With the help of the guard, Xiu Xiang made it back to North Peak in one piece. Upon hearing that Wei Xing has returned, no one dared to touch or even go near her. Song Yi Yan, who stood off to the side, glowered at her but didn't say anything.
No one asked her why she was at the bottom of the mountain nor did Xiu Xiang explain why. There was no point in telling anyone that Song Yi Yan tried to kill her. No one would believe her. Their fairy, Song Yi Yan would never do something like that.
Xiu Siang thanked her lucky stars for grabbing onto that golden thigh called Wei Xing and raced to her demolished hut.
"Sigh... I'll wait until tomorrow to fix this wall again." She shook her head at the giant hole in the wall. Maybe it was heaven's way of saying that this wall was meant to be destroyed?
She took a seat on her straw mattress and opened the small box that Wei Xing had given her. It was another pill, but it looked different from the other pills that he had given her. Thinking it to be another pill that healed her injuries, she popped it into her mouth. The moment she swallowed it, her heart thumped rapidly, and the pit of her stomach burned.
"What is this?" Xiu Xiang thought. It wasn't painful but it wasn't comfortable either. The energy inside her pulsed loudly and she suddenly had an urge to sit legs crossed and meditate. She gave in to instincts and sat legs crossed. She took a deep breath and it suddenly felt more comfortable. Energy pooled around her body and she hungrily soaked it all in. It was strange as her body had failed to do so before.
She was cultivating!
It shouldn't be possible because her power core had been blocked off by Master Feng Mian.
In the novel, the Demoness's ability to cultivate had been stagnated by Master Feng Mian because of it had been prophesized that the Demoness would be the reason for his utter demise, but she wouldn't know that until much later. Yet, here she was, gathering spiritual energy around her at a fast rate. At the speed she was going, she would definitely advance two levels. Was all this because of the pill that Wei Xing had given her?
A couple days went by and Xiu Xiang finally opened her eyes. She felt stronger than before. The thought of doing her chores didn't seem so bad anymore. It really wouldn't have been bad except she heard the sound of excited voices in the distance.
"Master's back!"
The color drained from her face. Master Feng Mian had returned early. Did the storyline deviate again? She was sure the actions she took changed much of it. Now that he was back, Xiu Xiang knew she was going to be in for a whole lot of torture. How would he react when he realized that Xiu Xiang could start cultivating again? She braced herself and dragged herself out of the hut to greet her master.
Everyone was already lined up at the entrance waiting for the appearance of Master Feng Mian. His head appeared from the bottom of the hill and slowly his face came into view.
If Xiu Xiang hadn't read any cultivation type novels, she would've assumed the man appearing before her was extremely young, but this wasn't the case. Any master who've attained immortal level, was able to keep their youthful appearance. Master Feng Mian was one of those immortals. He barely looked over the age of thirty despite being well over sixty years old. He was dressed in green robes adorned with golden vines. In one hand, he held onto a white fan which he had closed. He puffed up his chest upon seeing his disciples and tilted his chin upwards as he moved passed them.
"Welcome back, Master," they all greeted in unison. Master Feng Mian simply nodded but the moment he passed Xiu Xiang, he came to a complete stop. His eyes bulged as he whipped around to look at her.
"You!" he pointed his fan at her. His hand shook as his brows furrowed angrily. "How are you able to cultivate?"
All eyes were now on her. Xiu Xiang suddenly wondered what excuse she was going to give him. There was no way she was going to say that Wei Xing gave her a pill. That'll just implement him and get North Peak and West Peak into a fight.
"I don't know. I just can," Xiu Xiang lied.
"Lies!" he hissed as he grabbed her harshly by the arm. "You shouldn't be able to! I made sure of it!"
Xiu Xiang's eyes narrowed as she stared back at this master. The bastard dared to announce it straight to her face that he was the one who prevented her from cultivating?
"What do you mean by that?" Xiu Xiang said in a low threatening voice.
"You dare talk back to your master? The only way you could cultivate again was if you were given a Qi Rejuvenation Pill! No one would dare give you such a precious pill unless you stole it!" Master Feng Mian roared.
"I didn't steal anything," Xiu Xiang said calmly as she easily pried her arm out of his grasp. His face grew darker when he saw how easily Xiu Xiang had escaped his hold. It was true that he barely used any strength but even then, she shouldn't have been able to pull away.
"LIES!" He roared angrily. His fan opened with a swoosh and he swung it against her face. She easily dodged the attack and straightened her back as she glared back at her so-called master.
The surprised look on him lasted a second and was quickly replaced with anger. Before she could react, he was already upon her. His hand stretched out like claws ready to destroy her power core again. Xiu Xiang barely caught his arm as she tried to deflect it. This only made him angrier. A threatening aura escaped him while a chill ran down Xiu Xiang's back. She had a hard time breathing and her body froze up from such a scary aura.
In that moment, Master Feng Mian slammed his palm forward, striking her in the abdomen. The hit had been so hard, she flew in the air and slammed straight into the ground. Blood spurt from her mouth as pain traveled through her body from the hit. Almost at once, she felt something block her energy and she grew weak.
"You bastard! What kind of master strikes his own disicple?" Xiu Xiang asked.
Master Feng Mian smirked back as he fanned himself calmly.
"Punishing you for stealing. For you to have gain such a pill, you could have only stolen it from my stash. Wang Yue! Tie her up and give her ten lashes for stealing. Leave her tied up for a week! If anyone tries to help her, I'll whip you myself!" Master Feng Mian hissed.
She was quickly dragged away by the arms and tied back to that stupid pole. Song Yi Yan had been the one assigned to whip her as revenge for the last time. The smug look on her face could only show how happy she was to inflict pain upon Xiu Xiang.
Whip after whip, Xiu Xiang didn't even try to scream. She was so angry by the injustice, she could hear the blood pounding in her ears. Did all these people really want to turn her into the Demoness? She had practiced patience and tolerance all her life but every single one of them was pushing her to her very limit. She has never felt such hatred before, and she suddenly thought that ripping the heads off of everyone sounded like a beautiful idea.
"Is this really Xiu Xiang? Before when she got whipped, she'd cry out in agony but now she's just glaring at us."
"That look in her eyes, it's quite unnerving!"
Song Yi Yan stopped at the seventh whip as she grew frustrated. Xiu Xiang wasn't screaming. There was no satisfaction from whipping someone who didn't scream. She snuck glances at everyone who was watching Xiu Xiang intently. Nobody would notice if she put a little bit of energy into her whips. In fact, they might even be happier if it made Xiu Xiang scream. She raised her whip and was just about to swing, when she saw the sharp evil look in Xiu Xiang's eyes. It instantly made her blood run cold. She has never seen Xiu Xiang look that scary before and she actually became scared for a moment.
"Wha... what do you think you're staring at?" she hissed and swung her whip harshly at Xiu Xiang. Not once did Xiu Xiang blink as she kept glaring at her. It wasn't until the final whip when Xiu Xiang finally fell unconscious from the blood loss.
"Song Yi Yan, why don't you look happy? Look, she finally fainted. I can't believe that bitch didn't cry out even once," Zhi Ruo said feeling quite annoyed. Song Yi Yan couldn't shake off that horrible feeling she got from being glared at by Xiu Xiang. It was as if her eyes were screaming out 'I'll kill you soon. Wait for your utter demise'.
"Song Yi Yan! Are you alright?" Wang Yue asked as he wrapped a gentle arm around her shoulders. When she didn't reply, Wang Yue sighed heavily. "Song Yi Yan, you're too kind. Don't feel sorry for that waste. She deserved it. She dared to let my precious Song Yi Yan get injured."
Song Yi Yan forced a smile on her face as she locked eyes with Wang Yue.
That's right, she thought evilly. She definitely deserved every whip she got. How would that waste be able to kill her? Master Feng Mian already destroyed her power core for a second time. It'd be a miracle for her to rise up from that.