After Transmigrating into a Book as a Cannon Fodder Character, The System Turned out to be Completely Unreliable! - Chapter 59

Chapter 59: “What? Me? I can’t. I value my life.”

At dawn, when Ye Lingxi woke up, she had no idea what time it was—only that she felt like she’d been asleep for a long time.

She clutched her head, trying to recall what had happened before she fainted. The last thing she remembered was Lian Qi attacking her, and Lan Mushu saving her with her celestial vine whip. After that, everything went blank.

Ye Lingxi tried to get up and realized she was back at Baicao Sect. The hole in her body burned open by Ji Fuyu had also disappeared.

“I’m back?” she murmured to herself. But where had Ji Fuyu gone?

She took a sip of tea and ran outside, thinking she might still be near that big tree. Stumbling along, she reached the familiar spot and leaned on the trunk, calling out: “Ji Fuyu? Ji Fuyu…” She hadn’t shouted more than a few times when a sharp pain struck her head again. Kneeling on the ground, she hugged her head.

Damn, why does it hurt again the moment I wake up?

The ripples in the lake revealed her reflection. Frowning, she looked closer. Peering into the water, she mumbled in confusion, “Who is this woman?”

“You’re awake?”

The voice of Fu Guang rang out behind her. Startled, Ye Lingxi looked around nervously, almost as if she’d been caught doing something wrong. She even looked up into the tree to see if Ji Fuyu was hiding there.

“Are you looking for that little girl?” Fu Guang asked calmly.

“I…” Ye Lingxi started to answer, but he cut her off, “That little girl was taken by the person she truly belonged to.”

Oh, so that’s what happened. Wait—no, why was he telling her this?

She narrowed her eyes at him, on guard. “What are you trying to say?”

“Nothing,” Fu Guang replied with a cryptic smile. “Just letting you know, so you don’t go wandering off again.”

That smile—so fake. It made Ye Lingxi uneasy. It was like he knew everything.

His eyes seemed to see straight through her. Every time she moved, his gaze followed her like a hawk.

Wait—why are you all so afraid of me running away? Admittedly, that was my plan, but still…

“What do you want?” she asked timidly.

Fuguang kept smiling. “Nothing. Just chatting.”

Ye Lingxi: “…”

Is he a robot?

Then she suddenly remembered. “That woman I saw in the lake earlier—did you see her? She was really beautiful. Looked just like me, with golden eyes.”

Fu Guang just stared at her silently.

Ye Lingxi began to feel an ominous premonition. “Why do you keep looking at me like that? Is there something on my face?”

He pointed at her. “No. I was just wondering how to say this. That woman in the lake… is your own reflection.”

“Oh, I see.” Ye Lingxi nodded automatically. A moment later, she screamed, “WHAT?!”

Squinting at her reflection in the lake again, she made funny faces—and every movement was mirrored exactly.

So it really was her?! Was it the effect of that Five-Colored Spirit Stone? Had it turned her from a “faceless” girl into someone even more beautiful than Bai Luotang?

The more she looked, the more she liked what she saw. But no—now wasn’t the time to admire her looks. What the hell was going on?

She whipped around. “Old man, why are you telling me all this if you’re not going to arrest me? You all already know I’m connected to the Demon King—so why aren’t you doing anything?”

Fu Guang calmly replied, “Because you’re the one we’ve been waiting for.”

“…What does that even mean?” Ye Lingxi asked with a puzzled frown.

“You,” Fu Guang said, “are her reincarnation.”

“Whose reincarnation?”

Fu Guang raised his brows. “You should be able to guess. To be exact, she used your body to come back to life.”

“Wait a minute,” Ye Lingxi held up a hand. “Why won’t you just say her name?”

“I wouldn’t dare.”

“You wouldn’t dare? You’re the most senior person here, and even you are scared?”

She paused, and then suddenly laughed. “Don’t tell me… it’s…”

Fu Guang nodded.

“You’ve gotta be kidding.”

“I’m not. I only speak the truth. As for the rest, you’ll need to figure it out on your own.”

“…So you’ve known this whole time what she is to me?” Ye Lingxi asked.

“She’s not just part of you—she’s parasitic,” he replied.

“Whatever,” Ye Lingxi muttered. “Same difference.”

Fu Guang blinked at her outburst. “Why are you yelling?”

“Nothing, it’s just a speech particle.”

“…A speech particle?”

“You wouldn’t get it. It’s just something that feels good to say.”

“…Okay then.”

“Then… you also know about everything between me and Ji Fuyu?”

“Actually, not really. I saw her in the dungeon once, but something felt off. She looked the same, but wasn’t quite her. It wasn’t until we found two of her that I realized—the one by your side was the real one.”

Ye Lingxi sighed. Truly, age brings wisdom.

“And you’re not worried that I might be working with her?”

“We don’t worry about that. Even if you were once allies, she knows who you really are now. She’d never accept you.”

Ye Lingxi raised an eyebrow. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means you two could never truly be on the same side. She’s a demon. You’re a god. Natural enemies.”

“Unless… she means something special to you.”

Ye Lingxi waved him off. “You’re overthinking. We’re just using each other.”

“Oh? Is that so?”

“Of course! I mean, when I first appeared and ran into the final boss right away, I had to cling to someone strong, didn’t I?”

“Is Bai Shishu okay now?”

“You don’t need to worry about that,” Fu Guang replied. “Just focus on regaining your spiritual strength so you can defeat her.”

“What?! Me?! No way—I value my life!”

Fu Guang: “…”

“It’s fine. I believe in you,” he said, patting her shoulder.

Ye Lingxi: “Even if you say that, I’m not beating her. What I really want is…”

“What?”

…I just want to slack off and peacefully reach the finale.

“Never mind,” she changed the subject. “Why don’t you change back into your younger form? Everyone else still looks young. Since I already know the truth, why not show your real face?”

She still couldn’t get over how that grandpa she’d met turned out to be Lan Mushu. This story really was too wild—like the main cast could get whatever they wanted, and cannon fodder characters existed just to serve them.

She shook her head.

“What’s with that look? Do I not look good like this?” Fu Guang asked.

“Not really,” she admitted. “I just wanted to see your younger self. In Rong An’s memory, you looked really good. Way better than your current look.”

“I didn’t choose this. I can’t change back.”

“Why not?”

“My spiritual power has weakened. I can’t maintain my youthful form anymore.”

“But isn’t this Baicao Sect? There should be plenty of herbs to help you recover, right?”

That made Fuguang chuckle. “My depletion isn’t something common herbs can fix.”

“Then what can?”

“Bailing Grass.”

Ye Lingxi: “…”

Seriously, author? Can you not be this lazy with plot points?

She stared at Fuguang. “Didn’t you already find a way to heal Bai Shishu? Why not use that to save yourself?”

She couldn’t understand. If her Five-Colored Spirit Stone hadn’t been removed and everyone had returned safely, they must have found Baicao Spirit, right? So what’s the problem?

Fuguang sighed. “You were unconscious, so you don’t know. The Baicao Spirit has already fused with my sister. If she gives more of her bl00d essence, she might not survive it.”

Ye Lingxi was stunned. “Wait, you mean Lan Mushu and Baicao Spirit have fused? How did I not know that?!”

“That happened a hundred years ago,” Fuguang explained the full story.

“So that’s how it is…”

She couldn’t believe it. After all that searching, the Baicao Spirit had been right beside them the entire time. All that extra plot for nothing.

“So there’s really no other way?”

“No.”

Suddenly, a thought struck Ye Lingxi. She ran back to her room and pulled out her broken sword. Fuguang curiously followed her.

From the sword’s inner space, she took out the remaining three petals of the Baicao Spirit. Luckily, the system had stored them before it left.

She handed one to Fu Guang. “Here, take this.”

He stared at the petal in his hand. “What is this?”

“Baicao Spirit.”

“Why give it to me?”

“You saved us, didn’t you? And you didn’t punish me over what happened with Ji Fuyu. So just take it as a gift from me.”

“…That’s not really appropriate.”

“What’s inappropriate about it?”

Ye Lingxi snickered inwardly: Besides, we’re almost at the end of the story. It’ll be fine. He said he’s the reincarnation of Mingyue, so she won’t let anything happen to me.

Okay, fine. The real reason is—I just want to see his younger self again. Who doesn’t love eye candy?

“Just take it,” she said cheerfully. “Let’s call it… a gift of friendship.”