When a Female Alpha Transmigrates into a Book as a Substitute - Chapter 1

The day Jiang Xuezhi realized she was merely a stand-in, her soul shattered, and all hope vanished.

Her master, senior brother, family, and junior sister? it turned out they had all seen her as someone else.

They cared nothing for her years of effort and affection; they only wanted her to immediately return her identity to the person they truly valued.

They accused her of usurping another’s place, stubborn and unyielding.

She couldn’t understand, she couldn’t comprehend, she was also a person, not occupying anyone’s identity. She was simply herself.

She refused to speak of returning anything, and she would never let go of her loved ones and friends. She had turned dark!

Unfortunately, turning dark didn’t help. The one who returned uttered a single, dismissive sentence that plunged her into the abyss.

“I don’t care about these people, nor do I want to meddle in your affairs. I simply don’t want someone using my identity to seek benefits. So, please return my identity to me.”

Lin Wanwan stood aloof and proud, her brows cold and sharp, elegant and dignified, a stark contrast to Jiang Xuezhi’s disheveled, desperate state.

What Jiang Xuezhi cherished, the other clearly disdained.

Yet, no matter how much she sacrificed, she could never obtain what she desired, while Lin Wanwan only needed to stand there to be loved.

Jiang Xuezhi lost her mind.

…

“Ah.”

That’s all it took to break her?

Jiang Xuezhi, who had just crossed over from the interstellar battlefield, rubbed her head.

Her spiritual power was damaged, her head throbbed with pain, and she had to force herself to digest this wretched plot. It was utterly infuriating.

She stretched her shoulders and neck, this body was still too frail. Her bones creaked with every movement, every meridian blocked and sluggish, as if bound by heavy shackles.

Whatever. As long as she wasn’t dead, she could figure things out later.

First, she needed to deal with the immediate problem.

So, the current situation should be called “transmigrating into a book.”

Before all this happened, Jiang Xuezhi had just picked up an ancient Blue Star “mobile phone” on the interstellar battlefield, someone’s so-called “treasured” possession. It was loaded with outdated, melodramatic novels from a bygone era.

Under normal circumstances, Jiang Xuezhi wouldn’t have appreciated such things, nor would she have had the time to read them.

But at that time, her situation was unusual. Betrayed by a formidable enemy and her own subordinates, her spiritual power had been severely damaged. The military doctor advised her to avoid going out, suggesting she find something else to vent her emotions and pass the time.

She was reluctant, but to expedite her “recovery clearance” and return to the battlefield, she forced herself to comply.

She quickly repaired the ancient device known as a mobile phone. Upon opening it and seeing the stored content, she reluctantly skimmed a few chapters with disdain, only to find her own name.

That changed everything.

Was her name really that common?

It seemed the confiscation of this device was no coincidence.

To uncover why her name was in it and who had written it to spite her, Jiang Xuezhi patiently read on.

And then, she became hooked.

The melodramatic plot, the archaic worldview and gender dynamics, it was truly an effective way to vent emotions.

Jiang Xuezhi was so enraged that she punched a hole in the ship’s cabin, startling the military doctor, who promptly issued her the highest-level prescription.

She wouldn’t be returning to the battlefield for a year.

…See! It was a trap all along! Who had planted this to mess with her?

She had wanted to retaliate immediately but endured it for one night, only to end up transmigrating into the book.

Jiang Xuezhi cast a faint glance over the crowd before her. The fragmented vision did not hinder her from discerning the appearances of these people.

This should be the first minor climax in that book.

The female lead, Lin Wanwan, had returned to her sect, the Xuantian Sect, only to discover that her senior brothers and master believed she was dead and had actually found a replacement for her.

The replacement had taken everything that belonged to her: her identity, her cave dwelling, and her personal belongings, all handed over to the other.

The affection and camaraderie of her family, friends, and fellow disciples had all been lavished upon this substitute.

The other’s attire, mannerisms, and even the cultivation techniques she practiced were identical to hers, as if someone had crafted a puppet resembling her by seventy percent, clumsy and contrived.

All the emotions that those around her had never expressed to the real Lin Wanwan, whether fondness or resentment, were now directed at this replacement.

Without lifting a finger, the substitute had effortlessly taken everything that rightfully belonged to her.

Lin Wanwan was utterly disgusted.

She loathed her fellow disciples and master for creating this replacement, and she despised herself for nearly sacrificing her life for them.

She vowed to reclaim everything that was hers.

Her return shattered the three-year illusory dream the replacement had briefly enjoyed.

Now was the darkest moment for the substitute, Jiang Xuezhi.

She would be brutally humiliated by the female lead and subjected to extreme cruelty at the hands of Lin Wanwan’s master and senior brothers.

These people, overwhelmed with regret for their actions, did not seek to make amends with the female lead. Instead, they resorted to gouging out the replacement’s immortal bones, extracting her heart’s blood, and destroying her spiritual roots. They threw her into the Ten Thousand Demons Abyss, using the torment of the substitute as a means to prove their sincerity.

Incompetent and hypocritical, they were utterly laughable, hardly deserving to be called human.

In the end, none of them won the female lead’s favor. After exacting her revenge on these scum, Lin Wanwan entered the First Immortal Manor, the “premier institution” of the cultivation world, to dedicate herself to rigorous cultivation, leaving the others behind to wallow in regret and anguish.

Yet, they all remained alive and well.

Those who lived comfortably were driven to madness, acting as if their lives were over, while the one who most desperately wanted to live “the replacement” struggled for days in the Ten Thousand Demons Abyss, her bones and flesh gnawed by demonic souls, yet still fighting to survive.

Unfortunately, she could not escape her predetermined fate. Just as she was on the verge of breaking free, the young master of the demon realm arrived leisurely, stepped on the back of her hand, and tossed her back into the abyss.

What a tragic death.

The author must have harbored an immense hatred for her.

Jiang Xuezhi rotated her neck, pressing her hand against the back of it to ease the discomfort.

She had just transmigrated and hadn’t yet regained her senses when she was ambushed.

Lin Wanwan’s eldest senior brother, Xiao Jin of the Xuantian Sect, had struck the back of her neck with his sword sheath simply because the replacement, stunned by the unfolding events, had failed to bow her head and show sufficient respect to the female lead. The blow nearly severed her cervical spine.

Now, she had no choice but to lower her head.

She must forever bow to Lin Wanwan.

“Wanwan,” Xiao Jin said, dressed in the Xuantian Sect’s distinctive black uniform. His appearance was naturally handsome, and his words carried a tone of heartfelt sincerity. “Things aren’t as you think. Please let us explain.”

He wanted to explain, and indeed, there was a need for it, because Lin Wanwan had truly misunderstood.

They hadn’t intentionally sought a replacement for her. Instead, they had discovered a reliable method to use a substitute whose birth date and appearance closely resembled hers to attract her soul, preparing a new vessel for her and awaiting her true return.

Believing she was dead, this was the only way they could think of to call her back.

Their kindness toward the replacement was solely because they intended this body to eventually belong to Lin Wanwan.

In order to craft the perfect new body for Lin Wanwan, Xie Wang, the sect leader of Xuantian Sect, took in the stand-in as his disciple and proceeded to test countless poisons and medicines on her.

Under the guise of tempering her physique, he was actually conditioning her body to be the most suitable vessel for possession.

The stand-in herself remained completely in the dark, genuinely believing she was unsuited for cultivation and feeling deeply moved by the immense effort her master and senior brothers had expended on her behalf.

It was only after the others explained the situation to Lin Wanwan that she began to grasp the truth.

To ensure her willing cooperation, they naturally kept the reality hidden from her.

Moreover, there were things they dared not do to Lin Wanwan herself, and after her “death,” with no outlet for their pent-up emotions, they unleashed everything on this stand-in.

If these hidden feelings were exposed, it would not only tarnish their dignity but also displease the young junior sister upon her return.

In the original story, after the stand-in learned the truth, she turned to the dark side. Feeling like a ridiculous clown yet unable to sever her ties to those who had humiliated her, she tried to confront them, asking if there had been any genuine affection in their actions toward her.

But she wasn’t even given a chance to speak a full sentence before she was restrained and imprisoned.

Allowing her to reveal such things in front of the female lead? Unthinkable.

Even if they privately felt some remorse over their actions, it paled in comparison to their devotion to the real Wanwan.

For Wanwan’s sake, she had to die.

Whether in the past or the present.

If Wanwan returned alive, she had to die to keep the secret.

If Wanwan truly died, she still had to die to bring her back.

Death was the destined end for Jiang Xuezhi, the stand-in.

“Fine.”

Jiang Xuezhi spoke, her voice slightly hoarse but carrying a tone of unmistakable delight.

This reaction was entirely different from her initial response, as if she had become a different person in a short span of time.

The others watched her with shock and suspicion, their emotions complicated by the absence of the expected hysterics.

“I can agree to your terms.”

Jiang Xuezhi turned her neck, casually scanning the faces in the room before her gaze settled firmly on the female lead.

“If the so-called benefits you speak of include being sexually harassed by your senior brothers, tortured by your master while he pines for you, and having to ingratiate myself with your family and fake friends on your behalf, then you can have all those benefits back.”

Her words left everyone present stunned, staring at her in disbelief.

How could she say such things?

This was completely out of character for her, especially under these circumstances.

Was this how she described the senior brothers she adored, the master she respected, the parents she honored, and the friends she cherished??

Even though their feelings for her had never been genuine, her blunt declaration left them deeply unsettled.

The female lead’s expression turned even more dramatic.

It was as if Jiang Xuezhi had suddenly ceased to care about any of them.

She stood tall and straight, adjusting her shoulders slightly, her posture almost strikingly handsome.

“I’ll return your identity to you. How about I leave right now? I won’t overstay my welcome. I want nothing of what you have to offer, and I won’t drag this out.”

She had no intention of reenacting the stand-in’s original struggle, the desperate arguments, the descent into darkness and collapse.

What a pointless endeavor.

“I can leave right away, but before that, two conditions.” Jiang Xuezhi raised her fingers to the crowd, who hadn’t yet processed her sudden change. “First, prepare five million spirit stones, not a single one less. Second, I’ll carve a cut on your face.”

She narrowed her eyes, staring at Lin Wanwan’s face, which bore an uncanny resemblance to her own. It was like looking in a mirror, and it was deeply irritating.

Lin Wanwan was annoyed, and so was she. In fact, everyone present was getting on her nerves.

“Just as you dislike having your identity replaced, I dislike someone looking exactly like me.”

Jiang Xuezhi’s gaze darkened, a faint smirk curling her lips. Her face was pale, her lips blood-red, and the way she smiled carried an inexplicable gloom and menace, sending chills down everyone’s spines. This was a far cry from the naive, almost foolish “substitute junior sister” she had once been.

That smile, paired with her piercing stare, left everyone frozen in fear.

How bizarre, a mere Qi Refining cultivator, where did she get such an intimidating aura?

“Why so quiet?” Jiang Xuezhi said leisurely. “Are you all short on money, or is Fairy Lin unwilling to part with her face?”

“If you’re unwilling, there’s another way.”

Jiang Xuezhi took a step forward, standing directly in front of the female lead.

If there was one key difference between her and the female lead, it was their height.

Lin Wanwan was half a head shorter than Jiang Xuezhi. Up close, she had to tilt her head up slightly to meet her gaze.

Lin Wanwan stared into her eyes in disbelief, while Jiang Xuezhi studied their nearly identical faces and remarked offhandedly, “If you can’t bear to mar your own face, I can always disfigure mine instead.”

“How about a cut right here? If that’s not enough, I can add another on this side.”

She actually pulled out a dagger and held it against her own face, measuring as if in complete sincerity.

Lin Wanwan’s lips trembled. She wanted to say something, but no words came out.

Even after experiencing life and death, nothing had shaken her as much as Jiang Xuezhi did now.

Her transformation was too drastic. Just moments ago, she had seemed wronged, stunned, helpless, and fragile. After a brief moment of dizziness, how had she suddenly become… become…

“But this will cost extra.”

Jiang Xuezhi pressed the dagger against her own cheek with one hand while using the other to gently stroke Lin Wanwan’s face. Smiling brightly, she drawled, “I can do this, but it’ll cost you more.”

What was a face, anyway?

Just an external possession.

She still had no idea how to return to her own territory. For now, securing some startup funds to turn the situation around was what mattered most.

“So, what do you say, miss? Do we have a deal?”

Jiang Xuezhi blinked earnestly.

Lin Wanwan stared at her in shock, feeling the icy touch of her fingers gliding like a blade across her skin. Her heart contracted violently.