Chapter 285

"What..."

"Three layers of meaning?"

Upon hearing Su Hang's words, Li Qiushui could not help but become interested.

She had written it down casually, thinking of nothing in particular, and had never considered such depth.

Yet now, this fortune-teller claimed to see three layers of meaning within it?

Li Qiushui said with a smile, "I don't believe it..."

"Everything in this world is a result of causal conditions. Since you, Empress Dowager, could write this 'Cloud' character, it certainly did not appear out of thin air."

"As for why this character appeared and how it came to be, the reasons are something even you, Empress Dowager, may not clearly understand yourself..."

Looking at the character "Cloud" on the table,

Su Hang applied a bit of the half-baked psychological analysis he had learned in his previous life.

After all, a certain philosopher once said that existence is rational.

To put it another way, if something exists, there must be a reason for it.

Everything in this world either stems from a cause or results in an effect; it can never escape the two words: cause and effect.

It is just that effects are things people can see and even touch.

But once one traces back to the cause, many people stop seeking understanding.

Even the smartest people in the world may not be able to explain the 'why' of it all.

Because humans have consciousness, and they also have subconsciousness.

Many causes do not reside in the conscious mind, but are hidden deep within the subconscious.

This is a truth that even the most brilliant minds may not necessarily grasp.

Thinking of this, Su Hang smiled slightly and said:

"This first layer of meaning refers to your senior sister, Wu Xingyun, does it not?"

Hearing Su Hang say this, Li Qiushui froze for a moment.

Although no one had mentioned that name for many years, hearing it now felt just as familiar and just as hateful as before.

Li Qiushui herself had not realized that this resentment had caused her to write the character "Cloud" inadvertently.

This "Cloud" was indeed the "Cloud" from Wu Xingyun's name!

"Back then, the founder of the Xiaoyao Sect, Senior Xiaoyaozi, took in three disciples: the eldest senior sister Wu Xingyun, the second senior sister Li Qiushui, and the third junior brother Wu Yazi..."

"The three of you were all dragons and phoenixes among men. By rights, you should have achieved great things and carried the Xiaoyao Sect to new heights."

"Yet, because of love and hatred, the Xiaoyao Sect fell apart just a few years after Senior Xiaoyaozi passed away."

"To compete for Wu Yazi, you and your senior sister Wu Xingyun eventually came to blows and became sworn enemies."

"You caused her to suffer a Qi deviation, and she carved words into your face."

"You two, who were once close senior and junior sisters, suddenly became mortal enemies..."

"One of you became the Master of the Vulture Palace, commanding the Thirty-Six Caves and Seventy-Two Islands, becoming the largest faction in the Jianghu!"

"The other entered the Western Xia Imperial Palace, became the Empress, and after the old Emperor died, became the Empress Dowager."

"But even so, the hatred you two held for each other never diminished by half..."

Li Qiushui widened her eyes, unable to believe it:

"Mr. Su!"

"These are old matters from my sect; no one knows of them except the three of us!"

"How did you find out?"

At this moment,

Compared to believing in Su Hang's ability to divine the future,

Li Qiushui was more inclined to believe that Wu Xingyun or someone else had already been here and spilled all the secrets of the Xiaoyao Sect.

If that were truly the case, then the ones losing face would not just be Li Qiushui, but Wu Xingyun and Wu Yazi as well!

After all, although Li Qiushui was now the Empress Dowager of Western Xia, in private, she still considered herself a disciple of the Xiaoyao Sect.

For the founder of the sect, Wu Yazi, Li Qiushui held a sense of respect that could not be described!

She had a grudge against Wu Xingyun, but she had no grudge against Wu Yazi!

Su Hang smiled lightly:

"Under the gaze of Heaven's secrets, no secret can remain hidden..."

"Since you, Empress Dowager, have come to me for fortune-telling, you have entrusted your body and mind to me; naturally, I can see everything."

Li Qiushui nodded, accepting Su Hang's words.

"That old hag! If it weren't for her meddling back then!"

"I would have long since flown away with my junior brother..."

"She! She just couldn't stand to see others happy!"

Speaking of Wu Xingyun, Li Qiushui was filled with rage.

Even though decades had passed, the hatred she held for Wu Xingyun in her heart had not diminished by half.

On the contrary, Li Qiushui now blamed all her life's regrets on her senior sister.

"No way... so there was infighting within the Xiaoyao Sect?"

"Incredible! They only had three disciples, and they could still have infighting? And judging by the Empress Dowager's tone, the grudges between these three don't seem simple?"

"After hearing all this, I finally understand. It seems like two women fighting over one man? And the Empress Dowager happened to be the loser?"

"That's not quite right either. If the Empress Dowager was the loser, then the winner should be Wu Xingyun. But I haven't heard that the Tianshan Child Elder lived a very good life either! In fact, it's the opposite; that Tianshan Child Elder on the Vulture Palace was even more ruthless than this Empress Dowager! Every year, she would find ways to torture the masters of the Thirty-Six Caves and Seventy-Two Islands, forcing them to take the Life-Death Talisman, leaving them unable to live and unable to die."

"Heavens! Which sect in the Jianghu doesn't strictly forbid disciples from having private affairs? This Xiaoyao Sect is truly 'carefree'—they don't even care about that?"

"What a pity. As a major sect in our Central Plains Wu Lin, the reason the Xiaoyao Sect existed for such a short time and vanished so quickly must be related to this internal strife back then!"

At this moment,

Jiang Yuyan shook her head, resting her chin on her fair hand, looking thoughtful:

"I understand now!"

"No wonder the Empress Dowager tries so hard to recruit handsome men from all over the world to be her male favorites, and doesn't even spare good-looking monks..."

"It turns out it's because she failed to win a man when she was young, and she's filled with resentment!"

"Since she couldn't take revenge, she could only take it out on those male favorites..."

Having said this, Jiang Yuyan added:

"However, being a male favorite for the Empress Dowager isn't bad either!"

"If you serve her well, you can get the Small Formless Art, take advantage of the situation, and get benefits..."

"If I were a man, I'd be willing too!"

Jiang Yuyan's words instantly made Wang Yuyan blush.

Wang Yuyan shook her flushed face, looking anxious:

"Sister Jiang, can you please stop talking!"

"How could you..."

Jiang Yuyan shrugged:

"Why not?"

"If your cousin had changed his target back then, he might have already received the Empress Dowager's true teachings..."

"With Western Xia backing him, why worry about the Murong clan not being able to restore their kingdom?"

Wang Yuyan: "..."

Meanwhile,

After adjusting herself, Li Qiushui's mood calmed down.