Chapter 2: Extermination (2)

◎Good Immortal Lord, help me exterminate my family, won’t you?◎

Pinned by that gaze, Yun Jinxue’s heart grew increasingly uneasy.

She almost burned her fingers on the medicine stove.

Steeling herself, she spoke: “Why are you up? Doesn’t your body hurt?”

The girl didn’t answer, stepping out over the threshold.

Her clothes were already torn to strips, barely covering anything.

Because she was extremely resistant, Yun Jinxue had no chance to change them for her.

And now, as the girl moved, the tattered strips swayed, revealing large patches of jade-white skin crisscrossed with countless wounds.

Yet she seemed to feel no pain, simply straightening her back, slightly tilting her chin up, and walking over with her hands behind her back.

She didn’t look like a thirteen-year-old girl at all.

Perhaps it was an illusion, but as she walked out step by step, the flowers and plants in the courtyard seemed to wilt slightly.

Yun Jinxue felt that before she transmigrated, she was still an adult in her twenties. She couldn’t lose to a child in terms of presence.

So even though she very much wanted to lower her head, she held back.

She just asked again, “Why are you up?”

Dao Rhythm Immortal Lord’s voice was actually extremely pleasant to hear, deep, clear, and controlled. Even her words seemed to carry a faint feminine fragrance.

Jiang Yanyu walked up to her, glanced around the small courtyard, then retracted her gaze, fixing it on the bubbling medicine stove.

After a moment, she spoke: “I’ve heard there’s a pact between the Immortal and Mortal realms. Cultivators cannot turn a blind eye to demonic creatures wreaking havoc in the human world. They must be eliminated upon sight.”

Mi Ba flipped open a book beside them, explaining to Yun Jinxue.

So, in this book’s setting, for more harmonious coexistence, many agreements were established between the Immortal and Mortal realms.

Trade, security, sovereignty, resource exchange, etc., mostly mutually beneficial.

Among them, there was a clause: if a cultivator walks among mortals and encounters demons, ghosts, evil beasts, or monsters harming people, they cannot ignore it. They must immediately capture or kill it.

If their strength is insufficient, they must register it, and people will be sent later to exterminate it.

Alternatively, they could notify the local Demon-Ghost Supervisory Division to resolve it together.

It could be considered a form of protection that mortals sought from immortals.

But an agreement was just an agreement. Cultivators who could truly fulfill it were probably few.

It was a task with little reward and no supervision.

Whether to do it or not was entirely a matter of will. Naturally, avoiding it was easier and less troublesome.

Understanding the gist, Yun Jinxue nodded: “There is such an agreement.”

Jiang Yanyu continued: “In that case, I wish to point out a family of evil cultivators. Would the Immortal Lord be willing to take action and wipe them out?”

The young girl’s voice was light and airy, yet every word was steady.

She spoke slowly and methodically, leading one step by step, giving a person a strange sense of trust.

However, evil cultivators?

You, this little girl, are the world-destroying evil cultivator of the future!

Yun Jinxue hesitated slightly: “Where are they?”

Jiang Yanyu looked down at her, her eyes profound: “Cheng Prefecture, Crescent Moon Slope, the Jiang Family.”

Yun Jinxue thought she had misheard.

The Jiang Family of Crescent Moon Slope—wasn’t that the young girl’s own family?

Yun Jinxue recalled that when she asked for her name, she deliberately omitted her surname, calling herself only Yanyu.

So, she wanted to use the persona of an innocent passerby to ask the Immortal Lord to kill people for her?

Yun Jinxue said in her mind: Mi Ba, she’s still so young, yet she has this kind of calculating mind. How could I possibly deceive her easily later on?

Mi Ba said: 【I’m not too sure either. The novel is written from the Female Lead’s perspective, and there isn’t much detail on the villainess before the main story. Let’s just take it one step at a time.】

Yun Jinxue tried her best to keep her voice steady: “What’s wrong with the Jiang Family?”

Jiang Yanyu said expressionlessly: “The Jiang Family has fallen. The master harbors evil thoughts, colludes with Demon Cultivators, harms human lives. They deserve execution.”

Yun Jinxue swallowed, asking the System: Mi Ba, is what she’s saying true?

Mi Ba: 【This… the book doesn’t say what exactly the Jiang Family did. This system isn’t too clear either…】

Yun Jinxue said slowly: “What do you want me to do?”

Jiang Yanyu finally smiled gently: “The good Immortal Lord, who hates evil as her enemy, can you help me with an extermination?”

If the bloodstains were removed and she wore clean clothes, even at her young age, her delicate features couldn’t be hidden. She was clearly a budding beauty.

But such a face was speaking such bone-chilling words.

Yun Jinxue asked cautiously: “What is your relationship with the Jiang Family?”

Jiang Yanyu didn’t hesitate at all, saying smoothly: “I sought refuge at the Jiang Family. They gave me a dog’s meal. I accidentally stumbled upon their secret, and that’s why I was chased to that cave and found by you, Immortal Lord.”

Even without understanding the early plot, it was clear this was pure nonsense.

That body of hers was verifiably a daughter of the Jiang Family.

Refusing outright to her face wasn’t advisable, since she needed to befriend her afterward.

Yun Jinxue had no choice but to say: “I promise you. Once your body recovers, we will go to the Jiang Family to take a look.”

She supervised the girl as she drank her medicine, telling her to rest well.

Seeing her fall asleep, Yun Jinxue tucked the blanket in snugly and walked out of the bedroom.

“So what do I do?” Yun Jinxue felt somewhat crushed.

Mi Ba materialized, sitting on the tabletop, her short legs swinging back and forth.

“Even if you really help her exterminate the Jiang Family, it shouldn’t affect the main storyline. It should be doable.”

You have to know, in the future, countless people would die by Jiang Yanyu’s hand. The Jiang Family was just one fish in a stream. To kill them, for her, could only be described as a casual act.

It just had a sliver of special meaning because it was dyed with the color of hatred.

So exterminating them now or later made no difference.

Yun Jinxue had a headache: “No, you don’t understand the main point. She wants me to help her kill people, and they’re her own family.”

Mi Ba said: “I know.”

Looking at her largely indifferent expression, it was clear she didn’t understand the crux of her issue at all.

For a person who lived in modern society for over twenty years, taking a life, especially committing genocide, the biggest hurdle to cross was the psychological one.

Yun Jinxue sighed: “Is her current state normal? Why do I always feel something isn’t right? A very bad feeling.”

Mi Ba shook her head: “I haven’t seen anything wrong with her. Maybe you’re not used to this world yet.”

Of course, she couldn’t get used to it. How long had she been here, and she was already facing such a dilemma? Who could get used to it?

This cold-hearted child probably wouldn’t be easy to win over. Refusing her request right from the start would likely make it even harder to get close to her heart later on.

Mi Ba hugged her knees, shrinking onto the tabletop, pouting her lips in thought for a moment.

“Hmm… no matter what, let’s go take a look first. If she was lying, and the Jiang Family aren’t evil cultivators, you’ll also have a reason to reject her demand.”

At this point, it seemed that was the only way.

During the time she recovered, Yun Jinxue finished reading the original work and roughly understood the various settings of this world, no longer like an ignorant outsider.

About two weeks later, Jiang Yanyu’s body had more or less recovered.

The young girl, already quite tall for her age, stood at the table slowly sipping tea. Her eyes occasionally swept over, her meaning very clear.

Yun Jinxue had no choice but to say: “Let’s go take a look now.”

The original Yun Jinxue didn’t much like reading novels and rarely touched movies or dramas.

Compared to staying at home, she preferred being out in the sun, cultivating her mind and body.

Her understanding of cultivation themes only came from occasionally glimpsed classic Xianxia films.

However, the scenes of flying through the sky on swords still left a deep impression.

She initially thought she could experience that awe-inspiring spectacle firsthand here, but she hadn’t expected that in this book’s world, cultivators primarily traveled by horse.

Sword-riding was quite dashing, and the moves were cool, but it had one fatal weakness.

That was the consumption of Spiritual Power—it was simply too great.

Short distances could be covered by sword. If the distance was a bit far, unless it was an urgent mission, cultivators’ travel methods were basically similar to mortals’.

It was just that cultivators had much better physical strength and were more able to endure the hardships of the road.

As the Sect Leader’s daughter and Head Senior Disciple, she didn’t need to inform anyone if she wanted to leave the sect for something.

So, having decided to depart, the long, complicated procedures were skipped, and they simply went down the mountain.

Because Jiang Yanyu’s body was still very weak, a carriage was prepared. They planned to rock all the way to Cheng Prefecture.

The distance wasn’t too far anyway, about a four or five-day journey.

To keep a low profile, the carriage Yun Jinxue brought out from the Divine Zenith Sect was the most ordinary kind in the entire sect.

Though plain in appearance, it was very stable. Even driving on the bumpy, uneven dirt road, there wasn’t much shaking.

Listening to the creaking of the wheels, Yun Jinxue took a sip of tea, lightly lifting her eyelids to observe the girl across from her.

Jiang Yanyu had changed clothes. She wore the most common attire of the Divine Zenith Sect’s Outer Disciples.

The color was dusty gray, with no particular style, purely to distinguish it from other sects and to facilitate ease of movement when using cultivation techniques.

But on her, it just looked a little different.

She had simply tied up her hair and was leaning sideways by the window, lifting the curtain, watching the clumps of crowndaisy chrysanthemums outside.

Because she had just recovered from a serious illness, her lips were pale, and her face lacked color, like a piece of carved cold jade, devoid of warmth.

Sensing the stare, Jiang Yanyu’s eyes shifted: “What is it?”

Yun Jinxue’s hand holding the cup trembled, and she slowly put it down. “The journey is arduous. Is your body holding up?”

Turning her gaze back to the window, Jiang Yanyu said casually, “The last time I traveled this road, I was being hunted down. So, right now, it’s tolerable.”

Indeed, she had fled all the way from Cheng Prefecture, covered in wounds, weak and exhausted, only collapsing from sheer exhaustion when she reached that cave.

Now, having a carriage to ride in was truly much more comfortable.

At a loss for words, Yun Jinxue could only sigh inwardly.

The carriage was quiet. Her thoughts couldn’t help but drift away.

If she were at home, she wouldn’t be this jostled.

Right now, she would have already finished her hot meal, showered, and be in bed.

On the bedside table, there would be strawberries washed by her mom, and her curly-furred dog would be wagging its tail, burrowing under the blanket.

Ah.

It was already dark outside. Around Jiang Yanyu, a few fireflies had gathered.

The faint blue glow of the fireflies, sometimes resting on her shoulder, sometimes hovering by her hand, made her appear even more cold and pale.

Mi Ba, nestled in Yun Jinxue’s arms, explained: “She is originally a Devil Being. She’s naturally favored by living things of nature, so spirit fireflies always gather around her. That’s also how it’s described in the original work.”

In this book, Devil Beings were creatures closer to nature and more receptive to Spiritual Energy than cultivators.

This was simply because all Devils were born innately, not made through cultivation.

Classifying Devil Beings simply, there were only three types: Calamity, Plague, and War.

And Jiang Yanyu’s true form was precisely the Head of Heavenly Calamity—Thousand-Mile Icebound.

Only due to some special reason, she was reincarnated into the body of an abused, illegitimate daughter of the Jiang Family.

Because of this, she was buried for many years, until she was sold by Yun Jinxue to the Mad Red Hall, suffered unimaginable torture, and then recovered her true form.

Besides Devil Beings, if other living beings fell into the wrong path of cultivation, they could at most be called Evil Cultivators, Demon Cultivators, Ghost Cultivators, Beast Cultivators, and so on.

They could never, ever reach the level of a Devil.

However, even in the later stages, Jiang Yanyu never exposed her identity as a Devil Being.

So, despite her terrifying power, she was only called the Number One Evil Cultivator Under Heaven.

Yun Jinxue looked at the faint blue fireflies, waves of sorrow rising in her heart.

This thin, frail young girl didn’t yet know what bloody storms her future life would stir up.

As soon as this thought arose, Yun Jinxue gave a bitter smile.

Was her own fate any better?

The tea in the cup had gone cold. In the dark night road far ahead, the scattered lights of an inn flickered to life.

They were located at Wind Wave Ridge, and there happened to be an inn here. Just stopping for a meal, not overnight, wouldn’t delay them too much.

The carriage came to a steady halt. The waiter warmly rushed over to greet them.

He walked with a limp in one leg, but his movements were incredibly efficient, helping to lead the horse and settle it in.

Dao Rhythm Immortal Lord’s appearance in this body was, in fact, not too different from Yun Jinxue’s original looks.

But the natural elegance and grace of a cultivator, combined with this set of intricate, exquisite silver-white robes that highlighted her noble cultivation, were indeed a bit too eye-catching.

And this outfit itself was a magical artifact with special protective abilities; she couldn’t easily change out of it.

So, Yun Jinxue had prepared two veiled hats beforehand.

The hat’s brim was fringed with a white veil that hung past the neck. One hat each, they wore them on their heads, perfectly covering their faces.

But she had miscalculated.

The thin, transparent veil didn’t hide their looks. Instead, it created a shadowy, ethereal effect, a snow-slicked, fragrant allure, drawing even more attention.

The waiter’s gaze took several detours before he noticed the long sword strapped to her back and withdrew his stare with a jolt.

The two entered the inn, immediately drawing a round of stares.

Yun Jinxue pressed her hat brim lower and found a seat in a corner where the light wasn’t very bright.

Quickly ordering the food, Yun Jinxue took the long sword off her back and placed it on the table.

This long sword matched her own temperament, both glowing with a luminous, moonlit sheen. Slender and long, its edge was like autumn frost.

It was precisely the treasured sword named Bright Star, specially forged for her by her father, Sect Leader Yun Ding, who had sought out a powerful expert.

There was another sword paired with this one, called Clear Light, which would later become the main character Yan Guixing’s personal sword.

Putting down Bright Star, her fingers, as graceful as bamboo shoot tips, rested on the sword’s body. Yun Jinxue looked toward the little villainess at the table.

She had already tied up her veil, revealing her cold-jade face.

Her expression was indifferent, as if she didn’t care about anything around her.

She was already astonishingly beautiful now, but Yun Jinxue knew that later, when she recovered her true form, she would truly be unparalleled in beauty.

The inn had quite a few people. The scent of food and a faint smell of sawdust floated in the air, carrying a strange, cold desolation.

No one in the inn spoke, only the faint sounds of plates and chopsticks touching. The lighting was dim.

They hadn’t been sitting in silence for long when the dishes were all served.

In this rural, wild place, the food wasn’t that great, but there was no shortage of meat—just a bit too greasy.

Cultivators here actually didn’t practice inedia; she didn’t know if that was a good or bad thing.

The atmosphere was really heavy and dull. Yun Jinxue mentally flipped through topics like a drill sergeant picking soldiers and chose one to start. “How did you discover the Jiang family were evil cultivators?”

Jiang Yanyu swallowed the food in her mouth and said coldly, “The Immortal Lord will know when you go and see.”

“……”

Yun Jinxue didn’t give up. “You recovered very quickly. This constitution is quite exceptional among mortals.”

“Thank you for the Immortal Lord’s praise.”

Frozen by this chilliness, Yun Jinxue couldn’t say anything more and had to continue eating.

Although she knew the girl would become a decisive and ruthless villainess in the future, right now, shouldn’t she be in the pitiful, bullied stage?

Or had she always been such a gloomy and cold child?

What on earth had Yun Jinxue, that woman, done to earn her trust?

She really wanted to interview her.

Just as she was about to ask Mi Ba where the original owner was now, a sudden roar exploded at the entrance, like a thunderclap.

The wooden door was smashed into two panels, flying into the main room, startling a wave of cries.

Several brawny men, draped in animal hides and with faces covered in black cloth, filed in, knives in hand.

The one at the front, a muscular man over two meters tall, let out a loud laugh and bellowed.

“Robbery!”