“Lin… Qiu?” Wang Hantan’s face slowly broke into a malicious grin.
“Since you’re just an ordinary member of the Wang family, you should address me as Madam of the Wanjiangui Sect or Madam Sword Monarch.” Lin Jiu smiled with modesty. “Oh well, considering your young age, I’ll let this first offense slide.”
The moment the words dropped, a strand of malice seeped from Wang Hantan, joined by a few more from behind Lin Jiu, all flowing into the lotus petal. That beautiful petal, hovering between illusion and reality, gradually bloomed from eighty to ninety percent.
Lin Jiu glanced over her shoulder but couldn’t tell exactly which Wanjiangui disciples had emanated the malice. Yet her smile remained nonchalant—since her karma lotus required malice, she was destined to walk a path of infamy in this life.
Wang Hantan pulled a woman from the crowd—a strikingly beautiful woman with tired, dark circles under her eyes—and pointed at Lin Jiu with venom, “Jiao’er, look. Isn’t this ‘Madam’ of the Sword Monarch Wei Liang the very same Lin Qiu who, just days ago, was ready to join us and steal my favor from you?”
The woman pursed her lips and nodded.
Wang Hantan grinned, revealing a set of decaying teeth. “Tsk tsk, seems like someone has ascended and become a mighty phoenix, huh? The woman who merely days ago gifted me her undergarments is now clinging so tightly to the noble Wanjiangui! Incredible, truly incredible! I’d better not use that garment as a rag anymore—I should light incense and worship it instead!”
‘Here it comes, here it comes—the undergarments!’
“To tell the truth…” Lin Jiu let out a melancholy sigh. “To tell the truth, after my father passed away, my mother fell ill with grief, and her mind has become somewhat muddled. Those garments she’s been giving away are actually the stuff she has used in her youth. I’ve always heard that the Wang family has strong family morals, so I’m sure you wouldn’t have done anything improper with the garments. Please return them to the Qingyin Sect as soon as possible, or I might start to suspect that you had some inappropriate intentions toward my mother.”
She feigned wiping her eyes with her sleeve and continued, “As a daughter, I should take the blame and bear the shame on my mother’s behalf, but the current situation is still dire, with the devil threat remaining unresolved. Your Wang family is part of the righteous faction, yet instead of focusing on the greater good, you seem more intent on using me to stir up trouble with the Wanjiangui Sect. As much as it pains me, for the sake of the common people, I have no choice but to speak the truth! My father sacrificed his life to fight against the devils, and I believe he would understand my difficult situation. The entire Lin family is devoted to the welfare of the people—compared to the greater good, our personal reputations mean nothing!”
Lin Jiu wasn’t falsely accusing Zheng Ziyu. In the novel, Lin Qiu would later lay down her undergarments at Zheng Ziyu’s grave, claiming they had been her mother’s favorite.
Wang Hantan’s face twitched. He had always known Zheng Ziyu to be shameless, but this daughter of hers was even worse, surpassing her mother in brazenness. The most infuriating part was that, even though he knew Lin Jiu was spouting nonsense, there was nothing he could do about it.
“So,” Lin Jiu turned to Wang Hantan with a sincere expression, “surely you, the noble young master of the Wang family, wouldn’t have any improper thoughts about my mother, right? To defend my mother’s reputation, I’ll arrange for a few esteemed female elders to bear witness when you return the garments. However, in the case you’ve already done something indecent with them…”
She dramatically raised both hands to cover her face, feigning shock. “Then you’ll have no face left to show in public!”
This situation had been caused by Zheng Ziyu herself, and Lin Jiu of course felt no guilt when passing the blame—in fact, she was beyond thrilled!
Wang Hantan: “…”
“Shameful!” Wang Tianpo slapped his grandson. He, who had initially been waiting to enjoy Wei Liang’s humiliation, grew increasingly angry as the situation spiraled out of control. “What are you still standing here for? Go back and reflect on your behavior!”
The slap was heavy, causing Wang Hantan’s cheek to swell instantly. When he opened his mouth, four teeth fell out.
Wang Hantan suddenly looked up and stared at Lin Jiu, shooting her a venomous glare.
Lin Jiu watched with delight as the second petal of the karma lotus bloomed to its fullest beauty. A powerful surge of aura, even stronger than the previous one, erupted from her spiritual sea, surging through her meridians with tremendous force. The overwhelming aura crashed violently into her dantian, causing both her meridians and dantian to throb with unbearable pain.
For a moment, Lin Jiu felt as though she might explode. She instinctively turned to gaze at Wei Liang, who seemed to be lost in thought again. Whether it was her imagination or not, Lin Jiu thought she saw a trace of lingering killing intent in his eyes.
Feeling Lin Jiu’s eyes on him, Wei Liang quickly composed himself and moved closer, grabbing her shoulders. He then shifted his gaze towards Wang Tianpo, giving him a chilling look.
Wang Tianpo didn’t dare to stay any longer and quickly bowed before leaving.
The disciples of the Wanjiangui Sect wore complicated expressions as they watched Wei Liang help Lin Qiu to a wide white stone platform and form a hand seal to guide her advancement.
His voice was extremely steady and cold, guiding Lin Jiu through the process of forming her golden core, word by word. Lin Jiu, now able to have a complete look at the aura circulation within her body, gritted her teeth through the intense pain as she manipulated the surging aura to move in her meridians according to Wei Liang’s instruction.
Having been thoroughly strengthened by the Stalactite Spiritual Essence, her meridians were incredibly resilient, even glowing with a radiant seven-colored light. The circulating aura, drawn from the karma lotus in her spiritual sea, was exceptionally pure. However, for some reason, the two didn’t seem to be quite in sync. Upon closer inspection, she found faint, pinkish-transparent barriers in her meridians, causing the aura to move awkwardly, twisting and turning like a drunkard.
Gasping for breath, Lin Jiu opened her eyes and whispered to Wei Liang, “The Jade Heart Sutra is interfering with the flow of my aura. Is there any way to fix it?”
Wei Liang’s face remained cold as he leaned closer to her ear, his voice low and suggestive: “I like it… when your body is soft and pliable.”
Lin Jiu’s breath hitched.
Then Wei Liang straightened up, his face stern as ever as he said in all seriousness, “There is no turning back once your foundation has been set. You once strayed from the right path, and there’s no point in regretting it now. From now on, remember to be diligent and self-disciplined. Perhaps you can minimize the side effects.”
A few of the nearby Wanjiangui Sect disciples nodded silently, showing their respect and acknowledgment of his teachings.
Only Lin Jiu stared at him speechlessly, feeling like she had just gained new insights. ‘Is this really the so-called leader of the righteous faction? This guy’s nothing more than a beast in human clothing!’
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🤣🤣 shameless ML. I need the ML’s POV.