My Shijie Seems Intent on Destroying the World – Chapter 8

When the Spirit Flowers Bloom

“Why Is Shijie So Good to Me?”

Inside the Sea of Divine Sense¹, all was a pure white void, save for a few wild grasses growing beneath her feet.

Qi Zhi crouched on the ground, gently poking at that floppy little blade of grass.

            

It always liked to droop curved against the ground, like a little blanket, covering that pure white flower bud.

Sometimes she really could not bring herself to believe that such a lazy blade of grass was her spiritual root.

“You—always bending when you could stand straight, always flopping when you could stay up. No wonder you’re congenitally damaged…”

            

“Good thing Master protected you with a strand of spiritual power back then, or the two of us would probably have dissipated together long ago.”

“Even though you look completely hopeless, I’m still fairly diligent, right? Once you’re no longer incomplete, I’ll cultivate properly and make you grow tall and strong!”

As Qi Zhi spoke, the little grass at her fingertips seemed to understand, slowly straightening up and lifting the pure white flower bud high.

            

“That’s it! Now you look a bit more spirited!”

The lazy little grass could not take praise—within seconds of standing up, it flopped back down, flower bud and all.

“Never mind, never mind. Be as comfortable as you like.” Qi Zhi gently stroked its slender leaves and smiled, curved brows rising. “As long as you grow well and bloom on time, that’s all that matters!”

            

She bid it farewell and rose, leaving the Sea of Divine Sense.

She tugged the quilt around herself, rolled onto her side, and closed her eyes to sleep.

…

            

Come to think of it, ever since the first snow, Qi Zhi had been full of anticipation.

Mu-shijie had said that when her spiritual flower² bloomed, she would take her away from the mountain to cultivate.

There was no need to worry about Master—Shijie would find a way to make him agree.

            

For as long as she could remember, she had always lived here. The only time she was tricked into leaving the mountain, she had not seen anything before being caught and punished with kneeling for a day and a night.

But before Mu Qingshi had mentioned leaving the mountain, it seemed she had never even thought about leaving.

She thought it might be because she was just a little blade of grass.

            

What blade of grass does not take root where it first sprouted and strive to grow?

Wind and rain, the trampling of all creatures—for a blade of grass, these were merely ordinary. Though it hurt and though she might resent it, as long as she was still alive, she could always wait for the warm sun.

At least, that was what she used to think.

            

But now it was different!

The wind and rain that had once weighed her down so she could never lift her head, the deliberate and inadvertent trampling by others—all of it, because of Mu Qingshi’s appearance, could no longer easily hurt her.

Ninth Senior Sister had said that the day she came of age would be the day her spiritual flower bloomed.

            

When that time came, she could follow Mu-shijie far away from here, far from the malice that no amount of effort to please others could ever dispel.

It was just that when someone started longing for a certain day to arrive, time somehow passed both too fast and too slow.

The things she had to do had not really changed, and the person she wanted to see was someone she saw often enough, yet Qi Zhi still felt that each day passed with a strange, restless urgency.

            

So every night before bed, she would enter her Sea of Divine Sense and chat with her spiritual root for a while, as if doing so could make it grow a little faster.

Actually, if it were an ordinary blade of grass, being kept company like this every day really would make it grow quite a bit faster.

But this spiritual root was different. No matter how she coaxed it, it remained floppy, occasionally perking up for no more than ten seconds.

            

Seeing it always like this, Qi Zhi sometimes suspected that Ninth Senior Sister’s information might be wrong, and that her spiritual flower would not actually bloom the moment she came of age.

Such doubts inevitably came with a measure of anxiety.

Because of this, Qi Zhi had sat before Mu Qingshi more than once with eyes full of expectation, chin propped in both hands, mumbling softly, “Shijie, my spiritual root hasn’t moved at all lately.”

            

Whenever Mu Qingshi heard this, she would always smile, feeding her something delicious while telling her there was no need to rush.

Actually, she wanted Shijie to check it for her one more time. If Shijie looked and said there was no problem, she could stop being so anxious.

But Shijie had been particularly stern with her last time, telling her that the Sea of Divine Sense was a place she could never let anyone enter again. She had not dared to bring it up directly, only daring to hint at it like this.

            

But perhaps her hints were too subtle—Mu Qingshi never caught on, and the matter was left unresolved.

…

The years in the mountains passed like the wind, gently whitening the world.

            

Before she knew it, three months had passed since the golden osmanthus went into the jars.

This year’s osmanthus wine had fermented even more fragrantly and mellowly than in years past.

Qi Zhi gathered two jars in her arms and hurried over the silver-white ground toward Suihan Hall.

            

At this time every year, no matter how heavy the wind and snow, she would admire plum blossoms and the moon together with Mu-shijie, sharing the new wine.

Of course, she had not forgotten Ah Yun either.

Knowing it loved those little red winter berries, she had made a special point of filling a small bag just for it!

            

The little creature seemed able to smell them, flying down to the mountainside to meet her well in advance.

Mu Qingshi had also prepared delicious pastries for her, along with a warm cloak.

In one more month, she would come of age.

            

The demon race had long lifespans and rarely celebrated birthdays, but a five-hundred-year coming of age ceremony was tradition all the same.

Qi Zhi did not care, nor did she believe that those fellow disciples who already looked down on her would remember this day that belonged only to her.

But she did care whether Mu Qingshi took it seriously enough.

            

So she was careful, she was roundabout, and she said things with such obvious direction that she truly did not seem very clever.

“When Ninth Senior Sister last had a breakthrough, everyone up and down the sect went to celebrate. The gifts she received piled so high they filled the courtyard—she didn’t even glance at most of them before ordering them tossed into the storehouse to gather dust.”

“Fourth Senior Brother celebrates his birthday every year. I heard he had quite a prestigious status before entering the mountain, so he takes these things seriously. He receives plenty of fine gifts each time—any one of them would be something I’ve never seen.”

            

“When Sixth Senior Sister left the mountain, there were so many people gathered around to see her off…”

“Master has only taken on a few direct disciples, and it seems like everyone’s important days are celebrated with great fanfare. Perhaps only on the day I come of age will it be cold and quiet, with no one to care…”

Qi Zhi spoke, her brows and eyes lowering, her lips pressing into a thin line.

            

“That won’t happen. I care very much.” Mu Qingshi saw through her little scheme, gently patting the back of her hand. “The gift for you—I’ve had it ready for a long time.”

“Really?” Qi Zhi brightened at once. “What are you going to give me, Shijie!”

The words had barely left her mouth when Mu Qingshi tapped her nose.

            

Mu Qingshi said, “If I tell you now, there won’t be any surprise.”

Qi Zhi thought about it and decided Shijie was right. She nodded obediently and looked up at the white plum blossoms in the snow.

Mu Qingshi followed her gaze and fell silent for a moment.

            

A gust of wind blew past. Qi Zhi gathered her cloak tighter and looked at Mu Qingshi once more.

Mu Qingshi noticed her gaze and returned it, carrying a faint smile.

In Qi Zhi’s memory, Mu-shijie was smiling most of the time.

            

The smile on her face was always faint and gentle—like a spring breeze, like moonlight—so tender, so beautiful.

Yet for some reason, in one brief instant, Qi Zhi suddenly felt that Mu-shijie was not happy, and this added an indescribable feeling to her heart.

“What’s wrong?”

            

“Nothing… nothing’s wrong…”

“You’re lying. You clearly have something on your mind.” Mu Qingshi saw right through her. “It’s written all over your face—you’re not even trying to hide it.”

“Shijie’s one to talk.” Qi Zhi lowered her head and mumbled, “Shijie clearly has something on her mind too. You hide it well, but I still noticed… You’re not very happy right now.”

            

Mu Qingshi paused, then lowered her gaze and gave a self-deprecating smile.

“If I encounter something unhappy, I just need to tell Shijie, and I don’t feel so bad anymore.” Qi Zhi sat up straight, her face filled with earnestness. “Shijie, if you have something on your mind, can you tell me?”

Mu Qingshi only shook her head and told her, “Heartaches that can be spoken of are not the ones people hide.”

            

“…” Qi Zhi felt a pang of disappointment and silently lowered her head.

A small piece of pastry was brought to her lips. She pressed her lips together, reluctant to accept it, but after a few seconds of resistance, the faint sweet aroma won her over and she opened her mouth.

She chewed as she mumbled, “Shijie is unhappy, and I can’t even help…”

            

“How could that be?” Mu Qingshi shook her head and said earnestly, “Every time you come keep me company and talk with me, I’m very happy.”

Qi Zhi asked, “Really?”

Mu Qingshi nodded. “Of course.”

            

Qi Zhi opened her mouth, no longer able to suppress the confusion in her heart from all these years. “Why is Shijie so good to me?”

“Why ask this all of a sudden?”

“Everything has to have a reason.” Qi Zhi said earnestly, “I like Shijie, because Shijie is the person who treats me best in this world. I couldn’t repay even a thousandth of the kindness Shijie has shown me. So why has Shijie been so good to me all these years?”

            

Mu Qingshi seemed to consider this for a moment, then reached up and ruffled Qi Zhi’s hair. “Because Shijie likes you too.”

Qi Zhi tilted her head, picked up her cup, and took a sip of the light wine.

This answer did not seem to explain the confusion in her heart.

            

But she was still quite happy.

Because this was the first time Mu-shijie had ever said the word ‘like’ to her directly.

She thought, there were some things she couldn’t figure out, and that was fine—she didn’t have to.

            

She liked Shijie, and Shijie liked her too. That was already more important than anything!

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The author has something to say:

The little grass is easy to coax, the little grass is happily oblivious, and the little grass hasn’t realized what’s about to happen.

            

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