Chapter 28 - Xia Qiu's 'Curse'

 

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After the trio had left, Xia Qiu cleaned up the drops of blood from Tom with a mop she took somewhere around the back storeroom.

 

After she was done mopping, she skipped to Li Qu and asked him,

 

“Young Master Li! Put down your phone first and talk to me! I wanna know about that ‘curse’ you and dad were saying.”

 

“Wait, I am ranked 54305th on the leaderboard right now. Oh, I do not have any more shots? What is this, first top up bonus? Buy 100 shots for 10 Mei Dollars and be a VIP level one… I sh-”

 

Li Qu was busy playing Fish Mania as a screen popped up on his phone stating to charge money into the game for more shots when Xia Qiu interrupted him.

 

“Noooo, Young Master Li! Don’t fall into their traps! Once you top-up, it’ll be an everlasting spiral of spending! I have a few classmates that are still currently trapped in that pit!”

 

“But I would be a VIP level one. It indeed is a worthy trade, as they have stated, it is a 200% value. I could only get 50 shots for 10 Mei Dollars originally.”

 

Li Qu contemplated and tapped the top up button.

 

Ka Ching!

 

‘Guest ImmortalLi123 has upgraded to VIP level 1!’

 

A server wide announcement was displayed with the text above after a good few minutes due to the sheer number of players topping up for the first time.

 

“I can understand why people are hooked onto spending on these games, with this level of prestige that users would receive, even I cannot help but to top-up more and see it appear.”

 

“Young Master Li! Don’t do it! Tell me!”

 

Xia Qiu covered Li Qu’s phone screen with her hands as he sighed and put his phone on top of the cashier counter and gave an explanation to her.

 

“Alright, little girl, it cannot be considered a ‘curse’. It is more of something like a Physique. In short, you inherited a Mixed Physique from your parents.”

 

“But my mother died shortly after giving birth to me...?”

 

Xia Qiu looked confused when she mentioned it, she was teased in school for not having a mother in her childhood, she was furious and embarrassed by her classmates.

 

She then questioned her dad as to why she did not have a mother after she got home from kindergarten.

 

She noticed Xia Dong’s depressed looks but he did not state anything except that she was in a faraway place.

 

Only after she grew up had she known that her mother had actually died of unknown reasons shortly after giving birth.

 

It seemed like Xia Dong had hid some facts about the birth from his daughter.

 

“Did your father not tell you how she died? Oh, right, I did not explain it to him fully. She died because her Physique was passed onto you before she started cultivation, or rather, she did not cultivate.”

 

Li Qu stated it casually, but Xia Qiu was extremely puzzled, what Physique? What cultivation? She urged him to explain it in terms she could understand.

 

“What physique and what cultivation is Young Master Li talking about? That power that my Dad used? Please, explain it clearer!”

 

“Fine, I have nothing to do anyway. Your mother had a special body, called the ‘Eternal Ice Physique’. If she did not cultivate and gave birth, she would definitely die and the Physique would be inherited by the child. But in those rare series of coincidences, you inherited traits of your father’s Everlasting Fire Physique and your mother’s full Eternal Ice Physique, it then morphed into a Mixed Physique called the ‘Endless Icefire Physique’.”

 

Li Qu explained to Xia Qiu about the reason how she inherited her Mixed Physique.

 

There were myriads of Physiques that had been recorded and existed throughout the realms.

 

There were even lists that were compiled of the ‘Top Twenty Flame Physiques’, ‘Top Twenty Ice Physiques’, ‘Top Twenty Mixed Physiques’, ‘Top Twenty Hidden Physiques’ and so much more that it was endless!

 

It was a list that Diviners at the Heavenly Mystery Temple from the Star Heaven Realm compiled through their divinations and information they get everywhere.

 

The Diviners had made divinations about the appearance of those special Physiques, their cause and effects. They made a ranking board out of it and placed a pillar covered with words at the front of their temple entrance for cultivators to view and report to their specific organizations.

 

There was even news about the current existing ones that possessed those physiques and those that had possessed it previously and were known for it.

 

“You mean I have the Endless Icefire Physique? The non-Evolver ME?! And, my mother was an Evolver at the Genelock 2nd Phase according to dad!”

 

Xia Qiu was shocked and even forgot to address Li Qu as Young Master Li.

 

“True cultivation and your phony evolving and Ascension is like comparing Heaven to Earth. Your Physique was registered on the ranking as the 13th in the Top Twenty Mixed Physiques, with the last one appearing about 200,000 years ago by someone that I forgot the name of. But his cultivation base was at the Ancient Immortal before he got himself killed. Your father’s Everlasting Fire Physique however, is ranked 19th, barely qualifying in the Top Twenty Flame Physiques.”

 

Li Qu told Xia Qiu about her Mixed Physique’s ranking among the top.

 

There existed something like a newspaper magazine for the cultivators to learn of the breaking major news and genius rankings to keep themselves updated.

 

“H-how do you even know all this? My father said that you were ‘Extremely powerful! But…’ But what?!”

 

Xia Qiu had heard her father mention Li Qu’s powers but it was most likely that he did not mention his actual age and what level of power that he had.

 

“I read it from the ‘Cultivator Times’, a news update from the Dark Star Group of assassins that would publish these papers for everyone to buy and read previously. Alright, If you work for me, you are considered to be under me. I will tell you some things. Now, sit down and listen.”

 

The Dark Star Group, an intelligence and assassination organization, people who would carry out literally anything if the price was right.

 

The Void King Xu Sha belonged to this group as well, he was employed by someone anonymously and with the right price, he accepted the bounty contract and attempted to assassinate Li Qu, but he did not live to regret it.

 

They had connections within the Heavenly Mystery Temple and had gotten first-hand information about the appearance of new Physiques, top news about geniuses appearing from different sects and kingdoms.

 

That was how they could create the Cultivator Times newspaper magazine. It was quite a primitive way of distributing news throughout the realms, but it was insanely popular with designated delivery men specially delivering those papers towards each expert’s location.

 

Li Qu then proceeded to explain about the beginning power levels of cultivation to Xia Qiu after she sat down and waited in anticipation.

 

“First, I came from a place far away from Earth called Black Heaven Realm, where I was born…”

 

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