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It was hard to recall lectures from so many decades ago, but Barrett didn’t find it hard to refresh himself on the most important points of running a city. At least the most important things according to his father, and he found he basically agreed. The only thing that Barrett didn’t agree on was that he should be the one running things. The problem was that if asked to say who else could do it, he had trouble pointing someone out. Rylan, maybe, but in this particular case he was already quite occupied and many countries away.
Upholding peace and justice. Barrett couldn’t exactly say the lives of cultivators would be peaceful- very, very few cultivators got that privilege. Mostly those who devoted themselves to creation, crafting weapons and armor and magical items. Even then, they would likely end up in conflicts eventually. But… just because he couldn’t obtain perfect peace didn’t mean he couldn’t strive towards it.
From Barrett’s own perspective, peace wasn’t necessarily a lack of fighting or pain… it was about the larger context. If he sparred with Nilima, the violence and pain of the conflict certainly existed- but it was still also peaceful. After everything was over, they would rest and recuperate, becoming stronger for the experience. In times of war, however, the total prosperity of people decreased. Even if a country took over another and took all their resources, the total went down.
Justice was a more difficult concept. Everyone had some idea of what was right and what was wrong, shaped by their surroundings. Barrett believed that there was an objective answer for each situation, but not that he would necessarily know it. However, Barrett’s basic ideas of justice were simple enough. People should not bring harm to others, except to defend themselves. Every single person would have an opinion on what that meant, whether attacking someone who was going to attack them would be appropriate or not. One thing Barrett could say for sure was that ‘might makes right’ was incorrect. Even so, he sometimes had to act if that was the case, using his own personal might to uphold justice. Their village was officially unnamed but often called something akin to ‘Prosperous Haven’ or just ‘Haven’. As it grew larger, it inevitably had more conflicts with others nearby. Barrett found himself visiting nearby cities to disentangle students who had gotten themselves into trouble… but occasionally he had to let them stew in jail for a time when they had really been at fault, either intentionally or through carelessness in their actions.
—–
If Simran had been content to live a life where she just had enough food, things would have probably been simpler for her. Perhaps she could have settled down and started a family, or moved off into the wilderness and started a little farm for herself… or even continued to live in Haven or whatever people were calling it, but without continuing her cultivation. But, just the baseline level of being alive wasn’t what she wanted.
So she continued cultivating… even though it hurt. She never knew how much her muscles could cry out in pain until they grew strong enough to withstand more. But while it was unpleasant, it was nowhere near as bad as the feeling of helplessness brought about by hunger and inability to solve it.
On the path to cultivation, other people also existed. Sometimes they were friends, and sometimes there was conflict. Either one could result in growth, but Master Ravenhall said experience was the most important thing. He didn’t say she had to go out and pick fights, the implied training method of all of Mistress Nilima’s students, but she did have to seek new people to spar with.
Somehow, Simran had ended up friends with a strange older woman. A student of Mistress Nilima. Given her advanced age, the gentle path entirely suited her. That was why it was surprising to sense berserk energy in those tired old bones. Well, not in the bones probably. She seemed like she would fall apart if the berserk energy actually rested inside her for long. Then again, who wouldn’t? Simran had faced off against berserk energy users many times now, and it always had extremely unpleasant results for anything it interacted with. It was fortunate that Master Barrett had copious advice for how to deal with any issues it left behind, so she could heal more quickly and resume her training.
Urvi was like the grandmother of their little group. Not quite as old as the masters, but she certainly looked it. She was nice like a grandmother too- as long as everyone was behaving and getting along. And if nobody called her that. She watched out for the others, and that was why she had chosen Simran to come along with her. “One of our younger sisters has found herself bullied by cultivators from the city. Come with us to avenge her trouble.”
Simran looked over the others. Other women of various ages, mostly from the gentle energy path taught by Mistress Nilima. There were few students of either Master Barrett or the berserk energy path, and fewer still of those were women. “What happened?” Urvi had stood up for her during other trouble before, and the other cultivators really were like her little sisters. Sometimes a pain in the neck, but still family.
“One of our sisters purchased a cultivation medicine in the city, not knowing a certain cultivator had her eyes on it as well. Outside of the city, she was ambushed by a demon and the medicine stolen. Her wounds will heal, but her humiliation must be avenged.”
Simran nodded. “All of us for just one person? A demon?”
“Of course not. If we were all required for a single person, we could only bear the shame. The offender is a young protege of a sect, and never alone. Even at her young age, she is also a third tier cultivator in her own right.”
Simran grimaced. What an annoying situation. None of them were third tier yet, though she had hopes to reach it. Master Barrett seemed to believe she could, but she had only reached second tier the year before. She was less than mid second tier, and the same was true of all but the most advanced students in Haven. “How did they not manage to buy it first, if they had their eye on it?”
Urvi shook her head, “Perhaps it was just an excuse. Regardless, she is headed away from the city, so this is our best chance. If she remains in a city or returns to her sect, we can’t hope to get revenge.”
Simran nodded seriously. She understood.
—–
The target they were after was named Yamanu. It was not difficult to catch up to her route, since she wasn’t fleeing or attempting to avoid notice. Upon seeing her, Simran understood why she had been described as a demon. She was large, perhaps two meters and a hand’s width more in height and more muscular than most men. She had horns and tusks, and she carried a large spiked metal club. The others with her appeared to be less exaggerated, but all were strong and a few had small protrusions of horns or teeth. They must have cultivated a strange method or in a foul place to end up as they did.
“Halt there, fiend!” Urvi acted as the spokeswoman of the group, stepping out slightly forward. “You have brutally attacked and robbed one of our sisters! What do you have to say to this accusation?”
All of the approaching group tensed up and reached for their weapons, though Yamanu herself didn’t seem particularly worried. “Who are you, then?” She squinted, then sniffed. “Oh, I get it. That weakling couldn’t handle a loss. Then she wasn’t even brave enough to show up for revenge herself.”
“Her wounds require time to heal.” Urvi half-leaned on her weapon- a large pole with axe blades and spearheads on both ends. “Now then, do you deny that you robbed our sister of her rightly purchased cultivation materials?”
Yamanu’s grin revealed more than just her tusks, but also numerous sharp teeth. “That’s right, I wanted it so I took it. That’s my right. I’m from Heavenly Mountain, you know? We have a grandmaster.”
Simran tensed up. Heavenly Mountain. She’d heard about their… figures. She just hadn’t expected it to look quite the way Yamanu ended up. Something about the location of the sect caused sturdy bone growth- though Master Barrett had called it ‘excessive bone growth’ instead. Nobody had said they looked like demons. Though Simran thought that maybe people were just afraid to. A grandmaster? She knew that was right, and if Yamanu was a favored disciple…
Urvi didn’t let up. “A grandmaster? Even if you were a grandmaster yourself, it would give you no right to steal from others.”
Simran steadied herself and nodded. That was right. Still, could they afford to anger someone who had a grandmaster backing them? On the other hand… could they afford to back down? If they did, would they ever stand up for any of their own or even themselves? Not everyone would have grandmasters, but perhaps they would have a master in the clan… or know one… or potentially become one. Where was the line drawn? Grandmasters seemed like a good start, but… Master Barrett had said it once. Don’t be afraid of doing the right thing. Was teaching this woman a lesson the right thing? She certainly needed to understand not everything could go her way, that just doing what she wanted wasn’t right. Yamanu had left their sister alive, so they should not kill in retaliation… but they could at least break an equal number of bones, right? And, if they could get back what was stolen, they would. Simran thumped her spear on the ground behind Urvi, and readied herself.