Six Months passed since Susu entered the Accentuation Realm. The seclusion she entered under her Master’s instruction has proved to be more fruitful than she could ever desire, but still, she wasn’t where she needed to be.

The Sun Defiant Manual that Elder Zhu Zixin provided proved crucial in her development as she tried to ascend to the Qi Perception Realm.

The insights found in the first chapter of the manual were eye-opening. Susu had to admit that despite all the years she spent in serious cultivation. She wasn’t using her Internal Arts as they should be.

She twisting her Qi through her merdians as if it were a nail, being pounded by a hammer.

The scriptures within the Sun Defiant Manual favored a calmer assertion of power, which soothed and callused her meridians which made them stronger over time, which could possibly nullify meridian shrinkage and increasing stamina in battle.

However, Susu needed to breakthrough. Having her mind and body in synchronised was a crucial part of breaking through to the Qi Perception Realm.

That insight gave Susu what she needed to to expand her Mind Dantian.

Susu swirled her Qi from her Soul Dantian into her Core Dantian, then swirled the Qi within her Mind Dantian.

As it flowed, she tried to keep her mind clear, hoping to expand her Mind Dantian, but she lacked enough to expand the Dantian, so she continued pouring my Qi through her body.

The Qi that leaked into meridians began to sizzle like a flame. She swallowed deeply and began balancing her yin and yang essence.

Once she was able to balance the essences, her meridians began to cool. She opened her eyes, staring outside, and saw flickers of essences roaming through the forest beyond her cave.

A bead of sweat rushed down her cheek, and then another followed twenty seconds later as she controlled her breathing. She inhaled and exhaled trying her best, but the longer she swirled and surged her Qi, the more she realised her breathing technique was lacking. There’s so much I learned within the past year, Susu thought, yet there so much more to learn.

Breathing was essential to one’s Internal Arts, it never crossed her mind how efficient it needed to be, she just followed her master’s instruction. He never mentioned breathing, but he showed it.

Master Chaoxiang always preferred us to discover things on our own, Susu thought, is Brother Xing’s breathing technique that good he was able to ascend to the Accentuation Realm so fast?

I’m a Accentuation Realm Master, but it’s not enough.”

An additional two months passed and Susu’s breathing technique gradually improved.

However, she still hadn’t made any further progress than where she was two months ago.

She could swirl her Qi for longer periods, but her Mind Dantian, simply wouldn’t expand.

The Qi Deviation Susu had experienced on her ascent to the Accentuation Realm still bogged her right shoulder. It was healing, but very slowly.

The burning sensation she felt seven months ago, was but a sombre feeling now, which meant it had partially healed, but not to the effect in which she was satisfied with.

“I need to nurture it,” Susu said, looking at her right shoulder. “But I can’t…I must break through!”

When Susu used Scourge with her right hand, she noted the decrease in power due to the Qi Deviation in her right shoulder was too evident.

As much as she practiced with her dominant hand. It didn’t make sense to continue as she only aggravated the shoulder further. So she did was best and switched to her left hand.

After three months of practicing, Susu’s left hand had adapted to her right hand, which was only seventy percent of efficient.

This power she had now, was drastically higher than what she was at the Divination Realm, but because of her injury, she was unsure on what her true power was now.

But that was something she looked forward to see.

If Susu was going roam Axsum, she’d need her full power, as it had been a growing thought in her mind, a recommendation from her Master.

First, she must ascend to the Qi Perception Realm, before making her to Axsum to learn more about this mysterious power the girl’s parents used as they defended her. “She’s fine,” Susu said softly. “Brother Xing is taking care of her. You don’t have to worry, we will take care of her. I promise.”

The crimson moon’s light spritzed into Susu’s seclusion cave, lighting her face with its luminescence. The Yin energy from the moon’s light, sizzled her skin in cold, forcing goosebumps to rise from her skin.

She absorbed the Yin essence and refined it in her Soul Dantian. “What I did to ascend to the Accentuation Realm won’t work this time. I almost permanently injured myself, but with these new meridian pathways, I should be able to break through my bottleneck. I just need enough Qi to expand my Mind Dantian!” Susu said.

Susu closed her eyes once more, feeling the Qi within her Soul Dantian roil uncontrollably as she surged it into her Core Dantian. She inhaled and exhaled feeling the yin energy swarm around her as she continually refine it.

“I couldn’t refine all the Yin energy from the moon. Is this something men can do with the sun once they’ve reached the Accentuation Realm?”

The refined Yin essence within Susu’s Soul Dantian turned into Qi and Susu swirled it into her Core Dantian and her Mind Dantian again.

She continued exhaling and inhaling, calming herself whilst matching the Qi within her body continually.

A fiery sensation in her right shoulder ignited, forcing her to wince. I didn’t send any Qi! Susu thought as she tried to calm herself.

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The fire sensation began to roil back to her Core Dantian, forcing Susu to cease the circulation of Qi.

The Yin essence she’d been absorbing now swirled through her meridians to her Core Dantian.

Once the Yin essence reached her Core Dantian, she pushed it to the meridians then led to her right shoulder.

The Yin essence quelled the fire sensation she felt within her shoulder, and then she swirled it.

A cold sensation rippled through her right shoulder icing her meridians. She tried swirling her Qi into the meridians but the Yin essence didn’t allow it. “What did I just do?” Susu pondered. “Pure Yin essence sealed my meridians? Will it heal?”

Susu was worried, so instead of continuing her cultivation she ceased her swirl and pushed herself up to take a needed rest.

As she pushed herself up from the ground. She felt her knees strain, then cracked. Her lips curled into a smile and she shook her head. “I’m getting old.” She said softly.

She then walked out of her abode, feeling the gentle breeze caress her shoulders, sending a way of goosebumps down her back.

The fresh scent of the foliage poured into her nose and embraced the tranquility of her surroundings. The subtle splashes emanating from the pond and the branches swaying as they swished all around her.

Susu walked up to the nearest tree, flapping her hanfu free and sat down. The weight of her body felt like five logs strapped against her shoulders, forcing her to rest on the tree, before she knew it her eyes were closing and her mind was beginning to wander.

In that moment of lucidity, the child appeared in front of her, waving the toy soldier she bought her. She turned to Susu and ran towards her, but disappeared the moment she blinked. “Soon,” Susu said. “I will see you soon.”

Two days passed and the Yin essence build up within Susu’s right shoulder finally dissipated. She swirled the Qi within her Core Dantians, surging it through the meridians in the shoulder.

A fire sensation roiled within the meridians, more painful than before. Susu shrieked from the pain and released a sombre howl feeling the fire sensation wrapped itself around her arm.

She ceased her swell and feinted to the ground, feeling as though her Qi had been exhausted as she stared through the hole of her abode.

Susu nestled herself in her cave abode and sat in the lotus position. She closed her eyes and began whispering the sutra within the Sun Defiant Manual. “A river starts from a fire but flows like a waterfall. If the river turns to ashes, then life ceases to exist.”

Those words had plagued Susu’s mind ever since she read them in the second chapter. She didn’t understand them, but they felt familiar to her. A river starts from a fire? What does that mean? She asked herself.

Susu sat back, pondering on why the words were so familiar, yet so distant in her mind. Then it hit her like a flower blooming in her mind. “This second chapter is insight on how to ignite Qi. The first spark of Qi I felt, was like a fire, then wallowed into a river as I swirled it. If I’m not careful with my flow, I could damage my meridians, just like I did with my shoulders. I’m so stupid how couldn’t I realise this, stop yearning and let your Qi flow!”

Susu closed her eyes and began swirling the Qi within her Soul Dantian. She felt it swirl to the edges of her Dantian walls and gradually poured into her meridians.

Once a smidgen had flowed, she gently guided her Qi into her Core Dantian and began filling it as well.

Once her Soul and Core Dantians were filled with Qi, she then swirled her Core Dantian in conjunction with her Soul Dantian.

The moment she did that, a bead of sweat dripped down her forehead, and she began inhaling and exhaling calmly, trying to allow her Qi to flow like a river.

As Susu continually swirled her Qi within her Soul and Core Dantian, sweat began to pour down her back, reminding her that an hour had passed since she’d been swirling her Qi. Not yet She said, this isn’t enough.

The Qi within her Soul and Core Dantian began to roil, as her body began to ripple with fire as if she’d been set ablaze.

The meridians in her right shoulder’s began to scream from the pain and unlike last time.

As the Qi poured in, the yang essence from within her meridians began to dissipate, except for her shoulder. She began swirling her Mind Dantian and etches of Qi began to flow around her despite her eyes being closed.

Susu opened her mind, feeling her Qi thrashing against her Mind Dantian walls. It roiled back and forth whilst she inhaled and exhaled trying her best to calm herself from the strain.

The sweat that pooled beneath her could fill fifty thimbles of water, but Susu didn’t let up.

After what felt like the one-thousandth trash against her Mind Dantian, something happened, a cooling sensation with a slight sizzle.

The Mind Dantian began to expand slowly, Susu then swirled her Soul Dantian flooding her Qi through her Core Dantian and began to fill her Mind Dantian.

Susu’s Mind Dantian expanded by two centimetres. The first meridian point revealed itself, and susu allowed her to flow though the meridian point.

She then coalesced her Qi onto her Mind Dantian walls, stopping it from expanding further.

She repeated the process two more times, until the remaining meridian points were revealed and continually coalesced her dantian walls.

Once she was satisfied, She opened her eyes and the world around her changed to a mist-like form, like Qi. It’s so beautiful, Susu thought, burying the urge to grab that mist-like form with her hands and continuing on with her cultivation.

Susu’s Soul Dantian had but a whisker of Qi left, which left Susu delirious. She wanted to stop, but within her heart and mind, she couldn’t, she needed to clean her new meridians as well as consolidate her Mind Dantian.

A sizzling sensation began erupting from Susu, as her meridian pathways began compressing on the Qi she just flooded through them.

The Qi from within Susu dissipated, completely, starting from her Soul Dantian, then unto her Core Dantian and Finally her Mind Dantian!

Susu screamed out in agony, feeling as though a part of her was at loss. It made her feel inept, confused unable to channel her Qi any longer.

She sagged to the ground rolling to a stop, feeling as if the cold floor sending ripples of goosebumps through her body.

The child appeared in front of her in the form of mist, tilting her head at her whilst crawling towards Susu.

She blinked her eyes, ensuring she wasn’t delirious, but regardless of how much she blinked the child came closer to her without stop.

I’m going mad, Susu thought, but at that very moment, when she lost her ability to harness Qi. She felt at peace, she felt as though that at least she could see the child in this moment of weakness…was good enough for her.

Susu outstretched her hand, trying to caress the child’s cheek. And when she did, the child’s face warped into a mist and then swirled like a vortex around Susu’s hand, which quelled the goosebumps from around her body.

The mist wasn’t actually a mist but was Susu’s Qi. The Qi swarmed around Susu like a hurricane spinning violently as it roiled into her, filling her meridian pathways with its essence.

Susu felt as though she’d become lighter, stronger and faster and she inhaled her Qi. Then, an ember in her mind sparked…showing the flow of Qi surrounding her. “This is it…” Susu said softly, whipping the tears away from her face. “I’ve done it. I’ve ascended to the Qi Perception Realm!”

The feeling of relief washed over her body like a bell, thrumming and roiling. The pain in her shoulder though returned and seemed as though the ascension had returned it to its original state as she realised, pushing herself off the ground, lethargically.

Susu felt her knees wobble at that moment, then made her first step, walking outside to look at the Moon in the sky. She Eyed it for a long while, feeling the wind steal her body’s warmth.

“Master…I’ve done it.” Susu said firmly. “I’ve ascended to the Qi Perception Realm. I can do as you say, and head to Axsum to learn about this mysterious power they wield!”

It didn’t take Susu long to pack her things. She made her way to Fuzhou, Once she reached the city, she went east, heading in the direction she never expected she’d visit.

Axsum.

She didn’t know if she’d return, but if she did. The child will at least know where she came from and how she arrived. It was a long shot, but it was worth it.

After all, how could Susu claim to be her mother, if she didn’t plan to answer questions that surely would need answering in the future?

The End of

The Silence of Tears

Book 1 of The Lost Black Dragon