I Really Am A Villain
Ch. 390 - Situ Yunfei

After hearing the young man's words, Xu Zimo fell into thought.

Directly storming the City Lord's mansion to seize the inheritance would draw too much attention.

He had just arrived in the Northern Continent and didn’t need to create conflict with the Slaughter Empire so soon.

Plus, very few people knew about the Wind-Destroying Pearl's inheritance, so there was no need to stir things up.

“Now can you let me go?” the young man asked cautiously.

“I suddenly changed my mind, what now?” Xu Zimo asked with a faint smile.

“You...” The young man's expression changed, his eyes flickering with uncertainty.

He finally said, “Are you really going to make an enemy of Void Valley?”

“Not necessarily,” Xu Zimo shook his head. “It’s just that very few people know about the companion creature right now. If I let you go and you spread the word, what then?”

The young man fell silent.

Because that had indeed been his plan, to muddy the waters since he couldn’t get it himself.

“What would it take for you to trust me?” he asked.

“I’ll plant a Demon Seal in your body. You’ll follow me for now. Once I finish what I need to do at the City Lord’s mansion, you can leave.”

Xu Zimo replied.

The young man struggled with the idea and hesitated for a long time.

In the end, he looked at Xu Zimo and said, “What if you go back on your word again?”

“You have no choice but to believe me. Otherwise, I’ll just kill you,” Xu Zimo replied. “Besides, I don’t want to make enemies with Void Valley for no reason. I just want to reach my goal.”

“Fine,” the young man finally agreed with a helpless nod.

“My name is Situ Yunfei.”

“A compound surname, huh? Sounds like you have a pretty high status in Void Valley,” Xu Zimo smiled.

As one of the Ten Forbidden Grounds, Xu Zimo had researched Void Valley before.

Those with compound surnames were the true core members of the faction.

Situ Yunfei nodded slightly and said nothing more.

...

Xu Zimo turned around. Nearby, Guo Xiaoyun had already fainted from fear.

The sky began to brighten slightly in the east.

When she awoke and saw Xu Zimo beside her, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

“Big brother, where’s my grandpa?” she asked.

“Your grandfather has been dead for a while,” Xu Zimo replied.

“Was he killed by that man in black?” she asked sadly.

“No, your grandfather died from his illness. That man in black just used his corpse.”

Xu Zimo shook his head.

“Dead...” Guo Xiaoyun lay back on the bed, eyes blank, lost in thought.

“Take a few days to calm down. You’ll have to start a new life eventually,” Xu Zimo said.

“Now that Grandpa is gone, I don’t know what I’m supposed to do,” she replied helplessly.

“Do you want to cultivate?” Xu Zimo asked.

“Cultivate?” Guo Xiaoyun froze in place upon hearing the word.

To most ordinary people on the Primordial Heartlands, cultivation felt both close and out of reach.

The path of cultivation required resources, companions, techniques, and land, none of which could be missing.

Many never stepped onto the path their whole lives.

“You don’t need to answer now. Think about it,” Xu Zimo said.

...

In the following days, Xu Zimo and Situ Yunfei stayed in Fearless City.

They planned to accompany Guo Xiaoyun to the City Lord’s mansion, since she had a chance to receive the inheritance.

But over those few days, Xu Zimo noticed many unfamiliar faces in the city.

Several factions seemed to have purposely gathered here.

That made him suspect that news of the inheritance might have leaked.

“How did you know about the Wind-Destroying Pearl’s companion?” Xu Zimo asked Situ Yunfei.

“When the companion inheritance first appeared, I also tried to fight for it,” Situ Yunfei replied.

“But it ended up being taken by the City Lord of Fearless City. I did, however, get a notebook from the inheritance site. It contained information about the Wind-Destroying Pearl’s companion.”

“Where’s the notebook?” Xu Zimo asked.

“I destroyed it after reading it, to avoid being discovered,” Situ Yunfei replied.

“Did the book say anything else besides the companion?” Xu Zimo continued asking. “Anything about the other four spirit pearls?”

“No,” Situ Yunfei shook his head. “That inheritance was left behind by an ancient cultivator. After obtaining the Wind-Destroying Pearl’s companion, he was ambushed by powerful enemies. He died before he could even search for the Wind-Destroying Pearl, in his own cave. Later, the cave was opened, and the companion ended up with the City Lord.”

Xu Zimo nodded slightly.

Over the past few days, Guo Xiaoyun came to him and confirmed she wanted to cultivate.

He casually gave her a decent cultivation technique.

After about a week, the day to select the inheritor finally arrived.

Xu Zimo and Situ Yunfei disguised themselves as Guo Xiaoyun’s older brothers to accompany her to the City Lord’s mansion.

The City Lord of Fearless City was named Lu Yangui, said to be a peak Imperial Meridian-level expert.

The City Lord’s mansion was in a remote location.

It wasn’t in the most prosperous part of the city, but rather in a northern corner.

When Xu Zimo and Situ Yunfei arrived with Guo Xiaoyun, they found that the mansion wasn’t particularly grand.

The walls outside were red brick with green tiles, and many trees were planted around.

Dozens of people were already gathered at the gate.

There were both boys and girls, all likely candidates for the inheritance.

Although being born on the seventh day of the seventh month was rare, once the search range was widened, there were still some people who qualified.

All the young participants looked excited.

After all, this was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to change their fate.

After a while, an old man in a green robe walked out from the mansion.

“Everyone, let me briefly introduce myself. I’m the steward of the City Lord’s inner court. You can call me Steward Mo.”

The old man had graying temples and spoke with a smile.

“Greetings, Steward Mo,” the crowd responded quickly.

“Alright, I’m here on the City Lord’s orders to explain the rules,” he said.

“The seventh day of the seventh month is just a hard requirement. It doesn’t mean you’ll definitely receive the inheritance if you meet it. Only one of you will be chosen.”

“We understand. Please explain in more detail,” one of the guardians replied.

“There are no real rules. Each of you will be tested one by one. Whoever is recognized by the inheritance will become the City Lord’s adopted son or daughter.”

Steward Mo paused, then added,

“But I must make something clear. The inheritance carries risk. Only the one acknowledged by it will survive. The rest will die. There is basically no chance of survival.”