What Use Could a Disaster Like Me Possibly Have?

The Wolf Head Mercenary Group's headquarters was brightly lit.

Inside the hall, a gloomy-looking young man toyed with a wine cup in his hand as he listened to his subordinate's report.

He was Mu Li, the young leader of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group.

"Young Leader, I saw it with my own eyes! That kid in the black robe had an extraordinary bearing. You could tell at a glance that he wasn't ordinary!"

"He said a few words to Xiao Yi Xian, and her expression immediately turned awful!"

The scrawny man who had returned from the Myriad Medicine Pavilion embellished his account.

A flash of lewdness and greed passed through Mu Li's eyes.

He had long coveted Xiao Yi Xian's ethereal temperament and alluring figure.

Unfortunately, though that girl looked delicate, she was stubborn as could be. With Mr. Yao, the owner of the Myriad Medicine Pavilion, protecting her, he had never found a chance to make a move.

"Some fat sheep from out of town dares set his sights on the woman I, Mu Li, have taken a liking to?"

Mu Li sneered.

Just then, a girl dressed as a maid came running in from outside in a panic.

"Young... Young Leader!"

She was Xiao Cui, Xiao Yi Xian's maid, and Mu Li had long since bought her over with Gold Coins.

"Miss... Miss just left! She went alone toward the big tree to the east!"

Smash!

Mu Li hurled his wine cup heavily to the floor and shot to his feet.

"Good! Excellent!"

Ecstasy spread across his face.

"A lone man and woman meeting in the wilderness in the dead of night—Heaven truly is helping me!"

"Pass the order! Everyone, grab your weapons and follow me to East Cliff!"

Mu Li licked his lips, his eyes filled with undisguised lust.

"Tonight, I'll get both the girl and the loot! That brat's treasures are mine, and Xiao Yi Xian is mine too!"

The night was as black as ink.

At the eastern edge of Qingshan Town, beneath a solitary old tree.

Xiao Yi Xian walked over step by step, her white dress swaying softly in the night breeze.

Her heart was even more unsettled than the night.

When Xiao Yi Xian approached the old tree, her footsteps suddenly stopped.

The sinister, eerie scene she had expected did not appear.

At some point, a small wooden table and two round stools had been placed beneath the tree.

A pot of tea on the table sent up delicate wisps of steam.

The black-robed young man sat leisurely on one of the stools, pouring and sipping tea by himself, his movements as unhurried as if he were in his own courtyard.

The sight stood in stark contrast to the desolate night around them, leaving Xiao Yi Xian dazed for a moment.

She steadied herself, lowered her head, and slowly walked to the table.

"I... I'm here." Her voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz, carrying a tremor she had not even noticed herself.

Xuan Jin did not look up. He merely pointed to the empty stool across from him.

"Have some tea first."

His voice was calm, devoid of any discernible emotion.

Xiao Yi Xian was at a loss, but she still sat down as instructed.

She watched Xuan Jin lift the teapot and fill the empty cup before her first, only then refilling his own. The whole process was smooth and effortless, without a trace of worldly bustle.

Was this man really just here to talk to me?

She lifted the teacup. The warmth against her fingertips soothed her chaotic thoughts a little.

Xuan Jin said nothing. He simply took a yellowed ancient book from his Storage Ring and casually placed it on the table.

On the cover of the ancient book, four large characters were written in an archaic script:

Seven-Colored Poison Scripture.

Xiao Yi Xian's breathing stopped instantly.

A poison scripture?

"May I ask who you are, sir?" She finally gathered the courage to ask.

Xuan Jin raised his head, his gaze meeting hers for the first time.

"My name is Xuan Jin. Just call me Young Master." He paused, then added with a smile, "If you like, you can call me big brother too."

"..."

Xiao Yi Xian was completely speechless.

How could he still say something like that at a time like this?

His remark dispelled much of the tense, fearful atmosphere, leaving her with an absurd sense of bewilderment instead.

Xuan Jin seemed to understand what she was thinking and did not pursue the subject.

"Take a look at this."

Xuan Jin lightly tapped the Seven-Colored Poison Scripture with his finger.

"Once you finish reading it, you'll understand everything."

Xiao Yi Xian's fingertips felt a little cold.

She took a deep breath, then reached out and picked up the ancient book.

The pages were thin and carried the quiet stillness of passing years.

She opened to the first page.

"Within heaven and earth exist those with unusual constitutions, known as the Calamity Poison Body... Those with the Calamity Poison Body, whether born with it or acquiring it later, possess seven-colored lines faintly hidden beneath the skin of their lower abdomen. At first, the colors are pale as silk..."

The very first sentence made Xiao Yi Xian's body shudder violently. The seven-colored lines beneath her lower abdomen.

She continued reading.

"Those with the Calamity Poison Body are innately close to all poisons under heaven. By consuming poison to cultivate, they can transform potent toxins into their own Poison Dou Qi, advancing at an astonishing pace..."

"Yet this constitution is Heaven's curse. The more poison they consume, the greater the accumulation of toxins within their body, until their constitution can no longer suppress them. In the end, myriad poisons devour their body, causing them to explode and die. Wherever they pass, poisonous gas spreads, and all living things suffer..."

Every word was like a sharp blade stabbing viciously into her heart.

She read faster and faster, while her face grew paler and paler.

The book recorded in detail every characteristic of the Calamity Poison Body, what happened when it erupted, and its incomparably tragic final outcome.

Every description corresponded exactly to her own experiences.

Xiao Yi Xian finally understood why she had possessed an abnormally strong affinity for all kinds of herbs since childhood, and why poisons that were fatal to others had no effect on her.

She finally understood why, back then, her mother and everyone in her village had suddenly died under such strange circumstances.

It had not been an accident.

It had not been a plague.

It had been her.

The poison within her had erupted unconsciously and taken everything away.

"Heh... hehehe..."

Xiao Yi Xian's shoulders shook violently. She let out several meaningless chuckles, filled with despair and self-mockery.

"I'm a monster."

"A monster... who brings disaster to everyone around me..."

Tears silently slid down her cheeks and fell onto the yellowed pages, spreading into small wet stains.

Her lifelong dream had been to become an alchemist who saved lives and healed the wounded.

Yet reality had dealt her its cruelest blow.

She was not an angel, but a demon.

Her very existence was a disaster.

Xuan Jin watched her quietly and did not offer any comfort.

He knew that this kind of pain was something she needed to face and work through herself.

In his previous life, he had liked this character very much.

This girl had endured a life full of hardship, yet still kept a trace of kindness in her heart. She had accompanied Xiao Yan through his most difficult years, but never received a happy ending.

This time, let me be the one.

After a long while, Xiao Yi Xian's sobs gradually ceased.

She raised her head. Her beautiful purple eyes were red and swollen from crying, with only a deathly emptiness left within them.

She put down the Seven-Colored Poison Scripture, stood up, and bowed deeply to Xuan Jin.

"Thank you, Young Master, for clearing up my confusion, so that at least I may die knowing the truth."

She raised her head again, her face bearing a bleak smile of release.

"May I ask... why did you seek me out?"

"What use could a disaster like me possibly have?"