Stealing Luck from the Heavenly Dao's Favorite

Every morning, Wei Yunxi attended the clan school with the younger members of the Feng family to receive foundational cultivation instruction. They studied various aspects of the cultivation world—some of which had already been explained to her by Feng Jiayun in the past. However, the original Wei Yunxi either hadn't understood them at the time or had forgotten. Now, having transmigrated into this body, Wei Yunxi absorbed all of it with ease. Her days in the Feng family were fulfilling.

The afternoon classes were the children's favorites. Feng family cultivators taught directly from the Illustrated Compendium of Demon Beasts and Encyclopedia of Spirit Plants.

In their words: if you ever get attacked by a demon beast, you should at least recognize the type and know its weaknesses. And if you come across a spirit plant, you'd better know its value—no use crying over missed opportunities once the heavenly treasures are gone.

The Feng family's roots were in alchemy. Every disciple was required to learn how to identify spirit plants and herbs. Only those who earned high marks could advance to the next stage of training. So Wei Yunxi had spent her days flipping through the thick Encyclopedia of Spirit Plants, committing it to memory.

Every evening, after returning to her residence, Wei Yunxi would take a Body Tempering Pill, then soak in the hot spring to ensure its medicinal effects were fully absorbed.

The first time she took the pill, all she felt was a pleasant numbness through her limbs—no pain at all.

According to the Feng family head, most children her age would scream from the pain of taking a Body Tempering Pill for the first time. They would only begin to adapt after repeated use.

This suggested something important: Feng Jiayun had likely given her daughter the pill in secret before, but without telling her.

Wei Yunxi sighed inwardly. Feng Jiayun had been a responsible mother, but likely never imagined they would be forcibly separated, nor that her daughter would be handed over to a hypocrite like Wei Lingyue.

Despite staying in the Feng household, Wei Yunxi wasn't cut off from the outside world. She had already heard that Du Ruolan had officially become Lady Wei, and that Wei Yunqing was now recognized as the legitimate daughter of the Wei family. No doubt the mother-daughter pair were feeling proud of themselves.

Not long after, Wei Lingyue sent someone to the Feng household to bring his younger daughter back. His reasoning was that Yunxi's fifth birthday was approaching, and after that she would need to undergo a spiritual root test and begin formal cultivation. The Wei family, he said, had other plans for her.

This time, the Feng family head couldn't stop it. He explained the situation to Wei Yunxi and also prepared a set of items suited for early-stage Qi Refining. These were packed in a basic storage pouch for her to carry.

After thinking for a moment, Wei Yunxi handed her personal cloisonné white jade over to Feng Jiaqing and said seriously:

"Uncle, could you please hold onto the items Mother left me? Once I'm strong enough to protect them, I'll come back and reclaim them myself."

The Feng family head was a bit surprised. He hadn't expected the little girl to trust him so much, handing over all the keepsakes her mother had left behind. Smiling, he asked:

"Yunxi, you trust your uncle this much? Why not keep them yourself?"

Wei Yunxi furrowed her brow in pretend thought before answering:

"Wei Yunqing always tries to steal my things. After we return and I get tested, if her aptitude turns out better than mine, she'll definitely use her mother's status to take things from me. I'm not giving her my treasures."

The Feng family head immediately understood—this girl still held a grudge over the hairpin Wei Yunqing had snatched before. Still, he agreed with her decision. While their motivations were different, both had the same goal: to protect what Feng Jiayun had left behind.

Right now, the Feng family had concealed Wei Yunxi's spiritual roots. That meant once Wei Lingyue saw her mediocre aptitude, he likely wouldn't invest heavily in her cultivation. He wouldn't allocate resources to his younger daughter.

Or, if he was shameless enough, he might try to coax Yunxi into handing over all her mother's belongings, just like he'd done once before. So the Feng family head fully supported her choice.

That day happened to be Wei Yunxi's fifth birthday. The Feng family head gave her a first-grade defensive bracelet. It activated passively and would automatically protect her from lethal harm, even if she hadn't started cultivating yet.

Wei Yunxi was delighted. She performed a blood recognition ritual on the spot and wore the bracelet on her wrist. With four maids in tow, she cheerfully returned to the Wei family under the Feng family head's escort.

Wei Lingyue personally greeted them. After exchanging some polite words with the Feng family head, the two parted civilly.

Wei Yunxi had assumed she'd be sent to a remote courtyard. But unexpectedly, she returned directly to Zhuóhuá Courtyard. This was already different from how the novel had described it.

Once back at Zhuóhuá Courtyard, she washed up and changed into a new dress. Then, carried by a maid, she was taken to pay respects to her father—and meet the new, officially installed Madam Wei.

"Yunxi greets Father. Wishing Father eternal peace and health."

Wei Yunxi's soft, childlike voice was full of courtesy, but she completely ignored Du Ruolan seated nearby.

Du Ruolan didn't mind at all. Her eyes sparkled with maternal affection as she smiled warmly and said:

"Looks like the Feng family has taken excellent care of Yunxi. Your little cheeks are getting rounder."

Wei Yunxi didn't respond. The woman's smile was so fake—it was like a weasel giving New Year's greetings to a chicken, full of bad intentions. So she simply blinked her round eyes and looked at Wei Lingyue.

Feeling a bit uncomfortable under his daughter's gaze, Wei Lingyue gave a small cough and said:

"Yunxi, from now on, Aunt Du will be Lady Wei. You must show her proper respect."

Wei Yunxi had no intention of causing trouble, so she obediently turned to Du Ruolan and bowed.

"Yunxi greets Lady Wei."

Du Ruolan's smile stiffened for a moment, but she nodded with perfect decorum.

"You two haven't seen each other in a while. I'll leave you to catch up. I'm going to check on Yunqing."

With that, she swayed gracefully out of the room.

Once she was gone, Wei Lingyue put on a fatherly expression and asked how Yunxi had been during her time at the Feng family. Had she been bullied? Was everything alright?

Wei Yunxi, of course, wasn't stupid. She only shared what could be shared: that the Feng children had played with her, she'd eaten lots of good food, and the Feng elders had gifted her many trinkets.

As she spoke, she patted the beginner storage pouch at her waist and said, showing off just a little:

"Father, this is a birthday gift from Uncle. He said I can start using the items inside after I get tested and begin cultivating."

Wei Lingyue's eyes flickered. He sent a strand of consciousness into the pouch to check. It had only three cubic meters of space, and contained a black iron sword, a few bottles of first-grade pills, and a defensive hairpin. All were basic starter items—nothing else.

He silently cursed the Feng family for being stingy, then said aloud:

"Yunxi, did you thank your uncle properly?"

"Don't worry, Father. I thanked him very earnestly."

"Good. You should go rest early tonight. Tomorrow the clan will conduct the spiritual root tests for all children who've turned five."

"Yes, Father."

Wei Yunxi agreed sweetly, but made no move to leave.

Wei Lingyue frowned.

"Yunxi, is something the matter?"

Wei Yunxi looked at him with hopeful eyes.

"Father, today is my birthday. Did you prepare a present for me?"