Chapter 59 – Mission Complete, Reward: Divine Artifact
Under Qi Tian's subtle influence, Qian Renxue's arrogance had softened a little.
In the original timeline, the only opponent she acknowledged was Tang San, and the only people she truly cared for were Qian Daoliu and Bibi Dong. Even though she acted approachable when disguising herself as Xue Qinghe, deep down, she had always looked down on everyone else.
Fortunately, she was still young now—and still willing to listen to Qi Tian's advice.
Following his suggestion, she accepted Ge Zhan's allegiance and began planning to nurture her own forces within the Heaven Dou Empire's military. The Ge family was one of the empire's true powerhouses, holding substantial influence over the army.
By controlling them, Qian Renxue would essentially control the military of the entire Heaven Dou Empire.
That was far better than in the original story, where she had only partial command of the city defense forces—most of whom were actually agents of Spirit Hall.
With Qian Renxue's tacit approval, Ge Zhan was now officially her desk mate in the academy. Just this small gesture of favor was enough to make Ge Zhan so moved that he wanted to pledge his life to her.
"Ghost Uncle, could you stop flirting with Dugu Yan for once? How am I supposed to deal with this?" Qian Renxue complained inwardly.
Though she was disguised as Xue Qinghe, she was still a girl at heart—and had absolutely no interest in Dugu Yan.
"Dugu Yan seems to have noticed something unusual about us," she muttered.
"Look, she hasn't been waiting for me at Ge Zhan's seat these past few days!"
Qi Tian was momentarily stunned. 'Could this be that mysterious sixth sense women always talk about? Has Dugu Yan actually noticed that I only possess Qian Renxue every three days?'
"Xue'er, it must be your attitude! Remember, you're playing the role of a man. You have to at least show some interest in women!" Qi Tian said seriously, pushing all the blame onto her.
Qian Renxue was speechless.
"Let's not talk about this anymore. Hurry and tell me a story!"
The class had just started, yet Qian Renxue was already pestering Qi Tian to tell her another story.
He had long run out of the ones he knew, so he began narrating tales from online novels instead.
Fortunately, those stories were full of endless rivalries—"there's always someone stronger"—with lines like "Invincible under heaven, yet enemies descend from the heavens."
They were perfect to help Qian Renxue curb her excessive pride.
Time flew by—more than a year passed, and Qi Tian was now nearly eleven years old. For Qian Renxue, however, four years had gone by.
Over those four years, Qi Tian had watched her grow from a proud nine-year-old girl into a mature and calculating young woman. One by one, she eliminated or crippled the other sons of Emperor Xue Ye, securing her position as the undisputed crown prince.
With Dugu Bo's open support, even Xue Ye—though aware of her actions—had no choice but to acknowledge her as his heir.
If not for the fact that the Spirit Hall wasn't ready yet, Qian Renxue would've already staged her own version of the Xuanwu Gate Rebellion from one of Qi Tian's stories.
That day, as soon as Qi Tian possessed Qian Renxue again, the familiar system prompt echoed in his mind:
[Congratulations, host. Target Qian Renxue's personality has been slightly altered. Possession mission completed.]
[Mission reward: [Divine Artifact] has been distributed.]
[After mission completion, the host will no longer be able to possess Qian Renxue. Please handle any resulting effects accordingly.]
"Huh? It's over already?" Qi Tian froze.
That had been a cultivation cheat with innate twentieth-rank soul power! And now he couldn't use it anymore?
During the past year, his soul power had risen from rank twenty-two all the way to rank twenty-nine. More than half of that progress came from cultivating while possessing Qian Renxue's body.
Without her, his cultivation speed would undoubtedly drop drastically.
Qi Tian subconsciously touched his chest.
The little steamed buns from before… have really grown into big ones now.
Qian Renxue's soul was curled up deep within her spiritual sea, too exhausted to even complain about Qi Tian's antics anymore.
Over the past four years, she had long lost count of how many times he had done this kind of thing. She'd simply gotten used to it.
But today, something felt different—Qi Tian's grip was stronger than usual, and it actually hurt a little.
"Ghost Uncle, what are you doing?" Qian Renxue protested.
"Ah—sorry, I lost in thought for a moment," Qi Tian said, quickly snapping out of his daze.
Regaining his focus, he loosened his hold and said softly,
"Xue'er, this will probably be the last time I borrow your body."
"Ghost Uncle, are you serious?" Qian Renxue asked, her voice trembling slightly—she couldn't tell whether she felt relieved or… reluctant.
Qi Tian nodded.
"Of course. I'll be returning to my original world soon."
"Your original world? You mean… the world from your stories?" she asked curiously.
Qi Tian didn't answer, nor did he deny it.
What he meant wasn't another realm—just his own body back in the Douluo Continent. But if Qian Renxue wanted to misunderstand, so be it.
Feeling his silence, Qian Renxue thought he was simply reluctant to part with her.
"Ghost Uncle," she said softly, "can you tell me your name and what you look like? Maybe one day, I'll visit your world to find you."
Because of the stories Qi Tian had told her, her horizons had long since expanded beyond the Douluo Continent. She truly believed that beyond the heavens, there were even stronger beings—and as a result, much of her former arrogance had faded.
If she were to meet Tang San again now, she wouldn't hold back. After all, there would always be equals—and countless rivals—above the God Realm itself.
"My name and appearance, huh…"
Qi Tian hesitated. He wasn't sure if this was a parallel world or simply an earlier point in his own world's timeline. He'd spent the past year secluded in the forest, training in silence and ignoring everything beyond his cultivation.
'Forget it,' he thought. 'I haven't done anything shameful anyway—no harm in telling her.'
Qi Tian stood up, walked toward a mirror, and activated his Soul Bone's wisdom ability—transforming into his true appearance.
It was, coincidentally, also the ability of his first soul skill. He had mastered it long ago, so the transformation took only an instant.
"Xue'er, my name is Qi Tian. And this… is what I really look like."
The mirror reflected the image of a young man with sharp brows, a high nose bridge, and eyes that shone like stars.
Ever since his Blue Silver King martial soul had awakened, his already decent looks had become even more striking. Yet, thanks to his True Dragon Physique, there was also a certain firmness and strength to him—he didn't look delicate or feminine in the slightest.
"You… you're so young?" Qian Renxue stared at the reflection, her mind blank.
All this time, she had imagined Qi Tian as an old, wise uncle—someone like her late father, Qian Xunji. His constant guidance and patient lectures… she had taken them as a father's gentle care.
Only now did she realize—Qi Tian was just a young man, barely older than her!
The thought of how, over these four years, he had "massaged her chest muscles" every day suddenly made her imagination run wild.
Her cheeks burned crimson. This is so embarrassing!
That faint affection she had never dared to name… suddenly began to shift into something else.
"What's wrong? I can't be young?" Qi Tian asked with a teasing smile.
"Hmph! You should've told me sooner!" Qian Renxue pouted. "I've been calling you 'Uncle' for four whole years—you've been taking advantage of me this entire time!"
—
End of Chapter