"If you want to live a good life, you have to redeem yourself and win the favor of the male and female leads. Otherwise, you will suffer the same fate as before!"
The reminder from the Three Lives Mirror still echoed in her ears.
Song Wanning suddenly laughed.
'Redeem myself?'
'Since when does the vicious female villain get to redeem herself?'
Her knuckles turned white as she gripped the Three Lives Mirror, veins popping on her hand.
This mirror was a Divine Artifact she had obtained in her past life. It had actually allowed her to live once more after her tragic death.
Scenes from her past life replayed in her mind, and Song Wanning couldn't stop her body from trembling.
She, with her illustrious family and unparalleled talent, had turned out to be nothing more than a vicious villainess spurned by love—a stepping stone for the so-called transmigrated heroine.
She squeezed her eyes shut.
The painful experiences of being abandoned, humiliated, and betrayed...
...were seared deep into her Divine Soul, impossible to ever remove.
'Those people... Every single one of them will pay the price!'
Putting away the Three Lives Mirror, Song Wanning strode out of the main hall.
Her brows were like distant mountains, her skin whiter than snow. The dim sunlight seemed to brighten at her appearance.
But the people outside the hall were in no mood to admire her.
"Wan Ning, Chuxue's life is hanging by a thread. Are you really going to stand by and do nothing while she dies?"
Gu Qingyuan's expression was ice-cold, and a flash of murderous intent sparked in the depths of Song Wanning's heart.
Her long fingers dug into her palm, hatred pouring from her eyes. She wanted nothing more than to flay him alive and drink his blood!
The man before her was her fiancé, Gu Qingyuan.
He was also her childhood sweetheart and her dear senior brother!
The two had grown up together, and Gu Qingyuan had always taken care of her in every way, no matter how small the detail.
They had faced perils in Secret Realms together, barely escaping with their lives.
They had also shared happy, leisurely times, and it was only natural that they became engaged, waiting only to reach the Nascent Soul realm before officially becoming cultivation partners.
...Until he took on a female disciple named Ye Chuxue!
Even though they had both advanced to the Nascent Soul realm years ago, Gu Qingyuan kept postponing their marriage.
"Song Wanning!!!"
Gu Qingyuan appeared before Song Wanning in a flash.
"Chuxue is my disciple, and all I'm asking for is a single Heavenly Yuan Nourishing Heart Pill!"
"When did you become so petty and selfish?"
'Petty?'
'Selfish?'
'Right. Not wanting to just hand over my own treasures is selfish.'
'Wanting my own partner's exclusive affection is petty.'
'Hah.'
A mocking smile touched Song Wanning's lips as she raised an eyebrow and stared at the man before her.
"It's my property. I'll give it if I want to, and I won't if I don't. What are you going to do about it?"
She crossed her arms, a flicker of defiance in her eyes.
"You—"
Gu Qingyuan was stunned. When had Wan Ning ever spoken to him like this?
Just as he was about to speak, three hurried figures rushed over.
Song Wanning narrowed her eyes. A wisp of Evil Qi coiled endlessly around her deathly pale fingertips.
It was her three "dear" disciples.
"Master, Junior Sister Chuxue is dying! Please just give us the Elixir Pill!"
The voice arrived before the person.
Her first disciple, Bai Yang, had a flushed face, frantic with worry.
Her second disciple, Lu Nanfeng, dropped to his knees with a THUD, his face pleading.
"I beg you, Master, please save Junior Sister Chuxue!"
Her third disciple, An Ze, stubbornly tilted his head back. His eyes were bloodshot, filled with indignation and resentment as he glared at Song Wanning and demanded, "Master, why are you refusing to save her?"
Song Wanning's gaze swept over the three of them, and the murderous intent in her heart felt so real it nearly drowned her.
She clutched her chest, her eyes filled with nothing but cold emptiness.
'To think I worked so hard to raise these disciples, only to nurture a pack of ungrateful wolves.'
'What right do they have to accuse me?'
And Bai Yang, her most beloved first disciple—the so-called male lead—had been the one to lead the charge that razed the Song Family to the ground, even personally grinding her bones to ash!
'How could I not hate them?'
Song Wanning said nothing, her aura fluctuating unstably.
Seeing this, An Ze grew even more anxious.
"Master, you're such a disappointment! If you were the one who was injured, Senior Sister Chuxue would definitely give you her Elixir Pills!"
"Why are you so selfish?"
He practically roared these words at Song Wanning.
But in the next instant, Song Wanning abruptly raised her hand. A large Spiritual Energy Hand materialized out of thin air and yanked An Ze toward her.
The Spiritual Energy Hand choked him, and in just a moment, he couldn't breathe, his face turning red with pain.
"You dare curse me?"
Her eyes turned ruthless. With another wave of her hand, An Ze was flung away, sent hurtling toward the mountainside.
"BANG—"
An Ze crashed onto a training platform halfway up the mountain, horrifying a group of disciples who had been pretending to train while secretly watching the drama unfold.
"PFFT—"
An Ze violently spat out several mouthfuls of blood, then lay on the ground like a dead dog, unable to move.
"Gasp! Is that Brother An?"
"What happened to Brother An?"
The disciples were shocked, astonished, and uneasy.
Back at the main hall, the others finally reacted, staring at Song Wanning in shock as if she were a madwoman.
"Master, what are you doing?"
Bai Yang anxiously glanced toward the mountainside, then back at Song Wanning, before finally running to bring An Ze back up and quickly feeding him an Elixir Pill.
Lu Nanfeng also scrambled to his feet and ran over.
An Ze was gravely injured. His internal organs were damaged, and it would take at least two months for him to fully recover.
Gu Qingyuan frowned, his cold eyes filled with blame.
"He is your disciple, yet you struck him so viciously? Song Wanning, do you have any idea what you're doing?"
Song Wanning calmly lifted her gaze, her eyes sweeping over them with a ghost of a smile.
'If not for the Three Lives Mirror's reminder, I would have already dealt with them right here and now.'
'But I can't be impulsive. These people follow Ye Chuxue, and under the influence of her protagonist's halo, each of them possesses extraordinary fortune.'
'Besides, they are the very cause of the Heart Demon plaguing me...'
'That being the case, now that I've been reborn, I must plan my revenge step by step. I will watch them walk toward their own destruction with my own two eyes.'
'Only then can I protect myself and the Song Family, and only then will I have a chance to break this Heart Demon!'
"An Ze was arrogant and disrespectful to his master. As his master, it is naturally my duty to teach him a lesson."
"What, are you going to tell me how to do my job?"
"You—"
Gu Qingyuan thought that today's Song Wanning must have gone mad, to be speaking so aggressively.
Lu Nanfeng's face was also full of confusion and worry. "Master, you've always treated us the best and have never laid a hand on us. Why did you injure Third Junior Brother today?"
Song Wanning was famously domineering and fiercely protective of her own.
She had always doted on them.
In the ten-plus years since they became her disciples, she had never once struck them or even scolded them harshly.
But today she was acting completely out of character, making everyone uneasy.
"So you do know I treat you the best? Then how could you treat me this way for the sake of an outsider?"
Song Wanning's deep eyes stared intently at the three, making them feel a pang of guilt.
"This is bad! Senior Uncle Gu, Junior Sister Ye's condition is worsening! She needs to take the Elixir Pill immediately!"
A Sect disciple came running over, shouting and frantic with worry.
"Senior Uncle Gu, Junior Sister Ye can't wait any longer!"
An image of the unconscious Chuxue flashed in his mind, and Gu Qingyuan swayed on his feet.
Chuxue was still waiting for her salvation.
A look of resolve flashed in his eyes. He squeezed them shut, and when he opened them again, it was as if he had thrown all caution to the wind.
"Don't you want to marry me? Give me the Elixir Pill, and I'll agree to it!"