14 Shin Sumis Botanical Garden (1/2)

Shin Sumi stayed a whole day and a night doing breathing exercises next to the pond.

She had put a spirit stone on her lap, hoping that being in contact with it during a long time would help her feel the Shinsoo.

Her breathing had been calm and steady for hours, with one long inspiration and a short expiration. From what she had learned by observing others and from what Xiao Yue told her, it was the best way, although slightly uncomfortable at first.

It was not a natural breathing technique and it felt strange in her chest but Shin Sumi was patient and determined.

The rumbling of her stomach forced her to stop her session of meditation. Stretching while she cooked her last remaining portions of spirit plants, Shin Sumi observed her body.

Although it still showed no results, meditation was good for her body and her mind. After twenty four hours of exercises, she wasn't tired in the least and her heart was like a mountain lake; calm and pure.

She ate her spirit food, enjoying the strange taste like nothing from the mortal world, then returned to her meditation spot.

Adjusting her breathing, she found her rhythm of one long, one short and closed her eyes. Soon her mind was slowly drifting off while her body tried to absorb more Shinsoo.

During meditation, Shin Sumi was completely motionless but that didn't mean her body stopped its normal activity.

After another day long session, she found her robes sticking to her skin. It wasn't particularly warm outside, especially with the Shinsoo formations of the courtyard altering the ambient heat and humidity, but Shin Sumi was still covered in sweat.

”Maybe that is part of cultivation. Does that mean I'm getting close to Shinsoo Gathering?” she wondered as she bathed and washed her robes.

It had been three days since she had come back to the sect's lower valley and Shin Sumi was already one high grade spirit stone down.

Her consumption of resources was incredibly high and was enough to make the wealth of any cultivator under the Core Development stage pale in comparison.

For Shin Sumi it was almost normal because she had only ever tried to cultivate with high grade materials.

She had donned her robes again and felt light and refreshed when she decided to leave the valleys of the sect for the training grounds of the mountain. She wasn't particularly keen on walking through the jungle again but she could easily endure it in order to get to the chasm.

On her way, she made a stop at the fields where she picked up more seeds. She carefully chose plants that had a bigger Yin Shinsoo affinity. It was clear that this kind was more suitable to grow at the bottom of the chasm.

The path to the western gate from there went either in the direction of the Quests Pavilion or crossed the North Cultivation Plaza.

She had no business in the Quests Pavilion and she hadn't been to the Cultivation Plaza in awhile.

The trees swayed due to a light breeze in this part of the lower valley. It was a forest area spanning a few hundred meters in all directions. A dozen of dilapidated courtyards could be seen from the path.

Just like Shin Sumi's they were reserved for green talent Honorary Disciples and it was clear that they hadn't had an occupant in years.

One of the courtyard's Shinsoo formation was broken and the gates were open. In just one glance Shin Sumi could see that it had lost all of its luster, now being nothing more than a fancy house.

There was no doubt that the Shinsoo quality there had deteriorated over time without the protective spells in place.

”I am glad that I was assigned a courtyard in the southern forest area. At least mine is hidden and in better conditions” she thought.

Along the way she had been feeding seeds to the nut regularly. Shin Sumi had had an idea and was very happy with her results. It turned out that she didn't need the nut to be out in the open to feed it ressources.

From her bag of holding to her wrist, Shin Sumi watched as seeds after seeds disappeared upon contact with the skin on her wrist. The leaf imprint flashed in an almost undetectable manner every time even though the nut was still inside.

She was about to leave the forest area when the sound of laughter entered her ears.

”It's coming from the abandoned courtyard. The open one!” said Shin Sumi while looking around her.

Intrigued by a possible presence there, Shin Sumi walked under the trees in silence. She drew closer and closer to the open gates as the voices progressively entered her range of perception.

”... and that's what I told him! Can you believe it Sister Liu?”

The voice was unfamiliar to Shin Sumi, although she had heard the name 'Sister Liu' before. She was wondering where when a second voice rang.

”Did Brother Zhao really asked you out? Wow Sister Fan, you are so lucky!”

”Hmpf. Do you really think someone like a Liquid Realm disciple like Brother Zhao would take interest in you? Sister Fan you are pathetic. He is clearly using you. Nobody would even look at you if you weren't with me all the time. Senior Brother Fen likes me so he must have pulled a few strings to get his followers closer to mine in order to reach me.”

After the last person had spoken, ending with a cold snort full of disdain, there was only silence. Clearly the other voices were too afraid to reply.

Shin Sumi recognized the last voice and the harsh words almost immediately.

”This is definitely Chu Erlong. I should go quickly before they spot me!” she muttered.

Shin Sumi turned and started walking away much faster than previously. She absolutely didn't want to confront the yellow robed Chu Erlong, besides she had been spying on them, which was not really appropriate behavior.

If Chu Erlong knew, she would be furious without a doubt.

Shin Sumi was almost back on the path when her toes got stuck in a root. Caught in her momentum, Shin Sumi stepped loudly on a dead branch to find her balance.

CRACK !

”Oh no, I hope they didn't hear me!”

She didn't turn back to verify and made her way to the path. Shin Sumi left the forest as fast as she could without looking suspicious.

At the gate of the dilapidated courtyard, a yellow figure appeared. Her followers hadn't heard anything but Chu Erlong was far into the Shinsoo Gathering stage and could reach the Liquid Realm anytime. Her senses were far more developed than that of her followers.

Her brows were furrowed and her gaze contained something unreadable. She turned to sit back on the stone tiles under the curious look of the three red robed girls in front of her, not sharing any of her thoughts.

***

Shin Sumi slowed down only when she reached the North Cultivation Plaza.

Her heart rate was a bit fast and she was biting the inside of her cheek as a punishment.

”In the Immortal world, being too curious can lead to dangerous situations. Sumi you're better than this, try to be more cautious!” she reminded herself.

She was right. In this society where power was everything, she couldn't afford to be careless, especially when she was at the bottom of the food chain.

Without delay, she made her way to the western gates.

When the gates were far behind her and she had reached the end of the marked path, Shin Sumi rubbed her wrist. The nut came out and directly rolled across her skin to settle between her breasts.

Shin Sumi was not bothered by it anymore, and even found it reassuring to have it close to her. The nut had an insane sensibility for any danger and Shin Sumi now trusted it fully.

With the nut's indications in the form of light or stronger bites, Shin Sumi avoided many troublesome areas.

Her mind compass followed the direction to the mysterious chasm, not bothering to explore around more.

”I was lucky to stay safe while exploring the chasm and even finding a treasure. Now is not the time to push my luck too far. I can always explore around later when I have reached Shinsoo Gathering!”

In a few hours' time, Shin Sumi was back above the dark cliffs of the ravine. It didn't take her much time to find the slope and she was soon climbing downwards.

About a quarter of the way down a crystalline metallic sound rang in her ears. The copper bell in her bag of holding had activated itself and dissipated the confusion due to the darkness and the strange Yin energy.

The bell had absorbed some of Shin Sumi's blood and now formed a bond with her in much the same way the little nut had back in the Foggy Maze.

Shin Sumi's knowledge was too shallow to fully understand but she had become the master of the two treasures.