The next day came around without anything major happening over the night. I was not able to go into the forest, so I never found any new “friends” to py with, and I had not finished any of my research yet, so no lightning either. What I did do was note down some things I found interesting or wanted to talk about with Lanalia, as she had some interesting points of view on various topics or technological innovations.

  It was honestly very helpful for what I was trying to do, especially as she was seeing things from the perspective of a native of this world and someone with a preconceived notion of what something is. There were so many new things to think about that I almost filled an entire notebook with all the different things I wanted to research. And now that the next day was upon us, I would be able to talk with her about all of this again.

  Everyone had already cleaned up camp and was almost ready to leave at this point, and since that was the case, I would not make them wait and charged into the carriage before anyone could stop me. Lanalia seemed to have had the same thought as she followed me in with not even a second to spare. We then went to close the door when Lou Xia grabbed it and then stepped into the carriage with us. The entire time, she was staring at me with an emotion I had not seen her dispy before: jealousy. It was the kind of jealousy that made one want to keep something all to oneself. This was something that momentarily terrified me while conjuring up images of multiple stories that I have heard, but none of them were real, and it was not like there was even a person like that who existed.

  Thankfully, that helped to calm me down enough to move on with the day and focus back on what I had at hand. A conversation about theories and ideas that was now off to a shaky start with a new person in the carriage.

  Not long after, the carriage started to move, and we were finally on our way.

  As we traveled, Lanalia and I talked about quite a few more things, and I ended up needing a second notebook to write in. Lou Xia, on the other hand, tried to add her input a few times here and there, but most of what she had to say was either already touched on or something that was irrelevant. We at least took the time to try and involve her (when we remembered she was there) by asking her some questions about her opinions on some things, so it was not like we did not try. It was more that we were talking about something outside of her expertise. Though, granted, Lanalia was a beginner as well. However, at least she had an amazing level of talent to help her in this area.

  Eventually, Lou Xia managed to ask a question of her own that ended our discussion instantly, “So Lanalia, why is it that you know so much but don’t have any cultivation?”

  That was like a bomb going off in the carriage as it was something that I was refraining from asking to not touch on anything sensitive. What she said next only proved it. “I don’t have any cultivation because I am unable to cultivate. I am one of the rare few that aren’t born with a spiritual root. A true mortal.”

  That was honestly a shame as she was quite the brilliant mind and was clearly someone who would go far if given the chance. Sadly, there was no medicine that I knew of which could help her. The only thing I could do was attempt to make some sort of technique-...

  Once my mind ran across that st thought, I jumped up from my seat as I found a potential solution. The technique for body tempering that I made could theoretically be used by anyone with enough talent, regardless of spiritual root. The only problem was that I did not have anyone to test it on yet. Now, I had the perfect opportunity before me. However, this was also a person's life, so I had to ask for their permission first, and I had to do the experiments back at the sect, where it would be safer and easier to fix if anything were to go wrong.

  With all of that in mind, I looked over to her and was about to say something when the carriage hit a bump, and I fell back into the seat. We all looked at each other after that before sharing a small ugh at my expense. After we got that out of our system, I then asked her, “Do you still want to cultivate?”

  That got both Lou Xia Lanalia to freeze as my words sank in. When they did, Lanalia looked at me with a bit of heat in her gaze as she then replied, “I would do so if I could, but the medicine needed is very expensive and impossible to find.”

  Her answer was almost exactly what I wanted, making me grin a little as I then continued, “I might be able to help with your issue, but the method has not been tested and is experimental. So it is up to you to choose what you want to do. Though, if you think you want to try, you can head to the Silver Moon sect and give them this medallion. Just know that what you do is completely untested and the consequences of failure are unknown.” With that, I took out the small medallion I was given when I first entered the sect and handed it out to her, waiting to see if she would take it.

  Either way, she has well and truly earned my respect at this point.