Chapter 6: The Carriage, the Bandits, and the Girl Who Ran Away
Guo Mei was on her way to a nearby city.
Not for sightseeing.
Not for romance arcs.
For recruitment.
"…Every protagonist needs a disciple," she muttered to herself. "It's basically mandatory at this point."
SYSTEM: AGREEMENT NOTED. CULTIVATION PROTAGONIST STRUCTURE DETECTED.
"Yeah yeah," she waved it off, walking with a sack of supplies over her shoulder. "I know how this works."
Then she paused.
"…Actually, I really know how this works."
A road curved ahead between tall trees, leading toward a wider trade route. Carriages passed occasionally here, mostly guarded, mostly uneventful.
Mostly.
Then she heard it.
Metal clashing.
Shouting.
Panic.
SYSTEM: COMBAT NOISE DETECTED
Guo Mei slowed.
"…Of course."
She stepped forward through the brush.
And saw it.
A carriage stopped mid-road.
Broken wheels.
Bodies on the ground.
Bandits surrounding it.
Not random thieves either, coordinated, trained enough to overwhelm escorts quickly.
SYSTEM: HOSTILE GROUP DETECTED: 6
SYSTEM: CIVILIAN PRESENCE CONFIRMED: 1
Inside the carriage, faint movement.
Guo Mei exhaled.
"…Yeah, that's a tutorial event if I ever saw one."
One bandit turned toward her.
"Another one?"
Guo Mei tilted her head slightly.
"System."
[YES]
"…Can I skip dialogue?"
SYSTEM: NO OPTIONAL SKIP AVAILABLE
She sighed.
"Fine."
SYSTEM: SKILL COMBINATION DETECTED
SYSTEM: USER INPUT: IMPROVISED TECHNIQUES FROM EXTERNAL FICTION DATABASE
SYSTEM: SIMULATION ENABLED
Guo Mei's eyes flicked slightly as if reading invisible menus.
"Ohhh."
She raised a hand.
"Wait. I can stack these?"
SYSTEM: CONFIRMED
A bandit charged.
Guo Mei didn't move.
Instead
"Okay… One with the Sword."
Her fingers tapped the air like selecting a skill.
"Sword Intent."
Her body shifted slightly.
Not fully powered yet.
Just 1%.
The sword-like edge of her movement sharpened anyway.
The bandit froze mid-step.
Then
he fell.
SYSTEM: TARGET NEUTRALIZED
SYSTEM: SKILL EXECUTION SUCCESSFUL
Guo Mei blinked.
"…That was clean."
Another came.
She tilted her head.
"Alright, let's try a combo."
She pointed lazily.
"Absolute Kick."
A pause.
"…Penetration Intent."
Her foot moved.
No flourish.
No buildup.
Just a single forward strike that ignored defense timing entirely.
The bandit was launched sideways like the concept of balance had been politely removed from his body.
SYSTEM: COMBO RESULT: HIGH EFFICIENCY
SYSTEM: DAMAGE TYPE: CONCEPTUAL BREAK (LOW TIER)
Guo Mei's eyes lit up slightly.
"Oh this is broken."
Another bandit rushed in from behind.
She didn't even turn.
"Unstoppable Slash."
A hand gesture.
"Murderous Intent."
The air compressed.
A phantom edge passed through the space behind her.
The bandit stopped.
Then slowly collapsed, as if realizing after the fact that he had already been eliminated.
SYSTEM: TARGET ELIMINATED
SYSTEM: STYLE COMPATIBILITY: EXTREME
Guo Mei nodded like a scientist confirming a hypothesis.
"…So manhua techniques are just templates."
SYSTEM: CORRECT
She snapped her fingers.
"Shockwave Palm."
Then added casually:
"Wave Pulse Intent."
A forward push.
The remaining bandits were knocked back in a ripple effect, like the air itself had decided they were no longer welcome in this narrative.
SYSTEM: AREA CONTROL ESTABLISHED
SYSTEM: ALL HOSTILES NEUTRALIZED
Silence returned.
Guo Mei exhaled.
"…All at 1% too."
She looked mildly impressed with herself.
Then paused.
"…Wait."
She glanced at her hand.
"…Why does this feel like cheating?"
SYSTEM: USER IS USING SYSTEM FUNCTION AS INTENDED
SYSTEM: FREE AFK CULTIVATION ACTIVE
SYSTEM: PASSIVE GROWTH CONTINUES DURING ACTIONS
Guo Mei nodded slowly.
"…Right. Free AFK cultivation."
She started walking toward the carriage.
Then stopped.
"…System."
[YES]
She hesitated.
"…You're kind of useful."
SYSTEM: …
SYSTEM: PROCESSING COMPLIMENT
SYSTEM: USER SENTIMENT SHIFT DETECTED
Guo Mei crouched near the carriage.
"…Good job, sweetheart."
SYSTEM: …
SYSTEM: TERMINOLOGY ERROR
SYSTEM: DO NOT ADDRESS SYSTEM AS "SWEETHEART"
She tilted her head.
"…Why not? You're literally carrying me."
SYSTEM: THAT IS NOT ROMANCE METAPHOR
Guo Mei grinned slightly.
"Sure it isn't, darling."
SYSTEM: …
SYSTEM: WHY WEREN'T YOU THIS NICE AT THE BEGINNING YOU GOLD DIGGER
Guo Mei laughed under her breath.
"I wasn't getting free skill combos back then."
SYSTEM: ACCEPTABLE RESPONSE
"No promises."
Not dramatically.
Not beautifully.
Just efficiently.
A step forward.
A shift of angle.
A single break in formation.
One fell.
Then another.
The rest tried to adjust, but the system was already feeding her timing windows, body positioning, and optimal motion paths like a living combat overlay.
SYSTEM: COMBAT FLOW OPTIMIZED
SYSTEM: LEVEL INCREASE DETECTED
Guo Mei didn't even check immediately.
She walked to the carriage.
Inside
a girl.
Wounded.
Breathing uneven.
Still conscious.
Her clothes were clearly noble quality, though dirtied and torn. Her face, despite the situation, carried a stubborn pride that hadn't yet broken.
Guo Mei crouched slightly.
"…You alive?"
The girl coughed softly.
"Yes…"
A pause.
"…My escorts…"
Guo Mei glanced at the road.
"…Yeah. They're gone."
Silence.
The girl's hands tightened slightly.
Not fear.
More like realization settling in too late.
Guo Mei stood.
"Hold on."
She turned to the bandit remains, looted quickly—no hesitation now, just routine.
SYSTEM: LOOT ACQUIRED
SYSTEM: CURRENCY + ITEMS DETECTED
She walked back into the carriage.
"…System. Shop."
A faint interface appeared.
Not flashy.
Just functional.
She scanned.
Then selected a healing pill.
SYSTEM: EXCHANGE COMPLETE
A small bottle appeared in her hand.
She handed it over.
"Eat this."
Inside the carriage, a weak voice stirred.
Guo Mei turned.
A girl.
Wounded.
Breathing uneven.
Still alive.
SYSTEM: CIVILIAN SURVIVOR CONFIRMED
Guo Mei crouched.
"…You're the only one left."
The girl trembled.
"…Everyone else…"
Guo Mei looked past the carriage.
Then back.
"…Yeah."
A pause.
Not cold.
Just factual.
"…Bad run."
She pulled out a basic healing pill.
"Eat this."
The girl hesitated.
Guo Mei sighed.
"…If I wanted you dead, you wouldn't still be conscious."
That helped.
A little.
The girl took it.
Guo Mei stood.
Dusting her hands.
"…Alright."
She glanced at the road ahead.
Then back at the girl.
"…You coming or staying?"
The girl blinked.
"…Where?"
Guo Mei shrugged.
"City. Recruitment. Maybe chaos. Standard main character stuff."
SYSTEM: DISCIPLE FLAG DETECTED
SYSTEM: STORY ROUTE ALIGNMENT: HIGH
Guo Mei stretched slightly.
"…Also I need to see if I can upgrade 'Unstoppable Slash' into 'Unstoppable Universe Error'."
SYSTEM: …
SYSTEM: DO NOT NAME SKILLS LIKE THAT
Guo Mei smirked.
The girl hesitated.
"…Why?"
Guo Mei shrugged.
"Because if you die, I don't get the protagonist disciple subplot."
The girl blinked.
"…What?"
"Nothing. Just take it."
The girl slowly accepted the pill and swallowed it.
Her breathing stabilized slightly within seconds.
Guo Mei nodded once.
"Good."
She turned to leave.
"…Wait."
The girl's voice was weak but urgent.
Guo Mei paused.
The girl looked down, then spoke carefully.
"My name is Yang Xiao Qing."
A pause.
"I was supposed to marry into the royal family."
Guo Mei blinked slightly.
"…That sounds like a terrible deal."
Yang Xiao Qing gave a bitter smile.
"I wanted to become an alchemist."
Her hands trembled slightly.
"But they said I should be useful in a different way."
Silence.
The wind moved through the broken carriage.
"They killed my escorts," she continued quietly. "Because I ran."
Guo Mei stared at her for a moment.
Then slowly looked away.
"…Yeah."
That was all she said at first.
Then
"…That's a bad system."
SYSTEM: EMOTIONAL RESPONSE DETECTED
Guo Mei sighed.
"…Not you."
SYSTEM: ACKNOWLEDGED
She crouched slightly again, thinking.
Then clicked her tongue.
"Alright."
She stood.
"Get in."
Yang Xiao Qing blinked.
"…What?"
"I said get in. You're coming with me."
"…Why?"
Guo Mei glanced at her.
"Because I'm recruiting a disciple."
A beat.
"…And you look like someone who's about to become important later."
SYSTEM: NARRATIVE COMPATIBILITY HIGH
SYSTEM: DISCIPLE CANDIDATE IDENTIFIED
Yang Xiao Qing hesitated.
Then slowly climbed out of the carriage.
That night, as they traveled together, something shifted.
SYSTEM: CONDITION MET
SYSTEM: REWARD DISTRIBUTION INITIATED
Guo Mei paused mid-step.
"…Huh?"
SYSTEM: YOU HAVE GAINED:
Alchemy Cultivation Book, Fire Consuming God Technique, X100 Resource Refund System (linked to Yang Xiao Qing alchemy advancement)
Guo Mei blinked.
"…Excuse me?"
SYSTEM: EXPLANATION:
Yang Xiao Qing has high latent alchemy compatibility.
Your decision to rescue and recruit has activated hidden world reward pathways.
Guo Mei looked at the book that had appeared in her hands.
Then at the girl walking beside her.
"…So rescuing her is profitable."
SYSTEM: CORRECT BUT INCOMPLETE INTERPRETATION
Guo Mei sighed.
"…This world really runs on quest rewards, huh."
Yang Xiao Qing looked over.
"Something wrong?"
Guo Mei tucked the book away.
"No."
She started walking again.
"…Just realized I accidentally picked up a rare drop that talks."
SYSTEM: …