Chapter 23: Stone Bridges Do Not Burn, And Fate Is Taciturn
Within the spacious living room of Tan Lin's abode, a small party was currently taking place.
The darkness brought about by the arrival of the night was pushed away by the pleasantly bright spirit candles scattered around the room.
Empty cups and flasks emanating the strong scent of good wine were littered around on every table surface, and there was an overall jubilant atmosphere in the air as everyone was chatting and laughing about whatever came to mind.
"Now that we've lived through such a calamity, and all the loose ends have been tied up in these past few days, I'm confident that only good times are ahead!
"Apparently, since a few elders and overly ambitious inner disciples have died, the sect is planning to invest more into the outer sect disciples by presenting us more opportunities to get ahold of some valuable resources!
"If we work hard now this could be a serious chance for us to make giant leaps in our cultivation, and increase our strength and status!
"Isn't this what we have always dreamed of when we were just servants being forced to tussle through menial tasks day to day?
"As compared to our hopeless predicament back then, where our only string of hope lay in that damned cultivation technique which felt like it was made for dogs rather than humans, our current situation is multiple times better!"
At Tan Lin's words, almost everyone in the room's eyes lit up as they nodded their head in agreement with everything he said.
However, seated next to Zhang Wei and Jin Feng, Fan Lin's eyes trembled a bit and his face darkened. As jokes and playful banter were being thrown around, the unusually silent Fan Lin hesitantly spoke up garnering the attention of the lot.
"...Hey, guys.
"I don't think I can continue with this anymore."
His vague words incited confusion amongst the group as everyone's expressions turned weird.
Wanting to make sense of his words, Zhang Wei spoke up as well asking, with curiosity tinged in his voice,
"Fan Lin, what do you mean?
"You sick of the celebratory party already?
"I knew you were a bit reclusive, I never knew you were such a block of social anxie-"
"No, Zhang Wei..."
Before Zhang Wei could even finish his sentence, Lin Fan interrupted solemnly,
"...The world of cultivation.
"I'm sick of it."
Fan Lin took a small pause before he carried on explaining,
"By tomorrow, I'll finish packing my things and leave the sect to go back to my family."
These words hit the group like a bolt of lightning, leaving everyone frozen in place and the room lingering in a deathly silence.
Quitting the practice of cultivation?
Leaving the sect, when all the opportunities and benefits are just coming up for grabs?!
Tan Lin, who was the first to voice his objections, shot up from his seat and shouted,
"Are you insane, Fan LIn?
"What sort of stupid joke is that?!
"Are you seriously contemplating abandoning the single greatest opportunity for success that has appeared in all these years of difficulties and trials?!
"Don't fuck with me!
"Although I've not known you for as long as the others in here, I still consider you as just of a brother as everyone else in this group!
"And as your brother, it's my responsibility to prevent you from doing batshit crazy things like this!"
As soon as Tan Lin's speech stopped, everyone else's advice and objections come in like a torrent and soon the room was booming with voices of worry, shock, and anger.
"Why would you even consider throwing the fruits of your patience all away like this?!"
"Fan Lin! Have you been influenced by Tan Lin recently and gone brain dead?!"
"What the fuck are you thinking?"
Seeing this outburst from everyone, Fan Lin's face was calm and he resolutely blurted out loudly,
"I've only spoken up about this to inform you, who are all my friends, about the decision I've decided to make.
"I will not change my mind about this no matter what.
"Now that I've conveyed the main message, I will take my leave first.
"Thank you for everything everyone, and I hope you could see me off tomorrow before I leave to go home.
"Oh, and if I don't end up seeing you before I depart, then please make sure to take care and drop by my Willow Village to give me a visit if you ever get the chance!
"Goodbye."
As he was wrapping up his sentence, Fan Lin had already stood up and made his way to the house door about to take his leave.
Everyone was flabbergasted by his attitude, and were considering stopping him until realising it would be a bit awkward to do that after he had said goodbye so resolutely.
As a still silence flooded the room, after the clicking sound of the door being shut rescinded, everyone's anger soon sizzled down leaving behind a downbeat atmosphere.
The jubilance from before had long disappeared, and no one felt like celebrating anymore.
So with this party killer, everyone disbanded and returned to their abodes- effectively cutting the party short.
Each had their own idea in mind to knock some sense into Fan Lin!
Throughout the course of the night, even reaching the start of the next day, almost everyone visited Fan Lin's abode to speak their mind.
Only to be turned back without success.
The only person who hadn't come to Fan Lin, yet, was Zhang Wei.
It wasn't until the lick of dawn that a composed-looking Zhang Wei was seen standing at the front door, furiously spamming the spiritual doorbell that he had installed a while back in Fan Lin's abode to annoy him.
The funniest thing about it was that it was made specialised for Zhang Wei's spiritual energy, meaning only he could use it!
Anyways, soon a flurry of heavy footsteps could be heard reaching the door from the inside, and a tired and irritated voice greeted Zhang Wei before he could even see the speaker himself.
"Fuck you, Zhang Wei. You rat bastard!
"Now that the whole dilemma is over and done with, can't you let me have a nice long lie on my last day in this place?
"Everyone else, but you, came last night to talk with me!
"I should've anticipated you being a prick and doing this to me!"
As the scruffy figure of a handsome young man with nasty bed hair entered my view, a cheeky smile appeared on Zhang Wei's face and he replied in a mocking tone,
"That's more like it!
"Looks like you've finally come back to your senses, as I know for a fact that a bastard like you doesn't have a single polite bone in your body!
"Anyways, to answer your question, this big brother of yours knows for a fact that a bitch like you needs some alone time to calm down before you start listening to whatever anyone else has to say.
"So, cutting to the point, surely you weren't actually serious about quitting cultivation... I mean just listening to such a blatant lie felt sickening.
"So come clean and tell me what the real plan is!
"I've already guessed you've gotten your hands on the next 'book', so does the plan perhaps entail you going over there to hunt for more riches?
"...Surely you can't be thinking of leaving your trusty big brother behind on this?"
As Fan Lin listened to Zhang Wei's words, he couldn't help bite his lips and clench his fist whilst staring at Zhang Wei with disbelief evident in his eyes.
Only a while after Zhang Wei finished, could Fan Lin bring himself to spit out the words,
"...Are you crazy?!"
This time it was Zhang Wei's turn to give a strange expression, as from his perspective everything he had said was quite reasonable.
However, Fan Lin's follow-up words clarified the situation, leaving Zhang Wei wide-eyed and a facial expression filled with solemnity and shock.
"D-Do you even understand how suicidal that whole situation just was?!
"Although we and our friends were able to make it out alive this time, multiple fellow sect brothers and sisters, elders, and servants died miserable deaths!
"Throughout this whole ordeal, I've been unable to have complete peace of mind and stressed day and night about whether that damn demon would mercilessly wring the life out of me, or whether that damn fox would stomp me to death.
"Fate, protagonists, demons... these are all things a minor character, like me, should stop even thinking about meddling in!
"I-After watching an elder-level character, someone who has some true authority in this cold cultivation world, being pitifully reduced to some grotesque slop of soup. I came to realise how much I truly regretted constantly insulting and betraying my family and running off into such a merciless environment!
"I was a true fool and, as I had vowed all those years back when I was first enlightened on how I wasn't actually a mighty hero in this story...
"...I now refuse to be a fool any longer."
After that, Fan Lin spoke no more and awaited his best friend's response.
Initially, Zhang Wei had a lot to discuss and argue about, but now, the flood of words felt stuck in his throat.
He wanted to refute Fan Lin's words and persuade him to stay here and keep working together to tackle the problem of assisting these tricky and reckless protagonists.
Yet he couldn't.
As a friend... who was he to challenge Fan Lin's new aspirations and tell him how to live his life?
In the end, with a heavy heart, Zhang Wei could only mutter out the words,
"So, this the end of our roads together?"
Hearing Zhang Wei's words, a small smile took shape on Fan Lin's mouth and he shook a head from left to right.
"Are you stupid, Zhang Wei?
"Just because we won't be together doesn't mean we won't meet again!
"You, and everyone else, will always be my friends and brothers, no matter how much time passes I will always look forward to our next meeting!
"Plus, as I said yesterday, I wholeheartedly extend an invitation to any one of you to come over and visit me in Willow Village!
"I'll even leave each of you a copy of a route to my village, in case any of you are missing me too much.
"But even though I did say I'd extend an invite to all of you...Jin Feng, that sleazy bastard... if he suddenly gets in any funny thoughts about my sister..."
As he heard Fan Lin's first sentences, time seemed to have stopped for Zhang Wei.
Slowly, the sound of Fan Lin's ramblings faded into the background as Zhang Wei's thoughts overwhelmed him.
Separating roads... ha!
Yeah, what was I thinking?
True friends aren't lost so easily.
Thinking about his current relationships with the people around him, Zhang Wei could not help but think back to his previous world.
In the chaotic flow of the modern world, where everyone was bustling to set themselves up as best as they could for their future... he could only be swept up in it.
With the absence of a caring family, and his exceedingly low presence, Zhang Wei never really came to experience a true human bond.
Orphange, elementary school, middle school, every change of job.
In all these advents of change, there was always a common point of ephemeral connections.
He was just some minor passerby in everyone else's life, but his own.
Not even once was he a prominent figure!
Wasn't that just ridiculous?!
How come everyone else, no matter how shitty or virtuous they were, could create a meaningful impact on someone else's life... but him?
He felt dissatisfied with his life up till then, but, after transferring into this world that dissatisfaction began vanishing.
Thinking about everything he had been through up to this point, Zhang Wei shook his head and snapped himself back to reality. He then looked up at the still-rambling Fan Lin and said,
"You're right, you win.
"Go have fun with your family, you deserve it after saving an entire sect!
"But... please tell me if you got another 'book' like previously!
"If so transcribe it for this good brother of yours, as it would really help with my next mission!"
As Zhang Wei's words came out his mouth, Fan Lin looked at him incredulously and shook his head while saying,
"Yes, I did get another such 'book', and if you really want to then I'll transcribe it for you before I leave.
"...But, before that, I want to ask you something."
He paused after saying that, then let out a sigh and questioned,
"Hey, Brother Zhang?
"Although I won't stop you if you are intent on doing this, however, haven't you considered taking a break as well?
"Maybe peacefully cultivating in the sect, or going to a village or your hometown and just relaxing?
"It could help clear your mind up a bit, and also let you think through things."
"..."
Hmmm, that's actually...not a bad idea!
He is right that I've just tangoed with death and been ceaselessly fighting against time to resolve the whole Lin Fan incident, therefore, doesn't that hard work warrant a rest period?
Plus, I do have certain important things to ponder right now, and adding a protagonist and the calamities they attract certainly won't help in making a decision!
Why did I not think of that?
The more Zhang Wei thought about Fan Lin's suggestion, the more he liked it!
And very soon, he came to his decision.
Fuck yeah!
Xianxia vacation inbound!
In fact, on this holiday, I don't even want to have a single thought regarding protagonists and all that messy shit.
It's time for some me time.
"You're a genius, Fan LIn!
"You know what, forget about transcribing that 'scripture' for now. I'll come to find you for it when my vacation ends!"
...
Two months later at the quiet and spacious entrance of the Languorous Lily Valley Village, located between a large forest and a hill range, a slightly tired and scruffy-looking young man was standing still looking at the village with excitement and expectation burning within his eyes.
Naturally, it was Zhang Wei.
He had decided to look into a beautiful and laid-back holiday spot to spend his time in whilst he rested and organised his thoughts regarding which of the three incredible 'system rewards' to choose.
Eventually, in his search, he ended up stumbling on this rather scenic small village that has been noted for its exceptional tranquillity and wonderful nature.
Although there was a decent city not too far away, as well as there being a few sects about, it was, on the whole. quite a secluded place.
Upon taking his first few steps into the village, groups of villagers that were of varied ages, sizes and gender could be seen walking around the place. Some carried large bags with them filled with miscellaneous items that they were going to pawn, and some were families taking a stroll and enjoying life.
Normally, in such a setting, anyone would feel at ease with how peaceful this village was.
...Sadly, Zhang Wei couldn't bring himself to feel any ease.
In fact, cold sweat was dripping down his back, and his face reflected none of that excitement and expectation from seconds earlier.
Zhang Wei even felt that he'd be willing to pay any price to get back the carefreeness he had mere moments ago.
Why was Zhang Wei shitting bricks all of a sudden?
All this could be attributed to the scene where a handsome young man with a simple white robe was walking next to a young girl, and a middle-aged woman- Who appeared to be the girl's mother due to their somewhat similar features.
Now.
Just what about this young man that gave off a refined, scholarly aura, and seemed altogether quite harmless...
...gave Zhang Wei the fright of his life?
Well, naturally, this could be attributed to the incredibly eye-catching and unique stigma glaring above the young man's head that he had only ever witnessed on one other troublesome young man.
{Ding!}
[Congratulations host for finding another wild protagonist!]
[Please strive to do your utmost in supporting the 'protagonist' in order to maximise your rewards, and act becoming of an in-training Ultimate Background Character!]
Yeah, this young man was a protagonist.
...Fuck.
Chapter 24: Problems Plus Plights
[Congratulations, your painting skills have reached a level akin to a deity.]
[The System will now deactivate until the host has gathered one thousand karmic points]
[Current Points: 0/1,000]
Within a certain room inside a humungous cave abode, a simple-looking ink brush fell out of a certain young man's hand after reading the contents of the holographic message that only his eyes could see.
His irises turned pin-sized due to the sheer incredulity he was feeling, and a bewildered expression was blotted on his face.
However, this shock was soon washed away by the riptide of a stronger, more passionate expression.
Anger.
Pure, unadulterated rage.
Shooting up from the small wooden stool he was sitting on and completely dismissing the stunning masterpiece he had spent days finishing- not even giving it a cursory glance- his fists clenched tightly and he spat out unrelentingly with an ugly expression,
"System!?
"Deactivation?
"Karmic points?
"...Don't fuck with me!
"This...this must be some joke...right?!"
Awaiting a response seemed futile, as the only thing he got was silence.
However, this silence only served to provoke the young man even further as he began storming around the fantastical room filled with various era-shifting pieces that had been hung upon the glistening white marble walls - Each of which would make any other paintings seem like children's doodles in comparison.
Like a snow avalanche, which continuously grew worse as it cascaded downwards, the vexation within his tone grew as he roared out all of his woes.
"Not only have you had the audacity to kidnap an innocent blue planet-ling such as me and throw me into this barbaric danger-strewn world which has not an ounce of modernity, but you've also provided me with nothing useful to fend for myself.
"Fishing, calligraphy, painting, medicine, sculpting etc. All that which you've taught me is nothing short of useless!
"What in god's name are my sculpting skills ever going to help with when a starving spirit beast or bloodthirsty demonic cultivator decides to make me their next victim?
"All these mortal means, no matter how refined, cannot ever compare to immortals following the mystical path of cultivation!
"And now... you leave me?!"
After the passionate ranting died down, all that remained was the loud heaving and huffing of a despairing young man. As his composure started to return, his mind instantly drifted towards the solution, karmic points.
How am I even supposed to amass one, let alone a whole thousand?
Let's break it up. Doesn't karmic usually entail something to do with people?
More often than not, does it not concern relationships with people?
Hmmm, perhaps the system wants me to go out and socialise... with people?
But I already do that with a bunch of people down in the village, so how could it be possible that I do not have a single karmic point to my name?!
Being lost in his own thoughts the young man failed to notice that the brush he dropped to the floor mere moments ago began twisting and turning as if it were alive!
The brush part, which was dyed black partially due to the ink, started to shake as if it were a tail, and the rigid, straight body of the 'thing' began morphing shape into a wavy form.
Once it had finished its transformation, the brush looked like a mini wooden dragon.
As a matter of fact, it was a wooden dragon!
Laying still as a rock- or brush in this case- the dragon brush began internally screaming to its pitiful self.
Oh by heaven's mercy!
Finally, that Immortal Master has let go of me otherwise I may have accidentally yielded to my natural instincts and stretched back into a dragon, mid-painting. And from what I've been told by that damned Nine-Leaf Sage Clover over in the garden, doing such a thing during the Immortal Master's Immortal-Mortal tribulation is practically seeking death!
Damn it all!
Who would ever think in this vast realm that an ancient branch dragon, crystallised from the condensed essence of the wisdom tree and the true blood of the dragon emperor, such as myself, would be used as a mere brush?!
It kept raving on and on about its misfortune to itself until the dragon guiltily turned to look at the paintings once more, carefully analysing one specific one which depicted the shadow of a dragon upon a boundless field.
A mere glance was all it took for the glamour of the Dao to blind the dragon's eyes, completely enslaving it in its beauty.
Just before the dragon entered the trance, no more were the vulgar thoughts.
...All that remained was visceral awe and deep-seated fear.
...
"Thank you for the lesson, Teacher!"
As a unanimous body of high-pitched voices rang out in a small grassy courtyard filled with human-shaped wooden dummies, a young man's hand rose up and motioned for the hosts of the voices to take their leave.
As heaps of children began eagerly scurrying out of the courtyard to run to their parents outside, the young man couldn't help but shake his head slightly and let out a long sigh.
I'm not complaining, but these past few weeks have been feeling too peaceful.
It's unnerving!
I suspect this guy is probably from that 'trope', but it's so quiet I'm starting to question myself. I mean, when has there not been a whirlwind, or at least a gust, of chaos when a damn protagonist is involved?!
He took a brief glance at one of the young girls from his martial arts class, as she walked away with her mother in hand, and couldn't help but cringe a bit from the luminous blue, [Side Character], above her head.
Just what are the goddamn chances the vacation spot I chose happened to be the territory of a damn protagonist?!
It's actually been quite laidback being a martial arts instructor in this small village during the week, then going for little camping adventures to see the beauty of nature at the weekend. If I had known this was going to happen, I should've just asked that bastard Fan Lin to transcribe the book for me!
A point of contention surrounding this ordeal could have been just to turn a whole 180 degrees and bolt back to the sect!
As a matter of fact, that was exactly his initial plan!
But after a sudden revelation, and the notion that another two months of travelling was way too much of a hassle, Zhang Wei convinced himself that staying for a month or something wouldn't be an impossible venture.
So with his head propped up high, Zhang Wei entered the village with the determination to tussle it out with any nonsense this new protagonist would throw his way. To try to avoid problems he started with the good ol 'keeping a low profile' and rented a cosy little wooden cottage for himself for a copper or two.
Though the place wasn't even a fraction of the size of his old courtyard or nearly as luxurious, it didn't impose difficulties whatsoever as it wasn't like he had a lot of stuff with him- And the stuff he did have was in his storage ring.
Yet again, Zhang Wei had felt another burst of incredulity for spatial storage units due to how criminally understated they are in Xianxia novels by the authors- By now he was whole-heartedly subscribed to the 'Spatial Supremacy' school of thought and now felt a tinge of disdain course through his veins whenever he spotted a cupboard or a drawer.
After doing an essential quality check of the bed by blasting himself on it and being satisfied with the results, Zhang Wei exited the cottage with vigour, ready to take in the natural wonders of the world.
Looking back at it, in his previous world he never truly bothered with exploring nature beyond watching the occasional documentary on Rhino Beetles, so his sudden passion about it may come about as strange. Though If you gave it a momentary thought, you'd realise it wasn't.
Of course, the cultivation world contained a myriad of exceedingly wonderous and magical things but... those things were generally only witnessable by the rich and mighty unless you had a penchant for suicidal adventures.
Below all that was, in all honesty, a backwards normal society.
No internet, no real entertainment except the occasional drunk storyteller or busker. All in all, it was dead boring!
Unless you were a cultivation maniac or very fortunate, like a certain group of people starting with the letter p, you'd have no choice but to find homage in nature or relationships.
As Zhang Wei made a cursory trip around the village to get a grasp of the layout, a certain wooden wall dotted with wooden signs hanging from it caught his attention. The wall had the words 'Community Requests' engraved upon it.
Curiosity piqued, Zhang Wei scoured through the wall till one grabbed his interest. Upon reading the details a blazing elation was reignited within him that he hadn't truly felt since his first encounter with cultivation.
Looking for a martial arts instructor in a small village?
Isn't this like the number one setting for a hidden expert template?!
His breathing pace quickened, and his resolution to take the job soared due to his desire to relive an authentic xianxia experience.
As a mighty Foundation Consolidation Realm powerhouse, who else but me would be more suited for the task anyway?!
After snatching the small sign off the wall, everything fell into place. No administration or advertising was needed for this as the village was so small that word of mouth would sort everything.
Coming back to the present, Zhang Wei was giving the dilapidated little courtyard which he was given to use for the sessions, a quick sweep as usual. Whilst doing so, Zhang Wei's mind drifted to the reason he came here in the first place.
Do I save it for a regression template or should I just choose a providence right now?
But... I'm also deathly curious about the prospects of changing genres or whatever 'A Miniscule Revertion of Heavenly and Earthly Destiny' implies.
Ahhhhhhh, damn it all!
Why have I been cursed with terminal indecision!?
On that fateful day, the system presented his bewildered self with a choice between three rewards for successfully assisting Lin Fan.
...
{Providence Acquistion}
[Sick of being an individual without a cheat template?]
[Worry not!]
[For you can gain hold of one providence you have personally encountered as a background character, regardless of rank. However, don't get too big for your boots, as whatever providence you have chosen to acquire will be cut to 50% of its original effectiveness.
[Note: Regardless of whether the providence chosen is situational, variable, or unexpected the duration of the providence will be altered to indefinite.]
...
{Genre Change}
[Sick or bored of all the Xianxia nonsensicality?]
[Fear not, for the underlying premise of this reality can be changed with the mere action of choosing this reward. Murim's chaotic and callous landscape, to the colourful and romanticised world of aristocracy and magic, all is within the realm of possibility.]
[Note: Given this choice is selected, an unbiased and completely randomised genre will be chosen.]
...
{A Miniscule Reversion of Heavenly and Earthly Destiny}
[Deviate your fate by a minuscule margin]
[Note: Can be inconsequential or detrimental]
...
Zhang Wei always had these three options at the back of his mind after they had been presented.
The primary thought he had was that couldn't he just amass an indomitable regressor template by finding a regressor MC and copying his providence?
These thoughts certainly circled in his mind alongside the multitude of ungodly providences he could encounter, however, the 'Reversion of Heavenly and Earthly Destiny' had also forced him to second guess himself.
What if this option could genuinely rid himself of the background character status and transform him into a true protagonist template?
Zhang Wei wasn't very certain which option was more beneficial, however, he knew that the genre change option was most definitely a trap.
Why?
Well...What genre could a Xianxia advocate such as him possibly know better?!
Furthermore, although Xianxia was usually risky in the sense that there were overwhelming foes, it was also true that the enemies were mainly not as serious or hellbent on pursuing their enemy as long as they were not sworn enemies.
So out of the three, [Providence Acquistion] held an irrefutable advantage.
Not only would it give a permanent advantage with zero risks, but it also opened up the pathway to protagonist city.
If he could grab an overpowered providence, it mattered not whether it got nerfed to 40% as he'd be invincible outside of that protagonist, in fact, if he grabbed a hold of that motherfucking regressor template, there was a chance he could have infinite resets!
If that was so the possibilities were endless!
Curiously and unexpectedly, the one who walked into his training hall next and interrupted his excited thoughts was the very person whose sheer identity acted like a shot of espresso, keeping him awake at night.
It was none other than the protagonist, himself.
Before Zhang Wei even had the opportunity to say anything, a certain providence that floated beneath his name caught Zhang Wei's eye causing him to choke on any words he had prepared...