The Side Character Who Wins by Doing Nothing

Lan Yu was annoyed by Zhao Fengnian’s favoritism toward Lu Sangjiu.

And it grated on her how Lu Sangjiu always argued with her, only to turn into a sweet, obedient little thing the moment Zhao Fengnian spoke.

As a result, Lan Yu found it increasingly difficult to maintain her facade of a warm, generous, and understanding big sister.

After that, Lu Sangjiu finally got some peace and quiet. Lan Yu walked steadily onward, no longer turning back to chat with her every so often.

After walking a bit further, Zhao Fengnian suddenly shouted, ”Everyone, come quick! What is this?!”

Hearing the commotion, the others immediately hurried forward.

The members of the group were all connected by a rope, so when they ran, Lu Sangjiu was pulled along with them.

However, just as everyone stopped, arrays of light suddenly erupted around them, trapping them all inside!

Zhao Fengnian yelled, ”Not good! It’s a killing array! We’ve fallen into a trap!”

As he spoke, countless flashes of blades and swords descended upon the people inside the array.

It all happened so fast that Lu Sangjiu had no time to react before she had to face the sudden killing array.

Lan Yu was a Medical Cultivator, and her poisons were of little help in this situation. She immediately rushed to Lu Sangjiu’s side. ”Daoist Lu, protect me!”

Lu Sangjiu said nothing, focusing on dealing with the killing array.

However, Lan Yu, who was hiding behind her, suddenly found an opportunity and gave her a hard shove!

The push was so sudden that the blade qi from the killing array instantly sliced across Lu Sangjiu’s shoulder. She grunted in pain as she was knocked to the ground, and in the next moment, several more wounds appeared on her body.

At the same time, the rope tied to her wrist seemed to come alive, and with a SWOOSH, it bound her tightly.

Zhao Fengnian’s voice followed. ”Stop the array! Don’t actually kill her!”

The Array Master in their group acknowledged the order, and the light from the killing array dimmed instantly.

Lu Sangjiu lay on the ground, struggling fruitlessly. She stared at them in disbelief. ”You... Why?!”

A cold sneer played on Zhao Fengnian’s lips, the warm, big-brotherly demeanor he’d shown before completely gone.

”Heh heh, Lu Sangjiu, you’re far too careless.”

”You knew what you were here for. Did it never occur to you to suspect that the people you were looking for were right in front of you?”

Lu Sangjiu’s expression changed. ”You... You’re from the Qilin Sect?”

Lan Yu sneered, her gaze malicious as she stomped on the wound on Lu Sangjiu’s leg. ”What do you think? Did you really believe you’d met some good people?”

”Hmph, I’ve been sick of you for a long time. Go on, be arrogant now!”

”Feeling paralyzed? Can’t move a muscle?”

”Heh heh, I bet you didn’t expect this. I added something to the roasted meat you ate last night and the Elixir Pills you took this morning.”

”They’re harmless on their own, but since you consumed both and have now been wounded, the poison has been activated.”

”With your current cultivation, it’s impossible for you to neutralize it yourself. Just come back with us quietly.”

Zhao Fengnian chuckled lightly. ”And the Second Elder said she’d be hard to deal with. If you ask me, she’s nothing special... just a naive little girl. A simple trick was all it took.”

”To think they sent a Golden Core Stage Cultivator last time only to have him return in defeat. How foolish.”

He spoke with great satisfaction, then said, ”Alright, you two, carry her. We’re going back to see the Second Elder.”

The two male cultivators acknowledged and moved forward to lift Lu Sangjiu, ready to depart.

But at that moment, they suddenly heard a faint noise nearby. Zhao Fengnian’s eyes sharpened. ”Who’s there?”

”Lan Yu, go check it out.”

Lan Yu nodded. ”Don’t worry. My poisons are not to be trifled with.”

Following the sound, Lan Yu found a fresh gash on the trunk of a large tree.

She glanced around but saw no one, and only then cautiously approached to inspect it.

But as she drew near, a figure suddenly flashed out of the thick fog. Before she could even scream, a blade slit her throat!

Lan Yu’s eyes widened. Her body convulsed, and in the moment she fell, she finally got a clear look at her killer.

It was Lu Sangjiu, the one who was supposed to be bound and helpless. She was now standing right in front of her, holding a bloody knife.

Seeing Lan Yu’s stare, Lu Sangjiu smiled faintly. ”Surprised? Unexpected, isn’t it?”

Lan Yu’s face twisted into a snarl. She struggled to reach for her, but breathed her last before her hand could make contact.

Lu Sangjiu swiftly stripped off her clothes and took her storage bag, then put them on herself.

Activating Thousand Faces of Life with her Spiritual Energy, Lu Sangjiu quickly took on Lan Yu’s appearance. Even her aura was a perfect match.

Then, she used Spirit-killing Water to completely destroy Lan Yu’s body.

Aside from a puddle of poison that killed all the surrounding vegetation, not a single trace was left behind.

Just then, probably because she was taking too long, Zhao Fengnian’s voice called out, ”Lan Yu?”

Lu Sangjiu immediately answered and hurried back.

”What happened? What took you so long?”

Lu Sangjiu replied calmly, ”It was a Loose Cultivator who wandered in by mistake. It took a little time to deal with him.”

Zhao Fengnian didn’t seem to suspect anything. He nodded and said, ”Let’s go.”

Lu Sangjiu followed beside them, her eyes glancing at the ”Lu Sangjiu” being carried by the men.

’My Puppetry Technique, combined with an ordinary puppet, can just barely pass for the real thing,’ she thought.

’It’s not good for combat, but at a glance, it’s convincingly lifelike.’

In fact, she had been suspicious of Zhao Fengnian for quite some time.

Her doubts had likely started the night he feigned hesitation before telling her about the Menghua Forest.

He had acted as if he was worried about her facing danger by venturing out alone, but he was actually testing whether she had come by herself.

Then, he had deliberately mentioned his own plans to come to the forest, baiting her into suggesting they travel together.

Zhao Fengnian had revealed too many flaws, including the story he told her.

It had seemed plausible, but in truth, if he could really use a Communication Talisman inside the forest, shouldn’t his first call have been to someone outside it?

And even if he couldn’t, if he contacted someone and got no reply, shouldn’t he have tried contacting someone else?

Loose Cultivators survived by clawing their way through every hardship; no one was that naive.

At the time, Lu Sangjiu had likely raised a question that flustered him, so he hastily made something up on the spot. It sounded reasonable, but it was riddled with holes.

Of course, up to that point, it was still possible they were just a group of ill-intentioned people planning a robbery.

But later, when Zhao Fengnian deliberately mentioned suspecting that some fugitive or Demon Cultivator was holed up there, it became obvious he knew her objective. That meant they could only be from the Qilin Sect.

That was why she had made thorough preparations the day before, just waiting for the chance to turn their own plan against them today.

Now she had infiltrated their team as Lan Yu. Even if they discovered the puppet later, they wouldn’t suspect her right away.

Once they reached their base, she would assess their cultivation levels and numbers, and then she would plan her next move.