After Transmigrating into a Book, I Became Partners with My Mortal Enemy - Chapter 15

The talismans scattered throughout Tianji Academy functioned like modern display screens—notification boards modified with mining gas.

The more Ding Xiandi looked at them, the more they reminded her of a game’s global announcement board. She still didn’t quite grasp what kind of world she had transmigrated into.

In this world, cultivators becoming Dao companions was no longer a major event compared to mortal marriages. Most people, upon feeling a spark of mutual attraction, would impulsively seek a lifelong bond but mitigate the risk by choosing the lowest level of commitment: the Mortal Vow.

The Mortal Vow did not appeal to the Heavenly Dao; it was simply an application processed through the Hidden Heaven Bureau. At its fastest, the certification took ten days; at its slowest, a month.

The emergence of the Tianji Command had accelerated the development of the cultivation world and reduced the consumption of talismans. Previously, long-distance communication or transmitting images required vast amounts of talisman paper and complex incantations. The discovery of mining gas veins and the rise of the Four Major Guilds led to a sharp decline in the number of Talisman cultivators.

To this day, Talisman studies were merged into the public classes of the Alchemy and Divination departments, remaining the least populated profession in the Academy.

Even the slow-witted Mei Chi noticed the abnormality of the announcement board. She didn’t spend every waking hour with Ding Xiandi; before her Second Senior Sister switched her object of affection, the two had rarely interacted, let alone shared meals.

Seeing Ding Xiandi dazed, Mei Chi poked the back of her hand with a finger still dusted with bun crumbs. “Second Senior Sister, how many nets did you cast?”

The junior sister looked dim, but she knew a thing or two. Having spent time with her, Ding Xiandi realized that while Mei Chi was honest and simple, most people couldn’t win an argument against her.

Ding Xiandi wiped away the crumbs, looking quite frustrated. “What nets? I’m not fishing for anyone.”

The announcements continued to scroll. Ding Xiandi squinted at the Music Department name. “Gong Yu… who? They must have picked the wrong person.”

Mei Chi suddenly blurted out, “I want to eat grilled fish.”

“The spirit stones we have between us are barely enough for a pot of stewed pancakes. Just bear with it,” Ding Xiandi replied.

The gazes from those around her were far too intense. Feeling restless, Ding Xiandi finished her meal and hurriedly bid farewell to Mei Chi to head to her evening class.

The Sword Department was massive, taught in several batches. Ding Xiandi had yet to see a sword cultivator choose a dual degree. Perhaps because most of the ascended predecessors were sword cultivators, most people in this field held a strangely singular focus, showing zero interest in the curriculum of other departments.

The Tianji Command issued reminders based on a disciple’s schedule. The original owner had kept the default system sounds, but Ding Xiandi found them too plain. She had spent fifty spirit stones to unlock the Great Bell sound effect. The tolling of the bell resonated with her footsteps as she descended the stairs, making passersby think she had lost her mind.

“What’s going on? Someone actually paid for that sound?” “Isn’t that Ding Xiandi? Did you see the Marriage Hall announcement? Both You Fuling and Gong Yucui want to be her Dao companion.” “Gong Yucui? From the Gong family, the head of the great clans?”

On the way, Ding Xiandi remembered the significance of the Gong name. Among the three major clans, the Gong family was clearly the superior power. The early chapters of the original book spent a lot of time describing Ming Jing’s journey from her rural hometown to the main Ming family house.

The Tianji Academy was the setting for the second volume, focusing on her relationships with her peers. Even though the female lead’s appearance and cultivation were top-tier, she was still bullied because of her background.

The person doing the bullying was a Gong!

Ding Xiandi’s head throbbed. She didn’t even know what this Gong Yucui looked like. Getting caught up in this Marriage Hall mess was the last thing she needed, but she had no time to clarify things. The most urgent matter was handling the messages You Fuling was sending.

This woman actually suspected she had a backup!

[Ding Xiandi, what did you tell me? What am I supposed to think now?] [What number on your backup list am I?] [I suppose it was a lie when you said you needed me.] [You had so many friends before; I’m sure you’ve found plenty of marriage candidates by now, haven’t you?] [What, are Dao companions on a rotation shift now?]

The Sword Department was located on the southeastern peak of the Academy. People often ran late for evening classes, and being late meant a deduction of spirit stones. Compared to Ding Xiandi’s frantic sprinting, the other sword cultivators on the path looked quite leisurely. Upon seeing the girl with the copper-yellow ribbons and pockmarked face, they couldn’t help but whisper to their companions.

Ding Xiandi’s evening class was Sword Forging, and attendance was mandatory. A month in, she still didn’t understand why a sword cultivator needed to know how to forge. She had seen senior sword cultivators sharing their end-of-year testing experiences on the Tianji Command—every word written in blood, all theory.

Ding Xiandi, unable to gather spiritual energy, actually preferred these classes. In any course requiring spiritual power, she would never pass, no matter how hard she tried. Theory, however, was easy; she could answer questions without even trying. But her mind was currently filled with You Fuling’s transmissions.

What do you mean ‘outsourcing’ and ‘rotation’? She’s the same age as me and a shut-in, where did she learn these terms?

“Master Zhang is away today; I will be taking over the class.”

Seven days ago, this class was taught by an old man with his beard in pigtails, whose recitation of forging recipes was a perfect cure for insomnia. Ding Xiandi had sat with Juan Yuanjia then, watching the noble scion openly draw portraits of ladies in her textbook—supposedly a way to decompress. At the time, Ding Xiandi thought the girl was off; no matter how you looked at it, the lady on the paper had Ming Jing’s thick lips. Noticing Ding Xiandi’s gaze, Juan Yuanjia—holding a brush in one hand and a feather fan in the other—didn’t hide it, even asking if Ding Xiandi wanted to learn.

The substitute was a senior sword cultivator who had already successfully passed the exams for the Hidden Heaven Bureau. Once she received her graduation scroll next year, she would head to the Bureau’s headquarters. For a cultivator with no hope of ascension, this was the perfect destination. Many students boldly asked her how to pass the exams.

Ding Xiandi had no intention of staying in this world and cared nothing for the benefits of being a cultivation civil servant. She worked on today’s assignment while replying to You Fuling on her Tianji Command.

[I don’t know her.]

The biggest drawback of the Tianji Command was that it didn’t work by thought. Since there was no Pinyin in this world, Ding Xiandi had to handwrite on the screen, which looked incredibly clumsy. You Fuling, having been here longer, replied far faster than Ding Xiandi could type. Ding Xiandi had only sent one sentence, and the replies came like a blizzard.

[How do I know you don’t know her?] [Don’t you always have multiple backup plans?] [Am I just your ‘in case of emergency’?]

Ding Xiandi: “…” I didn’t realize she had such a temper. Didn’t she say she shouldn’t get agitated? Can she only get agitated about this?

On the podium, the senior was still teaching the secrets of scoring high for the Hidden Heaven Bureau. Master Zhang used to drone on about the ratios of raw copper to tin. Ding Xiandi, unable to keep up with You Fuling’s speed in the corner, finally switched to a whispered voice transmission.

The most glaring notification on her device was You Fuling’s Marriage Hall application, followed by the completely unknown Gong Yucui. Ding Xiandi made her choice, handed in her classwork, and left amidst the confusion. Her patched robe was so eye-catching it was impossible to miss.

The senior’s gaze fell on Ding Xiandi’s forging assignment. It was a hundred fill-in-the-blank questions, and Ding Xiandi had finished them all. Even if it was an open-book test, her speed was startling.

Ding Xiandi didn’t care about anything else; she rushed down the mountain toward the library.

In her apartment, You Fuling, who had no evening classes, repeatedly listened to Ding Xiandi’s messages. The mining lamps were unlike electric ones; they flickered like candlelight. Beside her were piles of yellow paper.

In Tianji Academy, alchemists doubled as healers, Law and Divination students doubled as Talisman masters, and Music students included Tool-refining. Only the Sword Department had no side disciplines. Law students focused on formation texts; unlike the alchemists’ exploding mountains, their mistakes often inverted yin and yang. Once, a student accidentally swapped a master’s head onto a crane; the student’s perfect score turned into a zero.

Cries of cranes echoed outside the window. Mechanical cranes were fitted with transmission stones. You Fuling didn’t understand why a mechanical object needed to automatically play the sound of a real crane. She paid no mind to the giant crane circling outside, clicking repeatedly on the Tianji Command resting atop a copy of Liuguang Miscellaneous Notes. Ding Xiandi’s voice sounded crisp yet anxious:

“Can you stop accusing me like this?” “I don’t even know half the people here, and you’re saying I’m involved with this Gong person?” “Please, I’m currently the ‘impoverished failure’ everyone loves to hate. I’ve suffered enough glares from your admirers lately.”

Ding Xiandi’s face wasn’t as beautiful as before, but her voice was identical. Hearing her speak like this felt incredibly familiar, as if they had been best friends for a long time. You Fuling smiled, but it quickly turned cold. A voice in her mind reminded her: You’re overthinking it.

Ding Xiandi was like this with everyone. She could laugh and chat with someone she just met. What am I to her? Then another voice said: You’re different. No one else could compete with her for first place. In this world, only you two know each other’s secrets. You should be together forever.

The Tianji Command wasn’t as good as a phone; it felt like a half-finished product, easily broken. More than one person had mentioned that talismans were more reliable. Unfortunately, the great Talisman masters had been lost to time. Nowadays, ordinary citizens of Liuguang sought help from mining guilds for their troubles rather than seeking talismans for protection.

Countless voices tangled in her mind, and the spiritual energy around You Fuling became uncontrollable. The Tianji Command under her finger shattered, and Ding Xiandi’s looping voice stopped abruptly. The frail girl gasped for air as the brushes, ink, and yellow talisman paper on the table were blown away. Some finished talismans fell into the indoor pool, looking like someone’s drenched heart.

She clutched a book embossed with the Heaven-Refining Sect’s totem, looking down at the Liuguang Miscellaneous Notes on her lap. It was open to the page she had just been reading.

Liuguang Miscellaneous Notes was the most famous publication in this world. Issued bi-weekly with many copies, it contained folklore, biographies, secrets, and dining guides. The main issue featured a different lead story every month—a format very similar to the magazines You Fuling loved to read before she died.

Her gaze fell on the introduction to the Gong family. This page usually had a talisman attached to show dynamic images. The female cultivator in the video wore magnificent clothes and was introducing the Gong family’s industries, her voice dripping with the arrogance of a music clan.

“This is Gong Yucui.”

You Fuling closed her eyes as the yellow paper swirled in the room. She fought against her rising obsessions. The paper even spelled out Ding Xiandi’s name according to her thoughts. She could hardly suppress her killing intent.

Kill Ming Jing. Ding Xiandi said she would die for admiring that person. Kill Gong Yucui. This person actually dared to send Ding Xiandi a ‘lifelong bond’ invitation. How dare she! Kill Mei Chi. Then Ding Xiandi won’t have to take that ‘bun-headed’ monster everywhere. Kill… everyone except Ding Xiandi. Then only the two of us will be left in this world. She will have no choice but to choose me.

The more You Fuling thought, the more painful and exhilarating it became. The brushes in her room moved through the air, drawing on the floating paper. The forbidden talismans on the floor flipped open on their own.

Suddenly, the sky changed. Thunder rumbled and rain fell without warning. Ding Xiandi, on her way to the library, was drenched. Before she could enter, she collided with Ji Ting, who was rushing out.

Ding Xiandi was about to say hello, but the other woman grabbed her sleeve. “Run!”

“What? Where to!”

Ding Xiandi’s question was swallowed by the wind and rain. Ji Ting seemed to have used a spell; a protective shield appeared around them as they sprinted toward the residential apartments.

On the way, Ding Xiandi spotted her junior sister standing with Zu Jinxi. But Ji Ting was too fast; before Ding Xiandi could even wave, they swept past like the wind. Mei Chi blinked in confusion. “I think I heard my Second Senior Sister’s voice?”

The alchemist who was so kind to her looked toward the direction the wind had blown. Ferocious lightning cracked the sky, as if trying to break someone’s stubborn spirit. The wind caught Zu Jinxi’s enchanting, slightly curly hair. She pressed her tongue against her teeth, which were growing rapidly due to the proximity of “bait,” and gave a gentle smile.

“You heard wrong.”

A ‘Heavenly Severance’ is hard to find, and the underworld is stubborn. None of that matters to Zu Jinxi.

The ‘human bait’ is the rarest of all.

Mei Chi heard Zu Jinxi muttering. “What did you just say?”

The woman with the naturally raspy voice shook her head. “I was just thinking that Tianji Academy is a wonderful place.”

“My Master said so too,” Mei Chi said, her mouth full of cold jelly. Thinking of the Master who brought her back from the West Sea, she sighed. “She said she’s so useless that she has to let my sisters and me change our own fates.”

“But I think my fate is great! I have food and drink, and my sisters love me.” She gave a silly smile to Zu Jinxi. “And A-Zu treats me well too.”

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