Chương 12: "The World Doesn't Care About Your Suffering. It Only Cares About Your Strength.”

Ch 12 "The World Doesn't Care About Your Suffering. It Only Cares About Your Strength."" Come in." The sound echoed eerily from the fanciful carriage despite the beautiful voice it was spoken with. The carriage was positioned at the back of the passenger section of the caravan, set apart from the others. It was constructed of a type of wood Amber did not recognize, but it stood distinct from the lighter woods of the other vehicles.

Even the wheels seemed sturdier, reinforced with bands of polished metal that gleamed in the fading light. Just who was the girl inside? Amber leaned her new spear against the outside and reached to pull back the soft fabric curtains, made of materials she did not recognize. She drew herself into the carriage and let the curtain fall behind her. It was her first time in a carriage, and while she was excited, the girl in front of her was impossible to look away from.

She had a luxurious chair, far nicer than any Amber had seen in her own village or in Misty Hollow. It was carved wood with exquisite fabrics over soft looking padding. The girl herself was no less a sight to behold than the first time she had seen her. Deep red robes adorned her pale figure. Her calm expression showed traces of maturity beyond her young years. Despite the awe inspiring display of strength she had shown Amber earlier, her face and figure looked strangely delicate.

Long black hair framed her down to her elbows as if they were reams of silk.

"Welcome," the ends of the girl in red's mouth pulled up into a smile.

"Sit. You're just in time, I was about to make some tea." Amber sat on the much less exquisite but available bench across from the girl. She said nothing as she watched the girl pick up a teapot from a small table besides her and hold it very oddly. While most would use the handle, the girl in red held it from the bottom, as a child might hold a ball.

"The tea will be just a minute." She smiled as the teapot in her hand began to lightly steam. There was a subtle heat filling the carriage. She was heating it with her hand! Amber tried her best to not show her surprise in front of the girl. It was difficult despite already witnessing her Fire Qi all too closely.

"In the meantime, why don't we get acquainted?" the girl in red asked.

"My name is Amber," she said with a small hand clasp. It felt good to be able to introduce herself with her name, instead of pointed fingers calling her a cabbage demon.

"Oh my, no surname? Then, a country girl who can cultivate! How delightful!" The red eyed girl mused. Amber tried not to show the displeasure on her face. Did the girl think she was being nice? She was making her tea though.

"And you are?"

"Ember," the girl in red robes smiled. Amber waited until she realized there was no surname coming, which made her feel even more annoyed at the girl's earlier comment.

"I did have a surname, if you are wondering. But I threw it away a long time ago. Oh, the tea's about ready." She grasped the teapot correctly now, by the handle, and poured tinged streams of steaming liquid into a couple of wooden lacquer cups on a little stand.

"Here," she handed a small cup to Amber.

"Thank you," Amber said, taking the cup. She told herself maybe this Ember girl wasn't all bad. She did stop the spar short of serious after all, despite starting it. She looked down into the cup at her own reflection. It had been many years since she had tea, not since her mom died had she had a cup.

"Excuse me, It's been many years since I've practiced tea etiquette…" Amber said.

"Hmm, I prefer the practice of non-practice as well," Ember laughed musically.

"So, Amber darling, where do you come from?" Amber watched Ember sip the boiling hot tea and felt an empathetic tongue sting, although she was fairly certain the older girl could handle her heat. She seemed fireproof enough.

"Green Wood village," Amber blew on her own tea a bit, "and you?"

"Red Sand village. Rather humble, but not as humble as yourself," Ember smiled.

"And is that where you threw out your surname?" Amber asked, trying not to scowl.

"No, no, I threw that out much earlier. When my parents sold me." The girl looked downright pleasant speaking of it and sipping tea.

"Apparently, I was born in a large city. I don't remember it though. Red Sand Village is where the brothel they sold me to was."

"Sold… you?" Amber asked carefully.

"Exactly what it sounds like," the girl nodded without breaking her smile.

"How could I keep the surname of those wretched folk? I've decided to make my own name in this world."

"You have an owner?" Amber asked, still in surprise of the girl's origin.

"Hahaha no my dear Amber, I am a free woman. I took my freedom."

"I didn't know that was possible."

"Everything is impossible until it is made possible." She smiled as she swallowed the last of her tea.

"And what is a brothel?" Amber asked curiously. Ember frowned for the first time in direct contrast to her usual persistent smile, pausing Amber from taking the first sip of her cooling tea.

"A disgusting place where old bastards who are more swine than men come to torture innocent girls." This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. Amber felt a cold chill go through her spine.

"I wished for it all to burn down. And it did, because I burned it down," Ember smiled even wider now. Amber felt disturbed by the sudden confession, but it was something she vaguely understood.

"I'm sorry," Amber said finally.

"That you had to go through that." Ember waved her fan dismissively, "Don't be sorry, darling. It made me who I am. And it taught me the most important lesson I'll ever learn."

"What lesson?"

"That the world doesn't care about your suffering. It only cares about your strength." Ember's voice did not quite match her smile.

"Those who wronged me thought I was weak. Disposable. They were wrong. And anyone who underestimates me in the future will learn the same lesson." The words hung in the air between them. Amber understood that feeling. To be at the whims of a merciless world, with nothing to protect you but the strength of your own two hands. To get back on those who had wronged you. To kill those who would kill you. To protect what others would take.

It was something she had felt growing in her recently, and burned even brighter inside her when she killed Wild Hog.

"From there, that night, it was discovered I had a special constitution. One that was quite suitable for flame cultivation. And my life has been markedly better since. Amber, it's time to drink your tea darling." Amber contemplated her words about special constitutions as she took a drink. She had suspected Wild Hog had something like that. He was certainly too strong to be a normal man despite not using Qi. Her thoughts were interrupted as she felt the warm tea fill her mouth with new flavors.

Her eyes widened subtly at the taste. She had mostly drunk dirty water in her home village. On occasion she had drunken mead when the water supply would make people sick.

"This tea is better than the ones I remember!"

"It's indeed not bad. Red Heavens Leaf tea. A bit of a fanciful name for what it is though." Amber took another sip and appreciated the flavor.

"Can I ask about your… flame consti…." Amber struggled to remember the word.

"Ah yes, you can just call it a flame body. To be honest no one can tell me what kind it is, I hope to find out after entering a Great Clan."

"So you're headed to the Great Clan trials too?"

"That's what I've brought you here for dear," Ember smiled.

"You see, I think we can be of help to each other."

"How so?" Amber could not hide her curiosity.

"First, tell me, what do you know about the Great Clan trials?"

"Not much…." Amber said, looking down at her tea.

"Just that… I need to get into Celestial Tiger Mountain." Her mother had refused to speak any details about the trials due to her insistence that Amber stay far away from them. What she did say was, especially, that she should never go near Celestial Tiger Mountain. Amber suspected that was exactly where she would find the information she was looking for. Ember narrowed her eyes subtly at the girl across from her. She hid part of her face with her fan.

"Hmm, you too, I see. Perhaps we really are meant to work together."

"What do you mean?" Amber asked.

"Celestial Tiger Mountain is the best and most brilliant Clan for a thousand miles in every direction, of course it's a natural home for a person of my caliber," Ember laughed haughtily as she fanned herself.

"I see," Amber looked down into her cup again, her thoughts racing. The so-called best and most brilliant clan for a thousand miles around seemed even more likely to be what she was searching for. Who else had the power to suppress her Fang family so thoroughly? If they weren't the culprits, she could probably find out who was if she went there.

"Well, let's start with the trials. You can succeed, and still fail to get into Celestial Tiger Mountain," Ember said.

"Really?" Amber turned her gaze back to the girl, "how so?"

"All the great clans in this area hold a trial every five years, and each clan brings home disciples. So, to get into the top clan, Celestial Tiger Mountain, we must distinguish ourselves from the rest. The clans will be fighting over disciples even more viciously than usual."

"Why is that?"

"Simple, my dear. They need bodies."

"Bodies?"

"Yes, bodies. The worth of a Great Clan is measured in many things, and bodies are one of them. Especially, it's the most lacking since so many died in the last age of demons 10 years ago. They get to pick, and we don't get to chose." Amber's heart skipped a beat. She hadn't known that another clan might recruit her first, without her say-so.

"And thus brings us to the crux of our cooperation. We can't just let other people be in control of our destiny, can we?" Ember gave her a smile that bordered on seductive.

"So, what's our plan? How do we work together?"

"As you know, there are trials we must partake in. We must dance for them, and they will choose which they care for as if we were horses to be judged and bought."

"That sounds gross, when you say it like that."

"Isn't it?" Ember smiled before she finished her tea.

"Which is why we will play our own little game as they play theirs."

"I'm in. So what are the trials?" Amber asked, impatient for the answer. She hated the thought of her fate being decided by others. If she could break that disgusting chain by working with Ember, then she would!

"There are three trials. The first two are different every time. But the third always stays the same."

"Do you know the third then?"

"The third is King of the Mountain," the red robed girl set her cup to the side.

"What is that exactly?" Amber vaguely remembered some children in her village playing such a game, but the details were lost to her as she was never invited.

"There is a certain mountain to the north of Tiger Gate City, called The King's Mound. It's a dangerous place filled with demons and beasts. There are a series of platforms up and down the mountain that potential disciples must fight over. The bigger the platform, the higher it is on the mountain. The higher the mound, the more points one can earn. You and I dear," Ember's eyes seemed to spark up with light, "will work together for the top of the mountain!

We will definitely stand out from the rest if we pull good results."

"It sounds… like a good idea!" Amber was processing a lot of new information, but an elation rose into her mind. Ember definitely seemed to be powerful, and it would be a much better idea than going at it by herself.

"It IS a really good idea."

"But why me?"

"I felt that Qi inside of you," Ember said, her deep red eyes falling on Amber.

"For just a moment, I instinctively pulled out my flames."

"Ah, that…" Amber looked away, not knowing what to say. She'd used just a little of her Saint Tiger Qi in the heat of the moment.

"If that's on my side, I'd be comforted a bit," Ember smiled. The girl in red reached into her robes and produced a small glass vial, no bigger than Amber's thumb. The green liquid inside glowed with a faint light.

"You're raw as a freshly slaughtered chicken, but you have guts and a bit of strength. This is a Qi Vitality Elixir. It will help you gather and move Qi a little easier. This is definitely your weak point. Use a few drops when you cultivate. Consider it a sign of my good will and an investment in my partner." Amber's eyes opened wide with greed and envy at the vial. This must be one of the miraculous medicines her mother had spoken of! The excitement made her gloss over the paltry assessment of her skills.

She broke her gaze as she resisted the temptation.

"I can't accept this. This must be valuable. And I don't have anything to give you back."

"Hahaha! Little Amber. I want you to take it so that I know you'll trust me." Ember's gaze seemed to subtly sharpen.

"As for you, I trust you already."

"Why?" Amber didn't know why she felt the need to ask why.

"I trust my intuition. And I'm usually right," Ember smiled, waving herself with small flicks of her fan. Amber wondered if she fanned herself off all the time to cool off her ego.

"There's one more thing you should know," Ember said, her voice dropping lower.

"Don't trust the other cultivators at the trials. They'll smile at you, offer friendship, but when it matters most…" She paused, her eyes flickering with that inner flame again.

"They'll stab you in the back without hesitation," Ember spoke with her fan hiding her mouth. Amber fell silent as Ember refilled their cups. The menacing words hung like uncomfortable humidity in the air.

"To our mutual cooperation," Ember smiled as she motioned for Amber to also raise her cup.

"Ah…. yes," Amber spoke quietly as she raised her cup in return. She wondered if she was making the right decision.