nside his private dormitory room, the place he had missed so dearly... He opened the door—it had been an eternity.
He stood there for a moment, gazing with eyes full of longing, like a husband seeing his wife after a long business trip... though usually, he'd find her with another man on his bed,
He closed the door behind him. The scent of his bedsheets, though covered in a thin layer of dust, were neatly arranged. Chu Chu... his maid. Surely she had been waiting for his return, but why didn't he see her? Where could she have gone, and why hadn't she come to welcome him immediately?
"Here we are again... my place. How long has it been since I was last here?"
He had changed so much in such a short time, realizing that small things could make the mind much more stable. He knew that trouble would inevitably come knocking at his door, so he had to prepare.
He took Ni Ni, who was still resting on his shoulder, and laid her down on his bed, covering her with a blanket. She was utterly exhausted and deserved some rest.
As he tucked her in, he inhaled the scent of the sheets longingly, gathering a bit of comfort to handle what was coming.
Knock! Knock! Knock!
A loud, aggressive pounding echoed on his door.
"You damn Morse! Come out of your hole, you coward!"
"How dare you trespass on someone else's property!"
He had expected them. With a face devoid of expression, he forced a fake smile and opened the door.
Truly, trouble never waits. Before him stood five tall cultivators, led by a short, thin man with a cartoonish, wispy mustache and narrow eyes.
He gave a disgusting laugh.
"You damn Morse, do you know the penalty for trespassing on someone else's property?"
One of the tall guards smirked maliciously.
"It's prison, you idiot!"
They all laughed, mocking and bullying him.
"You know it now... this place is the property of the Great Young Master Bing. Your presence here is trespassing, and we have the right to beat you to death. But the Great Master Bing is merciful to the extreme... we will let you leave without hurting you."
Oh, really? Bing's property? What a surprise.
Morse feigned panic.
"Oh, guys, I'm so sorry... Just let me gather my things and I'll leave, please don't hurt me!"
Morse rushed to his wardrobe as if terrified of facing them. They all laughed at his cowardly appearance.
"You have no right to take or move anything!"
Morse's hand was deep inside his clothes as he stood before the wardrobe.
"Please, please, just one second!"
"Hahaha! Look at this sleeping beauty here... leave her for us too, we'll enjoy her for a bit. We'll all show her a good time!"
But Morse remained still, his hand extended inside the wardrobe without saying a word. They stepped further into the room, their faces twisted with rage.
"Hey, you piece of trash! Didn't we tell you to hurry up—"
Suddenly, before they could even blink, Morse aimed his gun. With blindingly fast aim, he fired the tranquilizer darts. Before anyone could resist, they all collapsed onto the floor.
Morse grinned widely and quickly locked the door. He pulled a dozen small robots from his robe, which landed on the floor.
"Now... what would be the most beautiful sight for us here?"
Morse began browsing the System Store for the best "hilarious" tattoo designs, buying the most elite sets:
[Succubus Whore Tattoo Seal - located below the abdomen (Pinkish-red heart): 5 Points]
["Slap Me On My Ass" Tattoo Seal - for the forehead, permanent: 10 Points]
["I Am Gay" Tattoo Seal - permanent, for the neck: 10 Points]
Morse bought them all.
The robots began stripping the men naked while the seals were stamped onto their bare bodies.
Then, Morse tied them all together and ordered the robots to dump them in this disgraceful state right in front of Bing's apartment door... and he made sure their backsides were pointed exactly at Bing's door, so he would see that "spectacular" view the moment he opened it.
A moment later, the room was empty again. Morse wished he could see Bing's expression when he discovered his "little surprise." He would never pretend to be virtuous again.
He had changed. From now on, he would always play dirty. He glanced at the sleeping Ni Ni Layan, thanking God she hadn't woken up. As he began sorting through his things...
Knock! Knock! Knock!
The door again. Morse was surprised; he hadn't expected a second wave so soon. This time, he readied his gun, opening the door slowly with the barrel leveled. But when the door swung open, he instinctively jumped back.
Wait... what was this?
A familiar figure lunged at him, sobbing, and embraced him fiercely. "Morse! Morse, my friend! You're really alive! This is incredible! I truly thought you were dead!"
The man clinging to him was someone he knew well. How could he not? This was Chen Ming, his childhood friend. He had heard Chen had traveled for the Bright Jade Sect trials; he hadn't expected him back. "You bastard, where have you been?" Morse asked.
The man was weeping as he spoke. After they calmed down, Chen wiped his tears and looked at his friend. "I thought you were dead. That villainous brother of yours sent funeral notices to everyone! I suspected he had harmed you, so I returned immediately, but I couldn't find any proof."
Chen Ming tried to steady his voice. "He even claimed they slaughtered dozens of rare monster heads to find you. He brought their heads back and told everyone you had been devoured by them."
Dammit... did he use those fake monster heads Ni Ni Layan made to scare me? Honestly, it wasn't even surprising.
"Go on... what else happened?"
Chen Ming continued,
"That scoundrel cried and put on the act of the grieving brother. He even collected money for your funeral but pocketed it all and spent it at the brothel! He's been bragging to everyone about how he took down those 'giant monsters' and how powerful his soldiers are."
A villain to the core. The son of Concubine Qian—what else could one expect?
"Chen... what happened to Chu Chu? Why isn't she here? I'm worried."
Chen's expression darkened. He looked at Morse with sorrow, trying to compose his feelings.
"Morse... Chu Chu suffered great injustice after you left. I heard she waited for you every single night, certain you weren't dead. After Bing convinced everyone of your death, she was subjected to all kinds of humiliation. When she tried to resist, she was beaten, framed for a crime, and exiled from the family lands."
Bing Xuan... Bing Xuan... In his life, Morse had felt anger and injustice before, but he wouldn't tolerate this any longer. He wouldn't be "Morse" anymore if he didn't teach this bastard a lesson in concentrated humiliation.
"Don't worry, Chen. Everything is under control. I will get Chu Chu back."
After the two friends consoled each other, Chen's eyes drifted to the teenage girl sleeping on the bed behind Morse.
"Morse... who is this? Have you changed your preferences from girls in training uniforms to teenagers? She is actually beautiful..."
Morse cut him off before he could continue.
"No, it's not what you think. She is my disciple. I met her and found she possesses great talent, so I brought her with me."
Chen smirked at him.
"A great investment, my friend."
Dammit... this bastard still thinks I've developed a thing for teenagers.
Morse knew exactly how Chen Ming's mind worked.
"Man, you really don't understand a thing. I've decided that since I've been kicked out of the succession race, I'll participate in the race to become the Great Elder instead—the rank directly beneath the Clan Leader."
Pfft— Pffft! Chen Ming stood before him, struggling to choke back a burst of laughter.
"You bastard... You know what? This is my fault for even telling you."
Chen tried to calm Morse down.
"Steady on, pal. I just didn't expect you to say that. I heard that Great Elder Byeong wants to retire, but those competing for his seat are old foxes with cultivation levels at the Nascent Soul stage, at the very least!"
"You idiot. Through my disciple, who will defeat every other disciple in the family and become the First Core Disciple... that's where my chance lies."
Chen fell silent, trying to process his friend's impossible words.
"Excuse me... what exactly is your disciple's cultivation level? In fact, the weakest among the Core Disciples is at the Spirit Palace realm. So, what's hers?"
Morse replied flatly: "Stage 7 of Qi Condensation."
An heavy, absolute silence instantly fell over the room.
....
Meanwhile, elsewhere... in the courtyard of Young Master Bing Xuan. He was spending time in his lavish palace, carousing with a few friends. Just as one of them decided to leave...
"Bing... I think you're going to want to see this."
Bing stood up, swaying in a drunken stupor, and looked outside his palace door. The guards had been drugged...
And there, six backsides were staring directly at him, right in front of his home.