Inside a grand hall of immense majesty, the interior furnishings were opulent beyond measure. They clearly reflected the extraordinary status of the master of the residence.
Near the window, a young man stood with his hands folded behind his back. He wore a regal purple robe trimmed with thread of spun gold, embroidered with a golden dragon that seemed to swim through a vast sea of stars.
His face was as smooth and flawless as fine jade, his demeanor refined and graceful. Beneath a gleaming crown of nobility, his eyes shone like brilliant stars. Anyone who set eyes on him would harbor secret praise for such an extraordinary gentleman.
Yet at this moment, his brow was slightly furrowed. A trace of confusion lingered within his dark gaze.
'Have I truly transmigrated?'
The young man was named Qin Ting. In his previous life, he had been nothing more than an ordinary person whose sole hobby was reading fantasy webnovels. He had often dreamed of traveling to a magical world, yet he had never expected that upon waking up, he would actually cross over into one.
Once the initial confusion passed, excitement surged through his heart. In his past life, he was a nobody without parents or ties, leaving behind nothing to regret. Now that his soul inhabited this body, was this not precisely the life he had always longed for?
Qin Ting closed his eyes, carefully sifting through the fragmenting memories left behind by the body's previous owner. After a long while, he opened his eyes, a flicker of excitement gleaming within them.
As it turned out, this body was also named Qin Ting. But to his surprise, he was neither a destitute commoner, nor a talentless trash, nor an illegitimate son snubbed by a wealthy clan. On the contrary, he had been born into supreme nobility, enjoying a smooth and prosperous life from the very beginning.
Born into the Qin Family, an ancient cultivation clan, Qin Ting was currently a True Disciple of the Profound Heaven Sect, one of the premier sacred grounds of cultivation in the Eastern Wasteland.
Blessed with peerless talent, he had stepped into the Divine Wheel Realm two years ago at the age of sixteen. He had quickly established himself as the undisputed leader among the younger generation of the Profound Heaven Sect.
Even more impressive, he possessed a divine physique: the Purple Morning Divine Body, a legendary constitution seen only once every thousand years.
Furthermore, his father, Emperor Qin, was an absolute titan within the Profound Heaven Sect. He was an almighty figure whose cultivation realm was unfathomable and whose disciples were renowned geniuses across the lands.
Qin Ting felt a secret thrill. His starting point in this life was so absurdly high—could it be that he was destined to walk the path of invincible dominance?
Suddenly, a crisp chime echoed inside his mind.
[Ding! The Villain System has been activated.]
[Ding! The Villain System has successfully bound to the host.]
Qin Ting was overjoyed. As the saying went, the world was vast, but the system reigned supreme. With a system at his side, he would have no worries on his path forward.
Wait, the Villain System? Am I the villain?
As if perceiving his inner thoughts, the system's mechanical voice sounded again.
[The host is the villain of this world. The main task of the host is to defeat the original Son of Destiny, plunder their destiny, and obtain Villain Points, thereby embarking on the road to becoming an invincible villain.]
Qin Ting could not help but smile bitterly. So he was actually a villain.
Yet, as he pondered the idea, a strange thrill welled up inside him. Oppressive and overbearing—the more the target resisted, the more satisfying it became. Why was he getting more excited the more he thought about it? Was he truly suited to be a villain?
'System, what is the use of Villain Points?' Qin Ting asked internally.
[Villain Points can be exchanged for precious pills, cultivation techniques, spiritual plants, and magic treasures in the system shop. Every 100,000 Villain Points allows for one lottery draw. Since the system is binding to the host for the first time, you have been granted one free lottery draw. Would the host like to use it now?]
'Use it immediately,' Qin Ting thought without hesitation.
The moment he gave the command, a massive roulette wheel appeared in his mind. After spinning rapidly, the pointer finally settled on an icon depicting a glowing pill.
[Ding! Congratulations to the host for drawing the pill: Five Cloud Pill.]
Looking at the pill that materialized in his hand, Qin Ting took a sharp breath.
He had naturally heard of the Five Cloud Pill in his memories. It was an exceptionally potent medicine known as a realm-breaking pill. Upon consumption, it could instantly elevate a cultivator's realm by one level.
Although other pills possessed similar effects, the true wonder of the Five Cloud Pill lay in its complete lack of side effects. Its refining process was exceedingly difficult, requiring immensely precious ingredients.
Even within the Profound Heaven Sect, such a pill was extraordinarily rare. Not even a True Disciple like Qin Ting could obtain one at will.
Just as he was contemplating this, another prompt chimed in his mind.
[Ding! Current Mission: Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated in a hundred battles. Investigate the detailed background of your opponent, Ye Qiu. Mission Reward: 5,000 Villain Points.]
5,000 Villain Points. If he wanted to exchange for a Five Cloud Pill directly from the shop, it would cost 50,000 points. It seemed he still had a long way to go.
Ye Qiu? Qin Ting carefully searched his memories, and gradually, a figure emerged.
Ye Qiu seemed to hail from a small border country under the jurisdiction of the Profound Heaven Sect. Three months ago, a rare treasure known as Five-Color Dew was discovered in the ancient ruins of Moon Valley. Qin Ting had led a team on behalf of the Profound Heaven Sect to contend for it.
It was in Moon Valley that Qin Ting first encountered Ye Qiu and his companions. At that time, Qin Ting noticed that a young woman beside Ye Qiu possessed exceptional talent. Appreciating her potential, he asked if she would be willing to follow him as a maidservant.
The girl had agreed on the spot, but Ye Qiu had vehemently obstructed the matter, even daring to launch an attack against Qin Ting.
Naturally, Qin Ting had paid no mind to such an ant, and one of his followers easily defeated him. It was then that Ye Qiu screamed in fury: "Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river! I will repay today's humiliation a hundredfold in the future!"
Thinking back on it now, that Ye Qiu was almost certainly the Son of Destiny in this world.
After a moment of thought, Qin Ting waved his hand. A figure clad in black robes suddenly materialized in the hall, bowing deeply in salute.
"Greetings, Young Master."
From his memories, Qin Ting knew that his father, Emperor Qin, had trained a secret force of shadow guards for him.
Composed entirely of orphans, they were taught rapid-advancement techniques that allowed for swift early progress at the cost of burning their future potential, effectively severing their hopes of ever reaching the Divine Palace Realm.
These shadow guards were loyal only to Qin Ting, serving as his personal force to handle dirty work that was inconvenient for him to undertake directly. The man standing before him was the commander of these shadow guards, Nie You, an expert of the Divine Altar Realm.
Qin Ting commanded calmly, "Pass down the order to investigate Ye Qiu. I want every detail of his life, from his birth to the present moment."
Nie You clearly retained some memory of Ye Qiu as well, for it was he who had struck the youth down that day. He said softly, "Young Master, since this person has offended you, why not allow this subordinate to send someone to eliminate him directly?"
Qin Ting replied indifferently, "There is no need for that. Simply gather his information."
Though Nie You was puzzled, he knew better than to pry. He nodded respectfully and withdrew. As a shadow guard, his sole duty was to execute Qin Ting's orders to the letter; his suggestion had merely been an attempt to resolve his master's concerns.
In Nie You's eyes, even though Ye Qiu possessed some skill—having managed to survive one of his casual strikes—he was still nothing more than a bug. Compared to the Young Master, who shone like the full moon, Ye Qiu was merely the faint light of a firefly.
The Young Master truly had no need to waste effort on such an ant. Nevertheless, now that his master had spoken, he would carry out the command precisely.
After Nie You departed, Qin Ting let out a faint sigh.
He was not about to make the foolish mistake of sending minions to assassinate the Son of Destiny one by one, serving as nothing more than experience points for the protagonist to level up.
He had no desire to play out the trope where lower-ranked followers were sent first to boost the protagonist's fame, followed by himself stepping forward to challenge the youth, dominating early in the fight only to babble endless villain monologues, before ultimately getting counter-attacked by the protagonist's hidden trump cards.
And he certainly would not let his family background become a massive reward chest for the protagonist's meteoric rise to the top of the world.
He would never commit such an idiocy. To know one's enemy and oneself was the only way to ensure total victory. When striking a snake, one had to strike its vital seven-inch spot.
Qin Ting understood clearly that a favored child of fate possessed absurd plot armor. If he failed to crush the protagonist completely in a single blow, the task would only grow exponentially harder later on. He needed to be fully prepared to secure absolute victory in a single strike.
For now, the first thing Qin Ting needed to do was refine the Five Cloud Pill and break through to the Divine Spirit Realm. In this world, strength remained the ultimate authority.