Chapter 4 004 (Major Revision) She stepped on a fox tail

Can someone explain how the probability of encountering danger has increased by 7,000 times and the probability of death by 8,000 times? Isn't that incredibly malicious?

"Host, I'm not targeting you personally. The reason for this adjustment is that, logically speaking, you possessed the body of the real Yan Kingdom princess." The system's voice was unhurried: "The difference between a transmigrator possessing the body of a native and a demon possessing a human body lies in the fact that one is accidental and the other is intentional. But we don't look at the motive, only the result. From the result perspective, the logic of the two is the same. If it's not your own body, your soul inside will naturally not be able to reside very stably."

Lu Yuanyuan's expression changed: "So, once my life value gets too low, my soul will leave my body?"

System: "Correct. Your way of existence is the same as theirs, and your attributes are also the same. Such a yin body is a very nourishing delicacy in the eyes of some evil beings."

Lu Yuanyuan bit her lip: "Why do I feel like I wasn't so easily targeted in my past life?"

System: "In your first playthrough, you had a golden core within you and were a disciple of Mount Shu. You are incomparable to the current you."

Lu Yuanyuan took a light breath and dug her fingertips into her palm.

That's right. Once you've been to that world, you'll understand the difference between mortals and cultivators.

The mortal body is still too weak.

After regaining her composure, Lu Yuanyuan continued to ask, "Then, what about the life points? Before I went to Mount Shu in my previous life, this body's constitution wasn't this bad, was it?"

System: "Sorry, I can't find an experienced solution to this problem in the database. It might be a probability event."

Lu Yuanyuan scratched her head, and once she started talking, a flood of questions poured out: "So, how did I end up severely injured and sent to Mount Shu three months later? Do you have the original text for me to refer to?"

System: "Spoilers ahead, no comment."

Their "no comment" is truly no comment. Since no further information can be obtained, there's no need to press for details.

Lu Yuanyuan came to her senses and noticed that the tent was empty.

When she was talking to the system just now, to outsiders she looked like she was spacing out. Perhaps the Crown Prince found it boring and left.

It's better that they've left.

Lu Yuanyuan paused for a moment, fiddling with the tassels on the corner of the soft pillow, silently organizing her thoughts. Suddenly, she remembered something else: "Right, I can recover my health when I encounter Yue Hong and Yue Qi, but I have no reaction when I encounter other people. Is it because—" She paused, then voiced her guess: "Because these two are the potential male leads?"

System: "Correct. The potential male leads are the chosen ones of this world. The love and support of the readers will transform into their luck. The higher their popularity outside the book, the stronger their luck will be. When you get close to them, you will also receive that luck."

Lu Yuanyuan: "..."

As I thought, so that's how it is!

She was wondering why she reacted so strongly when she encountered Yue Hong, but her luck level was much lower when it came to the Crown Prince. It turns out this was determined by the character's popularity—how realistic!

Just then, the curtain was lifted by a hand, and the female doctor and her maid filed in, carrying ointments.

This was truly a stroke of luck – a godsend. Lu Yuanyuan was about to inquire about the contents of the dungeon when she looked at a maid who looked to be about fourteen or fifteen years old with her hair in double buns. She remembered that the girl's name was Dang'er, and she was a palace maid who had been transferred to serve the original owner of the body a year ago: "Dang'er, I just heard the Crown Prince say that someone died outside. What happened?"

Dang'er was rolling up her sleeves and adding incense to the openwork gold censer when she heard this. Her hand trembled, and she looked frightened: "Princess, you'd better not ask. I heard it's terrifying, bloody, and just looking at it will give you nightmares."

The original owner of this body was a princess from a defeated country sent for a political marriage. She was never pretentious. The palace servants around her weren't afraid of her, and she spoke and acted much more freely than when she was with other princes and princesses. The female physician, upon hearing this, also chimed in, "Is it really the work of a demon?"

"The Imperial Advisor's words must be true, right?" Dang'er pointed her index finger to the sky and said with some envy, "The Imperial Advisor came down from up there, after all."

Lu Yuanyuan knew that what Dang'er meant by "above" was the cultivation world.

Throughout history, a barrier-like boundary has existed between the cultivation world and the mortal world. Mortals cannot freely enter the cultivation world—which is only natural. After all, countless people in this world seek immortality and eternal life. Without this barrier, the gates of the major sects in the cultivation world would probably be lined with people waiting to join from morning till night.

Mortals cannot enter the world of cultivation; they can only imagine what it's like there. Golden Core cultivators who wield swords to slay demons are seen as superior beings, inspiring both worship and awe.

The Grand Preceptor of Yong Kingdom is said to be a Golden Core cultivator from the cultivation world. Because of his experience in the cultivation world and his own genuine skills, he is highly respected in the court, holding the same rank as the Three Excellencies, and his prestige is immense.

only……

For Golden Core cultivators, the mortal realm and the cultivation world are roughly like the difference between Harbin Buddhist Academy and Harvard University.

Anyone who dedicates themselves to the path of immortality seeks nothing more than higher cultivation levels and a longer lifespan. Given a choice, they would strive to rise to the top and fight tooth and nail to remain in the world of cultivation, rather than lingering in the mortal realm and refusing to return.

At least in her previous life, she had never seen a cultivator willing to go down to the mortal realm to live.

Lu Yuanyuan gently scratched her chin with her index finger, pondered for a moment, and still felt something was off.

Was it because the Emperor of Yong Kingdom gave him too much? So, this Grand Preceptor decided to stay and enjoy wealth and honor, preferring to be a big fish in a small pond rather than a small fish in a big pond?

After applying the medicine, Lu Yuanyuan dressed and, with Dang'er's help, sat down in front of the dressing mirror. While Dang'er combed her hair with a jade comb, she continued chatting with the female doctor.

"I've never seen a monster in my entire life; I've only ever heard about them in stories. What about you?"

Dang'er recalled: "When I was a child, I heard my father say that when he was seven or eight years old, he saw a house in a neighboring village that was haunted. He found a Taoist priest from Maoshan and had him perform rituals for three days before the matter was resolved."

"That's different. How can you lump ghosts and demons together?"

The barrier between the cultivation world and the mortal world not only prevents mortals from ascending, but also acts like a safe net, trapping countless ferocious demons and preventing them from descending to the mortal realm to wreak havoc.

Otherwise, given the vastly different combat abilities of the original inhabitants of the two realms, the monsters would definitely choose to descend to the mortal realm to hunt for food. At that time, it would be like wolves entering a sheepfold; mortals would be slaughtered cleanly, like cutting melons and vegetables.

Therefore, in the mortal realm, it is actually rare to see vicious and evil monsters.

Unless some fish slip through the net.

Ghosts are much more common in the mortal realm. In this world, after a human dies, their soul will be reincarnated after the seventh day after death. Only those who die with unresolved grievances, or those who commit heinous crimes, will have their souls unable to find peace and will transform into vengeful ghosts, disturbing the peace of others.

Because they lack a physical body, ghosts typically possess various objects to frighten people and drain their vital energy. Those possessed by ghosts will experience cold limbs, be plagued by various illnesses, and eventually die in despair. More ferocious ghosts may seize the body of a living person, but they rarely eat flesh and blood directly.

Over three hundred years ago, a powerful figure emerged in the Ghost Realm—the Ghost Emperor Jiuli. At that time, the immortal sects, led by the Shu Mountain Sword Sect, fought a fierce battle and joined forces to suppress him, restoring peace to the Three Realms. Since then, no powerful figures have emerged in the Ghost Realm, and it is now a disorganized and insignificant entity.

But Lu Yuanyuan knew that this Ghost Emperor was not completely dead. He would awaken in a hundred years.

At that time, the one who will kill him will be Duan Lansheng, who has already ascended to become a sword immortal.

Lu Yuanyuan picked up the porcelain cup and took a sip of hot water to soothe her throat. Water droplets rolled down the sky-blue cup, and the rising steam made her feel very comfortable.

Of course, that's a story that's a long way off. Let's deal with the immediate problems first.

The system doesn't provide a copy of the data; she has to figure out what's happening outside on her own.

At that moment, an unusual commotion arose outside the slightly translucent curtains.

The people who carried the body must have returned!

Dang'er styled her hair with the most fashionable hairstyle of the moment, and not content with just inserting a delicate gemstone hairpin, she wanted to add more ornaments to her head. Lu Yuanyuan waved her hand, indicating that there was no need to add any more, and said, "Let's go, let's go out and take a look."

Dang'er didn't understand why she was so persistent. Despite her fear, she could only follow, saying, "Princess, please slow down."

The temporary encampment for the Yong Kingdom's hunting expeditions was built with thick bamboo and wood deeply embedded in the soil, forming an outer wall that enclosed a wide and flat grassland.

At this moment, countless imperial guards and palace servants blocked the grassy area, discussing something with panicked expressions. Some timid maids, having seen something, turned pale with fright, stumbled out of the crowd, their legs gave way, and they knelt on the ground, vomiting violently.

Lu Yuanyuan walked to the front of the crowd and looked closely. There, on the open ground, lay a makeshift wooden stretcher, its burlap smeared with thick blood. On it lay a mangled mass of flesh, unrecognizable as human. Judging from the remaining clothing, the deceased had likely been a member of the Imperial Guard. Now, however, his skin had been peeled away, exposing raw, bright red muscle to the air, twitching slightly. Bloodshot eyes rolled within their sockets, revealing gleaming white teeth. In the summer mountains, mosquitoes were plentiful, and within half a day, numerous flies had crawled on the corpse.

Dang'er took a step back in alarm: "Ah!"

The smell of blood was too strong. Lu Yuanyuan frowned and covered her nose with her sleeve, but she didn't lose her composure.

The corpses that have been handled by monsters are often in gruesome states. It's perfectly normal for someone seeing such a scene for the first time to feel nauseous.

However, she hadn't spent so many years in Mount Shu in her previous life for nothing. Having seen so many things, her threshold for horror had been raised significantly. The discomfort from the initial shock quickly subsided, and Lu Yuanyuan's eyes flickered as she began to observe the details.

Monsters eat people mostly to satisfy their appetite, just like animals hunt.

But this time, the monster that was causing the trouble only peeled off the person's skin, clearly not killing him to fill his stomach.

Why does it only skin people?

Suddenly, a loud shout came from outside the crowd: "Make way! The Imperial Advisor has arrived!"

The crowd parted to make way. Lu Yuanyuan turned her head curiously and saw a group of imperial guards escorting a Taoist priest in purple robes. The priest had a full head of white hair, neatly tied up with a jade crown. His wide sleeves fluttered, and he appeared somewhat thin. He carried a snow-white whisk in his arm, and a sword, a string of copper coins, and a gourd-shaped seven-colored treasure hung at his waist, which was quite in line with people's general imagination of a cultivator.

Unfortunately, neither their weapons nor their clothing revealed which sect they belonged to.

The imposing and dignified Imperial Guards couldn't help but bow down before him, revealing expressions of awe and reverence.

Dang'er noticed that Lu Yuanyuan was looking at the Imperial Advisor thoughtfully. Thinking that she was afraid, she whispered to comfort her, "Princess, I heard that the Imperial Advisor is very powerful. He has three great magical artifacts and can suppress any monster, no matter how powerful it is."

Lu Yuanyuan gave a soft "hmm".

A palace maid whispered, "If only we had amulets from immortals."

The palace servant next to him rolled his eyes at him: "Even if we gave it to you, you wouldn't need it. Haven't you heard? Magical artifacts in the cultivation world can only be used by Golden Core cultivators to unleash their power. In the hands of mortals, even the most powerful magical artifact is just scrap metal."

"I...I was just saying!"

...

Since the death, the relaxed atmosphere of the hunt has vanished forever.

In the afternoon, the rain clouds in the sky gradually thickened, turning a gloomy, bluish-gray hue. A strong wind swept across Langya Mountain, causing the vegetation to sway. After a few muffled claps of thunder, the rain began to pelt down relentlessly.

The journey from Langya Mountain back to the capital by car would take half a day. According to past hunting traditions, everyone was supposed to rest at the campsite tonight and return the next day. But now, with the demonic calamity, fear gripped the people, and no one wanted to stay in the mountains, feeling the makeshift bamboo walls were unsafe. They dared not set off now, as departing at this hour would mean traveling the rest of the journey in darkness, which would be even more dangerous.

Therefore, everyone decided to move to a nearby palace, where the imperial advisor would stay overnight, and they would not set off back to the capital until dawn.

As the last rays of sunlight dipped below the horizon, the group finally arrived at the imperial palace.

The Yong Kingdom's summer palace was built at the foot of Langya Mountain. With its black tiles and red walls, it possessed a majestic grandeur, and was surrounded by a moat, making it virtually impregnable. As they disembarked from the carriage, the heavy rain had intensified into a torrential downpour with thunder and lightning. Ripples spread outwards along the bluestone path. Palace servants, holding umbrellas and fetching water, escorted the nobles into the inner chambers. Raindrops pattered against the painted paper umbrellas, creating splashes of water.

Lu Yuanyuan received the same treatment as the other princesses and princes who accompanied her; her room was arranged in the heavily guarded West Courtyard.

Although the emperor and his family only visited a few times a year, the palace was always guarded by palace servants and cleaned regularly. Lu Yuanyuan entered the room, which was quite spacious and elegant, with tables, chairs, cabinets, and beds, and gauze curtains fluttering in the breeze. Incense was already burning in the incense burner.

The only drawback was that the bolt was a little loose when closing the door, making it impossible to lock it securely. Two palace maids who were sweeping and cleaning came over upon hearing the news, repeatedly apologizing: "Please forgive us, Your Highness! We will prepare another room for you immediately. Please wait for half an hour."

Lu Yuanyuan found it a bit troublesome. Through the drizzling rain, she saw an unlit room across the garden, pointed there, and asked, "Where's that room? Is anyone using it?"

The two palace maids exchanged a glance and said, "Your Highness, that room is cluttered with miscellaneous books and is not as spacious as this one."

Lu Yuanyuan smiled and said, "It doesn't matter. I'm just resting for one night anyway. I'll just switch to that room."

Two palace maids bowed and then went to make preparations.

Lu Yuanyuan's shoulders were wet from the rain. She wiped the water droplets off with a cloth, changed into dry clothes, and tidied herself up in this room before having Dang'er carry a palace lantern. Together, they walked to the room opposite.

As she reached the corner of the corridor, Lu Yuanyuan heard the whispers of the two palace servants from the small room through the sound of rain, and she stopped.

“You’ve got the wrong one. This is palace incense; you can’t give this kind of incense to the princess.”

"What?"

"You're really foolish. Although the Princess of Yan and His Highness the Crown Prince have been engaged for three years and will be married at the end of the year, she is not yet the official Crown Princess. You used palace incense to scent the princess's clothes and bedding, and the head maid found out. You'll definitely be punished."

"Oh right! Luckily you reminded me, Sister Chunxing. Let's go get some new spices..."

The two palace maids, unaware of Lu Yuanyuan in the corridor, left with the wooden box. Lu Yuanyuan shook her head, took the glass palace lantern from Dang'er's hand, and said, "Dang'er, you don't need to follow me anymore. Go back and rest. Also, tell the maid from earlier that my room doesn't need incense."

After seeing Dang'er off, Lu Yuanyuan entered the room alone and looked around.

Just as the two palace maids had said, the room's layout was quite unique. Although small in size, it was decorated with great elegance. A tall wooden bookcase divided the space in two, filled with many antique books, and the air was filled with the faint scent of ink.

Lu Yuanyuan bolted the door, glanced around the bookshelf, but couldn't find what she wanted. She then rubbed the back of her neck and went to the bedside.

Lu Yuanyuan hadn't seen Yue Hong or Yue Qi since the afternoon. To save her life, she had to adhere to the principle of lying down if she could, and sitting if she could, and standing if she could. Her current health was 25/100, which meant she wasn't in immediate danger, but she was still easily fatigued.

Seeing that it was getting late, she took off her coat and shoes and socks, relaxed on the bed, and fell asleep to the sound of rain. Before she knew it, she drifted off to sleep.

The candle wick hissed as it burned.

The bronze water clock dripped, dripped. Night deepened, and the sounds of people and footsteps outside gradually faded away. Only the wind and rain remained, growing ever stronger.

Half-asleep, Lu Yuanyuan suddenly heard a muffled thud coming from behind the bookshelf. It seemed to be the sound of the wooden window facing the garden being blown open by a strong wind and slamming against the wall.

So, she'd been inside for so long and the window hadn't been closed properly the whole time?

Lu Yuanyuan, still half asleep, yawned, got out of bed, kicked off her shoes, and slowly walked around the bookshelf to close the window.

There was no palace lantern lighting behind the bookshelf, making it quite dim. Lu Yuanyuan wasn't paying attention to her footing and accidentally stepped on something soft.

Not only was it soft, but it also seemed to be covered in hair, which gently scratched her bare feet.

Lu Yuanyuan was startled and lowered her head.

What she trampled heavily underfoot was a snow-white...wet fox tail.

Lu Yuanyuan's gaze froze.

Following the trail of the fox's tail, her expression gradually stiffened, her blood began to freeze from the soles of her feet, and her fingers trembled.

She saw a familiar white Taoist robe with dark blue Sanskrit characters flowing around it.

The robes of the Shushan Sword Sect.