The whispers and discussions around them grew louder and louder.
“He did it on purpose. We all saw it.”
“No wonder he dared to bully a young girl. Turns out he has an elder backing him.”
“Just a moment ago, he claimed Fellow Daoist Lin was clinging to the Chiyang Peak Master, but it turns out he's the one using his background to bully others.”
“Talk about shifting the blame onto others.”
Wu Yong broke out in a cold sweat. He opened his mouth, but not a single word came out.
He really hadn't touched Lin Yue!
But from an onlooker's perspective, he had reached out to push her, Lin Yue had immediately fallen, and he had stepped on and crushed the pill with his own foot.
If this matter reached the Sect Master, there would be no way for him to explain himself.
Bullying a fellow disciple on his very first day in the sect and even destroying a keepsake left behind by her late mother—once the blame was pinned on him, he would definitely face severe consequences.
Perhaps even his uncle would be dragged down with him.
At that thought, Wu Yong squeezed out a stiff, forced smile.
“I-I'm sorry, Junior Sister Lin.”
“It was my fault! I shouldn't have pushed you, and I shouldn't have crushed your pill!”
“Just name a price, and I'll pay you back!”
Wu Yong quickly turned to Nan Mingzi, his tone carrying a hint of obsequiousness. “Elder, in the end, this is all just a misunderstanding. There's really no need to trouble the Sect Master and the other peak masters.”
Nan Mingzi's gaze went cold.
“Do you think paying some spirit stones will—”
“Master,” Xue Mingzhao suddenly looked up, sobbing as she tugged at Nan Mingzi's sleeve.
Her eyes were red, and her voice was soft and gentle.
“Everyone makes mistakes.”
“I'm sure Senior Brother Wu was just momentarily confused. Since he already knows he was wrong, why don't we... give him a chance?”
“If he pays some spirit stones, let's just leave it at that.”
Nan Mingzi's brow furrowed even deeper.
But Wu Yong felt as if he had just been thrown a lifeline. He quickly chimed in, “Thank you, Junior Sister! You truly are magnanimous!”
“Just name a price, and I'll pay you right away!”
Xue Mingzhao lowered her head, seeming to hesitate for a long time before murmuring softly, “Then... fifty thousand spirit stones.”
Wu Yong's eyes widened, and he blurted out, “Are you insane?”
“A high-grade Core-Condensing Pill is nowhere near worth fifty thousand spirit stones!”
Xue Mingzhao explained earnestly, “The pill is thirty thousand, and the remaining twenty thousand is for mental distress.”
Wu Yong was utterly bewildered. “Mental distress?”
“Yes.”
Xue Mingzhao sniffled and looked back at the powder on the ground.
“This was an ancestral pill left to me by my mother.”
“Even on the day my grandfather passed away, my mother couldn't bear to give it to him, choosing instead to save it for my brother and me.”
“Over the years, I've always kept it by my side. Every night before I go to sleep, I would take it out to look at it.”
“Through this pill, it felt as if my mother was still here with me.”
Wu Yong's temples throbbed with rage.
Was she even speaking human language?
A Core-Condensing Pill was used for cultivation, not for saving lives! Even if they wanted to prolong someone's life, that wasn't how they did it!
This Lin Yue was clearly playing the emotional card just to swindle him!
The next second, Xue Mingzhao suddenly looked up. With red eyes, she explained with an incredibly earnest face:
“And also... I used to hear the old cultivators in my village say that for us cultivators, if we do something bad and keep harboring guilt in our hearts, it will eventually build up into an inner demon and affect our cultivation. In severe cases, we might even suffer qi deviation.”
“I'm worried that because of what happened today, you'll feel so guilty that you won't be able to let it go, which might cause issues for your cultivation later on. That's why I asked for a little extra. Just think of it as... think of it as paying to buy peace of mind. Once this matter is settled, you won't have to keep worrying about it.”
She paused, lowering her voice even further as she added pitifully,
“I didn't want to say this at first, because I was afraid you'd think I was just trying to extort your spirit stones. But inner demons are incredibly dangerous, and I didn't want you to be consumed by guilt all day and end up ruining your cultivation.”
Wu Yong: “...”
A breath caught in his chest, nearly causing him to suffocate on the spot.
What did she mean by paying to buy peace of mind? What did she mean by worrying about him developing an inner demon?
You are my inner demon!
Extorting someone is extorting someone, yet she had to phrase it so elegantly!
So after I cough up the money, I still have to thank you for being so considerate of me?!
Just as he was about to lash out, he heard the surrounding onlookers whispering among themselves.
“Wow, this junior sister is way too kind. She was the one bullied, yet she's still worrying about his inner demons.”
“Yeah, if it were me, I wouldn't care if he suffered qi deviation or not. Just pay me back for my pill and be done with it.”
“I didn't expect her to be so incredibly thoughtful...”
Looking at Xue Mingzhao, Nan Mingzi felt his heart melt completely.
This child... she had suffered such a great grievance, yet she was still worrying about whether the other party would develop an inner demon out of guilt. How could anyone have such a soft heart?
She was so sensible, yet it made one's heart ache for her.
Seeing the looks on the faces of those around him, and then seeing Nan Mingzi's increasingly cold expression, Wu Yong forced himself to swallow the curses that had risen to his throat.
If he dared to say, “I won't feel guilty and I won't get any inner demons,” wouldn't that be equivalent to admitting he was heartless and felt absolutely no remorse for his bad deeds?
But if he accepted it, wouldn't he be submissively agreeing to pay this twenty-thousand-stone “inner demon fee”?
His face turned purple from holding it in, and after a long moment, he squeezed out from between his teeth, “There is no such compensation method in this world!”
Nan Mingzi took a step forward. The majestic pressure of a Nascent Soul cultivator suddenly erupted, bearing down heavily on Wu Yong like an invisible mountain.
Wu Yong's knees buckled, and he nearly fell to his knees on the spot.
The heavy pressure enveloped his entire body, making even breathing incredibly difficult.
Nan Mingzi looked at him coldly.
“My disciple's only keepsake has been crushed under your foot. She is currently in deep grief, and asking for only fifty thousand spirit stones is already a testament to her kindness.”
“Since you are unwilling, then follow me to the Council Hall. We shall let the Sect Master and the elders arbitrate this matter.”
“When that time comes, what you will have to bear won't be as simple as fifty thousand spirit stones.”
Wu Yong's face flushed red and white as he struggled to breathe under the pressure.
After struggling for barely two seconds, he couldn't hold out any longer. Gritting his teeth, he squeezed out three words, “I-I'll pay!”
Nan Mingzi snorted coldly, and the pressure around him receded like a tide.
Wu Yong was finally able to catch his breath, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.
“It's just that fifty thousand spirit stones is no small amount. I really can't produce that much all at once...” he said with a bitter face.
“Two days,” Xue Mingzhao suddenly spoke up. “I'll give you two days.”
Wu Yong wanted to haggle further, but when Nan Mingzi swept a glance over, the words immediately died in his throat.
“...Fine. In two days, I will give you the spirit stones!”
Xue Mingzhao nodded in satisfaction.
Excellent.
She was going to make her escape in two days anyway.
A day earlier, and she was afraid he wouldn't be able to gather the funds; a day later, and she wouldn't be able to wait.
This timing was absolutely perfect.
Nan Mingzi stood with his hands behind his back. The pressure of a Soul Transformation Peak Master silently descended, causing the surrounding disciples to shut their mouths instantly, plunging the area into absolute silence.
“The Heavenly Origin Sect has stood for tens of thousands of years, and what we forbid most is disciples harming one another or the strong bullying the weak.”
Nan Mingzi said coldly, “From now on, anyone who violates this rule will be severely punished according to the sect's laws!”
The disciples did not dare to argue. They picked up the clothes on the ground and quickly slipped away.
Wu Yong also lacked the face to stay any longer, hurriedly leaving with Li Lingxiao in tow.
Nan Mingzi patted Xue Mingzhao's shoulder, letting out a long, earnest sigh.
“Yue'er, you are simply too kind-hearted.”
“When dealing with people like him, you should give them a harsh lesson. Only making him pay some spirit stones is letting him off far too easily.”
Xue Mingzhao looked serious.
“Master, humans are not sages; who can be free from faults?”
“As long as Senior Brother Wu sincerely repents, he will still be our good senior brother in the future.”
“Although that pill was precious, compared to Senior Brother's heart of repentance, it is nothing.”
Nan Mingzi's heart swelled with pity and affection as he listened.
This child was simply too soft-hearted.
Even after suffering such a great grievance, she still spoke up for the other party at every turn.
Moreover, she cherished a mere high-grade pill to this extent, which only showed how bitter her life must have been in the past.
Nan Mingzi secretly decided that once they returned to Chiyang Peak, he would definitely refine more pills to compensate his youngest disciple.
Rate on N.U.
