Stealing Luck from the Heavenly Dao's Favorite

"Shut up!"

Wei Yunqing's face twisted into something monstrous, completely devoid of her earlier ethereal grace.

Standing beside her, Sheng Yuhong also frowned. "Qing'er, there's no need to listen to her nonsense. I'll activate the formation right now."

As he finished speaking, he began forming hand seals, triggering the array laid beneath Wei Yunxi's feet. At the same time, Wei Yunqing dropped all pretense and activated the array under her own feet.

Wei Yunxi stared at the scene—familiar, yet unfamiliar—and her lips curled into a cold smile. She spat out the word, "Reveal."

A red, three-petaled flower mark bloomed on her forehead. The moment the Huadian immortal artifact emerged, the illusion around her shattered like glass. In the next instant, a violent force slammed into her.

She silently whispered, "Hide," just before the blow hit her like a kick to the back.

"Ah—!"

Wei Yunxi hit the ground face-first, sprawling across the dirt. It took her several tries to push herself up.

As she got to her feet, the first thing she saw was a pair of white boots. She tilted her head upward and was met with a familiar face—the same elder who had greeted her and the chubby boy at the sect gate the day before.

Song Ke smiled down at the first disciple to be ejected from the Heart-Mirror. "Congratulations. You're the first to pass the second trial. Go rest over there."

"Yes, Senior!"

Wei Yunxi cupped her hands in salute before limping off to the side, rubbing her sore backside as she went to meditate.

Song Ke watched the little one's retreating figure with thoughtful eyes. He didn't know what she had experienced in the mirror, but she was by far the fastest to make it through. Her temperament was undoubtedly excellent. He was just curious about her talent.

As the name implied, the Heart-Mirror tested the depths of one's inner thoughts. It constructed illusions based on a person's desires and weaknesses, then judged whether they could withstand temptation and stay true to themselves.

Wei Yunxi, being a transmigrator, had a soul stronger than the average new disciple. She wasn't easily deceived by the Heart-Mirror, though the difficulty of her trial had clearly scaled up.

Fortunately, she was cautious and sharp-eyed enough to recognize the illusion for what it was. With the help of the Huadian immortal artifact, she broke the illusion and was forcefully expelled from the mirror. And it wasn't gentle.

Wei Yunxi suspected the Heart-Mirror was angry. Still, she didn't consider what she did to be cheating. The Huadian was already part of her body and had recognized her as its master. An immortal artifact protecting its owner was natural and just.

Completely at ease, Wei Yunxi sat cross-legged in the corner, pulled out the dried meat the chubby boy had given her, and began chewing slowly, preparing for the third trial.

From the shadows, the Haoran Sect elders watching her grew more and more impressed.

"This little girl has a fine temperament. And her mindset is strong too. She's promising."

"She's from the Wei family in Kunyu City. She was the first to arrive in the physical trial and even broke through to the first layer of Qi Refining right in front of the sect gate. Not a bad performance."

"Yes, her performance is indeed outstanding. But her aptitude is ordinary. She has three spiritual roots. If the Wei clan hadn't been given three extra spots this time, she might not have been here at all."

"Three spiritual roots, huh... that's a bit weak."

The moment they heard that the talented girl had only three roots, several elders gave up the thought of taking her as a disciple.

Wei Yunxi didn't wait long before other children began emerging from the Heart-Mirror. Those who hadn't yet started cultivating passed more easily. Some came out crying, some smiling, and some pale with fear. Each wore a different expression.

After a little while, Wei Zonghao finally emerged. Wei Yunxi immediately waved and called out,"Brother Zonghao, over here!"

Hearing his name, Wei Zonghao looked up, spotted her waving, and jogged over.

"Little Sister Yunxi, you passed already?"

"Mm-hmm. I've been waiting for you. What took you so long?"

Wei Zonghao let out a very grown-up sigh. "Don't ask. My mother wouldn't stop nagging me, so I left early just to escape. I didn't expect to pass the trial so quickly."

He plopped down beside her and asked, "What about you? How'd you pass?"

Wei Yunxi's apricot eyes gleamed as she lowered her voice and said, "Wei Yunqing tried to steal something from me. I caught her in the act, fought her, and took back what she stole. That's how I passed."

Of course, she couldn't tell the whole truth. But what she said wasn't too far off. She just dressed it up a little.

"Yunxi, you're amazing!"

The chubby boy chimed in with full sincerity.

"It's alright. She can't just rely on talent to bully others. I wonder when Big Sister and the others will finish their trial."

"They should be almost done. If the two of us at Qi Refining layer one could pass, there's no reason they, who're at layer three, can't." Wei Zonghao said this while chewing on some meat.

Wei Yunxi didn't argue, though in her opinion, cultivation level had nothing to do with this particular trial.

Some people just couldn't resist being talked about. Not long after they spoke, Wei Zongyu stepped out of the Heart-Mirror. He scanned the area, then walked over and sat near them without a word, nodding slightly before closing his eyes to meditate.

Wei Yunxi and Wei Zonghao didn't disturb him. They continued their hushed conversation.

Soon after, Wei Yuying, Wei Yunting, Wei Zonghan, and Wei Zongjin all passed the trial in sequence. Though a bit weary, their states were solid.

Wei Yunting glanced over the group and quickly noted that Wei Yunqing, who had entered the mirror first, still hadn't come out. She snorted lightly and said nothing, simply sitting down and closing her eyes to meditate.

She was already close to breaking into the fourth layer of Qi Refining. With the sect's rich spiritual energy, she hoped to take that final step. After all, Yunxi had only begun drawing qi into her body three months ago and had already reached the first layer. She couldn't afford to fall too far behind.

The rest of the Wei clan silently avoided mentioning Wei Yunqing. Wei Yunxi found it hard not to laugh, though she held it in. After all, as long as the protagonist's life wasn't going smoothly, she was content.

In the original story, she had been the one to take all the blame—she was the scapegoat, the one scolded and isolated. Without her standing in front to draw fire, Wei Yunqing was now taking all the hits herself. Rejected, excluded, and stumbling through misfortunes, she couldn't even pass the temperament trial on her first try.

That alone showed how much the setbacks had affected her.

An hour passed. Fewer and fewer children were emerging from the mirror. Just as Song Ke was checking the time and preparing to recall the Heart-Mirror, Wei Yunqing finally stumbled out.

She was a mess. Her robes were wrinkled, her hair disheveled, and her face bore bloody scratches. Her breathing was erratic, and when she looked at the crowd, her eyes burned with hatred, scaring some of the younger children nearby.

In the end, her gaze locked onto Wei Yunxi, filled with a murderous intensity, as if she could strike her down with a glance.

Wei Yunxi blinked innocently and whispered, "What's wrong with Wei Yunqing? Did she fall into deviation or something?"

Wei Zonghao shook his head. "No idea, but her eyes are terrifying. It's not like we did anything to her."

Even Wei Yunting and Wei Zonghan frowned. Something was clearly wrong with Yunqing.

Song Ke, having retrieved the Heart-Mirror, also noticed the hostility clinging to the last disciple to emerge. With a gentle wave of his hand, he knocked Wei Yunqing unconscious.

Wei Yunting stepped forward and bowed. "Senior, may I ask what happened to our younger sister?"