Capital of Golden Crow Kingdom, Jinyang2nd February, Year 41065 of the Elemental Era
In the grand palace, a woman was struggling while many maids surrounded her, helping.
The King of Golden Crow stood waiting outside, happiness shining in his eyes. He wasn't worried; the woman was a Rank 5 Warrior, and there shouldn't be any issue in giving birth to the child.
Soon, a maid arrived with good news.
"Your Majesty, twins are born. One male and one female."
At that moment, the sky split apart. Thunder roared, and heavy rain poured down as if the Heavenly Dao itself was weeping—whether in joy, sorrow, or anger, none could tell.
Jin Haoran entered the room immediately and looked at the twins. One was giggling, the other crying loudly.
He took them both in his arms and smiled heartily.
"Look at this boy—laughing even while bearing the immense pain of birth, like a dragon's roar. He shall be Jin Long. And this girl, even her cry is as beautiful as heaven. She shall be known as Jin Huang. Their deeds will one day resound across the world."
It was a father's blessing. He glanced up at the still-thundering sky and smiled. "They will rise so high that even you will admire them."
For the next two days, Jin Huang kept sleeping. Her organs weren't fully developed, and her eyes wouldn't open easily. It wasn't until two days later that she finally managed to open her beautiful eyes and observe her surroundings.
Two strange faces hovered over her.
Her mind was blank. She knew nothing. She simply glanced around curiously.
One of the maids smiled at her and said gently, "Our princess has finally opened her eyes!"
Jin Huang looked at the maid's moving lips and heard a sudden sound. She didn't understand its source, but it felt pleasant to her ears. She let out a happy gurgle.
The maid looked at her again and asked, "Want to see Mama?"
Jin Huang continued giggling.
At that moment, she recognized a pattern—the opening of this strange face's mouth was followed by a pleasing sound. She didn't understand what a mouth was, but she had noticed the pattern.
The maid lifted Jin Huang into her bosom. "Let's go. Let's go and see Mama."
Jin Huang heard her and looked around.
The majestic bed was draped in golden silk and embroidered with the Golden Crow emblem.
In one corner, a bronze incense burner released thin spirals of fragrant smoke, curling up and vanishing into the air.
On a small table, delicate porcelain vases held fresh lotus blossoms. Their soft pink petals seemed fragile, almost alive. Jin Huang's eyes lingered on their gentle curves.
Along the walls, elegant scrolls hung, painted with sweeping brushstrokes of mountains and rivers.
Soon, they arrived at her mother's palace.
The maid said, "Mistress, the princess has awakened."
Lady Rulan looked at the little princess in the maid's arms and smiled. "Give her to me."
Jin Huang curiously watched the maid's mouth up close and put her finger in it.
She possessed perfect memory from birth. She instantly memorized the alignment of the lips, teeth, and tongue used to speak.
Human cognition begins with imitation. Even before understanding, the brain recognizes symmetry, rhythm, and cause-effect patterns. Memory, stripped of language, is still a map of existence—sound, light, and motion.
However, she had no awareness yet. She didn't know she could replicate it. She didn't even understand what a tongue or lips were!
When her mother took her, she made strange faces and sounds to entertain her.
Jin Huang didn't understand the purpose, but the weird sounds brought her satisfaction. She giggled harder.
Then, something stunned her. She heard a new sound.
She giggled again—and heard it again.
Usually, people aren't aware of their own sounds because they're used to them. But Jin Huang, a newborn with infinite learning capacity, immediately recognized it.
Her giggling—which came from her mouth—also produced sound.
She giggled again, and, delighted by the sound, giggled once more.
Lady Rulan smiled. "You're so happy, huh?"
Jin Huang stared at her mother's mouth and tried to mimic her. But she had no concept of what a tongue or lips were.
So all she could do was try and fail, again and again—until it matched.
This is how language, and indeed all knowledge, is born: not in understanding, but in repetition. Trial and error is the foundation of intelligence. Before comprehension comes mimicry.
With undeveloped vocal cords and non-awareness of her own organs and senses, she couldn't mimic accurately.
She tried speaking.
Her voice came:"Aaaa""Abaabbabbababa""OOOOO"
She kept trying new combinations. As she experimented, she began recognizing real patterns.
She started gaining awareness of her tongue and lips. She didn't have teeth yet, but didn't need them to speak.
Her vocal cords weren't fully developed. Her sounds were high-pitched, thin, slurred, nasal, and muffled. Her tone was soft and weak. Naturally, it's impossible for a baby to speak after just two days. She was simply enjoying the sounds.
This is what differentiates children from adults. Adults live in the past or future—they forget to live in the moment. Children, however, live completely in the present. They find joy in the tiniest things. Even strange noises bring immense satisfaction.
Lady Rulan watched her trying to speak and was astonished. It was her first time seeing a baby attempt to speak at just two days old.
She cradled her lovingly and brought her mouth to her breast. "It's time for your meal. Aren't you hungry?"
Jin Huang looked again at her mother's mouth and cooed.
Lady Rulan, warmed by her joy, turned to the maid. "What about Long-er? It's time for both of them to feed."
The maid replied, "He'll be here soon, Mistress. Prince Long was sleeping. Sister Lian will bring him shortly."
Rulan nodded, glancing at Jin Huang as she fed happily.
After feeding, Rulan laid her beside her.
And so, this life continued.
Twenty days passed.
By then, Jin Huang could already control every part of her body. She had become aware of her physical form. She realized she was similar to the strange faces around her.
In fact, she had started mimicking their words.
Her first word was: "Heavens!"
At that time, she was in her father Jin Haoran's arms.
He smiled at his daughter. "She's a born genius. A blessing from the Heavens."
Jin Huang looked at her father.
She tried to mimic: "Hea-v-ens."
Jin Haoran was stunned. He laughed. "I didn't expect my daughter to be so gifted! Come on, say it again. Come on 'Father'. Come on, say 'Father'."
Jin Huang didn't have the energy to speak full sentences yet. She could only try mimicking one word.
She watched this strange man's changing expressions. Curious, she studied the alignment of his tongue and lips and mimicked:
"Co-m-o-n."
Jin Haoran had said "Come on" three times—so she copied it. Even though it was 'come on', but on hearing, it feels more like 'comon'. After all, as an adult, he speaks more fluently.
Realizing this, he switched strategy.
"Father. Father. Father."
He repeated it over and over, hoping she would copy it as well.
At that moment, Lady Rulan came over, smiling brightly.
Jin Huang giggled and stretched her arms toward her, as if asking to be picked up.
Jin Haoran sighed. "You ruined my plan."
Lady Rulan took her and repeated the strategy.
"Baby, say 'Mother.'"
Jin Huang didn't speak, just giggled.
Lady Rulan smiled gently. "Your Majesty, it's time for her to be breastfed."
Jin Haoran nodded.
Lady Rulan took her back and put her to sleep.
A few hours later…
Jin Huang woke up.
She looked at the ceiling and then her surroundings with curiosity.
Her perfect memory retained every word spoken to her. She didn't remember them as 'words', but as sounds—tones, pitches, and rhythms. With no concept of language, she memorized pure sound, not meaning.
She recalled what her father said and tried to mimic:
"Fa-th-er.""Fa-th-er.""Fa-th-er.""P-eak.""S-eak.""Sh-eak.""Ph-eak.""Sp-eak.""Fa-th-er."
She kept mimicking, as if trying to understand the underlying pattern which causes different tones, words and rhythms.
Days passed.
She began to grasp words, though she still didn't understand their meanings. Her progress was based on trial and error.
Eventually, she noticed something:When she said "Father" near the man, he responded differently.When she said "Mother" near the woman, she reacted with warmth.
She associated those words with them.
When she said "Milk," she noticed the woman often said "Drink."So she linked "Milk" with "Drink."
In this way, she began understanding language piece by piece.
By the end of the first month, she could speak.By the second month, she began to understand language fundamentally.
At first, she spoke single words. Then two or three at a time, skipping verbs.Gradually, she included verbs and formed complete sentences.
She still had a long way to go. She didn't yet grasp common sense or how the world worked. Only once she did could it be said she had mastered the language.
By this point, she could already crawl on all fours.
She had already begun internalizing basic concepts since she was born — Letting go of a spoon makes it fall. It gets dark at night.
These were only the beginning. Her understanding was still shallow.
Seeing her rapid growth, Jin Haoran often took her to court to hear the discussions.
He did receive some criticism, but as king, who could stop him?
As Jin Huang grew, Jin Haoran began to feel something new—
Fear.
She was too intelligent…Too intelligent for her own good.
Genius is a double-edged sword. The brighter the flame, the more it draws the wind. What nurtures brilliance can also unravel innocence.