“Alright, sir, enjoy your tea. Just call me if you need anything.”
The owner left with a smile.
Lin Yun lifted his cup, took a sip, and quietly listened to the conversations around the teahouse.
He heard several customers discussing the entrance examination for the Great Gold Sect.
Many people in the shop had clearly travelled from nearby areas specifically to take part in the sect’s recruitment trials.
“Second Brother, one of us has to make it into the Great Gold Sect this time. As long as we get in, our family’s fate will change. Father and Mother will finally live comfortably instead of depending on others!” Two brothers were encouraging each other.
“Xinmei, once I’m accepted into the Great Gold Sect, I’ll be qualified to propose to you. Wait for me!” A young man was making promises to the girl sitting opposite him.
…
Hearing this reminded Lin Yun of the time, long ago, when he had taken the entrance test for the Heavenly Sword Sect back on the Cultivation Continent.
Back then, getting into the Heavenly Sword Sect had felt like the key to changing his entire future on the path of cultivation.
In the ancestral land, countless low-level cultivators were just as desperate to join sects like the Great Gold Sect.
Yet as Lin Yun’s strength had grown, his perspective had shifted completely. To the current him, even the Great Gold Sect was nothing more than an insignificant little power that did not deserve his attention.
To many ordinary cultivators, however, entering such a sect still represented a life-changing opportunity.
“I’ve grown stronger, but I’ve also grown lonelier,” Lin Yun murmured, holding his teacup and shaking his head with a helpless, bitter smile.
He could clearly feel that the stronger he became, the further he drifted from ordinary people.
He could not even remember the last time he had sat among common folk and simply enjoyed the atmosphere of everyday life.
If he revealed his true strength, everyone here would only feel awe or fear. They probably would not even dare speak to him.
Cultivation was destined to be a lonely path.
Sitting here like an ordinary person, drinking tea and savouring a moment of mundane life, actually felt rather special.
Of course, with his current power, he could do things ordinary people could never dream of. He could even decide the fates of others completely.
While sipping his tea, Lin Yun silently extended his divine sense and instantly scanned the memories of everyone in the teahouse. None of them noticed a thing.
“Hm?”
Lin Yun suddenly frowned.
He had only been checking casually while drinking, hoping to pick up anything useful.
Yet he discovered that the young man at the nearby table, the one promising the girl he would propose once he joined the Great Gold Sect, was not thinking those things at all.
In reality, the young man planned to string the girl along with pretty words. If he failed to enter the sect, he would keep seeing her. But if he succeeded, his status would rise, and he would discard her without a second thought.
When Lin Yun checked the girl’s memories, he found she completely believed the young man’s promises and had already pinned her entire future on him.
“The world really isn’t as beautiful as people imagine. The stronger you become, the more ugliness you see,” Lin Yun sighed.
He drained the hot tea in one gulp, stood up, and walked over to their table.
Since he had come across this, he did not mind sparing two minutes to interfere.
At their table.
Lin Yun approached and spoke to the girl.
“Fellow cultivator, leave him. All those vows of eternal love and undying loyalty are nothing but lies.”
“Who are you? We don’t know you. What nonsense are you spouting?”
The young man opposite her shot to his feet and glared fiercely at Lin Yun.
“It seems I’ve hit a sore spot. I hope you stop playing with other people’s feelings and sincerity,” Lin Yun replied calmly, his deep eyes showing no ripple as he looked at the man.
“Fellow cultivator, you don’t even know us. How could you possibly know anything? He’s very good to me. He loves me,” the girl said earnestly, defending the young man.
“I may not know you, but I have already read his memories,” Lin Yun answered quietly.
“Read my memories? Ha, what rubbish. You’re just trying to extort us, aren’t you? Owner! Someone’s causing trouble here!” the young man immediately shouted.
