clergé - Chapitre 120
A slender figure, fair wrists, and jet-black hair.
She'll look absolutely stunning today; after all, she's the most beautiful girl I've ever seen in red, even more so than her mother.
Her mother was the previous Holy Maiden of the Moon, and there is still a portrait of her in a fiery phoenix robe in the church hall. However, she was also my father's lover.
Yes, the bride is not only my junior colleague, but also my half-sister. This is a secret buried by time.
When I was twelve, my father returned from outside the mountains with a little girl who was on the verge of death, thin and frail. He told me that she was the daughter of the former Holy Maiden and would succeed her as a teacher, and would also become my junior sister.
I hated her back then.
From the moment I was born, I was the sole chosen one of the Moon Worship Cult. Whether it was martial arts manuals or food and clothing, I was always the first to receive them. The leftovers, which I didn't care for, were given to the other children my age. But the arrival of this little girl changed everything. She received treatment no less than mine, and was equally favored, eventually even surpassing me—my father actually entrusted her with the Moon Worship Cult's closely guarded secret, the *Marrow Cleansing Classic*!
I was furious and resolved to kill her with my own hands.
The teachings of the Moon Worship Sect state that anything detrimental to oneself should be eradicated as early as possible to prevent future complications and recurrence.
However, at the crucial moment, my sword was stopped, and my father and the Right Envoy ordered me to let her go. I lost face with my sword, and returned to my room with a heavy heart, only to find my father sitting quietly in the room waiting for me.
"Southern Barbarians." My father narrowed his long, thin eyes and called my name. "Do you hate Pang Wan?"
Pang Wan was that silly little girl who would just giggle and drool.
"I wish I could kill her!" I said through gritted teeth. A man is never afraid of anything, and I was going to tell the truth.
"Good!" Father clapped his hands and laughed after hearing this. "From today onwards, as long as you are in the sect, you may use all your skills to hunt her down. If you can really kill her, then that will be considered your skill!"
I was slightly startled, but the doubts in my heart were quickly dispelled by elation—my father's order was an imperial edict, and I could finally vent my anger without fear.
Developing feelings for a target is something that could never happen to me, until one time when I had been secretly planning for over a month and was almost about to kill Pang Wan, the Right Envoy suddenly intervened and stopped me.
“Young Master, you’d better hold back a little.” He looked at me meaningfully. “Even if you really kill the Holy Maiden, the Sect Leader will probably only be sad, not happy.”
At first I didn’t understand what he was saying, until later I saw my father standing beside my unconscious junior sister, stroking her hair and silently saying, “My daughter, you have suffered.”
In an instant, I understood everything.
That silly, infatuated little girl was actually my father's biological daughter, my little sister.
Looking back now, perhaps Father had planned it all along. He saw that my sister had excellent physical strength and comprehension, but she had no interest in martial arts. She would only go all out when her life was at stake. My pursuit could be a catalyst to motivate her to practice martial arts.
Knowing the inside story, I suddenly understood why my father was biased. To be honest, I didn't blame my father. I was even a little happy to have such a sister. After all, my mother died not long after I was born, and I only had one relative on Mount Chuyun. Now I finally have another one, and I decided to treat her well.
As for what constitutes a "good" way? I don't know, maybe just not actually killing her would be enough.
Time flies, and several years have passed in the blink of an eye. My sister and I have both grown up.
Amei has grown into a graceful little lotus bud, but her mind is still a complete mess, she's silly. She's obsessed with looking in the mirror, and every time she sees me, her eyes gleam with a strange light.
At that time, I had just turned sixteen and was ordered to go down the mountain to gain experience.
This is exactly what I wanted. After so long of seclusion in Izumo Mountain practicing martial arts, it's time to broaden my horizons.
At first, everything went smoothly. I killed the leaders of two sects and gained the reputation of "Little Demon" in the martial arts world. I almost thought I was invincible until I overestimated myself and challenged Kunlun with my sword. I then realized that there are always stronger opponents. I was chased by the Kunlun sect members and fell into an ambush, falling off a cliff.
Mei Wu appeared when I was seriously injured. She was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen, like a pure white lotus flower. When I was down and out, she took care of me and served me without expecting anything in return. She didn't ask about my origins or background. She was so gentle and kind that even the hardest heart would melt.
I naturally fell in love with her. Most of the women in the Moon Worship Cult were ruthless and straightforward. I had only ever heard of girls like Mei Wu, but I had never actually met one. She was so beautiful and wonderful, like a fairy who had stepped out of a dream.
The day my injury healed, Meiwu tearfully said she couldn't bear to see me leave. I told her I would take her with me, I would marry her, and I would be with her forever.
The news that I brought Mei Wu back to the mountain spread throughout the entire sect overnight. Many members were greatly surprised, and even Lu Wei, the guard who had grown up with me since childhood, couldn't help but ask me, "Does the young master no longer want the Holy Maiden?"
I found their speculations laughable—the Holy Maiden is my own sister. How could I possibly marry her? Even if we were truly in love, Father would never agree. However, I could use this to spite her, since she used to take away a lot of Father's affection.
I know that my sister still cares for me to some extent; otherwise, she wouldn't have looked at me so shyly when we were little. But in the end, we can only be family.
As I expected, my father agreed to our marriage. Although my sister was a little shocked, she still generously gave us her blessings.
Then soon after, her father sent her down the mountain to gain experience.
On the day I left, I rode my horse to see her off at the door. With tears in her eyes, she asked me why I liked Meiwu, and I told her the answer.
Enraged, she lashed me with her whip, her face full of arrogance and domineering. For the first time ever, I held back and didn't retaliate.
Watching that stubborn red figure disappear into the distance, I thought to myself, maybe next time I come back, there will be a handsome young man by my sister's side. She will introduce him to me and my father, saying that he is the man she loves, and that she wants to marry him and spend the rest of her life with him.
At that time, I would give that young man a good beating, and then tell him that he must treat her well, otherwise I would poison his eyes, cut off his hands, and make sure he dies without a burial place.
What I didn't expect was that misfortune would strike at the same time as Amei's departure. On her wedding day, Meiwu was brutally murdered, and the killer, a master of martial arts, escaped unscathed and disappeared without a trace.
I have never experienced such a great change in my life. Overnight, it was as if the whole world was stained with scarlet. I hate everything around me. I want to avenge Mei Wu. I want to completely destroy the murderer and make his soul disappear forever.
In the instant before I was about to collapse, a familiar voice drifted into my mind: "Child, do you want revenge?"
"I want to! I want to!" I almost wanted to tear my chest open and show that person my yearning heart.
"Even if it might turn you into a monster, are you willing to do it?" the voice asked me again.
"If you're not afraid of death, what else is there to be afraid of?" I scoffed at his concerns.
When I came to my senses, I found myself holding the Moon Worship Cult's treasured manual, the Marrow Cleansing Classic.
My father once told me that he forbade me to practice the *Xi Sui Jing* (Marrow Cleansing Classic) because its martial arts were too sinister and only suitable for women. If an adult man practiced it, he would easily suffer a qi deviation. However, at this moment, I didn't care about anything anymore. So what if I suffered a qi deviation? As long as I could avenge my wife, what I would become was no longer important.
When I emerged from seclusion again, half a year had passed. I had successfully mastered the ninth level of the Marrow Cleansing Classic, but my eagerness to win had led to a qi deviation, transforming me into a monster that would devour people's power and flesh on the nights of the full moon when the yin energy was at its peak. People in the martial world called me Blood Tyrant, and I accepted it. Although I loathed this change, I loathed even more my past self who couldn't find the culprit.
Now that I am powerful, I will definitely avenge Mei Wu.