Stepping in for the Heroine to Crush the Protagonist Group [Transmigration] - Chapter 32

“Nine pounds and fifteen pence?” Hu Li ventured tentatively.

Min Yaxing nodded. “So the correct answer is….”

“B!” they both exclaimed in unison.

“My dear friend!” Min Yaxing nearly wept with emotion, almost reverting to a primitive state on the spot and howling at Hu Li.

After nearly three years of being trapped in this world, she had finally found someone. She had almost resigned herself to a lonely, solitary existence.

Hu Li was equally thrilled. She had finally discovered the mastermind behind the Type 67 hand grenade and the Floating Life Pagoda’s intricate mechanisms.

Pushing away Min Yaxing, who was squeezing her so tightly she could barely breathe, Hu Li took a deep breath and began sharing information, talking late into the night.

“So, you were originally the second female lead, then became the male lead and second male lead, and now you’re the female lead again?!” Min Yaxing exclaimed, her shock mirroring that of someone who had just binged a hundred and eight episodes of a melodramatic family drama.

Hu Li forced a wry smile. “Yeah, it’s quite a mess. But your mission isn’t exactly simple either.”

Min Yaxing had to play the ultimate villain, setting traps for protagonists across different eras, while simultaneously developing military industries, the internet, and spearheading an industrial revolution in the Cultivation World.

This is definitely no easy task.

Hu Li thought for a moment, realizing her own mission seemed relatively simple by comparison.

“Oh, right,” Hu Li added, “you need to keep the soul-swapping thing with the protagonist a secret.”

She hadn’t yet gotten a clear explanation from Gu Sheng about the reason for the swap, so she didn’t want more people to know.

Min Yaxing nodded. “Don’t worry, my lips are sealed.”

As if remembering something, she snapped her fingers, and five strange talisman papers materialized in her palm.

She placed the talismans in Hu Li’s hand. “A little welcome gift.”

Hu Li glanced down at the symbols, raising an eyebrow. “New toys?”

Min Yaxing leaned against the table, grinning proudly. “Yep! It took ages to make just a hundred of these. Here, have five to play with.”

Hu Li felt a little embarrassed. “This gift is too generous. I can’t possibly reciprocate.”

Min Yaxing chuckled, picked up the wine cup Hu Li had set down earlier, and held it out. “Come on, sis, just drink this wine. Consider it your return gift.”

Hu Li lowered her gaze to the cup and shook her head. “No way. Do you think I’m stupid? I know you’ve spiked it.”

*******

Min Yaxing’s hand, which had been holding the wine cup, paused. She pried open Hu Li’s tightly clenched fingers, placed the cup in her hand, and coaxed, “My dear sister, our purpose in this world is to clean up after the Heavenly Dao. The female protagonist can do whatever she wants, but we can’t—we’d be struck by lightning.”

“Besides, even if you don’t drink this wine now, someone else will trick you into drinking it later. You can’t prevent it.”

“So, take my advice. Instead of being screwed over by some unknown future scheme, you might as well drink this wine now. That way, you’ll help me advance the plot and save yourself trouble later. It’s a win-win!”

Hu Li fell silent, staring at the clear wine in the cup, pondering Min Yaxing’s words.

After a long moment, she sighed deeply, finally conceding that Min Yaxing’s reasoning made sense. Closing her eyes, she tilted her head back and drank the wine.

Seeing her plan succeed, Min Yaxing beamed and poured herself a cup as well. She pulled Hu Li to her feet and led her to the center of the Demon Palace, where she conjured a fragrant altar laden with apples, bananas, and persimmons.

Hu Li frowned, watching Min Yaxing place a statue of Guan Yu on the altar. “What are you planning to do?” she asked softly.

After arranging the Guan Yu statue and lighting incense sticks, Min Yaxing placed two futons before the altar, pulled Hu Li down to kneel, and declared bluntly, “We’re becoming sworn sisters.”

Hu Li gasped, “Isn’t that a bit much?”

Min Yaxing replied, “I’ll get you five more new ones.”

Hu Li fell silent for a moment, then exclaimed, “You’re the only sister I’ve ever had!” She raised her hands, ready to swear sisterhood with Min Yaxing.

But just as their foreheads were about to touch the ground, a deafening explosion shook the heavens, abruptly interrupting their ritual.

Hu Li swallowed hard and glanced at Min Yaxing. “Sister, do we really need such a grand spectacle for a sisterhood oath?” she asked, noting the Italian artillery now firing.

Min Yaxing helped Hu Li up, cleared the incense table, and pointed to the collapsed corner of the ceiling with a helpless smile. “It wasn’t me firing the cannons. My daughter-in-law is here to blow up the fortress again.”

“Your daughter-in-law is blowing up the fortress?” Hu Li tilted her head in confusion, glancing at the drafty hole in the roof. Following Min Yaxing’s gaze, she saw a figure approaching through the swirling dust. Her temples throbbed. “So it’s Shang Miaoyun.”

Min Yaxing stepped in front of Hu Li, confirming, “Indeed. She’s bombed my Demon Fairy Fortress nearly a hundred times these past few days.”

Her Majesty… Demon Fairy Fortress… Hu Li glanced sideways at Min Yaxing, thinking, Too many elements here. This is getting out of hand.

*******

Shang Miaoyun, clutching eight Explosive Talismans, strode into the Demon Palace. The moment she saw Min Yaxing, the talismans shot toward her in unison.

Min Yaxing remained unfazed. With practiced ease, she raised her hand, creating a wormhole-like barrier. The Explosive Talismans vanished into it, disappearing in an instant.

Shang Miaoyun clearly anticipated this move. She pursed her lips, her chubby cheeks puffing out slightly, then clasped her hands together above her head. A Demon Slaying Array, centered on her, activated on the spot.

Hu Li lowered her gaze to the suddenly appearing array beneath her feet. Remembering Gu Sheng’s pathetic combat skills, she hastily stepped out from behind Min Yaxing and called out to Shang Miaoyun, “Miaoyun Junior Sister, stop!”

Hearing Hu Li’s voice, Shang Miaoyun glanced at her, thinking, That Fox Demon has already been thrown into the Demon Abyss by Ahe.

She immediately concluded that Hu Li was Gu Sheng.

With a concise, “Senior Sister, don’t worry, I’ll save you,” Shang Miaoyun dispelled the array beneath Hu Li’s feet and resumed her attack on Min Yaxing.

Min Yaxing sighed inwardly, preparing to flee as usual. But then her Imperial System suddenly announced, “Host, new mission issued: Send the protagonist group from Feixian into the Demon Abyss to awaken their demonic nature.”

Min Yaxing stared blankly.

She glanced back at her sworn sisters-to-be, then at her “cheap daughter” who had just rushed in to coax her wife. Closing her eyes, she wore a deathly smile.

This damn System knows how to screw over its Host, she thought darkly. Without hesitation, she snapped her fingers, bundling Shang Miaoyun and Min Xiuhe together and sending them into the Demon Abyss.

Good things take time, Min Yaxing consoled herself. She’s actually helping them.

Hu Li, standing nearby, gaped at the sudden wormhole that had appeared on the ground. She cautiously took a few steps closer, peered inside, and exclaimed in shock, “Where did you send them?”

Min Yaxing’s hand silently drifted behind Hu Li’s back. “The young couple was arguing,” she said. “I sent them in there to deepen their bond.”

Hu Li pondered this. “Is this some kind of relationship counseling center?”

With a forceful shove, Min Yaxing pushed Hu Li into the wormhole, smiling faintly. “Something like that. Besides, the person you want to see is in there too, dear sister. Don’t miss this opportunity.”

Remembering what she still owed Hu Li, she tossed five talisman papers into Hu Li’s hand as she vanished into the wormhole.

Thud!

Hu Li landed butt-first with a sharp cry of pain. She scrambled to her feet, rubbing her bruised rear as she surveyed her surroundings.

It was pitch-black, so dark she couldn’t see her hand in front of her face. The only sound was the wind, howling like a child’s wail.

Her scalp prickled with fear. She frantically rummaged through her storage bag for a tinderbox and lit it, casting a meager circle of light around herself.

A desert?! The moment she recognized the terrain, Hu Li forgot all about her aching rear. She sprang to her feet, sweeping the tinderbox around in a circle, her heart sinking.

It really was a desert. She wanted to cry but no tears came. Clutching the talisman paper Min Yaxing had given her, she muttered, “So much for ‘old friends meeting old friends’—more like stabbing each other in the back.”

With a sigh, she leaned forlornly against a nearby tree, intending to indulge in some melodramatic wallowing.

But the moment she touched the tree, all thoughts of self-pity vanished.

Because the tree wasn’t a tree at all—it was a cactus.

Hu Li collapsed to her knees, utterly defeated.

At that moment, the System’s silence penalty expired.

*******

It flickered within Hu Li’s Sea of Consciousness, remembering its previous lesson. This time, it wasted no time, immediately projecting a map within her mind, marking two points in blue and red. It quickly explained.

 “Host, the Demon Abyss storyline has begun. Gu Sheng is at the red point, and you’re at the blue point. Hurry and find her.”

With that, it fell silent, fearing Hu Li might banish it to the “black room” again.

“Demon Abyss?” Hu Li repeated the words, her thoughts gradually returning to focus. After processing the term, she frowned and exclaimed in shock, “This is the Demon Abyss?!”

In the original novel….

Hu Li’s thoughts froze. She had absolutely no idea what happened in this part of the story.

Her roommate had told her this section was written like something out of Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, so terrifying that reading it would give you nightmares for three nights straight. That’s why she’d chosen to skip it.

As a result, navigating this part of the plot would depend entirely on luck.

Hu Li stared at the starless sky, already feeling a chill creep down her spine.

The female lead… For the first time, the title felt like a crushing weight.

Moreover, she had reason to suspect that, thanks to the “Protagonist’s Halo,” she’d be forced into frequent face-to-face encounters with ghosts in the coming days.

With this realization, Hu Li sank into a miserable crouch, ready to give up for the first time. She’d rather be struck by lightning than have ghosts breathing down her neck.

******

Hearing Hu Li’s thoughts, the System quickly interjected.

“Host, this is the Demon Abyss, not the Ghost Abyss! There won’t be any ghosts getting up close and personal with you! Besides, don’t you want to find Gu Sheng and get to the bottom of this soul-swapping business?”

Gu Sheng? Hu Li lifted her ostrich-like head, pondered for a moment, then buried her face back in her arms. “I’ll look for her when it’s daylight,” she replied to the System.

The System fell silent for a moment, then informed Hu Li, “Host, the Demon Abyss has no daylight. It’s perpetual night here.”

Hu Li: ?

Her expression complex, she slowly rose to her feet. “You could have mentioned that earlier,” she said coldly.

With that, she reached into Gu Sheng’s Storage Bag and rummaged around, pulling out two Peachwood Swords. She gripped one in each hand, then asked the System for two garlic necklaces, which she hung around her neck.

Still feeling uneasy, she even asked the System for a bag of raw glutinous rice, which she slung over her shoulder.

“Host,” the System said, “I told you, there are no ghosts in the Demon Abyss. And no zombies either.”

Hu Li replied with utter seriousness, “Just in case.”

Fully armed, she prepared to follow the tracking coordinates to find Gu Sheng.

But just a few steps in, a hairy black hand suddenly grabbed her ankle, dragging her violently into the quicksand.

Support Stepping in for the Heroine to Crush the Protagonist Group [Transmigration]