"Chirp, chirp, chirp!"
Urk.
The moment the absurd, bird-like sounds escaped her lips, Fu Xuan saw the look on Yu Xian's face—a desperate, failing struggle to maintain composure—and understood the sheer magnitude of her blunder.
Why did I just chirp?!
A wave of scorching heat rushed to her cheeks. Her hands flew up, clapping over her mouth as if she could physically shove the humiliating sound back in.
But it was far too late.
Yu Xian's defenses crumbled completely. A strangled snort of laughter escaped him, then another, until he was laughing openly, the sound raw and startling in the sterile quiet of the hospital room.
Hahaha… hahaha…
What could Fu Xuan even say?
All she could manage was a strained, wobbly smile in return, a hollow echo of his mirth.
But beneath that feeble facade, a shadow stirred in her heart, cold and tenacious, refusing to be dispelled.
Master… Master Jingtian…
In her mind, she silently repeated the name she had almost spoken aloud—a scar that had shaped her entire life.
Few on the Luofu knew this chapter of her past. It was a story from Yuque, a wound she kept meticulously bandaged and hidden from view.
Fu Xuan once had a master. He was Grand Diviner Jingtian of Yuque, the most formidable seer in the entire Xianzhou Alliance.
To study divination under such a master, to sit and discuss the intricate tapestry of the Dao with him—that period was one of the two happiest epochs of her life.
But the brighter the joy, the sharper the shadow it casts.
She could no longer recall the season or the weather of that day, but the moment her revered master revealed the truth was seared into her memory with perfect, painful clarity.
Why had he chosen her, a girl from the Fu family, at first sight?
Why did his gaze grow distant and unreadable whenever they spoke of destiny?
The questions that haunted her were answered all at once.
"Such is fate, Fu Xuan." Grand Diviner Jingtian had spoken these words while casually brushing dust from his robe with his mechanical wooden hand, as if discussing a forecast for mild rain. "I foresaw that you would become my disciple. And I saw that in the not-too-distant future, you would be the cause of my death."
"That is the sole reason I took you as my apprentice."
Jingtian had smiled then, a gentle, resigned curve of his lips.
"I have always been waiting for that day to arrive. I await the fate that belongs to me."
Ahem…
Even now, a full century later, the memory of her master's expression and those words could still send a faint, persistent ache through Fu Xuan's heart.
How could the future be so cruel? How could that be the reason?
He hadn't chosen her for her prodigious talent, nor for the Fu family's influence. It was simply… because he had foreseen his own end at her hands.
But she, Fu Xuan, would never harm her master! Never!
Back then, she had refused to believe in that predetermined future. She knew her own heart held no malice, no jealousy. Therefore…
…she had no reason, none whatsoever, to bring him harm!
Absurd! It's utterly absurd!
—What fate? What destiny? I refuse to accept it!
Clutching that defiance, a younger, more stubborn Fu Xuan had left her master in a fury. She boarded a starship bound for the Luofu, a self-imposed exile throwing herself into the more liberal environment of its Divination Commission.
"This way, I should be able to change that so-called fate, right?"
The outbreak of the Third Abundance War shattered that fragile hope.
In that conflict, the Xianzhou Alliance suffered catastrophic losses. The Fanghu was driven by the Abundance's disciples to attempt a collision with a living planet, teetering on the brink of utter annihilation…
At the critical juncture, it was Fu Xuan who proposed the strategy: to use Yuque's great artifact, the "Cloud-Scrying Mirror," to summon the aid of the Reignbow Arbiter. Only the destructive power of a god could repel the Abundance and save the Xianzhou.
It was, without a doubt, a suicide mission. The arrow of the Reignbow would obliterate everything in its vicinity; the one who operated the mirror would be atomized.
Yet, Fu Xuan volunteered without hesitation. Before the imperative of saving billions, her own life was a negligible price.
"A fine suggestion, Diviner Fu." General Jing Yuan's voice, heavy with something she couldn't quite place, stopped her. "But you have forgotten one thing: you lack the authority to operate the Cloud-Scrying Mirror."
She remembered the look on his face then—a complex mix of admiration and helplessness, but most of all, a deep, unmistakable pain.
"Return. This mission will be carried out by someone else. Go back and rest."
What?
Wait—no!!!
It wasn't until soldiers escorted her from the Divine Strategy Mansion that the horrifying truth of her master's prophecy finally crashed down upon her.
She, Fu Xuan, would ultimately cause her master's death…
The only person in the Xianzhou Alliance with the authority to operate the Cloud-Scrying Mirror was her master, the Grand Diviner of Yuque…
…
He died in that battle. Fu Xuan learned a lesson written in her master's blood and sacrifice. She felt, with acute desperation, the limits of her own divination, how it constantly hindered her from making the one correct choice.
This would not do.
To sharpen her skills, to prevent further tragedies, she sought out the Omniscia Eye from the Erudition's library, trading eternal, searing pain for the computational power to see further, clearer.
This way, she had believed, I can prevent tragedies. The people I cherish will surely not leave me again, right?
Inhale… exhale…
The memory faded, and Fu Xuan's hand rose unconsciously to touch the foreign object embedded in her forehead. The ever-present pain, usually a dull background hum, suddenly sharpened into a vicious throb, as if mocking her.
Reminding her.
Her vision blurred without warning. Fu Xuan bit her lower lip hard, staring wide-eyed as Yu Xian's figure grew hazy before her.
"Ugh… sob…"
An ache surged ruthlessly behind her nose and eyes. Faint, hiccupping whimpers were squeezed from her throat, thin and pathetic as a wounded animal's cries.
Abandoning all decorum, she used the white fabric of her sleeve to scrub violently at the tears now streaming freely down her face.
Her nose ran. Her slender shoulders trembled uncontrollably. The young Master Diviner finally surrendered, her composure shattered into hiccupping, ragged sobs.
…She could no longer contain the sorrow that had long since overflowed its confines.
She understood now. The agony of the Omniscia Eye was a relentless reminder, a verdict she could not escape.
It was reminding her-
You can do nothing.
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A/n: Hey over on my patreon there are currently two for the time being exclusive books which are
Life Simulator: Starting in Genshin Impact!
Zenless Zone Zero: Loving Daily Life Starting in New Eridu
patreon.com/deadlygoober