"Little cripple, you dare resist", a luxurious robed woman shouted coldly. She grasped her hand at air and Xie Long despite his unwillingness, flew towards her. She looked at him with malice filled eyes.
"Do you know how much I have waited for this day?", she asked while grabbing Xie Long by his neck.
"Why are you doing this to us? When have we ever offended you?", Xie Long asked out with rage. He didn't understand why a group of powerful cultivator would come finding trouble for his family. They started killing innocent members of his family without saying a single word.
"Little bastard, you dare ask for a reason! It is your sin for being born to a bitch. Your entire existence is the proof that she is a shameless slut. I will first kill you infront of her and then torment her slowly. I am wondering what expression she will make when I kill her beloved son infront of her", the luxurious robed woman replied with a sinister expression on her face. She could be considered as a beauty but the malice and hatred in her eyes, made her appear like a crazed lunatic.
"Don't insult my mother", Xie Long spoke in a muffled voice. He struggled with all of his might but his struggle was futile. In his entire life, he had never felt so much helplessness. He was shimmering with anger but he couldn't escape from the woman's grip no matter how much he tried.
The crazed woman walked towards a secluded cortyard while holding him by his neck. Xie Long felt like as if a volcano was erupting within him as he saw her walk step by step towards his bedridden mother's chamber.
"Pei", he gathered courage and spit out a mouthful of saliva towards the woman's face. From such a close distance , the luxurious robed woman could not avoid his spit.
"You bastard cripple", the woman snarled like a venomous snake. She forcefully threw Xie Long on the ground and stepped on his body.
"Crack", the sound of bone shattering echoed as the woman pressed her foot on his chest. Xie Long felt his vision darkening as the pain of bone shattering was beyond his tolerance limit.
'Only if I am stronger..
Mother I am sorry, this unfilial child can't protect you', these are the last thoughts of Xie Long before his consciousness drifted away.
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"Hey, wake up. How long are you planning to sleep?", Xie Long heard an enchanting voice as he gradually woke up from his slumber. He found an otherworldly looking beautiful girl staring at him with deep curiousity in her eyes. She was floating in the sky and looking at him with her big curious eyes.
Xie Long looked at the girl with a blank expression on his face. In his entire life, he had never seen such an otherworldly looking beautiful girl. She had silver hair and big limpid eyes. Starlight seemed to be simmering in her two beautiful eyes as she stared at him. Her face was oval. She was wearing a multicoloured cloth which glowed similar to her eyes' colour.
"Hmph! You really are an ungrateful human. Instead of protresting in front of this princess, you are looking at me foolisy", the beautiful girl snorted after a while. Xie Long was looking at her like a fool since he had opened his eyes.
"Princess, forgive me. You are so beautiful that I have forgotten my sense of propriety", Xie Long apologized as he slowly sat up. He did his best to look away from the otherworldly beauty and took a look at the surrounding. A lost expression appeared on his face as he found the surrounding unfamiliar.
''Am I alive or dead? What is this place? Am I experiencing some kind of after life after dying to those enemies'', he murmured to himself.
"You really are a little fool. It looks like you have too many questions in your head. Looking at your pitiful appearance, I have decided to help you but you must become my follower first", the otherworldly looking beauty spoke.
"Your follower!", Xie Long asked with a dazed expression. Her beauty was such that one would forget his sense of self when looking at her.
"I have lowered myself to help you recover. So, should not you be grateful that I have offered you to become my follower?", the beauty looked at Xie Long from the sky. Her attitude was arrogant but Xie Long could see that she was genuinely interested in helping him.
He took a look at his body after hearing the beautiful girl's words. A look of self realisation appeared on his face after he checked on his current condition. 'So, she has really helped me', he thought to himself.
"Princess, I can consider your offer but you have to answer some of my questions first", Xie Long spoke.
"Ask away. Looking at your ignorant expression, your questions will not be much difficult, I think", the beauty spoke. Her two gem like eyes glowed with shimmering light as she looked at him.
"Where am I? Am I alive or dead?", Xie Long asked. He looked at the otherworldly beauty with a serious expression as these questions were very important for him.
"Of course, you are alive. Dead people can't possibly come inside this pagoda world", the beauty replied. Her eyes became slightly uncertain because she herself was not very clear about the pagoda world's function mechanism.
"So, I am alive!", Xie Long clenched his fists. He thought about the moments before he died and a look of hatred and rage appeared in his eyes.
"Princess, what about others? Did they manage to escape the enemies?", he asked with a hopeful expression on his face.
"Your enemies are very weak but unfortunately there is only a single cultivator of their level in your household. I do not know how he fared after you are brought away", the beauty replied.
"Then I most hurry up. I don't know how my mother and uncle Jie is holding up at this moment", Xie Long murmured. His hatred and rage boiled as he though about his enemies.
"Are you really that foolish? What is the point in leaving now? According to my estimate, it has been three days since that incident. Even if you charge outside, what can you do with your almost non existent cultivation base?", the beauty snorted.
Xie Long felt like a bucket of cold water fell on his head after he heard the beauty's words. 'That is right. What is the point in charging outside when I can't even cultivate', Xie Long murmured to himself with a self depreciating expression. Unconsciously, he tried to absorb heaven and earth energy into his body and an expression of utter disbelief appeared on his face.
"Wait, how is this possible! I can finally draw heaven and earth energy into my body", Xie Long murmured with an ecstatic expression on his face. The disdain on the beauty's face didn't dampen his enthusiasm as he continued to absorb heaven and earth's energy into his body.
"How foolish! With your bloodline, it is a given that you will excel in your cultivation", the beauty ridiculed. Xie Long's cheerful expression felt very amusing to her. So, she smiled slightly.
"What do you mean? My bloodline?", Xie Long asked in a somewhat confused manner. After years long survival in mediocrity, he had stopped dreaming about any bloodline advantage.
According to him, his bloodline couldn't be more mediocre than the rest. Other boys of his age found some support regarding cultivation due to their bloodline but he had enjoyed no such advantage. Since childhood, he had only heard ridicules and faced disdain due to his inability to cultivate.
Other cultivators of his age who had support of a decent ancestoral bloodline, grew closer to a particular element while starting their cultivation. Depending upon their affinity with that element, their cultivation talent was labelled.
A cultivator who could sense a particular element was already considered a talent. They were a position higher than ordinary cultivators who didn't feel any special affinity towards heaven and earth's elements.
Xie Long never felt any closeness towards any elements in particular. So, the notion of bloodline support confused him more.
"Both of your paternal and maternal bloodline are excellent. Although the purity of your maternal bloodline has reduced, it can be nursed back to the ancestral level with the Pagoda world's resources.
As for your paternal bloodline, even I can't see through it. One of the reason this divine pagoda has accepted you, is most probably linked to your paternal bloodline", the beauty spoke. Even with her arrogant nature, she was impressed with Xie Long's paternal bloodline.
"Paternal bloodline!", Xie Long murmured with a confused expression. He had bittersweet emotions about his father. He resented him because his father was never there when he needed him the most. Yet, he could never bring himself to hate him because his father was the most heroic figure in his mother's eyes.
Xie Long had grew upon hearing stories about how brave and powerful his father was. But the impression about him faded away gradually as he started to face the difficulties of life. He unconsciously reached towards his chest to hold the pendant his father had left for him but upon reaching out, he found no pendant on his neck. The pagoda shaped pendant was the only memento his father had left for him.
"Could it be....!", his eyes widened as he thought about a shocking possibility.