As the saying goes, everything is difficult at the beginning.
It’s difficult in the middle.
It’s difficult at the end.
But Jiang Ke’er always believed she would have a beautiful future, and therefore, she would surely have a beautiful beginning.
However, this direction of growth… seems to be a very unfortunate development!
“Think about it carefully, Swift Wind Swordplay is quite cool, isn’t it?” The villain system’s voice was like a devil’s murmur, “Although it’s a bit of an orphan, pfft…”
“Did you just laugh?”
“No, you misheard.”
“You lost your points.”
“Don’t! Swift Wind Swordplay is really strong. Why don’t you try practicing it first?”
Jiang Ke’er reviewed the moves in her mind, feeling conflicted.
An A+ ranked sword technique certainly wouldn’t disappoint her, but she felt an inexplicable resistance in her heart.
This set of sword moves was, without a doubt, exactly like the skills of Yasuo, the “orphan” champion in the game League of Legends from her previous life.
This was a notorious “happy man”; even people who had never played LoL had mostly seen his memes.
“Speaking of which, Yasuo is a ronin with a katana, right?” Jiang Ke’er found a blind spot. “So this should actually be a saber technique!”
“This isn’t a game skill. This is a sword technique created by a bird-tribe genius in plane number 214835. Although the name is the same and the move effects are also the same, it’s not the same thing as what you remember.”
Oh, really?
Jiang Ke’er hesitated for a moment, but ultimately decided to diligently cultivate the Four Forms of Gale.
After all, it was an A+ ranked sword technique; its quality was guaranteed. And now that she was dirt poor, she had no right to be picky.
For now, she’d just be a happy wind fox!
Jiang Ke’er left the cultivation space.
The good-guy system, completely confused, had long felt something was amiss and couldn’t help but exclaim in alarm: “Four Forms of Gale, how did you know it was hidden there? It must be that old woman, the villain system, who leaked the secret, right?”
Jiang Ke’er didn’t even need to answer; the good-guy system already had its answer, as only the villain system knew her secret: “Old woman! You cheated again!”
The villain system remained silent, feeling guilty, apparently afraid that the good-guy system would also reveal its secrets.
“Host, don’t rely on this unscrupulous scoundrel!” The good-guy loli voice said angrily.
“I can’t help it, it’s for survival,” Jiang Ke’er said with a world-weary expression. “The good-guy system is unreliable; it gets arrogant when it has too many points. I had to abandon my principles and become a villain just to barely survive…”
“You didn’t say that earlier!” The good-guy loli voice grew anxious.
“Before boarding the Cloud Skiff, you said your heart was set on justice! You had no choice before, but now you want to be a good fox!”
“I wish my heart could be like the bright moon, but alas, the bright moon shines into a ditch!” Jiang Ke’er sighed towards the sky.
“I love justice, but justice doesn’t love me! I’m tired.”
[…]
The good-guy system also fell silent, seemingly going off to think of a countermeasure.
Good, this is the rhythm.
Jiang Ke’er awaited its enlightenment.
Because she had just obtained an excellent combat technique, Jiang Ke’er was in high spirits at the moment.
The only fly in the ointment was that she had no sword in hand, so she couldn’t immediately try out the Gale Swordplay.
It was truly frustrating; she had stolen so many things, but not a single sword.
This was because cultivators typically wore their swords directly on their waists, ready for immediate use, rather than storing them in their Qiankun bags, which made it difficult for Jiang Ke’er to act.
But there was no need to rush. Once she disembarked the Cloud Skiff, she could legitimately buy a suitable sword.
After several days of diligent work, plus some free magic crystals and pill dregs refreshed in the system store, she was now quite well-off. Buying a good magic artifact sword… shouldn’t be difficult, right?
Hopefully.
The big dog was still lying beside her, resting against Jiang Ke’er’s leg, occasionally smacking its lips, looking like it was sleeping soundly.
It was quite cute… if only it weren’t for the drool running down her leg, Jiang Ke’er thought with a wry smile.
“The Cloud Skiff is about to begin its descent. All passengers, please fasten your seatbelts, put away your tray tables, and restrooms are now closed… Cultivators below the Three Talents realm, please do not move around freely to avoid injury.”
Hmm? It’s landing already?
Jiang Ke’er suddenly remembered that something seemed to be missing from this journey… Oh, right! What about the free catering promised on the Cloud Skiff?!
She was almost starving!
How could even planes in another world be so deceptive, promising something and then not delivering… This was fraud!
“Oh, are we landing?” Mu Guoguo woke up groggily, sniffled, and looked around blankly, then sniffed with her nose and mumbled, “No free Cloud Skiff meal again… Good thing I ate in my dream.”
After she finished speaking, she patted her belly contentedly with her paw, looking as if she was spiritually full.
Eating in a dream counts too?
Sir, please teach me how to get full in a dream.
“You’ll get used to it; that’s just how the Nine Palaces Merchant Guild is,” Mu Guoguo yawned, wiping her wet mouth with her sleeve.
“All Cloud Skiffs are owned by the Nine Provinces Merchant Guild. When doing business with the Nine Palaces Merchant Guild, being short-changed is normal.”
It’s this name, the Nine Palaces Merchant Guild.
Jiang Ke’er already had a strong impression of the two characters “Nine Palaces.”
Qiao Xiaoxian had stumbled precisely because of the breakthrough to the Nine Palaces Realm. Now, there was an unscrupulous merchant guild with vast influence that also bore the name “Nine Palaces.”
Jiang Ke’er found it hard to believe there was no connection between them.
Without a super-powerful expert of the Nine Palaces Realm overseeing it, where would the Nine Palaces Merchant Guild get the confidence to be so arrogant and overbearing?
Never mind, no food it is. Can’t afford to provoke them.
Looking out the window, the crisscrossing streets appeared exceptionally prosperous. Unlike Aolai Nation, where some peripheral areas still retained a fishing village charm, the urbanization here was extremely high.
Dusk was settling, and it was the time when streetlights first illuminated.
The tall drum towers were adorned with brilliant luminous pearls.
The Cloud Skiff flew not far above them, stirring up strong winds, causing the female cultivators enjoying the cool air on the tower tops to gasp and clutch their skirts.
“Is this the Ancient Realm of Learning Inquiry?” Jiang Ke’er asked.
“No, this is just an affiliated city outside the Ancient Realm of Learning Inquiry,” Mu Guoguo laughed.
“The interior of the Ancient Realm of Learning Inquiry is a vast world. Whether it’s the Beginner’s Realm, the No Regrets Realm, or the Return to Truth Realm, the land size within each one surpasses the combined total of the Four Great Continents.”
That’s amazing.
It’s so big, Qiao Xiaoxian definitely won’t be able to find me, right?
“Are there any precautions for entering the Ancient Realm of Learning Inquiry?” Jiang Ke’er asked.
“It seems you really haven’t done any homework beforehand,” Mu Guoguo sighed, tapping her chin.
“The situation inside the Ancient Realm of Learning Inquiry is very complex. You could lose your life if you’re not careful. I don’t know whether to say you’re bold because of your skill or what… In any case, you can’t just go in so haphazardly.”
“Then why don’t you tell me about it?” Jiang Ke’er said, scratching Mu Guoguo’s chin and smiling.
“Alright… First, the moment you enter the Ancient Realm of Learning Inquiry, you’ll be randomly teleported to a surface location,” Mu Guoguo said.
“As I mentioned before, the Ancient Realm of Learning Inquiry is very, very large. After you’re teleported in, there’s no telling what kind of environment you’ll face… So you need to find a nearby village or town as quickly as possible.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Once you reach a village or town, you need to figure out which faction’s territory it is—there are many sectarian forces inside, and their styles vary. They’re also constantly fighting every day, so you could accidentally get caught up and lose your life.”
“Okay.”
“And then… well, there are too many things to pay attention to. I’ll just give you a beginner’s guide.”
Mu Guoguo pulled out a small booklet from her storage pouch: “Here, these are my class notes. I know everything inside by heart. You can just take it.”
Jiang Ke’er unceremoniously took the booklet and flipped through it.
Hmm…
Should she say it was worthy of a canine? It was standard dog-scratch writing.
It really tested one’s ability to interpret pictures and recognize characters. Reading it was like looking at a captcha on a webpage.
Oh well, it’s better to have something to read, after all, it was Mu Guoguo’s thoughtful gesture.
“How is it? My handwriting is pretty good, right?” Mu Guoguo, however, widened her eyes expectantly, looking at Jiang Ke’er.
“The teachers at the Ranger Guild all praised my handwriting, saying I was a genius calligrapher who created the ‘Mu Style’! They even pick up magnifying glasses to study each character in my reports with admiration!”
“Indeed… not bad…”
Jiang Ke’er smiled and patted the dog’s head.
This kind lie, it’s better not to expose it.
“Once you enter the Ancient Realm of Learning Inquiry, you must come to the Ranger Guild to find me and play!” Mu Guoguo earnestly urged.
“If you don’t know where to join, just join our Ranger Guild!”
“We’ll see then.”
From Mu Guoguo’s tone, she could apparently also enter the Ancient Realm of Learning Inquiry.
This was good. If she could meet acquaintances inside, many things would be much more convenient.
It’s just that the Ancient Realm of Learning Inquiry is too vast, and she didn’t know when she’d be able to find Mu Guogu.
But as long as she survived, they would meet eventually… Huh? Wait, could Qiao Xiaoxian be thinking the same thing?!
Oh my, time to run, time to run.
In just a few seconds, a group of cultivators arrived at the entrance of the Ancient Realm of Learning Inquiry.
“The aura trail dispersed here.”
The man holding a whisk opened his eyes.
“Just one step too late!”
Looking at the entrance to the Ancient Realm of Learning Inquiry before him, a hint of irritation flashed in the man’s eyes.
“The Beginner’s Realm. If it were the Return to Truth Realm, I could suppress my cultivation and barely enter, but this Beginner’s Realm is too far from my strength… Troublesome!”
“Send your disciples in,” the man turned around and looked at the three people behind him.
These three were from the Wuji Sect, Lingyun Daoist Temple, and Daguang Temple, respectively.
Two of them were indeed the Reverends from the Wuji Sect and Lingyun Daoist Temple, and the last one was the new Abbot of Daguang Temple.
“Yes!”
The three dared not utter a single complaint and hastily summoned the most excellent disciples they had brought from their respective sects, saying: “Ming Jian, Dao Yi, Jue Hong, the three of you suppress your cultivation and go in. Quickly find that fox demon and kill it, or capture it alive and hand it over to the immortal master… It’s best to capture it alive.”
“Understood!”
“Mm,” the man with the whisk nodded in satisfaction. “Actually, the three of you only need to be responsible for identifying and finding clues about that fox… I will have the Nine Palaces Merchant Guild pressure the major sects to send all their most excellent disciples into the Beginner’s Realm to assist you in eradicating that fox demon.”
“At the same time, the Nine Palaces Merchant Guild will also try its best to provide you with convenience.”
“Furthermore, the Tribulation Immortal Palace will even send its personal disciples to supervise this operation to ensure nothing goes wrong.”
“All in all.”
“That fox must be killed within one year!”