"Kui Yin, what day is tomorrow?"
"Reporting, Prison Emperor, tomorrow is the Gluttony Blood Moon!"
"Gluttony Blood Moon?" Lin Nian sat high upon the Nine Hells Absolute Emperor's Throne, his icy eyes cold as he gradually furrowed his brow.
"Yes, Prison Emperor. According to the rules you established, tomorrow marks a new cycle. It is the day you are to inspect the Eastern Prison."
Kui Yin knelt semi-prostrate before the Nine Hells Absolute Emperor's Throne, replying truthfully.
Looking at the incredibly loyal, stunningly beautiful, and perfectly figured succubus before him, Lin Nian couldn't help but sigh.
This succubus before him was "Kui Yin," his subordinate now.
One year ago, Lin Nian, then a junior in university, after a three-year fierce battle against cancer, had ultimately lost.
Lin Nian had thought that after death, he would vanish into smoke, disappearing from the world.
Who could have imagined he would transmigrate to another world?
A world similar to Earth, yet completely different.
Similar in that this world also had humans.
Different in that this world wasn't just humans; there were many races from myths and legends: the Undead, Demons, Bloodkin, Beastkin, Elves...
And after initial understanding, Lin Nian suddenly realized that this so-called otherworld...
Was actually the otherworld novel he had loved most in his previous life!
Not only that, but he had also become the most terrifying villain character in the book.
The Undying Nether Prison Emperor!
A Prison Emperor who controlled the four great Nether Prisons of the current era, making people tremble in fear!
A Prison Emperor who dominated the world, unrivaled and supreme, with none daring to disobey!
A Prison Emperor steeped in sin, unscrupulous, demanding reverence from all races!
At first, Lin Nian couldn't accept this outcome.
After all, in his previous life, even though he suffered from illness, he believed himself to be fundamentally good.
Yet suddenly, he had transmigrated and become the most terrifying villain character. This made it difficult for him to calm his emotions.
If the continuation of life meant existing as a villain, Lin Nian wasn't sure of the meaning of such continuation.
But he had no time to ponder, for the golden finger that came with transmigration arrived!
The Ultimate Villain System!
A system that made Lin Nian reconsider the meaning of life.
Life, existence itself is meaning!
Lin Nian wanted to say something like that, but the system gave him no chance.
The moment the system bound itself, it immediately issued a task: "All Races Pay Homage"!
Lin Nian knew this task very well. In the original novel's background story, this was a super event where the "Undying Nether Prison Emperor" established his imperial might!
After "All Races Pay Homage," the Four Great Nether Prisons shook the world, the Undying Nether Prison Emperor's fame spread far and wide, and the original Nine Heavens Continent entered an era of unparalleled sin, marking the beginning of the "Nether Era."
Thereafter, to better control the world, the Undying Nether Prison Emperor established the "Blood Moon and Setting Sun" system.
Based on this system, he periodically inspected the Four Great Nether Prisons under his control.
After the "All Races Pay Homage" task was issued, Lin Nian found himself in a dilemma.
He had two choices: accept the task and thus accept becoming a great villain!
Or reject the task and accept the system's punishment—death in this world once more, with his consciousness never to be revived!
Unsurprisingly, Lin Nian's essence was human; he wanted to live!
So be it, a villain he would be!
Thus, with that thought, he became demonic. To survive, Lin Nian chose to accept the fact that he *was* the Undying Nether Prison Emperor.
And tomorrow was the Gluttony Blood Moon, the new beginning after a full cycle of the "Blood Moon and Setting Sun."
"If I recall correctly, in the original novel's story, tomorrow is the day the male lead, Jiang Ce, escapes from the hands of the Eastern Prison Heavenly King, Gluttony."
Lin Nian pulled back his thoughts, flicked his sleeve, and signaled Kui Yin to rise. "Notify Gluttony to strengthen the prison defenses. Ensure not even a mosquito can escape the Eastern Prison!"
"As you command, Prison Emperor!" Kui Yin accepted the order, stood up, and then respectfully retreated from the Nether Palace Hall.
Watching Kui Yin's breathtakingly beautiful figure disappear into the hall, Lin Nian dropped his facade and sighed with deep reluctance.
When he used to read the novel, he had wondered: what kind of beauty was the succubus Kui Yin, whom the author spent countless words describing?
Was she truly as exaggerated as the author portrayed?
Beautiful enough to be called a miracle, so beautiful that any male creature of any race, upon seeing her just once, would lose themselves utterly.
Now Lin Nian had seen her, and for a whole year at that.
Kui Yin was indeed beautiful, so beautiful that Lin Nian felt the original author's descriptions captured only a thousandth of her beauty.
If it weren't for the Undying Nether Prison Emperor's own exaggerated innate skills, Lin Nian feared he would have long been enchanted by Kui Yin to the point of bursting his blood vessels and dying.
Such exaggerated innate skills also explained why Lin Nian had once complained about why the Undying Nether Prison Emperor could act like Liu Xiahui [a Chinese idiom for a man impervious to female charms] in the face of such beauty.
"Tomorrow I go to inspect the Eastern Prison, but tomorrow is also the day Jiang Ce escapes. This is troublesome," Lin Nian rubbed his temples, feeling troubled.
In the original book, although the Undying Nether Prison Emperor was nearly invincible in power, in the end, he was defeated by the human race's supreme expert, Jiang Ce.
The infamous and terrifying Nether Era he had initiated also ended with Jiang Ce after his soul was utterly destroyed.
Thinking about his future defeat at Jiang Ce's hands filled Lin Nian's heart with an indescribable worry.
Jiang Ce, human, a commoner.
Initially just an ordinary person from a small place, idle and shiftless, not doing anything proper, but inherently kind-hearted and not malicious in intent.
Due to the chaos of the era following "All Races Pay Homage," his hometown fell into war, forcing him onto the path of upholding justice.
But unrecognized talent and meeting the wrong people led to his capture by the Eastern Prison Heavenly King's subordinate, "Huang" [Wasteland], after the failed rebellion against the Prison Emperor. He became a prison laborer, forced to build and repair the Eastern Prison.
Later, for injuring a prison guard and accidentally killing Huang's confidant, he was thrown into the Molten Death Prison.
Jiang Ce, who should have turned to ashes in the Molten Death Prison, not only miraculously survived but also unexpectedly met the human race's supreme expert, Mo Beiheng, imprisoned in the Crimson Flame Nether Prison!
Because Mo Beiheng was nearing the end of his lifespan, and Jiang Ce coincidentally had good talent and a pure nature, the two became master and disciple.
Mo Beiheng poured all his lifelong knowledge into Jiang Ce, entrusted him with three tasks to complete, and then perished within the Crimson Flame Nether Prison.
Afterward, Jiang Ce played the pig to eat the tiger [hid his strength], pretending to be imprisoned by Huang while secretly colluding with forces within the prison and diligently studying Mo Beiheng's life's work. Finally, on the night of the Gluttony Blood Moon, after a bitter battle against Gluttony and his ilk, he escaped the Eastern Prison.
The news of Jiang Ce's escape then spread throughout the Nine Heavens Continent. Anti-prison forces everywhere heard of it and rose up in rebellion.
Various races, uniting and forming factions, ultimately stirred a wave of anti-prison sentiment across the Nine Heavens Continent.
"The Undying Nether Prison Emperor's final fate was truly too miserable. I finally got a second chance at life. If possible, I don't want my script to be the same as in the book."
Lin Nian took a deep breath and faintly clenched his fist. "Jiang Ce, if possible, I want to give you a win-win opportunity. I hope you cherish it. If not..."
**Eastern Prison.**
**Maximum Security Death Row.**
A slovenly young man, bare-chested revealing well-defined muscles, was bound to a stone pillar thick enough for four men to encircle. The bindings were fiery chains as thick as a man's wrist, burning with fierce flames.
The pillar itself was fiery red, its surface covered in cracks. At its peak was carved a giant beast with a ferocious, gaping maw.
Standing at the death row cell's entrance, even from a distance, one could feel the unbearable, scorching heat within the cell.
Not long after, a half-werewolf prison guard wearing frost-forged prison armor walked to the cell entrance, his face cold.
"Jiang Ce, to think you're still alive after half a year. No wonder you managed to kill so many of the Warden's men back then and crawled out of the Molten Death Prison alive. Seems you really have some skill!"
The half-werewolf guard sneered as he spoke, tossing a bag he held in his hand. "Eat! That's all!"
The bag flew into the death row cell and instantly turned to ash under the terrifying heat.
The food inside scattered onto the ground.
What appeared before his eyes were several dead rats emitting a putrid stench.
This had been Jiang Ce's main sustenance for the past six months.
"Sizzle!" The scalding temperature in the cell roasted the rats on the ground, making their skin and flesh even more foul-smelling. Anyone not accustomed to this odor would likely be vomiting uncontrollably by now.
Yet this disgusting, foul-smelling roasted rat was Jiang Ce's food for the day.
Ever since he swore an oath before his master Mo Beiheng's corpse in the Crimson Flame Nether Prison, Jiang Ce had been determined to rebel within the Eastern Prison.
Dead rats? He'd been eating them for half a year already. What was one more meal?
Besides, tomorrow was the Gluttony Blood Moon. Once he escaped the Eastern Prison, he would repay today's humiliation a thousandfold.
Thinking this, Jiang Ce channeled his arcane energy `[真元 Zhēnyuán]` throughout his body. A whirlwind immediately formed around him, sweeping up all the roasted rats from the ground and delivering them to his mouth. He didn't even bother to chew, gulping down all the rats whole.
"Good! Excellent! They say you humans hate foul smells the most, but you, Jiang Ce, seem to eat them quite happily! Hahahaha..."
Seeing Jiang Ce finish so quickly, the half-werewolf guard at the entrance burst into wild laughter.
Jiang Ce snorted coldly and laughed back, "If I get the chance, I think eating *you* alive would taste much better than dead rats!"
"Audacious! How dare you!" Seeing Jiang Ce threaten him right after eating, the half-werewolf guard was furious. He directly whipped out the Crimson Flame Whip `[赤炎鞭 Chìyán Biān]` hidden at his waist and lashed out viciously.
"Crack!" The whip struck, instantly leaving a charred, bloody gash on Jiang Ce's body, followed by excruciating pain.
"Hmph, see if you dare spout nonsense now! This Crimson Flame Whip is forged from the refining stones of the Crimson Flame Nether Prison! Even your human race's strongest couldn't withstand its torment, dying miserably there! You, a useless piece of trash who can't even beat a Warden, still dare to provoke me? Truly seeking death!"
The half-werewolf guard, still unsatisfied, lashed out twice more at Jiang Ce with the Crimson Flame Whip.
The fiery poison burned into his heart, but Jiang Ce endured it.
In truth, with his current strength, if he hadn't deliberately allowed himself to be injured, not a single one of the three lashes from this half-werewolf guard would have touched him.
Over six months of secret cultivation in this death row cell, he had mastered seventy to eighty percent of Mo Beiheng's life's work. Even if Gluttony came now, he was confident he could fight him to a standstill. Even if he was slightly outmatched, escaping would be easy.
Yet even so, he couldn't help but marvel at the potency of the fiery poison on the Crimson Flame Whip.
No wonder even a supreme expert like his master Mo Beiheng had ultimately perished in the Crimson Flame Nether Prison.
"Bwoooom..." A deep, resonant, bell-like sound, like the buzzing of a giant mosquito or the bellowing of an ox, echoed through the prison. The half-werewolf guard at the entrance suddenly paled and hurriedly put away his whip.
"Can Lang `[残狼 Cán Láng - Broken Wolf]`, what are you dawdling for? The Heavenly King's urgent summons! Assemble immediately!" roared a figure from the corridor beyond the death row cell. It wore crimson frost armor, a horned official's cap, and had the head of a tiger on a human body.
Hearing this, Can Lang immediately turned and saw the furious Huang `[荒 Huāng - Wasteland]`. He responded promptly, "Reporting, Warden! This subordinate was just teaching that trash Jiang Ce a lesson! Please calm your anger, Warden! Can Lang will rush to assemble immediately!"
Huang grunted in acknowledgment and stormed off with a group of prison guards in tow.
Seeing Huang leave, Can Lang glared at Jiang Ce and snorted resentfully. "Lucky for you, there's an emergency assembly. I'll deal with you properly tomorrow. You'd better behave, especially tomorrow! Cause any more trouble, annoy the Heavenly King, and ten lives wouldn't be enough for you to die!"
With that, Can Lang turned and hurried away.
Soon after, the Maximum Security Death Row was devoid of any guards.
Jiang Ce, bound to the stone pillar, suddenly expanded his divine sense `[神识 Shénshí]`. In the span of a breath, he had clearly perceived every corner of the entire death row block.
A cold smile curled on his lips. His aura erupted violently. Instantly, the fiery chains that bound him tightly crumbled into dust.
In the next second, he waved his hand and donned a suit of frost-forged soft armor that seemed to materialize from nowhere.
Immediately afterward, his voice spread throughout the death row block:
"I am Jiang Ce. Tonight, I will escape this prison. Are there any friends willing to follow me, to leave the Eastern Prison together?!"