The Failed Female Supporting Character [Transmigration] - Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The daylight in Misty Valley lasted much longer than in the Demon Realm. Ruan Lan had been out for half a day without returning. With nothing to do, Feng Qi lay on the floor, staring blankly at the ceiling in a daze. After an unknown amount of time, a shadow suddenly loomed over her. Yu Qi stood at the door of the bamboo house with her arms crossed, looking down at her; because she was backlit, her expression remained hidden.

“…S-Small Martial Aunt.” Once she realized who it was, Feng Qi snapped back to reality. She stood up, her gaze surreptitiously flickering behind Yu Qi, but she was disappointed to see no one else.

Yu Qi looked at Feng Qi, raising an eyebrow. “Just you?”

Feng Qi nodded slowly and replied cautiously, “Master said she would be back in a while.”

“Is that so…” Yu Qi’s smile was somewhat peculiar. She took a few steps toward Feng Qi and, with a mysterious air, hooked her finger. “Come with me. I’ll show you a treasure.”

Feng Qi instinctively took a step back, her mouth opening to refuse. But meeting Yu Qi’s half-smiling gaze, she gave a dry laugh. “That… how about we wait until Master returns…”

“No need to wait for her.” Yu Qi jerked her chin at Feng Qi, signaling her to follow, and turned to leave. However, after only two steps, she abruptly stopped.

Reluctantly following behind while pondering how to escape, Feng Qi looked over Yu Qi’s shoulder and saw Ruan Lan returning. Her eyes lit up, and she immediately called out, “Master!”

Ruan Lan arrived at the bamboo house and frowned at Yu Qi. “What are you doing here?”

Yu Qi gave a dry cough, pulled some items haphazardly from her storage spirit stone, stuffed them into Feng Qi’s arms, and answered honestly, “Senior Sister Chu asked me to deliver some things.”

“Go back and practice.”

“Yes.”

Yu Qi, who had just been acting high and mighty, slunk away dejectedly.

After Yu Qi left, Feng Qi, clutching the pile of items, stood awkwardly with Ruan Lan for a moment. Finally, Ruan Lan broke the silence. As she walked into the bamboo house, she said indifferently, “In the future, if Junior Sister Yu Qi calls for you to go out, you need not pay her any mind.”

Feng Qi nodded obediently; she hadn’t wanted to pay her mind anyway.

The items Yu Qi had shoved at her were daily necessities, along with a sword, cultivation techniques, and elixirs. She had even been given a small piece of spirit stone—something extremely rare in the Mortal Realm. Although the spiritual energy within it was thin, it was still far more generous than what other sects would offer.

As Ruan Lan passed by Feng Qi, she reached out and took the cultivation manual from her arms. After flipping through a few pages, she handed it back. “The path of cultivation prizes persistence. Talent and state of mind are equally important. But for a mortal who has just stepped into the world of cultivation, the most important thing is the foundation.”

“Your aptitude is good. Your pure Dual-Spirit Root constitution will make entering the gates of cultivation easier for you, but how far you can go in the future depends on your own efforts.” After offering some words of encouragement, Ruan Lan began to explain the technique in detail. She instructed Feng Qi to practice diligently and did not return to her own room until dusk.

Although Ruan Lan’s attitude did not seem warm, the fact that she had uncharacteristically spoken so much showed she had high expectations for Feng Qi—perhaps because this was the first disciple she had ever taken.

Feng Qi lay on her bed clutching the manual, sighing deeply. Before her eyes, she could still see the slightly cold yet patient Ruan Lan explaining the techniques. However, as a member of the Demon Race, she could only fail Ruan Lan’s expectations.

Because trying to get a demon to practice orthodox immortal techniques was truly harder than trying to travel back to her original world.

Cultivators in the Immortal Realm spent their entire lives seeking ascension, starting from the Qi Refining stage, through Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Spirit Severing, and Tribulation Transcendence, until finally becoming immortal.

For someone with average talent, it usually took about a month to truly grasp the Qi Refining stage, while those with higher aptitude needed only a few days.

Estimating the time, Ruan Lan returned to Feng Qi’s bamboo house ten days later. She grasped Feng Qi’s wrist to check her progress, her brow furrowing slightly. “Can you not understand the content of the technique?” Her condition was exactly the same as it was ten days ago.

Feng Qi lowered her head in silence. From Ruan Lan’s perspective, she looked quite pitiful.

Ruan Lan swallowed the words she was about to say. After a moment of thought, she mobilized a sliver of spiritual energy, sending it into Feng Qi’s body. She guided it slowly through her meridians in a specific path and whispered, “Focus your mind and stay calm. Remember this circulation route.”

As a high-ranking demon, Feng Qi wouldn’t expose her identity as long as she didn’t actively use demonic energy. However, when spiritual energy—which is antithetical to demonic energy—suddenly entered her body without warning, Feng Qi felt her hair stand on end. She clenched her fists, fighting down the instinct to flee.

Ruan Lan patiently demonstrated the circulation path several times before letting go. “Have you learned it?”

Feng Qi wiped the fine sweat from her forehead and nodded listlessly. “I have.”

Ruan Lan stared at Feng Qi for a moment, then turned and left with a plain expression.

That night, a plate of crisp and delicious spirit fruit appeared at the door of Feng Qi’s house. Holding the plate and glancing at Ruan Lan’s closed door, her gloom from earlier vanished, and the corners of her mouth curled up in a good mood.

A month later, Ruan Lan appeared at the bamboo house again. After carefully checking her wrist, she fell silent once more.

Feng Qi couldn’t help but defend herself. “I really did try.” She truly had whimsically tried to cultivate, wanting to see if she could become some cool half-immortal, half-demon being.

But the result was predictable: she failed.

Ruan Lan’s expression was subtle in the face of this defense. After a moment of silence, she shook her head slightly. “I will find a way.” She patted Feng Qi’s shoulder and said softly, “Do not put pressure on yourself. You may go out for a walk to clear your mind.”

Feng Qi had been waiting for these words for a long time; she hadn’t come to Misty Valley to stay in secluded meditation.

However, now that she finally had permission, looking at the way Ruan Lan looked at her made her feel not so happy. That “I’ve taken in a stupid disciple” look made Feng Qi feel very conflicted.

It had been a month and a half since they entered Misty Valley. Among the other inner disciples who had joined with her, even the slowest had reached the Qi Refining stage a few days ago, and the fastest had nearly mastered sword-kinesis.

Only Feng Qi remained exactly as she was when she first arrived, with no progress whatsoever.

If it were anyone else, they likely would have given up on a disciple with good constitution but poor talent, or simply demoted her to the outer sect. But Ruan Lan was not that kind of person; she was constantly thinking of ways to help Feng Qi successfully draw Qi into her body.

Because Feng Qi lacked spiritual energy and couldn’t learn to fly a sword, Ruan Lan simply built a wooden bridge between Fengxing Peak and the Main Peak to make it easier for Feng Qi to travel. This act stunned the disciples of Misty Valley.

Even Yu Qi ran over to complain out of jealousy, only leaving satisfied after receiving several benefits from Ruan Lan.

Ruan Lan was truly good to her disciple. Even though Feng Qi had written this plot herself, being there in person left her a little moved.

With the appearance of the wooden bridge, Feng Qi was finally able to reach the Main Peak again. To avoid letting people see how often she went there, she was very cautious, only going once every few days, making it look like she was just wandering about because of her frustrations with cultivation.

The Main Peak was generally where disciples practiced and sparred. Avoiding others, Feng Qi found a hidden spot and transformed into her original shape. The black cat tucked her clothes into her storage stone, then lightly jumped onto the steps, slipping along the corridor to the square.

Two disciples were sparring on the square, while others circled around to watch and discuss in low voices. Feng Qi stuck to the shadows, bypassed the Blue Phoenix statue, and reached the main hall at the back.

This was the place where the Sect Leader, Elders, or first and second-generation disciples discussed matters. Feng Qi nimbly jumped over the high steps and entered the hall. Just as she was about to start a careful search, she faintly heard voices. Startled, she instinctively hid behind a nearby vase, curling herself into a small ball.

She had observed for a long time and knew this place was usually empty, which is why she dared to search it. She hadn’t expected her luck to be so poor today.

The voices weren’t clear. As Feng Qi hesitated over whether to leave, she suddenly heard Ruan Lan’s name mentioned, causing her to lower her raised paw.

The black cat crawled forward slowly, taking advantage of her small size, and only stopped when the voices became clear.

The people speaking in the hall were Ruan Lan and the Sect Leader of Misty Valley, who had just come out of seclusion.

The Sect Leader had been in the cultivation world for 457 years. Although she still looked young and beautiful, her eyes held the wisdom of her age. Although she was the leader of Misty Valley, her talent was actually average; hundreds of years of hard work had only just allowed her to break through the Nascent Soul stage to reach the Spirit Severing stage.

Cultivators could maintain youth and extend their lives once they reached a certain level, but that didn’t mean they were immortal. Only by ascending could one truly escape the cycle of reincarnation.

In recent years, the Sect Leader had handed over the affairs of Misty Valley to Ruan Lan, while she remained in seclusion, hoping to break through again before her lifespan reached its end.

“I heard you took a disciple with Water and Wood Dual-Spirit Roots?” The Sect Leader looked at her most brilliant disciple lovingly and asked with a smile, “How is her savvy? Can she compare to you?”

Ruan Lan shook her head. “Her savvy is average.”

“Oh?” The Sect Leader was surprised. For Ruan Lan to give such an evaluation, her savvy must be truly poor.

Ruan Lan did not hide anything and recounted Feng Qi’s situation in detail, then frowned. “I wish to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill for her.” Normally, these pills were taken at the late stage of Qi Refining to increase the success rate of reaching Foundation Establishment.

If taken early, it could expand the meridians and make drawing Qi easier, but using it this way was considered extremely wasteful.

The Sect Leader considered Ruan Lan’s words for a moment and nodded slowly. “If the situation is as you say, a Foundation Establishment Pill might indeed help.”

“At the beginning of next month, an Immortal Abode within the territory of the Cloud Sect will open. Lead the disciples there for experience and gather the herbs for the pill. I will handle the alchemy.”

Ruan Lan bowed slightly to the Sect Leader. “Thank you for your help, Master.”

“Must you be so polite with me?” The Sect Leader laughed and shook her head. Remembering something, she tossed a jade pendant to Ruan Lan. “I once made an agreement with the Leader of the Cloud Sect. Take this jade. If you encounter difficulties, you may seek help from them.”

Ruan Lan took the pendant and nodded.

The Sect Leader looked at Ruan Lan with a gentle gaze. “The Cloud Sect has a disciple with a pure Fire Spirit Root. If you meet him, you might try to befriend him.”

“It’s a pity time is so tight, otherwise I could have opened the Blue Phoenix Secret Realm since I’m out of seclusion…”

Feng Qi, who was eavesdropping intently on the ground, felt her ears prick up at the mention of the Blue Phoenix Secret Realm. She was so focused that she didn’t notice a green snake silently approaching from behind. It wasn’t until the cold body of the snake tried to coil around her that she let out a terrified “Meow!” as the fur on her back and tail exploded upward.

A burst of amused laughter came from behind. Yu Qi stood behind the green snake, her shoulders shaking with laughter as she watched the puffed-up black cat.

To a demon, a snake was a lowly creature, not worth mentioning. But for Feng Qi, she had been terrified of snakes since childhood; she would break into a cold sweat just looking at pictures of them. Even though she could now kill a snake with one swipe of her claws, the psychological fear was impossible to erase.

This was precisely why Feng Qi always kept her distance from Yu Qi. This person loved venomous creatures, especially snakes; they were practically all over her mountain peak.

Furthermore, she had a strange quirk: she didn’t just like raising them herself, she liked making others raise them with her, and was constantly trying to take people to see her “little darlings.”

A hand picked up the trembling, puffed-up black cat that was staring at the green snake. A palm stroked its back soothingly, pressing its stiff tail back down. Ruan Lan pulled out a piece of dried meat and held it to the kitten’s mouth, her gaze toward the green snake appearing somewhat cold.

The smile on Yu Qi’s face vanished instantly. She quickly snatched her little pet into her hand and said pleasingly, “Senior Sister, Master.”

“Didn’t I tell you not to bring those things to the Main Peak?” The Sect Leader was most helpless against her youngest disciple; as soon as she acted spoiled after a mistake, she couldn’t bring herself to punish her. Her tone was never harsh.

Yu Qi knew the Sect Leader was easier to talk to than Ruan Lan. She quietly bypassed Ruan Lan to reach the Sect Leader’s side, pulled out the snake, and waved it around, bragging proudly about it.

Lying on Ruan Lan’s arm, Feng Qi finally recovered. But the thought of the snake being right there made her want to puff up again. She didn’t even dare glance toward Yu Qi. She struggled down from Ruan Lan and ran out of the hall like the wind.

She didn’t stop until she reached a deserted area. After crouching there for a long while and feeling better, she took out her clothes and returned to human form.

Yu Qi was truly a terrifying existence. Feng Qi rubbed her stiff face, vowing in her heart to stay even further away from Yu Qi in the future—the further, the better.

After resuming her human form, Feng Qi was in no hurry to return to Fengxing Peak. She went to the square and watched the disciples practicing their swords for a while, only turning to leave when the sky grew dark.

“So it’s you.” Someone suddenly blocked Feng Qi’s path. She was wearing the robes of an inner disciple, with a yellow ribbon tied around her arm.

Feng Qi looked at her several times and vaguely recognized her as one of the people who had entered the inner sect with her. The yellow ribbon meant she had been taken in by a second-generation disciple.

The newcomer was about thirteen or fourteen years old, with looks that could only be described as plain. Her eyes were large and watery, but they were filled with ugly jealousy. She blocked Feng Qi and lowered her voice intentionally. “So what if you have Dual-Spirit Roots? Without savvy, it’s all for nothing.”

Feng Qi looked at her, bewildered.

“You’ll be thrown to the outer sect sooner or later. Don’t think you’re superior just because you were taken in by a first-generation master.”

Feng Qi’s gaze swept over the girl’s face and hands. As if realizing something, a flash of understanding crossed her eyes. “Are you being bullied?”

The girl looked shocked. “What?”

Not everyone was like Ruan Lan, taking a disciple for the first time and being so attentive. Second-generation disciples had no limit on how many students they could take, and many new disciples were managed by older ones. Life was not easy for them at first. Feng Qi was the only one in Misty Valley living like this.

So, this person was likely unbalanced because she saw someone who had joined at the same time and couldn’t even achieve Qi Refining, yet was living better than anyone else.

But to confront her directly like this… Feng Qi had certain doubts about this person’s intelligence. Did she really think no one could hear them just because she lowered her voice?

This was the cultivation world.

“Practice well. Honestly, I envy you.” Feng Qi looked at the girl with pity, shook her head, and turned to leave. The girl, who didn’t understand the meaning behind that “envy” at all, stared at her back with a dazed expression.

In front of the Blue Phoenix statue, Ruan Lan watched Feng Qi and the girl. She said to the disciple beside her, “Deficient in character. Demote her to the outer sect.”

The disciple nodded. “Yes.”