Among those who came to cultivate in the Heart Returning Sect, apart from commoner disciples like Jiang Beiran who were picked up, there were also descendants of major aristocratic families. Jiang Beiran’s luck was particularly "outstanding"—he had hit the jackpot three times in a row.
In a small team of just five people, there was an official’s son, a rich heir, and a young martial hero—and all three of them had taken a disliking to him. What a disaster! After investigating the backgrounds of these three junior brothers, Jiang Beiran felt his soul nearly split apart.
At the same time, he had an epiphany—this world was targeting him! Very, very deliberately! But since things had already come to this, he had no choice but to face them.
Jiang Beiran no longer considered himself the same ignorant fool he had been in the past. Over the past year, he had accumulated a considerable number of attribute points and skill points. Even when facing a Yellow-Grade, Mid-Tier mission, he felt confident in his ability to fight! ...
The young martial hero was named Wu Qingce. His father was the renowned chivalrous hero of the Zhandong region—Flying Leaf Hand Wu Fengmian, whose hidden weapon techniques were so divine they were impossible to guard against.
Wu Qingce was the first to seek out Jiang Beiran after returning to the Heart Returning Sect, but his approach was surprisingly proper—he directly handed over a challenge letter. The winner would have the right to pursue their junior sister.
Despite Jiang Beiran explaining countless times that he truly had no interest in their junior sister, Wu Qingce was stubborn as a mule. There was no avoiding this fight. Either Jiang Beiran accepted the challenge, and they would meet in three days at the grove beneath the Heaven-Reaching Peak, or Wu Qingce would attack him on the spot.
Faced with such a blockhead, what else could Jiang Beiran say? Aside from a torrent of curses flashing through his mind, he could only force a smile and accept the challenge letter. But he didn’t just sit idle during those three days.
Rather than waiting for the other two to challenge him or scheme against him, he decided to take the initiative and find a way to deal with them first. So, he sought out the rich heir first. The rich heir was named Lin Jiuge, the son of Lin Jingxiang, the wealthiest man in Everpeace County.
Having grown up in luxury and seen all the splendors of the world, his decision to cultivate in the Heart Returning Sect was purely on a whim—and partly to earn some face for his father, making it easier to ask for pocket money in the future. When Jiang Beiran found Lin Jiuge, the young master had just finished his training.
Despite his privileged background, Lin Jiuge was still quite courteous on the surface, politely greeting Jiang Beiran with, "Greetings, Senior Brother Jiang." Though his tone carried a hint of something odd. Jiang Beiran responded with something Lin Jiuge never expected: "Junior Brother Lin, would you be interested in discussing a potential collaboration with me?"
From his earlier inquiries, Jiang Beiran knew that the Lin family primarily dealt in the transportation business. So during their conversation, he introduced the revolutionary idea of "newspapers" to Lin Jiuge. Lin Jiuge was immediately enthralled, slapping the table in excitement.
He promised to discuss it with his father right away. If his father agreed, he would reward Jiang Beiran handsomely—or, if Jiang Beiran preferred, they could proceed with the "investment partnership" he had mentioned. Jiang Beiran’s reasoning was simple.
If Lin Jiuge’s father had become the richest man in the county, he was surely no fool. If he was smart enough, he would recognize the value of a long-term partnership with someone who could come up with such brilliant ideas. If he wasn’t, then Jiang Beiran would simply treat this as an investment to complete the Yellow-Grade, Mid-Tier mission.
After settling the collaboration, Lin Jiuge’s attitude noticeably shifted to one of respect. He showered Jiang Beiran with praise, his repeated calls of "Senior Brother Jiang" now completely free of any sarcastic undertones. Seizing the opportunity, Jiang Beiran casually inquired about the last of the trio—the official’s son, Wang Yuan.
However, Lin Jiuge told him that they had only coincidentally taken on the same trial mission and were grouped together by the assigning elder. He hadn’t known Wang Yuan before and only knew that he was the son of Wang Bingquan, the county constable of Riverbank County.
He had heard of Wang Bingquan, though, as the man was highly regarded by the locals for his exceptional crime-solving efficiency. When arriving in a new place, the most important thing was to understand who held power. Thus, Jiang Beiran had made a point of studying the names of local officials.
The position of county constable was in charge of public security, second only to the county magistrate. In modern terms, it would be equivalent to the chief of police—a position with considerable authority. After thanking Lin Jiuge, Jiang Beiran was just pondering how to approach Wang Yuan when the young man sought him out on his own.
"Greetings, Senior Brother Jiang."
Wang Yuan was the very image of a refined gentleman. Just his polite smile alone would make most people warm to him instantly.
"What brings you to me, Junior Brother Wang?"
Jiang Beiran asked with a cupped fist.
"Ah… this is a bit embarrassing, but…"
Wang Yuan scratched his head.
"I came to ask—are you really not interested in Junior Sister Lin at all? You truly don’t like her?"
"Of course not. Didn’t you all see that day?"
"Then… could I ask… how did you make Junior Sister Lin like you? Could you… teach me?"
Seeing Wang Yuan’s flushed cheeks, Jiang Beiran could tell he had mustered up immense courage to ask this. It also became clear that the only way to dissolve this junior brother’s hostility was to teach him how to woo girls.
Worried that rejecting him would invite more trouble, Jiang Beiran agreed and began drawing from his vast experience of watching others flirt. Back in middle school, he had loved browsing social media spaces, soaking up all kinds of romantic lines. For example: "If I have no sword, I cannot protect you.
If I hold a sword, I cannot embrace you."
"No weapon is sharper than a broken heart."
"If you clip her wings, I will bring down your entire sky."
And so on—he had seen plenty. These lines had stunned an entire generation even in the age of the internet, let alone in an ancient world where sending a letter was a hassle. Wang Yuan listened with eyes shining so brightly he nearly kowtowed on the spot to formally acknowledge Jiang Beiran as his master.
"Let’s start with these. If they don’t work, I’ll think of other methods."
Wang Yuan thanked him profusely, promising a generous red envelope if he succeeded in winning Junior Sister Lin’s heart. Then, he left in high spirits. ... Time flew, and soon it was the third day.
Fully prepared, Jiang Beiran arrived at the grove beneath Heaven-Reaching Peak as stated in the challenge letter, ready to test the strength he had accumulated over a year of attribute allocation—with Wu Qingce as his whetstone. But a young martial hero was still a young martial hero.
On the surface, Wu Qingce was just a new disciple of the Heart Returning Sect, but in truth, he had long mastered an advanced hidden weapon technique. His flying needles struck with such precision that Jiang Beiran screamed even more pitifully than Ziwei[1]. However, Jiang Beiran also displayed strength far beyond what Wu Qingce had expected.
During their previous trial mission, Wu Qingce had noticed that Jiang Beiran’s Heart Returning Technique had only reached the second layer—equivalent to the second stage of Qi Refining. Yet in actual combat, Jiang Beiran’s strength and endurance far surpassed what a second-stage Qi Refining cultivator should possess, completely disrupting Wu Qingce’s rhythm.
Add to that Jiang Beiran’s liberal use of poison gu and pills, and in the end, the reckless fists of the novice overwhelmed the master—leaving Wu Qingce sprawled on the ground.
(End of Chapter) --- [1] Ziwei: A reference to a character from My Fair Princess (还珠格格), known for her exaggerated, dramatic screams when in pain.