The Bamboo Chronicles

"But, I'm what they call a good-for-nothing, Venerable One."

"... But, Han Meilan…"

"Yes?"

'She had been a genius in her generation…' the head monk shook his head and looked at Shanqiao with eyes of pity.

Shanqiao blinked with wide eyes of a rabbit. She had seen pity and sympathy in Liaowen's eyes, but she didn't understand it fully. After all, she was still only ten. She couldn't fully comprehend the many things in the world.

"I was born a good-for-nothing. Does that bother you?"

'It had bothered some people.'

"No, not at all," Ma Liaowen smiled. However, inside, he was immersed in his pity. His prejudice against non-cultivators was to the extent that he didn't even consider the oddity of Ruan Shanqiao escaping from her hunters, who most certainly were at least Sixth Rank cultivators.

"Well, regardless…" her voice trailed off as she explored the depths of the open chest in front of them.

"Oh, how did you open that?" he finally addressed the matter of the unlocked chest.

"I just did."

"..."

The girl ignored the pointedly very silent response of the head monk and focused on the contents of the chest.

Inside laid a small letter and two piles of books and jade tablets. Porcelain fingers gingerly opened the letter and quickly read it.

As she read, her eyes glistened with tears.

"Venerable One," she whispered gently. "Could you perhaps give me some time alone?"

"... Of course." the head monk left. Her request was quite understandable. She was after all a mere ten-year old who had lost her entire family.

Inside the room, the girl wiped her eyes dry and tucked away the letter. Her expressionless face was the only indication that the tears were not real.

"Now, I get to review the contents alone…" she muttered.

The letter wasn't much of a letter.

She had, however, gathered that it had been her father's idea to keep the specific books and jade tablets aside for her. It had been her mother's foresight that had led to the chest being sent to the monks at the Caili Mountain Temple.

As for the contents of the books and jade tablets, her mother had lightly written that it must have been some legendary books from the Ruan Clan. To sum up, her mother hadn't entirely been aware of what exactly she was sending away for safekeeping.

As she read the letter, Ruan Shanqiao had bit back a sigh, leading to seemingly tears. She understood that her mother was a very intelligent woman, who sometimes breezed through some logical steps. However, she had thought that her mother would at the very least check the contents of the books and tablets.

Setting aside the letter, Shanqiao pulled out the first book. The title read, "The Bamboo Chronicles of a Good-for-Nothing."

The title itself induced a sigh. 'Oh, dearest mother, the book at the very top told you everything you needed to know.'

This time she sighed unrestrainedly before she started reading.

"All those who are deemed as incapable of cultivation must wonder what the classification of cultivation amongst a person's characteristics. They should further contemplate the purpose of cultivation and the benefits of it. Only then will they come to the conclusion that cultivation is merely one of many possible talents an individual possesses.

"Coming to this conclusion, it is only appropriate to further ask, if cultivation is a coveted talent, what of other talents? Shouldn't there be other talents widely acknowledged as cultivation?

"Why is it that those unable to cultivate are immediately tossed aside with labels such as "trash" or a "good-for-nothing"? Shouldn't they also be recognized as excellent talents if they possess other talents worthy of recognition?"

Ruan Shanqiao thought. She thought hard. Around her, others had always been judged by the quality of their cultivation talent. She, however, did not have any talent in cultivation. Within the Clan, her other talents, such as her superior stamina and decision making skills had been praised. Outside those safe gates was only odd looks and criticism for her lack thereof.

It was at that moment, she decided that such criticism she had received from others was not well received criticism.

Despite the philosophy explained in the first several pages of the book, it ultimately turned out to be a fantasy story about a legendary figure in the Ruan Clan. The man had been born a good-for-nothing, but by honing his own unique talents he had achieved a status higher than even some of the best cultivation heroes of his time.

"Rubbish…" Shanqiao declared as she tossed it aside and grabbed the next book in the chest.

She opened the pages and started reading. Then, she stopped, retrieved the Bamboo Chronicles, and flipped through it once more.

The second book, she presumed was some fantastical thing like the last one, but it was about utilizing nature rather than standard Yuan or spirit energy infused objects to create arrays. Furthermore, these types of arrays had been mentioned, not once, not twice, but throughout the entirety of the Bamboo Chronicles.

A passage from the Bamboo Chronicles read: "With trained speed, Xiaomen slashed his bamboo sword in the air. The sword changed the air currents, which flowed into the Basic Attack Formation Array I. The array with its lightning element glowed a gloomy blue. From it appeared not one, but six arcs of lightning that threw his enemy backwards. The sixth rank cultivator did not get up afterwards. His body had been charred and his heart had stopped due to an overload of energy from the lightning."

'What if…' a thought formed in Shanqiao's head. 'What if the Bamboo Chronicles was not a fantasy, but reality?

'If it truly is reality, those born as "trash" definitely must consider their talents. Furthermore, what merit is there for everyone to have the same talents? As a unique person, even if the individual is deemed "trash", one truly must hone their unique talents… If that was to happen….'

A smile blossomed across her face. Truly the pride of good-for-nothings was the time to spend honing their most unique talents into their sharpest weapons!

This Ruan Xiaomen isn't actually some cuckoo, Shanqiao immersed herself in the Bamboo Chronicles.