This Is What a Villain Is Like

’Yes, it’s all my fault.’

’If back then in Jingyang City, I had hesitated just a little, chosen to trust him, listened to just one more word he had to say, and not thrust that sword...’

’Perhaps he wouldn’t have fallen into absolute despair, much less fallen from grace and been eternally lost to the Red Dust...’

’If I had understood sooner, faced the fear and terror in my own heart sooner, and realized the truth sooner, it all might not have been too late.’

’But I was scared. I flinched. I was terrified. I didn’t dare face the truth I had already guessed.’

’In front of others, I was brilliant and dazzling, a blinding light. But in reality, I was just a timid, gutless coward...’

’In my entire life, I can say I have never wronged anyone... except for him.’

The woman gave a self-deprecating smile.

She gently touched her chest over her heart, feeling waves of sharp pain, as if countless thorns were piercing her. The agony was so intense it felt like she was about to suffocate.

Countless memories from her past life flashed by like flowing water.

Finally, the images froze on the young man in white, clutching his chest in the courtyard as he slowly collapsed, his open eyes staring at the sky.

His eyes were deathly still and hollow, yet also very calm. He simply allowed his life, his essence, and his spirit to dissipate, like a mere shell without a soul.

During her Heart Demon Tribulation, she had reached out with a trembling hand, wanting to cover the wound that gushed blood like a fountain, but the young man never looked at her again.

Only at that moment, as tears burst from her eyes and blurred her vision, did she finally understand that all fates in all worlds were, in fact, sealed long ago in the past.

Even if she could ascend to immortality amidst radiant clouds, even if she found the Time Cicada, she still couldn’t change a single thing.

"From then on, we heard no more of each other; the spring mountains were like dark jade, the grass like smoke..."

The woman stared blankly, lost in thought. She let out a melancholy sigh, and the myriad thoughts in her mind subsided.

After a long while, she seemed to have finally calmed down.

She rose and slowly walked out of the hall, gazing into the distance.

It was an island wreathed in rosy clouds and swirling mists, situated among mountains overseas.

Looking down from the sky, the ocean was calm, without wind or waves, a deep and tranquil blue. It was dotted with countless small islands of varying sizes scattered all around.

The central island, with its rising, colorful mists and lush, ancient trees resembling an Ancient Primeval Forest, stood out majestically, like the moon surrounded by a cluster of stars.

Occasionally, Fierce Birds and other strange avians would streak across the horizon, disappearing into different parts of the island.

No Return Island. Just as its name implied, it was an island region located off the coast of the Nine Provinces, perpetually shrouded in a disorienting fog.

It was said that any creature or cultivator who came here could never leave, for they would become lost along the way, unable to find the path back.

Back then, after she had delivered that sword thrust in Jingyang City, she had feared her adoptive father and mother would sense something was wrong and rush back. Daring not to linger, she had fled in a hurry.

But she was certain that even though her hand had trembled at the last moment, causing the blade to go slightly off-target, it had indeed pierced straight through his heart.

The blood, tinged with an Immortal Charm, was exceptionally glaring. It had sprayed all over the courtyard, even staining the front of her robes red.

In a daze, she had fled the Prime Minister’s Mansion and escaped into the distance. She had expected to incite the fury of the Prime Minister’s Mansion and have countless experts sent to hunt her down.

But in the days that followed, everything was calm and peaceful. No one spoke of the incident, and no one came after her.

It seemed no one even knew about the "accident" of the assassination of the Prime Minister’s Mansion’s young master.

She didn’t know the final outcome.

Whether Jiang Lan had lived or died, she had no idea.

After that, she left the Nine Provinces Land and traveled far overseas.

Though she encountered some accidents and dangers on her sea journey, and was even drawn into an endless fog, she eventually set foot safely on No Return Island.

Although her Immortal Heart had been dug out, after her Nirvana Rebirth, she was fueled by a belief in vengeance. Her strength and talent far surpassed what they once were. Even those old monsters who had cultivated for many years with profound Dao Practice were no match for a single palm strike from her.

Because of this, she settled down in seclusion on No Return Island, even occupying an entire island for herself. Cultivators who strayed here from the outside world respectfully called her the Great Island Master.

Rumor had it that beyond the endless fog overseas, there were three hidden islands of No Return. On the central island lived a reclusive expert whose power had reached the pinnacle of perfection, like a Land True Immortal...

This was the reverence and esteem outsiders held for her.

And her strength was indeed as the outsiders claimed. A mere ten years later, she ascended to the Ninth Realm, the Feather Transformation Realm, and could be considered invincible in the world.

By the time she emerged from seclusion, left No Return Island, and walked the world again, twenty years had passed.

The Nine Provinces Land was a place of treacherous storms and turbulent situations.

In the Celestial Central Province, the Great Xia Dynasty reigned supreme, but in the shadows, remnants of the Blood Immortal Sect lay dormant, stirring restlessly.

The Southern Wilderness, the North Sea, Dongyuan, and Xiling were not peaceful either.

Dao Lineages from the Outer Realm plotted to descend, scheming to seize the Dragon Energy of the Nine Provinces and open the ancient path of reception to connect with other worlds.

She had no desire to meddle in the affairs of the Nine Provinces Land. Still harboring a deep-seated hatred, her only wish was to destroy the Prime Minister’s Mansion and everything that had ever been connected to him.

But she never imagined that upon setting foot in the Great Xia Dynasty, the news she would receive was that he had died long ago...

Driven by obsession, she flew into a violent rage, forced her way into the Prime Minister’s Mansion’s mausoleum, and unearthed Jiang Lan’s grave. To her dismay, there wasn’t even a complete skeleton inside—only a few bone fragments alongside his burial clothes.

Furious, she destroyed it with a single palm strike, not even leaving him the bone fragments. She obliterated everything, turning it all to dust.

Then, under the furious shouts and enraged glares of her adoptive father and mother, she let out several long laughs and strode away.

’He didn’t die by my sword, so how could he let someone else kill him first?’

’Dying just like that? That’s letting him off far too easily.’

’He clearly swore an oath to marry me when we grew up. So why did he go back on his word? Why did he break his promise? Was it all because he was a mere mortal, while I possessed an Immortal Heart?’