After triple-checking the data, the human-system pair fell into an eerie silence.
Well then…
This is way too low.
To be fair, she thought it would at least be a positive number.
“I remember that transmigrators can unilaterally terminate missions, right?”
Yu Sui Sui asked. She remembered it was possible, though doing so would require completing three additional world missions.
023 looked horrified: “Host, you’re not thinking of going back, are you?”
Could it be that she’s angered by the target’s favorability rating… But this wasn’t caused by a small system like him! So unfair QAQ.
“I’m not doing this mission anymore.”
Though slightly surprised, she didn’t care. She had already decided to bail.
What should you do when faced with something impossible?
Just switch to doing something else, of course!
She should take on those true beginner missions—there was no need to waste time here.
These self-created plot and character missions were never easy; they were usually reserved for experienced transmigrators. There was no way they should fall to a newbie like her.
She had fully realized it: Xie Rong Jing was really difficult to handle.
And now he could Blacken at any moment, completely like a time bomb with an unpredictable countdown.
Yu Sui Sui didn’t think she was so exceptionally talented that she could complete such a high-difficulty mission on her first try.
See, wasn’t this the reality?
What did -50 even mean?
It probably meant that even if she died right in front of Xie Rong Jing, he wouldn’t have much of an emotional reaction… Wait, but didn’t he save her on Moonfrost Bridge?
Yu Sui Sui’s newly cleared mind went blank again.
Then she thought: Whatever, who cares what he was thinking back then.
Since she couldn’t handle Xie Rong Jing, she’d handle herself—where you fall, just lie down there.
If this high-difficulty mission failed, then so be it.
“Host, there’s something you might not know…” 023 chose his words very carefully: “Only missions with medium or lower difficulty can be terminated at will…”
Yu Sui Sui: …
? Are you kidding me.
“This might actually be a good thing!” Seeing the host’s dissatisfaction meter rising rapidly—which directly affected whether he’d be reported—023 tried his hardest to console her.
“Host, think about it: if you complete this mission, not only will you become a regular employee, but you’ll also be rated as an outstanding employee of the Transmigration Bureau! What other newbie gets this kind of treatment?”
Yeah, thanks a lot.
You’re right, no other newbie does get this kind of “treatment.”
“Really can’t end it?”
“Really can’t QAQ!”
Fine, then having a chance to become an outstanding employee wasn’t so bad, Yu Sui Sui comforted herself.
It wasn’t that she was particularly interested in being an outstanding employee.
Mainly, given the current situation, there wasn’t any other option besides staying in this world.
Since there was no way out, she might as well think happy thoughts, like giving herself some false hope.
Student Yu Sui Sui once again demonstrated her astonishingly positive mindset—or perhaps it was just her “whatever, anything goes” slacker style.
She’d just take it one step at a time, she thought.
At worst, the mission would fail. Who’s afraid of whom?
023 gave a few more instructions before leaving this world. Yu Sui Sui stood up, expressionlessly picked up the bowl of Medicine, and went out of the room to dump it.
Once she fully gave up, nothing could knock her down again.
And so she remained in this state for nearly half a month.
After living the life of a young lady for two weeks, Yu Suisui dismissed Fu Ling and the other maids sent by her sect leader father, completely entering a state of doing whatever she pleased.
She would sleep until noon, enjoy Tian Zhao Sect’s specialty dishes, then spend her afternoons either strolling around South Peak or playing the qin in the courtyard while reading cultivation world novels, chatting with the young maidservants.
It was practically like being on vacation.
In between, she heard some gossip from Bai Shuang and others: it seemed those two Outer Sect Disciples suspected of scheming against Xie Rongjing had died.
The investigation results were apparently already out – the two had some kind of conflict, where one stabbed the other to death with metal spirit techniques before drowning themselves with water spirit techniques.
Although drowning oneself sounded rather bizarre, there was indeed no trace of spirit energy from a third party at the scene, so the case was closed.
Yu Suisui rested her cheek on one hand while eating spirit fruits resembling cherries with the other.
Something about this didn’t sit right with her. Weren’t they just supposed to be confined and pay fines? How did it escalate to them harming each other?
And in such a dramatic fashion of “he kills him, he doesn’t kill him, he kills himself” at that.
Wondering if this had anything to do with Xie Rongjing, Yu Suisui corrected her previous assessment: he wasn’t completely pitiful after all – he must possess some offensive method unknown to others.
Yet, she felt remarkably calm now.
None of the tension she’d felt when initially suspecting Xie Rongjing of murder remained.
One had to admit, human potential was limitless.
Perhaps without pushing oneself, one would never know their limits. She would have been somewhat alert before, but after learning Xie Rongjing could not only kill but was also prone to Blackening at any moment… her nerves had gradually stabilized through all the ups and downs.
Then suddenly, she became detached.
It was like a penniless person owing twenty thousand – they’d work seriously to repay the debt.
But if they owed two hundred million, mentally it would feel like owing nothing at all.
Thus, Yu Suisui’s mood had paradoxically settled into tranquility, even feeling more at ease than before.
As the saying went: if you lie down fast enough, no one can knock you over.
Yu Suisui passed another few days in leisurely comfort when one afternoon, a Spirit Cultivator came to visit her courtyard.
It was Steward Niu from North Peak – in fact, this was his fourth visit in half a month.
This man seemed to have identified Yu Suisui as his benefactor, regularly bringing small gifts to curry favor. Some she disliked, others intrigued her, like the spirit liquid resembling watermelon juice he’d brought last time that she found quite delicious.
For the watermelon juice’s sake, she was willing to reluctantly remove Steward Niu from the “Law Enforcement Hall idiots” category, thus responding quite amiably: “Good afternoon, Steward Niu.”
Steward Niu:…
This subordinate’s surname is actually Ma…
After exchanging pleasantries and flattery, Steward Niu finally awkwardly broached the main topic: “To be frank… this subordinate hasn’t been eating or sleeping well lately. Look at my face – hasn’t it grown thinner?”
Has it?
Yu Suisui blinked – it looked the same round face to her.
She didn’t voice agreement, but Steward Niu had always been thick-skinned and naturally continued: “Young Lady must know that the Sect Celebration is in three months…”
She actually didn’t.
Sect Celebration? What was that?
Yu Suisui flipped through the original host’s memories and discovered that, unlike other sects, the Tian Zhao Sect held meetings with unusually high frequency. They not only had sect celebrations but also sect competitions, ceremonies for outer sect disciples’ promotion to inner sect status, exchange conferences with other sects, and a series of large-scale events occurring anywhere from once a year to once every five years.
The sect celebration was supposedly the anniversary of the Tian Zhao Sect’s founding. However, after thousands of years, who could still remember the exact date? Thus, the original host’s father designated the day he succeeded as sect leader as the sect celebration day, holding festivities every three years that lasted for an entire month each time.
Now she understood.
Yu Suisui revealed a knowing smile and gestured for Steward Niu to continue.
After some conversation, she grasped the reason for Steward Niu’s visit today.
According to him, whenever the Tian Zhao Sect held any kind of assembly or conference, Xie Rongjing was required to speak before the entire crowd. This seemed to be a long-standing tradition.
But Xie Rongjing appeared extremely unwilling. While they had managed to make him speak in the past, he had grown increasingly rebellious over the last two years. During the previous sect competition, he had stubbornly refused to utter a single word, infuriating Sect Leader Yu.
Huh?
Yu Suisui didn’t understand.
She thought it was similar to student representative speeches during school assemblies, but didn’t they hate Xie Rongjing? Why would they give him this opportunity?
Yu Suisui and Steward Niu stared at each other blankly, neither comprehending what the other meant.
Steward Niu slapped his thigh—how could he have forgotten this!
The young lady had previously been in poor health and was always recuperating. On occasions like sect ceremonies, she would only make a brief appearance before leaving, so it was perfectly normal for her to be unaware.
“It’s like this,” Steward Niu explained. “The Tian Zhao Sect brought that Dev—that demon boy back, gave him food and clothing, and even allowed him to cultivate. All they ask is for him to say a few words during the sect celebration, express gratitude for the Tian Zhao Sect’s kindness, and repent for the demons’ actions… Who knows why he’s unwilling?”
Yu Suisui: …?
She knew a bit about Xie Rongjing’s situation and understood he wasn’t living well here.
Not only was he bullied, but he was also forced to express gratitude for this “magnanimity”?
Steward Niu was unaware of the young lady’s inner thoughts. He simply felt that the little bastard seemed quite obedient to her and hoped she could help persuade the Devil Seed.
If she succeeded, Sect Leader would surely be pleased, and he would share in the credit.
Steward Niu put on a concerned expression for Xie Rongjing’s sake: “After all, this would benefit him too. You wouldn’t know, but last time he didn’t speak at the sect competition, many disciples called him an ungrateful wretch.”
He knew the young lady favored the Devil Seed, but this wasn’t about hitting or scolding him—it was something that would benefit everyone.
Yu Suisui: …
Benefit him? Are you serious?
Her initial instinct was to refuse, but after reconsidering, she indifferently agreed.
It wasn’t that she actually intended to persuade Xie Rongjing to be grateful, but rather she felt: perhaps she should go see Xie Rongjing herself.
Having rested for over half a month, continuing like this would seem like she was deliberately avoiding him—completely unnecessary.
It wasn’t that Yu Suisui cared much about face, but mainly—it was already at -50, how much lower could it go?
Moreover, since she had already agreed to 023 to remain in this world, she might as well symbolically attempt the mission.
She now felt exactly like a slacker who had made peace with their final exam results: still attending school as usual, but half-heartedly completing all assignments.
Holding this entirely different mindset from before, Yu Suisui returned to North Peak.
It was already dusk when she arrived. Using the excuse that it would be more convenient for them to be alone, she persuaded Steward Niu to leave and went to find Xie Rongjing by herself.
Xie Rongjing was easy to find. While all Outer Sect Disciples had to work and cultivate, no one worked alongside him, nor did anyone want to include him during cultivation sessions. Thus, he had taken sole responsibility for a patch of wasteland near his residence, where he had planted some crimson Spirit flowers. At a glance, they resembled a red carpet.
And Xie Rongjing stood right in the middle of that sea of flowers.
Half a month had passed since their last meeting, and his external injuries seemed to have completely healed. He wore a white robe, and the fading sunlight cast its glow upon him, making his features appear divine.
Noticing someone’s approach, he turned around, standing against the light as he met Yu Suisui’s gaze.
“Is there something you need, Young Lady?”
Xie Rongjing’s face still wore that gentle, polite smile.
Had she not known his true feelings, she might have been fooled by it.
Yu Suisui hesitated for a moment between playing dumb and calling him out: “I came to see you.”
“To see me.”
Xie Rongjing slowly savored those two words before letting out a soft chuckle.
He walked toward her slowly, the flower petals beneath his feet crushed into scarlet juice, staining the hem of his white robe with speckles of red, like the blood that had flowed on the day they first met.
Looking down at Yu Suisui from his height, his eyes held mockery and amusement… but not a trace of warmth.
Xie Rongjing used his flower-stained fingertips to lift Yu Suisui’s chin, leaving two red marks on her fair skin.
Then, he spoke.
It was still that familiar tone, the ending drawn out lazily. As Yu Suisui looked at him, it felt as if she had returned to the night they first met—seemingly respectful, yet lacking any genuine deference.
He said, “Have you had enough of playing the game to redeem the Devil Seed, Young Lady?”