Chapter 5: The Truth Behind the Disfigurement

Wei Zi turned her head to look out the window. On the transparent car glass, she could clearly see her own reflection—perfectly curved eyes, starry pupils like a brilliant night sky, a petite nose with a straight bridge, pale lips, a small face no larger than a palm, and softly contoured, oval cheeks.

Her features were exquisitely delicate and flawless.

Yet, this face had been utterly ruined when she was sixteen in her previous life.

Because of persecution by Wei Dongming, she was sold on the underground black market, bought by unknown people. To protect her purity, she smashed a cup and scratched her own face.

She was afraid, yes, but the thought of being sold and living an endless, wretched existence made her feel sick and unable to accept it.

What she hadn’t expected was that even then, fate showed no mercy. The man who bought her seemed to have lost his sanity, obsessively possessing her without care if her face was disfigured or ugly.

That man—how could she not recognize him!

Xing Haotian, the youngest general of Huaxia!

Xing Haotian had only used his mystical arts to purge the toxic flames within, but after the treatment, Wei Zi’s face was covered in painful blisters, her skin charred as if burned. She remained unconscious for half a month before she finally survived.

This was the truth behind her disfigurement in her past life.

In this life, she vowed to keep far away from Xing Haotian. As for revenge… Ha! Compared to the marshal she would become six years from now, she was only a barely C-level mystic in her past life, far too weak to challenge a military titan. She faced reality and only wished to stay as far away as possible this time.

The car sped toward the home she had lived in before turning sixteen.

Or rather, it was Wei Dongming’s home—the home of Wei Xuan, Wei Qing, and even that mistress, He Xiaohe. The only one it was not home to was Wei Zi herself.

Her true home had vanished long ago with her mother’s death and her grandfather’s demise from grief.

The memories of that home had faded, and now, looking back, it felt bitterly ironic. After her mother died, she had endured six years of humiliation under that roof. Compared to the hellish life awaiting her after sixteen, those six years had been bleak and joyless.

Wei Zi took out the magnetic card from her bag and swiped it to open the gate of the villa. Without much leisure to explore a home that wasn’t truly hers, she ascended to the second floor, heading straight for her bedroom.

Passing by the study, she heard a voice.

“Husband, my cousin absolutely wouldn’t be mistaken. It has to be that little bitch Wei Zi!” He Xiaohe’s voice came from inside, making Wei Zi instinctively hold her breath and hide by the door.

At this hour, He Xiaohe should have been out shopping or at the salon with her friends, or drinking and playing mahjong. Why was she home?

Then another voice followed—one Wei Zi hadn’t heard in a long time: her so-called father’s voice.

“Wei Zi actually awakened her mystic core? That’s impossible!”

“Nothing’s impossible, husband. We can’t ignore this. My cousin said the mystic arts bureau wants Wei Zi to go for an examination tomorrow. What if she really becomes a mystic? What do we do then?” He Xiaohe’s voice was anxious.

“That little bitch is always so gloomy, and the way she looks at me is chilling, like she’s about to bite me if I’m not careful. I let her stay here for your reputation, to stop rumors that you abuse your daughter. But if she has mystic powers now, could she kill me? Husband, I’m so scared!”

He Xiaohe’s voice softened, trembling with a whimper that made even someone unseen imagine her repulsive expression.

“She dares!” Wei Dongming’s voice came back from inside. Wei Zi’s body trembled. After ten years, hearing that voice again made her grit her teeth with hatred.

“Whether she dares or not, I don’t know. But husband, next month Wei Zi turns sixteen, and the inheritance left by the old man and that bitch will become effective. What if she really becomes a mystic and starts having thoughts of rebellion? Then it’ll be hard to take back those property deeds from her!” He Xiaohe said.

Wei Zi sneered coldly. He Xiaohe was such a cunning woman; she knew Wei Dongming’s mind all too well.

Sure enough, after those words, Wei Dongming’s tone turned cold and ruthless. He paced a few steps and said resolutely, “The contract between that woman and the old man states that if Wei Zi dies before sixteen, the inheritance goes to the military convalescent home of Huatianguo. But the situation is unfavorable to us now. If she is found to have awakened the mystic core and become a mystic, we’ll be at a disadvantage. However, we don’t have to kill her. A disappearance would do. As long as Wei Zi passes sixteen and then vanishes, everything will be settled.”

“Husband, what exactly should we do then?” He Xiaohe asked.

“Simple. I’ll go to the clinic to pick up Wei Zi later and bring her back. At dinner, we will…”

Even after all she had endured, hearing her father speak such cold and vicious schemes made Wei Zi’s heart turn icy.

When she was unaware, she would comfort herself, thinking all this was just He Xiaohe’s manipulation of her father, who was merely swayed by whispers.

Now she realized He Xiaohe was a master at dealing with men, capable of such cruel plots despite lacking the intellect and connections.

The root of it all was her. That doctor she had seen consulting for Zhou Xiaoya was probably He Xiaohe’s cousin.

Snakes and rats in the same den.

Wei Zi gritted her teeth and quietly left, slipping into her bedroom.

What she needed to do now was not seek revenge impulsively but ensure her own safety.

Though reborn, her power was still at the lowest level of mystical strength; she had not yet earned the right to kill. She would not waste this precious second chance on someone as heartless as Wei Dongming.

She first found some money she had saved from part-time jobs in the drawer, then located the contract her grandfather left her hidden in a secret compartment beneath the carpet at the foot of the bed.

At fourteen, she had already understood much. Living under others’ roof had made her sullen. Before dying, her grandfather quietly told her about the contract’s location. This heavy burden made her even more withdrawn, afraid of accidentally revealing her secret.

She carefully packed these items into her bag and listened intently to the sounds outside.

After plotting their poisonous scheme, Wei Dongming left by car, perhaps to pick her up at the hospital. Although this differed somewhat from her past life, it was likely a butterfly effect caused by her waking instead of remaining unconscious, leading to earlier intervention by the mystic arts bureau.

He Xiaohe remained at home, entering the kitchen to prepare a sumptuous meal designed to push Wei Zi into the abyss.

Wei Zi quietly observed He Xiaohe—whom she hadn’t seen in ten years.

He Xiaohe was voluptuous and alluring, with a soft, sweet voice. Though a mother of two, she maintained a youthful appearance, looking barely in her early thirties. Dressed in a tight-fitting dress, she exuded sensuality.

Wei Zi couldn’t understand how such a woman, so petty and lacking refinement compared to her beautiful mother, had captured Wei Dongming’s heart so completely, playing him like a puppet.

Now she realized it was precisely because of He Xiaohe’s nature—satisfying Wei Dongming’s macho pride—that he had married her mother. Wei Dongming, a man who rose from humble origins, was born with both arrogance and insecurity, unable to endure his wife’s lofty bearing.

(Thank you all for your messages~ However, readers on the book platform cannot see the author’s comments, so here’s a reply: The new book will definitely be VIP! Please continue to support it~)