling at us.”

“Is that more appropriate?”

“I believe our bickering allowed it to be appropriate.”

“Do you think she will yell at us again if we keep doing this?”

“I’m certain she will. She does not look pleased.”

The two of them smiled at Xu Ling, clearly seeing that she wanted to hit them or throw something, but was unable to do so because of Peace Master So’s dao.

Xu Ling pulled the cap off her Three Pigeon treasure and growled into it, flooding the treasure with chi. “Patriarch Lee, I’m ready.”

She vanished before their eyes.