Heaven's Daughter

Chapter 26 - Advancing

It didn't take long for Kairi to adapt to her new environment. It was like she had returned to the time when she used to live in Liu Sect. The women of the village were extremely lively and outgoing compared to the women who lived in the big city. Sometimes Kairi wondered if they had too much energy. She learned that most of the people who lived in the village were servants who escaped abusive masters, brothels, or were orphans from the previous war. It was Zhao Chen who had brought them all together. With no way to make money, they started stealing from the rich and greedy. Even though Kairi didn't agree to their way of life, she didn't rebuke them either. They had done what they could to survive. She thanked her lucky stars that she had met kind people like Grandmaster Liu and Madam Liu. If she hadn't met them, she was sure she'd be living in a brothel house by now.

Every night, Kairi attempted to communicate with Zhang Sheng through the jade hairpin but it was cold and lifeless. She knew it was useless but she talked as if Zhang Sheng could hear her. It was the only thing that could put her at ease.

After a week of recovering, she was quickly thrown into training. Kairi sat crisscross on a large rock by a waterfall. She had been attempting to cultivate but it was extremely slow.

"Strange. Such a massive aura yet you're cultivation is lacking," Zhao Chen muttered.

"The man who adopted me when I was young placed a strong seal on my core. It's what's causing my cultivation to falter," she replied.

"Seal?" Zhao Chen crouched down so that he was at eye level with her. He held out a palm in front of her abdomen then closed his eyes. Seconds ticked by and he finally removed his hand. "It's not just any seal. It's a death seal."

"A death seal...?" That didn't sound good to her at all. Why would Grandmaster Liu cast it on her? "What exactly is this seal?'

"Exactly what it sounds like. A seal that locks away your powers until your deathbed," he replied. Sighing heavily, he got back up to his feet. "Fortunately the person who placed it on you didn't have the full incantation. He managed to place the seal on you but didn't fortify it, which is why you can still gather bits of spiritual energy. It also looks like someone had managed to damage a part of the seal."

She thought back to the time when the assassin back at Lan Manor almost killed her. So the reason why a part of the seal was destroyed was because she nearly died. It still didn't explain why the seal had been placed but the only person who knew the reason why was Zhang Sheng and Grandmaster Liu and neither were around to tell her.

"Is there any way to remove the seal?" she asked.
"The only way to remove it is to pull the soul out of the body and place it back inside. In other words, you would have to die," he answered. Kairi felt dejected as she stared at her opened palms. In this world, it was always about survival of the fittest. With the way she was now, she wasn't sure how long she was going to last. Having seen the look on her face, Zhao Chen sighed heavily. "There is a way around this. As I said before, the seal isn't fortified and part of it is already destroyed. You can't get rid of it completely but you might be able to weaken it."

"How?" she asked feeling hopeful.

"It's going to be excruciating painful. You might even die from it. Are you willing to take that chance?" Zhao Chen asked. She contemplated at the thought. All her life she had struggled to survive. Despite the hurdles, she managed to jump over them. This was simply one of those hurdles. Taking in a deep breath, she strengthened her resolve.

"Yes, I'm willing to take that chance."

As it turned out, Yi Rue was a gifted apothecary master. It explained all the pill recipes and manuscripts from the loot brought back by the White Tiger Bandits. She had disappeared for days to collect herbs and make a certain potion. After the sixteenth day, she finally returned.