"Hah. Did you really think you and my Junior Brother Ling hid it that well?"
Ji Chang released her chin with a dismissive snort and slowly leaned closer.
"You're seriously underestimating the Ji Family of the Western Wasteland… and you're underestimating my influence."
"As for the position of True Disciple in the Shendao Sect—honestly, its prestige can't even compare to my identity. The only reason I follow their rules is because I choose to."
"Even so, there are countless cultivators eager to attach themselves to me."
"When you met Ling Feng, when you spoke with him, even every single word you said…"
"I know it all."
Looking at the mocking smile on Ji Chang's handsome face, Luo Nishang felt fear surge through her heart.
Panic.
Dread.
All kinds of negative emotions flooded her mind.
She had believed their plan was known to no one.
Yet Ji Chang had already discovered everything.
Within the vast inner sect of the Shendao Sect, his influence had apparently spread everywhere.
If that was true, then a mere Qi Refining cultivator like her coming here…
was no different from walking straight into a trap.
Ji Chang would definitely kill her.
Under the crushing pressure of life and death, her body began trembling uncontrollably.
Through his dual pupils, Ji Chang could clearly see that the fear in the beautiful mature woman before him was genuine.
She wasn't pretending.
She was truly terrified.
Of course—
the truth wasn't what he had just claimed.
No matter how powerful the Ji Family was, the Shendao Sect was still a top-tier force. There was no way they would allow a single disciple to infiltrate every corner of the inner sect.
Even an elder with real authority couldn't do that.
At most, the sect gave Ji Chang—this direct heir of the Ji Family—some preferential treatment.
The real reason he knew everything so clearly…
was simply because he had read the original story.
But fear alone wasn't enough.
Thinking of his plan, Ji Chang continued speaking.
"Out of the entire Ling Family, you're the only one with a bit of beauty that caught my eye."
"Yet it turns out you're just a big-breasted idiot with no brains."
"My mistake for misjudging you."
"A tiny Ling Family… and you, a mere Qi Refining cultivator. Do you really think you could withstand the wrath of the Ji Family?"
"Use your brain."
"You're plotting to harm the only legitimate son of the Ji Family Patriarch."
"Not to mention my father is a Nascent Soul True Lord, and my mother is a Golden Core cultivator."
"Do you really think the Shendao Sect would protect all of you just because Ling Feng became a True Disciple?"
"How ridiculous."
"Let me tell you what will happen after you succeed."
Watching Luo Nishang's face grow paler and her body tremble, the amusement in Ji Chang's smile deepened.
"If you succeed, Ling Feng benefits."
"The Ling Family might even survive, since they share his bloodline."
"But you?"
"You're just the matriarch who married into the family a few years ago."
"You'll definitely be pushed out as the scapegoat."
"Even if sacrificing you only reduces the Ji Family's anger by a tiny amount…"
"That will be enough."
"By then—your soul will be extracted and refined."
"You won't be able to live… and you won't be able to die."
"Ah—!"
The sinister tone of his final words made Luo Nishang scream in terror.
Ji Chang wasn't exaggerating.
In the original story, this protagonist's foster mother truly had been used as a scapegoat.
Of course, the poison she carried was difficult to resolve—but not impossible for a Longevity Clan.
In the original timeline, Ji Chang hadn't actually been crippled.
After losing the chance to become a True Disciple, he had instead broken through his limits and advanced even further.
As for Luo Nishang, the scapegoat—
she eventually fell into Ji Chang's hands.
The novel had spent more than ten chapters describing the various humiliations and torments she endured.
"So tell me now."
Ji Chang crouched slightly, his tone almost playful.
"Do you still want to be your adopted son's scapegoat, you foolish woman?"
"N-No…!"
"I don't want that…!"
Endless pressure crushed Luo Nishang's heart.
In a daze, she seemed to see a terrifying future.
Ji Family cultivators capturing her.
Ten thousand arrows piercing her body.
Her soul extracted and refined.
Unable to live.
Unable to die.
Meanwhile, the adopted son she cared for so deeply—Ling Feng—would step over her corpse and become a respected True Disciple admired by everyone.
Even the Ling Family would slowly rise in power.
And no one would remember her.
After all, she was just an outsider who had only married into the family a few years ago.
Ji Chang's cold words were cruel—
but they made her realize the true gravity of the situation.
She had believed that once Ling Feng became a True Disciple of a great sect, everything would be resolved.
But she had forgotten something.
She had always been an outsider.
The fury of the Ji Family…
was something she could never withstand.
As for relying on Ling Feng to protect her—
that thought had once crossed her mind.
But a man who could push his own foster mother into danger…
would he really protect her against the overwhelming wrath of the Ji Family?
More likely—
he would simply ask her to sacrifice herself again.
Now that the influence of the protagonist's halo had been shattered, Luo Nishang's rationality finally returned.
The more she thought about it—
the more terrifying it became.
And just as she was drowning in this storm of thoughts, Ji Chang himself suddenly froze.
A voice echoed within his mind.
[Ding! Detected that the host has altered the destiny trajectory of a Destiny Heroine. Reward: 500 Destiny Points! The Host Template has been activated!]
A translucent panel appeared within his sea of consciousness.
Host: Ji Chang
Age: 21
Cultivation: Early Foundation Establishment
Bloodlines:• Sacred Demon Body (Heaven Rank — Sealed)
• Innate Dual Pupils (Earth Rank — Awakened)
• Devouring Origin Demon Physique (Sealed)
Spiritual Root: Top-Grade Mutated Lightning Spiritual Root
Cultivation Technique:Profound Thunder Void-Breaking Record
Destiny Points: 500
A system had appeared in his mind out of nowhere.
How could he not be shocked?
Fortunately, thanks to a cultivator's powerful soul, Ji Chang quickly grasped the basic function of the Destiny System.
The causal threads of fate formed a vast net across the world.
Among them, the destiny threads surrounding the Child of Destiny and those close to him were the thickest.
The system's true name was the Heaven-Defying Fate System.
Its purpose was to steal the intangible power of fate itself and rewrite destiny.
And if one wanted to obtain large amounts of that power—
the best method was to alter the fate of the protagonist's group.
Especially the Child of Destiny.
Even the slightest change in his destiny could produce fate power thousands—甚至 tens of thousands—of times greater than that of ordinary people.
This power would then be converted by the system into Destiny Points.
Currently, Destiny Points could be used for lottery draws.
One draw required 1,000 points.
Unfortunately…
he was still 500 points short.
"What an unexpected bonus."
Even without the system, Ji Chang had already been confident that—with his foresight and the terrifying power of the Ji Family—he could reach the peak of this world.
Now that he had this additional assistance…
his confidence grew even stronger.
The peak of this world?
No.
He wanted to ascend to the upper realm.
Perhaps even become an immortal ancestor.
Ji Chang glanced at the protagonist's foster mother still lying on the ground, her delicate body trembling as she struggled through her storm of thoughts.
A faint smile appeared on his lips.
Let's start with her.
A flash of spiritual light appeared in his hand.
A simple ancient box engraved with mysterious sealing patterns appeared in his palm.
"Foundation Establishment Pill."
"And not just any pill—"
"A mid-grade Foundation Establishment Pill with six pill patterns."
The tempting fragrance of the pill made Luo Nishang look up instinctively.
When she saw what was inside the box, she gasped in shock.
Her cultivation had long reached Qi Refining Layer Nine.
But with her mid-grade spiritual root, the chance of breaking through without a Foundation Establishment Pill was extremely low.
If she failed—
her meridians would shatter.
She would become a cripple.
That was why she had never dared to attempt the breakthrough.
And within the Ling Family, the elders tightly controlled the Foundation Establishment Pills.
There was no way they would give such a precious resource…
to an outsider like her.