Two weeks passed by, and winter's hold had grown official and firm in the state of Wei. Shen Jintian progressed in his studies of spell formation, and had tentatively begun to form simple Qi techniques of his own.
Despite his rapid and shocking talent of the field, he found that composing Qi techniques that held more than one spell node and simple conduits was a gap he would not be able to cross any time soon. For one, his own studies were limited, as his teacher had said multiple times he was only barely able to teach Jintian the basics. And for another. Then, there was the lack of spiritual energy available to him. If he wished to make any form of progress on his cultivation base, he was only able to practice creating several Qi techniques a day, before he needed to both replenish his Qi and practice cultivation.
And lastly… it was simply hard!
There was a language to spell formation, with its own flowing structure that required a level of elegance that was simply beyond him at the moment. One node was simple enough, as were basic conduits. However, to combine multiple nodes into a spell formation, he would require many more months of effective practice.
Still, he had managed to create a few basic ones, though he was still most pleased by his very first. Inspired by one of the first things he had seen his teacher do, light an incense stick with a wave of his hand, he had formed a spell formation with the "Fire" node, and formed the conduits for "where I point". He had earned much wonder from Xiyun when he had finally completed his first casting of it after three days of trial and error, pointing at their hearth and lighting a roaring blaze in only moments.
Though Xiyun's wonder had faded into exasperation as he then did it for her again, and again, and again, over the next several days.
Eventually, the day came for his teacher to leave to send word to his cousin, and await a reply. Before he did, though, Kang Shanxi sat Jintian down across from him. He then produced several items from his bag of holding.
"Besides the Qi techniques I am teaching you, I was also going to purchase one or two to add to your arsenal. They will only have the beginning stages, but it will still be useful to you at your level, and at the very least until you reach the Seventh or Eighth Circle." Kang Shanxi explained, and Jintian nodded.
In front of them was a small rattle drum, an orb the size of a hand that was filled with water, a ball of clay, a bamboo shoot, a pile of metal shavings, and a seed. Curious, Jintian inspected them all with spiritual sense, and found that while simple, they all had a trace of spiritual energy to them.
He then looked back at Kang Shanxi, who flicked his sleeve. "In truth, I should have done this once you reached the First Circle. But there were other matters of importance then, so… I am doing it now." He said, and then waved his hand over the items. "When joining a Sect, you will be asked if you have undergone Qi assessment before. The purpose of Qi assessment is to find what elements your Qi has affinity to. Most have some level of affinity to nearly all of them, while some tend to have a higher affinity to one or two."
"And you determine this by which of these things react to me?" Jintian asked, smiling. When his teacher nodded, he scratched his cheek. "It's like zhua zhou." He mused, and his teacher laughed at that.
"I was there for yours, did you know?" Kang Shanxi asked, and Jintian shook his head, before smiling wryly.
"I was told I made a beeline straight for the money…" He muttered shyly, rubbing the back of his head while Kang Shanxi chuckled, stroking his beard.
"You did! Well, I suppose it is a bit like zhua zhou, though this is far more direct and accurate." He said, pointing to each object. "The drum represents fire, the orb and clay as you can guess represent water and earth. The bamboo shoot represents wood, the shavings metal, and the seed… represents life or death."
Jintian tilted his head at that. The others represented the five elements, which he had learned formed the basis of most Qi techniques. "Life or death?" He asked, and his teacher nodded solemnly.
"In truth, most possess an affinity for neither. Even the slightest affinity for one or the other will result in special attention being paid to you, as these are the Qi affinities that lend themselves to the truly strange and bizarre techniques." He explained. "But no one has an affinity to both. They are the antithesis of each other, after all."
Jintian nodded at that, before recalling the Beast Legion technique his bodily cultivation manual described once he completed the Beast-Slayer body. "Teacher… is it possible for one's affinities to change?" He asked, and Kang Shanxi's eyes sparkled as he nodded.
"Indeed they can, young Jin. These changes typically only occur after a fortuitous, or ruinous, encounter. However… from the rumours I have heard, there are some bodily cultivation methods that will forcefully align one's affinity to better match their manual! It is one of the reasons they are so coveted."
Shen Jintian had expected as much, but to hear it confirmed only made him more wary of people eventually finding out he practiced one. Seeing his expression, Kang Shanxi smiled. "Worry not, young Jin. While possessing the manual for the cultivation method is dangerous, the act of bodily cultivation itself can also be good fortune for you. After all, many will assume that you are the scion of a Great Clan, seeded among the world to test yourself. And no one wishes to provoke a Great Clan."
Supposing this line of thought made sense, Jintian's anxiety was slightly eased. Seeing his anxiety fade somewhat, Kang Shanxi gestured to the items.
"Alright, let us begin. When I have determined what your affinities are, I can purchase techniques that will best align with your Qi." He said, and Jintian nodded, grabbing the first item, the rattle drum.
Kang Shanxi nodded to him, and he imbued a bit of his Qi into it. The rattles twitched, and then sprang to life, clapping lively against the leather of the drum. As they did, he saw both of the rattles begin to vibrate, before shuddering as static shock could be seen with every strike.
"Interesting. Your affinity for fire is average, but it would seem that you possess a fair bit of affinity to lightning." Kang Shanxi muttered, stroking his beard. "Ironic, really, considering the circumstances of your birth. Alright, move to the next."
Jintian severed his Qi connection to the drum, and the rattles fell limp to the side. He then grasped the orb filled with water, and imbued his Qi into it.
The water inside began to swirl, at first slowly, but growing faster and faster until there was a small vortex within the orb. And then, it began to frost over, before small cracking sounds could be heard in the air as the water inside froze mid whirlpool, an eternal cyclone preserved in ice. Frost roiled off from the orb, and Kang Shanxi looked on smugly, a twinkle in his eyes.
"As expected of my disciple! Your affinity for water is above average, but your affinity to Ice is astonishing." He complimented, and Jintian smiled bashfully, severing his connection to the orb.
Shen Jintian then picked up the other three items that correlated with the elements. He was of below average affinity to earth, as his energy only caused the clay to form a vague dog shape without any discernable features, and the same could be said of wood, which caused the bamboo to rattle in his hands and grow several leaf buds, but little more than that.
Metal, on the other hand, he was just as proficient in as ice, which made Kang Shanxi smile and nod approvingly. "Just as I thought. So long as you have above average affinity with wood or metal, you have more than a decent chance of becoming a spirit forger." He said, and Jintian then turned his gaze to the seed.
Kang Shanxi's expression turned somber as he focused on the seed, and Shen Jintian took a breath before imbuing his Qi into the seed.
He then yelped and flung it from his hand as the seed immediately withered and decayed, and in the time it took for it to sail through the air, it turned to dust that drifted through the air.
Looking at his teacher worriedly, Kang Shanxi sighed. "Also just as I thought." He said quietly, before gathering the items into his bag of holding. Jintian looked to where the motes of dust drifted lazily within the currents of the air, rubbing the back of his head.
"So… I have affinity with death, then?" He asked, and his teacher nodded, stowing his bag of holding back into his sleeve.
"A brilliant affinity with it, even." He confirmed. "More so than even ice or metal. I suspect that you possessed an affinity to it even before your bodily cultivation. More than likely, due to your father."
Jintian hummed thoughtfully, and his teacher cleared his throat. "It is a good thing, although I will most likely be unable to procure you techniques related to death on this trip. They are rare, and as such, inordinately expensive. Furthermore…" He paused. "You will be unable to use such techniques in bouts or competitions that prohibit killing. Most techniques related to death are, as you might expect, extremely insidious and difficult to implement without unintentionally crippling or even killing others."
Jintian frowned at that, wondering for what purpose he and his father possessed such an ominous affinity, before shaking his head. He at the very least wouldn't need to worry over it, it seemed, until he left for the world at large.
-
The next morning, Kang Shanxi had made his preparations, and Jintian held Xiyun in his arms as they both saw him off at the door. His master smiled to them both, as Xiyun cried, stretching her arms out to him.
"Do not worry, young Xiyun. I will be back before long." He promised, which did nothing to stem Shen Xiyun's wailing. Jintian smiled, and bowed to his teacher.
"I wish you safe travels, Master." He said quietly, and Kang Shanxi returned his bow.
"Keep up with your studies. Don't slack off! And I left some Go puzzles for you to complete, in the purple scroll on the top shelf. And ensure that you keep teaching Xiyun new words. And-" Kang Shanxi instructed, and Jintian rolled his eyes.
"Leave already, damn old man!" He snapped, and his master chuckled as he patted both of their heads, before sliding open the door and walking down the path. The sky was clear, morning sunlight sparkling atop of a field of freshly fallen snow like a thousand sparkling gemstones.
Taking a deep breath of the frigid air, Jintian watched his teacher for just a few more moments before closing the door. He bounced Xiyun in his arms, though she was inconsolable.
"It won't be so bad!" He tried to reason with her, but her tears were thick and unending, and snot was dripping out of her nose. Sighing, he shook his head. "Okay, it won't be the worst!"
After a few hours, she finally seemed to accept that it would be just the two of them for a little while, and she sullenly ate her dinner. When he attempted to get her to play with her toys, she threw them across the room, and he could do nothing by smile bitterly.
The next few days passed by uneventfully, and Jintian settled into a routine. Between taking care of Xiyun, practicing his Qi techniques, and studying, he found his days were still shockingly full despite the missing presence of his teacher.
And then, four days after Kang Shanxi had left, a blizzard swept through Anhe village.