A Song for The Ages

The group moved through the bustling training grounds, where menial disciples hurried between tasks, some exchanging information, others quietly assessing their competition.

Arriving at the Menial Tasks Hall, they joined the long queue leading to the stone counters. Gray-robed attendants processed reports with mechanical efficiency, their expressions empty, their movements precise.

Feiyin studied the process, noting how the disciples would place their metal tokens on the black pedestal at the counter to transfer contribution points.

When their turn arrived, the attendant, a thin man with tired eyes, barely acknowledged their presence.

"Report," he said flatly.

Feiyin stepped forward, setting the bundle of hares, pheasants, squirrels, and boars on the counter.

The attendant glanced over the carcasses, then retrieved a wooden placard and began scribbling calculations with a small brush.

"Total… 600 contribution points."

Feiyin placed his token on the pedestal, followed by Ren, Yue, and Shen Mu.

With a faint hum, the numbers transferred. Each of them received 150 points.

The attendant tossed the placard aside. "Next."

The group stepped away, heading toward the eatery, where menial disciples could purchase prepared meals using contribution points.

Inside, the scent of roasted meat and steaming rice filled the air.

Approaching the counter, Feiyin placed the extra meat they had brought before the kitchen steward, a stocky woman with sharp eyes.

She appraised the meat with quick efficiency, then nodded.

"100 points," she said.

The group exchanged glances, a small but welcome addition to their total earnings.

They placed their tokens down again, watching as points transferred instantly.

"Good hunting," the woman muttered before moving on to the next disciple in line.

With their first set of tasks completed, the group turned toward the Weapons Hall.

Inside the Weapons Hall, the atmosphere was thick with the scent of metal and oil.

A scarred man stood behind a heavy stone counter, arms crossed as he assessed them with a sharp gaze. Behind him, racks of weapons were displayed, sorted by quality and cost.

Feiyin stepped forward first, drawing the blade he had taken from the ambusher. It was functional but unbalanced.

"I'll keep this," he murmured.

Ren cracked his knuckles. "I don't need anything."

The man behind the counter grunted. "Fists, huh? No repairs needed."

Yue picked up a curved dagger from the selection, weighing it in her palm before shaking her head. "My claws are enough."

Shen Mu ran his fingers along the handles of various weapons before picking up a dagger, testing the grip. "I'll take this."

Feiyin gestured toward the pile of looted weapons from their ambushers.

"We want to sell these."

The man retrieved an appraisal stone, pressing it against the weapons. Numbers flickered across the surface.

He snorted. "150 points each. You've got five. 750 points."

Ren smirked. "We'll take it."

One by one, they placed their tokens on the stone slab.

A hum. A flicker. Points transferred.

Ren grinned at his new total. "Not bad."

Feiyin turned to the group. "Let's go back."

, -------------------------------------

The group returned to their cabin, settling into their usual spots, though there was a different weight in the air tonight. It had been a long day, but Feiyin wasn't done yet.

Bai Yu, curled comfortably around his shoulders, flicked its tongue, sensing his shift in mood.

Feiyin placed a hand on the small table, fingers trailing along its worn surface. The others watched him, waiting.

"We've reached a point where we can finally slow down and build our foundation properly," Feiyin began. "Before, we had to rush to open our meridians just to survive, but now that we've secured our position, it's time to take the next step."

Ren leaned back, resting his forearm over the back of his chair. "Which is?"

Feiyin's gray eyes, dotted with amethyst, gleamed under the dim lantern light. "Perfecting your Body Tempering Realm."

Silence followed.

Shen Mu furrowed his brows. "I thought we already completed it."

Feiyin shook his head. "You reached the peak. But you haven't perfected it."

Yue perked up, ears twitching. "Then what's the difference?"

Feiyin exhaled, knowing he was about to change their entire perspective on cultivation.

"Peak body tempering means you've trained your outer body to the highest degree and can generate 5,000 kg of inner strength. But perfect body tempering means you've harmonized both your outer refinement and inner refinement. You've unified every part of your being into a single, complete state."

Ren raised an eyebrow. "So… what does that actually do?"

Feiyin smirked.

"I can generate 10,000 kg of inner strength."

Ren, Yue, and Shen Mu froze.

They stared at him, expressions caught between shock and disbelief.

"That's… double what we can do," Shen Mu muttered.

Feiyin nodded. "Because I refined both aspects of my body, instead of just my external strength. Your skin, muscles, bones, marrow, and blood are only half the equation. You need to refine your organs too, the heart, lungs, liver, spleen, and kidneys, all of them need to be tempered."

Yue's tail flicked rapidly, excitement creeping into her expression. "How do we do that?"

Feiyin grinned.

, -

The process wasn't instant, it required an entirely different approach from outer refining.

Feiyin first guided them through the fundamentals, teaching them how to use their inner strength internally, rather than just to enhance their physical strikes.

"Your five organs correspond to the five fundamental elements, Earth, Metal, Water, Wood, and Fire. If you refine them correctly, they will support and enhance each other instead of working separately."

Yue's eyes brightened. "Like how the Five Elements Cycle works?"

Feiyin nodded. "Exactly. By training in harmony with the cycle, your organs will continuously reinforce each other, strengthening your inner body to the same level as your outer body."

Ren crossed his arms. "That sounds… easier said than done."

Feiyin chuckled. "That's why I'm here."

They started with breathing techniques, allowing them to sense and circulate their inner strength properly through their organs.

Feiyin demonstrated first.

He inhaled deeply, and the room seemed to still for a moment. His oscillation sense allowed him to direct his inner strength perfectly, each breath enhancing and reinforcing the organs one by one.

Then he exhaled, controlled, steady, deliberate.

Yue tried next.

Her ears twitched, her tail stilled, and she followed his rhythm, her inner strength flowing smoother than before.

Shen Mu followed.

His breathing was steady, his expression calm and focused as he followed Feiyin's instructions. He wasn't as naturally attuned to inner strength as Yue, nor did he have the raw instincts Ren relied on. But what he did have was an unwavering attention to detail.

He closed his eyes, feeling the ebb and flow of his inner strength, trying to guide it through his organs. It wasn't smooth at first, it felt foreign, unnatural, almost resistant.

His brows furrowed.

No. This is just like preparing medicine.

He recalled his days working under his father at the apothecary shop, measuring herbs to the exact weight, grinding powders until they reached the right consistency, brewing potions over a careful flame so they didn't scorch.

If you controlled the flame too strongly, the medicine would burn.

If you left it weak, the medicine wouldn't extract properly.

Balance. Precision.

That was the key.

He exhaled slowly and adjusted his technique. He started small, deliberate, ensuring that the energy flowed at the right pace, neither too forceful nor too passive.

Slowly… smoothly… let it circulate.

Then, suddenly, it clicked.

The energy moved differently, not in erratic bursts, but in a controlled cycle that reinforced itself, each organ supporting the next in the Five Element Cycle.

His eyes snapped open, flickering with a rare excitement.

"Efficient," he murmured.

Feiyin grinned, having noticed the shift. "You figured it out."

Shen Mu nodded. "It's like balancing medicinal ingredients. Too much of one thing ruins the entire batch." He clenched his fists, feeling the noticeable difference in his body. "This… is the perfect formula."

Ren was next.

Unlike Shen Mu, he wasn't thinking about theory or calculations. He was feeling it, like he always had.

His entire life had been built on instincts. Living in the slums meant knowing when to run, when to fight, when to steal, when to hide. It was all about survival.

And survival wasn't something you thought about, it was something you felt.

He took a slow breath, focusing on his body the way he did when dodging a blow in a back-alley brawl.

Too slow, and you got hit.

Too fast, and you overcommitted.

You had to move just right.

The same principle applied here.

He followed Feiyin's instructions, not by controlling, but by allowing his body to respond. Not forcing, but flowing.

The way his inner strength moved… it felt like the moment before a punch landed.

The perfect weight transfer. The perfect shift in balance. The moment where instinct and motion became one.

His breathing evened out, his inner strength circulating more naturally, not just in bursts, but in a constant, steady stream.

His eyes sharpened, a smirk tugging at his lips.

"Feels stronger," he muttered, rolling his shoulders. "Like a coiled fist before a punch."

Feiyin watched him carefully before nodding. "Good. Now keep refining that instinct."

Ren cracked his knuckles, confidence surging through him. "Yeah. I think I got this."

Feiyin looked over the three of them, seeing how each of them had found their own way forward.

Shen Mu, through his logical precision.

Ren, through his instincts and survival sense.

Yue, through her natural attunement to her body's flow.

It was different for each of them, but the result was the same, they were improving, advancing, stepping onto the path of perfection.

And Feiyin?

He grinned, feeling something stir within him.

He wasn't just following in his father's footsteps anymore.

He was walking his own path.

Three days passed.

By the third night, they could already feel the difference in their control and efficiency. Their inner strength responded faster, circulated smoother, and their bodies felt stronger than ever before.

Their training was yielding real results.

That night, as they sat together in their small wooden cabin, Feiyin was reflecting on their progress when Yue suddenly moved.

She rose from her seat, stepped forward, and without hesitation, she knelt.

Feiyin blinked, caught completely off guard.

Yue lowered her head, her silver-furred ears flattening slightly as her long tail curled around her legs, a sign of submission she never showed before.

Her golden eyes shone with conviction.

"I acknowledge you as my leader."

Her voice was quiet but unwavering, carrying a weight that made the air thick with meaning.

Feiyin felt his chest tighten, a lump forming in his throat.

Leader?

He didn't know what to say.

He had spent so long focusing on survival, on getting stronger, on adapting, but this, this was different.

This wasn't about strength.

This was trust.

Seeing his stunned expression, Yue offered a small smile.

"This is part of my clan's culture," she explained. "In the Snow Lynx Clan, when we find someone truly worthy, someone we believe in, we offer them our loyalty. Not out of obligation, but because we choose to follow them."

She took a breath, her fingers tightening slightly against her knees.

"You've given me something no one else ever has, a path forward."

Her words struck deep.

A memory surfaced, his father, standing tall, speaking about his days as a general.

"A leader does not demand loyalty. A leader earns it."

And he… had earned this?

He barely had time to process when Ren scoffed.

"I don't kneel."

Feiyin looked at him, a small smirk tugging at his lips. Of course, he didn't.

Ren crossed his arms, leaning back slightly.

"But yeah, I'll stick around. You're the first person who's ever given me something worth following."

Feiyin exhaled through his nose, something warm stirring inside him.

Then, Shen Mu, not one to be expressive, adjusted his stance, his sharp eyes meeting Feiyin's.

"You helped me survive and surpass my limits. I won't forget that."

Feiyin looked at them one by one, Yue, Ren, Shen Mu.

Loyalty.

Not because of power. Not because of obligation.

But because they chose him.

He clenched his fists, emotions swelling in his chest, heavy yet grounding.

They weren't just companions anymore.

They were his people.

His first true followers.

And deep down, in the place where his father's teachings had taken root, Feiyin swore something to himself.

He would not fail them.