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

As long as Ye Yong did not fixate entirely on one system, even the most versatile king could not surpass the master of a single discipline.

But a breakthrough that summoned celestial phenomena could not be concealed merely by innate talent.

Under what circumstances would such phenomena arise?

Setting aside cataclysmic disasters, more common occurrences included the establishment of kingdoms, the gathering of public sentiment, and the rise of national fortunes. The fall of kingdoms, the dispersal of public sentiment, and the disappearance of national fortunes. The breakthrough of a transformation realm cultivator into the void. Rarely, great ascension or saints wielding divine powers would resonate with the great Dao. Even more seldom were the appearances of treasured artifacts, celestial beasts, or divine creatures long thought lost.

For ordinary cultivators to invoke celestial phenomena, they would only experience minor tribulations during their breakthroughs into the void. Beyond that, barring the crossing of tribulations, it was nearly impossible to incite a change in the heavens unless one stumbled upon some grand opportunity or immense merit.

Yet here was Ye Yong, merely at the crystallization stage, not even undergoing tribulation, and already causing a shift in the heavens, a cascade of phenomena. Was this not akin to proclaiming to all, “This child possesses extraordinary bloodlines, receiving exclusive endorsement from the Dao of Heaven—come, everyone, and take him down”?

Monsters consume humans to grow in power. Cultivators, too, are a form of resource; a drop of blood from a void realm expert could resurrect a dying mortal, extending their life. Saints were even more formidable; ordinary land and vessels could scarcely contain them, they would simply pass through. If a cultivator below the void realm could obtain a drop of a saint’s essence and successfully refine it, their power would increase significantly, greatly benefiting their future advancements.

So, what level was Ye Yong, who could invoke celestial phenomena at the crystallization stage? A veritable delicacy, the kind everyone yearned to take a bite of.

A future genius of humanity, a walking source of nourishment that could elevate all. The former would attract the ire of monsters and foreign races, while the latter would be coveted by all. Which was the greater danger?

Ye Yong glanced up at the sky; it was afternoon, and the clear blue seemed to darken ominously, as if storm clouds were poised to gather at any moment.

Was the change in the heavens about to

“Bang!” Long Tian was sent flying a considerable distance, crashing heavily against a wall, blood spilling from his lips.

“Ugh…” Ye Yong gasped for breath, his internal spiritual energy surging, on the verge of a breakthrough. He forced himself to suppress it, but the backlash came swiftly, and soon he too spat blood, his face pale, clearly injured.

Onlookers were bewildered, utterly clueless about what had just transpired.

After his breakthrough, Long Tian’s spiritual energy had recovered significantly, and he was not gravely hurt. He looked at Ye Yong in surprise, unable to comprehend what had suddenly come over him.

“When you broke through, there were signs of spiritual energy flowing toward him. He must be close to a breakthrough as well. But by forcibly suppressing it, he caused a backlash.” The old man, a fallen immortal, had been observing Ye Yong, hoping to glean something from him. Unfortunately, his residual soul was not strong enough and was blocked by the system, yet he still noticed this detail.

“Why isn’t he breaking through?” Long Tian was utterly perplexed. He didn’t care much about being injured by Ye Yong; after all, he had already lost. Instead, he had experienced the essence of the Yin-Yang Duality Sword through Ye Yong’s earlier restrained attacks, gaining some insights and benefiting greatly.

“Unknown.”

“So, I’m the one who caused his injury?”

“Though it’s unclear why he chose to suppress his breakthrough, it is indeed your influence that affected him.”

“…” Long Tian fell into silence.

On the dueling platform, Ye Yong circulated his heart method, calming the chaotic spiritual energy within him. It took a while for him to regain his composure; just moments ago, his entire body had been in excruciating pain, unable to utter a word, even standing was a struggle. For the first time, he experienced the terror of backlash; no wonder some fell into madness because of it.

The first thing Ye Yong did upon recovering was to walk toward Long Tian.

I didn’t mean to strike you so hard, nor did I intend to kill you. Either I break through in front of everyone, or I send you flying and offend you. It’s fate that made me choose; don’t blame me for this.

Ye Yong had always believed in nipping danger in the bud. He took out a bottle of healing elixir and handed it to Long Tian. “I lost focus for a moment and didn’t manage to hold back. My apologies.”

Long Tian was completely stunned; this was a situation he had never envisioned.

—

24 Rational Discussion

In novels, when a villain turns back in time and offers an apology, they rarely face consequences. Ye Yong hadn’t done anything excessively harsh to Long Tian, and he believed that even if Long Tian were to seek revenge in the future, he wouldn’t go so far as to kill him; he would leave a path for survival.

“Are you… alright?” Long Tian did not accept the elixir; how could he? It was clearly his own misstep that had inadvertently involved Ye Yong. Yet, Ye Yong had the audacity to apologize to him. Long Tian was not so thick-skinned as to graciously accept it.

“It’s nothing serious. The Yin-Yang Duality Sword is too profound; with my current cultivation, mastering it completely is still a challenge,” Ye Yong had his excuses ready. Regardless of whether Long Tian could accept them, at least this way, he could lessen the resentment from bystanders towards Long Tian.

With so many admirers surrounding Ye Yong, including a fair share of fervent fans, there was a risk that if they misunderstood and thought Long Tian had harmed Ye Yong, they might turn against him. Who knew if Long Tian would redirect that resentment towards Ye Yong?

It was like a celebrity who hadn’t done anything wrong, yet their fans were so overzealous that they brought about negative consequences.

It was already exhausting enough to guard against the pitfalls of heavenly favoritism; now he had to prevent his admirers from stirring trouble and angering the protagonist. Ye Yong had no time to spare for such distractions. As the saying goes, crush all crises in their cradle, denying them any chance to grow. Even if they did grow, at least he could have stifled them, preventing an explosion that was too sudden or too intense, allowing for some room to maneuver.

No matter how cunning the heavens were, they lacked the clear “autonomy” of humans, only able to create coincidences and troubles on a macro scale, unable to pinpoint the details. Whether he could deftly resolve the situation depended on Ye Yong’s efforts.

“So it was backlash from the technique that caused your injury.”

“I had heard that the Yin-Yang Duality Sword could even challenge those in the Nascent Soul stage. Ye Yong using it at the crystallization level certainly comes with a price.”

Indeed, Ye Yong had not deliberately suppressed his voice, and the surrounding audience, with their keen hearing, naturally accepted the words of the person involved.

Long Tian felt a surge of emotions, a complex mix that was hard to articulate.

He understood that Ye Yong was trying to clear him of suspicion, but why?

Long Tian questioned himself; he had done nothing to deserve Ye Yong’s help. Since their encounter, he had either received Ye Yong’s assistance or that of those around him. For instance, when he was pursued by the Bai family outside Cheng Ying City, three passing demon women had intervened to save him. Outside Ning Hai City, Ye Yong’s elder brother, Ye Wen, had saved his life when he was cornered by evil cultivators…

“You…” Long Tian’s throat moved, but he could not find the words.

Ye Yong sensed something amiss; it felt as if a halo named “Friend of the Protagonist” was about to descend upon him, and he quickly shoved the elixir into Long Tian’s hands. “Thank you for practicing the Yin-Yang Duality Sword with me; it made me realize my shortcomings. Hurting you was not intentional. Let’s leave it at that.”

A friend of the protagonist? Only a fool would accept that.

Thinking of the futures of Qiu Li Gao, Hou Li Xie, Shi Zhi, and others… Ye Yong felt a chill run down his spine.

From now on, I’ll just take a detour whenever I see you. I’ll avoid any contact or conversation I can, and I refuse to believe you can force me into being a friend.