Wuxia: Starting Off With 60 Years of Inner Strength

He finished claiming the two key rewards.

Finally, there was the twenty years of Inner Strength.

By now, Jiang Ran was used to this.

He sat cross-legged, casually claimed the reward, and absorbed it bit by bit into his Fortune Heart Scripture.

Other than making the Inner Strength in his body more abundant, it had no special effects.

With these twenty years of Inner Strength added to his body, and not even counting the power from his Great Brahman Vajra Skill, Jiang Ran’s own cultivation base had already reached a century’s worth.

And when he added the fifty-seven years from the Great Brahman Vajra Skill...

Jiang Ran took a deep breath. He suddenly felt as if he had undergone a world-altering transformation in a single day.

’I wonder if I could take down the Demon Sect Leader with my current abilities?’

Jiang Ran suddenly thought of the old man he had seen fishing by the river.

His brow furrowed slightly. The old man was inscrutable, far beyond any ordinary comparison.

’How could a mere estimate ever be certain?’

’The only way to know for sure would be to fight him.’

At this thought, he glanced out the window. ’I wonder if Li Tianxin has found the old man yet?’

He had said that if they met, it was still anyone’s guess who would come out on top.

’But where did his confidence come from?’

Jiang Ran realized, upon reflection, that his knowledge of Li Tianxin was actually quite limited.

’I don’t know where he comes from, or what deep-seated hatred he holds for the Demon Sect...’

’Then again, that doesn’t seem to matter much.’

Putting the thought aside, he opened the system interface again to check his lifespan.

[Remaining Lifespan: Two years, five months, and thirteen days.]

It had been one year and ten months before, and now it was two years and five months. By his calculation, he had gained another seven or eight months of life.

This allowed Jiang Ran to breathe a sigh of relief. The pressure of his Nine Deaths Meridian was growing lighter and lighter.

’If this keeps up,’ he thought, ’I might actually have a shot at living to a ripe old age.’

Just as he was thinking this, he heard footsteps outside his door.

Ye Jingshuang’s voice drifted in:

"Brother Jiang, come out for dinner."

"Coming!"

Jiang Ran called back and opened the door.

Ye Jingshuang was gazing at Jiang Ran, and she seemed to breathe a sigh of relief upon seeing him safe and sound.

Jiang Ran paused.

"What is it?"

"I heard you cultivating earlier, and it sounded like your internal energy was unstable."

Ye Jingshuang said softly,

"I was about to come in to help, but then your energy stabilized, so I relaxed...

"After that, the doors and windows started shaking. It was such a huge commotion, I have no idea what you were doing in there."

"Well..."

Jiang Ran gave a wry smile.

"I was indeed cultivating and nearly suffered a qi deviation.

"But I’m fine now."

"Good."

Ye Jingshuang said,

"Let’s go. Everyone’s waiting for you.

"I had to hold Mingyue back all afternoon. Otherwise, she would have burst into your room looking for you hours ago."

Jiang Ran nodded and made small talk with Ye Jingshuang as they headed downstairs.

The first thing he saw was Li Tianxin sitting beside Liu Wenshan, sulking.

Liu Wenshan was cheerfully pouring him a cup of wine.

"If it’s not meant to be, there’s no use worrying about it. Brother Li, don’t take it to heart."

The corner of Jiang Ran’s mouth twitched. ’And here I was upstairs,’ he thought, ’worried about whether the guy was dead or alive. Turns out he’s down here feasting.’

When Mingyue saw Jiang Ran, her eyes immediately reddened.

She shot to her feet and rushed over to him.

"Benefactor, you’re really okay! This is... this is wonderful."

Jiang Ran smiled and reached out to pat Mingyue’s head.

"I’m sorry for making you worry."

Mingyue lowered her head, her face flushing slightly.

"Benefactor is a person of great ability, but all I can do is worry about you from the inn. I can’t do anything to help."

"Your concern is more than enough. I’m very grateful,"

Jiang Ran said with a smile.

"Let’s eat. Sorry to have kept you all waiting."

"Who said we were waiting for you?"

Li Tianxin grabbed a handful of tender, braised pork knuckle and stuffed it into his mouth.

"I’m already half-full."

"When did you get back?"

Jiang Ran asked casually.

Meanwhile, Ye Jingshuang picked up the wine jug and poured a bowl for Jiang Ran.

Li Tianxin shot him a glance and huffed.

"Right when you were tearing the inn apart."

"..."

It dawned on Jiang Ran. That must have been when he was circulating his Great Brahman Vajra Skill, about to throw that punch.

"So you didn’t find him after all."

"Was Young Master Li looking for someone?"

Ye Jingshuang asked. "Do you want to go look again?"

Jiang Ran gave Ye Jingshuang a surprised look.

He wondered where that question had come from.

Li Tianxin, however, just chuckled.

"No need. I’ve come to understand that some things can’t be forced.

"It’s best to just take things as they come...

"It’s no big deal that I didn’t find him this time. As long as he’s still alive, our paths will cross eventually."

"Exactly! That’s the right way to think about it."

Liu Wenshan nodded in agreement.

Jiang Ran then turned to Liu Wenshan.

"Senior Liu, Shuang’er has probably spoken with you already, hasn’t she? What are your plans for the future?

"Will you return with us to the Red Maple Ye family? Or would you prefer to find a place to settle down first?"

Liu Wenshan thought for a moment before replying,

"I had intended to take Mingyue home, but our property has already been sold. For the moment, we have nowhere to go."

"Why not settle down here in Benma County?"

Ye Jingshuang suggested.

Liu Wenshan looked hesitant.

Jiang Ran thought for a moment.

"How about this? We’re going to be making a detour through Cangzhou Prefecture.

"Why don’t you and Mingyue settle down there?

"I’m quite familiar with Steward Liu in the Prefecture. It wouldn’t be difficult to ask him to find some work for you...

"Of course, if you’d rather stay here in Benma County, that’s also an option.

"We could go directly to Lord Chang; it wouldn’t be difficult for him to arrange a livelihood for you either."

"Cangzhou Prefecture..."

Liu Wenshan mused for a moment.

"Doesn’t Cangzhou Prefecture still have that bandit problem with Feiyun Stronghold?"

"You’re talking about old news."

Someone at the next table, having overheard their conversation, suddenly chimed in.

"Not long ago, Li Feiyun of Feiyun Stronghold was killed. None of the seven stronghold leaders escaped—they were wiped out, every last one of them.

"Feiyun Stronghold has already been crushed by the Government Office."

"Oh?"

Liu Wenshan and the others were taken aback. Ye Jingshuang couldn’t help but turn to the man.

"Which great hero was responsible for this?"

The man glanced at Ye Jingshuang and said with a smile,

"Miss, you may not be aware, but this young hero is an incredible man.

"At the Cangzhou Prefecture Heroic Assembly, he threw those bandits into chaos with just a single saber.

"Afterward, he went all by himself and slayed the bandit chief, Li Feiyun!

"His gallantry was truly boundless, his martial skill unparalleled!

"It’s just that he’s indifferent to fame and fortune and was unwilling to leave his name.

"It was only after the Great Master begged him repeatedly that he finally left behind two words: ’Jiang Ran’!"