The expression on Shui Han Yin's face was quite calm, but his daughter's anger and disappointment did not escape the patriarch's eye. Of course, she couldn't understand why her father, who had personally beaten up everyone who tried to court her during her life, suddenly decided to offer her to some stranger.
Shui Han Yin tried to say something, but after thinking for a while she got her hopes up. If he really is from a mythical higher realm, would this man be interested in an ordinary girl from a lower realm.
Leaving her father's room, Shui Han Yin felt how the atmosphere in the Shui Clan had changed, usually at this late hour, quite a few people were having fun in the city after harsh training. Right now, the young geniuses of the clan were rushing around like shadows with an excited expression on their faces. Of course, it was understandable for them, getting into the higher realm was like a dream that they couldn't miss out on.
— Ironically, everyone thinks that once they get into the higher realm, they will immediately jump to heaven. But, no one thinks what happens next, they just trade their freedom and personal life to be an errand boy. — Shui Han Yin grinned.
**********
Yard of the Sixth Elder.
— I understand father. — Bai Lin nodded. Then he looked at the sixth elder and said in a solemn voice:
— Don't worry father, even if I can't cultivate because of my weak body, I'll try not to let you down tomorrow. The day will come when all those people who mocked me will regret it.
The sixth elder was speechless for a moment, as he knew Bai Lin as a weak boy who was always at home to avoid ridicule. His bold utterance and calm state, which he had not had before, showed him in a completely different light. It was as if he had become a different person. In spite of this, the sixth elder was pleasantly surprised.
— Great! — The sixth elder looked warmly at Bai Lin. — I knew my son could not be weak. I will wait for that day. Now I must go.
He turned to leave, but stopped with a hesitant expression on his face as he doubted whether he should tell Bai Ling about the patriarch's decision. With a furrowed brow, he looked bitterly at his son and said slowly:
— The patriarch decided that if the young man liked Shui Han Yin, he would give his blessing, even if she became a concubine.
«….»
As if lightning had struck his head, Bai Lin's mind was still in denial about what he had heard. He thought there was something wrong with his hearing.
— Father, what did you just say?
— The patriarch, decided if the young man liked Shui Han Yin, he would give his blessing even if she became a concubine. — The sixth elder repeated. — I know you have been in love with her since childhood, but if this man likes her there is nothing we can do. Forget about her, it's for the best.
Bai Lin was motionless, as if he had lost the meaning of his life. For the first time in his life, he was in such a desperate position, he didn't care if he couldn't cultivate he wouldn't give up, but once he lost Shui Han Yin, what would he do? He considered her the meaning of his life.
— What about our prenup? Is he going to break it? — His voice seemed very low and hoarse, completely mired in despair.
The sixth elder could only sigh and watch his son's dreams crumble. Well, what else could he do? He knew that the patriarch didn't like Bai Lin, everyone in his clan believed that Shui Han Yin and Bai Lin's wedding was like a phoenix marrying a mountaineer. Therefore, he was not surprised by the patriarch's order. Now he realized that he had told Bai Lin about it for nothing, the reaction was even worse than he had expected.
Bai Lin's mind was a complete mess, he knew that he wasn't worthy of Shui Han Yin, but the engagement was made at an early age and even when the patriarch found out that Bai Lin couldn't cultivate he didn't terminate the marriage contract, so he tried his best to prove that he too was worthy of Shui Han Yin. Despite all his failures, he had just recently found a mysterious teacher, thanks to whom he could now cultivate, but now everything was ruined.
Yang Min!
The only person to blame for everything that happens is Yang Ming. If only he didn't exist he could marry Shui Han Yin.
In fact, Bai Lin hardly ever spoke to Shui Han Yin, even after he met the mysterious teacher who helped him solve his cultivation problem by giving him some godforsaken ancient technique. Not only did he hide his teacher but also a level of cultivation that could rival even the first geniuses of the Shui Clan. And just as the confidence he had once lost came back, a man appeared to put things back on track.
Bai Lin knew that, Yang Ming's personal power and status was beyond his imagination so he immediately dismissed the idea of attacking him, there was only one option left. To appeal to his conscience, not every man could watch his bride being stolen by a man unknown to him, so Bai Lin did not think long and decided that tomorrow he would tell everyone that, Bai Lin is no longer trash from the Shui clan and also that he is engaged to Shui Han Yin.
Bai Lin closed his eyes and said in a calm voice:
— Father, don't worry maybe I'm really not worthy of Shui Han Yin. — In his own heart he cursed Yang Ming, in his opinion it was all his fault.
Bai Lin didn't even think for a second that if another genius came along and proposed marriage to Shui Han Yin, wouldn't the situation repeat itself?
After a while it was night, Bai Lin still couldn't get the bastard who wanted to steal his bride out of his mind, so he decided to find out what Shui Han Yin thought about it, he mustered up the courage to go to her yard, anxious as it was their first meeting when they were just the two of them.
**********
Ding!
[The main character has been found!]
Ding!
[The protagonist loses 200 life points. The user received 400 points]
Ding!
[You have received the task: Destroy the hope of the protagonist. Reward 1000 points + bonus]
[Do you accept the assignment?]
Naughty glasses. Yang Ming's eyes lit up, he did nothing and the protagonist was already humiliated. With a grin, Yang Ming decided to accept the assignment.
— Accepting!
Ding!
[User accepted the mission. If you fail, your cultivation level will drop to the initial stage of Heavenly Ascension(3). Warning! It's not the system's fault that only after accepting a quest can the user see the penalty for failure. There is no free lunch in the world, you have to pay for everything. Good luck]
Yang Ming stared blankly at the notification from the system, at first it seemed to him rather simple as in novels where you could use it to hold the world in the palm of your hand, and yet he was wrong. Just as the system had said: There is no free lunch in the world, the system is actually quite cruel, you might say like a slave seal. Under which a man could die for not following orders. And yet the system did not force one to accept the task, but only gave one a choice. You can lose a lot by going along with your selfish desires.
Yang Ming frowned slightly, but carefully considered really reward is worth the punishment, so he just put his doubts out of his mind, he did not want to be like some main characters of Chinese novels, who after a failed reward scolded the system but still depend on it, just what was the point of it? She explained the assignment in detail and reminded him that some assignments can cause huge losses. So Yang Ming didn't want to think about it too much, after all today was his first day in his new world.
It was quite quiet now, there was no noise from outside. In this quiet room, Yang Ming made himself comfortable on the bed, and tried to get some sleep, he had a hard day ahead of him in the morning, trying to humiliate the protagonist and get some points.
**********
Knock, knock, knock. Shui Han Yin knocked on the door several times. Although she herself did not understand why she came to this man, maybe it was curiosity or something else.
**********
Cultivation levels: Lower realm.
Initial Ascension(1) — Initial stage — Middle stage — Late stage.
Earth Ascension (2) — Initial stage — Middle stage — Late stage.
Heavenly ascension (3) — Initial stage — Middle stage — Late stage.
Mortal ascension(4) — Initial stage — Middle stage — Late stage.