The Talk with Mei

Xia Tao:

I approached the house with an uplifted mood from the recent activities, yes, it was definitely interesting! I'll have to find a way to go again sometime!

Approaching my house, I decided to check on the progress of the experiment involving grafting the old branch onto the tree, seeing if it was taking root and showing any promising signs.

As I approached a small area near the house, I inspected the tree with my spiritual energy to see how things were progressing.

I was encouraged by what I saw; the internal juices of the tree were flowing into the branch, and everything seemed to indicate a successful experiment.

Great, this means that in a month or two, if all goes well, everything will settle and this branch might even become a fruit-bearing part of the tree.

I hope I have better luck with this than with that tomato incident. That smell and mess still made me shudder.

Coming into the house, I spotted Mei sitting at the table on the veranda, engrossed in working with some documents.

"Hey, Mei" I greeted her.

"Hello, young master" Mei responded, looking a bit flustered. She might have looked great, but she seemed physically exhausted.

I was reaffirmed in my belief that she needed some rest, and it was a good time for me to check how my body was reacting.

"Mei, we need to talk" I said, slightly nervously, considering that the topic would be quite sensitive and knowing that Mei might want to decline my offer to rest.

"I'm listening, master. I also have some things to discuss" Mei said, setting aside her papers.

"There are some things I wanted to tell you, Mei" I began.

"First, I am the bearer of the Cursed Pervert's Body. How it came to be is something I can't disclose right now, and it's not essential.

You can try to find information about this physique if you're interested, but I'm fairly informed about it.

In short, I need to exchange my Yang energy for Yin energy frequently.

This accelerates the cultivation progress for me and my partners.

I don't know if you've noticed, but in these two weeks since we arrived here, I've advanced one minor realm level.

I'm now at the Strengthening of Foundation, 5th stage. On your side, you should also be experiencing growth, but given our significant disparity, your advancement might not be very noticeable."

"Secondly, if I fail to fulfill the conditions of the energy exchange, I'll start experiencing side effects, which theoretically should diminish as my cultivation grows."

"Thirdly, since I need to examine the negative aspects and you need some rest, given your exhausted appearance, we're taking a few days off."

"Lastly, if the consequences aren't too severe, I'm planning to head to the desert for a while with Ye Chen. I have a suspicion that the trip could be beneficial for us."

I delivered everything almost in one breath.

Mei sat there looking surprised, contemplating what I had said. After a minute, she responded.

Overall, we talked through the entire evening. While Mei wasn't entirely onboard with my plans, I managed to convince her of their necessity.

Regarding how to handle this information, I told her that I trusted her, but it would be best if she didn't spread it around too much, as it could cause a lot of trouble.

I have no doubts that May will handle this information correctly; she practically raised me, and I have no doubts or reasons to question her intelligence and loyalty.

We also discussed her plan to recruit external disciples for us, both to accumulate sect points and to ensure there are people to work. We decided to settle them on the other side of the mountain, which is located away from the desert.

***

Before going to sleep, I extracted enough blood to last Xia Lina for a month in case she needed it during my absence.

The next morning, I woke up with a slight discomfort in places where discomfort was certainly not welcome. Checking the system, I noticed a new entry:

Blue balls: 1/20.

Fuck.

It was unexpected, even though I was anticipating something similar.

Well, it wasn't as bad as I thought. It seems the goddess did have some sense of reason, considering what I was seeing.

It seemed safe to go on a trip with Ye Chen for a couple of days, but no longer, as I wouldn't be able to perform the necessary weekly Check Ins.

***

As the day began and I waited for Ye Chen to arrive, I called for Mei.

"Mei, how are you feeling?" I asked with concern.

"Fine, Master. Listening to my own body, I realize that my discomfort is partly caused by the excess Yang energy not being processed properly.

It would be wise to find a technique to address this issue. Once that's sorted, there shouldn't be any issues, and we can continue at the same pace or even experience greater cultivation gains" Mei replied with a gentle smile.

"Mei, by the way, I wanted you to resolve the matter with the techniques available to us.

We need to have something to study and develop further.

Also, you mentioned having a plan to recruit external disciples to our mountain, in order to earn work force and sect points. It will be beneficial, but we need to offer some advantages."

"Furthermore, I want you to subtly try to uncover the secret of the vase. I have a feeling that the spiritual mechanism on the vase isn't unique, and it's entirely possible that means of bypassing it are already known."

"Understood, Master."

In the distance, Ye Chen's shuttle is approaching.

Mei gathered herself and left me to greet the guests, heading off to tend to her own tasks.