Shao Lei sat on a table, between a decrepit old man wearing strange, wooden sandals and a strikingly handsome young man with crimson hair. She wasn’t aware of what was happening.

What she did know, however, was that she wasn’t dead. After watching Wu Shan win decisively and seeing how his strength had soared since the last time they crossed fists, it was only natural that she fell into some despair and left the Gala on her way to the inn.

Then, they ambushed her. The first hit landed with no resistance and that was it. She wasn’t in any pain at all because there was no point in her body that she could even feel. The blackout came mercifully swiftly, and that was it. Death…

…or at least, that’s what she thought.

“Is there any point in your body that you can’t feel?” Asked the handsome young man. She looked at him blankly before shaking her head weakly. “Any pains or discomforts?”

Again, she shook her head in denial.

“See? I knew you’d do well. You’re truly gifted, Yi Ming,” the old man cackled, stroking his beard as he surveyed her. Shao Lei was too depressive to really resist. Little mattered at the moment, anyhow. Not since her Dao Pillars were eaten whole by a gluttonous parasite.

“Why didn’t you let me die?” Shao Lei croaked, resisting the temptation to break down. Yi Ming simply sighed.

“Wow, junior brother Lao Chen. Even when you think you’re doing people favours, they seem to disagree,” Yi Ming chuckled. Lao Chen shook his head.

“What’s the matter, young lady? Is someone after you?” He asked. Shao Lei shook her head. “The handsome man over there is the Blood Dragon Patriarch. He could erase any problems that you might have.”

Yi Ming chuckled nervously as Shao Lei’s eyes widened comically. The Blood Dragon Patriarch healed her? For what reason?

“Junior Brother, you’re much too blunt. Shao Lei is most likely in despair due to a lack of cultivation base,” Yi Ming chuckled ruefully. “Though I don’t see why that should be enough to have you take your own life.”

Lao Chen stroked his beard. “Especially due to recent… developments. Introspect a little, young lady,” Lao Chen advised. Shao Lei didn’t have to be told twice as she assumed a lotus position and swam inwards, towards her dantian.

There, the wretched Cloud Dragon rested, but within its coils was a large egg. Inside the egg, unbridled concentrations of high-purity Qi rested. In her excitement, she was jolted out of her introspection as she began to smile.

“I can feel the Qi equivalent,” Lao Chen began “of a hundred and eight Dao Pillars, condensed into almost the highest purity. When that egg hatches, you will be thrust directly into Core Formation Stage, and by the looks of it, it will hatch any time within this week. You have truly treated this dragon to a feast, allowing it to eat your Dao Pillars so magnanimously,” Lao Chen chuckled.

“And I’ll have to thank you personally for providing me with useful data on visceral organs and the nervous system, particularly the spinal cord. Thanks to you, I cleared another Heavenly Meridian.”

Shao Lei didn’t know what to feel about any of this. Her future wasn’t over. It was just beginning, and hers would be a story throughout the ages. She wasn’t done. She had just began.

“Hoh, eager to get going, are we?” Lao Chen chuckled. “Well, I cannot, under good conscience, allow you to walk about knowing that you may get accosted yet again. Remember, you still do have enemies.”

She frowned, knowing it to be true. “B-but… I can’t burden both you masters any longer,” she confessed. “I owe the both of you too much.”

“Nonsense,” Yi Ming scoffed. “If it’s anyone that owes me, it’s your master, Nan Liu. If it is anyone that can grant me something that could possibly interest me, it’s her.”

Shao Lei shook her head. “I do owe the both of you, and I won’t let anyone take that from me. Whether it’s tomorrow, in ten years or a hundred years, I will repay the equivalent of what I owe.”

Lao Chen smiled warmly. “A tough exterior that hides a kind soul,” he murmured. His smile fell as he became melancholic. “It’s sad that in this world, kind souls are so easily obliterated. But, I saved yours from an untimely death which obligates me into action.”

Lao Chen closed his eyes and clamped his hands together, summoning a girl that looked to be the same age as Shao Lei, albeit with golden hair and strange eyes.

“Lin-Lin,” Lao Chen smiled. Lin-Lin looked up at him.

“Yes, father?”

“Meet Shao Lei,” he gestured towards her. The girl’s gaze fell on her, surveying her intently.

“Ah… I recall you. You fought and lost against Wu Shan,” Lin-Lin crossed her arms while Shao Lei grimaced. “You fought well, however. Though… I can’t help but notice that you don’t seem to have a cultivation base.”

Before Shao Lei could explain, Lao Chen continued. “As you can tell, she is defenceless for the time being, and she has a multitude of enemies who’d see her dead. As such, I want to ask you to take care of her.”

Lin-Lin blinked a few times before staring into her dantian. The moment she saw it, she started a little. “Is-is that a dragon?”

Shao Lei smiled sheepishly. “Long story.”

“Well,” Lin-Lin smiled. “It wouldn’t be a problem to take care of her.”

“Great!” Lao Chen clapped his hands. “Have fun with your playmate.”

--

A girl and a Nascent Soul ate their fill of lunch in the Water Lily Pavilion in a rather unpopulated corner of the luxurious hang-out. Lin-Lin didn’t actually have to eat, but there was a certain charm in tasting expensive foods that Lin-Lin wasn’t above partaking in.

Shao Lei ate her food slowly; looking over her shoulder every third bite like it was going to be her last.

“There’s nothing to fear if I’m here,” Lin-Lin took notice and attempted to comfort her, much to her embarrassment. Her cheeks flushed as she shook her head.

“I’m needlessly tense…” She admitted. “I just feel so… helpless without my cultivation base.”

“Hmm…” Lin-Lin hummed. “I have honestly no idea how that feels. Being weak, that is.”

Shao Lei frowned. “It’s because Senior Lao Chen is such a strong character, isn’t it?”

Lin-Lin shook her head. “Well, while father does mind my well-being, my personal prowess have always been slightly inferior to him since birth. After all, as his Nascent Soul, we share a bond.”

Shao Lei raised an eyebrow. “You expect me to believe that I’ve been dining with a Nascent Soul?”

Lin-Lin frowned before smiling brightly. “I do seem human, don’t I? On a scale of one to ten, how human do I seem?”

Shao Lei raised an eyebrow. “Ten, pretty much. Aside from the weird eyes, you’re pretty human.”

Lin-Lin’s smile widened as tears rolled down her cheeks. “Really?”

Shao Lei’s eyes widened. “Whoa… are you truly a Nascent Soul?”

Lin-Lin nodded. “Well… yeah. My father created me to have free will and intelligence matching a human… but the fact that I resemble a human so much to have fooled you…”

Shao Lei waved her hand. “Nobody would assume you to be a Nascent Soul the moment they see you. Absolutely nobody.”

“Thank you, Shao Lei. Can we be friends?”

Shao Lei frowned. “We’re already friends, aren’t we?”

Lin-Lin nodded. “Right.”

“Now… exactly how strong are you?”

“Well… in my base form, I am equivalent to a Core Formation expert of the final stage, and in addition, my Qi is 100% pure. If I borrow strength from father, I am equivalent to a Dao Seeker.”

“Whoa… that’s amazing! Why didn’t you say so from the start! And here I thought you were just another Foundation Establishment genius,” Shao Lei’s shoulders slumped in relief.

“Well, well, well! Look who it is!”

Shao Lei immediately tensed, looking towards Lin-Lin pleadingly, mouthing a ‘do something.’

Lin-Lin smiled. “Greetings, Zhang He.” Shao Lei whipped her head backwards, only to see Zhang He, the cocky bastard.

Shao Lei gasped. “You know him? He knows you?”

“Ah!” Zhang He exclaimed. “Is that Shao Lei? You two know each other?”

“My father entrusted her safety to me,” Lin-Lin nodded.

“Her safety? I’m pretty sure she could handle herself, Lin-Lin,” pulling a chair from a nearby empty table, Zhang He sat next to Lin-Lin.

Shao Lei felt awkward watching what was happening. “Lin-Lin was just joking a little. No one’s safety is entrusted to anyone around here.”

“Hahah, this beautiful flower of mine isn’t fit for the battlefield, are you Lin-Lin?”

Shao Lei frowned. “What?”

Lin-Lin sighed. “Zhang He. I haven’t been completely honest with you. There’s something that I’ve wanted to say since I first met you.”

Zhang He smiled. “What is it? Pray tell.”

“I don’t-”

“Lin-Lin!” A voice shouted behind her. She recognized the voice.

Wu Shan. Lin-Lin could only wince.

“That bastard knows you?” Shao Lei shouted.

Zhang He stood up abruptly, glaring daggers at Wu Shan. “How dare you speak the name of my love?”

Wu Shan grimaced in disgust. “Your love? She’s my sister!”

“Sister?” Yelled both Zhang He and Shao Lei in disbelief.

“Lin-Lin, is it what it looks like?” Wu Shan asked pleadingly before pointing an accusing finger at Zhang He. “That is not cool! How do you go out with someone’s sister without even telling them?!”

“How should I have known? Lin-Lin barely tells me anything!”

“People. Please calm down,” Lin-Lin attempted.

“Lin-Lin, how come you never told me he was your brother?” Zhang He croaked.

“Lin-Lin, how come you never told me you were seeing someone?” Wu Shan pleaded.

“And how come you never told me you were related to this bastard?” Shao Lei fumed.

“People, please calm down, I’ll explain!” Lin-Lin covered her face with her hands, not wanting to meet the gazes of anyone present.

“You all seem to have a problem with each other, so I assumed that if I kept my relationships with you people a secret, nobody would get hurt.”

“That worked just wonderfully, didn’t it?” Shao Lei scoffed.

“I’m sorry,” Lin-Lin smiled forlornly. “Zhang He. I’d like to speak to you. In private, of course. Wu Shan, watch Shao Lei.”

Wu Shan looked at Shao Lei incredulously as Lin-Lin left the table with Zhang He in tow.

“What did she mean by watch you?” Wu Shan asked as he took a seat opposite Shao Lei. All she got in reply was a hateful glare.

“Okay, then.” Wu Shan tapped the table and grabbed the nearest glass of wine which belonged to Lin-Lin and took a sip before chuckling. “You let Lin-Lin order wine? She’s way too young for that.”

Shao Lei still glared.

Wu Shan scratched the back of his head sheepishly. “The Water Lily Pavilion, huh? Seems you’ve got good taste in places to hang out. How did you get to know Lin-Lin?”

Shao Lei refused to answer, instead opting to just ignore him.

Wu Shan frowned. “Do you hate me because I defeated you?”

“Uh, what if I do?” Shao Lei retorted.

“Uh, because it’s childish!” Wu Shan shot back. “What’s the point in hating people that defeat you? Did I wrong you by being better than you?”

“Shut your goddamn mouth, bastard,” Shao Lei seethed in unbridled rage. Wu Shan blinked before taking a deep breath and letting it out again.

“Small wonder they call you the ‘Bipolar Princess’,” Wu Shan muttered, but Shao Lei banged the table with her fist.

“Say that again, bastard.”

“Or what? You beat me?”

Shao Lei remained quiet.

“You know,” began Wu Shan. “That time when I purified my meridians of your contamination, I can honestly say that I had never been in more pain than that time. But I don’t hate you.”

“Why should that matter? If I hate you, I hate you. There’s nothing you can do to change that.”

“All I’m asking is ‘why?’” Wu Shan pleaded. “I do have a conscience, and if I did something to really hurt you, I should know.”

Shao Lei thought back to her interactions with him. The alleyway and the arena were the sum-total of the times they had seen each other, and in total, he had only uttered two sentences to her, and she hadn’t spoken to him at all before then.

She was being obstinate. She knew that. She didn’t really care, though.

“Both you and Zhang He get awesome nicknames while mine is a double-insult. Why should I have it worse than the both of you?”

Wu Shan frowned. “I didn’t come up with the nickname. People just did, and from what I’m hearing, you beat up a whole lot of people to get your nickname. You’re no saint, Shao Lei.”

Shao Lei sputtered. “At least I give my enemies face when I fight them. Single exchange beat downs won’t earn you any allies, Wu Shan.”

“Neither will pointless bar-fights and verbal sparring.”

“Shut up.”

“You shut up,” Wu Shan crossed his arms. “The only reason I haven’t left yet is because Lin-Lin told me to watch you for whatever reason, and I fear Lin-Lin’s wrath much more than you.”

Shao Lei didn’t retort. Instead, she grabbed a glass of wine and sipped it slowly. Ever since her loss of cultivation base, things became much more difficult for her. Her food intake was limited, she would get drunk after just one bottle of wine, and she had to visit the bathroom at least thrice a day, which was already a major inconvenience.

Being mortal really sucked.

“Whoa! If it isn’t the ‘Bipolar Princess’ herself!” someone jeered loudly behind Shao Lei. Wu Shan stood up.

“If you don’t want any trouble, leave now,” Wu Shan threatened. Behind Shao Lei was a group of almost fifty cultivators. The patrons had already left to avoid getting caught in the scuffle.

“What is ‘storm fist’ doing here?” Someone asked. The man in the middle shushed them down as he smiled deceivingly.

“Storm Fist won’t matter. If Shao Lei is a paper tiger that made my junior brothers lose face, then who’s to say that ‘Storm Fist’ isn’t a phony either? Besides, we’ve got my elder brother with us,” he sneered, presenting a rather short cultivator with a devilish smile.

“’Storm Fist’ will matter because we’re no paper tigers,” Wu Shan barked. “Now get out of here, or I’ll just have to defeat all of you.”

“Try us,” the leader chuckled.

Wu Shan activated the Mind Rending technique, effectively knocking out a quarter of the cultivators present, while terrifying half those remaining into immobility. The leader frowned. “A mind technique?”

“Listen. We could talk it out and come to an agreement where both parties concerned apologize to each other over their perceived loss of face,” Wu Shan smiled. “Or we could just fight it out.”

The short cultivator appeared right in front of Wu Shan, punching the unprepared youth in the stomach, sending him flying into the wall.

“Or,” the leader proposed. “You could disappear and let us handle our business-“

The leader was blown back by a fist-sized Phoenix Bomb finding its way towards him sending him crashing through the roof, and far out of the premises. The remaining cultivators ran out of the pavilion promptly.

Wu Shan pushed himself out of the wall and glared at the short cultivator.

“You’re a core formation expert? What the hell are you doing wasting your time taking revenge for someone a whole stage below you? Are you just bored?”

The man just laughed. “I am bored, actually. I don’t give two flying shits about face. When there’s a chance to lord my strength over children, I’ll take it.”

“Then,” a voice reverberated around the room as the short cultivator crashed onto the floor as though gravity magnified itself. “You won’t feel indignant if someone like me were to lord their strength over you? Would you, now, Core. Formation. Expert?”

Lin-Lin appeared out of thin air, floating above the downed expert.

“A million apologies! Please forgive this lowly one!”

Lin-Lin eased her aura, letting the short cultivator stand up. “My father is a merciful man, but I find no reason why I shouldn’t destroy your Core and halt your cultivation indefinitely. Give me a reason why I shouldn’t, in twenty seconds or less.”

The Core Formation expert began to blabber incoherently, just muttering ‘please’s and ‘don’t’s and ‘I’m begging you’s. Lin-Lin frowned.

“Twenty seconds are up. Does the sum-total of the justification of your actions amount to mindless pleading? I really should cripple your cultivation.”

Lin-Lin levitated the man using sheer Qi, immobilizing him. Just as her hand was to shoot out, Wu Shan stepped between them.

“Father wouldn’t approve of this,” Wu Shan murmured.

Lin-Lin sighed, but nonetheless released her hold on the man, letting him run off.

Shao Lei, meanwhile, was still seated, clapping her hands. “Lin-Lin, wonderful performance. I give you a ten out of ten!”

“What about me?” Wu Shan asked.

“Since you couldn’t beat shortie, -2/10”

“Negative two?!”