The Failed Female Supporting Character [Transmigration] - Chapter 7

Chapter 7

When Feng Qi woke up, her head was still heavy. Sitting up on the stone bed, she felt something on her neck and instinctively grabbed it, realizing it was a handkerchief.

“You’re awake.” Ruan Lan was standing by the patch of Mandarin Duck Grass. Hearing the movement, she turned back toward her.

Feng Qi nodded daintily, clutching the handkerchief. Even now, she could still catch a lingering scent of the Wood Heaven Muse, making her nose itch.

Ruan Lan walked to the bed and lightly pressed the back of her hand against Feng Qi’s neck. Seeing that her temperature was rising again, she frowned. “I’ve disposed of the Wood Heaven Muse and washed my hands.”

“But the smell is still there.” Feng Qi felt weak. She pressed the handkerchief to her nose, inhaling the scent unique to Ruan Lan; only then did she feel a bit better.

I must not be exposed, Feng Qi thought. As she bowed her head, a pair of cat ears flickered through her hair for a fraction of a second—so fast it seemed like an illusion.

Ruan Lan’s eyes widened slightly. She grabbed Feng Qi’s wrist, and meeting her bewildered gaze, remained silent for a long moment. Finally, she said, “I saw… your ears.”

“Ears?” Feng Qi reached up to touch them, her reaction sluggish. “What’s wrong with them?”

Ruan Lan’s brow furrowed. As if reaching a conclusion, her eyes flashed, and she suddenly pulled out the Wood Heaven Muse she had just stored away.

Feng Qi looked at the plant in horror. “No, take it away… Meow.”

The scent, dense enough to overwhelm Feng Qi, filled the air. With nowhere to hide, she transformed into her original form without warning. Her clothes collapsed in a heap, and a palm-sized black cat with a tail longer than its body lay limply amidst the fabric.

Ruan Lan silently put the plant away. She moved the clothes aside, staring at the black cat rolling around inside. For the first time, she didn’t know what to say.

She had seen this cat twice before, back at Misty Valley.

The dizzy cat scrambled out of the clothes and tumbled across the stone bed. Ruan Lan watched her expressionlessly, only reaching out to catch her when she nearly rolled off the edge. The kitten grabbed Ruan Lan’s hand, gnawing on her fingers with tiny, playful bites.

After nearly an hour of this silliness, the black cat finally cleared her head. She glanced at Ruan Lan’s face, quietly let go of her hand, and burrowed back into her clothes with her back turned.

“Can you turn back into human form?” Ruan Lan asked, watching the trembling pile of clothes.

Feng Qi was terrified, but hearing no killing intent in Ruan Lan’s voice, she steadied her heart and shifted back. She dressed hurriedly with her back to Ruan Lan, her mind a mess, wondering how on earth to explain this.

“Are you a cat demon?” Ruan Lan asked softly.

Feng Qi’s hands paused. A spark of inspiration hit her, and she nodded slowly. “…Yes.” As long as she didn’t use her demonic energy, no one would know she was a demon.

Though the “demon” label was still risky, Feng Qi turned around and looked at Ruan Lan pitifully. “Master, will you expel me from the sect?”

In the Mortal and Immortal realms, “demons” (Yaos/Spirits) were often looked down upon or captured as pets/servants. No major sect would ever take one as a disciple. Fortunately, most cultivators knew little about the true Demon Race (Mo) and couldn’t distinguish between the two.

“How did you get into Misty Valley?”

“I… I just walked in.” Feng Qi watched Ruan Lan’s expression. “I don’t know why no one noticed. Maybe because I once ate a Transformation Grass.”

Ruan Lan looked her up and down. “You ate a Transformation Grass?”

Feng Qi nodded, then decided to embellish her value. “Actually, I’m a Fortune Cat.”

Ruan Lan met this with silence.

“I mean, my talent,” Feng Qi pointed to her nose. “I can smell treasures.”

Since some spirits did have such talents, and she had just led Ruan Lan to a hoard of riches, the story held some weight. Ruan Lan actually believed her a little more.

“Why come to Misty Valley?”

Feng Qi licked her lips. “Because I like it there. Anywhere else, I’d be captured. Master… I didn’t mean to lie. I won’t hurt you.”

“I see.” Ruan Lan looked away. “Fix your clothes.”

Did I pass? Feng Qi let out a breath of relief. She fixed her collar and stood obediently by Ruan Lan’s side.

Ruan Lan said nothing more, simply handed her some dried meat, and took over the stone bed to meditate. Feng Qi chewed her meat and waited for the door to open.

…

The Hunt and the Secret Power

Two days later, the stone door opened. Chen Lintian’s voice preceded him. “Senior Sister Ruan, are you alright?”

Ruan Lan woke from her meditation and glanced at Feng Qi, who had been sleeping curled up beside her. “We are fine.”

Feng Qi retreated behind Ruan Lan, avoiding Chen Lintian’s gaze. He walked in and saw the Mandarin Duck Grass, glancing at the two women. One cold, one warm—they looked remarkably harmonious together.

“There is nothing here but this grass,” Ruan Lan said, leading Feng Qi out. Chen Lintian, being a gentleman, simply smiled. “I trust you, Senior Sister. I only waited to ensure your safety.”

Outside, they found Liu Cheng still waiting. Her eyes flickered with hidden meaning. “You’re out just in time. Our companions found that mutated beast in the valley. We can help them now.”

Ruan Lan nodded. “Very well.”

Knowing Feng Qi had no combat ability, Ruan Lan didn’t take her to the fight. Instead, she drew a protective circle with her sword on the ground. “Stay here and wait for me. If you are teleported away, I will find you. Do not leave this circle.”

Once they were gone, Feng Qi grew restless. She stepped out of the circle and transformed into her cat form to explore.

She found what she was looking for by a stream: a low-level magical beast. The beast sensed danger and growled, backing away from the small black cat. But the cat was faster—a streak of black lightning. A sharp cry, a splash of blood, and the beast was dead.

Avoiding the blood, the black cat dug out a Demon Core.

Shifting back into human form, Feng Qi washed the ink-black core in the stream. Her face was pale; she hated blood, but she had to survive. She gripped the core and began to absorb its energy. Wisps of black mist flowed into her palms. Within seconds, the core turned to grey ash.

She felt her power increase slightly.

This was her secret: as the Saintess of the Demon Altar, she didn’t need techniques or dual cultivation. She could directly absorb the cultivation of demon cores or even other demons to increase her own. It was a power known to no one else in the world.