Chapter 1 Encountering Senior Sister Senior Sister!
In the countryside, the trees are dense and the shadows sway.
A dilapidated cottage was hidden in the woods, with dark red stains faintly visible on the door.
"Embrace the One...Concentrate the mind and gather the energy...Embrace the One..."
A young girl sat cross-legged in a corner of the room, a book in her hand. As she read, she glanced at her outstretched hands, as if hoping a flower would bloom from them.
He would occasionally wave the scroll around while continuing to mutter incantations.
Not far from her, many children huddled together.
Seeing her like this, one of them couldn't bear it and called out, "Hey! Don't waste your energy. You can't cultivate if your spiritual veins are completely shattered."
Of all the people, this person was the strangest. He was brought in unconscious and dressed in rags. When he woke up, he kept asking where he was and using terms like "cell phone" and "student ID," leaving everyone completely confused.
I heard that she was taken to the market a couple of days ago and was chosen by an immortal, but in the end she was told that her spiritual veins were completely shattered.
Even a three-year-old child would yearn for the path of cultivation. After all, it's the path to immortality, and who wouldn't want to escape the mortal world and ascend to the highest heavens?
However, the girls in this house were all abandoned by refugees or sold here by their families. They were struggling to even feed themselves, so they had no time to think about becoming immortals. If they couldn't find a good home, they would face an abyss.
Therefore, this newcomer who started dreaming as soon as he picked up a book really seemed a bit delusional.
"What if?"
Their gazes were drawn to Shen Lixia, who was barely clothed. She tugged at her tank top and brushed away the dust. Even so, she closed the book and let out a long sigh.
What a misfortune! After twenty years of diligent study, I've been transported back to the starting village.
I finally made it into university, thinking that the future was bright and smooth, but one day I suddenly went black and woke up to find myself in front of this group of kids.
Shen Lixia had considered that this might be some kind of shady business, or that she was dreaming. However, several days had passed, and she had even been to the market, and she finally confirmed that it was indeed a shady business, but in a different world.
—She put it on, in such a simple way, wearing the clothes and all. Despite much anticipation, there was no system, no original plot, and even the spiritual veins were shattered to pieces.
She, a modern person, arrived in this seemingly dog-eat-dog world of cultivation with nothing.
Luckily, it's also the height of summer here, otherwise, wearing only a tank top and jeans and having lost my jacket, I probably would have had to start over as soon as I landed.
The girl sighed and pulled out a steamed bun from her bosom. She broke the bun into pieces and raised her hand, gesturing, "Come on, who's still hungry?"
The children, huddled together, began to whisper among themselves. Seeing that she had finally returned to normal, a few girls boldly approached, and Shen Lixia shared the steamed buns with them.
One of them refused to take the money, only staring coldly at her, his tone sarcastic: "You're starving yourself, and you're trying to help others?"
Shen Lixia glanced at her and saw that the girl's exposed fingers were covered with rough calluses and scars. She understood and didn't blame the child for her bad attitude. She just said, "I'm an adult now, unlike you who are still growing. Aren't you going to eat? If you don't eat, you won't even be able to hit my knee when you jump up."
These words successfully enraged the girl. She snatched the food from Shen Lixia's hand, biting down hard and chewing as if her mouth contained not a steamed bun, but the other girl's finger. Shen Lixia chuckled and picked up the tattered little book again to read.
The book contains knowledge about what this world calls "cultivation." Fortunately, the language here is compatible with modern usage, although it uses traditional characters.
Not long after they started reading, someone kicked open the door and lashed out with a whip. Seeing the whip about to strike the girl, Shen Lixia quickly pushed her aside and stepped forward herself, taking the full force of the blow. The stinging pain subsided, but Shen Lixia remained calm as a man walked in, whip in hand, his expression fierce.
This man was the manager. This small hut, and even the surrounding woods, were his enclosure for his servants. Most of these servants were homeless people who had ended up here, waiting for their next destination.
There were also foreigners picked up from the countryside, like her.
The place where they were was a small grove in Changzhou, which belonged to the so-called "Sixth Domain," and was some distance from the city.
"Wake up!" the man snapped. "You, and you, come with me to the market!"
He was referring to Shen Lixia and the girl who had just spoken coldly. The two followed him out of the house, where a young man was waiting in a carriage. The three of them boarded the carriage, with Shen Lixia and the girl sitting in the back, separated from the front by a screen.
With a crack of the whip, the carriage began to move towards the town.
The scenery outside the car was lush and green, interspersed with pale yellow hues, with the occasional bird song drifting by, echoing lightly among the trees.
The journey was long. Shen Lixia nudged the child huddled up next to her and asked, "What's your name?"
The girl didn't respond at first, but after a while, Shen Lixia asked again as if she didn't sense her aloofness, and then she finally spoke: "Xiao Wu".
"Xiao Wu?" Shen Lixia knew immediately that this was a nickname; the child in front of her probably didn't have a formal name. "You need to think of a name for yourself."
What can I do if I don't have a name?
Shen Lixia wasn't originally called that; the person who adopted her called her Lixia because that's when she was taken to the orphanage. After she grew up, she changed one character in her name and was extremely satisfied with it.
The girl ignored her completely. Shen Lixia closed her eyes to rest until she heard the sound of hooves stop and the horse neighing loudly. A man outside called out, and she and the child jumped off the carriage. Before them stood towering city walls, and sounds of bustling activity could be heard from the inner side.
*Clang.* Chains were fastened to the hands of both men. The man, leading the boy, turned to the guard at the city gate, showed his identity, and handed him some loose silver before pulling on the chains and walking into the city. Shen Lixia looked down; the heavy metal pressed against her wrists, making it difficult to break free.
They led Shen Lixia and Xiao Wu through the streets and alleys, down the stairs, and into a secluded corridor. After passing through a long, dark passage, they finally saw bright lights. Various smells mingled, but the most prominent was the stench of decay emanating from the place itself.
This is an underground market.
The further in you go, the more densely packed the stalls and shops become, and you can often hear the sound of cleavers being chopped on a cutting board. The girl beside her completely buried her face in her cloak, pressing her whole body against Shen Lixia, as if she were a tail growing from her waist.
The area is teeming with strange characters, including martial arts practitioners who sell medicine and secret manuals, as well as hunters who sell the fur, bones, and flesh of animals that seem to be prohibited from being hunted by the government.
Some of them had scars all over their faces, so it's not surprising that a child of Xiao Wu's age would be scared.
The two were led to a narrow open space. This space was between two stalls, and there was a chair there. The man pulled up the chair and sat down, letting Shen Lixia and the girl stand behind him. The young man then went to solicit business, and soon he was entangled with a young man in white, following him all the way.
This kind of business is clearly not easy to sell. The man raised an eyebrow and said to them in a low voice, "Show off your skills and get the customers' attention."
The sound of the whip seemed to echo in her ears once again. Shen Lixia nodded and looked around.
If she really had to go with someone, she would prefer to choose a partner herself.
The crowd surged, a diverse mix of people from all walks of life, some rough and thuggish like thieves, others carrying swords. The latter carried no ordinary money pouch; it bore simple runes, suggesting some kind of magical artifact. Shen Lixia guessed it was probably for storage.
Could there really be some useful cultivation technique? It doesn't seem like it. Shen Lixia has excellent eyesight and can see at a glance that most of the manuals have words like "The number one cultivation technique in heaven and earth" and "Practice it and you will become an immortal."
Even a three-year-old wouldn't believe something that makes such a guarantee right on the cover.
She glanced again at the densely packed stalls and indeed saw some people who looked either otherworldly or unkempt, with various scrolls displayed in front of them—some were only one scroll, and some were even damaged. Most of these people didn't shout, seemingly waiting for someone destined to find them.
etc.
Shen Lixia's wandering gaze froze. She held her breath.
As far as the eye could see, a slender woman in white was dodging the passing crowds and walking past the stalls selling "secret manuals".
She wore a bamboo hat with a thin veil hanging down, obscuring most of her face, making her delicate eyebrows and eyes appear hazy and indistinct. Her black hair was partially tied up, revealing her slender neck, and her simple clothes made her skin appear even whiter than snow.
The clothing, which concealed her attire in every way, did not make her appear sinister on her. Instead, she seemed like a hermit immortal who had come to the mortal world on a whim, exuding a profound and elegant air.
Only a mole on his wrist caught the eye, like a smear of ink, connecting the immortal with the mortal.
It looks familiar.
No, she looks very familiar. How come she looks so much like her senior from her major?
Rather than the absurd conjecture that "my senior sister also time-traveled," she preferred to believe that this might just be someone who looked a lot like her senior sister.
Shen Lixia didn't know the other person's name, so she could only call her "senior sister" in her heart for the time being.
The woman walked slowly, seemingly uninterested in any of the goods or the displayed techniques. The boy frantically shook the chain on his hand, hoping his fuss would attract her attention.
Before her gaze could reach her, the whip struck first. Shen Lixia shifted her body, and the whip missed her, but she suddenly raised her voice and let out a howl.
The commotion finally caught the woman's attention. She turned around, looked in this direction, paused slightly, and then quickened her pace, walking towards Shen Lixia. Because of her unusual attire, the other street vendors regarded her as a distinguished guest and tried to stop her, but were quickly and politely refused.
Surrounded by many gazes, she strode towards Shen Lixia. The man's face lit up with joy, and he was about to speak when he heard a soft laugh from the young man behind him, gently calling out to the ethereal woman before him:
"Senior Sister."
The woman stared at Shen Lixia for a moment, then raised her hand to lift the thin veil and smiled slightly.
"Long time no see, junior sister."
Her voice was gentle and melodious, like a spring flowing through the forest, clear and pleasant to the ear. For some reason, it seemed to make Shen Lixia's heart skip a beat.
A note from the author:
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Some mine clearance:
The romance develops slowly.
There are many characters and secondary couples, with considerable screen time given to supporting characters. The villains are described in detail, and all the characters have different connections and feelings, primarily between women.
I don't know when I'll finish writing. Read it whenever you feel like it.
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