He didn’t use technique; he used pure, vented frustration. He was a blur of white robes and blue light, appearing as the great Yama, who was pissed from eating something bad.

Crash. Bang. Thud.

Bodies flew, and screams echoed.

Ji’an stood back, shielding her eyes from the sun. Beside her, Gu Zhiwei watched with wide eyes.

"Brother Lin, your guard..." Gu Zhiwei whispered, trembling slightly. "He is... so terrifying."

"Yeah," Ji’an said, watching Wangchen kick a thug so hard he defied gravity. A proud smile tugged at her lips. "He’s a bit grumpy today. Skipped his morning meditation."

’Go get ’em, Villain,’ she cheered internally. ’Vent that stress. Better them than the Protagonist.’

Within moments, the path was clear. Wangchen stood amidst the groaning bodies, sheathed his sword, and turned back to Ji’an. His hair was slightly disheveled, his eyes bright and wild.

He walked up to her, ignoring the carnage behind him.

"The path is clear, Young Master," he said, his chest heaving slightly. "Shall we cross?"

Ji’an looked at him. She reached out and plucked a leaf from his shoulder.

"Good work, Little Puddle," she grinned.

Wangchen’s wild expression instantly tamed into something docile and content. The rage was gone, soothed by a single compliment.

"Mn," he hummed, casting a triumphant glance at the terrified Gu Zhiwei. ’See? I am the useful one. I am the strong one. You are just luggage.’

"Let’s go," Ji’an said, stepping onto the bridge. "Next stop: Celestial Sword Sect."

As they crossed the swaying bridge, leaving the "Main Plot" forest behind, Ji’an felt a sense of accomplishment.

She had survived the night. She had managed the morning.

Now, she just had to survive the rest of their lives.

.

.

.

The midday sun filtered through the canopy, dappling the forest floor in shifting patterns of gold and green. The air was thick with the scent of pine resin and the lingering metallic tang of the earlier skirmish at the bridge.

Xie Wangchen walked with a lightness in his step that was almost unsettling. Having pummeled five rogue cultivators into the dirt, his "vinegar jar" heart had found a temporary equilibrium.

He had vented his frustration, established his dominance, and most importantly, protected his Young Master.

He glanced back. Lin Ji’an was walking a few paces behind, humming a strange, upbeat tune, occasionally stopping to inspect a mushroom or a patch of moss.

’He is in a good mood,’ Wangchen thought, a small warmth blooming in his chest. ’He likes it when I am strong.’

However, the third wheel was still turning.

Gu Zhiwei, having recovered some of his stamina, was walking beside Ji’an, though kept at a respectful distance by Wangchen’s earlier threats.

The "Saintly Protagonist" looked at the back of Wangchen’s head with a mixture of fear and awe.

"Brother Lin," Gu Zhiwei whispered, leaning in slightly. "Your guard... he seems much happier now. Is he... always so enthusiastic about violence?"

"He’s just passionate about his job," Ji’an replied lazily, cracking a walnut she’d found with her bare hand. "Some people do yoga; Wangchen beats up bandits. It’s a healthy outlet."

Internally, however, Ji’an’s mind was whirring like a high-speed blender.

[System Update: Day 2, Afternoon.]

[Current Location: The Deep Zone.]

[Upcoming Plot Event: ’The Reunion of the Golden Pair’.]

[Details: Gu Zhiwei is destined to reunite with Wen Shiru, the Heir of the Merchant Guild. Wen Shiru’s team will save Gu Zhiwei from a Rank 3 Spirit Beast, cementing a life debt.]

Ji’an chewed the walnut thoughtfully.

Wen Shiru. The Fifth Love Interest.

In the novel, Wen Shiru was the Fox type character. He was elegant, wealthy, and wore a permanent, gentle smile that hid a calculator where his heart should be.

He and Gu Zhiwei were childhood friends. While Gu Zhiwei was pure and naive, Wen Shiru was the one who quietly disposed of anyone who bullied him, usually by ruining their clan’s finances or trapping them in social scandals.

"Outwardly noble, inwardly a profiteer," Ji’an mused. "He’s the type who would sell you a rope to hang yourself with, then charge your family for the disposal fee."

She didn’t mind Wen Shiru meeting Gu Zhiwei. That was the plot. The problem was the "Rescue."

If Wen Shiru "saved" them, he would likely demand they join his team. If they joined his team, Wangchen would be relegated to a lowly servant role again, bullied by Wen Shiru’s elite guards.

Wangchen’s pride would take a hit, his Blackening Value would rise, and Ji’an would lose her chance to farm Beast Cores solo.

"We need to clear the stage before the ’Hero’ arrives," Ji’an decided.

As if on cue, the forest floor shuddered.

Birds took flight in a screeching panic. The ambient noise of the woods, the insects, and the wind suddenly died, replaced by a heavy, oppressive silence.

BOOM.

A tree fifty meters ahead snapped in half like a toothpick.

From the shadows emerged a creature that made the previous Steel-Bristle Boar look like a domestic pig. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

It was a Thunder-Claw Bear. A Rank 3 Spirit Beast.

Standing on its hind legs, it was nearly twelve feet tall. Its fur was matted and thick, shimmering with arcs of purple lightning.

Its claws were long, curved scythes of obsidian, and its roar was a physical wave of sound that shook the leaves off the trees.

[System Alert: Rank 3 Spirit Beast Detected. Combat Difficulty: Hard.]

[Note: This is the beast meant to corner Gu Zhiwei so Wen Shiru can save him.]

Gu Zhiwei’s face went paper-white. He stumbled back, gripping his sword with trembling hands.

"Rank 3..." he gasped. "That’s equivalent to a late-stage Qi Condensation cultivator! We... we can’t fight this!"

"Says who?" Ji’an said, her eyes locked on the bear’s paws.

’Bear Paws,’ she thought, drooling metaphorically. ’One of the Eight Treasures of the Kitchen. Braised in oyster sauce... slow-cooked with honey... the collagen content is off the charts.’

"Wangchen!" Ji’an shouted, pointing her fan at the beast. "That is not a bear! That is a walking banquet! I want those paws!"