2.”You’ll regret this!”
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Su Jing found a large rock and chose to sit on it as she massaged her feet. Now that she finally looked, her shoes were with some blood, signalling how her pain wasn't for nothing.

What did she do to have such a wound?

Not having anything, Su Jing broke one of her inner sleeves and wrapped her feet. Although still in pain, she felt a bit more comfortable now.

As the Sixth Elder directed his attention to the group, Su Jing became alert and eager to hear what he had to say.

"The Gate of Immortals is the only way mortals can reach the immortal realm, as few of you probably know already. Everyone is welcome to try their chances to reach the immortal realm, but take notice. If you weren't selected in our previous test, your journey from this point would be without Heavenly Clouds Sect's protection."

He paused, his gaze taking in the massive group of people who had not accepted. " Staying too long on this mountain path would make the demons flourish inside your soul by lengths and bounds, risking easily a death. I hope you will take care of your decision."

Su Jing gazed up the stairs, a bit overwhelmed by their size. She had followed these people because she did not know where else to go, but now, after hearing the elder's words, she regretted not choosing the other group that went down the slope!

Rummages and howls were constantly heard as if telling her the way back wouldn't be easy. The woods were all of a sudden dark to take without the master.

She seemed to be the only one fighting the worries inside her head. People began to step on the stairs, their figures getting lost one after another in the view. Many were excited and happily talking to each other as if the word "death" had not escaped the immortal's mouth.

The master turned towards the three chosen persons and started instructing them separately. He did not seem surprised by the mortals' reaction.

Now that Su Jing looked over, she observed that the two young immortals weren't with him. Were they so powerful they could go on their own?

Su Jing rose from her stone and approached the stairs, hobbling, wanting to eavesdrop on the master. She did not walk much, though. A cold, soft hand touched her shoulder, making Su Jing flinch in fright.

"Oh, my apologies. I did not want to startle you."

Su Jing turned and was surprised to see Bai Xiu Ying!

Young Master Zhu was behind her, with his arms crossed as he stared elsewhere, clearly disgusted at interacting with Su Jing. Su Jing could only bow her head, feeling a somewhat numb pressure on her stomach now that those two were around her.

"Immortal Bai, Immortal Zhu."

The soles of her feet still hurt, and as she lay her face down, she couldn't help but notice the beautiful shoes that Bai Xiu Ying and Young Master Zhu wore. While hers were bluish with a soft touch of flowers, Young Master Zhu wore a pair of resistant and comfy boots—something Su Jing would die to have right now.

"Older Sister does not need to greet us like that. Although our origin is immortal, we are still young."

Looking up, Su Jing saw Bai Xiu Ying gently smiling, unlike Young Master Zhu, who beat his finger impatiently against the forearm.

She next stretched out her hand, holding a green jade bottle in her palm. Su Jing took a moment to stare at it, not recognising what it could be—it was too small to be a bottle of water and yet too big to be used only for decorative purposes.

"I actually approached you to give you this elixir. I saw you limping during our walk here, and I figured out you were wounded. It can heal any injury or wound instantly."

Bai Xiu Ying smiled politely as she said that, appearing truthfully worried about Su Jing's condition. Su Jing, however, staggered for a moment, taken aback by her actions.

She murmured, "Immortal Bai is too generous."

Shouldn't medicine be costly? Su Jing had no money or any other way to repay her. However, Bai Xiu Ying stuffed the elixir in her hand, giving Su Jing only a little time to think.

"You will need your body to be healed to reach the gate. Although I said I would abandon my alchemist way, my family's upbringing wouldn't let me leave you like that."

Su Jing held the bottle, still feeling Bai Xiu Ying's body cold. It was weird to think that since a body is usually warm! Or was it just her hands?

Bai Xiu Ying stayed for a short time. Once she saw that Su Jing accepted her help, she followed Young Master Zhu towards the master. Su Jing kept the elixir in her palm, scared she might accidentally drop it.

"Did Immortal Fairy Bai help that?"

Su Jing overheard what the nearby people said, and her back suddenly felt targeted. Her heart couldn't help but beat loudly. She knew they wouldn't be as lovely as Bai Xiu Ying if Su Jing conversed with them. She quickly retracted and returned to the rock where she had previously sat.

As she unpacked the garments around her feet, more and more people, even those immortals, were gone. Bai Xiu Ying waved her hand towards Su Jing when she caught sight of her, and with that, Su Jing was left alone.

Although it was slightly unsettling, hearing the bird chirp peacefully and the wind blow made Su Jing relax as she massaged the elixir into her wounds.

Bai Xiu Ying seemed not to lie, as the elixir did its job fast and repaired even the injuries on Su Jing's hands. Su Jing kept half of the elixir in the bottle and put it in her pocket along with the red berries and coins.

With that, Su Jing finally felt better. She could see a few people in the distance, but they were already ahead.

Su Jing did not want to meet them or anyone else on this isolated mountain.

She started climbing, the slight breeze bringing a strange mist.

"What a terrible girl..."

"I know, right? She wants to be a chicken through the heavens!"

Su Jing was startled by the sudden voices. Holding a rock from the ground, she looked around for the two people but did not see anyone.

Only the fog was circling her, like a trap that doomed her to be blind from all points.

Confused, she continued to climb up, wary of any sounds she encountered.

"Hahaha, let's do it, let's do it. I am curious how much she can hold on."

"She should have listened to the Village Head!"

Vague, scattered fog phantoms appeared before Su Jing. Their faces were blurry and hard to put together. These images didn't hurt her, but Su Jing felt that those held significance to be suddenly shown to her.

Were those maybe her memories? Su Jing tried hard to recognise those voices, but it was all for nought. Her head was like a white piece of paper.

Su Jing continued, trying not to overthink these mean voices. As the staircase narrowed, each step became higher than the other.

A scary cliff was just near the railing.

To Su Jing's surprise, the back of a real person was in front of her. Su Jing approached hesitantly, and with each step, she was sure the guy was someone she saw at the root test.

Murmuring, he kneeled on the ground and held his head. She stopped a few steps from him, unsure if she should check if he were alright.

"Mother...Mother..."

He started shouting harder now as if the fog around his head had increased his pain. Su Jing did not know what to do, and to make things worse, when she stopped a few metres behind him, he seemed to hear her.

The man suddenly turned, his face red from crying.

"You, wait! Let go!" Before Su Jing could escape, he kneeled to her feet, catching her dress firmly in his palms.

"Mother, you are here! At last, I thought I'd lost you."

He circled her legs, making Su Jing almost fall.

"What the, I am not your mother. Woke up, you prick!"

She hit him in the head with her palm, getting frightened by his firm grip.

"Why can't you see I always sacrificed everything for our family? Can't you forgive me only once this time? After everything I'd done!"

Su Jing had no idea what he was saying, but once she noticed that his hands were going higher around her body, she couldn't hold it anymore and struck him on the head with all her force.

"I said, let go!" She then kicked him with her leg, salting above his body and running up the stairs.

The man was crying in pain as if throwing a tantrum on the ground. Su Jing's idea of helping had long been gone, so now that she had the opportunity, she no longer stood still and went away.

"So it all comes to this, huh? Do you truly hate me? Am I not your child, mother?"

Su Jing couldn't care less about his mommy issues and continued to walk. However, a cold wind passed the stairs, adding even more fog. This time, its colour was an intense black, attaching itself around the man's body.

"My brother did not deserve to be an immortal! He was good for nothing!"

He looked straight towards her, his whole eyeballs red. Su Jing had no time to think as he salted towards her, clearly wanting to hurt her.

Su Jing could only run higher on the stairs, running away from his punch. The place trembled as he hit the ground, making Su Jing unbalanced, and he almost fell down the cliff. She locked air in her lungs, looking back at the cloud of dust from behind,

Once the wind washed it away, Su Jing was horrified to see the place where he hit it destroyed to bits. A big hole was now between him and her.

Suddenly, he kneeled again, putting his hands on his face as he cried. Su Jing looked horrified at him.

"I killed him, I killed you..." he murmured, shaking his head, "You are here to reprimand me, aren't you? To stop me, maybe?"

Su Jing understood that the man in front of her killed his family before coming here, taking his dead brother's place as a contestant.

The man again swung his fist at her, this time his killing intent being even higher. Thankfully, he was slow in his acts since he was in the hole, giving Su Jing time to avoid him and make him stumble down.

At this moment, she gave him no other seconds as she ran away, going as fast as she could up the stairs through the dense fog. He continued to scream, but as Su Jing persisted and did not look back, his voice eventually faded, lost.

The silence did not persist for long as Su Jing's inner voices came back, this time with the tone of an older woman.

"Of course, she's here to marry Uncle Ben's nephew, Little Du! But she's kind of a wild one and needs instruction."

"Hahaha, he will surely have fun with such a little concubine."

Su Jing's steps gradually steadied, and an uncomfortable pressure got on her chest. The chaos of her running away and the memories plunging into her mind almost made her dizzy, and she couldn't stand straight anymore on her legs.

She did not know them, but their words weighed heavily on her.

Had she run away from her home? That would explain her swollen feet and dusty clothes.

Hitting her palm through the grey cloud that gathered around her head, Su Jing persisted, now sure that the mortal realm had no home welcoming her in.

There were more accidents similar to the previous one. Because of the fog, people were in a dream memory, making Su Jing feel weird that she was passing quickly through this.

Indeed, it wasn't easy for her to remember that she was a little wild-running bride, but some of the things she heard from those people were flashing!

Killing, cheating, betrayals... they had done everything possible to reach this place, yet they were ending in such a way. Su Jing now vaguely understood why the master rejected so many of them.

While she was walking, she once again saw someone.

This had happened so many times that she wasn't even surprised anymore. Su Jing chose to stay far from them and go off the stairs to hide behind some stones, but as she took a fugitive glance, she was surprised to see Feng Zhi Hao!

What, what was she doing here? Su Jing was sure she left last, yet Feng Zhi Hao was before her!

Su Jing observed her, finding it weird that she was so silent. Usually, people were screaming their dissatisfaction and using violence.

Miss Feng, however, was as hushed as a statue.

The wind moved her hair elegantly in the air. As harmless as she looked, the previous encounters taught her not to go near people again headlessly.

She stood hidden, wondering how to bypass her.

"Oi, who do we have here? Miss Feng herself!"

Su Jing froze and quickly hid better behind the rocks. Looking higher than Feng Zhi Hao, she was surprised to see one of the three accepted contestants. Wasn't he with the master and immortals?

It was confusing, but Su Jing couldn't care less about that now since she needed to find a way to escape!

It was clear that there was gonna be a fight here!

Unlike the tumultuous state of Su Jing, Feng Zhi Hao did not react at all, continuing to stay immobile. Her back was still straight, and her eyes closed, seemingly fighting an inner memory of hers.

As she crawled away, Su Jing became hesitant, thinking Feng Zhi Hao would lose if she were against the top contestant.

But as much as Su Jing wanted to help, she was weaker!

"Hahaha, it's surprising how you even got here."

The young man wore a yellow belt, seemingly giving the impression of gold. Hanging down these were countless pouches, making Su Jing sure that he stole them from others!

"I heard Old Patriarch Feng gave you many things before dying."

He got an ugly sight before going closer and encircling Feng Zhi Hao.

"Feng Zhi Hao, hei! Can't you hear me?" he moved his hands in front of her, pushing her lightly. Soon, he pulled the jade hairpin she wore, with no regard that he might have broken her hair.

"Ah, damn! What could I expect? This is not even a jade. It's just a useless piece of wood. "

He threw it on the ground, and the sounds of it falling down the stairs got lost gradually.

He then searched her clothes and hands but couldn't find anything.

"Why the fuck are you even a Feng if there is nothing good about you?" he lashed out at the unconscious Feng Zhi Hao, pulling on her clothes in anger.

Feng Zhi Hao destabilised a bit, and Su Jing saw her frowning in her sleeping state, signalling that she was somehow aware of what was happening.

However, since the man had pulled her clothes, the front side had gotten undone a little, showing her white neck and clavicle. There, going distinct, was a pure green stone, shining quietly as it was out in the open.

"That's a Qi-enhanced artefact! I knew it - she was hiding something!"

He brutely wrapped his hand around the necklace, trying to rip it out of her neck. Su Jing did not have time to observe these events closely, but suddenly, Feng Zhi Hao's hand moved, striking the man in the stomach!

"Argh, you crazy - !" Screaming in pain, his back arched, trying to cover the focal point of the hit.

Feng Zhi Hao then used her hand to hit the fingers that were still holding her necklace, finally breaking free from his clutches. Su Jing was surprised to discover that she had kept her eyes closed all this time!

"Feng Zhi Hao, so you were pretending all this time!" With blood coming out of his mouth, the man slowly got back up on his legs, a burst of maniacal laughter coming out of his mouth. "I should have guessed it. You have a treasure with you. From Qin Country till the Shun Mountains, how could a single miss like you come on her own?"

Feng Zhi Hao kept her silence and wrapped her fingers around her necklace.

Su Jing admired her tenacity for seeking meditation, but out of all moments, it was rather improper to do this now when someone was with a clear killing intent directed towards her!

"You dare ignore me?! Don't you know that this mountain is not bound to any rules, be they from the immortal or mortal realms?" He somehow materialised a sword from his sleeves and swung it in front. " Be prepared to die!"

Seeing this awful course of action, Su Jing closed her eyes, not wanting to watch a gruesome scene. However, instead of the sword sounds she had expected, a blast happened, throwing her on her back by the force of the air.

It was so strong that even the mountain looked like it was trembling.

The pine trees swayed in the distance, and Su Jing's body seemed to lose all strength, utterly drained of energy.

A golden light started to sprout around Su Jing. Looking in front, she saw that it was coming from Feng Zhi Hao's clenched hand, slowly enveloping and spreading to the surroundings.

The girl appeared to be transforming in terms of power, even her wounds healing rapidly on their own.

"You..." the man whispered, now trembling with his sword in hand. He was also astonished, but not at Feng Zhi Hao since he greedily looked at the treasure in her hand.

He got back up and punched again, unafraid of the colossal energy around Feng Zhi Hao.

Without warning, Feng Zhihao also lunged forward without a single weapon. Catching the hand holding the sword, she bent it, making the ruffian scream painfully.

Feng Zhi Hao did not give him even two seconds to talk as she quickly took his sword and slashed it across his chest. She did it multiple times as if wanting to make sure that each hit was causing him more pain.

The man's face was pitifully struggling to get up.

"You'll regret this!"

Feng Zhihao surprisingly smirked mockingly at the speaker, crushing his fingers one by one with her feet.

The man's screams were so piercing that they sent shivers down Su Jing's spine.

"Wait...!"

"Initially, I wanted you to send my regards to my dear second sister, but I've changed my mind."

The tip of the sword glittered in the air, sending with it a bad omen. The man's scream did not have time to be heard as Feng Zhi Hao sliced open his neck, making the actual bloody scene even more horrendous.

Su Jing did not dare even to breathe now that she saw this.

Feng Zhi Hao had now her eyes fully open, looking with indifference at the now breathless body that was lying in a pool of blood.

She kneeled in front of him, starting to rummage through his clothes and pouches. Su Jing saw how she took almost all the valuable things she could see on his body and threw them in a ring that miraculously appeared on her finger!

When she thought things finally got peaceful, the dead body wasn't in view anymore, a flame quickly burning it to dust.

The girl swiftly tidied all the mess as if she hadn't committed one killing.

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