OVPBM 1

Chapter 1 – Lu Yunwan Decides to Pretend!

The searing pain caused by the shattering of his crystal core crashed through Lu Yunwan’s skull in rippling waves.

Wasn’t I already dead? So even ghosts can get headaches?

“Hiss…” Lu Yunwan subconsciously pressed a hand to his temple, but the movement was interrupted by something he was holding.

The person reclining against a dark red velvet sofa slowly opened his eyes. A pitch-black cane entwined with poppy vines, along with the figure kneeling beneath it and the black-clad guards surrounding them, all flooded into his vision at once.

With a loud bang, the beautiful poppy cane slipped from his hand and crashed heavily to the floor. In an instant, a crack split across its surface.

Lu Yunwan instinctively reached out to pick it up. Yet the moment he lowered his head, he saw a long, narrow scar on his wrist.

This was not his hand.

“Your Excellency the Regent… Your Excellency…” Seeing him lower his gaze, the person on the ground suddenly crawled forward on their knees, struggling to reach for the hem of Lu Yunwan’s clothes, only to be forced back by the black-clad guards in the next instant. “I have nothing to do with Chu Xuanzhou anymore. I beg you, I beg you to spare me…” His eyes were filled with both fear and pleading.

Regent. Chu Xuanzhou?

Hearing these words, Lu Yunwan suddenly seemed to realize something and lifted his head to look upward.

At the arched dome of the building’s ceiling, there were no familiar carvings of angels or flowers, only a vast expanse of violently surging seawater.

In that instant, his world seemed to flip upside down. Moisture and chill rushed toward him together. A cold shiver ran down Lu Yunwan’s back, and he finally became completely awake.

Was there really such a realistic 3D projection in the world?

Not in the world he lived in. But there was one in the novel called 《 The Merfolk Empire 》!

No wonder that name sounded so familiar!

Lu Yunwan had been born into a family of ability users and was an extremely rare psychic-type esper. Unfortunately, he was also born with an uncommon genetic disease that prevented him from moving around freely like a normal person. Reading novels was one of his few forms of entertainment.

“Chu Xuanzhou” was the protagonist of the novel 《 The Merfolk Empire 》, the very book Lu Yunwan had been reading before his death. After being framed by the villain and suffering inhuman torture, the protagonist awakened the top-tier merfolk bloodline and mental power. Having tasted the coldness and warmth of human nature, he blackened, endured humiliation in secret, took his revenge, and ultimately unified the interstellar realm.

Most importantly, throughout the entire book, the villain was referred to only as “the Regent”, and the poppy cane was one of his signature symbols.

Lu Yunwan hesitated for a moment, then finally picked up a shard from the crack in the cane. The jagged gemstone instantly pierced his fingertip.

The next second, the sharp pain that surged up along with the blood told him with unmistakable clarity:

None of this was an illusion. He had truly transmigrated into 《 The Merfolk Empire 》 and become that ultimate villain!

Lu Yunwan’s breathing stalled. Just closing his eyes, he could already see his own future, his mental core being crushed, his cellular structure destroyed, suffering in agony for dozens of years until death.

“Your… Your Excellency…” The pleading voice of the person on the ground pulled Lu Yunwan’s thoughts back to the present.

He struggled forward, smearing blood everywhere in a chaotic mess, yet Lu Yunwan’s subordinates did not press him down with any force.

These black-clad guards all knew that the Regent most enjoyed watching people struggle on the brink of death.

Looking at his miserable state, Lu Yunwan finally remembered. The scene before him was exactly the opening of Chapter One in 《 The Merfolk Empire 》.

After the villain framed Chu Xuanzhou with fabricated crimes, the cannon fodder who had once been engaged to him immediately followed the wind, betrayed him, and defected to the villain’s side.

But evil meets its own retribution¹This idiom means: If you refuse to deal with a villain, another villain will naturally take care of them. In other words, bad people will eventually be handled or punished by someone equally ruthless, even if you don’t intervene yourself. It conveys a sense of karmic inevitability: evil meets its match.. The original host’s methods were so cruel, his temperament so treacherous, that even passing ants would spit at him²This is an exaggerated, humorous Chinese expression used to convey absolute moral revulsion. It does not mean literal ants spitting. Instead, it implies that the person is so vile, cruel, or detestable that even the lowest, most insignificant beings would show contempt.!

After capturing Chu Xuanzhou, he turned around and killed this man who had already lost all value for exploitation.

In the original story, Chu Xuanzhou never knew that he had been betrayed. Although he had no feelings at all for his so-called future spouse, he still placed this debt of blood firmly on the villain’s head.

…The rest could be dealt with later. Right now, Lu Yunwan had to shake off this accusation of indiscriminately killing the “innocent” first.

“Where is Chu Xuanzhou?” Thinking of this, Lu Yunwan subconsciously asked the cannon fodder, holding onto the slim hope that the original host had not yet managed to court death, “Is he alright?”  

The person on the ground froze for a moment. He did not know whether it was just his imagination, but he actually sensed a trace of worry and urgency from the Regent… Yet in his dying panic, he had no energy to think deeply. He could only hesitate and nod. He had only leaked Chu Xuanzhou’s whereabouts. The rest, he truly knew nothing about.

Then, before he could say anything more, a large mouthful of blood suddenly surged out of the kneeling man’s mouth.

He stared in despair with wide-open eyes as the terror of death assaulted him once again. Having underestimated just how utterly deranged the original host was, he hoarsely and unwillingly kept repeating “why” to Lu Yunwan over and over again.

“I-I already brought Chu Xuanzhou here… W-Why are you still killing me?”

Blood poured from all seven orifices of the person on the ground. His facial features twisted and deformed until there was no trace left of his once refined appearance.

Seeing his pitiful state on the brink of death, the black-clad guards all instinctively stepped back half a pace. But for Lu Yunwan, who had once lived in a world where humans and zombies coexisted, this scene held absolutely no intimidation at all.

Lu Yunwan suddenly met his gaze, then slowly, slowly curved his lips into a smile.

Like a bright red venomous snake gliding through the grass. Dangerous, cold, and beautiful.

A very good question.

Why would “he” kill someone who had once been engaged to Chu Xuanzhou and later betrayed him?

The original host did it to eliminate future trouble at the root… But now that he himself had become the villain, the answer was naturally different.

“Because you betrayed Xuanzhou.” Lu Yunwan’s gaze flicked swiftly over the cannon fodder’s body and finally settled on his empty fingers.

“But, but…” But wasn’t it you who wanted to capture him?!

The only reply he received was Lu Yunwan’s smile.

“Such beautiful fingers.” Lu Yunwan suddenly bent down and gently lifted the blood-soaked hand of the person on the ground into his own palm. With fondness and regret intertwined in his voice, he said, “What a pity they once wore that ring.”

The room instantly fell silent.

He had only worn a ring once, and that was when he became engaged to Chu Xuanzhou.

The person on the ground stared at Lu Yunwan with bulging eyes. At the instant when the despair brought by death eclipsed everything else, he suddenly recalled the undisguised worry and tension he had seen on this man’s face just minutes earlier when he asked about Chu Xuanzhou.

An absurd yet increasingly logical answer surfaced in his mind.

From beginning to end, he had guessed wrong about Lu Yunwan’s feelings toward Chu Xuanzhou. Perhaps he did not hate Chu Xuanzhou at all, but rather… admired him?

Everything before this had been a deliberate move by Lu Yunwan, this patient executioner, to lure out the snake from its hole.

Lu Yunwan wanted to kill those who betrayed Chu Xuanzhou, and also wanted to kill him as a “love rival.”

At the same time he realized this, so did Lu Yunwan’s subordinates.

The men and women dressed in black quickly exchanged glances. Thinking of the merman who had already been thrown into the prison, they saw deep terror reflected on each other’s faces…

Under the intertwined gazes of fear and dread, Lu Yunwan calmly wiped the blood from his hands. “Take me to see Chu Xuanzhou,” he said.

“Y-yes, Your Excellency.”

Cold light pierced through the rolling waves on the dome above, spilling onto that extravagant yet radiant face. The dense, fan-like lashes concealed his eyes and his emotions.

Lu Yunwan lightly tugged at the heavy black cloak draped over his shoulders. Passing through the crowd of people kneeling on one knee, he headed toward the corridor.

Steady, steady, I have to stay steady!

With his attention fully focused, Lu Yunwan did not notice the strange expressions on his subordinates’ faces. As he walked, he rapidly organized his thoughts. Chu Xuanzhou was the future master of the interstellar realm and the creator of the new order.

As a representative of the old powers, he himself was the greatest obstacle on Chu Xuanzhou’s path to success.

Going against the protagonist would lead to no future at all.

He needed to find a justification for all the previous evil deeds and quickly turn around to stand on Chu Xuanzhou’s side.

In Lu Yunwan’s view, only one thing could cause such a drastic change in a person: “love.”

He had to make everyone believe that he deeply loved Chu Xuanzhou.

Especially Chu Xuanzhou himself.

In 《 The Merfolk Empire 》, Chu Xuanzhou was a rational yet suspicious dictator. Unlike other merfolk, he had no interest whatsoever in romantic feelings. Even during the migratory period, when merfolk were dominated by primal desire, he could still remain calm.

When Lu Yunwan had been reading the book, what he admired most was precisely this kind of protagonist who was wholly devoted to his ambitions.

But now, his greatest difficulty was deceiving Chu Xuanzhou.

Fortunately… Lu Yunwan could not help but let out a quiet breath of relief. The original host had just captured Chu Xuanzhou and had not yet had time to do anything to him. There was still room to turn the plot around.

“Good morning, Your Excellency the Regent.” The person guarding the prison greeted him from afar. Piously placing a hand over his chest, he gave Lu Yunwan a deep bow.

“Chu Xuanzhou is in here?”

So overcome with excitement at seeing the Regent in person that he lost all caution, the guard ignored the intense warning looks from those beside Lu Yunwan. “Yes! Your Excellency,” he could not help but grin, lowering his voice mysteriously. “We have taken very good ‘care’ of him.”

Care?

Lu Yunwan’s eyelid suddenly twitched. Something felt very wrong.

Seeing his slightly strange expression and recalling the rumors of the Regent’s unfathomable and unpredictable nature, the man immediately shut his mouth and took a large step backward.

Blue light flashed at the end of the corridor, and the black outer wall abruptly vanished.

Before Lu Yunwan could prepare himself, accompanied by a surge of moisture in the air, a spacious prison and a gigantic cage that looked like an upright crystal coffin appeared before his eyes.

What the f*ck?! What kind of situation is this?!

A blood-soaked tail, its original color impossible to discern, curved like a crimson moon and pierced straight into Lu Yunwan’s vision. He saw a merman suspended inside a transparent tank.

The merman’s body was cold and pale, almost inorganic in its chill, covered with a thin yet powerful layer of muscle. His scar-ridden body was pierced by dozens of interwoven silver threads, which extended into the distance and connected to a machine glowing with red light. At a glance, he looked barely alive.

Lu Yunwan’s heart sank violently. At this very moment, it was as if three blood-red words, “it is over,” smashed heavily into him.

Seeing that he was not speaking, the person standing guard hurriedly stepped forward to explain. “Please rest assured, Your Excellency. Every single quantum cable here is guaranteed to have pierced through Chu Xuanzhou’s nerves. He was on the verge of shock ten minutes ago. He should not wake up anytime soon.”

“If Your Excellency is interested, you may even carry out the execution personally.” His subordinate made the suggestion with eager understanding.

Lu Yunwan had never imagined that while he himself truly had not had time to do anything yet, these so-called thoughtful subordinates had already taken action ahead of him.

At that very moment, a shrill alarm suddenly blared.

Dark red blood seeped from the junction where the quantum cables connected to the body. Hidden among the silver-white long hair, a pair of dark purple eyes filled with hatred snapped open without any warning.

He saw it. In the depths of the merman’s eyes, a savage crimson glow surged, as if in the next second he would burst out of the cage and tear everyone before him to shreds.

• 1
  This idiom means: If you refuse to deal with a villain, another villain will naturally take care of them. In other words, bad people will eventually be handled or punished by someone equally ruthless, even if you don’t intervene yourself. It conveys a sense of karmic inevitability: evil meets its match.
• 2
  This is an exaggerated, humorous Chinese expression used to convey absolute moral revulsion. It does not mean literal ants spitting. Instead, it implies that the person is so vile, cruel, or detestable that even the lowest, most insignificant beings would show contempt.