Chapter 2: Picked Up a Wife Right After Coming Down the Mountain?  

The Great Qian Dynasty, Yuzhou City.  

Today, the southern part of Yuzhou City was unusually lively, with crowds of people clogging the streets and alleys.  

Lin Guiming held a portrait in his hand, weaving through the bustling crowd.  

Having not descended the mountain in many years, he found it hard to adjust to the hustle and bustle of the secular world.  

“What on earth is going on? Is it really necessary for so many people to be here…”  

He muttered to himself with a hint of complaint.  

“You don’t know?”  

His words prompted an enthusiastic bystander to pop up, looking at him in surprise.  

“Know what?”  

Lin Guiming was utterly confused.  

He had only arrived in Yuzhou City today, planning to rest before heading to the capital of the Great Qian Dynasty.  

“Today is the day when He Wanying, the eldest daughter of the He family, one of the three major families in Yuzhou City, holds a martial arts competition to choose a husband!”  

The man spoke with growing excitement.  

“It’s the He family, one of the three major families!  

If you win, marrying the He family’s young lady would save you at least twenty years of struggle!”  

“Oh.”  

Lin Guiming responded indifferently.  

He wasn’t interested in such matters; his only purpose for coming down the mountain was to find his junior sister.  

“That old geezer, unable to control his own urges and making a mess, now expects me to clean up after him.”  

Thinking of this, Lin Guiming felt a surge of resentment.  

He unfurled the scroll in his hand again, sinking into frustration.  

Though the portrait was vivid, the Great Qian Dynasty was vast—how could he possibly find her so easily?  

With too many people around, Lin Guiming, worried about damaging the scroll, put it away.  

He glanced at the noisy crowd and the excited expressions on many young men’s faces, feeling puzzled.  

“It’s just a martial arts marriage tournament. Is it really worth getting so excited about…”  

Muttering to himself, he grew curious.  

Since his spiritual crane was still resting and he had nothing else to do, he decided to follow the crowd to see what this He family’s young lady looked like to attract such a frenzy.  

*** 

“Another nightmare?”  

Pushing open the door, He Ruoying, the head of the He family, looked at her sweat-soaked, panting daughter on the bed, her brow furrowing with heartache.  

“Yes…”  

He Wanying nodded, her face still carrying the expression of someone who had narrowly escaped disaster.  

Since childhood, she had suffered from recurring nightmares.  

In those dreams, the world was pitch black, surrounded by water, with a bridge stretching endlessly into the sky.  

The only light came from eerie ghost fires on the bridge, and she felt suffocating pain but couldn’t die…  

“Mother, I’m fine.”  

She shook her head, gently biting her lip.  

“Help me comb my hair. Today’s a big day.”  

“Wanying, are you sure about this?”  

He Ruoying frowned, looking at her daughter with concern.  

“It’s not too late to back out now…”  

“But Mother, if we back out now, the He family will lose all face and have no standing in Yuzhou City anymore.”  

The sixteen-year-old girl shook her head.  

He Ruoying looked at her daughter.  

Years ago, she had lost her chance to choose her own happiness and was forced to eke out a living in this small place.  

How could she bear to let her daughter follow in her footsteps?  

But this girl, though gentle like her mother, was stubborn about certain things and refused to listen no matter how much she was persuaded…  

“Mother, you know the situation our He family is in…  

Though you’re good at business and we’ve accumulated some wealth, our family lacks powerful cultivators.  

In the Nine Provinces Continent, strength reigns supreme.  

As long as our He family lacks strong cultivators, we’ll continue to be oppressed and exploited by the Wang and Zheng families.”  

“Wanying… more than that, I want you to one day enter the Imperial Academy, focus on cultivation, reach the Acquired Realm, become a titled noble, and make your grandfather stop looking down on you. If you marry now and settle into a life of raising a family, your future will be limited!”  

“Mother, don’t worry. I will go to the Imperial Academy!”  

He Wanying’s expression turned resolute.  

“But before that, I must take care of things at home. Otherwise, I’ll never feel at ease leaving you behind.”  

“Wanying…”  

Before He Ruoying could say more, He Wanying continued, “Once I find a capable husband today, I’ll learn from him, step onto the path of cultivation, and gain strength.  

Then I’ll have him stay here to protect you, and I can go to the capital to apply for the Imperial Academy without worry, reach the Acquired Realm, make Grandfather acknowledge you, and bring you back!”  

“Madam, it’s almost time. A large crowd has gathered outside, clamoring for the event to start…”  

He Ruoying sighed, waved off the servant who brought the news, and touched He Wanying’s head, her eyes brimming with tears.  

“Wanying, I’ve let you down!”  

“Mother, you should rest. I’ll go now.”  

With that, He Wanying bowed to her mother and turned to leave.  

***

“She’s here, she’s here! That’s the He family’s young lady!”  

When He Wanying arrived at the arena, the crowd below erupted in excitement.  

Her face showed a hint of unease, but she straightened her petite frame and walked to the front of the stage.  

“Everyone understands the rules.  

Whoever can defeat all competitors on this stage, regardless of age, appearance, or status, I, Wanying, will marry him, and we’ll wed today!”  

Her words sent the crowd into a frenzy, and soon a young man couldn’t resist stepping onto the stage, scanning the crowd below arrogantly.  

“Who dares to challenge me?!”  

“That’s… this young man has reached the peak of the Strength Training Realm and stepped into the Skin Tempering Realm!” 

The crowd below gasped in shock.  

“No way? He’s so young… Isn’t it said that it takes at least twenty years of hard training to complete the Strength Training Realm? He doesn’t even look twenty!”  

“With such talent, he’s already among the best in Yuzhou City…”  

A cultivator who had completed the Strength Training Realm had the strength of a wild horse.  

Though the young man looked lean, underestimating him could be deadly.  

“I’ll take you on!”  

Though his Skin Tempering Realm cultivation scared off many hopefuls trying their luck, among the crowd, there were still those whose strength matched his.  

A man in his twenties stepped onto the stage, his stance steady and his build balanced.  

“Skin Tempering Realm!”  

Undoubtedly, anyone daring to face a Skin Tempering Realm cultivator was also at that level.  

The two fought fiercely, trading blows, but He Wanying’s expression grew grim.  

She wasn’t holding this marriage tournament to find a husband who was merely at the Skin Tempering Realm.  

She wanted someone who could support the entire He family and stand against the cultivators of the Wang and Zheng families—someone at least at the Tendon Tempering Realm.  

After all, the heads of the Wang and Zheng families were both at the Tendon Tempering Realm.  

“Could it be that in all of Yuzhou City, there isn’t a single true expert?”  

She felt a surge of frustration.  

She had deliberately set no age limit, willing to marry even a much older man if it meant resolving the He family’s crisis and giving her a chance to truly step onto the path of cultivation.  

But from the current situation, things didn’t look promising.  

“Hmph, kids fighting? Boring!”  

At that moment, a middle-aged man with a full beard and an ugly appearance suddenly stepped onto the stage, knocking both young men off with a single palm.  

Flesh Tempering Realm! This middle-aged man was at the Flesh Tempering Realm!  

“Is there no one who can fight? This arena is too dull…”  

“Of course there is.”  

Along with the voice came another middle-aged man, bald and with a face full of rough features.  

“Oh? So, the Zheng family wants a piece of this too?”  

The bearded man looked at him with a mocking smile.  

“Naturally. The He family’s young lady is quite tempting…  

It’s been a while since we’ve sparred. Shall we?”  

“Couldn’t ask for better…”  

He Wanying’s expression grew darker.  

The two men were a guest elder of the Wang family and the younger brother of the Zheng family head.  

She had miscalculated.  

She hadn’t anticipated that the Wang and Zheng families would interfere with the marriage tournament.  

This was likely why no true young talents had shown up—after all, the Wang and Zheng families were practically the overlords of Yuzhou City.  

Aside from the city lord, no one dared to provoke them lightly.  

Even if young talents wanted to show off, they’d have to weigh their strength against these two families.  

They were trying to force the He family into a corner!  

But words spoken were like water spilled.  

If no one else dared to challenge these two, for the sake of the He family’s reputation…  

He Wanying’s heart sank.  

Was she really going to have to marry one of these two men today?  

Her face grew pale.  

She could accept marrying an ugly man or someone much older, but she absolutely couldn’t tolerate marrying an enemy who constantly targeted her family.  

“Is there no one who dares to step up…?”  

Her gaze swept the crowd ahead, filled with near despair.  

At this moment, Lin Guiming had followed the crowd to the scene.  

He paid no attention to the crowd’s gasps about the Flesh Tempering Realm fighters or the two men’s mediocre sparring on the stage.  

His only goal was to see this so-called He family’s young lady.  

“Huh?”  

Upon looking, he let out a surprised sound.  

Frowning, Lin Guiming pulled out the portrait from his chest.  

This He family’s young lady bore a striking resemblance to the person in the portrait.  

“Could it be… she’s my junior sister?”  

Lin Guiming’s heart raced with excitement.  

To get a better look, he leaped over the dense crowd and landed in front of the stage.  

“Move aside, move aside—”  

Impatiently, he slapped the two men on the stage aside and approached the He family’s young lady, examining her closely.  

“Hmm, she does look somewhat similar…”  

He nodded to himself.  

“…”  

He Wanying stared in stunned silence at the sudden turn of events and the handsome young man in a green robe standing before her, who didn’t seem much older than her.  

A shiver ran through her.  

No matter what, marrying this young man was far better than marrying those two middle-aged men from the Wang and Zheng families.  

Plus, this youth’s strength seemed quite impressive.  

“I declare the marriage tournament officially over. Today, I will marry this young hero!”  

She stood up decisively and announced the result of the tournament.  

Lin Guiming blinked, looking at the varied expressions of the crowd, then at the He family’s young lady, and finally followed her gaze to himself, pointing a finger at his own chest…  

“Huh?!”