Wang Ben spent the next two days studying Elder Hongwei's resonance-tuning notes and listening to him and Wang Tiexin in the clan archives. Their discussions kept returning to how the formation would work in practice. Ben followed them with the notes open before him.
On the second day, he found his father sealing away the last of a batch of pills in the workshop. The furnace's bitter smell still hung in the air.
"I've been thinking about Fang Wei," Tian said. "We should meet him."
Ben stopped across the bench from him. "I think so too. I've looked for another way to get the essence. I haven't found one."
His father placed the last pill in its case but left it open.
"We already owe Shen Wuyan a favor," he said. "I'd rather not take on another while that one is still unfinished."
Ben had hoped to avoid that too. Lin's warning had stayed with him while he searched.
"We can hear what he asks before we agree," Ben said.
Tian looked up at him, then closed the case. "Yes. Let's meet him."
Ben nodded. He still did not know what Fang Wei might want from them, but he trusted his father to question the terms as carefully as he had at Silent Path.
...
Later that day, Fang Wei closed his ledger in the back room of the Jade Mist. Its leather spine had split in three places, each patched by his own hand. He slid the book beneath the cloth at the corner of his desk.
It held only a fraction of the favors he had gathered over the years. He had kept gathering them as his meridians weakened and the blockages spread, hoping that someone he helped might one day help him. He was still at foundation establishment, but it took more and more work to remain there. Advancement had long been beyond him.
Wang Tian's meridians had healed. That was what Fang kept coming back to. The alchemist had recovered from a condition that had nearly ruined him, and might soon be refining grade-seven pills. Others in his clan had made recent breakthroughs too.
Fang had watched the Wangs for years. Their recovery had made them worth far more attention, though he had found no way to approach them. The stalled trouble with the Crimson Bastion gave him little concern. He thought the clan would outlast it.
Then Lin Suyin had told him what the Wangs needed. She had warned him to serve the Wangs well and bring no trouble to her name. Fang knew better than to dismiss her. She was strong and difficult to fool, and he wanted to keep her willing to send people to him.
He had spent favors he had saved for years to obtain the refined void-touched essence before the Wangs arrived. They had yet to agree to anything. Still, he would have what they needed when they sat down.
Fang poured fresh water over the tea leaves and set out two cups for his guests. He left them empty, pressed his palms against the table until his fingers were still, and listened for footsteps in the corridor.
...
The Jade Mist stood among the older buildings in the southern district. Its proprietor glanced up as Wang Tian entered, then waved him toward the back.
Ben followed his father between the tables. He felt the qi of cultivators around them, some faint, others pressing more heavily against his spiritual sense. One or two presences felt stronger than his father's. Few of the patrons looked up as they passed.
Fang Wei rose to receive them in the back room. His robes were plain, his face unremarkable. Ben felt less strength from him than from Tian, and something uneven in the pressure. As the broker bowed, his fingers brushed the edge of the table and began to tap.
"Master Wang. Young Master Wang. Thank you for accepting my invitation."
They had asked for the meeting, but Ben said nothing. His father returned the greeting and took the seat Fang offered. Ben sat beside him.
Fang filled their cups.
"Refined void-touched essence," he said. "Difficult to find just now."
Tian left his cup on the table. "You are well-informed."
"Lin Suyin told me what you needed. When she sends someone to me, I like to be ready."
"You had little time," Tian said.
Fang smiled. "I've been watching your clan for much longer than that. Your recovery has been remarkable, Master Wang. Yours and the clan's. I expect I'll be dealing with a grade-seven alchemist before long."
"You seem quite certain," Tian said.
"Certain enough to want your business now." Fang rested one hand beside the teapot. His other kept tapping. "I've wanted to be of service to the Wangs for years. When your inquiry came, I was glad to have something to offer."
Ben looked at the cups already set before them. Fang had been waiting for an opportunity while they had scarcely known his name.
"Can you supply it?" Tian asked.
"I can. Five hundred mid-grade spirit stones, and a future consideration."
Tian drew out a pouch and placed it near his cup. "Explain the consideration."
Fang left the pouch where it was.
"At some later time, I may need your help. I would ask you to consider the request honestly. Nothing unlawful, and nothing that would cost your clan its name."
"You have something in mind?" Tian asked.
"A hope." Fang's fingers stopped briefly, then resumed. "Your clan is gifted in formations. If its work could restore you, perhaps it could do something for me. I'm not in good condition myself. But that conversation can wait. Today I would like to begin doing business with you."
Tian had lifted his cup. Now he held it without drinking, looking at Fang. Ben had expected the broker to conceal more of what he wanted.
Fang waited. He made no attempt to soften what he had said.
"And if we hear your request and decline?" Tian asked.
"Then you decline. I don't force men to help me, Master Wang. I try to give them a reason to want to."
Tian set his cup down. He considered the broker for a moment before turning to Ben.
"This will fall on you as well. What do you think?"
Ben met his father's eyes. Fang's request might be one they could do nothing about. He had offered no way to judge that yet, and Ben would not promise him help merely because his father had recovered. But that was not what the broker had asked them to promise.
"Take it," Ben said.
Tian turned back to Fang. "The stones for the essence, and honest consideration within the bounds you've named. We agree to that."
Fang smiled and reached inside his robes. He brought out a small jade container and placed it between them.
"Refined void-touched essence. Enough for your array, with a little to allow for mistakes. I had it prepared."
Tian glanced from the container to him. "Before we agreed?"
"I hoped you would."
His father pushed the pouch across the table. Fang took it, and Tian drew the jade container toward himself, tucking it into his sleeve.
When they rose, the tapping stopped. Tian thanked Fang, and Ben added his own thanks before following his father out of the room.
...
When their footsteps faded, Fang Wei drew the ledger from beneath its cloth and opened it to a fresh page.
He sat with his brush in hand, thinking of the Wangs. He had spent years looking for a way to approach them. Now they had taken his help and agreed to hear him when he needed theirs.
For the first time in years, he found himself making plans beyond holding on to the cultivation he had left. He bent over the ledger and began to write.