After a Metaphysics Master Transmigrates into a Scummy Alpha, She Ends Up with the Best Actress - Chapter 16

Ye Lin’s lean, upright figure stood beneath the azure vault of heaven as the pale blue square array shifted at high speed above. In the hair’s-breadth gap between the Transfer Array and her spiritual shield, ten thousand invisible blows were exchanged in a flash, yet the array could not budge her barrier by a single inch. Because the “Array Key” had not been sucked in at the start, the eye of the array began to shake violently. Malice surged between heaven and earth; sinister winds gathered outside the shield, coiling into a pitch-black mass.

“Is it going to rain? Someone get umbrellas to the guests!” the director shouted, looking up at the dark clouds. First thunder, now this—his billionaire investor was staying in a wooden shack; he couldn’t let the man get drenched.

They hadn’t known each other long, but Gu Li chose to trust Ye Lin unconditionally. Whether it was an illusion or not, she felt she saw an aura of absolute sovereignty in those beautiful eyes—a gaze that commanded surrender and inspired absolute faith. Who said Ye Lin wasn’t an Alpha? In this moment, she was the epitome of “A” energy—cool, sharp, and commanding.

Following instructions, Gu Li retreated to the kneading board. Mimicking Ye Lin’s earlier movements, she scooped a spoonful of meat filling, pressed it into the wrapper, and folded the edges. Her brow was knitted into a tight knot as she stared anxiously at the figure ahead.

Dijiu Li’s spirit stood guard behind Gu Li, prepared to handle any fallout according to Ye Lin’s plan.

The wooden shack lacked a proper kitchen, featuring only an outdoor earthen stove with a rusted iron pot sitting atop it.

【Has that pot been sitting there for decades? It’s covered in rust!】

【How are they going to use that? I’m losing my appetite just looking at it.】

【If you made me scrub that, I’d throw up, actually, I’m already gagging.】

The netizens didn’t understand, but Ye Lin did—this pot was the key to breaking the array.

This iron pot had stood here since before the nation was founded. Legend had it that it was used by the military during the war. After a century of wind and rain, it was rusted but not decayed—a true relic that had absorbed the spiritual essence of the land.

Ye Lin stuffed firewood into the stove and lit it. Red tongues of flame instantly licked the interior. What the others didn’t see was that the flames were burning downward; the grey-black soil beneath the stove instantly liquefied into crimson magma.

Ye Lin ladled water into the rusted pot. She picked up a scrub brush, coated the bristles with spiritual energy, and swept it clockwise around the pot. The energy scraped away the rust, effectively “consecrating” the iron with a layer of light. Once the circle was complete, she swung her arm forcefully toward the southeast wall of the array.

“Break!”

As droplets flew from the brush, several streaks of spiritual light shot toward the sun like arrowheads, piercing the southeastern quadrant of the array. The wall collapsed instantly, creating a massive hole. The entire array vibrated violently as the remaining squares ground against each other, shifting rapidly to try and patch the gap.

Gu Li’s eyes widened. With one wave of Ye Lin’s arm, a chunk of the array had shattered! Her heart hammered against her ribs like a drum. It was too thrilling! If she wasn’t holding a half-finished dumpling, she would have cheered.

Dijiu Li was equally stunned. She had never seen someone multi-task scrubbing a pot and breaking an array before. Didn’t breaking an array require an altar and a ritual? Clearly, she thought, those flashy Taoists who charge a fortune for rituals are just scammers!

The brush went back into the pot. The water was lukewarm now. Ye Lin swept it counter-clockwise, and as the droplets flew again, she aimed due east. The spiritual arrows shattered the eastern barrier, widening the breach.

“Whoa!” Gu Li’s gasp reached Ye Lin’s ears, and the latter let her lips curl into a smug grin.

By the third scrub, the water was hot. This time, Ye Lin’s hand flicked in the air, obliterating the southern and southwestern barriers simultaneously. Then came the north, the northwest soon, the Transfer Array was a tattered mess. Only the “Eye” remained, desperately clinging to its connection with the ground through a few weak spiritual threads, spitting out tiny square arrays to replace its losses.

【Holy crap, why does Ye Lin scrubbing a pot look like a general slaying enemies on the battlefield?】

【I don’t think she’s scrubbing a pot; she’s commanding ten thousand soldiers. She’s so cool! AHHHH! Screaming.jpg】

【Her hands aren’t just hands; they’re the buttons to my heart! Voting for Sister Ye!】

As the comment section was bombarded, the hashtag #YeLinSharpPotScrubbing shot up the trending charts. On-site, a new “fangirl” had officially been born.

Watching the new miniature arrays spit out, Gu Li grew tense. She gripped the edges of the dumpling tightly, as if she were holding her own heart, pressing the dough together until it fused. She watched Ye Lin show off—no, break the array—feeling like a smitten schoolgirl. Too cool!

She is protecting me, Gu Li thought, recalling Dijiu Li’s words. Is this love? It’s love!

The cameraman zoomed in on the Film Queen, capturing the admiration, tension, and excitement overflowing in her eyes.

【Little Carp’s gaze is suspicious! Are she and Ye Lin for real?】

【It’s over. Has our Film Queen fallen?】

【Don’t talk nonsense. It’s acting; it’s all in the script. She’s definitely helping Ye Lin wash her reputation clean.】

After several rounds, the water in the pot was black and murky. Ye Lin lifted the massive pot to dump the wastewater. When she set it back down, the rust was gone—the iron was so clean it practically reflected the sun.

【Is this a dating show or a ‘Turning Trash into Treasure’ show?】

【Did that brush have some special coating? I bet the crew is about to drop a commercial for it.】

【What did that pot go through? New look, who dis?】

Amidst the netizens’ amazement, Ye Lin poured two more ladles of water into the pot. She used her right hand to prop up the lid, shielding the camera’s view as she stuck a talisman—infused with the processed “Ghost Tears”—to the inside of the lid. The paper vanished instantly.

Coldness flashed in Ye Lin’s eyes as she slammed the lid down. To the naked eye, it was just a lid, but her arm was wrapped in layers of spiritual energy so thick it looked the size of a barrel.

The fire in the stove roared higher. Above, the Eye of the array began to show signs of movement. The moment the lid hit the pot, a surge of spiritual energy shot downward, gathering the flames from the stove and tunneling a hundred meters into the earth. Red fire and blue energy fused into a crimson shockwave. Ye Lin used her left hand to form a “Backlash Seal,” striking the back of her right hand that held the lid.

The underground shockwave radiated outward like a tide, surging toward the borders of Xiao Wang Village. By the time Ye Lin lifted her hand, the crimson energy had already incinerated the “roots” of the array. The blue talismans were burned to ash. The bowl-shaped Transfer Array began to crack from its base, with pale blue fragments dissolving into the sunlight.

The Eye in the sky, deprived of its foundation and nourishment, began to expand and contract violently. The sound was like a heartbeat—a sonic boom that made everyone who heard it feel dizzy and disoriented. Even Dijiu Li clutched her head in pain.

Wanting to self-destruct? Not on my watch! Hidden by the rising steam, Ye Lin flicked the two refined Ghost Tears into the sky. They shot up like bullets, pinning themselves into the center of the Eye.

Crack! For a moment, it felt like the world had been paused. Then, with a resounding pop, a vibrant, multicolored firework bloomed in the sky. The Transfer Array had completely vanished from the skies over Xiao Wang Village.

“Eh? Someone’s setting off fireworks in broad daylight?” the crew members muttered, looking up, but the display had already faded.

Thousands of miles away, in the City of Ye:

Pffft! A woman dressed in navy-blue Taoist robes spat out a mouthful of blood.

Backlash! Someone had not only broken her array but used the Eye to strike back at her! She had met a true master. However, this is starting to get interesting.

It had taken Ye Lin less than three minutes to break the array. Gu Li had witnessed it all. For the first time, when she was in danger, no one else had been hurt. Does this mean everything is going to get better?

Gu Li was still holding that same dumpling, the dough damp from the sweat in her palms. She stared dreamily at the curve of Ye Lin’s back. Caught in the act, Ye Lin turned and gave her a crescent-eyed smile, as if to say: See? I kept my word. You’re safe.

As the spiritual shield was retracted, two rainbow bridges suddenly arced across the brilliant blue sky. The cameraman immediately gave them a close-up.

“So beautiful,” Gu Li whispered, looking at Ye Lin.

Ye Lin, assuming she meant the rainbows, nodded in agreement. “Really beautiful.” She hadn’t seen a sight like this in years.

Dijiu Li floated up to the treetops, deciding not to disturb the two of them.

“Ah!” Ye Lin suddenly remembered the food. “How are the dumplings coming along?”

Not great. The only “completed” dumpling had a hole in its skin. Ye Lin grabbed a fresh wrapper to catch the filling from Gu Li’s hand, repaired it, and set it on the board. “It’s fine. We only lost one wrapper.”

Watching Ye Lin carefully rescue a dumpling, Gu Li bit her lip. I’m a top-tier beauty standing right here, and I’m less appealing than a dumpling?

“I’ll do it,” Gu Li said, her tone cold and brook-no-argument.

“Oh, okay.” Ye Lin wondered if she’d said something wrong. Deciding she hadn’t, she added a cautious reminder: “Just take your time. Make sure you pinch them tight, or they’ll turn into noodle soup.”

“I will pinch them very tight,” Gu Li replied, her teeth clenched on the word “pinch.”

Completely oblivious to the tension, Ye Lin nodded earnestly and turned back to the wild herbs in her basket.

She sliced the bracken and beef. She dumped the wastewater from the pot, and once the heat had evaporated the remaining moisture, she poured in vegetable oil. When the oil was hot, she tossed in ginger and scallions until fragrant, followed by the beef. Once the meat browned, she added the bracken and seasoning. With a few quick tosses, a plate of Sautéed Beef with Bracken was ready.

The aroma wafted through the air, reigniting Gu Li’s appetite after the morning’s stress.

Next, Ye Lin rinsed the pot and started a stew with the wild mushrooms she’d picked.

“Ah! Is the food ready? Is there anything we can help with?” Ming Fanshuang and Shen Biejun hurried over, having just finished their class.

Seeing Gu Li wrapping dumplings, Ming Fanshuang quickly washed her hands to help. It’s just, she thought, how can someone as beautiful as Film Queen Gu make such ugly dumplings?

Shen Biejun, who couldn’t cook to save his life, silently found an axe and started splitting wood. They’d need a big fire to boil the dumplings.

Bubbles broke the surface of the mushroom stew; it was done. Ye Lin ladled it into a tureen. Then, she fired up the pan one more time to fry a batch of spicy chili sauce.

With the remaining fish mint and two fresh, tender cucumbers, Ye Lin tossed them in the freshly fried chili sauce to create a crisp cold appetizer.

The fruit gifted by the mother and daughter-in-law was simmered over a low flame with a moderate amount of sugar, creating a homemade fruit compote. Finally, she scrubbed the pot clean one last time and poured in two ladles of fresh water to boil the dumplings.

One by one, simple yet fragrant and beautifully presented home-cooked dishes were brought to the table. Shen Biejun was practically drooling. Scratching his head, he hurried inside to bring out chairs for everyone.

The dumplings were finished. Among them, a few looked quite “unique”—pinched into round shapes with little top-knots, looking completely out of place next to the others.

“Uh, Film Queen Gu’s dumplings are so distinctive. Very cute,” Ming Fanshuang said, trying her best to be supportive.

Shen Biejun couldn’t care less about the shape; as long as he could fill his stomach, he was happy.

Ye Lin, however, rubbed her chin as she carefully scrutinized those few odd dumplings. Why did they look so familiar?

“I’m claiming these few for myself. No one else is allowed to touch them,” Gu Li announced, setting the strangely shaped dumplings aside.

Author’s Note:

Gu Li: I made these specifically for my wife. No stealing!

Ye Lin: Oh, why go to all the trouble of making special ones? (With a grin spreading across her face)