After My Death, the Female Lead Breaks the Heartless Path - Chapter 11

Yin Ruolan didn’t easily trust Wen Banxia, especially given the latter’s less-than-stellar past. “Do you really think I’d believe you?” she retorted.

Wen Banxia wasn’t offended this reaction was expected. The two of them were never destined to sit down and discuss matters amicably.

“Whether you believe me or not makes no difference to me,” Wen Banxia replied, narrowing her eyes and leaning back casually. “After all, there’s no connection between us. I’m doing this for Xiaoqiu.”

A dangerous glint flashed in Yin Ruolan’s crimson eyes. “The two of you no longer have any ties.”

Wen Banxia shrugged, a faint smile playing on her lips. “But we’re still sisters. That will never change.”

“You mean the kind of sister who nearly killed her?” Yin Ruolan sneered, her words sharp and unsparing.

As expected, Wen Banxia’s smile froze for a moment before quickly returning to normal. “I won’t deny that. If possible, I’d like to make amends. And now, I won’t give anyone else the chance to harm her again.”

Yin Ruolan had to admit that Wen Banxia’s ability to control her expressions was impressive. If she were in Wen Banxia’s place, she doubted she could sit there so calmly, smiling as if nothing had happened. Truly, Wen Banxia was a dangerous individual.

Dropping the pointless back-and-forth, Yin Ruolan cut straight to the point. “What kind of organization is Tianzhi?”

“It’s a newly emerged group, somewhat like a sect but not quite. They’re more like a disciplined organization of people united by a common goal. All their members are non-cultivators with special abilities, just like Xiaoqiu,” Wen Banxia explained.

Yin Ruolan corrected her sharply. “It’s Xu Jingqiu. The two of you are no longer related.”

Wen Banxia paused briefly before continuing. “…They appeared out of nowhere, elusive and unpredictable, always chanting slogans about overthrowing fate. I think you two would actually get along quite well.”

“I’m also certain you’ve received their letters. After all, you’re the biggest variable right now. If they want to completely overturn the current predetermined fate, they’ll need to win you over and Xiaoqiu as well.”

“She has nothing to do with fate anymore,” Yin Ruolan insisted stubbornly. In the storyline she knew, Xu Jingqiu’s role had ended twenty years ago. Although things had already strayed far from the so-called fate, why was Xu Jingqiu being dragged back into it?

Wen Banxia sighed. She, too, was reluctant to believe that despite everything Xu Jingqiu had endured, she still hadn’t escaped this game. But the reality was undeniable. “Do you remember Ai Yanran?”

The moment the name left her lips, Wen Banxia felt a palpable surge of killing intent. The demonic energy around them fluctuated violently before being forcibly suppressed. As for who was suppressing it. Wen Banxia glanced down at the glowing contract mark on Yin Ruolan’s hand and fell silent.

Yin Ruolan would never forget that persistent woman. “Is she involved again?!” she exclaimed, rising to her feet, ready to settle the score. “I’ll go kill her!”

Wen Banxia pressed her back down with a resigned sigh. “Hear me out first.”

“Ai Yanran arrived here about a week ago. The Heavenly Dao tasked her with winning you over. My guess is that if she succeeds, the Heavenly Dao will regain control over this world. But now that Xiaoqiu is here, the only way to win you over is to eliminate her.”

“And if I’m not mistaken, Xiao Qiu is also a player in this game she possesses the authority to manipulate the world as well, though she doesn’t know it, and we can’t tell her. Do you think the Heavenly Dao will take action against her?”

Yin Ruolan’s expression darkened. She crushed the teacup in her hand and abruptly stood up. “Tsk, I’m going to dig out that system!”

“I’ve tried and failed. Do you have a way?”

Yin Ruolan nodded, and Wen Banxia breathed a sigh of relief. Bringing her here had indeed been the right choice. “Then go.”

Suddenly, the door was knocked.

With a flick of her sleeve, Yin Ruolan opened the door. A demon soldier rushed in, panicked, knelt, and saluted. “Your Majesty, it’s terrible! That human somehow bribed one of our comrades and escaped!”

It’s the Heavenly Dao/System! Yin Ruolan and Wen Banxia thought simultaneously, immediately realizing another thing Ai Yanran would definitely go after Xu Jingqiu!

Wen Banxia had already dashed out. Yin Ruolan ordered the soldier, “Arrest the one who was bribed and lock him in the Soul Refining Tower.”

The demon soldier’s heart sank. “Your Majesty, the Soul Refining Tower is that really necessary?” After all, the tower held only those who had sided with Penglai traitors. Letting someone escape shouldn’t warrant such a punishment, right?

“Unless you want to see him completely controlled by Penglai,” Yin Ruolan said coldly before hurrying away.

The demon soldier shuddered, realizing the situation was far more complicated than it seemed, and rushed off to carry out the order.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Ai Yanran, upon waking, flew into a rage, smashing everything in sight. The system offered no comfort, instead coldly outlining the next steps.

[The path to conquering the Demon Sovereign is no longer viable. She intends to kill you, and you can’t even get close to her now. This mission has been declared a failure.]

“What?!” Ai Yanran couldn’t believe it. “It’s only just begun! How can you be so sure I’ve failed?”

The system replied indifferently, [Does the Demon Sovereign seem interested in acknowledging or even seeing you? You’re under house arrest. How can you conquer her if you can’t even meet her?]

“Can’t you use your abilities to get me out? Or are you just that incompetent?” Ai Yanran dropped all pretense, sneering.

Unfortunately, her mockery had no effect. [Even if I let you out, what then? Her disgust and hatred for you have peaked. You have no chance. Now, you have only one option left.]

Ai Yanran snapped, “What is it?”

[Kill Ali, she is Xu Jingqiu herself. Kill her, and I’ll have the power to reset everything. You’ll be the favored daughter of heaven again, and the Demon Sovereign will love only you.]

Kill someone? Ai Yanran’s face paled, but she forced herself to ask, “Killing her will achieve all that? Why can’t you do it now?”

[Half of my authority resides within her. Once I reclaim it, no one will be able to stop me. Besides, things can’t get any worse than this, can they?]

Ai Yanran thought it over and finally relented. If it weren’t for that Ali or rather, Xu Jingqiu how could she have ended up in such a miserable state?

It’s all her fault!

Once they reached a consensus, things became straightforward. With the system’s help, Ai Yanran effortlessly bewitched the demon soldier guarding the door, found out Xu Jingqiu’s location, and hurried there as fast as she could.

When she pushed the door open, she didn’t see the panicked reaction she had expected. On the contrary, Xu Jingqiu was leisurely reading a book and only looked up slowly upon seeing her, speaking in an utterly calm tone: “Oh, you’re finally here? I thought you wouldn’t make it today.”

She then pointed at Xiao Bai, who was sound asleep beside her: “Look, even he’s fallen asleep. You’re really slow.”

[Don’t act impulsively. I’ll pull her into the system space. We’ll deal with her there, and everything will be over.]

The familiar space enveloped them once again, but this time it was pitch black, with only faint glimmers of light barely illuminating the person in front of her. Black mist permeated the area, constantly trying to invade her spiritual sea.

If Yin Ruolan were here, she would have recognized that this black mist was almost identical to the malevolent energy of the evil god.

“The Outer God’s space, it’s been a while,” Xu Jingqiu remarked nostalgically. Since becoming one of the Seven Kings of the Otherworldly Institute, she had only encountered the Outer Gods a couple of times, and never again after that.

[Don’t fall for her tricks. I’ll elevate your power to its peak. Finish her off.]

As the system spoke, it secretly blocked Ai Yanran’s sense of pain to prevent her from noticing anything amiss. Ai Yanran only felt an overwhelming surge of power coursing through her body and concealed herself within the black mist, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

“Clang!”

The sound of metal clashing rang out. Ai Yanran felt as if she had struck an iron block her blade couldn’t penetrate even a fraction further. It was completely ineffective.

Hadn’t the system said it would elevate her power to its peak? Why was she still no match for her?

With a mere wave of her hand, Xu Jingqiu sent Ai Yanran flying backward. Noticing blood on her sword, she shook it off in disgust. Once she confirmed it was clean, she transformed the sword into a submachine gun and unleashed a barrage of bullets.

Hearing a scream, Xu Jingqiu stopped firing. The submachine gun in her hand reverted to a bracelet, and the Heavenly Ruler emitted a radiant light, dispersing the black mist around them.

Ai Yanran sat on the ground, clutching her abdomen in agony, staring at Xu Jingqiu in disbelief. “You’re from the modern era! You’re not from this world. Why didn’t you say so? Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I never claimed to be from this world,” Xu Jingqiu replied calmly. “And none of you ever asked me. Why should I have volunteered that information?”

“Instead of obsessing over where I’m from, why not take a look at yourself right now?” Xu Jingqiu said, pointing at Ai Yanran.

Following her gesture, Ai Yanran looked down and saw cracks spreading beneath the bloodstains. Panic seized her. “Wh-what is this?” She tried to wipe them away, but they wouldn’t disappear.

These weren’t just stains her body was beginning to fracture.

Seeing Ai Yanran’s disbelief, Xu Jingqiu thoughtfully conjured a mirror for her to see. Blood was streaming uncontrollably from her eyes, nose, and ears.

“Look, your body can’t hold on much longer. Care to guess why you had no idea?” Xu Jingqiu retracted the mirror and spoke leisurely.

How could Ai Yanran not know why? The system had never told her it couldn’t withstand this, and even blocked her pain perception out of fear she might notice.

If this continued, she would surely die!

“S-save me! I didn’t mean to harm you intentionally. It was the system, the system made me do it!” Ai Yanran pleaded frantically, terrified that Xu Jingqiu might kill her in the next second.

Xu Jingqiu chuckled softly. “But I can’t save you. What should we do about that? And as far as I know, dying in the Outer God’s space leaves no trace, no one would ever know.”

Her indifferent gaze fixed on the struggling Ai Yanran as Xu Jingqiu snapped her fingers. The Heavenly Ruler erupted in a dazzling light.

“【Annihilation】, full release. Farewell.”

Wen Banxia and Yin Ruolan arrived at the room almost simultaneously. As soon as they pushed the door open, they saw Xu Jingqiu leisurely petting Xiao Bai. Noticing their arrival, she casually waved. “Hey, what brings you all here?”

As for Ai Yanran there was no trace of her left.

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