Chapter 2 Loss
"Hmm", a small, disheveled figure opened her eyes, wincing in pain. Warlight gazed up at the patch of blue sky above, the dense and towering trees, the occasional bird flying by, and sniffed the fresh air, trying to piece together what had happened. Warlight Yang had tried to kill her with that poisonous data, but they had both ended up losing, Warlight Yang having lost his wife and soldiers, and even his own life, while she herself had succumbed to the poison and died... and there had been an explosion. So why was she here now? Wasn't she dead? And where was this place?
Suddenly, a severe pain shot through her mind, and a large number of memories surged forth. It turned out that this was the Lingyin Continent, a world where spiritual power was cultivated, and the strong were revered. Seventy percent of this world's population consisted of spiritual cultivators, where might made right. The place she was in was the Gaosheng Empire, ranked third in terms of strength, followed by the Lou Nan Empire, Xingyun Empire, and Xiawu Empire. Each empire had its own powerful clans, but the specifics of the other three empires were unclear. However, the four major families of the Gaosheng Empire were: the Dongfang Clan, Nangong Clan, Ximen Clan, and Beidong Clan. Each clan had been passed down for hundreds of years, with countless collateral branches aside from the main line. Many smaller clans that couldn't stand on their own relied on these four major families to survive, serving them as vassals.
As she thought of this, she saw a little girl, about two or three years old, crying loudly after being scolded. A man and woman were talking, their faces filled with disgust and resentment. After they smashed countless tea cups, they stormed off in anger, without even looking back. So they didn't see the little girl gazing longingly at their retreating figures.
The girl was then carried away by an old servant from a secluded small gate, leaving the large mansion. The child's eyes were filled with tears, struggling constantly, although no sound could be heard, but still, it was possible to tell from the child's mouth shape that she was shouting "Dad" and "Mom". The body's sense of unwillingness, resentment, and grievance made her realize that this body she was in now was that little girl back then.
Originally, the little girl was the legitimate daughter of the second house of the Ga Sheng Empire, the master's daughter, Nan Gong Qing Kuang. She should have been a noble and proud young lady, but because her body couldn't condense spiritual energy, she was abandoned by her family. If people were to know that the master of the second house had such a useless daughter, they would probably laugh out loud! So this shameful existence must not become a "blemish" on the family's reputation, which is why there was that scene earlier.
But this old servant who secretly took the girl away...
Could it be that the girl's parents had a change of heart? Let someone secretly take her away. It's impossible, as the arrogant and domineering warlord would understand that all possible dangers must be strangled in the cradle, and such situations are usually handled discreetly, leaving no evidence behind. But could an old servant have such great audacity, daring to defy the master's orders and send the little girl away? It seems this point requires further investigation.
Without spiritual power, Nan Gong Qing Kuang was taken to a remote small town by the old servant and survived in the collateral branch of the Nan Gong family. What can be good for a child without parents? As she grew older, the girl's spiritual power did not increase at all, just like an ordinary person, and her weak physique made her perhaps even worse than an ordinary person. She had been bullied by others since childhood, and being beaten and scolded every day had become a normal part of life, and she lived without any dignity at all.
Years ago, the old servant also passed away, and for the young girl, the only warmth left in this world was gone. As a result, Nan Gong's life became even more miserable, with endless humiliation and beatings to come, anyone who had a bad mood would take it out on her, in such a remote place, who knew that the young girl's true identity should be a noble lady? But this "noble lady" was injured every day, hungry and cold, living under someone else's roof, being looked down upon, originally a proud and noble young lady now reduced to a fate no different from a beggar. Seeing this, Zhan Light Crazy felt even more deeply the sorrow that spread through his body, a thread of sadness lingering in his heart, bitter thoughts almost bringing tears to his eyes.
The scene shifted, and four young men had Nan Gong Qingcang cornered against the wall. After a round of vicious beating and cursing, it was unclear what they had fed her, but it didn't seem to be anything good. The sneering young man looked like he was enjoying the show, while the others, dressed in luxurious attire, watched with cold eyes. One of them seemed impatient, came over, and tore at Nan Gong Qingcang's clothes, soon exposing large swaths of skin, her hair disheveled. Seeing Nan Gong Qingcang's humble pleas for mercy, trembling resistance, injuries all over her body, tearful eyes, and terrified expression... Zhan Qingcang felt a fire burning in his body, wishing he could chop those young men into pieces.
Nangong Qingkuang finally couldn't bear it, pulled out a worn-out dagger and hacked randomly, taking advantage of the fact that several young men were not paying attention, and escaped in disarray.
All the way, she stumbled and staggered until she ran into the forest where she is now. Her exhausted body finally collapsed, perhaps the years of living had already killed all her hopes. The fallen Nan Gong looked up at the sky with a dull gaze, thinking about what kind of life she had lived for the past thirteen years. She was an abandoned child, but she was also a human being! Did she not have the right to live? Her birth was not something she could choose, and not being able to cultivate spiritual power was not her fault either! She never hoped to become a strong person or someone superior, as long as she could live a humble and lowly life, having food to eat, a place to sleep, and not being beaten or scolded, she would be very satisfied.
But why must even her small wish be taken away? What's left in this world, what does she still have? Is there anything worth holding onto? No, nothing is left. That's it! She's tired, so very tired... Tired to the point of no longer being able to hold on, finally a crystal tear rolled down from the corner of the girl's eye, and her eyes slowly closed.
Witnessing this scene, Zhan Liangkong relaxed his clenched fists and quickly composed himself. Nan Gong Liangkong had given up on life after countless hardships, but she was reborn in this body, so as a form of repayment, she naturally wanted to do something!
Nangong Qingkuang, rest in peace! Everything you've suffered, I'll make those people pay back tenfold, a hundredfold. Whether it's the parents who abandoned you or those despicable creatures who bullied you, what they owe you, I'll get it all back for you! Those who hurt you will pay with their lives!
Struggling to get up, Zhan Light Crazy knew she had to deal with the injuries on her body now. Just as she was about to take a step, a scorching hot wave suddenly spread through her body. Damn it! It must be the medicine she was fed earlier! Good, really good! A hint of gloom flashed in her eyes. She was only thirteen years old, not even an adult yet, and they treated her like this? Really good! Those few boys, she wouldn't let any of them off!
The first thing to do is to get rid of the medicine, according to her body's memory, she walked in one direction, remembering that there was a lake there, which was Nan Gong Qing Cang's only "free land". Thinking of this, she felt endless sorrow! At just 13 years old, she was abandoned by her biological parents, no one loved or cared for her, suffered from cold eyes, abandonment, beatings and scolding. Who could bear it?
She rushed to the lake, only paying attention to her physical condition and didn't notice a person sitting on the other side. Damn it! What kind of medicine did those scoundrels give to Nan Gong Zhi Qiang? Her body was getting hotter and hotter, even the cold lake water couldn't suppress the heat, she felt her strength dwindling under the torment of the medicine. She knew she wouldn't last if this continued, she would drown. With a burst of energy, the girl sprang out of the lake and swam vigorously towards the shore.
She reached the shore, panting heavily. She couldn't help but smile wryly, as if to say "is heaven trying to destroy her?" Just as she was about to get up, years of vigilance made her immediately look around, Ah! There's someone over there, when did they arrive? Zhan Qingxue couldn't help but size him up, a man? A tall and powerful man? Wait, a man?
Finally saved, too good, dragging the soft and fluffy body, War Light Crazy rushed towards him. The War family motto: As long as you can live, don't care about any cost. Just as he reached the man's side, War Light Crazy was about to pounce on him, but suddenly, he was slapped away by the man.
"The master is in a good mood today and won't kill you." After saying that, the man tidied up his clothes.
The man's dignified aura was revealed without a doubt as he waved his hand, but being bumped into by an insignificant human made him frown in disgust. He had some troubles on his mind and thought the scenery here was nice, so he wanted to clear his head, but never expected to run into such an insignificant person.
Not far away, Zhan Light Crazy fell heavily, but still got up. In her heart, there was only one conviction: since heaven let her life not be in vain, then she must cherish this opportunity. She couldn't die, absolutely couldn't die!
However, just as she was about to reach the man's side, she was slapped away again.
"Women here are so open now?" The man was somewhat surprised.
The warrior who was pinned to the ground suddenly held his breath, damn it, he's still addicted? For a long time, he didn't move, just when the man thought she gave up, she stored up her strength in her legs, and with one fierce pounce, she actually succeeded! Damn it, you dare to slap me, you dare to fan me, I'm not going to show my power, do you think I'm a sick cat?
The man's body froze for a moment, and soon he reacted. Looking at the disheveled girl, it was somewhat amusing, this angry little face made it clear that the kitten was very angry, with serious consequences.
Zhan Qing's heart was annoyed, taking advantage of the brief moment to catch his breath, he accidentally bumped into the man's forehead, and suddenly saw stars again. "Damn it! Is it made of iron or something...?"
"Alright, stop it now, you can't afford the consequences." From her expression, the man knew what had happened.
The man still wanted to stop her, but Zhan Qing was impatient. She had already gone this far, and he could be the antidote to death? Besides, who was the one suffering a loss here? It seemed that even someone as weak-looking as him couldn't be underestimated when angry. With one move of his capturing hand, the girl immediately felt triumphant.
Some tattered pink clothes were covered in mud, revealing a body full of scars and bruises. The wounds were a deep purple color, clearly inflicted by someone else. Seeing this, the man raised an eyebrow and continued his actions. His long, slender hands brushed aside the hair covering her face, revealing a delicate complexion that looked no more than 12 or 13 years old. Her skin was flushed with an unnatural redness, and there was a circular mark on her forehead, likely from colliding with him earlier. Her beautiful eyebrows, large eyes, and small nose all combined to create a pitiful expression as she gazed up at him. Her lips were slightly parted, inviting and tender, and her features were finely chiseled...
Suddenly, the man curled up the corner of his mouth and smiled eerily, "This is what you asked for!"
She lifted her misty eyes, intending to remember the man who took advantage of her in a crisis, and get revenge someday. However, she found that she couldn't see the man's face clearly at all. But this did not affect the contempt in her heart, and she silently cursed the dead man, hoping he wouldn't fall into her hands again!
