After Faking My Death, I Became My Rival’s "White Moonlight" - Chapter 1

“Drip, drop.” Blood fell onto the boundless ground beneath his feet.

It was the autumn of the tenth year of the Huiming era, a time when all things withered.

The decade-long chaos between immortals and demons had ended, and the passages between their realms were thoroughly sealed. The Demon Realm was locked away beneath the Void Abyss at the end of the Demon God’s lands, ensuring the demon race could no longer emerge to cause trouble.

Through this battle, the immortal sects also suffered heavy blows. The most devastating loss was the fall of the thousand-year genius of the Qingyun Sect, Immortal Lord Shuangyu.

“Drip, drop.” Blood fell onto the vast, infinite Starfall Sea beneath him. Blood flowed from his forehead, soaking into his eyes until the world turned a deep crimson. Shi Qing formed a hand seal, his consciousness fading as his physical body was gradually absorbed by the formation.

[Ding! Plot progress 100%. Congratulations, Host, on completing the final plot point of the book: Sacrificing your body to the formation to repair the Demon-Suppressing Array and preventing the Demon God from harming all living beings.]

[Reward: The Host’s soul may survive in this world with a new identity. Searching for a suitable new body now.]

[Reminder: The System is about to go offline. There is only one chance for a “Death Escape.” Please cherish your life, Host. Your future will no longer be controlled by the script. We wish the Host a life of unrestrained freedom!]

“Wake up, Xiao Fang!”

Shi Qing felt his shoulder being pushed firmly several times. Before his consciousness could fully react, a muffled cough escaped his throat. He lazily opened his eyes to see a young man wearing the robes of an outer disciple of the Qingyun Sect.

The young man said, “Stop sleeping. We are still missing a few types of herbs. Let’s finish up early today and head back. The immortal world hasn’t been peaceful this past month. There have been several incidents of demonic energy causing trouble, and even some small sects are in crisis. The senior sister at the infirmary ordered us not to come to such remote places for herbs starting tomorrow.”

It took a moment for Shi Qing’s mind to start moving. This was the Northern Peak, the highest point on the outskirts of the Qingyun Sect’s main peak. From here, one could see half of the Qingyun Sect by simply turning around.

Besides him, there were four other disciples resting under the tree with herb baskets on their backs.

One round-faced youth looked at him and said, “Little dummy, your body hasn’t recovered yet. We told you to rest longer, but you insisted on following us. Now you look half-dead again. Don’t fall down later and expect us to carry you back.”

Shi Qing didn’t care about the harmless nickname. He gave a faint smile and said, “I’m fine. Let’s go.” He stood up and brushed the dust off his clothes. However, he rose too quickly; his vision went dark, his head felt heavy, and his body swayed. He quickly reached out to steady himself against the tree trunk.

“Still saying you’re fine? Your health was poor to begin with. A month ago, you fell off a cliff while picking herbs. When we found you, your brain was scrambled. You were even asking people what the current era name was. Hey, have you really forgotten everything? Why aren’t you worried at all?”

“Yes, I’ve forgotten. There is nothing to worry about,” Shi Qing replied in the same calm tone. His handsome face was pale with a sickly tint, and he looked entirely drained of energy.

There truly was nothing to worry about. The original “Xiao Fang” had died when he fell off the cliff a month ago. That was when Shi Qing had occupied this body and woken up.

One of the requirements he had given the System for his new identity was that he must not forcibly occupy the body of someone whose lifespan had not yet ended. Otherwise, how would he be any different from a demon possessing a soul?

He estimated that waiting for a suitable body had taken quite some time. It was now the twenty-seventh year of the Yuqing era, thirty years since the Great Immortal-Demon War.

This body belonged to an orphan taken in by the Qingyun Sect to do odd jobs in the outer sect. Due to a damaged heart meridian from childhood, cultivation was difficult for him. He was seventeen this year, and everyone called him Xiao Fang.

A few sentences were enough to learn everything about this body’s quiet, ignored seventeen-year life.

When he made his request to the System, he had emphasized repeatedly: the identity must be low-profile so he could stay far away from past troubles.

Without the System forcing him through a plot, Shi Qing had finally reached the free life he had long anticipated.

But this body’s foundation was a bit too poor. Beyond the old injuries to the heart meridian, what worried him more was that even after a month, his divine soul was still unstable.

Shaking off his thoughts, Shi Qing picked up the herb basket. His thin hand pulled the strap over his shoulder as he followed the others deeper into the forest.

Before they knew it, the sun began to move west. The young disciple from earlier prepared to gather everyone to head back, only to realize Xiao Fang was missing.

“Where is he? Any further and we hit the Qingyun Sect’s forbidden grounds. He couldn’t have forgotten that too, could he?”

The Xiao Fang they were looking for stood up from the waist-high weeds. The setting sun cast fragmented spots of light across his face through the branches. He glanced around; the other disciples had been left far behind at some point.

Further ahead was the forbidden area. Shi Qing felt a faint sensation that something was calling to him. It was near the forbidden grounds where he had been found a month ago. Thinking of this, Shi Qing stepped forward.

As he neared the boundary of the forbidden zone, Shi Qing paused. He tentatively lifted his foot, but before he could step down, his already pale face turned bloodless. He quickly withdrew his foot and clutched his chest, letting out a series of muffled coughs. A trace of bright red leaked from the corner of his mouth, which he wiped away expressionlessly.

As expected, it wouldn’t work. This body relied on picking “Mystic Spirit Grass” under the guise of herb gathering just to stay upright. There was no way he could approach a forbidden area protected by the pressure of a Soul Transformation stage formation.

“Hey, Xiao Fang is here! This is where the Qingyun Sect’s spiritual vein is located. There are formation barriers set by Immortal Lord Shuangyu. Don’t wander this deep next time.”

Shi Qing rubbed the bridge of his nose and gave a bashful smile. “Alright.”

The setting sun was like blood. In the distance, the sea of clouds surged and tumbled, staining the forest in a menacing crimson.

The group shouldered their full herb baskets and began the trek back. Being physically weak, Shi Qing lagged behind the other disciples.

Suddenly, Shi Qing’s footsteps faltered. A strange feeling surfaced in his heart.

A bird’s cry pierced the silence of the world.

He immediately realized where the odd sensation was coming from. It was too quiet!

The disciples who had been laughing and chatting ahead had suddenly become eerily silent. Even the wind had stopped blowing. The only sound was the “shasha” of grass brushing against their legs as they walked.

The people in front suddenly changed direction, walking toward the dark, deep woods to the side.

It was currently the final hour of the afternoon, the twilight moment when Yin and Yang transition. Twilight belongs to the element of metal, symbolizing execution, withdrawal, and death. There is a folk saying: “Do not go out at dusk; do not sleep deeply at the fifth watch.” In some regions, it is believed that if someone behaves abnormally at dusk, they have “clashed with an evil spirit.”

Shi Qing looked up. His light-colored pupils looked like glass in the sunset.

Someone was playing ghost within the Qingyun Sect.

He remained silent and followed the others into the depths of the forest.

They stepped onto thick, slippery green moss, eventually reaching a place so deep that light could not penetrate.

Suddenly, an open circular space appeared, cleared by human hands. A golden light glowed from a formation on the ground, with ritual items placed according to the five elements.

A whistle pierced the darkness. The person blowing it was hidden in the shadows. The disciples in front suddenly lined up in a vertical row facing the formation, with Shi Qing at the end.

A moment later, the whistle blew again. With every blast, the person at the front of the line was driven to step into the formation.

One whistle: the position of Gold. Two whistles: the position of Wood.

When the final whistle blew, Shi Qing walked toward the central position of Earth with vacant eyes. As he brushed past the disciple at the Fire position, the Mystic Spirit Grass hidden in his sleeve slid out. Without stopping his pace, he continued to the center of the array.

A fierce wind blew from the northeast. The person controlling the array had activated it.

The faint golden light on the ground suddenly intensified tenfold. The lines of light began to connect and converge toward the center. Despite the howling wind, the formation failed to trigger.

“Huh?” a voice whispered from the woods.

A black shadow darted from Shi Qing’s rear left, arriving at the South Fire position directly in front of him. The newcomer was entirely shrouded in black mist, but Shi Qing’s body detected a familiar scent.

The shadow noticed the Mystic Spirit Grass on the ground but had no intention of picking it up. Instead, it quickly retreated several steps and stood outside the formation, motionless.

A cold, ruthless gaze swept over him. Shi Qing felt like he was being locked onto by a wild beast; the hairs on his neck stood up.

It was the man in black. He was staring at the people in the formation, checking each one to confirm their status.

Truly cautious!

The gaze finally shifted away. Shi Qing let out a silent sigh of relief. The shadow slowly approached and knelt down to pick up the herb.

Now.

Shi Qing’s eyes flashed. He formed a seal with his left hand. A faint golden light instantly exploded beneath the shadow’s feet. The light acted like a spiderweb, trapping the shadow before it could react. The array was set.

The shadow snapped its head up, the black mist around it growing stronger. It tried to tear the golden net apart, but the erupting black energy was instantly absorbed by the web, causing the golden light to flare even brighter and bind the shadow tighter.

A gaze several times colder than before shot toward Shi Qing like an arrow. The man in black spoke in a disguised, raspy voice that sounded like grinding metal: “Instant formation casting, the Soul-Binding Array. Who are you to Shi Shuangyu?”

He obviously couldn’t reveal his identity. In this world, only the demon race possessed the ability to seize bodies. He didn’t want to be labeled a demon remnant or have anything to do with his past life.

Shi Qing lowered his hands, trying his best to keep his fragile body from trembling due to the spiritual drain. While considering how to handle the situation with his current state, he replied casually, “A descendant.”

The shadow snorted coldly. “Nonsense. Shi Shuangyu and Gu Zhanyue had an engagement, but both were men. Where would a descendant come from?”

He really had to bring up the one thing Shi Qing hated. In his past life, the System had forced him to follow the plot, which included becoming Daoist partners with the original male lead, Gu Yan.

He said impatiently, “I am wearing the robes of a Qingyun Sect disciple. Naturally, I am a junior of Immortal Lord Shuangyu. How does that not make me a descendant?” He flicked his left finger, and the golden light of the array constricted. The shadow groaned.

“You set this formation to break the seal on the forbidden grounds.” Shi Qing didn’t ask; his tone was certain.

Shi Qing maintained an air of composure, but he knew his spiritual power was too weak. The shadow was a high-level cultivator, and he had only succeeded through a sneak attack. The Soul-Binding Array wouldn’t hold for long. Shi Qing asked directly, “Where did that demonic energy come from? Possession? It doesn’t look like it.”

“You can see demonic energy?” The shock in the shadow’s voice was hard to hide. It seemed Shi Qing’s ability to see through it was unexpected. “Then I definitely cannot let you live.”

The shadow suddenly turned toward the woods and barked, “How long do you plan to watch? Strike now!”

As the words fell, a cold light flashed from the forest. A sword qi cut through the night, heading straight for Shi Qing’s face. He ducked to the side, and the sword qi grazed his right cheek, opening a bloody gash. A line of blood trailed down to his chin.

Without time to wipe it, Shi Qing hurriedly formed a seal with his right hand. A golden light erupted at his feet as a protective shield formed instantly.

The person in the woods was likely at the Golden Core stage.

There was no time for a proper interrogation; fighting two people at once was too taxing. Shi Qing made a split-second decision. He changed his left-hand seal, and a flash of killing intent burst forth. The shadow was instantly slashed diagonally from the right shoulder to the left abdomen.

However, there was no spray of flesh and blood. With a “rip” sound, the shadow vanished into two halves, and a paper talisman fluttered to the ground.

An avatar talisman.

Shi Qing’s eyes narrowed. The moment his protective shield formed, it was struck by another sword qi from the woods, causing countless tiny cracks and making him cough up a trace of blood.

“The matter is exposed. Kill them all and erase the traces of the formation!”

The voice from the talisman on the ground was the same raspy, metallic tone.

Shi Qing’s expression darkened. If they wanted to kill him, they would have to see if they actually had the skill.

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