A Veteran Humblebrag Right off the Bat

Chen Ning was actually a little nervous, but he had to look as steady as an old dog to keep the guards in line.

"Yes, Sect Leader. Please wait a moment."

After speaking, one of the guards walked away at an unhurried pace.

Su Ling'er served as a protector in the sect.

Her rank was higher than that of guards like them.

Moreover, Su Ling'er followed directly at the sect leader's side.

Her standing naturally rose with the tide.

But that was before...

Now, these guards did not hold this young sect leader in such high regard.

After all, there were far too many people in the sect who refused to acknowledge him.

Instead, it made the newly appointed sect leader seem to have no backing at all.

So they did not take his orders very seriously.

The captain of the guards, Lu Qing, was in no hurry to carry out Chen Ning's instructions.

Instead, he took advantage of this rare bit of leisure.

First, he went drinking.

Then he rested for nearly half a day.

Only when evening came did he go and fetch Su Ling'er.

In his room, Chen Ning waited and waited, but no one came.

He could not help growing anxious.

The task had a time limit of only one day.

And it had started counting from the morning.

If he missed tonight, he would explode on the spot.

Then, before he even found out who had killed the original owner of this body,

he would have left them with the spectacle of his gruesome death. That would be interesting.

Finally.

A patter of light footsteps came from the doorway.

At the same time, the drunken voice of Lu Qing, the guard captain, rang out:

"Sect Leader... Hic! I... brought her here..."

Hearing him, Chen Ning opened the door.

Two figures stood in the doorway.

Su Ling'er stood there prettily, wearing a yellow dress patterned with little flowers, her hair tied into two little buns.

Petite and adorable.

The guard captain's steps were unsteady, and he did not even salute Chen Ning.

He was about to walk away.

"Wait."

Chen Ning called out to stop him.

"It took you a whole day to bring her here? Don't you think you owe me an explanation?"

"My leg is injured, so I can't walk fast. Please forgive me, Sect Leader... Hic!"

Lu Qing let out a belch, and the stench of alcohol filled the air.

Without waiting for Chen Ning to say another word, he turned and left the courtyard, then leaned against its entrance and dozed.

Chen Ning watched Lu Qing leave the courtyard, his expression betraying nothing.

But he made a note of the man.

Compared to this small fry, however, he had more important matters to attend to.

He turned to look at Su Ling'er.

From his memories, he knew that compared with the other undercover agents, Su Ling'er was, at least on the surface, quite amiable and cute.

That did fit the personality of a girl her age.

But Chen Ning still could not treat her like an ordinary loli.

"Ling'er, it's getting late. Why don't you stay here tonight?"

Chen Ning opened with a line straight out of a scumbag's playbook.

Su Ling'er was taken aback. She pondered for a moment, then asked, "Sect Leader Brother, isn't there something else?"

"Here's the thing. I'm not used to sleeping under my heavenly silkworm silk quilt, especially with the Exquisite Jade Pillow. They say it nourishes the body, but it's a little hard. And the premium incense bought from the Heavenly Soul Hall is a little too pungent."

Chen Ning was a veteran humblebragger from the moment he opened his mouth.

"I was thinking, why don't you go in and try them out for a night, Ling'er? If you like them, I'll have them sent to your room. I'll make do outside for tonight."

"Ding! Congratulations, host. The Rookie Sect Leader title's passive effect has been triggered. You have successfully persuaded the other party."

Chen Ning's heart stirred. He had not expected the title's effect to come in handy now.

The fifty percent increase in the chance of persuading others seemed especially powerful at a time like this.

Sure enough, as the system notification sounded, Su Ling'er said with a smile, "Oh, I see. Thank you, Sect Leader Brother!"

Su Ling'er looked genuinely delighted. She entered the room, bared her jade-like feet, and hopped onto the bed in a few steps.

Chen Ning casually found some bedding and laid it on a stone bench outside.

Before long, it was deep into the night.

But Chen Ning did not sleep.

He clearly remembered the task's objective.

Keep watch through the night.

He could handle staying awake for one night.

He urgently needed to gain strength.

Without strength, even a guard dared to look down on him.

And had nearly cost him his life.

Meanwhile, Su Ling'er was wrapped in the heavenly silkworm silk quilt inside the room, curled into a ball and looking fearfully out the window.

She had practiced the Heaven-Stealing Ghost Hand with her grandfather since childhood.

Although she had gained an unparalleled ability,

she had also provoked the Heavenly Dao because of this forbidden technique.

The Heavenly Dao would not tolerate her.

Whenever a thunderstorm came at night,

it was also when she was at her weakest.

And today was, according to her grandfather, the most terrifying thunderstorm night in a hundred years.

If she made it through,

her cultivation would proceed without obstruction from then on.

If something went wrong and she was affected by heavenly lightning,

she would lose all her power.

Worse still, she could perish, her Dao extinguished.

She had not been afraid at first, but now, as she looked at the dark clouds gathering outside the window,

and heard the low, beastlike rumbles,

everything foretold that tonight would be her tribulation.

"Rumble!!!"

Thunder suddenly erupted.

Su Ling'er clutched the quilt tightly around herself like a startled little rabbit.

"Am... am I going to die?"

Su Ling'er burst into aggrieved tears.

She had never done anything bad. Although her grandfather had sent her undercover in the Dragon-Seeking Sect,

she had never harmed anyone.

Nor had she ever done anything that offended heaven and violated reason.

She was still young, and there were so many delicious things she had yet to try...

But the Heavenly Dao did not care.

Outside the window, rain was already pouring down.

She felt that she probably could not escape this tribulation.

Just then,

Chen Ning's grumbling sounded from outside the window:

"Bro, I'm sleeping out here, and you decide to mess with me by making it rain?"

"Thunder and rain, making all this noise-how am I supposed to sleep? Just my luck..."

"Stop raining... stop raining..."

Chen Ning stood under the eaves, sheltering from the rain in a foul mood.

But the next moment,

a system notification suddenly rang out.

"Ding! Congratulations, host. The Rookie Sect Leader title's passive effect has been triggered. You have successfully persuaded the Heavenly Dao."

Chen Ning: "???"

That worked too?

Meanwhile,

the dark clouds dispersed.

The rain stopped as well.

The courtyard fell quiet once more.

That was more like it.

Now he could happily get on with his task.

Chen Ning returned to the stone bench and looked at the thoroughly soaked bedding.

He had no choice but to stand and wait for dawn.

Fortunately, there were only two hours left until daybreak.

Inside the room,

Su Ling'er gazed out the window at Chen Ning's tall, upright figure.

Though she could only make out his silhouette,

how could she not understand his painstaking efforts now?

What had just happened had left her utterly stunned.

All alone, he had shouted back the heavenly lightning.

How could such divine courage not inspire admiration?

"So... Sect Leader Brother had already made arrangements..."

Su Ling'er's pretty face could not help turning red.

She had actually believed that Sect Leader Brother had sent her inside to try the bedding.

But now it seemed...

"Sect Leader Brother must have seen through the tribulation I faced today..."

"Then... did he confront the Heavenly Dao especially for me?"

"It must have been so hard on him..."

Su Ling'er knew full well how unfathomable and inviolable the Heavenly Dao was.

As she pondered this, Su Ling'er, whose nerves had been stretched taut earlier, unknowingly fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning, the sky had just begun to pale like a fish's belly.

"Ding! Congratulations, host. You have successfully completed the beginner task [Keep watch through the night]."