Chapter 2: First Encounter by the Lakeside

After cleaning up the corpses of the three individuals, Chu Liuyue picked up a bundle lying nearby.

It belonged to the original Chu Liuyue.

Opening it to inspect the contents, Chu Liuyue raised an eyebrow.

Inside this bundle, there were actually quite a few banknotes, along with a mess of various pieces of jewelry.

While these things would naturally be beneath the notice of Shangguan Yue, who was once the noble Heavenly Mandate Imperial Princess, for a destitute young girl of the lowly Chu family, this was truly a windfall.

Was she planning to run away?

Chu Liuyue sneered.

Setting aside the fact that the original Chu Liuyue had a soft and timid personality and wouldn't have such courage, even if she wanted to escape, would she be able to part with her father, Chu Ning?

Most importantly, Chu Liuyue had been bullied by everyone in the Chu family; how could she have had the opportunity to obtain so many banknotes and pieces of jewelry? Clearly, someone had framed her!

If Song Lian and the other two had killed Chu Liuyue, the Chu family would have to put on a show of searching for her to save face.

Once everyone discovered Chu Liuyue's body and saw these items, they would certainly believe she had stolen things while out on an errand and attempted to flee.

Theft is a crime not worth forgiving with death!

Chu Qianmin intended to kill her and then splash a bucket of dirty water on her so that she could never rise again!

Since she had borrowed the original Chu Liuyue's body, she would naturally have to settle these matters for her!

Furthermore, Chu Liuyue's identity would indeed make her future actions more convenient.

After counting the goods, Chu Liuyue looked around and could faintly hear the murmur of a stream.

She was currently covered in blood and filth and truly needed a bath. It just so happened that there were change of clothes in the bundle, which made things convenient.

…

Passing through the lush, green forest for about fifteen minutes, a piece of azure lake finally appeared before Chu Liuyue's eyes.

To her surprise, a layer of white mist was floating atop the lake.

Even standing by the lakeside, one could only see the nearby azure waters gently rippling; however, the distance was a vast expanse of haze, making it impossible to see clearly.

Chu Liuyue reached out her hand, passing through the white mist, feeling slightly surprised.

This was actually a white mist condensed from extremely dense Origin Power!

One could imagine that if one were to cultivate here, they would surely achieve twice the result with half the effort!

As an Imperial Princess and the next ruler of the Tianling Empire, she was quite familiar with the situation of the dozens of vassal states of the Tianling Empire.

Although a place like this could not compare to the places where she used to cultivate, it was already considered excellent within this tiny Yao Chen Kingdom.

At that moment, a low growl drifted over!

She lifted her eyes and saw a snow-white lion by the lakeside, staring at her with a pair of ice-blue eyes!

This was a high-level Magical Beast!

However, just as Chu Liuyue was thinking about how to deal with it, the beast suddenly wagged its tail, lowered its body again, and closed its eyes.

Chu Liuyue was dumbfounded

Is... is it not planning to attack her?

Guardian Magical Beasts are supposed to have very violent temperaments...

Before she could finish her thought, the lion opened its eyes again to glance at her.

Then, it stood up decisively and walked toward her!

When it reached her, the white lion suddenly raised its paw—it swiped Chu Liuyue's bundle down, and then nudged her waist with its head.

"You want me to go in?"

Chu Liuyue asked uncertainly.

The white lion sat down on its haunches, its ice-blue eyes meeting Chu Liuyue's, as if saying, *If you don't go in, I won't leave!*

Chu Liuyue: "..."

She laughed, finding the white lion quite cute, so she patted its head. The white lion closed its eyes in satisfaction.

Only then did she take off her blood-stained clothes and enter the lake, letting the warm waters surround her.

Abundant and warm Origin Power surged toward her instantly!

Chu Liuyue closed her eyes and began to seriously examine the condition of this body.

…

In the Xuanwu Continent, the strong are respected.

Cultivators are divided into two types.

One type is Martial Artists, who absorb the Origin Power of heaven and earth and integrate that strength into their own flesh and blood.

The other type is Mystic Masters, who can perceive the laws of the movement of heaven and earth's Origin Power and use runes to condense it.

Although both are considered cultivators, because the conditions to become a Mystic Master are extremely harsh, they are far fewer in number than Martial Artists and are highly revered.

To become a cultivator, one must possess an Origin Vein.

The Origin Vein is the only bridge for a cultivator to sense and absorb the Origin Power of heaven and earth, making it extremely important.

The Origin Vein is divided into four grades: Heaven Vein, Earth Vein, Mystic Vein, and Yellow Vein.

The Heaven Vein is the highest; even in the Tianling Empire, only two people had emerged in a thousand years.

One was the ancestor of the Tianling Empire, and the other—was her.

This was also why she was the most noble Heavenly Mandate Imperial Princess!

To her, cultivation was the simplest of things.

However, the Origin Vein of this body was indeed congenitally flawed. Although the Origin Power of heaven and earth could be drawn in, it could not be retained, let alone converted into Chu Liuyue's own strength.

Thus, Chu Liuyue was a useless person from birth!

"It seems I must repair this Origin Vein first..."

Chu Liuyue murmured.

If these words were heard by anyone else, their jaws would surely drop.

The Origin Vein is innate; how could it be repaired!?

Looking across the entire Yao Chen Kingdom, it was unlikely anyone could do it!

But—for the former Heavenly Mandate Imperial Princess of the Heavenly Mandate Empire, Shangguan Yue, it was nothing at all!

The so-called Heavenly Physician was the most mysterious and noble existence on the continent!

Bringing the dead back to life and regrowing flesh on bone were all within their capabilities!

However, becoming a Heavenly Physician was even more difficult than becoming a Mystic Master! And their cultivation was vastly different from that of Martial Artists and Mystic Masters.

Even if this body were originally a piece of rotten wood, Chu Liuyue could turn decay into magic!

She wondered what grade this Origin Vein would be after it was repaired...

As she was thinking, a red light suddenly flashed before Chu Liuyue's eyes!

She frowned and looked at her hands, only to see a strange blood-colored rune slowly emerging in her palm!

"This is..."

She had never seen this rune before, much less known where it came from!

Could it belong to the original Chu Liuyue?

Just as this thought flashed through her mind, she suddenly felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

It was as if this rune originally belonged to her!

The blood-colored rune flickered, and then, it actually transformed into a stream of light and vanished rapidly!

Before Chu Liuyue could think deeply about it, she suddenly felt that something had appeared within her dantian!

The originally dim and exhausted dantian was now filled with a red light!

In the very center, the rune Chu Liuyue had just seen was floating quietly!

As she looked closely, she suddenly held her breath—

That blood-colored rune did not exist in isolation; it was actually engraved upon a transparent page!

The page was extremely thin, as if it had been crudely torn from some book, with ragged edges, floating there quietly and rippling slightly.

If not for the reflection of the blood-colored rune, it would have been truly difficult to see clearly.

Just as Chu Liuyue was curious about what it was and intended to look more closely, that transparent page suddenly transformed into water, condensing into a small lake within her dantian.

And the blood-colored rune also completely disappeared, as if it had never appeared.

Chu Liuyue looked at her palm; there were no traces left on it.

Her body returned to calm once more.

After thinking it over, she still didn't understand what was going on, so she simply gave up.

That thing didn't seem to harm her.

For now, she had to resolve the troubles of the original host first!

She turned around, intending to go ashore, but her gaze suddenly turned cold. She quickly hid her body in the water and looked ahead

"Who!?"

At the same time, she had already removed her hairpin and gripped it tightly in her hand, ready to strike at any moment!

Amidst the dense and ethereal white mist, a tall figure loomed indistinctly.

Then, a low, elegant male voice drifted over, carrying a faint hint of a smile

"Little girl, it's not very good to intrude into someone else's place like this."

Perhaps because of the swirling clouds and mist above the lake, his trailing tone was slightly elongated, carrying a touch of laziness.

It was like a gentle breeze plucking silk strings, lingering and evocative, unsettling the heart.

Happy New Year, everyone!

(End of Chapter)