Xiu Xiang's eyes fluttered open as she stood up in the darkness of the cave. The spiritual energy around the cave seemed to have been mostly spent up by her. She could barely sense any left.
It only seemed like yesterday when she had fallen into the cave and met the Demon King's soul. She breathed out a heavy sigh and lifted a palm high up into the air. Energy rippled around her as she gathered a concentrated ball of energy into her hand.
Like a bullet, the ball of energy sped through the darkness, pierced the cutting winds and blast into the sky. With nothing else to hinder her, she scaled the walls of the cave with ease until she made it to the top of the Cliff of Abyss. The ball of energy she shot up into the sky finally exploded like a large firework, lighting up the cliffside.
Almost immediately, she heard the sound of bells ringing in the distance. That was the bell Tian Ling Sect used in an emergency. It must've gone off because of her.
She turned to look in the direction of where North Peak was. She was so tempted to go over to exact her revenge. Oh, she wanted to shred each person to pieces so badly that fists shook angrily by her side. She ignored the constant tolling of the bell and walked over to a large boulder by the edge of the cliff. Putting her forefinger and middle finger together, she gathered her energy into the tips of her fingers and carved out some words.
Then her feet started to move of their own accord. She breezed through the forest and made her way toward North Peak. Everyone was already rushing toward the Cliff of Abyss leaving the peak with only a few disciples.
Xiu Xiang easily took them down before they even got a chance to glance at her face.
"Has it really been ten years...?" Xiu Xiang thought as she took in her surroundings. Everything still looked the same. Her eyes fell on the pole that she was constantly tied to while being whipped. Anger surged from deep within her as the pain of her suffering surfaced to the forefront of her mind.
With a wave of her sleeves, the pole combusted and erupted into flames. Without another look, she made her way down the gravel pathway until she came upon Master Feng Mian's pavilion. A hazy looking barrier in the shape of a dome covered the pavilion.
Under normal circumstances, it would keep out intruders but Xiu Xiang didn't fall under normal circumstances. She hadn't trained ruthlessly for ten years only to get locked out from a simple mid-level barrier like Master Feng Mian's.
She slowly raised her hand up and placed her palm on the barrier. It vibrated softly against her skin. Her fingers dug into the barrier as if she was digging into flesh. With a light push of her energy, the barrier shattered and disappeared. She strolled through the courtyard and pushed open the door to the pavilion.
Inside, Master Feng Mian had already awakened after feeling that his barrier had been obstructed. He was dressed in thin white robes, his gray silver hair wisped around behind his back as he came running out of his bedchamber only to freeze in place when he saw a dark silhouette of a slim figure standing in front of his doorway. The moonlight seeped through from outside but it did little to reveal the face behind the figure.
"Who are you? Why'd you break into my Jade Willow Pavilion?" he called out. He aimed his unopened fan toward the intruder.
"Master Feng Mian, have you already forgotten this disciple?" came a soft yet deadly bell-like voice. His brows furrowed as his free left hand weaved a sign. The candle off to the side of the room lit up the room revealing the face of the intruder. It was a young woman who barely looked like she was twenty years old. Her face was smooth like jade and pale like the moon. Her sharp eyes glowed with a hint of red light to it, clearly signifying her demon beast heritage yet she was wearing a tattered uniform that belonged to the North Peak. If it weren't for the dangerous aura seeping off of her and the deadly look in her eyes, he would've thought this beautiful woman was a heavenly being.
Her lips curved upwards into a sinister-looking smile as she stepped deeper into the main room of the pavilion.
"Why do you look so confused, Master?" she asked. She looked quite relaxed with her hands behind her back as if the pavilion had belonged to her and not him.
"How'd you managed to enter North Peak, Demon?" Master Feng Mian asked sharply.
"Sigh... was I really such an insignificant presence in your life that you can't even remember who I am?"
Xiu Xiang felt quite insulted. As she strolled around the room, she happened to pass by a mirror and finally gotten a good look at her face. She barely recognized herself. It's no wonder that Master Feng Mian didn't know who she was.
No matter, she thought as she broke the mirror with her hand.
"I was so sure that I wanted to rip you into pieces when I see you again, Master but now that I've gotten a good look at you, I realize, it's just not worth it," Xiu Xiang said as she looked over her shoulders.
"We have no relations whatsoever and I'm not your master. Why have you come here?" he hissed.
"To rob you of course. I'll need some money once I leave this place," Xiu Xiang said as a matter of fact.
"R-rob?! Despicable! You'll be long dead before you even manage to steal anything!" he spat. He snapped open his fan and with a horizontal wave of his fan, a strong gust of wind rushed toward Xiu Xiang.
"So slow..." She merely smirked before dodging the attack.
"She's fast!" He thought. If he knew that Xiu Xiang had given him a handicap by wearing the golden shackles, he'd probably spit out blood. By the time Master Feng Mian's eyes caught sight of Xiu Xiang dodging the attack, Xiu Xiang had already pressed several of his pressure points, paralyzing him on the spot.
"You...! What did you do to me?" Master Feng Mian seethed.
"Nothing much. I can't have you alarming the rest of the people on the Tian Ling Sect, now can I?" Xiu Xiang said as she strolled into his bedchamber. She grabbed his magic pouch that he carelessly laid on the table and filled it up with priceless treasures like his jade sculpture of an ascending dragon and an ember orb. She found his money pouch and also tossed it into the bag. Next, she found his stash of pills and tossed a bunch into her bag. She suddenly wanted to laugh as she threw the pills into the magic pouch. Back then, Master Feng Mian had accused her of stealing a Qi Rejuvenation Pill even though it had originally been given to her by Wei Xing. Who would've thought that one day, she'd really end up stealing?
Seeing that there was nothing else useful to take, she walked back into the main room.
"You won't get away with this!" Master Feng Mian roared. Xiu Xiang clicked her tongue and shook her head as she went to stand in front of him.
"Are you sure about that? Master Feng Mian is a highly regarded master of North Peak. What will people think when they hear that you were easily brought down by a demon and even got robbed right under your nose?" she said slyly. Her words seemed to have sunk in as Master Feng Mian's anger seemed to rise a few levels.
"You...!" he seethed as he struggled to move only to roar out in frustration. Xiu Xiang threw her head back as a burst of mocking laughter erupted from her pretty lips.
"Aw. Don't be so angry, Master Feng Mian. Losing a few treasures and pills is better than losing your life now. Isn't it?" Xiu Xiang said as she held out an open palm right at his face. A mass of dense energy swirled around her palm. It was so hot, he could feel his skin getting scalded from the tiny wisps that escaped from her palm. She looked like she was ready to burn him into charcoal. Fear flashed across his eyes as a chill ran down his spine. He's never seen someone with such a powerful aura before. Then he remembered that little disciple of his who would one day bring destruction upon his peak.
Xiu Xiang...
But she was dead! He made sure of it!
"You...! Xiu Xiang?!" he cried.
"Bingo."
He gasped in shock. The color instantly drained from his face.
"I know you're the one who ordered Wang Yue and the others to kill me off. Even the proud and arrogant Master Feng Mian of the Tian Ling Sect would have a day like this," Xiu Xiang said. She lowered her hand and the energy dissipated. She smirked and started for the exit only to stop as if she suddenly remembered something. "Ah. Do let Wang Yue and Song Yi Yan know to watch out for their backs. If I ever end up seeing them out there, I won't hesitate to kill them. Consider this warning a gift as we were once master and student."
The pathway towards the exit of the mountain was empty as everyone's attention was on the explosion above Cliff of Abyss. Xiu Xiang walked through the gates sporting a new uniform as the old one she wore was extremely tattered.
She was finally going to leave this place.
It was only a year that she had spent here but to her, it felt like hell on Earth. She didn't once look back as she moved forward, ready to start out her new life as the Demoness.