Immortal Calendar, Year 2095 — Zhou Star Realm.
Snow blanketed the martial platform of the Hundred Lotus Sect. Fat flakes danced in the air, and the chill of deep winter bit into the bones.
Amidst this frozen world, a four-year-old boy stood in the snow, practicing martial forms. Right beside him, a three-year-old girl followed his movements clumsily, her tiny fists swinging through the frigid air.
"Spread your legs more. Arms straight! Now—right hand, uppercut!"
The boy barked the command with a flushed, serious face, like a miniature drill sergeant. But the poor little girl looked like she was about to freeze solid, her lips turning a pitiful shade of blue.
It didn't help that the boy was wrapped up in layers of fur like a small bear, while the girl wore nothing but a thin, threadbare cotton robe.
"S-s-senior brother— I-I'm c-c-cold…" she whimpered, teeth chattering.
The boy crossed his arms, adopting the solemn posture of an adult. "Endure it," he said firmly. "Cold won't kill you. In fact, this kind of winter frost is great for your cultivation. Only benefits, no harm."
Watching from the sidelines, a young maid couldn't take it anymore. She tiptoed up to the boy and whispered, trying to defend the shivering girl.
"Young Master, please don't bully Junior Sister Pei like this... she looks so pitiful. Her snot's literally frozen..."
The boy shot her a look of disdain, as if she'd just said something idiotic.
"Who's bullying her?" he said righteously. "This is training!"
"Training doesn't mean making someone freeze to death in the snow!" the maid argued.
"You just don't get it!" he snapped.
"… …"
The maid glanced at the trembling little girl again with a sigh. She wanted to keep arguing, but she knew the boy's temper—stubborn as a mule. If it wasn't the Sect Master or Madam herself, no one could get through to him.
So she backed away reluctantly, already planning to tattle to the Sect Master later and maybe sneak the girl some hot coals for warmth.
. . . . . . .
The boy's name was Ye Anping. He was the one and only son of the Hundred Lotus Sect's Sect Master.
Although the Hundred Lotus Sect was just a minor sect within the vast Zhou Star Realm, being the young master still meant Ye Anping was born with a silver spoon in his mouth—or at least a gold-threaded rice bowl.
Within the sect, he reigned like a little tyrant. No one dared go against him.
And yet...
The maid could still remember a time—before he turned three—when the Young Master was adorable.
He used to smile, act cute, beg for candy, and run around with a perpetually snotty nose. He was a silly little thing, but utterly lovable.
Then, everything changed.
Ever since the Sect Master brought back a little girl named Pei Lengxue, Ye Anping had become a completely different person.
No more sweets. No more cuteness. Not even a hint of his former self.
Day or night, rain or shine, he was always pushing little Pei Lengxue around.
If she tried to escape? He'd grab her skirt and drag her back.
And when asked why he kept doing this?
His answer was always the same:
"It's for Junior Sister's own good."
The Sect Master was always too busy to care, and the maids could only sigh and shake their heads. No one could rein in Ye Anping.
"Ahhh…" the maid let out another sigh full of sympathy.
Ye Anping heard her. He frowned and looked away, feeling a strange pressure in his chest.
He knew what she thought of him now: a cruel young master who liked to torment others.
He didn't blame her.
After all, only he knew the truth.
These seemingly harsh training methods were actually perfectly suited to Pei Lengxue's spiritual roots and physique. In fact, they were crucial for her future cultivation.
Because ten years from now…
Disaster would strike.
A demonic cultivator known only as "Wu You"—gravely wounded and desperate to heal using living blood—would descend upon the Hundred Lotus Sect.
Under his blade, over a thousand disciples would perish. Blood would flow from the mountaintop to the valley below.
And Pei Lengxue…
She would be the only survivor.
But what happened to her afterward was even more terrifying.
Pei Lengxue would be shackled by Wu You, refined into a living furnace—a human cauldron—and in the end, reduced to nothing but blood and despair, her essence flowing into the Blood Pool of the Demonic Sect, doomed to suffer for all eternity.
You're wondering how Ye Anping knows this?
Simple.
Because this world is exactly the same as a Xianxia game he once played.
The world of "Heavenly Sword Chronicles."
That's right—Ye Anping is a reincarnator, someone who transmigrated into the world of the very game he used to play.
Only... he didn't become the protagonist.
He didn't even become the villain.
He wasn't the amnesiac Wandering Exile the players got to control either.
No, he became a disposable side character.
A nobody who dies right near the beginning of the story.
In the original game, there was a brief, brutal description:
"That day, the Hundred Lotus Sect was bathed in blood. Under the blade of Wu You, the Sect Master was decapitated. His fifteen-year-old son was left behind, only to become a feast for the wild beasts of the mountain..."
That "fifteen-year-old son"?
Yeah. That's Ye Anping.
So, sure—he's technically the young master of a sect. Sounds like a good start, right?
And yes, his talent isn't bad. He possesses dual spiritual roots: water and wood.
But here's the problem.
Even the actual protagonist only survived Wu You's attack thanks to sheer protagonist plot armor.
Ye Anping? He has no such luxury. There's an unbridgeable gap between him and someone like Wu You.
Which is why he pinned all his hopes on the current three-year-old Pei Lengxue.
In the game, she was originally just a side character—a disciple of the Hundred Lotus Sect with mediocre Trinary roots.
But that was a lie.
In truth, she possessed one of the rarest spiritual roots in ten thousand years—a Singular Water Spirit Root.
Because this kind of root was so uncommon, even the spiritual test misread her as an average Trinary root cultivator.
But when Wu You attacked and noticed her hidden potential, he didn't kill her.
He took her.
Turned her into his living furnace.
In other words—
Pei Lengxue is a hidden, god-tier talent.
So Ye Anping made a decision:
Before that bastard Wu You arrives, he will train Pei Lengxue into someone who can turn Wu You into a pile of ash.
Staring at the little girl whose lips had turned completely blue, Ye Anping frowned slightly, then quietly walked over and took her by the wrist.
"Junior Sister."
Pei Lengxue's eyes lit up. She thought the training was over and looked up at him hopefully, her teeth still chattering.
"S-S-Senior brother… c-c-can we g-go b-back now…?"
'Oh, this poor child… she's so cold she can barely talk.'
The maid at the side let out a long, helpless sigh.
But then, Ye Anping spoke again—saying something that made the maid's eyes go wide in shock.
"Mhm. Now we begin bone forging."
Bone… what?
Pei Lengxue blinked in confusion. "Huh?"
She didn't understand what "bone forging" meant.
And the next moment, she saw Ye Anping suck in a breath and suddenly—yank her right arm with all his strength.
CRACK
A loud, sickening snap echoed through the snowy courtyard.
Her elbow had dislocated completely.
"… …"
Because her body was nearly frozen stiff, Pei Lengxue couldn't even feel the pain at first.
But when she saw her tiny arm twisted into an unnatural angle, her pupils shrank into pinpoints.
Her mouth slowly fell open. She inhaled sharply.
And then—
"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH——!!!"
Ye Anping calmly raised his hand. "Don't be scared. We've still got thirty-five more bones to go."
"WAAAAHHHHHHH!!"
Pei Lengxue wanted to run.
She really did.
But her legs were already frozen stiff. She couldn't move at all. She could only sit there helplessly, watching—wide-eyed and sniffling—as the snot-nosed boy dislocated her joints one by one, then popped them back in with terrifying precision.
Even the maid who'd been standing nearby finally lost it and ran off in a panic to report everything to the Sect Master.
Later that evening, as expected, Ye Anping was dragged home and had his butt thoroughly whipped by his father.
But he felt no remorse whatsoever.
In fact, he only got worse.
He shattered her knees fifty times.
Threw her into an icy lake to soak for three days and three nights.
Dropped her off a cliff over a hundred meters high.
Locked her inside a demonic beast den for a full week…
And so, time passed.
The red maple leaves of Hundred Lotus Sect turned green, then red again.
Winter melted into spring; spring faded into autumn.
Ten years flew by in a blink.
The once small children had now grown into a handsome young master and a graceful young lady.
—
In Ye Anping's private quarters, the copper mirror atop his dressing table reflected the image of a face so stunning, it could make stars jealous.
Sharp brows, deep black eyes that shimmered like obsidian.
Snowy-white skin with clean, defined features and a cool, noble air.
Staring into the mirror, Ye Anping couldn't help but murmur in awe:
"Is it possible… for a man to be this breathtaking?"
The maid standing beside him, Xiao Die, was doing his hair. She glanced at him and sighed.
"Young Master… you're fifteen already. Can't you at least try to be a little modest?"
Ye Anping grinned. "Xiao Die, don't you think this face in the mirror is incredibly handsome?"
"Young Master, sure, you're handsome—but I've had to hear this every single morning for ten years. My ears are developing calluses."
Ye Anping chuckled. "Haven't you heard? If you keep calling someone handsome every day, they actually become handsome."
"… Is that a real saying?" Xiao Die tilted her head.
"Look at my junior sister. Isn't she gorgeous now? Isn't it because I praise her beauty every single day?"
"…"
Xiao Die visibly paused, six full ellipses floating silently above her head. Then she sighed again.
"Young Master… maybe it's just because she was already pretty to begin with?"
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Ye Anping waved it off immediately. "She wasn't even worthy of being a background character. If I hadn't told her she was beautiful every day, how could she possibly look even better than the main heroine now?"
"…Here we go again," Xiao Die muttered. "Main heroine, side character… Young Master, you've really read way too many storybooks. If the Sect Master hears you again, you'll be getting another spanking."
"You don't understand." Ye Anping's voice grew serious. "In another month or two, Pei Lengxue will defeat the Grand Elder of the Poison Gu Sect and save the entire Hundred Lotus Sect from ruin."
Xiao Die frowned, tying the last knot in his hair. "You've been telling that story for ten years, Young Master. But the Poison Gu Sect is in the Eastern Region, like, tens of thousands of miles away."
Ye Anping simply shook his head and said no more.
He stood up.
"Bring me some extra healing pills. I'm sparring with Junior Sister today."