I Just Wanted To Live but I Somehow Became Better Than the Protagonist

—

Clearly just a little boy

For ordinary crystallization cultivators, a breakthrough would only draw in spiritual energy within a radius of about ten meters centered on themselves. But Ye Yong was different; he directly executed a super doubling, affecting the entire thousand-square-meter hall, even absorbing vast amounts as if he intended to drain all the spiritual energy from this place.

Cultivators are very sensitive to changes in spiritual energy. At this moment, Ye Yong resembled a miniature black hole, with spiritual energy surging wildly toward him. Qin Shidream and Liang Xiaorou, who were nearby, were startled. Mu Qingyin’s zither music came to an abrupt halt, and the senior and junior sisters who were preparing to immerse themselves in the experience all shifted their attention to Ye Yong.

Though it was fortunate that no strange phenomena occurred, a faint holy light emanated from Ye Yong, making him appear like an otherworldly immortal, a phenomenon that remained inexplicable.

The good thing was that this was the Yinhua Hall, not a competition stage, with only about a hundred senior and junior sisters as “audience.” Otherwise, the thought of tens of thousands of unfamiliar cultivators… was terrifying just to imagine.

“Sorry for interrupting the hall master’s performance and disturbing everyone’s enjoyment of the music.” Ye Yong decided to take the initiative, as if breaking through and emitting holy light was a perfectly normal occurrence. If you didn’t have holy light, it was you who was strange, not me. He wore a calm expression: “The hall master’s zither skills are extraordinary. Just listening to the prelude made me unable to control the surging spiritual power within me, leading to this breakthrough…”

“What is your current cultivation level?” Despite being so close to the breakthrough, Mu Qingyin, a powerful cultivator at the seventh level of the Transformation Stage, couldn’t sense Ye Yong’s cultivation level. She could only deduce from the fluctuations of spiritual power that Ye Yong was still in the crystallization stage.

And what was the gradually dimming holy light about? If it were Buddhist light, it could be understood as a result of him carrying the white class Ruo Shari, but holy light and Buddhist light were clearly not the same. Moreover, how could someone in the crystallization stage attract such terrifying spiritual energy? Even Golden Core cultivators couldn’t manage that, right?

Ye Yong was most afraid of being asked about his cultivation level. If he claimed too high a level, he would be seen as a genius; if he claimed too low, it wouldn’t match the strength he was displaying. Of course, if the situation allowed, Ye Yong hoped to downplay it, as he had ten more levels of cultivation than others, making his advancement to a higher realm much slower.

“Crystallization… level eight.” However, Ye Yong had no choice but to falsely report his level.

The pause in his answer exceeded a second, and Mu Qingyin clearly knew Ye Yong wasn’t being truthful. She didn’t press further, merely nodded and said in a voice everyone could hear, “It seems you’ve been carrying the Buddhist beads I gave you all along. Very good; they will provide significant help during your breakthrough, adding a touch of Buddhist nature to your body. With your talent, you might even learn a few Buddhist secret arts in the future.”

Mu Qingyin twisted the holy light into Buddhist light—yes, she was taking advantage of the fact that the little ones couldn’t understand. Those Golden Core disciples who did understand would be silenced later.

Ye Yong was shrouded in mysteries. Since he wanted to keep things secret, as the hall master, Mu Qingyin naturally chose to take the blame for him. This way, even if a disciple accidentally leaked the matter, outsiders would likely think it was a treasure she had given him.

“Let’s set aside the matter of cultivation for now. You won first place in the newcomer competition, bringing glory to our Yinhua Hall. Here’s your reward.” Mu Qingyin quickly presented the prepared rewards, deepening the impression of generosity.

A third-grade Earth-level Qingquan wolf hair brush, four bottles of ink made from the blood of Yuan Ying spirit beasts, two third-grade spiritual music scores, and five third-grade canvases.

For Yuan Ying painters, this was a substantial reward, not to mention for someone in the crystallization stage.

The senior and junior sisters all looked on with envy, but there was no jealousy; on the contrary, they genuinely felt happy for Ye Yong, believing he deserved it.

“Thank you, Hall Master!” Ye Yong understood that Mu Qingyin’s series of actions were all to cover for him. To say he wasn’t moved would be a lie. Moreover, the rewards were quite a pleasant surprise.

Compared to other cultivators, the number of painters was undoubtedly much smaller, and rarity made things valuable.

“There’s no need to be polite; this is what you deserve.” Mu Qingyin looked at the many female disciples. “You all have opportunities, but remember one thing: I do not want you to force yourselves to contribute. Act within your means. If anyone gets their priorities wrong and puts themselves in danger, what awaits them will not be a reward, but punishment. Do you understand?”

At this moment, Mu Qingyin exuded the seriousness and authority expected of a leader. The disciples nodded in agreement, and soon she resumed playing the jade zither.

With the continuous distractions, no one discussed Ye Yong’s glowing breakthrough at all.

Qin Shidream and Liang Xiaorou were more familiar with his situation and didn’t believe it was due to the prayer beads. They admired Mu Qingyin’s handling of the matter—swift and decisive. The zither music she played was captivating, each note intricately linked, drawing them in. Even those who were not attuned to music felt their internal spiritual energy surge, significantly enhanced.

As the piece concluded, the hall erupted in enthusiastic applause. Mu Qingyin gently caressed the jade zither, trying to emulate Ye Yong’s way of stirring the atmosphere: “Who will play a piece?”

The female disciples exchanged glances, none daring to step forward. Who would be foolish enough to show off in front of the leader? Moreover, Mu Qingyin’s jade zither was a heavenly-grade treasure, rarely seen, let alone touched.

The once lively hall fell silent in an instant, with all the female disciples bowing their heads, afraid of being called out.

“…” Mu Qingyin was puzzled. Ye Yong had played a spiritual tune earlier and had encouraged them to take turns afterward, and they had all been quite happy. Why was it different when it came to her?

Recalling her tone from earlier, she found no fault. It must be the disparity in status that made them feel pressured, unable to relax.

Sigh, I really am not suited for this kind of occasion.

Mu Qingyin sighed inwardly, feeling it was laughable to think she could liven up the atmosphere and draw closer to her disciples.

At that moment, Ye Yong suddenly spoke up: “Heavenly-grade treasure, can we really touch it? It won’t break, right?”

“Of course not.” Mu Qingyin patted the edge of the zither. “The materials used to make heavenly-grade treasures are one in a million. Unless it’s ancient or made of special materials, even a full-force strike from a Void Realm expert wouldn’t necessarily damage it.”

“Can I try playing it?” Ye Yong asked.

Though Mu Qingyin was puzzled as to why Ye Yong, who had never touched a zither, would want to try, she still used her spiritual energy to bring the jade zither before him.

Ye Yong immediately sat cross-legged, placing the zither on his lap. He had indeed never touched a zither, but with his current understanding of music, combined with having observed Mu Qingyin’s finger techniques, playing a piece was not a problem. Besides, he wasn’t really trying to perform; he just wanted to get things started.

“Deng…” He transformed the melody of the flute piece into zither music. Initially, it sounded a bit stiff, but as he continued, it gradually became smooth. Even without being able to channel spiritual energy, it sounded purely like a mortal tune, yet it was hard to believe it came from someone touching a zither for the first time.

The senior and junior sisters never held back their praise for Ye Yong, applauding him and even offering guidance on his shortcomings. However, under Ye Yong’s subtle guidance, it unknowingly turned into them playing together.

Playing a heavenly-grade treasure felt like a dream. Since the leader had given her tacit approval, everyone naturally couldn’t wait to give it a try.

Only then did Mu Qingyin understand Ye Yong’s intentions and realize why she had always felt he was different from the other disciples. While the other disciples treated her with utmost respect, fearing any slight transgression, Ye Yong, though outwardly respectful, interacted with her as a friend, without any sense of hierarchical distance. He even found ways to help her integrate into the group.

—

He was clearly just a little boy, yet he worried about adult matters. Mu Qingyin didn’t find it annoying; rather, it felt quite refreshing.