Zhu Shiyao was left utterly confused. “Huh?” She couldn’t make any sense of the white-robed girl’s actions.

But knowing that Lin Mo had been saved by some unknown force, she finally felt at ease and obediently returned to the Lingjian Sect to receive her punishment.

Not long after this incident, the entire cultivation world came to know that the Qingling Sect had produced a terrifying demon. All twelve peak masters suffered severe injuries. The development of the Qingling Sect was set back by several decades.

When Duan Susu awoke and learned the truth, she too became disheartened with the Qingling Sect. She took Gu Zi and headed to the Lin family in Tianxing City.

Especially on Qingzhu Peak—now that Master Yuehua was seriously injured and without Lin Mo or Duan Susu to care for things—it became total chaos. No one was there to guide their cultivation, there were no offerings, and even meals were inadequate. What reason did they have to stay?

Many disciples of Qingzhu Peak took the initiative to withdraw from the sect, and the peak became more and more desolate.

Shen Ke’er’s health deteriorated day by day, yet she still insisted on taking care of the gravely wounded Ye Kai. With help from the Wanwan, Ye Kai quickly recovered his mobility. But by then, Shen Ke’er was already bedridden and unable to get up.

She had originally thought Ye Kai would care for her in return and help her find spiritual plants to extend her life. But reality gave her a harsh slap in the face. Ye Kai had no time or intention to care about her at all.

After Lin Mo crippled his foundation, if he wanted to gain Master Yuehua’s cultivation base, he had to once again rely on the technique Wanwan gave him, continuing to harm others to prolong his life. Of course, he didn’t dare choose targets within the Qingling Sect.

So whenever he had nothing else to do, he would run around outside, befriending naïve rogue female cultivators, using sweet words to win their hearts. And once he returned to Qingzhu Peak, Ye Kai would devote himself to currying favor with and taking care of Master Yuehua. In any case, he completely ignored Shen Ke’er.

Until one day, a disciple of Qingzhu Peak happened to be passing by outside the sect and started chatting about Ye Kai.
“Did you know? Not long ago when I went out to buy supplies, I saw Senior Brother Ye getting all lovey-dovey with a female cultivator from outside the sect.”
“Ah, then what about Senior Sister Shen?”
“Don’t you get it yet? Why do you think Senior Brother hates Ye Kai so much? He’s a complete scoundrel who just toyed with Senior Sister Shen’s feelings.”
“Now that Senior Sister Shen is disfigured and in poor health, why would he still want to be with her?”
“You’re right. But Senior Brother Lin may cultivate demonic techniques, yet he’s never harmed anyone from Qingzhu Peak—in fact, he’s been so good to us. I think Master may have gone too far back then.”
“Look at us now—without Senior Brother, Qingzhu Peak has fallen into such decline.”
“Even disciples from third- or fourth-tier sects are treated better than us Qingzhu Peak disciples now.”
“Say no more. Once the spiritual herbs I planted mature in a few days, I’m leaving too.”
“Then I’ll find a time to slip away too. Without Senior Brother Lin, Qingzhu Peak is nothing!”

Shen Ke’er’s already pale face turned even whiter. She still refused to believe that Ye Kai would truly abandon her. Forcing herself to stand, she slowly made her way toward Ye Kai’s residence.

When she finally arrived outside Ye Kai’s door, she heard voices from within. Inside the room, it wasn’t just Ye Kai—there was another woman with him.

“Senior Brother Ye, why don’t you care about Senior Sister Shen anymore?”

“I can’t do anything about it. My abilities are limited—what can I possibly do?”
“Then what if you’re with me now—what will you do if Senior Sister Shen finds out?”
“Haha, don’t worry. She’s already on her way out—so what if she finds out?”
“You really are terrible. I remember that Senior Sister Shen liked you so much.”
“She likes me, so I’m supposed to like her back? Look at how hideous she is now—why should I keep being with her? Besides, I’ve never even touched her. She’s that disgusting—I just can’t bring myself to do it.”

Upon hearing the last part, Shen Ke’er could no longer hold herself back. She pushed the door open and questioned Ye Kai, who was in bed being intimate with another junior sister:
“Junior Brother Ye, what did you mean by that?”
Seeing Shen Ke’er enter, Ye Kai didn’t panic. “The literal meaning.”
“You kept saying you’d protect me for a lifetime—this is how you treat me?”
“When you were seriously ill, I endured the torment of poison and still took care of you every single day. And what are you doing now?”

Ye Kai sneered, “You know what, thanks. Looking at your terrifying face every day—I feel a little nauseous.”
Shen Ke’er asked, “Since that’s the case, why did you try to get close to me in the first place?”
Ye Kai said, “Wasn’t it just because you had some influence on Qingzhu Peak and happened to be pretty?”
“And now, with how disgusting you look—what reason do I have to stay with you?”
“But I only went to the Dazhou Mountain Range to vent your frustration—look how I ended up.”
“Oh? Did I tell you to go?” Ye Kai sneered.
“You went because you insisted on it. You kept saying if your senior brother could go during Foundation Establishment, why couldn’t you? And in the end, you came back poisoned—because you were useless.”

Shen Ke’er’s deathly pale face first showed disbelief—clearly, the Ye Kai in her memory wasn’t this kind of person. Hearing what Ye Kai said next, her face twisted into a grimace. Her already frightening face became even more terrifying. Like a madwoman, she lunged at Ye Kai. The next moment, Ye Kai kicked her hard, knocking her to the ground. Her already frail body coughed up a mouthful of black blood.

Seeing her breathing grow weaker, clearly on the verge of death, Ye Kai didn’t spare her another glance. He simply took the other woman with him and left. Shen Ke’er stared at Ye Kai’s departing figure, still unable to understand—what had she done wrong? Why did Ye Kai treat her like this?

As her consciousness gradually blurred, “Dream of a Yellow Millet” successfully activated. Her soul was stripped from her body and drawn into the illusionary cycle prepared for her.

Shen Ke’er opened her eyes—she wasn’t dead. Instead, she had been expelled from Qingzhu Peak by Ye Kai. Although the poison hadn’t been completely purged, it would no longer threaten her life.

It was just that her cultivation slowly began to decline, and the poisonous veins in her body still remained. She had no father or mother, no one to rely on, and naturally couldn’t survive in the Middle Realm. So she chose to go to the Lower Realm.

During her days in the Lower Realm, she had no craft or survival skills, and finding work was extremely difficult. Shopkeepers disliked how unattractive she looked, and no place was willing to hire her for fear she would scare away the customers.

“Go on, go on, there’s no work for you here. Don’t come scaring my customers again,” one shopkeeper said as he shoved her out the door with obvious disdain.

After several days, a kind-hearted shopkeeper finally took pity on Shen Ke’er, took her in, and let her do some work in his shop. But after asking her a few questions, it turned out she didn’t know anything at all. He had no choice but to send her to wash dishes in the back kitchen, but for every ten dishes, she’d break one or two. Eventually, the shopkeeper couldn’t stand it anymore, gave her some money, and told her to leave.

“I—I can do it. As long as you’re willing to teach me, I can do anything,” Shen Ke’er pleaded.
“Teach you? You can’t even mop the floor or wash dishes properly—how am I supposed to teach you?”

Seeing how oblivious Shen Ke’er was, the shopkeeper became angry as well.
“To put it bluntly, you’re just trash—no shop would want someone like you. You’re not even qualified to be a prostitute.”

Hearing that, Shen Ke’er felt utterly miserable. She suddenly thought of the time when she had just been brought back to Qingzhu Peak by Lin Mo. Lin Mo had treated her incredibly well, never letting her do any chores, and would often take her down the mountain to buy tasty treats and fun trinkets. When cultivating, her senior brother always gave her the best resources.

How could it compare to now, where not only did she have to endure the scornful looks of ordinary people, but she couldn’t even get a proper bite of food to eat? The more she thought about it, the more miserable she felt, and tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.

In the days that followed, because of her hideous appearance, people would occasionally beat her up just for walking down the street. Fortunately, heaven never bars one’s way completely—she met a kind-hearted old man. Like her, he had no parents and bore many large and small black spots on his face, making him look horrifying and terrifying. He was already old and made a living by selling tofu.

She followed the old man like that, and after a few years, she more or less mastered the skills of making tofu. When the old man passed away of old age, she naturally inherited everything he left behind. It wasn’t much—just a shabby straw hut and a two-square-meter tofu stall. Over the years, she had managed to acquire the ability to survive on her own in the lower realm.

Until one day, she picked up a seven- or eight-year-old boy named Ying Guo. That child’s situation was very similar to hers when she was young—his family had suffered misfortune, and both his parents had died. Maybe it was loneliness, or maybe it was because the boy had a past similar to hers. She chose to raise that seven- or eight-year-old boy.

It was also her first time raising a child, and she had no experience in doing so. All she could do was emulate how Lin Mo had cared for her back then—wholeheartedly and selflessly taking care of Ying Guo. Seven or eight years passed, and Ying Guo gradually grew up. He became a handsome and dignified young man. Ying Guo was very close to her. After coming home from private school, he would often help her sell tofu.

Until one day, she noticed that Ying Guo was coming back later and later, and no longer helping her watch over the stall. After asking around, she learned that her child had recently grown quite close with a certain girl. That girl came from a well-off family—she was the daughter of a small landowner. Shen Ke’er had seen much of life, and she felt something about this situation was a little odd. She couldn’t understand why the daughter of a landowner would take a liking to a poor boy like her child.

Fortunately, she took the lesson from the overturned cart in front—Ye Kai—and kept a wary eye on the situation.