Hearing Ya-Ting's cruel words, Bai-Xue lifted her head weakly and whispered,
"Prince Min-Sheng wants to marry me... because he likes me."
At this, Ya-Ting and Hai-Rang burst into loud, mocking laughter.
Ya-Ting leaned down, grabbed Bai-Xue by her hair, and yanked it viciously.
"Oh, you poor little thing," she sneered. She jerked Bai-Xue's face upward by her hair and whispered coldly into her ear,
"Prince Min-Sheng is only obeying his father's orders. Trust me—he wants you dead just as much as I do."
She then pulled out a golden jade pendant and dangled it in front of Bai-Xue's eyes.
Bai-Xue's voice broke.
"No... no, that can't be. He... he wouldn't do this. Prince Min-Sheng can't betray me."
SLAP!
Hai-Rang struck her across the face so hard that Bai-Xue fell sideways.
"You will NEVER take anything that belongs to my sister," Hai-Rang spat. "Prince Min-Sheng is hers."
Bai-Xue's heart shattered.
Since childhood, she had dreamed of marrying Prince Min-Sheng—dreams she had held close, dreams she thought were real.
But with one cruel moment, everything crumbled.
Ya-Ting's eyes gleamed with hatred.
"You are a thorn between me and Prince Min-Sheng. So I'll remove you... permanently."
She suddenly wrapped her fingers around Bai-Xue's throat and squeezed.
Hai-Rang stepped forward quickly.
"First Sister, not here. Killing her in the mansion will cause trouble. Let the men take care of it."
At her signal, several masked men in black appeared. Rough hands grabbed Bai-Xue, dragging her away.
Hai-Rang led them through a hidden path behind the mansion.
"She's yours now," Hai-Rang said coldly. "Do whatever you want with her. Just make sure I never see her again—alive or dead—in this entire country."
Present — In the Nine Volt Forest
Bai-Xue stared at the golden jade in her hand, her expression dark.
"So... this girl's entire family and even her fiancé wanted her dead."
Her voice trembled with fury.
"Don't worry. I'll take revenge for you. I'll make every one of them pay."
She murmured to herself as she walked through the dense forest.
"But there's something I don't understand... Bai-Xue's mother was a God-rank cultivator. How could her daughter be completely worthless?"
She stopped walking, a strange discomfort filling her mind.
"I remember everything... except her mother's face. That's strange. Maybe I lost some memories when the head hit the stone."
Her eyes drifted downward to her clothes—torn, bloodstained, soaked with dirt.
Then something else caught her attention: a jade pendant tied at her waist.
She froze.
"H-How is this possible...? This jade has the same mark as my own jade... but the shape is different."
Her jade from her past life was an inverted triangle.
This one was a normal triangle.
But both carried the same mysterious star-like symbol enclosed within a circle.
"There must be a connection," she whispered.
In this world, two paths existed:
Summoners
—martial cultivators who contracted spirit beasts in life-and-death bonds.
If the summoner died, the beast died with them.
Pharmacists
—cultivators who crafted medicinal pills and healing elixirs.
Bai-Xue found a quiet spot beneath an ancient tree and sat cross-legged.
She steadied her breathing and attempted to meditate.
To cultivate, one had to stabilize the mind and connect soul, heart, and consciousness.
She closed her eyes—
—and instantly felt something blocking her, like an invisible force restraining her soul.
She tried again.
A sharp sound echoed inside her mind—a crack—
followed by an unbearable pain ripping through her body, as if every bone was breaking.
But behind the agony... she felt a strange sense of freedom, like invisible binds snapping apart.
She attempted again.
Another wave of suffocation crashed over her. Her breath halted. Pain exploded.
Then again—another moment of release.
Over and over, her soul struggled and her mind fought back, but nothing succeeded.
An hour passed in agonizing failure.
Her eyes fell to the jade in her hand.
In desperation, she bit her finger and let her blood drip onto the jade.
She gripped it tightly and focused all her strength.
The moment her blood touched the pendant—
A surge of black energy erupted around her.
It wrapped around her like a storm, twisting and crackling.
She screamed in agony as the dark power swallowed her whole.
Her cries echoed through the forest.
It felt as if thousands of knives had stabbed into her eyes and mind. Bai-Xue screamed—a raw, piercing cry—but the agony vanished in the very next heartbeat. She gasped and opened her eyes.
They were no longer their normal colour.
Her pupils had turned a dark, blood-red, glowing in the black night like polished rubies. She froze in shock as she realised she could see everything—every moving creature, every drifting leaf, every distant shape up to almost two kilometres away.
Bai-Xue: "Amazing... this is incredible."
She sat down and meditated again, letting her consciousness sink deeper. This time she saw it clearly—her soul spirit bound tightly by heavy chains, glowing with a suppressed light.
Understanding dawned upon her.
Her cultivation soul had been sealed with five layers of suppression.
Breaking the first had restored her pale body.
Breaking the second healed all her injuries.
The third and fourth granted her those eyes... and awakened her mind to a higher state.
Her gaze sharpened.
Bai-Xue (whispering): "So someone... someone deliberately sealed my cultivation. They didn't want me to learn martial arts. But why...?"
Just as the thought tightened her chest—
Awooooo!
The chilling howl of wolves echoed through the Silent Night Forest. She turned sharply and ran toward the sound. When she arrived, she sucked in a breath.
Hundreds of wolves lay dead, their dark fur soaked with blood, as if a fierce battle had erupted moments earlier.
And nearby... an injured man lay unconscious.
He wore clothes of obvious nobility. Bai-Xue approached him cautiously and then stopped, stunned.
He was breathtaking.
His long hair was the deep blue of ink on water. His face was exquisitely handsome—so perfect it could steal the breath from anyone who saw him. His white robe glowed faintly under the moonlight, making his fair skin appear even more luminous. His sword-shaped brows framed closed eyes that hinted at a light blue depth, like ripples on a quiet lake.
A man who looked like a god who had fallen—not divine, but dangerously close.
Bai-Xue found herself staring for a heartbeat longer than she intended.
When she noticed the wounds covering his body, she snapped out of her trance.
Bai-Xue: "He was already injured... and still managed to kill all these Level Nine Dark Wolves. What an incredible man."
She carefully removed the cloth around his wounds and winced.
Bai-Xue: "These are deep... but treatable. If I can find the right herbs..."
She scanned the forest, her enhanced sight sweeping through the night. A climber creeping up a tree caught her attention.
Bai-Xue: "Yarrow flowers... and—oh! Goldenrod! Perfect."
Rushing back, she glanced at the unconscious man and smiled softly.
Bai-Xue: "You're very lucky. I found exactly what I need. These herbs heal quickly... thankfully, my science background still helps."
She crushed the herbs and gently applied the mixture onto his wounds. The moment the paste touched him, his body jerked violently in pain.
Without thinking, she slid her hand into his hair, soothing him, and leaned forward until her forehead touched his.
Her voice became warm and tender.
Bai-Xue (softly): "Shhhh... endure it for just a little while. The pain will pass soon. You'll be fine."
As if hearing her, the trembling of his body slowly subsided. His breathing evened. The night breeze brushed past them, cool and fragrant, and she caught a faint, calming scent from him.
For a moment, it felt as though time had stopped.
But then—
The young man's eyelashes flickered. He was waking up.
Bai-Xue jolted upright, quickly pulling a corner of her clothes to cover her face. As she stepped back, her sharp eyes spotted a storage bracelet on his wrist.
She hesitated only a moment before whispering to herself:
Bai-Xue: "I should take some money and a few clothes... I need to survive too."