Yuelai Inn.
As for this copy of the Classic of Waterways, Chu Xingchen ultimately decided to follow Li Xingtian’s advice and summoned his eldest disciple.
At the moment, Li Yingling was lightly flipping through the book with a single finger, her eyes barely skimming the pages before she raised a brow and glanced at Li Xingtian beside her.
With a tone of mild surprise, she remarked, "Junior Brother, you don’t even understand something this simple? You had to call me here specifically?"
Li Xingtian fell silent for a long moment before admitting with a hint of shame, "Senior Sister’s brilliance is beyond my reach."
Chu Xingchen, who had been watching the heavy rain outside the window, turned his gaze to his eldest disciple, noting the undisguised pride on her face.
Li Yingling’s expression could practically be interpreted as—Without me, this sect would be doomed sooner or later.
Chu Xingchen walked up to her and lightly rapped her head with his knuckles.
"Stop showing off in front of your junior brother. Time is tight—finish learning and get ready to work."
Though the tap didn’t hurt, Li Yingling still theatrically clutched her head, feigning grievance.
"Master! If you keep this up, my brilliant mind will turn as dull as Second Junior Brother’s!"
Li Xingtian, standing silently nearby, endured yet another verbal jab from his senior sister…
Alas, his own performance had been lacking, leaving him no room to retort.
Chu Xingchen asked, "How long do you need?"
Li Yingling dropped the act. When it came to serious matters, she knew to adopt a proper attitude.
"Give me half an hour, and we can set off."
Chu Xingchen nodded and gestured for her to proceed.
What followed was an eye-opening display for Li Xingtian—a true demonstration of innate genius and the learning methods of a prodigy.
Li Yingling picked up a brush, ink, and paper. With utmost focus, she flipped through the book with her left hand while her right hand swiftly filled blank sheets with notes.
In mere moments, the first page was covered.
Two quarters of an hour later, as she finished her eighth sheet, she also turned the final page of the Classic of Waterways.
Setting down the brush, she scanned her notes, cross-referencing them with the book’s contents before declaring with confidence,
"I’ve got it. It was simpler than I thought. We can go now."
Chu Xingchen glanced at the densely scribbled pages in her hands, some lines resembling chaotic scribbles.
The term [Cultivation Prodigy] seemed almost too broadly applicable…
A peculiar thought suddenly crossed Chu Xingchen’s mind—
What if I taught Li Yingling some modern physics? Would that spark something unexpected?
But for now, all such musings had to wait. Business came first.
"Xingtian, accompany your senior sister to survey the surrounding waterways and draft a map," Chu Xingchen instructed, then glanced at Li Yingling’s notes and added,
"Make it easy to understand… There might be others reviewing it later who aren’t as sharp."
"We should consider their comprehension as well."
Li Xingtian bowed. "Understood, Master."
Li Yingling, brimming with enthusiasm, declared, "Come on, Second Junior Brother! I’ll teach you on the way!"
Watching his two disciples depart, Chu Xingchen lifted his gaze to the unrelenting downpour outside.
In the next instant, his figure vanished from the room without a trace.
Aside from laying the groundwork early, he needed to prepare other contingencies.
After all, it wasn’t the number of plans that mattered—it was the lack of them.
The more Plan Bs, the better.
---
Tianyan Sect.
Bai Xuanling held one of Qinghe’s horns in her left hand and a longsword in her right, her expression icy as she interrogated,
"You little river dragon—did growing new horns make you forget the days when you had none? Daring to deceive me?"
"Confess now, and I might spare you. Keep lying, and these horns won’t last."
Qinghe’s face paled, her voice trembling, but she stubbornly insisted,
"How would I dare deceive you? This is all there is! I didn’t pocket a single coin! The market’s been flooded with pills lately, driving prices down. I kept meticulous records—you can check the ledgers yourself!"
Qinghe was no fool. Having served Bai Xuanling for years, she knew the old demon’s temperament well.
Confession meant certain death. Only by resisting could she cling to life—and her horns.
Even if irrefutable evidence were slapped in her face, she’d grit her teeth and deny it.
These horns were a dragon’s pride!
Even if she was a bit of a hybrid… Pride was pride!
"You think I didn’t investigate?" Bai Xuanling sneered. "Before coming to you, I went to Lingmiao Peak and cross-checked with those alchemists. You didn’t sell at a discount—you marked them up!"
Bai Xuanling’s tone shifted abruptly, mimicking Qinghe’s voice:
"You think it’s expensive? I think it’s expensive too! But with such high demand, if not for our old ties, I wouldn’t even sell to you. Out there, I could hike the price another twenty percent and still sell out. This is practically a friendship discount!"
Hearing this, Qinghe’s face turned ashen.
Bai Xuanling narrowed her eyes. "Sound familiar, little Qinghe? Did you really think those who got swindled would keep your secret?"
"Let’s make this fair—three more lies, and I’m taking these horns as interest!"
Qinghe recalled those alchemists from Lingmiao Peak—how moved they had seemed when parting.
They’d promised to keep it quiet, to never let others know their pills were the cheapest.
Who knew humans could be so treacherous?!
As a dragon, why wasn’t her heart black enough yet?!
Bai Xuanling waited, but Qinghe remained silent.
"Nothing to say?!"
Qinghe racked her brain but found no excuses. In desperation, she lifted her head and forced a grin.
"I really didn’t embezzle! If you don’t believe me, drag me to Lingmiao Peak and confront them face-to-face! I—"
Bai Xuanling cut her off. "One."
Qinghe’s expression twisted into pitiful grievance, her large eyes glistening with unshed tears.
"Other people’s spirit beasts get pampered with fine food and treats, while I’m stuck eating bland pills every day…"
"Two." Bai Xuanling remained unmoved.
Qinghe shut her eyes. There was no way she’d return the money—if she had to rely on Bai Xuanling’s meager stipend, she’d need an eternity to save up.
Two months’ wages couldn’t even cover a single meal at Tianyan Sect’s Zhiwei Pavilion!
She steeled herself and spat, "Go ahead and cut them off! I’ve got no face left to show other dragons anyway!"
The atmosphere froze.
"Master, it’s done…"
Xie Lingyu’s voice rang out.
Qinghe’s eyes flew open, locking onto the returning Xie Lingyu like a lifeline.
Xie Lingyu was Bai Xuanling’s treasured disciple—whatever she asked for, Bai Xuanling would move mountains to grant.
Right now, in all of Tianyan Sect, only this young lady could save her.
"Help me!" Qinghe pleaded.
Bai Xuanling still held onto Qinghe’s horn, her gaze shifting toward Xie Lingyu.
Before Xie Lingyu could speak, a streak of light descended straight from the horizon.
With a casual wave of her hand, Bai Xuanling summoned the light into her palm—a small jade disc shimmering with a faint blue glow.
An urgent message from the sect leader?
Bai Xuanling frowned slightly. This brat dares to assign me tasks at a time like this?
Did I not feed him enough pills last time?
She channeled her spiritual sense into the disc, and within a second, the icy expression on her face melted away.
Well, the sect leader finally learned some tact—knowing to offer a reward.
Releasing Qinghe’s horn and sheathing her sword, her tone softened as she spoke:
"Ah, fine. I suppose I’m feeling merciful. Just a few spirit stones—hardly worth cutting off your horn."
Qinghe’s face instantly paled with horror.
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
