Chapter 2
I stared at Layla and spoke slowly, as if chewing each word before spitting it out.
“Your mother was right—you really are crazy! Just hurry up and die!!!”
Layla’s face turned red. She shouted angrily and stormed out.
When the door closed, the silence I wanted finally filled the room.
“Ha… haha……”
I staggered and sat down on the bed.
My heart was pounding wildly.
This is ridiculous… I’m shaking just from that?
She was the stepsister who had tormented Rize her whole life.
And yet, just speaking firmly made this body tremble.
How am I supposed to train a body like this?
I clenched my fist with difficulty.
In my world, a duel meant life or death.
If someone challenged me, they died.
Or I died.
“There’s another problem.”
Right now, Lady Lorraine and Layla were clearly enemies.
But—
Was the revenge really meant for them?
The promise I made was bound with my soul.
Since I received Rize’s body as payment, I must fulfill it.
The place where I met Rize was the Soul Realm.
There, souls are judged every year—whether to be reincarnated, sent to hell, or erased.
For souls from the cultivation world, it was also the time given to return to life.
That meant—
“I probably have one year.”
And if I fail within that time?
My soul will be destroyed. No reincarnation. No hell. Nothing.
The problem is—
What kind of revenge must I take within one year?
The word “revenge” is far too vague.
I don’t know the target.
I don’t know what kind of revenge she wanted.
“Haa… I can’t even ask.”
At that moment—
A young girl’s soul, no older than her early teens, appeared before me.
[Big sister, hello?]
“…You—!”
The moment I saw her, I knew.
“Rize…?”
[Yes! That’s right!]
But why did she look so young?
When we made the deal, she looked older.
Wasn’t her soul supposed to disappear after giving me her body?
“How old are you?”
[Hmm… It was the day Lady Lorraine came to the mansion, so I’m 13! Actually, I don’t remember anything after a few days since she arrived!]
“I see. Then you don’t know why I’m in this body either.”
[Wow! You understand so quickly! But why did you take my body? I tried to go back in, but I couldn’t!]
“Because your future self came to me and made a deal.”
[Huh? Me? What did I do?]
Her expression was completely innocent.
She truly didn’t know.
At my level, I could tell if someone was lying.
…In a way, this was fortunate.
If her soul grows to the age I met before,
she might regain her memories.
And then—
I could learn the truth about the revenge.
“You asked me for revenge. And you gave me your body.”
[Me?! Really? Then… who are we getting revenge on?]
“Lady Lorraine and Layla. They will kill you in the future.”
Her eyes widened, and she shook her head firmly.
[That’s impossible! They’re going to be my new mother and sister! They’ll love me and take care of me!]
…What?
That didn’t match anything I knew.
They weren’t acting like family at all.
Love? Care?
Not even close.
“…Is that so?
[Yes! I would never ask for revenge! They’re my family!]
How should I tell her the truth?
If I shock her too much, her soul might be damaged.
If that happens—
She may never regain her memories.
But leaving her like this isn’t an option either.
This is a dead end.
If I kill Lady Lorraine and Layla,
and that’s not the revenge she wanted—
“My soul will disappear.”
“…Do you want your body back?”
[I… don’t know. Suddenly, I hate my body… I don’t know!!!]
Her soul began to blur.
This was dangerous.
I needed to change the topic.
“Child, what is your name?”
[…Huh? Lili! My mother used to call me Lili!]
The moment she mentioned her mother,
her soul became stable again.
So negative topics make her unstable?
I’ll need to be careful with my words.
“Lili…”
[What’s your name, big sister?]
“I don’t have one.”
[Huh? No name?]
“I abandoned it when I chose the path of cultivation.”
[What’s a cultivator?]
“Someone who seeks immortality by any means necessary.”
[Ugh, that’s too hard to understand… But I’m suddenly so sleepy… Can I go rest?]
She looked exhausted.
“…Come whenever you want.”
The moment I finished speaking—
She disappeared.
More precisely, her soul remained nearby,
but without a visible form.
“Hoo…”
A child who didn’t even understand her own situation.
How do I show reality to someone already hurt?
Since my soul is at stake—
I must be careful.
And…
Perhaps because I became Rize—
When I look at Lili, I feel emotions I shouldn’t.
Pity.
The urge to protect her.
…Even to love her.
Strange.
The stronger I became, the more human emotions faded.
So what is this?
My feelings?
Or Rize’s?
* * *
Dinner on the first day passed meaninglessly.
“Miss, there is no dinner tonight. The mistress ordered it for body management.”
“…What?”
Body management?
That’s something used for pigs raised for slaughter.
And yet, they say it to me?
But something was strange.
This body was already skin and bones.
What kind of “management” is this?
“Are they treating me like livestock…?”
I ground my teeth.
Rize’s body was already weak—
And they knew it.
“…By mistress, you mean?”
“What do you mean? Miss, are you still refusing to accept her as your mother? That’s too much.”
This maid was clearly on Lorraine’s side.
“…Has she married my father?”
“Not yet! But the wedding is soon! Miss, you’re so cruel! The mistress cares about you so much!”
She looked me up and down, then slammed the door and left.
How rude.
“The true wife’s child is Rize. And yet a woman not even married is called mistress?”
I had no interest in speaking further.
But—
Is the maid also a target for revenge?
There are too many enemies.
“They are deliberately treating her like livestock…”
The original Rize would faint just from hunger.
But for me—
This level of hunger meant nothing.
Click.
I locked the door and sat on the floor.
Time: one night.
Before morning—
I must build a foundation.
To survive hunger.
To survive abuse.
“One night is enough.”
The first thing I learned long ago was—
How to control the body and circulate energy.
Unlike martial artists, cultivators use techniques—
To draw in natural energy.
That is the greatest strength of cultivation.
“…Let’s begin.”
I walked to the window.
The room was small and old—
But the moonlight came in clearly.
Moonlight.
A perfect source of energy for recovery.
I pulled away the curtains.
A full moon shone brightly.
“The Reflective Cultivation Method (回映修仙功法)… It’s been a while.”
A technique I trained for centuries.
It converts natural energy into spiritual roots.
I sat cross-legged and closed my eyes.
Tilting my chin slightly—
Letting the moonlight touch my forehead.
“……Hoo.”
I exhaled slowly and formed hand seals.
The moonlight energy poured in.
Though slow, I began circulating it.
It must gather—
In the dantian.
Sweat dripped down my back.
My body felt like it was burning.
“This feeling…”
The body resisting new power.
A sign of adaptation.
The energy flowed—
Through meridians—
Like threads of light.
From shoulders to arms—
Back to the chest—
Then into the lower dantian.
Circulating.
Again and again.
“Kgh—”
Normally, this should be done slowly.
But I had no time.
I had to push this body to its limits.
Without elixirs—
Using only moonlight—
This was dangerous.
Pain spread through every part of my body.
But—
“This pain proves I am alive.”
* * *
Time passed.
The moon faded.
Dawn arrived.
At the same time—
Energy filled my dantian.
“Qi Condensation Stage… Level 1.”
The level of beginners.
But—
Reaching it in just a few hours with this weak body?
An incredible achievement.
“Understanding matters more than the body.”
Without gathering energy, knowledge means nothing.
Fortunately—
This body succeeded.
“It feels like shedding a shell…”
My entire body had changed.
Even a small rebirth had occurred.
A foul smell rose from my skin.
I stood up slowly.
Despite not eating—
My mind felt clear.
At that moment—
Rattle.
Someone tried to open the locked door.
Morning already?
I opened it.
The maid spoke coldly:
“Miss, why is the door locked? Who gave you permission?!”
“It must have locked by accident.”
“Tch. Excuses? The mistress is calling you to breakfast. You’d better beg for forgiveness.”
