Cultivation: Starting with Sterilizing My Own Father

Wei Zhiying organized her thoughts: "I am the Ling Shuang Lou you mentioned. This Ling Shuang Lou was called by this name before the new sect leader took over. After the new sect leader took over, it was renamed Guiyi Sect."

The old woman stared blankly at Wei Zhiying, her mouth agape for a long time: "...Guiyi...it's...it's good...it's good to use this name...then...what about your sect leader? Is she alright?"

"The sect leader is incredibly kind. After he took over, he even changed the names of some cultivation techniques. He personally modified all of them, and it's not finished yet. Outer disciples like me can't see him. However, if I enter the inner sect and am defeated by the logistics elder, who is the former sect leader, I might be able to meet the sect leader. Since the former sect leader stepped down, he has passed the position to the current sect leader and is now in charge of the sect's logistics."

Wei Zhiying's smile vanished, and her lips drooped: "After hearing what you said, I have absolutely no desire to become the old sect leader's disciple. I used to think I could be his equal, but now I don't at all. I never imagined he was such a disgusting person. Has no one exposed him?"

The old woman paused, her gaze darting away, as if she were trying to comfort herself: "Perhaps she can't bear to part with her father."

Wei Zhiying sighed in empathy: "Yes, feelings towards parents are always complicated. My sister is an example. Neither my parents like her, yet she still longs for their love."

"Girls are always more sentimental." The old woman sighed with relief. "I'm here, and I just hope she's safe outside. This is God's retribution for me, making me fail my tribulation and fall directly from the Great Perfection of Refining Emptiness to having all my meridians severed. I barely managed to save my life and only have a little spiritual power left."

"You're a victim too." Wei Zhiying said helplessly, because he felt he couldn't persuade the old woman in front of him no matter what he did: "Grandma, don't worry, I will work hard to cultivate, and when the time comes, I will enter the inner sect and find an opportunity to expose that old man's crimes, make him condemned by everyone, and let him be locked up here, making him wish he were dead!"

The old woman finally smiled. This was the first time Wei Zhiying had seen her smile since she had been here for so long: "I'm provided with food and drink here, three meals a day without interruption. Apart from being locked up, I haven't been deprived of anything in terms of food, drink, or toileting. You say you're a chosen one of heaven, and I hope you really are. Although I don't have any special skills, I can give you a few pointers. My daughter loves the tender green of spring shoots the most. If you wear this outfit, and if you have enough strength, you'll definitely become the sect leader's personal disciple."

Wei Zhiying didn't laugh; his mind was a bit muddled. "Grandma, wait a minute. Are we talking about the same person? A daughter? But the current sect leader is a man named Sima Guiyi, and his name doesn't contain the character for 'moon'."

The old woman whirled around, gripping the cell bars tightly with both hands, her eyes practically bulging out of their sockets: "Where's Sima Yue? Is she the vice sect leader, or some elder?!"

From a humanitarian perspective, one would normally try to deceive a patient in such a desperate situation. However, Wei Zhiying sensed that this matter was far more serious than she had imagined: "I... I've never heard of such a person. But perhaps it's because I've only been in the sect for less than two months. I'll ask my teacher later; maybe they know him!"

However, the other party wouldn't listen to anything Wei Zhiying said afterward. One moment they were screaming madly, the next they were laughing loudly. The sand scorpion was so frightened that it hid behind Wei Zhiying.

The old woman's eyes were sometimes clear and sometimes cloudy. Wei Zhiying thought to herself, "This is bad. She's going crazy!"

"Retribution! Retribution! No...no...a trap! He lied to me! My Yue'er! That was my Yue'er! Yes...I saw it...she was right in front of me...I remember now...I've gone mad...I've gone mad from that moment on!"

Wei Zhiying felt around, but she didn't have any Mind-Calming Pills with her at the moment. She had used them all during her previous secluded cultivation. She could only reach out her hand, trying to use her spiritual power to calm herself down. But just as she reached out her hand, the old woman grabbed Wei Zhiying's wrist with a speed incongruous with her age. The force was so great that Wei Zhiying felt her shoulder dislocate: "I can teach you! You have to promise me you'll come often. Although I have no cultivation techniques and my element is probably different from yours—you're most likely earth element—I also reached the Great Perfection of the Void Refinement realm before I fell from grace. My realm is above yours, and I have a way to teach you!"

"I want to bring my sister with me."

"Can!"

Wei Zhiying's mouth moved faster than her brain; before her mind could process what she was saying, her mouth had already spoken. But the other person seemed to be acting differently, judging from their eyes, they genuinely agreed: "But I don't know who you are. If I want to become your disciple, I should first know my master's name, shouldn't I?"

"Su Jingrou. My name is Su Jingrou, and my older sister's name is Su Jingya."

This time, Wei Zhiying was shocked: "Oh my god, I should have expected this. Yes, you're still alive. You didn't die because there will be a seven-day holiday next month to mourn the deceased sect leader's mother... Wait a minute, let me sort this out. The current sect leader isn't your daughter, which means he's your nephew. So the sect leader's mother is mourning your sister. Oh, sorry, I got it wrong."

"No, you're right, the one being mourned is me."

Wei Zhiying was stunned.

Su Jingrou said, word by word, "My sister died when spring was in full bloom. Although the entire village had been slaughtered by that beast Sima Xiong after he killed his wife, my sister's letters started coming in monthly from spring onwards. In addition, Guiyi himself said that it was around that time. And next month is the day I fail my tribulation."

"Why doesn't he offer sacrifices to his birth mother? Logically speaking, his biological mother raised him from childhood to his teens. How could he be completely devoid of feelings? I know this is wrong, but logically, the people he should hate are you and the old sect leader. So why does he directly offer sacrifices to you? Moreover, I haven't heard any negative comments about you, nothing about you being a vixen who stole your sister's man. I've never heard of Su Jingya, the one you mentioned, nor have I heard of Sima Yue."

"Sima Xiong is a beast, and that child... he's probably gone mad with delusion." Tears streamed down Su Jingrou's face. "If anyone's to blame, it's that beast Sima Xiong. That child... I can't blame him even a little... I owe him... But my Yue'er... no... my Yue'er benefited... no... I'm a sinner... hahaha, I'm a sinner!"

Even though Wei Zhiying wasn't a psychiatric nurse, she realized one thing: the old woman in front of her might have already gone mad. Her alternating periods of lucidity and confusion weren't caused by Wei Zhiying's words. On the contrary, Wei Zhiying's words reminded Su Jingrou of things she had forgotten before.