"Bai Ling seems to be in trouble. I need to go and see. This happened because of me, and I won't rest assured if I don't check on her," Xiao Man whispered. "Do you know where Bai Ling is?"
"She should be underground in the White Tower."
Xiao Man looked puzzled. She hadn't thought there was space beneath the White Tower. She immediately asked Nangong Yu to take Ye Qing out first, while she went to find Bai Ling.
"Qian Ruo, if Bai Ling dies, you'll be the Saintess. Congratulations," a flattering voice chimed in, tinged with envy.
"Saintess?" a mocking voice retorted. "Do you think being a Saintess is that easy? If you want to be one, go ahead and be it."
"Besides Bai Ling, you are the most powerful. If Bai Ling dies, you'll be the Saintess. How could I be qualified?" the sharp-faced girl said with a fawning smile. "If you become the Saintess, don't forget to look after your sisters."
"I don't want to be the Saintess. If you do, you can be it," the woman named Qian Ruo said coldly, then turned and walked in another direction.
As Qian Ruo left, a look of jealousy and hatred flashed across the other woman's face. If she hadn't been inferior to them in controlling Gu worms, the Saintess position would never have fallen to Bai Ling!
After taking only a few steps, the woman bumped into someone. She was immediately startled and wanted to cry out, but the dagger in the other person's hand was held to her throat, preventing her from moving.
"Where is Bai Ling?"
The woman swallowed hard. "Ten Thousand Gu Pit."
Xiao Man frowned slightly. Ten Thousand Gu Pit—the name itself suggested it was not a pleasant place. "You said earlier that Bai Ling was going to die. What happened?"
The woman secretly glanced at Xiao Man, thinking, this person must be Bai Ling's lover. If she could capture her, she would be performing a great service, and then she wouldn't have to worry about securing the position of Saintess!
"She was caught meeting a man in secret and stole out of the White Tower, violating a taboo. After receiving thirty lashes, she was thrown into the Ten Thousand Gu Pit. A living person who enters the Ten Thousand Gu Pit faces certain death, let alone someone who is severely injured. Naturally, there's no hope for her."
"Take me to the Ten Thousand Gu Pit," Xiao Man said immediately.
"This..." The woman looked troubled. Xiao Man applied a little more pressure, and the woman quickly said, "I'll take you. I'll take you right away."
Hearing this, Xiao Man gestured for the woman to go ahead. The woman obediently walked in front, her fingers twitching slightly. She found she couldn't command her Gu worms to attack Xiao Man, and she couldn't help but feel bewildered. As they passed a fork in the road, she suddenly raised her hand and threw a handful of poisonous powder at Xiao Man before darting into the side path and disappearing!
Xiao Man cursed under her breath. She wanted to chase after her, but ultimately stopped. If Nangong Yu and the others waited too long for her, they would surely come looking for her, and she had to find Bai Ling and get out as quickly as possible.
Xiao Man ran down the other path. Bai Ling had been thrown into the Ten Thousand Gu Pit. For the dignified Saintess to be punished like this just for sneaking out of the White Tower to have fun—the Saintess tribe of Wuyue Country was nothing special!
Xiao Man continued downwards and finally saw a faint light. However, there were people inside, and they were not the ones she was looking for. She immediately concealed her aura and her presence.
"Great Elder, she was just being playful. A small punishment would suffice; why must you take her life?"
"Playful? She still refuses to reveal the identity of the man who bewitched her!" the Great Elder said furiously. "I want to see if her bones are harder, or if the Gu worms in the Ten Thousand Gu Pit are more formidable."
The Third Elder fell silent. Even for them, entering the Ten Thousand Gu Pit would be a near-death experience, let alone for the severely injured Bai Ling. Clearly, the Great Elder intended to kill Bai Ling.
"Third Elder, instead of trying to persuade us here, you might as well go and persuade Bai Ling to reveal the man's whereabouts. Then we will naturally save her from the Ten Thousand Gu Pit."
The Third Elder did not reply. Bai Ling was someone she had raised. She had always seemed obedient and well-behaved, but her personality was exceptionally stubborn. She feared that Bai Ling would rather die than reveal the man's whereabouts.
"Elders," a woman rushed in, who was none other than the one who had escaped from Xiao Man.
"Yao Hua, what is it?" the Second Elder asked, puzzled.
"That man, the one who bewitched the Saintess, has broken into the White Tower to save the Saintess!" Yao Hua said quickly. "I encountered her in the White Tower. I was no match for her and was captured. She kept asking for the Saintess's whereabouts and even told me to take her to the Ten Thousand Gu Pit. After finding an opportunity to escape, I came to report immediately."
"Excellent! We were just wondering how to find him, and he has come right to us!" The Great Elder slammed the table. "Seal off the White Tower and search! Dig three feet into the ground if you have to, but find this person! Dead or alive, I don't care!"
Xiao Man's expression remained unchanged. Hidden in the darkness, the Ten Thousand Gu Pit should be below. She only needed to wait for these people to search for her, and then she could seize the opportunity to sneak in.
The White Tower became lively again, with people searching everywhere for Xiao Man's trace. Every time they spotted a figure, they would pursue it, only for the person to disappear again soon. Even the Gu worms in the White Tower couldn't find any trace, making the elders increasingly enraged.
Xiao Man moved silently towards the Ten Thousand Gu Pit. As she passed the interrogation room, her gaze swept over the blood-stained whips with barbs, and a flicker of worry crossed her eyes before she quickly moved on.
The Ten Thousand Gu Pit was where the Gu Kings were cultivated, filled with countless venomous insects, all lethally poisonous.
When the previous Gu King died, the Gu worms in the Ten Thousand Gu Pit would fight amongst themselves until a new Gu King emerged. Currently, with the new Gu King still alive, the Ten Thousand Gu Pit was a large-scale Gu breeding ground. A living person entering would soon become their prey.
Bai Ling lay quietly in the Ten Thousand Gu Pit, her heart devoid of joy or sorrow. She had lived for eighteen years. At fifteen, she became the Saintess, but she had no freedom and no aspirations. Everything had to be done according to the elders' commands. She was merely a living puppet, and now she had been ruthlessly abandoned. She felt no hatred, only sorrow. Her short life, it seemed, had only been lived for herself for one day.
The Gu worms gradually submerged her, gnawing at her flesh and blood. The Saintess tribe did not need a disobedient Saintess. The so-called Ten Thousand Gu Pit was merely a place of execution, its purpose to strip away the Life and Death Gu from her body. The Life and Death Gu was not easy to cultivate, and the Great Elder would never bear to give up a Life and Death Gu.
The life of a dignified Saintess was not even worth as much as an insect!
As the last ray of light disappeared, Bai Ling smiled. In this life, she had at least lived for herself for one day. She had eaten delicious candied hawthorn, soft sweet cakes, drunk sweet fruit juice, and enjoyed mellow, spicy wine. She had also met someone who truly cared about her. She had no regrets.
Suddenly, the Gu worms covering Bai Ling receded like a tide. Bai Ling gained a moment to breathe and opened her eyes. She saw a figure plummeting from the sky. The person looked somewhat familiar. The figure landed beside her, a smile on their face.
"Bai Ling, I've come to get you."