I Just Wanted To Live but I Somehow Became Better Than the Protagonist

Turning Point

Early the next morning, Wu Xue woke up to find neatly arranged new clothes, filled with joy, and immediately took off her pajamas to try them on.

Just the right size, as if tailored for her, especially around the chest, with no tightness at all, nor did it feel empty.

Suddenly, she thought of something, and the once-excited Wu Xue instantly became downcast, reaching to grab her small chest, “I’ve eaten so much, why can’t I grow?”

The more she thought about it, the more frustrated she became. Other girls like Xiao Huan had grown taller, yet she hadn’t changed at all. Wu Xue simply couldn’t understand what the problem was.

It couldn’t be that after becoming a martial artist, her physique had strengthened, causing her body to become fixed, could it? The male martial artists in her memory were all tall and muscular. Female martial artists might not be particularly sturdy, but at least they had tall figures and clear lines.

Wu Xue rolled up her sleeves, revealing her fair and slender arms. She flexed her biceps, but there was hardly any muscle to speak of, not much different from before her training.

Wu Xue couldn’t help but feel a bit disheartened. After all, with her body tempered to the tenth level, lifting a thousand-pound boulder was no problem at all. Yet, she looked so delicate and fragile on the outside.

“If only I had a figure like Sister Shi Meng,” Wu Xue murmured to herself as she walked into the living room, where she found Qin Shi Meng and Liang Xiao Rou both present. Upon seeing Liang Xiao Rou sitting in a chair, her feet dangling off the ground, kicking the air back and forth with her tiny frame, Wu Xue instantly regained some confidence.

With guests visiting, Wu Xue, as a maid, immediately headed to the kitchen to prepare the tea set. However, Xiao Huan was already busy with her tasks. Wu Xue hurried over, wanting Xiao Huan to let her take over, but as Xiao Huan turned around, Wu Xue bumped directly into her chest.

Xiao Huan was still a Qi Refining cultivator, quite weak, and could not possibly compare to Wu Xue, who was on par with Foundation Establishment. She stumbled back several steps from the impact.

“That hurt! Be careful,” Xiao Huan exclaimed. Before she could say much more, she noticed Wu Xue staring at her in shock, or rather, staring at her chest. The intense gaze made Xiao Huan feel a bit uncomfortable. “W-what’s wrong?”

“Did you secretly eat something? How did you grow so fast?”

“Not at all, just going with the flow,” Xiao Huan replied, but Wu Xue’s gaze was unmasked. Xiao Huan quickly sized Wu Xue up and down. “But you, why do you seem unchanged since we first met?”

“I don’t know. I eat a lot every day.”

“Could it be because of the medicinal baths? Don’t you soak in them often? Is it possible that the medicine is stunting your growth?”

“Impossible. I’ve only heard that martial artists get stronger from soaking in medicinal baths, not that it would limit growth.”

“Is that so?” Taking advantage of Wu Xue’s moment of contemplation, Xiao Huan carried the tea set out. By the time Wu Xue snapped back to reality and chased after her, the tea was already brewed.

Do we really have to be this competitive?

Wu Xue pouted. At that moment, Qin Shi Meng said, “Xiao Xue, you got new clothes? They fit you perfectly! Where did you have them made? I’m thinking of getting Xiao Huan a few new outfits too.”

“They were given by the young master.” Mentioning the new clothes made Wu Xue feel quite pleased.

“The fabric is soft, of excellent quality, sturdy and durable, and dust-resistant.” The Qin family’s main business was selling fabric, and as a daughter of the Qin family, Qin Shi Meng understood a bit about it. She pinched the hem of Wu Xue’s clothes and examined it closely. “Yellow grade? No, it’s Xuan grade. But unlike ordinary defensive garments, it doesn’t protect the wearer from attacks…”

“It should be because of my usual training. If attacks were to be defended against, the training effect would be greatly diminished, so it probably lacks that function.”

“Hmm…” Qin Shi Meng understood this point well. She turned to Ye Yong, “Even if it can’t defend against attacks, the difficulty of making it only increases. Where did you find the tailor?”

“I exchanged it at the Contribution Hall.” The clothes were produced by the system, and Ye Yong hadn’t thought much of it. After Qin Shi Meng mentioned it, he suddenly realized that some system products he considered ordinary were, in the eyes of someone knowledgeable, quite special.

—

“I’ve studied most items below the Xuan level, but I’ve never seen anything so strange. Clearly a Xuan-level treasure garment, yet it can’t withstand attacks—it’s almost as if it was tailor-made for Xiaoxue.” Liang Xiaorou carefully examined Wu Xue’s attire.

In response, Ye Yong could only pull out breakfast to change the subject.

——

The joint competition required arriving at the venue five days in advance, which meant that Ye Yong, who wasn’t in seclusion, had 15 days of free time. He had roughly planned out his schedule to ensure he made the most of it.

Of course, the first few days were spent with the female leads. For the first three days, he took them all around Echo Peak, checking off every “sight.” The next three days, he unleashed the crazed, underpaid Golden Core evildoers for them to practice on. A balance of work and rest, allowing the female leads to relax while also gaining a lot.

Unfortunately, daily interactions had already made it difficult to increase their favorability. After six days, each of them had only gained an average of 2 or 3 points. Along with Mu Qingyin, it was easy to imagine how this homebody hall master was enjoying watching the young ones play around.

Overall, the gains were quite decent. Ye Yong now had 840,000 reversal points, bringing him a bit closer to the time artifact that operated at double speed.

Though he wanted to continue spending time with the female leads, Qin Shimeng and Liang Xiaorou were not disciples of the Yinhua Hall, and staying at Echo Peak for too long wasn’t advisable, so when the time came, they returned.

In the spirit of fairness, Ye Yong didn’t take Wu Xue and Hua Ningyan out to play alone; instead, he assigned them some training targets. After that, he went to the Danhuo Hall to try refining pills for a few days, then visited the Sword Pavilion to check on Ye Mao and the others, dropping off some trash… no, giving them some resources and offering guidance. Before long, it was time to head to the competition venue.

This time, the venue was managed by a first-rate sect called Buhongzong, located in the Great Ming Dynasty. It would take about three days to reach there by airship from Tianluo Sect. As for what to do during the remaining two days upon arrival, it was, of course, to familiarize the participating new cultivators with the surrounding environment and to meet the other sects’ talented individuals.

For major sects to develop to this day, both heritage and connections are indispensable. Making more friends is never a bad thing; in fact, some large sects form alliances because two disciples became close friends, later rising to high positions and facilitating connections.

The joint competition not only serves to probe the strengths of new disciples from various sects but also acts as a gathering for new disciples to make friends.

Ye Yong remembered the joint competition as the last place “Ye Yong” appeared before the public, forming cliques, using forbidden drugs, and going to great lengths to defeat the protagonist, only to embarrass himself time and again, ultimately leading to a complete collapse of his character, revealing his inner demons, and recklessly attempting to kill the protagonist, only to be counter-killed, triggering a domino effect that dragged the entire Ye family down.

“As long as I get through the joint competition, I can basically say goodbye to the death tribulation,” Ye Yong couldn’t help but sigh. “It’s been almost a year since I crossed over, and after all sorts of caution, I’ve finally reached a turning point.”

As for who would take over “Ye Yong” and inherit the death tribulation, Ye Yong didn’t care. There were plenty of villains; as long as they weren’t from the Ye family, that was enough.