Astral Odyssey: Dying Ember

World 1.5: Chen Xinyi

Another 4 months passed. Zhang Yong has been coming to the Chen's estate each month. It would always be some day within the last week of the month. He would chat with Hui Shan at the well-maintained gazebo before dropping by Xinyi's courtyard unannounced. Their sparring has never lasted for more than half an hour before he would stop abruptly as if satisfied with something then take his leave.

People began to notice that Zhang Yong would disappear for awhile in their estate. The length of time was perfect for a short dalliance with a woman so they assumed that it was so and never paid anymore attention to it. 

In this culture, it was normal for men to have dalliances with women from the low status and to have several concubines. The more wealthy and powerful one was, the bigger his harem could grow. Only women of status were expected to stay faithful to their husband and maintain their virtue and chastity till marriage. 

Moreover, nobody felt that there was any cause for concern since he obviously valued Hui Shan more than the lowly woman. Zhang Yong would spend up to two hours with Hui Shan chatting, playing chess, and listening to her playing the guqin. This assured them that the precious mistress of the household has not been disrespected.

Once again, Xinyi's power of being a neglected side character was at work. Everyone easily forgot that he actually has been finding another concubine's daughter and not some maid for sexual favours.

BaoBao had already let his guard down by the third month. Nobody came looking for trouble as Xinyi had predicted. BaoBao felt that she had simply been paranoid and pessimistic. However, he had the decency to never talk about Zhang Yong's promising interest in her again.

Xinyi has recently learnt to cultivate without the need to be in a meditative state. She subconsciously continued to circulate the energy within her while taking in a slow and currently still unsteady trickle of energy from around her. She felt that she was less easily tired and believed that it could aid in her stamina during fights but it was still early for her to test that out. Thanks to her hardwork in cultivation and monthly sparring, she has also risen to mid level Sky realm by the end of the fourth month.

Everything seemed to be going really smoothly, including today's experiment. It was the last day of her experiment. Her herbs have all grown. 

BaoBao could see and feel her unspoken excitement. Her martial arts morning practice was done with more vigour than usual. When the sun brightened uo the day, she began to harvest the herbs. She split the herb from each pot into two bundles. This totalled to 12 bundles. 6 bundles will be stir fried. The other 6 will be boiled in soup. 

She brought everything to the stove she had built for herself near the well. BaoBao looked at her washing and prepping the herbs for cooking. "There is only 1 pan and 1 pot. How long is this going to take?" 

"It's the soup that would take time. Probably around 180 minutes in total." 

BaoBao's jaw dropped. "Can't we just steal more pots?" 

"If we take too many at once, someone will notice and think that there is a thief, instigating a search. Besides, I have no need for that many pots after I'm done with this, then I'd have to return it again. Too much trouble. I'd rather be patient."

When she was done with the 6 stir fried dishes, she was only done with 2 of the soup dishes. She began her testing of the effects.

She took a bite of the herb that was directly nourished with her spiritual power once a week and closed her eyes to pay full attention to any sensations brought about by the herb. The only thing she felt was that it was delicious. She ate this herb before so she knew that the taste has been enhanced and made easier to enjoy than its unmodified state.