Chapter 2: This Is a Great Ominous Omen

Hearing her master’s teasing, Su Zhan felt a flicker of surprise.

She had just been wondering what to do, never expecting Lin Wan’er to already know about the issue.

“Master, recently… this disciple has indeed been troubled by this matter.”

Su Zhan nodded lightly.

Since her master had brought it up first, she asked, “Might Master have a solution?”

“Aiya, so it really has regressed? I was only saying it offhandedly.”

Lin Wan’er covered her mouth.

The moment she spoke, Su Zhan felt as if she had been choked, and the tiny spark of hope she had raised shattered completely.

“All right, I was only teasing you. Don’t make that face. Your master deduced that something was off with your cultivation, which is why I called you here—to help clear up your confusion.”

Lin Wan’er let out a soft laugh.

She asked Su Zhan to extend her hand onto the table and relax her mind, then gently placed her own fingers on the girl’s wrist.

A thread of spiritual power slipped from her fingertips into Su Zhan’s body to probe.

As the spiritual power moved through her dantian and meridians, Lin Wan’er’s brows drew together lightly.

She began murmuring under her breath, “Tsk… this is tricky…”

Su Zhan listened and inexplicably started to feel anxious.

It was like going to a doctor: the practitioner smiled warmly at first, but the moment they took your pulse their brow furrowed, they muttered to themselves, and looked utterly puzzled.

You would not doubt their skill—you would simply think, We’re doomed.

“Mm… it seems the situation is more serious than your master anticipated. Still, there is still a chance to stop the damage in time.”

Lin Wan’er withdrew her hand and resumed her gentle smile.

She asked softly, “Zhanzhan, do you remember how long it took you to advance from Qi Refining to Golden Core?”

“Roughly two or three years?” Su Zhan answered after a quick mental calculation.

“No. One year and six months.”

Lin Wan’er shook her head with a smile. 

“Among your peers, that speed is practically monstrous. Even your senior sister, with her astonishing talent, was only at late Foundation Establishment at your age.”

“…Master, are you praising this disciple?”

Su Zhan felt a little lost.

Weren’t they supposed to be discussing her cultivation regression? 

Or had she already gone into qi deviation, and her master was comforting her in advance?

“It is praise, and it isn’t. Rapid progress in cultivation is good, but raising your realm without solidifying your foundation will only backfire. Excessively vast spiritual power will rupture your meridians. In mild cases you lose all your cultivation; in severe ones, your body explodes.”

Lin Wan’er pointed a finger toward Su Zhan’s heart from a distance. 

“Just like your current condition. Your meridians have already sustained some damage. It is not yet serious, but they still need gradual nurturing. Otherwise it won’t stop at dropping a few small realms.”

So overworking herself had caused physical issues. 

No more grinding; take it slow! Su Zhan automatically translated her master’s words in her head.

Damn it. Had she been wrong to cultivate diligently?

She had no ulterior motives—she only wanted to stay alive!

While Su Zhan digested the information, Lin Wan’er picked up a pastry, took a delicate bite, and sipped her tea to cleanse her palate before continuing.

“Oh, right. I almost forgot the real matter. Let your master divine a hexagram for you.”

The regression in cultivation was a small issue; once her foundation was stable she could simply cultivate it back.

The real trouble was what came next.

Su Zhan shot her a puzzled look.

Lin Wan’er wiped her mouth with a handkerchief, then flipped her wrist and produced a tortoise shell out of thin air.

She placed several copper coins inside, shook it while murmuring incantations, and Su Zhan watched with bated breath.

The coins clinked inside the shell for a long while until one finally fell out. Only then did Lin Wan’er stop.

Su Zhan leaned in to look, but it was just an ordinary copper coin no matter which way she turned it.

“Master, this is…?”

“This is a great ominous omen.”

Lin Wan’er glanced at it, put the coin away, poured herself another cup of tea, and took a sip before speaking again.

“I had already deduced earlier that you would soon encounter a love tribulation. Given your current unstable condition, the hexagram shows extremely poor fortune. Should you fail to overcome the tribulation, heavenly lightning will descend as punishment.”

“Love tribulation?” Su Zhan frowned.

Before choosing the Ruthless Dao, she had naturally considered this possibility and had deliberately reduced her outings precisely to avoid running into some troublesome woman who might damage her Dao heart.

But… in those novels, overcoming a love tribulation usually involved killing your wife to prove your Dao. 

She did not even have a Dao companion—where was she supposed to go to face one?

Lost in thought, she unconsciously stroked the long sword at her waist.

She did not notice Lin Wan’er’s hand reaching toward her again, pressing a finger to her forehead and flicking it lightly.

The flick, infused with spiritual power, took effect instantly.

Su Zhan’s chaotic thoughts cleared at once, leaving only a head full of pain.

“What are you blindly pondering, silly disciple? Don’t tell me you plan to imitate those weak-willed demonic cultivators and kill your wife to prove your Dao?”

Lin Wan’er had noticed Su Zhan’s small movement and naturally guessed her thoughts. She sighed with a laugh.

Su Zhan stayed silent.

She could hardly say that in the novels she had read before transmigrating, the Ruthless Dao protagonists all ascended that way. 

Lin Wan’er would probably think she had already gone mad.

“The Ruthless Dao is not about being cold-blooded and heartless. It means following rules and reason in all things, neither lingering in emotion nor hindered by it, impartial and selfless, unbound by appearances. In the end you must comprehend that ruthlessness is also a form of feeling.”

Lin Wan’er received no answer, but Su Zhan’s silence told her she had guessed correctly. She paused, then smiled.

“If killing your wife truly allowed one to prove the Dao, then the Ruthless Dao would be a heretical, evil path reviled by the world. Would anyone still dare to marry so casually? Those people would not be cultivators at all, but deranged demonic madmen and madwomen. Do you understand?”

Su Zhan nodded silently.

She understood the principle. She simply did not know whose love tribulation this was supposed to be.

It couldn’t be Yun Li, could it? 

Su Zhan’s brows knitted tightly, a trace of gloom rising. 

In the original story, this cannon fodder supporting character of hers had fallen into hatred born of love and gradually become enemies with the protagonist group.

“All right, little one. Don’t worry yourself over such big troubles. Let everything follow its natural course.”

Lin Wan’er was quite accurate when it came to reading her disciple’s mind. She comforted her in the tone of someone who had been there.

“A love tribulation is nothing serious. As long as your Dao heart remains firm, even if a beauty throws herself into your arms, what can she do?”

“And if the Dao heart is not firm?”

Su Zhan blinked.

She considered her own willpower strong, but she was still no Liu Xiahui.

“Silly disciple~ Haven’t you figured it out yet? If you succeed, your cultivation advances. If you fail, you simply gain another wife. Either way, you lose nothing.”

Lin Wan’er covered her lips and laughed lightly.

She reached into her robe, pulled out a warm jade token, and placed it beside Su Zhan’s hand.

“Oh, right. While you were in seclusion, your master found you a little task from the Sect Leader. The Qi Refining disciples’ mortal realm tempering this time—the position of team leader has been assigned to you. It shouldn’t involve any real trouble. Consider it a chance for Zhanzhan to relax, travel a bit, and perhaps gain some insight. It will only benefit your future cultivation.”