The Scholar Who Hanged Himself

Two days passed quickly.

Gao Yunyi suddenly appeared out of nowhere again.

Although that group of armored warriors numbered only a dozen or so, the experience and benefits they brought him were truly substantial, far surpassing what those bandits and gang members could provide.

He's leveled up again.

I also upgraded the Qingxuan Robe and Qingxuan Crown to +1. Although the Qingxuan Crown is only a white-grade item, it still added a lot of defense.

Three Gathering Yuan Pills were also refined.

He now seems to be acting all rich and powerful.

As expected, leveling up in the mortal world is much faster and the rewards are more plentiful. If I had chosen to cultivate in seclusion in the deep mountains and forests, who knows when I would have reached the Foundation Establishment Realm.

So after finishing all that, Gao Yunyi promptly ran out again.

Although he enjoys solitude, he has to bow to reality for the sake of experience and rewards.

All I can say is,

It smells so good.

The sun was blazing, and the heat was unbearable.

Gao Yunyi, dressed in a blue robe, didn't have a single drop of sweat on his forehead.

With his fair complexion, neat long hair, handsome figure, and carefree demeanor, he resembled a noble young master from a prominent Aristocratic Clan who had left home for a spring outing.

Beside the green hills and clear waters,

Gao Yunyi stopped in his tracks.

Because there was a crooked tree in front of him.

A thick rope was hanging from the crooked tree.

Several stones were piled up under the tree, and a young scholar stood on one of the stones.

The scholar gripped the thick rope with both hands, tears welling in his eyes, his face filled with sorrow.

This scholar, perhaps, should, seems to be, about to hang himself.

Gao Yunyi had only ever seen these kinds of things in movies and TV dramas before; this was the first time he had ever witnessed such a thing in real life.

It seems quite interesting.

So Gao Yunyi stopped and stared intently at the scholar with a serious expression.

The scholar must have suffered a tremendous blow and, in a moment of despair, chose to end his life.

The emotions of sadness and despair had been brewing.

They were just waiting to put their necks in the noose, and then they could say goodbye to this painful world.

But unexpectedly, at this most crucial moment, someone suddenly appeared.

Fine, he's here, but he's too lazy to leave.

Standing there looking at himself, his gaze was like that of someone watching a ridiculous clown on a stage.

The sadness and despair that had been carefully cultivated vanished instantly, leaving only inexplicable embarrassment and awkwardness.

The scholar wanted to shoo the other person away, but when he thought that this road wasn't built by his family and that anyone could walk on it or stop on it, he didn't care at all.

Gao Yunyi wanted to urge the other person to hang himself quickly to satisfy his curiosity, but when he thought that hanging was someone else's freedom, he felt that doing so was a bit immoral.

So the scholar and Gao Yunyi looked at each other, and then looked at each other.

Their eyes met, and the atmosphere froze.

The scholar suddenly changed his mind about hanging himself. It wasn't that he didn't want to die, but he wanted to do it differently, somewhere where no one was around.

This is utterly disgraceful.

He sighed inwardly and loosened the rope with both hands.

But unexpectedly,

The stones underfoot were not stacked stably enough.

He slipped, lost his balance, and ended up with his neck caught in the rope loop.

"Well..."

In an instant, the scholar was like a fish just pulled from the water, thrashing and struggling wildly.

Gao Yunyi was originally prepared to give up and leave, but unexpectedly, the scholar changed his mind to satisfy his curiosity.

Gao Yunyi's eyes lit up immediately.

So this is what real suicide by hanging looks like.

It feels so painful, so uncomfortable, so suffocating.

If I were to commit suicide in the future, I would never choose to hang myself; it's just too disturbing to look at.

Having satisfied his curiosity Gao Yunyi was preparing to leave.

As I said before, let go of the urge to help others and respect their fate.

"Help... help..."

The scholar, hanging by his neck like a swing, saw that the person in front of him not only did not offer any help to save him, but also prepared to leave with a satisfied look on his face.

He immediately became anxious.

But the more anxious he became and the more he struggled, the tighter the rope tightened.

Gao Yunyi lowered his raised right foot again, as if he heard the other person had something to say to him.

So he walked a little closer to the other person and looked up at them with a puzzled expression.

"Help... help me..."

The scholar, who was almost suffocating, grasped at a straw and, with the last bit of air in his throat, managed to shout out a complete sentence.

[Mission: Help.]

[Mission Objective: Rescue the scholar who is attempting suicide by hanging.]

[Quest Rewards: Experience Points: 10, Items: None.]

[Would you accept?]

Gao Yunyi: "..."

This mission came too abruptly, catching him somewhat off guard.

He had always been assigned to kill people; he never expected that saving people would also be a mission.

Although the reward for this rescue mission is a bit low, every little bit helps.

Never mind,

Let's just consider it doing a good deed every day.

By this time, the scholar's face had turned purple from holding his breath, his eyes were almost rolling back, and his consciousness was beginning to become blurred and scattered.

Just when he thought he was about to die, a flash of white light seemed to appear in his blurred vision.

"Thump"

The scholar fell from mid-air, landing squarely on his backside on the pile of stones.

"Awoo..."

Under the intense pain, the scholar's hazy and scattered consciousness instantly returned to clarity.

He clutched his buttocks, his body arched and sprawled on the ground, screaming in agony, looking like a wriggling maggot.

Task completed.

10 experience points earned.

But for Gao Yunyi at this point, it was just a drop in the ocean; the experience bar didn't even budge.

Looking at the scholar writhing on the ground, Gao Yunyi couldn't help but sigh.

Human life is indeed too cheap, worth only 10 experience points.

The pain in my buttocks comes on quickly and goes away quickly.

The scholar, head held high and buttocks sticking out, half-lying on the ground in a rather cringeworthy posture, looked at his savior with a complex expression.

But in the end, he whispered something:

Thank you.

Having experienced great death, grief, and pain, the scholar's desire to die seemed to have calmed down.

Alright,

The person was saved.

The mission is complete.

Gao Yunyi had lost interest in the scholar.

Just as he was about to leave again, the scholar unexpectedly called him back.

"My lord, would you like to hear my story?"

Gao Yunyi: "..."

Who the hell wants to listen to your nonsense? I need to find quests to level up.

Bite--

[Task: Story]

[Task requirement: Listen to the scholar's story until the end.]

[Quest Rewards: Experience Points: 50, Items: None.]

[Would you accept?]

Gao Yunyi: "..."

Did we see a ghost today?

Etc...

This seems to be a series of missions.

"You say."

Gao Yunyi walked over to the scholar and casually sat down next to him.

The scholar was moved to tears when he saw that this stranger had not only saved him but was also willing to listen to his tragic story.

"This is a long story."

"Then let's make it short."

Scholar: "..."