Traveling Between Two Worlds: From Bread for Maids to Fantasy Overlord

The setting sun bathed the bluestone path of Qin Family Fort in a warm gold. Huang Yiming, holding Yang Xiu's hand, slowly walked towards the west courtyard that Qin Cang had specially arranged. This courtyard was secluded and elegant, a stark contrast to the dilapidated slums and desolate Black Wind Ridge. Several unidentified flowers and trees grew in the courtyard, and a gentle breeze carried their faint fragrance.

Yang Xiu followed beside Huang Yiming, her small hand still tightly gripping his sleeve, her eyes unable to hide her joy and unease. She had never lived in such a clean and tidy house in her entire life, and she dared not imagine that she could have her own room. She was afraid that all of this was just a beautiful dream, and that when she woke up she would return to the days of hunger and displacement.

"Young Master, is this really where we're supposed to stay?" Yang Xiu stopped and looked up at Huang Yiming, her voice soft and timid, her face full of disbelief.

Huang Yiming gently rubbed her head, his fingertips touching her soft hair, and said in a gentle tone, "Of course it's true. From now on, this will be our base in Qin Family Fort. No one will dare to bully you anymore." He looked at Yang Xiu's thin body, her coarse linen clothes were faded from washing and worn in many places, covered in dust from days of travel, and immediately decided to change her into a clean set of clothes.

As soon as he finished speaking, Huang Yiming's mind stirred, and his consciousness sank into the system's storage space. He didn't deliberately avoid it; after all, in this fantasy world, while storage artifacts were rare, they weren't just legends. Compared to revolutionary items like pistols and refined salt, storage spaces were actually easier to explain. A faint light flashed in his palm, and a light pink cotton dress, a pair of soft cloth boots, and clean undergarments appeared out of thin air in his hand.

Yang Xiu stared wide-eyed, her mouth slightly agape, her face filled with astonishment as she looked at the scene, her little head full of questions: How could clothes suddenly appear in the young master's hands? Is this also a magic spell of the immortal master?

Just then, hurried footsteps came from outside the courtyard gate, accompanied by a deep, honest voice: "Brother Huang, Brother Huang, my father asked me to bring you some fruits!" It was Qin Hu, the young master of the fortress. He was carrying a full basket of wild fruits. As soon as he pushed open the courtyard gate, he saw Huang Yiming conjuring up something out of thin air in his palm. He froze on the spot, and the basket of fruits in his arms fell to the ground with a "clatter," scattering wild fruits all over the ground.

Qin Hu's eyes widened, his mouth gaped open enough to fit an egg, staring intently at Huang Yiming's hand, then at the clothes on the ground, his whole body trembling uncontrollably. In his understanding, only legendary Golden Core cultivators could possess such abilities to retrieve and store objects remotely. Huang Yiming, who looked so young and ordinary, actually possessed such a treasure!

The next second, Qin Hu fell to his knees with a thud, his knees hitting the bluestone slabs heavily with a dull thud. He clasped his hands in a fist, his head bowed low, his voice trembling with awe and worship: "Immortal, spare my life! I, Qin Hu, was blind to your greatness and have offended you greatly. Please forgive me! I humbly wish to become your disciple, serving you faithfully and without hesitation!"

His kneeling completely stunned Huang Yiming and Yang Xiu. Huang Yiming's lips twitched as he looked at the simple-minded young man in front of him, and helplessly rubbed his forehead: He just took a set of clothes, how did he become an immortal? Qin Hu's reaction was too exaggerated.

Yang Xiu was so frightened that she shrank back, hiding behind Huang Yiming. She peeked out and looked at Qin Hu, who was kneeling on the ground, and asked in a low voice, "Young Master, what happened to the Young Master?"

"Qin Hu, get up. I'm not some immortal, I just have an ordinary storage artifact." Huang Yiming tried to explain, but Qin Hu wouldn't listen at all. He shook his head like a rattle drum and remained kneeling on the ground, muttering "Immortal, you are all-powerful" and "This humble one dares not be presumptuous."

Seeing this, Huang Yiming stopped explaining and instead put on a stern face, adopting an inscrutable demeanor: "Since you already know my secret, then I will establish some rules for you. First, you are strictly forbidden from revealing my origins, storage artifacts, or the secrets of any strange objects to anyone; second, what you saw today must remain a secret to you and must not be mentioned to anyone, including your father, Qin Cang; third, you must follow my instructions in future actions and must not act on your own. If you leak even a single word, you will bear the consequences."

His tone was indifferent, yet carried an undeniable air of authority. Qin Hu immediately fell silent and hurriedly kowtowed, agreeing, "This humble one obeys! This humble one swears that I will not divulge a single word. If I break this oath, may I be struck by lightning and die a horrible death!" At this moment, he had complete faith in Huang Yiming and was filled with admiration. He would have agreed to thirty rules without hesitation, let alone three.

Huang Yiming then told him to stand up. Qin Hu dusted himself off and instantly transformed into a devoted fan, crowding around Huang Yiming with fervent eyes and a look of curiosity, asking, "Immortal, how much can your storage artifact hold? Can it even hold an entire mountain? And that rattle you used earlier, was that also a top-tier magic weapon?"

He followed Huang Yiming around like a shadow, constantly flattering him and calling him "Immortal" at every turn. His endearing, simple-minded manner made Yang Xiu cover her mouth and chuckle. Huang Yiming, unable to resist his persistent nagging, could only give vague replies, but he knew in his heart that Qin Hu's admiration was genuine—this honest and straightforward nature was more trustworthy than those cunning elders. Seeing that Huang Yiming didn't answer, Qin Hu simply squatted down and picked up the scattered wild fruits one by one, deliberately choosing the reddest one and offering it to him with a shameless smile: "Immortal, please try this wild fruit, it's very sweet, I picked it specially, eating it will increase your cultivation!" As he spoke, he patted his chest, looking like he was "super reliable," his silly and cute demeanor reaching its peak. Yang Xiu laughed so hard her shoulders were shaking, and Huang Yiming was also amused and shook his head helplessly, his tense expression relaxing considerably.

Not long after, Qin Cang heard of this and personally went to the west courtyard. Seeing Qin Hu's obsequious manner towards Huang Yiming, and recalling the pistol and refined salt from before, he was certain: Huang Yiming had an extraordinary background and was no ordinary reclusive disciple. To firmly grasp this powerful patron, Qin Cang immediately summoned the high-ranking members of the fortress and publicly established a confidentiality agreement: anyone who leaked Huang Yiming's secrets, regardless of status, would be expelled from Qin Family Fortress; those with serious offenses would be executed without exception.

Those elders who had initially harbored suspicions and secretly inquired fell silent upon seeing this, daring not to make the slightest move. Huang Yiming looked at Qin Cang's decisive demeanor, a faint smile playing on his lips—at this point, he had completely seized the initiative, deeply bound himself to Qin Family Fortress, and firmly established himself in this otherworldly realm.

Little did he know that in a dilapidated woodshed in a corner of Qin Family Fort, a burly guard was using the cover of night to tie a note filled with secret messages to the leg of a carrier pigeon. He watched the pigeon fly away with a sinister look in his eyes, and the recipient of this letter was none other than the bandit leader of Black Wind Ridge.