Chapter 5: The Hidden Hand
Fu Tianling wasn't deliberately hiding it.
He simply hadn't been home much lately. Most nights he stayed in various brothels, and it had been quite a while since he last returned.
First, the courtesans were truly delightful. Second, he could conveniently earn some villain points while he was there.
Fu Mengli didn't press the matter any further. Everyone carried their own secrets. The fact that her fourth brother finally possessed cultivation counted as good news. Their father would definitely be pleased.
"Second brother wronged you in this matter."
Fu Wuming stared at the black line creeping along Fu Tianling's arm. His face still carried no visible emotion, yet there was probably guilt somewhere inside.
After all, someone used him, and that mistake pushed their fourth brother straight into a life and death crisis.
"If you really feel that bad, then just kill yourself. That female devil threatened me. She said if I kill you, she'll give me the antidote." Fu Tianling spoke plainly without hiding anything.
Expecting him to actually kill Fu Wuming was unrealistic anyway. The female devil clearly wanted him to investigate the hidden mastermind first.
As for Fu Wuming, she probably planned to kill him personally sooner or later. There was no way she would rely entirely on a useless person like him.
"Alright." Fu Wuming didn't waste a single extra word. He raised his palm and struck straight toward his own head.
Fu Tianling honestly didn't react in time. Even if he did react, it wouldn't change a damn thing.
Fortunately, Fu Mengli reacted instantly. She grabbed Fu Wuming's wrist before the strike could land.
His hand froze in her grip like it suddenly grew roots and refused to move even a fraction.
Fu Tianling didn't even see when his big sister moved beside their second brother.
She could actually stop Fu Wuming's strike, which meant her cultivation ran extremely deep. She likely already stepped into the Third Rank transcendent realm.
And she was only twenty two years old.
With talent like that, even Su Huanxue might struggle to surpass her.
Fu Wuming's talent stood roughly equal to Su Huanxue's. His cultivation ranked slightly higher, although he was older than her by a couple of years.
He turned twenty this year.
Fu Qingning's talent fell slightly below Su Huanxue's level.
As for their father Fu Canglong, his cultivation remained a mystery.
In truth, nothing in the empire required Fu Canglong to use his strength. His authority alone was enormous, powerful enough to rival imperial power itself.
Because of that, his reputation never stayed particularly good. Rumors even claimed he harbored rebellious intentions.
With a family full of monstrous talents and those kinds of rumors floating around, it would be stranger if the emperor didn't feel uneasy.
This situation practically screamed classic final villain template.
Under normal circumstances, families like this never ended well.
Of course Fu Tianling refused to let that happen. If the main villain fell, how could a small villain like him possibly survive?
Fu Mengli kept a calm face while speaking.
"Don't be impulsive. Fourth brother was joking." Fu Wuming shook his head calmly.
"Whether he joked or not doesn't matter. I caused harm to fourth brother. If my death allows him to live, then that's how things should be."
Fu Mengli's lips twitched slightly.
In her entire life, the one person she couldn't deal with was Fu Wuming. He listened to no one and followed only his own rules and logic.
"Alright, alright. That female devil still expects me to work for her. Su Zi is dead, so she needs a new pawn. I'm not dying anytime soon, thanks for the concern."
Fu Tianling gained a deeper understanding of his second brother's personality.
Despite everything, the man possessed qualities worthy of respect.
The suicide crisis ended just like that.
Fu Mengli looked toward Fu Tianling.
"You aren't afraid?"
Fu Tianling gave a faint snort.
"When people die, their souls still face the sky. What's there to fear? I already said my dying wish earlier. Big sister, willing to grant your little brother that request?"
He wasn't truly fearless.
Things already reached this point, so worrying wouldn't change anything. At least he survived longer than in the original storyline.
Back then he died immediately. Now he already lived through three chapters.
Next goal was surviving thirty chapters.
If he somehow survived three hundred chapters, he might even beat Ye Chen to death himself.
Besides, the system's rewards came in all kinds of strange forms. Maybe he would eventually pull an antidote pill from the lottery.
So even after swallowing the poison pill, Fu Tianling's mindset remained surprisingly relaxed.
Fu Wuming thought for a moment before lowering the hand he nearly used to kill himself.
"The Demon Descent Pill isn't an ordinary poison. It's a secret medicine of the demonic sect. Even the Prime Minister's residence doesn't possess an antidote." Fu Mengli's expression grew serious.
"Su Huanxue will definitely appear within one month. We capture her directly and force the antidote from her."
"If she senses danger, she simply won't appear. And with her personality, she would rather die than surrender."
Fu Tianling rejected the plan immediately before Fu Wuming could speak.
He refused to gamble with his own life. After all, he was a precious transmigrator.
Fu Mengli asked calmly, "Then what do you suggest?"
Fu Tianling took a sip of tea.
"Follow her instructions for now. We find the hidden mastermind who wants to start a war between the Prime Minister's residence and the demonic sect. Big sister, you'll have to investigate that first."
"Alright. Father should return today. I'll explain everything to him."
Fu Mengli felt her fourth brother's plan made sense. Still, this involved his life, so their father needed to hear it.
"I'll return to my room first. I need a bath and fresh clothes. There's still blood on me. That Liu Wunian fellow stays alive. I want to interrogate him personally."
Fu Tianling didn't bother discussing things further. His thoughts drifted toward finding faster ways to earn villain points.
Trying to kill the protagonist or conquer the heroines felt unrealistic right now. The easiest method involved messing with random side characters.
As for cultivation, he understood nothing.
Even if someone placed the greatest cultivation technique in the world before him, he wouldn't understand a single line.
It felt like asking a grade school student to read a doctoral thesis. The words might be recognizable individually, yet the meaning made zero sense when combined.
Fortunately the system lottery could reward cultivation directly.
In theory, Fu Tianling didn't need to cultivate at all.
As long as he gathered enough villain points, he could become ridiculously strong.
Not long after Fu Tianling left, Fu Canglong returned to the Prime Minister's residence for dinner.
He carried a square shaped face with an overwhelming presence. A few strands of white hair appeared among his black hair, yet instead of making him look old, it added a deeper sense of authority.
That mix of black and white hair paired with his stern and domineering expression created a natural aura around him. Even his footsteps carried power.
In terms of presence, he truly had everything under control.
Fu Mengli explained Fu Tianling's situation to their father.
Fu Canglong listened quietly without any change in expression.
"What do you two think about the Demon Descent Pill?"
Fu Wuming answered immediately, "This trouble started because of me. I'll charge into the demonic sect myself and force that female devil to hand over the antidote."
"You're even more foolish than your fourth brother."
Fu Canglong had just taken a sip of rice soup, and hearing that answer nearly made him spit it out.
Fu Wuming always acted straightforwardly. He followed the shortest path to solve problems and disliked thinking about schemes or conspiracies.
Unfortunately, the shortest path rarely counted as the simplest or most effective one.
Fu Canglong glanced toward Fu Mengli, signaling her to speak.
"We don't possess an antidote for the Demon Descent Pill, but I'll notify the merchant guild to keep watch. If it appears anywhere, we'll buy it at any price."
"The demonic sect headquarters remains a mystery. Even if we discover its location, our enemies are too numerous to start a large conflict."
"For now, we follow Su Huanxue's demands. Since she intends to use fourth brother, she won't kill him yet."
Fu Mengli hadn't even picked up her chopsticks.
She calmly laid out her plan.
Fu Canglong nodded slightly.
"Learn from your elder sister."
"Boring." Fu Wuming showed zero intention of changing his ways.
Fu Canglong could only sigh.
"Ling'er still behaves absurdly, but at least he matured slightly. He stayed calm when trouble appeared. His cultivation remains a secret for now."
The Prime Minister's residence already produced three monstrous talents.
Keeping Fu Tianling's cultivation hidden felt safer. Over the years the residence accumulated far too many enemies.
Fu Mengli looked at her father.
"Fourth brother slept with the wife of the Vice Minister of Censors and brutally killed her. News already spread. How should we handle that?"
"Handle it?" Fu Canglong picked up a piece of lamb and ate it casually.
"Zhong Anfu will come personally to thank Ling'er for killing that unfaithful slut. What needs handling?"
Fu Mengli nodded slowly, realizing her father's reasoning made sense.
Fu Wuming spoke with a serious face.
"I think fourth brother acted wrongly. He needs strict discipline in the future. Best solution is hanging him up and beating him until he admits his mistake."
Fu Canglong and Fu Mengli silently ignored him and continued eating their meal.