Chapter 1

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A handsome young man, around fifteen years of age, laid peacefully on a soft, white bed. His long, black hair spread across the sheets and pillows like threads of dark silk, framing a pale, attractive face.

Next to his bed, on a luxurious chair with a red-satin pillow, a woman was sitting silently. She'd been staring intensely at the youth for a long time. Her face was expressionless, but the redness around her eyes and her sickly, pale skin evidenced her distraught state. However, her beauty wasn't diminished at all – it was clear she wasn't a day over thirty, yet she projected an aura of maturity that clarified her status.

She was his mother.

After an unknown period of time, when the light, filtering through the windows, started changing hues, the boy suddenly let out a groan.

The woman, who'd almost dozed off, jolted in her seat. Desperately, she leaned over and took one of her son's hands in her own.

"Chun'er, are you awake?"

The youth didn't reply. Instead, one of his hands unconsciously went to his forehead. It was throbbing intensely, like it was about to burst at any moment. His eyelids slowly fluttered open. The first thing he saw was the woman's crying face.

'What's going on? Where am I and who is…?'

When his thoughts drifted towards the woman, countless images, words and emotions jumped to the forefront of his mind. However, that wasn't the end of it. One memory led to another, which called forth a different one and so on.

When he eventually returned to his senses, at least ten minutes had already passed. The scenery around him had changed as well – the woman was standing upright now, trying to coax a reply from him. A man stood next to her, appearing similarly unsettled. He seemed around her age.

"Husband, do something!"

The woman abruptly turned to the man and took him by the shoulders. Her eyes were wild, like she might to do something irrational at a moment's notice.

Suddenly, without warning, the man's hand shot out like a flash of lightning, striking the woman behind her right ear. It happened so quickly and silently that the youth almost didn't notice it.

Her eyes became unfocused and glassy, and she collapsed bonelessly in on herself. Before she could hit the ground, the man caught her and gently cradled her in his arms.

"I see you're awake, Chun'er."

When the man finished with his wife, he straightened his back and turned to his son. His tone was dry and emotionless.

The youth, having regained his senses, nodded slowly. He didn't react to his father's strange behaviour.

"Yes, Father."

Silence stretched between the two of them. The atmosphere was incredibly complicated, for many different reasons. Finally, after a dozen-or-so seconds had passed, the man spoke again.

"Rest for today. I will have your appointment rescheduled. When you feel better, come to my office."

Without waiting for a response, he made for the door, carrying his wife in his arms.

The youth watched him leave without saying a word. When his parents had disappeared into the hallway, he fell backwards onto his pillows with a sigh.

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'I've transmigrated into this guy, Chun Ma.'

The handsome teen lifted one hand to his face, gazing thoughtfully at his strong, slender fingers. When he rotated his palm, he could see the tendons and muscle moving underneath his skin.

'Holy. Fucking. Shit!'

Needless to say, he was beyond shocked. The last thing he could remember before waking up in this body was sitting at work, enjoying a coffee during lunchtime. After that, there was nothing.

'Did I die?'

He really had no clue. There wasn't anything in his memories that suggested an untimely demise. Even if he'd a heart attack, he'd at least have remembered the pain of it. However, nothing like that happened. It was like his soul had just suddenly appeared over here without any warning.

After spending around thirty minutes, trying to remember anything relevant to his transmigration, he gave up. There was just nothing there for him to find – he'd lived a normal, uneventful life. Since he couldn't figure anything out, he decided to dedicate his thoughts to more important matters.

'Could this be the setting of a novel from my past life?'

He'd read his fair share of Xanxia and Wuxia, yet he wasn't able to match any of them with the new memories inside his head.

'This world is completely unfamiliar to me.'

Still deep in thought, he unconsciously pulled his soft blanket up to his chin. He was combing through the memories of the person he'd possessed. The more he saw, the more uncomfortable he became.

'This guy is nothing but trouble!'

From what he'd seen, Chun Ma was an unmistakable villain, despite the fact that his father was the newly-appointed master of the Mount Hua sect, a righteous organization by all accounts!

'Fuck me, given who this kid is, I can't even change my alignment!'

Because of Chun Ma's 'unique' physiology, it was simply impossible for him to ever be a good guy. To understand why that was the case, it was necessary to examine the set-up of this world.

At first glance, it was a normal cultivation premise, with good and evil sects battling each other. However, there was one big difference – the supernatural forces lurking in the shadows! Aside from spiritual beasts, there were many other nefarious things laying in wait, outside the civilized world of man. Yaoguai were an example of this.

'Really, 'Yaoguai' is too broad a term to even use.'

There were so many different kinds of evil spirits that calling them all the same thing was profoundly unhelpful. It was like using the word 'mammal' when discussing all warm blooded, milk-producing animals. However, the reason why the term was used so broadly was because there was just too little known about them. They couldn't be captured or studied – they were far too dangerous for that.

For example, a black bear, which was an animal even normal humans could hunt, would be many times stronger and more violent when undergoing Yaoguai corruption. It was to the extent that a dozen cultivators would have to assemble in order to kill it. Even then, they would never face it head on, but use their wit and guile to slowly kill it.

That wasn't the worst part – Yaoguai weren't just physically strong, their terrifying spiritual energy assaulted the minds of living creatures. On top of that, their Ki was far denser than that of their 'natural' counterparts.

The accounts of mystical beasts undergoing corruption was mercifully low, as their high spiritual energy allowed them to resist the influence of Yaoguai. However, the few such situations that occurred couldn't be described as anything other than calamitous. The strength exhibited by a corrupted spiritual beast was on the level of a natural disaster.

Perhaps the most troubling aspect of Yaoguai was their origin – it was completely unknown! Nobody had any idea what caused the transformation. It appeared to be completely random. One moment, a farmer would be happily feeding their livestock. The next, that very same animal would metamorphosize into an unstoppable creature that promptly slaughtered his livestock, him, his family and his community.

It was the first act that was arguably the most interesting. Yaoguai seemed to have a special 'hatred' for their own kind. A bull undergoing Yaoguai corruption would murder its own herd first and foremost. Only after it'd finished genociding and cannibalizing its own population would it turn to other living creatures nearby.

However, Chun Ma knew the reason for such behavior. It didn't kill and eat its own out of hatred, but out of hunger. For a Yaoguai, no flesh was more delicious than that of its own kind. He knew this because he himself was a Yaoguai.

He couldn't remember his own birth, but it must've been clear from the start that he wasn't a human child. Both his parents knew the truth about him and had already known in his earliest memories.

Despite their identities as righteous cultivators, they've kept his identity a secret for all these years. Perhaps it was because they were both so upstanding that they were unable to kill their child, who had no control over his own nature.

If the truth about him was ever revealed, the imperial throne wouldn't hesitate to send their strongest exorcists to end his life. His parents wouldn't get away either – sheltering and feeding a Yaoguai was an unthinkable offense, deserving of the most extreme punishment. They wouldn't simply be executed, they'd be tortured until they begged for death. They'd be made into an example, to discourage others from sheltering the demonic creatures.

Chun Ma didn't think such a response was too extreme. He understood why he couldn't be allowed to live. Firstly, as stated before, Yaoguai had an insatiable appetite for the flesh of their own kind, and he was no different. He could eat normal food to stave off that hunger, but it would return eventually. When it did, he had to cannibalize. If he didn't, his desire would continue to grow until he completely lost himself to it.

Secondly, Yaoguai were extremely powerful. Human cultivators simply weren't their equal. They couldn't be controlled and they couldn't be captured, not for long, at least. The best way to deal with them was to kill them as soon as they manifested.

Chun Ma himself had, at the age of fifteen, already surpassed his father, who was the sect master of one of the Ten Great Sects. Much of that had to do with his own natural talent, but his Yaoguai nature was most responsible.

The third reason why he couldn't be allowed to live was because he was a human Yaoguai – an existence that was beyond rare and abominable to the extreme. To put things into perspective, there was only a single account of a human Yaoguai – the Heavenly Demon, who'd lived five-thousand years ago. He subjugated the Continent singlehandedly, wiping out hundreds of sects and slaughtering the Tang royal lineage until almost nobody was left. It was unknown what'd become of him at the end of his life, but it was assumed that he eventually died of old age.

From that one example, it was abundantly clear that a human Yaoguai was more dangerous than a spiritual beast Yaoguai. Spiritual beasts, despite their impressive natural gifts, were unthinking animals. When human intelligence was combined with a Yaoguai's outrageous spiritual energy, it resulted in something that was beyond the ability of mankind to resist.

Chun Ma let out a long sigh before rolling onto his back.

'If people find out what I am, they'll never let me go. My only option is to become stronger. When nobody is capable of defeating me, I'll be safe.'

He had enormous potential, but he didn't believe he was invincible. The reason for that was simple – for every powerful villain, there was an even more powerful hero that would rise up to overcome them. Chun Ma had never met him, but there was a person in his memories who met the requirements down to a T.

His eyes narrowed involuntarily.

'It doesn't matter whether I'm the villain, there's no way I'll just roll over and die. Fang Yuan, if you get in my way, don't expect me to be merciful!'

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A shabby-looking youth, clothed in frayed, washed-out robes, was sitting at a poor little desk. There was a long wick of rush grass, sticking out of a cracked cup. It was burning down slowly – the boy didn't even have enough money to afford candles.

'I can't believe it! That Mirror of Samsara was the real deal!'

Still feeling stunned about his regression, he stood up and looked out of the window. In the hut next to his, he could see a husband fighting with his wife. Suddenly, the man stormed out of his house, leaving a few curses behind. Not to be outdone, his wife retaliated in an equally vulgar manner, taking off her shoe and tossing it at the back of his head.

The youth's eyes wandered to the woman's reddened face.

'It's Ms. Long. Despite her foul mouth, she always gave me brown rice.'

His heart softened and his eyes became blurry as he thought of all the people who'd helped him throughout his life. When his time came to an end, most of them were already dead. His fists unconsciously balled at his sides.

'Unfortunately, I wasn't able to return to the time before the Fang clan's massacre.'

He, Fang Yuan, had originally been from a respectable background. However, for unknown reasons, his entire family had suddenly been killed overnight. Because of his poor cultivation, he wasn't able to identify the true culprits.

For the first ten years of his life, his talent had been exceptional. However, around the time of his tenth birthday, his cultivation mysteriously deviated. After that point, he was worse than a waste. He lost all his respect among his peers, as well as his position as the top pupil of the Mount Hua Sect.

For three years, he was nothing more than an eyesore to his family members. He remembered cursing his fate during those days. However, he didn't truly know what suffering was.

One night, he suddenly woke up from the smell of smoke. When he jumped out of his bed and ran into the hallway, it was already too late. His whole family was dead. Only a few servants were left alive.

Since that time, two years had passed. During that period, his difficulties had only increased. He had nothing left, aside from his status as an outer disciple of the Plum Blossom sect. It was only the pity of the higher-ups that allowed him to remain here, living in this shabby hut.

The final dagger had been shoved into his heart about a year ago. A messenger had arrived, carrying a letter from the Mu clan. After deliberating amongst themselves, they'd decided to annul his marriage with Mu Xuanyin, their prodigal descendent.

His father and her own, the patriarchs of the Fang and Mu clan respectively, had gone through thick and thin during their youth. Because of their strong friendship, they had promised each other that, if they had a son and a daughter between them, they would arrange a marriage.

However, it seemed that, after the Fang clan's annihilation, the Mu clan was no longer willing to go through with it. To make matters worse, they already decided to marry Mu Xuanyin to Jong Chun Ma, the son of Jong Hyun, the Plum Blossom Sect master. They didn't mention it in their letter, but from his previous life's experience, Fang Yuan knew their intentions.

The youth sighed and sat down at his desk again.

'I remember how mad I was when I read that letter. Now I understand that it was already considerate of them to have held out for four years.'

(Three years of him being a waste and one year after the Fang clan's destruction.)

He unconsciously bit on his lower lip. There was a look of resolve in his eyes.

'Xuanyin, this time, I won't let you suffer by the side of that demon!'

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