Reverend Insanity Chapter 3: Please go aside and scram

Bang, bang, bang.

A rhythmic clatter echoed as the night watchman patrolled, his wooden clappers signaling the transition of time.

The sound resonated through the elevated pillar houses. Fang Yuan stirred, his dry eyelids fluttering open. "Dawn is nearly upon us," he mused silently.

He had spent the better part of the previous night bedridden, turning over countless plans in his mind. Having secured barely two hours of rest, he felt the weight of fatigue; his body, yet to begin the journey of cultivation, lacked the vibrant energy of a veteran master. His physical and mental stamina were visibly taxed.

Yet, those five hundred years of existence had forged in him a resolve as unyielding as steel. This minor exhaustion meant nothing to him.

He cast aside the thin silk coverlet and rose with efficient grace. Pushing the window open, he discovered that the light spring drizzle had finally ceased.

The air was thick with the invigorating scent of damp earth, foliage, and wildflowers. Fang Yuan felt his senses sharpen instantly, the remnants of sleep vanishing. Though the sun had yet to breach the horizon, the sky had shifted into a deep, pre-dawn cerulean.

Below, the landscape was a sea of verdant hues, defined by the tall wooden houses and bamboo structures that hugged the mountainside, characterized by the unique architecture of the mountain folk. These dwellings sat on sturdy timber pilings to accommodate the rugged slope, with the living quarters confined to the second level. This was where he and his brother, Fang Zheng, currently resided.

"Young Master Fang Yuan, you are awake. I shall head up to assist with your morning routine." A maiden’s melodic voice drifted up.

Peering downward, he spotted his personal servant, Shen Cui.

While her features were merely pleasant, she carried herself with a polished air. Clad in a green robe with loose sleeves and embroidered footwear, her dark hair adorned with a single pearl hairpin, she emanated a youthful vitality that filled the room as she ascended with a basin of water.

The temperature was ideal. After a thorough wash and a quick rinse, he scrubbed his teeth with a willow branch dipped in snow salt.

Shen Cui attended to him with practiced grace, a persistent smile playing on her lips. As she helped him into his garments, her form occasionally pressed against his arm or back, a deliberate touch. Fang Yuan remained impassive, his internal state as still as a frozen pool.

In reality, this girl served as the eyes and ears for his aunt and uncle, a vapid soul driven by vanity. In his former life, she had beguiled him, only to turn cold and disdainful once his status plummeted during the Awakening Ceremony.

Fang Zheng arrived just in time to witness Shen Cui smoothing the fabric over Fang Yuan’s chest. A flicker of envy crossed his expression.

Sharing these years with his brother had afforded him his own servant, yet while Fang Yuan enjoyed the youthful company of Shen Cui, Fang Zheng was left with a heavy-set, elderly woman.

"I wonder what it would be like to have Shen Cui attend to me?" Fang Zheng contemplated internally, though he lacked the boldness to express it.

The blatant favoritism shown by their aunt and uncle toward Fang Yuan was common knowledge. Fang Zheng had initially possessed no servant at all; it was only through Fang Yuan’s insistence that one had been provided.

Despite the rigid hierarchy of master and servant, Fang Zheng never dared dismiss Shen Cui. Her mother was Mother Shen, a woman who wielded immense influence as the primary caretaker of the household, enjoying the absolute trust of their aunt and uncle.

"Enough. No need to busy yourself further." Fang Yuan brushed her soft hands away with a sharp gesture. His clothes were already perfectly arranged; her fluttering was nothing more than an attempt to entice him.

To Shen Cui, Fang Yuan represented a potential A-grade talent—a stepping stone to elevate her from a lowly servant to the status of concubine, a significant leap in her future.

In his past life, he had been a fool for her charms. After his rebirth, however, his perspective had sharpened, his heart turned to frosted iron.

"You may go." Fang Yuan didn't even grant her a glance as he adjusted his cuffs. Shen Cui pouted, clearly unsettled by his abrupt, unfamiliar behavior. She opened her mouth to offer a coy remark, but withered under his cold, impenetrable gaze, eventually whispering a submissive "yes" and retreating.

"Are you ready?" Fang Yuan asked, turning to his brother.

Fang Zheng stood in the doorway, eyes cast down at the floor, muttering a soft affirmation. He had been awake since the fourth watch, consumed by a nervous anxiety that prevented sleep. He had been ready and waiting for an age, his eyes rimmed with exhaustion.

Fang Yuan nodded once. He understood his brother’s internal turmoil all too well now, though in the grand scheme, it mattered very little. "Let us depart."

The brothers descended the stairs and made their way out. Along the path, they encountered other youths, all drifting in clusters toward the same location.

"Look, it’s the Fang brothers," came the hushed, cautious whispers. "The one in front is Fang Yuan—the one who composed those poems," someone stressed.

"So that’s him. He looks as cold and detached as the rumors suggest," another remarked, dripping with sour resentment.

"Hmph, if you had his standing, you’d act the same way!" retorted a third, masking their own frustration.

Fang Zheng caught the words but kept his head bowed, accustomed to being collateral in the shadow of his brother’s reputation.

Dawn’s light hit the horizon, casting Fang Yuan’s tall silhouette across the path, engulfing his brother in shade. Fang Zheng felt a suffocating pressure in his chest, a heavy reminder that he might forever struggle under the insurmountable weight of his older brother’s presence.

"Hmph, they say talent easily draws jealousy," Fang Yuan noted with an internal sneer, listening to the murmurs. It was no wonder that when he was later revealed to have only C-grade talent, those same people had swarmed him with such vitriol.

Behind him, his brother’s breath hitched. Fang Yuan’s 500 years of experience allowed him to perceive every nuance that he had missed in his youth. He saw the schemes of his aunt and uncle clearly now—assigning the charming Shen Cui to monitor him while leaving his brother with a decrepit crone was a calculated move to sow discord between them.

People rarely complain about having little; they only complain when things are not distributed with a semblance of fairness.

In his youth, he had been naive, as had his brother, allowing their manipulative relatives to drive a wedge between them. But now, with the Awakening Ceremony approaching, the game had changed. Armed with his ruthlessness and wisdom, he could easily rewrite their fates—perhaps by taking Shen Cui as a concubine early, or by dismantling his aunt, uncle, and the clan elders with any of the hundreds of methods hidden in his memory.

"But, I truly cannot be bothered..." Fang Yuan sighed to himself.

So what if it was his biological brother? Without a shred of loyalty, a brother was just another stranger. So what if Shen Cui was fair to look upon? Without affection, she was just flesh and bone; a concubine was far beyond her worth. And as for his aunt, uncle, or the elders? They were mere flickers in a long life, hardly worth the effort of his malice.

He chuckled internally.

As long as you stay out of my way, you are free to go aside and scram. I have no need to interfere with your lives.