Extra's Strategy: Cultivate Protagonists, Become Invincible

Since Han Xuhan had made it back to the inn safely, they reckoned that the mysterious expert he had encountered didn’t have any intention to kill or harm.

But that conclusion only confused Han Xuhan more. If that man had no ill intent, what could explain his behavior?

One of the senior disciples suggested that perhaps the man only wanted to scare him, forcing him to run away.

It seemed reasonable until someone else asked, "Does that mean there’s something in that place the expert wants to hide? He specifically targeted our junior brother, a cultivator.

"Could it be that Xuhan was about to stumble upon a significant secret? Or perhaps even a treasure that ordinary mortals wouldn’t be able to sense?"

Senior Brother Lin’s temperament was much more stable than his fellow disciples’. He decided, "Whatever the cause behind his bizarre behavior may be, the fact remains that we can’t afford to provoke other cultivators on our journey. We have to focus on finishing our final mission as disciples of the Crimson Snow Sect.

"We don’t even know what cultivation level that expert might be hiding. Junior Brother Xuhan reported that his Martial Cultivation at least could be near the peak of the Physique Transformation realm. Such an expert wouldn’t be lagging behind in the Cultivation of the Mystic Path either.

"After all, progressing through Mystic Arts is much easier than advancing on the Martial Path. So, even if we were to face this man, there’s a high chance that we wouldn’t be able to defeat him.

"Let’s just lie low for the night, help junior brother Xuhan finish his business in this city, and then we can continue with our mission."

Turning towards Han Xuhan, Senior Brother Lin wore a look of sincere apology. "I hope you won’t mind my decision as the leader of the group, junior brother. Having been harassed by that expert, you probably have some resentments in your heart, but we can’t-"

Han Xuhan waved his hands emphatically to stop him. "Don’t worry, senior brother. I actually agree with your deductions and decisions. I’d rather have our whole group avoid that creepy fellow. It’s not worth it to get into messy situations over minor scuffles."

With that said, no one had any objections anymore. The group decided that it would be unwise to venture out of the inn alone for the time being.

Some were even so anxious about being ambushed that night that they didn’t go to sleep inside their rooms until midnight had passed. Han Xuhan was definitely not one of them...

Fortunately, the night ended without any incidents. The next morning, Han Xuhan walked out of the inn while being shadowed by the entire group of senior disciples, feeling a lot braver this time.

Striding through the wide roads, he relied on his vague memories to find the way to the orphanage. To his relief, eventually, some familiar faces slowly fell into his sight after a long, tense search through noisy alleys and dilapidated lanes.

One by one, the number of familiar faces increased in his surroundings. Some standing behind shopping carts, some laboring behind courtyard walls, some seated inside dingy shops, haggling with customers...

People he had met every day back then, people whose homes he had visited often, shops he had frequented, yards he had played on, the more he saw, the deeper he felt a resonance inside his spiritual world. He felt a distinct sense of belonging here, as if his soul were being anchored to the land, the people, and the memories.

Vigor flooded his heart. Was the process turning out to be effective?

Was the spiritual foundation for the Monastic Path coming closer to his grasp?

The memories of his second life slowly got clearer and clearer with each turn of the street, each new landmark that he remembered, until he eventually reached the edge of the city.

A wide open field with a rough patch of weeds and grass lay ahead. The vibrant greenery was a sign that no one had set foot in there for quite a while.

The orphanage that occupied this field in his memory... It wasn’t there.

The low wooden panels that used to surround the field weren’t there.

Even the ancient banyan tree at the edge of the field, large enough that all the children in the orphanage could play under its shade during summer... wasn’t there. Not even a stump, not even a dent on the soil was left.

It was as if someone had wanted to erase every trace of the orphanage’s existence from this place. And they had succeeded.

Han Xuhan stood at the border of the open field for a long time, face blank, beads of sweat forming on his skin. His heart felt like a piece of living flesh caught in a snowstorm, numb to all senses except a faint pulse of pain.

He simply could not understand. What was going on here? He had been gone for barely half a year. What happened in these few months?

One of his senior sisters hesitantly walked over to his side and asked, "This... This isn’t the spot you were looking for, right? Where’s the orphanage?"

Han Xuhan mechanically turned to look at her confused face. Rubbing his dry mouth with his tongue, he had to try a few times before he could find his voice.

"The location is right. But the orphanage is gone. I’m not sure what happened."

"...Huh." She didn’t look as perturbed as he was. Instead, she quickly called over the other disciples of their group and explained the situation.

"Go ask around. Check what happened. The neighbors and the local folk would definitely know. The orphanage must have relocated to somewhere else."

Turning to stare at the patch of greenery in front of her, she added, "Honestly, it’s impossible to tell that an orphanage was actually here just half a year ago. How could a building disappear like it never even existed?"

At that moment, her words seemed to trigger a memory inside Han Xuhan’s head. But it wasn’t a memory of his ’native self’.

He recalled standing at the edge of a much larger field, just after escaping from the Holy Land of Laws. He remembered Mu Ran standing by his side, explaining the origins of that field.

"The entire Pine town has disappeared. Gone with each and every single particle in it that ever existed. The only sign that something was here is the area that it used to occupy.

"Even the buildings on it and the roads that led to it are gone. There are no signs of life within miles. In one night, the entire town has evaporated into nothingness."

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