On their way to the town, Chu Zhiyuan explained to Xie Qian what a corpse - nurturing acupoint was.
In ancient times, the practice of corpse - driving was the first to be passed down. Later, a branch of it emerged, which was corpse nurturing. The two were completely different.
Corpse nurturers, also known as witch - women, mainly acted out of self - interest. They desired immortality.
This was one of the fastest ways to achieve immortality.
However, this method was extremely cruel, and later it was listed as a forbidden technique.
Corpse nurturing was not what it literally meant. Instead, it involved refining the three souls and six spirits of a dead person.
These three souls and six spirits had to be extracted one by one, with time intervals in between. Needless to say, the pain involved was unimaginable.
Witch - women wanted the souls of children because their souls were the purest and easiest to control.
But there was a condition: the immediate family members of the children had to agree to offer them.
That's why most corpse nurturers were found in remote villages, posing as witch - women to gain the trust of the villagers.
After listening to Chu Zhiyuan's explanation, Ning Yitao gave him an appreciative look. "Your knowledge reserve is quite good."
However, after finishing his explanation, Chu Zhiyuan was worried about Yun Lianmeng. He still didn't feel at ease leaving her alone. So he told the others that he was going back to support her.
Ning Yitao could sense that the corpse - nurturing formation in that village was almost complete.
The witch - woman was not in the village at the moment, and Chu Zhiyuan was capable of handling any situation that might arise.
She knew that Xie Qian was extremely anxious. She stared at Xie Qian quietly and asked,
"Now there's a problem. I only felt it when we reached the village entrance that your child has already had one soul and one spirit extracted. Even if we rescue the child, he will be an imbecile. Do you still want to save him?"
Ever since she heard from Chu Zhiyuan that the witch - woman would refine the three souls and six spirits, she had associated it with Di Sumu's strange behaviors and had been mentally prepared.
No matter what, as long as she could get her child back, even if he was disabled or imbecile, so what? He shouldn't have had such a life.
He was just unlucky to be born into such an unreliable family and suffered this kind of torture. All she wanted to do was to rescue him and let him escape from the sea of bitterness.
She really didn't expect that Di Yong would sell their son to the witch - woman in the village. She just wanted her son back.
"No matter what he's like, I will save him." At this moment, Xie Qian's eyes were filled with tears, and her tone was firm.
Ning Yitao didn't ask any more this time. She knew that no matter how many times she asked, the answer from them would always be love.
For love, one could sacrifice themselves, give up benefits, and make concessions.
But why had she never encountered unwavering love? All she had experienced was betrayal, endless betrayal.
If Zhaocai knew what Ning Yitao was thinking, it would be speechless and unable to refute.
There was no denying that it had once truly abandoned Ning Yitao when she was alone.
Ning Yitao, who was about to reach the pinnacle of power, had saved Zhaocai, one of the ten fierce beasts when it was young and impetuous.
Zhaocai, who was arrogant and proud, had almost pulled Ning Yitao down from the position of sect leader because of the instigation of some villains.
At that time, Ning Yitao's "death" was indirectly caused by Ji Wangqiu and Zhaocai.
If it weren't for the two of them forcing her step by step, in order to keep her position as the sect leader, she would have to be forced to ascend.
At that time, she had no companions. There were only a group of jackals and leopards around her, eyeing her every move and eager to pull her down.
After her "death", they should have managed to pull her down from the position of sect leader.
Thinking of the past, Ning Yitao felt a bit desolate.
After everyone left, Duan Qinghuai saw Ning Yitao still standing there motionless.
Seeing a look of sadness flash across her face, he thought she was not confident about dealing with the witch - woman. Looking at her unhappy appearance, he felt a bit heart - broken. Impulsively, he stepped forward and hugged her.
Duan Qinghuai gently stroked her head, just like coaxing a baby, trying to comfort her.
"Don't think about unhappy things. If you feel that you're not confident about this village, we'll go back. I know you want to maintain the Taoist temple. I'll give you as much money as you want. I'll support you."
Duan Qinghuai's eyes were full of seriousness, and he spoke these words sincerely.
Ning Yitao suddenly found herself in a warm embrace. She was stunned for a moment. Her first reaction was actually that she was a bit reluctant to leave this embrace. No one had ever dared to be so abrupt with her.
Hearing what he said, did he want her to rely on him?
Her heart started beating uncontrollably fast. She realized something was wrong with herself.
Afraid that Duan Qinghuai would hear her rapid heartbeat, Ning Yitao pretended to be calm and pushed him away, smiling. "What? Don't you trust my ability?"
Duan Qinghuai still looked serious and said to Ning Yitao, "I just don't want you to force yourself."
Ning Yitao was a bit dazed. This seemed to be the first time someone had said such words to her.
In the eyes of others, Ning Yitao was always fearless and never fell. No one had ever thought that she would be afraid or lack confidence.
This was the first time Ning Yitao had truly smiled from the bottom of her heart.
When she lifted her lips and smiled slightly, the smile on her lips was extremely shallow and faint, like a feather floating gently, silent and delicate. It also seemed to carry a strange and extraordinary charm.
It could always easily imprint the smile deeply in others' minds, making it hard to forget.
Ning Yitao stared at Duan Qinghuai and said, "I'm not forcing myself. You have to trust me. We're connected, and I won't joke about your life."
Duan Qinghuai replied, "You must pay attention to your safety. I trust you. Don't worry about me."
"—My life is yours."
He said the last sentence extremely softly, as if it had drifted away with the wind.
But what he didn't know was that Ning Yitao had heard it, and the smile in her eyes deepened.
********
Early the next morning, the "little tail" couldn't hold back any longer and came to knock on Ning Yitao's door by herself.
The door opened.
—It was Ning Hong.
Ning Hong regretted deeply that she had ever said that she had severed the mother - daughter relationship with Ning Yitao.
Now she was completely useless in this family and had become the target of venting for Yun Fanghai and Yun Ruichu.
Yun Ruichu cried and made a scene at home every day, not caring at all that Ning Hong was an elder.
"It's all because of you! It's all because you brought Ning Yitao to our family that she had the chance to take my place and caused the Yun family to be in an economic crisis now."
Ning Hong suddenly realized, thinking that it was all because of Ning Yitao. If it weren't for her, how could she have ended up in this situation? Hatred welled up in her heart.
She blamed all the beatings and scoldings from the father - daughter duo on Ning Yitao, and the hatred piled up day by day.
However, Ning Hong would definitely not agree to a divorce. She had finally managed to enter the upper - class society that she had always dreamed of. How could she be willing to quit?
When Yun Fanghai was in a fit of rage, she braved it out and said that she could persuade Ning Yitao to help the Yun family, which gave her life a chance to breathe.