Chapter 2
Edward Quan ·
“Stop nesting flashbacks inside flashbacks. Don't forget, you sold my clothes and magical treasures to the fairy maidens first.”
“And you secretly took private commissions, forcing me to read tens of thousands of fortunes every day.”
“Worst of all, you never gave me a single spirit stone!”
Oh, right.
But putting all that aside…
Was Third Senior Brother completely blameless?
I had no leg to stand on, but I glared right back.
Su Wanning saw this as ironclad proof that we didn't get along.
She came over to provoke me.
“Ye Wangshu, has Senior Brother ever taught you?”
Before I could answer, she continued, “Of course he hasn't. You're so spectacularly useless. He'd never waste his time on you.”
“Unlike you, he and I are both peerless prodigies. We have endless things in common. It's like a great judge of horses finding his thousand-mile steed—”
Before she could finish, Third Senior Brother gave a distinctly sinister smile and ushered her into his little room.
I stretched out on the beanbag chair Eldest Senior Brother had fished up, snacking on delicacies Second Senior Sister had brought back from other worlds.
Life was good.
Hmm?
Had I forgotten to warn Su Wanning about a few things?
I quickly put the thought out of my mind.
She was a peerless prodigy, wasn't she?
Surely she'd enjoy things like Functional Analysis, Linear Algebra and Its Applications, and Point-Set Topology.
She'd love them.
Right?
At breakfast the next morning, Su Wanning had spectacular dark circles under her eyes.
Her gaze was blank, her face pale, and several unfinished exam papers lay in front of her.
Worst of all, a glittering golden disciplinary ruler hovered overhead.
Whenever she slowed down, it gave her a hard whack on the backside.
The moment she saw me, she found an outlet for all her feelings.
“Ye Wangshu, you did this on purpose!”
“You knew how difficult these subjects were, and you deliberately didn't tell me!”
Her voice climbed higher.
“You're jealous! You wanted to humiliate me with your petty tricks so Senior Brother would think badly of me.”
“You're so calculating!”
“You give me far too much credit,” I said sincerely. “I honestly thought a peerless prodigy like you would find these subjects easy.”
She was furious.
Just then, Third Senior Brother walked in.
One look at her papers, and his brow furrowed.
“Why aren't you finished?”
“You're the worst student I've ever taught.”
That fired up her competitive streak.
In the blink of an eye, she finished the papers.
He smiled with delight.
“Now that you've learned Western theory, it's time for the wisdom of our ancestors!”
The River Chart and Luo Writing, Orthodox Divination, Comprehensive Study of the Three Fates, Plum Blossom Numerology…
Out came an even larger mountain of test papers.
Su Wanning trembled.
She coughed up a mouthful of blood and collapsed.
Alarmed, Third Senior Brother reached toward her.
“Careful!”
She raised her brows at me and sent a telepathic message.
“See? He cares about me!”
She spread her arms to welcome him.
He stepped forward and casually dragged her out of his way.
“Thank goodness there's no blood on these. They're the only surviving copies.”
He tucked the ancient books into his storage ring.
“Aren't you going to check on Su Wanning?” I prompted.
As though he'd only just remembered her, he took her pulse.
“Mm. Still alive. She's fine, then.”
Then he gave her a gentle smile.
“Make sure you finish the required papers while you recover. And no compromising on quality.”
Her eyes rolled back.
This time, she really did faint from fright.
I sighed.
Until the world blows up, Senior Brother doesn't get a day off.
You're blessed, girl.
Su Wanning lay sprawled on the floor. For all we knew, she could have been dead.
Eldest Senior Brother and Second Senior Sister walked past without a glance.
Master Meow even curled up on her for a lovely afternoon nap.
In the end, I couldn't bear it and dragged her back to her room.
Her first words when she woke were, “Why does my face burn?”
Only then did I remember.
Had I accidentally dragged her facedown?
Never mind.
Third Senior Brother's ruler had arrived.
She no longer had time to settle accounts with me. Her miserable academic career began in earnest.
What can I say?
She really was a peerless prodigy.
In just two days, she'd mastered every subject.
When it came to practical applications, she needed only a few hours to surpass the best diviner in the outside world.
Her confidence soared.
“Ye Wangshu, let's see what makes you think you can compete with me!”
I stared.
You're going to read my fate?
Do you have a death wish?
Before I could stop her, she confidently began calculating on her fingers.
“538…? What are these eighteen digits?”
Dark clouds gathered overhead.
A bolt of golden lightning struck her.
She dropped straight to her knees.
“Ye Wangshu, you're useless! How can you be entangled in such terrifying karma?”
I shook my head helplessly.
“I may be useless, but I'm a transmigrator.”
“The world's will behind me… isn't useless.”
She gritted her teeth.
“I don't believe it. That was sheer luck!”
“Again!”
She formed a hand seal.
A light breeze passed.
Nothing happened.
“Where's my right arm?!” she screamed.
Only then did she notice that her right sleeve was empty.
I took a bite of the Peach of Immortality Second Senior Sister had given me.
“Oh, I know this one,” I said around a mouthful.
“Divination means prying into Heaven's secrets. It brings the Five Afflictions and Three Deficiencies.”
“Widowerhood, widowhood, orphanhood, solitude, disability. Lack of money, lack of life, lack of power.”
“This is disability. But don't worry too much. Most people only get one at most.”
Su Wanning went white.
“Can I still be saved?”
I shook my head.
“Not from what I've heard.”
She looked utterly hopeless. Then something occurred to her.
“What about Senior Brother? He's as normal as anyone!”
I clutched my head.
“What makes you think he's normal?”
The clouds churned overhead.
Through them, we could just make out two Third Senior Brothers fighting.
One wore flowing white robes.
The other was missing limbs.
“Xiao Ruoqing, you bastard!”
“You don't want the consequences yourself, so you make us versions of you in other universes suffer them!”
Third Senior Brother replied gently, “You're all me. What's the difference?”
Su Wanning shuddered.
I tried to comfort her.
“If your cultivation were just a tiny bit stronger, I'm sure you could do it too.”
As she watched the stars and galaxies shifting between my fingers, she completely broke down.
“How many lifetimes will that take?!”
She didn't want to remain disabled.
“I hear Senior Sister knows everyone. One of her friends must be a miracle physician who can cure me!”
She intercepted Second Senior Sister.
“Senior Sister, you're so young and beautiful. I felt close to you the instant I saw you.”
“As though you were my own big sister.”
She laid the flattery on so thick that Second Senior Sister's eyes crinkled with delight.
“Little Wanning, you do have a way with words.”
“But I'm off to visit a friend in another world. See you later.”
Su Wanning's eyes lit up. She seized her chance.
“I love making friends too, Senior Sister.”
“Take me with you. I'd love to spend more time with you.”
Second Senior Sister was so pleased that she readily agreed.
Then she seemed to remember something and turned to me.
“Little Shu, are you coming?”
I refused immediately, shaking my head like a rattle.
Su Wanning snorted.
“Useless as ever. You wouldn't know an opportunity if it fell into your lap.”
Then she strode off with Second Senior Sister.
I rather admired her courage.
There were plenty of places Second Senior Sister visited that even my senior brothers wouldn't go near.
They'd barely left when Eldest Senior Brother arrived.
“Little Shu, notice anything different about me today?”
I looked him over.
“Not really…”
He interrupted with a deliberately astonished expression.
“Oh, how did you know I caught a big fish?”
Now I understood.
I carefully circled him.
At last, I spotted a fish hanging at his waist.
It was smaller than my palm.
I said nothing. Just smiled at him.
That's it?
“What's that look for? Small or not, at least I caught it myself.”
He didn't hold it against me. Looking around, he asked, “Where are Second and Third?”
“Some other Third Senior Brothers dragged ours into a parallel universe to beat him up.”
“Second Senior Sister took Su Wanning to visit a friend.”
He looked a little disappointed.
“Oh. Then we'll have a proper celebration when they get back.”
He kept himself busy by making a hundred and seven dishes.
With the little fish in the middle, that made a full hundred and eight.
A Manchu-Han Imperial Feast.
The delicious smells had me swallowing constantly.
Third Senior Brother came home too.
Only, instead of his usual ethereal elegance, he now had a battered face and more lumps on his head than I could count.
“A glorious victory for me!”
Eldest Senior Brother and I rolled our eyes in unison.
Only Second Senior Sister was missing.
We waited.
And waited.