Chapter 5
The glass bottle is called a Soul-Imprisoning Bottle. Supposedly, it can confine any soul below peak Soul Transformation. It can also mute its prisoner, to prevent captured souls from bewitching whoever holds the bottle. My host’s father, the master of the Heavenly Way Sect, gave it to her.
I toss the bottle lightly in one hand, delighted. Then I stagger. My cultivation crashes back to its original realm, and I cough up a great mouthful of blood.
I hurriedly swallow several healing pills.
I originally plan to recuperate for a few days before returning, but I’m afraid a delay might lead to new complications. So I fly my sword toward the sect and switch on the communicator. Before I can say anything, Xiao Muyao’s helpless voice comes through. “Yingxue, you really can’t complain about losing this time. Your sister is…”
The heroine from the Modern Romance Division supplies, “An absolute savage.”
Me: “…”
My sister: “…”
The heroine from the Immortal Cultivation Division is practically bouncing with excitement. “That was incredible, Shen Yingyue! Just how many immortal-cultivation missions have you done? Your skill with ice techniques, talismans, and formations is on par with the best heroines in our division.”
I rub my chin. “Dozens, if not a hundred.”
Admiration flickers through the eyes of the heroine from the Historical Romance Division. “Shen Yingyue, I remember that we can’t block pain after entering a plane. Didn’t it hurt to stab yourself like that?”
I stare at her. “I’m not made of iron. Of course it hurt! But if I hadn’t shattered those skulls, one touch would have cost me half my life and infected the wound with corrosive demonic energy.”
The heroine from the Immortal Cultivation Division understands completely. “In the cultivation world, you have to act the moment action is needed. Hesitation only breeds disaster. When it comes down to it, forget stabbing yourself—you may have to cut off your entire arm or die.”
The Modern Romance heroine sighs. “I understand the logic, but without an iron will and the ability to stay calm and decisive, very few people could actually make that choice.”
Xiao Muyao glances at her. “There’s a reason the Strong Female Lead Division ranks first among all the heroine divisions. Its heroines enter every kind of plane and learn every kind of skill.
“A true strong female lead remains clearheaded and rational, always looking beyond what is right in front of her. In a crisis, she acts without hesitation. She knows what she wants and understands the larger picture. She neither loses herself in romance nor confines herself to household intrigues. Some can steady the realm with a brush and settle it from horseback.”
The other heroines’ eyes begin to shine, as if they are itching to try it themselves. Xiao Muyao smiles and mercilessly shatters their fantasies. “But the Strong Female Lead Division also has the hardest missions and the highest mortality rate of any heroine division. Not everyone has what it takes to become a strong female lead.”
It is like a bucket of cold water over the others. “…”
She points to me in the other dimension. “Shen Yingyue is merely one example of what that division produces.”
Me: “…”
My sister gives me a complicated look.
I quietly switch off the communicator.