Watching Shen Yuqing walk away, Jiang Zhaoxue finally relaxed and let out a sigh of relief.
Beside her, Qingye draped a cloak over her shoulders and spoke anxiously, “Lady Jun, please go inside quickly! Your spiritual energy is already dissipating, and yet you’re still refusing to rest.
You can’t hide this any longer, you must tell the Island Lord and the Young Master…”
“Enough, enough,” Jiang Zhaoxue pressed down on her hand, her tone firm.
“Qingye, I am truly exhausted.
Let me sleep for a while.”
“But this matter”
“I will handle it myself,” Jiang Zhaoxue promised.
“I will tell my father, my mother, and my brother.
You don’t have to worry.”
Qingye’s eyes were filled with skepticism, but seeing Jiang Zhaoxue’s determined expression, she hesitated.
In the end, she had no choice but to let Jiang Zhaoxue push her out of the room.
Before leaving, she cautioned, “Then you must say it!
Stop giving that man any more face!”
“I know, I know,” Jiang Zhaoxue replied as if soothing a child.
“I’m telling them right now, alright?
Don’t come in.”
With that, she shut the door, finally sealing off the noise outside.
The room fell into silence.
She walked back to her desk, massaging her temples in exhaustion.
Under her breath, she muttered, “What a mess…”
“Master, you are truly incredible!”
A voice suddenly rang out in her mind, full of admiration.
“In just a single moment, you came up with the perfect excuse , pretending to be sick!
And you actually tricked the Heaven’s Mandate Hall!
Now, you’re staying at Yunfu Mountain without restrictions.
You can escape whenever you want!
So, what’s next?
Are we running away?!”
“We can’t,” Jiang Zhaoxue sighed, resting her head on one hand.
“As long as the Heart-Link Pact exists, I can’t go anywhere.”
“Ah?”
Anan the spiritual entity in her consciousness paused for a moment before realization dawned on him.
“Oh, right!
The Heart-Link Pact lets him sense your exact location.
If he wants to find you, he just can!
So… what do we do now?”
Jiang Zhaoxue didn’t answer immediately.
She closed her eyes, letting fragmented memories from her dreams weave together, piecing together the storyline she now found herself in.
In the book, this arc played out like this:
Mu Jinyue had been poisoned by her.
As a result, Pei Zichen was sent to Wuyue Forest, near the boundary of the Nine Nether Realm, to find Lingxiao Flowers.
But when he arrived at the boundary marker of the Nine Nether Realm, a mysterious formation suddenly activated in Wuyue Forest, summoning a terrifying black serpent.
The black serpent went on a rampage, crushing all the disciples caught in the array.
Those who entered could not escape.
While Lingjian Immortal Pavilion was prepared to abandon Pei Zichen, Mu Jinyue received word of his predicament.
Without hesitation, she threw herself into danger to save him.
For Mu Jinyue’s sake, Shen Yuqing had no choice but to risk himself as well.
However, Shen Yuqing had just used the Heaven’s Mandate Book and had depleted much of his spiritual power to protect Mu Jinyue’s spiritual root.
He barely managed a stalemate against the serpent.
At the most critical moment, he dragged Mu Jinyue away in a desperate retreat, leaving Pei Zichen alone to face the severely weakened serpent , giving him a golden opportunity.
That night, Pei Zichen extracted the Heavenly Divination Jade, a priceless treasure, from the serpent’s body.
Meanwhile, Shen Yuqing, now poisoned by the serpent, spent the night alone with Mu Jinyue.
This was the moment he began to realize his feelings for her had surpassed mere mentorship.
Mu Jinyue, in turn, risked her life for Pei Zichen, cementing herself as the “white moonlight” in his heart.
From that moment, the gears of their fates began to turn.
And what about her?
The book never mentioned it.
But using common sense, she could easily imagine.
she would be in deep trouble.
If Shen Yuqing was getting beaten up, would she be able to escape?
If Shen Yuqing was injured, wouldn’t she suffer half the damage as well?
Without her, how would Shen Yuqing, already badly wounded, even live long enough to experience the heroine’s charm?
Without her, he’d probably be flattened by the serpent’s tail before he even had the chance.
“So, you have two choices now,” Anan suddenly said, analyzing the situation.
“First, change Shen Yuqing.
He hasn’t yet realized his feelings for Mu Jinyue.
If you can stop him from falling for her—or better yet, make him fall for you—you can prevent him from becoming an antagonist.
This would change his fate, thus saving you from your destined death.
And on top of that, you’d gain a perfect love story!
Romance and survival in one go!”
“You can read my thoughts?”
Jiang Zhaoxue immediately picked up on something unusual.
She had always known about the existence of fate beast—spiritual beasts linked to fate.
She had never doubted Anan’s existence.
But fate-bound masters were rare.
Those who actually possessed a fate beast were nearly unheard of, not even appearing in the past three thousand years.
Even her master had only reached the Nascent Soul Stage before his death, at barely three hundred years old.
She had only read about spiritual beasts in books and had little understanding of their abilities.
Her voice turned sharp, “Don’t play dead.
Can you sense my emotions?
Do you know what I’m thinking?”
Anan hesitated, then admitted sheepishly, “Well… since I reside in your Sea of Consciousness, I can sense it, yes…”
“If you don’t like it, you could just give me some energy, and I can take physical form.”
Jiang Zhaoxue thought for a moment, then sent a thread of spiritual power into her Sea of Consciousness.
A moment later, she sensed something taking shape – a bird.
And then, appearing before her eyes, was a jet black crow.
Jiang Zhaoxue: “…”
What the hell?
Her fate beast was a crow?
Could it be any more ominous?!
Sensing her thoughts, the bird turned its head away, its voice filled with sadness.
“A spiritual beast reflects its master… You’re just a side character with terrible luck.
I didn’t want to look like this either!”
Jiang Zhaoxue took a deep breath, suppressing her irritation.
She raised a hand and commanded, “I don’t care.
Just get out of my Sea of Consciousness.”
“Alright!”
Anan obediently flapped its wings and flew out, landing on her desk.
It tilted its head.
“Alright, now I can only sense your emotions, not your thoughts.
So, back to serious business, what do you think of my plan?
Oh, and can you pour me some tea?
Thanks.”
“It’s terrible.”
Still, Jiang Zhaoxue poured the tea, pushing the cup toward the crow.
Anan cocked its head.
“Then what’s your plan?”
“I refuse to put my fate in someone else’s hands,” Jiang Zhaoxue said coldly.
“As long as the Heart-Link Pact exists, I will always be at a disadvantage.
Whether I change Shen Yuqing, myself, or even Pei Zichen, I cannot allow that contract to remain.”