Achieving A Happy Ending With The Tragic Female Lead [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 20

Fumbling in the dark, Su Mi’s senses seemed to have dropped a level. She felt something soft brush past the back of her hand, leaving a faint, itchy sensation.

She frowned. “What did you say?” Because Wanqi Yue’s words were so soft and slurred, Su Mi couldn’t hear them clearly.

However, Wanqi Yue fell silent again.

Su Mi didn’t press further. The pain in her shoulder felt as if someone were tugging at it, and the surrounding muscles were affected as well. She endured the pain, exhaled to adjust her breathing, and asked, “Why is your hand so cold? Are you freezing?”

Wanqi Yue was holding her hand, but it was several degrees colder than her own, which felt unusual.

Hearing Wanqi Yue give a soft “mm” before falling silent again, Su Mi felt a continuous damp sensation on the back of her hand.

Su Mi wanted to withdraw her hand, but she feared the movement would cause the other girl to cry uncontrollably again. She had no choice but to use her uninjured hand to prop herself up against the wall, trying to get comfortable.

“How is it outside?” It seemed that ever since she woke up, she hadn’t heard those earth-shattering noises anymore. Having dozed for a while, she felt some energy return, though her spiritual power was still nearly depleted, sustained only by the Golden Core within her.

“It will be over soon.”

Wanqi Yue’s voice sounded heavy, as if she were suppressing something.

Su Mi suddenly realized something, where was Coal Ball? She had told the system to stay by Wanqi Yue’s side and watch over her, yet it was nowhere to be found.

“Where is Coal Ball?” Su Mi asked.

This question caused Wanqi Yue’s body to stiffen slightly. She tried to keep her tone as natural as possible: “It probably slipped away while I wasn’t paying attention.”

This caused a flash of alarm in Su Mi’s heart. Coal Ball was her accompanying system, it would never leave her without reason. Normally, they could sense and contact each other at any time, but it seemed impossible within this illusion.

Furthermore, she faintly felt that the “Female Lead” in front of her was different.

Though it was the same voice, she felt it was different from before, as were her actions.

Rumble…

Following a massive explosion, the entire ground shook. The anomaly had returned.

Su Mi turned her head to check the situation outside and discovered half a broken talisman lying in an inconspicuous corner, along with a barrier placed at the entrance.

The talisman had clearly been sabotaged. If it were Wanqi Yue, why would she destroy it? Moreover, the barrier didn’t look like Wanqi Yue’s handiwork.

While the sounds of mountains and rivers collapsing roared outside, the silence within the cave was so profound that Su Mi could clearly hear the breathing of both people.

The profile of Su Mi’s face was sharp and smooth, carrying a hint of coldness. She pursed her lips tightly, her lips were pale from blood loss.

The hand propped at her side exerted slight force, causing the tendons in her wrist to bulge slightly. An ice blade silently appeared, gripped firmly in her palm.

The commotion outside naturally caught the attention of “Wanqi Yue.” She looked toward the exit and said, “Wait here for a moment.”

Su Mi responded noncommittally. As “Wanqi Yue” leaned closer, Su Mi decisively pinned the other’s hands to prevent escape and slammed her against the uneven stone wall. The cold, gleaming ice blade lunged toward the other’s throat without hesitation.

The suppressed “Wanqi Yue” reacted quickly and tilted her head. Her face flashed by for an instant before being enveloped by heavy black mist again. A black veil reappeared on her face, hiding her features.

Su Mi’s sharp ice blade grazed the side of her neck and plunged into the hard rock, shearing off a few strands of long hair. Stinging beads of blood slowly surfaced on the fair skin.

In the darkness, Su Mi’s eyes, which had been somewhat lethargic just moments ago, were now as cold as frost. Her relaxed aura vanished, replaced by a biting chill.

“Who are you?!”

Why did she have the exact same voice as Wanqi Yue?

The faint light from the ice blade illuminated “Wanqi Yue’s” profile. Her features were shrouded by the opaque black veil, but a faint reflection could be seen in her pupils.

Those dark, unreadable eyes watched Su Mi through the veil, like a hidden, bottomless river.

Su Mi raised her hand, preparing to tear off the black veil to see what this person was hiding.

“I..”

“Give Eldest Senior Sister back to me!”

The two nearly identical voices overlapped, causing Su Mi to freeze. She turned her head toward the back and saw the dark barrier being sliced open by a sword. Strands of light poured in, illuminating the depths of Su Mi’s eyes.

As the barrier dissolved, Wanqi Yue, dressed in crimson robes, stood there with a longsword in hand, glaring with rage. Only upon seeing Su Mi did her expression soften into relief.

And Coal Ball was sitting perfectly fine on Wanqi Yue’s shoulder.

[Host, be careful! This person is not the Female Lead!]

The “Wanqi Yue” pinned by Su Mi tilted her head slightly, looking at the Wanqi Yue outside the cave.

Su Mi turned back, released her grip on the person’s hands, and retreated to the side of the real Wanqi Yue.

“Eldest Senior Sister! Did she do anything to you?” Wanqi Yue looked at her anxiously, explaining her absence. “I felt the commotion outside stop, so I thought I’d take Coal Ball out to check. I didn’t expect to be intercepted by this person and couldn’t break away immediately.”

When she went out, she hadn’t seen the woman who knew Bai Zhi, but she had encountered the shadow person, who charged straight at her upon discovery.

During the fight, Wanqi Yue discovered that this person also used a sword, and her moves were highly similar to her own. The feeling of fighting “herself” was incredibly eerie.

The opponent seemed heavily injured, and neither side gained much of an advantage. However, when she heard the shadow person speak in a voice identical to her own, she inevitably exposed several weaknesses, which the opponent immediately seized.

Just when she thought she was doomed, the opponent didn’t deliver a fatal blow. Instead, she trapped Wanqi Yue and hurried away.

Thinking back now, the person was in a rush to find her Eldest Senior Sister.

Seeing Wanqi Yue so worried about her, Su Mi felt a stir in her heart. “I’m fine, she didn’t do anything to me.”

“Wanqi Yue,” witnessing this scene, found it an eyesore. The meager traces of warmth in her eyes turned into naked murderous intent. In the end, I still have to solve her permanently.

Su Mi looked at the black-clad figure. “Mountain Lord, what exactly is it that you want?”

The figure did not deny the title of Mountain Lord. She used her fingertip to wipe away the blood trickling from her neck. “To save you.”

Wanqi Yue retorted: “If it weren’t for you, how would Eldest Senior Sister have ended up in such danger?”

The Mountain Lord snorted coldly. “That is because she insisted on saving a useless piece of trash like you.”

Listening to these two identical voices was like hearing a comedy duo performing a cross-talk routine in Su Mi’s ears. She held back the fuming Wanqi Yue and addressed the Mountain Lord: “Do you know me?”

The Mountain Lord didn’t answer immediately. After a long silence, she finally said, “Come with me. I won’t hurt you.”

Su Mi chuckled lightly. “You tell me nothing yet expect me to trust you. Furthermore, you are in league with the Physician Immortal, Bai Zhi, murdering others. How can I trust you?”

“The Physician Immortal and I take what we each need. Besides, she is merely getting what she deserves.” The Mountain Lord’s tone suggested she saw nothing wrong with her actions.

Wanqi Yue was incredulous. “Taking so many lives just for what you ‘need’?”

“If Heaven is unjust, one can only change the path of Heaven themselves.” The Mountain Lord looked at her with an unreadable smile, her tone carrying a hint of mockery. “Can you guarantee that you will always uphold the justice and ‘Sword Heart’ in your soul without ever changing?”

Wanqi Yue was about to answer when Su Mi stopped her. “There is no need to justify yourself.”

Instead of wasting words here, it was better to find a way out.

[Host, I can feel a faint connection with the main system. This illusion should be on the verge of collapsing.]

As if to prove Coal Ball’s words, the collapse of the mountains and rivers within the illusion accelerated. The scene looked like a mottled, fading scroll, vivid colors were peeling off the canvas, leaving behind empty voids.

The woman in gold reassembled her form and appeared before them. Her figure had become even more transparent; the spiritual power sustaining her spirit body was likely nearly gone.

Wanqi Yue stepped in front of her Senior Sister. “Don’t tell me you’re still thinking of using our Golden Cores to patch this illusion.”

The woman’s translucent face carried a hint of regret and pity. “It’s too late. The damage she did to the illusion is too severe. Even if I used both of your Golden Cores, it would be futile.” She looked at the Mountain Lord. “Did Bai Zhi teach you how to destroy it?”

The Mountain Lord admitted: “Yes.”

Upon hearing this, the woman fell silent for a moment. Then, she voluntarily dissipated her body into the crumbling landscape, further accelerating the collapse. The eerie clouds in the sky spun faster into a vortex, as if to churn the entire firmament.

At that moment, a longsword appeared in the Mountain Lord’s hand, pointing at Wanqi Yue. “She must stay.”

Wanqi Yue stepped forward fearlessly, pointing her sword at the Mountain Lord. “Let’s see who stays first.”

Perhaps due to the collapsing illusion, Su Mi found her spiritual power gradually returning. She first managed to stop the bleeding of her wound.

Up ahead, Wanqi Yue and the Mountain Lord’s figures blurred as they clashed, their sword blades emitting sharp grinding noises.

Su Mi hadn’t seen the Mountain Lord use a sword last time, and watching her now, suspicions naturally arose.

She couldn’t help but ask the system: “What exactly is the Mountain Lord’s origin?”

Her sword style was so similar to Wanqi Yue’s, though hers was several degrees more ruthless and decisive.

Could she be a disciple of Mount Qingyang? But the original plot never mentioned such a person.

Coal Ball replied: [I am working hard to contact the main system and upload information!]

After a hundred moves, the relatively inexperienced Wanqi Yue began to falter. The Mountain Lord found an opening and lunged, just as the blade was about to pierce Wanqi Yue’s heart, a blue talismanic seal suddenly manifested on her chest, blocking the sword tip.

The Mountain Lord’s movements stiffened. Her pupils behind the black veil contracted sharply. She pressed her sword against the blue seal. Seeing the seal crack inch by inch, she finally reacted and hurriedly pulled back her sword, but the tip still managed to pierce an inch deep.

Wanqi Yue had prepared herself for the injury, but the expected pain never came. She looked down, except for her torn clothing, there wasn’t a drop of blood.

“The Life-Death Talisman,” the Mountain Lord murmured. She wanted to say something but swallowed the words back down.

Like a dream or a bubble, instant birth and death. This was a technique of using one’s own body to take another’s place, a technique few would ever use.

The Mountain Lord looked at Su Mi in the back. Sure enough, a spot of crimson had appeared on Su Mi’s chest. Although this talisman was powerful, it was a one time use. Once broken, it was gone. Following this, the Mountain Lord became even more relentless toward Wanqi Yue, as if venting some sort of dissatisfaction and resentment.

Seeing that Wanqi Yue wouldn’t be able to dodge the next strike, Su Mi stepped forward, gripped Wanqi Yue’s sword hand from behind, and led her to deflect the Mountain Lord’s strike several yards away.

“I’ll do it.” Su Mi took the sword from Wanqi Yue. Her hair and sleeves fluttered in the wind, and the sword tip carved a deep trench in the ground.

Kneeling on the ground, Wanqi Yue looked up. She watched her Eldest Senior Sister who usually refused to carry a sword standing before her with the blade, her posture as straight and tall as a scabbard.

She could hardly remember the last time she saw Eldest Senior Sister hold a sword. It seemed to be back when she had first picked up a peach-wood sword and was briefly guided by a whimsical Su Mi.

The Mountain Lord also seemed mesmerized. She was unwilling to confront Su Mi, but Su Mi, now holding the sword, showed no mercy.

She swung the sword repeatedly, forcing the Mountain Lord back, while her left hand held several talismans, maintaining both offense and defense.

The ground beneath them shook violently amidst flying sand and stone. Su Mi exerted force to close the distance. Just as the illusion completely lost its support and shattered, she used a talisman to bind the Mountain Lord’s movement and lunged forward with her sword.

The illusion collapsed and shattered, the surrounding scenery receding and vanishing at high speed.

At the same time, the clever Coal Ball hid its form and returned to Su Mi’s shoulder.