A firm, stable figure was seated in a cultivation room with astral essence dense enough to lick and touch. Garbed in tight-fitting black-colored martial robes, Su Mei quietly cultivated.
Since arriving in the Myriad Monarch Sect, Su Mei had experienced benefits that could likely never be enjoyed with someone of her background. In truth, while she kept it silent, her heart was overwhelmed by the new scenery and lifestyle.
Leaving behind her home, millions of miles away, and entering this new sky, this new horizon. Who would've thought that she'd end up here?
She was born in a small village and raised as an upright and proper woman whose only hopes her parents had for her was to make a proper wife and find a good husband. She thrived for this, learning how to cook, clean, be silent when required, and act in the best interests of others. But this future was snatched away from her, and cultivators descended and snatched her away.
She was unable to control her fate, and her family was all the happy to send her off with smiles. It was what she was raised for, and while she wouldn't be a wife, at least she'll be able to service a strong man, right? Her family was proud of her, so shouldn't she be happy?
Her thoughts were that simple at the time as she followed along with a smile and hope in her heart
When she was in the Scarlet Solaris Sect, she was introduced to others like her, a part of something called a harem. She was merely a concubine of a lowly disciple, but she still tried to take pride in it. How many young women would fight or even kill for her treatment?
She didn't have any wants. Cultivators, even the lowest ones, had enough mortal currency and could earn vast amounts with utter ease. So, she had food on her table, clothes to wear, and even others to communicate with. Her 'sisters' that were with her treated her well, taught her things, and laughed with her.
Until she obtained attention, asked to constantly come to serve, and this caused friction amongst the group. They started to grow envious, ostracized her, jeer at her, make comments at her doing all sorts of tricks to please, and calling her all sorts of names under their breath, behind her back, and in their minds. She could see it when she saw their eyes.
Life went from decent to a living hell. She had to deal with abuse, and her complaints had merely caused them to apologize, and up to abuse in secret, even threatening her life if she dared to inform on them again. She saw the darkness of human hearts. She descended into the darkness of an abyss called depression and self-hatred.
It became even worse when the man himself didn't act, despite knowing their actions. She knew he knew, but she could only stay quiet. If she ran away, she'd be hunted down and killed, or worse...turned into a slave and forced to serve without an ounce of freedom.
She couldn't see a way out; she was too weak. Her tears that fell day and night within the corner that she seeked solace from helped little to assuage her feelings, and only exacerbated her awareness of this unfortunate fate of hers. Unable to mitigate her worries, she was left with no choice but to hope that if her position in his eyes were higher, she would be more protected.
Yet, despite her frantic efforts, she received merely verbal praise and nothing else. There were times when she saw the look in his eyes, filled with self-satisfaction and desire, curiosity of how far she'd go and what she'd do. It was a game to him.
Days went, weeks passed, and then that fateful day descended.
He fell from the sky and with a single strike, performed an act that she could only dream of. He arrived with those resplendent silver eyes that could draw immortals in, and a handsome visage that was otherworldly. His presence overtook her senses as she froze.
His first sentence revealed the truth she tried to hide in her heart, and then he asked a question that felt nonsensical, out-of-place, and baffling: "You hungry?"
In her home village, she read all about prince charmings finding an unfortunate damsel and falling in love with her, saving her from her troubles and bringing her to a happy end. For a moment, she thought this was her fate; she wanted it to be her fate.
But he asked that question, and she couldn't help but answer oddly. She said maybe!
Then that smile. A smile that seemed to exceed the sun's brilliant, the ocean's beauty, and overtook her senses.
"Then let me bring you somewhere you can figure it out."
Those words were forever etched into the depths of her heart, and her fate changed. He taught her how to cultivate, how to fight, how to observe, how to react, and how to kill. She took every word and treated it like gold, and while he had similarly given others those words, those lessons, she used those words to hone herself.
She became a cultivator and fought for him. His word was her law, his word became her life. Her blade was his, her life was his to use. This wasn't forced upon her, but she was given a choice, a choice if she was hungry or not.
And she was.
She was so incredibly hungry!
She wanted to live!
Only the living earn the right for hunger, only the living earned the right of a choice, and he offered her this choice. She rose in the ranks and became a lieutenant, one of his most trusted. She handled his matters and followed his orders, watching him from afar as he rose step by step in those three years.
In the sky, there was a particular star that travelers used when they were lost. It was so bright and consistent in the night sky that it would never lead one astray, allowing them to always find their home; where they belonged. She didn't know what it meant to be lost, but when she saw his back, she saw light; that light that showed her where she belonged.
Then, he left.
Her heart was seized by fear and uncertainty. The cultivation world was cruel and he had many, many enemies. If something happened to him, where would her light be? What should she do from now on?
At night, she would look to the sky and always see that particular sky. When she saw its illuminating the night sky, she felt that he couldn't be dead. He was simply elsewhere. She would one day find him, definitely.
But five years passed, and no news of his appearance, no matter how far she searched or investigated. She didn't give up. She couldn't give up. Even when the news of his death was made 'official' by the sect as they replaced him, labeled him as deceased, and moved on, she didn't.
She waited.
The light in the sky was still lit, so he had to be alive. She would find him.
She delved into her cultivation with ten times the intensity as before, and fought countless battles, using what she learned from him to become someone who can find him. She rose up, gaining power and recognition, considered as a genius by many, but none of that mattered to her. She wasn't cultivating for fame, for power, or for recognition, but to find him.
She grew colder. She grew more ferocious.
Then, five years later…he found her.
He returned.
Her emotions were intense, but she restrained herself. She wanted to cry, but she didn't want to reveal such weakness. She wanted to hug him, but she didn't want to breach the boundaries of their relationship.
In the end, her wants didn't matter. She still cried. She still embraced him. He pulled her out of the abyss, showed her what it meant to desire to live, and changed her fate. He was her light!
So many things had happened since then, and every second that passed was exciting and satisfying, as they traveled the country and experienced all sorts of things. Her cold heart, her fierce intent, and her desire for strength had been dulled.
Then, she saw the true power of this world and how weak she was. Her battle with Na Xinyi and later Wei Wuyin's exceptional display of strength truly revealed their differences.
Would she one day be a burden? Would she never be able to give him any support? These thoughts constantly circulated in her heart, and she couldn't accept it. How could she? Her light was getting further and further away, while she could merely observe and be there. While he likely didn't mind, she did.
She didn't just want him to just be her light, that was selfish. Her heart wanted to offer more, to be of use. To be his sword, to be his shield, to be his spear, to be his flag, to be his eyes, to be his light…
To be his light…
Su Mei's eyes were incomparably calm. When she was born, she was raised to be of use to someone else, and this was expected. When she was taken, she was made to be of use for someone else, and this was expected. But when he arrived, he showed her what it meant to want for herself. He never asked for her loyalty, merely gave her a platform to find herself.
She did, and she found more. In the deepest depths of her heart, mind, and soul, she wanted to be his light. She wanted to be that thing that drove him to success, not to succeed. But she can't.
Wei Wuyin wasn't like her. He was phenomenal. He was brilliant and cunning. He was strong in will and cultivation. He didn't need a light to show him success, he paved his own road to success with every single step he made. This type of person didn't need anyone, and no one would be able to match him as he forged his path. He was unrivaled and in the future, he was destined for unfathomable greatness.
There was already ample evidence of this.
He was born in the Myriad Yore Continent, just like everyone else that ascended that day, yet his path was far, far greater than everyone by millions of miles. And he hadn't even learned the greater methods, legacies, and understood the sky yet. But when he did, could anyone match him?
His sword? His shield? His flag? Did she have this right? Did she even qualify to carry his shoes?
Her heart was pained to realize the truth, the irrevocable truth: she didn't.
In a few months, in a few years, in a decade, she'll be at his heel, following him like a dog following a shooting star while he rode upon that very star.
She didn't want that.
She couldn't accept that.
There was only one way to ensure that didn't happen, and that was to similarly forge her own path, a path that could run parallel to him, so that he wasn't her light, that star that she chased behind from afar, but a partner that traversed heaven and earth.
Those eyes of hers contained resolve and intent that boiled endlessly, reflecting the flames of her soul. Within the depths of her eyes, an unfathomable amount of consuming darkness overtook the light and fostered a strong, unbreakable will.
This was Intent!
An Intent thought to be lost since ancient times, created from an ethereal intent that could only be birthed from the mind, not from the world. It was like slaughter and battle intent, but it no longer had a name. In fact, it was better to say it was taboo to utter the name beneath the heavens!
Alongside this Intent, darkness and light intermingled into one, giving birth to a unique form of energy: Darklight Energy! She had effectively birthed and merged these energies, energies that exceeded even Elemental Energy!
Su Mei realized her advancements. She inspected her hands and observed the flickering traces of darklight energies that revolved around her fingers and palms.
Clench!
Her palms became two incomparably hard fist, and she could feel the surge of power within.
"I can't follow Lord Wei's path. I won't cultivate a Divine Spirit of Saber Qi, but a Divine Spirit of Darklight Qi. If I want to forge a path that can travel alongside his, it can't be the same." Upon making this decision, she started to diligently cultivate, not realizing that her 'Divine' Spirit had already transformed into something else…
