The crooked, narrow streets of the lower city were just as he remembered them, a familiar maze of leaning buildings and grimy cobblestones. He found Old Nan's door easily enough, the wood weathered and unassuming, looking just like every other door on the street. He knocked, the sound a sharp rap in the relative quiet of the alley.

The door creaked open a few inches, and a young boy with sharp, suspicious eyes peered out at him. Jiang didn't recognise him, but it didn't take much of a leap to assume this was one of the street rats that stayed at Old Nan's when they didn't have any other options.

He paused for a moment, suddenly realising that he hadn't even noticed that it was actually quite cold at the moment. Winter was in full swing now, and the air carried what would be a deathly chill for an unprepared mortal.

"What do you want?" the boy demanded, interrupting his thoughts.

"I'm here to see Old Nan," Jiang said.

The boy's eyes narrowed further. "Don't know who you're talking about. Piss off." The door slammed shut in his face before Jiang could get another word in.

Jiang blinked at the splintered wood, taken aback. His first instinct was to just… kick the door down. It wasn't like it would be able to stop him – one good, Qi-reinforced blow and the entire frame would shatter. It would be easy. The thought was so immediate, so simple, that it surprised him.

He took a step back, forcing the impulse down. This was another one of those changes he'd been noticing in himself. Back when he was a mortal, the thought of kicking down someone's door wouldn't have even occurred to him – and not just because he wouldn't have been physically strong enough to manage.

Now, with the strength to do it so easily, it presented itself as a viable, almost tempting, solution. Just because he had the strength didn't mean he should use it in every situation. He was getting strong enough now that he had to consciously choose restraint, which was a new and uncomfortable feeling.

Still, the boy clearly wasn't going to let him in, and he didn't want to cause a scene by hammering on the door. He glanced at the deep, still shadow pooled at the base of the door. A different kind of solution presented itself.

He focused, investing a portion of his Qi into the darkness. He felt the familiar mental click as the connection formed, the shadow becoming an extension of his will, a numb, clumsy limb. He carefully guided a tendril of it under the door, a difficult task when he couldn't see what he was doing. He was operating purely by the vague sense of pressure he felt through the shadow, like fumbling for a latch in a pitch-black room. He felt the shadow-tendril brush against the inside of the door, then something solid—the bar. He tried to coalesce the tip, to give it enough substance to push the bar up…

The door swung open abruptly, snapping the tenuous connection he had with his shadow construct. He looked up to see Old Nan standing in the doorway, her wrinkled face set in a familiar, unimpressed scowl. She leaned on her cane, giving him the stink eye. "Are you done terrifying the children yet?" she rasped.

Jiang blinked, then looked past her. Huddled in the far corner of the small room was a group of street rats, including the boy who had answered the door, all of them staring at the threshold with wide, terrified eyes. He suddenly realised what it must have looked like from their perspective – some stranger knocks on the door, and when refused, a living shadow starts trying to force its way inside.

He cleared his throat, feeling a flush of embarrassment. "Sorry," he muttered.

Old Nan just grunted, shuffling aside to let him in. "Get in here before you scare the whole neighbourhood."

He stepped inside, following the old woman over to the rough-hewn table in the corner and taking a seat, acutely aware of the small, terrified audience huddled by the hearth. He leaned forward, gesturing subtly towards them with a tilt of his head. "I was hoping we could speak privately," he said, his voice low. "About… you know."

Old Nan snorted. "If you're aiming for subtlety, I think you're a little late," she said dryly, gesturing at their audience. "You're the one who let the cat out of the bag in the first place. What's one more story for them to whisper about?" She settled into her own chair with a groan, though her eyes were sharp, appraising. "You've been busy. Your Qi is stronger. Denser. You've advanced quickly."

Jiang shifted uncomfortably, both at the blunt way she was explaining this in front of other people, but also because he'd never been terribly good at taking compliments. "It's just the Pact making things easier," he deflected.

"The Pact builds on the foundation it is given," she corrected, her tone acerbic. "It can amplify what is there, but it cannot create from nothing. It's good that the Raven found you – you have talent, boy. You were wasted as a mortal hunter."

"I liked being a hunter," he said, the words a reflexive defence. But even as he said them, they rang a little hollow. He thought of the easy way he now moved, the way the cold was a minor inconvenience, the way he could face down a bandit camp without fear. The power was… intoxicating. He didn't have to worry about the same things anymore – earning a living was as simple as walking into a city and offering his services. It was a freedom he hadn't known he was missing, and a part of him was already addicted to it.

He pushed the thought away. "I need to know what comes next. I'm close to the next realm, but I didn't stick around the Azure Sky Sect long enough to learn about what that actually meant. What changes? Do I need to… prepare or something?"

Old Nan leaned back into her chair, shaking her head absently. "Not this time, no – but in future, yes. Most cultivators need only to break through their own limits. For us… the path is more complicated. See, we don't just need to advance ourselves; we need to advance the Pact as well. The Raven has tested you once, when you bonded with its construct and accepted the Pact in full. That means the first bottleneck is already cleared – but each realm comes with its own trial, and they grow more difficult with time. That is the price of the power you wield."

Jiang grimaced, but was honestly a little relieved. If something seemed too good to be true, it usually was – and he'd been getting a little worried about the hidden price of his Pact with the Raven for some time now. Knowing there was a downside was surprisingly comforting, though he wasn't stupid enough to think that he knew everything about it yet.

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"What do the trials involve?" he asked.

Old Nan shrugged unhelpfully. "Depends on too many things to count – which is a fancy way of saying nobody knows. The nature of your Patron, the nature of your own Qi, the circumstances, random chance, the phase of the moon, your last name. There is one thing you can predict, though, and that's the theme of the trial." She held up a gnarled hand, raising her fingers one by one. "First trial involves Courage in some way, that's guaranteed. Most of the time, it's just accepting a construct from your Patron, but even that can change. Doesn't matter for you, because you already passed. The next trial will involve Strength. Could be strength in combat, strength of will, or just lifting a heavy rock over your head."

She shrugged. "Again, nobody really knows how the Patrons decide. The third trial is Understanding." She hesitated. "That one is… weird. Nobody really remembers it – they just wake up one day somehow knowing that they've passed, and that something is… changed. Or, for the unlucky ones, they wake up knowing they failed."

Jiang raised an eyebrow. This really wasn't as helpful as he'd hoped. Old Nan clearly read the expression on his face, and she scowled at him.

"Whatever, brat," she snapped. "Come talk to me when you can explain it better."

Jiang held his hands up placatingly, absently noting that this was by far the most animated he'd seen the woman. She still looked old, but she also looked like she would cheerfully break him over her knee if he were rude.

"And what about for a normal cultivator? Are there trials for advancing, or is it just like clearing another meredian?"

"'Course it's different," Old Nan scowled at him. "If it were that simple and easy, everyone would be immortal. Mind you, you're still in the baby realms – never gonna be easier than it is right now, so enjoy it while it lasts." She leaned forward, her voice dropping. "To break into the second realm, you must condense all the Qi in your dantian. Every thread, every wisp. You must force it down until it becomes a single, perfect drop of liquid Qi. The pressure will strain your pathways, which is why a proper foundation is essential. That single drop is the key."

Jiang listened, absorbing every word.

"Once you have broken through," she continued, "the second realm is one of physical refinement. You will use that liquid Qi, drop by drop, to temper your own body, to forge it into something more than mortal flesh. This is where you will see the greatest physical change. The strength you have now is just borrowed Qi, a reinforcement. The second realm makes that strength your own." She gave a dry, almost smug smile. "How do you think I lasted this long and still look this good with a shattered core?"

Jiang wasn't stupid enough to voice his thoughts, but… if this was looking good, what did bad look like?

"I was going to ask," he said carefully. "You seem much… more energetic."

Old Nan scoffed at him. "No need to sugar-coat it, boy," she snapped. "I looked like I was ready to keel over at any moment, before."

Jiang didn't want to agree too quickly, but, well, it was true.

"The changes the second realm makes to your body are more than just physical," she said softly. "If you know what you're doing – and I do – then you can burn more than just Qi for fuel. A cultivator that passes the second realm has a natural lifespan measured in centuries, not that most of them last that long. And if you're desperate, you can trade some of that longevity for temporary power."

Jiang looked up, not missing the implication.

She was quiet for a long moment, her gaze distant. "I've been living in a haze for so long, I forgot myself," she said, her voice a low, rough whisper, "I forgot what it was like to feel anything but weak." She looked up at him with a faint, sad smile. "Until I felt the presence of your Patron, boy. It reminded me of who I once was. And now… I'd rather burn brightly for a year than smoulder for another decade, feeling myself slip away. This is my choice."

Jiang didn't know how to respond. Fortunately, Old Nan didn't seem interested in dwelling on the subject.

She waved a dismissive hand, her sharp gaze returning to him.

"Enough about that. You wanted to know what comes next. The Body Refining Realm, that's what they call it in the Sects. Apt enough, I suppose." She grunted. "The second realm is all about rebuilding your mortal frame, piece by piece, so it can handle the stress of true power. Each stage is a new renovation, and they must be done in the proper order."

She began to tick off the points on her gnarled fingers. "First, you refine your Meridians. They are the pathways your Qi travels. You must widen and strengthen them first, or they'll tear themselves apart later. Second, your Blood and Veins. Once the spiritual pathways are secure, you reinforce the physical ones. There's no point having muscles stronger than steel if your body can't get enough blood to them. Third, the Heart, the engine that drives it all. Fourth, the Lungs, the bellows. Supply must always be established before you increase demand. Only then do you move to the frame itself. The fifth stage is the Bones. The sixth, the Muscles. The seventh, the Skin. Those three are painful, but fairly basic - it's the last two you need to be careful about. They are the most delicate. The eighth is your Ears, and the ninth, your Eyes."

"The process itself," Old Nan continued, her voice turning grim, "is… unpleasant. Your Qi remembers the perfect state of your body. To refine a part of yourself, you must first be willing to destroy it. You gather a full dantian of liquid Qi, as much as you can possibly hold, and you pour all of it into the part you are refining, forcing it to break down under the sheer pressure."

Her dark eyes held his. "The more Qi you use, the greater the refinement, but the pain becomes… unimaginable. You must endure it, pushing until the very last moment, until your will is about to shatter. The instant your concentration breaks, the Qi you have invested will activate, healing and reforging that part of you. But it is a one-time chance for each stage. Flinch too early, stop the flow of Qi before you have given everything, and you are left with a shoddy foundation for the rest of your life. There are no second chances."

Jiang swallowed despite himself. He wasn't scared of a little pain – no hunter ever went completely unscathed for long – but that didn't mean he was looking forward to it. Not to mention that this sounded a lot worse than anything he'd felt before.

Still, it wasn't enough to deter him.

And the third realm?" he asked.

"Core Formation," she said, leaning back in her chair. "Once your body has been fully reforged, you condense your liquid Qi into a solid Core within your dantian. Obviously, there's a lot more to it than that, but forming your Core is a… deeply personal process. This important part is that from that point on, your Core will produce liquid Qi naturally. You will no longer have to spend weeks or months laboriously refining it. Your cultivation will become faster, more efficient, and far less reliant on the ambient Qi of the world around you." She gave him a knowing look. "For someone with a rare affinity like yours, whose element is scarce in the natural world, this is a game changer."

Jiang raised an eyebrow. "Shadows aren't exactly scarce," he pointed out.

"Ha!" Old Nan scoffed. "You think all it takes to form proper shadow Qi is a piddly bit of shade? No, boy, the only reason you haven't noticed the lack yet is because your reserves are just as lacking. Once you get to the higher realms, you'll realise how much of a difference it makes."

Jiang tilted his head. "I'll take your word for it."

Old Nan laughed. "You do that. Now, any other burning questions you have?"

Jiang considered it for a moment. He could ask more about the Patrons, how his cultivation would be affected beyond the Core Formation realm. He could ask for help developing his techniques further. But ultimately, as useful as that information would be, it wasn't actually what he needed right now – and while he very much doubted Old Nan would be able to help directly hunt Gao Leng, she would likely be able to help in other ways.

"There is one thing, actually," he said, settling himself more comfortably in his chair. "Tell me about unorthodox cultivation."

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