My Mother Has a System but Won't Use It

34  Mastery! n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Why did you call me Little Sister?" Yue Li asked with a pout.

"Ah, that." Han Li chuckled and said: "The people there obviously thought you were my little sister instead of my Mother. I just wanted to call you that infront of them."

"Hmm... So I look too young and beautiful." Yue Li couldn't help but smile.

"Anyway," Han Li said, "I don't have any plans to use the mirror yet. Go and bring a knife, let's start your training."

...

The world was starting to darken and the sun was wishing its final goodbyes for the day. People were entering back homes and birds were singing too.

Walking closer to Han Li's home. Liyue's heart was beating heavily. She was feeling all sorts of emotions at the moment; relief, anger, hope, distress, sadness, and even fear.

She was in her home and getting ready for her marriage, just a day away from that momentous occasion. But all of that suddenly changed and her father called her Husband-to-be and canceled the marriage with a hefty price.

The face of joy as the man accepted the money and left without looking back was still etched in her mind.

He could just go and choose another woman for marriage while having gotten his share of good money for just being a part of the process. Even though it might be humiliating, such humiliation could be easily pushed into the bride's head.

'Oh no, the bride was a woman who had illicit relationships but kept it hidden!'

That rumor was enough to tear away any attention the broken marriage might bring him. That was evident to her and her father but he still cancelled it. 'I guess my name is going to be ruined... And for something I didn't even do. And father didn't even bother asking for my opinion. Again.'

Had she shown great ambition and potential to reach the Evolution Stage, it might have been different. Maybe her father would have cared for her opinions.

'There is no need to bother about anything anymore...It's just a different man. Nothing changed except the face.'

As she was whining to herself and thinking how worthless her own opinions were, she arrived infront of Han Li's home. She took a deep breath.

It was not like she ever dreamt about a Romantic life or a prince charming. Those were not prominent concepts in Sacred Lust. The way it was done was strength ruling and everyone submitting.

Talent, Money, and such capabilities, even straight-up strength were always put infront of some random affection a daughter felt for a random man. Rarely was there ever a successful romance.

Knock* Knock*

Not hesitating anymore, she knocked on the door.

"Come in, the door is not locked." Rang a calm voice from inside.

Liyue swallowed and entered the house. Whatever the case was, she also had expectations of what kind of a man she wanted to call her husband.

The previous person was not someone like that. And since Han Li also never bothered asking her opinion, he wasn't someone she hoped her husband to be either.

She calmly closed the door behind her and walked into the house. The place was dimly lit and shadows were prominent; it was like the gloomy thoughts in her mind resonated with the area.

She sighed and soon reached the place the voice earlier came from. And then looked at the scene infront of her in curiosity.

A Red-haired woman, her face alight in the brightness of multiple candles was walking forward and backward while sweat matted her forehead and a knife glinted in her outstretched hands.

"Sit somewhere and don't disturb us for a while," Han Li said while seated on the bed.

Liyue gulped at the shining red eyes and nodded weakly. She couldn't say no. Her mother hadn't taught her how to say no to her husband.

Neither had her father ever been kind to a non-submissive part of her mother. She didn't see anywhere obvious to sit and just looked at Yue Li's red hair while she stood where she did.

'A mutation?' she wondered: 'Didn't Aunty Yue Li fail her Evolution? Still... Getting a hair color mutation must have been so eye-catching. I wonder when it happened.'

Han Li spoke in a calm voice. "Knife, Sword, Stick or Blade, it doesn't matter. In the hands of a Master, anything would be a deadly tool."

Yue Li nodded while taking another step. She was getting the hang of it but it was still rather hard to move like usual.

"If you can move just as you do without turning on your Spark while playing around with the Knife, that will mean you have reached Average proficiency in your current weapon, Knife."

Yue Li waved the Knife infront of her.

"That is just waving, you should be able to do anything and everything you can do normally to consider your Knife skills average. But it's fine, you are already able to move, slightly as it may be."

That was the general way people in Sacred Lust determined skill level. If an ordinary person — who was a master at Swords — was to be considered, he would be considered as a Mortal Sword Master.

If that person had the senses of an Awakened and used all of that added potential into the Sword moves, he would be an Awakened Sword Master.

Average, High, Mastery.

For each realm of cultivation, someone's mastery over a skill is considered in these three levels.

Liyue couldn't help but think of these things as Han Li kept teaching Yue Li. That was just general knowledge that everyone was acquainted with. If you were an Evolution Stage cultivator and your sword skills were just average for a person who had an Evolution Stage level of senses and self-control. It would still be much better than Awakened level Mastery.

She still remembered the teachings that Starlight Clan Evolution Stage members had imparted to her. In every Stage of cultivation, there was an Average, High, and Mastery at a given skill.

Han Li had to teach Yue Li in simpler ways though. So he said, "With more power came more possibility and flexibility. For you to become a Knife Master in the Awakening Stage, you should be able to move your knife like silk even while your senses that you are not yet entirely familiar with interfere. Now, turn off your spark. We have guests."

He would have to go through this subject deeply with her later.

Yue Li blinked and made the Blue Spark in her hands vanish. Liyue looked at the vanishing deep blue light in shock.

She hadn't noticed due to the eye-catching red hair. But Aunty Yue Li had a Spark?!

And that wasn't even their Starlight Spark!

Her heart beat like drums and she didn't know what to make of it.

Yue Li also looked at her and then looked at Han Li with doubts. He just smiled and said calmly, "My Mother is a bit special, and her story is a big one. Mom, go bring Liyue a seat, it's her first time here after all."

Yue Li nodded as her black hair returned to its original color. She had also noticed earlier the knocking sound, but she had just understood that it was her future Daughter-in-Law, and that made her nervous.

Quickly going to the kitchen, she brought a chair and got herself seated beside Han Li on the bed.

Looking at both of them, Liyue couldn't speak anything and the dimly lit room soon turned silent. Then awkward.

Liyue's hands clenched themselves, but she unclenched them and relaxed before saying: "Yes, father told me you were a talented person."

16:10

Even Yue Li didn't speak a word. As for Han Li? He was analyzing what kind of person Liyue was from her actions.

Her fingers that were silently clenching and unclenching. The slight sense of natural inferiority she emitted. The sense of submission he felt from her.

"Did your father tell you something about me?" Han Li asked.

Liyue's hands clenched themselves, but she unclenched them and relaxed before saying: "Yes, father told me you were a talented person."

"I see," Han Li calmly nodded. There was not even a second before she responded and there was no resistance. She also said something that should be pleasing to my ears.

She was afraid of him and at the same time, she didn't want to piss him off. "Tell me the reasons for you coming here," Han Li said.

Liyue became silent and the back of her neck reddened slightly. "I was told to meet you and...and talk about our marriage."

"What do you want to talk?" "..." She had no answers for that.

"You are quite the unconfident person, aren't you?" Han Li asked and then pointed at his mom, "Look at this dumbass, she would have yelled in frustration by now with all the questions I asked. Why are you so nervous in the first place? Calm down, I am not going to eat you."

Yue Li frowned and looked at Han Li with twitching eyes. 'Why is he throwing me into the mix? Bastard! He even called me dumb infront of her.'

She was trying hard to keep her chest puffed and act like a big thing. He absolutely ruined all her effort with that.

She glared at him with a wronged look. Han Li smiled, he could feel Liyue relax visibly.