Chapter 4 | How Could the Master of All Villains Be Righteous?

Yongdi City.

“Do you want to say goodbye to them?”

“...?”

Startled, Yao Dai followed her gaze. Sitting over there were the very two beggars she had beaten when they first met.

“I'll wait for you.”

Wen Li impassively let go of her hand and stood to the side.

Yao Dai's eyes narrowed slightly as she looked at the two beggars, who had also noticed her. Now that she had been cleaned up and given fresh clothes, they didn't seem to recognize her, looking at her with only raw envy in their eyes—envying how clean and tidy she was, like a child who had a family.

Why? Master should know what her relationship with them was like, yet she had never once asked about her past. Didn't she think Yao Dai was vicious and cruel for bullying people at such a young age?

After all, Master had seen her beating and scolding them with her own eyes.

Sensitive and wary by nature, Yao Dai didn't move rashly. Turning around, she asked, “Master, if the sect doesn't discriminate against evil cultivators and demonic cultivators, would it still not care if they murdered people and had wicked intentions?”

【Host, keep it up! Seize this chance to feed the villain some chicken soup for the soul! Turn her into an upright, model youth who loves helping others!】

The System waved its flags and cheered, stopping just short of setting off firecrackers.

As the "Save the Villain" System, its mission was naturally to reform the villain into a good person, help her steer clear of grudges and vendettas with the blessed male and female leads, survive the original plot, reverse her off-the-charts villainous corruption, and preserve the order of the collapsing world. Only then could Wen Li finally advance beyond the Foundation Establishment realm she had been stuck at for ten thousand years.

The morning sun shone faintly, strands of golden light shimmering before Yao Dai, slightly dazzling. Wen Li, standing before her, was cast into shadow, her cool, lonely face half in light, half in dark.

Those eyes, usually calm and quiet as frost, now carried a trace of lingering warmth as they gazed quietly at Yao Dai.

“Good and evil are two sides of the same coin. Throughout a person's life, there is no black-and-white divide between good and bad. Wiping out the wicked to the last can be considered good, just as repaying a benefactor tenfold can be considered good. Right and wrong exist only in human hearts; in the end, they are merely judged according to other people's interests.”

“If, in the name of so-called goodness, someone urges you to lay down your butcher's knife and become a Buddha on the spot, that is true evil. Because they have never experienced your pain, they use a single word—'goodness'—to dismiss all the harm done to you. If you have a clear conscience before heaven and earth, letting go of the moral righteousness preached by others purely to survive is, to you, what is good.”

Every single word from Wen Li fell clearly into her ears.

“Being kind to others is difficult. It requires accommodating others, yielding your own interests, and suffering grievances; good people always end up drawing the short straw. A single lapse in kindness breeds resentment and malice in others. But if you are kind to yourself, you can act entirely for your own sake without feeling guilty over what others lose, ensuring no one dares bully you; then, a single act of mercy will make them weep with gratitude.”

“A person only lives once in this world. What is righteous, what is good? It is simply that when you are capable of rewriting the world, you yourself become the rule.”

The System was utterly baffled. Its language comprehension wasn't great, but it seemed like the host was reforming the villain, right? See, she was even teaching her how to tell good from bad... Hiss, no, that wasn't right. Why did it sound so strange?

No, why did it feel like its brain was empty and sloshing with water?

Wen Li continued, “My disciple doesn't need to be kind. She only needs to be safe.”

Yao Dai's heart skipped a beat. For once, her usually unreliable master felt just like the mother who had taught her to read and write in the past.

“Master, then what do you hope I cultivate the Dao for?”

Meeting her clear yet dimly uneasy gaze, Wen Li spoke in a cool, indifferent voice.

“Some cultivate the Dao to live as long as the heavens; some to make a name for themselves; some to seek vengeance. I don't ask about your past, nor will I dictate your future. As your master, I only hope you can live for yourself, and find joy in yourself.”

It was just that once a person lived entirely for themselves, it inevitably came at the expense of others' interests. Such people were called by the world...

“Villains.”

Yao Dai was only thirteen, still young; at the time, she didn't yet understand the deep meaning behind those words.

“And also earn money to support your master in her old age.”

Yao Dai: “...”

All right, Master was still the same unreliable master.

The girl standing there suddenly moved, walking toward the beggars.

Thinking she had come to give them alms, the beggars' eyes lit up. But before they could utter a word of flattery—

In the next second:

“Ah! You!”

“Why are you hitting us?!”

The System: ?! Is this how people say goodbye?!

Could this be some brand-new social etiquette in the cultivation world?

Yao Dai rolled up her sleeves and threw punches and kicks at the two beggars with hands and feet, each blow harder than the last, her gaze vicious and sharp.

“Bully people less in the future, or you'll find out not everyone has as good a temper as me!”

She had been bullied by them for two years, having crawled through crotches and squirmed through pig manure, intentionally keeping herself foul-smelling and filthy out of fear that they would discover she was a girl.

Only in the third year, when she seized an opening, was she able to turn the tables on them.

Master had said that becoming powerful didn't mean one had to learn tolerance and mercy or refrain from picking on the weak. Rather, it was an eye for an eye, staying true to the person you were when you started.

Never let your current self forgive anyone on behalf of your past self; no one had that right.

Having stepped onto the path of cultivation, Yao Dai's prowess was now comparable to three adult mortal men. Naturally, the two beggars were no match for her, taking blow after blow squarely to the flesh, just as Yao Dai had once endured.

Her small frame stood there with her back to the sun, the front of her body cast in shadow.

Beneath the ferocity in her eyes simmered a faint excitement and thrill, along with a mist of tears.

If only she had been strong enough back then, her father and mother wouldn't have lost their lives, and she wouldn't have become a homeless orphan.

Remembering something, the little girl's eyes darkened with intensifying hatred as she looked down at the bleeding beggars on the ground.

It was as if she were looking at the enemies who had slaughtered her family. Her fingers curled beneath her sleeves, circulating a wisp of spiritual energy.

A faint trace of bloodthirst flickered in her eyes.

“If you've beaten them enough, let's go. Any later and the free meat buns over there will be gone.”

“Huh?”

Like picking up a chick, Wen Li suddenly grabbed the back of her collar, hauling her out of that shadowy corner. Together, they stepped into the warm spring light.

Caught off guard, Yao Dai didn't even have time to rein in the ferocity in her eyes. Looking up into Wen Li's cool, detached gaze, she froze for a moment. She suddenly realized that ever since she had met her master, she had never seen her smile.

Master was always calm, as though the sky itself could collapse without shaking her. Or rather, it seemed as if nothing in the world could evoke strong emotions in her, be it great sorrow or immense joy.

Yao Dai hurriedly lowered her head and called out in a muffled voice, “Master...”

“Mm.”

Wen Li asked nothing and said nothing, offering only a faint acknowledgment.

“If you keep dawdling, the meat buns really will be gone.”

As she spoke, the transcendent, fairy-like Wen Li looked into the distance. Sure enough, outside the wealthy man's gate where relief was being distributed to the poor, a long queue had already formed.

Whoosh! A gust of wind blew past.

In the blink of an eye, Wen Li had already taken her place at the very end of the line, still dangling Yao Dai.

Yao Dai held back for a moment, but couldn't help asking, “Master, why don't we just buy some with money?”

It made sense when they were training in the mountains since no one was selling anything there.

Wen Li set her down on the ground and casually patted her head. “Silly girl, how could anything you pay for smell as sweet as what's free?”

Just as a dollar found on the ground always brought more joy than a dollar earned by slaving like a beast of burden.

“...Oh.” Note taken: Master liked freebies.

The merchant distributing the buns, nearing fifty years of age, looked at how young Wen Li was while dragging along a half-grown child, and couldn't resist speaking up after some hesitation.

“Young lady.”

“Yes?”

Wen Li's expression softened slightly, thinking he was about to give her an extra bun. Holding Yao Dai with her left hand and clutching a bun between her teeth, she was just reaching out with her right hand to take another.

“You have your health and all your limbs; you really shouldn't let your daughter go without food. If you can't find work, you can come to my manor, and I'll have someone arrange a job for you.”

“...” He made her sound like an abusive stepmother.

The meat bun in Wen Li's mouth suddenly lost all its flavor. Becoming a mother out of nowhere at her age... She took the bun from her mouth.

“Thank you, but no need.”

Being a corporate slave couldn't hold a candle to the comfort of being unemployed.

Catching his meaning, Yao Dai's eyes curved into a smile. “Grandpa, do you think my master and I look alike?”

“Master...? You two are cultivators?”

The wealthy merchant's eyes brightened. Looking closely at Wen Li, her patched green robe was simple and shabby, but her bearing was extraordinary.

“That's right!”

Before Wen Li could speak, the little girl chimed in eagerly.

“My master is amazing! She's ranked on the Aptitude Ranking, and we're from the Wuji Sect!”

Seeing the smug, proud look in Yao Dai's eyes, cold sweat broke out across Wen Li's back, terrified that another word would expose her before her time. She reached out and pinched the child's mouth shut.

“All right, time to head back.”

She hoisted the child with one hand and was about to turn away, but unexpectedly, the wealthy merchant raised a hand to stop her.

“Daoist, this old man has a bounty task. The reward is three thousand mid-grade spirit stones. Seeing your extraordinary bearing, your cultivation must be exceptionally profound. Would you be willing? Of course, during this time, all your food, lodging, and travel expenses will be covered by me.”

The primary currency in the cultivation world was spirit stones, divided into low, mid, and high grades, with an exchange rate of one thousand between each tier. Barter was also common, utilizing dharma artifacts, cultivation methods, spirit pills, talismans, and the like.

Spirit stones circulated primarily among cultivators; one hundred low-grade spirit stones could buy an Origin-Consolidating Pill needed by Qi Refinement cultivators, so offering three thousand mid-grade spirit stones as a reward showed he was sparing no expense.

Of course, that was the going rate for hiring cultivators below the Golden Core realm; bigger figures would require far more.

Yongdi City in the Western Province was situated in the most remote corner, where spiritual energy was sparse and cultivators were rare, so this price was barely acceptable.

Yet for the dirt-poor Wen Li, who lived on wild greens and chaff...

This was a massive fortune!

Not to mention, she had a growing runt to feed.

“It isn't a matter of money. Since you face hardship, and in light of your charity toward the people, fate has brought us together. Lead the way.” Wen Li didn't even ask what the mission was, maintaining an aloof posture as she replied.

With her hair bound by a wooden hairpin, she turned slightly, cutting an image of noble refinement and ethereal grace.

“Wonderful! Please follow me.”

The wealthy merchant personally led Wen Li back to his manor.

【Host, you're so hypocritical. You clearly did it for the money.】

Wen Li scoffed. “If not for money, would I do it for a useless bum like you who can't provide anything and only paints empty promises? Wanting the horse to run without feeding it grass—why don't you eat what you shit out so the nutrients don't go to waste?”