Surprise! The Fake Heiress is Actually an Ancient Master of Metaphysics! - Chapter 1

Under a gloomy night sky, two figures clung tightly to each other by the floor-to-ceiling window.

Tan Lingyin leaned against the cold glass, trapped in the embrace of a tall, imposing man.

The man’s face was hidden in shadow, revealing only his bright, deep-set black eyes that burned into her with an aggressive, domineering intensity.

His large, veined hand gently traced her cheek, the warmth of his fingertips brushing against her smooth skin. “Yinyin, I’ve waited so long for this day.”

Tan Lingyin felt weak all over, imprisoned in his scorching embrace, her fingers devoid of strength.

Her cheeks flushed pink like peach blossoms, her beautiful fox-like eyes filled with confusion and bewilderment.

Who was this man?

Why did he feel vaguely familiar?

Her startled expression darkened the man’s gaze even further. He pressed her against the cold window, his nose brushing against hers.

“Sweet Yinyin, can I kiss you?”

His deep, slightly hoarse voice, like the chime of jade, sent shivers down her spine.

His slender, jade-like fingers lightly caressed the delicate skin of her neck, sending faint electric currents through her.

Tan Lingyin’s heart pounded like a drum, her mind dizzy with chaos.

The man’s nose slowly moved away, his warm breath carrying the fresh scent of jasmine, making her want to drown in it.

A cold sensation touched her lips, followed by a sharp click that jolted her awake.

Her eyes flew open to see a blinding white flash of lightning streak past the small window.

Cold raindrops seeped through the window’s cracks, splashing onto her cheeks.

She touched her lips, feeling the cool dampness there.

It was just raindrops—she had thought it was the man kissing her…

“Ugh! Tan Lingyin, what are you thinking? Getting lost in a dream like that?”

She quickly wiped her lips with the back of her hand and shut the window.

Turning to the small wall clock in the room, she saw all three hands overlapping—midnight.

“It’s time! Finally, I’m eighteen!”

She jumped excitedly out of bed and rushed to the nearby desk.

Another bolt of lightning split the night sky, illuminating Tan Lingyin at the desk.

The girl in a white dress had a delicate face that looked ghostly pale under the fleeting light, her once-charming fox eyes now dull and lifeless.

Her entire being exuded a fragile, malnourished aura.

“After all these years of being haunted by you, my Xuanling Bone has finally awakened!”

Tan Lingyin murmured under her breath, gripping the brush tightly.

Using the intermittent flashes of lightning outside, she dipped the brush tip into red cinnabar and pressed it onto the yellow talisman paper.

Her strokes flowed like a dragon, swift and unbroken!

A faint ghostly figure floating beside her leaned in to look and shrieked in terror, “A Soul-Destroying Talisman!”

“Look! She really can draw talismans!”

“So everything she said before was true!”

The room wasn’t just home to this one ghost—many others chattered, panicked, and screamed.

The piercing shrieks grated on Tan Lingyin’s eardrums, making her frown slightly.

Without turning around, she raised her hand and slapped the talisman onto one of the ghostly figures’ foreheads.

“Time to send you on your way!”

“Ahhh—” An even more bloodcurdling scream erupted.

The ghostly figure instantly dissolved into nothingness—utterly annihilated, with no chance of reincarnation.

The Soul-Destroying Talisman burst into flames, turning to black ash.

Tan Lingyin turned her head to look at the three other shadowy figures in the room, her pink lips curling slightly to reveal a row of pale white teeth.

“Your turn now.”

Amidst the eerie wails, a sudden knock interrupted the scene.

Liu Yun’s voice came from outside the door, “Open up!”

Reluctantly, Tan Lingyin went to answer.

Just then, a blue flash of lightning streaked across the window, illuminating her white dress and deathly pale face as she opened the door—her ghastly appearance startling Liu Yun.

“Ah!” Liu Yun screamed before erupting in fury. “You wretched girl! Dressed like some ghost—are you trying to scare me to death?”

With that, she shoved the door open and raised her hand to strike Tan Lingyin.

Tan Lingyin stepped back, narrowly avoiding the blow. The hurt and disappointment in her eyes gradually gave way to confusion.

This woman, whom she had called “Mother” for over a decade, bore no resemblance to her in appearance—they were not mother and daughter at all.

Liu Yun missed her target and snapped irritably, “Get downstairs now! I have an announcement to make.”

She turned and stormed off, muttering under her breath, “That creepy brat, skulking around like a ghost—why isn’t she dead yet?”

As the curses faded into the distance, Tan Lingyin tightened her grip on the doorknob.

Interesting.

So she wasn’t Liu Yun’s daughter after all.

No wonder Liu Yun had never shown her kindness, always beating or berating her, even treating her like a servant.

Out of guilt for occupying their daughter’s body—and fearing Liu Yun might have noticed something amiss—Tan Lingyin had obediently played the role of the dutiful daughter, submitting to every demand like a lifeless doll.

Of course, she still dodged the beatings—she wasn’t foolish enough to stand there and take them.

Before turning eighteen, Tan Lingyin had been unable to open her Celestial Eye or wield any mystical arts.

Only once the Xuanling Bone within her fully matured could she walk the path of the arcane.

At eighteen, the Xuanling Bone had finally reached its completion.

“What kind of trial is this, exactly?” Tan Lingyin pinched the bridge of her nose, baffled as to why she had been inexplicably cast down to the mortal realm for this ordeal.

Originally the revered Ancestor of the Mystic Path in the celestial realm, she had merely drunk too much and fallen asleep—only to wake up as the mortal Tan Lingyin, sharing not just the same name but even the same face.

Fortunately, this body possessed the Xuanling Bone; otherwise, she would have been doomed to an ordinary life.

Before closing the door, she glanced back at the three shadowy figures in the room, sending them huddling together in terror, trembling like leaves.

Tan Lingyin descended the stairs to find the servants cleaning up the living room.

An unfinished cake sat on the table, while confetti and flower petals littered the floor.

Clearly, someone had just celebrated a birthday here.

On the sofa, Tan Yayue nestled in Liu Yun’s arms, beaming with joy.

Her smiling face bore a striking resemblance to Liu Yun’s.

Now that was a real mother-daughter pair.

Tan Hongzheng wore a lukewarm smile and beckoned to Tan Lingyin. “Lingyin, come sit.”

“Sit? That thing is about to be kicked out—don’t dirty my sofa!” Liu Yun immediately cut in sharply, her glare sharp enough to slice through Tan Lingyin.

Tan Hongzheng coughed awkwardly and continued, “Lingyin, we never told you this, but… you were adopted. Back then, Yayue was lost due to an accident, and to ease the pain of losing our daughter, we adopted you from an orphanage.”

“But now that Yayue has been found, the Tan family can only have one daughter. If you stay, it’ll only make her uncomfortable, so…”

Liu Yun cut him off, frowning as she said, “Why are you spouting all this nonsense? That bastard has been freeloading for eighteen years—that’s already more than enough kindness from us.”

She then turned to Tan Lingyin. “For these eighteen years, you’ve been living the life that should have belonged to Yueyue. If you stay in this house any longer, our whole family will feel guilty toward Yueyue!”

“So tomorrow morning, rain or shine, you’re getting out!”

While they were speaking, Tan Lingyin had been silently studying the faces of this family.

Especially Tan Yayue.

Her fate was to die young, yet she had grown up perfectly healthy to the age of eighteen.

When Tan Lingyin first descended to endure her tribulation, this body was already five years old. Because the original soul had departed, she had no memories of the past.

At first, she thought the little girl was destined for an early death, and that the heavens had arranged for her to use this body for her trial, so she wasn’t truly occupying someone else’s life.

But now, it seemed the girl’s early demise was no accident.

Could this be the matter she was meant to resolve during this tribulation?

Tan Lingyin glanced at Tan Yayue, her dark eyes dimming slightly, and said coldly, “I understand.”

But Liu Yun noticed the look and immediately shielded Tan Yayue behind her, gnashing her teeth as she cursed, “You little bitch, what kind of look was that? You stole my Yueyue’s life, and now you dare glare at her?!”

“Look at your wretched, ghostly appearance—why didn’t you just die sooner?”

Tan Lingyin narrowed her eyes slightly, her fingertips gathering a trace of mystical energy before flicking it toward Liu Yun’s mouth.

Liu Yun suddenly felt a sharp sting, as if her lips had been zapped by electricity. “Ah! That hurts!”

Tan Lingyin’s expression remained icy as she said slowly, “Words have consequences. The karma you’ve accumulated with your mouth will soon come back to you. This is only the beginning.”

At these words, Liu Yun shot to her feet and stormed toward Tan Lingyin.

“How dare you curse me, you damned little bitch!” Liu Yun raised her hand to strike.

“Stop!” Tan Hongzheng, who was standing nearby, grabbed her wrist. “Why hit the child? No matter what, she’s still the daughter you raised for eighteen years!”

Liu Yun glared at him, eyes wide. “Tan Hongzheng, don’t pretend you see her as a daughter! Don’t think I don’t know you’ve been sneaking glances at her!”

She shot a look at Tan Lingyin. “She didn’t seem like much as a child, but the older she gets, the more she looks like a seductress!” Then she shoved Tan Hongzheng. “She’s practically bewitched you, you old fool!”

Tan Hongzheng raised his hand to strike her, but Tan Yayue rushed over and clung to him. “Dad, don’t hit Mom, I’m scared…”

“Don’t be scared, Mom’s here.” Liu Yun immediately softened, pulling Tan Yayue into a comforting embrace.

Tan Hongzheng also exhaled slowly and said, “Don’t be afraid, Yueyue. Dad lost his temper for a moment.”

Tan Yayue looped her arm through his. “It seems like whenever Lingyin is home, you and Mom argue a lot. I wonder if it’ll start affecting me too…”

In an instant, the way Tan Hongzheng looked at Tan Lingyin changed.

“Exactly. Look at her—like some kind of walking corpse,” Liu Yun spat disdainfully, pulling Tan Yayue back to the couch.

But Tan Yayue spoke up softly again, “Never mind, Mom. Maybe I’m overthinking it. Don’t be too hard on Lingyin—she looks so pitiful like this…”

“What’s there to pity? She’s been the Tan family’s eldest daughter for eighteen years!” Liu Yun said, then hugged her with a look of deep affection, “And you, my dear daughter, you’ve suffered so much outside!”

“Once the rain stops tomorrow, Mom will take you shopping. Whatever you want, Mom will buy it for you!”

Tan Yayue nestled in her arms, but her eyes gleamed with smug provocation as she glanced at Tan Lingyin.

Tan Lingyin rubbed her fingertips, a flicker of amusement flashing in her eyes.

This family of three—none of them were easy to deal with.

As she turned to go upstairs, Liu Yun’s voice rang out again.

“Listen here, brat, I’ve changed my mind. Pack your things and get out now.”

Tan Yayue’s sweet, delicate voice chimed in, “But Mom, it’s pouring outside. Lingyin might get sick, or worse, run into danger…”

Liu Yun scoffed, “She’s tough as nails. If she dies, even better.”

Tan Lingyin didn’t pause her steps, swiftly making her way back to her room.

Outside, lightning split the sky, and torrential rain lashed against the windows, illuminating the cinnabar and talisman paper on the desk.

The three ghostly figures in the room had vanished.

Who knew which corner of the villa they had drifted off to now…