The first round concluded swiftly. Aside from Shen Xiaoxiao, whom Fang Zhiyi had excluded from participating, everyone else took their turn—only to be instantly defeated.
Fang Zhiyi called them over and scolded them one by one.
"Master, may I... take my leave now?" Ren Xuan asked cautiously.
Fang Zhiyi waved him off. "Go on, but remember—no, wait, come back in a month. Sparring, you know."
"A month later?" Ren Xuan tensed. "This sparring business is..." He truly didn’t want to relive the feeling of being under the constant scrutiny of a Nascent Soul expert.
Fang Zhiyi grinned. "I think your suggestion for regular sparring is excellent. From now on, come every month. If you don’t, I’ll come find you."
"But, Master—"
"Scram!" With that single word, the crushing pressure of a Nascent Soul cultivator surged forth. Ren Xuan coughed up blood, clutching his chest as he staggered back.
"Senior Brother!" Shen Wanwan cried out in alarm, rushing forward with the others.
"Quit dawdling. Do you have any idea how busy I am?" Fang Zhiyi’s cheerful expression darkened in an instant.
Not daring to argue, Shen Wanwan and her group slunk away in defeat.
Fang Zhiyi then had his disciples change into matching uniforms. After inspecting them, he nodded in satisfaction.
"Now, it’s time for your second lesson."
"Master, we haven’t even had the first one yet," Jiang Leng pointed out.
Fang Zhiyi shot him a look. "The first lesson was just now—learning how pathetically weak you are."
The disciples fell silent.
"Did you cultivate immortality just to be trampled on by others?"
"No," Jiang Leng shook his head.
"Louder!"
"NO!"
"Good." Fang Zhiyi nodded approvingly. "Understanding your own limitations is a crucial lesson."
Jiang Leng nearly wept. Master, you didn’t have to let us get beaten up just to prove that. We already knew how weak we were.
Another disciple, however, perked up. "Master, does that mean we can become powerful cultivators too?" At those words, all the disciples turned hopeful eyes toward Fang Zhiyi.
Fang Zhiyi paused, then shook his head. "With your talent? Not a chance. The second lesson is about how to make the most of your weakness."
He stood up. "I’ll demonstrate now. Follow me."
Baffled, the disciples trailed behind him. Fang Zhiyi glanced back at them—bruised and battered, though thankfully without internal injuries, despite their opponents holding back.
Meanwhile, the Sect Leader was listening to Shen Wanwan’s report. Upon hearing that his disciple had been injured by Master Qingxu, he immediately prepared to demand an explanation—only for Fang Zhiyi to arrive first, leading a group of disciples.
Before the Sect Leader could react, Fang Zhiyi pointed at his disciples. "Sect Leader! Look at them! My disciples were beaten black and blue in a friendly spar. You must uphold justice for us!"
The Sect Leader’s gaze swept over the group—all bruised except for one young girl. His frown deepened as he glanced at Shen Wanwan.
Fang Zhiyi didn’t give her a chance to speak, instead demanding compensation outright.
"Compensation?" The Sect Leader gaped. Though unfamiliar with the term, he grasped its meaning.
"Ah, Sect Leader, you know how poor Qingxu Peak is. We can’t even afford medicine for these injuries. It breaks my heart as their master." Fang Zhiyi put on a pitiful expression.
The Sect Leader turned to Ren Xuan, who looked indignant—he hadn’t struck hard, nor dared to! And yet, he was the one who’d suffered internal injuries!
"About my second disciple..." the Sect Leader finally remembered.
"Oh heavens! What are we to do? My poor disciples, injured beyond my ability to heal!" Fang Zhiyi wailed, his Nascent Soul-level spiritual energy flaring erratically with his theatrics. He slammed a fist on the table. "This master has failed you!"
The millennia-old ebony table shattered into dust.
The Sect Leader was no fool, nor did he have the patience for Fang Zhiyi’s antics. Who would’ve thought that restoring his foundation would turn Master Qingxu into such a troublemaker—now extorting compensation with sheer seniority and power!
As Fang Zhiyi eyed a nearby vase, the Sect Leader hastily relented.
Once the spirit stones were handed over, Fang Zhiyi straightened up, gave a perfunctory bow, and swaggered out with his disciples in tow.
After they left, Ren Xuan couldn’t hold back. "Master, why let him act so shamelessly?"
The Sect Leader’s face darkened. "What else could I do? His current cultivation..." He paused, eyeing Ren Xuan. "And you—a core disciple, stooping to spar with those worthless outer disciples?"
Ren Xuan wilted under the reprimand. The Sect Leader scoffed. "The compensation will be deducted from your monthly allowance!" With that, he stormed off.
Shen Wanwan bowed apologetically. "I’m sorry, Second Senior Brother."
Ren Xuan forced a smile. "It’s fine." But inwardly, he was bleeding—the Sect Leader had given Fang Zhiyi a hefty sum. How many months would it take to repay that?
Rumors spread across Xuantian Sect that Qingxu Peak had been unusually busy. Yet when curious onlookers spied on them, they saw nothing extraordinary—just basic Foundation Establishment training and lectures from Master Qingxu.
Nothing noteworthy.
If only they’d dared to get closer, they might’ve heard Fang Zhiyi’s actual teachings.
"Forget the rest. What’s a sword cultivator? They pack a punch, sometimes enough to challenge those above their level. So when facing one, protect your vitals."
"Pill refiners? Excellent targets. Why? Because they’re weak. Perfect for greenhorns like you to practice on. Got it?"
A month passed in relative peace. The chores originally assigned to Qingxu Peak’s disciples were redistributed among other outer disciples.
Others occasionally crossed paths with Fang Zhiyi’s followers, now clad in uniforms reportedly designed by Master Qingxu himself—embroidered with the character "Qing." Though stylish, their cultivation remained pitifully low.
Whispers spread: Not even a powerhouse like Master Qingxu could change the fate of these hopeless cases.
Some even considered switching to his tutelage, only to be told he no longer accepted disciples—regardless of talent.
Two months later, Qingxu Peak’s disciples remained unchanged in strength, but their eyes had taken on a wolfish glint.
"Pill refining? Fine. By the rules, half the materials go to me," Lin Zhiyang, the head disciple of the Pill Refining Peak, said dismissively.
The disciple before him nodded. "Understood. I’ll prepare them, then?"
Lin Zhiyang waved him off. Once alone, he smirked. Pill refining is the life—no grueling cultivation, just concocting pills to ascend. And fools keep delivering materials to my doorstep.
Another disciple took the seat across from him.
"Pill refining? Wait six months. Can’t wait? Then scram."
But this one just smiled. "Senior Brother Lin, I’m not here for pills. I’m here to spar."
reezy rom-com) Good news: Jiang Liu is quite the ladies' man. Bad news: He’s lost his memory. Lying in a hospital bed, Jiang Liu listens to a parade of goddesses spouting "absurd claims," feeling like the world is one giant game of Werewolf. "Jiang Liu, I’m your first love." "Jiang Liu, you’re my boyfriend—she’s your ex." "Jiang Liu, we’re close friends who’ve shared a bed, remember?" "Jiang Liu, I want to have your baby." The now-lucid Jiang Liu is convinced this must be some elaborate scam... until someone drops the bombshell: "The day before you lost your memory, you confessed your feelings—and got into a relationship." Jiang Liu is utterly baffled. So... who the hell is his actual girlfriend?! ... Before recovering his memories, Jiang Liu must navigate this minefield of lies and sincerity, fighting to protect himself from these women’s schemes. But things spiral even further out of control as more people show up at his doorstep—each with increasingly unhinged antics. On the bright side, the memories he lost due to overwhelming trauma seem to be resurfacing. Great news, right? So why are they all panicking now?
esick Sect? Well, at least it's considered a respectable orthodox sect. Wait a minute— What kind of vibe are you all giving off? Shouldn’t this be a love-struck, romance-obsessed sect? Why does everyone here sound more like demonic cultivators? "Master, today he’s getting married. This disciple wishes to descend the mountain and crash the wedding, then toy with him to death right in front of his wife..." "Elder, I only got into your sect through connections, so why won’t you teach me anything?" "Because I also became an elder through connections." Thankfully, Su Ji was just an outer sect labor disciple. Surely, nothing too crazy would— "Junior Brother, you’ve broken through to Qi Refining. Once you sever your useless spiritual root, you can officially become an outer sect disciple." "The Great Dao is merciless. Don’t let a worthless spiritual root waste your essence and spirit, hindering your cultivation." Is this really the Lovesick Sect? ... Three years later, Su Ji sat in the seat of the Lovesick Sect’s sect master, sighing with emotion. His rise to this position all started when his junior sister adamantly insisted on preserving his "spiritual root." "Mmm... Senior Brother, what’s our relationship now?" "Stop talking. Keep going." "By the way, that newly promoted top-tier sect—didn’t they come to buy our Love Beans?" "One top-grade spirit stone per Love Bean—is that really so expensive?" "I suspect they’ve eaten too many Love Beans." "Now they’re lovesick." Well, this really is the Lovesick Sect after all.
shall grant"] ["Inscribing the glory of our race upon tombstones"] ["All that is threatened, I shall protect"] How his younger sister sees her brother: A brother who only makes eye contact once a day, mostly fading into the background as he tinkers with who-knows-what in his room all day. Their life paths should have remained largely separate. Until one day. Su Qi created an equipment card for his never-met "online girlfriend." His sister fell into silent contemplation upon receiving the "white stockings." [Card can be upgraded] [Upgrade by fulfilling any of the following conditions] [Condition ①: Consume one hundred higher-tier cards] [Condition ②: Complete one 'Heart-Pounding Adventure'] What constitutes a Heart-Pounding Adventure? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Beginner Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to admire it.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Easy Level): Equip the card, invite 'Su Qi' to touch it, and analyze the equipment's texture.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Entry Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to...] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Challenge Level): Freely combine the words 'Brother' 'Out' 'Brother' 'Me' 'Please' into a complete sentence...] "Please help me analyze both teams' mistakes in this match, brother..." His sister exhaled in relief—surely... surely there couldn't be anything more difficult? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Suicide Mission Level): Sneak a peek at the names of the galgames in 'Su Qi's' hidden E-drive folder]
lan, the Luo family, tracked him down - along with the babies in their arms. Mo Xuan stared pensively at the paternity test results from over a dozen top institutions, both domestic and international, showing a 99.99% match between himself and the two baby girls. At 23, Mo Xuan, a doctoral student, had become the father of two three-year-old children. The kicker? The mothers weren't even the same person! He gradually realized he was being lured step by step into an elaborate trap designed by these two yandere sisters. "Be good, little Xuan. Sister's life belongs to you entirely." "Brother, if you try to run away, I'll have no choice but to tie you up." Mo Xuan: "Do whatever you want, ladies. I give up."
