010 A oner’s Wisdom

  I narrowed my eyes at the small, delicate scoop in my hand. The paper-thi quivered as I dipped it into the water, carefully aiming for one of the goldfish swimming zily iank. My movements were precise—calcuted. I’m a padin, damn it. I should have inhumaerity, my body refined beyond mortal limits.

  A—

  Rip.

  The moment I tried to lift the he fragile paper tore instantly.

  I stared bnkly at the water, watg as the goldfish swam away unbothered, my scoop now a useless metal ring.

  The arcade stall owner, an old man with a shit-eating grin, chuckled from behind the ter. “Hah! Another one down!”

  I ched my teeth aed the urge to snap the stupid wooden pole in my hands.

  No. No, I wasn’t going to let sed festival game get to me. I wasn’t some dumb kid throwing tantrums over a ival prize. I had patience, skill, and inhuman stats bag me up.

  I thought about my Dexterity stat, a hat should put me above most martial artists in this world. I was superhuman, f out loud!

  Yet here I was. Failing. Again.

  The smug owner leaned against the ter, his arms crossed. “Give up yet, kid?”

  I huffed and grabbed another scoop from the stack. “Tch. Just you wait.”

  The moment I dipped it into the water, the goldfish scattered like they knew I was ing.

  ...Wait.

  Did they know?

  I narrowed my eyes at the water. Were these spirit goldfish or something? Did this stall owner actually have cultivated fish traio dodge s?!

  Another careful motion. Atempt.

  Rip.

  Another failure.

  The old man snorted, barely holding back ughter. “That’s six losses in a row, boy. You sure you don’t wanna call it?”

  I stared at the tiny fish mog me with their little fish faces.

  This game was rigged.

  I was faster than a normal person, more precise than a normal person, and had refined trol over my movements. In theory, I could just use superspeed, snatch the damn fish out of the water with my bare hands, and walk away victorious.

  But I wasn’t going to cheat.

  I was better than that.

  Even if it meant losing to a bunch of stupid, slippery fish.

  I sighed and dropped the scoop onto the ter. “You win.”

  The stall owner beamed, throwing his arms up. “Hah~! Suck it~!”

  I inhaled deeply. Let it go. Let it go.

  I had survived the hell called college, endured a PC explosion to the face, transmigrated with my sanity somehow intact, and even dominated Lost Legends Online as its top Padin for a long time.

  Yet here I was. Losing to a smug grandpa running a goldfish stall.

  I exhaled sharply through my aring at the goldfish swimming mogly just out of reach. My paper scoop had disied again, reduced to a soggy mess in my hand.

  The stall owner let out a wheezing ugh, spping his knee. “Hah! Suck it, lo home!”

  I stared at him.

  Thankfully, I adin.

  That meant I had patience. Self-trol. Restraint.

  If I were a barbarian, orc, or some evil-aligned character, this old man would have been unched across the festival grounds by now. Maybe his stall, too. Probably his entire livelihood.

  But no. I was civilized. Honorable. Benevolent.

  I threw the useless remnants of my paper scoop onto the ter. “You win.”

  The old man looked so smug I had to resist the urge to bless him with Holy Smite right then and there.

  Instead, I turned on my heel a before I did something that would require a Divine Pardon.

  As I wove through the bustliival streets, my mind cooled. The energy in the air was iious—ughter, lively chatter, the occasional firework bursting in the distance. Performers spun through the crowds, bang on stilts or breathing fmes, while vendors shouted about their wares.

  Then, I nearly bumped into a child waving a handful of colorful flyers.

  “Sir! Sir! Take ohe kid beamed at me, stuffing the paper into my hands before scampering off to shove it into someone else’s face.

  I raised a brow and unfolded the flyer.

  Yellon City’s Graival ItineraryDay 1: Weling the honorable guests from the sects and s.Day 2: Elimination Round hosted by the City Governor for the dueli.Day 3: Dueli - Best 8.Day 4: Quarter Finals.Day 5: Semi-Finals.Day 6: Grand Finals.Day 7: Gra.Huh. So this was a seven-day event.

  No wonder so many cultivators had desded oy—it wasn’t just about the festival. This was a full-scale martial tour. A stage for the youes to show off their strength, gaiation, and, most likely, recruit alent.

  I tapped my fingers against the flyer. Day 2’s elimination round was tomorrow.

  Which meant if I wao watch, I had until today to get a ticket.

  …Where did I even buy one?

  “Senior, have some.”

  I barely stopped myself from fling.

  Gu Jie had appeared from my blind spot, stepping into view like a ghost. I hadn’t noticed her until she spoke.

  That was... uling.

  I didn’t turn around fully, just let her catch up to my side as we tinued walking through the crowded festival streets.

  In her hands were two sticks of tanghulu—glossy, died hawthorn skewered ly in a row. She held o to me without hesitation.

  I took it.

  It didn’t take much to guess what this was about.

  She must have interpreted my earlier admonishment as an order. A and to actually enjoy the festival.

  I bit into the tanghulu. The chy shell cracked under my teeth, releasing the tart sweetness of the fruit inside. Not bad.

  My gaze flickered tu Jie, who was still holding her own stick, hesitating.

  I wasn’t big on followers.

  Even as a Padin, I had alreferred solo py. I particurly enjoyed PVP. It was simpler. No waiting on teammates, no w about their mistakes, no unnecessary drama.

  But this wasn’t a game.

  This was a strange world with probably no respawns.

  Having an ally or two might not be the worst idea.

  I chewed thoughtfully. “So how did the other errand I told you about go?”

  Gu Jie perked up, though there was a hint of nervousness in her expression. “The books? I will pick them up from an acquaintahe day after tomorrow.”

  She fidgeted slightly.

  That was… surprising.

  Someone as sharp as her had no reason to be this skittish over a simple book purchase.

  I g her out of the er of my eye.

  Something was on her mind.

  So, I asked pinly.

  “What’s on your mind?”

  Gu Jie hesitated for half a sed, then spoke. “Haven’t caught up on your name, Senior.”

  Ah. So she wao know my name.

  I g her, chewing the st of my tanghulu before answering, “David. My name is David.”

  Gu Jie blinked. “Huh?”

  I smirked, recalling Liang Na’s terrible butchering of my name. Might as well lean into it.

  “But you call me Da Wei.”

  Gu Jie pursed her lips, as if rolling the name around in her head. Then, to my mild surprise, she asked:

  “ I call you Master?”

  I shrugged. “Whatever floats your boat.”

  Her lips curled into a small smile. “Thank you, Master.”

  And then she looked up at me—tilting her head slightly, gazing through dark shes, her brown eyes slightly glossy, the perfect imitation of an obedient disciple trying to look adorable.

  …Nope. Not buying it.

  I knew I should be cautious around her. Xianxia tropes demahat what I had here was either:

  A treasonous wench with ulterior motives.A Type-1 dumbass heroine whose sole existence was to make the protagonist look awesome.Unfortunately, both options only applied tonists—and I didn’t want to be that protagonist. Or as that of matter, any protagonist.

  More than that, I adin first and foremost. And if there was ohing I tried to do, it was see the good in people.

  Besides, Gu Jie was only a human being.

  Her sickly pallor had faded after some actual food aion. Her once-ragged hair had been cut and washed, falling smoothly over her shoulders. The dark robes she wore—embroidered subtly with golden dragons—fit her as if she beloo a proper sect.

  She looked like a cultivator.

  But in the end... still human.

  Not some starving bandit who had barely survived on scraps.

  I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. “Go buy me a ticket for the dueli tomorrow.”

  Gu Jie’s eyes sharpened slightly, but she nodded. “Yes, Master.”

  Without another word, she turned on her heel and walked away, quickly melting into the festival crowd.

  I watched her disappear.

  While she was only a First Realm cultivator, she had mao survive for this long. That meant she had tricks—ones I wasn’t aware of yet.

  Keepi my side had its advantages.

  And I wasn’t kidding when I decided some time ago that I would rehabilitate this one bandit.

  sider it a side quest.

  I wahe streets for a while, letting my thoughts drift as I took in the sights of the festival preparatioually, I found myself near a small eatery. A young server, dressed in simple robes, was slumped against the wall, clearly on break.

  I stepped closer. “Care to earn a quick while still being able to rest?”

  The server cracked an eye open, looking at me with suspi. “Sounds too good to be true.”

  I tossed a copper into the air and caught it. “Depends on how much you like talking.”

  The server straightened slightly, i piqued. “I’m listening.”

  I sat down on a nearby bench. “I just need some local information. What’s going on with the festival? Who’s in charge? Any iing rumors?”

  The server sighed, stretg their arms. “Hah… so you’re one of those outsiders trying to get a leg up, huh?”

  I smiled. “Something like that.”

  Truthfully, I wasn’t pletely satisfied with what I’d learned from Gu Jie. There were still too many gaps in my knowledge.

  I had taken her as a follower, but that didn’t mean I could trust her yet. She was still in a probationary period, and while I liked to see the good in people, a little bit of caution never hurt anyone.

  More importantly, I o cross-examine what she had told me.

  “Alright,” the server said, rubbing their . “For a , I’ll tell you what I know.”

  I flipped the copper in my palm before flig it toward the server. He caught it mid-air with the smoothness of someone used to handling money.

  “Alright,” he said, rubbing his thumb over the , “ask away.”

  I leaned back. “What do you know about cultivators?”

  The server scoffed, shaking his head. “Same thing as everywhere else, I suppose. Cultivators are like gods. People revere them, fear them, and avoid them when possible. They summon storms with a flick of their hands and tear apart mountains like it’s nothing.”

  I hummed, her agreeing nor disagreeing. “And cultivation realms?”

  His faked. “Cultivation realms?”

  “Yeah, you know, like how strong they get?”

  The server frowned, clearly out of his depth. “Beats me. I’m just a oner. All I know is that the strohey get, the less they bother with folks like us.”

  That was… disappointing.

  I had hoped to cross-examine what Gu Jie had told me earlier, but it seemed that knowledge about cultivation and its realms was vague and scar this region. If even a city-dweller had no clue, then most on folk probably didn’t, either.

  What a bummer.

  I exhaled, ging my approach. “How about more muuff, then?”

  “Depends on what you mean by muhe server replied.

  I smirked. “Let’s start simple—what’s the name of this ti?”

  He raised a brow, eyeing me like I was an idiot. “You a lost fner or something?”

  “Something like that.”

  He shrugged. “Riverfall ti.”

  That was good to know. Now I wouldn’t sound like a fool when someone else mentio.

  “And what about this city? Who runs it?”

  “City Governor, of course,” he said, rubbing his temples. “You really ain’t from around here, huh?”

  “Indulge me.”

  The server sighed before tinuing, “Our City Governor is an imperial prince sent by the Empire. This city’s thriving because of his wisdom, they say. Trade, roads, even the festival—it’s all under his rule.”

  A massive empire ruling over this ti… That was a crucial piece of information. It meant that while the city r, it was not indepe.

  I leaned forward slightly. “And this Empire… it’s the stro for Riverfall?”

  The server chuckled. “If it wasn’t, we’d be ruled by someone else, wouldn’t we?”

  Fair enough.

  While the guy had limited perspective, what he cked in knowledge, he made up for in hoy and insight. This kind of information might not be groundbreaking, but it ractical knowledge, and practical knowledge kept people alive.

  I gave him a nod. “Appreciate the chat.”

  The server grinned, pocketing his . “Anytime. Just don’t go asking around about cultivators too much. Folk might think you’re looking for trouble.”

  Noted.