Yan Mingqing had pulled her sword back out. There wasn’t a fight, of course, at least not yet. Lin Songmei had jogged off, saying something about wanting to preview the carriages they’d be defending while also using the restroom. Mingqing, honestly, wanted to go along as well, but Songmei had disappeared before Mingqing had even reacted, leaving a few iridescent butterflies in her wake.
So... Now, here Mingqing was, alone on the bench, legs criss-crossed, and channeling some Qi through her sword to just focus herself.
Even though she wanted to tag along with Songmei, Mingqing didn’t mind Songmei running off to investigate what caught her eye—after dealing with possessive stalkers and admirers growing up, Mingqing was far too aware of how possessiveness iced the warmth out of any relationship.
With her expression hardening, Mingqing tuned out the rest of the world as her smile returned to the frown it used to sit in so often. Guiding her Qi through her body and blade for an impromptu cultivation session, Mingqing lifted her hand off the blade, bringing with it wisps of icy mist and glimmering dots of stars.
Twirling her Qi between her fingers, Mingqing closed her eyes as she pondered over what to do next. She couldn’t practice her sword forms because of the limited space around her, but a traditional meditation session also just seemed... boring after the hours she had spent to just break through the day before.
With Qi cycling through her body like a rampant stream, Mingqing ran through any skills she could practice. Cultivating, in general, was always going to be a battle of picking and choosing to focus on, but Mingqing, as of now, felt she was a bit of a one trick pony.
Feeling her mind wander back to Songmei, Mingqing took a few deep breaths to try and distract herself—to no avail. A few moments of distracted... daydreaming... later, Mingqing felt a light go off in her head as she remembered the skill Songmei had practiced every night for the past couple of weeks: conjuration.
In theory, being an ice cultivator, ice generation was possible... Mingqing just wasn’t sure how. Sure, ice generation was never going to become her primary combat skill, but Mingqing wasn’t opposed to starting her practice now—she’d have to bolster her skills to include more range attacks someday.
Furrowing her eyebrows, Mingqing tried her best to remember how Songmei described it. As a good girlfriend, Mingqing listened every time Songmei wanted to talk through her techniques to try and get another perspective on it; yet, now, when she needed to remember the most, Mingqing was drawing a blank.
Mingqing, trying to force her Qi out of her body to crystallize it into ice, couldn’t help but feel a bit of a foreboding feeling: conjuration was about to be a long undertaking... On the bright side, it probably wouldn’t take her too long to be able to make ice cubes or anything else for daily life. But, without even taking the first step, Mingqing could tell battle usage was a ways away.
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On the other side of the courtyard, unbeknownst to both Songmei and Mingqing was a different prodigy. Zhao Liying, first child of the phoenix clan, was a disciple of the biggest sect on the eastern continent.
Born a year earlier than Songmei, Mingqing, and the others, Zhao Liying should’ve had a massive head start, one insurmountable before the five pillars realm at the minimum. Yet, because of a poisoning as a child, Zhao Liying had to spend a year recovering and repairing her body with Qi before she could begin actual cultivation.
Though it set her back a year, the media still gushed over Zhao Liying. Elegant with chin-length fiery red hair and emerald green eyes, Zhao Liying’s status as one of the richest, most important young misses only reinforced the obsession the media had with her. She represented the perfect figure head to symbolize the up and coming new generation of geniuses.
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According to common convention, the common genius—if that was even a thing—would finish opening all twenty of their meridians at age eighteen—twelve main and eight extraordinary. Following the Qi Gathering where one would open their meridians, a common genius would finish foundation establishment and the creation of their five pillars by the age of twenty five.
Therefore, by her mid-to-late twenties, Zhao Liying’s the media was expecting her early struggles to be no more than an inspiring story they could quote to further her reputation.
Reality, though, was a little farther from the media’s idealistic hopes. Zhao Liying herself, now leaning against a wall alone, couldn’t care less for the media’s empty words. Sure, they now just compared her against those a year younger than her which was consistent with the delayed start she had. It didn’t mean anything though.
Zhao Liying had no intentions of becoming the elegant, feminine young lady the media wanted. She was a phoenix! She refused to bow down. She’d compete. She’d fight. And she’d burn. There was a reason she was born with the heart of fire. She planned on never quieting down. She’d fight and defend her opinions and values to the bitter end.
The day the media caught her acting like the prim and proper princess they wanted was the day they started taking psychedelics.
Sighing, Zhao Liying massaged her furrowed eyebrows. She needed to stop being so bellicose towards the media...
Looking around, Zhao Liying scanned the courtyard, looking for a couple familiar faces. Being a member of an eastern sect, Zhao Liying had only decided to come to Westriver after hearing about the commotion solved by a pair of Starlight lake disciples. Because of her recent arrival, she had seen and met a total of zero other people from her sect though—heavens, she hadn’t even seen any of the notable disciples from her continent!
About to return to just passing the time on her terminal, Zhao Liying froze as she noticed a girl meditating on a bench in the corner on the other side of the courtyard. Was that Yan Mingqing?
It had been a couple years since Zhao Liying had seen the girl, but the dark blue hair and icy cold atmosphere around her remained all the same.
Was it worth dealing with the ice queen though? Zhao Liying might’ve had a distaste with the media, but Yan Mingqing, even before beginning her cultivation journey, was known to beat up media members who looked at her the wrong way.
She really was the polar opposite to her charismatic, almost flamboyant older brother...
Crossing her arms and leaning against the courtyard wall, Zhao Liying mulled it over. If it wasn’t Yan Mingqing, then she could just apologize and leave. But if it was? It wouldn’t hurt to reconnect and work with a genius like Yan Mingqing... Even if it would be an icy, distant partnership.
With a long stare into the sky above and a sigh, Zhao Liying pushed herself off the wall, her boots clicking against the cobblestones as she took a longer route to avoid the attention of the few stragglers that looked bored and alone in the middle of the courtyard.
Closer, Zhao Liying was sure, no one else was able to radiate this cold, get-away-from-me aura. Trying to be upbeat and start off on a good note, Zhao Liying tossed out a greeting. “Yan Mingqing, long time no see!”
“What?” Mingqing spat with a pair of cold eyes, flicking a piece of ice towards Zhao Liying. “Do you need anything, Zhao Liying?”
Catching the piece of ice and flicking it to the side, Zhao Liying shrugged, “You know, I just wanted to catch up. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you and you’ve grown so much. Also, I wanted to ask if you wanted to work together for this upcoming mission, since it seems you’re alone as usual.”
“Not interested. You’re only a year older than me. No need to act like my older sister. Also,” Mingqing mused, a hint of a condescending smile ghosting across her face. “I have a group anyway. ”
Taking a deep breath to push down the indignant shout trying to claw its way out, Zhao Liying reminded herself she had expected this when deciding to try and partner with Yan Mingqing. She already knew Yan Mingqing was the picture-perfect definition of callous, aloof, condescending a-hole.
Zhao Liying just needed to be persistent. Years ago, with months of persistence, she had gotten Yan Mingqing to reveal the drops of kindness and warmth in her heart. Zhao Liying was confident she was still the person who had gotten Mingqing to open up the most.
All she had to do was get back and re-establish their connection.
Still, Mingqing had a group?
Zhao Liying had to admit she was surprised. There were people willing, or able, to put up with the ice queen on a regular basis?
Maybe they were trying to mooch off her status, wealth, and potential...