When a Yandere Cannon Fodder Meets a Dark, Twisted Villain - Chapter 42

It happened after the great war between the human and demon races. Although the three major sects were victorious, they were severely depleted.

Within the Xuanqing Sect, nearly ninety percent of the disciples were wounded. Most had lost their combat effectiveness and required a long period of seclusion to slowly recover.

Due to the extreme shortage of manpower and the fact that Sect Master Qin Wu was constantly traveling to handle the aftermath, the heavy responsibility of guarding the Treasure Pavilion fell upon Shi Yining, whose cultivation remained decent.

She remembered the day she received the command token; her master’s weary eyes were filled with worry, repeatedly urging her to be extra cautious. Shi Yining responded solemnly, promising to protect the Treasure Pavilion at all costs.

Although the demons had lost the war, they had not been completely eradicated.

On the third night of her watch, a demon cultivator—highly skilled in stealth and concealment—employed a secret technique to infiltrate the sect.

At that time, Shi Yining was sitting in meditation on the first floor of the pavilion. Detecting a faint, ephemeral trace of demonic qi, she immediately activated the building’s defensive array. The System spoke up beside her, pinpointing the demon’s location.

To resolve the threat as quickly as possible, Shi Yining followed the System’s guidance and launched an attack. A sword incantation pointed directly at the source of the demonic aura. She poured ninety percent of her strength into that strike, believing it would at least force the intruder to reveal themselves.

She never expected that the demon’s greatest strength was not concealment, but Heart-Clouding Illusions.

The moment her sword light pierced the air, she completely exposed her own position.

The scenery before her eyes distorted abruptly. By the time she realized what was happening, she had already fallen into a chaotic dreamscape.

The illusion was filled with familiar figures—Shu Mo practicing her sword under the moonlight, Shu Mo smiling gently at her… She chased after them obsessively, reaching out to touch them, but the figures would dissipate the moment she drew near, only to reappear further away.

She pursued them tirelessly. Even though she knew they were illusions, she could not stop. The deepest obsessions buried in her heart were magnified infinitely by the realm…

It wasn’t until a searing, tearing pain erupted in her chest that the illusion shattered.

The defensive array of the Treasure Pavilion had been breached. The demon’s claws had pierced through her back, striking right at her heart.

Warm blood instantly soaked her white robes. She did not die—the protective jade talisman gifted by her master flared with light at the final moment, blocking the majority of the damage. However, the demon’s claws were coated in a Demonic Poison that specifically targeted the most fragile parts of the human heart.

The residual poison was never cleared. Over time, under its corrosive influence, Shi Yining’s temperament became increasingly twisted.

Those nights spent tossing and turning in longing, the pain of unrequited love, and the despair of watching that familiar figure drift further away were all catalyzed by the poison into something darker.

At first, it was just occasional irritability. Gradually, whenever she thought of that person, an inexplicable resentment would arise. Eventually, even hearing the name “Yuehua Sect” caused a surge of hatred in her heart.

She began to avoid all news regarding Shu Mo and tore up the cherished sketches she had kept.

Until one rainy night, Shi Yining looked through the half-open carved window at the torrential downpour. She recalled the grievances she had suffered every time she visited the Yuehua Sect. The hatred in her poisoned heart grew like wild vines, strangling her until she could barely breathe.

She pushed the window open, and the rain instantly drenched her clothes. Cold droplets slid down her cheeks, indistinguishable from tears.

As if possessed, she cast a spell to send a transmission to Shu Mo, inviting her to meet in the Wutong Grove outside the Yuehua Sect.

She didn’t actually expect a response. In the past, her messages had always vanished like stones dropped into the ocean. But this time, she received a reply.

That person actually responded—at the very moment Shi Yining hated her most.

It was then that the long-silent System spoke, reminding her that Shu Mo had cultivated the Path of Emotionless (Wuqing Dao). From now on, there was no possibility between them. Rather than seeking the unattainable, it suggested she should make a clean break.

The System’s seductive voice, combined with the demonic poison, led Shi Yining to a frantic decision.

Though the Treasure Pavilion had been breached previously, the demon had been slain by Aunt Shixian, who had rushed to the rescue. The treasures inside remained intact.

Shi Yining, acting as the guardian, committed a breach of trust. Before going to meet Shu Mo, she took the Soul-Dispersing Bell which was sealed on the ninth floor.

The moment her fingertips touched the bell, the icy sensation sent a slight shiver through her, as if offering a silent warning. But she ultimately gripped it tightly and hid the forbidden treasure in her sleeve.

Upon arriving at the Wutong Grove, Shi Yining gazed at the familiar figure standing silently in the pavilion with hands behind her back. Though they were separated by several yards, she could already feel that chilly aura that kept everyone at a distance.

The Soul-Dispersing Bell in her sleeve was bone-chilling. Her grip tightened. Rain dripped from her chin, mixing with the warm tears falling from her eyes, disappearing together into the dark night.

Spiritual energy circulated quietly through her meridians, carrying a resolve that staked everything on a single throw.

Shi Yining slowly raised her hand. The Soul-Dispersing Bell in her sleeve let out a low, wailing cry.

The reason this item was a forbidden treasure was that it harmed the user before harming the enemy. There were many offensive treasures in the pavilion, yet Shi Yining specifically chose the Soul-Dispersing Bell, which would backlash against its master.

From the moment she left her sect, she never intended to return alive.

Her life had been a failure. She had sought love and found only bitterness; her grand path to immortality had been wasted as her cultivation stagnated; the fellow disciples she was once close to had drifted away, and even her master’s eyes held nothing but disappointment.

As the Soul-Dispersing Bell was activated, the icy cold turned into a scorching heat.

Shi Yining could clearly feel her own soul being stripped away bit by bit. It was a strange feeling—not particularly painful, but rather possessed of a sense of relief, like a liberation.

As the first toll of the bell rippled out, Shi Yining felt a sweetness in her throat. Warm blood welled up in her mouth without warning.

Blood overflowed from the corners of her lips, falling onto her white dress already soaked by rain. In an instant, it blossomed into several miserable, vivid red petals.

She gazed dazed at the familiar figure in the pavilion. For a moment, she felt as if she had returned to that afternoon at the Immortal Tea House where they first met.

She wondered: if she hadn’t gone to the tea house that day, if she hadn’t met her… would everything have been different?

The bell tolled again, and a more violent backlash struck instantly.

Shi Yining’s body swayed, and more blood poured from her mouth.

The figure in the pavilion also staggered several times.

The attack of the Soul-Dispersing Bell had finally taken effect. To disperse the soul, one must first disperse the spirit. If the attack continued, that person’s dantian would be completely destroyed, and a lifetime of cultivation would vanish like smoke.

This was the outcome she had desired; she wanted her to taste the flavor of agony as well…

But why? Why was it that seeing that person injured made her already riddled heart sting as if pierced by a thousand needles, aching to the point of suffocation? It hurt more than the erosion of the demonic poison, more than when the demon’s claws had skewered her. It hurt so much that she could barely hold onto the Soul-Dispersing Bell in her hands.

Behind the Wutong Grove lay Soul-Severing Cliff.

Shi Yining knew that acting here would quickly alert the cultivators of the Yuehua Sect. She did not want to be captured and put on trial; she did not want to uncover those bloody, mangled memories once more before the eyes of the world. In the final moments of her life, she wanted to be selfish, just once more.

Her consciousness grew hazy. In her daze, she heard the sharp whistling of countless flying swords cutting through the air, drawing closer. Suddenly, a fierce sword light slashed down, forcibly severing the sound waves of the Soul-Dispersing Bell.

The attack was interrupted… Shu Mo was saved.

That’s fine, then… Shi Yining thought. Dragging a body that was nearly a burnt-out lamp, she walked step by step toward the edge of the cliff. With every step, more blood trickled from the corners of her lips, carrying away her fading life force.

When she reached the edge, she turned back with great difficulty. Her vision was blurred, yet she could still make out that figure surrounded by the crowd… just as she had been during their first meeting at the Immortal Tea House: cold, lonely, and proud, as if isolated from the world, forever out of reach.

From the beginning to the end, it was all strangely similar.

Her body tilted backward. In the instant she fell into the void, the sensation of weightlessness suddenly hit her. In her delirium, she seemed to see that figure breaking free from the crowd’s restraint, rushing toward the cliff edge with reckless abandon.

It must be an illusion… Shi Yining thought. After all, she never liked me; why would she lose her composure like that for my sake?

The wind howled in her ears, and the biting chill from the bottom of the cliff rushed up to meet her. Shi Yining slowly closed her eyes, allowing herself to plunge into the endless darkness…

“She’s awake! Quick, bring the prepared spiritual medicine!”

Consciousness gradually returned. A clear, gentle voice reached her ears, sounding somewhat unfamiliar. Shi Yining’s eyelashes fluttered as she struggled to open her eyes.

The first thing that came into view was a sleeve of plain white silk, the cuff embroidered with intricate talismans. These patterns… looked somewhat familiar.

Her chaotic thoughts slowly gathered. After a moment of dazed silence, the memories from before her coma surged back like a tide—the secret chamber, the ice coffin, the bone-chilling cold, and finally, that tearing pain that had shredded her soul.

Shi Yining’s face turned deathly pale. Her fingertips curled unconsciously. At this moment, she was being held in someone’s arms. The embrace wasn’t cold, but that sleeve was clearly identical to the one she had seen in the ice coffin.

She looked up stiffly and met a pair of smiling, gentle eyes.

Seeing her wake up, the woman’s smile deepened. She tucked a stray lock of hair behind Shi Yining’s ear, her voice as soft as water.

“I heard from A-Ying that your name is Shi Yining, so I shall call you Ning’er. You have been unconscious for a long time and your body is still very weak. I had A-Ying brew some nourishing spiritual medicine; drinking it will help you recover faster.”

Shi Yining spoke in disbelief, “You… you are… Senior Ruonian?”

The woman nodded with a smile. “It is I.”

Upon receiving confirmation, the shock in Shi Yining’s heart rippled outward. The ritual had succeeded… Ruonian had truly been resurrected.

But… as the sacrifice, why was she still able to wake up? Shouldn’t her soul have been scattered to the winds?

Ruonian took the medicine handed over by Ruoying. Her white jade fingers lightly scooped a spoonful, blowing on it carefully. Once the steam had dissipated, she gently pressed it to Shi Yining’s lips.

“I know Ning’er has many questions. First, drink this medicine and nurse your body back to health. At that time, whatever you wish to ask, as long as I know the answer, I will tell you everything…”

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