Chapter 1: The Future

“Months from now, the Imperial City will host a martial arts tournament. Mei'er is already a third-stage martial artist, and there aren't many young people in the Kingdom of Liuyue who can compete with her. If she can emerge victorious, Imperial Grandfather will think much more highly of her. At that time, I will introduce her to my Master. Even Imperial Grandfather would have to listen to my Master's words, and besides, Master is also an Alchemist.”

An Alchemist...

Yue Muqing's breath hitched, and his eyes lit up.

Rarity makes things precious. It is precisely because Alchemists are so scarce that they hold a supreme status on the continent. If one could form a connection with an Alchemist, they would never have to worry about pills again.

“Prince Jin, rest assured. Mei'er will definitely emerge victorious in that tournament. Hehe, just as you said, there are truly too few geniuses in this Imperial City who can rival Mei'er.”

Yue Muqing smiled faintly; he still held great confidence in this precious daughter he had raised for over ten years.

Inside a bedroom located in the West Courtyard.

A young girl lay on the bed with her hands clutching her head, staring blankly at the ceiling beams. During this time, she had organized the memories in her mind that did not belong to her.

This place, known as the Northern Yue Continent, focused on the cultivation of Yuan Qi, which were commonly known as martial artists. The classification of martial artists on the continent was simple: starting from first-stage to ninth-stage martial artists, which corresponded to the Houtian realm. Beyond the ninth-stage martial artists was the Xiantian realm.

Xiantian experts were already capable of ruling the continent as kings and overlords. Even the Imperial Family could not possess a Xiantian realm expert; the ninth stage was already the limit.

Therefore, once a Xiantian expert appeared, they would be treated as an honored guest in any nation.

Aside from martial artists, there was another profession called Alchemists.

The requirements for Alchemists were extremely harsh. Not only did they need to be fire-attribute martial artists, but they also required powerful mental strength. The stronger the mental strength of a fire-attribute martial artist, the more genius their talent in alchemy would be.

However, on this continent where the strong were respected, the person she had possessed happened to be a waste. Due to clogged meridians since childhood, she wasn't even a first-stage martial artist. Although the toxins in her body had been removed, this blockage of meridians was something even her Master could not fix. She could only rely on herself.

This also defined her lack of status within the Yue family. Furthermore, because her memories before the age of five were completely sealed, and because she had never been able to step a single foot outside this Imperial City in these eight years, her influence had been slowly cultivated within the city. Now, it was time to go out and see the world.

“Clogged meridians?” Yue Niashang leaped up from the bed and sat cross-legged. Her fingers lightly pressed against her pulse, and her expression gradually turned cold and solemn. “It seems this original self was not a natural-born waste, but was instead given another kind of subtle poison. It was just that Master didn't discover it. Now that the toxins have gathered within the meridians, it causes the flow of Qi to be obstructed, making cultivation impossible.”

However, back in Huaxia, she had been a descendant of a medical family, so this bit of poison would not be difficult for her. Moreover, coincidentally, the Tingyu Pavilion would be releasing a batch of new weapons today; she might be able to find what she needed among them. But for now, she had to resolve this poison first.

Over these years, her medical skills had not vanished; instead, they had become even more refined. After eight years, the mystery that had troubled her was finally unraveled, and it was time for this poison to disappear as well. She had intentionally left those few types of poisons in her body, but she hadn't expected there to be such a potent one.

“If I had silver needles in hand, I would have one hundred percent certainty of detoxifying. But now, I can only settle for the next best thing and use embroidery needles as a substitute. It's just that embroidery needles are relatively unsafe; if used improperly, not only will they fail to detoxify, but they might even cause cross-infection. Furthermore, embroidery needles are short; one slight mistake and they could be left inside the body.”

But currently, she had no other choice.

If she went to a weapon shop to forge a set of silver needles, it would require a lot of silver, but she was currently very poor—so poor she didn't even have a single copper coin. It was hard to imagine this was the treatment a legitimate young lady of the Yue family should receive.

Fortunately, as a lady of a household, she had plenty of embroidery needles.

“The first step of acupuncture is sterilization.”

Taking several five-centimeter-long embroidery needles in her hand, Yue Niashang lit a candle and placed the tips of the needles over the flame. After half an incense stick's time, the entire embroidery needle was roasted bright red, after which she placed them into the pre-prepared clean water.

“It is quite backward here; there is no alcohol, and not even disinfectant. So, I can only use the most primitive method. But this will be enough. Next is the detoxification.”

Yue Niashang sat cross-legged once more, her two fingers rapidly tapping several acupoints, and then she slowly began to prick the embroidery needles into the acupoints one by one.

Time passed slowly. This period was exceptionally agonizing for Yue Niashang. The sour, aching pain caused by the toxins being expelled from her body made her willow brows furrow slightly; her delicate face turned deathly pale, and her thin lips trembled slightly.

Suddenly, the girl bathed in the sunset abruptly opened her sharp eyes. A wild smile appeared at the corners of her mouth, and a flickering light danced within her cold eyes.

“The toxins are finally cleared.”

At this moment, she felt an unexpected freshness in her body. That sensation from her previous life seeped into her heart once more, making the smile on her lips deepen, yet her eyes remained bone-chillingly cold.

“I am not the Yue Niashang of this continent, but I am living in her identity. Therefore, I will return her grievances and anger to those people, bit by bit. After eight years of silence, I can finally achieve this. Can you finally rest in peace?”

Inside the Imperial Study, Jun Yuefeng watched the bright yellow figure sitting upon the dragon throne flipping through memorials. He was in no hurry, merely waiting quietly to the side.

A moment later, the Emperor of Ziyue put down the book in his hand and looked up at the handsome youth standing below: “Feng'er, what business have you brought to your Imperial Grandfather?”

Jun Yuefeng curled his lips into a smile, his entire being radiating a glow of confidence.

“Imperial Grandfather, your grandson has come regarding the marriage with Yue Niashang of the Yue family.”

“Imperial Grandfather knows your thoughts,” the Emperor of Ziyue frowned, his expression darkening slightly as he spoke, “But a royal decree is a golden command. How can the decree personally issued by your Imperial Father be rescinded?”

With a tilt of his brow, a light flashed in Jun Yuefeng's profound eyes: “Imperial Grandfather, in the upcoming competition, my Master will come in person. At that time, your grandson will ask my Master for a Tianyuan Pill on your behalf. Perhaps it could allow you to break through to a third-stage martial artist.”

The Emperor's heart suddenly skipped a beat, and he became instantly excited. Heaven knew how many years he had been stuck at the sixth stage; without external aid, it was impossible to break through.

Only an idiot would pass up such a good opportunity.

“Ahem,” suppressing his inner joy, the Emperor of Ziyue gave a faint smile, “In that case, I shall help Yue Niashang of the Yue family find another husband. This is also equivalent to giving the Yue family an explanation, so as not to cause them to lose too much face. Feng'er, bring Yue Niashang to see your Imperial Grandfather in a few days.”

“Yes, Imperial Grandfather.”

Jun Yuefeng bowed submissively, but a triumphant smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. In the backyard of the Yue family, the young girl slowly opened her eyes. With a wave of her hand, a book was caught in her grasp. The book looked ordinary, but the two large golden characters on its ancient bronze-colored cover declared its extraordinary nature.

The Pill Book!

Yue Niashang gripped the book tightly, her gaze filled with a hint of complexity.

This Pill Book was something her grandfather had left her before he passed away, and it was also a supreme treasure that all cultivators dreamed of. Back then, it was for this Pill Book that her grandfather had left his sect to establish a medical family in the secular world.

And in the end, because of this Pill Book, she had suffered an ambush by the Lan family and lost her life at Mount Tian.

She hadn't expected her soul to travel through space and arrive on this continent, which was the counterpart to Huaxia...

“I wonder what use Grandpa left this thing for. Even if the Pill Book is good, if it cannot be opened, it is merely a burden.”

A man is innocent, but possessing a jade makes him guilty. Yue Niashang understood this principle better than anyone.

However, at this very moment, the Pill Book suddenly emitted a bronze-colored light, forcibly entering her mind without her permission.

This... what is happening?

Hiss! In an instant, Yue Niashang's head felt as if it were about to explode with pain. She clutched her head tightly, her small face turning pale from the agony.

After an unknown amount of time...

The pain finally subsided. At this moment, Yue Niashang still did not know what had happened.

“What was that just now...” She looked at the Pill Book in her hand in astonishment, her willow brows tightly knit. Just then, a gust of breeze blew in from the window, flipping the pages of the Pill Book.

“Haha, how many years has it been? This Seat can finally come out! Hmm? This aura... could it be that I have returned to the Shenwu Continent?”

A domineering, heaven-reaching laugh echoed into the clouds.

Then, Yue Niashang saw a black figure appear before her.

The man who entered her vision was handsome and elegant, his well-defined features carrying a domineering smile. His eyebrows were raised, and his handsomeness carried an aura of ruling the world.

He seemed like a high and mighty king, looking down upon all living beings in the world.

“Girl, was it you who released this Seat?” The man raised an eyebrow, looking at Yue Niashang with a half-smile, “In view of the fact that you released this Seat, I will not kill you. You may leave.”

As he waved his hand, the man's sleeve stirred a gust of wind. Suddenly, his expression changed abruptly, and a violent aura radiated from his entire body.

“Who? Who has placed a contract on this Seat! And it's actually a bastardly Master-Servant Contract! Who the hell did this!”

A Master-Servant Contract meant that the contracted person could never disobey their contract master for the rest of their life, otherwise they would fall into hell and never be reincarnated.

His domineering black eyes narrowed slightly as his gaze turned toward Yue Niashang, a flash of fury crossing his eyes: “You contracted this Seat? No! With your strength, you don't have the ability to contract this Seat. Could it be...”

His gaze swept toward the Pill Book resting quietly in Yue Niashang's hands. He gritted his teeth in rage. This thing had kept him imprisoned for so many years, and now it actually helped this woman contract him?

Having finally obtained freedom, it was ruined by this broken book!

!!