The chilling air in the room surged towards Lin Qi, instantly freezing her in place.

Lin Qi raised her hand casually, shattering the ice layer. She charged through, directly into Gong Shaojun's embrace.

She cried out in fear and bewilderment, "Mother! Mother! You can't leave! You can't abandon me!"

Gong Shaojun frowned slightly, but didn't answer the question.

She reached out and pulled Lin Qi from her arms.

"Stand at attention!"

A majestic and indifferent voice carried a chill, yet his gentle movements inadvertently revealed a touch of tenderness.

Lin Qi unconsciously stood straight, her nose twitching involuntarily.

Gong Shaojun took a handkerchief and wiped the dirt and tears from her face. His movements paused when his touch landed on the two bumps on her forehead.

This is not the first time.

Lin Qi was born missing a soul and a spirit, specifically the earth soul and the spiritual wisdom spirit. He showed signs of being mentally deficient.

When playing outside, I'm always bullied and come home with injuries every time.

When asked who hurt her, she didn't even know she was hurt.

She can protect her for a moment, but not for a lifetime.

Gong Shaojun sighed, "You're here just in time, let's take a look together!"

She waved her hand, and everything that happened in the ancestral hall was projected onto the screen.

Lin Qi saw his father being pinned to a long bench and beaten. The iron board landed on his father's body, each strike making him howl in pain.

Grandaunt and her 'mother' sat in the front, their faces composed and cold.

Grandaunt asked, “Mother, this fool has disgraced our family by betraying you. He deserves to die! But he is the head of the Lin family after all… If you spare his life, do with him as you please.”

'Mother' calmly sipped two cups of tea and nonchalantly revealed a major piece of news.

Last night, I was fortunate enough to break through to the Yuanying stage.

Lin Qi saw her great-grandmother stand up in shock.

Then, filled with rage, he ordered the servants, "Beat him! Beat him mercilessly! If he's dead, just throw him out!"

The servant, terrified, increased his grip.

The father’s screams grew louder and louder, each one punctuated by a mouthful of blood.

"When the time was right, 'Mother' slowly spoke up: "Grand-Aunt, please don't get angry. Lin Jie has a weak personality and isn't suited to be the head of the family anyway. Why not take advantage of this incident to have him step down as head of the family and replace him with someone else... how about that?"

Lin Qi watched as her great-grandmother's face turned purple.

She both detests her father's incompetence and is furious at her "mother"'s relentless pressure.

In this remote and desolate border town, a Yuan Ying cultivator could ensure the Lin family's peace for a thousand years.

If Gong Shaojun were to divorce in a fit of anger and remarry, even his great-grandmother wouldn't be able to do anything about it.

The Lin family cannot anger this Yuan Ying cultivator.

Grandaunt probed weakly, "If Lin Jian doesn't become the head of the family, who do you think is suitable for the position?"

"Mother," said gently, "Little Seven is no longer young. It's time for her to take over her father's position."

Let four-year-old Lin Qi take over as the head of the Lin family after her father?!

Great-great-grandmother was both surprised and relieved.

As long as the head of the Lin family still bears the surname Lin, she wouldn't feel she's betraying her ancestors.

She immediately agreed. "Okay, I'll have someone start making arrangements right away!"

Lying on the ground half-dead, Lin Jue suddenly raised her head, her red eyes pointing at 'Mother': "Shao Jun, you plotted against me!"

As soon as the words left her mouth, two figures rushed towards Shen Jue, sobbing.

One little girl glared angrily at the elderly matriarch on the throne and Gong Shaojun, a hint of hatred brewing in her eyes.

Lin Qi opened her eyes wide, staring at the unfamiliar yet familiar face.

The girl's face was still childish, yet it matched the features of the celestial being named Lin Yun who she had seen in her dream.

Foreign memories flooded in, crashing against Lin Qi's brain like waves.

She couldn't bear it for a moment, spat out a mouthful of blood and fainted.

"Xiao Qi!"

Gong Shaojun's usually calm and composed voice carried a hint of worry.

……

Lin Qi's mind felt like a dream, yet also crammed with countless unfamiliar memories.

She realized that the dream she had before was actually a glimpse into her past life.

She actually lives in a cultivation novel.

This storybook tells the tale of her stepsister Lin Yun's struggles and triumphs.

At only three years old, Lin Yun had nothing but the Lin family to rely on after his father was incompetent and his mother was killed.

As the illegitimate daughter of the Lin family, she was looked down upon by everyone in the desolate city.

The elder sister is foolish and tyrannical, often bringing people to bully her. Even the servants of the Lin family can arbitrarily oppress and abuse her.

Lin Yun's life before the age of five was simply miserable beyond description.

Until the Tianyi Sect held a grand disciple recruitment ceremony, Lin Yun was tested to have fire and wood spiritual roots, and thus entered under the tutelage of Dan Fengmen. From then on, he began his journey of defying fate and achieving greatness.

She climbed her way, bruised and battered, to the later stages of the Great Vehicle, becoming the first cultivator in the Cangwu Realm to break through the void.

As a vicious supporting character in a storybook, Lin Qi's fate wouldn't be good.

As the only legitimate heir of the Lin family, a prestigious cultivation family in the desolate city, she became the head of the family at the age of four. With the protection of her powerful aunt and her Nascent Soul mother as her backing, even if she were an idiot, she could have lived a carefree life in the desolate city without any worries throughout her entire existence.

But unexpectedly, her younger sister, Lin Yun, became the biggest surprise in her life.

She was instigated by the servants to bully her stepsister, offending the most promising cultivator in the Lin family.

As Lin Yun's fame grew at Tiyanzong, the tales of her abuse within the Lin family spread further and wider. The more deeply rooted and widely known these stories became, the worse the Lin family's situation deteriorated.

Because it was missing a soul and spirit, it couldn't cultivate and was ridiculed and bullied by many.

When he was young, he didn't know how to rebel. When he grew up, he learned to use the power of the Lin family to oppress others, resulting in offending a large number of cultivators and earning him the titles of "First wastrel" and "First fool" of Huangcheng.

The Meta-Infant's mother, heartbroken by her father's keeping of a concubine, chose to shut herself away in seclusion.

After entering the seclusion cave, he did not appear until the day when Lin's family was slaughtered by the cultivators who had been provoked by Lin Yun. However, he disappeared from the Cangwu Realm ever since.

From then on, Lin's once esteemed young master embarked on a path of struggle and survival.

The lack of a soul and spirit made her life worse than a beggar's.

One day, Jinwu Daochang met her and learned that she was the only surviving blood relative of the Lin family in the deserted city, the elder sister of Lin Yun. Without a word, he abducted her and imprisoned her in a dark cave where she was tortured.

Every time Lin Yun breaks through a level, Jin Wu Dao Chang will bring people to the cave to torment Lin Qi for a while.

During this time, he accidentally discovered that Lin Qi was actually born with the bloodline of the ancient Ice Phoenix. He then developed the idea of refining her into a medicinal pill.

When news spread that Lin Yun was about to ascend and shatter the void, Jin Wu Daochang couldn't bear it any longer. He decided to rip out Lin Qi's golden core, putting an end to this grudge once and for all.

Lin Yun stepped through the void, Lin Qi offered blood to the sea of fire. This was the final destination for the two of them.

……

"Home?" Gong Shaojun sneered. "Nonsense!"

"Heaven wants to use my daughter as a stepping stone for its chosen one, but I won't allow it!"

Gong Shaojun's usual cold tone was laced with a hint of anger.