Chapter 1 - Good Villains Never Give People a Chance to Finish Their Lines
"I told you she's just my sister! Are you done yet?"
"Will your sister cuddle with you? Will your sister go to a hotel with you? And get a room with just one big bed?"
Monday morning, 7 o'clock.
On the sparsely populated street, Wen Ruan walked toward the school with tired steps and dark circles under her eyes that could rival pandas.
While waiting for the traffic light, a young couple standing next to her was engaged in a heated argument.
She instinctively perked up her ears and heard the impatient man say:
"I swear, if I'm lying to you, let the heavens strike me with lightning!"
“Boom—!!”
The cloudless sky suddenly burst open with thunder, and purple lightning almost tore through the heavens.
The young man: ...?
The green light turned on, and with a mocking look, Wen Ruan hurriedly crossed the road, worried about the rain.
In the next moment, a bolt of lightning as thick as a bucket descended from the sky. In front of the terrified gaze of the man—
It took a turn and struck straight toward the girl on the other side of the road.
The Demon Realm.
Heavy snow fell, and the wind whined as it brushed against the girl's delicate face. Girls wearing only a thin layer of clothing lined up in a long queue, silently waiting for the palace gates to open.
Suddenly, the blue-clad girl at the end of the line shivered violently, her body swaying as she almost fell to the ground.
After stabilizing herself, Wen Ruan looked at the magnificent palace surroundings and felt a bit lost.
Wasn't she on her way to morning class?
Then what happened?
I think… there was thunder?
Her temples throbbed with pain, and unfamiliar memories flooded her mind like a tidal wave.
After receiving all the memories, Wen Ruan couldn't help but pinch herself. It hurt, so this wasn't a dream.
She had really transmigrated into a book.
And the book she transmigrated into happened to be the male-oriented cultivation novel she just finished reading last night.
The original owner of this body and herself had the same name. She was a newly accepted disciple of Shangyang Sect. She did not have any parents, and her cultivation just reached the Foundation Establishment stage.
Due to her resemblance to the Demon Lord, Mu Zhe’s unforgettable first love*, she was sent undercover by the sect to be by Mu Zhe's side.
*translator’s note: the original word Mandarin is 白月光 (bai yue guang). The direct translation of this term is ‘white moonlight’, but it also symbolizes a person’s unforgettable first love.
In the end, as soon as they met face to face, he twisted her head off.
She couldn't be more of a cannon fodder.
According to the description in the book, this Demon Lord wore black clothes, had a grim and fierce appearance, a wicked and malicious personality, and was a bit mentally unstable.
One of his great hobbies was decapitating people and setting mountains on fire.
And now, it was the moment of the original owner of this body’s first meeting with Mu Zhe, and it would also be her time of death.
"Squeak—"
The heavy, dark palace doors opened from within, and a graceful woman dressed in purple walked out. She glanced at them for a moment before nodding.
"You may all enter."
The girls in the queue remained quiet, even trembling from the cold, not daring to utter a word.
Most of them were ordinary humans who were captured and brought to the Demon Realm because they were beautiful, to be chosen by the Demon Lord.
Wen Ruan didn't want to go inside, but there were minions of the Demon Lord everywhere. If she made even a slight movement, she would likely lose her life on the spot.
Whether she showed herself or hid, the outcome would be the same. With a brave and resigned heart, she followed the line into the palace.
The palace was huge and terrifying, yet empty inside, except for the throne above and the pitch-black pillars, stained with old blood.
The girls in the queue trembled intensely, standing in the center of the grand hall like quails, wishing they could bury their heads in their necks.
Only a few of them dared to raise their heads and look towards the throne, their eyes gleaming with an inexplicable anticipation.
Wen Ruan instinctively distanced herself a bit from them, standing in the farthest corner, but then she realized it was unnecessary.
After all, her head would be twisted off, and whether others were involved or not didn't matter.
But even so, she held onto a tiny sliver of hope, hoping that the old Demon Lord had poor eyesight, or even better, that he was blind.
That way, he wouldn't be able to see her face, and he wouldn't blame her just because the original owner of this body and his unforgettable first love looked exactly the same.
Well, if she had the chance, she definitely wanted to look in a mirror and see what his unforgettable first love really looked like, to understand why this madman was so obsessed with her.
In the grand hall, besides them, the woman in the purple attire was also standing there. She cracked a whip, leaving deep marks on the black stone floor.
“How dare you not kneel in the presence of the Lord?!" a voice thundered.
Wen Ruan immediately knelt down.
The other girls followed suit, their shoulders trembling uncontrollably.
Zi Ji let out a disdainful snort through her nose, bowing to the throne with a hint of resignation as she advised:
"My Lord, please choose one. You are already over 300 years old; it is time to have an heir."
Wen Ruan thought, “Is this the cultivation world's version of matchmaking and pressure to procreate?”
Ah, so even single individuals in every world face the same annoyance at this age.
Having gone a day and a night without sleep, her mind was starting to feel hazy. Surprisingly, she wasn't particularly afraid in this situation; her thoughts wandered aimlessly.
She even took a moment to mentally calculate, based on their ages, what she should call Mu Zhe... great-great-great grandpa?
"Raise your head."
Just as Wen Ruan was indulging in her thoughts, a voice suddenly resounded from the throne.
Contrary to her imagination, the voice sounded very young, icy and cold, carrying a hint of menace.
Who... is being called?
Perhaps because he received no response, the person on the throne descended the jade steps impatiently.
"I'm talking to you."
Wen Ruan thought, “Me??”
Her heart raced wildly as she caught a glimpse of a shadow slowly enveloping her, causing her to gulp nervously.
Is it finally happening?
Oh well, let's just die quickly and go back. Maybe I can still make it to my morning class.
Just as she had resigned herself to her fate, ready to lift her head, the shadow moved away, and a black robe brushed past her.
Eventually, it came to a stop right in the middle of the room.
Wen Ruan discreetly glanced in that direction, where the eager girls had been standing just a moment ago.
She mentally lit candles of prayer for them.
As expected, in the next moment, the esteemed Demon Lord sneered, "Those immortal cultivators in the cultivation world look down on everyone. They actually sent you bunch of scraps to kill me."
The faces of those girls drastically changed, realizing they had been exposed. No longer hiding their true abilities, they erupted with majestic spiritual power, proclaiming with a hint of arrogance:
"Demon scum! You have slaughtered across the cultivation world for 300 years. Now, we have come to seek justice..."
Before they could finish their words, all three of their heads fell neatly to the ground.
Thick, gushing blood sprayed from their delicate necks. A few droplets stained the young man's inky brows and eyes, adding a touch of allure to his already exquisite features.
He took out a silk handkerchief, leisurely wiping his hands, his voice tinged with disdain. "So much nonsense."
Wen Ruan, sensing the pungent smell of blood, felt her soul leave her body as she realized, indeed, an excellent villain wouldn't give the enemy a chance to finish their lines.
The hall fell into a deathly silence, and she could even hear the faint trembling of her companion's teeth.
In this atmosphere, she finally belatedly felt fear.
The black robe began to move again, adorned with exquisite spider lilies embroidered in gold and silver threads, sparkling and precious.
This time, it stopped in front of Wen Ruan.
ray's note: hello everyone, welcome to the new adventure of our main characters, wen ruan and mu zhe! i'm the sole translator for the project, ray. if you are a returning reader of my other work 'I Just Want to Freeload on Your Luck', welcome back! hope you'll enjoy this story and feel free to let me know your thoughts anytime ╰(⸝⸝⸝´꒳`⸝⸝⸝)╯