Purple relief carvings hung in the towering building, and dark, eerie light refracted across the smooth steps. Beneath the steps knelt a crowd of demonic cultivators, while a black figure sat high above in the great hall.
In the empty great hall, Shen Guhan sat high on the cold chair. His finger-jointed hand lightly tapped the armrest of the seat, and the corner of his mouth curved into a smile of unclear meaning as he said in a low voice, “You say I will be killed?”
“Yes.” By his ear came a somewhat babyish voice, and hidden in the faintness of it was a trace of nervousness.
The one answering Shen Guhan was System 01. Its original task was to bind this world’s protagonist, Ye Jinyun, and help Ye Jinyun become the strongest person in this world. It had never expected that, through some twist of fate, it would end up binding this world’s great villain, Shen Guhan.
In this world’s setting, Shen Guhan was the whetstone for the protagonist Ye Jinyun, the big boss who sent Ye Jinyun experience and gifts. Without question, his strength was absolutely top-notch.
Although System 01 knew something of Shen Guhan’s power, it had not expected Shen Guhan’s strength to already be so overwhelming that it could even control him. To put it another way, System 01 had never thought it would be unable to escape Shen Guhan’s control. It had even realized that Shen Guhan wanted to erase it directly, and it could clearly sense that he had the ability to do so.
It had no choice but to quickly tell Shen Guhan the ending it knew, in order to draw Shen Guhan’s attention away.
Shen Guhan gave a light laugh and made a pulling motion in midair. A cluster of white light appeared in his hand.
System 01 felt itself being dragged out. A pressure was crushing down on it, as if it were about to erase its consciousness. It had gone through so many tasks, and this was the first time it had felt such a great threat. It hurriedly cried out, “It’s true. In the near future, you will bind the female lead as your cauldron, and you will be killed by the avenging male lead, Ye Jinyun.”
“Ye Jinyun.” Shen Guhan slowly repeated this unfamiliar name in a low voice, and his hand gradually loosened.
System 01 seized the chance to try to break free, but it was still firmly trapped in Shen Guhan’s hand.
Sensing that the white light in his hand wanted to struggle free, Shen Guhan did not make any other move. The corner of his mouth simply hooked into a trace of mockery.
No matter how hard the white light struggled, it could not break free, until the white light gave in and stopped moving.
“Who is Ye Jinyun?”
System 01 finally realized that it absolutely could not escape the man who had trapped it in his palm, and the white light dimmed a little.
But it quickly adjusted itself and ingratiatingly said, “He is the chosen son of this world. You could also understand him as the heavenly dao’s own son.”
“And me?” Shen Guhan asked.
“You are the protagonist Ye Jinyun’s opponent, the great villain of this world. In all the world, you are the strongest,” System 01 hesitated, and in the end still tactfully said, “Aside from the protagonist.”
After hearing this, Shen Guhan said nothing. Light flickered in his eyes, and a smile hung at the corner of his mouth, like the ice plains of the far north, carrying a chill.
Clearly, System 01’s answer did not satisfy Shen Guhan.
After a long while, a voice finally rang in System 01’s ear.
“Where is he?” Shen Guhan had never in his life known the word defeat. Now this so-called system’s words had stirred some interest in him, but this interest obviously carried no good intentions.
System 01 arched its nonexistent body. The whole mass of white light flashed, and it answered softly, “Hengzhou.”
Hengzhou, Li Residence, street corner.
“Why don’t you get lost already? Do you still think you’re that genius from back then? You should take a good look at yourself and see whether the name Ye Jinyun even matches our young lady’s name.”
“That’s right. You’re nothing but a waste whose spirit root has been completely ruined. Look at what you’ve become. And you still dare come to our residence. Who knows if you’ll dirty our place.”
Two servants in short jackets were coldly and sharply speaking to a youth, and from time to time they even waved the wooden sticks in their hands to threaten him, fully living up to the reputation of a wealthy household’s good dogs.
And the youth being driven away wore a long robe, only the hem, washed white from wear, made it clear beyond doubt that his wealth and status were gone. Seeing him being cursed at by the servants of the residence, he looked even more like a poor relative who had come to freeload. Only his straight back still faintly showed a few traces of dignity.
“This is the person who will kill me.”
Shen Guhan was concealed in the crimson clouds. His gaze fell on Ye Jinyun, who had his back to him, and his eyes were calm, showing no expression.
To him, this person’s bones and aptitude were truly mediocre. The road to immortality was nearly nonexistent, and to him, he was nothing more than an ant that could be crushed at will.
Shen Guhan lowered his eyes and thought, truly boring.
“He is Ye Jinyun.”
System 01 did not know what Shen Guhan was thinking, and only answered ingratiatingly. If it had a body, one could even imagine the shape of it bowing and scraping. Compared with Shen Guhan’s disappointment, it truly had not the slightest surprise at Ye Jinyun’s miserable appearance. After all, at any rate, it was a system. It had done so many tasks, and there were plenty of protagonists far more miserable than this. This really was nothing.
Shen Guhan had always been arrogant. He had never felt that he would lose to anyone, much less be killed by another person. Coming here this time was only to take a look out of boredom, but he had not expected the so-called person who could kill him to be nothing more than a ruined man. It was a complete waste of time.
He lowered his eyes and prepared to leave.
Thud!
Perhaps because they were used to acting domineering in ordinary times, the two servants saw that the youth had already lost and no longer had his usual dignity. Seeing that the youth still had his hair tied high and his posture straight, the wooden stick that should have only been used to intimidate actually really landed on the youth’s thin back.
Hearing the sound of the wooden stick striking flesh, Shen Guhan’s raised foot fell back down again. Since time had already been wasted, he might as well stay and watch the excitement.
His gaze swept over the youth, and the youth’s face was unexpectedly… good-looking.
Sharp sword-like brows went with slightly upturned peach blossom eyes, giving one a hazy, tipsy feeling. Add a high nose bridge, together with a small, pointed face, and from afar, the brows and eyes blazed like torches, free and extraordinary, truly a young man brimming with heroic spirit.
And the two servants now seemed to have grown interested. They struck once, then a second time. The youth could not dodge in time and took several muffled blows in a row.
The passersby who saw that the two servants were from Li Residence and were committing violence did not dare say a word. They only covered their faces and hurried past, afraid of being implicated.
And Shen Guhan unconsciously stepped half a pace forward.
Not long after, the Li Residence servants saw Ye Jinyun completely collapse to the ground, no longer showing the appearance of Hengzhou’s most dazzling genius from the past. A satisfied smile appeared on their faces, and they put away the sticks and left.
“The Li Residence servants are gone. Do you want to give him a knife and send him straight to heaven?”
System 01 suggested. Its task this time was to help the protagonist Ye Jinyun become the strongest person in the world.
But at this moment, even its own life was in danger, so it could only abandon that task. At worst, it would lose some points.
The moment it thought of this time’s point total, System 01 could not help but feel a twinge of pain. It was enough for it to save up for several worlds.
The youth’s spirit root had been completely ruined, and now he had added new stick wounds. He was like a jade bottle with a missing piece. Spiritual energy circled around his body, but it was of no use at all.
“Why aren’t you making a move?” System 01 asked in confusion. Could it be that Shen Guhan was not here to eliminate future trouble?
Shen Guhan said nothing, still standing in the clouds, but his gaze remained fixed on Ye Jinyun.
The sun moved from high overhead to sunset in the west. Ye Jinyun’s fingers moved slightly, then he staggered to his feet from the ground. After walking for a long time, it was only a few steps.
He raised his head and looked forward, and then saw a young man in black robes, with star-like eyes and sword-like brows, handsome and refined, with wealth pressing from his features.
“Who are you?”
Ye Jinyun lifted his chin, his eyes carrying caution. His disordered hair ends flew in the air, and there was still blood on the corner of his mouth that had not been wiped away.
Shen Guhan’s eyes moved slightly, and he asked System 01, “Why would I be killed by him?”
System 01 did not understand what Shen Guhan meant, and carefully replied, “Probably because you snatched the female lead, that is, Ye Jinyun’s lover, to be… your cauldron?”
“Cauldron.” Shen Guhan repeated in a low voice, then looked at Ye Jinyun again.
The afterglow of the setting sun fell on the youth’s washed-white robe, like a tenacious selaginella. Yet his brows and eyes carried unruliness, while the blood at the corner of his mouth was like a splash of vivid color, staining it crimson.
The depths of Shen Guhan’s eyes were dark and unreadable.
“I want him to be my cauldron.”