Chapter 34
Chapter 34: Aptitude Promotion
There were many ways to take revenge.
Verbal humiliation. Pain. Public disgrace.
In Shao Heng’s eyes, all of it was hollow.
She would never waste time on that fake revenge people loved to praise—making the enemy “live under your brilliance for life,” bitter and frustrated until the end.
Especially not for Lu Shao Jia and Lu Shao Jing.
Shao Heng had always believed love and hate were the most precious things she possessed. They shouldn’t be spent on people who didn’t deserve them.
And yet she couldn’t deny it.
She hated those two.
Because she had truly given them family affection.
She’d written on Lu Shao Jia’s behalf. Studied martial classics for Lu Shao Jing. Even when her instincts warned her, she’d endured the Marquis of Pacifying the South’s residence for more than 10 years, pressing herself into the role of a “good daughter,” swallowing her own nature until it went quiet.
Blood ties weren’t something you could erase. More than a decade of devotion became the root of her hatred.
She knew they’d been affected by the Heart-Bewitching Eye.
She’d never felt even a trace of forgiveness.
When she saw the Great Thousand Divine Ability Rankings and understood the truth, her first thought wasn’t They were deceived. We’re blood. We had more than 10 years as a family.
Her first thought was: We’re blood. They were born to treat me well.
Even if something influenced them, they should have overcome it. Otherwise what did that prove? It proved their goodness toward her wasn’t thorough enough. Their love wasn’t real enough.
Was that extreme?
Maybe.
Was it hypocritical?
So what?
Once they’d broken the bond first, she didn’t owe them understanding. She didn’t owe them forgiveness.
She didn’t even care to untangle how much of what they’d done came from the Heart-Bewitching Eye and how much came from jealousy and malice that had always been there, waiting for an excuse.
She only wanted revenge.
To maim them. Break their spines. Grind their pride into the dirt. Deny every achievement. Take their lives. Cut off every last trace of hope they might cling to as a path forward.
And humans were strange. Even with that extremity, reason still tugged at her wrist and held her back—held her low, patient, waiting for the right moment.
True One Yuan Sect was one of the strongest immortal sects of the Human Clan. It was the best ladder she had. Unless she faced a dead end, she wouldn’t abandon it.
And she’d already found her moment.
The annual disciple competition.
All newly recruited disciples were forced to join.
She would strike once—clean and final.
—
After Shao Heng turned in what the mission required, the number on her disciple token had reached 411 points.
Her stray thoughts scattered. The sight of contribution points only sharpened her urgency.
It had been 19 days since Zhao Tang gave her the Moon-Inquiry Token.
Her pace of earning points was already fast, but it still wasn’t enough.
At this rate, reaching 2,100 points in three months would come down to a razor’s edge. One setback—one unexpected problem—could make her fail at the last step.
“Most top-tier missions with the highest contribution points require a late First Realm cultivator,” she thought, gaze sweeping the circular hall. “I’m not strong enough to take them.”
If she went after a late First Realm devil cultivator now, or hunted demon beasts of that level, she might as well hand over her life.
She forced herself to calm down and read.
Floating wooden mission plaques rotated slowly in the air, their light steady. Shao Heng checked the newest listings, then selected four and held them in her palm. A Law Enforcement Pavilion disciple recorded them without comment, and Shao Heng left.
When she returned to the disciple courtyard, someone had been waiting outside her room for a long time.
The girl was stunning—like a red lotus rising from water, bright as an Immortal Maiden. When she saw Shao Heng approach, she smiled and walked over in a few quick steps.
“Are you Junior Sister Shao Heng?”
Shao Heng stopped and looked her over. The girl looked 15 or 16, and she carried only a little over 100 furnaces of spiritual power.
With a face like that, if Shao Heng had seen her before, she wouldn’t have forgotten.
“Who are you?”
The girl wore outer sect yellow robes as well. Her smile didn’t falter. “My name is Li Chao Ge. By age, I’m a bit older, so I’ll shamelessly call you Junior Sister Shao Heng.”
“I entered the sect the same year as you. I’ve tried to find you several times, and I finally caught you today.”
Shao Heng crossed her arms and lifted a brow. “I don’t know you. Why are you looking for me?”
“You may not have heard of me,” Li Chao Ge said calmly, “but I’ve heard of you.”
She lifted a hand and cast a Soundproof Charm. “I heard you entered the Qi Induction Realm within 10 days. That means you’re among the best of Lower Grade aptitude.”
“And you’re skilled in basic techniques, to the point you can cast without chanting or hand seals.” A hint of self-mockery touched her eyes. “I’m embarrassed to admit it, but even with cultivation elders in my family teaching me since childhood, I only recently reached that level.”
“So?” Shao Heng’s expression didn’t change, but her fingers tapped her arm in an irregular rhythm—a small tell when impatience sharpened.
Li Chao Ge didn’t waste another breath. “I want to invite you, Junior Sister Shao Heng.”
“To seek an opportunity that might let us gain Mid Grade aptitude.”
Shao Heng’s cultivation speed already surpassed most High Grade aptitudes, yet her curiosity still sparked.
An aptitude promotion?
To understand that strange possibility, she’d read hundreds of texts on Human Clan aptitude—if not a thousand, then close to it. She understood now that aptitude was influenced by meridians and bones, but the true root lay in the soul and true spirit. Making up for it after birth was brutally difficult.
She’d seen only two examples in texts.
One cultivator fell into a ravine, swallowed a Fifth Grade treasure herb—the Bodhi Golden Chalice Lotus—and was remade through destruction, reborn from the inside out.
Another cultivator, upon breaking into Fourth Realm, gained an innate divine ability called Molting Embryo through the Dao’s principles, then paid an enormous price over time to rise into High Grade aptitude.
Both cases required harsh conditions. Yet Li Chao Ge claimed she knew a similar opportunity—and was inviting Shao Heng to pursue it together.
Shao Heng’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Tell me.”
Li Chao Ge’s shoulders eased, as if she’d been holding her breath. “This isn’t a good place to talk. How about we—”
“Come inside,” Shao Heng cut in.
She used her disciple token to open the door restriction and let Li Chao Ge in. Once the girl stepped across the threshold, Shao Heng closed it again.
Li Chao Ge glanced around and hesitated, then smiled faintly. “Junior Sister Shao Heng, you really live simply. You didn’t change anything.”
The room looked nearly the same as the day Shao Heng moved in.
Shao Heng rolled her eyes. “Who says I didn’t? I replaced my cushion with the biggest, softest, most comfortable one.”
Then she activated the room’s isolation formation again and faced Li Chao Ge. “Enough small talk. What’s the opportunity?”
Li Chao Ge straightened, expression turning serious. “It’s a top-tier mission in the Law Enforcement Pavilion.”