Yu Xuan looked down at the three defeated disciples sprawled in front of him. His voice was casual, but his gaze was sharp.
"So... how long have you all been doing this? And why not just cultivate like normal people? You must’ve known you’d be caught eventually."
Zhou gritted his teeth. "You’d never understand... someone born with talent, born with a silver spoon in their mouth—"
Yu Xuan raised an eyebrow, then shrugged like it wasn’t worth the effort.
"Alright then. I don’t need to know."
He refused the backstory itself.
"W-Wait! At least listen!!!" Zhou shouted, panic rising. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. If the good guy didn’t hear the villain’s backstory, how was he supposed to get sympathy points and mercy?
Yu Xuan sighed, clearly reluctant. "Fine. Let me take a wild guess."
He clasped his hands behind his back, taking a thoughtful posture like a sage storyteller.
"You come from a prestigious clan. You were born with below average talent, so everyone ignored you. Then, by some ridiculous twist of luck, a mysterious manual, a wounded ancient beast, or maybe a talking rock, you suddenly got a chance to prove yourself."
He raised one brow and pointed dramatically.
"Then you got selected in the Heaven Immortal Sect, fueled by anger and resentment, and wanting to prove your worth, you did everything you can. Now you’re on a path of vengeance, robbing new disciples to fund your rise."
He gave a slow, satisfied nod. "How close am I?"
Zhou stared blankly. "...My story’s different."
Yu Xuan’s smile faded. His forehead had black lines. "Great. All that deduction... wasted."
He grumbled to himself, shaking his head. "Even cannon fodder villains get original backstories now? This world’s getting way too unpredictable."
Zhou, too confused to respond, simply remained silent. He watched as Yu Xuan turned toward him with that same half-smile and said, "Enough about your tragic lore. Time to finish the paperwork."
He narrowed his eyes. "Send the mission completion status. Right now. To that guy with the color-changing eyebrows."
Zhou’s lips twitched. Even after looting him, the brat wanted that reward too? The source of thɪs content is 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭•𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢•𝓷𝓮𝓽
Still... he wasn’t in a position to argue.
With a reluctant sigh, Zhou pulled out his medallion and tapped through the interface. After a moment, he said bitterly, "It’s done."
Yu Xuan gave a satisfied nod. That was mission number two completed. With his scroll delivered and letter written, all that remained now was the beast hunting.
And with the loot he’d gained from these three, he was no longer the broke new disciple he’d been just days ago.
Not that he needed it, of course. If he counted in the resources the Yu Clan had given him, he wouldn’t have to rob anyone.
But as they say — "from droplets, oceans form." Besides, stealing from thieves didn’t count. It was karmic recycling.
Still, there was one last issue to handle. He pulled up his alternate profile and messaged Brother Ban for advice.
[I_Am_A_Poet]: Brother Ban, I caught some thieves. What now? Urgently waiting, on-transmission.
To his surprise, Ban responded immediately.
[Not_A_Prince]: Just report it to the Punishment Hall through your medallion. Make sure it’s not a prank, or you’ll be in trouble.
[I_Am_A_Poet]: Thanks, Brother Ban.
Yu Xuan closed the chat and navigated to the Punishment Hall’s interface. Since this was official, he had to use his real name, and apparently this was the default setting.
[Yu Xuan]: I caught a group of swindlers. Currently near Town EH-JJK10.
The response came within two minutes.
[Strict_Disciple_110]: Hand them over to the guards at the town gate. We’ll begin the investigation. You may be contacted later if necessary.
No fuss. No questioning. Just clean execution.
Yu Xuan chuckled softly. "In this world... the strong really do get the final say."
He looked back at the three trembling disciples, now quiet as lambs.
It was time to make his way to the gate.
Yu Xuan arrived near the outskirts of the town once more, the three swindlers trailing behind him like dejected puppies. Their steps were sluggish, weighed down by fear and defeat.
The guards at the gate seemed to have already been notified. As soon as Yu Xuan came into view, a female disciple approached him.
She stood out immediately — short green hair framing her face, and skin that shimmered like polished gemstones. Upon closer look, it wasn’t just an illusion; her skin truly gleamed like diamond dust had settled upon it, or perhaps it was diamond altogether.
After a brief exchange of words, Yu Xuan handed the three criminals over to her. She received them without question, commanding an aura of quiet authority.
"They’ll be interrogated shortly," she said. "If they claim innocence, they may request a trial in the Cultivation Court at the Sect."
Yu Xuan raised an eyebrow, curious. "Trial?"
She nodded. "Their memories will be reviewed directly. If they’re guilty, the evidence is absolute. If they’re innocent... the truth will speak for itself."
She spoke the words with ease, but they sent a ripple of thought through Yu Xuan’s mind.
’So they even read memories as testimony...’
Once again, he was reminded of the sheer depth of this cultivation world.
In his past life on Earth, a person could lie, fabricate, twist the truth — justice was rarely clean.
But here? If the sect deemed it necessary, they could review your very soul, and the truth would be laid bare like an open scroll. (WOW!!!)
It was terrifying. And brilliant.
Yu Xuan’s eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
’So all those cliché stories about being framed and going on long, grueling quests to prove your innocence... those wouldn’t work here, huh?’
In one corner of his mind, he imagined a typical villain protagonist screaming, "I didn’t do it!" as cultivators dragged him away — only for the court to review his memory and say, "Yeah, no, you actually did."
’Guess that’s the end of that plotline,’ he mused dryly.
Still, he knew there were ways to tamper with memories — techniques, forbidden arts, dangerous methods that could forge or alter one’s past. But those came with massive risks.
The mind was a delicate thing in cultivation. Break it, and you lose yourself entirely.
He offered a polite bow to the green-haired disciple. "Thank you, Senior Sister."
She gave a brief nod in return. "Stay out of trouble, Junior Brother."
With that done, Yu Xuan turned on his heel and made his way toward the teleportation formation.
Two missions complete. One unexpected fortune fulfilled.
Only the beast-hunting remained.
As the formation glowed faintly ahead of him, Yu Xuan allowed himself a small smile.
’From writing love letters... to robbing robbers. This really is the start of a proper cultivation journey.’