The Magistrate: Chapter 44 (Patreon)

This is the start of Act II. I hope you enjoy.

Chapter 44

New Paths

Chapter 44

New Paths

Proving his value to the Great Clans and sects allowed Tobias to relax, even though it was still not safe to leave Cloud City. The exhausting pressure he'd placed himself under to gain protection for his family dissolved, freeing him of his stress. Four winters came and went peacefully. He spent time with his little sister, helping her to grow into a refined young woman. He studied cultivation and shared his insights with Xu Ling, guiding her path. And to his surprise, he began to see a future with her.

Their time together and the sharing of everything he knew had turned the relaxed young woman into someone he could walk beside in life as an equal. He hadn't quite realised how important that was to him until it appeared. He no longer felt like an older man teaching a child, but someone who could have a conversation on equal footing.

His years of study had allowed him to grow his understanding of cultivation to the peak of the foundation realm with all sorts of supporting documents, exercises, methods, techniques, and structural insights. Xu Ling had taken everything he'd learned and now understood it as well as he did. She lacked his deeper understanding, which allowed him to unravel the mysteries of cultivation, but she could dissect cultivation methods and techniques just as easily as he could.

He couldn't say he was in love with her, but her respected her, enjoyed his time with her, and that was the best you could hope for in this world. Perhaps love would come in time, when the requirements of society no longer caused them to retain an unromantic distance from one another.

Tobias hoped so, but was in no rush to find out if it was true.

Xu Feng felt differently about the matter. The man had noticed the change in Tobias the day he'd recognised his change in feelings and taken steps to arrange other accommodation for him and his daughter, moving them into the unfinished House of Sound in the entertainment district.

A year later, Tobias and Lingling had moved to his new compound in the cultivator district. The Cloud Steps, which had once been an ordeal, were now a brisk morning and evening walk as he travelled to the sect to perform his duties. A minor inconvenience that he had accepted to put the sect at ease around his growing cultivation and sensitivity to chi.

In early Spring, on a cool morning, the heads of the five Great Clans and four sects arrived at Tobias's compound in the cultivator district of Cloud City, with their entourages of core realm elders. Tobias's reception hall was larger than his entire residence in Cloud Sect, but it barely fit the crowds that had travelled to see him. The effectiveness of his first two manuals and his Finch Equations were now recognised throughout The Three Kingdoms and had been universally adopted by every major institution.

Instead of spending days explaining the value of his manuals, Tobias decided to use the opportunity to allow Lingling to build a favourable reputation. At just eighteen years old, his sister had studied his manuals diligently, practised the cultivation exercises until they were mastered. She was more educated than any cultivator her age had ever been, and Tobias wanted everyone to know that.

Tobias swelled with pride as she sat before the heads of the Great Clans and leaders of the sects, answering their questions flawlessly. The depth of her knowledge had left these Old Monsters all astounded more than an hour ago, and they were now searching for where her knowledge would end.

They had a long way to go.

Lingling had been cultivating for less than a year and had already completely opened and cleansed her body meridians. Her progress was something that was thought to have only been possible for a prodigy, and yet she was a living proof that the way they taught cultivation was fundamentally flawed. Her progress had also drastically improved her features, leaving her with a cultivator's beauty and grace.

Over the past year, Tobias had reached the peak of the initiate realm through the divine pills supplied by the Great Clans but had been unable to enter the foundation realm due to an improperly cleansed third energy meridian preventing him from breaking through. Storing his divine energy meridian opening and cleansing pills in the Cloud Sect's vault for years had caused them to lose a little of their potency, preventing him from progressing as he should.

But having access to his energy meridians had drastically increased the chi density in his body, allowing him to notice several micro reactions of surprise as the clan heads and sect leaders learned facts about cultivation that they themselves did not know. When Lingling had explained the fundamental difference between techniques formed internally and externally, those energy meridians weren't needed. Everyone had been openly shocked by her explanations, turning to him for answers. Tobias had redirected their questions to his sister, and she had answered flawlessly.

Tobias wasn't sure if they would adopt calling external techniques spells, but he was certain that they all now viewed them as independent practices.

As Lingling finished answering the leader of Mist Sect's question, the head of the Chow family tapped her fan on her right knee, indicating she wished to speak. "State the nature of enlightenment?"

Lingling paused to consider the question. "The nature of enlightenment can best be described as a fusion of Heaven and Earth, bringing the two closer together. Every cultivator has an ideal path from which they can obtain immortality. This is recognised as their Heavenly Path. However, every cultivator must walk their Earthly Path to obtain immortality. Enlightenment, therefore, occurs when a cultivator takes actions along their Earthly Path which deeply align with their Heavenly Path. The depth of this enlightenment is therefore proportional to their willingness to commit to their Heavenly Path."

"You are suggesting that the cultivator is to blame for the depth of their enlightenment.

Lingling had to pause again. This time, she took nearly three minutes to reply, and Tobias noticed she seemed troubled. "No. The weight of obligations is most likely to blame for the depth of their enlightenment. A warrior who protects their family or lord may experience enlightenment, revealing that their Heavenly Path is that of a scholar. The warrior will instinctively reject this path, causing the depth of their enlightenment to be reduced to one that only offers insights instead of raising their cultivation divinity."

Tobias sat stunned.

Lingling's explanation was slightly different from the one he had taught her, but it offered insights his explanation lacked, causing him to view enlightenment differently. Tobias had viewed the depth of one's enlightenment as a personal objection to changing to a new path. Lingling's explanation indicated that objections were more often grounded in real-world obligations. That perhaps the cultivator knew their calling or Heavenly Path, but could not pursue it because of the realities of life.

His understanding of the matter drastically expanded, revealing connections he'd been missing for years. It was a pivotal moment of understanding as everything realigned. Tobias raised his fan to stall further questions, as he experienced the greatest moment of clarity he'd ever felt. Lingling's troubled expression and the feeling she gave off made him realise that not only was she on the edge of enlightenment, but he was standing in her way.

Tobias rose to his feet, bowed to his guests, then sat facing her with his back to them, which was an insultingly powerful breach of etiquette. Tobias didn't care. Lingling looked at him, confused and concerned by his actions, as he reached out and took her hands in his, feeling the warmth of her fingers.

Tobias smiled at his little sister, opening his heart before others. "Lingling, you have done everything I asked of you. You have become a peerless cultivator and scholar. You have fulfilled every familial obligation placed upon you, and many you have perceived to be placed upon you, and that is my fault for not clarifying. I know you love to cook more than anyone I have ever met. It was never my intent to stand in your way, or to allow anyone else to stand in your way, if this is the dao path you wish to walk. You have my full support wherever your path may take you."

A smile spread across Lingling's cheeks before a blinding light engulfed her body. The intensity of the light was far greater than the light Disciple Xi experienced, or any other Tobias had witnessed. The surrounding chi began slowly and then more quickly to rush towards her, empowering her enlightenment and changing her for the better.

As he gently lowered her hands to her lap, the crowd silently rose to their feet and exited the reception hall. The heads of the Great Clans and leaders of the sects took up positions outside the doors, killing any sound that might disturb his sister's enlightenment. Tobias stopped outside the door, standing vigil for his sister with a content smile on his face.

One by one, he bowed to the heads of the Great Clans and sect leaders who stood in deep contemplation, analysing what they had witnessed. Core realm cultivators who had vanished by the time Tobias arrived outside reappeared, leading an army of Nang family servants towards the gate.

Enlightenment was sacred to cultivators, and nothing would be allowed to disturb his sister's.

Three hours later, Tobias led Lingling to her room, gave instructions to Uncle Nang's clan regarding her care, and returned to his reception hall to finish the negotiations.

Tobias gracefully sat, demanding respect with every careful motion. The crowd waited in utter silence. His sister's enlightenment was something they could not refute. They had all seen him guide her to enlightenment before them and felt that enlightenment drastically increase her divinity. She was no longer a barely gifted cultivator, but a genius worthy of the name.

One potentially destined for immortality.

Tobias tapped his fan against his right knee. "I believe further demonstrations of the value of my knowledge are no longer necessary, but if any wish to object, I will gladly continue on my sister's behalf."

None of the nine powerful people seated in the middle of the hall gave any indication that further proof was required.

Tobias motioned to his servants.

Over the past four years, he'd written an additional fourteen manuals, explaining various aspects of the cultivation world in a simple, clear manner. Very few of his insights went beyond the foundation realm, as the manuals he had access to didn't help you understand the concept of dao and its interaction with cultivation. Without that understanding, he could not progress.

His servants placed a small table before each clan head and sect leader, and then the collection on top. The cost of gaining access to his manuals had been delivered to everyone months ago. There would be no last-minute changes to the terms or attempts to haggle.

Tobias wanted official protection for his family, which was verbally expressed to the 2nd Emperor, divine cultivation pills to reach the core realm, along with vast quantities of spirit herbs and gatherers to open his own gardens in Cloud City to supply his family with pills to reach the foundation realm. The sects would also need to provide copies of the manuals they held, which were available to the public for a price. There were also monetary and material costs, but those were barely worth mentioning when dealing with cultivators.

This was only for restricted access to his insights.

The restrictions were the same as the ones placed on his personal library. For unrestricted access, they would have to remove the restrictions placed on his library. Tobias had made it clear that if they fully released these restrictions, he would begin selling the manuals he believed were valuable. They would also be allowed to sell his manuals in return.

Tobias had gathered them here to prove that the cost they were being asked to pay was worth his insights, and he felt confident Lingling had done so.

As the servants left, Tobias tapped his right knee with his fan to gather the crowd's attention. "Do you accept my terms?"

One by one, each clan head and sect leader tapped their thigh with their fan and agreed to his terms, before verbally releasing the restrictions on his library, allowing him to share the manuals with his family, key servants, and close friends and allies. This would allow them to copy the manuals and share them with their own families and sects. It also meant he could move his library out of the sect and into his compound.

It was less than he'd hoped for, but Tobias would have been shocked if they had agreed to make the library public. This didn't change much. Tobias could still build a thriving cultivation manual business. He would just need to keep developing his own methods and techniques.

Tobias tapped his fan to his knee as the last sect leader accepted his offer. "The manuals before you now belong to your clans and sects. If you would honour me by indulging in the knowledge before you and critiquing my work, it would be greatly appreciated. Any questions you might have could help me improve future editions and subsequent manuals."

Tobias knew that his security was only assured so long as he was valuable, so reminding them that he would continue to expand his knowledge and theirs was only wise.

***

Tobias's compound was by far the largest residence in Cloud City, being on par with the palaces of the five Great Clans spread throughout Capitol. Managing it required Uncle Nang's entire clan, so there were more than enough rooms for Tobias to host his guests. However, the cost of hosting them for three days was more than Tobias earned from his entertainment and shopping district in a year. The dietary requirements or simple luxuries that nascent soul realm cultivators expected were staggeringly expensive, and outfitting their rooms required hiring core realm craftsmen.

If they hadn't agreed to his terms, Tobias wouldn't have been able to send his family pills next year.

To Tobias's surprise, the questions the clan heads and sect leaders asked were not insightful. They provided him with none of the direction he needed to expand his knowledge into the core realm and provide them with greater help. It wasn't until the early evening that Tobias realised this was intentional. They were wary of what he'd produced and concerned that, should he go further, they might lose their grip on power.

In the early hours of the morning, Tobias sat in his study rewriting his thoughts on enlightenment. Lingling's articulation of the subject was superior to his, and he intended to make sure that the clan heads and sect leaders had the better version when they left in two days. She had given him the missing piece of the puzzle, opening the door to clarity and allowing him to write an entire manual on the subject instead of just providing notes and thoughts.

Enlightenment had more clearly defined parameters than Tobias had assumed, and he now understood them. These parameters would need to be tested, but that was impossible before his guests left.

As the sun began to rise, Tobias took a break and went to check on his sister. Her room was empty, but her personal servant said she had gone to the central kitchen.

Tobias walked into the chaos to find Lingling shadowing the various foundation realm cultivator chefs whom the clan heads and sect leaders had brought with them. They were preparing core realm meats, spirit vegetables, and rice saturated with chi. Lingling had a content smile on her face as she wandered around and asked them questions. It was a smile he'd seen, but only on rare occasions.

Tobias leaned against the doorframe and watched, not wanting to disturb her happiness. Lingling had done everything he'd asked her to, and he'd failed to see what was right before him. The poverty of their youth had left a lasting impression upon her. Food shaped her existence. Joy came not from cooking but from being wealthy enough to share what she cooked with those around her.

She wanted to make sure everyone was always fed, so they never had to experience the fear and pain of starvation. He'd seen that, but he hadn't realised how deep those feelings ran until she explained her understanding of enlightenment. Her heart had never hardened to the plights of others the way his had.

In this moment, Lingling was more alive and peaceful than Tobias had ever seen her. She reminded him very much of Disciple Xi, with his relaxed disposition when practising or teaching alchemy. It was the look of someone who understood their place in the world and was content with it.

After a few minutes, Tobias left, confident that his sister was on a path she had chosen for herself.