Five years later
Qiao Minxi, Eight years old
Qiao Mingxi's brows creased from the struggle as she tried to clear the copious impurities weighing down her body. Seated cross-legged on a polished slab, her body was like an unmoving statue, her mind constantly plundering her dantian and meridians while expelling as much of the dark matter as possible. The pain was excruciating, especially since she had just taken master Gao's bone clearing pill. Still, despite her young age, the girl had a fierce determination and strong willpower. The pain reached a point of being unbearable until she coughed up a mouthful of dark blood. Her breathing was coming out labored at this point and she slowly withdrew from her cultivation state.
As soon as she opened her eyes, she met Master Gao's wise cobalt eyes and was momentarily startled. As usual, he gave off a powerful presence as he stood with his back straight, his long white hair fluttering in the wind.
"You're back master!" She called in a soft feeble voice.
She tried to get to her feet to bow in respect but the old man lifted a hand to stop her. "You're tired now. Focus on regaining your strength."
Master Gao always assumed a strict, at times almost harsh attitude. Mingxi learned early on that she should display a quick understanding and prompt execution of his commands.
She nodded once. But then she noticed her skin was dark from all the impurities which had been expelled from her body. The black greasy substance was unpleasant to see and gave off a foul smell. Her cheeks heated in embarrassment and she glanced away self-consciously.
"I'll go wash up." Mingxi said in a tiny voice. Swiftly getting up, she briskly walked away.
"Xiao Xi." Master Gao called.
Mingxi turned to look at him questioningly. "Yes?"
"You don't need to push yourself this hard. You're still young after all and have all the time."
A soft smile graced the girl's face which remained exquisite even with all the dirt smeared on it. "Thanks a lot master for your concern. But I swear I'm not exceeding my limit. I want to do it this way and can bear it all."
When Master Gao first gave her the bone clearing pill a few days ago, he warned her that the process is particularly painful and advised her to just rest while it took effect. But if she wanted it to be more effective, then she would need to cultivate after taking the pill but that would make the pain ten times worse.
Her eyes shined with determination as she went on. "I want to reclaim everything that I've lost. And more than anything I want master to be proud of me."
A soft laugh escaped the man's throat. "I am already very proud of my good disciple. You've surpassed all my expectations."
Mingxi's smile widened. "Then I need to keep it up and cannot slack off no matter what!" Just then, the foul smell hit her yet again and her face scrunched. "I'll be off, then."
Gao Yun watched the girl disappear between the trees, a helpless look in his eyes. The little girl had a mental maturity which well surpassed her age. She's solely focused on getting stronger and wasn't interested in playing or enjoying life like other kids her age. He might be at fault for being too strict while training her or it might be due to what she went through when she was young. But no matter what he said now, she refused to change.
He shook his head, then slowly walked towards the wooden house. The hut he previously inhabited had been quickly upgraded into a cozy and accommodating house ever since he took in Mingxi. The land around it had also been cleared to make space for her training. Even a barrier had been set up within a distance of several miles to keep the beasts away. The old man had grown to care deeply for the little girl over the years.
In a perfectly hidden spot of the Balzamia Forest, the sunlight glittered over the ripples traveling the extent of a picturesque lake. In the crystal clear water, the most lovely girl could be seen gracefully washing her body. Her white skin like jade glowed in the sunlight, her long dark hair, seeming to be made from the finest silk, outright glittering. Those cherry red lips coupled with long eyelashes which occasionally concealed a pair of rarest sparkling violet eyes formed a sharp contrast to her pale skin, making her appear all the more exquisite. There was no doubt that this young girl would grow into a peerless beauty who could be capable of overturning cities with her appearance alone.
Qiao Mingxi was quite a germaphobe so she washed herself several times before she was satisfied. The hours spent in this type of meridian cleansing was very taxing on her body but the results were quite good. Already she could feel the spiritual qi flowing more smoothly in her body. At this speed she should be able to clear all the impurities in her body within 3 months and her cultivation speed will improve considerably.
Even though Qiao Mingxi was born with an outstanding talent, her dantian became crippled after the malevolent experiment carried out on her. Normally she should have remained this way forever, never having the opportunity to cultivate. But thankfully Master Gao took her in. On top of being a powerful cultivator, Gao Yun also possessed extraordinary talent in medicine and pill refining. He could be said to be a peerless genius who had mastered all the arts and Qiao Mingxi felt endless admiration for him. Master Gao expended lots of effort to nurture Mingxi back to health and help her dantian recover. She suffered from weak health for several years. It was only two years ago that she recovered somewhat and was able to begin cultivating. However, several flaws still remained in her dantian. Even with her hard work, her advancement speed was below average.
Her mood was beginning to turn gloomy but she shook off those thoughts then quickly finished her bath and got dressed, heading back to the wooden house with purpose.
Several hours later, Mingxi approached Gao Yun's room. "Master Gao?" She called hesitantly, knocking on his door. "Can I have a bit of your time?"
"Come in." Came the old man's gruff voice.
The old master was currently sitting cross-legged on a straw mat, his eyes glued to the book in front of him.
She bowed deeply in respect. "I'm sorry for disturbing you. I just wanted to ask… is there some other way for me to advance even faster?"
Master Gao stared at her probingly and didn't answer right away so she went on. "My meridians have cleared considerably, but I can't sense much change in my cultivation speed."
"That's completely normal." Gao Yun calmly responded. "Even if your dantian recovered it still contains many cracks and fissures. On top of that, because of the dark ritual performed on you, your body has accumulated too many impurities. While the bone clearing pill can purify your meridians, it can't remove the ones in your dantian."
"Then what can I do?" Mingxi asked, her voice now despairing.
"Like I said, you need to give it time to repair naturally. If you keep up your current pace, you should regain a normal dantian in ten years."
Mingxi shook her head vehemently. "That's too late! In ten years my half-sister will have advanced considerably. She has my heavenly dantian while I have a faulty dantian. It will be impossible for me to surpass her by then. Most probably, I won't even be able to reach the pinnacle of cultivation before my death."
"You never know who will reach the highest peak the fastest." Gao Yun reasoned. "The world of cultivation has always been unpredictable. You might encounter some treasure or obtain an inheritance which will considerably boost your strength."
"I don't want to rely on what is uncertain." Mingxi mumbled. "So if Master knows of a way, please tell me. I'm willing to work even harder if necessary."
She didn't want to depend on such things like luck. If she really had luck, she wouldn't have had her cultivation talent stolen away when she was still defenseless. She instead preferred to hold the belief that hard work will bring results.
Gao Yun stared at her cryptically. "Why are you so desperate to be the strongest?"
His query made her feel quite awkward. "It's not that I want to be the strongest. I just…"
"You want to take revenge on those who hurt you?" He pressed further.
These words made her go down the memory lane. While she might have been very young at the time, she still vividly remembered that fateful night. Her stepmother guided her to that strange room, saying that a doctor would examine her there. Mingxi knew something was off, but she trusted her stepmother so she forced herself to go along with the strange doctor. While her stepmother, Yue Man never showed her particular love and caring, unlike with her older sister Qiao Yue, Mingxi was never mistreated. But then the ritual began and Yue Man revealed her true colors. Mingxi felt unbearable pain and reached out to her only parent figure, but Yue Man's focus remained only on Qiao Yue. When the woman finally glanced her way, there was such loathing in her eyes. Mingxi then understood that she was unwanted.
Mingxi pondered over Master Gao's words for several seconds, then shook her head resolutely. "While it's true that I hate my stepmother for what she did to me, I'm not really interested in revenge. Rather, I want to face them again and gain justice for myself."
Master Gao raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Justice?"
Mingxi nodded firmly. "Their evil deeds need to be exposed so that justice can be served. Fairness is the righteous way… the law of heaven. That's all I want."
Gao Yun's lips tipped up slightly and he appeared pleased as he stared at his disciple. "You indeed have a maturity which surpasses even cultured adults. On top of that you possess extraordinary intelligence. You will surely reach very high in your life. "
"Thank you master for your praise." Mingxi said demurely.
"About your earlier request, I do know of a way for you to recover faster."
Mingxi's eyes widened in wonder. "For real?"
"However, it is very risky and there's a high chance you might lose your life. You will need to undergo several tests. If you pass them, I will introduce you to the method."
Mingxi's eyes firmed with resolve. "Thank you master. I'll do everything in my power to pass them."
"We'll see." Gao Yun said. He then patted the mat next to him. "Now come sit over here. I'll teach you some more advanced medical skills."
Mingxi eagerly went over and spent the next few hours in deep focus, assimilating all the knowledge her master imparted.