Fate Trading System – Chapter 270

Plan A

Furnace 21

[Refresher: Qi Refining stage → Foundation Establishment stage → Golden Core stage → Nascent Soul stage → Divine Transformation stage → Void Refining stage → Body Integration stage → Great Accomplishment stage]

Jing Yueru was pleasantly surprised. The ice around her had been dispelled, and she felt as satisfied as a child who had finally gotten the candy they wished for.

Everyone seemed to share an unspoken understanding, saying nothing and pretending not to know.

Su Xin and Jing Yueru weren’t afraid of gossip; in fact, Jing Yueru wished everyone knew.

Gui Ziqing felt a little embarrassed that others had seen him like that.

He did indeed like girls, and he particularly liked older ones.

He had a soft temperament and liked to act cute. He had originally thought he would spend his entire life cultivating alone until old age, but then he unexpectedly met Tian Ling.

He didn’t think Tian Ling’s personality and ideas were particularly against the norm or rebellious; he actually thought they were great. However, a sense of inferiority always lingered within him. Tian Ling had a powerful aura and a cold personality, which many male disciples admired. But he was soft and often ridiculed for not being “manly.”

“Let’s keep moving forward. Be very careful and don’t touch anything randomly.”

Su Xin said this. Jing Yueru, still feeling insecure, held her hand. Though there was a smile on her face, her unease was well concealed.

“Okay.”

Tian Ling took Gui Ziqing’s hand and walked beside them.

Su Xin saw a red dot on the map. It indicated a very simple room. The wooden door was ajar, bearing some scratches that suggested its age.

“There’s something inside.”

Su Xin hesitated, wondering whether to enter. A red dot visible right from the entrance probably wasn’t anything important, perhaps just a puppet. But who knew what that demonic cultivator would do? What if they were hiding in there?

“No need to go in. It’s a puppet. That trace of life force is…”

Jing Yueru frowned. She could no longer sense that life force; the surroundings were still thick with an oppressive aura of death.

“It should be in this direction.”

Jing Yueru pointed in a direction. They held objects that provided light, allowing them to see their surroundings clearly.

“There’s something over there too, but there are three of them.”

Su Xin sent a voice transmission to Jing Yueru. There was no need to invite unnecessary trouble. It wasn’t that she suspected the two people with her, but it was always wise to be on guard¹. It was better if they knew less about certain things.

Jing Yueru nodded at Su Xin. The four of them headed in that direction, but suddenly, a strange stirring came from behind them.

When Su Xin saw the thing, she felt her stomach churn.

It was a puppet, but it had been created by refining two people together, and its body had mutated.

The puppet was about 1.8 meters tall, with greenish-blue skin. It had a single body but two heads, one at the front and one at the back, making it look exceptionally repulsive.

Their hair was matted together. The puppet’s eyes were vacant; it was completely dead, yet it still moved.

“This demonic cultivator is far too vicious.”

There are generally two methods for refining puppets: one uses corpses, and the other uses living people.

Living people are more difficult to refine than corpses. However, the more powerful the living person used in the refinement, the more powerful the resulting puppet will be.

Refining corpses is easier, but the quality is too poor; they simply can’t withstand a fight.

This was clearly a puppet refined from corpses, but an extremely insidious method had been used: two people had actually been fused together. In life, these two might have been a couple or siblings—more likely a couple. In short, they must have been very much in sync. Such a two-person puppet would have excellent coordination, be more agile than other puppets, able to see in all directions and hear everything², and thus not easily defeated.

To destroy a puppet, besides smashing it to smithereens, one could sever its puppet strings. Without the controlling threads, the puppet would naturally be unable to move.

Jing Yueru was about to make a move, but Su Xin stopped her.

“I want to get some practice.”

My cultivation has always been theoretical; I haven’t had any real combat experience yet.

“Alright.”

The three of them stepped aside to watch, with Jing Yueru ready to jump in and help at any moment.

The battle ended quickly, much faster than they had imagined.

“This Senior Martial Sister… what’s her style?”

Tian Ling’s mouth twitched. Their terms of address were based on sect seniority or cultivation level, not age. Not knowing what else to call Su Xin, she decided to just call her Senior Martial Sister, the same way she addressed Jing Yueru.

As everyone knows, most cultivators specialized in ranged attacks. With a lift of their hand, they’d unleash a spiritual technique; wealthier ones had an abundance of magical artifacts, making it nearly impossible to get close. Of course, this didn’t mean they were weak in close combat, it was just that fighting from a distance had more style points³. However, someone like Su Xin, who fought at such close quarters, was a rare sight.

Our Xin-jie, a real maverick with wild methods.

These were definitely not techniques from their sect; Tian Ling and Gui Ziqing could see that clearly.

Flames blazed. Su Xin was capable of both ranged attacks and close combat, but in melee, she preferred to fight up close and personal, analyzing the enemy’s vital points with perfect clarity, knowing exactly where to strike for a fatal blow.

Since the goal was to smash the puppet to smithereens, Su Xin had already mentally marked several points while observing it. Then, she moved in and began to dismantle it.

All martial arts under heaven, only speed is unbeatable⁴.

This saying held true in any world. Although its two heads allowed it to see in many directions, making it difficult to ambush from behind, Su Xin had no intention of attacking from the rear. She confronted it head-on.

First, sever the necks, then the limbs, making sure it was too shattered to get up. Then, stab the heads, ensuring it was thoroughly dead.

Back when she was learning anatomy, the instructor had only taught the basics⁵. Their purpose was to kill, not to save lives. Mastering the body’s basic structural weaknesses—which spots would cause massive bleeding, which injuries looked severe but wouldn’t have catastrophic consequences—knowing these things was sufficient. However, Su Xin had found it quite interesting, so she had learned a little more.

This feeling of dismembering something into eight pieces⁶ was actually quite satisfying.

Su Xin wiped the smile from her face, trying not to let her perverted side show.

Jing Yueru shook her head. She didn’t know either. In short, Su Xin was very special, unlike anyone else.

Su Xin had dismantled the puppet as if taking apart components. The air carried the smell of something burning, and Su Xin wrinkled her nose.

Still, Jing Yueru’s ability to freeze things with a single move felt cooler. Although Su Xin thought her own little flames were pretty good, they just lacked a bit in the style points department.

Xilou was quietly coiled around her wrist, but Su Xin knew it wasn’t sleeping.

“Let’s go.”

It was dealt with so easily. Su Xin felt it wasn’t quite thrilling enough. Puppets had no thoughts, so they couldn’t adapt. She decided she needed to find more opportunities to practice in the future.

But in reality, Su Xin’s current role should have been that of a healer⁷. As an alchemist, refining medicine was supposed to be her top priority, generally avoiding combat. However, Su Xin possessed the heart of a damage dealer⁸.

They continued in the direction Jing Yueru had indicated. However, Su Xin noticed that one of the red dots on her map was moving.

Soon after, all the red dots on the map began to move, converging towards a single location.

“Found it! All the puppets are heading there. That demonic cultivator should be in that location.”

The black mist had lost its effectiveness. So, was the plan to gather all reinforcements for a big group fight?

“Then let’s head there.”

“Okay.”

They moved towards that area and were soon surrounded by puppets. Among them were some that clearly didn’t belong to this place.

These were clearly professionally battle-trained, different from the ones they had encountered earlier.

Jing Yueru sucked in a sharp breath when she saw them. The leading puppet’s strength was only slightly inferior to hers, already comparable to a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. Coupled with the fact that puppets felt no pain, they were actually somewhat stronger than cultivators of an equivalent level.

The air once again filled with a putrid stench emanating from the lower-level puppets.

Jing Yueru tore a talisman paper in her hand, hoping her Master could come and lend a han.

Fighting to the death wasn’t an issue for her, but she couldn’t let Su Xin be injured. Besides, there was also a Junior Martial Brother[in the same sect or martial school. and a Junior Martial Sister with them.

At this point, Tian Ling and Gui Ziqing also realized something was amiss and hurriedly sought help from their respective sects.

“Senior Martial Sister, it seems to have no effect.”

Gui Ziqing looked at the talisman paper in his hand. There was no reaction; it didn’t dissolve into a faint light as it normally would.

“Yes, don’t panic.”

Thousand-li voice transmission naturally existed, but with their current strength, they couldn’t perform it directly. They had to rely on tools like voice-transmitting paper cranes to fly out. But now that even the summoning talismans had failed, the paper cranes certainly wouldn’t be able to get through either.

“I’ll deal with the leader. You two hold off the others.”

“Okay.”

Su Xin first picked off the easier targets, rushing forward to smash them into pieces. This method conserved her spiritual energy and was, wow, much more efficient.

Gui Ziqing possessed dual fire and earth spiritual roots, while Tian Ling had dual water and metal roots. The two coordinated seamlessly and managed to prevent the puppets from getting near them.

In the end, only three puppets were left standing.

“It’s not some powerful old ghost cultivator⁹, nor an outstanding figure among demonic cultivators. How could they be so audacious as to come to the mortal realm and do something like this?”

Jing Yueru delivered the fatal blow, and that puppet crashed to the ground.

Su Xin had previously refined many Spirit Replenishing Pills. Running out of spiritual energy was something she absolutely wouldn’t allow. If her spiritual energy was depleted, how could she possibly fight!

Su Xin pressed medicinal pills into the hands of the other three, and together they dealt with the remaining two puppets.

In truth, if Golden Core cultivators from other sects had been sent, it might not have been resolved so easily. However, Jing Yueru’s strength was already far superior to that of her peers at the same Golden Core level. Adding to that Su Xin, who didn’t play by the rules, and the seamlessly coordinating Tian Ling and Gui Ziqing, it wasn’t exactly a cakewalk, but it wasn’t overly difficult either. The main issue was the severe depletion of spiritual energy, but since everyone had brought their own pills, and with Su Xin the alchemist right there, it wasn’t a major concern.

The room in the center housed the person they had come to eliminate on this mission.

Su Xin didn’t enter rashly. When they were fighting the puppets earlier, why hadn’t the demonic cultivator emerged? Those puppets seemed to be merely stalling them. A red dot was still showing here on the map, indicating that the demonic cultivator hadn’t intended to flee. Or perhaps… was the figure inside also just a puppet, and not the actual demonic cultivator?

“Let’s go in.”

Jing Yueru stepped inside. Before she could even issue a warning, her vision was obscured by a cloud of mist. When she could see clearly again, Tian Ling and Gui Ziqing were already unconscious on the floor.

Su Xin had closed her eyes the instant it happened. When Fourteen told her it was okay, she opened them.

The scene before her was utterly bizarre. A continuous stream of black qi was surging towards the person lying on the bed.

Beside the bed stood a woman in black. Her features were strikingly sharp and heroic, but when she turned to look at them, her eyes were lifeless. A long scar ran across her forehead.

Su Xin sensed the stench of blood and death emanating from her; she didn’t seem like a living person.

“You want to… resurrect her?”

Jing Yueru dredged up some scattered fragments of information from her memory. Looking at the woman on the bed, enveloped in black qi, she thought, No wonder.

Artificially creating a land of death¹⁰, trapping the wronged souls of people here, then harnessing the death qi to ‘resurrect’ someone already deceased.

Life and death are fundamentally governed by Heaven and Earth. Even those who cultivate the Dao cannot bring the dead back to life.

Defying fate to achieve such a thing would only result in an illusion, like flowers in a mirror or the moon in the water¹¹. Moreover, the methods employed are extremely detrimental and would incur horrific karmic retribution.

This method requires trapping the person’s soul¹² within seven days¹³ of their death, evading detection by the spirit envoys¹⁴ from the underworld. Then, a special kind of qi must be used to preserve the corpse for forty-nine days¹⁵, ensuring it doesn’t decompose.

After that, the ‘resurrection’ must be performed on an exact anniversary of the person’s birth (same month and day, in a year that is a multiple of their age at death or some other significant number of years), a land of death must be created, and then, with the aid of a specific magical artifact, the soul of the deceased must be fused with their physical body.

This can allow the person to awaken briefly, achieving a semblance of resurrection. However, this is by no means a long-term solution. The ‘resurrected’ person would require a constant supply of death qi, must avoid sunlight, and would still carry a putrid odor.

Su Xin was unfamiliar with this lore. She just felt that the scene before her didn’t resemble a resurrection at all. Is this truly about saving someone, and not harming them? she wondered.

“Since you know, don’t disturb me.”

The woman spoke, her voice hoarse as if from long disuse. Her gaze was intent and gentle as she looked at the woman on the bed, but when she turned to Su Xin and Jing Yueru, her expression became sharp and severe.

“It’s precisely because I know that I cannot stand idly by¹⁶.”

An entire village had already perished for this, and likely many more. If this resurrection succeeded, the woman in black would undoubtedly continue to sustain it, leading to even more deaths.

For the sake of all living beings under heaven, they could not simply look on.

Although the Heavenly Dao would naturally exact karmic retribution, it would likely only occur when she attempted to advance her cultivation. This woman was clearly consumed by emotion and unlikely to ever advance again.

Su Xin’s gaze fell upon the woman on the bed. She was dressed in magnificent crimson robes, clearly a daughter from a noble family. She seemed utterly out of place with the woman exuding an aura of death.

“If you make a move, then their lives are mine.”

The woman glanced at the unconscious Tian Ling and Gui Ziqing on the floor, then rose. Her expression was chillingly sinister.

“I’ll hold her off. You immediately kill the woman on the bed.”

Jing Yueru sent this via voice transmission to Su Xin, who acknowledged that she understood.

No matter what reasons this woman had, harming others was wrong.

Jing Yueru advanced, sword in hand. Su Xin immediately moved towards the bed, her sword thrusting at the chest of the woman lying there.

This person is already dead and not yet revived anyway, Su Xin thought. Might as well make her death more thorough. She’s indeed a beauty, but she should have passed on ages ago. Better to reincarnate sooner rather than later.

The sword didn’t pierce through; instead, it shattered.

Su Xin frowned. What shoddy quality.

The black-clad woman launched a palm strike at Su Xin, and one of Su Xin’s defensive magical artifacts shattered.

Jing Yueru seized the opportunity to attack, but her sword didn’t penetrate the woman’s body. Instead, it felt like passing through mist, eliciting no reaction whatsoever.

Jing Yueru thought, This is troublesome. This woman was probably long dead too—a living dead¹⁷, to be precise. Who knew what she had mutated her own body into for it to be so bizarre.

“If you scram now, I can still give all of you a way out. But if you insist on a fight to the death¹⁸ with me…”

The woman sneered, her appearance becoming utterly terrifying. Her hands transformed into ghostly claws as she lunged at Su Xin.

Su Xin dodged agilely, her mind racing for a way to get close to the woman on the bed.

The barrier around the bed was clearly too powerful; even her sword had shattered instantly. While it wasn’t a top-tier weapon, it wasn’t some piece of junk either.

Jing Yueru formed a hand seal with both hands, demonstrating her resolve to fight to the bitter end.

Su Xin had several swords; if one broke, she could just grab another. She had initially planned to be a healer, so she hadn’t prepared many weapons. Jing Yueru didn’t even have her natal magic artifact yet, as she hadn’t found one she fancied.

Su Xin thought of her Dandan¹⁹, and her other hand reached for the small snake on her wrist.

“Xilou, if you can understand me, can you slip in there and bite that woman to death?”

Su Xin raised her hand and whispered to the snake coiled there.

In the next instant, Xilou shot out like a tiny bolt of lightning. Su Xin barely caught a glimpse of its movement before Xilou returned.

“What did you do?!”

The black-clad woman roared in fury. The black qi stopped flowing towards the woman on the bed and instead swirled aimlessly in the surroundings.

“Well done.”

Su Xin stroked Xilou. Very good.

“Where’s the Soul-Locking Pearl²⁰?”

Su Xin spread her hands. How would she know?

It’s probably in Xilou’s mouth, she thought. This little guy loves to swallow things.

Xilou flicked its forked tongue. A pearl emitting a soft glow was indeed in its possession.

It’s a good thing. Can swallow.

“Give it back to me!”

“Dream on.”

Su Xin stroked Xilou’s cool, smooth body. Do you have any idea how awesome²¹ this snake is? Telling you would scare you to death!

“So it was the Soul-Locking Pearl.”

The black-clad woman was provoked. She chanted a string of incomprehensible words, and numerous dark shadows materialized out of thin air.

“Give it back to me!”

The black-clad woman’s primary target was Su Xin, while the dark shadows swarmed Jing Yueru, keeping her pinned down.

Jing Yueru felt incredibly frustrated. Why did it always have to be like this? Why did she always have to watch Su Xin fall into peril, only for her “other self” to emerge and save the day?

Her past self was indeed more powerful than her current one, but Jing Yueru had no memories of that past. From her perspective, it was simply another version of herself emerging to help Su Xin, a thought that deeply agitated her.

This agitation reached its zenith when the black-clad demonic cultivator landed a palm strike on Su Xin.

Su Xin coughed up a mouthful of blood and was sent flying towards the bed.

Although the person on the bed was already dead, she could still serve as a hostage.

Su Xin grabbed the neck of the seemingly comatose woman on the bed, switched her grip, and pressed her sword against it.

“If you move again, you can forget about getting her corpse back.”

Blood trickled from the corner of Su Xin’s mouth; she looked utterly wretched.

“You…”

Su Xin only had time to register the black-clad woman’s shocked expression before she lost consciousness.

Where… is this?

【Sea of Consciousness. Host is in an observer state. This should be a forced observer state. It will pass.】

She should have been in a subjective state, but Fourteen had tampered with things, pushing her out into an observer state.

It was an antique-style²² room. A woman with a beautiful face pushed open the door and entered.

Su Xin recognized her; just moments ago, Su Xin had been holding this very woman hostage.

“This is too much! How can they slander Ah Yan like this! What should I do?”

The woman paced back and forth anxiously, looking helplessly at her seemingly composed maidservant.

“Princess, don’t worry. You are His Majesty’s²³ younger sister. He won’t do anything to the Fuma²⁴.”

“How can I not be anxious? Those civil and military officials are saying such horrible things, especially those civil officials—they’re simply incorrigible! Even if His Majesty is my own brother, he won’t ignore all this court gossip²⁵ just for me. His Majesty is already wavering. You saw it yourself, I was driven out!”

The woman looked as if she was on the verge of tears.

“No one is willing to help me. I’ve pleaded with all the high officials²⁶. When Ah Yan first made her mark, she was all alone and lacked backing; there was no one to stand up for her²⁷.”

“Princess, do you think the Fuma… did she really… defect?”

“How can even you say that! I know exactly what kind of person Ah Yan is! She would never surrender to the enemy! If the news of her surrender is true, there must be some hidden reason!”

The woman was indignant. Previously, when Ah Yan led troops on campaigns, the entire imperial court had sung her praises. But upon hearing news of her surrender, every single one of them rushed to kick her while she was down²⁸, eager to brand her a sinner for all eternity. If those critics were so capable, why couldn’t they lead a mere handful of soldiers on a campaign themselves!

“I must prove Ah Yan’s innocence.”

The woman clenched her fists. Though delicate and frail, she radiated an immense strength at that moment.

Su Xin continued to observe. In the blink of an eye, the scene shifted.

The woman was applying makeup before a mirror. Aided by her maidservant, she donned magnificent robes.

“Your Highness the Princess, must you really do this?”

The maidservant knelt on the floor, her face etched with entreaty.

“Even if it means death, I will prove her innocence and buy her some time. I understand her. She will return.”

The woman looked resolute, determined to face death. The maidservant sighed.

“Imperial Sister, why must you suffer so?”

“With this humble one’s worthless life, I shall prove my husband’s²⁹ innocence!”

Though there were only a few fleeting scenes, Su Xin felt a heavy tightness in her chest.

She was a truly remarkable girl.

The scene shifted once more, this time to events after the Princess’s death.

“Report! General Lu³⁰ feigned surrender, biding her time patiently! She has now seized an opportunity to take the enemy commander’s head! The enemy forces are in disarray and have retreated beyond the border! The General is currently on her way back to report on her mission!”

“Your Majesty, the Fifth Princess has already… If the General returns to witness this, I fear she might… harbor rebellious intentions.”

“Kill.”

Su Xin saw the black-clad woman again. At this point in the vision, General Lu was dressed in men’s attire, returning triumphantly with her troops. However, instead of a hero’s welcome with cheering crowds lining the streets, she was met with city walls bristling with drawn bows.

It was then that she learned her beloved wife had committed suicide before the palace hall to prove her innocence.

Su Xin found it all too tragic to watch. General Lu had toiled tirelessly for the country, volunteered to lead troops into battle, and sacrificed for the nation’s security. After enduring so much and finally achieving a victorious counterattack, she returned only to find that her wife had committed suicide to prove her innocence and buy her time. The Emperor, far from recognizing her as a great hero, intended to execute her and her battle-hardened subordinates right before the imperial city walls.

Following that were scenes depicting a series of fateful coincidences. She hadn’t died, but had become a half-dead demonic cultivator and had somehow obtained the Soul-Locking Pearl.

Su Xin was abruptly ejected from the vision. She found herself looking at the black-clad woman, who was now being choked.

Red specks of light flickered around Jing Yueru’s eyes and brows, her gaze filled with killing intent.

“You two always seem to run into trouble.”

“It’s precisely because things get to this point that she calls you out.”

Su Xin glanced at the “hostage” on the bed. The beauty from moments ago had now turned into a pile of white bones. Su Xin released her grip and walked over to Jing Yueru’s side.

Indeed, this pair of ill-fated lovers³¹ had suffered a tragic fate.

But that wasn’t a justification for her to kill so many people and create a land of death. If the resurrection succeeded, even more innocents would suffer in the future.

Jing Yueru’s mission here was precisely to eliminate this demonic cultivator.

Su Xin felt a great deal of sympathy, but she would still do what needed to be done.

“I saw it… the way she looked when she died.”

The black-clad woman’s head snapped up, her gaze fixed on Su Xin. Her movements were restricted, her legs frozen solid by Jing Yueru’s ice.

“Why must you destroy this? You wouldn’t understand!”

Jing Yueru and Su Xin sighed inwardly at the same time. How could they not understand?

If they were in her shoes, they would probably make similar choices. If they had truly set their minds on something, they would pursue it relentlessly, even unto death.

Jing Yueru struck. Their paths were different; there was no common ground for them to find³².

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