Chapter 1: Betrayed at the Start, I Turned Around and Bound Myself to a System—How Would You Respond?

Eastern Wilderness Region, City by the Abyss.

The Estate of the Prince.

At this moment, the rear courtyard was abuzz with noise as people gathered one after another, among them clan members and guards. Something grave seemed to have occurred, for tension was etched on every face.

“How long has the heir been shut in his room?”

At the head of the group stood a man of resolute features, his tiger-like eyes narrowed as he stood with hands clasped behind his back, exuding the aura of one accustomed to command. This was Li Jing, Prince of the Abyss.

“Your Highness, the young master has not left his chambers for seven days now… I fear something may have happened to him…”

A servant hurried forward, his voice trembling with anxiety. He was responsible for the heir’s daily needs, and if anything befell the young master, his own fate would be sealed.

“Seven days… Has that unfilial son truly abandoned his life for the sake of a woman?!”

Li Jing muttered, both anxious and furious, the veins on his forehead throbbing. He was often preoccupied with affairs of state and rarely had time to discipline Li Wudao. Though the boy lacked talent, he had always been honest and kindhearted, seldom giving his father cause for worry.

Never did he expect Li Wudao would cause such an uproar throughout the city. His own son, the dignified heir, now driven to despair over matters of the heart, making a spectacle of himself for all to see… It was simply intolerable!

Just as Li Jing was about to order the door broken down, a guard hurried forward and reported gravely, “Your Highness, Miss Sun of the Sun family requests an audience. With her is a young man, unfamiliar to us, and judging by his demeanor, he is not here with good intentions.”

“Hmph! I have yet to hold her accountable for what happened to Wudao, and now she dares come to the estate? Bring them in. I want to see what game she’s playing!”

Li Jing’s expression turned icy.

Miss Sun, whose name was Sun Qian, was famed for her intelligence and beauty. She and Li Wudao had known each other since childhood, their bond the talk of the city, considered a match made in heaven by all. Li Jing, seeing the affection between them, had even humbled himself to propose marriage to the Sun family for the sake of his son’s happiness. Compared to the power of the princely estate, the Sun family was a mere minor clan and naturally dared not refuse, agreeing at once. Thus, the betrothal was set, with the marriage to follow upon their sixteenth year.

However, in recent times, some unknown rift had developed between Li Wudao and Sun Qian, and they ceased all contact. Thereafter, Li Wudao became a mere shadow of himself, listless and withdrawn, barely eating or drinking, locked in his room day after day, lost either to drink or to vacant staring.

“Your Highness, they are here.”

At that moment, the guard returned, ushering in a young man and woman.

The girl, about fifteen, had a delicate, fair face and a slender figure—a true beauty, but her eyes seemed cold and her lips too thin, lending her an air of indifference. This was none other than Miss Sun, Sun Qian.

The young man at her side, nearing twenty and clad in fine garments, carried himself with a certain arrogance, his gaze sweeping the assembly with obvious disdain.

At the sight of them, Li Jing and the Li family’s members all showed a change in expression.

For the two arrived hand in hand, their demeanor intimate and close.

“Sun Qian, what is the meaning of this?” Li Jing’s face darkened. “Are you not aware that you are still betrothed to Wudao? Now you openly consort with another man—what sort of conduct is this!”

No matter what, Sun Qian was still bound by an engagement to Li Wudao. Was this not a public insult to the princely estate?

“An engagement? I am here today to break it. Is there a problem?”

Sun Qian met Li Jing’s gaze coldly, a mocking smile on her lips. She produced the marriage contract and, treating it like refuse, threw it at Li Jing’s feet.

The crowd was stunned for a moment, then, seeing the contract, their eyes blazed with fury.

For a woman to come to the man’s home to break an engagement was a blatant humiliation.

Moreover, the girl’s family was but a minor clan—how dare they show such disdain for the prince’s household?

If word spread, the princely estate would be the laughingstock of the city.

Li Jing’s face flushed red with anger. He took a deep breath and said, “Give me a reason.”

“It’s simple. I have found someone I truly love, this Brother Ruan at my side. Compared to him, Li Wudao is nothing but worthless—he’s not even fit to carry his shoes. Why keep the engagement for the sake of tradition?”

Sun Qian seemed utterly unconcerned by Li Jing’s near-murderous glare. She clung to the young man beside her, as if wishing to merge into him.

This scene infuriated the entire Li family.

One humiliation after another—this was intolerable!

A few hot-blooded Li clansmen could stand no more and moved to teach Sun Qian a lesson. But as soon as they acted, the youth named Ruan sent them flying, leaving them on the ground, coughing blood.

Seeing this, several others rushed forward, but none could best him, falling one after another.

“You can’t even withstand a single punch from me. What, is the princely estate full of useless weaklings?”

The youth stood with hands behind his back, looking down on the defeated Li clansmen with a sneer.

Sun Qian applauded him gleefully, her laughter only deepening the Li family’s humiliation.

“You! How dare you!”

The clan elder barked, about to act, but Li Jing stopped him.

“This is the princely estate,” Li Jing said coldly to the youth. “You have wounded my clansmen repeatedly. Is this not arrogance?”

Li Jing’s gaze was fixed on the calm young man, killing intent flickering in his eyes.

If the youth lacked true backing, he would not leave this courtyard alive.

“You wish to kill me?” the youth scoffed. “I am Ruan Fei, son of the Third Elder of the Profound Heaven Sect. Who gave you the nerve?”

He produced a token, his tone utterly disdainful. “Try laying a finger on me—see if your estate still stands tomorrow.”

The unvarnished threat echoed through the courtyard.

The Li family tensed, their faces uncertain, and fell silent. Ruan Fei’s words were like a bucket of ice water, quelling their anger in an instant.

The Profound Heaven Sect was the overlord of Yongning Prefecture, a force above dynasties. Even its outer disciples were untouchable here.

Moreover, this arrogant youth was the son of the sect’s third elder—a background so formidable that even the Great Zhou Dynasty would hesitate to offend him, let alone a princely estate.

Li Jing felt as if plunged into an icy abyss. His clenched fists slowly relaxed.

Ruan Fei was right—if violence broke out here, the estate would not survive.

Yet to let these two depart unscathed would surely subject the estate and Li Wudao to endless ridicule, their names a joke in every mouth.

Li Jing’s brows knit in distress, caught between a rock and a hard place.

Just then—

Creak—

The door opened.

All eyes turned.

Out stepped a handsome young man, disheveled and reeking of wine. At the sight of him safe and sound, the crowd breathed a sigh of relief—the heir lived.

“Wudao… you… it’s good that you’re unharmed.”

Li Jing, who had been seething with humiliation, could not help but relax at the sight of his son intact.

“So you’re Li Wudao? Born a cripple, the look of a loser. No wonder Qian chose to cast you off—you’re utterly worthless.”

Ruan Fei glanced at Li Wudao with scorn and shook his head.

“Since you’re alive, hear me well—I am here today to break the engagement. The contract is returned. From this day forth, we are strangers—do not trouble me again.”

Sun Qian’s gaze was full of contempt as she looked upon the now-slovenly, dispirited Li Wudao, stating her intent once more.

As the two of them heaped scorn on him, Li Wudao’s expression remained calm. He looked at Sun Qian and said, word by word:

“For ten years you have eaten my food, worn my clothes, and spent untold cultivation resources that I provided. If there is to be a breaking of the engagement, it is for me to do—not you, nor the Sun family, are qualified!”

All these years, the majority of the cultivation resources enjoyed by Sun Qian and her family had been secretly supplied by Li Wudao. Day after day, for a decade, without complaint. Never did he expect that his trust was so misplaced.

“You…” Sun Qian was at a loss for words, but before she could reply, Li Wudao interrupted her.

He pulled from his robe a bloodstained white cloth and threw it at her feet. On it was his own freshly written letter of repudiation, penned in blood.

Sun Qian glanced down and caught sight of several words of scorn, her face turning deathly pale as she trembled with rage.

Li Wudao ignored her and turned to the clearly displeased Ruan Fei, saying coolly, “You are Ruan Fei, yes? I will come to the Profound Heaven Sect. I hope you can be as arrogant then as you are now.”

At this, Sun Qian burst out laughing, as if she had heard the funniest thing in the world.

“With your martial aptitude, you won’t make it past the first trial. What business do you have at the Profound Heaven Sect? Threatening Brother Ruan—are you courting death?”

Who in City by the Abyss did not know that the prince’s heir was an ordinary young man of mediocre talent? Even some of the Li clan’s elders found this incredible, unable to fathom what Li Wudao was thinking.

Li Wudao showed no reaction.

“I know it’s hard to accept, but reality is cruel. Why deceive yourself?” Sun Qian drew a breath, her voice icy and proud. “The sect’s entrance examination is at hand. The gap between us will only grow. Face the truth—we are no longer of the same world.”

“A worm like you—if you dare come to the sect, I won’t hesitate to crush you.”

Ruan Fei’s voice dripped with condescension; he did not even deign to acknowledge Li Jing, let alone waste a thought on Li Wudao.

Apparently bored, Sun Qian and Ruan Fei did not linger. With mocking laughter, they departed.

After weighing the consequences, Li Jing did nothing to stop them, watching helplessly as the two arrogant figures strode away, his expression dark as storm clouds.

After today, the estate would surely be the laughingstock of the city.

Li Wudao gazed at the departing girl’s scornful silhouette and sighed softly, his thoughts in turmoil.

So this was the so-called “first sword upon reaching shore—cut down your beloved first”?

To think, the moment he crossed into this world, he was met with such a mess.

Having merged with the memories of this body’s former owner, he felt both speechless and indignant.

After the pair had departed, the Li family’s members, weighed down with frustration and resentment, also dispersed.

“Wudao, do you truly intend to take the Profound Heaven Sect’s entrance trial? I’ve heard it is exceedingly strict. At minimum, one must possess mid-grade yellow-tier talent to have a chance. Perhaps you should reconsider…”

Before leaving, Li Jing could not help but ask.

“No need to worry, Father. I have my own means,” Li Wudao replied with a calm smile, his confidence unshaken.

Seeing this, Li Jing said no more, merely patting his son’s shoulder before turning away. He assumed Li Wudao was still suffering from the pain of betrayal—young men cared deeply for their pride, and that was understandable.

As the sun set, peace returned to the courtyard.

Li Wudao stretched lazily and strolled back into his room, his tall, slender figure cast in the golden afterglow.

Unbeknownst to all, the youth’s eyes had become piercing, clear, and fathomless.

Nor did anyone know that Li Wudao’s words were not idle boasting—he truly intended to take the Profound Heaven Sect’s entrance trial, and possessed the means to do so.

For on the very day he crossed into this world, he had awakened the Supreme Investment Rebate System.

This system would appraise the talent, constitution, and fortune of potential “investments”—the greater their quality, the richer the returns for a successful investment.

A faint smile played on Li Wudao’s lips.

A mere disciple of the Profound Heaven Sect—what cause for concern was that?

If I am to be bound to a cheat, how will you contend with me then?