Slap! Slap! Slap!
The sound of whipping continuously echoed in the woods. Wei Wan knelt on the ground, body upright, wearing only undergarments, revealing large patches of skinâsnow white yet blood red.
She was already very familiar with this kind of punishment, knowing she must keep her body straight so that her father could more conveniently hit her entire body with the whip.
Otherwise, if her father got angrier, there would be more severe punishment.
Wei Wanâs face was expressionless, her body covered in a mix of old and new scars, blood dripping, a horrific sight.
But she didnât make a sound. This sort of physical pain she had endured for over twenty years, and no matter how painful, she had grown numb to it.
Yet the sting in her heart was more unbearable than the pain in her body.
After an incense stick burned down, when the God-piercing Whip dropped to the ground with a snap, indicating the end of her fatherâs punishment, Wei Wan slowly turned around. Looking at the back of her father still shown in the Light Curtain, she bent down, her forehead touching the ground.
"Father, I asked you last time if I really have biological parents... Can you tell me?"
"Ling!!"
The middle-aged man shouted angrily, "Where did you hear such words?! I raised you for over twenty years and taught you cultivation, yet you doubt Iâm your biological father?!"
Wei Wan lay on the ground, respectfully saying, "Father, please calm down, Iâm just... a bit curious about my mother."
"Havenât I told you? Your mother was killed by a Demonic Beast. What, you donât believe even my words now?"
Wei Wan hurriedly said, "Iâm sorry, Father."
"Ling, Iâm very disappointed in you. It seems the God-piercing Whip alone can no longer teach you."
The manâs voice grew colder, and from Wei Wanâs clothing flew out a brocade bag. As the bag opened, a stench immediately wafted out.
This was the Body-Burning Powder specially developed by Mo Sha to satisfy his perverted hobby.
Every time he captured a female cultivator and brought her back to Spirit Corpse Mountain, he would whip and torture her first before sprinkling Body-Burning Powder on her wounds.
Then heâd watch the womanâs painful wails and laugh heartily.
At this moment, that brocade bag contained Body-Burning Powder.
The middle-aged man controlled with precision from a great distance, opening the bag mouth, demonstrating the exquisite control only a Divinity Transformation Realm could achieve.
Wei Wanâs body trembled as fear finally appeared on her calm face.
When Body-Burning Powder is sprinkled on a wound, it prevents the wound from healing for a long time, causing lingering pain akin to being cut to pieces.
Wei Wan had been tortured like this by Mo Sha several times at Spirit Corpse Mountain, and the pain was indeed terrifying.
"Father..."
Wei Wanâs voice carried a hint of pleading.
"Donât move!"
The manâs voice was icy, devoid of emotion.
Wei Wan dared not move, watching as the brocade bag approached her face, tilting, stinking powder falling, seeping into her bloodied wounds.
"Ah!!"
The next moment, Wei Wan fell to the ground, screaming and rolling, her smooth forehead veined, her normally gentle and graceful face twisted.
"If you dare to doubt my nurturing grace again, I will heighten the punishment!"
"Ah!! Yes... Father, I, I was wrong... Ah!!"
Wei Wan screamed miserably, her body twisting like a dying small beast, yet still apologizing to her father.
Only, in her eyes turned away from the man, there was deep disappointment and confusion.
That man is really not my father.
He has always been lying to me.
Where is my father?
Soon, the Light Curtain vanished.
The room left only Wei Wan, curled up on the ground, clutching her arms, trembling all over.
Her lips bit until they bled.
The effects of the Body-Burning Powder would last several two-hours, and at this moment, Wei Wan didnât even have the strength to scream.
She struggled to get up, staggered out of the woods, and walked toward her small courtyard.
Not long after Wei Wan left, a woman dressed in black, her face under a black veil, walked slowly out, stepping on the ground stained with fresh blood from Wei Wanâs earlier flogging.
The woman took out a bead identical to Wei Wanâs, which emitted a glow, forming a Light Curtain just like before.
In the Light Curtain was the image of a huge cavern, a waterfall cascading from the cave ceiling, with a middle-aged man facing the waterfall, sitting cross-legged, back to the woman before the Light Curtain.
This scene was identical to when Wei Wan contacted "Father" just now!
The middle-aged man slowly spoke: "Daughter, your sister let me down."
The woman laughed, her voice crisp yet carrying a chilling intent:
"Daddy, sheâs not my sister at all, sheâs just a dog you adopted, did you really hold any expectations for her?"
The middle-aged manâs tone was wholly different from the way he spoke to Wei Wan, full of affection:
"Haha, rightly said. Ling is not my own, her talent and scheming are not like yours, must have been hard on you these years suppressing your cultivation and enduring humiliation."
The woman smiled and said, "As long as I can help Father, I can do anything."
The middle-aged man said, "Ling hasnât been as obedient lately, keep an eye on her. It seems someone who shouldnât be on Zhenyang Mountain has arrived."
"Yes, Father." The woman agreed, then inquired:
"If she finds out about her lineage, she surely wonât listen to you anymore. Do we still keep her?"
The man said indifferently, "If thatâs really the case, then kill her, do it cleanly, and blame it on Cyan Lotus Sect."
"Understood, Father. Recently, Tantai Mingyue will select disciples to go to the South Demon territory to investigate the deaths of Shi Shuhong and Wei Shouyuan. If Wei Wan has disloyal intentions, it is the perfect opportunity to have her die on Cyan Lotus Mountain."
...
Wei Wan returned to her small courtyard, entered the house, and sat at the bedside in a daze.
At this moment, faint footsteps and barely restrained panting could be heard in the courtyard outside the door.
Wei Wanâs eyes flickered, and the coat she had just taken off flew back over her body, covering the fresh blood and scars.
A moment later, the door was gently pushed open, and a woman dressed as a maid quietly came in, a dagger gleaming in her hand.
She approached the bedside, raised the dagger, and stabbed down fiercely.
But it was caught by five cold fingers, the Everlasting Lamp in the room suddenly lit up, revealing a plain-looking, yet hate-filled face.
"Xiaowu?"
Wei Wan frowned slightly, looking at the maid full of resentment, and asked:
"Why are you trying to kill me?"
Cloud Bambooâs face was full of tears, her voice sharp: "You killed my father, I want revenge!"
She strained to try to plunge the dagger down, but she had no cultivation, and was no match for Wei Wan.
With a light push from Wei Wan, Cloud Bamboo fell to the ground, glaring at Wei Wan:
"Kill me!"
Ever since learning Wei Wan was Ling, whenever Cloud Bamboo closed her eyes, she was confronted by her deceased father and clansmen questioning her, all knowing who the enemy was, why was she not daring to avenge?
Are you afraid of death?
We are all dead, you live alone in the world, yet you dare not avenge us!
Are you still from Cloud Bamboo Mountain?
Tonight, Cloud Bamboo couldnât suppress the flames within her heart anymore.
Taking advantage of the deep night, she snuck into Wei Wanâs room.
She knew she wouldnât succeed, but if she died just like that, it might be a relief for her.
Now indeed she was subdued by Wei Wan, but what of it?
All her loved ones were gone, living alone in this world held no meaning anymore.