Author's Note: I was gone because school. My uploading schedule is gonna be hella weird until things stabilize. I may upload on just the weekends. Anyhow, thanks for reading, as always.

A crowd gathered quickly. The murmurs of crows spread the announcement through the festival roads and crevices like an autumn shower: Two children, disciples of the famous Yue Yun Sect, were to be flogged a thousand times.

Why? No one knew at that point, causing faces to be flushed with vulgar anticipation. Mixed into the flood of rosy-cheeks were four masks of varying paleness and depth.

“Those two idiots,” Cai growled under his breath. His eyes narrowed as he plucked at the air for any hints of their presence. Clenching his fists tight until knuckles cried, he let loose a roar of exasperation, startling the other onlookers.

“My prince, what an unexpected reaction,” Gai’zhi smiled as he poked his head over the shoulders of the crowd. He pulled out a mirror and threw it all the way to the front. Landing at the feet of a wealthy businessman, the man picked it up. To his surprise, a pair of hands came pouncing through the surface lacking a reflection. This wealthy businessman suddenly found himself near the end of the crowd, surrounded with no escape.

At the very front of the crowd, Gai’zhi chuckled and pocketed his mirror and then yawned. The three children were by his side.

“Did you like my trick, my little prince?” Gai’zhi asked.

“Senior Brother Gai’zhi, I do not have the patience for your stupidity today,” Cai said roughly as he tightened his fists.

Gai’zhi smacked Cai’s and the twins’ backs and gave them a thumb up. He declared, “Do not worry. I am sure there is a reason. And that things will be fine.”

“But what if things aren’t,” Jang-Guo shouted. His face like a bloodshot eye. “What if something happened. And things aren’t fine? What then, Senior Brother?”

Gai’zhi raised his brow and pulled out a gourd from his sleeves. He took a sip of the drink and asked, “You say that like you know something.”

Cai glared at Gai’zhi. “And you sound like you know something too, Senior Brother Gai’zhi.”

“Aiyah, aiyah, my little prince,” Gai’zhi blushed. “We all have secrets. For one, I actually did not stop wetting my pants until I was nine years of age.”

“That’s not what I —” Cai started but was stopped by the blaring of horns and the clanging of bells.

Meili hesitated but pulled at Cai’s sleeve. “Qiu’yue will be fine right? And Senior Sha?”

“I don’t know; that’s why I’m angry.”

The crowd parted like a gulf and a storm of Black Pearl disciples surged to the front where two children stood under an old oak tree. Though stood was a generous term. In truth, Qiu’yue and Senior Sha were both bound by chains, blindfolded, and gagged (the cloth was for the children’s own benefit).

An inner disciple with the face of a shrew stepped forward. Placing his talons together, he explained the situation.

“Oh, honored guests! Is Spring not the time of youth? Of courage and memories? It is. And these two children here are at the peaks of youth! As one have heard, there will be another tournament of sorts beside the annual fighting tournament. And that tournament is one with an age requirement — yet these two are brave and yearn for glory!” The announcer paused and molested the crowd with his beady eyes. He waited until a roaring applause ensued. Smiling, he continued. “And to prove their worth, these two children will withstand a thousand strikes of the whip without using their qi to protect their mortal bodies. Now, how will we know no qi is used? The chains are special. Yes, a tool manufactured only by the Clear Rain Sect — the material saps qi like a root near water.”

“Isn’t it a bit cruel to hit children?” A housewife asked as she hugged her own boy.

The announcer sneered. “Children? These two are cultivators foremost. Now, let us loosen their ties to the oak and begin!”

With a flourish, the disciples untied Qiu’yue and Senior Sha from the oak. They forced the two onto the ground. Instantly, the chains wrapped taut around their small frames once more.

Hearing those words, the twins regained color in their cheeks. On the other hand, Cai’s plum face only darkened further.

“What’s the matter, my prince,” Gai’zhi asked with a knowing smile.

“I’m sure you have an idea, Senior Brother Gai’zhi,” Cai responded. The twins looked at each other with confusion. Cai sighed and remarked, “There’s no way in hell Qiu’yue would do something so outrageous. We all know she’s impulsive but she’s definitely too shy to stand in front of a crowd like so. I bet the blindfold is to keep her from being too much of a nervous wreck.”

“Something’s questionable is going on then?” Gai’zhi smiled from ear to ear.

“You damn pervert,” Cai muttered under his breath.

“Oh my, little prince, your mask! What happened to your mask?” Gai’zhi chuckled.

“I can ask the same. Senior Brother,” Cai smiled wryly.

The twins held onto each other a bit tighter. Meili whispered into her brother’s ear, “Ge-Ge, I’m so glad you are my brother.”

Jang-Guo overcome with emotion embraced Meili wholeheartedly — causing him to experience his own public beating.

Meili smiled, a brightness in her eyes, and held onto Jang-Guo’s arms, her face nestled on his shoulder. “I’m happy you’re so simple. If you were smart like those other two, I would die of exhaustion.” Despite the statement being a clear insult, Jang-Guo beamed happily nonetheless.

Within a quarter of an incense, the crowd thinned considerably. The sky donned a pale amber glow and the wind began to sing a lullaby. Qiu’yue’s and Senior Sha’s whimpers and moans became a pattern with no variation. The beat of the lashes were of a strict pace. There was no flourish or flair. Even the announcer paid his respect to the ceremony by standing in silence. The only people left were the cultivators and eccentrics, those kinds of people, the insane and mad.

And those people soon brought out gourds of wine and rice crackers from their sleeves. Enjoying the haze of night, they waited with gleaming eyes for the results.

The blue servant uniforms became battered and bloodied. A grid of lacerations cried out on the two children’s backs. Strangely, Senior Sha’s face became flushed and his moans came quicker and more heavy — causing the deliverer of lashes to squirm. Qiu’yue’s moans became like those of beasts — a harried, angry one. With every snap of the whip, the two children’s cries became fiercer.

It was as if the splitting pains woke them to a new plane of existence — each lash jolting them out of potential unconsciousness.

After an incense of time, the lashing ceased. A thousand strikes. Those blue uniforms became black with the pigment of blood. Flies gathered on the open flesh, flitting about. The slightest hint of white bone peeked through the maroon. The announcer smiled and removed the restraints on the two children.

Senior Sha breathed heavily with a strange smile. He lied there like a sow even as the wind sliced across his open back. The boy shuddered with a content sigh.

When they removed Qiu’yue’s restraints, the girl immediately leapt for the nearest prey with her hands formed into claws. Saved by instinct, everyone leapt back, causing the girl to strike the cobblestone instead. A small crater formed, cracks rippled across the ground. Her eyes glowed a muted gold under the night sky. Qiu’yue twitched, unable to remain still — blood flowing freely from her orifices and weeping from her back. She howled, but made no motion — waiting for an opening.

“Interesting,” Gai’zhi remarked.

“Interesting? Everyone seem intent on killing her,” Cai muttered and gestured around. “They think she’s a threat.”

“Well, she is.” Gai’zhi smiled and shrugged. “Well, nothing we can do. Let’s just go home and sleep. We can plan a happy and fun funeral tomorrow.”

“You —” The twins shouted but stopped when they felt the murderous glares of the other spectators. Biting their lips, they asked, “Isn’t there anything to do?”

Gai’zhi glanced at Jang-Guo. “You knew something was strange about her, didn’t you?” Without waiting for an answer, Gai’zhi walked away. “Nevermind. I do not like tangling myself into difficult things in which I am not certain of living.”

Meili and Cai looked at Jang-Guo. Jang-Guo fidgeted before finally relenting. “Fine. Something may have happened in the Tomb. But nothing like this! All that happened...well, Qiu-di somehow stole a cultivation level from me.”

“What! That’s impossible!” Meili exclaimed.

“Maybe not,” Cai mumbled with furrowed brows. “Cultivation is to absorb the spiritual power of the cosmos to strengthen our mortal bodies in order to become gods. In theory, it is possible to drain

spiritual power and add it to one’s own.”

“But what about the meridians?”

“In the end, stealing cultivation is simply forcing the body to change. I would think that if one took on cultivation too dense for one’s meridians, it would simply burst. But adding a level one or two higher should be possible — if painful. Maybe that’s why Qiu’yue is not moving. All the opponents most likely have cultivation levels too high for her to endure.” Cai paused in his speculations. “And most likely, she has entered this primal state because she felt her life threatened. Though, by the strain of her muscles, I doubt she could use more than 25% of her qi still.”

“What —”

“We watch,” Cai responded. He narrowed his eyes. “They won’t hurt Senior Sha.”

“But —”

“If Qiu’yue is a danger to us, then why should we help her.” Cai responded, glancing over at the twins before returning his cool gaze at the scene. “We each have a goal that we must accomplish — I don’t want to have my life or time wasted.”

“You really are cold sometimes, Cai,” Jang-Guo spat bitterly at the ground.

“No wonder you’re still single,” Meili muttered.

“I don’t see the two of you jumping in,” Cai whispered.

Someone moved. As if like a single stone cast into water, everyone else rushed forward as well. However, a streak of red overtook all others. Diving behind Qiu’yue, Hai’Deng struck several points on the girl’s body with his bamboo stick and she fell unconscious into his arms. Then Hai’Deng yelled, “Hold your ground!”

Recognizing the red scarf, the cultivators stopped their approach, mere inches from the two. Everything took a single breath. No one disobeyed. Hai’Deng’s reputation was one to be feared and respected.

A lone elderly man walked forward. Elder Wang announced, “Well, the two endured the lashes. They will compete in the tournament. That is all. And of what you saw today, well — I’m really, really sorry! You see, well, how embarrassing. I was mixing some new pills...and it seems the side-effects has finally kicked in. It would be too shameful for me to even leave the house if news of this gets out. Please, will you young heroes respect this old one’s wish?”

The cultivators looked at each other. Some were satisfied with the explanation and left. Others held their skepticism but bowed and left as well. The announcer stared at the Sage of the Pulse a little longer and remarked, “I will report this to sect master, regardless. Forgive this junior’s lack of manners.”

Then the Sage of the Pulse looked over at the three children. He smiled, “My, what a pretty girl. If I had a grandchild, I would want her to look exactly like you...though a wife like you wouldn’t be too bad either! Hohoho.”

Jang-Guo frowned and stepped forward. “Who the hell are you?”

“I’m the Sage of the Pulse,” Elder Wang laughed. “I was going to heal your two friends over there for free, but now I feel like sleeping.”

Meili pushed aside Jang-Guo (who fell back with an oomph) and asked, “Really? Can you please?”

Elder Wang stroked his beard, “Well, if such a pretty girl asks, I can’t say no, now can I?”

Cai stepped forward and bowed. “Excuse me, Sage of the Pulse. Despite Meili’s pretty looks, she is not yet even of twelve years. You may think she is simply one of those who retain such youth even into the evening of life, but she is not.”

Elder Wang pouted. “Oh please, the wife part was a joke. I’m much too old for one anyhow. Though I did mean it when I said I would want a granddaughter like her.”

Hai’Deng brought Qiu’yue and Senior Sha over.

“Now, please go and rest. I will heal your friend and they will be well tomorrow.”

Cai smiled and bowed. “Sage of the Pulse, before you go, are you not going to explain why you care so much for Qiu’yue? Are you not going to explain to her family what exactly happened?”

“Family?” Meili exclaimed.

Cai smiled, “You and Jang-Guo are her sister and brother, respectively. I guess I can be the father. And Senior Sha suits the role of a worrying and worrisome mother.”

“My, what good friends,” Elder Wang smiled. “I already explained. The pills I made had unforeseen side-effects. I feel responsible. Please, go and rest, young boy.”

Without heeding any more words from the three, Elder Wang and Hai’Deng left. The three children frowned.

“Cai, you really scares me sometimes,” Meili whispered. “One moment, you didn’t care if Qiu’yue died; the next, you called her family.”

Cai said nothing and started walking.

Elder Wang lived in the more modest sections of the Black Pearl Sect. After years of living in the sect, he requested the home to be refashioned into a cozy cottage of sorts. He had Hai’Deng lay Qiu’yue and Senior Sha onto his bed.

“Elder Wang, what was with the girl back there?” Hai’Deng asked. “Her very qi felt completely different from usual...it was disgusting and terrible.”

“Hai’Deng, even I do not know. However, it has made one thing clear. She is truly the daughter of Yin Hong.”

“She’s dangerous,” Hai’Deng said angrily.

“I know. But so is medicine and fire and even the life-giving water.”

“Elder Wang,” Hai’Deng scolded.

“Start the preparations for the boy, please,” Elder Wang asked. Hai’Deng bit his cheeks but complied and left for the medicine room. Elder Wang brushed aside Qiu’yue’s bangs. He checked the girl’s pulse and felt it has returned to a more stable state. However, it was heavily strained and broken still. The girl’s internal wounds far exceeded expectations. “She really does look like Yin Hong.”

Hai’Deng returned with the supplies. Elder Wang and him proceeded to apply balms and pastes and needles. Elder Wang bid Hai’Deng farewell after the operation. Once the old man ascertained Hai’Deng has left, he returned to the girl.

“I can’t believe I have to do this again in this lifetime,” Elder Wang smiled wry. He placed the girl’s palm against his chest. Instantly, the girl’s nails protruded like talons and dug into his flesh. Elder Wang bared his teeth as he felt himself drained of both vitality and cultivation. Once he felt Qiu’yue was back in a better state, he wrenched the palm from his chest and applied some green cream onto the wound.

Hai’Deng who hid in the shadows felt the exchange of cultivation. Exchanges of cultivation was not unheard of in the cultivating world. Dying masters who were unable to achieve divinity often transferred all their cultivation to one (un)lucky soul. However, those exchanges were either of: a forceful giving of cultivation, or a mutual acceptance. Hai’Deng felt the opposite. He felt Elder Wang’s cultivation forcefully dragged through his meridians through a wound into one’s own soul and body. Hai’Deng knew it was not the boy. The blind boy with the red scarf made for the sect master. Before leaving, he faced toward the people inside and apologized, “I am sorry. Please, gods above, punish only me, and never the sister I do these things for.”

Qiu’yue woke up the next day at noon. The stream of light tickled her eyes and she greeted the day with a great yawn. She sat up and found herself in an unfamiliar place. Getting off the bed, she explored the room.

It was a quaint little room with a wooden table and wooden chairs and a wooden bed with a wooden pillow. Unlike the stone buildings of the Black Pearl Sect, strong and cold, the place Qiu’yue found herself in was made of entirely wood. Though it was spring, the mountain air was still chilly. She wrapped herself with the blanket on the bed.

Hearing the voice of Senior Sha, Qiu’yue followed it outside to the courtyard. The voices stemmed from a large cabin marked with the plaque “Herbs” over the door entrance. She entered it and gagged from the intense mixture of odors.

“Ah, you finally woke up,” Elder Wang greeted with a smile.

Senior Sha rushed over to Qiu’yue and patted her up and down. “Little Qiu’yue, are you ok?”

“Uh, yeah, Senior Brother Sha,” Qiu’yue responded. With a tired grin, she asked, “What are you two doing?”

Senior Sha beamed up — which was a curse upon Elder Wang’s eyes. He who possessed the face of a demon being excited was as if a sadistic beast baring his teeth at a feast of prey. “Little Qiu’yue, ah, listen to this! I figured out why I’m stagnating!”

“Really?” Qiu’yue exclaimed with a smile.

“Yeah, Elder Wang tested my pulse and found something really special!” Senior Sha said all this quickly and feverishly. “I’m finally going to break through my bottleneck! I can keep being with all you! I, I can keep being with you guys.”

“Hohoho, what an emotional boy.” Elder Wang walked over toward the pair. “Even I was amazed to find someone possessing your body, boy. To think you were of the long lost Ai’Nue Clan [Masochism Clan]!”

“Ai’Nue Clan?”

“Yeah, little Qiu’yue, my parents who abandoned me must be powerful warriors! There must be some hidden intrigue and plot and I may have a unpredictable and wonderful future! I may have a legacy to call my own! The Ai’Nue Clan,” Senior Sha said the name of his clan with a smile.

“It would make sense for the Ai’Nue Clan to have a person of your...aura,” Elder Wang said after a pause, paling at the sudden bursting of acne on Senior Sha’s forehead. “The Ai’Nue Clan has a special body in which the more pain one feels, the more pressure one endures, the stronger they grow. They are, in theory, cultivators with no limits but that of Heaven. This boy has been stuck because he has not been stimulated enough — he simply need to increase his regiment’s intensity. We were trying to figure out a pill — well, a poison — which will render him immune against illness and garner him a resistance to the elements. Come, help us search for my pet scorpions.”

Qiu’yue paled and smiled nervously...before leaping onto Elder Wang’s sleeves, crying. “Scorpions? I hate bugs! Hate them, hate them!”

Senior Sha, on the other hand, had an expression of pure pleasure. “Ah, come little scorpions, come and bite me. My butt is really meaty, you know!”

Qiu’yue glanced at Elder Wang, “Senior Sha...is he ok?”

Elder Wang stroked his beard. “The people of the Ai’Nue Clan are always a strange deviant bunch. I think his true self is simply being realized. Heh, one of my old friends from the clan once had his family jewels crushed in attempt to achieve Nirvana and breakthrough to the Star cultivation stage. It didn’t happen...but the girl who crushed his testicles and him eventually married and had children.”

Qiu’yue looked into Elder Wang’s eyes and asked, “Elder Wang, am I also strange?”

“...Yes, you are strange as well. Do you remember what happened?”

“No...I don’t remember anything at all,” Qiu’yue answered.

“That was the same with your mother when she studied under me. However, she knew

what went on despite not remembering. I learned she came to me in order to control her rampages...or maybe to improve them.” Elder Wang stroked Qiu’yue’s hair. “I believe, Hai’Deng can help you with your issues.”

“The blind boy,” Qiu’yue asked. Elder Wang nodded. Qiu’yue frowned, “He’s mean.”

“He’s just in his own circumstances. Do not blame him,” Elder Wang smiled. “Besides, he is in the same boat as you.”

Qiu’yue tilted her head.

Elder Wang sighed. He moved to help Senior Sha search for his scorpions, motioning Qiu’yue to follow. As they searched the many cabinets and crevices and boxes, Elder Wang told Qiu’yue about Hai’Deng.

“The boy is also impaired in his use of qi. Where you can use 25% of your qi, he can only use 10%.”

“But he’s so strong; I’m not,” Qiu’yue remarked with yearning.

“Well, his qi is denser and more mature. 10% of soul-severance qi is still stronger. But martial arts is not about how much more developed your cultivation is. Otherwise, why would anyone truly obey the Emperor? And why would the Empire be at relative peace?”

“I don’t know,” Qiu’yue answered.

“That’s because those were rhetorical questions. When you use martial arts, you use qi to fuel those arts. Like feeding kindling to fire. Now, let us imagine a competition of keeping fire alive. One side has a lot of kindling; the other side has little. Keeping a fire alive, is not simply about feeding kindling mindlessly or in one fell swoop. There’s the consideration of technique and how one tend it with the wind.”

Qiu’yue’s eyes lit up. “The big pile of kindling is like the external school! The fire might grow really big but it might not last as long or be as controllable. The kindling might even squash out the flame!”

“Exactly so, with martial arts, technique and experience are more essential than cultivation level. Otherwise, everyone will simply resort to doping. Honestly, all these misconception that a higher cultivation level means a better fighting force! This is why the Black Pearl Sect has gone astray from the right path! Hmph, excuse my rambling. Hopefully there will be a change in things. Tomorrow, there will be a person participating in the tournament who is of a special clan — one who uses no qi in their martial arts at all. The Mu Clan.”

“The Mu Clan,” Qiu’yue repeated with awe. Then she furrowed her brows, “Then why do people cultivate?”

“To become deities. Cultivating is to change the mortal body into one which can last beyond normal years. It is to strengthen the soul. Once one has an immortal body and a golden soul, one can ascend to become more than human. That’s why some gods are war gods and others are merely medicine gods.”

“Ohh, war gods can use their power to better fight, right? Because they know how to really use their powers to fight?” Senior Sha jumped in with sparkles in his unfocused eyes.

“Indeed. Though it is unheard of, there are people who have never cultivated, but through sheer devotion to martial arts has ascended to become gods after death. Those people are the real monsters — performing inhuman feats with the ease of cultivators.”

“Wow,” Qiu’yue exclaimed. “Those people exist?”

“Yes, long before cultivation became commonplace, it was those heroes who slew demons and conquered barbarians. Through sheer training, they strengthen just their bodies until they too can cut a boulder with their hands.”

“Then who would win in a fight? A cultivator or one of those people?”

“It depends,” Elder Wang answered. “Asuras and cultivators once fought a lot. No side has ever achieved definite victory.”

“How?” Senior Sha cried. “Cultivators have magical tools and magic and special abilities.”

“And if our core is destroyed? If our meridians burst? We would be weaker than regular humans. There once lived an asura who fought against one hundred cultivators even after his two arms were

torn off.”

“Wow, asuras are really strong,” Senior Sha laughed.

“Now, don’t go mentioning asuras to anyone old. Though asuras do not live forever, and the mere existence of such a madman is rare, for some cultivators the wounds of fighting against asuras has never passed.”

“Then why do people try to become gods?”

“Because they are powerful. Gods, those who have reached divinity, are the most powerful entities on this plane of existence. Some wanted to bring about miracles; others wanted to bring back the dead; most wanted to do the impossible. There are some gods who became gods out of boredom or curiosity. Most gods never really do what they want. There are laws when one become deities — everyone think they can ignore or change those laws, but that’s foolishness. And most gods eventually grow bored of humanity and of life. However, asuras believe those who absorb the energy of the cosmos are not truly relying on their own strength.

Qiu’yue frowned. “Then I must be really weak then.”

“Little Qiu’yue, how can you be weak? You saved me from those cultivators from before, right?”

“Then shouldn’t I be able to beat someone a lot stronger than myself if cultivation levels don’t

matter.”

Elder Wang struck Qiu’yue on the head with his stick. “Idiot girl, just like your mother. What did I just say? Experience and technique. Xi Shi is older than you, more experienced, more exposed to death and violence. How can a wet pup like you compare? Honestly, it is better you lost. If you won, I cannot even imagine the brutal training and exposure one would have to suffer to become a killing god like so: condensation beating soul-severance. Though, those things happen enough in war, that I have plenty of answers.”

At that, Elder Wang grew silent. The three searched for the scorpions and found them nibbling on some herbs.

“Do scorpions usually eat leaves?” Qiu’yue asked.

“Those herbs attract scorpions...I was going to use it to make an aphrodisiac! Damn it,” Elder Wang cursed.

“An aphrodisiac?” A voice asked. “Sounds interesting!”

Gai’zhi entered the room with a carefree and dumb smile. “Ah, it’s legal, right, Mr.Sage of the Pulse? If I had this, fufufu, all the sect’s women will belong to me! Oh, it’s got to be better than even the drugs offered at the brothels, right? Right, right?”

“Elder Wang, do I have the position to kill this idiot?” Hai’Deng asked shaking his bamboo stick. “On the way here, he was constantly buying food, getting lost, and harassing the women from our sect!”

“Oh, Hai’Deng, good to see you,” Elder Wang said happily. His hug was denied with a glare.

“Mei-Mei,” Meili called happily and embraced Qiu’yue with a smush. Jang-Guo came over and patted Qiu’yue as well.

During the chaos and noise, Cai stepped forward. Kowtowing, he thanked the sage.

“My, what a deep appreciation,” Elder Wang said with surprise.

“It is only natural,” Cai responded. “You saved those two.”

“It was my pill’s fault, afterall.”

“You still hide the truth, elder?” Cai asked with a smile. His eyes becoming fierce.

“When humans found out the truth, the world ended, and death and disease and war and pestilence and famine plunged the world into suffering. I believe that answers your curiosities for now.”

“And if the truth reveals itself later on? When we do not have time or resources to deal with it?”

“You speak wise for a brat,” Elder Wang smiled. “I simply do not want one to regret.”

“And if we regret not acting sooner?”

“I know nothing more other than the girl might not be fully human. I see her as I see Yin Hong. I guess, it is my own selfishness that I wish the best for Qiu’yue,” Elder said as his eyes closed onto Qiu’yue squeezed in between Jang-Guo and Meili.

Cai got up and thanked the elder. Gai’zhi came over and slung his arms over Cai’s shoulders. “So, what were we whispering over here? Some unimaginable secret?”

“Nothing which will concern you.”

“Oh, but the girl’s lineage most definitely does.”

Cai and Gai’zhi exchanged a look. The younger boy brushed off Gai’zhi’s arm. “For now, I will protect Qiu’yue. Do not think of anything questionable, Senior Brother Gai’zhi.”

“You’re a strange one,” Gai’zhi whistled.

After getting scolded by Hai’Deng for their misconduct and helping to clean, the Yue Yun Sect left Elder Wang’s abodes. Elder Wang promised Senior Sha to finish up a poison capable of killing a god before he leaves. No one knew if Elder Wang was joking or not.

Returning home, Qiu’yue learned of Cai’s official apprenticeship under Gai’zhi.

“Our little prince is trying something rather stupid,” Gai’zhi smiled. “He wants to merge the internal and external schools’ foundations into one. If he fails, he may just cripple himself~”

“Shouldn’t you stop him then?” Qiu’yue scowled.

“My little vixen, he is a cultivator. We chase after death because we wish to become gods. There is no reward without risk,” Gai’zhi chuckled.

“Qiu’yue, Senior Brother Gai’zhi is right. Why don’t you go and rest,” Cai said with a glance before focusing his attention back onto Gai’zhi. His posture informed everyone he will not be bothered, that he should not be bothered.

Qiu’yue turned to the twins and found them focusing on their own training.

“Qiu-di, we’re sorry, but we want to become strong. This is a good time for us to train in our synchronization,” Jang-Guo informed her.

“That’s right! Just watch and rely on your big sister to protect you!” Meili grinned.

Qiu’yue nodded and turned to Senior Sha. Upon seeing...his new method of training, she decided against interacting with him. Anyone who opted to cut his own flesh then apply healing balm repeatedly was someone to not be trifled with.

Sighing, Qiu’yue entered her room. Jumping onto her bed, she felt a surge of anger — and frustration. Silently, she punched the wall. The young girl felt useless.

“What am I doing,” she cried. Qiu’yue thought about the months she lived since separating from her Papa. She wanted to become strong to leave the sect and find him. She also wanted to gain the trust of the other orphans. She wanted to protect people close to her. She wanted to fulfill Sun Devouring Moon Senior’s wish. She wanted all these things, but she was weak. “I hate this! I hate it so much.”

“Do you really hate it?” A voice like the taste of cherry tea sounded. “If you want power, you can trust in me.”

Qiu’yue jolted her head in search of the voice. She found nothing.

“Up here,” the voice told her.

Glancing up, she found the nose of a cute fox peeking down at her. The fox was a young kit with gray fur like burnt ash. The fox’s pale pink nose reminded Qiu’yue of the beautiful hanfu her mother wore.

“Who are you?” Qiu’yue asked.

“I am the cutest existence in the world,” the fox answered with a pur. Leaping into Qiu’yue’s arms, she buried her nose into the girl’s collar. Peeking up with those seductive black orbs, the fox told Qiu’yue her name. “You may address me as the Celestial Fox. Call me Xing’Er, since I like that better.”