บท 10: Onward
Both disciples woke up at first light. Moss had curled into a ball from his meditation posture. After sleeping on hard ground like that he expected not to be able to stand but he felt refreshed instead. All the muscle fatigue of yesterday was gone. He was in a good mood and brimming with energy.
-'Did you meditate well ?' The sister asked, yawning.
The commoner got up and stretched up. All of his joints pain was gone as well.
-'Not bad actually. I feel great !'
-'You really are something, old man. I do not know if I could do this at your age.'
-'If we get to climb these stairs then I am sure you will.'
While saying that, Moss thought about his dream. Had he really met with the scholar or was it just a weird fantasy ? That did have a much importance, at the exception of one point.
-'Sister. I know I may sound crazy but I dreamt about scholar Wei. It felt very real. We talked a bit. It was pretty random but at the end he warned me against wolfs here. He said that they were more dangerous than normal ones.'
-'Really ? Are you sure it was not just a simple dream ?'
-'I am pretty sure of it. It was the first time I felt like that.'
-'But did we not check for that yesterday ? We found no wolf traces.'
Lauren was sceptical.
-'As for that, wolfs can cross great distances in a short time. It just meant that we are not on their current territory. We did not hear them either so if they happen to exist they should be far away.'
-'I guess a small warning can do no harm. What could we do to ward off wolfs ?'
-'For normal ones, not running away and a bit of fire can do the trick. I have been in this situation myself, although in bigger groups. If the specie is really different and more dangerous then I do not know. We can sharpen our staffs to use it as lances. We can also make primitive bows.'
-'Fine by me. With that said it is time for me to meditate, go do what you want. But please do not wander to far off, or in suspicious places. Okay ?'
-'Yes sister. I will try to find some things to reap. See you later.'
Morning was the best time for the tree mind seals technique cultivation. They already had some food provisions so the commoner fixed his priority on finding tubers and spiritual herbs. If he could find some fine wood to make bows off it would be good as well. The descriptions of the different spiritual plants habitat were quite short but it was better than nothing.
Moss was experienced. He knew how easy it was to loose his way in the woods. He took good note of the position of the sun and memorized his every sequence of steps while leaving marks regularly.
His perseverance soon paid off. In a recumbent and dead hollow tree he found his first moon related spiritual plant. Then in different places each time he unearthed two that were for the sister and one for him again. He had a great time in this treasure hunt and got more excited after each find. The concentration of spiritual herbs was low however so he had to cover a large perimeter. Before he knew it it was time to go back. This sortie was a huge success. On his way, he had collected two sticks for bows and some tubers as well.
That earned him a lot of praises from the sister. When he unpacked his best spoils he even became her hero. She bowed to him, called him "genius picker" and humbly asked for his guidance. Moss's spiritual plants were best consumed during the night but she could eat hers right away. And so she did.
-'Sister, did you felt anything during your practice ? Or when eating those plants ?' He asked afterwards.
-'Yes. But it was not much and it is hard to describe. It was warm. The exercises are fairly complex but I think that I am starting to get the hang of it. And I feel refreshed. That I can tell.'
-'That sounds good to me. Sister, you are doing well !'
Nothing was holding them in this place any more. Time had come to move ahead. Now that their food supply was assured they just had to keep an eye open for a good find and make their advance.
It was Moss who once again spotted a spiritual plant as they trekked. Lauren's jaw nearly dropped in amazement.
-'Brother, you really are too good at this. Would it be me alone, I doubt I could have found even one.'
This last plant was ranked best in the dual state moon cultivation art. It had been hidden in the cavity of a divided trunk fairly exposed to moon light, but surrounded by clear rocks. The whole thing was small and covered up by the greenery. It had not been enough to escape the peasant awk eyes though.
After some time the vegetation grew clearer. They eventually stumbled upon another water stream, bigger than the last. It proved to be a good spot for a pause. They ate, then washed themself and their clothes. When doing so, they had no choice but to trust each other not to peek. Then they had the leisure to talk a bit.
-'Brother, tell me about yourself. I do not know much about you, truth be told.'
-'Well I have kids. And my kids have kids.'
-'You really are a grandpa !'
-'Yes. Raising kids is not simple you know. I have not seen the whole bunch for some time but they all have become accomplished people. I think they are my greater achievement.'
And like that he told her their name, their nature and some fun things that had happened during their childhood.
-'First thing I will do when we get up this stairs will be to send them a letter.'
The more he talked, the more the princess had the conviction that he really was the person he claimed to be. When he asked her about herself, she responded that a chaotic personal life was to be expected for a royalty and stopped there. Moss did not push farther. He understood that accurate informations on a princess personal life could bring harm in the wrong hands.
After lunch they moved on without delay. Trees were getting higher but the land also got more practicable. At some point they crossed path with a large but also very ancient road. So old that the pavement had almost completely been destroyed by vegetation. Some trees had even grown upon it but they were not nearly as tall as their neighbours. They stopped to take a look. The pavement had been a fine craft in its days, both agreed. The road direction matched with theirs so they followed it. This significantly hasted their progress towards the stairs but they did not find anything remarkable on their way. The road just extended itself to no end.
At some point they had to stop for the night. The disciples elected the remains of a building on the side of the road to settle down. Only the foundation of the walls had been left in a bunch of squares on the ground, but it was enough to make them feel like they were taking a step back to civilisation. They trained while light remained.
When the sky eventually grew completely dark, Moss consumed every spiritual plants at his disposal. The effect manifested themself shortly. A cold fluid progressively invaded his whole vascular system. His vision distorted a bit and he started to smell weird fragrance. That did not disturb him form his meditation however. The best effect was the absence of fatigue. On the opposite, at some point he became able to taste the moonlight and feel its power pouring inside him.
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