Chapter 41: Breaking the Curse
Ying Tong looked at the girl, who was in such a pitiful state, and her expression instantly darkened.
Especially after seeing the girl’s instinctive actions, a boundless rage brewed in her eyes.
According to Ying Xuechen, the reason this branch of the Ying family had been exiled was that they had committed a grave error, leading to their banishment and even the stripping of their surname.
However, the Ying family had not completely cut ties with them, because given what they had done, they should have long since lost their lives.
The curse implanted within them was both a punishment and a form of protection.
This curse would gradually fade with time.
Once the curse completely disappeared, there might still be a chance for this branch of the family to return to the Cangqiong Realm.
However, it was clear that they could not wait even that long and chose the most foolish way to stave off the curse’s erosion.
Ying Tong looked at the terrifying black lines of the curse that covered Ying Xuejian’s body.
She took out a string of fifty-four sarira beads.
As the beads appeared, Ying Xuejian felt her ears clear up significantly, and she became unusually relaxed; even her vision brightened.
“This is a gift for our first meeting.”
“First… meeting… gift?”
Having been locked away in a dark, damp cell since childhood, the most she had seen were the people who came to beat her and, whenever a newborn was born into the family, they would bring the child here to conduct a ritual that transferred the child’s curse onto her, followed by a brutal beating that left her skin torn and bloodied.
No one had taught her to read, and no one had taught her to speak; the few words she knew were ones she occasionally overheard from the guards who beat and humiliated her.
Looking at the luminous, jade-like sarira beads before her, Ying Xuejian hesitated to accept them.
Seeing that her limbs were shackled by thick chains, Ying Tong waved her fingers, and the chains instantly crumbled into powder and disappeared.
Then, she placed the sarira beads around Ying Xuejian’s neck and said, “Let’s leave this place first.”
Immediately, Ying Xuejian felt a flash of white light in front of her, and her body was enveloped in a warm, comforting energy.
It felt so nice, so blissful. Am I dreaming? If so, please don’t let me wake up.
Ying Xuejian prayed silently in her heart.
…
In a two-courtyard house in Shifang City, Ying Tong pushed the door open and walked in, carrying the unconscious Ying Xuejian in her arms.
Seeing what Ying Tong was holding, Ying Xuechen instinctively asked, “Venerable Yunhuang, why did you bring back a little beggar?”
But soon, he realized something was amiss; the black lines on the little beggar’s face looked all too familiar.
He felt his bloodline within him begin to boil, and a surge of unnamed anger welled up in his heart.
That’s right; the black lines on this little beggar came from the Ying family’s bloodline curse.
In the Longteng Continent, only those from the branch of the Ying family that had been exiled from the Cangqiong Realm all those years ago could bear such a curse.
Having been stripped of their surname, they were said to have adopted the surname Yīng instead.
However, according to logic, the curse should have been getting lighter with each generation. Why was this person’s curse so severe?
Inside the room.
Ying Tong had already cleaned Ying Xuejian’s body and dressed her in fresh clothes.
While changing her clothes, Ying Tong noticed that this girl had no flesh on her body at all.
However, these wounds were nothing compared to the curse that marred her body; they were simply negligible in comparison.
The black lines of the curse not only affected her appearance but also hindered her cultivation talent, making her progress unbearably slow. When the curse acted up, it was excruciating, like being eaten alive by a thousand ants.
Fortunately, Ying Xuechen could resolve the curse, but the matter of her heart and soul would depend on her own willpower.
The fact that Ying Xuejian had been able to endure such torment for so long spoke volumes about her determination.
Once she had settled the girl, Ying Tong brought Ying Xuechen and Ying Shaoan into the room.
As soon as he entered, Ying Xuechen couldn’t help but gasp at the sight of Ying Xuejian.
“What happened?”
He looked at Ying Tong, “Venerable Yunhuang, what is going on?”
“I’m not entirely sure of the details, but what I know is that those who were exiled back then used certain methods to transfer all the curses onto one person, in order to rid themselves of the curse’s torment.”
Upon hearing Ying Tong’s words, Ying Xuechen became even more agitated. “How is that possible? This curse acts directly on the bloodline; if it’s transferred, the bloodline would have to be…”
At this point, Ying Xuechen paused, realization dawning on him. “They didn’t know about this.”
Ying Tong said to Ying Xuechen, “You help her remove the curse from her body. As for the extra curses, let them return from whence they came; the bloodline can be disregarded.”
Ying Xuechen, upon hearing this, nodded solemnly and said, “Junior obeys. I promise I won’t let you down.”
Seeing this, Ying Tong nodded in satisfaction, then turned her gaze to the side at Ying Shaoan.
“You shouldn’t just stand idle either; you’re responsible for healing her scars.”
Ying Shaoan imitated Ying Xuechen and replied, “Junior obeys. I promise to complete the task.”
At this moment, Ying Xuejian, who was lying on the bed, had already awakened but made no sound.
Looking at the unfamiliar ceiling and the soft clothes on her body, a flicker of emotion passed through her eyes.
Turning her head to look at the three people who were talking, she recognized one of the voices as the one she had heard before.
Lowering her gaze, she saw the sarira beads around her neck and recalled the words “meeting gift.”
At that moment, the three who were conversing also noticed that she had awakened.
Ying Tong spoke gently, “Don’t be afraid; we won’t hurt you.”
Ying Xuejian blinked and then broke into a brilliant smile.
She hadn’t really understood what Ying Tong had said; she simply found her voice pleasant to listen to.
Thanks to Ying Tong’s presence, the process of Ying Xuechen lifting the curse went exceptionally smoothly.
He sliced his finger, allowing a drop of blood to fall onto Ying Xuejian’s forehead.
The blood immediately seeped into her body.
The black lines of the curse that had been entrenched on her face seemed to meet some kind of nemesis and fled in panic.
Ying Xuejian felt an immense sense of relief wash over her, her entire body feeling light and comfortable—even more so than before.
After the ritual was completed, Ying Tong noticed that the black lines of the curse on Ying Xuejian’s body had not disappeared and asked, “Why are these black lines still here?”
Ying Xuechen explained, “I have already lifted the curse from her, but the black lines of the curse do not belong to her. They will gradually disappear over time and return to their original owner.”
What Ying Xuechen did not say was that once these curse lines returned to their original host, they would not remain as small and fine as they currently were.
It was bad enough that these people showed no remorse; they had even gathered all the curses onto one person to avoid suffering themselves, even going so far as to abandon their own bloodline for it.
**TN
The exiled Ying family are using Yīng/應, while the Cangqiong Realm Ying family uses Yíng/贏
