Chapter 2: Tempering the Body

"You... you..." The fierce woman's lips were stained with blood, her face a mix of ferocity, anger, and fear as she pointed at Xiao Bei, stammering several "yous."

"What do you mean by 'you'? I told you to get lost, didn't you hear? Or do you want another beating to remind you?" Xiao Bei threw off the bedding on the bed, got up, and helped his mother, Zhang Lan, who was standing there in shock, to sit down on the bed. He looked at the fierce woman coldly.

"You wait, I... I'll go find the mistress, let her make a decision for me, you little brat... you just wait." Mumbling incoherently, the fierce woman dragged herself to the door, stumbled, and then ran off like a streak of smoke.

"Xiao Bei, you..." Zhang Lan stared at Xiao Bei with wide eyes, her face a mix of confusion and excitement.

Then, as if realizing that someone would soon come to make things difficult for her and her son, Zhang Lan's face turned pale. She pushed Xiao Bei, got out of bed, and paced back and forth. "What can we do? The mistress will come soon, Xiao Bei. She will definitely scold you. You should lie in bed and pretend to be seriously injured. Maybe this time, seeing you in bed, she will soften and not scold you. After all, she is your aunt..."

As she spoke, Zhang Lan pushed Xiao Bei again, trying to get him to lie down and pretend to be injured.

Seeing Zhang Lan's appearance, Xiao Bei felt a pang of pain in his heart.

This pain was genuine.

The fusion of the two souls already had the emotional factors of the previous Xiao Bei, and now that Zhang Lan was first worried about Xiao Bei, it made Xiao Bei, who had lost both parents many years ago, feel the beauty of having a family, an incomparable happiness.

However, Xiao Bei's soul, now fully integrated with the previous Xiao Bei's soul, also knew that what Zhang Lan said was true.

After all, the current situation of Zhang Lan and the previous Xiao Bei in the Xiao family was not good, or rather, it was dire.

Xiao Bei's father was Xiao Feng, the second son of the current head of the Xiao family, Old Master Xiao Zhan. Xiao Feng already had a wife, who was the mother of the young master who had struck the previous Xiao Bei, originally named Xiao Yun. Zhang Lan was originally a maid serving Xiao Feng. One day, when Xiao Feng was drunk, he had an affair with Zhang Lan, and Xiao Bei was born.

After Xiao Bei was born, he was found to have blocked meridians and a very weak spirit, making him unsuitable for any martial arts. He was a complete waste. This made Xiao Feng, who had originally been delighted to take Zhang Lan as a concubine, suddenly become cold.

Seeing that Xiao Bei had no talent for cultivation and was a complete waste, Xiao Feng's coldness gradually turned into indifference. If it weren't for the occasional medicines and tonics sent by Xiao Feng during holidays, the previous Xiao Bei would have thought that Xiao Feng didn't even know he had a son.

...

Mother's status is determined by her son's. The previous Xiao Bei, your weakness has made your mother suffer. From now on, I will not let this happen again. After all, we are one now, and your mother is also my mother!

"Mother, don't worry, nothing will happen. After all, I am Xiao Feng's son, and my aunt won't go too far."

After saying these words, seeing that his mother still had more to say, Xiao Bei smiled at Zhang Lan and continued, "Mother, I forgot to tell you, I can actually cultivate now."

"What?"

Zhang Lan, who had been worried about the upcoming trouble, suddenly heard Xiao Bei say this and her mouth opened wide in surprise.

"Xiao Bei, are you confused and talking nonsense because of the beating from that bad boy Xiao Yun?" Zhang Lan's face showed anxiety again. She wiped her hands on her coarse cloth dress and then touched Xiao Bei's forehead.

Xiao Bei smiled and held Zhang Lan's hand, looking at her face filled with concern. "Mother, I'm not lying. Remember, didn't I come back very late one day not long ago? Do you remember?"

"You mean that time a few months ago?" Zhang Lan thought for a moment, puzzled, and asked Xiao Bei.

"Yes, that's the one. That day, I went up the mountain to cut firewood and met an old man with a white beard. He gave me a pill and said that after taking it, my body would be completely adjusted, and I would be able to cultivate. I took the pill with some doubt, and after taking it, my head became dizzy. I didn't regain consciousness until very late, which is why I came back so late that day."

"I wanted to give you a surprise by confirming that I could cultivate, so I lied and said I fell asleep while cutting firewood. Mother, I really can cultivate now. This morning, I practiced the family's cultivation technique and got results. Mother, I really can cultivate now, look!"

As he spoke, Xiao Bei, under Zhang Lan's puzzled gaze, picked up a wooden stick about the size of his arm from the wooden table.

By focusing his consciousness in the Star Palace, he used the Central Star, which he had cultivated in the Star Palace, as the starting point to channel a thread of power into his palm.

"Slap."

His palm fell like a chopping knife, and the wooden stick broke into two pieces with a crack.

Zhang Lan was stunned.

In no time, Zhang Lan began to sob, her tears contrasting with the few strands of white hair at her temples, making it very heart-wrenching to see.

"Xiao Bei, Xiao Bei, Mother is so happy. You can finally cultivate. Your future, Mother no longer needs to worry about, sniff sniff..." At this moment, Zhang Lan was not thinking about how her own life would change, but rather that Xiao Bei's future would be secure!

What a mother's love!

I, Xiao Bei, no matter which life, which continent, have a good mother!

Xiao Bei's eyes also became moist.

...

As Xiao Bei had anticipated, the so-called aunt did not come to seek revenge for the fierce woman, nor did the fierce woman come to cause trouble for Zhang Lan and Xiao Bei.

However, Xiao Bei knew that a barking dog rarely bites, but a silent one will bite when the time comes. A calm lake is the easiest place for a monster to suddenly emerge. Everything must be guarded against.

After letting his mother stay at home for a day, Xiao Bei's intuition told him that the retaliation would come the next day.

During this day, Xiao Bei sat in meditation and practiced, continuously guiding the power generated in the Star Palace to temper his body, all under Zhang Lan's wide-eyed gaze.

This body was indeed a waste. After about two hours of meditation, a layer of black mud would cover Xiao Bei's body. During this day, Xiao Bei took a total of six baths using the well water in the small courtyard.

"It seems the detoxification process will take another two days. Otherwise, the power cannot fully circulate throughout the body. This body is indeed a waste."

After dinner with his mother Zhang Lan, Xiao Bei thought to himself.

...

Early the next morning, just as the sky was beginning to lighten, Xiao Bei was woken by a series of light footsteps outside the house.

"Here again, hmph. It seems that some people won't learn unless they are given a harsh lesson. Do they really think I, Xiao Bei, am easy to bully?"

His expression changed, and a cold smile appeared on the corner of Xiao Bei's mouth.

Outside, the person who had come was the fat and fierce woman. Behind her was a tall, thin middle-aged man in a black robe with a mustache, about forty years old.