I'm The Lowest-Ranking Daughter Of A Martial Arts Villain (2 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 2

10th life.

This is the number of times I have lived as Ju Na Rin.

In the most recent life, I roamed about as a high-level orthodox martial artist, cutting down Demon Sect followers left and right—but that hadn’t always been the case.

In my very first life, Na Rin truly was just an ordinary orphan girl.

The only unusual thing about her was her unluckily inauspicious white hair, which she had been born with.

Being an orphan was already pitiful enough—on top of that, having white hair?

Wishing for an easy life would’ve been greedy, indeed.

In truth, whenever anything went wrong, Na Rin was unjustly beaten, blamed as “that unlucky white-haired girl.”

So it wasn’t strange at all that she’d impulsively set off on a journey upon hearing rumors of a pharmacy in Xi’an selling a dye to darken one’s hair.

It was around that time

that the Demon Sect’s army appeared in Xi’an without warning, brutally slaughtering everyone in sight—

the Xi’an Blood Massacre.

The Xi’an Blood Massacre also served as the opening shot of the Great Demon Sect War, which would rage on for more than a decade.

Na Rin ended her first life right at that very scene.

At the thin, fleeting end of her short life, Na Rin realized something astonishing.

“The fury of the Wind God must be truly fearsome. Alongside the north wind came the Demon Sect’s Dharma Protector Vaisravana, whose forces swallowed up Xi’an’s main thoroughfare in a single gulp.”

“…Seosaeng Sword God?”

She realized that the world she was living in was none other than the wuxia novel titled *Seosaeng Sword God*.

“Right… there was such a novel.”

Which lifetime’s memory was this?

She felt as if she’d read that very novel which formed her world.

A hazy recollection, glimpsed through a small window in a gray-toned world.

“But what was it about again?”

It felt like she’d read it—and also like she hadn’t.

While everything remained vague and indistinct, a scroll suddenly appeared before Na Rin, unrolling with a soft rustle.

[LIFE OVER] [*You met an untimely death at a young age. Would you like to live again?… (Yes/No)]

These were completely unfamiliar characters.

Before this, Na Rin had been illiterate—she couldn’t even read at all.

Yet these strange words flowed naturally into her mind,

as if she’d always known them.

As if entranced, Na Rin chose “Yes.”

“…!”

In the next instant, she stood atop a cliff—

right before her late mother’s tomb,

exactly as she’d looked in childhood.

“Ha… hahaha…”

It was utterly absurd.

Her lived memories remained intact, yet time itself had reversed.

But her astonishment lasted only a moment—Na Rin’s clock, rewound to the past, began ticking forward once more,

as if giving her another chance to rewrite that first regretful, incomplete life—

a life that began in squalor, endured hardship, and ended pointlessly.

Thus began her second lifetime.

Na Rin devoted her entire life to reading every wuxia novel in existence, hoping to find the one that formed the backdrop of this world.

But she never found it—and ultimately died under the blade of a mountain bandit who coveted her heavy cart of books. That bandit had been a martial artist who’d fled into the mountains to escape the Demon Sect.

Third life: “Surely, even if the whole world’s gone over to the Demon Sect, longevity is the ultimate goal!” Convinced of this, Na Rin fled far south to Guangdong to evade the Demon Sect’s attacks.

She ended up becoming a rather famous courtesan in Hangzhou—but was unluckily assassinated when one of her clients turned out to be a Demon Sect spy.

Fourth life: “Even if the whole world is under the Demon Sect’s control, the imperial palace must be safe!” Driven by that vague belief, Na Rin became a palace maid in the harem—only to discover, to her shock, a Demon Sect follower among the eunuchs.

And so it went—fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth lives…

With each rebirth, Na Rin’s soul matured steadily, yet the end remained always the same:

an untimely death before turning thirty.

It was as if some distant being in the heavens kept telling her, “That path is wrong.”

Finally, Na Rin had no choice but to accept the inevitable truth.

“If this world truly is a wuxia novel, then I have no choice but to become a martial artist.”

So Na Rin headed for the Mount Hua Sect.

She chose this sect among countless others for three reasons.

First, it was one of the few renowned orthodox sects that had stood firmly against the Demon Sect until the end.

Second, it accepted disciples based solely on talent, regardless of background.

And third—it was close to her mother’s grave.

Honestly, that last reason mattered most.

Zhongyuan was disgustingly vast; picking a distant sect might waste years just traveling there.

So long as they’d accept her, no sect suited her better than Mount Hua.

And fortunately, Na Rin’s martial talent turned out to be nothing short of genius—beyond genius, even.

Perhaps it was simply how she’d been designed from the start, given that her world was based on a wuxia novel.

After that… well, you know the rest.

She trained diligently, became a formidable expert, fought hard in the war—but got betrayed from behind by our own elders and was reborn once again as a three-year-old.

“Status chime.”

Despite her clumsy speech, Na Rin’s single utterance summoned a scroll into midair.

Invisible to others, it was utterly real to her.

The scroll unfurled on its own the moment it appeared, filling her vision with text:

[Name: Ju Na Rin

Age: 3 years

Level: 1

Affiliation: None

Status: Hunger Stage 2, Exhaustion Stage 1, Grief Stage 5

Titles: Sprouting Seedling (+100% EXP gain), Unlucky White Hair (+20% chance others will avoid you on first meeting)

Alignment: Orthodox 100%

Inner Energy: 2.2 Jiazi

Martial Arts: Twenty-Four Plum Blossom Sword (Lv. 10), Drifting Fragrance (Lv. 10), Qin Na Grappling (Lv. 10) ▶ More

HP: 610 (Sturdy, Enduring, Tireless)

Strength: 460 (Strong, Punches Hard)

Speed: 715 (Blindingly Fast, Lightning-Quick)

Accuracy: 570 (Never Misses, Dead-Eye, Sharpshooter)

Intelligence: 179 (Brilliant)

Intuition: 420 (Keen, Sharp Instincts)

Charisma: 340 (Captivating, Adorable)

Sensibility: 420 (Stylish, Cultured, Combat-Savvy)

Aura: 1,009 (Spine-Chilling, Overwhelming, Extraordinary, Iron-Blooded)

Tip: Affiliation, Titles, and Status effects cannot be downloaded.

Tip: Only your highest stat from past lives is applied.

Tip: Unlearned skills will not appear.]

Na Rin grinned proudly at the status screen.

A bit uneven, perhaps—but these stats could hold their own against any prodigy in the world.

Exactly! This was how it should be. If everything reset completely every time she reincarnated, life would be unbearably hollow.

She calmly reviewed the fruits of her last arduous life.

“Huh? When did my Aura jump so high?”

The last Aura stat she remembered was around 400.

Now it was a staggering 1,009.

She didn’t check her status screen often, fearing others would think her strange—but this difference was just too extreme.

How could the Aura of Ju Na Rin—the ordinary white-haired orphan—exceed 1,000, when even Ju Na Rin, the supreme expert known as Blood Plum Blossom who once dominated Zhongyuan, had only 400? That made no sense!

“Notification chime.”

Another scroll appeared before Na Rin in response to her voice.

[*Successfully intimidated 50+ peak experts → Stat increased (Aura +100)] [*Successfully intimidated 10+ transcendent experts → Stat increased (Aura +100)] [*Successfully intimidated 1 transcendent expert → Stat increased (Aura +10)… Duplicate messages suppressed.] [*Successfully intimidated 1 peak expert → Stat increased (Aura +5)… Duplicate messages suppressed.]

“Ah! So it all stacked up right before I died!”

She must’ve missed these notifications—she’d had combat alerts disabled during battle.

Still, considering she’d gathered about a hundred somewhat influential orthodox martial artists (even if they were mostly deadweight) and shouted, “What’ll you do if I’m the Heavenly Demon?”—this stat boost was only natural.

Na Rin clicked her tongue, lost in thought about her past life.

“Those clueless old fools…”

She knew full well the Great Demon Sect War was nearly impossible to win.

After living ten lives, she’d never once seen the martial world defeat the Demon Sect.

But who in their right mind would think it acceptable to just hand over Blood Plum Blossom—their only meaningful remaining asset—to the enemy?

“Now that I think about it… this is the first time I’ve chosen to die.”

After her death, did the Demon Sect truly keep their promise?

Did the Martial Alliance Chief properly care for Grand Master Hyeon Baek’s remaining years?

Those matters were out of her hands now. It’d be easier just to assume things turned out fine.

Still… if there was one thing she couldn’t let go—

“I won’t let Mount Wudang and Mount Hua off the hook.”

Na Rin ground her teeth, thinking of Cheong Heo of Wudang and Hyeon Woon of Mount Hua.

Now that she thought about it, she was even angrier.

What? Just because I have the same damn white hair as the Demon Sect Leader?

If there’s any connection at all, you think I’ll just sit back and watch?!

Crack! Ptooey!

“Fucking bastards.”

No matter how secluded those backroom elders were, could they really be that stupid?

If I’d truly been a Demon Sect follower, they all should’ve lost their heads long ago!

“…Wait.”

Na Rin’s jet-black eyes sparkled.

This wasn’t a joke.

“If we’re doomed to lose anyway… wouldn’t siding openly with the Demon Sect and ending this war quickly result in fewer casualties than dragging it out pointlessly on the Alliance’s side?”

But before that—

who even started this damn war in the first place?

“Filthy Demon Sect bastards!”

Na Rin clenched her tiny, rice-ball-sized fists with all her might, grinding them together fiercely.

“No—calm down. Think this through again.”

Right. The Demon Sect started this war. Not the martial world.

Then perhaps only the Demon Sect could truly stop it—or prevent it from ever beginning.

“What if I joined the Demon Sect…”

Na Rin lifted her head and looked back at her status screen.

These stats were more than enough to secure a place anywhere—

a bit uneven, sure, but the Demon Sect was survival of the fittest. Strength alone could get her far.

“This is worth trying. No—it’s something I must do.”

Na Rin hardened her resolve.

This life, she would stop the war from within the Demon Sect itself.

And this time—

“I’ll live happily! At least once!!”

Her voice, though belonging to a three-year-old, erupted with uncharacteristic fury—

Ding!

[*Major branching path updated. “The Demon Sect Leader’s Lost Youngest Daughter” has been unlocked.]

“Huh?”

What’s this?

Na Rin couldn’t tear her eyes from the newly added line on her notification scroll.

“The Demon Sect Leader’s… lost youngest daughter?”

No. It can’t be.

The scrolls had never lied to her before—but this time, it had to be a lie.

There was no way she could be the Demon Sect Leader’s daughter.

It just couldn’t be!

“Stop it! Stop it, I said!”

Na Rin hurled the notification scroll away and sank to the ground, collapsing where she stood.

Her head spun; her mind went blank.

How could this make any sense?

Who had killed her all these times? Who had chased her relentlessly through life after life, no matter how far she fled, placing a period at the end of each of her ten existences?

And now they were telling her—

“I’m a filthy Demon Sect bastard? And the Sect Leader’s daughter, no less?”

She could almost hear Cheong Heo of Wudang and Hyeon Woon of Mount Hua laughing:

“Hahaha! I knew it! I always knew you were a filthy Demon Sect follower!”

“And we kept telling you your white hair matched theirs exactly—but you wouldn’t listen! Serves you right!”

Damn it. Damn it all!