Chapter 306: Let’s Talk About the Future

~~~

“What did you even do?” Liu Jin asks while healing Huang Shing’s bruised eye. His friend’s regeneration should have already mended such a minor injury, but the actions of cultivators in higher realms have the added benefit of permanence. They cannot be easily undone.

“I didn’t do anything!” Huang Shing says, flinching as Liu Jin’s Qi works on his injury.

Liu Jin gives him a look.

“What?!” Huang Shing squirms in place. “Anyway, she started it! She was mean!”

“She’s an old woman,” Liu Jin points out.

“Exactly!” Huang Shing says, nodding seriously and crossing his arms. “I told you this once. Old people are scary because they lived to be old.”

“That is unfortunately inarguable,” Liu Jin admits. The bruise on Huang Shing’s face is fighting him a lot more than he expected. Huang Shing must have really annoyed Lady Zhao. “All the more reason why you shouldn’t open yourself for retribution.”

“You’re not wrong, but it feels weird that you are the one telling me that, Brother Jin,” Huang Shing says.

Liu Jin blinks.

“Whatever do you mean?”

Huang Shing sighs.

“Never mind,” he says. “I guess I am just a little nervous. You know what happened in the second stage.”

Liu Jin nods. All ten members of the Eternal Flame Clan’s delegation have passed to the third stage. Bei Hong is meditating. Feng Zhi is fuming, and many of the others have gone out to enjoy Imperial Cloud City. Most had a relatively easy time during the second stage, but Huang Shing and Pan Qiu are exceptions.

“You fought Chen Guo. I heard you did well.”

Huang Shing laughs.

“It was two-on-one, and it still felt too close for comfort. Even if I hadn’t kept my cultivation secret, I am not sure we could have won. Chen Guo… he’s very strong. Don’t tell Feng Zhi I said this because he’ll get mad as usual, but I’m certain Chen Guo is stronger than him. That rate of progress is just too unfair.”

“You already knew him,” Liu Jin notes. Huang Shing nods.

“Before I joined the Eternal Flame Clan,” he says. “After what happened with Feng Zhi, I traveled to seek strength. I met lots of people and did lots of things. Saving a village from a wild beast. Stopping some pirates. That sort of stuff. It felt good, you know? Wandering around doing heroic deeds.”

“But with Chen Guo, it was different?”

“It didn’t feel that way at first. I was protecting a butcher’s daughter from some thugs,” Huang Shing says, shrugging his shoulders. “Things escalated. As usual. By the time Chen Guo became involved, I don’t think he quite realized what had happened. Problem is, neither did I. I thought he was some big jerk like Feng Zhi, so I treated him like I wish I had treated Feng Zhi.”

Huang Shing manages to smile and wince at the same time.

“I was lucky to make it out alive.”

Liu Jin frowns. “Do you need our help?”

A surprised look appears on Huang Shing’s face. He laughs shortly after.

“No, it’s not like that. I don’t think he wants to kill me. Just beat me up. I don’t plan on letting him, obviously. It’s just…Thinking back on it, I really was one of those people who couldn’t see Mount Tai.”

It is rare to see Huang Shing in such a contemplative mood. This time, it is not because of depression like how it was when he found out the truth about Yi Jiao. His friend is truly meditating on himself.

“It’s easy to have an erroneous image of oneself,” Liu Jin says, picking his words carefully. “Some people think too kindly of themselves, others too harshly, and some manage to do both. If you can look back and recognize your mistakes, I think that’s a step in the right direction.”

“Is that even something that applies to you, Brother Jin?” Huang Shing asks.

“Of course,” Liu Jin says with complete seriousness. “The person I am now is not the same person that left Eastern Port City many years ago. I have become comfortable doing things the old me would not have approved of. Does that mean I have adapted? Or am I merely decaying? I have to think a lot about that. If I don’t do that, I think it will be easy to become someone I do not wish to become.”

Huang Shing shakes his head.

“You’re too much, Brother Jin,” he says, smiling. “If it is all the same to you, I’ll stick to doing most of my contemplation in a more physical way.”

“That’s well and good,” Liu Jin replies. “To be honest, I am envious that you and Bei Hong can operate that way.”

Huang Shing chuckles. “We’re just profound thinkers that way.”

Liu Jin laughs.

~~~

Su Daji wakes up staring at an unfamiliar ceiling.

The red tells her everything she needs to know about where she is. The impossibly ornate crystal chandelier made with gold only reinforces it. It must have taken a craftsman several months to make, yet it is being used to decorate a bedroom instead of a common area.

A part of her wants to close her eyes and go back to sleep. Alas, even though the bed is soft like a cloud, no amount of comfort can truly satisfy her right now.

Besides, she has a guest.

“You are not the Boss,” she says, raising her body to a sitting position and folding her hands over her lap. Instincts with wildly different ideas as to how she should conduct herself war within her.

“No, I am not,” says the woman in the room with her, a beautiful redhead with golden eyes. Lu Mei, if she remembers correctly. “He had important matters to attend to. I thought we could use this opportunity to get to know each other.”

Su Daji studies her carefully.

There is an abundance of cleverness in the girl’s golden eyes. Part of her finds her lacking. Part of her distrusts her immediately.

“Did you just try to imply I was not an important matter?” Su Daji asks.

“Nothing of the sort,” Lu Mei replies.

“No,” Su Daji says, rolling her shoulders a little. The more she talks, the easier it is to think. “You definitely did. I know because a part of me used to do the same. Minor slights are a great way to test someone.” She frowns. “I don’t like it.”

Lu Mei’s expression barely falters. Most would not have caught the slight irritation coming from her, but having two lifetimes somewhere in her soul, one significantly longer than the other, helps Su Daji notice the little things.

“I suppose we could be frank. It will be a relatively novel experience for me,” Lu Mei says. “You were precious to Qing Jin once upon a time. At least, a part of you was. Getting you back, even in this changed state, has given him a measure of peace.”

Ah.

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Su Daji suddenly understands. She has no idea why it has taken her this long when it should have been obvious to both her former selves. Perhaps she’s still too sleepy.

“However, if you aren’t who you say you are, if this is some sort of ploy by you or the Wandering Wind, it will hurt him,” Lu Mei says. The temperature rises, yet the girl’s golden eyes are cold. “If that happens, I will make you regret it.”

She is being threatened.

“I take it back,” Su Daji says after letting several seconds pass. “I like you.”

Lu Mei raises an eyebrow. “I don’t recall you saying you disliked me.”

“It was implied,” Su Daji says. “Anyway, it was a good threat. Boss is lucky to have someone like you with him. He’s too kind. Always was. If he doesn’t have someone looking out for him, he’ll never think to look out for himself. He’s annoying that way.”

Lu Mei frowns and crosses her arms. “You’re making this complicated.”

“Considering my origin, I don’t think there is any way I can make things simple,” Su Daji replies, shrugging her shoulders. “Which part of it all annoys you most?”

“The part where I am starting to think you’re telling the truth,” Lu Mei says. “I had hoped to come here to meet a clever liar.”

“I was that. A part of me, at least, but I don’t care much for it now. An honest life is more satisfying. You should try it.” Su Daji suddenly grimaces. “Sorry, that wasn’t meant to be an insult. It’s the fox side of me. She enjoyed making women angry.”

It made them sloppy and easier to execute, but mentioning that is probably not a good idea.

“If you’re being honest,” Lu Mei says, heavily stressing the if, “it means Qing Jin has reunited with a dear friend, albeit one who has undergone several changes.”

“But?” Su Daji prompts.

“But you’re a creation of the Wandering Wind,” Lu Mei points out, making Su Daji’s face darken. “There is no telling what that woman has done to your soul. You could pose a danger to us without knowing about it.”