Reincarnated Phoenix Horse

I was flabbergasted----srunned to the core of what to reply her. As far as I was concerned, wherever I was and how I could get out of this world laid in the system's hands.

"Are you crazy? Whatever you did almost got me killed." I scoffed, dusting myself up from the bed.

"Miss Lin Xi, do you want to proceed?" There was no sort of reaction on her face, just an empty look. I scoffed internally, making up my mind to say no.

"What if I say no?"

"Time unfreezes and you know that woman ain't smiling at you." With a stoic face, she said like it was not a big deal. I gazed at the woman once again, her fist still raised in air when she tried to choke me. Whatever Xue Lian wanted from this situation was better than being choked to death by who ever this is.

"I accept your system. So, can you get me out of here?"

"Sure." Xue Lian fled forward to the woman, taking the dagger from its sheath and stabbing it into her chest. And suddenly, the whole time unfroze. The woman fell to the ground, clutching to her chest.

Her face turned pale, her hair turning white. In the next instant, she spat out blood.

"You can run but you can't hide for too long."

I stumbled backwards noticing that her body faded off. Right before me, she disappeared into thin air.

She completely just vanished.

I was amazed, stunned and still frightened. The air subconsciously held in my mouth was exhaled. "Could you explain what she means? It isn't possible that you put my soul in a body that already have her own problems."

"Shen Mi, the Fourth daughter of the Shen Empire. Many don't like her, and I guess you've met one of them."

"Geez. So I am going to be fighting for my...what do I even say, her own life since you said this person is one in the millions who wants my head cut off."

"So sleeping didn't work out did it?" A curled up grin appeared on Xue's face as she picked up the dagger from the ground. She ran her fingers through its blade, a blueish red staining her palms. "Poison? Totally would have killed you if I hadn't intervened."

"Can you tell me more about this Shen Mi?"

"Aiyoo, the infamous Shen Mi, hated for her talent in divination telling," Xue Lian began, twirling the dagger between her fingers with an almost careless gaze in her hand. "She is the illegitimate child Shen Fuchen had with his maiden. She was conceived during his affair while his wife was pregnant with their third child. Let's just say her existence is an inconvenience to the Shen Dynasty, especially to those who'd rather pretend she doesn't exist at all."

I crossed my arms, narrowing my eyes. "And yet, here I am, stuffed into her body and taking her problems as my own. Convenient for you, isn't it?"

Xue Lian's expression remained unreadable, but a flicker of something—pity, maybe—flashed in her eyes. "It's not as simple as you think," she said, her voice softening. "Shen Mi isn't just hated for who she is. She's hated for what she is and what she could do. Well, not many knows this but I can spare you a secret"

"Just go on and speak, I've had enough secrets already." I ratted out in a rage unexplainable.

Xue Lian sighed, the dagger halting mid-spin. "Ever heard of Phoenix Horse."

I blinked, confused. "Phoenix Horse? What does that have to do with me—or Shen Mi, for that matter?"

"Everything." Xue Lian stepped closer, her tone serious now. She encircled her arms into a cross symbol, raising them slightly above her head until a golden roll appeared.

"You do dark magic?"

"Girl, I can do a whole lot of things. Centuries ago, the Phoenix Horse was the guardian of the Devil's Bone, a relic of immense demonic power. The bone held enough dark energy to destroy empires and reshape worlds, and many sought to claim it for themselves. One of those was the Demon Clan of Xian Mo. They waged a war against the Phoenix Horse, determined to seize the bone and its power. But the horse, knowing it couldn't win, made a desperate decision."

She paused, letting the weight of her words sink in. My breath hitched, dread pooling in my stomach with my eyes fixated on the golden roll having words imprinted on it. "What decision?" I asked hesitantly.

"When the Phoenix Horse was about to be defeated, it took the Devil's Bone and transmigrated its soul into the body of a dying mortal—Shen Mi," Xue Lian explained, her voice dropping to a near whisper. "The horse's soul merged with Shen Mi's, allowing her body to heal and granting her the ability to protect the bone. But the process wasn't perfect. The merging left her weak, sickly, and marked by the demonic power she was trying to contain. That's why she became a target, hated and feared by all."

I stared at her, stunned. "You're saying Shen Mi isn't just some unfortunate illegitimate child. She's... she's the Phoenix Horse?"

"Precisely." Xue Lian nodded. "And you, my dear, are now the one carrying that burden. The Devil's Bone is still inside you—or rather, inside Shen Mi. And that's exactly why Jin Yutian has followed you into this timeline."

I stumbled back, the weight of her revelation nearly knocking me off my feet. If Jin Yutian truly followed me into this timeline, did he know the true idenity of Shen Mi?

"Jin Yutian… he's here to take the bone?"

"Exactly," Xue Lian confirmed my suspicion nonchalantly. "In your timeline, Jin Yutian was only able to cultivate and yield one quarter of its power after you stabbed him. His attempt to cultivate demonic powers using the Devil's Bone was incomplete. He couldn't fully understand or wield its power. So he came here, to this timeline, to claim the bone directly from the Phoenix Horse herself. And coincidentally, your body was taken along with his time travel."

"Great. Isn't this lovely? I am in a greater mess than ever before. In a body of an ancient thousand old Phoenix horse and also have part of the devil bone in me."

Sarcasm was written all over my voice. This wasn't the second chance I had hoped for.

But Jin Yutian....

I said his name with so much loathe in me. He ruined everything, and right before my eyes beheaded my father. I couldn't let him get away with whatever master mind plan he had.

"What is the next thing? I mean this whole system of yours, how does it help me?"

"Actually, I did forget to mention something. The system doesn't resurrect you when you die. So try not to die okay?"

"I will try my best." I smirked at her, the knock on the door briefly turning my attention to the door. Immediately, my mind flashed to the incident previously and I stepped backwards, hiding behind Xue Lian.

"Young Madam. Your medicine is here. Your father, his highness asked I feed it to you."

There was a meek voice of a woman behind the door and I looked at Xue Lian waiting for her next command however Xue Lian didn't do anything than to laugh and sit on the bed.

I tiptoed to the door, peeking through the cracks of the door to confirm if truly everything was okay. "Come in." I moved an inch from the door, as it creaked open revealing a slim white maiden dressed in red and white hanfu.

"Greetings Fourth Young Miss. I can see that you are regaining your health." She fell to the ground on her knees and rose only when I asked her to.

Growing up from a military inducted family, maidens never kneeled to greet. Infact, they were less of fragile maidens than this era. Everything was absolutely new to me.

I gazed at Xue Lian, wanting to know what to do with the woman.

"Um, can you remind me what your name is?" I blurted out.

"Sadly, the Young Miss has developed Amnesia and can't recall her favorite maiden. I am An Youyan. Do you feel pains anywhere? I can have the doctor called for you."

She dusted her clothes, heading for the door and leaving the room. I sighed and returned my eyes to Xue Lian who was unbothered on the bed. Just then, I remembered something--- An Youyan didn't detect Xue Lian.

"I am only visible to you, not any mortal. I am a Thousand years System, of course no mortal can see me well except from you. And why?"

"Because Shen Mi's body houses two of the most deadly powers in the dynasty."

"Not bad. You will get the hang of it. Let's get out before she comes back in with a doctor."

I couldn't help but ask why and in the end, just allowed Xue Lian to drag me out. She didn't follow the passage to the front yard rather took a shortcut through the Forrest, a garden passage way.

"Wouldn't it be suspicious that I just disappeared from the room?"

"If you stay in that room, th doctor is going to check your pulse and know that your Yin and Yang is not stable. They will find out you are the Phoenix horse. The lesser people know about your identity, the more days you can stay alive without people placing price tags on your head."

"Where are we going?"

"The largest library in Shen Dynasty, Celestial Scroll Hall. Apparently a thousand years System now has the peanut brain size of a mere mortal. How unfortunate!"