The loss of the crystalline sanctuary had forced An Fei to fall into unfavorable circumstances. The young girl glanced at her trembling hands and winced at the numbness that raced through her veins, but grit her teeth. Her brows knit in determination, she rushed towards the wooden cabin to fill an entire wineskin bag with water from the pond, ignoring Xu Lingxin’s surprised cries.
Before the sun collapsed for the day, An Fei had completed three trips into the Mourning Forest, in which she had prepared the necessary equipment. The young girl proudly gazed upon the simple bedding she had established on the soft and silky soil, and patted the numerous barrels piled into a small heap near the exit.
“This only works when I’m barely conscious – how twisted.”
An Fei snorted, but lay herself on the mattress and reached for the wine bag. After taking a light swig, the young girl felt the world before her sway and distort as the familiar torment of numbness rushed through her body. The crawling and prickling sensations of cold needles brushing against her skin and stabbing her internal organs caused An Fei to quickly flee into the mental visualization and occupying her mind at watching the golden kernel expand.
If she remained fully conscious, then it was impossible for her body to accumulate or gather the golden beads regardless of her pattern of breathing.
Yet, much to An Fei’s discomfort, the act of… cultivating seemed completely natural to her body after it was placed into a prolonged state of shock and disorientation. Once she had downed a sizeable amount of the glacial water and endured the torment of being ravaged from both sides by an inescapable chill, the rhombic crystal at her chest greedily accumulated the beads of golden light at a visible rate.
An entire wineskin’s amount of water resulted in the accumulation of a cube of golden light the size of her thumb’s nail, and the state of numbness lasted for just over an hour. Each barrel besides the mattress could sustain ten wine bags of water, and An Fei had prepared to stake out an entire week of constant delirium.
Despite Xu Lingxin’s naggings and protests, the young girl sunk herself into the depths of the Mourning Forest and refused to emerge until the entire week had passed. As such, the invasion and marches from the youthful cultivators seeking to temper their mind was largely ignored by An Fei as she witnessed the golden kernel breathe and expand to match the size of the rhombic crystal.
The more golden light swarmed and churned within the crystalline cage, the young girl noticed her physical capabilities recovering to their former limits. An Fei couldn’t discern the exact degree to which her body had recovered, but the pain in her chest accompanying each breath had diminished to a mild needle stabbing at the depths of her chest from the back-shattering blow a week prior.
Once the supply of eternally chilled water had run out, the young girl crawled out from the depths of the forest. The rhombic crystal at her chest completely inundated with the mysterious golden light, An Fei blinked and shielded her gaze upon abruptly exposing herself to light. The constant exposure to the intense cold temperature and darkness had caused her skin to yield a pale sheen, and the young girl fought hard to restrain the constant shivering of her body.
But it seemed to be worth the price.
Her breathing had evened from its previous periodic gasps, and An Fei rubbed at the sides of her temples to smooth the wrinkles that threatened to sink into her countenance. The young girl directed a pale glance towards the silent and tranquil forest, but wrinkled her lips at the disaster that had enveloped the exposed fringes.
The stampede of youthful cultivators had caused the originally smooth and silky soil to be reduced into a spectacular mess of trampled earth and upturned clumps, with residue of vomit and blood sprinkled across the craterous ruins. Her trail of wooden branches stabbed into the soil were surrounded by a battalion of circling footsteps, causing An Fei to clap her forehead and sigh over and over.
“Why are they even of the thought that these branches contain… Sword Intent?”
Xu Meilian was overly enthusiastic about the branches containing some strain of the flabbergasting and unrealistic ‘sword intent’, and the youthful cultivators seemed to share a similar sentiment. The young girl gathered her mind and left the Mourning Forest with a final shake of her head, only to be met by a painful slap… to her right cheek.
The rhombic crystal at her heart was completely flooded with golden light, but the <Steps of Underlying Shadow> failed to activate. The sheer strength of the blow caused An Fei to stagger back several steps and clutch at her right cheek, and hot tears filled the corners of her eyes.
“Elder Sister! What was that for –“
Pa!
The left cheek suffered a similar fate, and An Fei sank to a low crouch with both hands pressed against her face with tears streaming in thick rivulets. The young girl hissed and crooned in efforts to ignore the pain, and was faced with Xu Lingxin’s dark glower and pursed lips.
“Little. Sister. You seem rather fulfilled about yourself. Did you achieve great merit with your newfound steps on the path of cultivation?”
The young girl blinked in confusion and revealed an involuntary shiver as the celestial maiden’s countenance darkened an additional shade. Panic filled her mind as An Fei noticed her vision change from that of a beautiful countenance and the vast skies to the infinite and expansive earth, and her abdomen seemed to be pressed up against the delicate and springy thigh of a well-developed maiden –
“Huh!? Wait! Wait – Elder Sister, please wait –!”
Pa! Pa! Pa!
Three fleshy shockwaves racked her body, and An Fei’s pained cheeks flushed with great shame. The young girl struggled to escape Xu Lingxin’s iron grasp on her waist, yet the celestial maiden was adamant as her angered voice bashed the tips of her ears from above.
“You – a mere mortal – think you’re so great, ah? Elder Sister clearly told you to recuperate, but after just three lectures – no, not even lectures, just evening discussions – you believe that you can start the journey of cultivation!? Little Sister, you truly have the gall!”
With each growl, the slender palm swept through the air to land a solid strike against An Fei’s bottom. The young girl’s screeches of pain and begging cries for mercy caused a healthy smile to arise on He Xin’s usually stoic countenance, yet Xu Lingxin’s voice adopted an even harsher strain radiating anger and disappointment.
“This is the Mourning Forest – the Mourning Peak! Where do you think you are at, some rural mountain village at Great Yong? Open your eyes before you try some reckless actions before the cultivators of Bei Tang. You think everyone is kind and virtuous as your Elder Sister!?”
“Then where is this place, ah!?”
The constant strikes to her bottom caused a scorching heat to rise from her chest, and An Fei screamed at the top of her lungs. Her emotional cry contained along its anger a heavy shadow of loneliness and sorrow, yet the celestial maiden’s response caused her entire body to freeze.
“This is the Morning Star Temple! This is the capital city of Bei Tang, Chang-won! You, my dear Little Sister, greatly need to learn your place!”
For the remainder of Xu Lingxin’s thoroughly planned and executed punishment, An Fei remained mute and resembled a broken wooden doll, accepting without resistance. When the celestial maiden found herself convinced that the young girl had learned her lesson, she relented and allowed the latter free from her knee and palm.
“You truly believe that nobody noticed your rash attempts of swallowing down spiritual qi whilst in the depths of the Mourning Forest? Elder Sister could only downplay this issue by attempting to refine a baleful weapon looted from a cultivator of the Haunted Buddhist Sect,” Xu Lingxin revealed a bitter scowl.
“The ordinary disciples may not know of your presence, but the elders and Sect Leader are aware that a mortal girl from Great Yong resides on my Mourning Peak – nothing you do can conceal your identity, especially when your dialect greatly resembles that of Great Yong’s northern territories.”
The celestial maiden sighed and gazed towards the expansive skies, spreading her arms and embracing the vicious gale that roamed the Mourning Peak. With her hand latched onto An Fei’s frail arm, Xu Lingxin dragged the sore young girl towards the wooden cottage, where He Xin crouched kindling a fire underneath the cauldron.
“The Morning Star Temple can tolerate the existence of a mortal girl from Great Yong. However, once that mortal girl decides to cultivate – or even near that idea, the disciples, elders, and the entirety of Chang-won’s cultivators will seek your death. Remember that.”
The stern remark crashed into An Fei’s ears, and caused a stone to plunge into the depths of her heart. As the young girl clutched at her sore bottom and brooded over the matter with swollen cheeks, the trail of wooden sticks twinkled with a crimson gleam.
On the revealed end of each branch, displayed a faint inscription of a heavenly, scarlet dragon.
