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1000x Random Returns: Investing in My Crippled Demon Wives!

Chapter 16: Hard Cultivation with Strategic Rubdowns! · Oct 30, 2026

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Chapter List (125)

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1 Chapter 1: Congratulations, You Married Failure. 2026-10-30
2 Chapter 2: The Estate, The Coins, and a Promise. 2026-10-30
3 Chapter 3: Aurelia: First Wife’s Unyielding Duty [R18] 2026-10-30
4 Chapter 4: Seraphina: Breaking the Elegant Facade [R18] 2026-10-30
5 Chapter 5: Evelisse: "Don’t get the wrong idea" [R18] 2026-10-30
6 Chapter 6: The Golden Finger Finally Arrives!! 2026-10-30
7 Chapter 7: Investment Returns!!! 2026-10-30
8 Chapter 8: Satisfying Three Wives Before Lunch. 2026-10-30
9 Chapter 9: A Streaker in the House?! 2026-10-30
10 Chapter 10: Aurelia’s Special Thanks[R18] 2026-10-30
11 Chapter 11: Returns Beyond Imagination! 2026-10-30
12 Chapter 12: Boiling Blood and Midnight Upgrades! 2026-10-30
13 Chapter 13: Morning Glow-Up and Alleyway Ambushes! 2026-10-30
14 Chapter 14: Mind Blowing Information! 2026-10-30
15 Chapter 15: Deep Entries and Fake Names! 2026-10-30
16 Chapter 16: Hard Cultivation with Strategic Rubdowns! 2026-10-30
17 Chapter 17: Kissed, Armed, and Ready to Penetrate! 2026-10-30
18 Chapter 18: Goblins Have Never Heard of Personal Space 2026-10-30
19 Chapter 19: First Dungeon, First Boss, First Existential Crisis! 2026-10-30
20 Chapter 20: How to Scam Your Dungeon Party With "Wife Tax"! 2026-10-30
21 Chapter 21: "Why Is It THERE?!" 2026-10-30
22 Chapter 22: She Finally Swallowed! 2026-10-30
23 Chapter 23: The One Who Judges (And Immediately Abuses Her New Authority). 2026-10-30
24 Chapter 24: A Talent Worthy of the Gods 2026-10-30
25 Chapter 25: Fame Comes Knocking, Politely, But Still Knocking! 2026-10-30
26 Chapter 26: Four Fast Rounds and a Miracle Recovery! 2026-10-30
27 Chapter 27: Taking a Rough Pounding from an Ogre!? 2026-10-30
28 Chapter 28: Yanked Inside and Held Tight! 2026-10-30
29 Chapter 29: "Old Family Notes" Save the Day Again! 2026-10-30
30 Chapter 30: Bangs at the Barrier! 2026-10-30
31 Chapter 31: Our First Battle as a Family! 2026-10-30
32 Chapter 32: How to butcher.[R18] (bonus Chapter) 2026-10-30
33 Chapter 33: The Family Bath! [R18] (bonus - ) 2026-10-30
34 Chapter 34: Evelisse in the Bath! [R18] 2026-10-30
35 Chapter 35: The Spoils of Our First Family Battle 2026-10-30
36 Chapter 36: Ravaging Wives Unlocked the Mana Chef! 2026-10-30
37 Chapter 37: I Said I’d Appreciate the View, She Told Me to Take Action 2026-10-30
38 Chapter 38: Efficient At What, Exactly? 2026-10-30
39 Chapter 39: Storage Ring Prices Are So Expensive I Thought I Was Supposed to Propose to a Monster! 2026-10-30
40 Chapter 40: A Bed Big Enough for Four and built to Survive a War!? 2026-10-30
41 Chapter 41: "Whatever She Is" Wants Blood!? 2026-10-30
42 Chapter 42: The Ghost of House Aethernis 2026-10-30
43 Chapter 43: Bloody Traits! 2026-10-30
44 Chapter 44: Husband’s New Weapon! 2026-10-30
45 Chapter 45: Bribed into Seven Minutes of Pure Persistence! (bonus - ) 2026-10-30
46 Chapter 46: Still Sheathed in the Morning! 2026-10-30
47 Chapter 47: Slid Inside Before She Could Yell! 2026-10-30
48 Chapter 48: C-Rank and a Heart Attack Shopping List! 2026-10-30
49 Chapter 49: The Lucky Charm Joins the Squad! 2026-10-30
50 Chapter 50: Empty and Disappointingly Dry on the Inside! 2026-10-30

Chapter 16: Chapter 16: Hard Cultivation with Strategic Rubdowns!

Lucien stepped out of the Adventurers Guild, Guild Card in hand.

He flipped it over once, then again.

No House Aethernis stamped anywhere on it.

No family crest.

No inherited weight.

Just Luc Voss, printed clean and simple, belonging to nobody but himself.

’Huh.’

’First time in my life something’s actually mine, its a weird feeling, a good weird, though.’

”Not bad,” he murmured, pocketing it.

---

He remembered the estate then, the sagging roof, the moss, the general sense that the building itself had given up on life.

’Time to fix that.’

A few blocks over, a storefront caught his eye Blackstone Renovations, gold lettering gleaming above a display of miniature manor models.

Inside smelled like sawdust and ambition.

Blueprints covered one wall.

A mana-powered drill sat mounted behind the counter like a trophy.

A stocky dwarf with a magnificent beard looked up from his ledger.

”Borin Blackstone,” he said, extending a hand like a hammer.

”What’re we fixing?”

Lucien listed it off.

Leaking roof.

Broken windows.

Cracked walls.

Overgrown garden.

Damaged courtyard.

Plumbing that groaned like it resented existing.

A kitchen stuck somewhere in the previous century.

Borin wrote it all down, nodding along, then did some quick math and quoted a number that made Lucien’s soul briefly leave his body.

”That’d be about 500 gold give or take” Borin stated

’That’s... a lot of gold, no that’s basically all of the gold.’

”Phase one,” Lucien said instead.

”Roof, kitchen, plumbing, basic cleaning, garden trim. Rest later.”

Borin grunted approval.

”Smart lad, don’t overextend on day one.”

He scribbled a final figure.

”That be 120 gold, deposit it today and the crew will starts tomorrow morning.”

Lucien paid, shook the dwarf’s very solid hand, and left considerably lighter in the coin pouch but strangely satisfied.

’Progress, actual physical progress though at quite steep price, but its worth it.’

---

Evening settled over the city by the time he finished, and Lucien realized he had zero interest in cooking tonight.

’ I want to cultivate instead, that should be priority for a few days.

He found a cozy restaurant a few streets from the estate, not a highly fancy one that charge gold for leaves, but a warm one, the kind of place with actual regulars.

He ordered enough for four, some roasted wyvern meat, firebird skewers, mana rice, spirit vegetables, warm demon bread.

While waiting, he pulled out his phone and opened the Guild App properly for the first time.

Dungeon listings scrolled past, each one detailed — difficulty, monster types, recommended party size, completion rates, average earnings.

’Didn’t know dungeons dropped mana cores too,’ he noted, reading further.

’Less refined than mana crystals, but more usable. And treasure chests — random ones scattered around, rare as anything, or guaranteed ones after beating the boss.’

’Wood, bronze, iron, silver, gold, diamond, the say there’s more tiers but don’t list it, seriously why say that then.’

Lucien thought while scrolling down.

’Chest tier decides loot quality, apparently. Skill books too — though normal people apparently have to actually practice theirs instead of downloading it instantly like some people.’

’Must be nice,’ he thought, mildly amused, ’being normal.’

His order arrived, ge paid, gathered the bags, and headed home.

---

He heard laughter before he even opened the door.

’Huh, three days ago this house was a tomb. Now there’s laughing before I’ve even turned the key.’

Inside, Evelisse sprawled across the couch, feet up, a bag of snacks balanced on her stomach, TV blaring something dramatic. She caught the smell of food instantly and sat bolt upright.

Seraphina sat curled in an armchair, a notebook full of herb sketches open on her lap, murmuring notes to herself.

Aurelia stood near the window, fresh from training, towel slung over her shoulders, gym tights and sports top clinging with sweat in a way that Lucien very deliberately did not stare at.

She had a weapon manual open in one hand regardless, apparently incapable of resting without also improving something.

”I bought dinner,” Lucien announced, setting the bags down.

Evelisse’s face fell instantly.

”...”

”You cheated.”

”I took the day off,” Lucien said.

”Cultivation calls, my dear.”

She pouted, arms crossed.

”I like your cooking more though.”

”I got it but I got to cultivate Evelisse. So I’ll note it for next time.”

Seraphina smiled softly.

”It smells wonderful regardless.”

Aurelia set her manual down.

”It saves time, especiallysince you need to get stronger” she said simply, which from Aurelia counted as an enthusiastic endorsement.

They sat, plated the food, and dug in.

The moment forks touched plates, the chime rang.

[Ding!]

[Investment Detected: Restaurant Dinner (Common)]

[Aurelia — ×12 — Reward: 2 Months Cultivation Progress]

[Seraphina — ×10 — Reward: 2×Moon Orchid (Common)]

[Evelisse — ×12 — Reward: Healing Massage Manual (Common)]

Lucien blinked at the last one.

’...A massage manual?’

’I didn’t cook this, I just bought it. So why—’

Realization settled slowly.

’Im an idiot, it’s not about who made it, it’s not even about price.’

’It’s about whether the investment actually helps them. Restaurant food, home food — doesn’t matter, as long as it genuinely benefits the person eating it.’

’The system isn’t judging value alone,’ he thought.

’It’s judging intent and impact.’

’Huge distinction. Massive, actually.’

He filed that thought away carefully, then turned his attention to the manual, curiosity — and, admittedly, a little mischief — winning out.

He focused on it, and knowledge flooded in instantly.

Pressure points. Mana circulation techniques. Muscle recovery patterns. Full therapeutic massage theory, settling into his mind whole.

’Oh, this is useful,’ he thought, glancing toward Aurelia and taking in her hourglass figure.

’Not just for—’

’Well. Not ONLY for that.’

’She trains constantly. Muscles locked tight, no matter how crippled her core is.

This could actually help her recover faster.’

He smiled to himself, quietly pleased with the universe’s timing.

---

After dinner wound down and the wives scattered to their evening routines, Lucien slipped upstairs, locked his door, and pulled up his accumulated cultivation rewards.

[Cultivation Time: 13 months]

’Seven months plus four months plus two more. Let’s see what 6 months do first, don’t want sit here a whole day and miss the dungeon.’

He sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and released it all at once.

Mana surged through him — meridians lighting up, bloodline pulsing in response, the Mana Devouring Scripture pulling everything inward and refining it at a pace that made his own head spin.

Layers compressed.

Foundations deepened.

Something clicked, deep in his core, and shifted upward.

[Rank Advancement: Peak E-Rank Achieved.]

He opened his eyes hours later, breathing slow, a grin spreading across his face.

’Nice, very nice.’

He checked the time.

4 hours past midnight.

’...Six hours? That took six hours?’

He laughed under his breath. ”So that’s what cultivation actually feels like.”

---

The house had gone quiet, moonlight spilling pale across the hallway.

He drifted toward Aurelia’s door out of habit — then stopped.

’She complained earlier and said I hadn’t spent enough time with her.’

He turned instead toward Evelisse’s room.

She was already asleep, curled up, one wing draped haphazardly over the blanket. He eased in beside her, careful not to wake her fully.

She mumbled something without opening her eyes.

”...You bad husband...”

Then she settled back into sleep, apparently unbothered by her own accusation.

Lucien smiled in the dark, arm settling around her.

’Noted. Loud and clear, as always.’

---

Far away, beneath an underground hall lined with Asura war banners, a servant knelt before a shadowed figure.

”My Lord,” the servant said.

”The second assassin is dead.”

Silence.

”Our information was incorrect,” the servant continued.

”The husband is not weak. He defeated an assassin, a new assassin but still trained to kill above his own rank.”

A single finger tapped against the armrest, slow and deliberately.

Tap.

Then, quietly, a laugh.

”So,” the figure murmured.

”The waste heir pulled himself up after all.”

The servant lowered his head further.

”What are your orders, my Lord?”

The figure rose, silhouette sharp against the dim light, face still lost to shadow.

”Cancel the disposable pawns and the assassination mission.”

The servant stiffened.

”You’ll go personally, my Lord?”

”If he truly intends to stand beside Aurelia,” the voice said, calm and cold.

”Then let him experience what it means to oppose me.”

The silhouette turned, walking toward a balcony that opened onto a sprawling Asura city glittering below.

The servant bowed low, and said nothing more.

Heading to fulfill his lords orders.

While the lord stared down at the city before him, his lips curving up as he turned and walked away.

***************

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