Fairy, Please Respect Yourself

“Substitute literature,” simply put, is when one character is treated as the substitute for another, leading to a series of events…

Uh, why am I suddenly reciting from Baidu Encyclopedia?

Anyway, this was exactly the situation Cao Xueyan faced now.

It seemed Xiao Menglan had mistaken her for the Dao partner she had once lost.

At first glance, this didn’t seem like a bad thing.

She could righteously live off the favor of a dignified Golden Core cultivator, and didn’t have to worry about that white moonlight in her heart suddenly returning — since the woman had perished a century ago.

Ah, with this, even if her simulation chances were exhausted, she could live the rest of her life peacefully…

Yeah, right!

What about the demonic cultivators invading?

That demonic saintess was still lurking in the Formation Peak.

From all the simulated endings so far, not a single person in the Azure Cloud Sword Sect could be relied upon.

The sect master was nowhere to be found.

The “carry” of the whole team had vanished — how were they supposed to fight the group battle?

After watching herself die N times in the simulator, Cao Xueyan understood.

Only strength of her own was true strength.

If the sect was unreliable?

Simple — she herself would carry!

No one could stand in the way of her path to immortality!

As for now, she needed to endure and develop quietly.

So she thought.

But honestly, Xiao Menglan’s soft, silky palm caressing her face actually felt… pretty good.

The warmth of a Golden Core cultivator’s body seeped through her skin.

Her cheeks burned.

It was embarrassing — her first time feeling something like this.

So this is what “snuggling close” feels like?

Not bad, actually.

Though Xiao Menglan’s tone had a slightly yandere edge, her movements were gentle, almost like caressing her long-lost lover.

Now, with no one else around, Xiao Menglan couldn’t get enough of staring at her.

Softly, she murmured, “You look so alike… They say the Dao of Heaven is merciless. But why allow me to meet you in this life? Could it be that you are truly Ruyu reborn, destined to meet me once again within the sect?”

As she spoke, her actions did not falter — on the contrary, they grew more intrusive, more audacious.

No longer content with simply pressing her palm against Cao Xueyan’s cheek, she tilted her fingers.

Her finely crafted fingertips became like the brush of a talisman master, sketching strokes across Cao Xueyan’s snow-white neck.

One stroke.

Two strokes.

As expected of a third-rank talisman master at the Golden Core stage, her skill was extraordinary.

Soon, where she traced upon Cao Xueyan’s skin, redness bloomed visibly.

But that wasn’t enough.

Xiao Menglan seemed bewitched.

She stared blankly at Cao Xueyan — yet in her eyes, it was as though she were seeing another person.

Her fingertips grew bolder and bolder, almost brushing against the collar of Cao Xueyan’s robes, probing toward the mysterious unknown beyond…

“Peak Master…!” Cao Xueyan couldn’t suppress herself.

Panting, she pleaded, “Please… please restrain yourself…”

At last, Xiao Menglan’s fingers halted.

Cao Xueyan breathed a heavy sigh of relief, chest rising and falling as if freed from a burden.

The “strokes” still burned faintly upon her skin.

Xiao Menglan admired her own handiwork.

After a moment, she recovered her usual Golden Core dignity.

“What just happened, you must not take to heart.”

But that one indifferent sentence made Cao Xueyan feel a little displeased.

Though what just occurred was brief, strange, and even a little thrilling, why did this sound so much like the words of a scumbag?

Trying to deny it already?

Fine then — you’re stronger, so you’re right.

I won’t argue.

However much Cao Xueyan thought to herself, none of it showed on her face.

She adjusted her breathing, circulating her cultivation technique.

The redness on her cheeks and neck gradually faded.

“Yes,” Cao Xueyan replied in a low, hoarse voice tinged with a sob, “this disciple will not take to heart what just happened. It was only that my cultivation was shallow, my mind unsteady, and I lost composure, making a fool of myself.”

Looking at her pitiful appearance, Xiao Menglan’s heart softened.

She also berated herself — what madness had seized her to act so inappropriately toward an ordinary disciple?

If word spread, how would others see her?

Would they say that after losing her Dao partner, she had grown lustful and debauched, even laying hands on an innocent disciple, worse than a beast?

Xiao Menglan sighed.

“It was my fault. Do not blame yourself. How about this: if you can reach entry-level in talisman arts within five years, I will take you as my personal disciple.”

These were the same words she had spoken earlier in the Steward Pavilion.

But now, the meaning was completely different.

Before, it was a casual remark.

Now, it was a solemn promise.

Overjoyed, Cao Xueyan asked, “Is that true?”

Xiao Menglan’s expression grew serious.

“Of course it is true.”

Golden Core cultivators carried the power of heavenly tribulation within them.

Their words resonated with the Dao of Heaven.

Unless they rebelled and turned demonic, they would never lightly break a promise.

The simulator’s text rarely described details — just the results.

Most likely, the simulated Cao Xueyan had also experienced this, and through her own effort, barely entered talisman-making within five years, becoming Xiao Menglan’s disciple.

“I warn you in advance,” Xiao Menglan said with authority, “in these five years, if you slacken even a little, do not blame me for expelling you from the Moon-Inviting Palace. You would then practice only at the foot of Talisman Peak.”

“Peak Master, rest assured. This disciple will—”

“Wait,” Xiao Menglan interrupted.

“From now on, address me as teacher.

Call yourself student.

Whether we truly have a bond of master and disciple depends on your effort.”

“Yes, teacher!”

“As for mortal formalities, spare them.

Take this True Explanation of the Talisman Path.

Study as much as you can in a month.

After one month, I will test you.

If you fail, leave on your own.”

Her tone was firm.

Though Xiao Menglan was usually kind and never quarrelsome, when it came to teaching disciples, she made no compromises.

The book she handed over was not the full version, only the introductory part.

Reading it in one month was not difficult — all depended on diligence.

If, after a month, Cao Xueyan could not answer her questions, it would prove her attitude lacking.

And Xiao Menglan would not be merciful.

Cao Xueyan accepted the True Explanation of the Talisman Path.

It was a thin, slightly worn book.

Opening it, she saw not only the main text and complex rune diagrams, but also delicate handwritten notes — surely Xiao Menglan’s own.

“Go and read it well. She will lead you to your room.”

Xiao Menglan drew a talisman in the air.

One of the cleaning maids suddenly lifted her head, face wooden, and set down her broom to walk toward Cao Xueyan.

At the same time, a chill spread into Cao Xueyan’s palm.

She looked down and saw a talisman she had not noticed before, its surface feeling like tanned hide from some spirit beast.

“With this talisman, you can control the puppet.

For daily chores, you may leave them to her,” Xiao Menglan instructed.

“Thank you, teacher.”

Cao Xueyan treasured it, thanking her profusely.

Then a thought struck her.

“Teacher, does this puppet have a name?”

“It never had one. It only does cleaning work. Why should it need a name?”

“Then may I give it one?”

“No matter. Do as you wish.”

Cao Xueyan looked at the beautiful, absent-minded puppet maid beside her.

After a pause, she said, “Then… I’ll call you Mosheng.”

Mosheng… Cao Mosheng.

That was her name in her past life.

She had once planned to give that name to her first magical artifact.

But now, it seemed, it came earlier than expected.

It was only a keepsake, after all.

Alas.

“Then, student will take her leave.”

Cao Xueyan carefully put the True Explanation of the Talisman Path into her storage pouch, then bowed respectfully to Xiao Menglan.

“Go.” Xiao Menglan nodded slightly.

The puppet maid, now named Mosheng, led Cao Xueyan away from the training ground.

After winding through corridor after corridor, they arrived before a side chamber.

This would be her new residence.

Xiao Menglan seemed to remain behind at the training ground.

Cao Xueyan let out a small sigh of relief.

At once, a familiar panel appeared before her eyes.

Host: Cao Xueyan

Realm: Qi Refining, Seventh Level (700/280)

Simulation Chances: 1

Cultivation Points: 120

Huh?

Hadn’t her simulation chances run out before going to the Steward Pavilion?

When did she gain one more?