203 - Destroyer of Ice and Fire

Ning Songwu pouted. "Yes, it's quite large. I've been here for three years and still haven't explored it all." "You've been here for three years? That's impressive," Helan Mianmian replied with a beaming smile as she looked at Ning Songwu. Suddenly, a sharp and mocking voice broke in, "Oh really, how impressive. After all, she descended from the Rongku Pavilion to 'understand the people's sentiments,' right?" The girl emphasized the words 'people's sentiments' with deliberate sarcasm. Ning Songwu followed the voice to see a girl, roughly twelve or thirteen years old, standing with her arms crossed over her chest. Her delicate face was full of provocation as she squinted at Ning Songwu. "I can't imagine how much karma you accumulated in your past life to become Elder Ran Fanyin's disciple without lifting a finger. I'm really looking forward to seeing your abilities!" The girl lowered her voice with a tone filled with disdain, her gaze cutting sharply into Ning Songwu. Ning Songwu raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Oh, it's nothing much—just a tad bit luckier than some. I can't promise my abilities, but I'm certainly better than some of the newly admitted disciples." The girl froze for a moment, then sneered. "Is that so? If you're so strong, why were you sent to Hongfei Pavilion? I bet Elder Ran Fanyin regrets taking such a foolish disciple." "My master does not!" Ning Songwu's expression changed abruptly, her voice rising in anger. "Quiet." Ping Zilai glanced coldly at Ning Songwu, his face showing displeasure. Helan Mianmian tugged at Ning Songwu's sleeve, but she remained sullen and angry, ignoring Helan Mianmian while sulking alone. "Don't provoke her. She's Lan Ze, the eldest daughter of the renowned southern Jiangnan Lan family. You've heard of the Four Great Families, right? They're formidable. I've seen plenty of people fawning over her every day," Helan Mianmian whispered to Ning Songwu about the girl's identity. "So what?!" Ning Songwu retorted, her fiery temper flaring instantly. "The Lan family's head is close with the leader of the Northfa Sect. Lan Ze knows quite a bit about Northfa's internal affairs. If she dislikes you, she has many ways to trouble you!" Helan Mianmian sighed, worried that her roommate had provoked the wrong person. "Are all the people here so distinguished? What does your family do?" Ning Songwu asked, somewhat curious, as she looked at Helan Mianmian. Helan Mianmian hesitated, her face showing a bit of discomfort as she stammered, "This... I can't really say..." "Oh... if you don't want to say, then don't." Ning Songwu wilted again, collapsing softly onto the table. She had no interest in listening to Ping Zilai's endless lectures. A jade pendant around her neck pressed uncomfortably against her skin, emitting a faint warmth. Thinking about the drop of her master's blood infused within it, Ning Songwu's nose prickled with an inexplicable sadness. She really disliked it here. She missed her master. As she thought about this, Ning Songwu's eyes reddened again. Later that night, despite Helan Mianmian's attempts to cheer her up, Ning Songwu remained distracted. Eventually, Helan Mianmian pouted and climbed into bed to sleep. Left alone, Ning Songwu listlessly lay over her table. She didn't want to do anything, but she also couldn't sleep. She recalled the disciples' earlier conversations and Brother Zisheng's mention of himself and Sister Ziran starting from Hongfei Pavilion. It seemed like the disciples from Hongfei Pavilion indeed had the potential to become Elder Ran Fanyin's apprentices. Throughout the Northfa Sect, she was the only exception, taken in by Ran Fanyin on a compassionate whim. Her master probably resented her for being less skilled than the proper disciples from Hongfei Pavilion and had “cast her back to the furnace” here. If she couldn't learn as well as the other disciples, would her master stop liking her, abandon her, and choose a more outstanding disciple as her new apprentice? Ning Songwu shook her head vigorously. She didn't want to think about this. Suddenly, Ning Songwu's eyes opened wide as she remembered the unfinished task of drawing a landscape of Northfa Palace for her master. Ning Songwu looked at her right hand. If she used her right hand to complete the drawing, her master would be delighted. Thinking about using her right hand made Ning Songwu feel insecure. Her hand trembled uncontrollably. Slowly, she reached for a brush hanging on the brush stand, gripping it nervously. Years ago, the tendons and bones in this hand were shattered, and it almost became separated from her arm. Even though it had been treated and constantly nourished with rare ointments, it still ached sometimes. And any exertion felt like thousands of ants gnawing at her bone marrow, an excruciating pain. When her master asked about her right hand, Ning Songwu, not wanting to worry her master, would only report the good news, often hiding the painful truth, sometimes even lying. Ran Fanyin was entirely unaware, never imagining that her ten-year-old apprentice would go to such lengths to protect her feelings. Ning Songwu's hand trembled violently as she held the brush, causing the ink on the brush tip to waver. Finally, with a plop, a drop of dark ink fell onto the pristine rice paper, slowly spreading out. But the brush remained suspended. The sleeping quarters of the Hongfei Pavilion disciples were completely dark, except for one window’s faint candlelight that remained lit through dawn. Chapter 77 – Dread Luo Sheng and Helan Mianmian whispered to each other, their exact words unknown. After a while, Luo Sheng left with a dark expression. That clever girl hardly needed managing. Helan Mianmian smiled watching Zisheng leave and then tidied her clothes before slowly walking back to the classroom. As expected, the moment Ning Songwu saw her, she asked, "Do you know Brother Zisheng? What did he say to you just now?" Helan Mianmian replied frankly, "He's a distant relative. We don't see each other often, so he didn't know I had joined Northfa. He was a bit excited upon seeing me." "You're a distant relative of Brother Zisheng?" Ning Songwu supported her chin with one hand, thoughtfully. "The world is indeed small... Brother Zisheng must be from a prestigious family too..." Lan Ze, sitting not far away, overheard and turned to Ning Songwu with a mocking smile. "Prestigious family? You underestimate your Brother Zisheng. Didn’t you know after three years in Rongku Pavilion? He's royalty—the third son of the current emperor!"