The entire yard went silent the moment Bai Lin announced her presence.
Her status in the estate commanded respect. Even though she was younger than most of the cadets, her talent... everything as a whole made everyone respect her.
Especially because she was the only cadet who specialized in all aspects of medicine, although there were others.
She passed the East Cadet Exams, the same one Han had written without realizing.
"Follow me."
Han didn't argue. He grabbed his sword and limped behind her, using it as a support.
His blood left a trail behind him, and the instructor commanded one of the cadets to clean it up.
As soon as the instructor left, the cadets began chattering among themselves. They faced Kai mostly, who was fuming in a corner over his defeat.
Han could barely hear any of it. His ribs ached, and his throat still burned from Kai's grip. He could barely hear anything; the ringing in his ears hadn't subsided.
Wind, and low murmurs underneath, were the only things that managed to register in his brain.
Bai Lin led him along a quiet path to the north side of the estate, where the building he stayed in was located.
They passed the building, and a few other yards, gardens, and a temple that gave off an energy that piqued his interest.
The wind was stronger here, cooler too, because this side of the estate was near the edge of the mountain and higher.
Finally, after passing through a heavily guarded gate, and a massive garden with a stone path, they reached the Apothecary Office.
It stood alone, surrounded by plants, and a wall that kept the privacy. It was impressive, but the security seemed excessive.
It had two floors and was different from all the others in the estate.
It looked plain on the outside, with the same white-lacquered walls and gray pillars like most of the buildings at the palace.
The only difference was the flat roof that had a slight angle upward, like an umbrella, only more uniquely designed.
Han already guessed the type of roof that had been used.
The type that could pull back with some sort of technology, to allow airflow inside despite having windows.
He quietly wondered the purpose of that, because there was not a plant growing inside.
She pushed the door open, letting the cold air from the inside hit him all at once, carrying a sweet-smelling intensity.
Han was beyond overwhelmed. The aroma was not only calming, but it oddly eased his pain.
The air was cool, warm... generally unexplainable.
Just right.
The scents of herbs followed, leaving aftertastes of sweet, bitter, sour, and just disgusting.
Bai pointed to a bed on a raised platform by the window.
"Sit. Shirt off," she ordered and turned around.
Han didn't hesitate. He sat down slowly and removed his shirt.
The cold air stung his skin, yet he wasn't in as much pain as when the air outside had hit it.
Strange, he thought, as he placed the sheath and his other sword beside him.
He looked around while he undressed, watching her prepare whatever she wanted to use.
He half expected her to pull out a box with first-aid items, or a bottle of ointment and painkillers.
Instead, she drew her sleeves back and raised her hands.
Han tilted his head in confusion. He paused, holding his inner shirt halfway to his shoulder.
The air changed after a second.
It wasn't the normal movement of the wind.
It wrapped around her fingers like thread, circled the mortar and pestle on the table.
It picked up dried herbs in visible balls of wind and gently dropped them into the bowl.
Han watched in silence, barely breathing for fear that he would ruin something, but his eyes were wide.
The wind ground the herbs smoothly, like her own hands.
While some gathered water from a jar, another gust of wind fanned the small flame under a pot, without smoke.
It didn't feel like magic, nor did it have anything to do with mana.
"Elemental Cultivation..." Han muttered, speechless and excited at the same time.
He had never imagined he would see something like this in real life, since he only ever watched or wrote it.
Now it was happening before him.
"That's incredible," he said, his gaze fixed on the visible balls of wind doing one thing or another around him.
"Wind cultivation," Bai Lin replied. "This is normal for people from the north side of the east."
She turned around. "Born close to nature. Our meridians grow open to elemental qi. Earth, water, wind... all flow easily through us. Even Avens are like that here."
Of course Han knew that. The Eastern Range had a particular set of people living in the north.
Specifically, where the mountains were higher and larger than those around Shanlu.
He remembered, from the first time his father spoke about that side.
"That land was never truly conquered, only tolerated," was what his father always said whenever the topic of war came up.
As a child, Han thought it meant the land had good warriors.
He was wrong.
The truth was deeper, written between old scrolls, whispered through the academy halls.
It was even a symbol, showing that the north side of the east was not known for war, but for listening, negotiating, and peace.
Given the marks of wings they were born with.
People born there carried rooted meridians, ones that hummed when near flowing water or stirred when the wind moved.
The empires called them compatible cultivators.
But in that land, there was no term for it. It was simply life.
Wind, Water, and Earth, those were not tools to misuse, but companions.
Even the quietest child, if born near the cliffs, might find their breath syncing with the mountain winds.
A boy playing in the river might accidentally stir the current with his fingers.
A girl weeding plants might find them growing better where she stood.
Nevertheless, every peaceful land had its dark sides.
The northern and southern military used that region to ship crops to their cadet bases, as well as to keep their slaves there to work.
Slaves like his mother.
Han once read that the strongest apothecaries came from there, not because they knew more herbs, but because they didn't need the books.
They could feel the quality of a root through the ground, smell qi lines in boiled water, grind leaves in rhythm with the wind's beat.
They called it elemental harmony.
"Can I learn it?" he suddenly asked.
She glanced at him. "You can. But you have to learn how to fly first. And with your ribs cracked," her eyes dropped to his bloodied skin with a scowl, "I doubt you'll be flying any time soon."
"So far it seems impossible for a half-human."
Bai Lin stared at him for a moment, wondering if he was an ignorant idiot or just uninformed.
She heaved a sigh and moved one of the balls of wind close to him. They both watched it pulse and gleam, then fade.
Then it reappeared with a faint light blue hue, which made her give him a look that clearly said, "There's your answer."
She added, "If you have Aven blood, no matter how far back it goes in your lineage, even if it's just the mark, then you are one, no matter what."