Chapter 169: 169- System [2]

Fang Yuan’s eyes narrowed, then softened as he gave a small approving nod.

Not bad. Twelve already...

The Lin family. Their main branch thrived in the frigid north, rubbing shoulders with the top clans of the kingdom.

Even with such intense competitions, they had been strong and audacious enough to even extend a branch family into Coldwind City, deep in the east, carving themselves a seat among the five great clans there.

That kind of ambition alone marked them as anything but weak.

Fang Yuan exhaled softly, his gaze distant. If I had not been born into this world, who knows what the Fang clan’s fate might have been under such competition...

He could see them still, his rivals, like stones pressing in from all sides.

The Wu clan were never the type to be easily satisfied, he remembered them sinking their teeth into mines and minerals, scraping the bones of the earth for profit.

They gave him the most headache back then.

The Zhao clan, on the other hand were slick and relentless, they had their grip tight on shops and trade routes, weaving coin into chains of influence. Fang Yuan had a hard time trying to carve a way into the market.

The Lin clan took a stealthy approach, seizing Coldwind City’s entertainment market, wine, song, courtesans, theaters, all the luxuries that drowned men faster than blades. Fang Yuan outright gave up on trying to fight for a share, the Lin family had total control over that.

And then there was the He family, the most straight forward, no masks, no subtlety. They sharpened their blades and declared their intent to devour Fang lands whole.

Just remembering the years spent dealing with them tugged at Fang Yuan’s temples, a dull headache rising behind his eyes.

By nature, he had never been the bold, reckless type. Timid? Perhaps. Careful? Always.

A man who saw shadows where others saw light. He was under the firm belief that just as he himself hid his true cultivation, so too must everyone else be hiding theirs.

With that suspicion guiding him, brute force had rarely been his first choice.

Instead, he relied on wit, patience, and tongue. A cutting phrase here, a cleverly placed bargain there.

Where fists only solved problems crudely, words could dissolve them like salt in water.

Of course, there were times when words failed and fists became the only language left.

In those moments, Fang Yuan shined the brightest.

His strikes were swift and precise as he ends the disputes before they could even begin.

To him, such solutions were the simplest, far more honest than the games of politics and persuasion.

A single blow carried more truth than a thousand words.

And when it came to fists, he had no equals. Even while deliberately masking his cultivation, feigning weakness to mislead others, the outcome never changed.

They were never truly his peers.

Pity, Fang Yuan mused, none of the four rival clans truly resorted to violence.

To them, strength was ornamental, a side-piece to influence and reputation.

Only their pampered young brats, arrogant little "geniuses", ever bothered to fight.

Those he had beaten up again and again, until humiliation was carved into their bones.

At least they didn’t lost their nerve and instead they always came crawling back, eager for revenge.

Fang Yuan enjoyed it.

He knew their elders clung to integrity above all, so he exploited that stubborn pride.

Whenever he faced a deadlock in negotiations, he simply found a way to provoke one of their young masters, dragging the issue into a wager.

Supposedly, if the He clan dangled a land deed to one of Fang’s holdings.

Fang Yuan would immediately seek out the young master of the He Clan, and upon meeting him, he’d offer a chest of gold ingots as a bet for the land deed, playing the part of a desperate gambler to perfection.

Naturally, the young master of the He Clan would take the bait without hesitation, wagering the deed in a heartbeat.

For why they don’t hesitate to take the gamble, Fang Yuan always made sure to provoke them in a ’peaceful and calm’ manner.

After the bet was made, before a crowd of wide-eyed onlookers, Fang Yuan would make their fight appear perfectly balanced, until, of course, he pulled ahead at the very last second, as if by some miraculous stroke of luck.

That way, when the same issue arose again, the young master wouldn’t even consider backing down.

He would cling stubbornly to the illusion that victory had been just out of reach last time, and that Fang Yuan had only won through by sheer luck.

Naturally, he was exposed eventually.

Not all of the other clan heirs were equal in cultivation, and their patriarchs were no fools.

Still, the young masters kept coming back for more.

God bless them for being too arrogant for their own good... and blissfully stupid, Fang Yuan mused internally, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

After all, from childhood until now, those so-called prodigies had tasted defeat at Fang Yuan’s hand more times than they had ever heard their parents say the words: I’m proud of you.

A faint smile curved his lips at the memory. Then, just as quickly, it slipped away.

A subtle frown crept across his brow.

"No... something’s off here."

He stilled. His reminiscing cut short, Fang Yuan summoned the translucent golden screen of the system before him, his sharp gaze scanning the new task.

His fingers hovered mid-air, his expression caught between curiosity and suspicion.

"...A task without a reward?" he murmured. His tone was light, but his brows pressed together in thought. "What kind of absurdity is that?"

He waved a hand, frowning. "Hey, system... don’t you owe me an explanation?"

No response came. Fang Yuan’s lips twisted in a half-smile, half-grimace. Great. Scammed by my own system, again. Typical. Whoever gave me this system, please stub your toes.

Just then the golden screen flashed again.

[Congratulations! Fang Tian of your clan has successfully ascended to the Nascent Soul Realm.]

Reward: 1× Hollow Spirit Pills.

[ Hollow Spirit pills are now purchasable in the shop]

Fang Yuan froze mid-breath, eyes wide.