Spirit Taming

Chapter 716: To The Mud!

"Good, you're here to take us to see your beast that's healing. I've been waiting to see its progress and ask it how you have been caring for it." Clark spoke with a slight hint of malice in his voice.

It wasn't to scare Jasmine as she had arrived, but to ensure that she did not forget how poorly she had treated her own beast. How she had to keep maintaining the betterment of their relationship. Even if her beast was allowing her to get away with any pain that she had caused it.

A spirit beast was deeply connected to their tamer. Part of them at the deepest of levels. They often did not care if their tamer harmed them or even pushed them to the brink of death. However, some people would abuse that. It was not readily accepted by most societies, but still, some turned a blind eye.

Jasmine had turned a blind eye and even ignored the pain that she could feel from her bond with the clay golem core. That led to the potential of her beast becoming a monster. If left alone, people doing this could become literal monsters besides perishing flat out.

But even in contracts from then to now, Clark could vaguely sense the water and earth energy around her. Especially since she was not in the wilderness where they had been on edge that they would have to face a monster.

"You only have one guard with you today, will that be alright?" Maria was a little nicer than Clark was. Not that Maria didn't understand why Clark was harsh. He had explained things clearly.

"I was planning on taking you there first. The mud pits are also a spa experience that the earth elves like my family enjoy. It brings us closer to the earth energy and the earth as a whole." Jasmine responded a little too quickly, but that was just the intimidation from Clark.

"I was called to listen to the great matriarch earlier today. She instructed me that having too many guards around would be disruptive. That you should be able to see the city as an elf would to show proper respect." Jasmine also sounded like she didn't understand this. However, Clark knew exactly how he should look at all this.

Since he had been blunt with how the humans had fought their own corrupted, the matriarch was telling him to put himself right in their shoes. To look at their society and judge them on what they were instead of just what he might have heard. Because if she were to judge them on what she had heard about humans… Well, the group might not be breathing right now.

Some humans had done horrible things.

"We are going to see a forge too, right?" From Ralph's view, they should see a forge so that he could learn more about everything the elves had in mind when it came to smithing. That way he could use whatever knowledge he saw to alter his own skills.

"I think that can be arranged. I thought you would be more interested in medicine though."Jasmine was thrown off b y this. She had thought that because of the way she was told that Clark and Maria were well above many others when it came to healing arts, that alchemy and medicine would be a focus.

"I can examine the herbs that Maria will need to make unique potions. We might be able to get more potion formulas for her training." Ella's interruption made Maria nod along.

"We can get this formulas' ingredients too. I will let you three read it while we walk." Clark watched Ella, Maria, and Isa crowd around the formula as he handed it to them. It was only a few moments before they were looking at him with a look they had given him many times before.

"I know I know, holding out. So just deal with it. And Lit should hold this life crystal. It will help her awaken a more powerful healing skill as she gains more spiritual energy. Then here are some supplies I have extra of that I picked up along the way." Clark handed almost everything he had gotten the other day over.

He still kept the extreme clay sculpting technique book close. He knew that this would be valuable to use. "So we are leaving?" Jerold tentatively followed Jasmine who was struggling to grasp what the group was going on about. But her guard was keeping her focused since it was clear that this would be an ongoing challenge.

"Since the savior wishes to see my partner first we will go there. It's nearby." There was a clear reason for this. Jasmine wanted to avoid whatever punishment that might come along with not doing well enough in Clark's eyes.

Knowing they were headed to what could be called a spa by even the elves though, the girls became more focused. Yes they had a very serious goal, but a spa day? What could an elf who was always fair skinned and bright eyed have for a spa? It must be well above hot springs and other aspects of human culture.

Making their move, Clark noticed that the areas they had been unable to see well were actually cut off somewhat from the rest of the city. This was all due to the fact that they had been brought to a place to avoid direct contact with other elves. Now, those vine walls were mysteriously shortened to allow a better sightline.

"It looks like there are fires over there. I didn't expect the elves to have flames right near the roots of trees." Grace's comment was more like a question than anything. Jasmine spoke right up too. The matriarch had instructed her to answer questions well.

"The broken and aged wood that falls or is broken through growth needs to be disposed of. Some of the herbs also need to be fed with ash so that they can develop the right kind of fight energies. So, the fire elves will burn small sections of the ground and use that heat to boil hot water for bathing and also to be sent to the mud pits."

This made a lot of sense. Ralph was even thinking about the metal work that would have to be used to create a method to transfer the heated water. Unfortunately for him, he soon saw the small stone canals made for the water to flow from where the smoke was coming from. The elves did not focus too much on metal work that they would have pipes within their trees.

They could just make stone structures with the help of their beasts.

"How do the elves train their agility? If you move through forests and trees, it has to be more advanced than what some people do with muscle training." Brad's follow up question made Jasmine even more perplexed. This wasn't at all what she expected of this group. They were so spread out between them.

"There are many ways to train skills and the body. But we mainly rely on the strength of our beasts to partner with us. Nature made us a certain way, and our beasts help make up for what we lack." Jasmine was getting nowhere. She wasn't sure how she would report all this back to the matriarch.

The walk was exactly what Jasmine had said though. A short moment and they had made it to a large area walled off with many vine walls. They were made with various other sections put aside. Making it clear that this entire area was for unique training or as she had said, spa time.

The pungent smell of purified and wet soil was everywhere. A slight steam moved around which made certain herbs grow right out in the open. Something that everyone would know might be common here in the elven city. Herbs were just part of nature, why would they grow in fields when they could grow alongside the people?

While it still felt they were not in the city very much, it also made sense that this was a place for privacy. The elves would not have a spa or a training area out in the open to show off. Especially one that showed an elf being covered in earth, or in mud.

Not that this was an issue for the group. When they were welcomed inside by a few staff members who had clearly gotten warning of humans on the way, they began showing off the area.

Large pools of bubbling mud that had various earth and water dual affinity beasts. Some elves that were meditating right there. And some massive pits that were specially made for the golems to create their bodies.

" There it is. Let me go see." Clark spotted the familiar analysis in one of the large pools. The slightly round object on top was actually a golem core. The clay golem core. And since it was in mud made of clay, it easily moved around to go near him since it recognized him as well.