Stepping on the Demoness to become the strongest

"Old Yan, I heard that Goryeo swordsman girl wears a white uniform, carries a seven-foot sharp sword, and can both fight and dance. Absolutely stunning!" Li Zhaojiang animatedly said, "Amazing!"

"A Sword Immortal is just a Sword Immortal, why does she need to sing and dance too?" Lin Ning remarked with a hint of sarcasm, "Your focus is quite strange!"

"What's strange about it?" Yan Yu unabashedly mocked, "It's just down there."

"That's enough." Li Zhaojiang dismissively waved his hand, "She's not a Lu Country girl, so she's not in your hunting range, right? Can't you do me this favor?"

Yan Yu pondered for a moment and then sent a message to Chen Lingyun:

"Li Zhaojiang is my brother-in-law and also my brother. This favor isn't really that demanding. Even if it's just for Minghu's sake, if you can help, just help a bit."

"And how do you consider helping?" Chen Lingyun asked with a smile.

"Ask if they need anyone to clean the toilets." Yan Yu replied.

"OK."

Chen Lingyun started typing on her phone. Li Zhaojiang, watching, gratefully said:

"Old Yan! No, brother-in-law, you really are my brother!"

"No need to be polite; let's not mess up the seniority." Yan Yu quickly gestured him to stop, "Brother-in-law can only help you this much. Whether you can win over the heart of that Goryeo girl, that's up to you."

"Of course." Li Zhaojiang thumped his chest.

The two were busy bragging, when Li Minghu had already come down from upstairs after receiving the news.

"What's going on?" she asked Li Zhaojiang with surprise, "What do you want with Ling Yun?"

"Sis, I..." Li Zhaojiang was about to speak smoothly but was interrupted by Lin Ning, who said:

"He wants to pursue a Goryeo girl and asked Ling Yun to arrange an opportunity to work in Jinmen."

"Oh." Li Minghu pondered for a moment, and with her brother's extremely expectant gaze, calmly said, "No, you can't go."

"Sis!" Li Zhaojiang cried out sadly, "This is your brother's lifelong happiness, I beg you..."

"I said no, so no!" Li Minghu became angry, "You already have a girlfriend!"

"Who says you can only have one girlfriend!" Li Zhaojiang shouted in injustice, "Look at Old Yan!"

"Indeed," Yan Yu suddenly said, "Why not ask Ah Jiang's girlfriend if she agrees to let Ah Jiang find a new girlfriend? If she agrees, then it's a willing exchange, nothing we can really do about it."

"Alright." Li Minghu took out her phone, "I'll speak to her."

"Wait, sis!" Li Zhaojiang quickly exclaimed, "No need, I'll tell her myself..."

Before he could finish, Li Minghu had already sent a voice message.

Soon, a reply popped up on the screen.

"She says, she'll bring her sword over later and ask what you mean," Li Minghu read aloud from the screen, word by word.

Li Zhaojiang's vision went dark, like someone mourning a deceased parent, and he quickly said to Yan Yu:

"Old Yan, I have something to do, so I won't disturb any further."

"It's alright, stay and have a meal before you go." Yan Yu held onto his arm, urging him to stay, "We've never met your girlfriend, it's a good opportunity to introduce her."

"Exactly!" the girls chimed in, trying to hold back laughter, "Bring her over for us to meet!"

But Li Zhaojiang, unwilling, shook off Yan Yu's hand and hurriedly used Sword Control to flee.

"Why does your brother seem a bit scared of his girlfriend?" Yan Yu quietly asked Li Minghu.

"I chose her for him," Li Minghu said flatly, "to curb his personality."

Everyone was suddenly filled with respect, noting that while Minghu usually seemed like a warm-hearted sister, she could be as sharp as a knife when it came to decisions.

What kind of person was Li Zhaojiang? A playboy, hard to tie down. With a girlfriend his sister chose to manage him, his playful days were likely over—just looking at his previous demeanor, it was clear he probably ranked low in the household hierarchy but was amusing to watch!

With that thought, everyone simultaneously glanced at Yan Yu.

Though Yan Yu and Li Zhaojiang were quite close, appearing to share a carefree personality, they were actually quite different.

Li Zhaojiang loved the thrill but not the responsibility, changing partners more often than shoes; whereas Yan Yu, once involved, felt a need to take responsibility, with a strong and unyielding nature that made altering his decisions nearly impossible.

If Yan Yu were as easily swayed as Li Zhaojiang, he would've long been caught by any of them; they wouldn't have been in such a stalemate now.

"Why are you all staring at me?" Yan Yu felt puzzled.

"It's nothing, it's nothing." Everyone quickly diverted their gaze, pretending nothing happened.

At this point, quitting was impossible; they could only continue running a super-marathon. After all, quitting halfway meant all the sunk costs up to now would be trapped.

But if they persevered until the end, at least they'd stand undefeated. Whether it would result in a small win, big win, or huge win depended on how many competitors could stick it out—in other words, this was the essence of competition.

The more you compete, the more you win!

Yan Yu felt that the girls had been contemplating something not-so-good just now. But since girls' thoughts are hard to guess, he didn't dwell too much on it.

After lunch, some people returned to their rooms for a nap, while others kept an eye on Yan Yu, evidently with extra "napping plans" to strive for.

Feeling uneasy under their gaze, Yan Yu excused himself to go for a walk and swiftly slipped away.

This revealed Li Zhaojiang's advantage: maintaining a relationship with just one girlfriend meant his schedule was greatly flexible. Whereas in Yan Yu's case, with a 'big family,' meeting everyone's needs meant time was naturally scarce.