Stealing Luck from the Heavenly Dao's Favorite

When Wei Yunqing arrived at the gates of Haoran Sect, the first person she spotted was Wei Yunxi. It couldn't be helped, she had been obsessing over her Little Sister the whole way.

Wei Yunting and Wei Zonghan followed her gaze and saw their long-lost younger siblings. To their surprise, both Wei Yunxi and Wei Zonghao looked better than anyone else in the group, chatting quietly as if nothing had happened.

Wei Yunqing immediately charged ahead, her voice rising as she demanded, "Why did you arrive before us?"

Wei Yunxi and Wei Zonghao both frowned. What, arriving early was a crime now?

Wei Yunxi rose to her feet and, ignoring Wei Yunqing, addressed Wei Yunting, who was acting as team leader. "Big Sister, Zonghao and I were chased by a swarm of weasels. We couldn't outrun them, so we hid in the nearby forest. That's why we got separated."

Wei Zonghao stood up beside her and added, "I was the one who couldn't keep running. Little Sister Yunxi didn't want to leave me behind, so she stayed with me.

Once the weasels left, we tried to catch up with you. But that night, we ran into a pack of green-eyed wolves. To avoid them, we had to take a detour.

After that, we completely lost your trail. We just kept heading toward the sect gate, hoping to run into you on the way. We were worried you wouldn't make it in time."

The moment "weasel swarm" and "green-eyed wolves" were mentioned, everyone instinctively turned their eyes toward Wei Yunqing. She wanted nothing more than to shut Wei Zonghao up, but she couldn't say a word.

Wei Yunxi had known the truth all along, but she feigned ignorance as she asked, "Big Sister, when we got separated, we noticed that the weasel swarm only chased the Wei family's team. Who provoked them?"

Wei Yuying rolled her eyes and snapped, "Who else? Your beloved older sister caught a baby weasel. That's why we got chased the whole way. And those green-eyed wolves? She burned Lingjue Wood by mistake, thinking it was firewood. We were surrounded the entire night and had to delay the journey the next day. That's how we missed you."

Wei Yunxi gave Wei Yunqing a look of exaggerated surprise, as if she couldn't believe someone with such excellent talent would make such foolish mistakes. The humiliation was almost too much for Wei Yunqing to bear.

Wei Zonghao, ever the master of backhanded remarks, raised his voice deliberately. "No wonder you all arrived so late. Someone was dragging the team down."

"What did you say?"

"Did I lie? If not for you, would Big Sister Yunting and the others be delayed?"

He had no intention of letting her off easy.

Wei Yunting frowned. "That's enough. Both of you. Do you want the other families to laugh at the Wei clan?"

Wei Zonghao wisely stopped picking on Wei Yunqing and turned to the quietest of them all, waving to Wei Zongyu. "Zongyu, come sit with us."

Wei Zongyu was already exhausted. He walked over silently and sat beside the chubby boy, preparing to meditate, but Wei Zonghao kept tugging at him, asking what had happened on their journey.

Meanwhile, Wei Yuying took the initiative to sit next to Wei Yunxi, asking for the details of their trip.

Wei Yunxi and Wei Zonghao had already agreed to keep the red-maned horse a secret. They only mentioned what could be safely shared, especially how they used juice from Weiwei grass to avoid being targeted by spirit beasts. That detail made the other Wei clan disciples regret not traveling with them.

Wei Yunqing, once again, became the isolated one. Her glare toward Wei Yunxi turned darker by the moment. She was still a five-year-old child and hadn't yet learned how to hide her emotions.

Hidden elders and experts, watching from the shadows, took it all in clearly. They silently noted that although Wei Yunqing had outstanding talent, her temperament left much to be desired.

Just before sunset, the last three children arrived at the sect gate, supporting one another. Wei Yunxi scanned the group and quickly noticed something—one of the mortal girls who had gone to the restroom with Wei Yunqing earlier was now missing from the crowd.

Not long after, Song Ke reappeared before the young hopefuls who had passed the first round and smiled warmly.

"Congratulations on passing the first physical trial. Next, you'll need to pass through this 'Heart-Mirror.' Anyone who succeeds will move on to the second round."

As he finished, he waved his sleeve, and a mirror appeared at the mountain gate. It stood two meters tall and one meter wide. The frame was forged from meteorite iron and decorated with auspicious cloud patterns and runes Wei Yunxi couldn't yet recognize. Later, she would learn they were formation glyphs.

The mirror reflected every child standing before it. Even the slightest twitch in their expressions was magnified. No one dared step forward.

Then Wei Yunqing moved.

She walked up to the mirror with calm confidence and stepped through. Her figure vanished, the mirror's surface rippling once before returning to stillness, as if no one had ever passed through.

Wei Yunxi found the whole thing inauspicious. She refused to go in right after Wei Yunqing. She had no desire to be tainted by whatever misfortune might follow. In the end, her caution would prove wise.

The second to pass through was Wei Yunting. Though she didn't appreciate Wei Yunqing trying to hog the spotlight, now was not the time to dwell on it.

Wei Yunxi and Wei Zonghao were the last members of the Wei clan to enter the Heart-Mirror.

When Wei Yunxi stepped through, a moment of dizziness struck her. By the time she regained awareness, she found herself chained to a wall in what looked like a dungeon.

She frowned and struggled, but the chains held firm.

Then footsteps echoed down the corridor. Moments later, she saw an adult version of Wei Yunqing walking toward her, accompanied by a tall, handsome man. The two looked like a perfect couple.

Something felt deeply off, but she couldn't immediately place it.

Wei Yunqing's gaze was filled with pity, and that alone made Wei Yunxi want to gouge out her eyes. She sneered, "What are you looking at?"

Wei Yunqing flinched slightly, then spoke in a disappointed tone. "Little Sister, you've made a terrible mistake this time. The sect will not forgive you."

"Spit. What did I do? Don't come pretending to be some weeping cat playing at kindness."

Wei Yunxi's retort was sharp and cold.

The man beside Wei Yunqing frowned, displeased. "Qing'er, she may be your Little Sister, but she is also your enemy. You've already honored your bond by coming to see her one last time. She must face punishment for what she's done."

"But she's still my sister..."

"It's because she is your sister that you must not cover for her. If you hadn't tried to stop her, you wouldn't have harmed your own foundation. It's time she paid the price."

He pulled Wei Yunqing into his arms, shielding her from interfering further.

Wei Yunxi's eyes shifted, then widened. This... this was the final chapter of the novel she had read before transmigrating. In that story, the female supporting character had her spiritual roots stripped and her golden core removed by the male lead.

But hadn't she transmigrated into Wei Yunxi at age five? Why was she now in this adult body?

No wonder everything felt so wrong.

This was part of Haoran Sect's entrance trial.

The moment she realized it, the world seemed to ripple, then fall still again. Narrowing her eyes, Wei Yunxi glared at the romantic pair and spat, "You two are disgusting. One wants to steal my spiritual roots and dig out my core. The other wants to steal my talent.

Do you think the Heavenly Dao will spare you just because you succeed?

Wei Yunqing, even if you ascend to immortality, it'll be with the talent that was meant for me. You'll never be better than me."