Three days later, Merin looks at the snow-covered forest surroundings of Miji Town. Miji Town is built on a dwarf mountain. A few hours ago, they arrived at Miji Town, and as they stepped inside Miji Town, Xialing was whisked away to heal the general.
The general's name is Bai Ju, and the army is the Bai Family's private army. When he heard the name Bai family, he remembered his marriage contract. He doesn't know if this Bai and his fiancée's Bai family are the same family.
He could inquire about this from any soldier in the Bai Family army, but he wouldn't, as if it's true, then his fiancée is from one of the powerful forces in the Kingdom. In the six prefectures of the Kingdom. Only two forces are absolute overload of their respective prefectures. One is the Yashi family of the Higane prefecture, and the Bai family of the Baidi prefecture.
The Yashi family is understandable, as they are the royal family of the Owani Kingdom. The Bai Family is not a royal family, but is in charge of a prefecture. So, he wouldn't show his marriage contract or inquire about the Bai family from anyone in Miji town.
The Owani Kingdom spans six prefectures: Mugen, Baidi, Ouchi, Higane, Saika, and Nanto. Before his eighteenth birthday, he aimed to conclude his travels in Baidi Prefecture. His planned itinerary began in Ouchi, moving through Saika, Nanto, Higane, and Mugen, before finally reaching Baidi.
But he didn't travel east to Saika, but had to escape north to Mugen prefecture. In half a month, he can enter Baidi prefecture to meet the Bai Family and talk about the marriage contract. But after he became aware of the power of the Bai Family. He should be at least a High-Ranking Samurai to discuss with the Bai Family, and it would be best if he could become a Great Samurai.
So, before meeting the Bai Family, he should complete his journey, and the next stop after he leaves Mugen would be Higane, then Saika. After arriving in Saika, he can return to Ouchi to visit his family and then to Nanto. And at last from Nanto to Baidi.
Mentioning family, he remembers he should send a letter back to his family to tell them he is safe. His family would be beside them, worrying about him after he escaped from Susa City. They wouldn't be worrying if he didn't send a letter to his father inviting him to visit in Susa City. Now his father must be at his house in Susa City.
So, two letters, one back to his family home at Yellowwind Town and the other to his house at Susa City. He turned back to step inside the room and start searching the room for papers and ink to write. He hears. " What are you doing?"
Merin without stopping. " I want to write a letter back home."
Asuna says," I should also write a letter to my family and my master. My master should send people to pick me up from here."
Merin stops finding either paper or ink. He opened the room's door, and in the building, he found a servant and asked her to send some papers and inks back to his room. And in a few minutes, both were delivered. He shared some with Asuna and started writting his letters.
After an hour, they delivered the letters to the post office, and after paying the fee, they returned. As the time of lunch has come and after have had their lunch. Both of them returned to their room.
Asuna start cultivation on the bed and Merin sits on the balcony. Feeling the cold winter wind, he closes his eyes and, with his artistic conception, fills the natural energy all around him.
The natural energy he absorbs before is all refined to increase his inner energy. Now, to increase his cultivation without precious resources, he would have to absorb the natural energy. But he remembered the danger of absorbing the natural energy last time, and at that time, Xialing helped.
Now Xialing's whereabouts are unknown to him. He looks inside the room, leaning backwards and observes Asuna cultivating on the bed. In his mind question arises," Should he ask for help from her?" But looking at her cultivating. He feels bad about disturbing her, and few days, Asuna and Xialing will leave.
Then, he would be all alone. So, at that time, without any help, he would have to absorb the natural energy. He closes his eyes again and, taking a deep breath, he sits comfortably and senses the natural energy all around him.
Like fireflies flying all around him.
He pulls the fireflies toward him, and they one by one enter his body. As they enter, he feels the pleasure sensation spread throughout his body. The second time in life, he feels so good and does not want to stop the pleasure coursing through his body. But before he drowns further in the pleasure, he stops pulling natural energy to absorb. And feels the pleasure slowly fade away.
After a minute, with his soul energy observes his body and finds the fireflies circulating his body with his inner energy. To advance to High-Ranking Samurai, he has opened nine doors inside his body. According to the knowledge in cultivation technique and his personal opinion as a healer. These nine doors seal the hidden potential of a human.
Opening each door increases the control over the body and further releases inner energy outside. To advance to the middle of the Middle-Rank Samurai realm, he has to open two doors. He is having difficulty deciding the doors to open on each palm or sole of his feet.
After much deliberation, he comes to the decision to open the two doors on the sole of his feet. He came to his decision because his fighting strength is enough for his realm, but his movement speed started to decline. He has already mastered a low-level movement technique, and it was ok before, but now the enemy he faces would become numerous than him or stronger.
So, if he doesn't want a High-Level cultivation technique for his future. He would have exchanged for an intermediate movement technique. But as the High-Level cultivation technique is more important for him, he decides to open the door at the sole of each foot.
With the decision made, he directed his inner energy at the sole of his right foot to open the door. He finds the door without any difficulty as it is embedded in his energy channel. There are innumerable doors like this in the body, but the Samurai chose the nine doors.
He doesn't know the reason why from the creator's Samurai cultivation system perspective. But from his perspective of a cultivator of the Samurai cultivation system and as a healer. It's because the nine doors are major doors storing most of body's potential.
Merin has to stop to push open the door after evening. He hears a knock on the door, he stops with a sigh and stands up and turns around to find Asuna opens the door and Xialing enters their room.
Merin stands leaning at the doorway to the balcony, while Asuna and Xialing find a place to sit.
Asuna starts the conversation. " How is the general?"
Xialing replies," He is ok."
Merin asks," But I heard he has fallen unconscious."
Xialing says," It is because he lost the majority of his ancestral blood."
Asuna asks in shock," What? How?"
Merin is confused about what ancestral blood is. He hears Xialing." He had performed a forbidden technique to raise his strength to fight against a rebel general."
Asuna says," Then can it be recovered?"
Xialing replies," If it had been a week later. I would have said no, impossible to recover, but now, a week, advance and the Bai family also fed the general special medicine to stop the deterioration. Now, I have to refine the potion according to his ancestral blood to recover the lost blood."
Asuna says," The Bai family blood comes from Rimefang beat."
Xialing nods.
Merin makes noise to get their attention and asks," Ancestral blood?"
Xialing glances at Asuna. "You didn't tell him?"
Asuna shakes her head.
She explains. "Ancestral blood forms when a Yao beast transforms into human form and mates with a human. Their descendants carry that blood. The blood of the Yao Beast in those humans is called Ancestral Blood."
Xialing nods along the way and then sceptically looks at Merin. " Do you not know the reason why Asuna's family stopped both of you from coming together, even with your talent?"
Merin remembers their fake backstory. " It is because she is from a noble family and I am from an ordinary family. They do not want to dirty their noble blood."
Xialing shakes her head." It is not because of her ordinary family, but dirtying their noble blood is true."
Merin, in confusion, glances at Asuna, who as if knows what is going on inside Xialing's mind.
Xialing continues," Do you know pure blood human cultivation stops at the second turn of the Great Samurai realm?"
Merin replies," Really?" and from her question he feels their are advance realms that pure blood humans cannot advance.
Xialing says," Yes, but those humans with ancestral blood in them can advance even further up to the Dharma realm of the Yao beast."
Merin, without any knowledge of the cultivation system of the Yao beast. " What is the cultivation realm of the Yao Beast?"
Xialing says," Starts at the Mana realm, then the Spirit realm, the Ancestral realm, the Dharma realm, and the Ancestral realm. The Great Samurai realm corresponds to the Spirit realm."
Merin nods. Xialing then questions." Kanoru, now you know the reason why Asuna's family would not let you marry Asuna. You should treat her well, she sacrificed the future of her maternal family because of you."
Merin asks," What do you mean? Because she married me for love. Her family cannot use her as a bargaining chip to marry other powerful families."
Xialing says," It can be the reason, but not entirely."
She explains further: when two ancestral bloodlines mix, the result could be a mutation, an inherited power, or even deformity. It's a risk, but one many forces are willing to take. However, if someone with ancestral blood marries a regular human, the child will inherit the blood, but its purity will degrade.
Merin listens without change in expression. No disappointment. No envy.
He didn't come to this world to marry into power—he came to earn merit.
If he can raise ordinary humans to reach the third turn of the Great Samurai realm, or beyond, he'll fulfil his mission. The world will reward him. And now, he's more curious than ever about the Yao.
These beasts who shed their forms to walk among humans… if he learns their method, perhaps one day, when he returns to his real body, he can transform into human form.
With his path clear, he only wants to ascend to the Great Samurai realm and enter the Yao region.
That night, after dinner, Asuna fell asleep early. The room grows quiet.
Merin returns to the balcony. And continue to pressure the door open. Today, his goal of coming to his world is determined, and to complete his goal, he needs to reach the second turn of the Great Samurai realm.
He wishes he were a second-turn Great Samurai right now. Then he would start research to create the next realm of the second-turn Great Samurai. But he is not, so for now he has to continue his practice and one day he will become a second-turn Great Samurai.
With determination, he circulates his inner energy and presses the door to open with his inner energy. While practising, he thought he would have to research on Yao beasts, why they are able to cultivate three realms higher than pure humans. If he finds the reason, then his goal so that humans can also cultivate to ancestral realm would be clear.