Three days ago, at the headquarters of the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect.
Red Scorpion toyed with the jade poisonous toad in his hand, his sinister gaze sweeping over Madam Xia.
Inside the hall, twelve lanterns made of human skin swayed gently on the beams, casting flickering light on Madam Xia's pale face.
"Madam Xia," Red Scorpion suddenly clenched his fingers, the Jade Toad shattering in his palm, its green juice dripping onto the ground with a sizzling, corrosive sound, "we've discovered something... unusual about the Xia family's bloodline."
He slowly wiped his fingers. "I need to draw some blood from you, but I need your cooperation..."
Madam Xia stood in the center of the hall, her slender fingers unconsciously tightening around her sleeves.
"As long as Madam cooperates with the research," Red Scorpion licked his lips, revealing sharp canines, "I can spare the rest of your family..." He deliberately dragged out the last syllable, his gaze sweeping over the few members of Madam Xia's family who were trembling in the corner of the hall.
Red Scorpion had prepared dozens of torture methods and even placed various instruments of torture in the corners of the palace.
He knew that upright people valued family ties most, especially Madam Xia, who was known for her virtue. He had already mentally rehearsed countless schemes of coercion and enticement—first using her parents as leverage, then threatening the lives of the entire Xia family...
But all the plans crumbled the moment Madam Xia spoke.
"No need to say anything more."
These three simple words silenced the entire hall.
Mrs. Xia's voice was eerily calm, as if she were discussing the day's weather.
She slowly raised her eyelids, and the hatred surging in her once gentle eyes startled even the bloodthirsty Red Scorpion.
"You may take my blood if you wish." Madam Xia stepped forward, rolling up her sleeve to reveal her snow-white wrist. "I once read in an ancestral book that my family's bloodline is the Nine Yin Meridian, and on the last day of the lunar month, a cinnabar mark will appear on the Qi Hai acupoint."
She spoke slowly and deliberately, each word like a silver needle dipped in deadly poison, "The Heart-Eating Gu, crafted with the blood of one's closest relatives, can sever a person's meridians, causing death."
The hall was deathly silent.
The members of the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect looked at each other, their eyes filled with disbelief.
The secret they thought they would have to go through great lengths to obtain was revealed so easily by Madam Xia.
Red Scorpion narrowed his eyes, his fingers unconsciously tracing the patterns on the chair: "Does Madam know what this means?"
"Of course I know," Madam Xia suddenly chuckled.
She took out a small jade bottle from her sleeve. The bottle gleamed with a cold, eerie light in the candlelight. "This contains the blood of my heart that I collected yesterday." She lifted her collar to reveal a white cloth wrapped around her chest, still stained with specks of crimson.
"Even if you hadn't come looking for me, I would have sent someone to deal with her!"
"You..." Red Scorpion's pupils shrank suddenly, and his body leaned forward involuntarily.
"Surprised?" Madam Xia stroked the jade bottle. "When that wretched child killed my husband and crippled my Yuwei, did she ever consider the bonds of kinship?" Her voice suddenly rose, and she slammed the jade bottle heavily onto the table. "She clearly possessed unparalleled cultivation, yet she watched helplessly as the Xia family fell into ruin!"
"That bastard..." Madam Xia gritted her teeth, each word dripping with deep-seated hatred, "She should have died sooner!"
After all, compared to a powerful daughter who has completely severed ties with her.
Madam Xia felt more than just regret.
There was also hatred towards this daughter.
She hated that her daughter was so good at hiding her talents, that she had such a gift but had always been playing dumb in their home.
Her husband and her Yuwei both died at the hands of that damned Xia Qingdai.
If Xia Qingdai could bring her and her family wealth and prosperity, then so be it.
But now, even though she's so powerful, she only gives the benefits to those from the Xuantian Sect.
She treated that servant Xiao Tao better than she treated her own mother.
Madam Xia, on the other hand, had to face the ridicule and sarcasm of everyone every day.
She had absolutely no intention of trying to win Xia Qingdai back.
Instead, I feel...
What's the point of having such a bastard alive? She'd be better off dead.
Mrs. Xia screamed hysterically:
"She received so many benefits and so much praise, even though she already possessed extraordinary abilities."
She should have given all these benefits to our Xia family.
She could have taken care of her younger sister, Yuwei.
She could have given her father the best life... but that bastard did nothing!
In the end, it even caused their deaths!
Madam Xia's voice began to tremble, "And I, her own mother, have to endure the ridicule of the whole city! They say I can't tell right from wrong!"
She stood up abruptly, the gold hairpin in her hair swaying violently.
"You want her dead? I not only want her dead, I want her to die a agonizing death!"
Suddenly, lightning flashed and thunder roared outside the palace, the pale light illuminating Madam Xia's distorted face in every detail.
—
now.
With a sinister grin, Red Scorpion pulled out the Blood Jade Bottle from his robes. He deliberately held the bottle high so that everyone could see the swirling blackish-purple smoke inside.
The smoke sometimes condensed into the shape of a venomous snake, and sometimes transformed into the shape of a skull, emitting a chilling hissing sound.
"Xia Qingdai!" He deliberately dragged out the word, his voice filled with smug satisfaction. "Do you recognize this? This is made from the very blood and sweat of your dear mother! Three whole days of tempering, all for this very moment!"
He shook the jade bottle, and the smoke inside immediately churned violently, revealing countless hair-thin, blood-red Gu worms swimming within.
The Gu worms seemed to sense something and suddenly all turned towards Bai Ying's direction, emitting sharp cries.
"Your mother went to great lengths to kill you!" Red Scorpion chuckled sinisterly, the centipede scar on his face contorting with excitement. "She said that the Nine Yin Meridians of your lineage are most vulnerable to Gu poison made from the blood of your closest relatives. Tsk tsk tsk, you even betrayed the weakness of your own daughter's bloodline to us. You're truly a failure as a person!"
As he spoke, he abruptly pulled out the cork, and a wisp of black smoke immediately shot out of the bottle as if it were alive. The smoke twisted and deformed in the air, gradually coalescing into a blurry human face—it was none other than Madam Xia's face!
"See that?" Red Scorpion's face twisted with smugness. "This is your mother's 'love' for you! Today, I'll let you savor it!"
He suddenly pointed the bottle at Bai Ying, and black smoke shot out like an arrow. The smoke split into countless tiny, blood-red Gu worms in mid-air, each emitting a sharp hiss, swarming towards Bai Ying!
The red scorpion let out a loud laugh.
So what if Bai Ying is powerful? With this poisonous smoke, she's doomed!
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