Chapter 14: Unexpected Awakening

From a young age, before she could even speak, Sang Ying was diagnosed with congenital frailty and meridian blockage, deemed without the talent for cultivation. At most, she would only ever reach Foundation Establishment in her lifetime.

It was said that her mother had the same constitution and passed away not long after giving birth to her.

How long could one live after only reaching Foundation Establishment in their lifetime? Sang Ying had calculated it—about a hundred and thirty years.

When she learned this news, her senior brothers and father, fearing she would be upset, never brought it up. But Sang Ying was delighted. Mortals could live to a hundred years old, and she could live thirty years longer.

Sang Ying had no interest in wielding swords or spears, nor did she have the strength for it. While her two senior brothers practiced swordplay, she would always flip through a talisman booklet for fun.

This was something her mother had left behind, which she had found deep in her father’s study. It was called the Zhi Qu Talisman, with the last few pages torn out, but the earlier pages contained many interesting talismans.

The first talisman Sang Ying learned was the Illusion Form Talisman.

The first time she used it, she transformed into the teaching uncle to tease her second senior brother, punishing him to run ten laps around the mountain. Her second senior brother didn’t notice at all. It was only when he returned to report after finishing the run, and Sang Ying couldn’t hold back her laughter, that he realized something was off.

Neither of her senior brothers could recognize her when she used the Illusion Form Talisman, and even her father was sometimes fooled by her. Only Xie Lingyu—no matter what form Sang Ying took, he would always recognize her, and she could never deceive him.

Sang Ying had a stubborn personality, growing more determined with each failure. When the Illusion Form Talisman couldn’t trick him, she turned to another art her mother had left behind—divination arts. One night, she waited outside his window, planning to conjure a few clusters of eerie blue Li Fire to pretend to be a ghost and scare him.

But the fire accidentally caught her own hair. In her panic to put it out, the window was pushed open, and the young man sighed, scooping up a ladle of water to douse the flames.

The fire was extinguished. Sang Ying looked up to see the young man, who had clearly been bathing, his long hair dripping wet, his body covered in steam, wearing only a loose outer robe that exposed his fair collarbone and chest.

In an instant, Sang Ying’s ears turned red, and she fled back to her room in a fluster.

Afterward, the young man said nothing, as if nothing had happened at all.

Sang Ying never expected him to remember this incident for so long, nor that he would bring it up years later, accusing her of peeping at him while he bathed.

…As if she had any intention of peeping!

In her early years, when Sang Ying listened to her father tell stories, she would swing her legs and ask, propping her chin in her hands: Why do protagonists only comprehend peerless martial arts and stage a comeback when they’re on the brink of death?

Her father said it was a mysterious thing, something even he couldn’t explain.

It’s just that at the brink of life and death, one might glimpse the secrets of heaven. They might unleash boundless potential, break through the shackles of their cultivation realm, or perhaps recall events from long ago, seeing their own fate clearly.

Sang Ying thought she might be the latter.

Wrapped in demonic energy, with her Spiritual Power depleted and her consciousness fading, she had a dream—a dream that this world was actually a book.

She had often listened to Sang Jing Ming read storybooks, where, besides the righteous protagonist, there were many villainous side characters.

As luck would have it, she was one of them.

The protagonist of the book was Xie Lingyu. In his youth, he was hunted by enemies and, while unconscious, was accidentally picked up by the book’s malicious female side character. Afterward, he was taken in by the malicious female side character’s father and stayed on Minghua Mountain.

The malicious female side character didn’t see Xie Lingyu as a senior brother but as her own lackey, ordering him around like a servant every day. The young Xie Lingyu was constantly oppressed.

Of course, the father of a villainess wouldn’t be a good person either. On the surface, he saved Xie Lingyu and took him in as a disciple, but in reality, it was because of his bloodline—Azure Dragon blood could prolong life, cure illnesses, and nourish the meridians.

Sang Jingming used Xie Lingyu’s blood as a medicinal catalyst to nurse the villainess back to health, disregarding the damage it would cause to his cultivation base. She drank the medicine for six years straight.

To pave the way for his daughter, Sang Jingming recognized Xie Lingyu’s future potential and, leveraging his kindness, demanded that he marry his daughter in the future.

…

Sang Ying fluttered her eyelashes and opened her eyes to see a tranquil lake, the moon reflected on its surface, rippling with the breeze.

The night was quiet, but the demonic cultivator boy beside her was making a fuss. “Seriously, I got stabbed with a sword and didn’t faint, but you just got a little demonic energy on you and nearly slept yourself to death.”

No wonder.

She had been frail and sickly since childhood, with a weak constitution. Even a minor illness like a cold would become a major ordeal.

Sang Jingming had invited countless medical cultivators and prescribed numerous medicines since she was young, but none had any effect. Yet, when she turned twelve, a medicine that could cure her illness suddenly appeared.

After that, as long as she drank the medicine daily, her health gradually stabilized, even allowing her to cultivate alongside her senior brother.

“Ouch… that was really harsh. Hey, why are you spacing out? Did you hit your head and go dumb? Are you really dumb?”

No wonder her second senior brother had been hesitant and evasive when he saw her, unwilling to reveal his true intentions.

No wonder he had been so eager to persuade her to divorce and even introduced her to other promising young talents. So that’s how it was.

So that’s how it was.

Sang Ying lowered her eyes.

Her second senior brother must have known—that Xie Lingyu already had a beloved white moonlight in his heart. He wanted to tell her but couldn’t bring himself to say it.

In the book, Xie Lingyu had already fallen for someone in his youth but was forced to marry the villainess out of gratitude.

He didn’t love her, so for three years after their marriage, he never grew close to the villainess, addressing her only as his junior sister.

Her chin was lifted, and two fingers pinched it lightly. The gloomy boy examined her closely. “The book never mentioned that getting hit by demonic energy could turn someone into an idiot. You’re the first case. Let me think about how to cure your foolish brain.”

Sang Ying raised her hand and swatted his away, her tone indifferent. “Is this how you treat your savior?”

The boy was taken aback, then laughed. “Finally remembered? Looking at you, I thought you’d forgotten everything.”

Sang Ying hadn’t actually remembered, but the book had written about this character.

Wei Li, the crown prince of the Devil Realm, had been saved once by the villainess. Many plot points in her memory were vague, but she faintly recalled that he had done many bad things to help the villainess.

With this push, Sang Ying remembered. Half a year ago, she had saved an unconscious boy—it must have been him.

Sang Ying glanced around. Several mirrors stood by the lake, their surfaces unclear. A few female cultivators lay unconscious by the shore.

“What did you capture them for?” she asked.

“To repay your kindness,” Wei Li glanced at her, as if somewhat disdainful of her intelligence. “Isn’t it obvious?”

“Three years ago, these women’s fathers tried to seize your pathetic sect and force you to marry into their families. Hmph, a bunch of hypocrites. Let them taste what it’s like to lose their daughters too.”

Sang Ying: “…”

She lowered her head and sighed, rubbing her temples. “As you said, they’re a bunch of hypocrites. What sincerity could they possibly have? Acting so anxious is mostly for show.”

The boy visibly stiffened, rubbing his head in frustration.

“Moreover, the wrongs they committed should be avenged upon them personally. It has nothing to do with these girls.”

Leaning against the tree, Sang Ying’s small face was pale and bloodless, her voice soft: “Let them go.”

“Alright… these few can be released. But this one,” Wei Li thought for a moment, “Xu… what was his name again? Anyway, he also wanted to seize your small sect, so he’s definitely not innocent. I once saw him holding your portrait in his study—he must have been plotting something to harm you.”

Sang Ying sighed, “The struggle for the heir position has always been like this; there’s nothing more to say. What about the others?”

Wei Li leaned against the tree, crossed his legs, and hummed lightly, listing them one by one: “Your second senior brother ran away as soon as he saw you in trouble, disappearing without a trace for three years—a classic case of ingratitude.”

“That one’s still somewhat acceptable. Your husband is the worst of them all.”

As he spoke, the young man sat up, somewhat indignant. “Those scoundrels forced you back then—he couldn’t possibly not know about it. Yet he agreed to the Immortal Alliance’s request to rescue their daughter, clearly showing he never cared about the humiliation you suffered.”

Sang Ying sighed softly, “I’ve already said, they are innocent.”

The gloomy young man glanced at her sideways. “Fine, then what about him falling for someone else?”

Sang Ying stiffened abruptly.

“I’ve investigated it—he fell in love with another girl. Look, that so-called Saintess from Yaochi, I’ve captured her too. What do you call that? A mistress, right? Later, I’ll give this mistress and your scoundrel of a husband a good beating.”

“Stop talking.”

“What kind of long-cherished white moonlight is this? He already has a wife yet still does such things—hypocritical and utterly heartless…”

“I was the one who interfered in their relationship.”

Wei Li’s words halted, and he looked at the girl in confusion. “What did you say?”

Sang Ying leaned against the tree, gazing at the moon reflected in the dark blue lake, her eyes calm. “I said, he didn’t change his heart. I was the one who stood in their way.”

The breeze gently rippled the water, and Sang Ying’s voice was equally soft. “He married me only to repay the kindness of saving him back then. There was no affection between us, so how could it be called a change of heart?”

Wei Li was momentarily speechless, not expecting such a situation. The curses he had ready died on his lips, and he scratched his head. “Whatever. In any case, he married you, so he’s yours. Being married yet liking someone else means he lacks virtue as a man.”

Wei Li released the girls from the families, leaving only the successor Saintess of Yaochi, unconscious and sleeping peacefully.

Sang Ying looked at her face—indeed, as described in the books, her demeanor was gentle and pure.

There were many rumors about her in the Cultivation World: Shen Ying of Yaochi, a prodigy of heaven, with astonishing talent.

In truth, Sang Ying had seen her once before.

It was two years ago, when Xie Lingyu encountered an unexpected situation while slaying a Demon Beast and was trapped in an ancient secret realm with others from Yaochi.

When she heard the news, she wanted to go. At that time, it had only been a year since the sect incident, and many people outside were watching. Lengmian even stopped her from going.

By the time she finally arrived, they had already broken through the secret realm and emerged. Xie Lingyu had exerted all his strength to rescue several companions from Yaochi from the perilous secret realm.

Xie Lingyu was severely injured. He walked over but collapsed heavily to the ground before he could say a word to her.

Panicked and at a loss, it was Shen Ying who calmly and gently reassured her not to worry, using Yaochi’s innate healing ability to treat Xie Lingyu’s injuries.

Back then, there were rumors that they were a perfect match.

Two years ago, Sang Ying angrily tore up the cultivation gazette, unable to eat her meal that day, and spent the evening staring blankly at the moon.

Two years later, Sang Ying gazed quietly at the moon reflected in the lake and thought.

They truly were a perfect match.