Chapter 24: Sorcery! He uses sorcery!

He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and spat out bitterly:

"The more they bully me like this, the more it proves they are merely cowards putting on a brave front. I refuse to believe that in broad daylight, they would dare to beat me to death!"

"Thirty years on the east bank, thirty years on the west; never bully a young man because he is poor! As long as I, Xu Ze, have a breath left, the day will come when I return everything I have suffered today to them tenfold!"

Huh?

Su Yi listened, utterly bewildered, unable to fathom the thought process of this "Child of Destiny."

If you already know he has connections within the Xianxia Sect, why on earth did you join it? Are you a masochist? Wouldn't it be better to join a different immortal sect?

If you had chosen elsewhere, you could have developed steadily, kept a low profile, and avoided the risk of being targeted by powerful enemies. Once you had grown strong enough, you could easily crush them with all the tropes a Child of Destiny enjoys—why insist on coming here to be abused?

Even becoming a rogue cultivator would be better than suffering like this; many such cultivators with great destiny eventually rose to power and dominated their regions. Given that he is a Child of Destiny, his opportunities surely wouldn't have been lacking...

And now that he has joined this so-called Xianxia Sect, he’s spouting nonsense about "thirty years on the east and west banks." If someone were to hear that, they might laugh it off, but if someone like Zhao Zijing took it seriously, he could just pull a dirty trick the next day, collude with an elder, and have your head twisted off to be used as a chamber pot. Thirty years? Three years would be a luxury...

Of course, as much as Su Yi wanted to mock him, he couldn't be bothered to advise him.

He is a Child of Destiny, after all. If his thought process were the same as a normal person like him, would he still be a Child of Destiny? If that were the case, Children of Destiny would be as common as dirt...

Inside the Xianxia Sect.
Outer Sect.

"Reporting to the Elder, the assignments for the new batch of servants have been arranged. Please review them."

Inside the grand hall, an elder wearing a green robe and a lotus-shaped crown sat in the seat of honor. Standing below him was a middle-aged man dressed in the robes of an Outer Sect deacon.

As he spoke, the middle-aged man respectfully presented a small booklet to the elder.

The elder nodded and began to leaf through the booklet. A moment later, he frowned and closed it.

"Assign that disciple named Zhang Yi to the medicinal fields, and have Zhao Zijing tend to the spirit beasts. Everything else remains the same."

The middle-aged man was stunned, a murmur of confusion rising in his heart.

The medicinal fields were a plum assignment; not only was the work light and leisurely, but the location was rich in spiritual energy, making cultivation much easier than anywhere else. It was far superior to chopping wood or stoking fires.

He hadn't expected Mo Shenglin, an Outer Sect elder known for his iron-clad impartiality, to personally suggest placing Zhang Yi in such a prime position. It was truly bizarre.

Could it be that this Zhang Yi also had connections in the Inner Sect?

Although he had his doubts, he certainly wouldn't dare ask.

***

Though surprised, he could not refuse his superior's command. He took the booklet, crossed out "Zhao Zijing" from the list, and wrote in "Zhang Yi."

Elder Chi from the Inner Sect had approached him privately, intending for him to move Zhao Zijing to the medicinal garden, but a present official is better than a distant one. Since Mo Shenglin, his direct superior, had spoken, he had no choice but to comply, no matter how unwilling he felt.

After finishing this, the man took his leave.

Once the man had gone, Mo Shenglin closed his eyes to practice breathing exercises, and the surrounding spiritual energy began to converge toward him.

However, his meditation was soon interrupted by a commotion.

Outside, a group of Outer Sect disciples was carrying something covered by a black cloth, which vaguely revealed the silhouette of a human figure.

What was this about?

As Mo Shenglin wondered, the disciples, seeing his keen gaze, rushed forward to set the object down. They immediately pulled back the black cloth, revealing Zhao Zijing’s flushed, distorted face.

Because of his rage and panic, Zhao Zijing’s face had turned the color of liver.

Elder Mo was startled.

"What has happened to you? Why are you kneeling before me? Get up!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Zijing felt even more infuriated. The grievances and humiliation he had suffered surged up, and he could no longer hold back his tears.

"Ah! Elder Mo, you must seek justice for me! That Zhang Yi practices evil arts! He used an evil technique on me, poisoning me to this state... Waaaah..."

The thought of having to face others with this appearance caused his mental state to collapse.

The men had carried him back to his dormitory, but after waiting for a while, he hadn't improved. Instead, his legs felt increasingly useless, as if he were paralyzed.

In his desperation, he had thought of Elder Mo. Fearing he would be seen on the way, he had covered himself with that black cloth. While it looked like he was carrying a corpse, which was terribly ominous, he didn't care.

*Zhang Yi, I will not let you off!*

Elder Mo frowned upon hearing this. He had been pondering matters, and Zhao Zijing's wailing and sniveling annoyed him. He waved a large hand.

"What evil arts? You are a grown man; what kind of spectacle is this, weeping and wailing!"

Stung by the shout, Zhao Zijing stifled his cries, but they turned into ragged sobs, making him look like a wronged young bride. The Outer Sect disciples nearby couldn't help but cover their mouths to stifle their laughter.

"Let me take a look!"

Mo Shenglin frowned and stepped forward, grabbing his wrist. With a surge of true energy into the body, everything within Zhao Zijing was laid bare.

Soon, he found the source of the problem. His brow relaxed, and he couldn't help but scold.

"Nonsense! What evil art? You junior, you are full of lies! This is clearly nothing more than a simple technique of dislocating joints and grasping. To call it an evil art—even if left alone, it would have healed on its own in a few days!"

***

After speaking, Mo Shenglin circulated his true energy, coursing through Zhao Zijing’s body to realign his dislocated meridians and unblock his obstructed acupoints.

As the last obstacle vanished, Zhao Zijing went limp, collapsing to the floor and gasping for air.

Once he had recovered slightly, Zhao Zijing hurriedly scrambled up to bow.

"Thank you, Elder, for your grace in saving me. That Zhang Yi is truly overbearing. Without a word, he slapped me, and you don't know, later he..."

Before he could finish, Mo Shenglin waved his hand, his tone filled with stern admonition.

"If you are healed, then leave! Why are you still here? In the future, do not be so rash and speak without thinking. If I catch you slandering a fellow disciple again, I will certainly not show you leniency!"

With that, he swung his large sleeves, clasped his hands behind his back, and walked into the hall without looking back.

Seeing this, Zhao Zijing dared not argue. He could only bow respectfully and answer timidly.

"Yes... disciple takes his leave."

He then led the group of Outer Sect disciples away in disgrace.

Once they were some distance away, one of the disciples leaned in and asked, "Young Master Zijing, what do we do now?"

Zhao Zijing gritted his teeth.

"This will not end like this!"

A look of hatred flashed in his eyes as he made a decision.

"I am going to the Inner Sect now to ask my cousin to intervene. I must make this guy surnamed Zhang pay!"

"This is far from over!"

He took two steps forward, then paused, suddenly remembering something.

"By the way, bring that woman, Luo Xiaojia, to my room later..."