It was only when the caravan halted for the night that Tian Shen Ji finally had some time for himself. Alone in the small tent Tie Ergou had provided, he began to look through the items his father had packed for him.
As he sifted through the items, two letters fell to the ground. One was a simple, weathered piece of parchment. The other was different; the paper was fine, and the calligraphy was elegant and flowing. Tian Shen Ji's breath stopped as he recognized the writing he could never forget: his mother's handwriting.
"This is Mom's writing... had she left me a letter?" His blank expression finally cracked, showing a flicker of raw emotion. He took it closer for inspection and then he saw the words that broke his defenses instantly."For my little miracle"
"This is definitely for my mother's writing. What about the other?" inspecting the second letter, he understood it was not for his mother; as it had a different feeling about it, it was something more direct.
"This should definitely be for my father, what should I do, what letter should I read first." Tian Shen Ji was in quite the dilemma, but it didn't last for long.
"Forget it, I should read dad's letter first." As much as he was dying to read his mother's words, he needed to know what his father had on his mind at that time."I didn't even know it existed until now so I'll be patient for a couple of minutes more."
He put his mother's letter down with care and he started opening his father's letter but the closer to opening it was the heavier his heart felt. By the time he fully opened, his heart was on the brink of collapse. but it didn't as it froze at the first sentence he read.
"If you see this letter it means I'm dead, but thanks to the Heavens, you are not. Ask Tian Chen to take you to an Immortal City to look for a way to join a cultivation sect. If it is not possible to join one, try a cultivation family. Even if I am not dead, you should still ask Tian Chen to take you to an Immortal City. Do not stay in the village and waste your time, I forbid you to do that. You are a genius and have talent for cultivation. You should spread your wings as high as possible."
"In the unfortunate situation that both me and Tian Chen are dead, you should wait for the next caravan that will come; the villagers will take care of you."
"And in the worst case, if the village is destroyed as well, you should wait for reinforcement. It will probably be Jin Sheng as the caravan would not be too far. If the worst comes, Jin Sheng should be trustworthy, but my instinct was telling me that some people from the caravan were dangerous and you should tread carefully, as they definitely have something to do with the calamity to come."
"If all that is to pass and you survive, forget who you are. Don't try something stupid like revenge. You are smarter than that. Just survive"
"Look for a jade box in the form of a toad with copper coins on its back. It is a special kind of box that already recognizes your blood; it contains more than it meets the eye and does not allow cultivators to lock into it."
"It contains both the Phoenix Nine Reversal Refining Qi Art and Eight Hidden Inner Turtle Breaths Art. There is also a magical treasure, the Yang Blood Jade Cicada Pendant, along with some silver and gold and two low-grade spiritual stones."
"I am sorry there are so few spiritual stones. I had forced your mother to buy the magical treasure. I thought I had enough time until you were the age to join a sect and could gather enough, but it seems I was wrong."
"It shouldn't be as big of a problem, as sects don't ask for anything other than talent and loyalty, and I know you have them both."
"You should be careful with spiritual stones or any valuable in general; do not show your little wealth. There are plenty of greedy people that will do anything for even the smallest amount of wealth."
"The pendant is a magical artifact. It has nourishing and minor healing capabilities, emits an extremely warm feeling. calming the mind and spirit. It was something that I had hoped could help your mother's health, but it was just my wishful thinking."
"It had cost us both our savings and our entire family savings of 2.000 low-grade spiritual stones, so be careful."
"You should be able to use it when you break through the 1st Layer Qi Refining Realm. It will help you enormously as you are not just an immortal cultivator, you are also a martial artist."
"There is also another letter. It is something your mother wanted to give to you when the time came to enter a cultivation sect. Unfortunately, it seems you will read it earlier."
"Shen Ji, listen I know i am just repeating myself. You are a smart child, a very smart one at that, so please survive. I don't want to see you in the afterlife, not at all."
"If you dare show up, I'll disown you, and your mother will disown you as well. Do you hear me brat? Do please survive .Please, I beg you."
"I know I have deeply disappointed you and I'm sorry. I hope you can forgive me. I left you all alone."
"I love you."
Old tear marks were left on the letter, and new ones were joining them now as Tian Shen Ji read. This was the first time his father, a kind yet rough man, had said those words.
"Dont worry dad I will survive no matter what."
…
He looked at his mother's letter. "Should I read it?"
His father's note said she wanted him to open it when he joined a sect. He didn't want to disobey her last wishes but he really wanted to read it. "What a headache. I have started acting like a spoiled child."
"I should listen. I had already gotten too emotional for Dad's letter. If I read Mom's letter now, I can only imagine how badly it will affect me."
What was pressing him the most right now was the fact his father believed that the beast attack had not been a natural occurrence, but something planned. He had pushed away the idea before because he did not have time to think, but now that he did, he could not unsee it.
The beast attack had probably been carried out by humans and masked as a normal beast attack, and those responsible could be right here in this caravan.
The realization struck a heavy blow to his already fragile trust in humanity. Revenge crossed his mind, but he knew why his father warned to not even try it; he could not do anything to them yet.
The thought annoyed him to no end.