10: Chapter 10 Crippled Cultivation? Madam, Your Immortal Journey Has Only Just Begun

The next morning.

A ray of dawn light filtered through the carved window lattices, dappling the wide, soft couch in the bedchamber.

Ye Qingcheng's eyelashes trembled slightly as she slowly opened her eyes.

What met her gaze were unfamiliar green curtains; the air was filled with a faint scent of ambergris and a lingering trace of passion.

The moment her consciousness returned, the fragmented and absurd memories of last night flooded her mind like a tide.

Being drugged, fleeing, falling, that man's embrace, and that... which she had to do to neutralize the poison...

Ye Qingcheng's face instantly flushed red to the tips of her ears, followed by a deathly pallor as if she had fallen into an ice cellar.

She instinctively clutched the brocade quilt, wrapping herself tightly and curling up in the corner of the bed, her delicate body trembling uncontrollably.

It's over.

Everything is over.

She was the dignified Tianshui Holy Maiden; even if she were expelled from her sect, she was still proud and had guarded her purity like jade.

But now, in these wild mountains, to save her life, she had lost her virginity to a Devil Head she had only met once!

"Xie Yunzhou... Revered Master..."

Humiliation, regret, and despair intertwined.

A look of resolute death flashed in Ye Qingcheng's eyes.

Her purity was gone; what meaning was there in living on?

She closed her eyes, steeled her heart, and prepared to mobilize her Spiritual Qi to sever her own heart's Meridians.

However—

"Emp... empty?"

Ye Qingcheng snapped her eyes open, touching her lower abdomen at the Dantian area with a look of astonishment.

It was empty; she couldn't feel even a trace of Spiritual Qi fluctuation.

The Peak Foundation Establishment Stage cultivation she had painstakingly built over a dozen years had vanished overnight!

"My cultivation... is completely gone?"

Despair was instantly magnified countless times over.

For a Cultivator, losing one's cultivation is more terrifying than losing one's life; it meant she had become a complete cripple.

But immediately after, her expression froze.

No.

Although there was no Spiritual Qi in her Dantian, her body... didn't seem to feel uncomfortable?

She tried to perform an internal inspection of herself.

The Meridians that were originally shattered by Xie Yunzhou's palm strike were now all reconnected!

Furthermore, the reconstructed Meridians were broad and tough, incredibly smooth, and faintly emitted a lustrous jade-like glow.

The side effects of the 'Extreme Cold Physique' that had plagued her for years—that unbearable stinging coldness every full moon night—had also completely vanished.

In its place was a warm Innate Origin Qi lurking within her limbs and bones.

Meridians reconstructed, rebirth through destruction!

Although her cultivation was gone, her Foundation was actually more perfect than during her prime!

Is this the legendary 'Flawless Body'?

"This... how is this possible?" Ye Qingcheng stared blankly at her hands, feeling the weak yet incredibly pure life force within her.

"Awake?"

A somewhat lazy and magnetic voice came from beside her.

Ye Qingcheng trembled all over, turning her head like a startled fawn.

She saw Wang Yang propped up on his side, his black sleeping robe loosely draped over him, revealing a small patch of his fit chest.

His deep eyes were looking at her with a bit of playfulness and a bit of appreciation.

"Wanting to die?"

Wang Yang reached out, his long fingers gently lifting a strand of Ye Qingcheng's hair scattered on the pillow, his tone teasing:

"Madam, last night, to help you reconstruct your Meridians and extract the Hehuan poison, I exhausted quite a bit of my Origin. If you die now, wouldn't my hard work all night be in vain?"

Ye Qingcheng bit her lip, staring fixedly at the man who had taken her first time.

She wanted to curse him for taking advantage of her?

But last night... it was clearly her own medicine taking effect, and she had taken the initiative to cling to him.

She wanted to kill him?

But now she was a Mortal, and he was unfathomable.

"You... what exactly did you do to me? My cultivation..." Ye Qingcheng's voice was hoarse, with a complex tremor.

"The poison is neutralized, your life is saved, and your Meridians are reconstructed."

Wang Yang withdrew his smile and sat up, his tone becoming domineering and serious:

"As for your cultivation... that was the price that had to be paid to reconstruct your Foundation. Your previous Cultivation Technique was too cold and damaged your roots; it doesn't suit your current talent. If it's gone, it's gone."

He leaned close to Ye Qingcheng's pale yet still exquisite face, his gaze burning:

"Ye Qingcheng, listen. From last night onwards, your life is mine, and you are mine. If your cultivation is gone, you can train again. Though my temple is small, I can afford to provide for you."

"As for those who harmed you..."

A cold light flashed in Wang Yang's eyes. "Since I have taken you as my Madam, your grudge is my grudge. When you return to your cultivation, I will lead you back to kill them, trampling those who bullied you under your feet one by one!"

Ye Qingcheng looked at the domineering yet responsible man before her.

The overwhelming hatred and grievance in her heart miraculously dissolved by more than half under these crude but protective words.

She lowered her head, and two lines of clear tears fell.

It wasn't despair, but a release from finally finding someone to rely on.

"You... you keep your word?"

"I never lie to women."

Wang Yang reached out and gently wiped the tear stains from the corners of her eyes, "Especially my own woman."

Ye Qingcheng could no longer hold it back; she threw herself into Wang Yang's arms and wept loudly.

She cried out all her grievances and cried away her past.

From today on, there was no Tianshui Holy Maiden in the world, only the Sect Master's Madam of the Hehuan Sect.

...

Half an hour later.

Wang Yang tidied his clothes and hair, and leading Ye Qingcheng, who had changed into a clean, simple skirt, walked out of the room.

Although Ye Qingcheng had lost all her cultivation and become a Mortal, that cold and noble temperament etched into her bones, combined with the touch of charm between her brows after last night's nourishment, made her even more moving than before.

The square outside the main hall was bustling with activity.

"Sect Master! Sect Master! We've struck it rich!"

Lin Dahai's excited voice echoed through the clouds.

"Three thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones! Five hundred catties of refined iron! Two carts of first-tier Spiritual Plants! And this Low Grade Spiritual Artifact, the 'water-severing blade'..." Lin Dahai was flushed with excitement, looking like a nouveau riche.

To the side, Lin Xiaowan was registering items in a small notebook. Hearing footsteps, she looked up and was instantly stunned.

She saw her usually shiftless Revered Master walking over, holding the hand of a white-clothed woman so beautiful she felt ashamed of her own appearance.

Even though the woman didn't have the slightest fluctuation of Spiritual Qi, her aura... was like a Nine Heavens Goddess descending to the Mortal world.

"Revered Master... who is this?" Lin Xiaowan asked blankly.

Wang Yang coughed, puffed out his chest, and introduced with a face full of pride:

"Ahem, well, Xiao Wan."

"Let me introduce you. This is Ye Qingcheng. From today on, she is your... Revered Master's Wife."

"Mas... Revered Master's Wife?!"

Lin Xiaowan's eyes widened. She looked at Ye Qingcheng, then at Wang Yang.

An indescribable sourness suddenly welled up in her heart.

I was clearly here first...

And how can the Revered Master's Wife be a Mortal?

Even though she's good-looking, isn't being a Mortal very dangerous in this cruel world of immortal cultivation?

"What? You're not going to greet her?" Wang Yang raised an eyebrow.

Although Ye Qingcheng was a bit shy and a blush rose on her face, she still displayed the grace of a lady from a great family.

She gently pulled her hand from Wang Yang's and gave Lin Xiaowan a gentle smile.

Because her cultivation was completely gone, she couldn't open her storage ring, so she could only take off the warm jade from her neck that hadn't been placed inside.

"For our first meeting, I'll give this 'Warm Sun Jade' to... Xiao Wan, right?"

Ye Qingcheng's voice was soft, "My cultivation is currently shallow and I have few possessions. This jade pendant can nourish the Meridians and will be of some help to your current Realm. Please do not look down on it."

Lin Xiaowan felt the gentle Spiritual Qi emanating from the jade pendant and saw Ye Qingcheng's sincere smile. The sourness in her heart was instantly replaced by appreciation.

Who could refuse such a gentle and beautiful Revered Master's Wife?

"Thank you, Revered Master's Wife! Revered Master's Wife, you are so beautiful! It must be the blessing of several lifetimes for Revered Master to be able to marry you!"

Wang Yang: ...This girl, does she know how to talk? It's clearly a perfect match of talent and beauty!

...