Cui Xiaoxiao couldn’t explain clearly to her two senior brothers, but while digging wild vegetables alone, she had the opportunity to speak with the second senior sister in detail.

After listening, Jiang Nanmu widened her eyes slightly: “You mean Qin Lingxiao isn’t just seeking to marry you to help you detoxify?”

Cui Xiaoxiao was digging wild vegetables by the roadside with the old dog Ji Xiang. Hearing this, she wiped the sweat from her forehead and said: “Although the Jiuxuan Sword Sect’s reputation sounds respectable, what kind of righteous cultivator would a traitor who could kill his master be? His cultivation may be high, but in terms of character, he’s far inferior to our master! I once swore to master that I would cleanse my heart, reform myself, and make the Talismonger Sect flourish. How could I possibly submit to some worthless major sect under coercion and disgrace our Talismonger Sect’s reputation?”

Jiang Nanmu thought about it – since the master’s death, this Cui Xiaoxiao had indeed seemed like a different person, no longer cynical, and her temper much improved.

She couldn’t help but be curious about what had happened during those three days and nights when the master had taken Cui Xiaoxiao into seclusion in the Lingshan cave before his death.

Why had master seemed to have his vitality completely drained after emerging, quickly becoming listless and then suddenly passing away, while Cui Xiaoxiao seemed like a changed person, no longer having such a difficult personality?

When Jiang Nanmu tentatively asked about this, Cui Xiaoxiao pressed her lips together and said softly: “Have you heard of the retrospective illumination method?”

Jiang Nanmu shook her head – she had never heard of this.

Cui Xiaoxiao smiled bitterly and said no more, only her hands digging wild vegetables gradually slowed as she couldn’t help but recall those final moments with the master…

Only she knew that master Tang Youshu had exhausted his lifelong cultivation to use the retrospective illumination method, just so she could revisit that most unforgettable scene from her nightmares.

She had always thought that her mother had heartlessly sold her daughter because she disliked her poor fate and wanted to send the jinx far away.

Standing by the cart, Xiaoxiao personally witnessed that after the cart pulled away, the tearful little girl, a gaunt mother, walked tremblingly out of the dilapidated courtyard.

Mother was also in tears, watching the cart roll away.

Uncle was still complaining to mother: “When people sell daughters, if it’s a death contract, it’s at least ten taels of silver! You only sold for three taels, and then gave those three taels to the cart driver – what’s the logic in that? Sister, are you sick and confused?”

Mother’s gaze became cold and clear as she said softly, “Even if the doctor didn’t say so, I know I won’t last more than a few days with this illness. You believed that charlatan’s words – when I’m gone, you won’t be able to tolerate my Xiaoxiao either. Since that’s the case, I might as well find her a place where she can have clothes and food. That human trafficker is from the village and is quite reliable – I charged less money so she would wholeheartedly arrange for Xiaoxiao to be placed in a good family as a maid, giving her stable work. I gave money to the cart driver, hoping he would take care of Xiaoxiao along the way… I sold a ten-year living contract – after ten years, when Xiaoxiao grows up, she can redeem herself and make her living. I have no ability as a mother – this is the last thing I can do for Xiaoxiao…”

By the end, mother’s words were choked in her throat, her eyes staring blankly at the departing cart, full of reluctance.

And standing nearby, the now grown-up Xiaoxiao just stood there in a daze.

At that moment, the great stone of cynicism that had been pressing on her heart due to being abandoned by her mother seemed to be lifted all at once.

So, mother hadn’t disliked her poor fate, but was terminally ill and truly unable to care for herself. Knowing that her uncle’s family was unreliable, she could only arrange her future as best she could before dying…

At that moment, all the forgotten fragments of old memories flooded back to her heart.

Her dear mother had loved her since childhood. Although the family was poor and couldn’t afford private school, her literate mother had always personally taught her to read and write…

The night before being sold, mother had held her tightly while sleeping. When she woke up the next day, she discovered that her hair against her mother’s cheek was wet.

Xiaoxiao wanted to call out “Mother,” but her voice seemed choked, and only tears silently flowed down her cheeks.

When she tried to move her feet, the once-familiar family home and relatives disappeared like smoke.

Tang Youshu’s miraculous technique could briefly reverse time and recreate past scenes.

Cui Xiaoxiao could only observe as a spectator, unable to speak with people from the past, much less truly reunite with her mother.

The master had regretfully said that there were more exquisite ancient spells than time retrospection that could make time flow backward and allow free travel through past and present.

Unlike his method, which exhausted a lifetime of magic, yet only provided a brief glimpse of the past without true immersion.

However, such exquisite methods of overturning heaven and earth violated celestial secrets. Even those ranked among the immortals couldn’t use them casually, or they would surely face heavenly punishment.

Tang Youshu had depleted his cultivation to restore the truth of when Cui Xiaoxiao was sold years ago, actually to resolve this unruly girl’s psychological knots.

He knew his destiny had arrived, and depleting his cultivation further shortened his lifespan. But if it could help Cui Xiaoxiao resolve her psychological barriers and have a heart inclined toward goodness, then his painstaking efforts wouldn’t be in vain.

Recalling master’s final words to her, Cui Xiaoxiao sighed deeply.

Master didn’t consider her to have the so-called “ten-harm” fate – quite the opposite. Such an extremely yin fate, having severed worldly attachments, would be a once-in-a-generation talent of great ability if the right opportunity arose.

Cui Xiaoxiao should have been short-lived, but could live to this age, clearly showing that this humble life was a flaw in destiny.

The so-called “fate,” though heaven’s command, had the character “person” above the command, meaning that while fate was determined by heaven, it wasn’t beyond human power to change.

Unfortunately, true destiny reading, like the Talismonger path, had been neglected by people for too long, leading to rampant false theories and the absurd practice of determining a person’s entire life by their fate.

For the first time since becoming aware, Cui Xiaoxiao heard someone say her birth chart was good.

She had suspected Tang Youshu was talking nonsense and only asked what would happen if he misjudged and mistook a plague god for a treasure.

In Cui Xiaoxiao’s view, after Tang Youshu forcibly “bought” her from her adoptive father, his health had deteriorated daily, clearly showing her ability to “curse people” was not to be underestimated.

But Tang Youshu smiled slightly: “My lifespan was already at its end – what does that have to do with you, little girl? As for your future path, it’s entirely up to you. Although I told your senior brothers that you could bring glory to the Talismonger Sect, I was just humoring them. Our Lingshan Talismonger Sect is just a small sect I created on a whim – there’s no sectoral glory to speak of. In any case, I’m entrusting the Talismonger Sect to you. You can do whatever you want – just don’t let your senior brothers starve to death, and you won’t have failed my entrustment… Take your senior brothers down the mountain for training. You… will have great fortune.”

Thus, the begging bowl of the Lingshan Talismonger Sect was passed to the young Cui Xiaoxiao.

Thinking of master’s earnest entrustment to revitalize the Talismonger Sect, Cui Xiaoxiao quickened her movements and no longer dwelled on the past, focusing wholeheartedly on digging wild vegetables – at the very least, she now had to feed her fellow disciples.

Seeing Cui Xiaoxiao ramble incomprehensibly without answering her question, Jiang Nanmu sighed and stopped asking, joining Cui Xiaoxiao in digging.

They had now arrived at a place called Chixi Prefecture, with winding streams everywhere, so the eldest senior brother used talisman runes to control water and even caught several fat fish from the streams.

With fat fish as additional dishes, today’s dinner became somewhat sumptuous. Not only was there fish head stewed with wild vegetable soup, but also fire-roasted fat fish, eaten with cakes brought from Fei County. All of them ate quite satisfactorily.

The eldest senior brother, who usually spoke harshly to Cui Xiaoxiao, even pleasantly served her fish meat twice during dinner.

Before Xiaoxiao could be moved, Ji Wuqi spoke bluntly, saying she didn’t have many days left to live anyway. He was just pitying someone about to die.

When the day came for her to become demonized, she shouldn’t blame him, her senior brother, for ruthlessly destroying beauty and righteously eliminating relatives.

There was no choice – eliminating demons and protecting the way was what righteous warriors must do. Even if she held the title of sect leader, it wouldn’t matter.

Cui Xiaoxiao looked at the somewhat evasive gazes of the second senior sister and little junior brother – their meaning was probably the same.

Cui Xiaoxiao was also very worried about being poisoned by the Demon Pearl’s yin toxin, but after so much time had passed, apart from the mark appearing on her wrist, she showed no abnormal symptoms.

Hearing her eldest senior brother’s words, she said that even if she became demonized, she would probably be quite weak. After all, Demon Pearls needed to attach to people with deep resentment to exert maximum demonic power.

However, if the eldest senior brother kept speaking so harshly to her, it would easily create psychological demons – don’t blame her then for only chasing and biting Ji Wuqi alone!

Seeing she still had the mood to joke, Ji Wuqi couldn’t help but glare at her fiercely, then lowered his head to continue drinking soup and eating fish.

During the meal, A’Yi specifically looked at the map and discovered that Cui Xiaoxiao had led them the wrong way – this place was quite a detour from Qilao Mountain’s Phoenix Pool.

Xiaoxiao somewhat disbelievingly took the map, and indeed it was! So yesterday at a fork in the road, after hesitating, she still took the wrong path. Fortunately, the detour wasn’t too far – they could find their way back to the original route tomorrow morning.

After eating, it was time for nighttime cultivation practice.

Although the Talismonger Sect mainly focused on talisman refining, activating spirit talismans still required cultivating dantian true energy and utilizing the essence of the sun and moon.

So meditating under the moon was an essential path for almost every cultivator.

Compared to the other three fellow disciples, Cui Xiaoxiao had no foundation in meditation and inevitably suffered from beginner’s problems. After a short while, she felt her waist aching and wanted to move around.

When she half-opened her eyes, the other three fellow disciples were still steadily in meditation, but the old dog Ji Xiang that had been lying at her feet was nowhere to be seen.

She looked around and saw Ji Xiang following the stream toward dense trees. She quickly got up to chase after him, but as she walked, mist gradually rose around her, and the stream at her feet somehow suddenly became viscous.

Cui Xiaoxiao suddenly stopped and loudly called for Ji Xiang.

The surroundings were empty with no sign of the old dog. Just then, a pitch-black cave suddenly appeared before Cui Xiaoxiao. This cave appeared abruptly and had a terrifying shape – it looked like a skull.

Cui Xiaoxiao examined it and suddenly turned to flee. She had always valued her life and had no curiosity – with the cave looking like this, she’d have to be brain-damaged to want to enter!

But just as she turned around, a tremendous suction force suddenly appeared behind her, instantly pulling her slender body inside.