My System, My Wife Feng Aotian [Transmigration] - Chapter 39.2

Lanyang City thrived as usual. The grand ship returning from Lanyang Palace sparked chatter in every street and alley, while Baishui Sect disciples gathered in the inn, whispering excitedly about restoring their sect’s glory.

Ever since Palace Master Feng announced her message six months prior, Baishui Sect disciples had been acting as if they had already ventured into the Chongshan Secret Realm and secured a great opportunity. Their pride was palpable; even the ants on the roadside knew about the Baishui Sect Leader’s journey to the Chongshan Secret Realm.

Xue Mengtao stepped across the inn threshold, raised her token to the attendant, and calmly declared, “I’m here on Lanyang Palace business.”

The attendant’s expression shifted. He quickly retreated behind the counter, crouching down as Xue Mengtao approached the Baishui Sect disciples and commanded, “Follow me.”

The disciples of the Baishui Sect exchanged glances. Someone recognized the woman from the outer gate of Lanyang Palace. If she was from Lanyang Palace, did that mean their Master had returned?

Excitedly, the disciples followed Xue Mengtao out of the inn. Just as the last disciple stepped across the threshold, they heard her calm voice: “Your Master left something for you.”

Bai Fenghui’s direct disciple rubbed his hands eagerly, forgetting to even ask where his master was. “What is it?” he asked, unable to contain his excitement. “Could it be a precious treasure?”

He spoke so loudly that everyone nearby could hear, eager for others to witness the treasure his esteemed master had brought back from the Secret Realm.

Xue Mengtao stood opposite the Baishui Sect disciples, her expression impassive as she tossed a Storage Ring onto the ground.

It was Bai Fenghui’s Storage Ring.

The disciple’s eyes lit up, already imagining the treasures he would display. He channeled spiritual power into the ring. Suddenly, a corpse materialized in the open space before them.

The onlookers recoiled in horror.

“Ah!!!” The Baishui Sect disciple screamed, staring in horror at the corpse. They couldn’t be more familiar with this man—it was none other than their Sect Leader!

“Master… Master Bai?” Bai Fenghui’s direct disciple stammered in horror. “How could Master have died? Palace Master Feng personally promised to protect his life! Everyone heard her! What happened?”

The shocked expressions of the onlookers shifted to astonishment. They indeed remembered hearing Palace Master Feng’s words that day.

Facing the questioning, Xue Mengtao replied calmly, “What Palace Master Feng said that day was that she would protect him from death within the Secret Realm. She kept her word. Sect Leader Bai died outside the Secret Realm. If you don’t believe me, you can ask any disciple who left the Secret Realm that day.”

Bai Fenghui’s direct disciple, still reeling from the shock of his master’s death, pressed on, “My master was at the Golden Core Stage. Who could possibly kill him? And why?”

Xue Mengtao lowered her gaze to the lifeless body lying on the cold floor. “I’ll say this only once,” she declared solemnly. “Please listen carefully.”

“Sect Leader Bai Fenghui of the Baishui Sect kidnapped an elder disciple of Lanyang Palace within the Chongshan Secret Realm, attempting to coerce Palace Master Feng into submission. When this failed, he resorted to using a Spiritual Beast to assassinate her and steal her Storage Ring. For this, he was slain in retaliation by Palace Master Feng.”

The Baishui Sect disciples froze. The surrounding crowd, their earlier curiosity now replaced by shock and fury, glared at Bai Fenghui’s corpse.

Lanyang City flourished because of Lanyang Palace. In essence, most of its residents lived under the palace’s protection. To attempt to kill Feng Jue was to strike at those who protected them—how could that not enrage them?

Someone immediately cursed angrily, “Good riddance!”

A Baishui Sect disciple trembled in fear. “Impossible! How could our Master possibly do something to offend Lanyang Palace? Even if he did—killed, or even just harmed Palace Master Feng—we’re still in Lanyang City! He couldn’t possibly just stand by and watch us be slaughtered by enraged Lanyang Palace disciples, could he?”

Impossible?

Several Baishui Sect disciples paled. Even Bai Fenghui’s direct disciple couldn’t help but swallow hard, waving his hands in frantic explanation. “This has nothing to do with us! We had no idea! I never thought Master would do something like this!”

Regardless of the crowd’s fury or the Baishui Sect disciples’ explanations, Xue Mengtao remained calm. “This matter is absolute and beyond question. From this moment forward, Baishui Sect disciples are forbidden from entering Lanyang City. Any Baishui Sect disciple found within will be executed without mercy.”

The disciples before Xue Mengtao’s knees buckled, many collapsing to the ground with deathly pallor in their faces. They watched helplessly as she released a Communication Talisman, countless glimmers of light soaring from her palm to the hands of Lanyang Palace disciples patrolling the city.

“Nullify your entire cultivation and withdraw from the Baishui Sect,” Xue Mengtao declared. “I will ensure you leave Lanyang City alive.”

The melancholy in Xue Mengtao’s eyes turned to icy resolve as she enunciated each word: “You have ten breaths to decide.”

“I’ll withdraw! I’ll withdraw immediately! I’ve wanted to leave the Baishui Sect for ages!”

The moment Xue Mengtao finished speaking, a disciple shouted frantically, stripping off his Baishui Sect uniform right in front of everyone.

Ignoring the panicking disciple, Xue Mengtao retrieved a Thunder Sound Grass from her Storage Ring and tossed it onto Bai Fenghui’s corpse. “This is what the Palace Master promised you. Consider the debt settled.”

The Palace Master of Lanyang Palace kept her word. She had vowed to shed no blood within the palace walls, and she had killed Bai Fenghui outside. Even if Sect Leader Bai had already crossed the Bridge of Helplessness, Palace Master Feng remained true to her promise.

The senior disciple kneeling at the front, Bai Fenghui’s direct successor, stared at the Thunder Sound Grass lying before his knees, his expression shifting.

Thunder Sound Grass was incredibly valuable; a single stalk could fetch hundreds of high-grade spirit stones. His throat bobbed, his disciple robe half-removed. With a sudden resolve, he snatched the herb from the ground and soared into the sky.

The disciple who came to deliver the corpse was merely at the Qi Condensation Stage. Did he really think he could escape? After all his arduous cultivation, he had finally reached Lanyang City. All he needed to do was exchange the Thunder Sound Grass for Spirit Stones somewhere, and who would care—

Before his smug smile could fully spread, a sword glint streaked across the sky. His fleeing body froze mid-air as the corpse plummeted from above. The pursuing patrol disciple landed with a thud, casting a disdainful glance at the corpse.

Who do you think you’re looking down on?

The invaluable Thunder Sound Grass also crashed to the ground, its branches and leaves scattered in a pathetic display. Yet no one dared to touch it. In the deathly silence that followed, a hunchbacked old man suddenly surged forward from the crowd, his tattered clothes and disheveled hair in disarray. He snatched up the herb and brandished it triumphantly before the stunned former Baishui Sect disciples.

“He’s dead! Dead! Hahaha!”

This was none other than the “mastermind” behind the persecution of Lianshan Sect disciples—the Baishui Sect Elder who had ordered their cultivation destroyed and their compensation stolen.

Xue Mengtao froze momentarily upon seeing him, then her expression shifted to sudden realization. She approached slowly, a smile playing on her lips. “I remember now,” she said. “I was foolish before, never realizing you were still alive. Now we can settle the score. Senior, I nearly died at the hands of your disciples. You owe me a life and a Spirit Stone.”

Xue Mengtao advanced step by step, the old man retreating inch by inch, defensively brandishing the Thunder Sound Grass as if it were a weapon.

“Fine,” Xue Mengtao said with a smile. “This Thunder Sound Grass will suffice for the Spirit Stone. But you still owe me your life.” She plucked the herb from the Baishui Sect Elder’s grasp, stored it in her Storage Ring, and drew her longsword.

The patrolling disciple raised an eyebrow and reminded her, “Private duels are prohibited within Lanyang City.”

Shall I drive him outside the city walls for you?

Xue Mengtao considered for a moment. “He used to be an Elder of the Baishui Sect. I don’t know if he still holds that position.”

The former disciples of the Baishui Sect quickly shouted in unison, “Yes! He’s our Elder! He shows up at our inn every day, demanding food and money in the name of his position! We can’t get rid of him!”

Well then, that settles it.

The patrolling disciple gestured for her to proceed.

Xue Mengtao unsheathed her sword, and a third corpse appeared on the long street. She casually flicked the blood from her blade, bowed to the patrolling disciple, and calmly walked back the way she came.

The crowd on both sides instinctively retreated, watching her depart with a mixture of awe and reverence.

Once she was out of sight of the crowd, Xue Mengtao’s stiff arms began to tremble uncontrollably. She walked into an empty alleyway and suddenly covered her face with her hands.

She had killed someone.

Xue Mengtao’s entire body trembled, her previous calmness dissipating like smoke. Tears streamed down her fingers as she wept and laughed.

She had killed someone.

Forgiveness wasn’t as difficult as she’d thought.

She was truly worthless, which was why Elder Siyi had repeatedly shielded her, even falling for Bai Fenghui’s deceit because of her own soft-heartedness and involving Elder Siyi.

How could she have been so foolish?

Xue Mengtao laughed through her tears, leaning against the wall and looking up at the azure sky. On Immortal Gazing Platform stood a familiar figure in pink robes, who had been watching her for some time and now nodded.

Xue Mengtao knelt down and bowed to Siyi, silently saying, “Master.”

She no longer wanted to be that quiet Xue Mengtao who waited in her small courtyard, a worthless person content to be manipulated and confined to a tiny corner. She wanted to become strong.

She wanted more people to respect her, fear her, and dare not humiliate her.

She had received Young Master Xue’s intentions. She was grateful for Xue Bufan’s past kindness; if not for him, she wouldn’t have embarked on the path of cultivation.

But this time, he was too late.

No, perhaps he was many years too late.

Xue Mengtao stood up, wiped away her tears, and walked toward Lanyang Palace, each step firmer and lighter than the last.

Above the clear sky, thunderclouds gradually gathered.

“She’s about to break through,” Feng Jue said.

03 pressed against the window, puzzled. “What happened to Xue Mengtao?”

“Go ask Siyi,” Feng Jue replied absently, busily arranging items on the table.

Since entering the Secret Realm, Xue Mengtao had been constantly following Siyi. Feng Jue hadn’t bothered to inquire about the specifics; she had originally intended to use Xue Mengtao as bait to lure Xue Bufan, but the plan had proven unnecessary. In any case, those who should have died remained alive, while those who shouldn’t had perished. With the Baishui Sect’s minor affairs resolved, what more was there to say?

But this posed a dilemma for a System (Companion) that thrived on detailed records. Clutching its matchstick-like body, 03 scratched its head in frustration. Seeing Feng Jue preoccupied with the table, it drifted over and settled on the small bed.

Indeed, after disembarking from Lanyang Palace’s grand ship, Palace Master Feng—instead of rushing into secluded cultivation or tallying her spoils from the deadly battles in the Secret Realm—had immediately gone to the city. There, she had ordered a set of toys befitting a wealthy family’s child and was now enthusiastically playing with them.

In 03’s eyes, this was like an ancient version of a Barbie doll castle from the modern world.

It was Barbie Ball.

“Look, a vanity table,” Feng Jue said, pointing to a palm-sized vanity table with a mirror so bright it could reflect a person’s face. She clicked her tongue in amazement. “Children these days have such fascinating toys.”

03 asked, “You’ve never played with one?”

Feng Jue was arranging all the furniture into the “house” without looking up. “No,” she replied. As a child, the elders of the palace had bought her countless toys to keep her amused, but she wouldn’t even glance at them, finding them childish. Later, when people started giving her various weapons, the delicate Palace Master of Lanyang Palace would reluctantly play with them.

03 could only see Feng Jue’s profile. Beneath her long lashes, her eyes sparkled with childlike excitement, completely shedding the dignified image of a Palace Master.

“Before I turned six, Mother taught me to read and write. We often sat on a swing while she read storybooks to me,” Feng Jue said, pausing to think. She smiled at 03 and continued, “Mother also took me flying through the mountains and cities, teaching me about the world. But I was so young that I’ve forgotten most of it.”

03 asked, “What happened after you turned six?”

Feng Jue smiled. “When I was six, she burned out like an oil lamp and passed away.”

A sad, tearful expression appeared in 03’s bubble. It raised a matchstick and patted Feng Jue consolingly.

Feng Jue chuckled softly, lifted the bed, and placed it—complete with the standing System (Companion) ball—into the small house. She then put a ceramic doll beside the System ball. Pinching the doll, she nudged 03 and said with a smile, “You’re always nagging me to get married. Today, I’ll find you a bride. Let’s call her Lingling. 03, go give your Lingling a kiss.”

03 pushed away the ceramic Lingling in refusal. The black circles on its surface shifted. “Without 00, I don’t want a bride. Feng Jue, I’ve discovered two things: first, Elder Siyi is truly terrifying; second, this is really stupid.”

Despite 03’s resistance, Feng Jue managed to press the ceramic doll firmly against the 03 Ball, bursting into laughter.

A sighing emoji appeared in 03’s bubble.

Feng Jue grew silly.

After laughing her fill, Feng Jue tossed aside the ceramic toy and leaned back on the couch. She raised her hand to inspect her faded nails and drawled lazily, “I’m going into seclusion as soon as I get back today. Who knows when you’ll see me again? Lingshi is also going into seclusion, leaving you as the only bead in Qihuang Palace. If you don’t want to play with ceramic dolls, who else is there to play with?”

“I can’t exactly ask someone to come keep you company. It’s your own fault for being such an unsociable little system.”

03 said quietly, “03 doesn’t need company.”

Feng Jue glanced at 03, her expression helpless. “Alright,” she said.

She flew back to Lanyang Palace with her purchases. Soon after, a gentle bell toll echoed from Qihuang Peak, signaling that the Palace Master of Lanyang Palace had gone into seclusion.

The bell’s reverberations drifted through the air, accompanying the white cranes as they soared. The entire mountain peak fell silent, devoid of any sound.

03 gazed at the tightly shut door of the meditation chamber, circled once, and settled among the toys Feng Jue had bought, a matchstick clacking against them.

03 flew into the jade bowl holding five balls, nuzzling them.

03 fluttered into the pile of storybooks, flipping through the pages.

03 soared out the window, landing atop the main hall where it nestled into a snow-covered tile—the same one it had often roosted in before.

A speck of luminous white blended into the vast expanse of dazzling white, tinged with the warm golden hues of the rising sun, bathed in the pure light of the moon, and immersed in the boundless stars.

03 opened its clock and checked the time.

Only three days had passed since Feng Jue went into seclusion.

The quiet System silently retrieved a small purple flower from its backpack and placed it atop its head.

03 gazed into the distance.

No matter. I’ll see Feng Jue soon. I’ll wait a little longer.

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