This time when Jianyu awoke, he was fully cognizant of where he was. His sleep had been dreamless and restful, although his body was still sore as it tried to recover from his injuries. Although most of his wounds had healed over already, he still had to recuperate from the incredible strain he had subjected his body to as he channeled techniques he hadn’t refined yet.

Soon after rising, Jianyu realized several things. First, he had no idea what time it was. He was faced with the same difficulties he had faced the previous… day? Night? He wasn’t sure how long ago he had faced the ravenous wolf pack. Ultimately, it didn’t matter, as all rational thought was quickly replaced with a desperate hunger. He was positively famished, a sensation he hadn’t felt in many years. Normally, a cultivator could sustain themselves with Qi, but as Jianyu remembered bitterly, he could no longer cultivate.

Strangely, he wasn’t thirsty at all, though he hadn’t drunk anything since the attack on the sect. He wasn’t one to look a gift horse in the mouth, however, and didn’t question it, lest the gods were listening. Leaving the destroyed barracks, Jianyu walked around the inner courtyard, extending his Soul Sight as he did so. He noticed the wolf pups, still slumbering where he had left them. If I’m going to take care of them, I’ll have to think of names. He sighed, realizing just how much he had left to do before he left the sect. I’ll add that to my list.

As he walked, Jianyu examined his surroundings. Despite multiple days having passed since the attack, life still hadn’t returned to the sect. In his vision, Jianyu saw numerous dead zones, places where Qi strands appeared to have been torn apart. This violated everything he thought he knew about the world; Qi could not be created or destroyed, only altered. Even cultivators themselves didn’t create Qi; they simply collected the natural energy of the world and converted it into a form that they could use.

Just as there was Life Qi, there was also Death Qi as its counterpart. The five elements, Water, Fire, Wood, Metal, and Earth, made up almost everything in reality. Water Qi rejuvenated the body, working in tandem with Wood Qi to create life. Metal Qi was present in the blood, reinforcing the bones and muscles of the body. Earth Qi was present in the flesh of every living being, the neutral element that bound everything together. And Fire Qi was present all throughout the body; it was why one’s muscles seemed to be ablaze after difficult exercise. But fire, like all the elements, is dual in nature, and as it destroyed the muscles and flesh of the body, it also tempered the flesh that remained, helping to build new tissue in its place.

Of course, there were also other types of Qi, like Wind, Lightning, and Darkness, but even these played a role in everyday life. But everywhere that the assassins had used their sinister techniques, the fabric of the world simply ceased to exist. What concerned Jianyu was that every time he approached one of these… voids, he began to feel an attraction towards it. Compounding this, it appeared that the strange force acted upon the void as well, causing them to move towards Jianyu. For the time being, he resolved to avoid them if at all possible. Nothing good ever came from Void Qi techniques.

Finally, he arrived at the pantry. Even though there had been no Qi-dense foods when he had searched previously, that didn’t mean there was nothing for him to eat. In fact, there was plenty of mortal food left untouched by the battle; dried meats and mortal fruits were in abundance, of little use to cultivators. For better or worse however, Jianyu was no longer a cultivator, and so food like this was essential for his survival.

He began to unceremoniously sate his appetite, eating anything he laid his hands on. Cheeses and meats were the first to go, filling his stomach more quickly than other foods. As they contained more Qi than other foods, they stood out more in his vision. Any mortal chef would have been appalled at the sheer price of the foods he was consuming; though the ingredients in the pantry were of mortal-grade, they were still of exquisite quality, carefully cultivated by the novice gardeners of the sect or bought at a premium from distant towns.

Before long, Jianyu realized that he was growing increasingly thirsty the more that he consumed. At first, he ignored it, desperate to end his ravenous cravings, but it quickly became too pressing to ignore. Grabbing as much food as he could carry, Jianyu sprinted from the pantry, located in the kitchen on the west end of the sect, back to the east end, where the moisture collectors were located.

They were shaped like wide funnels, powered by Qi constructs within that drew water into their entrance. At the bottom of the funnel was a spout where water could be drawn from. In his frantic state, Jianyu released the water and began to drink directly from the spout, presenting a curious sight for any would-be onlookers.

After quenching his thirst, Jianyu was finally back to normal. That… was weird, he thought to himself. Even when had been mortal, he couldn’t recall ever being so primal in nature. Another thing to ask about if I survive long enough to see a healer.

Despite his famished outburst, Jianyu still didn’t feel content. His body felt whole again, albeit strained beyond its limits, and his stomach was filled. Why, then, was he still unsatisfied? He resolved to discover why as he accomplished his goals for the day.

His first job was caring for the wolf pups. Although their last meal had been enormous, they were already whining with hunger once more. They quieted after Jianyu fed them more demon cores. At this rate, I’m going to run out of sustenance for them. Beyond his immediate supply, he had no idea how to care for them.

The pups content for the moment, Jianyu began the difficult task of burying the bodies of his fellow disciples. While he had only ever been close with his brother, he knew that the disciples deserved better than to have their bodies lay out in the open, exposed to the elements. Also, Jianyu needed supplies, and despite questioning the morality of robbing the dead, Jianyu’s practicality won out. He simply needed their supplies more than they did, having moved onto the next life. After digging a pit and stripping any valuables from his former compatriots' corpses, Jianyu quickly but respectfully buried their bodies, aided by the strength of his enhanced body.

In the end, it paid to be practical, and Jianyu was now the proud owner of 17 low grade essence stones, several daggers he strapped to his person in various places, a cheap but durable jian to replace the one he had lost, and several storage rings ranging from trash to poor quality. It was common knowledge that having more than one storage item at a time caused the spatial dimensions within them to interfere with each other, leading to disastrous consequences. As a result, Jianyu settled on the best ring he could find, holding a storage of 20 dàn*.

There was another reason that Jianyu had chosen to search for a storage ring. While his compatriots would be buried, satisfying their ancestors and ensuring that no evil spirits were attracted by their mistreatment, his brother was a different case altogether.

Jianyu stared into his brother's eyes, empty as they were. Those beautiful brown eyes, once filled with life and vigor, were now devoid of anything at all. Normally, Jianyu couldn’t see color in his Soul Sight, but evidently Zhaohui had begun his ascension into Foundation Establishment, his body incredibly detailed because of the Qi within his flesh.

Even death itself seemed hesitant to claim the immaculately preserved corpse. His sad smile was marred by the blood trailing from the corners of his mouth, and his formerly sky blue sect robes were stained with dried blood. Normally, bodies would begin to decompose quickly after death. They would begin to stink as their bowels voided themselves, and bacteria began to claim their corpse. However, due to some strange characteristic of Void Qi, none of these signs of decomposition were present.

Glancing sorrowfully at his brother’s body once more, Jianyu mentally directed his new storage ring to store Zhaohui’s corpse. He would receive the funeral he deserved one day, after Jianyu avenged him.

After attending to the bodies of the former disciples, he set about preparing to leave the sect. The pups were growing quickly and Jianyu had a finite number of cores to feed them. He personally needed to find a healer to fix his body, or at least tell him what was wrong. He set about filling his storage ring with the rest of the food from the pantry, as well as anything that could prove valuable in the future. He had space to spare, and even though the storage ring only decreased the weight of its contents by 10%, this was nothing to his superior constitution.

His tasks complete, Jianyu prepared to leave the place he had called home for the past 10 years. He wasn’t saddened by this. All that was left of it were ghosts and bad memories.