Blockhead Zhang

That ten-year-old boy thought that the little girl did not leave because she did not manage to hear his words.

Of course, he could not blame her; he should have spoken louder. Only, his throat badly hurt. One of his friends had tried to squeeze his neck, damaging his voice in the process.

His mother once told him that communication is important. If the boy wanted to be understood, he had to clearly and honestly say what he needed or wanted to convey.

How unfilial was he to not follow his mother's teachings?

But... he could not talk. Even if he tried to, no sound would leave his mouth. He would only end up coughing out blood.

On the other hand, if he could not warn this little girl, she would be taught a lesson as well. She would be beaten up by his friends.

No innocent deserved to be hurt because of him.

The boy tried to speak again. They said that they would return after the morning classes were done. He had to warn the little girl to run before Li Mao and the others see her talking to him... but he felt so weak he could barely keep his left eye open.

Pathetic, useless trash.

He could not even properly talk, yet he had the gall to call himself a cultivator. He was exactly what his friends told him to be. No wonder they beat him up always. It must've been too hard for them to be around someone like him.

"I'm right. You are a weirdo."

Weirdo?

The little girl had a lilt in her voice that made her sound like she was singing. It was the loveliest voice he had ever heard, maybe only second to his mother's croon when she sang him to sleep back when she was alive.

His body was cold, but that memory made him feel warm.

"You have three immortal souls, but you're missing one mortal soul. Did you have a problem reincarnating?"

The boy wanted to keep on listening, but he felt so tired he could barely hear what she was saying.

"You must have been a pretty badass bigshot in your past life, huh?"

Bigshot? Who, him? Was she trying to make him laugh?

He was only an outer sect janitor disciple just as ordinary as his name, Zhang Wei. (1)

If he had a past life, he was sure he would probably be a tiny insect, just as Li Mao once said.

His eyes were closed, but he could hear the sound of her voice come nearer. "For your soul to be damaged like this, yet not have it completely dissipate, your enemy must have hated you so so much, that person wanted you to suffer for several reincarnations."

Zhang Wei could not understand the words of the little girl… could it be he was really an idiot?

Was that the reason his friends and fellow disciples call him 'Blockhead Zhang' behind his back?

If there was anything worth noting about him, it was that he belonged to the lowliest of the low.

He was the child of an illegitimate son of a Li Clan branch descendant and a female servant, someone who could only be, at most, an attendant of the clan's many small businesses outside of the sect.

If not for the discovery of his talent in cultivation a few months back, an orphan like him would probably be inside a pub cleaning tables and washing plates, earning him nothing more than free meals and a place to stay.

Even so, Zhang Wei had no status inside the Li Clan, as it could be seen that his birth father did not even allow him to use the surname Li. He had to continue using his mother's surname, which was Zhang.

Due to the discovery of his ability to cultivate, he was able to escape from his fate as a servant and join the Ye Sect as a janitor disciple.

However, his becoming a janitor disciple was not an elevation of status. Those new outer disciples who entered the sect with him bullied him. To be labeled an outcast was already hard. To be ostracized and insulted at the same time... he could only face them with a smile.

His difficult life had turned for the worst upon being targeted by Li Mao... his paternal half-brother.

Maybe, Zhang Wei had offended Li Mao without him knowing; he must have done something stupid, that's why he was being punished.

The next time they met, he had to kowtow and apologize...

Just as he fast falling asleep, Zhang Wei felt a tiny hand press on the crown of his bleeding head.

"Well, finding you here is creating karma with me," he heard the little girl sigh. "Aiya, I'm such a kind and virtuous lady... I don't think the old fogey would mind having another mouth to feed. Here's the thing, I may not have healing pellets with me, but I can cure your injuries with my spiritual qi."

He felt an extremely freezing force enter his head. The shock caused him to open his eyes, and he found himself facing the little girl eye to eye. She was so near he could smell her sweet, fruity breath.

Zhang Wei did not know if it was her smile or the unexpected blast of pain, but all of the sudden, his mind went blank.

"I warn you, my qi is very cold. If you bear with the pain and not cry till the very end, I might accept you to be my next playmate. Finding the last piece of your broken soul spells an adventure worth looking forward to in the future. Who knows, maybe it is not even in this mortal realm... hee hee... don't disappoint me, weirdo."

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(1) Zhang Wei is one of the top most common Chinese names for males.