After The Death Escape and Ascension, The Male Protagonist of Long Aotian Went Crazy - Chapter 22

Shi Hua chose a place to live in Qingxuan’s immortal estate, close to Qin Xiyan’s quarters.

That was also the system’s idea.

A qualified vicious supporting character had to keep an eye on the male and female leads, disrupting them whenever possible. Living next to Qin Xiyan made it easier to block their budding romance.

In the original plot, the vicious supporting character’s interference always backfired, ending up pushing the leads even closer.

During the day, Shi Hua focused on cutting off their interactions, dutifully playing the role of the evil supporting character. Now, lying in bed, she felt drowsy.

【Immortal Lord, you did very well today. Keep it up!】

Shi Hua closed her eyes and answered faintly, “Mm.”

The system, in rare high spirits, pulled her into a chat. Shi Hua found this strange creature from beyond her world intriguing; she could glean tidbits of knowledge about realms outside of this one.

Fresh, novel—fascinating.

【Immortal Lord, the name Jiang Qingwu—did you make that up, or…?】

The system always respected Shi Hua’s privacy. If she showed the slightest reluctance, it would instantly drop the topic.

Shi Hua hadn’t slept in a very long time.

Cultivators didn’t need food, nor did they really sleep—meditation had long replaced it. She had lived like this for a thousand years.

To complete her mission, she had sealed away her true cultivation, showing herself to others as no more than a Foundation Establishment mid-stage cultivator with an ordinary mortal’s bones.

Now that she touched a bed again, drowsiness came flooding back.

“That name… it was mine before I joined Xuan Yin Sect.”

【Ah? But isn’t Immortal Lord’s name Shi Hua? The binding interface didn’t show any other names…】

The system nearly doubted its own data.

Shi Hua didn’t fully understand its jargon, but she could catch the gist. The system also deliberately used simpler words she could grasp, so communication wasn’t too difficult.

“Perhaps it’s because that was only an alias. My true name is indeed Shi Hua. Jiang Qingwu is a name I came up with when I was wandering the mortal world, but I stopped using it after I took a master.”

The name “Jiang Qingwu”—once, ten thousand years ago—struck terror into all demon beasts. After she apprenticed, the name gradually faded away. She vaguely remembered doing something under that identity later… but it was too far in the past to recall clearly.

She had lived too long; most things blurred into dust.

The only one who might still remember that name was Chi Qingxuan.

Shi Hua thought uncertainly.

【I see. Immortal Lord’s life experience truly is rich!】

The system sighed in wonder. After a while, seeing no reply, it looked down—and realized she had fallen asleep.

In all its time being bound to her, this was the first time it had seen it happen.

After thinking a moment, a slit tore open in the void.

A fluffy snow fox crawled out, tiny paws tugging at the blanket to cover her carefully. Its big, fluffy tail swished lazily as it curled up by her head and drifted off to sleep.

Ever since his suspicions were confirmed, Wei Shizhou firmly separated Jiang Qingwu from Shi Hua in his mind.

But during a sparring match, as he gazed at her face, he couldn’t help recalling that vivid dream from the other night. His distraction let Shi Hua’s sword graze his shoulder.

【Mission complete!】

The system’s cold, mechanical voice rang out.

Shi Hua quickly put on a look of panic. “Y-You… why didn’t you dodge?!”

Her plan had been to injure him slightly with a palm strike, not a sword.

Thankfully, she had pulled her blade back in time.

Wei Shizhou pressed a hand to his wound, conceded defeat, and dropped his gaze, not daring to look at her.

He muttered something to Qin Xiyan, asking leave to recover, and walked off with an oddly stiff gait.

Xie An, watching his retreating back, then glancing at Shi Hua being comforted by Qin Xiyan, narrowed his eyes knowingly.

That night, he sneaked into Wei Shizhou’s room.

“Wei Shizhou, you’ve been acting weird today!”

Wei Shizhou glared darkly at the uninvited guest climbing onto his bed and kicked him straight off.

But Xie An clambered right back up. Before Wei Shizhou could kick again, Xie An shouted:

“Do you like Jiang Qingwu?!”

Wei Shizhou’s foot froze midair.

He flatly denied it.

But Xie An wore a smug, knowing grin, leaning closer, whispering, “Come on, admit it. When she stabbed you earlier, you could’ve dodged. But no—you just stared at her smiling like an idiot. And I saw your ears turn red!”

How could he still deny it?

Xie An sighed, frustrated.

Wei Shizhou, at the end of his patience, kicked him out again, sealed the room with a spell, and shut the door—smooth, efficient.

“Wei Shizhou! What kind of man are you?!”

“A real man wouldn’t be such a coward! Can’t even admit it!”

No matter how hard Xie An pounded the door, Wei Shizhou ignored him, curling up tightly under his blanket.

That single sentence—“Do you like Jiang Qingwu?”—made his breathing stumble, his mind blank.

Thump, thump.

His heartbeat pounded wildly, reverberating through his chest like a web spun tight, surrounding him, choking him.

He clutched his ears desperately.

Stop beating! Stop!

He and Jiang Qingwu weren’t the same kind of people. Her future shone bright—she would one day return to her rightful world. His fate was already shackled; he couldn’t drag her down with him.

The damn plot would always force things back onto its rails.

Whether he liked her or not didn’t matter—he mustn’t entangle her.

Wei Shizhou kept warning himself. His tightly shut eyes trembled as he recited calming mantras, until at last the frantic rhythm eased.

The next morning, Shi Hua went to the back mountain to cultivate.

Not seeing Wei Shizhou, she assumed he was still recovering. But after several days of absence, she began to feel uneasy.

“System, where did Wei Shizhou go?”

That wound should’ve healed with just a pill.

Her gut told her something was wrong.

【Although the plot has deviated, Immortal Lord, the key storyline events must still proceed.】

【The next event is: the male lead being punished in the Cold Cliff, the female lead visiting and comforting him, and their bond deepening.】

【Originally, the male lead fought with fellow disciples in secret. The vicious female supporting role exposed it, so your task is to report it. Right now, the male lead and several disciples have snuck to the mortal realm to drink. Please report this quickly!】

Xuan Yin Sect had strict rules: cultivators could not enter the mortal world without permission, nor could they abuse mortals with their power.

Aside from disciples sent to purchase supplies, only those hunting beasts left the sect.

Shi Hua skimmed the plot. The mistake was Wei Shizhou’s; punishment was deserved.

That day, Qingxuan, having finished handling sect affairs, personally came to instruct the disciples. Counting heads, he found one missing.

Qin Xiyan, flustered, sent someone to fetch him—but found no trace. She had no answer to give. As his senior sister, it was her fault.

“Immortal Lord… I know where he is.”

“He and a few disciples went down the mountain to drink.”

Shi Hua hesitated, then spoke softly.

At her words, everyone turned to watch Qingxuan’s expression.

Leaving the mountain without leave was punishable; the Cold Cliff awaited.

Even though Foundation Establishment cultivators weren’t fragile like mortals, with their cultivation sealed, the Cold Cliff’s freezing aura cut to the bone. Three days inside meant bedridden for half a month.

The sect master was away, so Qingxuan bore the responsibility. His face darkened.

“Went to the mortal world!”

He had been far too lenient with this prodigy of heavenly bones.

Wei Shizhou hadn’t gone to the mortal world on a whim.

He had studied the plot and thought that by avoiding private fights, he could escape punishment. He went out with a few fellow disciples, but in his gloom, let them drag him into drinking.

He had asked around beforehand—at worst, sneaking out earned a light punishment. That’s why he agreed.

But drunk, they bumped into a group of men. The men, equally drunk, erupted in curses.

Their insults turned vile—attacking family.

Wei Shizhou, too drunk to think, lashed out with a fist. The other man struck back, and soon fists flew everywhere.

Even the disciples who had tried to stop it were hit, and anger boiled over into an all-out brawl.

When Qingxuan arrived, what greeted him was chaos—disciples and mortals rolling on the ground, punching wildly.

Cultivators, brawling with mortals—unacceptable!

Then one of the men spat an insult that made Wei Shizhou’s rage explode.

Channeling spiritual power into his fist, he roared:

“Say that again, and I’ll beat you to death!!!”

“Impudent!”

Qingxuan’s oppressive aura shattered the madness, his icy voice thundering: “Restrain them!”

The disciples instantly sobered, scrambling to pull Wei Shizhou back.

But it was too late. Qingxuan had clearly seen him use spiritual power against a mortal. No one could save him.

Justice above all, Qingxuan sealed Wei Shizhou’s cultivation and ordered him thrown into the Cold Cliff.

Qin Xiyan could only sigh helplessly, leading the escort.

The matter ended there. Xie Wanmian was left to appease the mortals.

【Congratulations, Immortal Lord. Mission complete!】

This time, the voice wasn’t cold and mechanical.

Shi Hua’s expression remained calm. “So even if Wei Shizhou hadn’t fought fellow disciples, he still would’ve ended up punished at the Cold Cliff?”

【Yes. The plot cannot be defied. Even if avoided once, Heaven will find another way to bend it back.】

The system displayed the storyline:

【Immortal Lord, the next events don’t involve you much. They center on the male and female leads’ relationship growth. You may act freely these days, but remember—an evil supporting character should interfere with the leads whenever possible. Success isn’t necessary; just the attempt matters.】

The next arc: Wei Shizhou punished in the Cold Cliff, Qin Xiyan visiting and comforting him, deepening their bond. For half a month she would care for him. As the villain, Shi Hua was expected to “occasionally disrupt.”

“All right.”

It meant she could rest for a bit.

But then…

Qin Xiyan hurried over, looking anxious. “Ah Wu, Junior Brother has suffered a deviation in cultivation. I must go check on him. Please, take this food box and watch over Wei Shizhou for me!”

Before Shi Hua could respond, Qin Xiyan rushed off.

Shi Hua stared down at the food box.

Something felt… off.

But with the system offline, she couldn’t ask.

Forget it. She’d just take a look.

The Cold Cliff winds cut like knives, stabbing her cheeks with icy pain.

Shi Hua trudged against the gale, eyes watering, until she spotted a small figure curled up at the base of the rocks.

“Wei Shizhou!”

His teeth chattered, body trembling violently. Still, his eyes—red and watery—stubbornly locked on her blurred figure in the storm.

Her face was flushed from the cold, and she carried something cradled in her arms.

“Were you crying?”

His eyes shimmered with unshed tears, rimmed crimson like a rabbit’s.

“I was not!”

He snapped back loudly, sniffling, quickly rubbing away the wetness at the corners of his eyes—futile, transparent.

“Okay, okay, you weren’t crying.”

“Immortal Lord struck you earlier. Take this pill quickly. And these snacks—Senior Sister Qin prepared them. Since you don’t practice fasting, you’ll starve if you stay here seven days…”

Her soft, nagging voice was shredded by the storm.

Wei Shizhou caught only fragments—“pill,” “snacks,” “starve.”

She hadn’t scolded him for hitting mortals. Instead, she spoke gently, carefully, treating him with rare warmth. It struck his heartstrings hard.

From childhood, he had known so little kindness.

Every bit of warmth cut deep, made him tremble. Yet he dared not reach for it—terrified it would vanish, leaving him empty again.

In a hoarse whisper, he asked, “You’re not going to ask me why I hit them?”

Shi Hua raised her hand, forming a barrier just big enough for the two of them.

The storm’s howl dulled.

Her voice, soft but unwavering, reached him clearly now—shattering the dam he’d tried to hold.

“Because I know—you’d never hit someone without a reason.”