Guide to the Rebirth of the Evil Woman in the Immortal Realm - Chapter 6

The celestial realm was vast, divided into four major domains: east, south, west, and north.

The Eastern Domain specialized in cultivating spiritual flora and plants, offering tributes to the divine realm every century. The Southern Domain was home to ancient, well-connected aristocratic families. The Western Domain, compared to the other three, was barren and suited for secluded cultivation. The Northern Domain served as the entry point for ascendants from the three thousand minor worlds below, perpetually overcrowded and bustling with what could be described as a mortal-world atmosphere.

Zhao Lanying’s Green Emperor Spirit Mountain was nestled behind a stretch of Ying Sea in the Northern Domain.

Breaking through the barrier’s restrictions, one could glimpse the scenery beyond the mountain from afar. Thanks to its proximity to the Green Emperor Spirit Mountain and the Ying Sea, this area was rich in resources and populated by many immortals. There was even a celestial market modeled after mortal towns, where rare and precious celestial items could be traded.

Shen Fuxin rode the wind for a while before landing steadily on the cyan jade bricks at the entrance of the celestial market.

In her previous life, she had never visited this place. She had only heard about it from fellow junior immortals and had come here relying on her memories. Sure enough, she found a large moss-covered stone tablet.

A young man in cyan robes wiped the moss from the black characters on the tablet with his fingertips. Just then, a distant cry echoed, and Shen Fuxin looked up to see two white cranes with red beaks flying toward her.

As their feathers brushed past her shoulders, she found herself standing at the bustling entrance of the celestial market.

Shen Fuxin glanced around. The place wasn’t much different from the mortal markets depicted in paintings, exuding a charm that couldn’t be found within the Green Emperor Spirit Mountain.

Some immortals slept on leaves, with rare treasures from the Ying Sea floating before them. Others, dressed modestly, tinkered with heavy swords laid out in front of them. Then there were those who practiced the art of divination, seemingly not in pursuit of spirit stones but merely seeking amusement, idly toying with star-chess pieces used for fortune-telling.

Shen Fuxin calculated the spirit stones she had on her and felt a pang of regret.

Before burning her dress earlier, she should have stripped it of its pearls and jade ornaments to exchange for money. It had been an impulsive oversight.

Aside from needing to purchase some medicinal salves, she also wanted to browse the market for a suitable alchemy cauldron. However, even decorative cauldrons were quite expensive, let alone ancient artifacts like the two left behind by the high gods at the Sword Platform.

Thinking of the small crimson pill that had inexplicably appeared inside her, Shen Fuxin shifted her gaze to an immortal polishing a sword by the roadside.

If tossing a sword into an alchemy cauldron could produce a sword pill, what would happen if she added two or three swords? She still hadn’t figured out the pattern of pill formation, and since she couldn’t find a cauldron for the time being, she turned her attention to buying new swords.

But none of these swords looked like something she could afford.

Just as she hesitated in front of the sword stall, a cold hand suddenly patted her shoulder from behind.

Almost instinctively, she released her sword intent.

Shen Fuxin spun around abruptly, following the trajectory of her drawn sword. Instead of the expected sight of blood, her eyes met a pale, warm jade-like hue.

It was an intricately designed robe, one that should have been luxurious, but its overly light jade color subdued its opulence. Upon closer inspection, it was clear the garment had seen better days. Perhaps due to repeated cleansing spells, the fabric had faded to a bluish-white.

Even before seeing the person’s face, Shen Fuxin had already drawn her conclusion.

This was undoubtedly a stingy, impoverished, and down-on-their-luck minor immortal, with barely any spirit stones to their name, trying to put on a show of wealth with extravagant robes.

The few wisps of sword intent that shot out vanished into the newcomer’s robes, dissipating into nothingness where she couldn’t see. The young immortal let out a soft exclamation, her voice tinged with a hint of grievance: “What was that for? I merely wanted to ask if you’d like a fortune told.”

Shen Fuxin’s brow twitched slightly as she lifted her gaze, only to be momentarily stunned by the person’s appearance.

The figure before her was quite tall, standing a head above Shen Fuxin herself, with broad shoulders and long legs. She looked less like a fortune-telling charlatan and more like a sword immortal of Zhao Lanying’s caliber. Yet, even more striking than her build was her face gentle as a spring breeze, but with eyes as deep and cold as the sea.

And at that moment, those eyes seemed to hold immense grievance, gazing at her with a reproachful accusation.

“You hurt me,” she said.

Shen Fuxin had a bad feeling and raised an eyebrow skeptically. Sure enough, the next moment, the jade-robed charlatan clutched her chest and said weakly, “But conflicts often lead to friendships. It must be fate that brought us together. How about I give you a fifty percent discount on a fortune?”

What thick skin. Shen Fuxin had no patience for such antics and turned to leave. “I have no money.”

Undeterred, the charlatan chased after her for a few steps. “Let’s talk this over! I’ll give you half a reading for free, fair immortal! I see peach blossoms in your aura your wishes are coming true, and joyous news is near.”

Without looking back, Shen Fuxin retorted, “I see darkness over your brow, a sign of a short life. You should worry about yourself first.”

The immortal market was vast, and she quickly shook off the pursuer, ducking into an herbal shop to buy some bone-mending flowers for healing. When she emerged with her medicine, the jade-robed charlatan had returned to her original spot, squatting beside other fortune-tellers and watching them play star chess with eager eyes.

Something felt off to Shen Fuxin. She had felt a vague sense of familiarity about this person from the start, so she turned back for a closer look.

Under the drooping tendrils of a willow tree, the squatting figure, though smiling, exuded an inexplicable sense of detachment from the world around her.

How strange.

Unable to recall where she might have seen this person before, Shen Fuxin mentally brushed it aside and set off to search for a cauldron. Unfortunately, after wandering the market for what felt like ages until the sky began to pale, she had scoured nearly every corner of the vast immortal market without finding even half a cauldron.

Just as she was about to leave with her healing herbs, a familiar figure flashed in the distance. Shen Fuxin focused her gaze and recognized Sword Sovereign Jiexia.

By her reckoning, the morning lessons should have ended by now. Sword Sovereign Jiexia stood with her sword strapped to her back, accompanied by an unfamiliar immortal in bright yellow robes, who was frowning as she spoke to the sword sovereign. Their relaxed postures suggested they were long-time friends.

Noticing someone watching them, the yellow-robed immortal lifted her eyelids and glanced over. Shen Fuxin saw that her eyes were emerald green, with vertical pupils unlike those of ordinary humans.

At the sight of those eyes, Shen Fuxin immediately guessed her identity.

The Ying Sea was quite close by, and the underwater dragon palace was home to the golden dragon lineage. With the dragon clan’s new bloodline scarce nowadays, only one descendant was known to the world Shen Fuxin recalled her name was something like Jing Rong?

Sword Venerable Jiexia, preoccupied with her own thoughts, failed to notice her most troublesome student blatantly watching from the roadside. She rubbed her temples and sighed, “Are you truly going to descend to the mortal realm for ten cycles of reincarnation trials? Just yesterday you said it wouldn’t be so soon. Why today?Ah, what kind of day is this? Strange occurrences keep piling up.”

Jing Rong of the Golden Dragon lineage crossed her arms and remarked sarcastically, “Indeed, a full ten cycles. Ten lifetimes as a human, ten as a ruler. If even one cycle fails, the Dao Heart will shatter. What do you think they’re scheming?”

“It can’t be that extreme,” Sword Venerable Jiexia’s refined, scholarly face rarely showed anger. “Rong, if it’s as you say, wouldn’t the Immortal Realm be utterly lawless?”

Hearing the phrase “utterly lawless,” Jing Rong chuckled dryly. “Forget the Immortal Realm even the higher realms are likely no better. You ascended from the mortal world and don’t know the sordid old secrets they’ve kept buried. But enough, it’s all in the past now. It’s just that my journey below might stretch beyond ten cycles, and who knows how long it’ll be before I return. You should take care of yourself in the Immortal Realm.”

Sword Venerable Jiexia sighed. “Are you leaving tomorrow at dawn? Let me give you some life-preserving artifacts. I spend my days teaching at Green Emperor’s Spirit Mountain and have no use for them.”

As the two walked and talked, before Sword Venerable Jiexia could finish her sentence, a voice abruptly cut in: “Mortal realms can’t use Immortal Realm artifacts. Giving them to her would be pointless.”

Hearing this, both turned to look ahead. Shen Fuxin watched coldly from a distance sure enough, it was that jade-robed charlatan who always seemed desperate for spirit stones.

Standing cheerfully under a verdant willow tree, the charlatan extended a hand toward Jing Rong. “This humble one offers you half a divination first. Hear whether my words ring true before deciding on the other half.”

Sword Venerable Jiexia tugged at Jing Rong’s sleeve. “Let’s go, Rong. My fate is mine to command, not heaven’s.”

But Jing Rong’s feet seemed glued to the ground. Despite her friend being a bona fide Sword Immortal, she couldn’t budge her. Jing Rong broke free and, turning the tables, stopped Sword Venerable Jiexia instead. “I’m not short on spirit stones. If your divination proves accurate, name your price.”

“Esteemed immortal, are you embarking on a long journey?” The charlatan shook her sleeve, causing bottles and jars inside to clink noisily. “This trip of yours. let’s just say you’re walking into a one-way journey, fulfilling someone else’s design.”

Jing Rong’s expression shifted sharply. “What do you mean?”

The jade-robed immortal merely smiled without answering, her outstretched hand deftly turning palm-up.

Jing Rong stared back silently. The charlatan widened her captivating peach-blossom eyes innocently and slightly raised her palm.

Sword Venerable Jiexia reached for Jing Rong again. “Forget it, just let it go.”

With a stony face, Jing Rong pulled a bulging pouch of spirit stones from her robe and slammed it into the charlatan’s palm. “Keep talking!”

She had put real force into the gesture, expecting the other to stagger back from the impact. Instead, the energy seemed to sink into a bottomless abyss.

Not only did the charlatan not retreat, her outstretched palm didn’t even tremble.

Jing Rong stared in astonishment for a moment, a flicker of caution rising within her. Then she saw the charlatan break into a radiant smile and, right before her eyes, eagerly tear open the pouch to start counting the spirit stones.

“One, two, three, three thousand. Thank you for your patronage. I’ll gladly accept these three thousand spirit stones.”

She tucked the pouch of spirit stones into her sleeve with satisfaction and smiled. “There’s a variable in the final lifetime of your journey. If it comes to pass, you’ll return whole and unscathed. If not well, prepare for your spiritual foundation to shatter and descend into the animal realm in the underworld.”

Jiexia Jianzun’s heart raced with alarm, and she hurriedly reached out to stop her friend. “I told you her predictions aren’t reliable, just take it with a grain of salt!”

“What kind of crow’s mouth nonsense is this ‘animal realm’?” Jing Rongyan gritted her teeth, a mix of anger and laughter escaping her as a translucent water-colored spear materialized in her palm. “Luo Jiexia, if you’re really my friend, don’t stop me. I’m going to beat this damned charlatan to death!”

Shen Fuxin watched the commotion from a distance, finding it amusing, and couldn’t help but curve her lips into a smile.

She observed the jade-robed immortal fleeing from Jing Rongyan’s pursuit. As the figure swept past her, their eyes met briefly, and the immortal murmured to herself, “Joy today, mourning tomorrow. Indeed, the lotus seed has no heart, it’s only natural to be trapped by greed, anger, love, and hatred.”

In that fleeting moment they brushed past each other, Shen Fuxin stood frozen in place. Before her, there was no one, only the gently swaying willow branches and the lingering fragrance of plum candy.

Her heart pounded like a drum, and without a second thought, she sprinted after the figure!

Unnoticed, rain began to fall. The howling wind and pattering rain rose and fell in turns, tousling Shen Fuxin’s hair and whipping at her blue robes. In that instant, heaven and earth seemed to roar in harmony with the frantic beat of her heart. For the first time, she felt she was on the verge of uncovering clues about her origins that charlatan definitely knew something!

One fleeing, the other chasing they raced with the wind for what felt like an eternity until Shen Fuxin finally caught sight of that familiar jade-colored robe.

Amidst the vibrant spring mountains, the figure halted and turned back, offering her a smile.

“Divinations start at five hundred spirit stones, payment upon service, no credit. Fair one, are you seeking fame, power, or—”

Ji Ting grinned at Shen Fuxin. “Or perhaps fate?”