“Ruan Qiuping!” Si Ming glanced around.
No one answered.
“Teacher, Ruan Qiuping definitely didn’t come, when did you see him in class!” One of the students below grinned.
… Luckily, he didn’t come again.
Si Ming breathed a sigh of relief and raised his hand to mark the attendance in the class register.
“Teacher, I’m sorry I’m late!” A young man wearing long golden sleeves and golden trousers broke in.
Ruan Qiuping actually came to class?!
The students instantly became tense, reaching for their amulet of dispelling bad luck, and some even immediately activated protective spells around them.
Ruan Qiuping looked at the empty three rows in the back of the classroom and sat down in the middle of the vacant seats. But as soon as he sat down, the chair collapsed, and Ruan Qiuping fell to the ground with a thud.
Ruan Qiuping rubbed his butt in pain, reached out and pulled a chair, but as soon as he looked up, he saw that the dozens of classmates who were closer to him jumped in fright and rushed elsewhere.
Ruan Qiuping let out a heavy sigh, tugged at his golden clothes, and helplessly said, “Is it necessary? Is it really necessary? Even if I am the God of Misfortune, you don’t have to avoid me like this, right? Don’t you have those amulets given by the God of Fortune? And look, for the sake of improving my luck, I specifically bought this golden outfit from the Trading Forest, endorsed by the God of Fortune. Come here, bask in its golden radiance…”
A classmate muttered softly, “The God of Fortune never wears golden clothes. You must have bought a fake one. You truly are the God of Misfortune…”
Indeed, Ruan Qiuping was a born God of Misfortune.
The previous God of Misfortune had already suffered from a series of unfortunate events and met an unlucky demise. Currently, the position of the God of Misfortune in the Heavenly Court is temporarily vacant. Although Ruan Qiuping hasn’t been officially appointed as a deity due to insufficient cultivation, he has become the only candidate for the God of Misfortune in everyone’s hearts.
Ruan Qiuping’s misfortune is on par with the previous God of Misfortune. For instance, when he was born, the once prosperous Ruan family fell into irreparable poverty. Even the celestial beings in the heavenly realm no longer referred to them as the “Ruan family with two extraordinary golden lions in front of their gate in the far west” Instead, they became known as the “poorest Ruan family in the west” abbreviated as the “Poor West Ruan Family.”
Ruan Qiuping’s misfortune goes far beyond making his family poor. It is a contagious and pervasive “misfortune.” Even low-level immortal beings would experience minor misfortunes when they encountered him, and conversing with him would bring about major misfortunes. Two hundred years ago, a young immortal accidentally touched Ruan Qiuping, and the next moment, he fell to the ground and remained unconscious for half a year. Since then, no immortal dared to approach him.
Upon hearing that Ruan Qiuping would be teaching at the Si Ming Academy, all the teachers and students sought amulets from the God of Fortune to ward off his misfortune. They wore them day and night, barely mitigating Ruan Qiuping’s misfortune.
In the concept of yin and yang harmony and balance in all things, Ruan Qiuping believed that the birth of the God of Fortune, Yu Huan, was meant to counteract him.
At the same moment Ruan Qiuping was born, in the far east of the Heavenly Court, a child destined for fortune came into the world.
The instant these two individuals touched the ground, the western part of the Heavenly Court was enveloped in dark clouds, fierce winds blew, and torrential rain poured down. Meanwhile, the eastern part of the Heavenly Court was bathed in colorful light, birds chirped in unison, and flowers bloomed abundantly.
After Ruan Qiuping’s birth, his family fell into poverty, and misfortune befell the surrounding area for miles. On the other hand, after the birth of the God of Fortune, Yu Huan, the wealth and reputation of the Yu family skyrocketed in the eastern part of the Heavenly Court. Immortals within a ten-mile radius of the Yu family, who had previously experienced minor ailments, now became lively and radiant. From then on, the Yu family was known as the “auspicious family in the east,” abbreviated as the “Fortunate East Yu Family.”
Not long after, people in the western part of the Heavenly Court spontaneously migrated to the east. The Ruan family became the most desolate place in the west, while the land adjacent to the Yu family skyrocketed in value, becoming the most prosperous area in the entire Heavenly Court, second only to the Heavenly Court itself. This drastic change disrupted the original land value structure in the Heavenly Court.
Thus, the future God of Misfortune and God of Fortune in the Heavenly Court were set.
Ruan Qiuping glanced at the bustling classroom and lazily said, “Teacher, why aren’t you teaching yet?”
Si Ming instinctively lowered his head to confirm the presence of his amulet to ward off misfortune, then flipped through the textbook and looked up at Ruan Qiuping, muttering, “Why are you suddenly so proactive…”
“It means I’ve become studious!” Ruan Qiuping grinned.
With that, he took out paper and pen from his backpack and actually began listening to the lesson.
As Ruan Qiuping lowered his head to take notes, the playful expression on his face gradually faded, replaced by a determined and silent fighting spirit in his eyes.
Ruan Qiuping’s fighting spirit was solely for the sake of his beloved little sister.
Ruan Qiuping’s sister was named Ruan Dongdong, who had just turned three years old. In a realm where the average age spanned hundreds or even thousands of years, she was barely considered a seedling, just a seed about to sprout.
Yet, this tiny little seed had unexpectedly been betrothed by the Celestial Marriage Stone.
A few nights ago, Ruan Qiuping overheard his parents talking and learned that the Celestial Marriage Stone, which had remained dormant for hundreds of years, had suddenly displayed two names.
Yu from the Fortunate East and Ruan from the Impoverished West.
The Celestial Marriage Stone had never decided anything else, only the marriage. However, the unmarried child of the Fortunate East Yu Family is Yu Huan, and this unmarried woman of the Poor West Ruan Family has nothing but Ruan Dongdong.
Yu Huan and Ruan Dongdong were the newly arranged marriage by the Celestial Marriage Stone.
This arranged marriage… Ruan Qiuping didn’t know what the Yu family thought, but his parents were overjoyed, bursting with laughter.
However, Ruan Qiuping was unwilling.
Extremely unwilling.
He wished he could take a knife and kill Yu Huan.
First of all, who was Yu Huan? He was a mature man of 221 years old, the same age as Ruan Qiuping. On the other hand, Ruan Dongdong was just a three-year-old child who couldn’t even speak clearly or walk steadily. And now plans to send her to the man’s family in a couple of days, with the intention of getting married and having children after a dozen years?
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
What was this? In modern human terms, it was damn well a crime.
Ruan Qiuping would grind his teeth even in his dreams, wishing to break off this engagement.
However, there was a rule regarding the Celestial Marriage Stone’s arranged marriages—it couldn’t be broken or violated. If anyone violated the matrimonial ties set by the Celestial Marriage Stone, they would be struck by forty-nine heavenly thunderbolts.
Ruan Dongdong had no magical powers at all. She would cry loudly even at the sight of thunder or lightning on a regular day.
But Yu Huan was different.
The entire heavenly realm praised Yu Huan as if he were a blooming flower. They spoke of him as the youngest calamity-crosser in the heavenly realm, the soon-to-be earliest ascended immortal, and the record holder for defeating the ferocious beast XiQu in the shortest amount of time… There were countless such praises.
Since Yu Huan was considered the pride of heaven and the hope of the heavenly realm’s future, could a mere forty-nine heavenly thunderbolts kill him?
Moreover, he was the designated auspicious God, so maybe when the forty-nine thunderbolts struck, not a single one would hit him.
Thinking of this, Ruan Qiuping gritted his teeth in bitterness.
In fact, Ruan Qiuping had never seen Yu Huan before.
Although they were both well-known figures in the heavenly realm, wherever Ruan Qiuping went, there were no people, while wherever Yu Huan went, it was always crowded.
Ruan Qiuping had caught a glimpse of Yu Huan’s figure about a hundred years ago. The legendary auspicious God was surrounded by a group of people, making it impossible to see him clearly. Ruan Qiuping could only vaguely saw the white jade crown on his head.
Later on, he heard that the God of Fortune was constantly harassed by people, so he personally learned the Art of Invisibility. He would disappear when he went out and would never be seen at home. He only wrote a few amulets for dispelling misfortune, ignoring all other requests. He was quite aloof.
Ever since Ruan Qiuping learned about his sister’s engagement to Yu Huan, he had been closely following Yu Huan’s movements. Finally, he received a small piece of information—Yu Huan was going to descend to the mortal realm to undergo a calamity.
Although Ruan Qiuping and Yu Huan were the same age, their cultivation paths were completely different. Ruan Qiuping remained stagnant, almost unchanged compared to a hundred years ago, while Yu Huan’s cultivation soared. It was said that after this calamity, he would be officially appointed as the God of Fortune, becoming the youngest God ever to be appointed.
Coincidentally, Ruan Qiuping was studying the subject of fate and was in charge of human destinies.
Knowing that Yu Huan was descending to the mortal realm, Ruan Qiuping knew that his opportunity had come.
During the process of immortals descending to the mortal realm to undergo calamities, there had always been an age-old challenge known as the tribulation of love. Many immortals who descended to the mortal realm would fall in love with mortals, and some of them couldn’t forget their mortal lovers even after returning from the calamity. Thus, a tragic love story between immortal and mortal would ensue. To address this issue, nowadays, those who returned from the mortal realm after undergoing calamities would drink the Forget Love Potion to erase their memories of their mortal relationships. However, even with this Forget Love Potion, every few decades, there are several immortals who inexplicably restore their memories and cry out to the heavens, yearning to find their mortal lovers in the underworld.
This had become a distinctive characteristic of Gods undergoing calamities.
That’s what Ruan Qiuping wants to use on Yu Huan.
He only needed to help Yu Huan find a deeply passionate lover in the mortal realm, and then do some tricks to make Yu Huan unable to drink the Forget Love Potion. In that case, when Yu Huan returned from his calamity, he would naturally break off the engagement with Ruan Dongdong and wholeheartedly focus on how to be with his mortal lover.
It was simply perfect!
Ruan Qiuping stretched lazily and tapped his own head with a pen, praising himself: ” What a clever brain!”
“Snap!” The pen in his hand inexplicably broke into two pieces, and the black ink flowed down Ruan Qiuping’s forehead.
…Ah, just another usual stroke of bad luck.
Ruan Qiuping silently wiped the ink off his forehead with a spell, touched his head, and praised himself again: …What a sturdy skull I have.
After attentively listening to a few classes, Ruan Qiuping finally understood the process. This course he was taking was an introductory course in the field of Fate Management. The theoretical classes had ended recently, and from today, they would start the practical classes.
Over the next two days, they would first visit the ” Fuhua Gate” where Gods descended to the mortal realm and observe various tools used to modify human destinies. Then, for the following two days, they would accompany the Si Ming and his assistant to observe the mortal realm. Finally, on the fifth day, the apprentices would officially begin their practical classes in the mortal realm. For the next two months, they would have five minutes of descent to the mortal realm every day.
These five minutes were not to be underestimated. Nowadays, the management of the passage between the heavenly realm and the mortal realm was becoming stricter. Normally, gods who could go to the mortal realm, aside from those descending for calamities, were only students who study Course of Fate Mastery. If regular Gods wanted to visit the mortal realm for a trip, they had to go through dozens of departments and processes, which took several decades in mortal time.
From this perspective, the daily five-minute permission that Ruan Qiuping obtained as a student was truly precious. Not to mention that according to the time conversion mechanism, where one day in the heavenly realm was equivalent to one year in the mortal realm, those five minutes in heaven were worth 30 hours in the mortal realm.
Thirty hours per year… If he worked hard, he could surely find a suitable partner for Yu Huan before he died.
With this thought in mind, Ruan Qiuping finally felt at ease.
“Everyone, follow Assistant Qiyue to the Fuhua Gate. Ruan… cough… Ruan Qiuping, stay behind.” said the Si Ming.
Once most of the students had left, Ruan Qiuping stood up and walked towards the podium. “Teacher, what’s the matter?”
“It’s nothing, just stay where you are. You don’t need to come closer…” The old Si Ming hastily said, wiping the sweat off his forehead. Then he continued, “Ahem, Ruan Qiuping, do you think that since this course is nearing its end, you’re afraid I won’t give you a passing grade? Actually, you don’t need to worry about that. You have exceptional talent, and you are an indispensable presence in our Fate Master Academy. Even if you don’t attend classes and just study at home, I will still give you an excellent grade…”
“Teacher, there’s no need to treat me differently,” Ruan Qiuping said seriously.
“If you treat me this way, what will the other students think?”
“The other students are hoping you won’t attend classes…” the Si Ming muttered under his breath.
Ruan Qiuping pretended not to hear and said, “Well, Teacher, if there’s nothing else, I’ll go to the Fuhua Gate with the other students.”
“Hey, wait a moment. There’s one more thing. I need to add some fortune to the Hidden Fate Ball.”
Adding fortune to the Hidden Fate Ball was a part-time job that Ruan Qiuping and Yu Huan did together at the Fate Master Academy, with the aim of balancing human destinies.
However…
“Didn’t we do this already this year? Why do we need to add more fortune?” Ruan Qiuping was confused.
The Fate Master said, “Yu Huan is going to descend to the mortal realm for his calamity, but his fortune is too abundant. It will make his life in the mortal realm too smooth, which is not conducive to a successful calamity. So, I want you to add some of your own fortune to balance it out and help him smoothly overcome his calamity.”
Ah, that legendary God of Fortune, understand, understood.
Ruan Qiuping smiled ominously and poured his own misfortune into the Hidden Fate Ball.
In an instant, the once transparent ball was now filled with black energy.
Ruan Qiuping chuckled inwardly, then handed the ball over.
For a moment, Ruan Qiuping almost felt like the evil queen from a fairy tale offering a poisoned apple. At that thought, he paused: Did he go too far? With so much misfortune, the God of Fortune might perish as soon as he landed.
“Not enough,” the Si Ming shook his head. “You haven’t witnessed Yu Huan’s current abilities. When you two were born, your fortunes were evenly matched, but now his cultivation surpasses yours. I suspect that the moment the Hidden Fate Ball touches his body, it will be purified, unable to carry over to the mortal realm…”
Ruan Qiuping: …
What does that mean? What does that mean? Are they saying that his and Yu Huan’s cultivation levels are now worlds apart, and even if he poured all his effort into infusing misfortune, it would still be insignificant in front of the God of Fortune?!
How dare they look down upon the great God of Misfortune’s misfortune!
It’s an enormous insult!!!
Ruan Qiuping forced a smile, retrieved the Hidden Fate Ball, and said, “It seems I almost did something bad with good intentions. Since it’s for Yu Huan’s calamity, I should take it seriously.”
After saying that, he took back the Hidden Fate Ball and turned around. He continued to infuse it with misfortune. God knows how much effort he put into it. During the process of infusing fortune, the entire classroom seemed to rotate. The windows and doors flew open, the curtains rustled, and the objects on the desks floated in the air. Ruan Qiuping laughed as if he were a villain who had successfully plotted something.
Suddenly, the tip of a pen cut through Ruan Qiuping’s wrist, and a drop of fresh blood fell into the Hidden Fate Ball as he waved his hand. However, this scene was so discreet that no one noticed.
“Alright,” Si Ming shook the Hidden Fate Ball in his hand. “That should do it. It seems that Yu Huan will have the fortune of an ordinary person during his calamity.”
Ruan Qiuping: …
The fortune of a god who descended to the mortal realm is usually reduced by ninety percent. So, even though he exerted so much effort, he only neutralized one-tenth of Yu Huan’s good fortune?!
Ruan Qiuping angrily slammed his hand on the desk.
“Bang!”
The desk suddenly toppled onto the ground and hit Ruan Qiuping’s foot hard.
“Ouch, ouch, ouch!” Ruan Qiuping exclaimed in pain.
Si Ming shook his head and tossed a bottle of ointment to Ruan Qiuping. “Clean yourself up and go to the Fuhua Gate by yourself later.”
Ruan Qiuping nodded in pain, holding his foot.
Ruan Qiuping was indeed late for the Fuhua Gate, but it wasn’t entirely his fault. Who would have thought that when he left, he would encounter a crazed divine beast, two annoying little immortals who were lost, and the drunken Old Man Under the Moon who initially pestered him for a conversation and later threw eggs at him upon finding out he was the God of Misfortune.
To be honest, Ruan Qiuping had gotten used to it. Such a lively and unpredictable life was expected for the God of Misfortune.
In any case, Ruan Qiuping wasted quite a bit of time on the way, so by the time he arrived at the Fuhua Gate, it was already dark, and his fellow classmates, his assistant instructor, and his teacher were nowhere to be seen.
A gust of wind blew, leaving behind only the mottled shadows of trees, and the entire Fuhua Gate was completely silent.
Ruan Qiuping glanced at the tightly closed gate, sighed, and turned around, ready to leave.
However, at that moment, a tree shadow on the ground suddenly flickered.
Ruan Qiuping initially thought it was his eyes playing tricks on him, but upon closer inspection, a man in white attire appeared out of thin air.
The man was in a white robe and a white crown, his face was as cold as jade, there was no expression between his eyebrows, but there was an extraordinary aura around his body, and the swaying corners of his clothes as he walked seemed to exude an aura of immortality.
Even the moon seemed to favor him, casting a pure white glow upon him.
He looked unfamiliar.
Ruan Qiuping glanced down at his own golden shirt and golden pants, pursing his lips.
Why bother pretending? In this day and age, why dress so traditionally?
Only you are serious, only you look good.
Hmph.
Anyway, the first time Ruan Qiuping saw this person, he felt very unpleasant.
But as he looked up again, he noticed that the person seemed to be walking towards him. It was a strange feeling, considering that people from the heavens usually avoided him. This seemed to be the first time someone was approaching him.
Three steps, two steps, one step.
The person stopped in front of Ruan Qiuping.
Very close.
Ruan Qiuping could see the strands of hair on this person, count the individual eyelashes, and sense the breath he was exhaling.
Ruan Qiuping’s throat tightened slightly. It seemed to be the first time… the first time someone was this close to him.
Suddenly, Ruan Qiuping snapped back to reality and took a few quick steps backward. But his retreat was hasty, and he stumbled over a stone, nearly falling. In that critical moment, the man in front of him took a few quick steps forward and caught his hand.
Ruan Qiuping widened his eyes in surprise, straightened his posture, hastily shook off the man’s hand, and quickly took a few steps back, saying, “How dare you touch me? Don’t you know who I am? I’m the… “
“Ruan Qiuping,” the man suddenly interrupted, his eyes curved into a smile. “I know you.”
Ruan Qiuping furrowed his brows and muttered, “Well, if you know who I am, why would you still dare to touch me…”
Suddenly remembering something, Ruan Qiuping took out a jade pendant from his pocket and reluctantly threw it at the man, saying, “I bought this for a hefty price in the Trading Forest for my sister. It’s a personal amulet of the God of Fortune. I’ll lend it to you for a minute to dispel the bad luck on you, but you have to return it to me after you’re done.”
” the God of Fortune?” the man asked.
“That’s right, the one with the surname Yu,” Ruan Qiuping said with a hint of arrogance and contempt. “Hmph, a trash God of fortune, somewhat useful.”
The man in the white robe smiled, raising the pendant and saying, “But this pendant doesn’t belong to Yu Huan.”
With that, he reached into his pocket and took out a high-quality white jade pendant, saying, “This one does.”
Ruan Qiuping sneered, “So, you’re implying that I bought a counterfeit.”
Hah, no wonder he’s not afraid of me. Turns out he’s carrying something related to the God of Fortune.
The man took another step forward, this time holding Ruan Qiuping’s left hand and placing both pendants in his palm. He smiled and said, “If you don’t believe me, try it for yourself when you go back.”
… He touched his hand again.
“I told you not to get so close to me and not to touch me,” Ruan Qiuping shook off the man’s hand, took two steps back, and looked down at the two pendants in his palm. He asked, ” Don’t you want money?”
The man shook his head.
Seems like he’s rich and gullible.
Ruan Qiuping tucked the two pendants into his pocket, lifted his chin slightly, and said, “Then I’ll accept them for now. If they turn out to be genuine, I’ll thank you in advance.”
The man nodded, glanced at the dimming Fuhua Gate, and whispered, “Ruan Qiuping, we will meet again.”
“Better not. It’s not a good thing for you to see me,” Ruan Qiuping muttered and walked away, without looking back.
Ruan Qiuping kept his eyes straight ahead, walking for several tens of minutes before finally stopping. He lowered his head and looked at his left hand.
Since he could remember, he had never touched anyone, not even his parents or his beloved sister. Two hundred years ago, when a deity accidentally touched his shoulder through his clothes, that deity fell to the ground unconscious. Since then, others have been avoided by him.
So this is what it feels like to touch someone else.
Warm, soft, and with a lingering warmth that felt a little warm.
God of Misfortune(霉神): In this novel, ” God of Misfortune ” refers to the immortal who brings bad luck to others.
God of Fortune（吉神）：In this novel, ” God of Fortune ” refers to the immortal who brings good luck to others.
Heavenly Court （天庭）: The highest ruling center in Chinese folk mythology.
XiQu（犀渠）: A monster in ancient Chinese mythology and legend.
Art of Invisibility: A form of magic that makes the body invisible, rendering it unseen.
Forget Love Potion（忘情水）：A legendary elixir in folk mythology. True to its name, drinking it can make one forget the memories of love, severing the pain in the heart. It is considered a treasure of the immortal realm.
The Old Man Under the Moon（月老or月下老人or月下老儿）: In Chinese legend, the deity in charge of marriage is referred to as “Yue Lao” or “Yue Xia Lao Ren” or “Yue Xia Lao Er” which translates to “The Old Man Under the Moon.” It is also used as a term to refer to matchmakers.
Comment: Ruan Qiuping is a deity of bad luck, while Yu Huan is a deity of good luck. Their story must be very interesting.
This is such an interesting premise! I’m hooked~
Honestly feel bad for RQ but he seems chill about his situation. I’m really looking forward for what lies ahead for our Mc and ML.
interesting 👀
imma cry! i feel bad for him QAQ!!!! even he himself he’s scared to touch people