Training Alone

The next day, after Ning Buhui handed the things over to Xie Yue, he asked no more about it.

On the day Xie Yue set out, Ning Buhui went to the west side gate to see him off.

Spirit Hall had sent an elder at the Soul Douluo level to lead the group, accompanied by two Agility Attack System Soul Saints. Xie Yue brought only dry rations and traveled light. Standing beside the carriage, he listened as the elder explained the route, nodding now and then. Yan kept saying, "Remember to bring back anything good you find," while Hu Liena stayed quiet and merely straightened Xie Yue's cloak collar.

"Have a safe trip," Hu Liena said.

"Mm." Xie Yue turned to Ning Buhui. "Those notes of yours were a huge help. I'll treat you to a meal when I get back."

"I'll be waiting," Ning Buhui said.

The carriage departed. Ning Buhui stood at the gate, watching it disappear at the end of the imperial road, and felt the tension in his heart ease a little. He had done everything he could to help Xie Yue. The distribution and habits of the Illusory Moon Shadow Wolf, a map of Crescent Moon Valley's terrain, the best time to hunt-all of it was written on those few pages. The rest was up to Xie Yue.

Over the next few days, Ning Buhui returned to his old routine. He trained his body and practiced combat during the day, entered the third level to cultivate his Soul Power at night, and occasionally browsed books in the library. As the days passed, he kept feeling that something was missing. Xie Yue had already set out, he himself would not be going on any missions anytime soon, he had no use for the Immortal Herbs in the spirit plant garden for the time being, and he had adjusted the cultivation speed on the third level to the maximum he could currently withstand. Yan and Hu Liena each had their own training. He suddenly realized that he had finished everything he had on hand.

The feeling was unfamiliar. When he had worked in archaeology in his previous life, he had never had "nothing to do." He could spend an entire day brushing a pottery shard clean or leaf through an old volume until late at night. But now, he truly had time on his hands.

That evening, he sat by the window of his quiet room, watching the first snow of the winter drift down outside. The flakes were tiny and sparse, melting into moisture before they reached the ground. He stared absently at the specks of snow, and a thought suddenly popped into his head.

Go out and have a look around.

Even he was startled for a moment. The idea had come naturally, yet it carried an impulse he had never felt before. In Bluestone Town, he had hoped to stay alive. In Nuoding City, he had hoped to enter Spirit Hall. After arriving at Spirit Hall, he had hoped to cultivate, learn, and grow stronger. He had been pushed along every step of the way, and every step had led clearly to the next. But now, he was only eight years old, already a level 34 Soul Elder, with Immortal Herbs growing in his spirit plant garden that others could not even dream of. He suddenly felt it was time to find himself something to do.

Training.

It was not as though he had never considered it. Bibi Dong had mentioned it before, saying she had originally intended to send him out alone a few times, but had dropped the idea after he formed a team with the three of them. But going on missions with a team and going out alone were two different things. With the team, he had Xie Yue to fall back on, Yan up front, and Hu Liena controlling the field. All he had to do was stand at the back and provide buffs. Alone, he would have no one to fall back on and no one to stand in front of him. Whatever happened, he could only rely on himself.

He knew he would have to gain that kind of experience sooner or later. He could not spend his whole life as a support Soul Master.

He pulled a map from the desk. South of Spirit City lay the border of the Star Luo Empire; to the north were the Heaven Dou Empire and Sunset Forest; to the east was the Star Dou Great Forest; and to the west lay the wasteland. His gaze traveled over the map twice before settling on an inconspicuous spot to the southeast.

The outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest.

From the books he had read in his previous life, that forest had the greatest variety and highest concentration of Soul Beasts. But precisely because there were so many Soul Beasts, Soul Masters from all over were active on its outskirts year-round, making it somewhat safer than a place like Sunset Forest. He did not need to venture deep inside. He would just make a circuit of the outskirts, hunt a few Thousand-Year Soul Beasts for practice, and test the effectiveness of his Wind Thunder Wings in actual combat while he was at it. Besides, the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest were not far from Holy Soul Village. He had seen through the intelligence network some time ago that Tang San had already entered Nuoding Academy. He had no intention of making contact, but he suddenly thought it would be good to see the place.

He folded the map and put it in a drawer. Early the next morning, he went to see Bibi Dong.

Bibi Dong was reading reports. When he entered, she did not look up, merely saying, "Sit."

Ning Buhui sat down in front of the desk. Only after she closed the last report did he speak. "Teacher, I'd like to go out on my own for a while."

Bibi Dong raised her eyes.

"Where?"

"South first, then east," Ning Buhui said. "I want to see what the world of Soul Masters outside Spirit Hall is like. There are some things I can't learn by staying in the hall and cultivating all the time."

Bibi Dong was silent for a moment. Her gaze rested on Ning Buhui's face, as if weighing the significance of those words coming from a seven- or eight-year-old child. After a moment, she asked, "Alone?"

"Alone."

"No." Bibi Dong's answer was decisive. "You're only eight. Outside Spirit City's boundaries, any Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast could take your life."

Ning Buhui was not surprised. He had expected Bibi Dong to object, and he had prepared what to say. "I'm not going out to risk my life. This trip is mainly to travel around and see things. If I run into danger, I'll run. I have the Wind Thunder Wings; they're more than enough to keep me alive. Besides, I really do need some experience training on my own. If I'm always following behind you and Xie Yue and the others, I'll never be anything more than a support who needs protection. Teacher, don't forget, I'm also a Control System Soul Master."

Bibi Dong looked at him, her gaze deepening. Rather than answer immediately, she stood and walked to the window. Outside, the night was dark, and the footsteps of patrolling deacons sounded in the distance.

"How long do you want to be gone?" she asked.

"Two months at least, half a year at most."

"Have you decided which places you're going to?"

"South first, to have a look around the Star Luo Empire," Ning Buhui said. "I want to see how Soul Masters out there cultivate and fight. I might join a small team and take on some mercenary missions. Then I'll head east and visit the Star Dou Great Forest. I won't go far in, just stay on the outskirts. I want to see what the largest Soul Beast forest is like."

Bibi Dong said nothing. She knew that all the places Ning Buhui had mentioned were within Spirit Hall's sphere of influence. Spirit Hall's forces were spread throughout both empires; if anything really happened, a signal would bring people from a nearby branch hall. He had chosen a relatively safe route.

"You're an eight-year-old child, a level 34 Soul Elder, with purple, purple, and black Soul Rings, and an External Soul Bone. Any one of those things would cause quite a stir on its own, let alone all of them together." Bibi Dong turned back to look at him. "How do you intend to hide your identity?"

Something stirred in Ning Buhui's heart. Talking to a clever person certainly saved trouble. He nodded. "I'd like to borrow something from you, Teacher: a Soul Tool that can change my height, build, appearance, and Soul Rings."

Bibi Dong asked no further questions. She returned behind the desk, took a flat brocade box from deep inside a drawer, and pushed it in front of him.

"Open it."

Ning Buhui opened the lid. Inside lay an extremely thin, silver-gray mask, its texture like soft leather and yet also like thin gauze. It had no outlines of facial features; it was smooth all over, with only a tiny black crystal set between the brows.

"The Thousand-Transformation Illusory Mask," Bibi Dong said. "An ancient Soul Tool. It can change the wearer's build, height, and appearance at will, as well as the color and number of their Soul Rings. Using it consumes Soul Power, and each change lasts about twelve hours. If you want to return to your original form before your Soul Power runs out, a thought is all it takes."

Ning Buhui picked up the mask. It was so light in his hand that he could hardly feel its weight.

"This is very rare," Bibi Dong said. "With it, you'll be another person out there. And there's this." As she spoke, Bibi Dong handed him a specially made signal flare. "If you run into trouble you can't handle yourself, use this flare. Members of nearby branch halls who see it will come to help as quickly as possible."

Ning Buhui put the mask and signal flare into his ring, stood up, and bowed solemnly. "Thank you, Teacher."

Bibi Dong did not answer, merely waving a hand for him to leave.

When he reached the door, a very quiet voice came from behind him. "Don't die out there."

"I won't," he said.

Ning Buhui walked back to his quiet room with a light step. He had expected to spend a good deal of effort persuading Bibi Dong, but she understood things more clearly than he had imagined. She knew he was not simply an eight-year-old who wanted to go out and play. She also knew she could not stop him. Rather than try, it was better to give him more things to keep him alive.

He did not cultivate that night. He took everything he needed, then sat down at the desk, picked up a brush, and wrote a letter. It was short. He said only that he was leaving, that he knew his teacher would worry and send an elder to protect him in secret, but that was not what he wanted, so he asked her to forgive him for leaving without saying goodbye.

When he finished, he left the letter on the desk in the most conspicuous spot, then pushed open the door and walked into the night.

He did not take the front gate. On the west side of Pope Hall was an extremely narrow passage that led straight to a concealed drainage channel outside the city. No one usually used it, and weeds grew thickly there, but Ning Buhui had noticed it before while patrolling with Zhou Qing. He passed through the passage and climbed over a low wall, arriving at the foot of Spirit City's outer wall. The night was dark. One group of patrolling deacons had just passed, and the next would not come for nearly half an hour. Keeping close to the base of the wall, he walked several hundred paces north and found a concealed maintenance door. It was unlocked and slightly ajar. He slipped through and closed it behind him.

Outside lay a barren slope. The winter night wind rushed down his collar, making him hunch his neck against the cold. He glanced back at Spirit City's white walls, which looked like a tranquil, lengthy embankment in the darkness. Flags snapped atop the walls, and scattered lights glimmered.

He looked away, took the Thousand-Transformation Illusory Mask from his ring, and placed it against his face. The moment it touched his skin, it adhered silently, as though melting. With a thought, he pictured a boy of fourteen or fifteen, thin, with gray hair and a somewhat wooden gaze. The mask turned slightly cool, and his body grew taller, his shoulders broadened, and even his features changed. He looked down at his hands. They were considerably larger than before, with thick knuckles. He released his Soul Power and sensed it: a level 28 Soul Grandmaster, with only two Soul Rings, both yellow.

He nodded in satisfaction.

The night wind blew from the north, carrying the scent of vegetation from the distant forest. Ning Buhui pulled his outer robe tight and set off south. The silhouette of Spirit City grew smaller and smaller behind him until the night swallowed it. He did not look back. There were some things he could not quite explain, and it was time to act on them.