Chapter 25: Preparation // Comfort

That night, Zed immediately left Fengshu city and flew northwards. He made sure to leave in secret and not let himself be followed.

With nothing but the moon and the trees as his company, strong wind brushing against his body, he continued forward, fighting the drowsiness he felt.

After 6 hours of continuous flight, he finally arrived at his destination, the destination in which they will reach in 3 days after their departure.

It was dawn when he observed the surroundings while making mental calculations of the upcoming ambush.

He estimated that they would be followed and that their followers would catch up to them on the 3rd day, and the place where he was at right now was a route deep in the wilderness.

Since they were planning to escape covertly, they planned on using old routes that weren't well known. Zed analyzed the terrain and plotted several traps for them to utilize.

After continuous hardwork, the sun was setting as Zed finished his final trap. He had spent the entire day making traps and studying the terrain to use it to their advantage.

Zed smiled in satisfaction before making an evil grin as his eyes flashed in anticipation. Their pursuers wouldn't know what hit them.

-

Zed continued to move without resting as he flew back to Fengshu city.

He promised to explain his plan to the King before midnight so he didn't waste time and flew despite the evident exhaustion on his face.

Although his thoughts belonged to an old man who lived for more than a hundred years, his body's brain was still young and premature.

So combining the overthinking thoughts that the old man had with the young and flexible brain that the teen had, Zed was capable of rapidly thinking and processing details in his brain much faster than compared to the average youth.

Naturally, this also meant that the mental toll he would experience was also greater than normal. That is why, currently, Zed was incredibly fatigued.

Be he wouldn't rest. At least, not until they escape the city.

Plus, he still had another role to fulfill in the plan that he would suggest to the King later on.

-

Right after her brother left, Lan'er was guided towards Xia Meixiang's chambers. 

She passed through the halls and eventually reached one of the imperial gardens. There was a bridge in the middle of the garden.

The bridge had a long tiled roof and thin wooden beams between the artistically carved wooden railings. They were all coloured in red and the platform was made out of polished stones.

The bridge served as a pathway that led to the other side of the garden which was where the bedchambers of the royal family were located.

Lan'er took the time to appreciate the magnificent view one would see as they passed through this enchanting garden. She walked across the garden and above the pond.

Lan'er stopped walking as she stood in the middle of the pond. She smelled the familiar and calming woodsey fragrance that reminded her of her childhood. She closed her eyes and listened with her other senses.

The ripples of the pond, the rustling of the leaves, the ambient sound that nature provided, she percieved them all.

After clearing her mind, she took a deep breath and prepared herself. Right now, she was going to comfort and take care of her big sister Mei.

If she couldn't even do this, then what kind of a junior sister was she?

Determined, Lan'er chased the back of the servant and followed her.

After some time, they reached the bedchamber palace which had a similar structure to the main palace, except smaller in size.

The corridors still had the same artistic railings, but the floors were made with smooth wooden planks. Lan'er passed by many doors that had the same sliding mechanism as theirs, except that everything here had an exquisite design.

The flower arrangement and other artistic pieces looked decorous and sophisticated, however, for Lan'er, these aesthetic designs didn't look marvelous since she had something better than those objects.

Which was her brother.

For her, her brother's beauty was the only attractive piece she needed. After all, her brother's face could provide her with all the positive feelings that one would feel while looking at an artistic piece.

Eventually, they stopped before double doors that had a sophisticated wooden texture. There were also glass panes that filled the symmetrical design of the doors.

The servant bowed and left Lan'er alone after fulfilling her duty.

Lan'er was about to knock, but she heard a faint snuffling sound from beyond the door. An average person wouldn't have heard anything, but Lan'er was raised in a unique environment that needed to her to raise her senses to the extreme to survive.

She whispered to herself. "Let's do this..." 

Shoosh.

She slid the door open and entered.

"Ah- Who's there?!" The voice called out in a tone that was similar to a shriek.

Lan'er looked around the luxurious room with a lavish design. A room that was as big as their living room, with a tea set by the right corner of the room and planted flowers hanging by the edge of the walls.

Aside from those, there was a calligraphy table next to the tea set, shelves of books and scrolls on the left side of the room and finally, a large and luxurious bed made with fine silk placed in middle of the room.

The large queen-size bed had thick red cloths that could be used as blinds from above the bed. Sitting on the bed was Xia Meixiang, glaring with puffy eyes as she looked at the person who had entered her room.

Lan'er slightly smiled. "It's me."

"O-oh! It's Lan'er! Give me a minute..." Xia Meixiang hurriedly wiped her tears and tried to fix herself.

Lan'er chuckled and walked towards Xia Meixiang's bed.

Xia Meixiang felt Lan'er take a seat on her bed so she playfully glared and pouted. "I told you to give me a minute..."

Lan'er didn't mind her words as she responded. "It's okay, Sister Mei can continue to cry." She then continued to comfortably look around Xia Meixiang's room.

Xia Meixiang was appalled before shaking her head and chuckling seconds later.

"Come to think of it, this is the first time that I've been in my sister Mei's room." Lan'er stated.

"Mhmm... Yes-" Xia Meixiang was about to agree with her statement, but she suddenly felt Lan'er embracing her.

Feeling the smaller and yet warm body in front of her, Xia Meixiang thought she was truly acting weak.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she made a self depricating smile.

"I-I'm so weak... why am I so weak?! I can't even handle my emotions properly and now? sniff... I have to get comforted by someone younger than me.."

Lan'er remained quiet.

"Why? I feel so pathetic... I- I understand that what father plans for is the best, but.... I'm still so immature for being spoiled and crying about it...

Why can't I just become strong and accept the way things are? Instead of- *sniff*... crying..."

Tears continued to flow down her cheeks as all the frustrated feelings she had bottled up earlier, poured out all at once.

"Damn it.. damn it.. damn it.."

Xia Meixiang felt so pathetic and mad at herself. Why was she so emotionally weak? Why was she so physically weak?

"Greatest prodigy? that's hubris... I'm nothing, but a pathetic weak willed girl..."

She then felt the tiny arms around her, carefully caress her back as if trying to wash away all the sadness and frustration she felt.

"L-Lan'er-"

"Shhh... Sister Mei... do you know what I think about sister Mei?"

Xia Meixiang remained quiet and let her continue.

"You see... I'm usually the one sparring with sister Mei, and every time, we would do our best to defeat each other and improve ourselves.

So... I can say with my entire heart that.. I know sister Mei well."

Lan'er continued, "It's alright to cry. Similarly, it's also fine to be frustrated at yourself. My brother once told me, "Even the strongest people in the world have had a weakest point in their life"."

Suddenly, Lan'er's voice changed. It became the unique voice of a mature woman.

"What matters is how you rise back up from the ashes."

Xia Meixiang released herself from Lan'er as soon as she heard that different and ethereal voice. Lan'er's face remained the same, but the impression she gave was very different.

"W-who are you...?" She asked... slightly worried.

Lan'er smiled as she answered. "Nice to meet you, young one. My name is Tang Xiurong, Lan'er's master."

Xia Meixiang's brows furrowed as she didn't know what was happening. All that she understood was that Lan'er was assuming a new identity.

Tang Xiurong chuckled. "No... Lan'er isn't crazy. Think of our situation as a possession where I am temporarily using her body."

Xia Meixiang seemed convinced and decided to trusts what she said.

"You must be wondering why I suddenly took ahold of her body... Well.." Tang Xiurong smiled. "She asked me to comfort you by telling you the lowest point of my life."

"You must obviously keep this to yourself, but.. when I was alive, I used to be The Immortal Empress who ruled over the Immortal plane."

"Gasp.." Xia Meixiang was shocked at the revelation. 'An Immortal?! Lan'er has an Immortal as her master? No wonder she kept rapidly improving.'

Tang Xiurong noticed her thoughts and spoke. "Be grateful to my disciple for she genuinely trusts you... enough to share her greatest secret with you."

"Not anyone can know about me... not even her own brother."

Tang Xiurong's last statement made Xia Meixiang surprised.

She couldn't believe that the little sister who loved her brother very much would actually keep a secret from him.

Tang Xiuromg added, "Well the young lad is quite understanding as well. He knows of my existence but doesn't pry into it."

"He understands his role as a brother and that his sister has a life of her own. He didn't control her nor direct her. He just supported her while showing the paths she could take."

She made an expression of admiration. "I admit... The young lad is a great brother.... and you're lucky to have him as a friend."

"He is a very loyal person and the fact that he treats you the same despite the difference in status means that he sees you for who you are, and considers you as his friend."

Xia Meixiang looked back on the past two years they had spent together and she realized that what Tang Xiurong said was right.

Zed never treated her special nor different from anyone else. He never acted differently around her nor did he pull back any consideration.

He remained the same person he had always been from the start.

"Anyway.. we got a little side-tracked." Tang Xiurong spoke, returning Xia Meixiang from her thoughts.

"My lowest point in life... was suffering the greatest defeat that would forever be a stain on my history."

Tang Xiurong looked at the ceiling as she recounted the days of her defeat.

"To simplify the story, before I became the Immortal Empress, I started from the very bottom. From a soldier to a general and all the way to the top."

"And in my time as a General, I was trusted with a legion that I could wholeheartedly say were my loyal comrades. They joined me in numerous battles and countless conquests."

Tang Xiurong smiled as she reminisced about the days of her youth.

"Sigh... indeed... those were the greatest times of my youth. Unfortunately, time does not wait for anyone. There will be a day when that youth will grow up to be an adult."

"The only difference was... Life taught her the hard way to do it."

She made a grim smile and continued, "My legion and I were assigned to defeat an enemy army. We were confident, but that overconfidence was the reason for our loss."

"Make no mistake, we didn't simply lose but- We overwhelmingly lost."

Her eyes flashed with a glint of anger while hatred could be heard from her voice. "I was too confident.. too comfortable with how things were... but it was already too late to realize that, as my entire legion was wiped out.

They were all killed and the others sacrificed their lives in order to secure my escape."

She looked at Xia Meixiang in the eyes. "I blamed myself countless of times... to the point where I inflicted self harm."

"I wanted to be punished... condemned for my mistakes! But..." Her voice trailed off.

"...There was no one. No one to help me. No one to comfort me. I had to struggle by myself."

"Which is what I did!"

"I rose... higher... higher and higher while dragging the sins I made on my back. I continued to climb higher until I reached the peak."

Tang Xiurong began to exude the aura of a conqueror, the aura she always had when she was the Immortal Empress.

"I know... my sins may never forgive me, but... I will not let it get in the way of my conquest. The meaning of my life, my sole goal in life, I will pursue it to the very end."

Lan'er in spirit form was listening next to Xia Meixiang. She remembered what intention their sword was made of.

She was sure that similar to her, her master had used her feelings to fuel her power, making her one of the greatest Immortals that had ever lived.

Her eyes glistened in desire as she felt a burning inspiration to become someone like her master.

Tang Xiurong returned from her narration as she spoke to Xia Meixiang. "It is not too late for you... unlike me, you are not alone. Your friends are always there to help you."

"However... there will be a time when your friends won't be able to help you, and if such times come, who will you rely on?"

"Therefore, you must become strong yourself. You must protect your own ideals as you make your mark on the world."

"Now the question is..." Tang Xiurong's eyes were slightly glowing as she continued, "...Are you ready for it?"

"I-.." Xia Meixiang couldn't answer.

Seeing that the latter couldn't answer, Tang Xiurong smiled. "You hate yourself for what? Being weak? Then change yourself. Eliminate that weakness yourself."

"But you need to take that first step, or you won't be able to start anything, especially if you keep holing up on your self deprication."

Tang Xiurong made a serious expression as she clasped Xia Meixiang's cheeks with her hands. "Do you understand?"

Xia Meixiang's last tear flowed out as she closed her eyes.

With a low voice, she answered. "I understand."

Tang Xiurong smiled. "Good girl."

Edited By: WorthyAdversary