Canceled marriage? Not gonna happen.
A weak upbringing? Nah.
A special item? Nah.
Rich, second generation? Sure.
Both parents? Yes.
A decent person? Maybe.
A System? Fine, one cliche.

"I'm a dead man, no law sanctions me now."——Delta. 

Ash Auberon, a young special agent had led his squad into shattered pieces after an incident that caused the death of their former leader, Zero and his favourite apprentice, Delta. Delta is now back alive with a list of targeted victims to kill, forcing Ash to work together again with his former rival-teammate, Remington Develier.

With the twist and turn along their journey, they found 404 Underworld users are all around them leading them to have connections and complicated relationships with them. Well, it might be cool having friends with illegal skills, who knows?

"Let's play a game, nac uoy fi em hctac"——???_ 

???:\404Boys>File#.DeltΔ_>File#.Milo_>File#.Zer0_>File#.MORS_>File#.Pandora_>File#.Ze'ev_>File#.A41_>File#.1225_ 

???:\404Boys>This is a work of fiction, any resemblance are all purely coincidental_ 

???:\404Boys>New chapter every Friday_

The one-eyed man approached us. This was my first meeting with one of Seoul's Seven Kings.

Yoo Sangah talked in the group chat.

–Dokja-ssi, this person is perhaps…

–Yes, you're right.

I nodded to Yoo Sangah. It was impossible not to think of this person when seeing the appearance.

–By the way, I don't understand. Even if the constellation is 'that person', why is the incarnation dressed like that?

–His sympathy with the constellation seems to be high. The higher the sympathy rate, the more the incarnation is influenced by the lifestyle of the constellation.

–I should never cough in front of him.

The man with long hair tied back was bowing to the man approaching us.

"Your Majesty. You came."

"Yes."

"What happened?"

"Do I need to say it? Here."

The one-eyed man pointed to his staff. There was a blue jewel available from the Big Dipper embedded on it.

[Greedy Wolf Star].

The long-haired man admired it.

"Ohh…!"

Wasn't he quite good? Already gaining one star jewel…

The star jewels were the rewards of the Big Dipper chapter.

It was an item that increased overall stats by one level. It had a good effect on its own but the star jewels were meaningful when seven were collected.

It was because the jewels were the summoning material for the Four Yin Demonic Beheading Sword.

The one-eyed man looked at me. "Who are these people?"

"They have just entered the Big Dipper chapter. Their abilities are quite good so I was thinking about getting them to join."

"Really?"

The one-eyed man and I extended our hands to each other at the same time.

"I am Cha Sangkyung."

"I am Kim Dokja."

I shook his hand while activating a skill.

[The exclusive skill, Character List is activated.]

+

[Character Information]

Name: Cha Sangkyung

Age: 26 years old

Constellation Support: One-eyed Maitreya

Private Attribute: Pseudo Sect Founder (Hero), Maitreya King (Hero)

Exclusive Skills: Weapons Training Lv. 5, Mental Barrier Lv. 3, Eloquent Speech Lv. 3, Skillful Deception Lv. 3, False Prayer Lv. 1…

Stigma: Maitreya Promised Land Lv. 2, Law of Interest Lv. 2, Demonic Enemy Lv. 3

Overall Stats: Physique Lv. 28, Strength Lv. 26, Agility Lv. 28, Magic Power Lv. 25.

Overall Evaluation: No one can be free in front of his 'eye' that gives insight into everything. Be careful not to cough in front of him.

+

It was regrettable that Jung Heewon wasn't here. If she saw this man in front of me, she would never speak nonsense about my sponsor again.

Cha Sangkyung said, "I have a burden of seeing things. Can I look at you once?"

"Yes."

Yes, he could try.

[The character 'Cha Sangkyung' has used Law of Interest Lv. 2!]

The stigma 'Law of Interest' was quite interesting among the investigation techniques in Ways of Survival. It didn't reveal the attributes window of the opponent but it was a skill that roughly gave information about the personality of the opponent. In other words, he would see a 'Easily fooled Demonic Enemy' if the person was 'good', while he would see a 'Back-stabbing Demonic Enemy' if the person was 'bad.' For example…

[The character 'Cha Sangkyung' has discovered that you are a demonic enemy that shouldn't be touched.]

It was like this.

"T-This?"

"King, why are you acting like this?"

[The character 'Cha Sangkyung' is greatly disturbed.]

Cha Sangkyung shouted with a pale face.

"D-Demonic enemy!"

"Huh? It can't be…"

At his words, the group members of the Maitreya King simultaneously looked at me. The atmosphere became tense when Cha Sangkyung urgently added.

"N-Nothing. I have made a mistake."

"Huh? There's nothing?"

"Yes, it is nothing. Everyone back off."

Indeed. He would be a fool to ignore the warning of the constellation. By the way, a demonic enemy that shouldn't be touched…

Maybe the One-eyed Maitreya didn't want to fight with me.

"Sigh… it isn't surprising."

The dubious thing was the reaction of the long-haired man. It was momentary but there was an expression of 'regret' on his face.

"The plan will start in one hour. I'm looking forward to your participation despite being a bit late."

Cha Sangkyung said before returning to his group members.

The first encounter with Gung Ye ended like this. (TL: Gung Ye had a slight mention earlier in the novel. He is a king who proclaimed himself a Buddha and became a tyrant who sentenced death to anyone opposing him, including his own wife)

The long-haired man said, "Phew, it almost became a major event. I'm glad."

"It is absurd to say that he is a king who knows the hearts of the people."

"Haha, Gung Ye might be recorded as a tyrant later on but he was a good and wise king first. You never know what will happen in the future. History can change."

I looked carefully at the long-haired man and asked, "By the way, who are you?"

"Oh, I haven't introduced myself yet. I am Han Sooyoung. I am Cha Sangkyung's assistant."

A man who supported the incarnation of Gung Ye. It was highly likely that he was attached to Gung Ye's side because of his sponsor.

Who was it? Perhaps it was a king? I immediately used a skill.

[The exclusive skill, Character List is activated.]

[The information of this person can't be read in 'Character List.']

[This person isn't registered in 'Character List.']

…What?

"Um? What's wrong?"

I looked at the shamelessly speaking Han Sooyoung and couldn't help laughing. I see… now I knew who this person was.

"It's nothing. Just… I feel like you are a demonic enemy."

"Haha, what do you mean?"

I could see Han Sooyoung's eyes change strangely. Maybe at this moment, both of us were thinking the same thing. The question was who would pull out a sword first.

The doors of the waiting room started to open one by one.

"The kings are coming!"

There was tension in the Maitreya group while several people in the waiting room started cheering.

I watched the kings walking out the door and asked Han Sooyoung.

"Are they on the same side?"

"Yes, they are all kings who promised to cooperate with us. From left to right, there is the 'Prudent King' Yoon Kiyoung and 'Fighting King' Kim Baekho Then the last one who came out is the 'Earth Dragon King' Gu Daesung."

I remembered something when I heard this nickname.

The Prudent King and Fighting King. They were just like their nicknames. They had decent skills and stats but they were one step lacking compared to the Seven Kings.

The only one I needed to pay attention to was the Earth Dragon King Gu Daesung.

Gu Daesung discovered Cha Sangkyung and asked, "You have already come out?

Fast."

"You are a rude earthworm."

"…Earthworm? Is that what you are calling my sponsor?"

Yoo Sangah was startled when she heard their words and whispered to me, "That person, I think he has a good sponsor behind him."

"…How do you know?"

"I heard the story that the king of Baekje was born from an earth dragon."

"Earth dragon?"

"That's what they meant by 'earthworm.' The other kings are calling him the son of an earth dragon in a mocking manner."

She was really amazing. She figured out the identity of Gu Daesung with this much information.

Yoo Sangah was right.

Earth Dragon King Gu Daesung. In my memories, he was one of Seoul's Seven Kings with the late King Gyeon Hwon as his sponsor.

"There are quite a few people with kings as a sponsor. Then the king we saw before…"

I nodded. In fact, it wasn't a coincidence that there were so many incarnations with a 'king' as their sponsor.

The situation would be similar in other areas, not just the Seoul Dome.

In Japan, there would be a competition between the three heroes including Oda Nobunaga. In the UK, there would be a competition between Richard the Lionheart or Henry VIII.

The world's greatest constellations would be preparing for a war over the Absolute Throne, raising their coordination with their incarnation to a breathtaking level.

[The constellation 'Maritime War God' is expecting the appearance of a new fable class constellation.]

[The constellation 'Bald General of Justice' is watching the situation with sweaty hands.

The other high-ranking constellations were also interested. It was natural. As I said before, the fourth scenario was an event for the greatest constellations of each country.

"Is everyone gathered?"

The kings soon gathered in the middle and gave a speech.

"Our enemy is the Tyrant King who entered the third door! The Tyrant King has already received two jewels from this dungeon and cowardly raided innocent kings. Some of the people present would've lost a king to him."

That's why this waiting room was a field of corpses.

Perhaps the Tyrant King killed two kings and took away their star jewels. It meant he would soon gather all seven star jewels…

"The new Seoul shouldn't be handed over to such a person. If he gets the Four Yin Demonic Beheading Sword and then takes the Absolute Throne, there will be endless grief and tragedy in Seoul!"

"Thus, the people have to fight! Get up right now! The kings here are all wise. The future will be fine no matter which of us becomes the absolute king. We have to at least stop the worst king!"

"This will be a struggle for a righteous way of living! Take care! You will be great fighters taking your first step into a new history!"

The speech didn't have much substance but people became excited. Some people cheered, some sympathized while others were touched to tears. It was like they were real revolutionaries fighting for justice.

I looked at the scene alone. 

Just one month ago, the people here had voted for a president. They did their duty and agreed to have private property through legitimate economic activities. All of a sudden, it felt like a dream.

In just one month, Seoul had returned to the kingdom days.

"Depart!"

Hundreds of people entered through the third door. Cha Sangkyung's group was at the back and we moved in line with them.

Our vision wavered before a giant tunnel appeared. It was a huge tunnel where the size couldn't be easily measured.

Han Sooyoung walked beside me and opened his mouth. "This is so exciting. I feel like I'm in a martial arts novel."

"A martial arts novel?"

Han Sooyoung nodded with a meaningful smile. "Why, don't you think it is like a martial arts novel? It is like a treasure map. The legendary sword is sleeping in the stone chamber and whoever obtains the sword shall be the best person in the world!"

Han Sooyoung spoke accompanied by gestures seemed quite plausible. It wouldn't be unbelievable if he was an actor.

"It is a common cliche in a martial arts novel, the treasure sword."

"Oh, Dokja-ssi, do you read martial arts novels as well?"

It couldn't be missed when talking about genre fiction.

"I read quite a bit. By the way, there is a common development in these cliche novels."

"Common development? What is it?"

"It turns out that the treasure map is a fake! This type of development."

Han Sooyoung's eyes shook. "This is interesting. What happens next?"

"It is an obvious story. The 'shadow' laughs quietly and kills the people gathered because of the fake treasure."

"Hoh… is that the current situation? Could someone be a shadow?"

I nodded and stated, "It is a possibility although I don't like such obvious cliches."

"Um? What does that mean?"

"To be honest, there are too many cliches like the treasure sword.

"Hmm… there are too many stories, making it bad?"

"For writers, I think it is a story that lacks distress."

Han Sooyoung's expression slightly hardened. "Then what would Dokja-ssi do if you were the writer? What if you had to write about the treasure sword?"

"I'm not sure. I am a 'reader' as my name suggests."

"I think that a reader would do the same. Writing familiar cliches will give satisfaction to the readers."

Yes, I thought he would say something like this. I smiled and asked, "Who said this? You are speaking as a writer. I'm not saying that cliches are bad. At the very least, a plagiarist shouldn't use it."

"Pla…giarist?"

"Yes, a plagiarist."

It was funny to see Han Sooyoung's face change colours.

"Well, every story is similar. It is the details that are a bit different… Can it really be called plagiarism? Perhaps if Dokja-ssi is the writer―"

"Nope, I would do it differently."

Han Sooyoung's eyebrows twitched. "…You would write it differently? How?"

"For example, like this."

I raised Unbroken Faith and cut his neck. No blood was visible as his head fell down.

I added, "Why are you hiding when it will be revealed anyway?"

Then Han Sooyoung's head spoke from where it was lying on the ground. "How interesting. Kim Dokja."

Only I know the end of this world.
One day our MC finds himself stuck in the world of his favorite webnovel. What does he do to survive? It is a world struck by catastrophe and danger all around.
His edge? He knows the plot of the story to end. Because he was the sole reader that stuck with it. Read his story to see how he survives!

(What a cliche title!)

A soft mechanical voice sounded it. "Host has been born. Initializing system." A progress bar reaching from 0% to 100% then followed. Only ten seconds for it to load! How fast!

"Welcome host to The Cliche System." After finally being born Michael, now had even more problems to deal with! Now he had a system, truly a cliche world. Oh how funny! Cliche system, cliche world. 

After finally being done with his inner monologue he tried activating the system! 'System!' He called out inside of his mind and low and behold there it was! The holy grail of all protagonists! A menu listing. Status. Skills. Shop. Cliches. Obviously the first choice was to choose the non normal option! 

'Cliches.' He said inside of his mind and again you must behold the beauty of this new menu! The new menu listed some new options even! Supreme talent. Parents death. Attacked due to supreme to talent, WARNING: REQUIRES SUPREME TALENT. Sect destroyed. House robbed. Master being a very powerful being. The list continued on and on, and on. But finally there was something different! Some words and some numbers, whoa! 

Bad cliches 0, Good cliches 3. I suppose this is the cliche system.

Little did I know I was completely wrong!

I honestly doubt this novel will get anywhere. But I'm mostly doing this for fun. Though, I hope it doesn't turn out like the supreme anime system or whatever the hell it's called. That story is a pile of garbage wow. Don't get your hopes up too high.

John was working in his office, looking closely at some documents to inspect and sign on his table.

Romeo came inside the office bringing more files with him with a grin on his face.

"So, you're gonna marry Catherine for real?" he asked.

"Yep, that's my final answer and I'm in the process of filing and obtaining all the necessary requirements for the marriage license."

"You have only known each other for a few months, I think nearly 3 months right? That's too early to marry somebody, and besides, she is too young for you bro!" Romeo commented.

John looked at his best friend in the eyes.

"I'm of marrying age already, she might be too young but as long she loves me, that is all that really matters. I feel like I have known her all my life. I'm willing to face uncertainty in the future whatever it is, as long she is with me we will weather the storm together."

Romeo laughed at the way John uttered those cliches stuff. "You are really in love with the girl. How come you have not introduced her to me yet? Why don't we set up a double date, you and Catherine, my wife and I? How about that?"

John nodded. "Okay, I will set up a date for you to meet my future wife. I will let you know when we are ready."

"I'm looking forward to meeting her. I want to see what you see in her---?" said Romeo.

John dismissed Romeo's doubts.

"We just visited Dahlia's grave yesterday," said John.

"Ohh, you already brought Catherine to meet your 'ex'?"

"How it's going?"

"Huh? What kind of question is that, Romeo?"

"Nothing. I wonder how Dahlia feels right now in heaven while watching the man she loves already got a new girlfriend and he was about to marry that new girl in the coming days."

"She won't mind. I think she will be happy that I was able to finally move on from our dark past."

Romeo broke into a smile. "Yeah, I think so. Congratulation Bro!"

He just smiled at his best friend and return his attention back to what he was doing but he remembered something...

"By the way, I want you to be my witness in our civil wedding."

"Huh? Civil wedding? Why not directly held a church wedding?" asked Romeo.

"Because I want to marry her ASAP! I'm afraid something will happen again. I am afraid she will meet somebody new and that somebody will take her away from me. Besides church wedding takes a long time and I don't like it."

Romeo sighed, he can understand very well his friends fear considering that John already loses his first love due to untimely death seven years ago. "Ah I see, now I understand why the rush. But there will be a church wedding, right?

"Yes of course. It will follow after six months. I still need to inform my parents and my brother in the US so that they can come home and attend to my wedding."

"Okay. Just tell me if you want my assistance. I will help your dream wedding come true. My wife and I will help you with the wedding preparation."

"Thanks, I already had taken care of everything when it comes to the incoming civil wedding. I already applied online to have our birth certificate delivered to me next week. I already have finished the draft of the Letter of Intent To Marry, I can print it anytime and have it signed by Catherine anytime. The CENOMAR will be arriving next week as well. There are minor requirements to obtain the marriage license such as an affidavit of parental advice, community tax certificate, barangay clearance, valid ID's, black & white or colored photos, application for marriage license...."

John was glancing at his list while talking...

Romeo was also glancing at the list and grimaced. "Whoaa that list is long!" he said. He remembers that it's his wife who processes all the requirements for their wedding in the church and all he need to do was to go along with everything she asked and ordered him to do.

He looked at his best friend John's face. What he saw was a very serious and very much in love guy.

"You really love her! It shows in all your efforts. I wish you all the happiness in the world bro! You deserved to be happy after everything that happened to you in the past."

"Yeah. My marriage with Catherine will be a happy and a blissful one. Thanks for your good wishes bro!"

"I guess everything is already well taken care of by you. You seemed to be hands-on with everything."

John smiled. "That shows that I am very serious to make this wedding come true no matter what."

"Okay. Congrats again bro. I will leave now so that you can continue perusing the remaining list of the wedding requirements. Don't forget about the double date, I and my wife are looking forward to it."

John nodded at him.

Romeo exited the office, whistling.

John brought his attention back to the wedding requirements. He still has to obtain a community tax certificate for the two of them, then a wedding seminar certificate of attendance. 

This is awesome, only a few remaining lists to go! He was very excited about the wedding to finally come true.

He pressed the intercom.

Ramon entered his employer's office.

"Sir..."

"Go to Cavite City and fetched Catherine and her cousin Grace. Bring them to the MysticBay Twin Tower. I will wait for them there. They will be waiting at 5:30 PM at the lobby inside the Marigold Hotel. So you better go there now, don't let them wait for long. Tell Catherine I will be waiting for them in the Twin Tower."

"Copy Sir," said Ramon. He exited the office and went towards the elevator.

John called his favorite catering service and ordered a variety of dishes to be delivered in the Twin Tower for their dinner tonight. He needs to impress Grace, Catherine's cousin.

He already had chosen the clothes to wear for the meeting tonight, a polo shirt or something formal, he will play the attentive waiter and serve the girls, then if Grace wants and demanded to see his face, he will have her take a peek of his face for a few seconds as a sign of his being serious.

Everything was happening smoothly as planned...

After their marriage in the church, he will bring Catherine in the US for their honeymoon and he will visit a cosmetic or plastic surgeon specialist there so that he can finally restore his original appearance. It's about time he will get rid of all the scar on his face so that he can accompany his wife in any public outings and not get conscious or bothered anymore with his hideous appearance.

As the positive thoughts flowed into his mind, he felt happy, satisfied and contented with the way things are going in his life. He can no longer ask for more. With Catherine's coming into his life everything falls into the right places, just the way it was supposed to be.

{COMPLETED} The twin sisters, Catherine and Caroline, robbed an old ancestral house out of  pressing necessity. Unfortunately they were caught empty handed by the owner himself and his bodyguards. 

To avoid jail time, Catherine offered her body to the owner in exchange for their freedom.

What happened next...?

A tumultuous, intense and passionate love story between Catherine and the owner named John began to take shape in each chapters of the story.

~~~~~

For John, his first encounter with Catherine was embroiled with lust, not proper and wasn't even built on a solid ground. He thought he already lost her. But he nurtured and kept her memory alive in his mind. How many times he was willing to chase the woman he loves?

For Catherine, she met John for the first time in a cruel stroke of destiny. He ravaged her body for two nights straight. But he left a lasting impression on her. He was her first kiss, the first guy she was physically intimate with. But he wasn't even her boyfriend! He was just a stranger that appeared in her life once, but the imprint he left on her body, his gentleness and his generosity was bound to hunt her forever. How long she can deny the true beating of her heart?

In another time their path was destined to cross again...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*** This novel is controversial, gripping and mind engaging! But more importantly you will be amazed of one man's enduring love for one woman 'till the very end. It's rare to find a guy who's love for a woman can endure the test of time...

*** The novel contains smut, steamy scenes but done in good taste, lol. Btw. you can skip chapter with steamy scenes, not all chapter has smut theme though.

*** This novel is for Adults only! For mature readers and audiences, lol. Only 18+ above please! Thank you. 

*** If you don't like the novel, please don't bash the novel and the Author. This is a work of fiction, although some of the events and scenes in the story happens in real life...still everything in this story was a work of fiction, please don't take it personally. Thank you!



~My Other novels in this site~

* The Last Embrace~ Vampire Fantasy Romance, 472 chapters, completed.
* Sweet Surrender: The CEO's Second Wife~ ongoing.
* The Tale of Three Sisters ~ ongoing.

The experience and consolidated knowledge of a warrior who had become immortal were much more useful in a short period of time than the legacy of the Star Emperor had been to Mo Wen.
The legacy of the Star Emperor and the legacy of Ji Wuya were both of very high levels. However, Mo Wen's current realm was too low, and they were too far-fetched for him and so were of minimal help.
Even though Xiang Buwei's memories were different, he was a warrior who had become an immortal in the Primordial Soul Realm. He had just gone over the threshold of the rite of passage martial arts. To Mo Wen, Xiang Buwei's martial arts experience was much easier to understand and accept.
In terms of cultivation realms, it was the same for warriors who became immortals and immortal cultivators. There was the Primordial Soul Realm, the Tide Changing Realm, the Supreme Profundity Realm, the Divine Illusionary Realm… The difference was in the path taken for the two different types of cultivation. There were many paths leading to the great path and the ultimate destination of all cultivators was the same.
The experience of a warrior who was in the Primordial Soul Realm was exactly what Mo Wen needed.
Furthermore, in Xiang Buwei's memories, there were also four rite of passage martial arts which were what he had learned in his life. Mo Wen accepted his memories and naturally had a very good grasp of the rite of passage martial arts he studied. Mo Wen could use these martial arts skills almost without cultivating in them.
What was coincidental was that the four rite of passage martial arts Xiang Buwei learned were both Cold Ice and Fire profound meaning. This was the most suitable for Mo Wen since he had learned the Nine Yin Divine Technique and the Nine Yang Divine Technique. He could easily integrate the four rite of passage martial arts into his own skills.
If it had been a Wind profound meaning of Earth profound meaning martial arts, Mo Wen would not be able to unleash their power.
Once a warrior entered the immortal realm, he would understand and cultivate the power of profound meanings. That was a power that Mo Wen could not understand or imagine at this stage.
If Xiang Buwei had not been imprisoned, based on his power in the profound meanings, he could have killed Mo Wen with a flick of his finger.
"Cold Ice Domain."

Mo Wen was shocked. Xiang Buwei had learned a type of rite of passage martial arts called the Cold Ice Domain.
Mo Wen knew a little about this martial art technique because he had seen Wang Yinru using it some time ago. At first, Wang Yinru promised to teach him this martial arts skill but Mo Wen did not cultivate it. He could see that while the Cold Ice Domain was powerful, and was even more powerful than ordinary absolute rank martial arts, Wang Yinru did not learn the entire set of martial arts skill but just part of it.
Mo Wen was not interested in cultivating a partial martial arts technique. As such, he had left it to one side.
He did not expect that he would see the Cold Ice Domain in Xiang Buwei's memories again. Even though it was different from Wang Yinru's Cold Ice Domain, it was a complete set of martial arts techniques. It was much better than Wang Yinru's imperfect Cold Ice Domain technique.
"Xiang Buwei was really a talent of his generation. He had managed to cultivate four rite of passage martial arts to this level. No wonder the Huatian Palace took more than ten years to capture him back then."
Mo Wen was shocked. He did not leave the Cold Valley immediately but found a quiet and secluded spot in the valley to examine Xiang Buwei's four rite of passage martial arts. Even though Xiang Buwei had cultivated the four rite of passage martial arts to an extremely high level and had passed it all to Mo Wen in one go, Mo Wen wanted to completely familiarise himself with the techniques. He also needed to get used to them.
Mo Wen stayed in the Cold Valley for another day. He started his journey again on the third day. After finding the direction the Mechanized Maze City was in, he started moving forward.
Even though there were many criminals from the Heart of the red stone who stopped him on his journey, there were not many of them who could threaten Mo Wen given his current cultivation. Even if the old woman in the third martial arts realm appeared again, Mo Wen was confident that he would be able to kill her.
One day later, a towering ancient city appeared in front of Mo Wen. The city was built on several mountain peaks and was exceptionally grand and magnificent. It looked as if it was built on the clouds.
Mo Wen climbed up on one of the mountains that was ten thousand meters high. It was high up in the clouds. Mo Wen reached the enormous doors of the ancient city.
This was the Mechanized Maze City. Legend was that a mysterious assistant palace lord of Huatian Palace built the city. The assistant palace lord was a highly-skilled gimmick master who studied the gimmick techniques of the immortal cultivation realm for his entire life. He was very experienced and learned.
Other than a grand palace lord, the Huatian Palace had four assistant palace lords. They were all very powerful people. At least, they were considered the most powerful existence at the pinnacle in the main space.
An assistant palace lord had built the Mechanized Maze City which was filled with countless secrets. It was said that the assistant palace lord resided in it and the city was the center of research in all things related to gimmicks.
"A city on top of a ten thousand feet mountain. This sort of wonder probably only exists in the immortal cultivation realm," Mo Wen could not help but lament as he looked at the city.
There was only one city gate to the Mechanized Maze City. Right outside the Mechanized Maze City was a ten-thousand feet abyss. The city gates hung in the air like doors to heaven.
Anyone who wanted to enter the Mechanized Maze City would have to be verified and then be led inside by a rainbow.
It was doubtful that even a bunch of immortal cultivators in the Primordial Soul Realm would be able to enter without permission even if they worked together. It was because the mysterious assistant palace lord was in the Supreme Profundity Realm.
"Please pay 500 points if you wish to enter the city."
A voice suddenly rang in the air as Mo Wen wondered how to enter the amazing city.
Mo Wen turned to see where the voice came from and realized that the voice came from an enormous mountain wall. Humanoid features appeared on the flat surface of the mountain wall. It had eyes, eyebrows, and a nose. It had all the features of a human face.
What was that!
Mo Wen had an odd thought. Was that the legendary mountain deity or a mountain demon?
He had read about such rock type demons in the classics. They could turn into large mountains. However, those types of demonic beasts were relatively rare, and there were not many of them even in the Demon Realm.
"I am the Divine Mountain that guards the city, and I am in charge of whoever enters or leaves the Mechanized Maze City. If you agree, hand over your jade pendant. I will send you into the city once 500 points are deducted."
The enormous face on the mountain wall spoke again.
A Divine Mountain that guards the city! Mo Wen laughed bitterly to himself. The name itself inspired respect.
However, one needed to pay 500 points to enter the Mechanized Maze City. Those without 500 points would not be able to enter even if they got to the city.
Mo Wen took out a jade pendant. It indicated that he had more than 20,000 points. It did not matter if he had 500 points deducted from it.
However, what made him slightly upset was that he did not know what happened in the past few days since he was cultivating in seclusion. Many had surpassed him in terms of points and Mo Wen had fallen from the top ten. He could not even find his name among the top 20.
Did all those hidden experts come out to steal points?
Mo Wen thought of Bai Chen. He was not at all famous before this, and his name could not be seen amongst the top 100. However, his cultivation levels were terrifyingly high.
Now, Bai Chen was in sixth place. He had more than 50,000 points.
A flash of green light shone from the mountain wall. It scanned Mo Wen's jade pendant. Then, in the next moment, the points on Mo Wen's jade pendant fell by 500. At the same time, a rainbow flew out from the Mechanized Maze City and enveloped Mo Wen.
In an instant, Mo Wen felt a large power tugging at his body. He lost control over his own body. However, that only lasted for a mere moment. He was standing above the city gates of the Mechanized Maze City in the next moment. The pulling sensation had disappeared completely as well.
"Welcome to the Mechanized Maze City."
A voice rang from the watchtower. A group of people appeared in front of Mo Wen. To be more exact, a group of humanoid creatures appeared in front of Mo Wen.
Robots!
Mo Wen had a weird thought. The creatures that approached him were all puppets. They were very similar to the robots in the outer worlds.
What shocked Mo Wen was that these puppets seemed to possess their own thoughts and intelligence. He could see the flicker of intelligence in their eyes.
How was this done? He had never seen puppets who had their own thoughts.
"Distinguished participant, the next round began when you arrived at the Mechanized Maze City. You can now choose between two destinations: the Death Fighting Square and the Hundred Practice Combat Tower. A friendly reminder: there will be life-threatening dangers in the Death Fighting Square but you will also gain more points there. If you wish to be the top ten in the Heaven List, the Death Fighting Square would be your choice. The Hundred Practice Combat Tower is relatively safer. The chances of participants dying are minimal. However, it would be difficult to gain high points there. Please choose based on your abilities," a female robot who led the group approached Mo Wen said in a mechanical manner.
Mo Wen realized that while these robots had thoughts, their minds were simple. Their ability to think was similar to wild beasts.

Yet, even so, the gimmick skills of the assistant palace lord were startling.
"Then I shall go to the Death Fighting Square," Mo Wen said lightly. Since he was participating in the Heaven List battle, then he should work hard to achieve a good result. Furthermore, being in the top ten of the Heaven List was a prize that everyone dreamt of. He was no exception.
He had already realized that the Death Fighting Square was probably the reason he was being left behind on the list.
"Then please come with me."
The female robot smiled mechanically. Then, a flying ship stopped automatically in front of the two of them.
Mo Wen boarded the ship under the instruction of the female robot. It flew into the air with a whoosh and into the Mechanized Maze City.
Mo Wen had a bird's eye view of the entire Mechanized Maze City from the flying ship. It was a relatively modernized ancient city. Everything in the city was automated and it was relatively large. On the flying ship, Mo Wen could not see where the city ended.
Very quickly, the flying ship stopped in front of a building that looked like a torch. The torch-like structure was large. The bottom consisted of a rounded pillar that was a thousand meters tall. It was 300 meters in diameter. On the top, was an oval square. It looked like a torch from afar.
The Death Fighting Square.
Several enormous ancient characters appeared in front of Mo Wen.
After Mo Wen alighted from the flying ship, the female robot brought him into the torch structure. Then, they took an elevator up straight to the highest floor.
The square on the highest floor was massive and magnificent. It was the size of a hundred soccer fields and perhaps outside, it would be the size of a small town. However, here, it was just a square in the air.
Mo Wen immediately noticed the auras of many people in the square in the air the moment he appeared. There were probably several thousand auras! Why were there so many people here? There were not so many competitors for sure.
"Younger brother, you've finally appeared. I thought you were eliminated before you got through the heart of the Red Stone. I was worried for an entire day."
A coy voice rang in the square. Then, a lithe figure appeared in front of Mo Wen.


In his past lifetime, he was an exceptional prodigy who practiced both medicine and martial arts. In this lifetime, on earth, he used his superb medical expertise and extreme martial arts achievements from his past lifetime to excel in the medical field and the ancient martial arts world. He moved his way towards the pinnacle!

A fine youngster, who had been frequently looked down upon due to his poverty, had gone through the cold and warmth of this world to lament laughingly that life was merely so. However, he accidentally awakened the memory of his past lifetime. Since then, for three incarnations, he enjoyed prosperity.

'A talented little fellow without the countenance of those annoying rich kids…' That was Baiyi's impression of this boy whom he had already coined a prodigy.
Being called a prodigy by a Voidwalker was a rare honor for anyone! Of course, this did not mean that the lad should be too pleased with himself. After all, he was being barely considered a prodigy by Baiyi, and frankly, almost everyone in the Void could be called a prodigy of inhumane proportions, even without their individual eccentricity.
Besides, prodigies had always been overrated. Going for the Legendary-level in one's '20s was not too impressive when one remembered that even a capitalistic magnate like the clumsy Undine had done it, too. Back then, her actual skills and abilities were, well… in summary, Producing prodigies using money was a common occurrence. Ergo, the most valued talents were those who not only possessed the required skills, but also those who had been through the trials of life and matured because of it.
Baiyi was not only willing to talk with this boy because of his capability and resourcefulness in solving the previous test, but also because he was endeared to that mien of modesty and pragmatism — rare qualities hard to find in young men his age.
"You are?" Baiyi started a conversation. Then, upon realizing that he did not sound polite, especially when it was a conversation between two men, he corrected himself, "What's your name?"
"Jones. Jones Joseph," the boy replied, mentioning an alliterative name that could be easily picked up from any "Most Popular Baby Boy Names" list. The name was so common that nothing — like a sudden meteor shower — happened when he uttered it.
'Joseph? ...You were a famous actor before, right? Cause you reminded me of Joseph Gordon-Levitt[1]', Baiyi commented to himself. Outwardly, he continued to ask, courteously, "Career?"
"A teacher in an unknown academy," the boy answered plainly.
Technically, there was no such thing as an "unknown academy" in the world, for there were not many academies out there, to begin with. This world was nothing like Earth — which was a world saturated with all sorts of schools that teach way too many varieties of subjects, ranging from culinary arts and machine operations to piloting gigantic mechas and planet-destroying death stars.
Hence, "an unknown academy" was a just a roundabout way — used by various academies — to refer to education institutions that were going rapidly downhill, with the possibility of going out of business. Another example of such an academy would be Mia and Tisdale's Celestial Fortress Academy.
It already took considerable skills to start an academy, but it would take even more than that to keep the academy running. There were no tax exemptions or subsidies for educational institutions in this world, and so any academy could easily find itself battling mismanagement, insufficient investment, a minuscule amount of cash-in-hand, loss of teachers, and loss of students. Hypothetically, if the unfortunate academy did not play host to brave female students who could become idols[2] or work as tank-operating mercenaries[3] to generate revenue for the institution, it would be easy for the academy to dissolve completely within a short period of time. 
Now, what if one wanted their academy to survive for a longer period of time? The Academy would either have to be so bombastic that it defeated any man's nature to throw shades at it — or it would have to suck up to the likes of the royals, the aristocrats, and business tycoons, providing them with a number of skilled men and women every year; despite that, the academy would also have to be content kissing the behinds of these royals, aristocrats, or business tycoons. 
However, if the tycoons and nobles decided to shake off the academies that sucked up to them, it would spell disaster for the educational institutions. From his conversation with the boy, Baiyi's discovered that the academy the boy lectured at was called 'Ivy Academy'— a name which shook Baiyi. However, despite the uncanny similar name it shared with the Ivy League, Ivy Academy apparently lacked much in every other department, compared to the Ivy League. Ivy Academy was once an elite school, but it went gradually went downhill after a time. This was because the position of academy principal was passed down to the principal's descendants, whether they were deserving of it or not, due to the unreliable bloodline hereditary system that the academy utilized. Therefore, as more generations passed, the academy's quality kept declining.
There was a time when the Ivy Academy could still rely on a certain degree of financial aid from the Northern Duke — who was Vidomina's father — to survive a little longer, but ever since the Duke's health began to deteriorate, their funds were cut off, leaving the academy in a poor state. At that period, it could only boast of 30-something students and 1 teacher. The Ivy Academy had now turned into something like the Make-A-Wish Foundation Elementary School.
That only teacher left at Ivy Academy was none other than the youth in front of Baiyi, Jones Joseph. It was no wonder that he was so tight on money. With an academy like Ivy Academy, it would be shocking if Joseph Jones still got paid, especially now that bankruptcy was almost more inevitable for the academy.
Hence, what could be the source of his determination? It stemmed from a very dramatic story.
Joseph was a young lad borne into an abject noble family that was almost no different from other commoners; the only difference was that they possessed a last name. As per a typical wuxia plotline, Joseph's family had a patriarch who dreamed of restoring the family to its former glory. The patriarch decided to place that dream on the shoulders of his son. The patriarch sold the only valuable he owned, and Joseph was sent to Ivy Academy, which was the cheapest academy back then. This decision left the Patriarch so poor, he could only live on as a farmer.
Not only did Joseph prove himself to be exceptionally talented, but — and most importantly — he also proved himself to be devoted and driven. He was ardent in his studies, and he took up part-time jobs in his free time. He impressed what few lecturers were left in the academy at the time, and they all taught him as much as they could. They also introduced him to the only granddaughter of the sitting principal.
As per cliches, the sitting principal approved of Joseph, and he allowed the two to fall in love and be happily married. When Joseph finished his studies, he returned to the academy as a lecturer, and it was at that time that his wife bore him a daughter.
At this point, one would think that Joseph's story would continue following the path of cliches. If it did, Joseph would have become even more driven, and with his burning conviction, the academy would begin to improve. Then, he would go on to solve many problems that arose later on, collect all kinds of rare items and treasures, and build up an impressive harem whose females would all live in harmony, only as long as they all got equal loving from Joseph[4].
However, Joseph was not a protagonist, and all that did not happen. When the old principal died, the position of principal was passed onto Joseph's wife, and after that, the academy deteriorated even more, inching ever closer to the abyss of hopelessness.
This development was not of Joseph's doing. He had worked his hardest, offering every inch of himself that he could to save the academy. However, he still had hope, despite the terrible luck that had befallen him. Hence, he chose to participate in the Power Level Examination because he badly needed the title of 'Legendary-level sorcerer' to bring some respect and recognition back to Ivy Academy. If that happens, maybe some tycoons would find his powers useful enough to aid him a little. In the worst case scenario, he would still be able to use the newfound special rights from his status as a Legendary-level sorcerer to mitigate some of his funding [5]problem.
"For what reason have the two of you not given up? What is it that has made you persevere for so long?" Baiyi asked.
Joseph gave Baiyi a strained smile and shook his head helplessly. Then, suddenly, he replied in a determined voice, "My wife and I made a promise to Grandfather: we will never give up on the Academy!"
'What stubborn couple,' Baiyi sighed quietly. Unrealistic dreams like these were always like fireworks on a night sky — dazzling, captivating, and moving. However, it was still transient.
This time, luck was on Joseph side. Not only was Baiyi one of those people who appreciated the beauty of determination, but he was also searching for his own teaching staff.
Baiyi patted Joseph's shoulder and said, "When this exam was over, I'm buying you a drink."
"Wha—?" Joseph looked at him, feeling perplexed.
"Hey. I listened to your story, so shouldn't you return the favor?" Baiyi's reply hid a smile, and the soul armature turned to continue the other tests.
Joseph remained where he was, feeling stunned. Then, he shook his head hard. He wasn't sure why he had told a stranger so much about himself, especially in the middle of an exam… Could it be because he liked the soul armature's name? Hope… something he was trying to realize.
Meanwhile, in the Void, Baiyi said, "Man, I must hand it to the Charlatan. His secret techniques are always so effective when used on highly-spirited shonen-characters! Now all I need to do next is to complete my investigation into his backstory. He looks like a great addition to my teaching staff, judging by his impressive academic skill and his humble personality. Besides, he's already married and has a daughter."
"And, of course, you emphasized the part after 'besides'," the Soul Armature Practitioner helplessly said. "Are you sure that he will accept your bizarre students and his future colleagues, who are really just plushies?"
"Ay? This doesn't sound like you," Baiyi replied. "You're the one here whose dream was to become an animal trainer… Now you're doubting my students?"
"It's precisely the fact that not many people think like me that worries me, alright?" the Soul Armature Practitioner replied, with a sigh.
"Oh, nothing to worry about. He even persists through the painful state his academy is in; there's no way he won't be able to stomach some literate animals and plants," Baiyi's replied, brimming with confidence.
By this point, the last test of the exam was over, and the examiner handed Baiyi his form, which was filled with purple "excellent" stamps. All that remained was to wait for the result, which would be announced the next day. After the result announcement, the Association would then delegate missions to the candidates who passed — which was really just a thinly-veiled attempt at getting cheap labor for the Sorcerer Association — and after these missions were completed, the Power Level Examination would truly be over.
Baiyi was not in a hurry to leave. He loitered around the exit for a while until Joseph came. It was already noon by then, so Baiyi invited the young man to a small tavern inside the Association's headquarters.
Joseph only ordered the cheapest pieces of bread, without any drinks. As he stuffed them into his mouth, he looked at Baiyi with a curious expression. After a while, he asked, "Sir Hope, did you… did you cast a subliminal message on me?"
'He realized it? What a perceptible young man,' Baiyi thought to himself. But outwardly, he denied it quite strongly, "No way! I am not that sort of person. Besides, a legendary-level sorcerer like yourself would have easily noticed it, right?"
Of course, the Fifth Walker did not use a technique as useless as subliminal messages. What he used, however, was a far more advanced and skillful illusion technique.
"My deepest apologies. Please pardon my boorishness," Joseph hurriedly replied. "It's just that, well... for someone I just met, I think you are very amicable…"
"That's purely because we are both working in the same field. After all, I'm also a teacher in an unknown academy," Baiyi replied. "But then again, we still have our differences."
Using that as a pretext, Baiyi proceeded to give Joseph a summary of his students' situations.
"Huh. Celestial Fortress Academy, which is fabled to have 2000 years of history, is also heading in that direction?" Joseph sighed, feeling a little nostalgic.
[1] Well, for those unfamiliar with the type of charm Gordon-Levitt brings — well, he's famous for his boyish, high-school-crush type of hotness which isn't too disillusioning hot that you can't muster the courage to approach him (source: people who find him adorable). ...So I supposed our Jones Joseph would probably by casted by Gordon-Levitt if this turned into a Netflix-original Live Action!
[2] Love Live! School Idol Project reference— the idol show to sate your K-on vacuum… maybe.
[3] Girls und Panzer. Cool, Japan. Very cool.
[4] Baiyi the prophet, seeing into his own future?
[5] What Joseph really needs is a Kickstarter campaign, innit? Maybe he could make Youtube videos and get monetized for it for side income! A good-looking lad still has an advantage over a visual medium...


Imagine being forced to live, after death, as incorporeal bodies trapped in a vast space of nothingness for thousands of years, with nothing to do but exchanging past memories with other cohabitants (read: weirdos).  Everybody wanted out, but there was no way to leave the Void... 
Until one day, a young man was finally summoned, as a powerful but reluctant mentor, by a bubbly and motivated but completely naive young girl. Baiyi, finally out of the Void, was the only one who could save all of the other 32 souls from their prison and his summoner might just be The Key to their freedom.
However, Baiyi had to use the techniques and abilities the other souls had taught him throughout the years, and together with his own extensive knowledge of anime and game tropes from his shady and dangerous past as an otaku, to face the biggest challenge of them all: training the clumsy young girl he was forced to partner up with… into a competent sorcerer!

Whether or not 52 Hertz really did feel lonely was something that had always been argued over. A large proportion of people were more inclined to believe that it could feel loneliness; after all, whales had a certain level of intelligence and were considered social animals.
Scientists and oceanic enthusiasts had also tried to find 52 Hertz, wanting to see it in real life by playing sounds with a frequency around 52 Hertz in the water it often appeared in. The hope was to attract it to them.
Their effort was not successful; after all, the Pacific Ocean was really vast, and 52 Hertz was too mysterious. How easy was it to wait in the grass for the rabbit? When the limited funds were used up, they had to go home and give up for the time being.
Despite that, the method they were using was likely correct. When 52 Hertz, who was born to be single, heard a similar voice to its own, it was likely to approach it out of curiosity even if it did not understand the content of the voice.
52 Hertz had actually appeared in the open sea in Binhai City, and Sihwa could communicate with whales… The opportunity was hard to come by. As long as Sihwa learned its language, she could reply to its call.
Since Sihwa wanted to know how to help it, Zhang Zian explained his idea in detail.
"But this is just an artificial response. The truth is that another mixed-blood whale like it does not exist. Even if Sihwa could communicate with the whale, she still wasn't a whale." Fina exposed the gaps in Zhang Zian's words without mercy. "It is just like you agreeing to a promise that would never come true. Without a doubt, this is tricking the whale."
Fina's pride made it accustomed to confronting everything directly. It disdained deception, which was not in line with its normal style.
Sihwa was originally ready to agree, but after she heard what Fina said, she could not help but hesitate. 52 Hertz was already very pitiful… It should not be hurt anymore.
"I don't agree with that. Truth is not always needed. Sometimes white lies are needed instead," Zhang Zian retorted, "Now 52 Hertz needs hope. If a lie can bring hope to it, then a lie may not be a bad thing… And who can confirm that in a few years or more, there won't be no other whale like it? In that case, a lie will no longer be a lie."
Old Time Tea, who lived a more rounded and flexible way of life, agreed. "Zian's words are logical. I deeply agree with him. Consoling oneself on false hopes might be derogatory, but it is not necessarily a bad thing to hope that a plum will quench your thirst or that drawing a cake will ease your hunger. No matter what happens in the future, at least it really managed to stop your thirst and ease your hunger at that moment. 52 Hertz has been thirsty and hungry for 30 years… Perhaps our lie would be able to ignite a sense of hope for it. It could keep it going for another 30 years."
Fina hmphed, but did not say anything to disagree with their opinions.
"Pi, what do you think?" Zhang Zian asked.
"Zhi zhi." Pi also nodded and agreed. It pointed at itself, then pointed at the computer keyboard outside, meaning to say, "If it could know earlier that it would one day be able to finish typing the whole Shakespearean series, it would definitely continue to type. It would be even more hopeful."
Sihwa saw that everyone was no longer objecting. She nodded and said, "All right, I know now… It's just that, can I learn its language?"
It was no wonder that she lacked the confidence. Before, she could understand the languages of other whales because she had been born in their world. Her ears had been full of whale songs, and a white whale had accompanied her around, so unconsciously she had managed to learn their language. This time, she had to deliberately go and learn it, and she did not have a lot of confidence that she could do it.
Ever since birth, it had been unable to communicate with the other whales. 52 Hertz was like a wild child that grew up in the mountains; no one taught it how to talk, so its whale song could be said to be something entirely of its own. Whether it was the way of speaking or the pronunciation, it was all very different from other whales, so learning its language would be very difficult.
"Don't worry," Zhang Zian encouraged her, picking up the fairy tale book that was placed to the side. "You have even learned what is said to be the world's most difficult language to learn: Chinese. What is 52 Hertz's language in comparison?"
Sihwa was shocked after hearing that. "Is Chinese really that hard to learn?"
"Of course, Chinese has been said to be the most difficult language to learn by UNESCO. Did you realize that? A single Chinese word has a lot of different meanings; a single tone has a lot of different meanings; a word has a lot of different meanings; and a sound has many words. It is just like a piece of paper––you can write on it, use it to wipe your buttocks, and fold a paper plane with it. It has many uses!" Zhang Zian's face was brimming with honeyed pride. "For example, if you hear someone saying a word 'gou,' you never know whether he saw a dog or wanted to recite a poem until you've seen which word it is."
Sihwa's facial expressions showed confusion while she listened to him.
For foreigners, Chinese was probably as unique and hard to understand as 52 Hertz's song.
"Ga ga! I have specifically come to inform you that you've gotten onto the shot list for next year. Please check and accept it!" Richard saw that everyone was staying on the second floor. They hadn't come down for a long time, so it flew up to join in on the excitement. It just so happened to hear Zhang Zian's pretentious words, so it instantly cracked down on them.
Zhang Zian gave a dry cough, then brought the topic back. "Ke! Anyway, just be at ease and learn. If you need any help, like needing more recordings, all you need to do is open your mouth. It's no big deal. I'll just go record more sounds."
"When it comes to learning a language, no one is better at that than me. I'm willing to provide you with all the tricks from the numerous language that I have accumulated free of charge––as long as after you have learned the whale's language, you teach it to me," Richard flapped its wings and called out.
Not being able to learn Pi's sign language was one thing, but it had always been dissatisfied that it could not understand whale language, so it took the opportunity to make the request.
"What kind of know-how? Say it out for us to hear." Zhang Zian, upon hearing that, was quite curious; after all, it was not bad to have more abilities. If he could learn some useful tricks, if the pet shop collapsed one day, then he could still go to New Oriental to be a teacher…
Richard jauntily called out, "Ga ga! The trick is––if you can't die while you are learning, then you must learn until you die!"
Zhang Zian, "…Are you sure this is not some closed high school slogan of a closed Militarization Organization?"
Fina looked across them, then coldly spit out, "Noisy!"
Zhang Zian and Richard shut their mouths at the same time, both not willing to admit defeat as they glared at each other. They wished they could use their glares to kill the other.
"All right, I will try my best to learn," Sihwa nodded and said. Her voice was not loud, but it was more firm than normal.
It was the first time that she had a strong determination not for herself, but for other lives besides her own. She did not bargain with Zhang Zian; she was purely selfless. She could not get anything in return from 52 Hertz, and she had to use time that she could spend playing on her phone to learn a new whale language. That was something that would have been unthinkable to her before now.
She seemed to see a shadow of herself from 52 Hertz: They were both so lonely, and both so misunderstood.
She wanted to help it, just like she hoped that someone would help her.


1. Download a suspicious game
2. Catch a few magical pets as partners
3. Go through interesting daily routines and lead the pet shop to a whole new level

Han Siming was dumbstruck when he noticed the others' surprised faces. He said immediately, "Don't misunderstand. I didn't mean to exchange blows with you. I only wanted to ask for your advice on swordsmanship."
Not until then did the surprise on the others' faces fade.
Han Siming was ranked in the top fifty on List A of the Dragon Rise List. It didn't make sense for him to challenge Jiang Chen, who was ranked ninety-eighth.
Practitioners were usually aggressive, so when they had heard Han Siming wanted pointers, they had thought he wanted to fight.
"It's good for me, but it's not necessarily good for you. You should know that." Jiang Chen extended his right hand and said, "My right hand is good at using knives. That's why I could combine it with the sword in my left hand."
"I see." Han Siming tumbled to the realization that he would never achieve Jiang Chen's level.
He said, "I hope you can make great progress and have a fight against me one day, so that I can experience your sword attacks."
"I surely will." Jiang Chen glanced at him. He seemed like the most respectable rival he had ever had by far.
Then Han Siming left. While Jiang Chen was leaving, Yin Shuang came up to him.
"Jiang Chen, are you going back to the Hero Palace?" asked Yin Shuang.
"Yeah."
"Thank you for your help these past couple days. May I have the opportunity to return the favor?" Yin Shuang smiled, showing her white teeth.
"Maybe I was returning you a favor?" Jiang Chen smiled mysteriously and gave her a meaningful look. Then he left.
Yin Shuang, puzzled, stood there, thinking about what he had meant. She frowned. She was sure that there in the martial arts workshop had been the first time they had met.
"Eh?"
Suddenly, she felt her communicating jade pendant vibrating. She took it out and found her family wanted her to return as soon as possible.
When she was leaving, she saw people leaving on the ground floor of the martial arts workshop, all in a hurry.
Something big is happening! Yin Shuang realized. She hurried to get back to the Sacred City as quickly as possible.
On his way back to the Hero Palace, Jiang Chen stopped. The token of the Hero Palace was vibrating again with high frequency.
The emergency signal? This is the first time.
Jiang Chen took a look and hurried to go back.
It was a mess in the Hero Palace. Jiang Chen almost thought the place was under attack.
Like other disciples, he came to the square outside the Hall of Heroes.
"Jiang Chen."
Ying Wushuang walked out of the crowd and came up to him. The disciples around him immediately had weird looks, confused that the two had some unknown relationship.
By then, everyone in the Hero Palace thought there was something between them.
"What happened? Why are there so many disturbances?" Jiang Chen asked curiously.
"I don't know. It's quite strange."
Ying Wushuang was like him, curious but not anxious. Even if the sky collapsed, the Venerables would do something about it.
"What about the martial arts workshop?" asked Ying Wushuang.
"Very good. Thanks for your recommendation."
Although he had only used three rooms, the martial arts workshop had helped him a lot. He had achieved his goal through its unique classes.
Ying Wushuang felt happy for him. She was going to say congratulations when other disciples exclaimed, and their voices drowned hers out.
When she looked up, her expression was exactly like the others.
Jiang Chen noticed some people were approaching in the air far away. If anything, their energies were very strong, no weaker than Han Siming's.
When they finally arrived at the Hero Palace, Jiang Chen found they were all unfamiliar faces.
Taking their strength into consideration, something dawned on Jiang Chen.
"Disciples of inheritance?"
"Yeah."
Ying Wushuang nodded. She was totally shocked. She said to him, "Something really big must have happened. Even the disciples of inheritance have come!"
Then she pointed at three people and told Jiang Chen that they were the top three on the Fighting Power List.
Jiang Chen saw for himself that it was true that they were the weakest among the disciples of inheritance.
"Who is that?" asked Jiang Chen.
He didn't even have to point. Ying Wushuang already knew who he was talking about. Since that guy had shown up, he was the center of everyone's attention.
His long, black hair was flying in the wind. There wasn't a single flaw on his fair face. Under the slim dashing eyebrows was a pair of melancholic almond eyes.
His lips were full, but had no color. However, it wasn't a sick paleness. Such an appearance was handsome for a man and beautiful for a woman.
He was wearing a loose long coat, inside which was a neat, close-fitting outfit. He looked elegant in such an outfit.
Whoever stood beside him would be outshone by him, so everyone kept their distance from him, looking at him with respect and awe.
"Li Nanxing, disciple of inheritance, ranked tenth on List A of the Dragon Rise List," Ying Wushuang introduced him to Jiang Chen. There was awe in her tone.
Jiang Chen was shocked. The top hundred, top fifty, and top ten on List A of the Dragon Rise List all had different meanings.
The top ten were influential men in the Dragon Field, even throughout the whole continent.
Jiang Chen took a few steps ahead, intending to figure out his state.
However, Li Nanxing glanced at him, as if he had found out. His melancholic look was stifling.
If it had been others that had been glanced at, it would be difficult for them to even breathe.
By then, more people had come to the air. There were some grand elders that looked familiar to Jiang Chen.
"A secret treasure left by the Dragon Dynasty has been found in the Flying Dragon City.
"Inside the secret treasure is an small, independent world deployed with ward. No one whose status is above the Reaching Heaven State can enter.
"All disciples, no matter what you're doing, leave it behind and head for the secret treasure immediately!
"Any useful thing you find in the secret treasure will belong to you, except strategic resources or great treasures that great Venerables could use, which you should hand over to the Hero Palace.
"Of course, this will be a great credit. The Hero Palace won't owe you anything. The top five people that make the biggest contributions will be promoted to Venerables."
It was apparent that the Hero Palace was rushing. One sentence after another, all the disciples were shocked.
There was too much information. It even took Jiang Chen a good while to come to himself.
Then he looked around, trying to find Crimson Moon.
The secret treasures of the Dragon Dynasty had a close relationship with people who had royal blood, but it occurred to Jiang Chen that he had killed the emperor of the Xia Dynasty, so he was too embarrassed to go see her.
"Not just the Hero Palace, but also eight aristocratic families of inheritance and all the sects and schools will go, along with the Evil Cloud Palace!"
"This time, you should collaborate with each other and work with your organizations.
"Li Nanxing, Lin Jingyu, and He Ting, you three will be in charge of the secret treasure. You should help each other."
Without giving the disciples any time to pose questions, the grand elder continued, "You three left your organizations before. Now go back and take charge for now."
"No problem."
Li Nanxing, Lin Jingyu, and He Ting came forward to greet the guilds they had been in.
"Sword Association, come here," Lin Jingyu called. Soon, he frowned and asked, "Where are the people of the Sword Association?!"
It turned out that only few people had come to his side.
"Mo Jianfei, what's going on? I left the Sword Association under you, and this is what you've turned it into?"


The war of gods left the earth no winners, but a broken world.
Thousands of years later, the soul of the God of war created a new world from the ruins.
Nine reincarnations for the same one belief.
A youngster looked up at the starlit sky with his sword in hand.
Monsters, demons, evil persons…Whoever had the nerve to damage this world would end up dying.
To see how a youngster got onto the top of the world little by little, inherited the soul of the God of war, and defend his own world!

(Lily's POV)

Master is truly kind.

I thought so as he deployed numerous dharmic artifacts to free the girls who were once bonded by their fate.

This fact made me feel proud.

But it also made me feel ashamed of myself.

Numerous times, I terrorized those shops on petty jealousy alone.

Yet not once did I bother to consider most of their background.

Perhaps I had lived too much in darkness to consider these things.

Which is why I am thankful to master.

Not only for being a reason for me to move forward, but also for helping me slowly regain the humanity I had once lost.

Still, master.

I wonder why?

Why are you showing such an expression?

With an ache in my heart, I gazed at master's face.

His face was currently half hidden by a fox outlined mask, almost as if to hide the sorrow hidden deep within.

Yet it failed to hide the numerous meanings being told by the hint of smile visible on his face.

It was not his usual smile filled with care, compassion, or even sentiment nor anger.

It was a smile which seemed much more complex.

It was a smile which seemed interwoven with stories of his disappointment, sorrow, nostalgic feelings, resolution, and a sense of self-mockery.

A smile which could not be expressed by mere words.

A smile… whose meanings I could not understand.

Although I would have liked to understand more about master, I suppose it was not the time yet.

Maybe one day, he would tell me himself.

Thinking so, a smile appeared in my face and I asked him.

"Master"

Hearing my voice, he broke down from his trance and looked at me with a smile.

This was the smile I was familiar with.

One which showed his care and tenderness.

The one I liked.

"Yes Lily."

With the cutest voice I could make, I asked him.

"Where are we going next?"

"The tomb of some pervert whose remains lie in the forest."

"Ok."

I nodded while not forgetting to give a smile of my own.

٩(^ᴗ^)۶

Yipee. Another date with just the two of us.

...…

(MC's POV)

With the passage of time, the world has given birth to many perverts.

Perverts who seek pleasure in cat ears.

Perverts who seek their dao in kneeling before lolis.

Perverts who spoil shotas for their own nefarious purposes.

And many more whom we unfortunately cannot list in a single day.

Through one way or another, all these perverts have managed to leave some stain in world's history before passing to spread their culture in the afterlife.

However, even among all these gentlemen/ladies of culture is one figure so illustrious that all the perverts in the world must bow before him.

That figure is Immortal Qinglan.

The one dubbed as the greatest pervert of millennia. 

To tell the truth, he is a rather tragic figure.

He is the Romeo in the world of culture.

One without Juliet, of course.

But that is only one of the few things that makes his story more heartbreaking than the original.

He cultivated the Pure-Yang technique in his lifetime which required the cultivator practicing it to remain a virgin while keeping 'all his things' intact.

While the technique slowly made him more powerful, he also started getting lonely and frustrated.

It was one thing if he was a eunuch, but he was not.

Many times, he contemplated being a mortal.

At least, he would be free from this agony.

At least, he would not die a wizard.

Until one fateful day changed his destiny forever.

Some perverts celebrate this day as the day of great revelation.

In this day, Qinglan discovered the new feature of crystal cameras.

He realized that he could capture embarrassing moments of his opponent female cultivators.

What started as lucky picture shots slowly evolved into a situation where his life-death battles turned into wear-this-uniform-if-you-lose battle (exclusive to females).

Nurse uniforms, stockings, corsets, maids, secretary, and more costumes started getting popularized.

All females became his enemy.

But he was no death seeker.

So, all his pictures were R-13 and only those who signed the treaty with him would get pictured.

However, that did not stop rumors from flying around.

After all, the scope of his activity was too large.

Soon, he died.

According to Qinglan Chronicles, his last words were "At least let me graduate from being a wizard".

Truly a legendary figure.

That is the person whose tomb (and spirit) we are about to visit right now.

...…..

'A mighty and valiant figure from the heavenly plane.'

That was how the spirit of Qinglan introduced himself to me and Young Che in my past life.

Believing him, I searched about him when I reached the heavenly plane where he claimed he came from.

After that, I got my 'revelation'.

At the cost of being treated like a pervert follower of his by many immortal fairies nearby.

( ɵ̥̥ ˑ̫ ɵ̥̥)

That damn wizard turned me into a wizard as well. (Not his fault)

I should have realized that he was a pervert the moment he chose Young Che as his successor despite peering into his heart.

That old spirit must have chosen him for the free porn scenes.

Obviously, there is no way I am going to take Lily to such a place.

In the first place, there is no rule that states masters cannot grab the hidden treasures for their disciples.

I believe in practicality rather than hot-blooded reasoning.

So, might as well grab the treasure alone while letting Lily rest in the self-efficient carriage.

I thought so as I explained my reasoning to Lily.

But unlike what I expected, she fervently started protesting my decision before going into despair while chanting date, date, something.

Meh.

Throwing her a set of calendars, I made my way to the entrance of the immortal cave.

"Great Pervert Qinglan, here I come."

I said with a hint of determination visible in my face.

...…..

"Good lad. If only understanding people like you existed when I was alive."

Immortal Qinglan sighed sentimentally as he looked at the pictures I gave to him.

"Respected elder, it is all due to your footwork that we young generation have come so far."

I said as I passed him more pictures.

Obviously, I was only buttering him up. 

After all, there is no way he and I are cut from the same cloth.

I thought as I shed tears of men while passing my collection.

All for my disciple. All for Lily.

I silently chanted in my heart.

Finally, after my hand drawn Ai-chan was stolen from me, I got the thing I desired.

It was the equipment I came here for.

The enlightenment stone.

It is an item which could help cultivators understand the laws of cultivation easier so that they could progress faster.

Although it is not quite important to me since I have already memorized most of the laws from my past life, it will prove to be quite a cheat for Lily.

I thought as I imagined the smile on her face after she received the item.

Pacing my steps, I made my way to the place I had parked my self-efficient carriage.

But when I reached the site, what greeted my sight was not the figure of Lily welcoming me.

It was the sight of her barely breathing bloody body leaning on the tree nearby.

For me, the world of cultivation was divided into three difficulty levels:

The easy level Mortal Plane where I made mob characters cry the name of their ancestors.

The medium level Spiritual Plane where mob characters made me cry the name of my ancestors.

The hard level Heavenly Plane where I joined my ancestors.

After experiencing all sorts of turbulence for more than thousand years and somehow restarting my life again in the middle of easy level (Mortal Plane), I wanted to do nothing more than become an NPC and peacefully ascend to higher planes without fighting like those hot-blooded lunatics of shounen manga.

As such, I painstakingly taught my dear disciples all sorts of knowledge in hopes that they could provide senior support for their master in the future.

Yet… how did things turn out this way?

What do you mean you are going to destroy the Heavenly Demon Sect? Isn’t that supposed to be the duty of high spec MCs? Oh wait, you are a high-spec MC.

Wait what? You want to rule over the world? Go and cure your chuuni disease before you come before me again.

And you, you, and you. What do you mean by you will not let anybody take our master? Wear your dress properly and go meet the therapist immediately.

*sigh* I can’t take it anymore.

Someone, please replace me.

My female disciples are scary.

.....................
I do not own the cover pic nor any portion of it.

list of cliches and their meanings

Let's Turn All the Cliches on their Head

404 Boys and Their Cases

Omniscient Reader

The Cliche System

The CEO's Painted Skin

Invincible Kungfu Healer

Why Did You Summon Me？

Pet King

The Brilliant Fighting Master

My female disciples are scary

People search list of cliches and their meanings also like: