Chapter 768 The Gods' Game: Card Swapping 12
"And now, do you hate me?"
She was clean, beautiful, and powerful, wearing brand-new leather armor, with dazzling ruby earrings, and smelling of food and wine.
Looking at myself, there were bloodstains and old wounds intertwined, and my arm, broken and uncorrected, had been healed by the medicine...
Yu Xunge looked at her with her only remaining eye, her eyes red and gritting her teeth as she said, "I hate you to the bone!"
“I like this answer.” Admiring the answer, Zhu Ri bent down until her eyes were level with Little Oak Owl’s.
A month ago, this cub had the look in its eyes like a lost kitten or puppy.
But now, she is like a wolf cub that has learned to hunt and has the ability to survive on its own.
The elf looked directly into the little oak owl's eyes and said, word by word:
“Anger and hatred don’t need qualifications; they are meaningful. Don’t use those seemingly clear-headed but actually ridiculous principles to deceive yourself.”
Yu Xunge nodded, but as soon as she opened her mouth, she found herself choking up. She closed her mouth, trembling as she swallowed the inexplicable emotion until she was completely calm before asking, "But you said you would abandon your emotions."
The elf choked up for a moment, took a deep breath, closed her eyes and raised an eyebrow: "What I mean is, when you encounter a problem, it's best to put it aside for the time being and focus on solving it, so as not to let it affect your judgment, but I'm not telling you to deliberately ignore it."
Yu Xunge solemnly replied, "I've got it!"
Zhu Ri added, “Most importantly, do not try to rely on any existence. All the pain and despair you have suffered in the arena is because you tried to rely on me. This is my punishment for you, and I hope it is profound enough.”
Yu Xunge nodded again, a flame seemingly burning in her remaining eye, and said, "I've remembered."
Zhu Ri glanced at the soul fire that had appeared above the other person's head, and a smile spread across her eyes.
She straightened up and looked down at the little oak owl: "I'll give you a chance to back out. Are you still willing to become my apprentice? If not, I'll send you back to Caladom."
"Yes! I do!"
"From today onwards, you will be my apprentice, the Sun Chaser. Now, you may tell me your name."
"My name is Xun Ge."
"Searching for songs day after day, very good, you are destined to be my apprentice."
...
Every day, he used a skill to heal all of Yu Xunge's wounds and injuries.
This greatly reduced the despair, rage, and anxiety in the cubs.
She took Yu Xunge to the hotel for a bath and gave her a new set of clothes, a warm yellow cloth armor with cute duck patterns on it.
Yu Xunge lovingly stroked her new clothes, which made her look like a child, rather than the warrior in the arena who lived every minute as if it were her last.
Zhu Ri made her sit down, took out a dagger, and deftly and swiftly tidied up the little oak owl's hair, which it had cut short for easier combat, instantly making the little owl look neat and cute.
Much more pleasing to the eye, Zhu Ri patted Little Oak Owl's head with satisfaction and tossed him the dagger he had just used for the haircut: "Apprentice's gift."
Yu Xunge happily accepted the new azure dagger: "Thank you, teacher."
The original dagger had long been dulled, but Yu Xunge didn't throw it away. She moved the old dagger to the weapon ring on the left side of the assassin's belt and hung the new dagger on the right side, in the most convenient place to strike.
She tried drawing and sheathing the blade several times, enjoying it immensely, as if she had discovered a game she could never get tired of.
Zhu Ri sat with his legs crossed, watching his only apprentice perform eight hundred feints.
She tapped the table with her fingers and said, "You looked like you had something to say when we came out of the arena. Speak! You know I don't have much patience."
Yu Xunge sat down opposite her, cleared her throat, and without any hesitation, asked:
"Since you think it was a mistake for me not to hate you before, then Fat Goose should be more to your liking. Why did you choose me? I don't think our choices can influence or even determine your final choice."
With a kick of her long legs, the chair tilted backward and swayed back and forth. She said, "He hates me, but he's also afraid of me. He puts his emotions first. You're different. You don't hate me, but you're not afraid of me either. You value the matter itself more. You can't be controlled by your emotions, so he has no value in teaching me, but you do."
Yu Xunge then asked, "What about Wu Ren? She's actually the same as me; she's neither afraid of you nor hates you."
She knew she was being incredibly naive. She clearly hated Zhu Ri, yet at this moment she was chasing an answer, an answer to why she had been chosen.
Zhu Ri remained silent, her gaze shifting slightly upwards to the cub's soul fire.
It was a silvery full moon, with stars of various colors hanging below it. Four stars were closest to the full moon. These four stars were beautiful, and most of the star field was filled with extremely pure and sincere love, but they were not the largest stars under the full moon.
The largest star hangs somewhat far away, but it is extremely conspicuous... and its creator is none other than itself.
This star represents the little oak owl's feelings for itself.
The central area of the star is blood-red, occupying at least 80% to 85% of its surface area; that is the young star's hatred for itself.
But the colors around it are much richer, including gratitude, longing, worship, respect, and filial piety.
What finally convinced Zhu Ri to take Xun Ge as her apprentice was the appearance of her soul fire.
She saw this moon from the very first day they met; it was so dazzling, so dazzling that she couldn't help but look at it again and again.
After being ravaged by the arena, the moon remained unchanged; it did not become incomplete, nor was it corrupted by darkness.
Every day in the arena, its radiance grows brighter and more dazzling than the day before, so beautiful and so unwavering.
This cub doesn't hate the world, nor does she feel sorry for herself; she only hates the instigator, and only hates herself, the spirit who caused her suffering.
Every day, the red color spreads across the star that represents her, and at its peak, the red area covers almost 90% of the planet.
But as she taught Xun Ge hatred and anger in the arena, trying to hone her skills, a ring of red in the center of that star slowly faded, turning into a faint sense of gratitude.
This clever cub understands what is truly good; hatred cannot cloud her mind or rob her of her ability to think.
Every day, I think that even the most eccentric and arrogant strong person would not be willing to take on an apprentice who is vindictive, ungrateful, and only remembers grudges.
Moreover, she knew that her temper and way of doing things were definitely not good, and she was far from being gentle, loving, or doting.
Teachers and apprentices invest not only their energy and resources, but also their emotions.
She wanted to hone the little oak owl's sharpness, but she didn't want to see that sharpness ultimately turn against her.
What's even more interesting is that when she healed the little oak owl's wounds and deformities, her gratitude grew even more.
But when she gave Little Oak Owl new clothes, cut her hair, and gave her a new dagger, the star merely twinkled, without changing at all.
Cute yet realistic.
When they first met in Caladom, the cub immediately felt grateful and fond of her when she agreed to buy him potions.
Now that she has seen the cruel side of the world, only truly valuable teachings and actions that can make her a better person can change her mind; simple warmth cannot move her at all.
The gratitude of cubs is not cheap.
Intelligent, resilient, and flexible; possessing self-respect, but never clinging to pride when weak.
They are emotionally rich yet able to rationally disregard the influence of emotions and focus on the matter at hand.
The more he thought about it, the more satisfied he became with this apprentice.
In the end, in a good mood, Zhu Ri gave an answer that wasn't really an answer: "She has too much of a sense of responsibility; you're most like me."
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