Ch-15- Guests (First Edit)
(Lou Xia POV)
In the clearing, there were these amalgamations of metal that seemed to move on their own. They did not give off any Qi fluctuations, meaning that some very high-grade formations must power them.
Ignoring this, the kitsune just kept on walking.
The next thing I saw, which seemed fairly odd, was a bunch of different work tables set out in a circle with various different things belonging to different professions laid out on them.
Walking past this, we came to a house like one I had never seen before. The house itself looked to be an L-shaped building, with the corner part having a second floor. From the outside, the building looked to be made of logs, with stones supporting the base. There were also many windows lining the exterior without any shutters, leaving one a clear view of the inside.
The door seemed to be made of sawn and sanded lumber without any form of paint. Just in front of the door was a landing made of stone with stone steps leading up to it. The door was also sunk into the stone, showing that the stone on the outside is not just a support for the logs like I thought but actually a half wall.
The kitsune then used her foot to turn the horizontal handle on the door, causing it to click as her foot pushed slightly. The door swung open.
Following the kitsune as she opened the door and entered, I was greeted by a table set with six chairs, with two on either side and one at the head and end of the table.
Passed by the table is a kitchen along one wall and a stairwell on the one opposite. Just before the stairwell is a doorway that leads down the side of the house. The kitsune then walks past the table and through the doorway.
Following her, I enter a hallway with two doors on the right and windows on the left. Looking through the windows, I see the stream just below it and the collection of work tables just beyond, with a shack that seems to be barely held together behind them.
Hearing a door open, I look back at the kitsune and see her enter the far door. Entering just behind her, I am greeted by a bedroom that seems to be well-furnished but unused. The Kitsune sets down Zhuan Jiahao on the bed before turning to me.
The Kitsune: "Do you have any medical supplies? All I have is unrefined herbs."
Lou Xia: "I have a couple of healing pills."
Zhuan Jiahao: "I have a golden core Healing pill in my bag."
Hearing Zhuan Jiahao's words, I was momentarily stunned, as those pills were fairly hard to get. Nonetheless, I walked over to him and reached to his side to retrieve the space bag.
Opening it, I took the pill bottle marked with a symbol for healing from inside and fed him the pill inside. Zhuan Jiahao gave me a weird look, but I ignored it and grabbed a spare robe from my space bag.
Tearing up the robe, I use the strips of cloth as a makeshift bandage to stop the bleeding as the pill does its work. Finishing my work, I see that he wants to say something, but before he can, I tell the kitsune that we should let him rest and grab her hand, pulling her out of the room.
Outside the room, I continue pulling her out into the kitchen/dining area. There, I stop before taking a seat on one of the sides of the table. The kitsune then shrugs before taking a seat at the head of the table.
The Kitsune: "So why did we have to leave the room? Aren't those pills supposed to heal him?"
Lou Xia: "They are, but they take a lot of the body's energy to do so, leaving a person fairly tired, especially if it is a pill at your own realm or higher."
The Kitsune: "Oh, wouldn't that be dangerous then? I mean, with the pill needing your own body's energy, if you take one that of too high of a realm, then it could even kill you if that's the case."
Lou Xia: "Most pills aren't that way, and that one is also a healing pill. They have their own stores of energy, but use your body's energy to make the healing process more efficient and prevent your body from rejecting the healing done."
The Kitsune: "Oh, so it's like organ or implant rejection then, I see. So, you guys get around that by using your body's own energy to help make the new body parts? That is quite interesting."
Lou Xia: "I don't entirely understand what you just said, but sure, we will go with that."
The Kitsune: "Oh yeah, I forgot about that. Anyway, the room we didn't go into is yours, Lou Xia, and the door on the other side of the room goes to the bathroom. But it isn't fully finished yet, so I will complete it tomorrow after breakfast."
Lou Xia: "Oh, thanks. By the way, you know my name, but I don't know yours. Isn't that quite rude?"
The Kitsune: "Sorry. My name is, um... Vale, short for Valaria. By the way, you can find me upstairs if you need me."
With that, Vale got up and went upstairs, leaving me alone. It seems that Vale is not her real name, but I will go with it for now.
I then got up and went to my room. When I opened the door, I saw that it had the same furniture as Zhuan Jiahao's room.
Walking over to the bed, I flopped down on it and felt how soft and comfortable it was before ripping myself away, sitting on top of the bed in the lotus position, and beginning to cultivate.
(Valaria's POV)
Walking upstairs, I make my way over to the bed and lay down on top of it, facing the ceiling. Soon, a window appeared in my vision.
[Congratulations [Quest: Mainline 2: First Contact] Completed! You have received the reward of one limit break skill point.]
This notification was quite late, but it seems that the system either has some major changes or Elinaria was watching and prevented it from appearing.
Regardless, this gives me some things to think about. I have twelve skill points to spend.
The first thing I put a point into is medicine, which I then added the one-limit break skill point to. After that, I put three points into archery, swordsmanship, and blacksmithing.
Stepping back and looking at the skill screen, I see one more skill that I want to get, so I pull out the captain's cultivation core and convert it into experience.
[You have leveled up] X3
[You have received the level-up rewards of +1 skill points and +2 tech points.]
[You have received the level-up rewards of +1 skill points and +3 tech points.]
[You have received the level-up rewards of +2 skill points and +1 tech points.]
With the new skill points, I place three into chemistry and one into cooking.
Soon, the information came flooding in, but this time, I did something different and cleared my mind, entering a meditative state and trying to learn as much as possible. I even went so far as to draw connections between some of the information I was learning and try to take it a step further.
While doing this, I did not even notice that I was constantly acquiring new information related to what I was trying to learn.
In this state, I can not even feel the passage of time until I stop receiving information, and a window appears in my vision.
[Congratulations. While receiving the information, you took an active part and received more information than normal as a result. You are now a master in Chemistry and Blacksmithing and a Revolutionary in all fields of medicine. You have also discovered restorative meditation and no longer need to sleep.]
Looking outside the window, I see the sky brightening and the atmosphere gaining color.
Getting up, I feel that my clothes are stiff, so I look down and check them, only to see they are soaked in blood.
When I checked the bed to see if any blood had gotten on it, I was relieved to see that it was free of blood. Taking off my clothes revealed that my undergarments were also blood-free.
Sighing in relief, I put on the dress my body was born(?) created in(?) and put it on. This dress honestly felt wonderful to wear if it was not for the constant weird feeling I got from not being used to wearing such a thing.
Before heading downstairs, I opened and checked the tech menu after the steam electric generator.
There, I found what I was looking for an electric pump and residential water and waste systems techs. Purchasing them both gave me some knowledge related to the two. After finishing what I wanted to do, I headed downstairs to prepare breakfast as normal.