The following day, a commotion erupted in front of Huo Yan’s quarters. A figure knelt at the courtyard gate, the faint sound of sobbing filling the air. Several disciples had gathered, rowdily clamoring for Huo Yan to come out.
Standing amidst the crowd, Zhou Xu watched the scene with a smirk. The Little Junior Brother’s previous tactic had been far too childish. If he wanted to humiliate Huo Yan, what was the use of merely framing him for trespassing into forbidden grounds or coveting sect treasures? Hardly anyone would believe that. As luck would have it, just when he had given up hope, he unexpectedly encountered someone from Huo Yan’s past, specifically, a part of the Eldest Senior Brother’s most shameful, hidden history.
“Little Junior Brother, just watch,” Zhou Xu thought. “I will certainly make you satisfied.”
How could Xian Yuzhu possibly miss out on the chance to watch Huo Yan’s misfortune? Without telling a soul, he had rummaged through his belongings early that morning to find a human-skin mask. Wearing it, he blended into the crowd, certain that no one would recognize him.
Inside the house, Huo Yan, who had spent the entire night in meditative cultivation, opened his eyes expressionlessly and rose from the stone platform. Although cultivators were naturally clean and free of dust, he still washed up and deliberately changed into a fresh celestial robe. The noise outside the gate was growing intense. Because he had not reacted, the fervor was only escalating.
Zhou Xu was immensely satisfied. The longer Huo Yan refused to show his face, the more material Zhou Xu had to work with. He shot a subtle glance toward the crowd, and a voice immediately shouted, “Eldest Senior Brother! A man must take responsibility! You should come out and see for yourself!”
This statement instantly drew a chorus of agreement from the gathered disciples. Seeing the reaction, the person kneeling at the gate hunched their back, weeping like a pear blossom in the rain.
“Big Brother Huo,” the youth called out sorrowfully. Dressed in coarse hemp clothes, his thin and frail back made him look profoundly pitiful, as if he intended to cry until he fainted if the master of the courtyard did not appear.
Creak
The tightly shut courtyard doors swung open. Huo Yan stood within the doorway. His frost-covered face appeared before the crowd, his deep, dark eyes coldly scanning everyone present. In an instant, the world went silent. Only the youth on the ground showed a flicker of excitement, which, upon closer inspection, held a hint of malice.
“Ding. Detected the appearance of this world’s Dragon Proud Heaven male protagonist! Please be prepared, Host. Successfully making the protagonist acknowledge the Xie Shurong identity will allow you to seize one Luck Point.”
Xie Shurong, or rather, Xie Rong, felt a surge of excitement. He was a transmigrator from the modern world. After his legs were accidentally broken by a debt collector’s car, a thing calling itself the Fate-Changing System appeared in his mind. The system promised that if Xie Rong could seize the protagonist’s luck in ten book-worlds, it would not only grant him a new, healthy body but also ensure he lived a life of luxury. He would transform from a blacklisted debt-ridden criminal into a wealthy man of status.
He had already traversed nine worlds; this was the final one required to complete his mission. Once he seized the luck of the protagonist, Huo Yan, he could completely change his destiny! The system, knowing its host’s temperament, issued a warning: “The difficulty of this world is high. This is a No-CP blackened protagonist route. Since your identity as a fiancé did not exist in the original setting, the Xie Shurong storyline has been constructed to ensure your safety. Please roleplay cautiously.”
Xie Rong scoffed mentally. “What is the big deal? Do you not trust my acting skills?”
Having successfully plundered luck from nine protagonists, Xie Rong remained indifferent to the warning. What was so hard about this? A mere No-CP route meant nothing; he had even replaced the leads of harem novels. Moreover, Xie Rong’s skins were always highly deceptive. Men were all the same, animals that thought with their lower halves. Even the most heartless protagonist would find it difficult to repeatedly reject a pure, harmless little white flower who had sacrificed everything for him. He would first gain trust, then take everything Huo Yan possessed. This was Xie Rong’s standard operating procedure, and he was brimming with confidence.
“System, just wait. Within three months, I will make you look at me in a new light.”
Huo Yan might be indifferent to beauty, but Xie Rong was different. He loved status and beauty above all else. Once he replaced Huo Yan as the new protagonist, he would naturally turn this No-CP world into his personal harem! The system looked at the protagonist’s glaring 100% Blackening Value in the task bar, then at the host’s foolishly arrogant display, and remained silent for a moment.
“You had better be right.”
Huo Yan ignored the uninvited guest. He simply stared at the swarm of disciples crowded at his gate. His tone was icy as he questioned, “Why are you all clamoring here instead of cultivating this morning?”
The disciples still felt a physiological fear of their Eldest Senior Brother; one by one, they dared not make a sound. Zhou Xu clicked his tongue inwardly, cursing them as a bunch of useless trash. After a moment of silence, he glared at the disciple who was supposed to challenge Huo Yan. To his frustration, that disciple was so intimidated that he kept his head bowed, not even daring to look up. Left with no choice, Zhou Xu had to step forward himself.
“Eldest Senior Brother is quite formidable,” he said, pushing through the crowd and offering a brief cupped-hand salute. “We are here for a reason. This morning, while I was leading the disciples in their early exercises, we happened to encounter this Young Master Xie Shurong outside the mountain gate.”
As he spoke, Zhou Xu’s gaze shifted to the youth in hemp clothing kneeling at his feet. Seeing his cue, Xie Rong immediately lifted his head, revealing a fragile, innocent face streaked with light tears.
“Big Brother Huo, do you still remember me? I am Shurong.”
As Huo Yan looked down at him, Zhou Xu curled his lips into a smirk and said slowly, “He claims to be an old acquaintance of yours. He says you two were betrothed as children. Because of this engagement, he has been waiting for you in his hometown for eighteen long years. Unexpectedly, as the wedding date approached, Eldest Senior Brother never showed up. Having waited in vain, Young Master Xie went through untold hardships and searched far and wide until he found the gates of our Yuxian Sect, carrying a token and a marriage contract.”
Zhou Xu added gloatingly, “Young Master Xie, where are your token and contract? Bring them out for the Eldest Senior Brother to see.”
Xie Shurong was triumphant. “System, do you see? This is what I call heaven helping me. This cannon-fodder character is rushing to help me on his own accord.”
Following Zhou Xu’s words, he hurriedly pulled a black wooden plaque and a roll of red, gold-flecked marriage paper from his robes. Huo Yan looked down expressionlessly. On the front of the black wooden plaque was the word “Huo” carved in a flamboyant style, and on the back was the seal of the Qilin, the specific token belonging only to the main Huo family line.
The marriage contract served as the final nail in the coffin. Once unfurled, it contained several lines written in neat calligraphy: “Today, I, of the Huo family, betroth my legitimate son Huo Yan to the second son of the Xie family, Xie Shurong, by the command of parents and the words of a matchmaker,” and so on. It even bore the official seals of Huo Yan’s parents.
Huo Yan’s brow furrowed deeply. He tossed the plaque and the contract back into Xie Shurong’s lap. The token and the handwriting were not forgeries. Yet, he had absolutely no memory of this person, this name, or this face. As a wakened individual, Huo Yan knew that in his predetermined life, no such fiancé existed.
But why? Just now, a mysterious voice in his mind had told him that his parents had indeed arranged a childhood betrothal for him with the child of a friend surnamed Xie shortly after his birth.
Seeing Huo Yan’s expression, Zhou Xu knew he had won. He crossed his arms and intentionally raised his voice. “Eldest Senior Brother, cultivators fear nothing more than a lack of integrity. If you turn out to be a heartbreaker, you will be hung on the Sect’s Board of Shame for a year and face the scorn of everyone.”
Meanwhile, in the crowd, Xian Yuzhu was covering his mouth, nearly bursting into laughter. Hehe! Hahaha! It was truly a case of searching far and wide only to find it easily. Who would have thought that this stupid, neurotic Huo Yan, who always acted like he was above worldly desires, actually had a low-born male fiancé with no cultivation to speak of? To be saddled with a childhood betrothal he had no say in, he must be suffocating with frustration!
Beneath his mask, Xian Yuzhu felt completely vindicated and refreshed. Orthodox cultivators could only have one Dao companion in their lifetime, and the Yuxian Sect was particularly strict regarding the private lives of its disciples. The thought that Huo Yan would either have to be publicly shamed for a year as a negative example or accept this low-class mortal as his companion filled Xian Yuzhu with joy. If Huo Yan accepted him, it would be even better. The famous genius and Head Disciple of the Yuxian Sect having such a pathetic partner would be the laughingstock of the cultivation world!
Xian Yuzhu wanted to turn Huo Yan’s frustrated face into his future entertainment. He prepared to record the scene with a Shadow-Recording Stone, but as he lifted his head, he met Huo Yan’s heavy, dark gaze. Huo Yan had been staring at his gloating expression for God knows how long.
Xian Yuzhu was suddenly struck with a sense of crisis. He instinctively touched the mask on his face. It was perfectly intact. Yet, for some reason, he felt a sudden, inexplicable panic that Huo Yan had seen right through him.