The Beloved Master's Mad Dog Disciple - Chapter 43

Bo Xuenong quickly realized she had overestimated the difficulty of her task.

Si Xianling was surprisingly easy to handle.

Wu Qingshu was utterly devoted to her daughter. Despite her aloof and distant demeanor, a few sweet words from Si Xianling could instantly bring a radiant smile to her face, the doting affection in her eyes washing away all traces of coldness. Though she disliked Zhu Ningfu, she wouldn’t forcibly separate the two if Si Xianling wanted to spend time with her.

This made Bo Xuenong curious about Wu Qingshu’s backstory in the original novel.

In most books, the majority of characters serve as supporting roles to the main cast. To gain significant page time, one needed to be closely connected to the male and female leads. Shen Yanting, for example, was the male lead’s first love and the female lead’s Master’s most beloved disciple. Since Bo Xuenong was constantly by Shen Yanting’s side, she naturally occupied a substantial portion of the narrative.

Wu Qingshu’s prominence was somewhat understandable—as the Supreme Elder of the Cloudmist Sect, she likely had some connection to the female lead. But what about Zhu Ningfu?

Bo Xuenong couldn’t imagine any way Zhu Ningfu could be connected to the main cast.

Zhu Ningfu didn’t contest Wu Qingshu’s claim to her daughter for long. As the Sect Leader of the Beast Taming Sect, she naturally had to join Xiang Manyu and the others in resolving the crisis at the Heavenly Cuisine Sect. Wu Qingshu remained behind with Si Xianling.

Now that she knew about the situation in Lanshou Village, she naturally wanted to go and see for herself.

Wu Qingshu transferred all of Si Xianling’s Beast Tamer beasts from Bo Xuenong to herself, then gently lifted Si Xianling into her arms. With a flick of her wrist, she released a green talisman, which instantly transformed into a purple fox. Carrying Si Xianling, she floated onto the fox’s back first, then waved to Hua Jinshi and Wu Liangyi, who followed suit. Turning to Bo Xuenong and Gui Nian’an, she called out, “Come on up! Let the Beast Taming Sect handle the Heavenly Cuisine Sect. You’re both injured—we’ll go to Lanshou Village to recover.”

Si Xianling protested, “Mother! This young lady hasn’t even seen those Heavenly Cuisine Sect beasts die yet!”

Wu Qingshu shot her a sideways glance. “Aren’t you always saying how much you trust your other mother? Do you really think she won’t avenge you?”

Si Xianling immediately flashed a flattering smile. “Who said that? Of course I trust Mother the most! You’re the best to me.”

If Bo Xuenong remembered correctly, Si Xianling had just told Xiang Manyu that her aunt was the best.

With so many people doting on her, Si Xianling clearly possessed a knack for flattery. She had a different approach for each person, tailoring her words and actions to suit their preferences—a skill that others would find impossible to replicate.

To this day, Bo Xuenong hadn’t even managed to win over Shen Yanting, fretting daily about how to make her Master like her more.

Under Wu Qingshu’s watchful gaze, Gui Nian’an carried Liu Huairou onto the fox’s back, while Bo Xuenong, cradling Shen Yanting, also climbed aboard.

Gui Nian’an instinctively stood closer to Bo Xuenong, the person she knew best. “Shouldn’t we go help?”

Bo Xuenong’s gaze instinctively shifted to Shen Yanting, the porcelain doll gently shaking her head on the swing. “The Beast Taming Sect’s enduring strength doesn’t stem from the power of their Beast Tamers, but from the generations of High-Tier Demonic Beasts who have accompanied them. Their core strength lies in these creatures. Even if the Heavenly Cuisine Sect hadn’t been caught off guard and severely weakened, the Beast Taming Sect would still have a high chance of victory. Now that the Heavenly Cuisine Sect’s Sect-Protecting Grand Formation has fallen, the Beast Taming Sect has the power to annihilate them entirely.”

Since Shen Yanting had said they didn’t need to help, Bo Xuenong naturally wouldn’t move.

After such a long journey, her body was already weary.

Bo Xuenong sat cross-legged on the fox’s back, lowering her head to gaze intently at the porcelain doll as she rested.

Wu Qingshu glanced at Bo Xuenong and Shen Yanting before reassuring Gui Nian’an, who still wanted to help. “The Beast Taming Sect’s power comes from the same source. They won’t easily harm their own people. If you try to help, they’ll only hesitate, worried about injuring you.”

Though Si Xianling rarely got along with most members of the Beast Taming Sect, she still acknowledged their strength.

Leaning against Wu Qingshu’s chest, Si Xianling struggled to turn Wu Qingshu so she could face Gui Nian’an and the others. Once she had a clear view, she spoke: “Gui Nian’an, you can’t help them. And don’t even think about meeting those Demonic Cultivators. They’ve killed countless people, using others’ lives to replenish their own spiritual roots. Even the Demon Sect doesn’t condone such depraved acts. Your villagers are enduring hardship for their children, while those cultivators, eager to please the Heavenly Cuisine Sect, tricked your grandmother into using the Contending Blossom Talisman to enhance her Spirit Supplement’s appearance. They even… they even claimed that a better appearance would prolong her life. In reality, the talisman’s true purpose was merely to amuse those beasts from the Heavenly Cuisine Sect. Some of those Spirit Supplements were their own bl00d relatives. Even if they were forced into this, their actions are unforgivable.”

Bo Xuenong, who had never seen Si Xianling so serious, couldn’t help but glance at her. Si Xianling’s face was flushed with fury.

Wu Qingshu’s expression remained calm, her eyes icy. She clearly agreed with Si Xianling’s words.

The Path of Cultivation can only be walked willingly. No amount of coercion from others can force someone to cultivate in their stead. Regardless of their initial motives, these individuals ultimately chose to embrace Demonic Cultivation methods, seizing the lives of others to replenish their own spiritual roots. While killing is commonplace in the Cultivation World, their victims were not heinous criminals or those who had defrauded them of cultivation resources. Instead, they preyed on Outer Sect Disciples with weak spiritual roots, individuals unlikely to achieve greatness. These disciples had never harmed anyone, and some had likely never even left the Heavenly Cuisine Sect.

Moreover, after submitting to the Heavenly Cuisine Sect, they cooperated in their charade, occasionally returning to their villages to dangle the lives of their loved ones as bait, coercing them into willingly becoming Spirit Supplements for the sect. With the Contending Blossom Talisman in play, it’s impossible that only the children who delivered the talismans knew the truth about the deception. Yet not a single one dared to reveal the truth to Gui Nianqin.

Each of these acts constitutes an unforgivable crime.

Bo Xuenong raised her head, her gaze sweeping over the weeping Liu Huairou and the emotionally conflicted Gui Nian’an.

In Liu Huairou’s imagined scenario, she was supposed to die while Bo Xuenong and the others rescued the children of Lanshou Village. Instead, she lived, while the children perished.

Gui Nian’an’s thoughts were even more complex. Imprisoned within the Heavenly Cuisine Sect for centuries, she was torn between resentment toward the Lanshou Village children for betraying their home and frustration at her inability to reveal the truth to Gui Nianqin. She harbored deep resentment toward most of the Heavenly Cuisine Sect, including her former villagers who had pledged allegiance to the sect. Now, as these people faced death, fleeting images of their past flashed through her mind.

She glanced at the ravaged landscape, a far cry from the once-prosperous Heavenly Cuisine Sect. It felt like she was still trapped in a dream. For her and her people, the Heavenly Cuisine Sect had been an imposing mountain that had oppressed them for over seven hundred years. Yet now, in the blink of an eye, it was on the verge of collapse, leaving her momentarily disoriented about her future path.

Gui Nian’an remained silent, leading Si Xianling to believe she hadn’t heard her words. Irritation flared within Si Xianling. “If you want to save those Demonic Cultivators, go ahead. But if you actually succeed, they’ll probably devour your spiritual root first.”

Si Xianling’s temper was notoriously short.

Gui Nian’an shook her head. “I have no intention of saving them. They ceased to be my friends the moment they helped the Heavenly Cuisine Sect harm my village. I simply believe our uncles and aunts are still waiting for them to return home. If we can’t bring them back alive, we should at least bring back their bodies. And seeing the once-indestructible Heavenly Cuisine Sect crumble like this… it leaves me uncertain about where to go next.”

She paused, then added, “The Cultivation World is teeming with powerful figures. Can I truly protect myself and those I care about?”

Gui Nian’an voiced the question Bo Xuenong had been pondering.

Before confining herself to the Imperial Tranquility Sect, her strength had ranked third within the Sect.

Only upon venturing beyond its walls did she realize the vastness of the world and the existence of countless others far more formidable than herself.

The recent journey to the Heavenly Cuisine Sect had starkly revealed the true disparity in power. She lacked even the qualification to glimpse Shen Yanting’s true cultivation realm, and Wu Qingshu remained an unfathomable enigma. If Wu Qingshu were to become her future assailant, how could she possibly defend herself?

While her Spirit Supplement and Human Talisman merely attracted covetous eyes, her Fierce Beast Bloodline made her a target for universal extermination.

For a fleeting moment, Bo Xuenong felt lost. Yet her resolve quickly solidified. Shen Yanting didn’t want her to die, and she would find a way to survive.

The System might be expensive, but it was undeniably useful.

Bo Xuenong reopened the System Panel and noticed she had gained another 400 Points, bringing her total to 2,000.

Assistant Bo Xuenong has received +200 Points for Silver-Tier Zhu Ningfu’s gratitude.

Assistant Bo Xuenong has received +200 Points for Silver-Tier Wu Qingshu’s gratitude.

This increase was likely due to her saving Si Xianling.

While it wasn’t surprising that Bo Xuenong’s Points had increased, what was strange was that Zhu Ningfu and Wu Qingshu had given her exactly the same number of Points. This implied that both women loved Si Xianling equally, which seemed impossible.

One was her biological Mother, the other her stepmother.

Even if both loved Si Xianling, their feelings should have been different.

Could it be that Zhu Ningfu’s deep affection for Si Xianling’s deceased father had extended to loving his daughter as much as her biological Mother?

Bo Xuenong glanced at her remaining two thousand Points and decided to first ask the System how many Points it would cost to access Wu Qingshu and Zhu Ningfu’s original book storylines. It wasn’t just curiosity; Wu Qingshu was a Grand Martial Aunt whom Shen Yanting deeply respected, and Bo Xuenong was concerned about her on Shen Yanting’s behalf.

System: Understanding a Target’s life story aids the deputy in targeting them. Original book storylines are free. Expanding a Target’s life story costs fifty Points per person, revealing significant events beyond the original narrative. Does the deputy wish to proceed?

Original book storylines: Free.

Might as well take a look.

Expanding a character’s life story costs only 50 Points.

Having experienced the System’s exorbitant prices, Bo Xuenong was suddenly tempted by such a cheap option.

She stared at the delicate white porcelain doll for a long moment before deciding to get both. Tucking Shen Yanting away while Wu Qingshu and the others weren’t paying attention, she opened the plot details related to Wu Qingshu and Zhu Ningfu. What she saw left her stunned: Zhu Ningfu was actually a member of the Demon Sect, and Si Xianling had truly died.

The Female Lead, Yu Cenwan, had initially chosen the Pill Cultivator path—despite it not being her strongest aptitude—to help the Male Lead regain his senses. To torment the Female Lead, the author had deliberately written her innate talent in other paths as far superior to her aptitude for Pill Cultivation. Only after Yu Cenwan fused with the Buddha Fruit to enhance her talent and met Mo Tingshu did her Pill Refinement skills steadily improve. Even then, she encountered several masters better suited to her, the best of whom was Wu Qingshu.

Yu Cenwan possessed an extraordinary gift for talisman crafting. Wu Qingshu had repeatedly urged her to abandon Pill Cultivation, discard her cultivation realm, and become her disciple as a Talisman Cultivator.

In the original novel, Wu Qingshu’s character had lost her daughter and treated the Female Lead as both a disciple and a daughter. This was the reason Wu Qingshu’s character received a silver-tier level of narrative focus.

She was exceptionally kind to the Female Lead.

Unfortunately, Supreme Elder Sang Fan of the Nethergate Sect disliked the Female Lead, and Wu Qingshu disliked the Male Lead just as intensely.

The Male Lead’s master saw the Female Lead as a stumbling block on his path to success, while Wu Qingshu believed the Male Lead’s promiscuous and fickle nature made him unworthy of the Female Lead’s devotion.

As the greatest obstacle to the Male and Female Leads’ relationship, Wu Qingshu was destined to die.

Like Shen Yanting, Wu Qingshu met her end in a Secret Realm, during a conflict with Zhu Ningfu.

The cultivation journey in Scale Mountain County was unique in the original novel. Secret Realms appeared one after another, and their stories comprised the bulk of the plot. Many characters perished within them, including Wu Qingshu, Shen Yanting, Zhu Ningfu, and Wu Qingshu.

Wu Qingshu’s narrative prominence stemmed from her kindness to the Female Lead. Zhu Ningfu’s, on the other hand, arose because the Demoness among the Male Lead’s many romantic interests was her own niece. As both the Sect Leader of the Beast Taming Sect and a member of the Demon Sect, she served as one of the novel’s major antagonists.

Their first appearances in the novel both occurred before the Cultivation Journey in Scale Mountain County. One was the Elder leading the Cloudmist Sect, and the other was the Sect Leader of the Beast Taming Sect.

They immediately clashed upon meeting, startling the Female Lead.

Through Wu Qingshu’s explanation to the Female Lead, the origins of their hatred were revealed: Si Xianling.

Si Xianling was the Young Sect Master of the Beast Taming Sect, having lived there her entire life.

One day, two Pill Cultivators from the Sect stole something from Si Xianling. Zhu Ningfu, as Sect Leader, failed to uphold justice for Si Xianling, causing her to run away from home. Later, Zhu Ningfu sensed Si Xianling’s death through their bloodline connection, but they never found her remains.

Wu Qingshu blamed Zhu Ningfu for her daughter’s death, wishing she could tear Zhu Ningfu into a million pieces. She seized every opportunity to fight Zhu Ningfu.

Her relentless pursuit of Zhu Ningfu’s misdeeds inadvertently led her and the Female Lead to discover Zhu Ningfu’s ties to the Demon Sect, exposing the villain’s true identity. This revelation sparked a full-scale war between the Demon Sect and the Orthodox Path forces. In the chaos, Zhu Ningfu and Wu Qingshu met their end together.

Bo Xuenong hadn’t expected the story to unfold this way. She immediately expanded the biographies of both women, and what she saw next startled her even more.

Wu Qingshu’s relationship with Tu Gaojun was nothing like the passionate romance Si Xianling and Shen Yanting had imagined. Her affection for Si Xianling stemmed not from her being the child of her beloved, but from her initial desire for a child when seeking a Dao Companion. As the foremost sect, the Cloudmist Sect possessed unparalleled resources, and its disciples were all exceptional geniuses, with Wu Qingshu standing out even among them.

She achieved Qi Condensation perfection in a month and Foundation Establishment perfection in a year. After choosing her cultivation path, she could memorize the Spirit Patterns on talisman paper with a single glance. Even the most complex talismans could be mastered after a hundred attempts, while simpler ones were learned instantly. Within just twenty years, she successfully formed her Golden Core and broke through to the Golden Core Stage. Less than a century later, she had already advanced beyond the Golden Core Stage to the Nascent Soul Realm. Her cultivation progress slowed after reaching the Nascent Soul Realm, not due to any deficiency in her Innate Talent, but because Talisman Cultivators inherently faced greater challenges in breaking through realms. Surviving the Thunder Tribulation was notoriously difficult, and failure often led to death. Wu Qingshu deliberately suppressed her cultivation until she had prepared sufficient countermeasures against the Thunder Tribulation.

Despite these precautions, she reached the Out-of-Body Stage at a thousand years old, the Spirit Transformation Realm at eighteen hundred years, and the Body Integration Stage at twenty-seven hundred years.

Wu Qingshu had maintained her position as the foremost Talisman Cultivator because, unlike Hua Jinshi and others, she hadn’t halted her breakthroughs in the Spirit Transformation Realm out of fear for her life. Her status as a First-Rank Talisman Master was perfectly aligned with her cultivation realm. She had long since reached the Great Ascension Stage, just one step away from ascending to immortality.

Wu Qingshu broke through to the Great Ascension Stage at the age of four thousand. All she needed now was a fortuitous encounter to ascend to the Divine Realm.

One day, hearing rumors of a divine miracle manifesting on Qinghui Mountain, she ventured there specifically to seek this opportunity.

Wu Qingshu did indeed find a fortuitous encounter, but it was not meant for her. The person who claimed it, overwhelmed by excitement, suffered a qi deviation right before her eyes. Having come so close to immortality, they instead met a tragic end, their body and spirit annihilated. The incident also shattered a segment of Wu Qingshu’s Spirit Bone, rendering her ineligible for the Divine Realm, as those with incomplete Spirit Bones are barred from ascension.

Repairing the Spirit Bone itself wasn’t difficult.

However, Wu Qingshu had been injured by the divine aura, a wound beyond the healing capabilities of mortal forces.

Her Path of Cultivation to immortality was shattered, leaving her with only her vast lifespan and profound solitude. This emptiness deepened as her Master, Senior Brothers, and Senior Sisters gradually perished, one by one, leaving her world utterly desolate.

In her youth, Wu Qingshu had been single-mindedly focused on achieving divinity, never considering taking disciples.

By the time she finally thought to accept disciples, Mo Tingshu and her generation had already become qualified to mentor their own students.

Wu Qingshu’s seniority and power were undeniable. If she chose to take disciples, talented cultivators would flock to her, threatening the influence of Elders like Mo Tingshu. Unwilling to disrupt the sect’s balance, Wu Qingshu found her long, stagnant life and the Path of Cultivation, which offered no further advancement, increasingly hollow. Gradually, the idea of nurturing new life took root in her mind.

Her cultivation had long plateaued, rendering further practice unnecessary. She would never face Thunder Tribulations or inner demons again, leaving her with only time and energy to spare.

Tu Gaojun wasn’t chosen for his exceptional talent, but because of the Beast Taming Sect’s unique nature.

The quality of one’s spiritual root was never determined by inheritance, but by chance and destiny. Wu Qingshu feared giving birth to a child lacking talent. As the foremost Talisman Cultivator, she couldn’t simply transplant another’s spiritual root into her child. The Beast Taming Sect’s practice of sharing Bloodlines between high-tier Beast Tamers and their Masters ensured that the Sect Leader’s daughter would never be disadvantaged. This was her true reason for seeking out Tu Gaojun.

The rapid deterioration of their relationship after Si Xianling’s birth stemmed from Wu Qingshu’s sole interest in the child from the beginning.

Wu Qingshu’s life stretched endlessly, unbound by mortal constraints.

Her greatest wish was for Si Xianling to remain by her side for as long as possible.

As long as Si Xianling lived, Wu Qingshu would always protect her.

After Si Xianling’s death, Wu Qingshu lost the will to live.

When Zhu Ningfu died, she hadn’t intended to drag Bo Xuenong down with her. Bo Xuenong had chosen to end her own life, her heart heavy with despair.

Zhu Ningfu’s life story was nothing like Bo Xuenong had imagined. Her affection for Wu Qingshu wasn’t merely a case of “love me, love my dog” stemming from her feelings for Tu Gaojun. Wu Qingshu was the true reason.

Zhu Ningfu was indeed a formidable Pill Cultivator. The reason she wasn’t listed on the Heavenly Talent Register was because she came from the Demon Sect. The Divine Pavilion would never grant cultivation resources to cultivators who had strayed from the righteous path. Those who lived in the shadows—the Demon Sect and Joyous Union Sect—were deemed unworthy of the Heavenly Talent Register. Moreover, her original surname wasn’t Zhu; it was Zhu.

She was the aunt of Zhu Miaotong, the Demon Sect’s Young Sect Master who had entangled herself with the Male Lead and viewed Shen Yanting as her romantic rival.

Every member of the Demon Sect was ruthless and sinister, and those who carried the Demon Emperor’s Bloodline were especially cold-blooded and merciless.

This Bloodline granted them immense power, but it also doomed them to cruelty.

Zhu Ningfu was the child of the Demon Emperor and a Human Cultivator. For her first decade, she lived with her mother, experiencing familial warmth and the kindness of human hearts. When she was suddenly brought back to the Demon Sect—a place devoid of emotion, where only slaughter and power ensured survival—she found it utterly alienating.

She couldn’t bring herself to forcibly take the lives of innocents, nor could she bear to treat her bl00d relatives as enemies. Thus, she chose the path of Pill Cultivation.

A powerful Alchemist was highly respected everywhere, but after her father’s death, her brothers and sisters fought fiercely for the Sect Leader’s position, and her status changed. She went from being a revered Alchemist to a coveted treasure everyone wanted to seize.

Zhu Ningfu refused to take sides. Her relatives couldn’t bear to lose her powerful Pill Refinement abilities, nor did they want her to fall into the hands of another sibling and become their ally.

Soon, Zhu Ningfu found herself living a long life of imprisonment. Her prison changed frequently. Initially, her Eldest Brother imprisoned her in a snake pit. After her Second Brother killed the Eldest Brother, she was moved to the Netherworld Cave. When her Youngest Sister killed the Second Brother, she was transferred to the Water Prison… Zhu Ningfu remained imprisoned for over a thousand years, enduring extreme cold and bone-piercing pain every day.

She had been devoured by demon beasts and subjected to the most brutal methods of torture.

By then, Zhu Ningfu was no longer the young mistress of the Demon Sect. She was a caged beast, her body covered in festering wounds and her heart shattered, having lost all hope for this world.

It was at this moment that Wu Qingshu and Si Xianling appeared.

Si Xianling was notoriously mischievous, with a fiery temper since childhood. After arguing with Tu Gaojun, she ran away from home and accidentally stumbled upon the place where her Second Brother was imprisoning Zhu Ningfu—a Water Prison filled with freezing ice water. The extreme cold left Zhu Ningfu looking utterly wretched, her limbs swollen and bloated from prolonged immersion, and her festering wounds emitting a foul stench.

Si Xianling, empowered by the Greyfur Rabbit, cultivated at an astonishing pace. Despite being hundreds of years old, she retained the appearance of a child in her early teens. Fearless and audacious, she would stand with her hands on her hips, demanding to know why the Demon Sect disciples guarding her were torturing people so cruelly, no matter where she was.

By then, Wu Qingshu had become adept at finding her daughter. Unless Si Xianling was trapped within a complex formation like the Heavenly Cuisine Sect’s Sect-Protecting Grand Formation, which combined ten formations, a mere one or two formations couldn’t stop her talismans.

The Demon Sect disciples didn’t even have time to lay a hand on Si Xianling before Wu Qingshu slaughtered them all. Perhaps because Wu Qingshu was mortally wounded and unable to gather Spirit, or perhaps because Si Xianling looked so pitiful, Wu Qingshu and her companions never suspected her of being a member of the Demon Sect. Wu Qingshu pulled her from the Water Prison and wrapped her in a thick fox-fur cloak.

For Wu Qingshu, this was a matter of course. But for Zhu Ningfu, it was different.

Si Xianling and Wu Qingshu were both lights illuminating her dark world.

Wu Qingshu especially.

The first warmth Zhu Ningfu felt after emerging from the icy pool belonged to Wu Qingshu. She secretly investigated Wu Qingshu’s identity, initially hiding from the Demon Sect and acting cautiously. Later, when the position of Sect Leader fell to her Third Sister, the only one she had a decent relationship with, she began spying on Wu Qingshu and Si Xianling’s lives.

Zhu Ningfu couldn’t understand why Xiang Manyu and the others failed to see that Wu Qingshu’s strict discipline was for their own good, even though she, a member of the Demon Sect, could clearly see it. She also couldn’t fathom why Wu Qingshu, who was so kind, was disliked by everyone in the Beast Taming Sect except Si Xianling. After Wu Qingshu separated from Tu Gaojun, they even forbade her from entering the sect.

What she found most baffling was Si Xianling’s Lifebound Beast, the Greyfur Rabbit, which, like its mother, loathed Wu Qingshu.

The Greyfur Rabbit held a unique significance for Wu Qingshu. When she glimpsed Wu Qingshu’s hidden sorrow, she felt an overwhelming urge to make them all disappear, especially Tu Gaojun.

This was undoubtedly Tu Gaojun’s doing. After all, the Greyfur Rabbit’s mother was his own Lifebound Beast. The fact that Si Xianling’s other four beasts adored Wu Qingshu proved she had diligently trained them. Only the Greyfur Rabbit’s unique bloodline made it difficult to control.

Tu Gaojun constantly professed his deep affection, yet this esteemed Sect Leader did nothing to address the Beast Taming Sect’s animosity toward Wu Qingshu. He even neglected his own Lifebound Beast, and Zhu Ningfu suspected he might even be fueling the hatred. How utterly hollow his supposed love was.

Zhu Ningfu had been in such a disheveled state when she was rescued that neither Wu Qingshu nor Si Xianling remembered what she looked like. This gave her the opportunity to infiltrate the Beast Taming Sect.

The Cloudmist Sect, as the foremost sect, was heavily guarded with numerous magical formations and powerful Elders hidden in the shadows. Moreover, their Sect Leader was exceptionally intelligent, making it too risky for Zhu Ningfu to attempt an infiltration. The Beast Taming Sect, on the other hand, was different. Their Bloodline was shared with their Beast Tamers, imbuing them with a bestial mindset.

While intelligent individuals existed within the sect, they were exceedingly rare.

Many in the Cultivation World derided them as fools with high cultivation but no brains, a sentiment Zhu Ningfu found somewhat justified.

Zhu Ningfu had initially intended to kill Tu Gaojun, but she hesitated, fearing Si Xianling’s hatred if she learned the truth. As fate would have it, Tu Gaojun provoked a top-tier demon beast and suffered severe injuries. Afraid that news of his humiliation—being critically wounded while harassing a female demon—would spread, he dared not seek treatment. The resulting delay proved fatal, and he perished on the spot.

At that time, only Zhu Ningfu and her great-aunt remained by his side. The great-aunt, being elderly and having reached the peak of her cultivation, could no longer progress. He had no choice but to transfer the Sect Leader’s legacy power to Zhu Ningfu, along with all the Beast Tamer techniques and creatures.

Zhu Ningfu’s plan was to first establish herself within the Beast Taming Sect, then gradually change everyone’s perception of Wu Qingshu. She aimed not only to end their hostility toward Wu Qingshu but also to make them worship her as Zhu Ningfu did. However, this process would be long and arduous, requiring her to learn Beast Taming methods from scratch.

In the original novel, before she could fully control the Beast Taming Sect, Si Xianling died.

Wu Qingshu thereafter hated her with a burning passion. Consumed by grief, she completely abandoned her efforts to maintain control of the sect.

Ultimately, her identity was exposed while assisting her Third Sister, leading to her death at Wu Qingshu’s hands. For Zhu Ningfu, this was a release—she willingly embraced death. She never expected Wu Qingshu, having avenged her daughter’s death, would also choose to die.

Why her?!

Why does Zhu Ningfu get to have such a fortunate fate?!

After the initial shock, Bo Xuenong was consumed by deep resentment. Her greatest wish had been to die at Shen Yanting’s hands, but in the original story, Shen Yanting had used the sword in Bo Xuenong’s hand to commit suicide. This was no different from Bo Xuenong killing Shen Yanting herself. Meanwhile, Zhu Ningfu, who hadn’t even protected her own daughter, ultimately died as she had wished, at the hands of the person she admired and worshiped.

Bo Xuenong completely overlooked the fact that their roles had been reversed. She also failed to recall that Zhu Ningfu’s relationship with Wu Qingshu was far from a simple master-disciple bond.

Bo Xuenong sighed repeatedly, making it impossible for Shen Yanting to ignore her. “Nong’er, what’s wrong?”

“Master, could you…” Bo Xuenong began, then abruptly swallowed her words.

Shen Yanting had already said she didn’t want to die. Bo Xuenong couldn’t possibly bring it up again.

The original story was no longer the same as the current one. Si Xianling hadn’t died, so Wu Qingshu likely wouldn’t pursue Zhu Ningfu either. The rest of the story would likely change as well. She and Shen Yanting wouldn’t necessarily follow the same path. They could both live well, or… or perhaps it would be better if the Male Lead died first.

Noticing Shen Yanting still watching her, Bo Xuenong stiffly twisted the words on her tongue. “Master, could you… talk to me?”

“Nong’er?” Shen Yanting’s eyes were filled with confusion. “What do you want to say?”

Si Xianling turned to look at them, her eyes bright with mischief. “Sister Shen, whatever you say, your little disciple hangs on every word, listening intently and memorizing each syllable. If she misses anything, she might even slap herself! She’s truly devoted to you.”

Bo Xuenong didn’t grasp the hidden meaning in Si Xianling’s words. She simply felt that Si Xianling had struck a chord in her heart. “Exactly! I love hearing everything Master says!”

The porcelain doll’s face visibly stiffened.

She lowered her gaze, her fingers unconsciously stroking the red cloth. A muffled voice escaped her lips: “Nonsense.”

Bo Xuenong blinked in confusion, then frantically reached for the porcelain doll’s hand. The doll’s body was so small that Bo Xuenong could easily encircle Shen Yanting’s entire hand with just two fingers. Afraid of pulling too hard, Bo Xuenong gently shook the hand, her voice tinged with pleading: “Master, I’m not talking nonsense, and neither is Senior Si. Every word Senior Si said resonated with me—that’s exactly how I feel! When Master teaches me techniques, I truly want to punish myself if I fail to remember them, because every word you say is precious to me.”

As Shen Yanting listened, her heart grew increasingly uneasy. She instinctively glanced at Wu Qingshu.

Realizing how absurd her reaction was, she gently lifted her gaze and shot Bo Xuenong a mildly exasperated glare. “Can’t you tell she’s just trying to trick you into saying things you don’t mean?”

“Trick me into saying things I don’t mean?” Bo Xuenong looked genuinely bewildered. To her, every word she had spoken had been a sincere expression of her feelings. “But I truly mean everything I said about Master!”

Wu Qingshu, who knew the truth behind the events of that year and was aware of Bo Xuenong’s true identity, understood the problem with Bo Xuenong’s bloodline.

Hearing Bo Xuenong’s unwavering sincerity, Wu Qingshu couldn’t help but praise Shen Yanting. “Yan Ting, you’ve raised your disciple so well. She’s incredibly devoted to you.”

“Devoted? Hahaha!” Si Xianling’s unrestrained laughter unexpectedly strained her wound. Wincing in pain, she wrapped her arms around Wu Qingshu’s neck and clambered upward. Her beautiful eyes darted between Shen Yanting and Bo Xuenong before she suddenly asked Shen Yanting, “Sister Shen, is this swing fun? Would you dare to build one for Sect Leader Mo?”

Shen Yanting remained silent, but a faint blush rose on her porcelain-doll-like complexion.