After My Death, the Female Lead Breaks the Heartless Path - Chapter 24

Yin Ruolan was not as furious as Ai Yanran had imagined. After all, from beginning to end, the only one prone to such outbursts was Ai Yanran herself.

With a scornful laugh, Yin Ruolan mercilessly taunted, “Do you really think you’re so impressive? Without the Yin family’s support, do you believe the Ai family alone could have achieved this much?”

“Ah, those years watching us flee everywhere must have brought you great joy, right? But what does any of that have to do with you? All you could do was throw your weight around as the young mistress.”

Yin Ruolan crouched down in front of Ai Yanran, grabbing her hair and yanking it back, forcing her head to tilt upward. “But now, there’s no family backing you here. Oh, that’s right, you don’t know, do you? After your ‘accidental death,’ the Ai family was investigated. Your only reliance in the real world is gone. Or are you hoping the cold-blooded Yin family would spare even a glance at someone who’s lost all value? No, nothing will come of it. Without your status as the young mistress, you are nothing.”

“Not to mention here. If it weren’t for the [Heavenly Dao] altering people’s perceptions, do you think your mindless, childish words could have earned you your current status? Without the [Heavenly Dao] shielding you and artificially inflating your favorability, tell me, how many people would even bother with you? Look at what happened today, how many stood by your side?”

“The world has long suffered under the oppression of Penglai, Ai Yanran. You’ve made a terrible move!”

“Still, there’s one thing I’m curious about,” Yin Ruolan suddenly grew calm, sending a shiver down Ai Yanran’s spine. “What would happen if the fragment of the [Heavenly Dao] on you were to disappear right now?”

Ai Yanran paled at the sight of the suddenly materialized longsword. “What are you trying to do?”

Yin Ruolan pointed the demonic sword at Ai Yanran, a blood-stained smile curling on her lips, appearing utterly sinister to Ai Yanran. “Just testing a theory, of course.”

“Don’t worry, I’m not like you. My sword is precise, this won’t be painful.”

“The reckoning between us has only just begun!”

Excruciating pain robbed Ai Yanran of consciousness. She was utterly defenseless against Yin Ruolan. Ever since her fight with Xu Jingqiu, the Heavenly Dao system had fallen silent, as if dead.

When she awoke again, Yin Ruolan was meditating on the other side, eyes closed. All her wounds had vanished. If not for the lingering ache in her chest, she might have thought it all a dream.

“System? System?” Ai Yanran called out, but there was no response. Her face paled momentarily, though she wasn’t overly worried.

She had always known this Heavenly Dao was unreliable. Why else would it resort to so many tricks if it weren’t incapable of defeating Xu Jingqiu? Even with assistance, it remained useless, truly pathetic.

Fortunately, she still had a trump card.

The door suddenly swung open. Yin Ruolan glanced at her indifferently before turning to leave without another word.

“Yin Ruolan!” Ai Yanran suddenly shouted, stopping her in her tracks. She laughed maniacally. “Do you think you can escape? I told you are mine and you will always be mine.”

Yin Ruolan simply didn’t want to waste any more words on this person. They were acting like a lunatic, just as they had in the past and still were now. “Go get your head checked,” she said, stepping out the door first and leaving Ai Yanran’s final remark behind.

“Do you think Xu Jingqiu would still treat you this way if she knew the truth from back then?”

Xu Jingqiu had nearly fallen asleep waiting before Yin Ruolan and the others finally arrived. Seeing Yin Ruolan approach, Xu Jingqiu managed a faint smile. “You’re here?”

Yin Ruolan hurried over, instinctively pulling her into an embrace, and asked with concern, “Are you alright?”

Xu Jingqiu shook her head. “I’m fine.” But then again, maybe not? She couldn’t remember. She let out a yawn, feeling genuinely exhausted. Still, they had to cross the middle layer next, what a drag.

Hearing this, Yin Ruolan held onto Xu Jingqiu, who seemed inexplicably listless, and then glanced at Wen Banxia. Only then did she notice the bloodstains on her. Wen Banxia gave a slight nod, and Yin Ruolan understood this girl wasn’t telling the whole truth. The worse possibility was that Xu Jingqiu’s memory loss was worsening.

They needed to find the Memory-Seeking Herb as soon as possible.

Ai Yanran was the last to emerge, still feeling the ache in her chest. She didn’t know what method Yin Ruolan had used, but while the wound had healed quickly, the pain lingered persistently.

She began taking a headcount. Among the human cultivators, she didn’t much care about those from the mortal realm, but the numbers from Penglai had visibly dwindled. They had started with over thirty people, all hoping for a share of the spoils, but now fewer than ten remained.

Then she looked at the demon tribe their numbers were almost unchanged.

“Care to explain, Miss Xu? Why is it that your demon tribe has hardly suffered any losses, while our Penglai group has been decimated?” Ai Yanran sneered sarcastically.

Xu Jingqiu lazily lifted her eyelids. “Why don’t you ask why so many from Penglai have died while the other human cultivators are mostly fine?”

“Exactly, why not admit that your Penglai cultivators are just too weak?” Murmurs arose from the other cultivators, all casting strange looks her way. “Yeah, we all went through the same ordeal. How come only you guys couldn’t handle it?”

“Shh, don’t you know? Those from Penglai are all weaklings. Did you really think there’d be many skilled ones from Penglai Island? If they were truly so powerful, why did they wait for the Divine Maiden to prove herself before sending troops back then?”

“Right, right, I still remember the scene, a bunch of celestial soldiers wailing like ghosts. It was only thanks to the Divine Maiden that they made it through safely.”

“Compared to that, this so-called Divine Maiden. tsk tsk tsk.”

“I heard she used underhanded tricks, colluding with the Heavenly Venerable to imprison the Divine Maiden so she could take her place.”

Arguments, discussions, and scornful gazes pinned Ai Yanran firmly in place. The Penglai disciples tried to shield her as usual, rebuking these “inferiors” they looked down upon, but they were outnumbered.

Moreover, the demons were watching with malicious interest, ready to seize an opportunity to strike.

In reality, the demons were quite amused by the infighting among the humans. Those who would blindly defend “Penglai” at the mere mention of the name were now looking at the Penglai disciples with disdain. This was far more entertaining.

You know, in the past, everyone would only complain about Penglai in private. This was the first time they openly mocked it so boldly. It wasn’t just them who were fed up many cultivators were thoroughly annoyed by Penglai’s arrogance. They acted all high and mighty, barely fulfilling their responsibilities, yet demanding hefty annual stipends every year.

This time, it was downright satisfying to watch them squabble among themselves. Heh heh heh.

Watching the demons huddle in groups of two or three, whispering and occasionally bursting into laughter, Wen Banxia even suspected that, if conditions allowed, these people would be munching on melon seeds while enjoying the show. In the end, it was Yin Ruolan who interrupted the internal conflict: “Alright, if you’ve rested enough, let’s move forward.”

Truth be told, if Xu Jingqiu hadn’t yawned again, Wen Banxia seriously doubted Yin Ruolan would have stopped watching. Noticing her gaze, Yin Rualan shot back a provocative look and pulled Xu Jingqiu even closer.

Wen Banxia: “…”

Does falling in love turn people into dogs?

After showing off, Yin Ruolan gently patted Xu Jingqiu and said softly, “We’re about to set off. If we can find the Memory-Seeking Grass, it might help alleviate your symptoms.”

That sentence jolted Xu Jingqiu awake. She hurriedly said, “Don’t take anything you see here.”

She had designed the middle layer as a vast illusory forest, filled with treasures and spirit herbs conjured by illusion arts. These treasures and herbs could affect one’s mind, the more one took, the more it would interfere with their thoughts, trapping them here forever.

This place wasn’t created by her but by another “Monarch” she had enlisted, one who excelled at traversing dreams. Their illusion skills were the most exceptional she had ever seen, capable of even fabricating physical forms. She herself lacked such abilities; at most, she could pluck a blade of grass and transform it into a small dagger, but that was the extent of it.

Illusions were not her forte in fact, they could be considered her weakness.

On the contrary, if one took nothing, they could successfully leave this secret realm yes, leave, not delve deeper.

However, with her presence among this group, they might just have a chance to explore the inner layer.

“Fellow Daoist, why do you say that?” a human cultivator asked, seemingly unwilling to give up.

Xu Jingqiu glanced at her, then turned her gaze to the mist-shrouded forest, where faint glimpses of treasures embedded in the ground and glowing spirit herbs could be seen, luring people to pluck them.

“Whether you believe me or not is up to you, but this mist is peculiar. It’s best not to touch anything within it. Your hands are your own, I won’t stop you.”

She couldn’t say more without breaking the rules of this secret realm, and she had no intention to anyway. Not everyone was worth saving; some wouldn’t feel grateful but would instead drag you down with them.

Naturally, this explanation didn’t convince everyone, but under Yin Ruolan’s warning glare, none of the demons dared to take anything.

After a brief preparation, the group entered the forest, instantly enveloped by the mist. Yin Ruolan and Wen Banxia instinctively grabbed Xu Jingqiu’s hands, one on each side.

For a moment, Xu Jingqiu imagined a scene of parents holding a child’s hands on an outing.

Considering the number of demons present, Xu Jingqiu had the Heavenly Rule Ruler transform into golden threads, wrapping around each demon’s wrist and finally connecting to her own.

No dangerous creatures appeared in the Misty Forest. As long as one refrained from touching the treasures, they could leave safely. The creator of this place claimed to be a peace enthusiast, but those who couldn’t control their hands were clearly not within her consideration.

After some time, as nothing seemed to happen, a few individuals could no longer restrain themselves. They stealthily reached for the swords nearby, swiftly stashing them into their storage rings after pulling them out. They thought no one had noticed, but in reality, almost everyone had seen it.

Xu Jingqiu couldn’t be bothered to remind them, nor did she intend to. She merely reined in some of the dazed demons, bringing them back to their senses.

More and more people gave in to temptation, gleefully pocketing the “treasures” while inwardly scoffing at Xu Jingqiu for her mysterious warnings. In their eyes, she was only saying such things out of fear that they would take all the treasures.

The false peace was shattered by a piercing scream.

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