After She Faked Her Death, They All Got Their Comeuppance

[Over 100,000 words of bonus content exclusively for official readers]

[Currently revising. The main story and bonus chapters have both undergone major changes, with many new scenes and interactions added. The official version is only available on Jinjiang, and I am only responsible to official readers.]

As a once-in-a-generation prodigy of the Taiqing Sect, Lu Mingyi's life had always gone smoothly.

At a young age, she had already reached the Golden Core stage of cultivation and become a personal disciple of Sword Peak. Within the sect, she had:

An eldest senior sister, gentle as water and always looking after her;

A lively, spirited junior sister who could stay up chatting with her until dawn;

A childhood friend from the neighboring Alchemy Peak, the same age and at the same cultivation level as her;

And even her master, rumored to be icy and aloof, who guided her attentively and taught her everything she knew.

But one day, Lu Mingyi's cultivation began to inexplicably regress. Along with it came the ability to hear other people's inner thoughts.

Lu Mingyi discovered that her eldest senior sister was only kind to her because she reminded her of a late younger cousin;

That although her childhood friend seemed close to her, she was filled with envy and resentment, believing Lu Mingyi had stolen the attention that should have been hers;

That her junior sister was a Holy Maiden of the Demon Sect, intent on stealing the sect's treasure to further the Demon Sect's plans, and had chosen Lu Mingyi as her tool;

And that her master genuinely hoped Lu Mingyi would grow strong enough for her to kill her and fulfill the Great Dao.

As Lu Mingyi's cultivation regressed, those around her grew cruel, deciding she was unworthy of being a personal disciple of the Taiqing Sect. In the end, she was even saddled with a crime she had never committed.

In the sect's punishment hall, Lu Mingyi tried every way she could to explain herself, but everyone simply watched as she endured her punishment.

Thrown into the dungeon, Lu Mingyi was utterly miserable. It turned out that all those beautiful memories had only ever been wishful thinking on her part.

Heartbroken, she decided that once her seclusion was over, she would leave the Taiqing Sect and have nothing more to do with anyone from her past.

But then Lu Mingyi suddenly died.

When she opened her eyes again, the world had changed beyond recognition.

Given another chance at life, Lu Mingyi decided to focus on cultivation and stay out of the tumultuous world of human affairs.

Along the way, however, she heard that her former "closest friends" had not been doing well over the years:

Her eldest senior sister, now head of her family, had gone white-haired overnight for reasons unknown. Every day, she waited at Lu Mingyi's former residence in the Taiqing Sect, performing rituals to summon her soul;

Her once-spoiled childhood friend had changed completely, switching from alchemy cultivation to sword cultivation and taking Lu Mingyi's old sword, Yunyou, across the land, hoping to find her shattered soul;

The Demon Sect's Holy Maiden had once caused a huge commotion at the Taiqing Sect. Now the new Demon Lord, feared by the entire cultivation world, she had people searching far and wide for clues about Lu Mingyi;

And her master, now the sect leader of the Taiqing Sect, had been so consumed by worry that her cultivation had plummeted, forcing her into seclusion to recover.

Lu Mingyi: "Huh? Are they putting on an act?!"

P.S.

1. This is not a traditional groveling-and-redemption story [important]. The characters are not perfect [very important!]. Each has their own personality flaws or shortcomings. If that's not your thing, please don't read.

2. Unless specifically stated otherwise, all characters who appear are women.

3. This is a cultivation world with lots of original worldbuilding. There will be a plot, with the plot and romance taking up roughly equal proportions. It should be a very long story.

---- October 25, 2023: Second Version of the Blurb ----

My next book is Becoming My Ex's Older Sister's Contract Lover. Here's the blurb. If you're interested, please visit my author page and add it to your favorites =3=

Yu Wanzhao was the unloved child in her family. Her mother would rather care for the daughter of her first love than spare Yu Wanzhao a glance.

Her family arranged for her to marry Yan Ran, the younger daughter of the Yan family. Yan Ran was sweet-looking and playful, and she and Yu Wanzhao had grown up together.

Faced with Yu Wanzhao's terrible reputation, Yan Ran took her hand and said with deep affection, "A-Zhao, I don't care about any of that. You are all I care about."

Yu Wanzhao decided that from then on, she would give Yan Ran all her love.

But on the eve of their engagement, Yu Wanzhao unexpectedly caught her fiancee entangled with the daughter of her mother's first love.

She heard her fiancee speak in a sweet, cloying voice, nestled in another woman's arms:

"Yu Wanzhao? She's timid and useless, completely worthless! How could she compare to you?"

"As soon as I help you get the shares, I'll dump her."

Standing outside the door, Yu Wanzhao heard every word.

So all that warmth and affection had just been a carefully crafted illusion.

The engagement banquet never took place. Everyone thought Yu Wanzhao's uselessness had driven Yan Ran to abandon her.

At the center of the scandal, Yan Qinglan, elegant in both bearing and manner, took Yu Wanzhao to her villa and handed her a marriage agreement.

Yu Wanzhao was confused. "Why did you choose me?"

Yan Qinglan replied calmly, "My family is pressuring me to get married. You can help me with that, and I'll help you deal with your current problems. We both get what we want."

Everyone in A City’s elite circles knew that Yu Wanzhao and Yan Qinglan had a terrible relationship.

Yu Wanzhao was an incompetent nepo baby with no achievements, disliked by her mother. Yan Qinglan, on the other hand, was the head of the thriving Yan family and one of the most outstanding people of their generation.

There were even rumors that the last time they met, years ago, they had nearly come to blows.

Even Yu Wanzhao thought Yan Qinglan had proposed marriage to take the opportunity to get revenge for what happened back then.

But one morning, when Yu Wanzhao woke up in a bed that was far too spacious, Yan Qinglan was still in her arms.

Bright red kiss marks stood out on her pale skin.

The warmth and softness of the previous night's touch still lingered on Yu Wanzhao's fingertips, and her forearm was faintly sore from overuse.

She thought: Is this Yan Qinglan's way of getting revenge on me?

When Yan Ran heard that Yu Wanzhao was being pursued by her cousin, she thought it was a great chance to win Yu Wanzhao back.

She dressed up and knocked on Yu Wanzhao's door, only for it to be opened by her cousin, wearing a slightly loose shirt.

Yu Wanzhao stumbled sleepily out of the bedroom, didn't even look at Yan Ran, and cuddled up to Yan Qinglan, saying, "Sis, why are you wearing my clothes?"

Yan Ran's face turned ashen, her eyes blazing with fury.

For a long time, Yu Wanzhao couldn't believe Yan Qinglan truly wanted to marry her, and carefully kept her own feelings in check.

Later, she discovered that there was a photograph hidden inside the necklace Yan Qinglan always wore.

It was a photo of the two of them when they were young.

P.S.

1. A top who plays the pig to eat the tiger and takes control of the situation x a gentle, patient, devoted bottom.

2. Same-sex marriage is legal in this setting. One-on-one romance, happy ending.

3. Unless specifically stated otherwise, all characters who appear are women. There may be a very small number of disposable male characters.

Theme: Everyone has their own view.