A world without glitz

It works very well.

The beginning of the universe without spirit, the mother of all spiritual things.

The most spiritual of all, the door to all wonders.

Under a clear, blue sky, Chen Ye clung to the person before him. His fingertips felt the delicate touch of silk. The slender waist, barely slender enough to hold, felt surprisingly easy to squeeze. The hem of her red gauze skirt rustled in the wind, like a burning flame. She looked up, only to see the woman's jet-black hair cascading down her face. A gilded hair ornament swayed gracefully in its flight, catching the sunlight and shimmering with golden light.

"The host has been successfully bound--"

Before the system's mechanical chime faded, Chen Ye felt the embrace tighten around her waist. The woman in red veil suddenly turned around, revealing a face as beautiful as a peach. Beneath willow-shaped brows, her foxy eyes tilted slightly upward, a vermilion mole adorning the corners of her eyes. She was now observing her with a hint of amusement. The high bridge of her nose cast a faint shadow on her cheek, and her red lips parted slightly: "Have you had enough?"

Chen Ye was startled to realize that her fingers were nearly digging into the woman's waist. Just as she was about to let go, the cloud beneath her suddenly jolted, and she yanked back, this time colliding directly with the woman's back. The cool scent of white plum blossoms, mingled with a hint of blood, wafted towards her. Only then did she notice the soft black iron armor faintly visible beneath the red veil.

System: This is the heroine of this world—Meimei, the Saint of the Demonic Cult. The host is currently en route to the Taixu Sect Immortal Cultivation Conference. Story progress 0%, love progress 0%. "Saint, Saint..." Chen Ye's voice trembled as he realized his face was pressed against her buttocks. The skin on the back of Meimei's neck was translucent white, revealing pale blue veins. Her breath was now causing tiny pimples.

Although Chen Ye had known for a while that she had arrived in a book-traveling world, the notification still startled her. "System Master, I have a question. Why does the world of immortal cultivation use such a simple method of flight?" Chen Ye had never been afraid of heights and had often flown airplanes. But she had never been exposed to such heights as she was now. How could the ethereal feeling she felt be comparable to any gaming device or flight equipment? She hadn't even bought insurance from the System Master yet.

Chen Ye gasped, then saw Meimei suddenly make a hand gesture to accelerate. The wind whipped up her hair, revealing three silver rings jingling on her earlobes. Her eyes, always smiling, were now cold as ice, and her cinnabar mole glared in the sunlight.

"If you touch me again, I'll throw you down." The voice was as light as a feather, but it made Chen Ye stiffen instantly.

"Saint, do we really have to fly over like this?" Chen Ye felt that his words were like a gust of wind that dissipated before it even reached Meimei's ears. He could only hold on to her slender waist tightly as a safety precaution.

"You don't miss your parents, do you?" Chen Ye didn't expect Meimei to say this, but it seemed that she really didn't have parents. Or maybe she did, since they weren't dead after all.

In the palace on the cliff, two gods were looking towards the northeast with eager eyes, unwilling to leave for a long time. "It was you who kidnapped my daughter! It was you, I will fight you to the death." Demon Lord Xiaoxiang pinched Sanxu's shoulders fiercely with both hands, as if the person in front of him was really the human trafficker who kidnapped his daughter. Sanxu was shaken badly, not only his whole head was dizzy, but also his hands and feet became light. He tried his best to squeeze out half a sentence to awaken the humanity of the old man in front of him. "Only your daughter is gone? Didn't my apprentice also go?"

"Your good disciple kidnapped my daughter, and you still have the nerve to bring this up?" Xiaoxiang's temperament was only slightly more mature than his own daughter, Chen Ye. At this moment, his emotions were completely out of control, his body swaying as if he could fall at any moment. The one who suffered, of course, was Sanxu, who stood before him.

Every time Xiaoxiang shook Sanxu's head, the jade crown on his head would tremble, as if it would fall off at any moment. "Stop shaking, can you open your eyes and see the world? Staying in this shabby little palace of yours every day is really short-sighted!" Sanxu finally couldn't help it. While tidying up his clothes that Xiaoxiang had messed up, he straightened the jade crown on his head and said angrily.

"How could I be so short-sighted? I'm just worried about my daughter!" Xiaoxiang widened her eyes, tears welling up in her eyes.

"You are already old, and all you do all day is to flirt and be ambiguous. Don't you know what others are spreading?" Sanxu wanted to stuff the handkerchief into the eyes of the man in front of him.

"I don't care what others say!" Xiaoxiang's voice also rose an octave. "I only care about Yeye's safety and happiness. Can your broken Xiangyu protect her? And what if your apprentice treats my daughter as a maid?"

"You...you..." Sanxu was so angry that he couldn't speak, his chest heaving violently.

"I'm really worried about Ye Ye. I don't know if the food is enough for her on the road. Can your poor Xiang Yu take good care of her?" Xiao Xiang had learned all the little-fairy things from nowhere, crying, making a scene, and even threatening to commit suicide. San Xu really didn't know how his little sister could fall for such a man.

"Go home and cry to my sister! I can't stand you being a daughter slave every day!" Sanxu couldn't stand Xiaoxiang's nagging anymore. He suddenly swung his hand, forcibly pulled away the sleeve that Xiaoxiang was holding tightly, turned around and left without looking back, leaving Xiaoxiang alone crying.

Thousands of miles above, the two flew close together. Chen Ye had just lost her enviable, high-paying job as a matchmaker, and was feeling down when she was suddenly bound by a mysterious otherworldly system.

"I never imagined an ordinary undergraduate like me would be so sought after in the job market! I was unemployed, then immediately found a job," Chen Ye muttered to herself. Recalling the web interface she'd seen, the enticing salary offer had made her think she'd found a treasure. However, as she gradually gained a deeper understanding of the system, she realized things were far more complicated than they seemed. It could even be considered a high-risk job. As someone on the sidelines, she had no idea when she'd be gone. How to earn more money with her limited screen time was the real priority.

Chen Ye often watched those wonderful fantasy dramas and was familiar with all kinds of magical spells and flying scenes. But when she actually had to experience it herself and land on her feet, she panicked and had no idea how to deal with it.

So, in a panic, she had to hug Meimei's slender waist tightly, as if only in this way could she ensure her own safety.

This was the first appearance of the heroine of this book, and as expected, she was quite eye-catching. However, Chen Ye felt that almost everyone present was focused on her face. Please don't get me wrong, I'm not the heroine!

Everyone had long heard that there was a hidden connection at this Immortal Cultivation Conference. People like them who had achieved success through their own strength hated those who used backdoors the most. So upon arriving, these people began to inquire about each other's identities.

From afar, they could see the two men approaching on a cloud. The one in front was beautiful, the one behind was extremely wealthy. The magical instruments hidden in his sleeves were already piled high, and only then did they notice the tip of the lotus just emerging.

Meimei knew full well that her master would undoubtedly assign her an attendant to help with matters. However, she never imagined that this attendant, while possessing considerable spiritual power, was in reality a mere nepotist. She was familiar with her reputation, and her character and strength were well known. They had originally sat comfortably in their master's agarwood sedan chair, ready to depart, but who could have predicted that this nepotist could not tolerate the rich agarwood scent emanating from it, constantly complaining that it made her dizzy.

Meimei had no choice but to abandon the agarwood sedan chair and fly to her destination with this person she had a relationship with. But who would have thought that this person was incredibly timid and was almost scared to death while flying in the air. Fortunately, this person had a brain injury, so he didn't suddenly throw a tantrum.

"Everything is difficult at the beginning, I hope things will be easier later." Meimei only has this wish at the moment. She feels that she, the saint of the demon cult, is the real miserable person.

At the Xuyufang of Taixu Palace, Qi Yiwen had never imagined that her own courtyard would one day welcome the presence of fellow apprentices. The two of them wandered through the courtyard, stopping and starting here and there, leaving only the ubiquitous herbs to suffer.

"Big Brother, do you see those green numbers in that notebook? In the past ten years, Taixu Sect has lost over a thousand disciples, while the number of new disciples, including those Second Brother swindled and deceived from various sects, is less than a hundred. Why is this? I think everyone knows the answer." Tanhua had been trying to repay kindness with kindness, but now someone was occupying the position of Sect Master while doing the work of a new disciple. As soon as this question was posed, Xuhua, standing across from him, quickly got the message.

"Some people only practice martial arts all day long, and don't care about the affairs of the sect. But they have a good reputation. They are at the top of the martial arts and appearance in the fairy world. Now we, the junior brothers and sisters, want to use his reputation to accept us as his disciples, but he always refuses. Master, why did you let this person with only a good appearance to be the sect leader?" Xuhua was so moved that he hugged his fellow sufferer Tanhua tightly, and the two of them almost knelt down to Qi Yiwen.

Tanhua and Xuhua had rehearsed this palace-forcing drama dozens of times, and every word and expression was just right.

"I take the Three Realms as my own responsibility. I have a lot of big things to do, okay." Qi Yiwen always speaks with a boastful tone, especially with his tall and straight figure, he really deserves a good reputation for being upright and incorruptible.

"Have you watered Bilian today and fertilized the branches and leaves of Nanzhu?" The tacit understanding between Tanhua and Xuhua in communicating with Qi Yiwen was cultivated over thousands of years. They both came up to Qi Yiwen, and their speechless attitude towards this senior brother was really frozen in this awkward atmosphere.

"Wait, do you smell something burnt?" Qi Yiwen walked to the gate of Xuyu Palace and carefully searched for the source of the smell. Qi Yiwen finally caught sight of the faint glow of fire in the main hall of the southwest, Taixu Palace.

Taking advantage of the east wind, he pretended to shout at the top of his voice, "The Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains seems to be on fire." Qi Yiwen turned around and ignored the two men's painstaking efforts.

"Even if your courtyard is on fire, you have to come with me to the Immortal Cultivation Conference." Xuhua and Tanhua each held Qi Yiwen's arms, covered their mouths, and ran straight to the gate of Taixu Gate. Qi Yiwen could only be heard mumbling, "Taixu... ran away..."

At the entrance to Taixu Gate, this stone tablet is said to have been placed there by Qi Yiwen after she left the illusory world of Taixu. While it's a blank tablet, it's no ordinary stone. When illuminated by sunlight, it shimmers with a myriad of light, transforming unpredictably. Over time, this blank tablet has become a famous check-in spot at Taixu Gate.

System Master: "The Taixu Sect is the undisputed leader of the immortal sects in the world today. The current sect leader, Qi Yiwen, is an immortal who ascended from the Taixu Illusionary Realm and is also the male protagonist of this world."

This was Chen Ye's first time doing this job, but as a veteran in the workplace, he had an innate sense of drudgery. "System Master, could you send me the world background as a PDF? I really can't remember it all. What's the hero's name? Is it his prose? I'm coming to work, so you should at least assign me a small task. If not, is it free time now? And how much is the salary? System Master, let's discuss it."

System Master: "The key plot has not been triggered! The key plot has not been triggered!"

"Rubbish system!"

"Where are you going?" Meimei stopped Chen Ye before he could leave. "The sun's too strong here, Saint. Look, there's a tea stall over there. Let's go have some tea and get out of the sun." Chen Ye knew how to be a devoted lackey to the demonic Saint. Sincerity is the first rule of all when it comes to moving people. Shielding her from the sun wasn't enough idol-like behavior—romantic, wasn't it? And although Meimei was tall and thin, Chen Ye could still shield her from the sun by tiptoeing. Truly a human sunscreen.

Perhaps because the sun was mostly obscured by clouds, Meimei only then became aware of the blazing, scorching sun overhead. However, at this moment, the two of them stood in the very center of the Taixu Sect's plaque. Compared to the group of people behind them who were eager to seek immortality, this was undoubtedly the perfect place.

Meimei only heard Meimei say softly: "You are a little shorter than me, stand next to me. Be patient, the leader Qi Yiwen will be here soon." As soon as the voice fell, a figure was seen flying rapidly from the distant horizon.

The figure was clad in a black dress that fluttered in the wind, as graceful and elegant as a fairy descending to earth. He rode on a crane, soaring through the air, a gentle breeze enveloping him. He seemed at one with the world, yet separate from it. The black brocade robe added a touch of mystery and majesty. In the warm sunlight, the golden threads shimmered with a dazzling light, gleaming brilliantly.

When he landed steadily on the stage, everyone finally got a clear look at his true face. It was a face as smooth and smooth as a beautiful jade, with eyebrows as dark as distant black and eyes as clear as autumn water. His eyes revealed a divine radiance that sought to save all living beings.

Chen Ye stood in the crowd, staring intently at Qi Yiwen on the stage, and suddenly a strange feeling welled up in his heart. Just a moment ago, he seemed to have made eye contact with her, and in that instant, a tiny electric current quickly passed through his body, making him shiver involuntarily.

Looking at the charismatic leader of the Immortal Dao sect before him, Chen Ye couldn't help but sigh inwardly, "As expected of the protagonist! This modeling is very attentive! But why do the models of the characters around him all look like they were copied and pasted together? I'm face-blind."

System Master: "Triggered the key plot - Meimei, the Saint of the Demon Cult, won the championship of the Immortal Cultivation Conference and fell in love with the sect leader Qi Yiwen at first sight."

Chen Ye looked at Meimei beside him. She was standing there normally, her eyes were not blank. When he came to his senses, he began to question the system: "Wait, what are you talking about? Are these two things related?" Where did this artificial intelligence come from that was talking nonsense? Chen Ye was ready to complain to this system.

System: "Detected that the love ratio has risen to 1%. Triggering the main quest. Host, your task is to prevent the protagonist of this world from falling in love. The system has set a story progress percentage and a love percentage (this setting was newly added after countless hosts' feedback). If the love ratio decreases or the progress increases by one percentage, you will receive 10,000 gold coins (gold coins are real-world money). Gold coins can also be used to purchase props, but the props are not yet online, so please stay tuned."

Chen Ye is now in an independent world. Rather than a world, it is more like a game loading panel. This interface is composed of countless signal lines in front of her, which clearly display the tasks issued by the system.

"As the saying goes, it's better to demolish ten temples than to ruin a marriage. I like such hurtful things. Wait, the love ratio has increased. Does that mean the two protagonists have a crush on each other after just meeting? Tell me who was attracted by your beauty? You did it on purpose. System, please measure my favorability. With your exquisite modeling and perfect appearance, who wouldn't be moved? If you add a rose float appearance for the heroine, they will fall in love. I guess my favorability is about 70 or 80, and the identity of the sect leader adds another 5%. No, no, this male protagonist's character is too good, with multiple layers of filters. Meimei will lose control."

Chen Ye lost her high-paying matchmaking job in a small, 18th-tier county because she introduced a mama's boy to an independent woman, a gold-digger to a passionate man, and even facilitated a pair of disapproving late-life romances. All of these relationships were online, so while it was clearly the computer system that was to blame, Chen Ye took the blame for everything, racking up ten negative reviews and effectively losing her job.

Chen Ye no longer wanted to do the life-shortening job of matchmaking. He had just resigned and was about to leave his job at Youyuan.com when he received an invitation from the system. Out of curiosity, he clicked "OK" and ended up here, becoming one of the many unemployed people trafficked here by the system.

System Master: "The key plot has been sent to the host's brain container in the form of a PDF."

"A little thoughtfulness."

The Wuhua world is a world of immortal cultivation. The heroine of this world, Meimei, is a saint of the Demon Cult. A wronged soul that crawled from the bottom of the cliff, she vowed to seek revenge on those who dwell on the shore. To fulfill the Demon Cult's millennium plan, she infiltrates the Taixu Sect through a competition to steal the secret treasure. Meanwhile, the hero of this world, Qi Yiwen, is the aloof and unselfish leader of the Taixu Sect. While pursuing Taixu, he falls in love with Meimei at first sight. After Meimei wins the championship at the competition, they become master and disciple, a relationship that blossoms over time. However, when her identity as a spy for the Demon Cult is revealed, their incompatibility sealed their fate. They both destroyed their own immortal bones to protect their loved ones. Their love is unsung in the Wuhua world, but because of them, the Immortal Cult has fallen into decline and the Demon Cult has become rampant.

"No way, can they fall in love with each other despite having such opposing identities? Why not expose their identities and give up sooner rather than later? Also, this was clearly my favorite story with a strong female lead, so how did it become a strong male lead again? Can't my daughter give up her career?"

"Apart from completing the main emotional storyline, the host cannot change the ending of the story where the immortal sect falls and the evil cult becomes rampant. As for the process, I don't care." The system's cold voice is most suitable for saying such ruthless words.

Chen Ye had just exited the system interface with satisfaction when a deafening round of applause suddenly rang out. The applause was so sudden and fierce that it nearly gave the unsuspecting Chen Ye a tinnitus. "The system is broken."

At this moment, a resounding and solemn voice rang out. It turned out to be Qi Yiwen's little follower. After reading the plot synopsis, Chen Ye could probably call out her name. This little follower was Epiphyllum - Qi Yiwen's junior sister. As her name suggests, she was a fleeting beauty.

"The Immortal Cultivation Conference has officially begun! We are now entering the first stage. Please take your belongings with you, fellow immortals. The next stop is Water Mirror." Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw a seemingly unremarkable lake quietly nestled beside the grand plaque of the Taixu Sect. This lake wasn't created by nature; the water wasn't crystal clear, and there were no lotus flowers blooming within. "Isn't this the illegal structure that tripped me up?" Chen Ye immediately recognized it as the artificial lake in her neighborhood—the famous stinking ditch, a thing that looked good but didn't do anything.

In a flash, Meimei grabbed Chen Ye's slender waist without hesitation and plunged into the lake like an arrow. Chen Ye felt her vision go black and her body instantly lost weight. Fear and panic filled her heart. She struggled frantically, screaming at the top of her lungs, "Help! I can't swim!"

At this moment, Chen Ye tightly embraced Meimei's slender waist, as if grasping at a last straw. She didn't even care about the face of the demon sect, just desperately trying to save her own life. With this series of actions, Chen Ye had taken full advantage, but she was completely unaware.

Meanwhile, the system watched on in astonishment. It could never have imagined that its seemingly promising host, unable to swim and afraid of heights, was truly an incredibly fragile little master. Helplessly, the system abruptly muted Chen Ye's flawed plea for help, lest anyone else overhear and laugh at her.