Silence!
An eerie silence!
Both Xuan Wudao and Da Huang had grown unusually quiet, as if someone had placed a seal over their mouths—not a word, not a sound.
"Hey, you two, say something."
"It’s getting boring."
"Don’t you think it’s too quiet with everyone keeping mum?"
Chen Chang'an glanced at them, but Xuan Wudao and Da Huang simply turned their heads away, ignoring him completely.
"Master Chen, I suspect they’re too ashamed to speak now—utterly mortified."
Chen Chang'an never expected Hua Wulei, someone so aloof, to have such a talent for delivering cutting remarks.
The reason Xuan Wudao and Da Huang stayed silent was simple: every time Chen Chang'an said something, Hua Wulei would follow up with a few stinging words. And they couldn’t even argue back. Da Huang had it slightly better—his strength spoke for itself—but Xuan Wudao had suffered immensely.
Over the course of their journey, Xuan Wudao had lost count of how many times he’d been kicked or sent crashing into mountains. Even if he didn’t care about himself, he had to think of the environment!
"By the way, Master Chen, aside from apprehending this scoundrel Xuan Wudao, I have another matter to attend to this time."
"It might delay us for a few days."
Hearing this, Chen Chang'an was taken aback. Another task?
"Another scoundrel?" Chen Chang'an asked.
"Not a scoundrel—a heartless, ungrateful wretch who toys with women’s affections. A man who deserves death!" Hua Wulei said coldly.
"Exactly!"
"Such people are despicable!"
"I, Xuan Wudao, despise them most of all!" Xuan Wudao declared solemnly.
Hua Wulei sneered. "Birds of a feather. You’re no better."
"Now that’s unfair."
"Though I frequent pleasure houses, I’ve never crossed the line."
"I’ve never broken a woman’s heart."
"I have principles," Xuan Wudao insisted, dead serious.
"Principles?"
"What a joke!"
"How high can the principles of a brothel-haunting wastrel really be?"
Xuan Wudao’s face flushed red with anger, but he was outmatched in both strength and wit. What could he do? Stay silent, as usual.
"Are you heading there now to deal with it?" Chen Chang'an asked Hua Wulei.
"Yes. It should take about two days."
"I can give you directions to the Numinous Goddess Palace. You go ahead, and I’ll catch up later."
"Hey, hey, hey!"
"Now I’ve got to call you out on this."
"Don’t hit me—I’m being serious."
"Is this how you handle things?"
"It’s like telling a prisoner to walk themselves to jail!"
"Do you really think they’d go willingly?"
"Aren’t you worried we’ll run?"
"This is downright disrespectful!"
Xuan Wudao was indignant. This was outright humiliation—expecting him to turn himself in?
"You might run, but I trust Master Chen’s integrity. He’ll keep you in line."
"He’s not that kind of man."
Hua Wulei’s words shattered Xuan Wudao’s composure.
Damn it!
Not that kind of man?
The most cunning one here is him! How did he suddenly become the paragon of virtue?
"Let’s go. Don’t bother with him—we’re not cut from the same cloth."
"Ah, yes. What is he? ‘Unsoiled by the mud, untainted by the waves.’"
"Our words alone would sully him."
Da Huang’s sarcastic remark dripped with mockery.
"Indeed, not the same. You’re a dog."
Grrrr!
Da Huang’s throat rumbled with a low growl, his eyes locked onto Chen Chang'an.
"Da Huang, calm down! Don’t act rashly!" Xuan Wudao hurriedly intervened.
"Don’t stop me! I’m going to bite him to death!" Da Huang snarled, claws bared.
"Easy, easy! Let’s cool off. How about I take you to a—"
BAM!
Before Xuan Wudao could finish, Hua Wulei sent him flying with a slap.
"Take him to a what?"
Her icy gaze followed Xuan Wudao’s trajectory as she demanded an answer.
"Scenic mountains and rivers!"
"I was going to take Da Huang to appreciate nature’s beauty and refine our spirits!"
Xuan Wudao scurried back, clutching his cheek, on the verge of tears.
"Hmph. Good. You two could use some refinement."
"‘Keep good men company, and you’ll be one of them.’ Yet despite being around Master Chen, you’ve learned none of his virtues."
"Such willful degradation."
She sighed in disappointment.
Virtues?
What virtues does Chen Chang'an have?
He’s the most scheming one here! And we’re the degraded ones?
Following his example would be true degradation!
"Deputy Palace Master Hua, you misunderstand."
"One’s nature cannot be forced."
"‘Fate dictates all; none can escape it.’"
"Some qualities are beyond their reach."
"It’s innate—a matter of essence."
Chen Chang'an sighed regretfully.
"Master Chen speaks wisely."
"Men of your unwavering integrity are rare in this world."
Hua Wulei nodded in solemn agreement.
"Ah, the loneliness of virtue."
Chen Chang'an sighed again.
"Master Chen, I won’t delay you further. I have urgent business."
"Please escort Xuan Wudao ahead. I’ll join you shortly."
"Actually… why not go together?"
"I’d like to see the spectacle."
"I’m curious—how does the Numinous Goddess Palace deal with such heartless men?"
Chen Chang'an was never one to pass up a good show. Plus, he genuinely wondered what methods the Numinous Goddess Palace employed.
"Yes, we must go!"
"My life might depend on it!"
Xuan Wudao was equally eager.
"Very well. Let’s proceed together."
"Though I trust Master Chen, this Xuan Wudao… his character is dubious. He might deceive even you."
What?!
Damn it!
How did this circle back to him again?
Xuan Wudao felt like dying. Yes, he’d sinned. Yes, he’d erred. But couldn’t they just punish him outright? Did they have to twist the knife over and over?
"By the way, where exactly are we going?" Chen Chang'an asked curiously.
"Demon Ridge. The Tu Family."
Demon Ridge? The Tu Family?
Chen Chang'an had never heard of them, nor had he been to Demon Ridge. But Xuan Wudao’s expression shifted to surprise.
"You’re going to the Tu Family of Demon Ridge?"
"You know of them?" Chen Chang'an asked.
"Of course. The Tu Family is the foremost power in Demon Ridge—far stronger than my Profound Sky Sect."
"They’re just a step below the Three Great Clans. Their ancestral patriarch is said to be one step away from the peak of the Emperor realm."
"But that single step makes all the difference."
Xuan Wudao’s shock stemmed from the Tu Family’s formidable strength.
Though Hua Wulei was the deputy palace master of the Numinous Goddess Palace, she wasn’t at the level of the palace master—a peak Emperor.
She just walked over like that—would the Tu Family really let him do as he pleases?
"Why does it feel like the factions in the Central Heaven Domain are such a mess?" Da Huang frowned and asked.
"A mess? Not really, is it?"
"The three great sects represent the strongest among the sect factions."
"The three great families represent the strongest among the clan factions."
"Then there’s a whole bunch of others, all representing various powers."
"In the Central Heaven Domain, no single faction has dared to claim they’re the undisputed top power yet," Xuan Wudao explained.
"Huh?"
"What’s going on?"
"Is this… someone breaking through?"
【Prologue: The Beginning of It All – Use holy water to heal the saintess tainted by demonic energy, then converse with her.】 Shen Nian stared at his older sister sipping yogurt, lost in thought. So you’re telling me my sister is the saintess, and yogurt is the holy water? 【Main Quest 1: Brave Youth, Become an Adventurer! Reward: Rookie Adventurer Title.】 【Side Quest 1: Find the Adorable Kitty! Reward: 1000 Gold Coins.】 Shen Nian: "Wait, I’m a high school senior here—did some guy who got isekai’d accidentally bind his system to me?" Hold on, completing quests gives gold rewards? Titles even boost stats? Is this for real? (A lighthearted, absurd campus comedy—not a revenge power fantasy.)
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.
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!
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?!
