Xie Li felt that she had probably used up all her best luck on meeting Su Jiu.
After she arrived at the sect, everyone treated her very well at first. With a brother who was a Personal Disciple, and having been brought back by Su Jiu herself, she naturally enjoyed a period of attention.
But as time passed, the others in the sect began to catch on. Su Jiu had never personally come to see her, and although her brother was a Personal Disciple of Blazing Flame Peak, his standing was nowhere near Su Mianmian's.
For a time, her life was dark. Those who had once been most eager to curry favor with her changed their faces almost overnight.
As she saw it, perhaps people really did need to suffer setbacks before they could grow.
And so, during that time, reality forced her to grow up.
Later, it was instead a few friends who had not been quite so close to her who gave her considerable help.
Someone told her that this was how cultivators truly interacted with one another.
As Xie Li grew older day by day, she blossomed into an increasingly beautiful young woman.
That beauty naturally drew covetous eyes.
But Xie Li had a particularly fierce elder brother. For her sake, Xie Gu had already been hauled into the Enforcement Hall no fewer than three times. Although it was ultimately proven each time that the other party had provoked him first, he had beaten them so badly that he still suffered considerable physical punishment there.
Even then, the disciples administering his punishment had only held back out of consideration for his position as True Lord Hong Ling's Personal Disciple.
Others might not have understood Xie Gu, but Xie Li knew him all too well.
He harbored an