Chapter 117

  Silence (II)

  The atmosphere was... well, it was freakin' awkward.

  It made sense, though, if you think about it. While Madame Lu may see Light as some herald and such, to Wan Lan she's just some random 6-year-old girl that she's suddenly being told to follow and effectively obey for no apparent reason.

  And Light? Well, though her countenance occasionally does mellow out, she's still pretty much apathetic to everything. It's a bit depressing to see, actually, a young girl go through the 'motions' of the day, as it were. Is she happy? Is she sad? Is she anything?

  ... who can tell?

  Thus, the two sat opposite of each other while Xi Zhao and Dai Xiu left, unable to handle it, and Long Tao stayed in the corner of the room, seeming bemused.

  Then there was me, seated at the top of the table, occasionally desperately trying to kickstart a conversation by asking some inane questions like, "What's your favorite part of town?" and "Where do you want to go?". I'm pretty sure Long Tao's staying just to hear me ramble random crap and laugh at it.

  It did allow me plenty of time to look through her information, which was... well, let's just say she'll fit this group like a square peg in a square hole.

  [--Creator's Eyes used]

  [Target: Wan Lan]

  [Age: 16]

  [Talent: low-Heaven]

  [Cultivation Realm: Peak of Qi Condensation]

  [Cultivation Method: Deathrip's Bane, Second Form (low-Jade)]

  [Cultivation Arts: Death's Touch (low-Earth), Void Step (peak-Earth), Winged Descent (low-Heaven), ...]

  [...]

  [Traits]

  [Death-Touched (Legendary) -- experienced death and returned from it. Tangible connection to the Law of Death]

  [Demonic Heart (Legendary) -- a heart perfectly developed to endure the volatility of Demonic Qi. Increases potency of all arts that use Demonic Qi and makes the ones that don't almost unusable]

  [Demonic Eye (Epic) -- an innate, extreme defense against all Illusions. Can more easily discern through lies and deception]

  [Angry (Rare) -- prone to outbursts of rage; can be angered more easily]

  [Zealotry (Epic) -- once devoted to a cause, she will follow it unto death, doing whatever she believes necessary to achieve it]

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  [Fiendish Meridians (Epic) -- has extremely robust and resilient meridians that are nigh impossible to tear. Can more quickly and violently circulate Qi]

  [...]

  [Assessing suitability...]

  [A special Physique and Bloodline discovered]

  [Demonic Vessel Physique (Epic) -- an artificial Physique developed by the original Demon God to bless their most devout followers. Newborns are bathed in a water made up of 77 flowers from the Demon Realm, drowned until they are dead, and brought back to life. Perfectly suitable physique for Demonic Qi]

  [Dreadline (???) (Locked) -- one of the world's most ancient bloodlines, originating from the legendary Emperor of Dread. Only one inheritor is born per generation, but the means of unlocking the Bloodline have long since been lost from the world. Is considered extinct by most contemporary powers]

  [...]

  [Recommended: a uniquely dual path is possible. Due to the inherently supplementary natures of the target's Physique and Bloodline, it is possible to integrate them into a wholly unique form of existence--greater than Human, lesser than God. The target must first reach the '???' Realm, however, and the host must first reach the '???' Realm to unlock the secret to unchaining that which has been dormant for millions of years]

  [...]

  [Final Assessment: less a talent and more a chance. Either the target will live up to the mediocre expectations of the surroundings or surpass them and join those in the higher firmaments. Has a higher than 0% chance of becoming one of the Seven Divine, an Empress of the Heavens]

  ... yeah.

  You know, I understand basically 3% of it all, and I'm still freaking out.

  She's sort of like an extreme version of Elder Qin--an unrealized potential that can still be realized at some point in the future. It's just... do I actually want to realize it?

  Look, she's to be an 'Empress of Dread'--I don't know about others, but dread isn't exactly a word I associate with good and fun times or with good and fun people. What if I rear a monster that'll go out to spread the plagues and stuff?

  ... then again, it can just be a title. Titles, I've learned, aren't necessarily representative of people--I mean, Long Tao was once called a 'Divine Blade', but I have no doubt that at least some people called him 'Blade of Dread' or 'Slaughtering Sword' or 'That Crazy Bastard Killer'--it's just the nature of the world of cultivators, it feels, that the title might not represent who you are in totality.

  Then again... it might.

  So, yeah.

  Awkward is as awkward gets.

  "Thank you for the tea," Wan Lan said as she stood up. "It's been nice to meet you all."

  And thus, she was out.

  "Who was she?" Light asked curiously.

  "You didn't feel anything?"

  "Hmm... she smelled nice," the girl said. "And she was pretty." Well... she's a kid. Maybe she didn't feel it because the Bane had become the Boon? "She's a Demonic Cultivator, too. But... it's a bit weird... I don't get it."

  She shrugged, stood up, and left.

  Did she sense the strange bloodline? Or was it something else? Ah, who knows? The girl's an enigma, to be honest. She's been with me for a while now, and I know like 4 things about her.

  "Master," ah, here comes the guy who says things.

  "Yes?"

  "You always find the strangest things," he grinned. Yeah. He probably sensed something, too.

  "You were there," I said. "I didn't find her. She just... appeared."

  "Yes. Things also seem to appear around you, always. I'd thought my life would be boring for a little while longer, but it feels that with you around... every day can become a new adventure."

  "I much prefer the quiet days."

  "As do most people, I imagine," he said with a shrug. "When are we leaving?"

  "It should be in two days' time."

  "... hm," he hummed for a moment, walking past me and toward the room. "I'm quite curious to see how you deal with that hulking chief. It should be a rather fantastic sight."

  ... hey. Why does he keep insisting that we'll have to interact with him? And, more to the point, if he knows that we'll have to, why not offer a way to just completely circumvent that? Does he get off on watching me struggle?! Is that it?!

  It feels kinda weird to think that, to be completely honest; yes, he's a monster that's thousands of years old, but right now he's...

  Well, anyway, enough about that.

  Positive thoughts, just some positive thoughts. I'm sure that, with Madame's help, we'll make a clean break from the town and be on our way to an even worse hellhole in no time.