“Second brother, what are you talking about…” Yu Yingwan trembled as she rushed forward to demand an answer.
“Father, will you tell her—or shall I?” Yu Qi asked, his mocking smile turning cold.
Manor Lord Yu snapped, “And what good will it do you to say this? Must you destroy Beast-Taming Manor? This is your home!”
Those words alone were an indirect admission that what Yu Qi said was true.
“Father…” Yu Yingwan gasped, stunned.
As if reminded of his authority, Manor Lord Yu straightened and scolded harshly, “Don’t forget—I am still your father!”
Yu Qi laughed. “Haha, oh, you’re not only our father. How many of those mindless war puppets are your children too? How many of our so-called ‘younger siblings’ were born that way?”
It was as if Yu Qi’s words had struck him across the face—Manor Lord Yu’s expression twisted hideously.
Yu Yingwan recalled what Yu Chun had once hinted at—something she had refused to believe. Then a terrible thought struck her, and her whole body shuddered. She remembered how, when she encountered those “people,” she had always felt something strangely familiar.
Her murdered mother. Their tainted lineage.
“We… we’re like them…” Yu Yingwan’s face drained of all color as she looked at Yu Qi in horror.
Junhua and Fu Ye, listening nearby, also went pale, staring at the siblings in disbelief.
Yu Qi turned toward his sister, a cruel smile curling his lips. In an almost casual tone, he shattered Yu Yingwan’s world word by word.
“My little sister is as clever as ever.”
Yu Yingwan’s eyes widened slowly.
“You guessed right—we, too, are half-human, half-merfolk. The only difference is that we weren’t brainwashed.”
Yu Yingwan stumbled backward, shaking her head helplessly, unable to accept it.
The other disciples exchanged stunned looks, equally disbelieving.
Watching this, Gu Baiqing was utterly dumbfounded. The small creature in his arms, Three Bean, finally piped up, “No wonder I always felt they smelled strange.”
“Really?” Gu Baiqing asked, startled.
Three Bean nodded. “Now that I think about it, that pair—Yu Chun and Yu Qing—they had the same scent too.”
Gu Baiqing nearly fell out of the tree in shock. No wonder… no wonder all the women he’d seen at Beast-Taming Manor never seemed to be their real mothers—everyone said their mothers had been killed by merfolk.
“Don’t tell me even Manor Lord Yu himself—?” Gu Baiqing blurted.
“No. The older generation of the villa doesn’t have that scent,” Three Bean said. “But most of this younger generation does.”
So… almost all the children of this generation were born from the union between the previous generation and merfolk?
Thinking of how Yu Chun and his sister had treated merfolk with such contempt, Gu Baiqing found it bitterly ironic. Though Yu Chun, at least, would never live to know the truth.
Just as he thought that, a piercing scream rang out from the other side.
Gu Baiqing looked down from his perch—and his mouth twitched. As expected, when the truth came to light, everything else followed.
Yu Qing and a group of young nobles from Beast-Taming Manor came running out of the forest.
The mountain was collapsing, and battle raged nearby. Too weak to fight, they had fled for their lives—only to stumble upon this earth-shattering revelation.
Yu Qing charged straight up to Yu Qi, her fear of demons completely forgotten. “Second cousin, it’s not true, is it? Tell me it’s not true—that we’re not half-breeds.” Her voice faltered under Yu Qi’s calm, knowing gaze. “At least… at least we’re not. My father hates merfolk—he would never…”
The gathered young nobles looked at Yu Qi in desperation, as if begging him to confirm the purity of their blood.
But the next second, that illusion was shattered.
“I cannot determine… but—do you still have a birth mother?”
That one question forced everyone present to face a brutal truth—none of them had a birth mother.
At once, a man doubled over and vomited—it was a purely psychological reaction of disgust.
In their deeply ingrained beliefs, the merfolk were fish—a tonic, an ingredient for pills. They ate merfolk flesh, used merfolk balm, and some even lit lamps with merfolk oil.
The moment they thought of that, everyone’s faces went pale; some couldn’t even stand straight from the shock. Yu Qing collapsed, gasping for breath.
Yu Qi’s words were like arrows, striking every person from the Beast-Taming Manor. They were all crushed by the revelation, because deep down, they knew what their sect had been doing to the merfolk all along.
They had been taught to hate and despise merfolk—only to discover that their own family, their entire lineage, could not cut ties with them. The irony was unbearable.
Suddenly, Junhua burst into laughter—loud, unrestrained, almost doubled over from it. Yet to Gu Baiqing, that laughter was filled with nothing but bitter sorrow.
“You beasts—slaughtering merfolk, treating them as less than human, yet half your blood is theirs! You are the most revolting creatures of all.”
To those who had just learned the truth, the words from a merfolk were like salt on an open wound—another strike upon a shattered heart.
Some young men, unable to bear it, ran out screaming. Others turned on Manor Lord Yu, hurling accusations, refusing to accept what they’d heard.
Watching the chaos, Manor Lord Yu slowly closed his eyes, and for the first time, pain surfaced on his face.
Years ago, their ancestor had returned from the Sacred Land with his merfolk dao companion, both gravely wounded. Afterward, the ancestor’s decline was swift. No matter what his merfolk partner did, nothing could stop it.
The ancestor began blaming his dao companion, his resentment festering—until one day, the merfolk disappeared. Only the ancestor remained in the courtyard, his cultivation stabilized and his spirit beast, the Shadow-Sky Wyvern, newly inherited.
A cultivator in the Tribulation Stage stood at a peak few could ever reach. Because of him, Beast-Taming Manor’s influence began to rise.
But the ancestor changed. One day, he summoned young Manor Lord Yu and several elders, revealing all the secrets of the merfolk—the mermaid beads, the human-merfolk hybrids, and the Sacred Land.
He wanted to seize the Sacred Land to strengthen Beast-Taming Manor. But everyone knew they were nowhere near powerful enough to challenge the merfolk.
So the ancestor revealed his true intent: they would lure merfolk, extract mermaid beads, grow stronger, and create a fighting force that could rival them.
Blinded by greed for power, they all agreed.
At the time, merfolk often came ashore—they were easy to deceive. Back then, no one used illusion beasts; they went themselves.
They tricked with affection, with false love, with promises of children—just to steal the mermaid beads.
At first, few could do it. Especially when merfolk wives bore their children—emotions grew, attachments formed.
But once the first man dug out a bead, swallowed it, and became stronger, others could no longer resist. None wanted to fall behind, be seen as weak—or worse, as having fallen in love with a merfolk. They couldn’t bear their children knowing they had a merfolk mother.
In their eyes, merfolk were never equals.
As long as they could bear children, as long as they were useful—that was enough.
And so, one by one, the women of Beast-Taming Manor disappeared.
Even Manor Lord Yu eventually turned on the wife he had brought home.
The strength gained from their breakthroughs buried whatever guilt remained.
Yet when they looked upon their children, disgust and moral shame festered.
After all, hybrids weren’t “true” humans—though undeniably more gifted, better suited to cultivating and taming beasts—it still made their hearts twist.
So they found a substitute method: using illusion beasts to lure merfolk, using female merfolk solely as breeding vessels. No assigned mates—only pregnancies that would yield merfolk-human offspring. That way, no one knew who fathered whom, freeing them from moral burden. The children were raised together, trained, indoctrinated—turned into perfect tools.
Only then could they rest easy. To them, they weren’t “having children”; they were merely—cultivating strength for Beast-Taming Manor.
Thus grew the Manor’s current power.
And the children of this generation—those born of that sin—could never be replaced. They became secrets the elders vowed to guard forever.
Until now.
Manor Lord Yu lifted his head to look at his son—the one he had once loved—and asked, “Do you hate me that much? Or is it all for that merfolk? She’s already had her mermaid bead taken by Ah Zhong—how is she still alive? Ah Zhong is dead—what gives her the right to live?”
Junhua and Fu Ye both turned toward their sister.
Fu Qingfan’s bead had already turned to dust—she should have been dead. So why…
Junhua’s voice rang out, sharp and furious: “What did you do to my sister?”
Yu Qi set down the crystal tank. Inside, Fu Qingfan looked limp—like a fish gasping on land, even though the tank was filled with seawater.
A merfolk should revert to human form once separated from seawater.
But Yu Qi kept her submerged—clearly for a reason.
From above, Gu Baiqing watched as Yu Qi carefully infused the tank with demonic energy. In an instant, Fu Qingfan’s dull eyes brightened—her spirit revived.
He was nourishing her with demonic energy.
When Yu Qi moved, Junhua had wanted to stop him—but seeing her sister’s color return, she hesitated, glaring instead, fury boiling beneath her grief.
Like a fed pet, Fu Qingfan rubbed against Yu Qi’s hand, murmuring “Ah Zhong” again and again.
And Yu Qi accepted that name willingly, without a trace of denial.
“Your sister came to Beast-Taming Manor years ago to investigate the merfolk disappearances. I fell in love with her at first sight—but she… she loved a man as cold-blooded as his father, just because he once made a show of helping a merfolk in public.” Yu Qi’s fingers traced Fu Qingfan’s cheek. “Too foolish. Too naïve.”
Junhua stared blankly at his sister.
“At that time, Father had already taken my elder brother into the mountain. He learned everything—and not only did he feel no disgust, he even set his sights on Qinfan. Am I right, Father?”
“What cold-blooded?!” the Master of Yu Manor roared. “It’s your brother who did the right thing—it’s you who was wrong!”
“Heh, that arrogant fool—he lost to me in talent, so he tried every possible way to win over Qinfan, wanting to surpass me. I knew nothing back then. I even blessed them, wished them happiness. Who would’ve thought—what my brother truly wanted was Qinfan’s mermaid bead.”
When Yu Zhong was about to act, he discovered Qinfan’s true identity—and a new plan formed in his mind.
He would pretend to love her, pretend to plan a marriage—all so that he could remain close to the royal family, gather information, and infiltrate the merfolk from within. He believed this method would be quicker and easier than the ancestor’s way.
As for the mermaid bead that could advance his cultivation—well, that would be simple. Though illusion beasts were few back then and bead production was slow, Yu Zhong didn’t care. Having succeeded once, he easily deceived another merfolk into bearing him a bead. He swallowed it and quickly advanced in power.
But Qinfan, though deeply in love, was not stupid—she eventually noticed something was wrong.
Realizing the deception, Fu Qinfan sobered quickly and tried to escape—but Yu Zhong caught her.
He knew the merfolk were stubborn. Once trust was broken, they were useless. Enraged, Yu Zhong snapped, deciding to forcibly dig out her bead.
At that moment, Yu Qi appeared. Still deeply in love with Fu Qinfan, he would never allow his brother to harm her—and so the brothers fought. In the struggle, Yu Zhong shouted out all the truth.
The shock overwhelmed Yu Qi; caught off guard, he failed to protect Fu Qinfan—Yu Zhong struck, wounding her grievously.
Half of the mermaid bead was torn out along with her flesh and blood.
Yu Zhong, completely deranged, swallowed it whole—never realizing it was only half. Back then, mermaid beads were too precious, and none yet knew the consequences of consuming more than one.
By the time Manor Lord Yu arrived, Yu Zhong’s body had already begun to twist and deform into something unspeakable. He went on a crazed killing spree—and finally exploded, dying in the chaos.
Yu Qi had already fled with Fu Qinfan.
He thought that returning her to the sea would save her—but when he tried, he found that the now-merfolk Qinfan could not sink into the ocean at all. It was as if the sea itself had rejected her—her kin denied her.
Yu Qi was heartbroken, watching helplessly as she withered and died—and in that despair, he succumbed to demonic corruption.
The dense miasma of demonic energy soon drew the attention of a passing demon.
The demon offered him a way.
Using the blood of twins to feed a mermaid bead, then nurturing it with demonic energy, he finally managed to bring Fu Qinfan back to life.
But the revived Fu Qinfan was like a child—her mind regressed, her body unable to return to human form, unable even to swim into the sea as a merfolk.
Her memory remained only in fragments.
And, in a cruel twist of fate—perhaps influenced by the bead—the only memories that survived were of her false love with Yu Zhong.
Thus, in her mouth, Yu Qi became “Ah Zhong.” That name alone could calm her.
Since then, Yu Qi’s hatred for the truth—for the entire Beast-Taming Manor—had twisted beyond repair.
Yu Qi became the Beast Demon.
He turned to Junhua and said, “So, we should work together, shouldn’t we? To avenge your sister—to avenge the merfolk. This vile manor deserves to be wiped from existence.”
Before Junhua could answer, Manor Lord Yu struck.
He could already feel Yu Qi’s seething hatred. He knew this son could not be redeemed—and he refused to let a child who constantly reopened old wounds and threatened the Manor’s existence live any longer. It was better to end it himself.
Just then, the ground began to quake. Before anyone could react, the earth cracked apart like thin ice shattering over a lake.
Something massive was forcing its way up from beneath.
The sudden upheaval sent everyone into panic—ready to flee.
But the next instant, something impossible happened.
Yu Qi, holding Fu Qinfan, leapt clear—but no one else could move. Their feet seemed glued to the ground, as if something below were sucking them down.
Yu Qi’s face changed. He shouted to Junhua, “The ancestor is coming out! Fu Junhua, if you keep hesitating, you and your entire merfolk clan will die here!”
He didn’t say that out of compassion for the merfolk.
To Yu Qi, there was only Fu Qinfan—and hatred for Beast-Taming Manor, along with loyalty to the Demon Saintess. He would do what needed to be done. Seeing Junhua still frozen in indecision, Yu Qi flew backward.
“Hurry up and decide! We’re out of time!”
High above, Gu Baiqing stood untouched in the trees—but as he watched, realization dawned. The spirit-gathering array had gone out of control. From his height, he could see it clearly: a colossal figure—half giant, half shapeless sludge—was clawing its way out of the cracked mountain.
It was a monstrous old man, roaring again and again: “I want spirit power… I want mermaid beads!”
The sight made Gu Baiqing’s heart lurch. Mo Xuanli had never said the opponent would be a monster like this—and from Yu Qi’s movements, it was obvious he meant to retreat first.
Gu Baiqing’s eyes hardened. In a flash, he unleashed his spiritual power—and instantly felt the powerful pull of the spirit-gathering array.
But as a Tribulation-Stage cultivator, he wouldn’t be dragged down so easily. Like lightning, he streaked across the sky—so fast that by the time Yu Qi saw him, it was too late.
With a thunderous crash, Gu Baiqing seized Yu Qi by the throat and slammed him into the ground, leaving a deep crater.
The crystal tank was caught midair by the giant cat, Three Bean, who held it steady and landed softly.
As the smoke cleared, Yu Qi stared at Gu Baiqing in shock. “You… you are—”
“Though you weren’t the worst in this story,” Gu Baiqing said coldly, “you still did what never should’ve been done. Now talk—why did you build the spirit-gathering array? What are you demons planning? What do you intend to do to my disciple?”
“Immortal Lord Luofeng, Gu Baiqing? What are you talking about? I don’t understand!” Yu Qi tried to struggle, but the current coursing through his body made it nearly impossible to move—let alone resist the hand around his neck that could take his life at any moment.
“Heh, still not talking? If you weren’t coveting my disciple, how could you have guessed my identity so quickly?” Gu Baiqing’s gaze was icy cold.
Yu Qi shuddered all over. “I really don’t know! I just saw that your disciple seemed to have a tendency toward demonic cultivation, so I thought about recruiting him, that’s all! And anyway, shouldn’t you be worrying about that old monster right now? Why are you still holding on to me!”
Gu Baiqing narrowed his eyes slightly, his hand tightening. “Heaven’s lightning is the bane of the demon race. Want to try it for yourself?”
Yu Qi was already choking, unable to speak.
“Anyone from the demon race who dares set their sights on my disciple—I’ll kill every single one of them! Why not start with you?” Gu Baiqing said, his tone mockingly threatening.
He was just about to deal another harsh blow when Junhua saw it and, despite her weakness, tried to stop him—after all, the beast demon’s life was tied to her sister’s fate.
But before Junhua could act, a black dragon suddenly swooped down, coiling in midair. A whip lashed out, and Gu Baiqing felt a sudden tightness at his waist—his body was yanked upward and wrapped in coils.
The next moment, he fell into a familiar embrace. Before he could speak, a voice filled with suppressed anger growled—
“Master! Didn’t I tell you to stay somewhere I could see you?!”
![The Sickly Beauty Gives Up Struggling [Rebirth]](https://i2.wp.com/lazygirltranslations.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/4322s.jpg?resize=151,215 "The Sickly Beauty Gives Up Struggling [Rebirth]")
