After My Death, the Female Lead Breaks the Heartless Path - Chapter 7

In her writings, even the cities closest to the Demon Palace in the demon realm were depicted as impoverished, the scarcity of resources and the pressure of survival being the main reasons the demon race invaded the cultivation world. Under Ai Yanran’s pen, the demon race was even portrayed as mere vassals of evil gods.

Although Xu Jingqiu had long known that the current world bore no resemblance to the one described by the two of them, she couldn’t help but feel a small sense of surprise upon seeing the bustling streets, crowded not only with demons but also with humans and beastkin.

“This is actually quite nice,” Xu Jingqiu murmured, patting Xiao Bai’s head as she strolled along the street, a slight smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

She never expected that under Yin Ruolan’s leadership, the demon race would develop so rapidly, prosperously, and harmoniously. It was clear that the conflict between the two races had long since ended.

Seeing humans here wasn’t particularly unusual, so Xu Jingqiu decided against wearing anything to cover her face, she simply wasn’t used to it and found it stifling. Xiao Bai gave her a hesitant glance, feeling that some things were better experienced firsthand to be truly convincing.

Then, they found themselves blocked on the street.

A human appearing here wasn’t strange, but a human who looked exactly like the Demon Lord’s white moonlight, emerging from the Demon Palace, was far from common.

Unable to bear the attention any longer, Xu Jingqiu used the Heavenly Ruler to transform a black iron mask and put it on, scanning the area for a place to hide. Before she could find one, the crowd suddenly dispersed.

She immediately realized what was happening and, sure enough, caught a glimpse of a familiar figure flashing by. So, it was that someone who had been following her all along who had shown their face Xu Jingqiu nodded slightly and continued on her way.

Thanks to Yin Ruolan, no one dared to crowd around her this time, though many still observed and whispered from a distance. This didn’t bother Xu Jingqiu and didn’t spoil her good mood.

Until a detestable voice called out to her.

“Hey, you! I’m talking to you! Do you even realize that? How dare you keep walking? Hey! Stop right there!”

Ai Yanran had never wanted to come here in the first place a backward, ancient world. How could it compare to the comfort of being a young lady at home, surrounded by people who flattered and admired her?

So when that voice first appeared, she had refused without hesitation. But now, her family had gone bankrupt, and even her former followers dared to mock and insult her to her face.

Then, the thing calling itself the Heavenly System appeared once more.

According to the system, she was the heroine in this world endowed with talent, divine artifacts, a perfect partner, and followers, all she had to do was complete tasks. In any case, it had to be better than her current situation.

And indeed, just as the system had said, from the start, she became the Divine Maiden of Penglai Immortal Sect, revered by thousands, accompanied by two prodigies, the young master of the Duyun Sect and the young mistress of the Hehuan Sect. It was indeed a prestigious identity.

The only downside was that her destined partner had fallen into demonic ways and become the Demon Lord. Now, she had to complete tasks to guide the Demon Lord back to the right path.

“You should be glad that Yin Ruolan has managed the demon realm quite well, and she’s here too. Otherwise, I would never set foot in a place like this.” Ai Yanran snorted arrogantly, speaking to the system. “They actually want me to register? Don’t they recognize my face?!”

She was the female lead! Since when did the female lead need to follow such trivial procedures in a place like this?

The system remained silent. Ai Yanran was boiling with anger but had no outlet for it. Fortunately, the admiring gazes from those around her provided some satisfaction. At least her face was still captivating.

But before she had gone far, she overheard some murmurs.

“Hey, look at that human, doesn’t she resemble the one who came out of the Demon Palace earlier?”

“Hiss, now that you mention it, she does. Could she be another one trying to catch the Demon Lord’s attention?”

“Probably. Otherwise, why would she show up now, of all times? Right when someone appears by the Demon Lord’s side? She must be trying to replace that person. But honestly, she doesn’t even look as much like her as the other one.”

“Tsk, tsk, how shameless.”

“……”

Ai Yanran couldn’t bear to listen any further. What did these people mean? Implying she was some kind of substitute? What did they mean by “resembling” someone else? If anything, others were imitating her!

Without another thought, Ai Yanran grabbed one of the two gossiping individuals and demanded angrily, “Who? Who has the audacity to imitate me?”

Startled, the person instinctively pointed in a certain direction. Ai Yanran shoved them aside and stormed off, ignoring the curses hurled after her.

Sure enough, she spotted a woman wearing a mask and holding a white dog. “Hey, you! I’m talking to you! How dare you keep walking? Hey! Stop right there!”

Xu Jingqiu frowned in disgust, not wanting to engage and ruin her good mood. She had been annoyed to learn this woman was still alive, but there was nothing to be done especially not in public.

To her irritation, the woman grabbed her arm.

Xiao Bai lazily opened his eyes, giving Ai Yanran a deathly glare before closing them again to feign sleep.

“I don’t like being touched randomly,” Xu Jingqiu said coldly, releasing Ai Yanran’s grip and instead seizing her wrist firmly. “Did no one teach you manners? Don’t act like a screeching, hairless monkey grabbing people without permission.”

Ai Yanran had never been spoken to like this. Her face flushed with anger, but she was powerless to retaliate. The masked woman’s grip was impossibly strong she couldn’t break free with one hand, and her other wrist was aching from the hold. “L-Let go!”

Xu Jingqiu sneered, suddenly releasing her. She glanced around but found nowhere to wipe her hand, so she reluctantly wiped it on Xiao Bai.

Xiao Bai: “Ow!”

“I’ll give you a bath later,” Xu Jingqiu consoled him.

Xiao Bai did not feel consoled. If anything, he was even more annoyed. Before he could protest, Xu Jingqiu patted his head and walked away leisurely.

Ai Yanran was fuming. What was with that gesture, as if she had touched something filthy? She hurried after Xu Jingqiu, blocking her path. “What do you mean by that? I haven’t even asked why you’re impersonating my appearance!”

Hasn’t she always looked like this? What does it mean that she’s pretending? Only then did Xu Jingqiu take a proper look at Ai Yanran. If she remembered correctly, Ai Yanran didn’t look like this before she did bear a resemblance of about seventy percent.

But that seventy percent resemblance gave her face a strangely unsettling, disharmonious feeling.

And her temperament, it was far from what it used to be. If Ai Yanran had been like this before, she wouldn’t have suffered setbacks twice.

Seeing Xu Jingqiu remain silent, Ai Yanran’s patience ran out, and she reached out directly to remove Xu Jingqiu’s mask. Xu Jingqiu raised an eyebrow and glanced behind her.

Just as Ai Yanran’s hand was about to touch the mask, a powerful force yanked her back and threw her harshly to the ground. Ai Yanran cried out in pain, but when she looked up, all she saw was the flicker of a dark red robe, and then both of them had vanished.

[It was the Demon Lord. The Demon Lord took her away. But I don’t know why the Demon Lord appeared here or why he’s protecting that fake.] The system, silent for a long time, suddenly spoke.

“Then what’s the deal with that person?”

[I don’t know.]

Ai Yanran gritted her teeth against the pain and stood up. There was no one around anymore, and she couldn’t hold back from cursing, “You don’t know this, you don’t know that, what use are you to me?”

[The current plot has already been altered. Many answers need to be explored by the host themselves; asking the system is useless.] The system replied coldly.

Ai Yanran: “So you’re saying I’m incompetent?”

[If that’s what the host believes.]

“Get lost! How dare you say that to me? The plot has deviated this badly, and I’m the one who has to fix it. You can’t even provide me with any information, and you still have the nerve to criticize me? Useless thing!”

[This system is not a thing, nor is it useless. I can locate that person’s current position. The host can confront her and find the answers themselves. If it’s the original, there’s no need to worry, the original lacks the ability to cultivate. If it’s not the original, there’s still no need to worry. This system will assist you, boosting your strength to the peak that this body can currently achieve.]

[There’s another possibility: she might be a tasker like you. If you get close to her, I can absorb her system, which will provide the host with more resources.]

Ai Yanran scoffed, “Then hurry up and do it. Why are you wasting time talking?”

On the other side, in a private room of a teahouse.

“I’ve killed her, but for some reason, she reappears the next day every time.” Yin Ruolan frowned, unable to understand why the Heavenly Dao kept reviving this person.

Xu Jingqiu pushed her plate of tea snacks toward Xiao Bai, who was staring eagerly, took a sip of tea, and after a moment of thought, said, “It might not be the same person. It’s possible they’re bringing in someone with the same name from another world. After all, to the Heavenly Dao, they’re just expendable resources. By the way, you really don’t need to keep sending me things.”

Yin Ruolan’s expression instantly fell. “You don’t like them?”

Seeing Yin Ruolan’s reaction, Xu Jingqiu swallowed the “I don’t like them” that was on the tip of her tongue and changed the subject. “She’s about to arrive. Do you want to hide? If you’re here, she won’t say many things.”

Yin Ruolan’s mood improved slightly, and she nodded before disappearing. A moment later, someone violently shoved the door open.

With no one else around, Xu Jingqiu had long since removed her mask, leisurely sipping tea, forming a stark contrast to the disheveled Ai Yanran.

The moment Ai Yanran caught sight of Xu Jingqiu’s face, she froze. It wasn’t for any other reason she truly looked exactly like the “white moonlight” the system had shown her. “You’re Xu Jingqiu!” Ai Yanran shrieked.

Xu Jingqiu frowned in displeasure, setting down her teacup. “No, my name is A Li.”

It was a casual, almost careless name. Xiao Bai lifted her head and gave her a look that said, “Who would believe that?”

And then she saw Ai Yanran heave a sigh of relief, genuinely convinced.

Xiao Bai: “…”

Stupid. Truly stupid. Clearly, she was nowhere near the same level as the one who had toyed with people so effortlessly back in the day.

Ai Yanran didn’t dwell on it, or perhaps subconsciously, she didn’t want to believe that Xu Jingqiu was the real one. Hearing the denial, she relaxed considerably, striding over in one big step and slamming her hand on the table.

“Well, that makes things much simpler. I’ll give you two choices: either ruin that face of yours yourself, or get as far away as possible and stop hovering around Yin Ruolan.”

“That position belongs to me.”

Support