CHAPTER 85: CHAPTER 85: PITY

Lana cursed under her breath.

"Mr. Crow, you are truly a handful!"

Lucy, who was squatting beside Lana and trying to find an earthworm in the leaf litter, agreed in her heart. This crow was truly vengeful.

Mr. Crow, who had worn a straw hat and a black goggle, just lifted his wing and pointed at the spot near Lana’s leg.

The scene was comical, with Lana and Lucy wearing gloves and personally finding earthworms and placing the earthworms in the box.

"Shit! Lucy, you shouldn’t have mentioned the punishment at all! Now, see, we both are suffering!" Lana sighed in frustration.

Under the glow of the evening sun, her skin, riddled with the sheen of sweat, amplified her beauty.

Lucy remained silent, but in her heart, she rolled her eyes.

Once done, Lana closed the box and slid it toward Mr. Crow. "Here, check it."

Mr. Crow gave a perfunctory glance before nodding, causing Lana to feel furious.

"One day... one day, if I have the chance, I will make you pick up poop!"

Lucy almost burst out laughing. Miss Lana’s antics were truly funny. Though her back hurt a bit from the constant squatting and she felt disgusted because of picking the earthworms, she enjoyed her time beside Lana.

Lana was like a fresh breath of air. She was unstable, but her words were funny and kept a person entertained till the end.

Mr. Crow snorted, took the box, and calmly flew to Lana’s room.

"Hey! Mr. Crow! Don’t you dare eat those in my room! Are you listening? Sigh! When children grow up, they don’t value their elders’ advice! He must have hit puberty!"

Lucy: "..." I take my words back.

..............

The next day.

Lana returned to her university and entered the cultivation room.

Seeing her classmates deep in discussion, Lana chuckled, "What are you guys talking about?"

Her melodious voice attracted the attention of everyone, and they froze for a mere moment before putting on a stiff smile.

"Lana? You are early today."

Sensing their weird reaction, Lana arched a brow, yet she didn’t probe and replied in a nonchalant voice, "Hm, I want to become powerful fast."

Fay stared at Lana as if she wanted to say something but held back.

Throughout the cultivation session, Lana could sense the strange barrier between herself and her classmates. There was a strange sense of alienation.

Lana pursed her lips before closing her eyes, continuing with her cultivation.

If they have a problem with her, they should confront her instead of acting like immature adults.

After 3 hours of constant meditating, Betty and Layla decided to take a break. Fay and Wade followed them after an hour. Richard was the last one to wake up from his cultivation state; he had lasted 4 and a half hours.

Mystic cultivation wasn’t as easy as it seemed. On the contrary, it was arduous and made a person’s back ache.

Yet Lana seemed oblivious because even after 6 hours she continued to cultivate. Her dedication put the quintet in a dilemma.

"I seriously doubt the rumor," Betty spoke in a hushed voice; her eyes were fixed on the girl cultivating with dedication.

"But if it is true, then...she is a bad seed." Layla sighed.

"Guys, instead of arguing and gossiping like old aunts, it would be better if we confronted her!" Wade suggested, his face marred with determination.

"But do you think she will tell the truth?" Fay asked with uncertainty in her voice.

"Why not? And if she lies, we can immediately know." Richard said in a nonchalant tone.

After struggling for a while, the group decided to confront Lana and waited till she finished her cultivation.

To their surprise, though, Lana cultivated for 9 hours straight, and they even heavily suspected that if not feeling hungry, Lana might have continued without a break.

Lana massaged her aching back and stood up with wobbly legs. Though a bit unsteady at first, she soon regained her balance, showing her familiarity with routine.

With a bit of effort, she sat on a chair far away from the quintet and asked Mr. Crow, "Can you fetch me a bottle of water?"

Mr. Crow didn’t need to be told twice; the next second, he fetched the bottle for Lana.

Once the cool water entered Lana’s parched throat, she sighed in contentment.

"Lana?" Betty’s cautious voice made Lana turn and look at Betty with a puzzled expression.

"There is something we wanted to ask."

"I know." Lana gave a cheerful smile. "I thought you would ask at the reunion party of the university."

Betty blushed because of Lana’s indirect jab and explained, "We heard a rumor about you and Brenda being switched at birth. And also how you knew about the switch but still continued to enjoy the benefits provided by the Almond family."

"Ah? And what’s the verdict?" Lana asked curiously; her voice sounded so nonchalant, as if she wasn’t the party involved at all.

Layla immediately shook her head and explained, "We aren’t judging you, Lana; we are questioning because we want to know your side of the story."

Lana smirked and shook her index finger. "That’s where you are wrong, Layla. If you truly wanted to know my side of the story, you wouldn’t hesitate. This hesitation indicated the lack of trust and possibility of you trusting the rumor."

The faces of the quintet became grim, and Fay tried to smooth things over. "Lana, you are misunderstanding; we..."

"Indeed, we lack trust." Richard intervened, "To create trust, we need to know you better, Lana."

His words were laced with no kind of sugar coating, just straight-up facts, which Lana respected from the depths of her heart.

"Good words, Richard." Lana smiled. "So here is the truth: the switch indeed happened; however, I never knew until the day Brenda appeared."

Fay couldn’t help but lament, "Poor Brenda, she had to suffer so much. Lana, please don’t mind me... I just..."

"I don’t mind, Fay." Lana cut her off, "Your opinion and pity can be directed at anyone."