"Wen Jiang, Wen Jiang, wake up."
Wen Jiang opened her eyes, a dark gleam passing through her pure black pupils.
The nurse who woke her didn't notice, only saying, "It's time to change your medicine. It'll hurt a bit. Just bear with it, okay?"
As the nurse applied the medicine to her face, a sharp pain almost made Wen Jiang pass out. She also heard the nurse's sympathetic voice, "Such a pretty face. What a pity..."
Wen Jiang hissed, feeling somewhat bewildered.
She was not the original Wen Jiang.
She had once been the most talented individual in the 21st-century Yunxia Country's Cultivator World, but unfortunately, she failed her Tribulation at the brink of ascension.
She was struck by Tribulation lightning that annihilated her soul. Logically, she should not have survived.
But in a daze, she felt her Remnant Soul drifting in space for a long time. After an indeterminate period, she opened her eyes and awoke inside a girl's body.
A girl with the same name as her, a freshman at Yunxia Empire's university. A week prior, she had been bullied on campus, beaten up, and hospitalized with a knife wound to her face.
The original owner of the body was already frail and couldn't hold on. This allowed Wen Jiang's Remnant Soul to inhabit it.
The pain was real.
However, the path of cultivation was inherently one of defying fate. She had endured far greater suffering than this. Gritting her teeth, Wen Jiang didn't utter a sound.
Even the nurse was somewhat shocked.
She remembered that when this girl was admitted to the hospital yesterday, she was covered in wounds, and her condition had been critical. They even thought this child wouldn't make it.
The nurse said with pity, "Those people, they're just too cruel..."
Stopping midway, she glanced at Wen Jiang's face, not daring to continue.
Those were the children of nobles, people she truly couldn't afford to provoke.
Wen Jiang understood her implication.
The original owner's soul had likely moved on to reincarnate. Since she was now alive in this body, it was hers to control. As repayment, she planned to smash that bullying bastard's skull.
After the nurse finished applying the medicine, Wen Jiang rested in bed.
Searching through the original owner's memories, Wen Jiang frowned. This isn't my original world.
It was also the 21st century. In her original world, Spiritual Energy had resurfaced, cultivators had reappeared, and she had become one of these new-era cultivators.
In this world, there were also records of the revival of Spiritual Energy, but it had taken a completely different path.
The revival of Spiritual Energy also brought forth numerous Demons. To combat them, humanity stumbled upon a method: using cards to summon the spirits of Divine Beasts.
Unfortunately, the battles were brutal, and countless countries vanished during the era of spiritual revival.
A thousand years later, the wars subsided. Yunxia Country had paid a heavy price, even experiencing a collapse of civilization and losing its once-prized cultural heritage.
The world order was reshuffled, giving rise to three great empires: Yunxia Empire, leading the Eastern Continent; Sanctuary Empire, leading the West; and Frost Moon Empire, leading the North.
Under the rule of the three great empires, dozens of smaller countries existed in dependency.
Fortunately, the spirits of the cards remained and were integrated into their daily lives. Those who could use cards to battle were known as Spirit Card Masters.
The military forces of the three great empires were usually composed of Spirit Card Masters. They could summon Card Spirits to fight and protect their homelands.
Similarly, cards had become a measure of strength between empires. Unfortunately, in Yunxia Empire, due to the less complete preservation of civilization compared to the West, their overall strength seemed to be weaker.
Wen Jiang was curious about these cards. She could sense abundant Spiritual Energy in the air, yet her Remnant Soul seemed obstructed by something, preventing her from drawing upon or absorbing it.
This means I can't cultivate.
This isn't a good sign.
[DING—Congratulations, you have been selected by the Masochistic Female Protagonist Card Drawing System!]
[I am the Masochistic Female Protagonist System Zero Egg. Do you hate those who bullied you? Do you want revenge? Do you want to completely capture the male lead's heart? Bind with me, and I'll give you everything you desire. Please choose AGREE or CONFIRM.]
Isn't there a 'No' option?
Wen Jiang remained silent.
This system's name is so unlucky.
She wasn't unfamiliar with Systems. Novels were very popular in her world. Cultivators led monotonous lives, so she often passed the time reading novels and watching TV dramas when bored. She wasn't a big fan of stories featuring Systems. In most of those stories, once the protagonist acquired a System, they'd reach the pinnacle of life. Everything came from the System, often without rational explanation. How could anyone feel at ease using something like that?
Wen Jiang, who believed in self-reliance, found this concept very unrealistic. She never thought that one day, such a thing would happen to her.
She narrowed her eyes slightly, sensing a minuscule intrusion in her brain. It was tinier than a particle and likely originated from a more advanced civilization. Lacking divine power, Wen Jiang figured that forcibly expelling it might result in mutual destruction.
With that in mind, she suppressed the flicker of murderous intent that had arisen within her.
Seeing her silence, Zero Egg assumed she was too stunned and reiterated, "Choose to bind with me, and you'll get everything you desire. You only need to complete a few trivial tasks."
Only then did Wen Jiang slowly speak up, "Masochistic Female Protagonist Card Drawing System? You mean, I'm the masochistic female protagonist?"
Zero Egg: "More or less. You're quite smart, Host."
According to its data, the original Wen Jiang was indeed a 'masochistic female protagonist.' In the early stages of her story, she was weak, insecure, and infatuated with the male lead, Song Yingchen. Coincidentally, Song Yingchen was also a 'fated male lead,' and Wen Jiang's task was not only to improve herself but also to become Song Yingchen's devoted helper. Once Wen Jiang truly won Song Yingchen's heart, the System would gain immense energy and achieve its objective, allowing it to retire.
Based on the System's data, it believed Wen Jiang would definitely not refuse. After all, to the original Wen Jiang, Song Yingchen was her entire life.
Right now, Wen Jiang didn't even remember who Song Yingchen was. She simply asked, "What if I don't accept?"
Zero Egg said proudly, "Host, you can't refuse. I'm already bound to you. This is just a formality; you simply need to accept."
Wen Jiang: What a load of crap.
Knowing she couldn't forcibly remove the System right now, Wen Jiang calmly asked, "What can you offer me?"
Zero Egg replied, "Card drawing, of course! As the name suggests, it's a Card Drawing System! Isn't this world all about cards?!"
Zero Egg projected a transparent screen into the air before Wen Jiang. While this world possessed such technological capabilities, it clearly couldn't directly interface with the brain to project images. Zero Egg indeed came from a higher civilization.
"Look, here's a series of card decks. For example, this Female Protagonist Card Deck includes the Beauty and Skincare Card, Charming Gaze Card, Busty and Slim Card, Rose Body Fragrance Card, Lotus Body Fragrance Card, Pitiful and Charming Card, and so on. Any one of these could vastly improve your appearance. Winning over the male lead would be a piece of cake!"
Wen Jiang was speechless.
What in the world are these eyesores?! Wait a minute, who's the male lead?! What is all this?!
Wen Jiang suppressed the urge to lash out and asked, "Aren't there any battle cards suitable for me?"
"Battle cards?" Zero Egg sounded puzzled. "Of course, there are battle cards, but they aren't for you. Battle cards are drawn when your tasks reach a certain stage, and they're meant to be given to the male lead, Song Yingchen. This will earn you his deep affection. Haven't you always liked Song Yingchen? Don't you feel you're not good enough for him? With me, winning him over will be a breeze!"
Battle cards are for the male lead?
Song Yingchen?
Memories of Song Yingchen immediately surfaced in Wen Jiang's mind.
Her eyes narrowed.
Oh, so it's that asshole.