In front of the main hall, Ling Xiao stood with his hands behind his back. Though there was a smile on his face, the depth in his eyes sent a chill to people's hearts.
Chu Yang still maintained his kneeling posture. By now, his robes were completely soaked with sweat—obviously, it wasn't that he didn't want to resist, but that he… simply didn't have the strength to do so!
"Young Master's might is awe-inspiring—we are truly overwhelmed!"
Ye Liuyun glanced at his still-dazed daughter, then quickly bowed respectfully to Ling Xiao. Over the past few days, he had only known that Ling Xiao was from the Holy State, so he had treated him with utmost deference. But he had never imagined that this young noble from the Holy State would have such terrifying cultivation.
To be able to shake the state of mind of a Soul Sea Realm powerhouse—his cultivation must be… at least at that level, right? A Soul Sea Realm expert at seventeen or eighteen?
Ye Liuyun swallowed hard, his resolve to cling tightly to Ling Xiao's "coattails" growing even stronger. Chu Yang was promising, but he needed time to grow. In this world, there was no shortage of teenagers with extraordinary talent. But how many of them actually grew up to become powerful overlords?
Besides, in the Four Wastelands, any force even remotely connected to the Holy State now dominated their respective regions. Ye Liuyun didn't expect Ling Xiao to take him to the Holy State, but if… if Ye Qingchan could win this young master's heart, would Xuanjian Sect ever need to fear anyone again?!
"Sect Master flatters me. This is merely some trivial trick not worth mentioning."
Ling Xiao smiled calmly, his words and demeanor humble, with no trace of arrogance. This made countless people in the square look at him with even more awe. This was the demeanor of a true powerhouse! Unassuming, humble, and polite.
In contrast, Chu Yang's earlier wailing and ranting seemed rather crude.
"Ding! Congratulations, Host, on successfully sowing discord between Ye Liuyun and his disciple. This aligns with villainous behavior—you have gained 300 Villain Value."
Even this works? Ling Xiao was a little stunned, but joy welled up in his heart. It seemed that earning Villain Value was far easier than earning Fortune Points!
At this moment, the experts from other forces in the square who had come to watch the commotion couldn't help but speculate about Ling Xiao's identity. Though they couldn't link him to the Holy State, Ye Liuyun's attitude made it clear that this black-robed young man must come from a powerful and noble family.
But… Chu Yang's talent was obvious for all to see. Ling Xiao was strong, but he wasn't a disciple of Xuanjian Sect. If Chu Yang was determined to leave, wouldn't that be a loss for Xuanjian Sect?
Of course, Ling Xiao paid no attention to their thoughts. Instead, he couldn't wait to summon the system.
"System!"
Immediately, a character profile screen appeared before his eyes:
Master: Ling Xiao
Identity: Young Master of the Wandao Demonic Sect
Divine Body: True Demonic Body (Forbidden Constitution)
Cultivation: Late Stage of Soul Sea Realm
Techniques: Wandao Demonic Manual, True Demonic Body (Innate), Purgatory Eyes (Innate)
Destiny Value: 30
Villain Value: 600
Clearly, these 30 points of Destiny Value and Villain Value were obtained from humiliating Chu Yang earlier. In other words, this system must have just awakened. Otherwise, given Ling Xiao's original arrogant personality, he would have played the villain role many times before, and these two values would definitely not be so low.
"System, what are Destiny Points and Villain Value used for?" This was what Ling Xiao cared about most.
"Only when your Destiny Points exceed those of the Chosen One can you accept kill missions and receive the final reward. Villain Value can be exchanged for items in the System Mall."
As expected, it was roughly what Ling Xiao had guessed. Destiny was something illusory and mysterious—but when it came down to it, wasn't it just a tool used by authors to fool readers? Otherwise, how could the protagonist casually pick up a broken stone on the road and find the remnant soul of an old grandmaster who had been harmed by others inside? Why couldn't anyone else find it?
"Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west"—the villains were all ruthless and merciless, so why would they let you "cross to the west bank" (i.e., rise again)?
So, all these unreasonable things were just destiny!!
After all, to reach the peak of cultivation, one not only needed terrifying talent and unyielding will but also a bit of destiny. With destiny on your side, you would naturally turn danger into safety, find a way out of desperate situations, and even revive on the spot as long as there was a glimmer of life…
Chu Yang was the original Chosen One, with his destiny already reaching 500 points. But Ling Xiao currently had only 30 points of Destiny Value in total. If he killed Chu Yang now, unforeseen accidents would definitely occur—he might even lose his own life.
Logically, Ling Xiao shouldn't understand any of this, so he would only be a "stepping stone." But now…
These clichés held no sense of novelty for Ling Xiao at all.
"Plundering Destiny Value is actually quite interesting."
Ling Xiao's gaze swept across the entire square. He noticed that among all the Xuanjian Sect disciples, only Chu Yang had the highest destiny. Next was Ye Qingchan, who stood beside him, with her destiny reaching 400 points. As the original female lead, it would be a waste of her stunning looks if she didn't have some destiny.
"System, is plundering the only way to gain Destiny Value?"
If it meant killing Chu Yang, Ling Xiao would have no guilt at all. But Ye Qingchan was truly beautiful, with a temperament that was just right in every way. To kill her for Destiny Value… honestly, Ling Xiao felt a little reluctant. Besides, generally speaking, beautiful women in novels definitely had destiny. Could Ling Xiao really kill them all one by one?
Keeping her by his side and doing "things they loved to do" in his free time—wouldn't that be nicer?
"There are two ways to gain Destiny Value: one is to suppress and kill, and the other is to subdue and possess."
The system's answer was simple and straightforward, and a smile couldn't help but curl up at the corner of Ling Xiao's lips. This made things much easier.
"Presumptuous Chu Yang! You have repeatedly challenged the sect's authority today! Someone, take him to the Cliff of Repentance and lock him up—wait for Young Master Ling Xiao's decision!"
Ye Liuyun shouted coldly, casting a tentative glance at Ling Xiao.
Ling Xiao nodded, but secretly found it amusing. How could he not know what Ye Liuyun was thinking? However, Chu Yang really couldn't be killed now—he needed to find out what Chu Yang was relying on, then play with him slowly until he died.
As for Ye Qingchan, she would certainly stay by his side. After all, with her looks, even in the Holy State, she would definitely be considered top-tier!
"Have you watched enough?"
Ling Xiao looked at Chu Yang, who was slowly climbing up from the ground, and spoke softly.
Hearing this, Ye Qingchan froze. She looked down at the empty teacup in front of Ling Xiao, then quickly picked up the teapot and refilled it for him.
To be honest, even now, Ye Qingchan still hadn't recovered from the shock earlier. She had never imagined that this mysterious young noble from the Holy State would have such terrifying cultivation.
Originally, Brother Chu Yang had seemed like a celestial being in her eyes. She had long known that Chu Yang's combat power was more terrifying than that of most peak Xuling Realm cultivators. But defeating enemies across realms had its limits—otherwise, how would authors pad their word count?
For a moment, Ye Qingchan had indeed dreamed of the world of the Holy State.
"Ling Xiao!! If you don't kill me today, I will definitely kill you tomorrow!!"
In the square, Chu Yang struggled to get up from the ground. When he saw Ye Qingchan actually bending over to pour tea for Ling Xiao, the snow-white curve of her chest—once so alluring—now seemed rather jarring!
He really couldn't understand what was wrong with everyone in the sect. Why were they all as docile as lap dogs in front of Ling Xiao? Even that Nine Nether (Jiuming) who had promised him immortality was nowhere to be seen now!
He was the one favored by Heavenly Dao!!
Ling Xiao held the teacup, looked up at Chu Yang, and a hint of a smile played at his lips.
"This is boring. Miss Qingchan, why don't you come to my room? Let's do something interesting