Female Lead, Something's Not Right (GL) - Chapter 12

Lu Ran was anxious. “Why are you spending so many spirit stones to buy this?!”

Bai Su also tried to dissuade her. “True Monarch, this has already far exceeded the price of the cultivation method.”

The female cultivator at the auction was ecstatic. She had thought this item wouldn’t sell for much, but it had far exceeded the experts’ expectations. “Two thousand top-grade spirit stones, once! Two thousand spirit stones, twice!”

The white-bearded old man tried to persuade her. “Miss! If you bid again, the Sect Leader will be angry.”

Meng Jiaojiao glared furiously. “I want to see who dares to compete with me! Elder Xu, take me over there!”

“Two thousand top-grade spirit stones, three times! Congratulations to the esteemed guest in the Heavenly Room.”

“Miss, don’t be reckless. That female cultivator who can bid such a price is not an ordinary person. There are people beyond people, and you cannot underestimate them. We don’t even know who that terrifying oppressive force came from when we just entered. When the Immortal Market opens, great cultivators gather. You’ve sneaked out this time. If you run into danger, this old servant is afraid he won’t be able to protect you.” Elder Xu’s painstaking advice finally convinced her.

Shen Shu stood up. Bai Su was anxious. “Where are you going, True Monarch? The next item is the Heaven-Mending Stone.”

Lu Ran understood Shen Shu’s character. No one could stop her from doing what she wanted. “Valley Mistress, don’t worry. I’ve already arranged for the Heaven-Mending Stone. Sect matters are busy, and the elders have many important things to discuss with the True Monarch.”

“Farewell.”

As Shen Shu left, Bai Su rose anxiously, but a feather fan blocked her way. Lu Ran shook his head helplessly.

“Valley Mistress, some things you should know the outcome of, even without saying them out loud.”

Bai Su was not resigned. “What does that little disciple have? I am the Kunlun Valley Mistress. Whether it’s my talent, my appearance, or my family background, how can she possibly compare to me?!”

“A rough jade or a fish eye, the one who loves you will treasure you. You are indeed a piece of rough jade, but the Valley Mistress should know that in a place like the Qianmeng Continent, talented people are abundant, and rough jades are everywhere. I’m only giving you a friendly warning out of our past friendship. Don’t go down the wrong path.”

Lu Ran held a divination seal in his hand. This was the first time he couldn’t predict the outcome. He didn’t know who the problem was with, Shen Shu or that insignificant little outer sect disciple.

••••

By the bridge, the willow trees’ reflections shimmered in the water. Gu Shiyan sat by the river, lost in thought. After leaving the Wanbao Pavilion, she had aimlessly wandered until she followed a stream to this broken bridge. Unlike the noisy market, this place had the peace and tranquility of the mortal world.

Her thoughts slowly drifted away…

Under a hazy sky, the setting sun shone on the fields. A small child held a paper kite, running freely, their silvery laughter echoing through the fields.

“Mama~ the kite is flying~ heeheehee~”

A dark wind suddenly blew, and the child’s paper kite was instantly stained red with blood. She stood frozen, watching her loving parents die in a black vortex. When the black wind came for her, several white-robed immortals descended from the sky and saved her.

Later…

Later, that child lived with her grandmother, a poor and destitute life. She accepted the departure of her parents, the disappearance of her cat after six years, the death of her grandmother, the boring, day-in and day-out cultivation life as an outer sect disciple of the Tianxuan Sect, and her tragic death.

When she was alive, everyone in the village envied her good fortune, but only she knew.

She was not okay.

Finally, she had a chance to live again. Thinking about her tragic ending in the book, she only wanted to escape. But she didn’t know why she was tangled up with Shen Shu. She truly couldn’t guess what True Monarch Hehua was thinking.

As Hua Wu had said, she was just an outer sect disciple with ordinary talent and an average appearance. There was nothing about her that was worth showing off. Compared to the Kunlun Valley Mistress, Bai Su, she couldn’t even compare to a single strand of her hair. If True Monarch Hehua could reject Bai Su, how could she possibly be interested in her?

Until her death in her previous life, she had believed it was because she was too poor. If she had been a little smarter, worked a little harder, and saved a few more spiritual stones, would her ending not have been so tragic? But today, she had stepped into a place she had never been able to enter before. In this moment, the world she once knew seemed to have changed.

Shen Shu’s world and her own world were like heaven and earth. Although it was just the difference between looking up and looking down, the distance was immense. Some people were born to look down on others, and some were born to look up to them.

She was just like the rest of the common folk—too ordinary. So what was the purpose of getting a second chance?

Gu Shiyan looked at the mayfly on the water’s surface. “Your life is only a day long, born at sunrise and dying at sunset, living and dying in a single day. What’s the point of it all?”

Pitiful, just like herself.

“Mayfly’s wings, lovely clothes, my heart is troubled, where do I belong?”

In her despair, a glimmer of light shone through. The setting sun was hidden among the clouds, and thousands of rays of light shimmered on the river, creating golden ripples. Thousands of mayflies gathered, lightly touching the water, their tails fluttering. Although their bodies were small, they used their last moments to create a magnificent spectacle with their lives.

The light in Gu Shiyan’s eyes was ignited. She stood up excitedly, reaching out to touch the mayflies, her heart filled with awe.

A crane lives for a thousand years, leisurely. A mayfly is born at dawn and dies at dusk, and it lives its life to the fullest. The melancholy in her heart dissipated, and she chuckled to herself. “Your short lives have already surpassed the lives of most mediocre people. Whether it’s my ordinary past or my illusory present, cherishing the moment is what’s truly important.”

To exist in the world like a mayfly, a mere grain in the vast ocean. She would accept her ordinariness and still look forward to the future.

Gu Shiyan turned around with a smile, ready to leave, when she suddenly noticed a person standing under the tree. She lowered her eyes, thinking about the absurdities they had shared. For a moment, she didn’t know how to act.

She was self-aware enough to know the massive gap between her and Shen Shu. It was possible for a person like her to be with anyone, but not her!

Besides, the Heavenly Book also mentioned that Shen Shu’s future Dao companion would be Xiao Ze. Although their current situation seemed strange, things would definitely be different later on. Perhaps the love poison from the White Tiger Pagoda had given True Monarch Hehua a temporary sense of novelty, but once that wore off, they would no longer have any ties.

Gu Shiyan felt that this was most likely the case. She didn’t need to overthink it. It probably wouldn’t be long before Shen Shu’s attention would shift. She could just proceed with her own plans.

“Are you going to keep standing there in silence?” Shen Shu’s voice was faint.

“If the True Monarch has no other instructions, this disciple will return to the sect.” Gu Shiyan didn’t move.

The air pressure around Shen Shu had dropped to freezing. She clenched the gift she was going to give the girl, her eyes narrowed dangerously, staring at the little person who was rejecting her.

Was being with her so unpleasant? The passionate look on her face in bed wasn’t fake, but now she was acting so distant.

Shen Shu suppressed the displeasure in her heart, guessing that the little one might be tired. She stepped forward and hugged the girl. “If you’re tired, come back to my immortal boat with me. I’ll take you back.”

Gu Shiyan’s body stiffened. She used the excuse of a bow to break free from the embrace, speaking respectfully. “There is no need to trouble the True Monarch. This disciple can go to the teleportation array.”

The marks on her body were already enough to cause speculation. If others saw her getting off Shen Shu’s private immortal boat, she didn’t know what they would say behind her back. The most terrifying thing was that she hadn’t forgotten that there were many people in the sect like Qin Qianqian who adored True Monarch Hehua. Shen Shu could have her fun and leave once the novelty wore off, but her life would be miserable.

“I didn’t hear you clearly. Say that again.”