A Snail's Wisdom

…

"Niece may be unaware of this, but this old man is more than an admirer of weapons. I am a blacksmith."

"Un. Disciple knows. Third Elder's name resounds loudly beyond the sect's walls."

Kenja heard a few things about the elders from his childhood in Ryuga, and he had learned more from Puchi and several other disciples along with bits of gossip from the bazaar merchants he haggled with.

Third Elder Kondo was the leading blacksmith and weapons expert. His physical strength was his strongest attribute, and he had achieved a high level of mastery with several different weapons, both for battle and for forging purposes. It was public knowledge that he was not great at communicating with the opposite gender, not that he was aware of this shortcoming.

First Elder Katou Daiki handled the sect's affairs and treasury along with supervising the vice elders. Rumored to be cultivating a secret technique, he rarely ever appeared outside his cave. He originally came to Ryuga from another continent more than a century ago, but a discipleship with the previous elder gave him a stepping stone to becoming the First Elder.

Second Elder Inazuma was the only spiritual architect in the sect. Rarely made an appearance outside of his studio, people described him as a man with many scars and burns. An oddball and an eccentric, he focused more on spiritual tools than on his own cultivation. Plus, he was a tea addict. He rarely interacted with the sect aside from the other elders and his tea girl Aracha.

Fourth Elder Ariyoshi Miji cultivated his body and martial arts while dabbling in formations. Despite his short stature, his athletic prowess and combat adaptability was said to be the highest amongst the elders. Although he was famous for his temper when someone mocked him for his height, he did not shy away from mentioning it when it benefited him, displaying his adaptability.

Fifth Elder and Kenja's new master Kazane Kazue delved in enchantments and spent most of her time cultivating her first disciple, Aoi Rin. While the elders could be classified as aloof, being the only woman amongst the elders, Elder Kazane kept to herself even more than the other Elders. Supposedly, she was a native to Ryuga, but she had spent a large portion of her life outside the Freezing Desert.

Finally, Sixth Elder Gao Diao was the head pill alchemist and apothecary. Similar to the First Elder, he came from outside the Freezing Desert decades ago and quickly rose to elder status due to his proficiency in pill concoction. He had a distinct laugh that would accompany his speech.

Scratching his sideburn in delight, Third Elder Kondo smiled at Kenja tenderly. His impression of Kenja improved further.

The elders of any sect were treated with the utmost respect and veneration by both the sect disciples and most outsiders, but it was for this reason that treatment towards an elder varied radically and extremely.

Oftentimes, whether by reverence or by fear, disciples would remain silent and steer away from an elder's path. Others with a braver heart would brown-nose an elder, praising them to the heavens, hoping to obtain special treatment as a result.

Technically, neither conduct was wrong, but from the perspective of an elder, a balance between the two was the most desirable.

Kenja's words were well-measured.

They gave Elder Kondo the chance to regain some lost face with the spectating sect without overembellishment. Unfortunately, unbeknownst to Kenja, Elder Kondo had already erected a sound barrier to prevent any eavesdropping.

Still, Kenja's gesture did not go unappreciated.

"Mm. What does niece think of forging?"

Kenja was puzzled.

"Disciple asks Elder to forgive. Disciple is ignorant."

Thinking that the issue with Matsushita Hizumi had reached an end, Kenja was politely going along with the conversation to give the elder a platform to retreat from. But now, it seemed like there was something else the elder wanted to talk about.

"Good. Good. Take a look at this."

Using his free hand, the Third Elder took out a different sword from his storage bag and held it to Kenja with his free hand.

Bewildered, Kenja did as requested and examined the sword in front of him.

It was nearly twice the length and several times thicker than Sakura with a sleek and unblemished surface that only appeared on recently-forged metal. He could sense a powerful wave of Qi surrounding the blade.

He could tell the caliber of the sword was clearly beyond the comprehension of a Qi Flourishing cultivator like himself.

"Disciple is inexperienced, but disciple feels this sword is unfathomable."

Elder Kondo's smile grew and nodded his head several times in agreement. This was not how he had planned to reveal the sword he made for the first time, but he finally got to show it off. Kenja's critique pleased him immensely.

"Mm. Here, hold it."

Passing the sword to him, Kenja was forced to grab it with both hands. He nearly fell over due to the sheer weight of the object.

Kenja could feel a violent power between his palms that he could not control as if he was holding a bull by the horns unlike when he held Sakura who instilled in him a sense of gentleness and security.

"...Disciple can tell this sword is amazing." Although he was more comfortable wielding Sakura, he would often forget she was a weapon; whereas, he felt he could do some serious damage with this blade if he could swing it.

"Mm. Mm."

He looked at Elder Kondo's face for a sign of what to do with the sword but only met a surprised look that quickly switched to a more expectant and happy expression, nodding in approval.

"Disciple wishes to ask…what is Elder's meaning?"

Elder Kondo replied tersely, "Trade swords."

"Trade swords?"

Kenja's mouth was opened slightly, unsure of what to say.

Now that they had exchanged a few words, Kenja came to the conclusion that this elder's conversational skills were, indeed, a bit lacking like the rumors said as he jumped from one random point to another with no obvious train of logic.

All of a sudden, he wanted to trade swords?

Kenja grew silent, his confusion about what the Third Elder wanted escalating.

"Trade your sword for this one. It can handle the strength of a crystallized core. Will serve you well in the future."

Kenja's eyebrows knitted tightly in hesitation.

Kenja's troubled expression perplexed Elder Kondo. "Unwilling?"

"Now's our chance, disciple! Let's get rid of this promiscuous girl once and for all. This new sword's a tad too fragile for me, but it's not a bad start for you. Much more reliable than that toothpick," whispered Snail so that only Kenja could hear him.

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Kenja replied, "Disciple asks for Elder's understanding. Disciple has attachments to that sword. Won't trade it for anything."

Kenja held out the heavy sword to return it to Elder Kondo.

He was enticed by the sword's obvious appeal, but Kimura Sakura was not just a sword. Although it had been only a week since they met, he considered her a companion. Additionally, she was definitely special in some way; otherwise, the pillars would not have praised her so highly. And most importantly, she contributed to his cultivation.

Plus, she helped Kenja deal with Snail…

The elder frowned at Sakura in annoyance. Preferring this scrap metal over his masterpiece, he felt humiliated.

After stealing a quick glance at the other elders, his head made a slight nod at Kenja.

"Careful, disciple!"

Before Kenja could register Snail's warning, he suddenly grew dizzy, and his knees felt weak. Losing control of his lower body, he began to fall forward.

Acting fast, he weakly stabbed the ground with the Third Elder's sword, managing to stay upright thanks to its help.

Looking back at the Third Elder, Kenja questioned his actions, "If Elder wishes to punish disciple, Elder should report disciple's crime."

The elder was surprised by Kenja's resistance. "No crime. If you wish to study my craft, you must recognize me as master. Now, hurry and kowtow. Do you need this master's help?"

Kenja was dumbfounded.

Who said anything about studying under you?!

And what kind of master would force someone to worship him?

That defeated the purpose of the ceremony!

Kenja reflected on their brief exchange and could not understand how they reached this point. Elder Kondo had clearly skipped several steps and broken several rules regarding the art of simple communication.

"It's coming again!" Snail warned.

Before he could provide Third Elder Kondo with an answer, Kenja was attacked by a more powerful round of vertigo than the previous time. The sword that he struggled to hold onto for stability was knocked to the ground by an invisible force.

With his legs still feeling like jelly, his bent body followed gravity's course and fell forward, his arms limp at his sides.

Instinctively, he braced for impact and closed his eyes, ready for his face to meet the grass…