Chapter 20 Part 1
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This chapter is edited by Farouq Omileye. Thank you for your contribution!
Chapter 20: A Heart Like Clear Glass (2)
— At night.
A bonfire burned.
Outside the front hall, two figures sat by the flames.
One was a young girl, resting her cheek on her right hand, her eyes reflecting the flickering firelight. She was mimicking her master’s calm demeanor, though her imitation was not yet perfect.
The other was also a young girl, but her posture was far less composed. Her eyebrows drooped, her face clouded with gloom, and her back bent as if carrying an invisible weight. She looked as though she had swallowed a bitter pill that lingered, unrelenting, in her chest.
In truth, Yu Ying had swallowed something bitter—failure. Her thoughts had grown sluggish, burdened by her mistake.
She had tried to save someone, but instead, she had fallen into a trap. If not for An Yue noticing something amiss in time, she might have been reduced to a lifeless husk by the cruel Mrs. Hu.
Yu Ying had believed that even if her eyes were blind, her heart would not be.
But looking back, she realized it was just wishful thinking.
It wasn’t her eyes that failed her—it was her own foolishness.
Yu Ying clenched her fists as the realization settled like a heavy stone in her chest. Yet she was lost. She knew she was wrong, but how could she make things right?
Was there such a thing as a “Smart Pill” in this world? Probably not.
Could she really find the right owner for the rusty sword in her hand?
Her fists tightened further as doubt crept in. The future felt unbearably dark.
What if her heart’s judgment was flawed? What if the images she had seen in her mind—the ones guiding her to the sword’s owner—were all wrong?
Had she already missed the person she was searching for?
Yu Ying’s thoughts churned restlessly. She pulled out the sword, her grip trembling slightly as she looked toward Bai Lian, whose face glowed softly in the light of the fire.
“Miss An Yue,” Yu Ying said, her voice small and uncertain. “Can you… can you touch it again?”
Bai Lian blinked, startled. She glanced at Yu Ying and then at the sword.
“Didn’t I already touch it?” she asked, her tone laced with confusion.
Yu Ying lowered her gaze. “I… I just want you to try again. To see if it works this time.”
Though puzzled, Bai Lian nodded. “Alright.”
A familiar system notification appeared before her eyes. It looked just like the task options from the first sword test, except the reward for Task 1 had been downgraded.
Bai Lian chose Task 2: [Hard Skill +1].
Her hand moved through the firelight and came to rest on the hilt of Yu Ying’s sword.
Yu Ying instinctively closed her eyes behind her black cloth, focusing on the sensations.
She tried to feel it—the warmth of Bai Lian’s touch, the energy that might pass from her hand to the sword.
For a moment, she thought she saw something. A faint, pure white light shimmered in the endless night of her mind, scattering gently like stars in the distance.
But no matter how hard she tried to reach for it, it stayed just out of her grasp.
Yu Ying opened her eyes, and the world was still wrapped in darkness.
She sighed deeply and withdrew the sword.
Once again, it was so close. And once again, she fell short.
The frustration dug deep into her heart, the wound raw and fresh. She clenched her fists, resisting the urge to throw the sword into the fire.
She curled up, hugging her knees, and whispered, “Miss An Yue, you are so kind to me.”
Bai Lian blinked in surprise.
The girl was thanking her—over what? Just touching the sword?
With a soft smile, Bai Lian replied, “Perhaps it’s because you remind me of my younger Martial Sisters.”
“Your… Martial Sisters?” Yu Ying tilted her head, confused.
“You’re about their age,” Bai Lian explained. “Well, you’re about my age, too.”
Yu Ying’s eyes widened beneath her blindfold. “You… you’re my age?”
“I’ll be nineteen in a month,” Bai Lian said casually.
Yu Ying froze.
Two years older. Bai Lian was just two years older than her, yet she was so strong and mature—so far ahead that Yu Ying felt like a child in comparison.
The gap between people could be staggering. Greater than the gap between humans and cats, even.
“Miss An Yue,” Yu Ying said softly, her voice tinged with gratitude. “Thank you.”
“Huh?” Bai Lian blinked again, taken aback.
“If not for you,” Yu Ying continued, “I would have died at the hands of Mrs. Hu.”
Bai Lian waved her hand dismissively. “It was nothing. And if it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t have gone back to the Hu family in the first place.”
Yu Ying shook her head. “If not for your careful guidance, I would never have realized my own foolishness.”
Bai Lian tilted her head. “Guidance?”
Yu Ying looked down, her thoughts swirling.
Only after falling into the mud, she thought, can someone truly begin to reflect.
An Yue had noticed the danger right away. Yet instead of stopping her, she had let Yu Ying walk into it—perhaps to teach her a valuable lesson.
Yu Ying hesitated, then gathered her courage.
“Miss An Yue,” she asked tentatively, “may I ask for your advice?”
Bai Lian saw another system notification pop up:
Task 1: Refuse. Reward: [Wind and Thunder Mantra].
Task 2: Agree. Reward: [Light Skill +1].
Once again, Yu Ying had become a task generator.
Bai Lian chose Task 2 without hesitation.
“Ask away,” she said warmly.
Yu Ying hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“Miss An Yue, how can I truly see a person clearly?”
Bai Lian smiled faintly.
“Time,” she said.
“Time?”
“A person’s true heart can only be seen over time.”
Yu Ying nodded thoughtfully, though her heart felt heavy.
She understood the truth in Bai Lian’s words, but the reality remained daunting.
She didn’t have the luxury of time to observe everyone. Not when the sword’s true master was still out there, waiting to be found.
