Every part of Camille's body seemed to be shredded, with every inch of flesh and bone permeated with excruciating pain. Her eyelids felt as heavy as a thousand pounds, and through the hazy blood-colored sight, even the candlelight appeared tinged with crimson. "Sister, when you took my place in the Eath genre that day, did you ever think it would come to this?" A lazy female voice drawled into her ear, sometimes distant, sometimes near, making her doubt whether this was yet another nightmare.
Chapter 1 If Life Were Only Eight Years Left
Every part of Camille's body seemed to be shredded, with every inch of flesh and bone permeated with excruciating pain.
Her eyelids felt as heavy as a thousand pounds, and through the hazy blood-colored sight, even the candlelight appeared tinged with crimson.
"Sister, when you took my place in the Eath genre that day, did you ever think it would come to this?" A lazy female voice drawled into her ear, sometimes distant, sometimes near, making her doubt whether this was yet another nightmare.
Then, the sound of shattering bones resounded again, and the pain engulfed her in an instant.
"Ah!" she cried out in agony.
Her legs... This wasn't a dream!
She opened her eyes and looked at the woman in front of her, adorned in ancient attire, toying with a longsword.
It was a face she had never seen before.
"Sister, aren't you supposed to be tough as nails? It's just this much. I didn't even exert much force. How did it break so easily?" Her tone was light and chirpy, as if she had achieved something worth bragging about.
Blood trickled down Camille's forehead, and as she tried to raise her hand to wipe it, she found her arm already a mass of flesh and blood, immobile.
"Candice, stop wasting time with her. The secret realm is about to open. Give her a quick end."
...
Camille felt the heartbreak for the first time, as the merciless sword pierced her chest. She cast a final glance at the woman, imprinting her face deeply into her mind.
When she opened her eyes again, Camille was back outside the Eath genre. Her chest still throbbed with pain, and the glaring sunlight made her feel disoriented.
The surroundings were still unfamiliar, and for a moment, she couldn't quite place when or where she was.
The voices of children chattering pulled her back into the commotion, and as she regained her senses, she looked around.
Rows of children surrounded her, none older than fifteen, some as young as six or seven.
They seemed to be talking about something related to "magical energy," but she couldn't quite comprehend.
Her head felt heavy, and as she rubbed her temples, a plethora of memories flooded her mind.
She had transmigrated.
Thrown into the world of a xianxia novel she had read just two days before, where a supporting character shared her name. Back then, she had thought it was a mere coincidence, never imagining she would become "her."
The protagonist's brother, Samuel, had saved a junior of an elder from Eath genre. In gratitude, the elder offered the protagonist's sister a spot in the Eath genre.
Unbeknownst to them, the sister, Camille, possessed exceptional talent and could cultivate without entering Eath genre.
The incident of her sister taking her place had spread throughout the cultivation world. Eath genre, coveting such talent, discovered the truth and, to demonstrate their stance, not only expelled the sister but also restricted her cultivation to merely the third level.
Shortly after leaving the sect, she fell into the hands of dark cultivators, and due to her remarkable appearance, she was used as a cauldron for alchemy, enduring endless torment. Just as she managed to escape, she was captured by her once admired senior martial brother, who handed her over to the protagonist, Candice, to settle a personal vendetta.
Camille found herself transmigrated into this sister's life. She never imagined that an inconsequential line from the book, "settling a personal vendetta," would unfold in such a way...
Her bones shattered, yet she endured with the aid of elixirs to postpone immediate death. Had it not been for her senior's prompting, she might have resorted to even more elaborate forms of self-torment.
It was utterly brutal.
What astonished her even more was that after dying in the transmigration, she found herself reborn on the day when Camille took Candice's place in the Eath genre.
And now, Camille was only ten years old.
Camille had regretted countless times, vowing that if given another chance, she would never step into Eath genre. But now, after replacing Candice, 21st century Camille had replaced her.
The choice lay before Camille, a further endurance of the torment she had just experienced, or to step back into the vast world where one could soar freely like a bird. Camille didn't hesitate and firmly chose Eath genre.
If she were to soar freely, she needed to be able to fly. Only two months ago, she had graduated from high school. She knew nothing beyond Eath genre. How could she survive without it? Perhaps she wouldn't last eight years, and she'd meet an early end.
To enter the cultivation world, one needed "magical energy." The original Camille, for some reason, possessed this energy, and thus she was dared to replace Candice, hopefully securing a better future.
Yet, Camille was aware that though she had the potential, success wasn't guaranteed.
Camille had low-level magical energy aptitude, barely meeting the threshold for Eath genre. Without any fortuitous encounters in her life, she would only reach a basic level for the rest of her life.
"Fire, Wood, Earth magical energy, primary Fire magical energy, core values seventy-one, fifty-six, eighteen," the apprentice measuring magical energy spoke dispassionately.
"Go over there and wait," someone gruffly pushed her and ordered.
Camille realized the speaker was the adult who had brought her from the mortal realm.
She obediently complied and overheard the adult conversing with someone else.
"I went all the way to the mortal realm and brought back a low-level magical energy being. However, I've settled the debt with the sect leader."
"A low-level magical energy is still a magical energy. With such a large sect, there's always work for someone."
"But she needs to stay to begin with. The second round of testing is coming up, and looking at her physique... it may not be certain!"
...
Camille took a few steps, finding her place in the crowd, and then exhaled deeply.
According to the original storyline, Camille should have possessed Wood, Fire, and Water magical energy. But how had it changed to Fire, Wood, Earth? Camille pondered this silently, automatically filtering out the condescending comments from the distance. What was wrong with having low-level magical energy?
As long as she had magical energy, she could cultivate. In her previous life, she had been a student at Tsinghua University, even though she had just received her admission letter and hadn't started yet... But in this life, she only sought a path to survive. Wasn't that achievable?
What was wrong with being an outer sect disciple? What was wrong with working hard? Hard work would yield results, and perhaps she could earn some resources!
In eight years, Candice would rise to prominence. In that time, she had to improve her cultivation, so she could live without Eath genre!
The sect didn't coddle idlers. In the first year, new disciples could obtain basic resources effortlessly, but afterward, they had to bear the cost of everything, from cultivation techniques to their daily sustenance.
It seemed she had to save more resources while cultivating. When Candice rose to prominence, she would leave calmly and prepare to leave without impediment.
Chapter 1 If Life Were Only Eight Years Left
05/04/2024
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