Free Web NovelChapter 1: Extra - Character Arc 1: Gong Shulan
Originally, this short story was in Chapter 288 of the main text. However, it felt a bit abrupt within the main story, and after receiving reader feedback, I moved it out and rewrote it.
It is now being published as a free Chapter.
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My name is Gong Shulan.
In the future, I will have another name—Hu Yao.
When I was born, the Gong Family was still glorious within the Marketplace of Danqiu Mountain, a renowned Foundation Establishment Family.
The Gong Family possesses a Secret Treasure called the Blood Ghost Jade. My grandfather was the one who obtained it. With this Secret Treasure, he went from a Qi Cultivator whose path was at its end to a suddenly promoted Foundation Establishment Master, causing quite a sensation in the surrounding region.
Many Cultivators wanted to find out what kind of Opportunity my grandfather had stumbled upon to have transformed from a sparrow into a Phoenix.
A Foundation Establishment Lifespan is 400 Years. If nothing had gone wrong, my grandfather would have protected me as I grew up, watched over me, and taught me Cultivation Techniques, Secret Skills, and the common knowledge of Cultivation.
Just like any grandfather and grandchild in the many Cultivation Families.
Unfortunately, the Blood Ghost Jade had a side effect. While it could improve one’s aptitude, it also consumed a great deal of the host’s Lifespan.
My grandfather died when I was eight years old.
That night, the Gong Family held an emergency meeting. My father, as the head of the family, decided to keep the death a secret, using the excuse of Seclusion to hide the news of Grandfather’s passing.
From Grandfather’s Dantian, Father dug out a Skull Jade Pendant that emanated a green glow.
So, this was the Blood Ghost Jade.
Hiding in the shadows, I saw the legendary Gong Family Secret Treasure for the first time—the Opportunity for Foundation Establishment that outsiders coveted.
That night, Mother and Father argued. Mother didn’t want Father to follow in Grandfather’s footsteps. She was willing to go into hiding and abandon the Gong Family’s entire legacy rather than let Father consume his Lifespan to become a short-lived Foundation Establishment Cultivator.
Three years later, Father failed.
He never Promoted to the Foundation Establishment Realm; his Realm was forever stuck at the Qi Cultivation Ninth Layer.
With Father’s death, the weak Gong Family, our Foundation Establishment Family, no longer... no longer had anyone capable of steering the ship.
News of Grandfather’s death began to spread like wildfire through Danqiu Mountain. After all, Grandfather hadn’t attended Father’s funeral. This was the best proof that he was already dead.
A host of Cultivators once again began to covet the "Gong Family Secret Treasure" that had allowed Grandfather to break through to Foundation Establishment.
Mother wanted to take me and flee. She took Father’s Blood Ghost Jade and placed it in my arms.
But Mother didn’t make it. The moment she stepped out of Danqiu Mountain, she was ambushed by Tribulation Cultivators and tragically lost her life.
I was eleven that year. I figured out that Mother’s death was inextricably linked to the Cultivators of Danqiu Mountain.
Chentang, Ren Yifeng, and the others from the Shuyun Alliance were the secret murderers. They were the ones who directed the Tribulation Cultivators to kill my mother as she tried to leave Danqiu Mountain.
The night Mother died, I was terrified, petrified that Chentang, Ren Yifeng, and the others would find me.
I hid at home, clutching that Blood Ghost Jade, trembling as I watched the world outside my window.
My father’s "good friend," Chentang, walked in. He ransacked the entire Gong Family estate, and after finding nothing, he turned his attention to me.
But astonishingly, the Blood Ghost Jade I was clutching in my arms vanished without a sound or a trace.
Chentang left, disappointed.
As for me, I discovered the Blood Ghost Jade’s existence during my subsequent Cultivation. It was inside my Dantian, firmly rooted within.
From the Blood Ghost Jade, I learned the reason: I possessed the legendary Ghost Spirit Body, making me the true master of the Blood Ghost Jade.
It was all too coincidental, so much so that I could hardly believe it. Yet, I had to. Because of this Blood Ghost Jade, I now had hope for revenge.
However, a basin of cold water was soon poured over my head.
To seize the Gong Family Secret Treasure, the Shuyun Alliance began to pressure me with both threats and enticements, trying to make me trade what I knew of the Secret Treasure for Cultivation Resources.
The hardships of Cultivation constantly plagued me. It wasn’t until I was fifteen that a turning point finally arrived.
With the help of the "Blood Ghost Jade," I could finally create a Human Puppet, linked to my own life and controlled by my Guardian Map Divine Sense.
Soon after, a prostitute from the slums named Hu Yao became my first Human Puppet.
Hu Yao had been tortured to the brink of death by Young Master Wangg. Only by becoming a Human Puppet could she be "Resurrected" and get her revenge.
Hu Yao agreed to my plea.
In truth, even if she hadn’t agreed, I would have made her into a Human Puppet anyway.
With Hu Yao’s help, I began to earn Spirit Stones and cultivate little by little. I spread the word that the Gong Family had left me a large inheritance, which allowed me to focus on Cultivation without having to sell off my assets.
「Time passed.」
My Realm grew higher and higher. I needed a chance to escape Danqiu Mountain and find the right opportunity for my Foundation Establishment.
But that year, I met a Cultivator.
To be precise, a Male Cultivator.
At that time, I—or rather, Hu Yao—was washing clothes by a stream in Danqiu Mountain when I saw a young Martial Artist walk in from beyond a Concealing Array in the distance.
This young Martial Artist wasn’t particularly handsome. At least, compared to his sworn brother beside him, he was far less striking.
However, compared to his brother, this young Martial Artist was much more personable. He quickly struck up a friendly acquaintance with me, becoming one of my "friends."
I accidentally learned that the young Martial Artist and his sworn brother seemed to have a stash of Spirit Stones of dubious origin.
Ever the schemer, I saw this as my chance to escape Danqiu Mountain. I began to get closer to this young Martial Artist, intending to divert the attention of Chentang and the others onto him.
My efforts paid off. I succeeded.
I escaped with my life and broke through to Foundation Establishment outside.
But I could never forget.
Outside the Yaolang Mountain Range, when that young Martial Artist learned the truth, the depths of his eyes revealed a profound hatred for me.
I felt so guilty.
Even when the young Martial Artist hunted me down afterward, I didn’t blame him. After all, I was the one who had deceived him first.
After reaching Jing Country and the Demonic Realm, I met many more people. I should have been able to forget that young Martial Artist, but... while some fawned over me, a Spirit Body Cultivator, and others watched me with cold indifference...
...there was no one else who was willing to be true friends with the person I was, the prostitute from all those years ago.
I... I think I had genuinely fallen in love with him.
