One thing he’d never felt, not really, was hope. Master couldn’t make him strong, and she’d never groused about that topic. He could rise as an alchemist and artificer, but deep down in his heart he knew that wasn’t what his family wanted. He would always be a disappointment, at best.
He held hope in his hands, now. A lone petri dish, among all he had prepared. The bacteria were getting along well with the substrate mimicking the human body; more importantly, a tiny force pulsed within the container. Jing, Essence. Project Coral was a go… and not a moment too soon. If he’d kept track of days right, his Master would be returning today.
Trying to absorb the actual energy in that dish would be fatal, probably instantly. Without a core, he could not handle it within his own body. But these bacteria could do it. If he could form symbiosis with them by inserting a few samples into his own network of meridians, they would collectively perform the functions of a core. He could Ascend further.
All the necessary equipment was at hand, and the Zodiac were spread throughout the compound to greet and welcome the Master whenever she returned. He’d managed to make the second product in time, so there were no other pressing matters. Now was the time. In the heart of the qi laboratory, he took off his robes, grabbed a clean syringe, and got to work.
Of course, the next part was tricky. With Dog and Dragon keeping watch outside the lab’s door, the prince settled onto the floor in the lotus position and turned his focus inward. It had been a long time since he really concentrated on cycling his qi; typically, his enhanced subconscious took care of that. This time, he sunk deep in and monitored every aspect of his energy flow.
The work was impossibly delicate, but maintaining his meditative state throughout helped. With the syringe, he drew a tiny little dot of the enhanced bacteria, and then had to transfer the sample to his body within a few heartbeats to ensure they remained alive for the whole process. He had to make twelve separate injections, each at precisely the correct acupunctural point to align with his major meridians, and then eight more for the ‘extraordinary’ meridians. This would give his newest creation its best chance to adapt to his flesh and align with his energy.
Was that a… tickling sensation? A squirming feeling? Could he feel the micro-organisms squirm around inside of his flesh? Qi functioned as a connective force, so it was possible. Another factor he needed to monitor. He redoubled his concentration, cycling his qi to guide his new symbionts to their destined place within his body.
Did he sense happiness? Fulfillment? Huang Jin had a flash of insight, an image of awed rural types plucked from their dull and mundane homeland and placed by a mysterious force into a new, strange, and wondrous country. Then, the odd impression faded into the background of his mind as he detected a little hint of a stutter in his energy flow. The new residents settled in and began their work.
He continued cycling his qi, checking for changes and allowing the newcomers to get situated. All at once, something pierced his concentration from the outside.
“Ah, understood. Give me one moment!” he finally got around to replying. No matter the need for haste, he needed to clean up the lab after his adventures with the syringe. As a researcher, contamination was unacceptable. It was the work of mere moments to set everything aright, including the dish containing the now-much-reduced remnants of the bacteria.
They had a plan in place for how they’d be arranged for the Master’s return; he'd drilled the Zodiac on it whenever he had the time. He hurried from the lab and rushed to grab a fresh gi, Dog and Dragon hot on his heels… or back, in Dragon’s case. In the last month, he’d grown from the size of Huang Jin’s hand to the size of his arm, and had already started flying through the air like a ribbon in the breeze. The ridge on his back grew noticeable and red, his antlers were no longer nubs, and he had real teeth already. He could largely take care of himself, now, and even spoke a word or two occasionally- with his mouth, no less!
Dragon, Dog, and Huang Jin would position themselves in the vast prairie chamber, next to the alchemy shed where the products awaited presentation. Pig, Rat, Rabbit, Ox, Horse, Rooster, Sheep, and Snake were stationed outside of the cabin, in a temporary barn structure he’d set up for the occasion. Between those two points, Tiger and Monkey would attend to the Master within the house and direct her to the prairie chamber. Hopefully, it would be a fun little display before he showed her what he’d managed to do.
In the very brief time he had left after reaching the shed, the prince wrote a final page in his report document for Project Coral. Then, all he could do was wait.
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Before her lay a new construction by the side of the cabin, a tidy little open barn clearly made with both love and haste. Arranged within were a long, milky-white snake, a colorful rooster, and a lost-looking sheep, all silent. The greeting came from those arranged in front of the barn. The huge form of Ox bowed, though even in that stance he outsized the little building. Three other animals also bent their knees before her: Rabbit, a pig with a rat clinging to the top of its head, and a horse. The horse fidgeted and twitched in place, as though uncomfortable or suppressing some urge.
Its obvious discomfort was just enough to distract her from the giant pile of ‘what the fuck’ that waited within her home. She put her hands on her hips and said, “You look like you have more to say, horse.”
After one final twitch, the words exploded out,
That was as far as he got before Rabbit landed a vicious kick right to his hind ankle, dropping him instantly. <-ARG!>
Ox gazed sidelong at the two as if this happened every day, while the pig looked over at the display briefly before catching himself and re-bowing his head. The rat maintained his grip, but his eyes remained fixed on the ‘Grandmaster.’
Dahe Yiji closed her eyes and turned her face up to the sky. “Kid really is royalty, I leave him alone for a bit and he starts growing retainers.” She stepped past the bickering spirit beasts toward the less intelligent specimens inside the shelter. The sheep bleated, but did not approach or shy away from her, while the snake and rooster just watched her movements. She leaned down to the colorful bird and asked, “Alright, so what’s your thing?”
“Buc-ack?” It cocked its head, one eye remaining trained on her in blank uncomprehension.
“Fascinating.” The Immortal stepped away from the gathering and made her way to the cabin proper. With a gesture, she released them from duty, adding, “At ease, fellas, I have been adequately welcomed.” She didn’t stop to see if that calmed them; there was much to think about, here.
Eight spirit beasts, six just recently Awakened from the state of normal animals. Two of these were already capable of speech! And apparently, they’d managed to teach the art to Ox and Rabbit.
It was all very strange. Ox and Rabbit were born into their power, and were indeed vastly stronger than the others… but the sheep, chicken, snake, horse, pig, and rat had all made it to the second stage of the Student’s Realm. That shouldn’t be possible, given the time frame.
She knew there were more inside, but allowed herself some surprise when she opened the front door. A macaque and a whole-ass, full-grown male tiger waited within, each bowing down in their own fashion.
“Fuckin’ ay, I’m welcomed already. Be a good couple of whatevers and take me to the kid, would you?”
The pair glanced at each other, bowed again, and then the monkey hopped up on the tiger’s back and started riding him.
“Well,” she said as she followed, “you two have it more together than that mess outside.”
His tone was unmistakable: grave, genuine, and utterly sincere. Dahe slapped a hand to her forehead. “Oh, thank goodness! You know, when I got out of bed this morning I was really hoping a monkey would show up and shove his nose in my ass.”
The tiger stopped short, nearly throwing off his rider. The monkey scrambled to maintain his grip, then gave her a furtive backwards look before bowing his head. The tiger joined in this gesture, turning to face her.
He calmed when she put a gentle hand on top of his head. “It’s fine. I can tell you’re an astute and diligent student. But know this, and make certain you tell the others: I am Huang Jin’s Master, and not your own. I give you permission to respect me, if you really must, but you mustn’t hold any expectations of me. Are we clear?”
They took her to the great prairie chamber, and then just a little bit further to her student’s alchemy shed. Dog lay on the ground at his own master’s feet, and to her relief he did not bow to her and only inclined his head. The Chow Chow knew his exact place in the world. There, before the little building, stood her silly, precious little protege, clasping his hands before him and bowing lightly in greeting. His qi flowed strangely, but Dahe had greater concerns at that moment.
A long, thin shape clung to his shoulder. It stared at her, round circle-within-circle eyes wide open and mouth agape. Dragons had an inherent sensitivity to qi; it could tell that she was some kind of incomprehensible monster.
Honestly, the shock was mutual. She’d thought she sensed it from the outside, but now, looking at it with her own eyes… yeah, this was Yulong. It was the Wood Sovereign, her friend, in every detail, down to his very genes.
For the first time in many centuries, Dahe Yiji, Immortal of the Great River, stood utterly speechless.