Stepping in for the Heroine to Crush the Protagonist Group [Transmigration] - Chapter 2

Second mission: Infiltrate the Tianyan Sect and become the heroine Gu Sheng’s spiritual pet.

Hu Li slapped the counter and shouted, “The villainess becomes the heroine’s spirit pet? That was never in the original novel!”

In the book, the few scenes where the original character and Gu Sheng interacted were all about how she schemed against Gu Sheng, creating rifts between her and Xie Qingyang. But now—this new relationship? Completely unheard of.

And what was with this little prince and the king nonsense? The novel only mentioned that the original host was a fox demon who once saved Xie Qingyang. No one ever said she was some kind of princess of the fox clan!

Hu Li grumbled endlessly in her head, leaving no chance for the system to speak.

Finally, the system lost its patience and rammed around inside her consciousness a few times.

Her vision darkened, and countless fragments of memory flashed through her mind like a reel of spinning lantern slides—rapid, chaotic, unstoppable.

They were the original host’s memories.

The flood of information hit her like a storm. Hu Li clutched her head, slumped to the floor against the counter, and struggled to process it all.

After a long while, she finally came back to her senses. Staring blankly at the ceiling beam, she let out a shaky breath and cursed, “The original host really wasn’t human—she called her mother’s killer her own mother!”

Those memories pieced together a story that had never been mentioned in the novel, one that was sickening to the core.

The original host was indeed a princess of the fox clan but the current Fox King, Hu Yingying, wasn’t her mother. Her true mother was Hu Zhizhi, the previous Fox King—Hu Yingying’s older sister.

The three should have been a loving family.

But Hu Yingying and the original host had joined hands to murder Hu Zhizhi and seize her throne.

And the most twisted part? The original host didn’t hate Hu Yingying in the least. She obeyed her every word without a hint of resistance, as if utterly blind to the fact that her “aunt” was her mother’s murderer.

The one who killed her mother, yet she treated her better than her real mother ever could have.

“Unbelievable!” Hu Li pounded the ground in anger, then immediately yelped from the pain and jumped to her feet.

Before transmigrating, she had grown up in an orphanage and had never known a mother’s love. To see the original host throw away her own like trash filled her with rage.

No wonder…no wonder that in the novel, the original host had manipulated Xie Qingyang, forcing him to infiltrate the Tianyan Sect in her place. And then, not long after, she snuck in herself, as if seeking death.

Turns out she was following the orders of the woman who killed her mother.

Hu Li’s eyes reddened with fury, but soon she forced herself to calm down.

The original host’s sins had nothing to do with her. What mattered now was figuring out how to sneak into Tianyan Sect and become the heroine’s spirit pet.

The novel only mentioned her infiltration in passing. Just one vague sentence and when Hu Li interrogated the system for details, it refused to spill a word.

Then suddenly, the book’s comment section revived itself:

【Why is Shampoo looking for a job in the black market? Is he brain-dead?】
【Didn’t you read what Shampoo said? He wants a job that’ll make him famous across the cultivation world. Only the villainess can help him.】
【Famous in the cultivation world? More like famous in the red-light district if he becomes a courtesan.】
【Hey, stop slandering Qingyang! He was tricked by that fox spirit!】
【That fox spirit was doing the world a favor. A scumbag like Qingyang deserves it.】
【What? Don’t be so biased, okay?】
【What’s with the bird language up there?】

*******

The argument went on and on, and Hu Li got so caught up watching the chaos that she forgot to grill the system for answers.

The comments had split into two factions; Team Xie Qingyang and Team Hu Li—bickering nonstop until Hu Li’s eyes watered from exhaustion. Then, as if realizing she was watching them, the comments shifted.

【Hey, did anyone notice there’s a chapter that only has the villainess’s name, followed by a line of ellipses?】
【I saw that too! Did the author fall asleep on the keyboard?】
【Why six ellipses though?】
【Go look at your keyboard, genius.】

More bickering.

As Hu Li stared at the comment section, a spark of realization struck her. She cleared her throat dramatically and said, “Ah, if only someone could tell me how to sneak into the Tianyan Sect!”

For a moment, the comments vanished.

Then, they came flooding back:

【The ellipsis chapter changed! The fox spirit asked: How do I get into the Tianyan Sect?】
【It’s true! Just checked—hilarious! The author really knows how to boost clicks.】
【Quick! Let’s help the fox spirit figure it out. I feel like this novel’s breaking the fourth wall in real time!】

“Hilarious indeed,” Hu Li thought. This “golden finger” of hers was too amazing.

As the commenters brainstormed like loyal strategists, she leaned back lazily and cracked open a handful of melon seeds to snack on.

Before long, they had come up with the perfect plan. Hu Li spat out the last seed shell, patted her clothes, gave a big thumbs-up to the screen, and said sincerely, “The power of the people is truly great.”

With that, she packed up the few belongings left in her shop, stuffed them into her storage pouch, pulled her hood over her head, and stepped outside.

The sky had already turned dark.

The other shopkeepers were closing up, hurrying home with heavy bags or heading out for nightlife.

Blending in with the crowd, Hu Li easily disappeared among them.

The black market at night was a world of extremes. The southern side, which led out of the market, was pitch-black even the lamps refused to shine there.

But the north side was another story. It led down to the underground city, where night meant blazing lights so bright they could blind even a ghost.

And that was exactly where Hu Li was headed.

The black market’s underground city only opened after dark. The people and things down there were even darker than those above.

The inhabitants were ghost cultivators, demonic cultivators and heretics. There’s not a single righteous soul among them.

The goods sold there were forbidden tomes, dark spells, and twisted rituals—nothing upright in sight.

They were like rats dwelling under the earth, scurrying to life only when night fell.

*******

At the entrance to the underground city, two ghost cultivators stood guard.

Whether on purpose or not, both were dressed as the legendary Ox-Head and Horse-Face from the underworld. Under the flickering red-and-yellow lights, the sight was enough to make one’s scalp crawl.

“Got a Blessing Seal?” the one dressed as Ox-Head barked, stepping forward to block Hu Li’s path.

Hu Li’s whole body trembled. She stared at the iron trident blocking her path, sucked in a sharp breath, and stumbled back out of the undercity gate. “I—I don’t have one.”

The horse-faced guard slammed his spear into the ground with a loud clang, barking, “No blessing seal, yet you dare try to enter the undercity?!”

Hu Li nodded instinctively, then quickly shook her head again. Staring at the ground, she asked hesitantly, “Sirs… aside from the blessing seal, is there any other way to get inside?”

Neither the original novel nor the comments had mentioned this “blessing seal” thing. Where on earth was she supposed to get one now?

The bull-headed guard suddenly said, “If you don’t have a blessing seal, you’ll need to tie a red cord around your wrist.”

“A red cord?” Hu Li rummaged through her storage pouch, her expression growing awkward.

The horse-face guard snorted. “Don’t bother looking. We’ll give you one.”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a messy handful of frayed red strings. Without care, he picked one and tossed it at her.

Hu Li caught it, wrinkling her nose at the strange, indescribable smell clinging to the cord. Forcing down her nausea, she looped it around her wrist.

The moment the red cord tightened around her skin, it vanished.

Frowning, she was about to ask why it disappeared, but before she could, the bull-headed guard withdrew his trident and gave her a shove. “Hurry up and get in. Don’t block the way.”

His voice was sharp, and with that monstrous face glaring down at her, Hu Li shivered and decided she didn’t want to ask anything else. She dashed into the undercity as fast as she could.

The undercity was crowded, a steady stream of black-robed figures flowing through its streets. Contrary to her imagination, not everyone here had a monstrous, ghastly face—everyone looked more or less the same, cloaked in the same black robes as the surface market.

The place she was looking for was called Wanbao Residence. From what she had gathered from the comments, it sold everything imaginable and supposedly had an artifact that could conceal a demon’s aura. That was her ticket into Tianyan Sect.

But with shops stretching down both sides of the street, two blocks long at least, how was she supposed to know where to start?

“System,” Hu Li muttered under her breath, “do you come with an evil navigation feature?”

The system, which had been busily drafting a complaint report to the main system, finally responded lazily, “Host, Wanbao Residence is the richest place in the undercity. Just head toward the brightest lights—you’ll find it.”

Translation: No navigation. Good luck.

Hu Li rolled her eyes and decided to do it the old-fashioned way by asking for directions.

She picked her first target: a black-robed vendor selling medicinal herbs. People who sell herbs can’t be that bad, she thought. Even if they are, their combat power shouldn’t be higher than mine. Comforting herself with that logic, she stepped forward.

“Excuse me, big brother, could I ask you for directions?” she said with her best polite tone.

The vendor looked up. From within the dark hood, two sharp, cold eyes seemed to cut right through her disguise.

Hu Li instinctively checked her own robe, then patted her hood. Yes, it still covered her face. So how did he…

“Wanbao Residence?” the man rasped, his voice rough like sandpaper. “Little girl, looking to buy something?”

Her breath caught. He had called her little girl.

Hu Li quietly tested her voice, murmuring a few words under her breath. It still came out as a low male tone. There was no way he could’ve known her gender.

That could only mean one thing: the man before her was no ordinary peddler.

“If you don’t want me to say who you really are,” the man said, “then buy something before you leave.”

Whether in the black market or down here, exposing one’s true identity was dangerous especially for a lone woman like her. His meaning was clear enough: this was blackmail.

And Hu Li didn’t have the luxury to take risks. After a long moment of internal screaming, she gritted her teeth, pulled five spirit stones from her pouch, and said, “I’ll buy.”

“Tch. Stingy little thing.” The man snatched the stones and clicked his tongue, though he still followed through.

He grabbed a small bundle of herbs from the stall and tossed it to her. “Wanbao Residence is at the end of this street. And take this as a lesson, girl—next time you come here, don’t go around being polite. Most of the ones who are… end up like you.”

Before Hu Li could respond, both the man and his stall vanished into thin air.

So he hadn’t really seen through her identity at all. He’d just guessed she was a woman because she’d been too polite.

People are the real demons here… she cursed silently. “What, are men not allowed to be polite?!”

Stuffing the herb bundle into her pouch, she trudged toward the end of the street.

Thankfully, the scammer had at least told the truth about the directions.

At the street’s end, a towering signboard came into view, the three bold characters for Wanbao Residence shining so brightly they nearly blinded her.

But instead of excitement, Hu Li felt despair.

Because the entire building was covered in glowing lamps—bright enough to give a cultivator a sunstroke.

Inside, however, the decor was elegant, exuding a refined ancient charm instead of the tacky wealth she expected.

Passing a screen, she found rows upon rows of exquisite magical tools glittering in neat displays with each one expensive enough to make her heart ache.

“They just leave all this out in the open and aren’t afraid of thieves?” she muttered.

“No one dares steal from Wanbao Residence,” came a calm voice.

A man in a bright yellow robe stepped from behind one of the shelves, walking toward her with measured grace.

Hu Li blinked at him and blurted, “Wow, even the delivery guys are cultivating now?”

The man froze mid-step, clearly not understanding, but his expression suggested he suspected it wasn’t a compliment.

Realizing she had spoken aloud again, Hu Li clamped her mouth shut, glaring at her own treacherous tongue.

“I’m the shopkeeper here—Feng Shu,” the man said smoothly. “What would you like to buy, Daoist friend?”

Testing her voice carefully and finding it under control again, Hu Li replied, “Shopkeeper Feng, I’m looking for a magic item that can conceal a demon’s aura. Do you have one?”

“Of course. The only question is—can you afford it?”

“…May I ask the price?”

“Starts at one hundred spirit stones.”

Hu Li reached into her pouch. Inside were exactly one hundred spirit stones—her entire savings from half a month of working at an inn.

“Shopkeeper Feng, could you… make it a little cheaper?”

“We don’t haggle.”

Her hand tightened around the pouch until her knuckles turned white. Finally, she said through clenched teeth, “Then I’ll take the one for a hundred spirit stones.”

Feng Shu nodded, walked a small circle through the shelves, and returned with a delicate bracelet strung with tiny red pearls. He handed it to her.

“Payment first,” he said, eyes flicking to the pouch she still refused to let go of.

Hu Li exhaled, closed her eyes, and surrendered the pouch. She took the bracelet in exchange.

Feng Shu counted out the stones, then returned the now-empty pouch to her. “This bracelet is called Hidden Fragrance. When you need to mask your aura, simply wear it.”

“Understood.”

She nodded weakly, staring down at her deflated pouch as though her soul had left her body, then shuffled out of the store like a ghost.

Once she was gone, another black-robed figure emerged from behind the shelves, handing Feng Shu five spirit stones.

Feng Shu bowed respectfully. “Elder Qi, as you instructed, I’ve sold the item to that fox demon.”

“Mm.” Elder Qi gave a faint nod. “Well done, Feng Shu.”

Feng Shu said nothing more, and Elder Qi turned to leave the undercity.

But before he reached the door, another black-robed man burst into the shop, shouting in panic, “Shopkeeper Feng! Something’s happened at Cloud Pavilion—someone’s causing trouble!”

“Who?” Feng Shu asked.

“Someone named… Xie Qingyang!”

Elder Qi froze mid-step. After a beat, he said evenly, “Feng Shu, I’ll handle this myself.”

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