Missing Thoughts Literature

Things like strange fire were absolutely no cheat abilities.

Yu Sui opened her eyes again and discovered she was still alive. Her inexplicable screams had drawn Lady Su to her side, and for once, she had stayed with her all night.

Lady Su sat on a long bench nearby, resting one hand against her forehead as she pondered. She caught sight of the child waking out of the corner of her eye, then rose and came over.

She seemed to hesitate for a moment before reaching out and gently placing the back of her hand against Yu Sui's forehead to check her temperature.

A maid's voice sounded outside the door. "Madam, Mister Zhou has arrived."

Lady Su said, "Come in."

The man who entered had a limp. He stepped only halfway through the doorway before stopping; the candles covering the floor blocked his path.

Mister Zhou had a face full of stubble and cloudy eyes. His disheveled appearance made it impossible to guess his true age.

"How is she?" Lady Su asked.

Mister Zhou bowed his head and replied, "It should be the cold of Mountain Cold seeping into her body and building up until it erupted, causing her unbearable pain."

Yu Sui opened her mouth and gave a silly grin.

Mister Zhou continued, "Madam is the master of Farmer School Xi Rang, and the child inherited half of your Xi Rang. Mountain Cold turns to water, and she cannot refuse Xi Rang's absorption. If she stays in Mountain Cold for long, Mountain Cold will inevitably build up in her body."

Lady Su lowered her head and stared at Yu Sui, the back of her hand still against the child's forehead. As Yu Sui giggled, her expression did not change.

After a brief silence, Lady Su said, "For the time being, you'll look after Kui'er."

Mister Zhou nodded and withdrew.

More and more information reached Yu Sui.

From learning that Lady Su was the master of Xi Rang to finding out that half of it was inside her own body.

They attributed her earlier screams and wails to the Xi Rang inside her and Mountain Cold.

The one good thing about being a baby was that adults did not hold back when they talked. They said whatever they wanted and never worried that a two-month-old infant might overhear.

Yu Sui did not correct them, either. Though there wasn't a single wound on her body, she could feel the pain of the World Destroyer being burned alive. When the flames grew too fierce, she had passed out from the pain.

She had thought she would die.

So this was what it meant to resonate with the World Destroyers.

Who would want a resonance like this?

Yu Sui felt rather gloomy. She prayed that the remaining World Destroyers would not die before her.

The punishment by fire had left her with a deep psychological shadow.

But judging from what had happened before, the World Destroyers were not a fixed group of five.

The number stayed the same, but the "people" changed.

Yu Sui pondered this as her eyelids grew heavy. She soon fell asleep again.

Lady Su did not leave. She stayed right beside her.

*

With an unknown father, an uncaring mother, and the identity of a World Destroyer that had made her a target for pursuit across the continent, Yu Sui became even more careful about pretending to be an infant who knew nothing.

She could not let Lady Su detect even the slightest sign that she was a "child with extraordinary talent."

Yu Sui suffered several more attacks during this time. The Nine Schools Practitioners had been ordered to kill Lady Su's children. Over the course of the next year, many came in waves, but Lady Su drove them all back.

From the information Yu Sui had received, cultivators on the Xuangu Continent were collectively known as Nine Schools Practitioners.

"Nine Schools" was a collective term for countless different factions. Each had its own path, but nine schools currently ranked among the continent's foremost:

the School of Medicine, School of Law, School of Names, School of War, School of Dao, Farmer School, Yin-Yang School, Ghost Dao School, and School of Techniques.

Everyone could draw starlight into their fate and search for the Nine Schools school that best suited them.

It all depended on one's "talent."

The higher one's compatibility with a school, the greater the chance of entering it and cultivating to sainthood.

All of this was still far beyond Yu Sui. She only knew that Lady Su came from the Nine Schools Farmer School and had cultivated to the Thirteenth Realm, just one step away from reaching the peak of the Sages.

Mister Zhou, meanwhile, came from the School of Medicine. His cultivation level was unknown.

The Xi Rang they spoke of seemed more like a treasure. It had originally belonged to Lady Su alone, but when she gave birth to Yu Sui, the child inherited half of it.

In the months Lady Su watched over Yu Sui, she never once picked the child up or took her away from the little shrine room.

A mute woman cared for Yu Sui.

Her face bore the marks of time. Deep wrinkles made her seem rather stern, yet she treated Yu Sui with tenderness and care, catching her several times before she could fall out of her cradle.

Yu Sui rarely cried. Sometimes, her body was uncoordinated, and she would crawl up only to fall and bump into things. Thinking a child ought to cry, she would let out a couple of wails.

But her reaction was too slow, so the Mute Woman signed to Lady Su, "The young miss is rather slow to react."

Lady Su looked at the child sitting up in her cradle and drooling at her, but said nothing.

She stepped in front of Yu Sui, joined two fingers, and lightly pressed along the child's Meridians, helping them flow smoothly and dispersing the Cold Air that Xi Rang had not absorbed.

Because Lady Su believed Mister Zhou's claim that the Cold Air would harm the child, she helped Yu Sui disperse it once every seven days.

Yu Sui smiled at Lady Su, her eyes curving into crescents, and held out the tiger doll in her hands, inviting her to play.

Lady Su did not spare her a glance before turning to leave.

The Mute Woman could not speak.

Lady Su did not speak to her.

So Yu Sui was already one year old, yet still a child who could not talk.

*

Ever since Lady Su said that Mister Zhou would look after Qingkui, Yu Sui had not seen this elder sister again.

It was not until tonight, after someone attacked the shrine and Lady Su killed them, that Mister Zhou arrived with Qingkui, who was wailing. He said she had been frightened and would not stop crying, insisting on seeing her mother.

Yu Sui climbed out of her little bed and peered outside, but the Mute Woman standing nearby pushed her back in.

"Go back." Lady Su crouched down and wiped the little girl's tears.

Qingkui choked on a sob. "I don't want to. I want to sleep with Mother."

She seemed to notice Yu Sui inside and changed her mind. "I want to sleep with Mother and my little sister."

Lady Su furrowed her brow, apparently still occupied with something else. She left Qingkui to the Mute Woman to take inside.

When Qingkui saw Yu Sui, she stopped crying, as if she had spotted some new toy. She came closer and pinched Yu Sui's cheek. Yu Sui lifted her face and smiled at her, and Qingkui smiled back.

"I haven't seen you in so long." Four-year-old Qingkui sat beside Yu Sui's bed. "I've grown taller, and you've gotten bigger, too."

Yu Sui blinked.

"Why don't you talk?" Qingkui turned to look at her. "You're supposed to call me big sister."

Yu Sui said, "Big—"

Qingkui earnestly taught her, "Big—sister!"

Yu Sui said, "Big—ah."

"That's not how you say it!" Qingkui pointed at herself. "Big sister!"

Yu Sui was teasing her and refused to say it. In the end, Qingkui sighed. "You're so silly."

The two children played until Qingkui was the first to lean against Yu Sui and fall asleep. Yu Sui closed her eyes too, pretending to be asleep.

Lady Su came into the room and lifted the curtain to look at the two sleeping children. She bent down and covered Qingkui with the blanket she had kicked off.

Mister Zhou stood in the shadows by the doorway and said in a low voice, "They've found Mountain Cold's location. The Luosha Practitioners of the Yin-Yang School, School of War, and School of Dao have all been summoned. Your old injuries haven't healed. If you keep dragging this out, more and more of them will come, and those who come here will grow stronger. It'll be difficult to keep Qingkui safe."

Lady Su lowered the curtain and turned away, her bright, dark eyes gleaming coldly.

After a moment of silence, she said softly, "Take Qingkui and leave."

Mister Zhou looked up at her.

"Let Qingkui go. Let her grow up safe and sound, far from conflict and danger."

"Sir, I ask this of you only once."

Lady Su bowed her head to Mister Zhou.

"Are you going back?" Mister Zhou asked, watching her.

Lady Su's lashes trembled slightly. Then she raised her head and said, "I'll take the other child back with me. Everyone's attention will be on that child. No one will care about Qingkui."

Mister Zhou agreed.

The next day, the Mute Woman woke Qingkui. She sat up, rubbing her eyes, still looking half-asleep.

"Kui'er." Lady Su held out her hand to Qingkui. "Come on."

Qingkui answered and took Lady Su's hand as they left.

From that day on, Yu Sui never saw her elder sister Qingkui again.

*

Even when Yu Sui was awake, she kept busy. She often separated her consciousness and peered at the little flame deep within her mind. Sometimes it stood motionless; other times, its small tongues of flame flickered as it burned.

She called the moment she first received the knowledge of the strange fire the inheritance baptism. During that baptism, the flame Yu Sui saw was the same as the one now deep in her consciousness.

Was this the strange fire?

It could burn all things in the world, crack the earth, and swallow every living thing.

Yu Sui's consciousness reached out to touch the tiny flame, and then she really did feel its temperature. It was cold.

When she fell asleep, her consciousness lingered beside the flame, and she felt warmth spreading through her limbs and body. It held the Cold Air of Mountain Cold beyond her heart meridian, keeping her from feeling even the slightest pain.

When Yu Sui was alone, the flame stood still.

Only when someone came near her did it begin to flicker.

When no one spoke to her during that year, she would talk to the strange fire herself. It never answered, but at least she had someone to confide in.

Yu Sui patiently studied the strange fire. After Mister Zhou and Qingkui left, Lady Su came to see her less and less. The only person by her side was the Mute Woman.

From what she had heard in their earlier conversation, the pursuers who came to Mountain Cold would grow stronger from then on. Lady Su was injured and had yet to recover; she was not strong enough to protect her children from them.

So Lady Su planned to take the other child back.

Yu Sui thought, So I'm the other unlucky child. But where are we going back to?

*

A month later.

The strange fire deep in Yu Sui's consciousness flickered slightly. Someone stepped through the starlit night and came to the child's bed, reaching out. A dark-brown sleeve fell beside the bed. His long, distinct fingers curved as the man gently lifted the sleeping child.

A gale blew the door open with a bang, snuffing out every candle on the floor. Only moonlight poured in, falling upon the man.

Yu Sui opened her eyes and saw his smiling face. He was handsome and refined, yet sinister.

Though he smiled, an oppressive aura radiated from him. It was as if a venomous snake were coiling around your neck, its fangs already pressed against your throat, forcing you to obey.

The man looked toward Lady Su outside the door and said with a gentle smile, "Susu, you kept me apart from my daughter for over a year. Don't throw another tantrum now. Come back with me."

That year, one-year-and-two-month-old Yu Sui met her father, the only king in Qingyang Nation without the surname Nangong: Nangong Ming.

Lady Su stood outside the door, expressionless. She said nothing, only lowered her head slightly.

The maids and the Mute Woman had been held captive by Nangong Ming's people and could not move. There were also many corpses on the ground.

Nangong Ming carried Yu Sui outside, ignoring everyone else as he walked naturally up to Lady Su. He lowered his head and pressed his forehead against hers. "If you hadn't taken pity on them, all my daughters would have died. You spared one, and I'll be grateful to you."

At that moment, Yu Sui felt that her father was an even harder character to deal with than her mother.

Nangong Ming spoke gently, but the atmosphere around them grew more and more sinister. It was as if the air had been sucked away, and an invisible weight bore down on her heart, making her uncomfortable. Fear rose in Yu Sui from nowhere, giving her a firsthand taste of the kind of presence that could "scare a child into crying."

She struggled in Nangong Ming's arms and let out a babble, furrowing her brow to show how uncomfortable she was.

Nangong Ming drew away from Lady Su, smiled at Yu Sui, and patted her head to soothe her. "Susu, let's go. Come home with me."

Lady Su had no choice but to leave with Nangong Ming.

This was also the first time Yu Sui had left that gloomy little room.

*

The outside world was more interesting than Yu Sui had imagined.

She only had time for a hurried glimpse of one corner of Mountain Cold before Nangong Ming took her back to the Qingyang Imperial Capital.

The mountains and seas along the way were breathtaking. Before Yu Sui had time to savor them, she had already entered the prince's residence, with its Red Gate Red Wall.

King Nangong had returned to the residence, bringing back Lady Su, who had been away on a journey, and the little princess born abroad.

The path from the main gate to the Main Hall was lined with people. The servants kept their heads bowed as they followed orders, carrying clothes and food supplies to welcome the madam and the little princess.

From beginning to end, Nangong Ming was interested only in the child in his arms. He used all sorts of things to amuse her, switching to something else whenever Yu Sui looked away from whatever he was holding.

The Main Hall was already filled with members of the Nangong Family.

Several young madams waved their round fans slowly, their gazes drifting toward the hall's entrance from time to time. The older madams rested with their eyes closed in their seats. At the table beside them, three boys sat without speaking, each playing on his own.

The men dressed in fine silk sat or stood about. Those who stood had furrowed brows and paced back and forth around the doorway.

The collateral clan members stood off to the side without a word.

Nangong Ming had never taken a wife. There was no principal consort in the residence, but he had three concubines. Including Lady Su, who had returned today, that made four.

As the figure in dark robes drew near, all the men and women who had been seated rose.

"Is everyone here?" Nangong Ming carried Yu Sui into the Main Hall. The flowering trees along both sides of the path swayed gently in the morning breeze. He placed Yu Sui on the table and smiled at everyone.

"The prince's residence has a new little princess. Her name is..."

Nangong Ming looked at Lady Su. "Does she have a name?"

Lady Su coolly returned his gaze. "No."

Nangong Ming did not get angry. He continued to smile warmly.

Yu Sui tried to climb down from the table while Nangong Ming was not watching, but accidentally knocked over a bowl. The delicate porcelain hit the floor and shattered with a sharp crack.

The sound made the atmosphere in the hall turn strangely oppressive again.

Yu Sui did not dare move either. She sat by the table and played dumb.

Nangong Ming bent down and picked up a piece of the broken bowl. He placed it in Yu Sui's hand and said gently, "May all be well in the wake of the shattering. Since it's so auspicious, you'll be called Nangong Sui."

When he spoke the words Nangong, everyone's eyes turned toward the two of them, unmistakably incredulous.

They knew that only the heir to the prince's title could bear the surname Nangong.