After I Failed to Reform the Female Lead of a Tragic Novel - Chapter 7

That had been when Gong Dongling had just returned from the Far North.

Ever since Xu Ruozhen brought Xie Yu back to Buzhou Mountain, she had gradually come to learn that she had a senior sister whose whereabouts were unknown. That senior sister looked similar to her, but was far more outstanding—and possessed so much more love than she did.

Even though the accident had happened long ago, grief still hung over everyone in the sect. As for Xie Yu, who had appeared at such a time, the way she was treated was easy to imagine.

Although she felt wronged, Xie Yu knew that with her aptitude, if not for this face that resembled Gong Dongling’s, she would still be wandering and begging because of the famine. Indeed, for a mortal, merely being able to step onto the immortal path was already something she ought to thank Zhenren and Senior Sister for with boundless gratitude.

She had never resented her senior sister. She only hoped that she, too, could live with a little bit of her own brilliance, instead of forever living in the shadow of being a substitute.

When Senior Sister returned, she wanted to go see her too, but those people stopped her. They mocked her without restraint, saying that if she went over, she would only upset Gong Dongling.

She thought about it. That was indeed true. So she only watched from afar as master and disciple reunited.

News that Gong Dongling was being tormented by cold energy reached Xie Yu’s ears. Perhaps it was destined, because in that single instant, she remembered that she had once seen a formula in an old book that could suppress cold energy.

Her memory had always been good. It was an introductory book on alchemy, and the formula had been lying inconspicuously among the pill examples.

Xie Yu was not sure whether Master and the others knew of this formula. Anxious, she carried the book and went to find Master.

But on the way, those people blocked her again. Seeing how carefully Xie Yu guarded the book like a treasure, they insisted on snatching it away.

When they opened it, however, they found that it was nothing but an alchemy book. Disappointed, they mocked Xie Yu harshly, saying that with her trashy cultivation at the third level of Qi Refining and her pathetic aptitude, she actually dreamed of learning alchemy. It was simply a toad lusting after swan meat.

Xie Yu silently picked the old book up from the ground, wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, and walked numbly toward Master’s residence.

But unexpectedly, she witnessed a tender scene between Zhenren and Gong Dongling.

Zhenren said, “Ling’er, it was Xie Yu who begged me bitterly to bring her onto the immortal path. I have never regarded her as my disciple. Master’s little disciple will always only be you.”

Gong Dongling’s eyes were red and swollen, tears shimmering in them. “Then why is Master still letting her be your disciple now?”

“Only because so many people are watching right now. Once…”

The hand Xie Yu used to hold the old book began trembling. She was afraid to hear what came next, so she turned to leave, only to accidentally knock over a glazed lamp on the table beside her.

With a crash, the lamp shattered, leaving fragments all over the floor.

The two people inside were also startled. Xu Ruozhen flew into a rage. “Who is outside?!”

When he came out, he saw Xie Yu kneeling on the ground with her head lowered, her trembling hands picking up the broken glazed shards. Both her hands had been sliced bloody by the fragments, yet she seemed to feel no pain as she silently continued picking them up.

Xu Ruozhen yanked her up and questioned her. “What are you doing here?”

She curled into herself while clutching the book, unable to say a word.

The book was taken away again. Xu Ruozhen frowned as he flipped through a few pages, also thinking that Xie Yu wanted to learn alchemy. He coldly reprimanded her.

“Always aiming too high. Alchemy is not something a person with your kind of spiritual root can learn. You heard quite a bit outside just now, didn’t you? Remember this well. Not just anyone can become my disciple. If you continue acting like this, I will expel you from the sect sooner or later.”

What followed was a whipping she could not escape.

By the time Xie Yu dragged her broken body and knelt in the hall, Gong Dongling had risen at some point. A flowerlike smile bloomed on her pale face as she walked over, casting a large shadow. She pinched Xie Yu’s chin and said, “Seeing you in such a miserable state—I haven’t been this happy in a long time. Don’t worry, I won’t let Master drive you out for now. After all, you still haven’t tasted the same pain I have.”

Perhaps it had been out of revenge. Xie Yu threw that book into the deepest corner of the Library Pavilion and darkly hoped no one would ever find it again.

And now, she had personally found it and given it to Gong Dongling.

Maybe I really am worthless…

Xie Yu’s mind was a tangled mess as she thought this.

Gong Dongling also remembered this part of the plot and suddenly felt somewhat at a loss. Xie Yu clearly still hated her, so why had she taken this out and given it to her?

She was good at using gentleness and softness to deal with other people’s hatred, but when she truly felt the other party’s sincerity, she did not know how to respond.

Besides, Gong Dongling was someone easily moved. Once moved, her nose would sting, her eyes would grow wet, and her reaction would become especially exaggerated.

“Thank you. If you run into any difficulties in the future, come find me. After all, although we may not count as friends, we are still people who share a secret now.” Finally, Gong Dongling covered her nose and spoke with slightly stiff sincerity.

Was it really that moving…

Xie Yu glanced sideways at Gong Dongling’s expression, which looked as if she were about to cry, and unconsciously touched her own nose. In her heart, she silently added another label to Gong Dongling: crybaby.

…

After Gong Dongling brought the book home, she opened it and realized it was an introductory alchemy textbook. Her interest was immediately sparked.

Although she had been sick in the real world in her previous life, she had still hoped to live like a normal person. After learning that her congenital heart disease had no chance of being cured and that she would not live past twenty, she had begun trying many new things.

It was the same in this cultivation world. There would come a day when she returned. Before then, she wanted to experience more things. Who knew? Maybe they could even come in handy after she went back.

She thought of those power-fantasy novels she had read before, where the protagonist returned from the cultivation world, mastered alchemy, and made a fortune from then on.

Forget the real world—even in this cultivation world, only a very small number of people mastered alchemy. Not only did it require a pure fire spiritual root, but it also required talent. Just as sword cultivators needed to establish a spiritual connection with their swords, alchemists were the same. Whether one could establish a connection with the alchemy furnace was the key to “talent.”

Because cultivators had an enormous demand for pills, alchemists not only earned money hand over fist, but also held very high social status and were especially respected.

Alchemists also had ranks, judged according to their upper limit. The higher the rank, the easier it was for them to refine high-grade pills, and the higher the quality of those pills would be. However, an alchemist’s upper limit was not fixed. As their techniques and understanding improved, their rank could rise as well.

Gong Dongling’s spiritual root happened to be a single fire spiritual root. Logically speaking, she had the qualifications to become an alchemist. But in the original book, there had never been any mention of the original owner having any connection to alchemy, so she was not sure whether she possessed this “talent.”

Moreover, there was an even bigger problem. Because cold energy had entered her body, she could not even drive her spiritual power to cultivate. How was she supposed to refine pills?

She turned to the page with the formula for cold energy, and her heart sank a little further. There, written clearly, were the words: high-grade seventh-rank pill.

This meant that the “Runze Pill” Gong Dongling needed to take long-term could only be refined by alchemists of the seventh rank or above. One had to know that in this world, pills above the seventh rank cost more at auction than all the heavenly treasures in her room combined!

Sword cultivators were all so poor their pockets jingled. Where would they get the money to support a medicine jar like her?

“System, are you there? Let’s make a deal. I’m already giving the Xuanji Grass to Xie Yu, so you have to give me some compensation, right? I’m not asking for any other golden finger. Just let me refine pills normally. I’ll handle the rest myself.”

Gong Dongling knocked on the system, perfectly justified. Why did other people come with golden fingers the moment they appeared, while she started as a medicine jar and could not even cultivate?

【…You’re the first one who has ever actively asked me for a golden finger. Considering the difficulty of the host’s mission, it’s not impossible. But this is the only exception. This system’s only function is to issue warnings when the female lead’s blackening level increases. The rest must be solved by the host herself.】

She had not expected the system to agree so readily. She immediately pressed her palms together and pleaded with sparkling eyes, “Can you not take it back after I return to the real world? I still want to sell beauty and complexion pills to make a fortune!”

【? Get lost!】

Gong Dongling rummaged around in her room for a long time and finally found an alchemy furnace used as decoration. She had no idea if it would work. Its bronze shell was mottled, the body of the furnace was round, and there was an opening beneath the stand where fire could be placed. She opened the ancient book’s tutorial, eager to try.

With her previous experience connecting to the Xuanling Sword, Gong Dongling was quite familiar with the process this time.

If compared to something from the modern world, this kind of connection was very much like connecting to Bluetooth. Search, control, and once connected, one could transmit instructions.

Unlike last time, however, the “red thread” in her sea of consciousness was like a dead object. It remained completely motionless and was easily held in Gong Dongling’s hand before merging into her palm.

This was probably the legendary “not very spiritual.” It had no consciousness of its own and would only mechanically carry out its master’s orders.

Gong Dongling actually preferred this kind. After all, the Xuanling Sword was far too “wild.” She still had to guard against whether that sword, after nursing resentment for too long, would rise up on its own while she was sleeping and kill her.

As though it had heard her inner thoughts, Xuanling buzzed and trembled against the wall for a moment.

“I wasn’t scolding you! Why are you making noise? It’s not even a big deal.”

With the system’s blessing, Gong Dongling did not even need to circulate qi. She merely raised her hand and felt heat gather in her palm. Following the book’s instructions, she recited a spell, and with a whoosh, a ball of spiritual fire appeared in her palm, nearly burning off Gong Dongling’s eyebrows.

However, this fire was only a spiritual energy form. It was not real fire and could only be used for alchemy.

She carefully placed the fire into the stand beneath the furnace and concentrated on adjusting it for a while. Sure enough, she found that the flame could grow larger and smaller.

The formula for the first trial in the beginner’s chapter was for spirit grass pills, the kind cultivators habitually ate as food. The ingredients were simple: ordinary immortal spirit grass that could be found everywhere. Every alchemist could make them, and they could even be industrially mass-produced in large furnaces.

Gong Dongling casually grabbed a handful of immortal spirit grass from outside her door. As she cast a cleaning spell on it and read the book, she froze.

Because the book never said how long to refine it. It only said that once the heat was right and the time was ripe, the ingredients should be fused into the shape of pills.

“The heat is right? The time is ripe?”

How am I supposed to know when the time is ripe?

Then again, without precise clocks in this world, it really was difficult to judge time. Alchemists needed large amounts of training so they could rely on feeling and habit to determine when pills were ready. How troublesome and backward.

Gong Dongling suddenly had a bold idea, and her eyes curved slyly without her realizing it.