508: Distant memories...

Hiss… But why do I feel like I don’t want to harm her… Nether Immortal didn’t hear Lu Hao’s words at all.

The memories she had forcibly sealed away completely boiled over the moment she saw Lu Hao. The Seal shattered, and the memories wildly surged through her mind.

Her consciousness was also involuntarily dragged back into that inescapable quagmire.

It was the day after their parents died, hunted by enemies. They were merely at the Foundation Establishment and Golden Core Stage of Cultivation; the brother was at the Golden Core Early Stage, and the sister had just reached Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.

Their parents had anticipated this, so they hid the two in a very cold place and faked their deaths to escape the enemy’s pursuit.

As their parents tearfully sent them away, Ling'er heard her parents crying and entrusting her brother:

“Your parents are gone, you must take good care of your sister. If your parents successfully escape the enemy’s pursuit, they will come to find you two at the first opportunity!”

…Inside a thatched hut, wind blew through everywhere, and it was bone-chillingly cold. This was their temporary shelter, built with their remaining Cultivation. At this time, her brother had already gone out to search for various healing resources.

But in a place like the Netherworld, where people are eaten whole, how easy was it for a child to find healing Medicinal Pills?

The small girl huddled in a corner, wrapped in thin, old bedding, her teeth chattering.

The door creaked open, and cold wind rushed in, making her shiver.

Then, a thin figure, not much taller than her, darted in, bringing with him a chill, but his face held a bright, somewhat foolish smile.

“Ling’er, look what big brother brought you?”

The young man held out his hand as if presenting a treasure; a red flower lay quietly in his palm, exuding a vibrant color.

In the Netherworld, most flowers were black; only some Spiritual Plants and Spirit Medicines would display other colors.

So, for this young man to pick a red flower, he must have put in a lot of effort.

Then, the young man carefully placed the flower in her hair, then very seriously looked left and right, adjusting Ling’er’s hair, finally setting a style, and said with a smile:

“Hey! Ling’er looks so beautiful with this flower!”

Ling’er looked at the young man in front of her, and it seemed that the swirling snow outside no longer felt so cold.

“Brother, safety first when you’re out. Don’t get these things for me; just come back early.”

Ling’er stared intently at the young man with wide eyes, then stubbornly raised her head, not letting the tears fall.

“Ling’er, don’t worry, I am your big brother, I will definitely protect you!”

“Mm!”

The siblings leaned against each other, watching the wind and snow outside, in silence. After a moment, they both began to sob softly. For them, a world without parents was simply too unfamiliar and difficult… The memory moved to her teenage years, when Ling’er had just turned fifteen.

They had successfully evaded the enemy’s pursuit that time, and then both changed their names and embarked on the path of Cultivation.

Ling’er’s talent was quite good; her Cultivation Realm was now basically on par with her brother’s, only one small Realm lower.

The two joined a gray force called the Bloodcloth Hall!

The Bloodcloth Hall engaged in perilous activities. Every three months, its Disciples had to complete a mission.

This could be assassination, escort, or exploring various extremely dangerous ruins.

Entering ruins was generally the least dangerous, but the Bloodcloth Hall also had requirements: only by obtaining the items required by the force could they leave the ruins. Otherwise, if they left early, the first time would result in physical punishment, the second time their Divine Soul would be directly refined and cast into the Myriad Grievances Prison to endure a hundred years of torment!

If there was a third time, the outcome would be Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering!

Yet, even so, in the Netherworld, countless Cultivators wished to join the Bloodcloth Hall. Why? Because every time a mission for the Bloodcloth Hall was completed, Cultivators would receive extremely generous rewards.

These were resources sufficient to allow a Cultivator to successfully advance one small Realm.

The siblings also passed through numerous trials and eventually successfully became members of the Bloodcloth Hall.

They wanted to avenge their parents, so for the sake of Cultivation, they had no choice!

However, after joining the Bloodcloth Hall, Ling’er did not go out to do any missions for the first few years.

At first, Ling’er was a bit confused as to why she was different from others, but later she understood… It turned out that her brother had proactively requested the Elder to help Ling’er complete her quarterly missions. The Elder agreed, but the condition was that he had to complete three missions within three months!

The young man agreed without the slightest hesitation.

Later, when Ling’er learned the truth, she also knelt and begged the Elder to withdraw his order, but he heavily injured her with a single palm strike, leaving only an extremely cold remark:

“Scram!”

That time, after the young man completed his mission, as soon as he entered the door, he began to say:

“Ling’er, this is for you. This is a Profound Rank Magic Treasure…”

Before he could finish speaking, he realized something was wrong. He quickly walked into the room and, seeing his heavily injured sister, he was consumed by rage.

“Ling’er, don’t be afraid.”

The young man tightly embraced her injured body, his voice low and firm: “The revenge for our parents, and your revenge, I will definitely get! I will protect you, always protect you!”

His anger was completely overwhelming his reason. He held his sister tightly in his arms, but in his heart, he had already sworn a solemn oath… Originally, Ling’er had always been under her brother’s protection. In her heart, her brother was her sky, and her sky would never fall!

Until one time, after her brother returned from completing a mission, everything… changed.

Her brother seemed like a different person, starting to… not love her anymore… starting to make her go out and complete missions too, starting to no longer give her any Cultivation resources, starting to always verbally abuse her for no reason… “You really are a good-for-nothing. How can you mess up a mission like this? I’ve been out so many times, haven’t I always been fine?”

“Danger? You’re telling me about danger? If it’s dangerous, then wait here for the Hall’s punishment. It seems I’ve protected you too well all these years. Remember, only the strong can survive!”

“Only the strong are worthy of being my sister! The way you are now, you’re a good-for-nothing!”

Ling’er looked at this very unfamiliar brother. At first, she thought she had done something wrong, so she was careful in everything and always thought of her brother, but it was all useless.