Based Guy in ATG c1 (Patreon)

“Long’er, what do you mean divorced!?” Xiao Lie was gobsmacked to hear that! What happened!?

“Well, first, she didn’t want to do wifely duties. Second, she is most likely infertile as her body is extremely cold, and third, she is with Frozen Cloud Immortal Palace; her Master is there with her. She could fly, so I guess she was at the legendary [Sky Profound].” Xiao Long explained in a single breath. The only time he sounded interested was when he was talking about the cultivation realm of Xia Qingyue’s Master.

‘Flying sounds so cool! I wouldn’t need to walk anymore. Walking is for brokies.’

For a second, he imagined building a man cave somewhere high in the mountains with a cultivation version of gym instruments.

‘Oh, and a fridge with some beer.’ 

“...Frozen Cloud Immortal Palace!?” Xiao Lie spoke after taking a big sip.

“Yeah, so I divorced her without wasting a second.” The transmigrator started eating his food.

Seeing how he was not bothered with this, he then noticed his aura!

“...Long’er…Y-Y-Your cultivation!” The old man pointed his finger at his ‘grandson’.

“Yes, I found a herb outside the clan last night. I needed fresh air after that divorce.” Xiao Long smoothly lied here.

“What a fortuitous encounter! It would seem heaven have not abandoned us!” 

Internally, Xiao Long grimaced. How overdramatic could people be here? But at least he is happy about something.

“With this, Long’er, you could join New Moon Profound Palace! There won’t be any issue for you to join that place. I have a favour with one of the elders from there.” The old man got quite excited by the idea of his grandson finally cultivating!

“That sounds great.” Xiao Long couldn’t say no. Knowing the tropes, it's his second arc there. Since he skipped the first one, the second one could start early. He might catch his ‘rival’, one of the Young Masters, by surprise. 

Whoever he is.

After the initial exchange, it was time to eat.

However, a few short minutes later, Xiao Lie’s servant brought news.

As the man was saying something to the elder, Xiao Long ignored it as he had no interest in the news. His goal is simple: to be successful and reach the apex, whatever it is. 

To do that, he needs to visit bigger ‘ponds’. Leaving Floating Cloud City is paramount.

“Long’er, we have big news.”

“Hmm?”

“Fourth Young Master of Xiao Sect will be visiting us. He sent a forward message saying that he would be here in four days. His goal is to take one of our youngsters back to Xiao Sect.”

Xiao Long simply raised his eyebrow; well, that was not good. While the old man looks quite excited to some degree, the transmigrant knows his tropes. 

“What is his reputation?” 

“...Hmm? You think he will do anything to us?” 

“Well, not to us. He could do something to the girls.” Xiao Long shrugged while saying that.

Xiao Lie immediately got serious.

“...His reputation is not the best. While Xiao Sect is trying to keep all the news secret, people do talk.”

“Well, then you should keep Lingxi away from him.” 

“...That would be for the best.” 

Not long after that, the mood turned sour as Xiao Lie thought about how to keep his daughter safe, just in case.

Xiao Long eventually finished with food and was planning to go back to his training, but he got intercepted by the clan leader’s Young Master.

“...Brother Long, do you have a moment of your time.” Xiao Yulong is the leader’s son and the strongest of the younger generation, but that smile hides a viper.

He might be able to fool a child, but he has seen adults like that all the time, especially when he was working part-time before becoming a proper writer. It's always ‘nice’ when someone gives you extra work with a beautiful smile. (heavy sarcasm)

Regular people should stay away from these kinds of people. A street light pole distance, if possible.

“Sure, what is it?”

“Nothing much. I just wanted to know where Fairy Xia is.”

“...Hmm? I divorced her.” Xiao Long bluntly dropped a bomb.

“...”

“...”

“...”

Whatever flow there was, it was shattered as Xiao Yulong looked like a moron for a few seconds.

“...Eh?”

“Yes. You shouldn’t have high hopes for her brother Yulong. She is with Frozen Cloud Immortal Palace, she is very arrogant and could try to freeze you to bits, on top of that her Master is [Sky Profound]...

 I saw them fly.” For a second, he pretended to be how he was before, semi-meek, and he ‘trusted’ his ‘brother’. But then he had an idea. Could he use him to get rid of Xiao Sect?

Xiao Long wouldn’t mind going to one of the four superpowers, but his cultivation is very low, and he would not get the attention of that waste.

So why not use this viper brother of his?

“...I see… that’s quite a shock. But for you to divorce her like this… I am impressed.” Xiao Yulong had a weird look as he never expected his little brother to have such ‘iron’. It makes him feel a little bit of respect. Not much, but just a little bit.

“Yes. Anyway, I heard that Young Master from Xiao Sect is coming over.”

To Xiao Long’s words, there was an immediate reaction. Xiao Yulong seriously nodded.

“Yes, we are making preparations. You should be at your best behaviour, brother Long.”

“I will. But I heard he is a womaniser. If you want a favour with him, you should take him to THAT place.” Xiao Long smiled knowingly.

When Xiao Yulong heard that, there was a glint in his eyes, he immediately patted Xiao Long’s shoulder.

“You are right! Thanks for the great advice.”

After saying that, the Young Master of Xiao Long’s clan walked away. When he was away from the transmigrator, he had a sneer.

‘Just how stupid you can be, little brother, giving me such ideas? You should have kept it to yourself. Well, it doesn’t matter. With Xia Qingyue away, there is no need for me to bother with you anymore.’

As Xiao Yulong was thinking about his opportunities, he didn’t see Xiao Long behind him, cleaning his shoulder as if it were dirt. He also had a smile on his face.

He also had similar thoughts.

‘101 of people manipulation. Always think about what the other person wants. But to think how little it takes to make you that excited, ‘brother’.’ Xiao Long scoffed. He thought of dropping hints that Frozen Cloud could still watch the clan. Or something like that. But all he needed was to mention a brothel.

‘I don’t even want to know what he was considering selling to get that favour.’

Knowing the tropes, if he still had Xia QIngyue around, it shouldn’t be hard to see the plot.

The Young Master arrives and spots Xia Qingyue. He wants her to create some 3rd rate plot to mess with Xiao Long. He gets exiled while XIa Qingyue is rescued by her Master. After that, they meet in some sort of tournament.

‘Now the question is… what should be my cheat?’

The transmigrator touched his pendant. 

‘This? But what does it do?’

He knew he was in a book of some sort. But he was not a cliche protagonist. He inhabits someone who should have become one. His setup is as one.

‘Well, whatever, I have my power, so I might as well use it and do whatever I want. I don’t give a fuck about the plot.’

As he realised he didn’t care, he started walking to his small pavilion. It was time to continue his training.

~~~

At first, he thought about continuing to use the ‘Nine Rebirths of Nature’ art to improve his physique and cultivate the next major realm, but then he remembered that arts like these have specific side effects.

For example, if you reach a specific stage, you develop some sort of passive effect or a move.

More specifically, if he masters the first stage of art, he will have ‘indestructible skin’, and the second stage of mastery will give him ‘Divine Strength’.

That is just an example, but this is how he remembers working in Xianxia tropes.

That is why he proceeded to alter the art instead of continuing his cultivation.

So he closed his eyes and ‘shattered’ the cultivation art he created. He saw the five paragraphs from before and started to expand.

He added stages and perks of cultivating this art. First was the indestructible skin at stage one. The second stage will involve ‘Altered Muscles’. The third stage will have ‘Thicker Blood’. The fourth Stage will have ‘Diamond Skeleton’, and the last stage, the fifth stage, will give ‘Divine Might’.

While Xiao Long is certain it's not bad, these perks are not truly ‘Godly’. He can guess that they are like buffs one could get from a cleric in a video game. It would make his grind faster but not groundbreaking.

He truly needs to find a godly art, decipher it, and improve his Profound Arts making with that one.

After he finished making the art, the text glowed, and the art he created became far more complex. The original five paragraphs turned into 25.

The basics didn’t change. Xiao Long still needed to absorb the energy, but now it was like walking through a corridor with rooms; these rooms should hold something interesting.

The process of cultivation all of a sudden became much more interesting.

Now, he had two thresholds: one was to master the art he created, and another was to increase energy in his Profound Veins.

With art completed, he could focus on cultivating and chasing that [Nascent Profound].

Around four hours later of continuous Nature Energy absorption, Xiao Long’s cultivation surged, and he reached [Fourth of Elementary Profound].

He wanted to continue but the doors slowly opened and a dark brown-haired girl poked inside.

“Long’er, Father told me what happened. Are you okay?”

“...Lingxi, knock first before you enter.” With a sigh, Xiao Long reminded ‘little aunt’ about etiquette.

“S-Sorry. Can I enter?” 

“...Yes, I can give you five minutes.”

She walked in with a pout. Xiao Long could see that she was not happy with his attitude. After all, he had changed a lot since that incident.

“What happened?” She asked with crossed arms.

“Nothing. I fixed my veins, and now I am cultivating. So I have no time to play with you.” He said with a tired sigh. 

“A-Amazing! W-Wait, does this mean you will be a cultivator!?” She started to panic as she always thought he would be in Floating Cloud City, but now she needs to do something if he plans to travel!

After all, Xiao Lingxi had a massive crush on Xiao Long.

“Yes. I need to train and be successful.”

“I-I see.”

Xiao Lingxi was always an oddball. From what Xiao Long remembers, she stands out like a sore thumb. She doesn’t care about cultivation and simply wants a normal life. But girls like these are the first ones to end up in the bed of a Young Master, and the Protagonist needs to protect them all the time.

In other words, they are an utter hassle, and Xiao Long doesn’t want to deal with them. He hopes that after that Young Master leaves, no one will bother with this place for the next 50+ years. With her non-existent cultivation, this girl won't be pretty any more after that long, and no one will care.

“That's Good. Then you can return and play with cats or something. I have things to do.” He motioned for her to leave.

“...I don’t play with cats! Don’t start bullying me!” She huffed at him. He can easily trigger her.

“Besides, I want to cultivate too, now!”

Xiao Long rolled his eyes when he heard that.

“Good, then go bothered Grandfather. He can teach you the basics.” He motioned for her to get away.