Lin Lumi is a college student from the twenty-first century who transmigrated into the world of a xianxia novel titled "Contention." She inhabits the body of the neglected Third Miss of the Marquis of Anding’s estate. For ten years, she has lived under the watchful eye of a system that demands she fulfill a specific role as cannon fodder to earn her return to her original world. Her mission is to visit an abandoned earth god temple in the suburbs on her eighteenth birthday, where she is supposed to be killed by a demon. This event is designed to allow the novel’s male protagonist, Wei Lingfeng, to arrive, slay the demon, and obtain a fortuitous encounter that will launch his cultivation journey. Lin Lumi has spent a decade preparing for this final act, enduring a cold and indifferent family while maintaining a rivalry with Mu Heng, the Second Young Master of the Prime Minister’s family, who possesses a top-tier lightning spiritual root.
On the night of her mission, Lin Lumi decides to take one final act of revenge against Mu Heng before her death. Having spent ten years in constant conflict with him, she writes a lengthy, elaborate love letter intended solely to disgust him and haunt his thoughts. She delivers the letter to him before heading to the temple. However, upon her arrival, the snake demon that was supposed to kill her is unexpectedly slain by Mu Heng himself. The system declares the mission failed, stripping her of the opportunity to return home. Instead, it offers a new, more difficult path: she must assist the male lead in protecting the common people and facilitate his relationship with the female lead. A bonus reward of one hundred million is added to the original prize for completing these tasks.
Lin Lumi retrieves the demon’s core, the Hunyuan Ring, which is essential for the male lead’s future success, and returns to the capital. The next morning, she is summoned to the palace by the Emperor. Mu Heng, having read the love letter, misinterprets her intentions and uses the imperial audience to his advantage. He petitions the Emperor to bestow a marriage decree upon them, claiming deep affection. Lin Lumi attempts to explain that the letter was a prank, but the Emperor and their parents, eager to secure a powerful alliance, accept Mu Heng’s declaration. Lin Lumi is forced to accept the engagement, though she negotiates a delay until after she completes her cultivation at the Dongling Ling Shu Sect.
Lin Lumi travels to the Dongling Ling Shu region for the entrance examinations, accompanied by Hua Tian, the daughter of a General. Upon arrival, she learns that the prestigious Lingling Sect has established a new Mysterious Law Hall, led by a handsome and aloof master who resembles a supporting character she admired in the original novel. During the assessment, Lin Lumi witnesses Wen Jing, the fake princess of the Ming Kingdom and an antagonist in the story, bullying Jiang Yunong, the novel’s female lead. Lin Lumi intervenes, using her beast-taming abilities to threaten Wen Jing into retreat. She then befriends Jiang Yunong, ensuring the female lead’s safety and securing her own position within the plot. The story concludes with Lin Lumi achieving a perfect score on the written examination, drawing attention from both allies and enemies as she navigates her new role in the cultivation world.
