2: Chapter 2 First Investment, Zhuge Family's Concubine's Daughter

Holy crap!

Those friends of his were right; he, Su Chen, really did have the destiny of a protagonist.

It's just that this golden finger... isn't it arriving a bit too late?

So underhanded.

Even more underhanded than that Master of Five Weapons from last night's ranked match!

Don't ask; if you ask again, I'll add Super Armor during the ultimate.

["Host, would you like to choose to become an 'angel investor'?"]

["Tip: You aren't completely dead yet. If you're five seconds later, two staff members in black and white clothes will come to take you..."]

"That's the freaking Black and White Impermanence!"

Su Chen said irritably.

["Whoa, you should have said so earlier."]

["Detected Host's hesitation. Considering the Host is about to die, the first investment is being forcibly initiated..."]

"Talk about a forced sale."

Although Su Chen was dissatisfied, he had no choice.

He still had some attachments in this world; he really wasn't ready to be mindlessly fed Meng Po's Soup.

[Investment draw complete.]

[Investment World 1: Fantasy Immortal Dynasty, Great Qian.]

[Investment Target: Great Qian's future Female Prime Minister, Zhuge Jinyu.]

[Host Identity: A mist-covered ancient mirror.]

[Investment World 2: Martial Arts World, Great Ning.]

[Investment Target: Siren Girl, Aloof Sword Immortal.]

[Host Identity: A broken sword.]

[Investment World 3: Fantasy World, Hehuan Sect.]

[Investment Target: Hehuan Sect Saintess.]

[Host Identity: A purple, electrified, rod-like object with rounded ends.]

["Remaining investment worlds awaiting unlock..."]

["The Host only needs to nurture the investment targets—the Daughters of Heavenly Dao—into talents to obtain generous cultivation and extraordinary item rewards, as well as the chance to gain powerful Contracted Heroic Spirits and reach the pinnacle of life..."]

"Stop, stop, stop!"

Su Chen said irritably.

"Is there a more normal identity? I should at least become a person!"

["Sorry, Host. Subsequent worlds are currently locked and await further exploration by the Host to unlock other new investment targets..."]

["Detected Host's indecision. Randomly matching an investment target for the Host..."]

Seeing this, Su Chen quickly pressed Investment World 1.

No way!

If he ended up in Investment World 3, he really wasn't prepared to be the Hehuan Sect Saintess's 'Purple Soul-Cleanser'.

[Host confirmation complete.]

[Investment world confirming.]

[The Host will transmigrate into a mist-shrouded mirror. The investment target needs to wipe it daily, and only after ten years will they be able to see the Host's face clearly.]

[Then...]

[Investment No. 001 officially begins!]

...

Fantasy Realm, Great Qian Immortal Dynasty, Zhuge Family.

In the silent main hall, a white-haired young girl knelt.

Zhuge Jinyu, the third concubine-born daughter of the current head of the Zhuge Clan.

Seated on the grand chairs before her were none other than her biological father, Zhuge Clan Head Zhuge Yuan, and the Zhuge Family Matriarch, Murong Yue.

Around her stood many members of the Zhuge Clan.

In their eyes were sympathy and pity, but most were filled with spite and ridicule.

"Zhuge Jinyu."

"Tomorrow, the second young master of the Wang Family from the Great Wei Dynasty, Wang Teng, will arrive at our Zhuge Family to discuss the marriage. Are you aware of this?"

The stunningly beautiful girl knelt in silence, only weeping wordlessly.

The candlelight flickered in the hall, reflecting in her swollen eyes.

The whispered words of the surrounding clansmen pierced her heart like needles.

"This jinx caused her brother's death. That Wang Family really isn't picky."

"Exactly. Our Zhuge Family has been ruined by her."

"But I heard that Wang Teng isn't any good either. He's a playboy; three concubines in his manor alone were played to death."

"No need to pity her. Although her talent is barely passable, she's just a little girl. To sever the future of our Zhuge Family... she deserves this."

"Zhuge Jinyu, step aside for now."

Zhuge Yuan sighed. Zhuge Jinyu slowly rose and stood to the side.

How could this be?

Why did a single instance of her being naughty and wanting to go hunting lead to encountering a rank-seven magical beast—a Sabertooth Tiger—in the back mountains?

And her elder brother, Zhuge Liang, was torn in half by the beast just to save her.

Why?

Why did the Heavens take away the future head of the Zhuge Family, her brother who was a genius of his generation, instead of her?

Though she had just reached her Hair-pinning Ceremony, she knew that all the hopes of the vast Zhuge Family rested on her brother, Zhuge Liang.

The Zhuge Family was one of the few families in the Fantasy Realm skilled in the art of divining heavenly secrets. For centuries, the head of the Zhuge Family had always been the prime choice for the position of Great Qian's Prime Minister.

This tradition began when Great Qian was still the orthodox Immortal Dynasty of the world.

It had continued until today's era, where the world was split into three and Great Qian was exhausted.

It could be said that every generation's eldest son of the Zhuge lineage bore an unimaginable responsibility.

And her brother had lived up to expectations. Not only had his cultivation broken through to the early Nascent Soul stage at a young age, but his divine calculation skills surpassed any previous family head.

People praised him one after another, saying the Zhuge Family's prestige was growing and there was hope for Great Qian's northern expedition and revival.

But all of this was ruined by her naughtiness.

Thinking of this, Zhuge Jinyu cried even more bitterly.

With the image of herself dragging her brother's cold body in her mind, she unconsciously pulled a mirror from beneath her robes.

Her father had given it to her on the day of her Hair-pinning Ceremony.

He said it was a Consecrated Ancient Mirror gifted to their family by a high monk friend, capable of blessing the Zhuge Family with prosperity.

The mirror was covered in strange white mist, unable to reflect her appearance at all.

But her father had specifically warned her not to wipe the mirror with anything else, or the effect would vanish.

It was very strange.

But hearing that this mirror was an auspicious object, she chose to keep it with her at all times.

But at this moment, Zhuge Jinyu's mind was filled with her brother's cold corpse and the family's ridicule; she couldn't care less about such things.

She unconsciously used her sleeve to wipe the surface of the mirror.

In her ears, she could still hear Murong Yue's sarcasm and her father's disappointment.

"I told you long ago that girls are useless! If you had just stayed home and waited for marriage, would it have come to this?"

"I see it now; this little girl is a born low-life, a loser, a jinx!"

"I met the second young master of the Wang Family from the Great Wei Dynasty in the north; he's indeed not bad. Although he's a bit of a playboy, his family's power is immense..."

As the matriarch, Murong Yue was her brother's mother but not the mother of this concubine-born daughter, so she had always been harsh toward her.

"Sigh, now that our Zhuge Family has no capable descendants, we can only count on Jinyu to marry into a good family in exchange for some resources..."

What she didn't expect was that her father, who had always doted on her, would say such a thing.

It was clear that she had truly hurt her family deeply this time.

At this thought, she suddenly gripped her sleeve tightly, her nails digging into her palm.

Why?

Her elder sister was already a victim of political marriage, having married the Old Emperor of Great Qian, who was over thirty years older than her.

Now she was to follow in those footsteps?

Just because she was born a girl?

When her talent was clearly not inferior to her brother's at all!

Resentment and grievance surged up. She raised her sleeve and wiped the mirror surface fiercely, as if trying to shatter this suffocating fate.

The mist gradually dissipated.

Her movements suddenly froze.

Was she seeing things?

A hazy figure actually appeared in the mirror!

And she was certain that the figure was definitely not her!

How could she possibly have such a prominent Adam's apple?

Zhuge Jinyu quickly pressed the mirror to her chest and looked around.

Fortunately, no one noticed.

"Don't be afraid, little girl. I'm inside the mirror; they can't see me."

"They can't hear me talking to you either."

"Who... who are you?"

Zhuge Jinyu tremblingly closed the front of the mirror and took two steps back, her delicate body shivering.

No one answered.

Just as she rubbed her eyes and prepared to think about how to deal with the matriarch's forced marriage tomorrow...

In the silent room, that ethereal male voice spoke again.

"I've seen plenty of capital manipulation, but this is the first time I've seen it in a Fantasy World."

Before Su Chen could finish, his investment target let out a sharp, explosive scream.

"Aaaaah—there's a male ghost in the mirror!"

Trapped inside the mirror, Su Chen only felt a sense of helplessness.

This was his investment target, the so-called greatest prime minister of all time for Great Qian?

She just looked like a weak, ordinary little girl.

"How am I supposed to carry her..."

"Be quiet first and listen to me. I'm not a male ghost. Since when do male ghosts have such a pleasant voice?"

"I won't hurt you, and they can't find me. Look, even though you just screamed, they didn't notice anything unusual."

Hearing this, Zhuge Jinyu quieted down.

Her scream just now hadn't been quiet, but the surrounding clansmen, her father, and the matriarch didn't seem to react.

She opened the mirror again and examined it carefully.

The mist on the mirror hadn't been completely wiped away; only a portion was gone.

But she could still vaguely see that the figure in the mirror seemed to be a good-looking young man.

"Are... are you one of those old grandfathers in a ring?"

Her voice trembled as she recalled plots from certain storybooks about an old man in a ring guiding the protagonist to immortality.

"Strictly speaking, I am your angel investor, though you probably won't understand that."

The mist shifted, as if a gaze had landed on her face.

"Seeing that your talent is no worse than your brother's, do you want to make a deal?"

"Young lady, do you want to become stronger?"