Chapter Fifty-Seven: Even the Protagonist Can Become a Supporting Character

The strength of the fourth-rank Earth Roar beasts at the lower end was comparable to a third-layer Foundation Establishment cultivator, while the strongest among them, those close to the fifth-rank Earth Roar leaders, could match cultivators at the sixth or seventh layer of Foundation Establishment. Xing Kai had slain fifty fourth-rank Earth Roars; it was impossible that all of them were the weakest kind. According to those who swept the battlefield after the fight, the entire Earth Roar horde contained fewer than six hundred fourth-rank creatures, nearly thirty percent of which were stronger than the fifth layer of Foundation Establishment, and over ninety-five percent surpassed the fourth layer. With their thick hides and robust bodies, such beasts could only be slain by cultivators of the same level if they wielded at least a lower-grade Mystic Artifact or better. Even then, a third-layer Foundation Establishment cultivator would find it nearly impossible to defeat a beast vastly superior to themselves, even with a high-grade artifact.

Of course, this excluded those like Ling Xiao, who excelled at spiritual attacks; as long as the gap wasn't too great, Ling Xiao could handle them. So, amidst the doubts, people speculated that Xing Kai must possess some unique method for dealing with Earth Roars; otherwise, it was hard to explain how he could have vanquished so many fourth-rank beasts without anyone noticing.

However, when the disciples of the Five Elements Pavilion claimed they had never heard of Xing Kai, everyone was left even more bewildered, and a sense of anticipation arose. If the Pure Yang Temple could hide talents such as the Lin brothers and Ling Xiao, it was possible that other sects also harbored hidden geniuses. Perhaps Xing Kai was the secret pride of the Five Elements Pavilion.

Yet, since no definite answer could be obtained from the Pavilion’s disciples, many began to suspect those around them. After all, who said Xing Kai’s apparent identity had to be that of a Five Elements Pavilion disciple? He could very well be a spy placed in another sect.

As a result, many people began to eye their companions with suspicion, seeing Xing Kai’s shadow in everyone.

There were other mysterious figures among the top hundred of the Chosen Ranking besides Xing Kai. Wang Meng, fourth-layer Foundation Establishment disciple of Zhenxian City, ranked fifth; Chi Xianzi, fifth-layer Foundation Establishment disciple of the Holy Land of Grand Yang, ranked tenth—both were names without faces. Not only did the orthodox sects have unknown disciples in the top ranks, but even the top twenty included disciples from the Seven Demon Sects: such as Liu Shifei, third-layer Foundation Establishment disciple of the Sect of Ecstatic Joy, ranked ninth; Hua Ying, second-layer Core Formation disciple of the Path of Freedom, ranked fifteenth; and Gou Lichuan, a wild beast cultivator of the Myriad Demon Abyss at the Foundation Establishment stage, ranked sixteenth.

There were supposedly no members of the Seven Demon Sects in Vengeance City—at least, none openly. This made people uneasy, especially disciples of the Pure Yang Temple, who now had to guard against spies from other orthodox sects as well as possible infiltrators from the demonic path.

Even just checking the ranking was enough to make everyone anxious and suspicious.

Wang Li, oblivious to the turmoil outside, secluded himself in his quiet chamber, incessantly accumulating experience.

For the moment, Vengeance City remained calm; everyone was waiting for the Chosen Ranking’s next quest to refresh. But some people simply couldn’t sit still—impatient ones wanted to try their luck outside.

Ling Xiao, as the chosen child of fortune, was among them. Originally a low-key person, after twice being thrust into the spotlight, his confidence swelled. With close ties to the Lin brothers and other experts, he couldn’t resist venturing into the Chosen Ruins, using the excuse of exploring new territory for his fellow disciples. Once his wounds healed, he eagerly set out with the Lin brothers and several bold outer disciples, leaving Vengeance City for unexplored areas.

Luo Heng, who became the de facto leader of Vengeance City after Wang Li, was strongly opposed to people venturing out in search of fortune, especially the high-level experts of the Nascent Soul and Core Formation stages.

“The situation outside Vengeance City is unclear. No one knows what dangers the next Chosen Ranking quest might bring. Until then, I hope everyone will hold their positions in the city to prevent another threat like the Earth Roar horde. We are just candidates here, each with our own fate, but survival must come first—what use is a great opportunity if you die trying to seize it? If something happens outside, any opportunities gained mean nothing.”

Luo Heng truly didn’t want high-level fighters like the Lin brothers to leave Vengeance City. The appearance of unfamiliar names on the ranking was already reason enough to be vigilant—if the Lin brothers and the others left, and another large-scale attack occurred, the city would be sorely lacking in top-tier fighters, and the consequences could be disastrous.

Luo Heng spoke plainly, but those determined to seek their own fortunes paid him no heed, insisting on acting as they wished. Ling Xiao and his group were not the first to venture out, nor would they be the last.

Ten more days passed with no sign of the quest refreshing, and more and more people became restless. People left both singly and in groups. Within another five days, the number of Foundation Establishment or higher cultivators left in Vengeance City had dropped to less than a third of the original count.

After tallying the numbers, Luo Heng and Jiang Yu, full of worry, sought out Wang Li.

“Steward Wang, if this continues, we won’t even be able to maintain the city’s defensive lines. Please, you must think of something,” Luo Heng said, face clouded with concern, as he described the current situation in Vengeance City.

Jiang Yu added, “Indeed, most of those now stationed on the outer defenses are only at the Qi Refining stage; their strength is far too low to handle any unexpected emergencies. And when Foundation Establishment experts leave, they often take weaker disciples with them. If this goes on, we’ll be forced to send even Body Refining disciples to the front lines.”

“The weakening of our defenses isn’t even the most urgent problem—the unrest caused by so many disciples leaving is even more dangerous.”

“Master Sheng, is this what you meant when you said pawns would inexplicably enter the game? Do you have any strategy to stop it?”

Wang Li half-squinted, feigning wisdom, but inwardly was urgently seeking advice from Master Sheng.

Master Sheng replied, “I have no way to stop them from leaving, because their actions aren’t within the world’s will’s calculations.”

Wang Li asked, “What do you mean?”

“Your presence triggered the Chosen’s opening quest to end early. Without following the set script, there’s an indeterminate gap. During this interval, the candidates are not monitored by the world’s will—until the quest refreshes, everyone in the ruins is simply following their original fate. Since you are someone outside their destiny, you can only affect a handful of people connected to you by karma. You cannot, and should not, interfere beyond that. The karmic consequences would be too great, and who knows what measures the world’s will might take to erase your influence once it reasserts control.”

Master Sheng continued, “Let them go. Ling Xiao’s departure isn’t necessarily bad for you or Vengeance City. As long as he doesn’t shift from the protagonist to a supporting role when the quest refreshes, there’s no problem.”

Wang Li was taken aback. “Can the protagonist really become a supporting character?”