Aimless Ascension

Wang Qi wasn't really feeling it today to answer the longread from her family. She had been meditating the Ice Mantra of her sect with a few of her fellow sect sisters when the call came.

Obviously, if she chided the junior sister that she didn't want to answer today and was busy practising, she would carry the message over the longread to her family. Wang Qi couldn't do that.

That would make her an unfilial daughter after everything her parents endured to get her here. So she decided she would listen to them again about whatever proposal they had. And she would deliberately delay whatever proposal they would come up with again.

In a way that would make her unfilial too, as she was doing it deliberately over months, but as far as her current circumstances allowed her, she could only do that.

With a heavy heart, she stood up and proceeded to rush towards the communication chambers.

"Senior Sister, you're ditching practice again," her junior Sister Pei said with a snicker. "Let me guess it is your family again or is it your time to teach alchemy to others again?"

Wang Qi considered replying to Junior Sister Pei, but another of her sisters chimed in:

"Sister Qi, you can't always ignore their proposal like this," Sister Song said. "Well, if you don't want to marry then just tell them that, if they don't agree, you have the sect to back you."

"I will consider your words Sister Song," Wang Qi replied eventually, "however this is my family, I can't just bury them for my ambitions."

"I'm just pointing out your options," Sister Song snorted. "If you feel so indebted to your family, then perhaps you can marry whoever they found for you. Just don't bother us when you're stranded on the Ice Mantra."

Wang Qi narrowed her eyes. She could detect the jab in her fellow sister's tone. On regular days, Wang Qi didn't really bother to reply to such tones, however, she decided today isn't going to be the case.

"I thank Sister Song for your concern about my spirit art," she said, "but you can be rest assured, I won't lose out on any of your progress. And even if I do, I would never bother you or my fellow junior or senior sisters."

"I'll see you to it then," Sister Song sneered.

Junior Sister Pei, who joined barely half a year after Wang Qi, looked troubled hearing out their exchange. She wasn't quick to water the flame, but she did try eventually, although it did no good.

"Senior Sister Qi, you're never a bother, you helped me so much when I joined," Junior Pei said. "Senior Song, Senior Qi, we're all sisters here, there's no point arguing like this. We should help each other more and be more dependent, isn't that how companionship grows?"

"Dependence only makes you a fool, Junior Sister Pei," Sister Song said and threw a look at Wang Qi before focusing on her meditation again.

Wang Qi exchanged a polite bow with Sister Pei and departed from the icy cave. She channelled her Qi to settle the restlessness as she had been under freezing point for over six hours.

She wasted no more time to rush to the communication chamber. She already kept her family waiting for a few minutes, but it should be understandable.

Reaching the particular longread device, Wang Qi found the connection was already cut off, while her family left a note for her instead of communicating directly.

Wang Qi took the paper script from the device and excused the junior sister. She was delighted to learn it was from her grandma, not her family asking to marry some genius youth to lift their standing again.

Wang Qi sighed and moved out of there to the waiting room. She rested her bottom on a seat in the waiting room and proceeded to read the note.

[My dear granddaughter, I hope your heart is as steady as it had always been. I heard from your father that you made it to Silver rank recently. Congratulations on that, you're living up to my expectations. However, it pains my heart that you never bother to come to Wayshire or even exchange words with this old woman.]

Wang Qi bit her lips as she read that. Although she had seen her grandma a couple of years back when she returned home to Azure Park, she had never visited her in Wayshire since she joined the sect.

It wasn't that she didn't want to. Wayshire had almost nothing to show for itself, but it had a peaceful and homely vibe to it as far as she remembered. She remembered she enjoyed visiting there during the local festivals. However, since her sister couldn't endure her presence anymore, she decided it was for the best that she didn't visit anymore.

Moreover, she barely had time to complete all her study and the sect duties. Not to mention, she had to work about thirty hours a week part-time to gain more resources for herself.

Wang Qi was so terrified of failure and disappointing her family, she hardly rested herself apart from the few hours of sleep every day.

[The local festival is coming along well. If you have the time and desire, visit Wayshire. Even if you don't come I'll understand. Everyone else but me is busy with their lives, and I understand that old age has got me.

[However, if it isn't too much, I hope you'll write to me at least once every two or three months. I hardly remember how the sect has been and what changed after I left a century ago. Anyway, for that reason I contacted you. Your sister has decided to return to practising spirit arts again.]

Wang Qi lifted an eyebrow as she read the last line. She hadn't seen it coming. As far as she knew her sister, something drastic must have happened for her to go back to practise again.

[With much deliberation, I decided to loosen our revenue to buy her a good fate lock. Your parents had been unfair to her, and she had been on the brink of losing everything again. I decided this without consulting your parents or uncles and aunts.

[The fate lock we purchased has Plant and Life attributes, it would be a real loss if she didn't practise some medicine brewing and alchemy with it. That's why I decided to contact you. I'm not asking much from you, of course, Wang Li barely had the foundation to handle much. All I am asking is the notes your grandfather left on Alchemy along with his experience. You should have gotten all the benefits from them, now give this to your sister so that it can be of some help to her.]

Wang Qi frowned. she had completed her studies over her grandfather's alchemy notes years ago. It has been a great help to her journey of alchemy from the beginning. Unfortunately, she didn't have it with her. She sent it back home after she was done with it. Although she had copied them before returning.

Wang Qi saw no fault in sending that too, though she wasn't certain what her sister's impression would be if she sent back her the notes in her own writings.

[Also, I heard your parents are trying to marry you off to someone. I have no comment on that, but I'll only advise you to do what your heart desires. A practitioner's life is long, opportunities like these will present themselves occasionally, so don't take it too hard.

[--Your Grandmother.]