Zanxing

Chapter 7 - Pingyang Town (1)

The red pill was like blood, accentuating the delicate whiteness of Zanxing's hand.

"Is this it?"

Old Niu, having lived more than half his life, prided himself on having seen many storms, yet at this moment, he was shocked, stammering, "This... this is...?"

"I killed that monster underwater and this came out of its body," Zanxing replied.

Actually, this wasn't entirely accurate; at that time underwater, she had struck the shadow of the "Yu'" with a sandball, causing the shadow above to begin dissipating, while the solidified black domain started to churn violently. A blood-red pill flew out from it. Zanxing hadn't paid much attention initially, but the Xiao Yuan Pearl at her chest began to warm slightly as if it craved that object. Thus, she reached out and snatched the fleeing red pill into her hand.

"Ah, Uncle Niu, is this the demon's core?" Hong Su exclaimed excitedly, "This is the first time I've seen a demon's core!"

"I haven't seen one either..." Old Niu muttered.

"Uncle Niu, didn't you just say this monster's core is equivalent to a third-grade spirit medicine? If Miss absorbs this core, won't her cultivation rise significantly?"

"That may be true," Old Niu pondered for a moment, "but this core is derived from a monster's body and contains monster energy. If one's cultivation isn't sufficient, they may not be able to absorb the energy within." He glanced at Zanxing, who appeared deep in thought, and suggested, "Why not wait until we reach Pingyang Town and trade this core for spirit stones or lower-grade spirit medicines? It would be easier for the young lady to absorb them that way."

"Isn't that a bit of a waste?" Hong Su pouted, "Lower-grade spirit medicines and spirit stones are common, but demon cores aren't. How about giving it to the Young City Lord?" Her eyes lit up, "The Young City Lord is just about to enter the selection competition. If he has this monster core to help him, he will surely enter the sect smoothly. At that time, the Young City Lord will definitely thank Miss and treat her even more affectionately."

Zanxing shot a glance at the little girl who was lost in her fantasies, thinking how naive she was. However, she had no intention of giving the hard-earned monster core to that scoundrel.

...

The night was already very deep.

Thick fog enveloped the entire mountain, and there was no moon tonight, only a hint of thin starlight filtering through the branches and landing in the woods. By the burning campfire, the little girl was sleeping soundly against the old carriage driver.

Zanxing walked over and gently covered the two of them with the blanket she had taken from the carriage.

Hong Su mumbled in her sleep, murmuring softly.

Zanxing tiptoed past them and walked to the other side.

She stopped not far from them and found a clean stone to sit on, gazing up at the night sky and letting out a sigh of relief.

From the moment she crossed over until now, she had been dealing with sudden changes, and only now did she have time to fully accept the reality of the world she found herself in.

She had indeed crossed into the world of "At the Peak of the Nine Heavens."

"At the Peak of the Nine Heavens" was an old-school male-oriented cultivation novel, aptly named. Throughout the book, the male protagonist essentially did three things: 1. Slap faces. 2. Level up. 3. Gather a harem.

As a female cannon fodder who exited the stage in less than two thousand words, in some respects, Zanxing had retracted the hand that had been pushed toward Liu Yunxin. Instead of following the male protagonist into the water, she should have altered the plot. As the character of "Young Lady Yang," she wouldn't repeat the ending of being crushed to death by the male protagonist Mu Chengxiao.

With no storyline of enmity with the male protagonist, she had escaped the fate of cannon fodder. Even with the crossover, she had departed from the original plot and could start anew, living her own life in this world... if only her face wasn't injured.

Zanxing's hand brushed over her right cheek.

She had been injured by the mud shot out by the "Yu'" underwater; disfigurement was secondary; more importantly, she could feel monster energy spreading along her face. If this continued, her life would be at risk.

As Uncle Niu had said, Yue City was a small place, and the healers only treated common injuries. Perhaps only the skilled medical practitioners in Pingyang Town could address the residual effects left by the monster.

She had to go to Pingyang Town.

But... after going to Pingyang Town and healing her facial wounds, what then? In this world, the strong were revered, and ordinary women prided themselves on marrying a cultivation husband. Without the ability to protect herself, the better-off like Liu Yunxin would seek a powerful partner and endure the man's infidelities. The worse-off, like Young Lady Yang, not only followed the wrong person but lost her life as well.

The original author of "At the Peak of the Nine Heavens" seemed to harbor malice toward women. In this book, ordinary women were like goods, beautiful vases used as bargaining chips, devoid of any dignity or choice.

So, what if... she didn't want to be an ordinary woman?

Zanxing gazed at the twinkling stars in the night sky.

Thanks to having read countless cultivation novels, she at least wasn't unfamiliar with certain common tropes.

Ancient texts say: "What the earth bears, within the six harmonies and four seas, is illuminated by the sun and moon, traversed by the stars, and recorded by the four seasons. Summoned by the Tai Sui. The gods are born, their forms are diverse, whether short-lived or long-lived, only the sage can comprehend their path."

It seemed that the immortals of ancient times only existed in distant legends. Ordinary humans either sought longevity or the more expansive world, practicing and cultivating. From a young age, they diligently trained, breathing in qi, absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, nurturing with elixirs and spiritual herbs, yearning for ascension to become immortals.

Cultivators in this world were no different, from refining qi, establishing a foundation, forming golden cores to nascent souls, exiting their bodies, splitting their spirits, and finally reaching great ascension, transcending tribulations, and transforming spirits. Each step was fraught with hardship.

Her fiancé, Wang Shao, started refining qi at eight, established his foundation at twelve, and was now in the mid-foundation stage, a standout in Yue City, a so-called "genius." Meanwhile, Young Lady Yang was now seventeen, barely managing to enter the first layer of refining qi with the spirit medicines given to her by Wang Shao.

Of course, this was before Zanxing crossed over.

And now...

She opened her hand, the blood-red pill in her palm glowing with an otherworldly aura under the faint starlight.

The demon core was formed from the monster's energy within a beast. Besides the essence that cultivators craved, it also contained the beast's violent power. As a novice cultivator in the early stage of refining qi, she probably wouldn't absorb the essence but might be harmed by the monster energy on the core.

But she had a golden finger.

The Xiao Yuan Pearl at her chest seemed impatient, rapidly heating up. Zanxing placed the red pill in front of her, bringing her palms together, and gradually condensed a golden energy from her palms, wrapping the red pill tightly within it.

During the days she practiced in the sand cave, including during her battle with the "Yu'," she had roughly figured out how to use this "energy," which was the essence of heaven and earth. For someone at her level, it was somewhat challenging to subdue the monster energy on the core. However, the Xiao Yuan Pearl was essentially a buff, increasing her energy tenfold.

The golden light that burst from her palms instantly engulfed the red pill.

As the last trace of starlight faded away, the world was left in silent darkness. It was unclear how long had passed, but thin strands of red light like tiny red threads began to fly from the enveloping golden light, heading toward the girl sitting calmly in meditation.