In a boundless desert, rarely visited by humans, no one knew there was an invisible magic barrier.
Passing through this barrier, there was a forest several hundred miles in circumference, surrounded by a circle of peculiar, aggressive plants. With an external barrier and internal plant encirclement, the sense of security was maximized.
“Phew…”
Aiersi puffed out a breath. She was the owner of this barrier, but ironically, her strength within it was the weakest (on the surface).
Suddenly, a silver-white figure darted out from the grass beside her, embracing her from behind. It was a beast-eared girl with silver beast ears and long, straight silver-white hair, holding a wreath made of fresh flowers.
“Yin Lin, you’re being mischievous again.”
“Master, I made you a wreath, try it on!” she said, placing the wreath on Aiersi’s head. The wreath fit perfectly, but her fluffy fox tail was extremely restless.
“Stop messing around, and also, keep your tail still!”
Aiersi wasn't ticklish, but the tail was scratching some embarrassing places.
“No way, I want to play with Master! I’m so bored, come play with me!” Yin Lin whined.
Aiersi helplessly picked up Yin Lin, who was only half her height, held her in front, stroked her head, and looked at her kindly. After all, she was only nine years old. When Aiersi found her in the deep mountains, she was only three. Aiersi brought her back and raised her personally, so she regarded Aiersi as the most important person.
This barrier was so large that it contained more than just the two of them. Behind them were dense villages, and at the center of the barrier was a tall mansion, which was where Aiersi worked and lived. All the wooden houses were made of intertwined branches and tree roots, a purely natural construction.
Aiersi was not actually from this world. Of course, her original name was not this, nor was she in the form of a little loli she was now.
She had transmigrated from another world. As for why she turned into a girl, she wasn't clear. She woke up as a little loli with long, light blue hair and blue eyes. Her original height of 1.8 meters had become about 1.5 meters, which she found very hard to accept.
Before transmigrating, her original name was Barund. Prior to this, she had experienced a three-year-long war. She had been a king, but that war had made her lose everything, and her enemy was a disciple she had carefully taught. However, Aiersi did not hate him.
The reason she didn't hate her disciple was that his character had always been kind and straightforward, but one day he went out and never returned.
Fifty years passed, and he returned, but it was to destroy her country.
For some unknown reason, he had been infected by a strange power, the instigator of all this—the Dark Source.
The Dark Source was a strange power; when it attached to any living creature, it would make them lose their true self, become evil, and constantly kill to gain more power. But her disciple hated this thing even more than she did, so most of the reason should have been man-made. As for who or what the reason was, she didn't have time to investigate. Aiersi would not casually kill her disciple; she had exclusive methods to restrain the Dark Source, an experience gained from three years of war.
With her country destroyed, she was fortunate to transmigrate into a parallel world. This world was largely similar to her original world. When she transmigrated, she vaguely heard someone say something to her, only remembering some general points—it was a hint from a god. But she didn't understand why the god would help her.
As Aiersi recalled, her gaze suddenly shifted to the grass beside her, and she sighed helplessly: “Zi Ming, come out, stop hiding.”
From the grass beside them, a demon stood up. Aside from a pair of horns on his head and somewhat dark skin, he was essentially no different from a human, dressed in a purple-black tuxedo.
He wore a smile, but Aiersi did not give him a kind look: “Can you stop pestering me?” As she spoke, she picked up Yin Lin.
“That won’t do.”
The demon said this somewhat arrogantly, making Aiersi frown.
Aiersi pulled a candy from her pocket, popped it into the drooling Yin Lin’s mouth, and put her down to play.
After Yin Lin left, Aiersi looked at Zi Ming indifferently: “You’ve been pestering me for ten years since I transmigrated. Can’t you change your personality?”
“Change just because you say so? How is that possible?”
“You, you’re incorrigible. You, Xiao Huang, Chang Ci, and I all transmigrated together. The other two are fine, but why did only you change?”
“What’s wrong with me?” he asked shamelessly.
Aiersi looked at him strangely: “You’re so perverted…”
The air was silent for a few seconds, then Zi Ming’s lips curved into a smile: “I don’t think so. You know my personality, I’m a loli-con, and there’s something even more important…”
Aiersi’s eyelid twitched, feeling a bit uneasy. She knew her strength was far less than before she transmigrated, but strangely, the strength of Zi Ming and the others hadn’t changed at all, and she had turned into a little loli, which made her restless.
“What exactly about me attracts you? And don’t forget, I’m originally a man.”
Zi Ming, however, was not afraid in the slightest. He took a few steps forward, hooked Aiersi’s chin, and they looked at each other. The atmosphere was a bit…
“Before was before, now is now, understand? Master, you are not who you used to be. Your current appearance will remain this way no matter what, and your strength is weak. Isn’t this just seducing me?”
Zi Ming gently pinched her little cheek, his expression unreadable, giving Aiersi an urge to hit him.
“Who… who’s seducing you?”
Aiersi slapped Zi Ming’s hand away, her face slightly flushed. Ever since she became a little loli, some of her behaviors had become a bit strange. In that moment, she was clearly very angry, but her chest felt warm, and her face unconsciously flushed. And Zi Ming was always like this, making her feel helpless. Who would have thought he was thousands of years old before?
“By the way, Master, when are you going to wear some clothes a girl should wear? Isn’t it hot wearing this robe all day?” Zi Ming scrutinized the light blue robe Aiersi was wearing, his expression a bit disappointed.
“None of your business… skirts and such, I’m not used to them. The key is, with you here, I wouldn’t dare even more.”
Aiersi’s expression was evasive. She really wasn’t used to it, but the key problem was Zi Ming. She hadn’t tried it secretly, but it felt chilly down there, and she always felt like something would leak out, never feeling safe. And even before she went out, she felt like someone was secretly watching.
“Hehe…” Zi Ming laughed infatuatedly. In the distance, a sound of rushing wind came, and a giant rock, dozens of meters large, flew straight towards him, hitting him on the head.
“Boom…”
A huge impact spread out, sending sand flying everywhere, but it just missed Aiersi. Aside from her, a large pit was formed here.
“Here we go again, Xiao Huang, go easy on him.”
Aiersi gave a faint smile, and a golden-yellow figure flashed out. She wore a yellow gown, and her figure was only that of an 8-year-old, but Aiersi knew she had lived for hundreds of years.
She clenched her small hand into a fist, her golden curly hair blown by a powerful aura, and the golden wings and wasp tail on her back buzzed.
“Zi Ming, honestly tell me, did you steal my honey again?”
Xiao Huang looked at Zi Ming, who was pinned under the giant rock, with an indifferent expression, her small mouth licking the curved stinger on her arm.
“Ahem hehe…” A strange laugh came out, and the giant rock shattered into pieces out of thin air. Zi Ming stood there unharmed.
“How can you call it stealing? I took it openly in front of you. To avoid disturbing your sleep, I kindly didn’t wake you up.”
Xiao Huang’s veins bulged after hearing this: “You… fail to flirt with Master every day, and now you steal my honey. Have you thought about how you want to die?”
“No, but you need to calm down. Have a candy to calm down first,” Zi Ming said, rummaging through his pocket.
Xiao Huang originally didn’t want to strike (seeing that Zi Ming still had some conscience, even though he treated her like a child), but the thing he pulled out made her face sink again…
“Oh, you… you used my honey to make candy to coax children? You’re finished!”
Xiao Huang’s eyes flared with murderous intent, and she instantly pounced.
“Candy is just for…”
Before Zi Ming could finish speaking, Xiao Huang had already flashed behind him, and the curved stinger on her hand stabbed him in the butt. Following his scream, Aiersi quietly left the scene.
“Phew… these two, one is fine, but the other really needs an injection to cure his illness.”
After leaving, Aiersi looked back and let out a long breath. In her previous life, although Zi Ming was a demon, under her previous guidance, he didn’t develop for the worse, but he did develop some strange quirks.
Just then, Yin Lin appeared from nowhere, pouncing into Aiersi’s arms, looking at her with sparkling eyes.
“Master, Sister Xiao Huang and Brother Zi Ming are fighting again, aren’t you going to stop them?”
“Don’t worry about him. He did something wrong, and Xiao Huang is teaching him a lesson.”
“Eh? Is Brother Zi Ming always the one who makes mistakes? Is he that mischievous?”
“That’s right, so don’t be like him, you’ll turn bad,” Aiersi said, picking up Yin Lin and gently pinching her little face.
“Turn bad? So Zi Ming is a bad guy? Then why doesn’t Master punish him?”
“He’s just a bit too mischievous, but he’s not a bad guy…”
“Mischievous, I’m different, I just like to stick to you,” Yin Lin said with an innocent smile.
Aiersi gave a wry smile in response, “Whatever. Just don’t be like him when you grow up. Also, you should learn to be independent. I can’t always be by your side sometimes.”
“Aren’t you always here now?”
“…”
Aiersi sighed and turned to walk towards the village behind her. As she walked along the path, many “people” greeted her. These were either elves or shape-shifting magical beasts, and there were quite a few types, of course, some that hadn’t shape-shifted.
Despite this, Aiersi was still the weakest here.
But no one resisted her, because not only was she protected by Zi Ming, Xiao Huang, and Chang Ci, who were all incredibly strong, but no one else dared to touch a hair on her head.
However, these elves and magical beasts did not fear her; it seemed their relationship with Aiersi was already very close, making it feel like people in a village interacting normally.
But this was not the case ten years ago.
Most of these were brought back by Zi Ming, and Aiersi had been in this world for over ten years. Zi Ming always brought them back in droves, and because she was human, none of them listened to her at first.
Aiersi, before she transmigrated, had raised tens of millions of magical beasts and elves. Zi Ming was the leader of those magical creatures back then, so he had an occupational habit.
Aiersi, on the other hand, let Zi Ming do as he pleased to get him to calm down, but... she couldn't just ignore it, but if she did...
From the first batch of magical beasts brought back until now, over ten years later, she had died countless times. One could say that her current strength, allowing her to become the master of this barrier, was also an accident.
As for why she was still alive, it was because she possessed Undead recognized by heaven and earth. Unless it was a fatal curse, she couldn't die. But in other words, if she didn't have Undead, she wouldn't have survived until now.
Fortunately, after ten years of living together, they also developed trust in Aiersi and understood her character. From initially trying to kill her every time they saw her, it had changed to how it was now.
They all willingly signed contracts with Aiersi, becoming her dependents.
Initially, those magical creatures were countless times puzzled as to why Zi Ming and the others would obey the commands of a little girl whose strength was tens of millions of times weaker than theirs. Now they understood that everything about Zi Ming and the others came from her, which made them completely submit.
Soon, Aiersi arrived at the center of the village, which was where the mansion was located.
The mansion was surrounded by a wooden fence entwined with various flowers. In front of it was a plaza with a huge Magic Array carved into the ground. In the center was a pillar formed by intertwined tree roots, topped with a strange, colorful lotus in a closed state. It only bloomed at night, offering a unique sight.
After a long time...
"Pfft..."
Aiersi looked at Zi Ming, who had come to find her, and almost burst out laughing.
His clothes were perfectly fine, but one could see the bulging skin underneath, covered in large and small bites. His face was okay, but it looked just like a pig's head.
"If you want to laugh, go ahead. It doesn't hurt or itch me anyway."
Because of these bites, Zi Ming's voice also became somewhat comical, like someone speaking with their face covered.
Aiersi composed herself, "I'm not laughing at how you look now, but at how you've become immune to stings. No wonder you're not afraid of Xiao Huang killing you. The first time you provoked her, you came crying to me..."
She said, looking at Zi Ming with a teasing expression.
Zi Ming didn't say anything; he just raised his hand, and a healing spell appeared. Wherever it passed, the bites on his body quickly disappeared. He looked around and whispered:
"Where's Yin Lin?"
"Sleeping..."
"Master, it's been over ten years, are you still planning to stay cooped up here? Don't forget the hint the gods gave you."
"I know, the gods said that this world is largely similar to our previous one, but the patterns they use in this world will be different.
And they also said that two important people to me have also come to this world, and that finding them would tell me everything and what I need to do, but I still haven't figured it out."
"But that's no reason for you to stay cooped up here."
Zi Ming was very helpless. Although he understood that Aiersi had helped him teach magical beasts and elves a lot over the past ten years, besides that reason, she had another main reason...
"Master, have you finished reading the book the gods gave you?"
"Of course. I initially thought there was only one book. After casually flipping through it, it felt strange, and it turned out the last page of that book said: This is just the catalog..."
Aiersi hadn't forgotten that there was a storage spell at the back of that book. When she saw the mountain of books piled inside, she completely despaired.
Those books were to help her understand this world (excluding history). From those books, she learned about the power distribution and professional divisions of this world. Among humans, there were various professions, divided into five levels: A, B, C, D, and E, with each level having A, B, and C stages.
Those above A-level were called the strongest. The strongest had different titles for different professions and were divided into five stages. Breaking through each stage would grant them world-destroying power.
The strength of Zi Ming, Xiao Huang, and Chang Ci, the three magical beasts, was at the third stage of the strongest. The weakest magical beast in the barrier was around C-level (except for some newly born small magical beasts), while her strength was at DA-level. However, before transmigration, her strength was at demigod.
As for why her strength was so low after coming to this world, it wasn't that she didn't try to become stronger. It was because after coming to this world, no matter how she tried to become stronger, the magic power in her body remained unchanged, and her level stayed the same, as if something was suppressing it.
"Master... you're very troubled, aren't you? Ten years, oh no, nineteen years, and your strength hasn't grown at all. Magical creatures will die laughing."
"Enough, I don't want to talk about this..."
Zi Ming said this because the Magic Array beneath their feet was a Time Difference Magic. Ten days inside was equivalent to one day outside. They had stayed inside for ten years before coming out. As for this barrier... it was an accident. Aiersi was choosing some magic stones from her ring when Zi Ming accidentally dropped one of them. It was a huge barrier for protecting a City-state, and it formed upon landing. She had given him a good beating then.
Aiersi knew she was weak, but she also had many heaven-defying spells. Although her strength was weak, with these spells, she could compare to people several times stronger. Moreover, she had a heaven-defying ability to absorb surrounding power for her own use, which resulted in her magic power always being at its peak. Of course, this ability could be controlled.
"I just love seeing you angry."
Zi Ming looked at the pouting and angry Aiersi with a strange smile, as if this was what he desired most.
Aiersi was fuming, but she was also helpless. However, she could abuse him, she just didn't want to.
How ridiculous... she was very weak, yet she could abuse him...
"Speaking of which, Master, you are the weakest in the barrier, but that's just your superficial strength. I know your strength is very strong, so... it's time to unlock the hand and foot rings you've been wearing for over ten years, isn't it?"
Zi Ming pointed at Aiersi's slender hands and feet, but there was clearly nothing there; it must have been invisible.
"What are you talking about? Impossible. My strength is very weak now, it's not like no one can beat me."
"No... you're a girl now, you don't need this! Those rings combined weigh nearly ten thousand kilograms. With such immense strength, who would believe you have that much power?"
Zi Ming looked at her tender, fair skin, devoid of any muscle, and fell into deep thought.
He knew those hand and foot rings were not simple. They started at only five kilograms and would become heavier over time. After wearing them for over ten years, Aiersi's strength had reached a terrifying level; even C-level magical beasts couldn't withstand a single punch from her.
"My last bottom line is no cross-dressing, and my strength cannot be less. Only my appearance has changed, my heart hasn't. If I truly become a delicate woman, then I'm really beyond saving."
"You're already beyond saving..."
Zi Ming covered his face, unsure what to say.
"I plan to go out and find the other two people, but it might be difficult to bring them back here."
"Uh..."
Zi Ming pondered for a moment, "Indeed, besides you, the magical beasts here basically don't trust other humans."
"I've finished reading the golden little yellow book given by the celestial beings. It doesn't describe the patterns of this world's markings, and the elves and magical beasts here simply don't believe I don't know this.
I don't know it at all, but they've learned most of my things. I don't understand why they consider this ancient patterning."
"At least they didn't recognize that you transmigrated here."
Zi Ming whispered.
"Even if I said it, it probably wouldn't help, because it's too absurd."
"So you plan to go out and explore?"
"Yes, I can't just stay here forever, can I? I'll find an academy to study first and research the patterns of this world."
"However, the power within you is a bit..."
"Are you talking about this?"
Aiersi said, raising and opening her hand. A dark red mass of power suddenly appeared in her palm, emitting a bloodthirsty and murderous aura.
"You didn't have this before, you know."
"I don't know what it is. It's a power that surged into my body when I hadn't woken up after transmigrating. It seems to have become a power I can control."
"Won't people discover this?"
"No, it's under my control and currently very docile, but I don't know what will happen. I don't know if the gods did it."
"Nine times out of ten it was them, it's just unknown whether this thing is good or bad."
Zi Ming affirmed.
"Forget it, as long as it's under my control, it's fine..."
Aiersi didn't care. This power hadn't stirred for over ten years, and she didn't know what it was for, but every night when she was sound asleep, she would always hear some sounds, as if teaching her something. These familiar feelings made her know it was real.
Zi Ming said to himself, "In that case, I know a place. There's a City there, and in that City, there's a Magic Academy. But before that, I need to find Ye Feng."
"Let's go take a look together."
Aiersi smiled, and a light blue magic power appeared in her hand. A Teleportation array manifested, enveloping the two of them. After a flash, the two disappeared from their original spot.