A year rolled by in the blink of an eye, and Anji had already grown comfortable in the Mystical Qilin Sect, her new ho.
Just last year, she rembered her brother escorting her to the sect. The mory of their trip to different towns and regions outside remained fresh as snow in her mind. Yet, Anji had grown a few centitres taller since that ti. The old clothes she had brought from the Celestial Dragon Sect were now too small for her. Even if Anji grew at a slower rate than other children, she still outgrew her old clothes under the great care of Aunt Wine and Doctor Yun.
Initially, the collaborative training was intended to last only one season, allowing everyone to return before winter. Travelling during winter was difficult, even for cultivators who did not need to wear wool clothing. However, a few people who did not have urgent matters remained behind when they learned the Mystical Qilin Sect was busy preparing for their successor’s birthday. Zhao Wanting and Ruiting insisted on staying. Even Zhao Mingfeng ditched his sect duties to visit. There was no way he was going to miss out on Anji’s seventh birthday! Sadly, Mingshen was still busy, but he wrote a letter and sent a gift to apologise for being a bad brother. Anji did not think she had terrible brothers, even when neither of them was able to attend her seventh birthday.
Apart from the Celestial Dragon Sect, so representatives who had grown close to Anji remained behind to attend her birthday celebration before returning to their respective sects. Shi Ding insisted that Sect Leader Chen would kill him if he returned without first celebrating Anji’s birthday. In fact, Chen Zhong rembered the birthday and sent gifts to the Mystical Qilin Sect to congratulate their successor. Surprisingly, Hong Nian Niang visited a few days before the celebration, even though all her disciples had left the mountain a few weeks prior with the Azure Dragon, Heavenly Phoenix, and White Tiger mbers. The lady, dressed in red from head to toe, smiled at Anji and brought a surprise with her.
"Congratulations on your seventh birthday, darling! Bai Dajin might be a brute, but he’s still considered Murim’s strongest martial artist. I ca with a gift he commissioned. It took so long to make that I feared we would miss your birthday. Anyway, swing it a few tis to see if you like it?"
The gift was a set of personalised daggers that could be concealed in boots as a secondary hidden weapon. The daggers were crafted with a lock and push chanism for safety and were smaller than most blades, making it easy for a child to carry them around. If Anji grew a little bigger, it would make great concealed weapons in her sleeves.
"I can’t believe he thought of this," the Vermillion Bird Sect Leader sighed. "Great minds think alike. Thankfully, I didn’t go with daggers. In my opinion, it was too crude for a lady. Here, this is my gift to you. Happy birthday!"
Opening the long box, Anji studied the new hairpin with interest. On the surface, it appeared to be a beautiful new hair accessory. However, the sharp edges and strange ring design at the end of the ornant puzzled her.
"Is this also a hidden weapon?" she asked.
Grinning, Hong Nian Niang stroked Anji’s head affectionately. Not many people would be able to tell at one glance what this was. It ca from a different province and from a martial sect ant only for ladies. Although it was not the exact version, the Vermillion Bird Sect Leader adjusted it to be worn at all tis as a secret weapon hidden in plain sight.
Demonstrating how the Ei Piercer hairpin worked, Hong Nian Niang shifted the ring into the centre grove of the weapon, locking it in place with the hair ornant. Anji observed with curiosity as the woman slipped that ring onto her middle finger and spun it around on her open palm like a fan.
"The edges are sharp, so if you grab it, you can stab soone with it. It’s not the easiest weapon to master, but I thought this would be a lot simpler than a hidden needle crossbow. Those things tend to misfire a lot."
Unsure if she would consider this safer than a needle crossbow, Anji thanked Hong Nian Niang for her generous gift. Truthfully, it was a very pretty hairpin. Even if Anji never learned how to use it as a hidden weapon, she would still have a nice hair accessory to wear for her birthday banquet.
"Thank you," she bead. "I love it!"
That was enough to convince Hong Nian Niang that her gift was better than Bai Dajin’s. Eagerly, the Vermillion Bird Sect Leader offered to restyle Anji’s hair so she could try out the new hair accessory. Zhao Wanting watched from the side and smiled. Although she did not want her youngest child to live a life of violence, it was good that Anji had weapons to protect herself with. While the Mystical Qilin Sect was a strong fortress, sotis enemies ca from within the walls.
With her birthday being only a few days away, Anji cherished her ti with the people who were staying behind to celebrate it with her. According to her shifu, she had enough understanding of how to harmonise with nature. After discovering the trick and spending a considerable amount of ti in the library, Anji finally understood how to control the artificial cores that had been released from their limiters. However, that knowledge was only in theory. After her seventh birthday, Yan Ping told Anji that she would have to remain in her isolated cultivation chamber to prepare for cultivation enhancent. Until she reached the Refined Core stage, Anji was not allowed to use the accelerated cultivation chamber. Her artificial cores were too weak to withstand the pressure without limiters unless Anji had refined her control over them in the Refined Core Stage.
Although Anji was very hardworking, she had no idea how long it would take her to reach the Refined Core Stage. After all, even after working hard for three years at the Celestial Dragon Sect, she only barely managed to reach the foundation of the Strengthened Core base. Knowing that the process could take several years, Anji treasured what could be the last ti she would see the people she cared for and engraved the mories of her seventh birthday in her heart to look back on whenever she felt lonely during her isolated training.
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