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

The sect competition, rather than merely testing newcomers, was more about selecting suitable candidates for the subsequent joint competition.

The joint competition, held every few years, originally started as a playful event between two major sects. However, as time passed, a millennium went by, and more sects began to participate, transforming the small skirmishes into the grand event it is today.

The joint competition is an opportunity for newly recruited elite disciples from various sects to showcase themselves and engage in exchanges with their peers. Those who rank high can receive substantial rewards.

With the chance to gain a good reputation and acquire valuable resources, it would be strange for young cultivators not to take it seriously.

When Ye Yong went to the Sword Pavilion to deliver items to Ye Mao and Ye Gou, he found them training diligently. Upon receiving the spirit meat and elixirs, they were overjoyed, vowing not to disappoint Ye Yong and to train even harder.

In the original novel, aside from Ye Mao surviving the sect competition, Ye Gou and the others had perished in the secret realm a century prior. However, due to Ye Yong’s interference, they had successfully survived. Thus, Ye Yong was uncertain whether their participation in the competition would trigger any butterfly effect. But at this point, he could not stop them from joining; he could only remind them to do their best, emphasizing participation and avoiding enmity.

“Young Master Yong, next time you don’t need to deliver things personally. Just let us know, and we can come to collect. But since you’re here, why not guide us a bit? If you have important matters, we wouldn’t want to trouble you.” Ye Gou had become the collective spokesperson for the younger members of the Ye family. After all, with Ye Mao’s personality, he would never directly express his requests to Ye Yong. Ye Gou, with his thick skin, was indeed the best candidate for the role.

05 The Younger Generation of the Ye Family

Ye Yong planned to rest for another couple of days before retreating again. His itinerary included spending time with the adorable Wu Xue, playing with foxes, and seeing if Qin Shiming and Liang Xiaorou were free for tea to strengthen their bonds. Guiding Ye Mao and the others wasn’t part of the plan, but the thought of bullying the weak as a form of entertainment, while also helping them improve, was tempting enough for him to agree.

The Sword Pavilion had designated areas for disciples to spar and train—free in the public zones, while the paid ones were shrouded in illusion arrays, preventing outsiders from witnessing their techniques. Naturally, the well-off younger generation of the Ye family opted for the paid venues. In truth, after more than half a year, the combat styles of the Pavilion’s promising newcomers had become common knowledge. Take Ye Mao, for instance; there were already people studying and targeting his swordplay. But just because one knows the opponent’s moves doesn’t guarantee victory; tactics merely strive for an advantage. In the face of absolute strength, all else is futile. Moreover, cultivators are always advancing; you might think you’ve grasped my techniques, but unbeknownst to you, I’ve secretly trained new moves to catch you off guard.

Of course, the most significant reason for choosing the paid venue was that Ye Yong himself drew attention like a spotlight. His popularity within the sect had surpassed that of most elders, and every action of his was scrutinized.

His personal guidance was regarded by Ye Gou and the others as a secret inheritance, and they certainly didn’t want outsiders to steal their knowledge for free.

“The Ye family is so stingy, not even giving everyone a chance to learn from them.” Who wouldn’t want to benefit without cost? As soon as they saw Ye Yong and the others enveloped by the illusion array, rendering the inside invisible, complaints arose.

There were also those whose motives weren’t to leech off others but to study Ye Yong: “Since joining the sect, I’ve never seen Ye Yong make a move. During the recent assessment at the Sword Pavilion, he only used his Golden Core Sword Intent, which hardly counts as a technique. Damn it, I really want to see his moves!”

Having never showcased his strength in public, Ye Yong had built his reputation solely through events, a rarity among young talents. Most cultivators of Tianluo Sect wouldn’t question it, as some things are known through personal experience. But other sects were different; many believed it was a facade, a ploy by Tianluo Sect to promote him as a figurehead, all waiting for a joint competition to slap Ye Yong down.

Such is the world of cultivation—self-centered and arrogant, especially among the gifted. Unless witnessed firsthand, they refuse to believe; sometimes, even when they do see, they’ll concoct excuses to convince themselves it was merely a fluke.

This was why Mu Qingyin urged Ye Yong to participate in the competition—to silence the majority.

—

“Who’s coming first?” Over twenty newcomers had joined the Ye family, with most of them entering the Sword Pavilion. Aside from Ye Mao and Ye Gou, familiar faces among the crowd, the others were vaguely recognizable, but Ye Yong couldn’t name them.

“I’ll go first!” Ye Gou volunteered. He was at the third level of crystallization, a decent rank among newcomers, yet he was far from the realm of prodigies, merely sitting at an above-average level.

Having just entered crystallization, many people advanced quickly, primarily due to the accumulation and sedimentation during the Foundation Establishment stage. However, the premise for advancement lay in having resources. Ye Gou’s talent was ordinary, and he had a wolf pet to care for. Were it not for the resources Ye Yong had previously provided, he would merely be a nobody now.

“Just be ready,” Ye Yong said casually, pulling a ground-level sword from his storage ring. To be honest, he had so many items that he couldn’t even remember who had given him what.

Without a hint of defensive posture, Ye Yong stood there, completely unguarded, as if in a non-combat situation. Yet, despite this, Ye Gou felt as if he were facing a formidable enemy, his grip on the sword slick with sweat.

“Don’t waste everyone’s time; hesitation can lead to defeat,” Ye Yong urged.

“Okay, okay!!” Ye Gou shouted to rally himself, then launched an attack at Ye Yong.

The technique Ye Gou employed was one of the modified mystic-level arts of the Ye family, the “Fire Sword Technique.” It stimulated the spiritual roots with spiritual energy, transforming it into flames that coiled around the sword’s body. With dazzling movements, amidst a flurry of feints, lay the hidden, lethal strikes.

Ye Yong possessed an automatic cultivation system, akin to the arts refining themselves, transmitting the essence of their understanding directly to him. This spared him the lengthy process of trial and error, allowing him to master the techniques far beyond Ye Gou’s capabilities. Thus, it was effortless for Ye Yong to see through the flaws in Ye Gou’s swordplay.

The sensation was peculiar, akin to having mastered simple arithmetic; the moment one sees 1+1, the answer of 2 springs to mind without a second thought. Ye Yong raised his sword and pierced through Ye Gou’s opening, shattering the once-imposing swordplay in an instant. The recoil sent Ye Gou stumbling back several steps before he could steady himself.

Though he had anticipated Ye Yong’s prowess, the reality of being so easily countered left Ye Gou feeling quite disheartened, as if all his years of practice had been in vain.

“Truly worthy of Young Master Yong!” Yet Ye Gou was evidently a skilled flatterer; he quickly masked his disappointment and began to praise, “My Fire Sword Technique has reached a minor success, nearing great success, yet it was so easily exposed! Even if I had another thousand years—no, ten thousand years—I could never catch up to Young Master Yong!”

“Enough, enough.” Ye Yong waved his hand impatiently, signaling him to stop, and began pointing out the flaws while attempting to offer solutions.

Ye Gou’s talent was rather ordinary; he could not grasp everything from a single explanation. He stepped aside to practice, allowing another junior of the Ye family to take the stage.

Half an hour passed, and everyone had finished their critiques. If one were to judge ability, it was clear that Ye Mao, the spirited youth, stood out. After all, he was the minor antagonist, and a villain must possess strength for the protagonist to truly shine.

“Young Master Yong! I wish to try again!” Ye Gou felt he had grasped the essence of his practice and stepped back into the fray, only to be effortlessly countered by Ye Yong once more.

“Don’t be discouraged; your technique has no major flaws. It’s difficult for cultivators of the same realm to counter it. They can either evade or clash with powerful moves, and most will choose to evade. If they do, you can unleash the third segment to pursue. If they choose to clash, switch back to the first segment and fight while retreating.”

Many techniques are divided into segments. In the martial world, there are various arts categorized into upper, middle, and lower volumes. Taken individually, they may exhibit considerable power, but they remain incomplete. A complete technique, with each segment added, increases in potency.

To determine whether a cultivator has mastered a technique, one must observe how many segments they comprehend.

The Fire Sword Technique consists of seven segments; Ye Gou had mastered three. As long as he further solidified his swordplay, he would face little trouble against crystallized cultivators.

“Thank you for your guidance, Young Master Yong.” Ye Gou quickly retreated to a corner to practice, while other juniors of the Ye family, inspired by his efforts, approached Ye Yong for further insights.

The spirited youth Ye Mao progressed rapidly; his already accomplished “Layered Waves Sword” began to approach a level of mastery after Ye Yong pointed out a few unnecessary movements. In truth, Ye Yong found it more challenging to deal with him than with others, requiring a bit more seriousness, but that was all.

After all, Ye Mao was at the fourth layer of crystallization, while Ye Yong was at the fourth layer of solidification—a mere word apart, yet worlds different. It was evident that Ye Yong’s solidification was enough to crush the crystallized cultivators; they were simply not on the same level.

“Where do you find the time to practice swordplay amidst your studies of sound and painting?” Ye Mao truly could not comprehend. Each time, he approached with confidence, believing he could push Ye Yong back, yet each time he fell just short. The most frustrating part was that as he grew stronger, Ye Yong seemed to grow stronger alongside him, as if he were being coddled in his development—how infuriating.

“There’s always time to squeeze in,” Ye Yong would not reveal that his technique was so accommodating in its cultivation; he merely reaped the rewards.

“Why don’t you all join forces?” Ye Yong suddenly recalled that the joint competition included a team collaboration segment. However, the protagonist was a lone wolf and did not participate, so it was merely glossed over in the narrative. In reality, Ye Yong would likely be required to join, which implied he needed teammates…

Liang Xiaorou was not