He woke up, dirty, full of ooze that smelled badly, with pain all over his body, and no clothes, only rags remained. He looked around, the semicircle was gone, the cup and dagger too, only his master was observing him, with her cane in hand, and a blank face.
He rubbed his eyes, having a intense desire to sleep, but couldn't, now he needed to see what are the changes, what his dear master did to him through the ritual, because it's clearly, she did something.
Looking inward, in his dantian, the qi colour changed, no longer dark red but a violet, with just tinges of red floating through it. Then a cold feeling embraced him, his body was cold, his touch cold.
His skin colour lost it's lively nuance, it was a sickly white, resembling not pure snow, but a white alien and foreign.
His mouth fell open, there was a huge centipede on his body, inked in, though that's not exactly the word he would use, it was now part of his body, qi coursing through it, he shouted, "What is it? What did you do to me?"
A smile slowly crept up, and said, "Nothing sweet disciple, just made you compatible with the cultivation technique, that's why your progress came to a glacial halt, your body just couldn't convert the resentful energy into the technique qi, now, you can, and will progress much faster."
He again starred at the centipede on his body, and said, "I got that, okay, why is this centipede on my body!"
A bleak wave of qi assulted him, powerful enough to make him hit the ground, Huo Wen, raising her voice, said, "Don't shout me, know your place disciple, you should never raise your voice at your master. Never. About the centipede, everyone can cultivate, it's just that humans are the perfect form to integrate the dao and qi into their bodies, the other beings have other advantages, like having innate abilities, or a denser qi, what would happened if you integrate that part with the human body? Well, here's your answer."
He didn't get up, laying on the ground, he thought long about his new situation, his new body, because It felt foreign, not his, yes, he was more powerful now, but he isn't a normal human anymore, or is he a human?
Huo Wen approached him, giving him a hand, and then gently raising him up, she said, "Sweet disciple, it's not worth to think of what you lost, but what you have gained, you gained way much, a powerful body, a bloodline even, and with time, abilities found in the Purple Centipede, just think, no one will be able to stay in your path."
He sulked, it's not that he cared that much about being a complete human, just how much he would end up sacrificing for power and freedom, would he be even able to break free from this master of his?
She cleared his body with her qi, her control over qi amazed Ding Xiu, his master had an absolute control over her qi, like she had over him, for now.
Then gave him a black robe with red hems, saying, "It's an enchanted item, no wind, or water, or fire would be able to destroy it."
It was comfortable, after the qi bath, he felt fresh, and new, new in more ways than one, yet, from when he became that comfortable with his master, why he isn't affected that much by the ritual. What he lost in that ritual?
He steeled his will, and promised to himself to never eat a human, or to drink a human blood ever again, if he breaks his promise, may Heavens strike him down. A sudden shock, then a mark was left on his body, he didn't say that to his master.
It was clear though, Heavens heard him, and now he will die if he ever broke his promise, a hanging sword over his head, it's better this way, better dead than to embrace entirely the nature of his master.
Because it's clear, he will be forced to go deeper and deeper into the demonic cultivation practices, refining people, souls, killing and consuming qi from then, and he can no longer dilly dally around.
He needs to be stronger, otherwise, he will forever remain under his master, a slave to her whims and desires, a toy for her to vent her frustrations and anger on.
He would just never eat humans or drink blood, that's a complete no from his, what would differentiate him from a beast, an animal, at least they do it for hunger, he for what? For power, when there are other ways to get that power.
His master took a sword, it was a simple, straight, with two edges, nothing elegant or pretty about it.
She thrown It at him, piercing the ground right next to his feet, and said, "You will learn sword fight, and how to fly with a sword, it's mandatory for cultivators to be able to do so, and no righty scum will ever dare to call me a failure as a master."
He took the sword, it was weird in his hands, he used sticks, makeshift spears, stones, and even a bow, but never a sword, it was expensive and only rich people could afford to have one, swinging it softly through the air, he looked curiously at the afterimages left.
Holding with both of his hand, he had again that stray thought of attacking his master, and maybe one In a million and he kills her, shaking his head, he focused on the crumbling pagoda and asked, "Why we did the ritual here, especially next to that pagoda?"
She tapped the ground with her cane, and turned at the pagoda, saying, "It was a sect headquarters, the most powerful sect in this region, and the only one who gave me some headaches, still, in the end, they ended up consumed. The negative qi built up here is strong, impressively strong, and would be your last challenge till you reach Golden Core, if you can climb up to the top, you will be officially my disciple, if not, you die here."
He perked at her words, again Golden Core, why does she wants him to reach that rank as fast as possible, does she plan something? The very thing of becoming her disciple, is suspect in itself, he doesn't know yet enough information to make guesses, but she got him for something, and he wants to know that before getting in the pot.
Holding the cane like a sword, she said, "Now, it's time for you to learn how to fight, come at me with every bit of killing intent, it will hurt. For you."
He didn't need to be said again, at least he will vent all the energy he had bolted down till this moment, a horizontal swing, that she evaded with ease.
A cane to his legs, and he fell down, she laughed, saying, "How much time did you spent in wildness? Because your reactions are severely lacking, poor disciple needs to be taught the very basics, make sure you hear this, when the attack is coming, you evade. Evade, got it?"
He ignored her snides comments, and got up, dusting off his new clothes, and doing a basic slash.
She stopped the attack midway, coiling around the sword, and striking back, at his shoulder, and a flurry of pain embracing him, another hit, another one.
The attacks were undetectable, she continued to laugh. Desperately, he tried to block them, to no avail.
He couldn't say to stop, she will not do it anyway, gripping his sword as hard as he could, he thrust, the tip barely touching her clothes, she moved the sword with her hand and said, "Good, good, don't lose your calm in fight, losing it means death, it's painful, yes, infuriating, yes, just a moment of carelessness and there it ends."
The training continued, what was there to fight, it will take decades or who knows how much time for him to reach her level, her attacks were vicious, as a hit to his head, made him momentarily lose his thoughts.
The sword was chipped, that cane was unbreakable, tired, bloody, and perplexed at the lack of improvement, he dropped down, and started cultivating, a moment of pause and the sole way he can keep the dread of his master at bay.
The qi absorption was growing, and growing, flooding his veins and dantian, the mist devouring and getting denser and larger.
Huo Wen turned her attention to him, and put a hand on his shoulder, directing her qi into his dantian.
The mist condensed to a small point, and broke, becoming clearer and having a higher viscosity, he broke through, he was now at the second stage of Xianxia, seven more to, and seven more till he will discover what his masters plans.