Rong Lixian could no longer hold back her tears. The torrent of betrayal and abandonment poured forth from the depths of her heart.
The demonic cultivator burst into laughter before speaking. "Crying, are you? You think that'll make you seem pitiful? That they'll feel sorry for you? Pathetic. These people already sold you out! You're nothing more than a tool they used to save themselves. Hahaha!"
Rong Lixian froze, unable to comprehend what she had done wrong. All she ever wanted was to help them to give them her blood to save the lives of those she thought were like family. But... was it all a lie? She looked up at the villagers she had once helped, only to see faces filled with scorn and contempt staring back.
"Why are you crying!? What if you anger the immortal lord!?" one of the villagers barked at her.
"Yeah! Just shut your mouth and act like the useless little blood doll you've always been. Don't you dare drag the rest of us down with you!" another added, glaring at her in rage.
Her heart shattered. Rong Lixian couldn't understand couldn't grasp how they could speak such cruel words. She didn't want to believe that the people she had helped were no different from demons themselves.
The demonic cultivator laughed again. "Hahaha! What a pitiful sight!"
But then...
Rong Lixian clenched her teeth, a surge of fury overtaking her. And then came the scream.
"AaaaAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!"
BOOM!
A golden aura erupted from her body, raw and overwhelming. The force of her unleashed power sent tremors through the very earth beneath them.
The three demonic cultivators at the Foundation Establishment stage rushed forward to shield their young master.
"Young Master, fall back!"
SPLAT!
The three of them were instantly torn apart, their bodies split in half and blood splashing across the ground. The young man behind them survived for a breath... but in the next moment, he was reduced to a mist of blood, crushed into nothingness by Rong Lixian's unleashed power.
The surrounding villagers stood frozen, faces twisted in fear. But before they could run, the aura radiating from Rong Lixian exploded outward. For low-level cultivators like them, it was an oppressive wave of death.
BOOOOMMM!
The backlash of her uncontrolled energy hit several villagers at once. Some collapsed where they stood, blood pouring from their mouths before their lives slipped away.
"Father! No! Fatherrrrr!!"
The cry of a little girl echoed through Rong Lixian's ears, striking her like a jolt of lightning. She stopped for a moment. It was the voice of the girl who used to come tease her every day. At first, Rong Lixian hadn't thought much of it just a playful child being mischievous. Even if some of the girl's words had been harsh at times...
BOOOOOOOM!!
A violent surge of demonic energy came crashing toward her as a furious roar echoed from the sky above.
"You damned beast! So you're the one who killed my son?! Die!"
The demonic energy fell like a meteor. Rong Lixian made no attempt to dodge. She understood the deadly force of the attack, yet she chose to receive it directly to protect the few villagers who had once given her food or treated her wounds when she was injured. Though she despised many of them, she couldn't bring herself to hate them all.
Even if she knew their kindness was born not of compassion but of survival, even so... she would offer this final act of repayment.
Fwoosh!
BOOOOOM!!
Rong Lixian took the blow head-on. Her body was wracked with devastation, veins and meridians nearly obliterated.
But in that instant, a mysterious ray of light pierced through the demonic cultivator in the sky. He didn't even have time to scream before his body disintegrated.
High above the village, a lone figure floated.
Han Ming stood calmly, facing a mysterious young woman with pitch-black hair and vivid crimson eyes, clad in a form-fitting black robe. Behind her were dozens of demonic cultivators, all at the Nirvana level. Han Ming narrowed his eyes as information appeared in his mind.
[Name: Yan Lingning]
[Age: 16]
[Identity: Saintess of the Hehuan Sect, Daughter of Destiny]
[Cultivation Level: Body Fusion Stage 9]
[Special Physique: Ancient Origin Yin Body (Emperor Level)]
[Potential: 10 Stars]
[Comprehension: 9 Stars]
[Fortune: Gold]
[Loyalty: 0]
Yan Lingning looked warily at Han Ming and demanded in a cold voice,
"Who are you? Why did you slay our sect's elder?!"
But before she could finish, a demonic cultivator beside her shouted in a panic,
"Saintess! Can't you see?! At his waist he bears the crest of the Peak Master of Pure Light Peak, of the Holy Land of the Immortal River!"
Yan Lingning turned sharply toward the speaker and sneered,
"So what? Does the Holy Land of the Immortal River have the right to..."
SHIIING!
Before the words could leave her lips, her head was severed cleanly by a Blade of Light from an unknown direction. No one saw it coming. Not her, nor her followers. Their heads were all cleaved off before they even had the chance to react. They were all slaughtered in the blink of an eye.
Blood sprayed through the air as their lifeless bodies plummeted toward the ground.
Han Ming did not stop. He raised his hand and unleashed a force that obliterated their lingering soul fragments, ensuring none of them could ever reconstruct their bodies again.
But then, suddenly—
[My turn nowwwwwww!]
BOOOOOOOM!!
A massive bolt of lightning crashed down from the heavens, striking Han Ming directly. Thunder exploded across the sky, and golden energy radiated outward, sending shockwaves through the entire region.
But the blow barely injured Han Ming. The system's defense activated just in time. However, the lightning gave Yan Lingning's soul fragment just enough time to escape. The others were not so lucky. With cold precision, Han Ming pointed his finger, firing blasts one by one to annihilate each remaining soul.
The system's voice rang out gleefully.
[Did I look cool, Host?]
Han Ming only smiled in silence and descended swiftly toward the ground below.
Rong Lixian lay motionless on the ground, her body covered in grievous wounds. Blood soaked her so completely that her original skin tone could no longer be seen. She knew death was drawing near—it was only a matter of time.
Yet in those final moments, she heard the sobbing voice of a young girl—the same girl who had lost her father to the surge of her aura.
"You freak! Give me your blood!"
A scream filled with hatred pierced the air as the girl picked up a knife and rushed toward Rong Lixian.
But before the blade could pierce her, a villager shoved the girl aside. Rong Lixian, barely conscious, saw the scene unfold through the haze of pain and couldn't help but feel a faint sense of peace. At the very least, one of her kind deeds had not been in vain.
However, only seconds later—
Stab!
A blade pierced through her body without warning.
"This blood is mine! Get lost! Your father's already dead, he doesn't need it anymore!!"
"No! Back off! This thing's dying soon anyway. If I don't have this freak's blood, how am I supposed to go out and party with the girls?!"
"You're the one who should back off! I've still got plenty of men waiting for me. Move!"
"Screw all of you! I still need to buy a house for my wife!!!"
"AAAAARGH!!"
Rong Lixian's agonized scream echoed through the village. But before she could do anything, another blade drove into her throat.
Silence fell.
The villagers who once trembled in fear now wore expressions filled with greed. To them, her body was nothing more than a treasure trove waiting to be carved up.
A woman stepped out from the crowd, her voice trembling with excitement.
"The organs of this freak... must be worth a fortune!"
That one sentence lit the spark of greed in every heart.
High above, Han Ming stood silently in the sky, watching the scene with expressionless eyes. Not a trace of pity for Rong Lixian crossed his face. To him, this was simply the fate of a cruel world. There was no place for those who didn't understand their limits. He shook his head slightly and turned to leave.
But just as he turned—
Crack!
A sharp sound of snapping bone pierced through the madness of greed.
Slash!
One of the villagers dropped to the ground, his neck twisted by Rong Lixian's hand. In the next instant, she snatched the blade from his grip and began stabbing the others without hesitation!
Stab! Stab! Stab!
The sound of flesh being pierced rang out again and again. Screams erupted throughout the village.
"No! You monster, get away!!"
"AAARGHH! She's not dead!!"
"Stop! Stay back!!"
Rong Lixian's face was now soaked in blood. She had been stabbed countless times, yet it was as if she no longer felt any pain at all. The only thing left within her was a feral, frenzied instinct to survive.
Her blood dripped onto the ground, yet her body still moved. The villagers who had once feared her were now backing away in panic, but the greed that consumed them remained unshaken.
"Kill her! Take her blood!"
"Her heart will buy me a mansion!"
"You filthy thing! You've dirtied my silver with your mud!"
"I call dibs on her eyes!"
"Die! Just die already!"
The villagers surged forward, weapons in hand. Their eyes were red with madness, like demons crazed for blood.
And yet, Rong Lixian still stood in the middle of the mob. Her body trembled slightly, but then the corners of her lips curled into a crazed smile.
But just then, the sound of someone snapping their fingers echoed through the air.
Snap!
The bodies of all the villagers in that area split in half without warning. Blood sprayed in every direction in a gruesome display. Death claimed them all in an instant.
Standing amid the pool of blood, Rong Lixian stared blankly at the carnage. There was no emotion in her eyes. She didn't even care what had just happened to them. At that moment, everything within her had withered—faith, hope, everything.
A voice echoed from the sky above. "Do you still wish to live?"
She slowly raised her head and looked up at a man. His appearance was plain, his face unremarkable, but there was something about him that made it impossible to look away.
She spoke in a faint whisper. "You came here for my blood as well, didn't you?"
The man didn't answer her question. Instead, he asked another. "If I gave you the chance to live again, what kind of life would you want to live?"
Rong Lixian clenched her fists. Something surged within her. Her body trembled, and then she spoke in a weak but resolute voice. "I... I want to become stronger. I want power. I want to control my own life..."
Han Ming stared at her for a moment before finally speaking. "Then... would you like to become my disciple?"
Rong Lixian frowned. "Do you want my blood?"
Han Ming smiled faintly. "Of course. I want your blood."
Rong Lixian sneered. "Then don't even dream of it!"
She opened her mouth wide, ready to bite her own tongue and end her life on the spot. But in that instant, Han Ming moved ever so slightly. A tremendous force locked her body in place, rendering her completely immobile.
He chuckled softly. "Just kidding. I don't need your blood. But I'm serious. Do you want to be my disciple or not?"
Rong Lixian stared at him, eyes filled with suspicion. "Will you hurt me?"
Han Ming replied with unwavering certainty. "If you become my disciple, I will never harm you."
With those words, Han Ming extended his hand and began healing her wounds with spiritual energy.
...
...
Before long, her body returned to its normal state. Every wound, no matter how severe, was healed in an instant. Even the knives embedded in her flesh had fallen away. Tears welled in Rong Lixian's eyes once again, but this time, they were different. She felt something she had never experienced before.
She bit her lip hard, then slowly knelt down and bowed until her forehead touched the earth.
"Thank you, Elder, for saving my life!"
[Name: Rong Lixian]
[Age: 16]
[Identity: Villain of Fate, ???]
[Cultivation: Shattered]
[Special Body: Five-Clawed Golden Dragon Emperor Body (Seized) (Emperor Rank), Ancestral Dragon Bloodline (Seized) (Emperor Rank)]
[Potential: 10 Stars]
[Comprehension: 10 Stars]
[Fortune: Black]
[Loyalty: 50]
Han Ming smiled. He knew full well that Rong Lixian couldn't possibly trust him yet, not after everything she had been through. But that didn't matter.
"I have a small test for you."
With a flick of his wrist, a mysterious golden magic circle appeared, enveloping Rong Lixian's body in a radiant glow. A dimensional gate opened, and her body was pulled into it instantly.
Moments later, the gate opened once more. Rong Lixian reappeared before Han Ming, kneeling down with labored breaths, but her voice was firm.
"Disciple greets Master!"
The system's voice echoed into the stillness of the night.
[Congratulations to the Host for acquiring a second disciple! You have received 1 Disciple Recruitment Gift Box.]
Han Ming looked at her with approval.
"Very good."
He waved his hand lightly. A powerful barrier spread out, enveloping the entire area. The system was commanded to conceal all natural phenomena, preventing anyone from sensing the overwhelming power beginning to manifest in this place.
Han Ming looked down at his newly accepted disciple and gave a slight nod, speaking with a calm voice. "Open the gift box."
At that moment, the system's voice rang out again.
[Congratulations to the Host for obtaining: 1 Heavenly Dragon Reversal Pill (Emperor-grade healing pill), 1 Primordial Dragon Pearl (Great Emperor Weapon), and 1 Nine Worlds Golden Dragon Manual (Emperor-grade cultivation manual).]
Han Ming retrieved the pill bottle and handed it to Rong Lixian. "This is a basic healing pill. Consume it, and your recovery will accelerate."
Rong Lixian took the bottle and swallowed the pill without hesitation. A warm surge of power coursed through her body. Her torn meridians gradually mended, and her weakened muscles began to regain strength.
"Next, I will teach you the Nine Worlds Golden Dragon Manual. It is an unmatched Emperor-level technique. You must commit it to memory and use it to forge your own path."
Rong Lixian's eyes widened. Determination shone brightly in her gaze. She listened to every word Han Ming spoke as though they were divine commandments.
"Begin training."
After listening to Han Ming's explanation, she immediately entered a state of meditation. Dragon energy began to gather within her, and the meridians that had once been shattered by the loss of her power slowly began to regenerate. As time passed, a golden light radiated from Rong Lixian's body, and her strength surged in great leaps. However, Han Ming once again suppressed her cultivation just before it surged out of control, then opened his spatial ring.
"Take this."
He handed her the Heavenly Dragon Reversal Pill without hesitation.
"Thank you, Master."
Rong Lixian swallowed the pill, and in that moment, it felt as though her body was engulfed in divine dragon flames. An immense power burst forth, and a radiant golden dragon appeared behind her, letting out a thunderous roar that echoed across the entire mountain.
Her cultivation soared once more, but it too was sealed before breaking through the threshold.
Han Ming waved his hand, and a lustrous golden orb floated out from his palm. It was the Primordial Dragon Pearl, an ancient artifact infused with the bloodline of dragons from the age of the Dragon Gods.
"Drip your blood onto it. It will help you grow stronger, and in time, it will evolve alongside you."
Rong Lixian looked at the orb before her with trembling hands. Unbidden, tears streamed down her cheeks. She felt an inexplicable sense of closeness to it. "Master…"
She received it with a heart full of emotions she couldn't describe. It was the most precious gift she had ever been given in her life. She now understood, from this moment onward, the word weakness would no longer be part of her destiny.
The system, quietly observing the entire scene, fell into silence, a flood of doubts rising within it.
[…Huh? What kind of formation was that just now?? Why was her loyalty at 50 before entering, but after emerging, it shot up to 101? And it looks like the host slipped that Luck-Distortion Technique into the formation too… so that his disciples would train with it embedded… Ugh, forget it. Thinking about it makes my head hurt!!]