Cultivating the Purple Cloud Wings

After glaring at the Shop Manager's retreating back and muttering a few vicious threats, I returned to my room. I sat cross-legged, closed my eyes, and calmed my mind for a long while before finally settling my emotions and adjusting myself to my best condition.

I took out the Purple Cloud Wings battle skill Scroll and carefully opened it. A pair of jet-black eagle wings was drawn on its surface. They felt icy cold to the touch and were as hard as steel.

Several lines of small writing in the lower left corner explained the origin of this battle skill. An unknown expert and several friends had captured a fifth-tier Flying Magical Beast comparable to a Dou Wang, taken its wings, and sealed its soul within them. It could only be cultivated by one person.

"Soul?"

I scoffed without the slightest fear. I was a transmigrator; my soul was famously powerful. What was there to fear from the remnant soul of a Magical Beast that had been sealed away for who knew how many centuries?

I placed my hand over the eagle wings on the Scroll and slowly let my soul seep out through my palm, covering it.

Suddenly, a savage eagle cry rang directly within my mind!

Startled, I lost my focus, and the eagle beast's remnant soul fiercely attacked my soul. My entire body trembled as indescribable, bone-shaking agony erupted in my mind!

I could no longer remain seated and fell straight backward, slamming into the floor.

The eagle beast's remnant soul continued its relentless attacks against my soul. I saw two eaglets hatch from their shells in an eagle's nest beside a freezing Cliff.

I saw the adult eagle leave to hunt for food and never return. The two eaglets, starving, fought each other until one killed and devoured the other.

I saw the frail young eagle, driven by hunger, leap from the bottomless Cliff. It clumsily flapped its wings amid the rushing currents of air, then slowly rose into the sky, soaring ever after and looking down upon the earth!

Was this... me? So I was an eagle...

A burst of searing pain suddenly shot through my mind, and I abruptly came to my senses. No, I was Nalan Ye!

No, that wasn't right. Who was Nalan Ye? I was Gannan Xiaoshan... No, I was an eagle...

Eagle, Nalan Ye, Gannan Xiaoshan... who exactly was I?

Only at the very end, in that final flicker of consciousness, did I understand. The eagle beast's remnant soul had contaminated me. Soon, my consciousness would be annihilated, and I would become a Walking Corpse that knew only slaughter.

My eyes slowly closed, and darkness swallowed my vision. Would I ever wake again?

So this is how my story ends... I'm so unwilling...

After an unknown amount of time, I woke groggily and felt something soft beneath me. Turning my head, I found myself lying in a large bed. Thick blankets covered it—no wonder it felt so soft...

I wasn't dead?

It took me quite a while to recover my senses. I truly wasn't dead. My head felt muddled, and my throat was unbearably dry. My lips moved as I hoarsely called out:

"Water... water..."

The door suddenly flew open, and a delicate-looking young girl dressed as a Maidservant rushed in anxiously. She fed me a cup of water and asked, "Young Master, how are you feeling?"

"I..."

I barely swallowed the water when, to my surprise, the Maidservant ignored me and ran back out, shouting, "Shop Manager, Young Master Nalan is awake! Young Master Nalan is awake!"

I gave a bitter smile, licked my dry lips, and wondered how many days I had been unconscious. And in such danger, when I had nearly been contaminated by the eagle beast's remnant soul, who had saved me?

A pale white figure quietly surfaced in my mind. It had to have been her, right? Though she was only a one-star Dou Zhe, I somehow felt certain that she had saved me.

At that moment, a flurry of hurried footsteps sounded outside. A group of people rushed into the room. Tilting my head and looking carefully, I saw the Guard Captain, the Shop Manager, and even a second-tier Alchemist—but that pale white figure was nowhere to be seen...

I frowned, but before I could think further, the Guard Captain and Shop Manager came over to apologize and inquire after my health. For no reason, I felt irritated and impatient, so I dismissed them with a few casual words.

The Shop Manager seemed to notice my foul mood and hurriedly had the second-tier Alchemist step forward. This Alchemist clearly did not have much talent. He looked forty or fifty years old, yet he was only a second-tier Alchemist!

The mottled wrinkles across his face and his skeletal hands made me frown even more.

Still, I did not refuse, because I knew I needed treatment. Suppressing my nausea and revulsion, I let the wretched old man examine my entire body. In the end, he shook his head and said, "There is nothing seriously wrong. Young Master Nalan merely made a slight mistake during cultivation. Rest for a few days, and you will be fine."

After saying that, the wretched old man left behind several bottles of medicinal pills and took his leave. The Shop Manager hurriedly apologized to me before going to see him out.

Only the Guard Captain remained by my bedside. We had spent quite some time together, and he could be considered a trusted subordinate. I tilted my head to look at him and asked, "Mo Mu, how many days was I unconscious?"

Mo Mu said three days. After a pause, I asked again, "That day... who saved me?"

Mo Mu looked ashamed. "Young Master, Little Fairy Doctor saved you. Mo Mu was incompetent and nearly allowed Young Master to perish. Please punish me."

I naturally had no interest in punishing Mo Mu. Hearing that Little Fairy Doctor had saved me, I could not help feeling delighted. "Where is Little Fairy Doctor? Why haven't I seen her at all?"

Mo Mu was not stupid this time. He hurriedly went out and called for a guard to bring Little Fairy Doctor over.

While waiting, a Maidservant brought over a small bowl of porridge. Thinking that I would soon see Little Fairy Doctor, my appetite greatly improved. With the Maidservant attending to me, I quickly ate more than half the bowl.

But just then, a set of anxious footsteps suddenly sounded outside the room, and a guard rushed in with a face full of panic. Mo Mu was about to berate him when I raised a hand to stop him and hurriedly asked, "What happened?"

"Young Master..."

The guard had run here in great haste. Trying to steady his ragged breathing, he stammered, "Miss Little Fairy Doctor is gone. I asked the Maidservant who attended her and the others. Ever since Miss Little Fairy Doctor left two days ago, no one has seen her again."

"I... I only found this in her room." With that, the guard stepped forward, lowered his head, and presented the envelope in his hand to me.

My heart skipped a beat. I shoved away the Maidservant who was feeding me porridge, heedless of the porridge spilling across the expensive bedding, and snatched the envelope from the guard!

I gripped the envelope tightly, feeling my hand tremble slightly. I took a deep breath, yet I was a little afraid to open it. But I opened it anyway.

"Nalan Ye, I cannot go to Gama City with you. I am going to travel the continent. Also, as repayment for saving my life, I took those materials with me."

"Oh, and I copied the Seven Coloured Poison Scripture as well. But I will not leak it. Take the original back to your clan—Little Fairy Doctor."

I could hardly believe it. I shouted and abruptly leaped from the bed, flailing my arms and kicking the blankets off the bed in a wild mess.

Mo Mu was startled. He hurriedly circulated his Dou Qi, rushed onto the bed, and restrained me in one motion. "Young Master, what is wrong?"

I struggled twice, but with the absolute gap in strength between us, I could not break free from Mo Mu's restraint. I could only turn my head to stare at his face and grit out each word, "Women... are all big pig trotters!"