Tang Yin returned to the caravan and grinned at Mada Ning, revealing her ten thousand-year spirit ring. "Soone was lucky," she announced. "Tadaa."
Upon that day, she took up her sword training again, and Uncle Jian had not been joking when he told her she would make up for the slack when Mada Ning walked towards them. "We are soon to arrive at Nuoding," she told her. "We will probably stay for around two days, so if you want to visit soone from the school, now is a ti like never."
"At Nuoding?" She was puzzled, having studied the way before. "Isn't that like the long way around?" she asked Mada Ning.
"Not entirely wrong," she told her as Yin stopped swinging down her sword. "But our largest custor is there, and we wanted to take a route where we pass through the least amount of cities possible, and that has good infrastructure. Also, from Nuoding, we are heading to one of the smaller harbor cities and then by sea directly to Vast Sea City, which is much faster than land. From there, you and Uncle Jian can charter a boat towards Sea God Island. It's the only place where ships charter towards the archipelago where Poseidon's Court is."
Mada Ning took a small map out, and Tang Yin bowed over it as Mada Ning's finger drew a line over the heavily used map.
"Here you see, we are following this path instead of this one," she explained.
"We could have taken this route as well." Her finger drew a line over Suotou City towards Heaven Spirit City, Silver City, and Vast Sea City. "But with our constellation of people, that would have risen too much curiosity and probably would have attracted trouble we would like to avoid while having a friend of the Young Miss travel along."
"Oh, I see. Never thought about streets and pathways like this. I usually just go straight," she noted, mustering the map, and Mada Ning smiled.
"That is perfectly understandable. Most spirit masters don't care about these things. There is no need to, except when avoiding the large spirit beast forests. But when in a mixed group like ours, we have to adapt to those who aren't spirit masters, especially when transporting goods as well."
"I see." She mustered the map. "There is no one specifically I have to visit in Nuoding, but would you mind if we pass by my old ho village?" she asked Mada Ning. "I would like to visit the village Elder Jack and my forr elentary teacher, Lee, and see how they are doing. It's been really long since I last visited there, and they both did a lot for . Only if the opportunity cos around, though."
"I don't mind, but it's best if you ask Uncle Jian as well." She looked at Chen Xin, who nodded at her.
"I don't mind," he said. "There is no reason not to."
"That would be really nice," Tang Yin grinned.
Thinking of Elder Jack and her Teacher, Lee, she wondered if they were still alive. Especially Elder Jack, who had already been an old man when
she had first left for the school, and her teacher, Lee, had arranged for her to join the literary departnt just so she could be with Tang San, with whom she probably would have never been in her current position but still in a narrow world and probably in a state far worse than currently.
Losing more mories than she already had.
"Yay." She threw her arms into the sky and picked up her worn-down wooden sword. "For now, I have training to make up for ditation, no?"
"Right."
--
Tang San felt cold shivers run down his spine. He was training and preparing for the coming battles in the Spirit Arena. In his hands a few of his throwing knives were in his hand when he stopped moving and stared at the silvery moon high in the firmant. Ever since his sister was gone, things had beco slightly off.
He felt colder and more calculated than before, planning and mapping out goals not for himself but for everyone who ant sothing to him.
Tang Yin had once told him that there was a culture in her world similar to the one he ca from.
Where community always was the greater good, where one was to serve the community or organization, like during his ti in the Tang Sect from his world.
In her own culture, individualism was more important, where the service to everyone around was less aningful than one's own well-being. Where saying no was just as important as saying yes.
He thought it strange to pursue individualism instead of building on the community since the community was far stronger, even when many main characters blended together for a greater goal. However, he had seen it in the Nuoding Literary Departnt, where everyone, in a way, stood as an individual yet ford a community with each of them pursuing their own goals instead of common goals. And considering his own actions within his forr sect, he agreed that he, too, had probably always pursued an individual path over a common one.
"Third brother?" Zhu Zhuqing walked up to him. "Is everything fine?"
He turned around and smiled at her. "Yes, it's fine. I was just thinking
about sothing Yin said a while ago."
"I understand," Zhu Zhuqing stated, and they both turned silent. None of them were people of many words. Then soone hugged him from behind, and he felt it was Xiao Wu and sothing inside him lightened.
"Hiii," she said. "Penny for your thoughts?" she said, using wording Yin usually uses, and they all adapted it since they found it funny, causing Tang San to laugh openly. She really was his Sunshine, Xiao Wu. If Tang Yin was his best friend and warm family wrapped in one, Xiao Wu was his sunshine and joy.
"Hello, Wu." He smiled and then took out a carrot from his storage, which she grabbed. "I was just lost in thought."
"About Yin?" she asked him, knowing well enough that he often mused about his sister, missing her even if he would not admit it, and Tang San nodded.
"Happens. You are twins." Xiao Wu looked at the moon. "Though I am sure she is fine. I an, she does have a way to get whatever she wants in the end, even if sotis taking a few turns in between."
"You are right. I am sure she will be fine," he said, and sothing felt wrong as he did so.
Again, a cold shiver ran down his spine, which he couldn't quite place. Ruffling his hair, he decided maybe it was just chilly, and his mind was playing tricks on him, so he should go get so rest for the battles the next day. After all, their team battle opponent was not one to take lightly.
Still, the unease remained whenever his thoughts wandered to Yin.
User Comments
0 comments from readers