A Snail's Wisdom

They used their abilities to combine several tables and move a dozen chairs around. Hizumi could have arranged it all instantly, but someone of his standing wouldn"t handle such menial tasks.

He then handed the jar to a Foundation Establishment junior and said, "Prepare a quarter of this fruit for consumption. Make sure you don"t touch it."

"Why can"t he touch it?" pondered Kenja.

Seeing the curious look on Kenja"s face, Snail explained, "Even touching a fresh Sanguine Spirit Fruit would allow the concentrated Qi to seep into your pores and cause them to expel blood. That"s how powerful these fruits are. Simple physical contact will injure the unprepared."

This reason was why they were termed Sanguine Spirit Fruits. It was not for their blood-red color, but because simply holding it could become a b.l.o.o.d.y affair.

Hizumi"s junior handled the jar without touching it. He unsealed it and motioned for the water inside to carry the fruit out of the jar. The fruit was was floating in the air with the water encasing it.

The water preserved the freshness of the fruit as well as its quality. Separated from the tree, it would become a harmless and regular fruit within an incense stick of time if the water was not present to envelop it.

The junior executed a hand-slicing motion as a small portion of the fruit was severed. He then used his index finger to draw tiny circles in the air. The severed portion was quickly divided into spheres the size of a tiny marble.

Kenja looked at the cut-up fruit and realized that it looked identical to the fruit Souji and Elder Kazane had enjoyed during his examination, except this portion size was less than a fourth of the previously prepared fruit.

Hizumi sat on one side of the table, indicating for everyone to join him. The fruit-cutter had taken a pair of chopsticks out and split it up into dozens of small toothpicks before placing one into each morsel of fruit.

He maneuvered the fruit onto the table and siphoned some of the water to encase the servings in order to prolong their freshness.

Having finished preparing the fruit, he placed the remainder in the jar and joined his other brothers at the table. Hizumi took the jar and placed it back in his bag.

The boys were all seated on one side of the table and the other side had four empty chairs, inviting Kenja and his sisters.

"Please, take a set so that we may we begin the festivities," Hizumi commanded.

Hizumi had already stopped thinking about the game"s conditions and was looking forward to victory.

Kenja turned to his sisters and instructed them, "Let us enjoy the good fortune senior brother has offered us. Since I am the eldest sister here, I shall go first, and we will take turns until we are satisfied."

The three girls nodded their heads, understanding that Kenja had arranged these terms for their sakes.

"Kobayashi Shizuka thanks Senior Sister Hirai," Shizuka thanked Kenja as she bowed. She nudged Yoshie who was still squinting at Kenja and gave her a stern look.

Yoshie bowed alongside her. "Kobayashi Yoshie thanks Senior Sister Hirai as well."

They had already heard of this "Big Sister Hikaru" from Hanabi over the past few days. Kenja had the strong urge to tell them to also address him as big sister, but he resisted.

He wanted to distance himself from them as much as possible for many reasons, and he wouldn"t have jumped in to save them had it not been an opportune moment for him.

He loved his sisters, but he believed that constantly shielding them would hinder their growth as cultivators.

Had they gone along with Hizumi"s original suggestion, there was a good chance nothing too untoward would occur to them. After all, everyone still belonged to the same sect. Hizumi wasn"t immune to the sect"s rules of conduct.

Hanabi took a step forward toward Kenja with a repentant look on her face. "Big sister, please forgive me." She felt immense guilt in dragging Kenja into her ordeal.

Kenja looked at her and felt a pang in his heart. He hadn"t spent that much time with Hanabi, but he adored the sincere side to this princess. Seeing her upset and listless made him uncomfortable.

"You were about to enjoy such a great opportunity without inviting me. As your big sister, I will forgive you, but don"t be selfish in sharing such opportunities in the future." Kenja gave her a playful wink.

A smile returned to Hanabi"s lips as she looked at Kenja with strong adoration. "Big sister Hikaru truly is the big sister," she said in admiration.

Hanabi had a great talent for cultivation and was a princess of the royal family, but Kenja had experienced her ignorance of the world firsthand. Had no one escorted her around, she would wait in front of doors expecting them to open on their own.

While he was confident his twin sisters no longer needed his a.s.sistance to overcome the troubles they might encounter, he decided to watch over this princess a while longer until she could find her bearings.

Additionally, he had promised Souji to take care of her, and Kenja had always taken his promises very seriously.

Kenja sat down at the table across from Hizumi. His sisters followed and sat down next to him. Kenja clasped his hands and bowed slightly.

"My sisters and I thank you for this treat, senior brother."

The crowd that had been silently watching the spectacle for the past while began murmuring once more.

"Her loss is certain, and she still thanks him for the fruit!"

"What a respectful sister!"

"We should be more like her."

Hizumi was quite pleased with Kenja"s respectful demeanor. He smiled and lightly nodded in acknowledgment as he motioned for one of the fruits to float towards one of his junior brothers at the Qi Flourishing stage.

Even though he felt his victory was a.s.sured, there was no need to embarra.s.s them. The least he could do was make it look like a hard-fought battle.

The junior thanked his senior brother, agreeing with his intentions. He pinched the toothpick and placed the fruit in his mouth.

As soon as he began chewing the sliver of sweetness, he began circulating his Qi. Others nearby could feel the large quant.i.ty of Qi being circulated inside him. A few breaths later, he let out a deeply satisfied sigh with a look of intoxication.

Kenja was prepared for this, but he still could not believe his eyes. The fruit that he had eaten as breakfast everyday would cause such an effect with only a small crumb.

Hizumi nodded approvingly as he turned to Kenja. Kenja understood he was next and reached out for one of the bigger marbles. Wager or not, he was quite hungry.

Some of the crowd applauded Kenja for his bravery, but most derided him for his arrogant display.

"Junior Sister Hirai"s courage is commendable, but do not be in a rush to end the game. It would be unfortunate for your team if you retired after the first bite," Hizumi advised.

Kenja only smiled as he swallowed the fruit whole. Thanks to his current cultivation level, he could feel the enormous amount of Qi flow through his meridians for one breath before seeping out into his body"s muscles and bones.

He didn"t bother trying to circulate anything since he knew there would be no benefit. While others would be overwhelmed by the amount of Qi entering their bodies, he could only feel disappointment as that very same Qi naturally left his body.

"That was quite delicious, senior brother," he complimented truthfully. It had been several days since he had any of this fruit, so he had been craving some.

Everyone stared at him dumbstruck. Not only did he pick a large portion to eat, but he didn"t bother chewing it or circulating the Qi through his meridians in an effort to cope with the incoming Qi.

The one most surprised was Snail. His head was hidden inside his sh.e.l.l, but his eyeb.a.l.l.s were about to fall off his tentacles as his mouth hung wide open.

"Junior Sister Hirai has a strong stomach," Hizumi said baffled. He snapped himself out of it and motioned for another one of his junior brothers to eat.

He performed the same as his previous brother, but he spent a slightly longer time circulating the Qi before exhaling in a tired manner.

This time, Kenja told Hanabi to try one. Hanabi enjoyed taking up challenges, and she would have easily accepted the wager in the first place if her other junior sisters were not being dragged along with her.

She resolutely ate the fruit and circulated her Qi for only two breaths before exhaling out.

"Junior Sister Ryu is quite talented. You are indeed fit to be a princess of Ryuga," Hizumi praised Hanabi as he covertly leered at her.

"Such flattery. This boy should learn how to be more subtle if he wants to capture the hearts of women," ridiculed Snail.

Kenja felt Sakura vibrate slightly in agreement with Snail.

While it was not known amongst the city"s mortals, the cultivators knew about the "Kiss of the Dragon" and its benefits. It enhanced not only the inheritors" cultivation, but also the cultivation of their partners.

For anyone, winning over Hanabi would be a great boon, and this was what motivated Hizumi. With his seniority and cultivation level, few could challenge him in the sect, let alone contend with him over Hanabi.

Hizumi was about to motion for one of his third brothers to eat when Kenja spoke up.

"Senior brother, this will take all day if we simply alternate like this. How about you all eat once, and then we will eat the same number? We continue, till one side is no longer able to match the other."

Everyone looked at Kenja, stunned by his suggestion. Hizumi was trying to make this look like a somewhat-close compet.i.tion, and Kenja"s suggestion would lead to a quick defeat for the girls

"Sister, why do you wish to lose so quickly?"

Hizumi eyed Kenja in disbelief. "Junior sister, are you in a hurry to concede defeat? What"s the rush?"

"Please forgive my rudeness, senior brother. It"s just that...I am quite hungry," Kenja announced embarra.s.sedly.

The dining area became so silent that they could hear a vendor in the distance sizzling some meat. They weren"t sure what to think of this sister who was treating the compet.i.tion as if it was a mere lunch date.

Kenja was being completely truthful. He hadn"t eaten anything in several days, and now that food was in front of him, he was being forced to eat it one crumb at a time. Of course, he would become a little impatient.

Hizumi coughed out loud, also unsure of how to respond. Kenja wasn"t being disrespectful, so he decided this junior sister was trying to appeal to him with cute mannerisms.

"Very well, junior sister. I will allow it."

He motioned for six servings to float to the five juniors who hadn"t eaten yet and himself. They ate the fruit and spent some time circulating Qi. Hizumi took one breath of time before exhaling a satisfied sigh.

One of the brothers with a low-level Qi Flourishing cultivation finished circulating his Qi, stood up from his seat and bowed before stepping away from the compet.i.tion.

"Impressive, junior sisters! You have dealt the first blow," Hizumi congratulated them magnanimously.

The audience began their quiet whisperings once more after hearing Hizumi"s compliment.

"Senior brother is a true man amongst men. See how he congratulates his opponents after suffering a loss?" an outer sect disciple said to his friend.

"I wonder if we can join their dinner tomorrow," a servant girl dreamed out loud.

"He is definitely one of the sect"s Five Tributaries!" gushed another admirer.

Hizumi smiled in pleasure as he heard the crowd"s words. He enjoyed the glorification of those below him and was glad his words did not go unnoticed.

Kenja was glad that the crowd was inflating Hizumi"s ego. The bigger it was, the easier he would be to control with words.

"Your words are truly generous, senior brother," Kenja added onto the crowd"s compliments.

"Let us show this esteemed brother our determination, sisters," Kenja riled up his sisters as he picked up a fruit and ate it. Again, he astounded everyone by swallowing it whole without circulating his Qi.

Hanabi, Shizuka and Yoshie mimicked him and bravely ate a serving. They circulated their Qi for several breaths. Hanabi finished first while Shizuka and Yoshie continued to push the Qi through their meridians.

Shizuka and Yoshie stopped around the same time, heaving a large sigh and a heavily intoxicated look.

"Well done, you two," Kenja couldn"t help but praise his sisters, taking pride in their achievements.

"Junior sister, your side still needs to eat two more servings," Hizumi informed Kenja.

Kenja picked up two servings and ate them, placing the toothpicks next to the other two he had used earlier. Once again, he didn"t bother circulating his Qi and put up a dissatisfied expression as if he wanted to eat some more.

Everyone"s eyes reddened. Hizumi and Snail were about to cough up blood. Everyone"s eaten at least one serving, Hanabi two servings, but Kenja had already eaten four and was still looking for more.

"There you go, senior brother. Your turn." Kenja smiled sheepishly at him.

Snail was going mad inside his sh.e.l.l. Even with Kenja"s unique const.i.tutions, this should not have been possible.

Kenja could hear the sound of pages flipping in his ear.

"He must be looking for a plausible explanation," guessed Kenja, laughing at the panicking Snail"s expense.

When Kenja first started eating the fruits several years ago, he would be satisfied after one or two bites, but soon after, he could eat the whole fruit easily, sometimes two if he were hungry enough.

Hizumi"s eyes shifted back to the fruits as he motioned for his brothers to eat another serving. The seven of them each took another piece of fruit and placed it in their mouths.

They circulated their Qi once again; a few of them circulated more furiously than the others. They all heaved sighs once they were done, several of them swaying with dazed looks on their faces.

The sound of chairs sliding against the floor broke the silence as four of Hizumi"s juniors stood up and bowed before stepping away from the table.

Hizumi was a little distraught that his side had already lost five people while Kenja"s side hadn"t lost a single one yet. He understood that it was reasonable for most of his entourage to retire after two portions, but the other team had less people and still hadn"t suffered a single casualty.

The princess had eaten two, but she was an outstanding cultivator at her stage, so this performance was to be expected. It was within the princess" capabilities to eat at least three before retiring.

The twins on the other hand hadn"t reached the Qi Flourishing stage, so their limit should have been one bite. Even as he looked at them, they swayed on their seats with dazed looks as they continuously circulated the Qi they ingested earlier.

The incredible oddity though was this "junior sister" that came out of nowhere and changed the wager and its rules. Kenja was only at the Qi Flourishing stage, yet he had devoured four portions without batting an eye.

He definitely felt something was off, but he was at the Core Crystallization stage. It doesn"t matter how talented they were, they couldn"t match him.

"That was seven bites. It is your side"s turn, junior sister," Hizumi challenged Kenja. He had realized the real threat to him was this deus ex machina that rescued the girls.

"Yes, senior brother." Kenja nodded and began speaking with his sisters, "Sisters, I am quite hungry. May I eat your shares for this round?"

Thankfully, no one had been drinking water at this time; otherwise, they would have spit it out uncontrollably. The inner sect disciples were struggling to eat one or two bites, and Kenja volunteered to eat them all.

"How hungry are you, sister?"

Even Hizumi wouldn"t offer such a thing to his juniors. He couldn"t even if he had wanted to; eating so many portions so quickly would be dangerous even to him.

Kenja"s three comrades looked at him with wide eyes, unable to respond to Kenja"s entreaty of self-sacrifice.

Hanabi was the first to speak up, "You can"t, big sister. It is too dangerous to consume so many portions at once."

Agreeing with Hanabi, Shizuka voiced her concern while swaying slightly, "Yes, senior sister, I can still eat one more bite."

"Yes, I can ahlso tttake wa" mo" bite, senior sister," Yoshie slurred.

Kenja enjoyed seeing their desire to continue alongside him as well as hearing the inebriated Yoshie"s disheveled speech, but he shook his head at them.

"I will leave some for you after I am no longer hungry. So just wait patiently while I have my fill."

After he said that, he motioned for seven toothpicks to fly out of their fruits and sat them next to his four previous toothpicks. Then he motioned for all seven marbles to fly into his mouth in an inelegant manner.

He swallowed them whole and picked up the napkin in front of him, lightly patting his lips.

"Please forgive me, senior brother. I forget my table manners when I am hungry."

Hizumi and Snail coughed up blood.