Chapter 5
The Little Trash-Picking Girl
"...My power increased this much?"
Bai Fanxian murmured to herself softly. It seemed the cause definitely came from her last elixir refinement.
Her figure drifted slowly through the sky. Her Heaven Sense burst out until she could sense a massive group of living beings gathered at one point.
"Must be a city?"
Bai Fanxian flew toward the direction she sensed. Along the way, her eyes scanned the path. Many things had changed from what she remembered. She saw many strange black pathways, and on those pathways, odd wheeled objects were moving back and forth.
"How did I end up here?"
Bai Fanxian now stood atop the tallest building in the city. She swept her gaze around in confusion. Everything she saw was unfamiliar. Plus from what she could sense, the number of cultivators in this city was disappointingly few.
Besides this, what happened to her Alchemy Residence?
Why was it buried so deep under the mountain that it couldn't even see sunlight?
And where did all her disciples and close friends go?
That was what worried her most.
Bai Fanxian stood calmly. The gentle breeze that made her clothes flutter helped make her look exceptionally beautiful. But unfortunately, no one could see this scene.
She looked down at this large city. It had many tall buildings, both developed and undeveloped areas. So it wasn't strange that some areas looked like slums.
There, Bai Fanxian saw a little girl hiding in an alley. Whenever someone threw trash in the bin in front of her, she'd show a happy expression and dig through it frantically. When she found a small piece of bread, it made her smile so wide her cheeks puffed up.
But not long after, she had to run away with a frightened face when people in the area saw her. Various shouts and curses rang out behind the little girl who looked only 7 or 8 years old, as if she were disgusting.
Once she was sure she'd come far enough, the little girl sat down to rest in an alley where no one was. Because it was full of rotting trash that gave off unpleasant smells.
The little girl sat down leaning against the wall. In her hand she still held the pitiful piece of bread. Her small hands tore the bread and put it in her mouth hungrily.
Bai Fanxian just stared at the scene silently. She had no intention of helping that child. But just as she was about to turn away, she suddenly caught the glint in that little girl's eyes.
It wasn't the despair of waiting to die.
Wasn't feeling sorry for a cruel fate.
And wasn't even full of the rolling evil that those who grew up on this path usually had.
But it was the glint of infinite determination. Even though it was full of exhaustion, she'd still fight. Eyes that believed she'd definitely make it through.
The little girl didn't eat all the bread she got. She saved half in the pocket of her pants that were so old they had tears in several places. Then she pushed herself up and walked out of that desolate alley.
As she walked out, the little girl's eyes landed on a street stall selling fragrant grilled meat. She was about to walk past, but she found the stall owner wasn't there.
And there was no one around the stall at all.
The little girl swallowed audibly. But she shook her head to chase that thought away and took long strides to get past it faster.
But just then, a stray dog appeared on the other side of the street stall. It was staring at the finished grilled meat on the stall and was about to jump up without caring about anything.
The little girl startled. She quickly ran toward the dog and waved her hands to chase it away.
"D...don't!"
That small voice made the stall owner talking on the phone nearby notice. When he saw a street kid near his stall, he got very angry. He ran over and grabbed a small stick nearby.
Smack!
Even though it was a small stick, the little girl was not only young but also lacked proper nutrition. Getting hit by the stick in the middle of her back made her small body fly out immediately.
"You street brat!"
The stall owner was so angry he was fuming. While he wasn't paying attention, the stray dog waiting for its chance jumped at his stall, scattering everything. It grabbed a large piece of grilled meat in its mouth and quickly ran away.
"Damn it all!"
The stall owner who saw his stall's messy state was so angry steam came out his ears. Since he couldn't catch the stray dog, he thought he'd take it out on the remaining little girl instead.
Even though the little girl was still hurting all over, her instincts told her to quickly get up and run. In the end, she came back to the same alley from earlier. She fell down to lie against the wall. Her small hand reached back to touch the wound that was a long red mark in the middle of her back. The longer she left it, the more severe it seemed to get. Some wounds started bleeding, and some started swelling into dark purple bruises.
She bit down in pain. In her eyes appeared a confused look.
She was confused about what she did wrong?
Even though she was a street kid, she never stole from anyone.
All the food she found came from digging through trash cans or leftovers people didn't eat.
So what she did was right, wasn't it?
Didn't her mother teach her that doing good would be rewarded?
She dreamed that at least helping chase away that dog would make the uncle who owned the stall thank her a bit. And maybe give her a small stick of grilled meat as a reward.
Just that would've made her so happy.
Why?
The eyes that used to be determined now looked dim. The little girl closed her eyes as small tears started flowing out, not knowing if it was from sadness or pain.
Her small body trembled. She lay still against the wall in a pitiful state.
"...Why didn't you just steal it?"
A clear voice but full of authority rang out in this alley full of rotten smells. Bai Fanxian stood before the lying little girl, asking with interest.
Not knowing if the little girl thought she was dreaming or what, even though she wondered asking her, her consciousness that was fading from pain made her answer Bai Fanxian's question honestly.
"...Mom taught me not to steal from others."
"So where's your mom now?"
"...Mom said she'd be in the sky, watching me from up there. I promised Mom I'd only do good things." The little girl answered in a hoarse voice. It seemed she could pass out any moment.
"...Is that so?"
Bai Fanxian stared at the small figure before her. Because of her promise to her mother, she'd grown up this far. And because of that same promise, she'd almost died like this.
Seeing the little girl had passed out, Bai Fanxian waved her hand lightly. Her small body floated up with invisible power, then floated to her side. Then they floated up into the sky together, heading toward the mountain she'd just left.