The potatoes helped. They were tough and tasted like dirt, but they were food. Li Fan and Zhang Tie ate them roasted over a small fire behind the hall.
[Congratulations. Host has avoided starvation. Basic survival check: passed.]
Zhang Tie ate four potatoes to Li Fan's one. The boy's energy was scary. After eating, he went right back to work, dragging more wood for the barracks.
Li Fan watched him. The system had given him the 'Mountain's Embrace' manual as a reward for starting the build. He looked it over. It was simple. It taught how to use the energy of the earth to make your body stronger, tougher, like stone. It was perfect for Zhang Tie.
"Disciple Zhang," Li Fan called.
Zhang Tie dropped a log and ran over."Yes, Sect Master?"
"Your training starts now.Sit."
Zhang Tie sat on the ground,looking serious.
Li Fan pointed to a spot on the ground. "Put your hands here. Feel the earth. Don't think. Just feel its weight. Its patience. Its strength. Let that feeling come into you."
It was basic stuff. The first page of the manual. But to Zhang Tie, it was magic words from his master. He closed his eyes, his big hands flat on the dirt. He sat so still he looked like a rock himself.
Li Fan watched. For a long time, nothing happened. Then, a faint brownish glow, like dust in sunlight, appeared around Zhang Tie's hands. It slowly moved up his arms.
[Disciple Zhang Tie is comprehending 'Mountain's Embrace' foundational concept. Speed: slow but steady. Affinity confirmed: High.]
Good. The kid could learn. He wasn't dumb. He just learned with his body, not his head.
While Zhang Tie sat, Li Fan worked. He used the 'Unbreaking Hold' technique to join wood together. His hands glowed with a soft blue light as he pressed beams into place. The joints sealed tight, stronger than nails. They built the frame of the barracks. It was just four walls and a roof, but it was a real building.
The sun was starting to go down when Zhang Tie opened his eyes. He looked at his hands. "Sect Master... I felt it. It was heavy. But good heavy."
"Good," Li Fan said. "That's your foundation. Practice that feeling every day. Now, help me lift this beam."
They worked together. With Zhang Tie's strength and Li Fan's technique, the barracks was up before dark. It was just one room with four simple wooden beds, but it was solid. It had a door and a window.
[Mission Complete: Build Barracks.]
[Reward: 5 Low-Grade Spirit Stones added to inventory.]
[New Mission: Secure the Perimeter.]
[Goal: Create a basic warning system around the sect grounds. Use spirit stones and formations.]
[Time until estimated enemy probe: 36 hours.]
Enemy probe. The Fierce Tiger Sect. Li Fan felt a chill. He looked at his sect. One hall, one barracks, two people. Not much.
"We have a problem," Li Fan said to Zhang Tie as they looked at their work. "A local sect called the Fierce Tiger Sect thinks this mountain is theirs. They might come to cause trouble."
Zhang Tie's face got hard. His big hands clenched. "We will protect the sect, Master."
"I know.But we need to be smart. Tonight, we make traps. Not to kill. To warn, and to slow them down."
Li Fan's mind started working. He still had the spirit stones from his rewards. He had the Basic Spirit Gathering Array knowledge. He could make something simple.
"Zhang Tie, I need ten thin, straight branches. Each as long as your arm. Can you find them?"
"Right away,Master!" Zhang Tie ran into the growing dark.
Li Fan took out one of his spirit stones. It glowed with a soft white light in his hand, warm and full of energy. He could use this.
When Zhang Tie came back with the branches, Li Fan got to work. He used the sharp rock to carve tiny lines on each branch—a simple alarm rune from the system's basic knowledge. At the base of each branch, he pressed a tiny sliver of spirit stone, broken off the main one.
[Improvised 'Whispering Stick' alarm. Triggers when foreign spiritual energy passes. Crude but effective. Success rate: 65%.]
He placed the sticks in the ground around the sect border, about fifty steps apart. He placed them along the main path, hidden by bushes and rocks.
"These will tell us if someone comes," Li Fan explained. "They will hum if a cultivator passes. We will hear it in the hall."
Zhang Tie looked at the sticks with wonder. "Magic sticks."
"Simple magic.Now, the path. We need to make it... difficult."
They didn't have time for a wall. So Li Fan used what they had. He had Zhang Tie roll big stones onto the path, not blocking it completely, but making a narrow, twisty route. At the narrowest points, Li Fan set up more simple tricks. A loose pile of rocks balanced to fall. A trip wire made of strong vine at ankle height.
[Defense rating: Minimal. Will annoy and delay low-level cultivators. Will not stop a determined Core Formation expert.]
It was something. By the time they finished, the moon was high. They were both tired.
"Sleep," Li Fan said. "You take the first bed. I will take the watch for a few hours."
"But Master—"
"That's an order,Disciple."
Zhang Tie nodded, yawning. He went into the new barracks and was snoring in minutes.
Li Fan sat on the steps of the main hall. The mountain was quiet. The array hummed inside. The little flame in his dantian was a steady ember now. He listened.
He thought about the Fierce Tiger Sect. The system said they would probe. That meant scouts. Maybe a few disciples. He and Zhang Tie could handle a few. Probably.
But what came after? If they beat the scouts, the main sect would come. He needed more. He needed another disciple. He needed the system to give him better tools.
[Scanning local area for compatible talent...]
A map appeared in his mind's eye.It showed the mountain and the valleys around. A few dim dots of light glowed here and there—mortal villages. Then, one dot, closer than the others, pulsed with a faint, sharp light. Like a needle.
[Talent detected. 3 li east, in Green Willow Village. Profile: High Sword Affinity. Status: Crippled. Rejected by local swordsmen. Probability of recruitment: High if Host offers purpose.]
A sword talent. Crippled. Rejected. Just like Zhang Tie.
Li Fan looked at the moon. He needed to be ready for the Fierce Tiger Sect first. But after... there was another person out there who needed a place.
He heard a noise. A soft snap from the woods.
He was on his feet in a second. The noise wasn't from his alarm sticks. It was closer. An animal?
Then he heard a whimper. A human sound. Full of pain.
It came from just beyond the broken gate, off to the side of the path.
Li Fan moved quietly. He picked up a heavy stick. He peered into the dark.
A figure was slumped against a tree. Small. Thin. In the moonlight, he saw it was a girl. She held her right arm against her chest. It was bent the wrong way. Her clothes were dirty and torn. She was shaking.
She hadn't set off the alarms because she had almost no spiritual energy. She was barely at Qi Condensation, layer 1. And she was hurt.
She looked up and saw him. Her eyes were wide with fear and pain. She tried to scramble back, but she cried out as her arm moved.
"Don't," Li Fan said, his voice low. He dropped the stick and held up his empty hands. "I won't hurt you. What happened?"
The girl just stared, breathing fast. She was maybe sixteen. Her face was pale.
[Target identified: Su Ling'er. Age 16. Qi Condensation, Layer 1 (Meridians damaged). Affinity: Sword (Sealed). Source of injury: Fall from cliffside path, likely fleeing pursuit. Recommendation: Provide medical aid. High potential recruitment target.]
Su Ling'er. The sword talent. She was here. Already.
"Can you walk?" Li Fan asked.
She shook her head, tears in her eyes. She pointed weakly back down the mountain, then made a cutting motion across her throat. Her meaning was clear. Someone was after her.
The Fierce Tiger Sect wasn't waiting 36 hours. Their problem was here now. And this girl was caught in it.
"Zhang Tie!" Li Fan called, not too loud.
The snoring in the barracks stopped. A second later, the big boy stumbled out, blinking. "Master?"
"Help me. We have a guest. And we might have company soon."
Zhang Tie saw the girl. His sleepy face turned serious. He didn't ask questions. He just moved, gentle for his size. "I'll carry her, Master."
As Zhang Tie carefully lifted Su Ling'er, Li Fan looked down the dark path. No lights yet. No sound of alarms. But the night didn't feel empty anymore.
The first battle wasn't days away. It was coming tonight.