Destiny in Cinders

”Of course.” Huo Qing brushed it off and turned back to help An Jing with his search. ”Hilltwixt has plenty of granaries. You can place an order right now if you want to purchase food. It’s just a matter of logistics. How much do you need?”

An Jing ran the numbers. Riverside’s current population hovered around forty to fifty thousand people. Though it was less than a tenth of its peak population, it was still considered a major hub. The Bejeweled Traders Guild’s granaries were in fairly good condition, holding at least several thousand tons of grain, which was enough to feed the city for several months. But these supplies needed to be inventoried, and he was worried that the remaining guild martialists might tamper with them. He needed a fresh batch of grain for emergencies.

After pausing to think, An Jing said, ”Hmm... Enough to feed three thousand people for a hundred days? Just for emergencies, not to keep them completely full.”

”That’s quite a lot.” Huo Qing was a little surprised. He figured the number represented the size of An Jing’s cult. ”At two jin per person a day, that’s six hundred thousand jin in total. Based on current grain prices, it’ll cost around ten thousand merits.”

”That’s actually pretty cheap.” An Jing arched an eyebrow. The purchasing power of a single merit was roughly equivalent to one or two hundred yuan in his past life. But in Skysource, food was actually a relatively scarce commodity because arable land was so limited. By his estimate, all that grain should have cost around twenty thousand merits. He never expected to get it for half that price.

”Deepnight City isn’t short on grain, just look at Pilljungle. We have a lot of wood-aspect cultivators here. In fact, I heard Uncle Metalhand graduated from the agricultural academy.” Huo Qing had already begun looking up nearby granaries for An Jing. ”Do you really need six hundred thousand jin? We don’t have enough merits on our books, so we might have to make up the difference with frostjade.”

”There’s no need for that.” An Jing shook his head. He didn’t plan on spending ten thousand merits on grain. A single day’s supply was enough to handle an emergency. Any more than that, and he wouldn’t even be able to transport it all over. ”Let’s do two thousand merits first. I’m a bit short on merits, so lend me some for now and I’ll pay you back next time.”

”What’s all this talk about lending?” Huo Qing chuckled, placing the order for An Jing. ”Anything else you need?”

”That’s all.” At this moment, An Jing truly realized how great it was to have a friend’s help. It would have been an absolute nightmare to have to tackle this all alone. He wasn’t a professional, nor did he have a chip. There was no way he could get everything done as quickly as Huo Qing. ”Thanks a lot, Brother.”

”It’s nothing.” Huo Qing chuckled and proudly gestured toward the qi-collection formation. ”I’ve already mastered the basic part of the Soul Domination Mantra. I’ve nested it sixfold, which makes it more potent than the ones you usually find on the market. When you make your next cultivation breakthrough, I might actually hit ninefold and the formation should reach the Foundation Building Realm!”

”That’s amazing! Your talent for formations is truly impressive.” An Jing sighed. To claim that Huo Qing was exceptionally gifted would be an overstatement. He didn’t even come close to freaks like An Jing, those with imperial blood like You Ruhui, or cultivators with celestial spirit roots and miracle arcs like Nian Quan and Bai Qinghan. In fact, he still paled in comparison to Cang Linzu and Gu Yeqi, with just above average talent. But despite such mediocre aptitude, Huo Qing still advanced at lightning speed through hard work and practice.

If the civil and military officials of a newly established dynasty all shared the same birthplace, could this be credited to the immense fortune of that region? It was simply a matter of opportunity. Just as Nian Quan said, those elite cultivators from megacorporations and powerful clans weren’t as talented as he was. But with enough resources, they could still reach the Foundation Building, Purple Mansion, and even Goldcore Realms.

Though Huo Qing’s aptitude was far from extraordinary, it was easily enough to put him on track for the Foundation Building Realm, and with sufficient resources, even the Purple Mansion Realm was well within his grasp. The bond he shared with his friends was rooted in mutual support. Just as he helped You Ruhui advance, she provided him insights from the tomes. And the same went for Huo Qing; this was the true power of friendship.

An Jing checked Huo Qing’s martial cultivation once more, only to find that his progress was slow. He had yet to master the Imperial Sky Art and had barely scratched the surface of the Imperial Earth Art. Yet, his pace was to be expected. Given Huo Qing’s rock-solid foundation, An Jing could see that he wouldn’t encounter any bottlenecks despite his slow progress. After all, Huo Qing was one of the few individuals across both worlds who pursued both the martial and qi cultivation paths like An Jing. Even without a lifearc, practicing the martial way with spirit roots was ultimately a different road to the same destination.

Before long, the neighboring grain company delivered a palm-sized void artifact loaded with sixty tons of food to the warehouse. With shipping this effortless, it was no wonder Skysource boasted such advanced logistics despite being a recovering wasteland.

Recalling that An Jing’s own void artifact was too small, Huo Qing had thoughtfully included a rental for a large void artifact, which doubled perfectly as storage for the automata. The service cost a hundred merits per use, but any damage or late return carried a steep penalty of five thousand merits.

”It honestly never crossed my mind.” As soon as he saw the void artifact, An Jing realized he had been looking at the big picture for so long that he had completely overlooked these practical details. Huo Qing simply smiled. ”You never miscalculate on major decisions, but you’re a bit careless when it comes to the little things. Covering your blind spots is the least I can do.”

With everything settled, An Jing prepared to leave with the grain-laden void artifact. He left behind an extra pouch of frostjade to ensure smooth cash flow, which reminded Huo Qing of something. ”An Jing, do you happen to have any yin-aspect or spirit-aspect materials on hand?” He looked a bit embarrassed. ”I’ve hit a wall with the Soul Domination Mantra. The materials needed for the advanced formations are quite hard to come by in the city, and the tome is from your cult after all, so I assumed you might have some tucked away?”

”Okay... Wait a second, I really do have some!” An Jing initially meant to agree and then check Bejeweled’s warehouse in Void Embrace. If the materials were available, he wouldn’t hesitate to part with them. But upon searching his void artifact, he found the yinjade seized from the vanguards of the Lord Inspector of the West as well as the spirit gold rewarded by Grand Chen authorities. Though immensely valuable, these materials were useless to An Jing. He simply dumped them all out, setting them on the ground right before Huo Qing’s wide, trembling eyes. ”Is that enough? If it’s not, I can head back and take another look...”

”Enough! Enough! Enough! Don’t take any more out!” Throwing his hands up in a panic, he resembled a kitten that had merely hoped for a bit of kibble, only to back away in terror when a mountain of food was dumped over its head. This massive hoard worth nearly ten thousand merits had shocked him so deeply he looked ready to bolt and hide.

”This is ten times—no, dozens of times—what I need! I just need a small amount of these materials to use as catalysts! My god! An Jing, you’re just carrying this much yinjade and spirit gold around with you? If anyone found out about this...” Raising his hand, Huo Qing shut all the doors and windows. He instantly concealed the entire warehouse with an illusion formation that he picked up from Smart Warehousing Tips before letting out a sigh of relief. ”This is enough to last me until the Foundation Building Realm. My god, there’s so much...”

”Ha, it’s not like I’d ever hold back around you. If I want something, I’ll tell you straight up.” An Jing couldn’t care less. He laughed heartily and said, ”So don’t be polite. If you need something, just name it. We both win when we work together. The stronger you are, the more I can rely on you.”

”I will.” Huo Qing was absolutely thrilled. He gave the automata one final check, inspecting the formation programs and structural components. Letting out a long breath, he said, ”With these materials, I can finally try my hand at more advanced formations.”

With matters settled, An Jing prepared to leave Hilltwixt and find a quiet spot to return to Void Embrace. Just then, a city-wide alarm erupted from the very center of town. ”WARNING: Large fey invasion detected! All cultivators in the vicinity must enter the town or evacuate immediately. The Hilltwixt administration shall not be held liable for anyone caught in the formation.”

”WARNING—”

Despite the blaring alarm, both An Jing and Huo Qing remained perfectly calm. ”Again? How many times has it been this month? Ten? It’s once every two days. I’m actually getting used to it.”

Located on the periphery of the safe zone, Hilltwixt was a constant target for fey attacks. Alerts went off every couple of days, so the locals completely ignored them, and the two of them were now equally unfazed.

”Are you leaving now?” Huo Qing asked. ”Why not wait a bit?”

”No,” An Jing said, shaking his head. ”You should keep your guard up and prepare for the feys to break into the town. Always assume the worst-case scenario.”

Huo Qing said confidently, ”I’ve already set up a formation to conceal my presence. I’m always cautious.”

”Formationists are meticulous indeed.” An Jing gave a nod of approval. Without another word, the two parted ways. An Jing slipped out just before the town was locked down, found a secluded spot, and returned to Void Embrace.

After An Jing left, Huo Qing returned to his desk and went right back to studying. This time, however, the clouds gathering in the distance looked slightly different. From the abyssal depths of the roiling dark clouds, a brilliant golden halo erupted, faintly revealing the silhouette of a three-legged bird of black and gold.