After Transmigrating into a Novel, I Made a Comeback with the Male Side Character

Mu Li, a modern university student, transmigrates into the body of a tragic supporting character in a cultivation novel she had read before boarding a plane. In the story, this Mu Li was the fiancée of the male lead, Xuanyuan Yunfei, a rare genius who breaks off their engagement due to her inferior cultivation. After being rejected, the original Mu Li becomes obsessed with the heroine, Su Xuening, schemes against her, and is ultimately killed by Xuanyuan Yunfei. Upon waking in this new world, Mu Li realizes she has arrived before the plot begins. Determined to avoid her gruesome fate, she decides to sever ties with the male lead immediately. In the Mu family main hall, she calmly agrees to the annulment, returns her betrothal token, and refuses compensation, shocking Xuanyuan Yunfei and her own family. Her father, Mu Yuhan, the clan head, reprimands her impulsiveness but ultimately accepts the decision, confining her to her residence for a month to focus on cultivation.

During her confinement, Mu Li discovers she possesses exceptional comprehension and memory, allowing her to master cultivation manuals and alchemy with ease. She fuses a Sunheart Flame she purchased, enabling her to refine pills with high success rates. To make money, she sells her pills through a discreet shopkeeper, quickly accumulating wealth. While house-arrested, she catches a thief stealing her pills, only to find it is a tiny Treasure-Seeking Mouse named Duoduo. She contracts the spirit beast, which proves invaluable due to its ability to sense spiritual treasures. With Duoduo’s help, she locates a rare Purpleblood Vine at a mortal stall, which she purchases despite the male and female leads also wanting it. The vine accelerates her cultivation and Duoduo’s growth, allowing Mu Li to break through to Foundation Establishment in a single attempt, an event marked by spiritual omens that impress her family.

Upon reaching Foundation Establishment, Mu Li decides to enter the Cliff-Sea Secret Realm, a location crucial to the original plot where the leads gain significant advantages. She leaves Ling City secretly to avoid drawing attention, but encounters Fu Qingzhou, a supporting male character and rival to Xuanyuan Yunfei, who is gravely injured. He joins her carriage, and despite her attempts to remain distant, they travel together to Cliff-Sea City. Upon arrival, she finds Fu Qingzhou already conversing with Xuanyuan Yunfei and Su Xuening. Unwilling to engage in the tangled relationships or become fodder for gossip, Mu Li avoids them and explores the city alone. She meets a poor young boy who deduces she is an alchemist and asks for a Foundation Establishment Pill in exchange for guidance. Mu Li recognizes the potential in the boy and agrees to the trade, securing a protector as she prepares to enter the dangerous secret realm, aiming to carve her own path separate from the original protagonists.