Raising the Villain in Wrong Way

"Senior brother Lin is a true gentleman. It gives you a strong sense of... security, doesn’t it?"

The Princess and Liu Liu nodded in silent agreement. It was an inexplicable feeling.

In a realm filled with monsters and backstabbing cultivators, sitting naked in a river should have felt terrifyingly vulnerable.

But with Lin Ji’an sitting on that rock, his back turned, they felt safer than they did behind the heavily warded walls of their own sect dormitories.

The security bred relaxation, and relaxation bred playfulness.

Ling’er, feeling the pain in her ankle subside thanks to the Qi water, scooped up a handful of water.

A mischievous, girlish smile, one she rarely showed in the palace, crept onto her face.

With a flick of her wrist, she sent a spray of glowing water arcing through the air.

Splash!

The water hit Ji’an squarely in the back of the head.

On the rock, Ji’an’s shoulders tensed. She didn’t turn around. She simply slowly raised a hand and wiped a glowing drop of water from the back of her neck.

"Your Highness," Ji’an’s voice floated back, sounding incredibly dry and exasperated. "My robes were finally dry. Please tell me that was just a rogue jumping fish."

Ling’er giggled, covering her mouth. It was a shockingly normal, teenage sound.

Liu Liu, emboldened by the Princess, scooped up her own handful of water. "I think it was a very large fish, Boss!"

She threw her water. It hit Ji’an’s shoulder.

"Hey!" Ji’an complained, still refusing to turn around. She dodged to the left, but she was sitting cross-legged, limiting her mobility. "I am standing guard! This is serious business! The forest is full of dangers!"

"The only danger here is you dying of boredom, Senior Brother!" Su Wan chimed in, suddenly laughing brightly.

She used her cultivation to create a small wave, sending it crashing against the rock Ji’an was sitting on, splashing her boots.

The girls erupted into a chorus of unrestrained laughter, the sound echoing beautifully across the luminous river.

They splashed each other, and they splashed the back of their stoic guardian, teasing him mercilessly.

"Turn around, Senior Brother! Defend yourself!" Liu Liu taunted playfully.

"I cannot turn around, Liu Liu, for I am bound by the ancient and sacred oath of ’Not Being a Creep’!" Ji’an shouted back, dramatically throwing a hand over her eyes even though she was facing away. "Spare me, river demons! My spatial bag is getting wet!"

The girls laughed harder. The tension of the survival trial melted away into the warm night air.

For a brief, shining moment, they weren’t cultivators fighting for status. They were just kids having a water fight.

And Lin Ji’an, sitting on her rock, soaking wet and utterly exasperated, smiled into the darkness of the forest.

’Annoying,’ she thought fondly, dodging another splash of water by the skin of her teeth. ’But I guess it beats fighting a snake.’

***

Thousands of miles away, on the floating jade terrace of the Assembly Plaza, the broadcast of the Luminous Jade River was causing absolute chaos.

The visual feed of the girls in the river was appropriately blurred by the modesty filters of their respective tokens, leaving only their shoulders and heads visible, but the audio was crystal clear.

And the visual feed of Lin Ji’an, sitting heroically on the rock, taking the splashes with long-suffering, gentlemanly exasperation, was broadcasting in 4K resolution.

The female disciples in the plaza were practically foaming at the mouth.

"He won’t turn around! He refuses to turn around! He is a saint, ahh!"

"Look at how he protects them! He’s letting them tease him just to make them feel safe!"

"Lin Ji’an is the ultimate husband! I will fight anyone who says otherwise!"

On the terrace, the male "Protagonists" were experiencing a collective meltdown.

Gu Zhiwei was clutching his chest, his eyes shining with pure, unadulterated admiration. "Brother Lin is the pinnacle of chivalry! He respects women! He guards them with his life! I must learn from his noble example!"

Lu Jianheng was aggressively polishing his sword, trying to ignore the way the girls on the screen were giggling at the chef. "It’s just a cheap trick! He’s playing the reliable guard dog to win their favour! Truly pathetic! A true swordsman would never allow himself to be splashed with water!" 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Even though he said so, whoever dared to look at his face could tell that he was lying, and his eyes were burning with intense jealousy.

Xiao Yichen, the Second Prince, was watching the Princess, his spoiled, arrogant sister, giggling and acting like a normal teenager.

He looked at Lin Ji’an’s back, his gentle smile turning sharp and dangerously intrigued. "Little Uncle has tamed the untamable shrew. Remarkable. Truly remarkable."

And then, there was Xie Wangchen.

The Ice Genius had abandoned the jade railing. He was now standing at the very back of the terrace, shrouded in a localised blizzard of his own making.

He was staring at the screen. He saw the water hitting Ji’an’s back. He heard the girls teasing his Ji’an.

The jealousy wasn’t just a fire anymore; it was a supernova.

’They are splashing water, having fun, and laughing with him. They are looking at him.’

Wangchen’s hand was gripping Winter’s Sigh so hard his palm was bleeding, but the blood froze before it could hit the floor.

He didn’t care that Ji’an wasn’t turning around. He cared that Ji’an was there.

He cared that Ji’an was making them feel safe, when Ji’an’s safety, Ji’an’s warmth, was supposed to belong exclusively to the Eternal Cloud Peak.

"Master," Wangchen said, his voice completely devoid of inflexion, a terrifyingly calm tone that promised absolute destruction.

Elder Qin, who had just coughed to hide the fact that he, too, was rather impressed by Ji’an’s gentlemanly restraint, looked over. "Yes, my disciple?"

Wangchen didn’t look away from the screen. He watched a drop of glowing river water slide down the back of Lin Ji’an’s neck.

"When Phase Two begins," Wangchen whispered, his eyes glowing with an abyssal, predatory blue light. "When the sparring bracket opens... put me in the first match."