A Fragmented Soul

The light of the formation flared brightly, illuminating Gu Baiyi's flickering smile, which stood out strikingly.

Ji Rong had never been particularly competitive, but at this moment, a sudden fighting spirit ignited within her.

Oh? Saying "I'll wait for you"?

Like hell I need you to wait for me.

With an indifferent expression, she replied, "That won't be necessary." Then, she lifted her foot and stepped onto the stairs.

Gu Baiyi was momentarily stunned.

Then, she let out a low chuckle and turned to ascend the three hundred and thirty-fourth step.

Her Senior Sister was just like in their past life, never willing to concede defeat.

[Ding!! Congratulations, player. Gu Baiyi's favorability +10]

Ji Rong had no interest in analyzing the whims of this lunatic heroine's favorability rating.

She looked up at the staircase, feeling an invisible pressure weighing down on her legs, making it impossible for her toes to even touch the step.

Runes flickered across the stone stairs.

The oppressive force seemed to be an inherent rule, restricting all who attempted to ascend without discrimination.

She refused to back down.

Summoning her focus, Ji Rong gritted her teeth and forced her trembling leg onto the stone slab.

But in the next instant, the glowing runes repelled her with a forceful burst. In a split second, she had no choice but to draw her sword to steady herself.

"Clang—"

The sword tip struck the ground, scraping out a piercing screech.

Unexpectedly, the sword intent carried by the silver blade rebounded against the runes.

Spiritual energy surged backward from her feet through her meridians.

Ji Rong's breath turned chaotic. She had to take a deep breath, forcibly swallowing down the metallic taste of blood rising in her throat.

Gripping the Qinghe Sword tightly, she propped herself up, barely managing to stay on her feet.

Once steady, she couldn't help but curse internally:

Damn it, is this staircase bugged?

By now, Ye Chuyang had already slung his peachwood sword over his back and steadily ascended to the three hundred and twenty-second step, surpassing Ji Rong.

Seeing her struggle, he frowned slightly and turned back to say, "Senior Sister, there are three thousand paths to the Dao. The way to the heavens is not limited to just one."

Then, he turned forward again and disappeared into the misty clouds.

Ji Rong remained silent for a long time.

She knew there were many ways to ascend the Heaven-Piercing Staircase.

For instance, in the game, the heroine had merged Yu Fei with spiritual energy, achieving a balance of softness and strength, allowing her to complete the climb.

As for the male lead, he was naturally incapable of drawing spiritual energy into his body, leading the sect to overlook him. Yet he never gave up. Through years of studying sword techniques and honing his will, he had eventually succeeded.

But what about her?

She had no control over her fate, forced into the role of a villain. What path was left for her?

As Ji Rong gazed at the endless stairs stretching before her, for the first time since entering this game, she felt lost.

She tried recalling her past life, desperately attempting to grasp onto fleeting memories, but everything was hazy.

Her previous life had been too empty. Other than occasionally seeing her sister, there was no one else, no meaning to her existence.

She neither knew why she was here nor where she was supposed to go.

[Dear player, you transmigrated here because you stayed up too late and died suddenly. Stop asking what you already know.]

Ji Rong: "..."

Her melancholic moment was ruthlessly interrupted by the system.

She shook off her thoughts and looked at the stairs blocking her path once more.

To hell with meaning. She was here, so she'd make the best of it. Survival was the only priority.

With renewed determination, Ji Rong lifted her sword again, staring at the next few steps.

Meanwhile, Lan Cen had already reached the three hundred and fourteenth step.

She looked up just in time to see the scene unfold.

Ji Rong, sword in hand, stepped onto the stairs. The oppressive force descended, making her legs tremble.

Yet her expression remained calm. She raised her sword and gently struck the golden light barring her way.

Lan Cen's eyes widened as she watched the white figure enveloped in glowing energy.

Amidst the surging aura, the woman looked fragile, as if she would be shattered at any moment, like a moth charging into a blazing inferno, burning itself out in one final flight.

Within the flames, countless sword shadows flickered.

Lan Cen gazed at them, as if seeing the snowy peaks atop ten thousand mountains.

A lone figure stood on the eaves, untouched by the bustling world below, beyond the reach of mortals.

Ji Rong's strike was the fifth technique of Silent Rivers and Mountains—A Thousand Snowy Peaks.

She thought, If I can't pass, then I'll carve my way through with force.

As the Qinghe Sword fell, the runes entwining the stone steps shattered into dust.

The golden fragments drifted in the air like falling snow.

Ji Rong lifted her sword and looked at the stairs ahead.

Her fingers, numb from exertion, twitched. Blood dripped from the sword hilt onto the stone, like scattered red jade beads.

Where her sword had struck, a crack split the stone steps, an eye-like fissure, as if the gods were gazing upon mortals.

She stared at that "eye," then raised her sword and stepped forward.

From then on, she repeated the process for each step.

Sword intent surged, breaking through the barriers on the stairs.

With each shattered rune, golden light burst forth, while the stone slabs beneath her feet were stained with splattered blood.

Three hours later.

Ji Rong had reached the three hundred and thirty-second step, one step away from the top.

Each technique she had used was different, and her spiritual energy was nearly depleted.

She stared at the step blocking her way, lifted her bloodstained hand, and swung her sword once more.

Yet, the stone step remained unmoved.

No matter how many different techniques she tried, be it Half a River of Autumn Water or Between Clouds and Waters—the runes remained unbroken, like an immutable law.

Ji Rong's face remained expressionless.

Some so-called "laws" were nothing more than game scripts.

And yet, the stone slab before her felt eerily familiar, like a path she had once walked, or the presence of an old acquaintance.

She frowned and asked herself, "Why?"

A fallen leaf brushed against the blue stone.

A hoarse voice echoed in her mind: "You were never meant to pass."

The words seeped into her consciousness, and Ji Rong knew only she could hear them. So she asked, "And why not?"

"Because those with fragmented souls cannot ascend the Heaven-Piercing Staircase."

Ji Rong sneered.

A fragmented soul?

Sounds more like your brain didn't fully develop.

Then, she asked again, "And what if I insist on passing?"

The voice gave no response.

Silence returned. The stairs remained before her, an insurmountable chasm.

The truth was, even before that last swing, Ji Rong had already reached her limit.

But for some reason, even though her spiritual power was insufficient and her sword techniques lacked proper form, every strike left her feeling exhilarated, as if she were on the verge of breaking through to the next realm.

Ji Rong glanced at the wine flask that had fallen into the bushes and suddenly recalled a plotline from the game related to the secret realm.

There seemed to be an NPC in the Tianshui Secret Realm.

Every time she passed by, that person was always drunk.

He would lie sprawled on the ground, laughing and muttering, "Sometimes nothing exists, sometimes everything does. When water overflows, it spills; when the moon is full, it wanes."

Ji Rong pondered over these words and thought back to Ye Chuyang's method of passing the Heaven-Piercing Staircase..

Could it be that this NPC was hinting at something…

A bug in the Heaven-Piercing Staircase?

To test her theory, Ji Rong lifted her head, raised the Qinghe Sword, and slashed down at the stone steps with a sword technique.

Her sword intent was flawless, depleting the last trace of spiritual energy in her body. Yet, despite reaching complete exhaustion, there was no backlash.

Ji Rong's conviction grew stronger.

This staircase definitely had a bug!!

Without hesitation, she lifted her foot and stepped onto the final step.

A radiant glow erupted around her as surging true energy flowed from the soles of her feet to every corner of her body. It was as soft as flowing silk, coursing through her meridians.

In an instant, Ji Rong felt her spiritual energy replenished.

She closed her eyes, and in the depths of her consciousness, a vast blue lake appeared, clear and pristine, like a crystal.

[ Ding!! Congratulations, player! Cultivation level increased to Heart-Seeking Middle Stage. Achievement points +10. ]

[ Current player attributes: Mystery 10 points, Prestige 60 points, Presence 10 points, Influence 5 points, Achievement 10 points, Gu Baiyi's Favorability -789 points. Keep up the good work! ]

Ji Rong: "…"

Was it really necessary to highlight the -789 favorability?

[ The heroine's favorability toward everyone is quite low. Please don't lose heart, dear player. ]

All low? As expected of the heroine.

Ji Rong calmed herself and asked, "But what's the use of these achievement points?"

[ Dear player, achievement points can be used to purchase items. However, the minimum purchase requirement is 20 points, so this feature is not yet available to you. ]

She smiled and waved goodbye to the pay-to-win mechanics.

Just as Ji Rong was bantering with the system in her mind, an aged voice pulled her back to reality.

"You do have some skill, young one, to break through the restrictions of the secret realm and reach this point."

Ji Rong scoffed internally.

Weren't these so-called restrictions just a bunch of ridiculous constraints set by the game developers? She replied indifferently, "I wouldn't dare claim such praise."

The voice echoed from a distance, "Since you've come this far, why not finish walking the Heaven-Piercing Staircase?"

Ji Rong: "?"

No further words followed, nor did any formation appear before her.

She stood there in silence for a long moment, then turned her gaze to the remaining 666 steps ahead.

A wave of despair washed over her.

Damn you, game developers.

Cultivators rarely experience complete spiritual depletion, but the key to passing the Heaven-Piercing Staircase lay precisely in exhausting one's energy, finding life only in the face of death.

The restrictions of the secret realm only applied to those who had spiritual energy. Thus, the higher one's cultivation, the greater the difficulty of climbing, and the more mental strength was required.

Conversely, if one's spiritual energy was completely drained, the energy imbued within the steps would flow into the cultivator's body. Instead of causing an overflow or backlash, it would actually replenish their lost energy.

However, to ascend all 999 steps, one would have to repeat this cycle countless times, depleting spiritual energy, climbing the steps to restore it, and then exhausting it once more.

Thus, when Ji Rong finally reached the top after this torturous process, half a month had already passed.

Fortunately, cultivators could sustain themselves without food. Otherwise, she might have become the first villain in history to starve to death.

Having endured the hardship, Ji Rong finally stepped onto the last platform.

Her vision swam with dizziness, and her eyesight was already blurring.

Beyond the steps lay the first level of the secret realm.

Unlike the verdant and picturesque Qixia Mountain, the first level of the secret realm was desolate and barren, with no trace of human presence. The distant cries of wolves and caws of crows echoed through the wild expanse.

Ji Rong was utterly exhausted.

She felt like she was about to faint.

And indeed, she was right.

The next moment, the Qinghe Sword slipped from her grasp.

Just before she lost consciousness, Ji Rong had only one thought: To hell with these thousand steps. The game developers have no soul.

Ji Rong slept for a long time.

In the depths of a chaotic dream, she saw her elder sister.

That woman still had the same aloof demeanor, always frowning slightly as she looked at her, yet never uttering a word.

At this moment, her sister stood within the void.

Her features were blurred, but she solemnly told her, "You must remember, you have to obtain those five swords."

"Why do I need them?" Ji Rong asked.

Her sister seemed to smile faintly, reaching out to gently pat her head with a rare trace of tenderness. "You'll understand one day."

Then she turned and walked away, vanishing into endless darkness.

Ji Rong shook her head.

Even in a dream, her sister remained as cold and detached as ever.

As her consciousness gradually returned, Ji Rong slowly opened her eyes, greeted by the sight of a bright moon hanging in the night sky.

She found herself lying atop a soft bed of grass.

Perplexed, she wondered, she had already reached the first level of the secret realm before she fainted. How could there be such a comfortable place in this barren wilderness?

She reached out and touched the ground beneath her.

Ah, it was covered with a layer of moonlit grass, making it feel especially soft.

Ji Rong lifted her head and scanned her surroundings.

A bonfire crackled nearby, casting flickering light across the area. A small snow fox lay curled up beside the fire, fast asleep.

The flames crackled and sent sparks flying, their glow reflecting off a gleaming silver sword. A hand methodically wiped down the blade.

The wind made the fire sway, scattering embers into the night. Ji Rong's gaze met a pair of eyes filled with amusement.

Clad in purple robes, Gu Baiyi sheathed her sword, a smile in her eyes as she said, "Senior Sister, you've finally woken up."

Ji Rong's vision darkened. She felt like fainting all over again.

There was nothing more tragic than waking up from a deep sleep only to find "Death" himself waiting for you.