(04) Mo ShiLan's Love

When Wu LiJing returned to the sect, she went directly to her room with a slightly gloomy face. But just as she was about to enter, she heard a laugh and after contemplating for a moment, she didn't step into her room. She followed that laughter and entered her main courtyard.

The coldness on her body dissipated when she saw two familiar figures sitting around the stone table and interacting harmoniously with smiles on their faces.

There was a female cultivator who looked no younger than eighteen years old. She wore the Moon Sect inner disciple uniform while sitting on the left. She had a small pretty face and could be considered cute with the slight fat on her cheeks that contrasted with her thinner body. The changes of expressions on her face was refreshing and her sweet, doe eyes were animated as she spoke. The male cultivator across from her wore his usual yellow robes and was currently laughing.

Her younger cousin, Wu QiaoHua, continued chatting with her fiancé and Mo ShiLan was listening with a warm smile.

Wu LiJing's lips lifted when she saw that her fiancé was comfortable with her cousin. If she was to marry him in the far future, she wouldn't be too worried about him mistreating Wu QiaoHua, her only family. Wu LiJing slowly walked closer and didn't want to break this atmosphere, but it would be rude not to greet her guest.

"ShiLan, you're here. I hope QiaoHua kept you from feeling too bored."

Mo ShiLan appeared to jump a little when he heard her voice and looked over to her. He smiled and stood up along with Wu QiaoHua. "LiJing, you walked so quietly, you surprised me! Cheng ChunHua told me you would return soon so I decided to wait here. Luckily, QiaoHua saw me and decided to keep me company."

Wu LiJing nodded. "Please, sit back down."

Wu QiaoHua saluted and greeted her.

"QiaoHua, sit down. And we are in my manor, stop with the formalities. How is your cultivation going? Are the teachers teaching you well?" She has been out lately so she hasn't been able to look after Wu QiaoHua properly.

Wu QiaoHua raised her brows. "Eldest Senior Sister! I am tired of talking about cultivating this and that! The teachers have been very harsh lately and just lectured the ones who have been slacking off! I was chatting with Sir Mo about the rabbits I saw in the Silver Forest today. They were so adorable, jumping here and there. But they dared to eat the herbs I had gathered in my basket!" She fumed as she recalled that moment. Her hard work was wasted and she had to start over again.

Mo ShiLan chuckled and Wu LiJing smiled, shaking her head. "Alright, but I am still going to check on your cultivation. The competition is coming up as well as the test for disciples. If you want to be picked for the Sect Competition, you need to work harder."

Wu QiaoHua glanced at her cousin and sighed. She stood up with a pout and clasped her hands respectfully. "Alright. Eldest Senior Sister, Sir ShiLan, enjoy yourselves. I shall excuse myself and go rest. I had to run all over the place today due to those rabbits!"

Then she left. Mo ShiLan stared at her disappearing back for a moment before he turned his attention back to Wu LiJing.

"You should try not to be so strict on her," he said with a soft voice.

With a serious expression, Wu LiJing said, "I spoil her too much, actually. I let her slack off, but this might become detrimental to her in the future. The least I can do is make sure she is improving her cultivation."

Mo ShiLan sighed and nodded after a moment of silence. He smiled and held her hand. "I brought you and QiaoHua some cookies on my way here. But since it's getting late, you can eat them tomorrow instead."

"Mm. Many thanks."

Wu LiJing stared at Mo ShiLan as he started to talk again with a warm smile. After being lost in her thoughts for a while, Mo ShiLan finally realized that she wasn't listening to him.

"LiJing? Is something the matter?"

Wu LiJing snapped out of it and nodded. She stared at him and then suddenly ordered, "ChunHua, you can leave." Cheng ChunHua had been standing on the side in case they needed anything since a guest was over. The maid retreated quietly.

Mo ShiLan suddenly felt nervous when the atmosphere between them changed. Wu LiJing looked at him with a very solemn expression, as multiple thoughts raced in her mind.

She may have given others such a look but never to him before, so Mo ShiLan felt puzzled. What was so serious? Did something happen? Did he act oddly just now?

"ShiLan," she started.

Wu LiJing has been thinking about this for a while and finally decided to tell him. It wasn't fair to hesitate. He always treated her courteously and he also treated her only family well. Those are basically the only characteristics she wanted in her future partner. In fact, she never thought about marrying until those years ago when he appeared with Madam Shao.

He made an effort to get to know her, sent her gifts, visited her to chat with her, and now she could be comfortable around him. She liked the serene atmosphere around them. Not only was he a top bachelor because of his good-looks, he was also kind and patient.

"I was thinking about our marriage."

Mo ShiLan's eyes slightly widened and she didn't notice that the warm hand on top of hers went rigid.

He had a good personality, so she didn't want to wrong him. "Before you could ask for my hand in marriage in the future, I wanted to tell you that..."

"No!" Mo ShiLan let go of her hand and suddenly raised his voice, interrupting her. There was silence all around them.

She blinked. "What?"

He looked away, ashamed. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I cannot marry you."

Wu LiJing's lips slightly parted, but then they closed again and her shock turned to calmness. It was so quiet in the courtyard that sounds of twittering insects could be heard. The warm atmosphere from earlier abruptly faded away.

"I do not love you," he continued in a pained voice. "I-I... I love Wu QiaoHua."

Wu LiJing's eyes widened. A sudden picture flashed in front of her eyes. The feeling of the harmonious atmosphere earlier. The sound of his sincere laughter. He never really laughed like that around her. Now that she thought about it... whenever he sent her gifts, he never forgot to send some to QiaoHua as well. He also asked about her quite often when he visited. She simply thought that was him looking after her cousin for her.

"I'm sorry," he apologized once more. Then he looked up at her with unwavering eyes. "I had thought I could fall in love with you, LiJing. But when I met QiaoHua, I realized what love really was."

"Why didn't you just tell me then?" she asked after a moment of silence.

"Because you love me!" he said. "I didn't want to break your heart..."

Wu LiJing was speechless. Actually...

"I also didn't want to make my parents unhappy. They like you very much, Wu LiJing. If I cancelled this engagement, three people who are dear to me would feel sad..."

Wu LiJing opened her lips but he quickly stopped her. "I know. You're probably very sad right now. I also thought I could marry you and watch Wu QiaoHua afar like I always have. But today when you mentioned marriage, I realized I actually can't go through with it."

Wu LiJing suddenly felt a little irritated. "Mo ShiLan, I actually don't love you..."

"Don't lie to make me feel better, LiJing," he said with a very pained face.

She was left speechless again. She wasn't lying, really!

"You always sent me gifts all these years... You made time for me when you could and smiled warmly at me, treating me and my parents well. But I can't lie to myself anymore even if I don't want to let you down." He stood up. "I'll tell my parents that it was my fault and break our engagement."

Before he left, he paused and said one last, "I'm sorry."

Wu LiJing's lips were left parted, and she stared at the courtyard exit for a long time without saying anything. She really was telling the truth! She actually just wanted to tell him that she didn't want to marry now; he would have to wait for many years because she wanted to concentrate on her cultivation! She needed to take revenge for her parents first.

But he suddenly revealed all these things, created a show for himself and made it awkward for her... Also, she only sent those gifts in return for the gifts he sent her as well! She was just being polite... She sighed and rubbed her temple.

Wu LiJing stared at her table for a moment, lost in thought, wondering what to do. Her heart felt a little lost. But just a little. After all, she had been preparing herself to be life partners with him all these years after she accepted the engagement. That was why... the picture of a handsome man dressed in dark red flashed in her mind. Her chest suddenly ached a little and she closed her eyes for a moment before she opened them again and stood up.

Wu LiJing entered her room and after a pause, slowly walked to her side drawer. She took out a paper with four names signed on the bottom, two of them being her parents'. She laid it on the table and her eyes admired the signatures of the names, Zao MingZhu and Wu YangYi. She traced them gently for a moment before she let out a small sigh.

"I'm sorry, mother, father."

She looked towards her door and suddenly wondered if QiaoHua felt the same way towards Mo ShiLan. Because if she did... she would congratulate them.

After a few days, Wu LiJing left the Moon Sect again. But before she left, she checked up on Wu QiaoHua first.

"You're doing well," Wu LiJing said. "But you must remember to practice using your inner chi to enhance your sword to strengthen your attacks. If not, do more exercises to strengthen your body. Also, try to improve your qing qong, even your friends' qing qong is better than this. And never let your guard down, even if your opponent is me." She suddenly felt a little worried. The test for the Moon Sect disciples would be taking place soon.

Wu QiaoHua nodded, feeling sweat drip down her chin after having had a spar with her cousin. Wu QiaoHua looked at Wu LiJing who didn't have one drop of sweat on her face. She suddenly felt a little down. "I'm trying," she said. "It's just hard."

Wu LiJing sheathed her sword. "You can do it if you train."

Wu QiaoHua was just quiet as she sheathed her sword as well.

"The disciples are going to train in the Disappearing Forest in a few days. I heard it can be quite dangerous. Master asked that I join in to make sure everyone gets out safely. Those who show good results will get rare herbs as a reward. Be ready for it."

Wu QiaoHua only nodded silently.

Wu LiJing lifted her hand to pat QiaoHua's head but QiaoHua lowered her head to pull back some hairs and stepped back.

"Is that all?" her younger cousin asked, staring at the ground.

Wu LiJing's hand froze and she took it back. "I asked ChunHua to boil some useful herbs for your cultivation. Consume them before you meditate," she said in a softer tone.

Wu QiaoHua nodded. "Mm." Then she walked back to her room.

Wu LiJing watched until her cousin disappeared then focused her inner chi and spread it throughout her body before she jumped and disappeared into the sky.

She understood that it can be a little suffocating to have someone constantly check up on one's cultivation... she understood best, having only concentrated on cultivation her whole life since she was little. That was why she wanted to make sure QiaoHua was able to do whatever she wanted. But if QiaoHua wasn't cultivating properly or wasn't improving, it was up to her to push her, even if she had to be strict.

Wu LiJing checked up on QiaoHua now whenever she returned from her missions that sometimes took days or even a week. In the past, she didn't have much time and mainly sent herbs to help her cousin's cultivation; but now, Wu LiJing wanted to be more responsible. After all, what if one day the enemy who murdered her parents realized they were in the Moon Sect? She still didn't know who they were. In this world, one can only be more assured if one was strong enough. She knew this reason was behind her father's strict regimen in her training.

Her father was kind, but he was strict and resolute when it came to cultivation. After she turned six, she solely focused on cultivating and learning martial arts. At first, she was excited. She loved seeing her father and mother show off their skills and couldn't wait to start on her own.

So, she felt a little happy from seeing her cultivation improve little by little. But when she had to stop playing with toys... stop having more time to go out and play with friends as she grew one year older, she couldn't help but feel a little dejected.

"Wu LiJing, as rouge cultivators, we have to cultivate harder in order to reach the level of those who are richer, have more connections, and have an abundance of resources," her father would say and pat her head. "Now let's do it again." He would try to motivate her and even if she didn't understand him back then, she did now. Since she was only born with a green core, she had to work harder if she wanted to succeed like a blue or purple core possessor.

Everyone possesses a different potential depending on the core they are born with. Most have red, yellow, and green cores, with red being the weakest rank. Those born with blue and purple rank cores are rarer but usually dominate the top of the cultivation world.

Wu LiJing touched the lower part of her abdomen where her core resided. She was lucky she wasn't born with a red core. Because then, she might not have been able to become a direct disciple of the Moon Sect. Her mother once said to her, "We must live enjoying what we have because if we spend our lives envying others and fighting for things that are not ours, then when we lose what we had, it will be too late to regret."

Even if her father and mother were no longer alive, she remembered the words they said to her by heart. Her thoughts stopped when she reached an inn and decided to rest for the rest of the night before traveling again. When she entered her room, she opened the letter her master gave her to confirm the direction of the village she was to enter. Her eyes lowered and her brows furrowed.

'Chestnut Village. Suspicious activity. Look into it.'

...

At Chestnut Village.

"P-please let me go! I wasn't even part of the plan! I didn't even know about it!" A man was on his knees, begging and crying like a child with eyes filled with horror. His whole body trembled as he looked up, with his palms together in a begging motion.

There was a woman reflected in his pupils. Her small face contained a smile and shown with a beauty that could not be described in mere words. Even her figure was ethereal as she took a step forward with perfect, bare feet, forcing him to shuffle back. When she took another step, a bell jingled from her ankle and compared to the feeling of joy that used to accompany that sound, he was petrified.

"Please let me go! I beg of you! I'll do anything!"

An alluring laugh echoed from the ethereal beauty and she took off her outer robes of peach, which had splotches of red blood still dripping from the sleeves.

"Didn't you all say you loved me? I'm finally willingly bringing myself to your doorsteps. Why must you run away now?" She sighed and twirled a piece of her dark hair with a blood-stained finger as her cold gaze fixed itself on the man in front of her. "Pathetic men," she muttered.

"AHH!" He ran when she took another step forward and she haunted him with another fit of laughter.

However, his trembling legs were no help when he finally reached outside where the moon shone, because he tripped. Right when he was going to fall forward, the noise of a bell rang and he felt a hand jab into his flesh.

He gasped, feeling as if he was unable to breathe. The pain was excruciating and he looked down to see a whole in his chest.

In front of him was the beauty he had always admired and in her hands was a thumping heart. A jade bracelet hung from her delicate thin wrist, stained with the blood that flowed down her elbow. Her fingers clenched his heart as if she wanted to crush it and he reached for it yet only stumbled and fell over. His vision blurred as he watched her drink his blood from his heart with a devilish smile.

"I still have three more to go," she chuckled, feeling satisfied as she licked her lips. Blood trickled along her slender neck. Her eyes were filled with a crazed sparkle and the man was suddenly glad his turn was over as he bled to death.