Missing Thoughts Literature

Chapter 20

The Dragon Ladder remained stationary. Yu Sui and Mei Chengyu waited for a moment, confirming no one else entered, then tried to open the door to look outside. However, after inputting the incantation, the Dragon Ladder door wouldn't open.

Mei Chengyu tried again with a blank expression.

It was still useless.

The incantation interface for opening the door was stuck, spinning but not opening.

As Yu Sui looked at him with confusion, Mei Chengyu said directly, "It's broken."

"What's broken?" Yu Sui tapped the door with her finger. "It's not going to suddenly fall or fly upwards, is it? Senior Martial Brother, we're on the thirty-third floor, and there are still over seventy floors above us. If it suddenly flies up, I'll die."

Mei Chengyu: "I won't die."

Yu Sui: "Right, so I'll die."

Mei Chengyu's eye twitched slightly. "You won't die either."

"Really?" Yu Sui moved to stand behind him.

Mei Chengyu added another trait to his impression of Yu Sui: timid.

The Dragon Ladder's incantation was stuck, preventing entry and exit. Its operation had stopped. Mei Chengyu took out his Listening Wind Ruler and sent a message to Xing Chun, asking him to notify the Mechanism Clan that the dormitory's Dragon Ladder was stuck.

"The Mechanism Clan people will be here soon," Mei Chengyu said.

Yu Sui remained silent behind him.

Mei Chengyu looked back and saw Yu Sui tilting her head slightly, intently gazing at the Moonlight Pearls embedded in the wall for illumination.

"What are you looking at?" Mei Chengyu asked.

"This," Yu Sui pointed at a Moonlight Pearl. "The Dragon Ladder is stuck and not moving. Will it also have problems and suddenly stop glowing, plunging the Dragon Ladder into darkness?"

Mei Chengyu looked at Yu Sui. "Don't scare yourself. The Moonlight Pearl's light has nothing to do with the Dragon Ladder's operation."

"Oh," Yu Sui retracted her hand.

After a moment of silence, Yu Sui asked again, "Senior Martial Brother, could it be that we rode the Dragon Ladder up and down too many times just now, causing it to get stuck and unable to move?"

Mei Chengyu leaned against the wall, playing with his Listening Wind Ruler, and said without looking up, "Be more confident. When there's a problem, don't look for the cause within yourself. The problem is with the Dragon Ladder, not us."

Yu Sui clapped her hands enthusiastically after hearing this.

Mei Chengyu glanced at her. Yu Sui said sincerely, "I think you're right, Senior Martial Brother."

Very confident.

Mei Chengyu turned his gaze back, continuing to examine the Listening Wind Ruler.

After a brief silence, Yu Sui tapped the wall and asked, "Senior Martial Brother, will it fall?"

Mei Chengyu: "No."

Yu Sui asked again, "What if it falls?"

Mei Chengyu was still playing with the Listening Wind Ruler. "Then use the Wind Riding Technique to maintain balance."

Yu Sui: "But I don't know how."

Mei Chengyu: "Then lean against the wall."

Yu Sui said, "There will still be impact force, won't there!"

Mei Chengyu's peripheral vision swept over her. "You even know about impact force?"

Inexplicably, the two of them started chatting, back and forth.

The questions Yu Sui asked were, in Mei Chengyu's opinion, minor issues, even ones he was too lazy to explain. However, when Yu Sui looked back at him with curious eyes, Mei Chengyu felt it was fine to tell her. Otherwise, his ears wouldn't be quiet. This junior martial sister was a chatterbox.

During their conversation, they even forgot about the Dragon Ladder malfunction until the stuck incantation interface suddenly started running, and the Dragon Ladder door opened with a click.

Standing outside were two people from the Mechanism Clan, dressed in their mechanical attire. Their shoulders, colored black and red, bore the insignia of the Four Great Families. The one in front was from the Wen Yang Family, their shoulder insignia a golden bird with outstretched wings.

The man standing at the forefront, with his sleeves rolled up to reveal his sturdy forearms, greeted Mei Chengyu, "Yo, you're stuck inside? Why didn't you fix it yourself?"

Yu Sui thought the remark was provocative and peeked out from behind Mei Chengyu. Seeing that the man didn't seem to be provoking her, it felt more like teasing from an acquaintance.

Mei Chengyu didn't move from his position inside. "If I fixed it, what would you guys be for? You get paid to do a job, don't always think about having others do it for you."

Wen Yangzhou and Wen Yangxiu, the two brothers, didn't get angry. Instead, they burst into laughter, their eyes gesturing towards Yu Sui behind Mei Chengyu, and teased, "I think you didn't want to fix it because you wanted to spend more time inside with someone, didn't you?"

"Hey, can you say that to someone's face?"

Mei Chengyu let out a cold laugh and directly closed the Dragon Ladder.

The Dragon Ladder ascended.

Yu Sui asked Mei Chengyu, "Senior Martial Brother, so you know how to fix Dragon Ladders."

Mei Chengyu said expressionlessly, "No."

Yu Sui said, "If you know, you know!"

Mei Chengyu: "I don't."

The Dragon Ladder stopped at the sixtieth floor and opened its doors.

Yu Sui went out and waved to Mei Chengyu, "Thank you, Senior Martial Brother, Senior Martial Brother..."

Before she could finish, Mei Chengyu had already closed the Dragon Ladder.

Yu Sui blinked, watching the Dragon Ladder close and ascend.

She returned to her dormitory. The moment she opened the door, she heard voices inside, "It's not proper for a man to pace around the room like this!"

As if hearing the door open, Shu Chujun, who was reprimanding Li Jinshuang, turned her head.

Yu Sui finally saw her roommates. Xun Zhiya stood with her back to Yu Sui, looking out the window with an unreadable expression. Li Jinshuang stood by the table, still silent. Shu Chujun, standing by the door, was a sweet and beautiful girl, but her eyes were filled with arrogance.

Li Jinshuang ignored Shu Chujun. After wiping the teacup on the table clean, she picked up the tea tray and went straight back into the room.

Yu Sui looked at Li Jinshuang returning to the room, then at Shu Chujun still by the door.

Shu Chujun snorted and also turned back into the room.

Yu Sui thought about greeting Xun Zhiya by the window, but she also indifferently returned to the room.

Fine, if that's the case, then no one should speak.

Yu Sui slowly opened the door and entered the room.

She sat on the bed and looked at the Listening Wind Ruler. The secret text was still corrupting Taiyi's communication array, and it would likely take until tomorrow night.

Yu Sui closed her eyes to rest for a while, then got up and sat up, sighing as she looked at her open palm.

When would she be able to sleep soundly at night without being tormented by the strange fire?

Mei Chengyu lived on the seventy-ninth floor, room 1036.

It was already late at night. He opened the door and went in. The room was brightly lit. One of the doors was open, and Wei Ren, dressed in loose, casual clothes, came out.

Wei Ren yawned, covering his mouth. His hair was messy from sleep. As he turned to look at Mei Chengyu, a tiny black scorpion was crawling from his cheek to behind his ear.

"You're the Ghost Dao School Senior Martial Brother who lives here, right?" Wei Ren spread his hands and smiled. "Nice to meet you, I'm Wei Ren. Let's get along well from now on."

Mei Chengyu used to live alone. Now he had a roommate, and he didn't have any objections.

After all, it wouldn't be long before he kicked out his new roommate and continued to live alone.

Yu Sui slept intermittently last night. Seeing that the time was almost right, she yawned and got out of bed to wash up in the room.

She could hear footsteps outside and the sound of pouring tea, indicating that her other roommates had also woken up at this time.

The Listening Wind Ruler glowed faintly; it was a notification from Taiyi Academy.

New students would receive unified basic lessons, and they would be assigned to different practice halls according to their assigned numbers.

Yesterday, Black Beard told Yu Sui that basic lessons referred to the five elements, yin and yang, tai chi, bagua, heavenly stems, and earthly branches, etc. Whether it was military strategy, famous doctors, or Dao, agriculture, yin and yang, these were all fundamentals that disciples had to learn.

Therefore, the one-month basic lesson would not be divided by school.

Yu Sui's assigned number was three, and she had to go to Practice Hall Number Three.

Sheng Zui sent a message, telling her to wait for him and he would take her to Practice Hall Number Three.

Yu Sui waited in the room for a while. After hearing a knock on the door, she went out. As she came out, she saw Li Jinshuang and asked her, "Which practice hall are you in?"

Li Jinshuang replied concisely, "Three."

"Then we're the same," Yu Sui invited. "Shall we go together?"

Li Jinshuang didn't answer and opened the door to walk out.

Yu Sui's gaze followed Li Jinshuang.

Sheng Zui, standing outside the door, didn't even look at Li Jinshuang as she left. His eyes were fixed on Yu Sui. With a stern face, he handed her the small food box he was holding. "Eat before you go."

"Let's eat while we walk," Yu Sui said, taking the food box.

On the way, Sheng Zui told her about Practice Hall Number Three and inquired in advance about the teacher for today's class.

Sheng Zui said, "It's Jing Yun Kui from the Yin-Yang School. He's a rigid and stubborn old man. If you can't answer questions or disrupt the class discipline, he'll scold you. So, you'd better not sleep in class like you used to, and not be ignorant when asked."

Yu Sui ate the breakfast he brought and nodded.

Sheng Zui frowned and added, "Since you're here at Taiyi, don't hang out with Gu Gan. Study hard. Some basic five-element formations only require rote memorization. No slacking off, you must learn them."

Yu Sui: "Mm-hmm!"

By reminding Yu Sui to study, Sheng Zui, as an elder brother, felt it was his duty to supervise and be responsible. This also served as an opportunity to break their three-year cold war.

He didn't have high expectations for Yu Sui's cultivation in the Nine Schools, but he just wanted her to focus on her studies, which was better than her being infatuated with Gu Gan.

"Academy disciples are divided into four grades: A, B, C, and D. You're currently Grade D. Your cultivation will earn you bonus points, but violations will deduct points. Disciples of different grades have access to different areas."

Some places are only open to disciples of a certain grade.

"For example, the Nine Schools' library is only open to Grade A disciples. If you're demoted to Grade B, you won't be able to enter."

Sheng Zui was currently Grade A, but he would be demoted if he lost two more points, so he had been consciously controlling his temper lately.

"Within a month, you must memorize the applications and operations of all basic five elements and bagua. Because next, you'll be learning the introductory techniques of the Ghost Dao. I don't know if your ten percent talent will be enough to learn it, but since you're Sage Chang Gen's disciple, there might be another way."

Sheng Zui turned to look at Yu Sui, who was walking beside him. Seeing that she was focused on eating, he didn't know if she was listening.

"Did you hear me?" Sheng Zui asked, just to be sure.

"I heard you, Third Brother," Yu Sui replied. "Can we have beef filling next time?"

Sheng Zui: ""

The Third Practice Hall was at the Yin-Yang School.

It was a building shaped like a giant whale leaping out of the sea. The entire structure was water blue, and under the sunlight, a faint blue ripple seemed to sway around it, making the building appear as if it were in turbulent waters.

Sheng Zui had intended to escort Yu Sui to the classroom door, but she refused.

"Third Brother, I'm eighteen, not eight," Yu Sui said.

Sheng Zui frowned and looked at her.

Yu Sui sternly rejected Sheng Zui, waved goodbye to him, and walked towards the giant whale building herself.

Quite a few people were already seated inside the practice hall. They were either chatting with each other or quietly reading. Among them were many noble and aristocratic disciples from Qingyang Nation, who greeted Yu Sui when they saw her.

Yu Sui easily blended in with the people around her. After sitting down, she listened to the young men and women she knew share interesting stories from Taiyi yesterday.

She saw many familiar faces.

For instance, the Xue siblings sitting in the back, and Li Jinshuang and Wei Ren sitting not far in front of her.

The instructor, Jing Yun Kui, was indeed an old, stern man as Sheng Zui had described. His wrinkled face was full of authority, and the oppressive aura he exuded upon entering the classroom silenced everyone. When his sharp eyes swept over the students below, everyone unconsciously straightened their backs.

"What I will teach you next is the necessary foundation for practicing the Nine Schools Techniques. Even if you join different schools and practice different Nine Schools Techniques in the future, you will not escape the power of the Bagua's operations."

Jing Yun Kui wasted no words. He began, "I will check attendance daily. No one is allowed to miss a class, or two points will be deducted from your disciple score."

Deducting points was easy, but earning them back was hard.

Most people didn't want to lose points right after arriving at the academy.

The students in the class perked up.

Yu Sui listened to Jing Yun Kui talk about Bagua and the Five Elements. Initially, she thought there might be something different, but as she listened, she realized it was indeed the most basic knowledge. She knew it all, and not only knew it, but could also use it skillfully.

After all, the Five Elements, Bagua, Taiji, Yin-Yang, and the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches had all been incorporated and utilized by the Yin-Yang School, Taoist School, and School of Techniques into communication arrays. She had dealt with these things almost every day in previous years.

Though no one had taught her, she had learned them instinctively.

"The Five Elements are the primary forces that constitute this world. They are everywhere and nowhere. In our common observations, we can see the power of the Five Elements and Yin-Yang represented in mountains, rivers, wind, thunder, fire, stone, wood, and even in the human heart, lungs, and kidneys."

"The Nine Schools Techniques and the power of the Five Elements are born together. The power of the Five Elements can create all 'techniques' in the world, and different schools visualize these Five Elements techniques in different ways."

Jing Yun Kui spread his hand, and a cluster of flames ignited in his palm. "For example, the Yin-Yang School's Cursed Fire, the Taoist School's Lightning Technique, the School of Names' bestowed characters, the Agricultural School's Beast Taming, the Medical School's Blessing Technique, the School of Techniques' divination, the Legalism School's punishment, the Military School's swords, the Ghost Dao School's runes, and other Nine Schools Techniques, all operate through the Five Elements Qi. And the Five Elements Qi, when first born within a person, takes the form of what is called the Five Elements Light Core."

In other words, only those who possess a Five Elements Light Core can practice the Nine Schools Techniques. Those without a Five Elements Light Core are called Normal Practitioners.

Back then, Nangong Ming couldn't detect Yu Sui's talent because she hadn't developed a Light Core yet. Later, when Yu Sui had a Five Elements Light Core, people's understanding was that there could only be one. Therefore, during the test, they couldn't sense the first Five Elements Light Core that Yu Sui had crushed. Without sensing the Five Elements Light Core, she would be judged as having no talent and being a Normal Practitioner.

Hearing the explanation about the Five Elements Light Core, Yu Sui's spirits lifted again.

The daily basic classes lasted until sunset. There were short breaks in between, but perhaps because it was the first day of instruction, Jing Yun Kui didn't make things too difficult for them.

At the end, Yu Sui stretched and stood up, following the crowd out.

She fiddled with her Listening Wind Ruler, looking for the route map she had noted down yesterday, preparing to go to the Ghost Dao Saint Hall.

Sheng Zui hadn't waited for Yu Sui. He asked where she was going after class, and Yu Sui said she was going to the Ghost Dao School to see her Master.

Sheng Zui knew where the Ghost Dao Saint Hall was. He couldn't go there, so he could only glare at his Listening Wind Ruler and send a message to Yu Sui, reminding her.

Yu Sui, who couldn't use the Wind Riding Technique, walked for a long time to get there. She walked from sunset to dark. There was no moon that night, and the Milky Way in the sky was magnificent. There were no lights around, not even a path. Yu Sui used the light from her Listening Wind Ruler to find her way, passing through the forest in the dimness. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the open doors of the Ghost Dao Saint Hall.

Yu Sui fanned herself, breaking out in a sweat on the slightly cool spring night.

She climbed the thirty-three steps and arrived at the entrance of the Saint Hall's main building. The door was ajar, and Yu Sui pushed it open easily.

Before pushing the door open, Yu Sui had already sensed with her Strange Fire that there were people inside, both living and half-dead.

Mei Chengyu, who was sitting by a table playing with his Listening Wind Ruler, looked up when he heard the door open. He raised an eyebrow slightly upon seeing Yu Sui, who was covered in sweat.

Yu Sui feigned surprise. "Senior Martial Brother? You're here too."

Mei Chengyu looked her up and down. "I'm leaving soon."

"Oh, I came to find Master," Yu Sui said, looking at the portrait that flowed with ink-like colors. "Master, I came to learn the Wind Riding Technique from you."

Mei Chengyu also looked at the portrait with her, then back at Yu Sui a moment later, finally understanding why she was sweating so much.

It was no wonder she was sweating, running all the way from the Yin-Yang School to the farthest part of the Ghost Dao School.

Before Sage Chang Gen could reply, Mei Chengyu chuckled. "You came all this way just to learn the Wind Riding Technique?"

Yu Sui replied, "Yes. If I learn the Wind Riding Technique, I won't have to run back to the dormitory anymore. If I have to run back to the dormitory from here, my legs might be so sore tomorrow that I can't get out of bed. The instructor today said we can't miss class, or we'll lose points."

Mei Chengyu mused, "That old man from the Yin-Yang School would indeed do something like that."

Yu Sui looked at the portrait with reverence. "Master."

Sage Chang Gen replied, "You may."

Seeing that Master was really going to teach Yu Sui, Mei Chengyu lowered his head to reply to a message on his Listening Wind Ruler. He answered Xing Chun's "Are you eating?" with a "No," and decided not to leave after all.