Stepping in for the Heroine to Crush the Protagonist Group [Transmigration] - Chapter 1

Clang!

The beaded curtain was lifted. The wind chime hanging from it shook sharply, letting out a crisp, piercing sound.

The black-robed person behind the counter shuddered and raised her eyes to the other figure in black robes. She lowered her voice: “System, that’s Xie Qingyang, right?”

For a moment, the air turned cold. Then a mechanical voice echoed inside her mind: 

[“Yes, Host. Please proceed boldly.”]

Taking in the order, the so-called Host drew a deep breath. She fixed her gaze on the man walking steadily toward her and whispered encouragement to herself: “Hu Li, don’t be scared. He’s just a two-dimensional fictional character. Snagging him will be a piece of cake.”

She cleared her throat, lowered her voice to a gravelly “uncle tone,” and greeted the man who had stopped at her counter, surveying the shop. “Fellow Daoist, lodging or just a meal…”

Oh no. She had been stuck working in inns too often lately. Wrong script!

“What I mean is—are you looking for work?” Hu Li scrambled to cover, cold sweat beading on her back until it soaked through her clothes. “Tell me, what kind of monthly pay are you hoping for? Do you need food and housing provided? Any requirements for work hours? And lastly, are you more into single rest days or double rest days?”

She rattled off her spiel.

Xie Qingyang caught only a few recognizable words, his expression turning serious. “Mr. Li, you don’t need to say more. I’ve already inquired about you. I know you’re the one with the deepest connections in this black market. I came here seeking you for one thing only: a chance at a position that will one day make me renowned throughout the cultivation world. Can you give me that?”

A position to become famous across the cultivation world? Hu Li raised a brow. If I really had that, it wouldn’t be wasted on you.

But her mouth said otherwise: “If that’s what Fellow Daoist wants, I can naturally provide. The question is, how much sincerity do you have?”

“Sincerity?” Xie Qingyang looked puzzled.

Hu Li rubbed her thumb against her index and middle finger.

Seeing him still playing dumb, she simply blurted: “You get what you pay for. Fellow Daoist, got any spirit stones?”

At last he understood. His voice turned bitter as he patted the shriveled pouch at his waist. “Mr. Li, when I entered the black market, the guards confiscated every last spirit stone. But rest assured when I rise to greatness, I’ll repay you with interest.”

Oh, so he wants to run a tab. Hu Li sneered inwardly.

Not that it surprised her. In the original novel, Xie Qingyang was dirt poor in the beginning—a no-name sword cultivator with pockets emptier than a beggar’s bowl.

Even if he was the male lead.

But thinking about poverty only made Hu Li wince. She herself wasn’t faring any better.

Just half a month ago, she had suddenly transmigrated into a novel—one of those old-school cultivation dramas dressed up as a “level-up” story. And her role? The vicious second female lead.

The book, Ascending Immortal, told the tale of the male protagonist, Xie Qingyang, and how he rose to the top by shamelessly bouncing between the heroine and the villainess.

At first, Hu Li hadn’t cared about this forgettable, corner-propping novel. Until her college meal buddy nudged her with a grin: “Li-li, the second female lead has the same name as you. You should better memorize the whole thing who knows, maybe you’ll transmigrate one day.”

Only then did she skim through.

And what did she find? Good grief! The things “Hu Li” did in that story weren’t even human. Then again, the original second female lead wasn’t human at all.

She was a fox spirit.

Correction, Hu Li thought. A fox demon.

Right now, the plot was at the part where the second female lead pretended to kindly give the male lead a recommendation letter to Tianyan Sect, but in truth planted a Bewitching Heart Gu in him.

Her mission was to complete this scene.

But every time she thought about what came next, that after this, the novel’s heroine Gu Sheng would be dragged into a nightmare of torment by Xie Qingyang—her teeth itched with anger.

Gu Sheng: the Tianyan Sect’s young sect master, as pure as orchids and aloof as a cold moon. She was destined in the novel to be dragged from her pedestal, used as the male lead’s stepping stone, battered in body and soul until the end.

Infuriating. Absolutely infuriating!

Hu Li ground her molars and slammed the counter with rage.

Xie Qingyang flinched, thinking she was rejecting a deal without payment. His voice turned guilty. “Mr. Li, forgive my offense. I’ll take my leave.”

He was about to turn when Hu Li called out: “Stay, Fellow Daoist.”

If not for the threat of heavenly lightning striking her dead upon failure, she would never have stopped this bastard.

“If you have no spirit stones now, you can at least leave your name. When you rise to greatness, you can return the favor.”

Hu Li tapped the counter lightly, the dark hollow of her hood fixed on him.

Xie Qingyang hesitated, then stepped back toward her, bowing earnestly. “My surname is Xie, given name Qingyang. I beg for your aid, sir.”

He was just a penniless sword cultivator, overlooked by all. Hu Li’s olive branch was his only chance.

“Xie Qingyang.” Hu Li smiled faintly. “Got it.”

From beneath the counter, she pulled out a pre-prepared recommendation letter to Tianyan Sect and handed it over.

The moment he took it, the system in her mind chimed: 

[Ding—Mission Completed.]

That’s it? Already done?

Hu Li’s lips curled. Before Xie Qingyang could even open the letter, she snatched it back and tore it to pieces. In its place, she slipped him a business card.

“I just remembered—this place is even better than what was written in that letter. Fellow Daoist should head there instead.”

Xie Qingyang frowned, suspicious. “Truly?”

Hu Li nodded, sales pitch smooth as butter: “Food and lodging included. Go there, and you’ll surely make a name for yourself.”

“Make a name for myself…” The words echoed in his mind.

He could already see the image—himself standing tall, everyone beneath his feet, basking in glory.

The thrill almost made him laugh out loud. Hu Li, hearing his reaction, nearly shook with suppressed laughter under her robe.

But just as she was about to clap the counter and see him off, a string of colorful glowing text flashed across the air behind Xie Qingyang:

【Heard the author named the male lead after his bald head, inspired by shampoo he couldn’t use.】
【Really? I’ll pay double for my Qingyang!】
【Shampoo brand: I’ll sue you for slander.】
【Guys, stop fighting. Let’s talk plot, okay?】
【Fine. Just started—this is the male lead’s White Moonlight?! Why does he read like a shady salesman?】
【Author’s edited too many times and ruined the character.】
【Got it. Thanks.】
【Second read—wait, wasn’t the fox spirit supposed to give him a Tianyan Sect recommendation? Why’s she handing out a brothel pimp’s card?!】
【What? A pimp’s card?! Did the author go crazy again last night?】

Hu Li: … Are these… live reader comments?!

Her smile froze. She quickly hustled Xie Qingyang out, swarmed as he was by a barrage of rainbow subtitles, then flailed at the system: 

[“System! Did you see that? The comments—on Xie Qingyang! Actual reader comments!”]

One line stood out sharply in her memory. It was one she herself had left back when she had read the novel.

What she hadn’t expected was that the new ones were live. They even showed exactly what she handed to him.

The system was stunned too. It was only four days out of the factory, an intern with zero field experience.

Everything it knew about guiding hosts came from senior systems’ hand-me-down advice. It had never seen live comments filling the air like this.

But one rule the seniors drilled into it: Never let the host see you panic, or they’ll take the reins.

So after a moment, it bluffed: “Host, this is your golden finger. Since you didn’t study the original carefully, I’m giving you this perk.”

Hu Li raised a brow. “A golden finger?”

She half-believed it. Then, eyes bright with mischief, she said: “Alright, then show me more! I want a live stream of Xie Qingyang entering Yunlou!”

The business card she had given him? The contact of a Yunlou brothel keeper.

*******

Yunlou was the black market’s most infamous pleasure house. In the original, Xie Qingyang once abandoned Gu Sheng in a flower house, ruining her reputation. She never let go of that shame, even at the story’s end.

So now, Hu Li figured she was just returning the favor, using his own trick against him.

But the system had no such power. When she demanded to watch his visit to Yunlou, it stayed silent, no matter how much she pestered.

Then—clang!—the wind chime outside jingled again.

A sharp whistling sound tore the air.

“Host, get down!” the system barked.

“Huh?” Hu Li yelped, then dropped to the ground, hugging her head as an arrow shot straight for her face, so fast it left only a faint afterimage.

“What the hell?!” Her pupils shrank. She shook as she crouched, teeth chattering. “Too vicious! Way too vicious! In the original, at least I survived half the book—who’s in such a rush to kill me now?”

The cultivation world was all blades and blood. She only wanted to be a timid little fox. Who knew the villainess’s enemies would show up so soon?

The system sighed. [“Host, it’s not an enemy. It’s a plot trigger.”]

When choosing a host, the seniors said there were two rules: not too cunning, or the system would be manipulated; not too stupid, or the host would self-destruct before anyone else got to them.

Hu Li… seemed to hit both extremes.

“What do you mean it’s not an enemy?” She peeked out, staring at the arrow quivering in her counter. Her throat bobbed as she swallowed.

The arrow was sharp enough to split bone. If she hadn’t ducked, she would already be respawning.

“This world really is full of savages.” She scowled. “System, what do I do with enemies? The novel said the original Hu Li offended tons of people, but never explained how she dealt with them.”

The system growled: “[…Host, has it occurred to you this might not be an enemy at all?”]

Hu Li frowned, pulling the arrow free. A tuft of fox fur was tied to the tail of the arrow. “Nonsense. They even plucked the original’s fur. That’s definitely a blood feud.”

“That’s a message talisman tied to it!” the system snapped. “Rip it open!”

“Huh?”

She turned the arrow over. Sure enough, behind the fur was a scrap of talisman paper with crooked runes drawn on it.

When she tore it, a woman’s voice rang out: “Little Highness, His Majesty commands you to personally infiltrate Tianyan Sect.”

The paper burned into ash.

Hu Li blinked. She was just about to ask What the hell kind of plot is this? It wasn’t in the original! when the system cut her off with a new mission:

[“Second Task: Infiltrate Tianyan Sect. Become the heroine Gu Sheng’s spirit pet.”]

Hu Li: “Huh?”

Support