Chapter 1: The Villain’s Predicament

“A sudden cool breeze swept through, and she couldn’t help but shiver. One hand covered her mouth, while the other steadied the trembling curves of her…”

—Snap!

Su Qin hastily slammed the diary shut, his face flushed crimson. The sheer impact of such content was utterly overwhelming for him.

But after taking a few deep breaths, he opened it again.

‘No, I need to read this carefully; I can’t afford to miss any details.’

It wasn’t that he truly wished to read it, or found any pleasure in doing so; rather, this text held an indispensable significance for him.

He was currently inside the game [Records of Wangchuan], and though he was a veteran player, he had inexplicably found himself cast as the villain.

Having skipped much of the early plot of the original work, he only knew the general direction of the story, which meant he now had to examine it with utmost attention.

As he continued to read, a peculiar feeling began to settle over him.

The scenes depicted in the text bore a striking resemblance to a certain ‘masterpiece’ by a ‘teacher’ he had admired back on Blue Star , and even the names seemed amiss.

‘It must be a coincidence,’ he mused.

Moreover, he found the handwriting remarkably familiar.

Su Qin traced the familiar strokes, recognizing the frantic, almost soaring script of someone hastily copying homework as a holiday drew to a close—it was perfectly evocative.

The entries from the past six months were so susceptible to the dampness that if one rubbed them vigorously, the ink would still smudge.

‘It seems the weather has been quite humid,’ he thought.

In truth, these very writings had originated from his own hand, but the current circumstances afforded him no time for detailed contemplation.

Based on the contents recorded, Su Qin pieced together the parts of the original plot he had previously skipped, and instantly realized his situation was far from optimistic.

In the original story, Su Qin had acquired a Great Demon’s Relic along with a secret refining formula. He decided to diligently refine this fortuitous encounter, but in doing so, he performed certain ‘technical micro-operations.’

The altered formula, however, led to complications. While the Blood Demon Spirit Body was successfully refined, his divine soul nearly collapsed, and for the following month, he dedicated himself to recuperating it.

Up to this point, the plot still seemed entirely reasonable.

The very next development, however, immediately brought forth the distinct flavor of a forced plotline, typical of a bad novel.

Su Qin had kidnapped Qi Shuyue, the Saintess of the Righteous Path.

At that time, the Qingxuan Sect and the Demonic Sword Sect were locked in a fierce war, with both sides entangled in a desperate struggle.

In the original story, Su Qin had seized this opportune moment to abduct the most beautiful woman on the battlefield.

Su Qin was, in fact, a member of the Demonic Sword Sect, and though his Sect Master had repeatedly urged him to join the fray, he had always found excuses to decline, only to ultimately ‘steal the fruit’.

(TL Note: A Chinese idiom meaning to reap benefits from others’ efforts, often in a morally questionable way)

The Saintess of the Qingxuan Sect had rallied her forces with a single cry, finally invigorating the morale of the righteous path.

Yet, no sooner had she done so than she was captured, causing morale to utterly collapse and leaving everyone seething with resentment.

Most importantly, he could discern no benefit whatsoever from this act; it only served to create enemies at every turn. Crucially, Su Qin’s demonic body was nearing collapse simply because he had been exposed to light.

At this point, the written record concluded.

Confusing and dubious, the diary presented a sense of random absurdity, and it was precisely this quality that had led him to skip the plot in the first place.

‘It’s better to deal with the immediate situation first,’ he decided.

Su Qin calmed the heat raging within his body, and as he recalled the trajectory of the original story, he began to form inferences about what was to come.

In the original plot, Su Qin had indeed overcome this difficult predicament, and that very night, he had thoroughly ‘dealt with’ Qi Shuyue (TL Note: A euphemism implying a forceful or complete sexual act).

Subsequently, the Demonic Sword Sect had condemned him, expelling him from the sect and confiscating both his disciples and his Silver Splendor Hall.

Before his departure, Su Qin, seething with indignation, had ‘dealt with’ each of his disciples one by one.

Moreover, even before ‘dealing with’ his disciples, he had seized the opportune moment when the Sect Master arrived to punish him, and had already ‘dealt with’ the Sect Master as well.

What followed was a relentless pursuit, and ninety years later, at an age exceeding one hundred and thirty, he was finally dragged into the sunlight, where he dissolved into three feet of green smoke (TL Note: A poetic idiom signifying complete annihilation).

He now found himself precisely at the stage where all these contradictions were intensely erupting.

The mere thought of it gave Su Qin a pounding headache, and a look of deep worry clouded his features.

‘What an utter mess this is,’ he sighed inwardly.

Both the Qingxuan Sect and the Demonic Sword Sect harbored immense resentment towards him.

Qi Shuyue, in particular, wished she could bite him to death, while each of his disciples yearned to devour his flesh and flay his skin.

His demonic body, moreover, was on the verge of collapse, and the full power of his Golden Core (TL Note: A stage of cultivation) could not be freely exerted.

If things continued in this manner, he wouldn’t even need to wait ninety years; he’d be utterly finished by next month.

‘This is truly troublesome,’ Su Qin muttered.

He furrowed his brow, but being a veteran player, he quickly assessed the situation based on the memories flooding his mind.

‘First, I need to find Qi Shuyue. Dealing with her is the top priority.’

As it stood, most of the current crises revolved around Qi Shuyue; the matter of his demonic body could be addressed gradually.

Su Qin rose and departed the hall. The sun was gradually setting, and in the deepening shadows, pairs of blood-red eyes flickered.

The Blood Demon Spirit Body granted eternal youth, immortality, immense power, astonishing self-healing abilities, and mastery over subordinates. Were it not for its vulnerability to sunlight, it could likely dominate the world.

Reaching a stone wall in a side hall, an hidden door automatically opened as Su Qin approached, unleashing a potent stench of blood.

The faint howls of imps echoed, causing Su Qin to frown. He coldly commanded:

“Silence.”

The sound was not loud, but the spectral spirits in the cave immediately concealed themselves, not daring to utter another sound.

In the gloomy dungeon, Qi Shuyue, lying limp on the ground, heard the sharp reprimand and managed to gather some of her dwindling spirit.

Her expression was serene and cold, as the faint glow from the window fell upon her, making her appear like an angel with broken wings, imprisoned in a sinister cell.

‘To think I fell into the trap of such a person.’

In the original story, she had been drugged and simply left here without even being bound, neglected for half a day.

However, there was no need to worry about her escape; the dungeon swarmed with countless spectral spirits, and a multitude of blood bats guarded the hall’s exterior.

Su Qin held no interest in people; following the blood path, he preferred to command bats and other animals. Ease of control was one aspect, but it also allowed him to easily bypass defenses for surprise rear attacks.

Qi Shuyue was currently clad in a green silk dress. Due to her complete lack of strength, her upper body was pressed almost entirely against the ground, while her lower body was gently kneeling.

Her skirt barely reached the rosy white of her popliteal fossae, making one long to kiss them.

Her figure was utterly exposed, both front and back.

She had been sprawled in this position for several hours. As soon as she could move, she dragged her body towards the wall, leaning against it to appear as less disheveled as possible.

‘He must have come for my appearance, too, right? Should I be crying now?’

Qi Shuyue pondered for a moment, then her profound eyes regained an innocent sparkle, gazing with terror into the distant darkness.

After a series of heavily oppressive footsteps, a sword-browed youth emerged from the shadows. Dressed in a dark daoist robe, with sharply defined features, he appeared, by outward looks alone, to be a fine young man.

Yet, those abyssal eyes were currently fixed directly on the disarray of her chest.

It was Su Qin. Information about him instantly flooded her mind, and Qi Shuyue gritted her teeth, muttering softly:

“Shameless pervert.”

Su Qin reluctantly averted his gaze, not angered but instead smiling, his words filled with amusement:

“You’re mistaken, Saintess. You should call me the Demon Lord. After all, I am the master of a hall.”

Qi Shuyue scoffed at his words, her tone growing sharper.

“If not a pervert, then why were you looking at me like that just now?”