Chapter Fifty-One: The Protagonist's Aura

In Wang Li’s view, Ling Xiao was in mortal peril at this very moment.

The fifth-tier Earth Howler was even more formidable now; though it still could not fly, it swiftly closed the distance between itself and Ling Xiao, relying on its extraordinary leaping ability. In the blink of an eye, it struck Ling Xiao with a mighty claw, smashing him hard to the ground.

Ling Xiao tumbled across the earth in a wretched state, rolling seventeen or eighteen times before coming to a stop. Yet, when he tried to rise and flee, he found himself utterly unable to do so. Nearly half the bones in his body had been shattered by that blow. Wang Li could even see the femur of Ling Xiao’s left leg protruding ghastly from torn flesh—a stark white bone, chilling and horrifying.

“It’s over. He’s as good as dead!”

Wang Li muttered with some frustration, “So this is what it’s like to have the protagonist’s script. It’s not easy at all!”

“Heh, this is just the beginning. Don’t worry, that chubby fellow isn’t going to die,” Master Sheng replied, sounding wholly unconcerned for Ling Xiao’s fate. “Even if he were to die, it wouldn’t be here. The world’s will doesn’t so easily discard a chosen pawn. As long as he hasn’t fulfilled his destined purpose, he’s safe. What he’s going through now is just the start—anyone with a protagonist template needs to suffer a bit, else it would hardly be worthy of a hero’s journey. That’s what those guys enjoy.”

“Is there really any need for all this torment? Wouldn’t it be more efficient to just give the protagonist smooth sailing?”

“No, no, no. That kind of perverse pleasure is hard to change. That’s just how they are. Besides, if the hero didn’t rise through a thousand hardships, the world’s will wouldn’t achieve its aim of warning and inspiring the people. This is a pattern proven over countless iterations, and the tale of a hero rising from obscurity to the pinnacle is always popular—cliché, yes, but effective. If you had the same script, it would be no different: once you’re successful and renowned, you’d become the idol of all cultivators, your legend would be etched into this world, and then…”

Master Sheng paused deliberately, leaving the sentence hanging.

Wang Li, though he knew this was just another of Master Sheng’s tricks, couldn’t help but play along. “And then what?”

“Then… just watch how the world’s will is about to grant that fat kid a protagonist’s halo! Look, it’s happening!”

Wang Li’s attention snapped back to Ling Xiao, and the sight nearly made him cough up blood. He muttered, “This is just absurd!”

He saw Ling Xiao, collapsed on the ground, grit his teeth and unleash a wave of spiritual sword shadows in a desperate mental attack. The fifth-tier Earth Howler leader dodged nimbly, evading every single one.

A deep, guttural roar followed.

Ling Xiao’s final, dying struggle had failed, and in return, the Earth Howler mocked him—fetid, foul-smelling spittle splattering onto Ling Xiao’s face.

Seeing his attack fail, Ling Xiao panicked. Feeling the beast’s menacing pressure and blatant killing intent, his mind raced chaotically.

“What do I do? What do I do?”

“I haven’t even proposed to Xiao Rou’s world yet. I can’t die here!”

“I haven’t reached the peak… Damn it, dying here is just not worth it. Wait—there’s that move!”

He remembered the single-use spiritual weapon he’d obtained by chance. Though it was only a mid-grade yellow-tier item and might not break through the Earth Howler’s defenses, it had a special function: once activated, it would automatically lock onto its target. Even if it couldn’t kill the beast, it could buy him precious time.

Thinking of this, he didn’t hesitate. He drew out the spiritual weapon, the “Spirit-Breaking Arrow,” ready to use it. But he was a step too late. The Earth Howler had already closed in, having observed his every move. Without hesitation, it opened its bloody maw, lunging straight for Ling Xiao’s head.

Frightened out of his wits, Ling Xiao summoned all his remaining strength to shift his body back. The movement tore at his wounds, the pain rendering his consciousness hazy.

The last thing he saw before blacking out was that reeking maw descending upon him.

“Boom… Crack!”

Just as the Earth Howler was about to bite off Ling Xiao’s head and half his torso, a mass of pitch-black tribulation clouds suddenly appeared in the sky. A thunderbolt as thick as a barrel struck the Earth Howler directly on its head. The beast didn’t even have time to utter a sound before collapsing stiffly to the ground.

A single bolt of lightning had cleaved away half its skull.

Ling Xiao lost consciousness. A disciple of Pure Yang Temple, who had arrived just in time, confirmed the beast was dead, hoisted Ling Xiao onto his back, and flew toward Vengeance City on his sword.

Wang Li, having witnessed the entire scene, was utterly dumbfounded…

“Master Sheng, don’t tell me that beast just happened to be undergoing tribulation. Isn’t this a bit much?”

Master Sheng replied with sinister amusement, “Heh, that’s nothing. You haven’t seen anything truly shameless yet.”

“Absolutely shameless!” Wang Li exclaimed.

He suddenly felt profoundly grateful that he hadn’t ended up with Ling Xiao’s protagonist script.

The world’s will played a dirty game: first tormenting Ling Xiao to the brink, then stepping in to save him. Such methods sent chills down one’s spine.

“I told you, this is nothing. In my original world, there was once a Child of the Plane chosen by the world’s will—now that was truly excessive!”

Recalling the familiar scene, Master Sheng couldn’t help but vent his thoughts: “Have you ever seen two armies of mortals at war? On one side, the Child of the Plane had three thousand men; on the other, the imperial court had three hundred thousand. The Child merely wished for a mutiny to create chaos, and the world’s will summoned a rain of fire meteors upon the imperial army. The Child didn’t even have to lift a finger—the enemy collapsed on their own. Isn’t that spectacle even more absurd than a measly tribulation bolt?”

“So that’s why you shielded my fate, so the world’s will can’t scheme against me?” Wang Li asked, still uneasy.

Master Sheng replied, “That’s one way of putting it. But it’s not as though I actively shielded your fate. It’s just that this world is so low-level. Even as a remnant soul, I far surpass this world’s will. As long as I don’t reveal myself, it can’t perceive me, and since you and I are now one, it can’t perceive you either.”

Wang Li considered this. After all, Master Sheng was once a Primordial Saint’s remnant soul—some unusual means were to be expected.

But something still felt off. With suspicion, he asked, “If the world’s will can’t scheme against me, why do I still need to be so cautious, hiding away and never showing myself?”

“Because, while fate can be altered, one cannot escape causality.”

Master Sheng explained, “I’ve told you before—causality is a treacherous thing. It actively seeks people out. Only those who attain the realm of Hunyuan Da Luo Jinxian can dispel it. I am but a remnant soul now, powerless against causality.

“If you accumulate too much causality, your fate will likely mutate, and the world’s will may sense an anomaly within its designs. To ensure its plans proceed as intended, it will attempt to correct the deviation, and then you might find yourself in its sights. At that point, I can’t guarantee my shielding will still work.”

Wang Li said, “Your words sound a bit contradictory…”