Chu Xueyu's power surged deeper into Shen Ming's sea of consciousness.
Memory after memory unfurled before her mind's eye, not the usual recollections of a youth raised in the Shen Clan, but images alien and unfathomable.
Strange cities of steel and glass. Vehicles that roared without spirit qi. A world with no cultivation, yet filled with wonders of science and technology.
Stories written in ink and projected on glowing screens, worlds of fantasy spun into novels, manga, anime, and games.
Her eyes trembled, her breath pausing for a brief instant.
This was no ordinary soul.
And then came the most shocking discovery.
This Shen Ming was not Shen Ming at all.
He was a transmigrator from that world called Earth. More terrifying than that, he carried knowledge of the world she herself stood in.
He knew its future. He knew the hidden plots that had not yet happened. He even knew her name… because it was all written in a novel.
Chu Xueyu almost faltered.
She, the matriarch of the Shen Clan, a Heavenly Saint, a pillar of the Shen Immortal Clan… was just a character on a page?
Her shock only deepened as she sifted through the key reason behind his scheme.
The crippled heiress of the Huo Clan.
The girl who now seemed worthless to the eyes of all would one day recover her talent.
No, she would not just recover, she would soar.
Rising step by step through the cultivation realms, surpassing all peers, until she became unrivaled beneath the heavens.
Breaking into the Supreme Emperor realm, she named herself the Flame Empress and carved her name into eternity.
She would then ascend into the legendary Immortal Realm, and established a powerful force she named the Eternal Flame Domain.
She had even ascended to being one of the Thirteen Great Immortal Emperors, sovereigns who dominated the boundless Immortal World.
And Shen Ming, with his foreknowledge, wanted to bind her early, to use her meteoric rise as his ladder to immortality.
Chu Xueyu's expression darkened. Her grip on Shen Ming's soul tightened, causing his body to convulse violently.
She glanced at Shen Haoran, her voice cold and sharp.
"Haoran. This is no cousin of yours. He is a parasite wearing your cousin's skin. And he knows too much."
Shen Haoran raised a brow, confused.
Chu Xueyu raised her hand, as a glowing orb appeared at the tip of her finger—it is the memories and knowledge from Shen Ming—and flicked to to her son's head.
Shen Haoran slowly exhaled, his golden eyes flickering with a terrifying sharpness.
The river of memories from Shen Ming was still fresh in his mind, every scene etched into his soul.
The knowledge of that future gnawed at him, but instead of despair, a cruel smile spread across his lips.
"So… I am but a stepping stone." His voice was low, calm, yet carried a weight that made even Qing'er, the Profound Saint woman, shiver. "The heavens themselves think to write my destiny as fodder for another's rise?"
His aura surged, the might of his Golden Core cultivation roaring like a dragon beneath his skin.
The tribal tattoo of the Infinity Dragon God Divine Physique glowed faintly, exuding an ancient and oppressive aura that seemed to defy fate itself.
"No," he muttered, his tone turning cold and resolute. "If this 'novel' dares to make me a stepping stone, then I will carve apart its pages. If she is destined to be Flame Empress, then she will rise… but she will rise under my shadow."
Chu Xueyu watched her son intently, a trace of pride flickering in her eyes. Unlike most who would crumble at such a revelation, Haoran had chosen domination instead of submission.
Her gaze shifted to Shen Ming. The young man's body lay twitching, his eyes vacant and drooling. The soul search had reduced him to little more than a breathing corpse.
"Dispose of him?" she asked, her voice devoid of emotion.
Shen Haoran didn't answer. He raised his hand, and a glowing sword-like energy materialized from his palm.
With a flick of his wrist, he cut off Shen Ming's head.
Then, with a snap of his fingers, his body engulfed into golden flames and turned into ashes in an instant.
Qing'er shivered seeing those flames.
Gold Incinerating Supreme Flame, ranked 4th in Heavenly Flames rankings.
It was subdued and nurtured by the ancestors of Shen Clan, and rumors has it that the flames already has consciousness with a cultivation of Heavenly Saint, and has been guarding the clan for thousands of years.
Of course, what Shen Haoran has in his body isn't the true Gold Incinerating Supreme Flame, but merely a fragment of it, a small ember.
It is given to all important members of the Shen Clan.
"Qing'er," he called to the woman.
Qing'er bowed slightly, awaiting orders.
"Prepare my Boundless Profound Ark, I will visit the Huo Clan myself."
Qing'er nodded, before vanishing into the shadows.
Shen Haoran then turned to Chu Xueyu. "Mother, the Huo heiress… if I step forward now, she will remember it forever. When she rises, she will already belong to me. The Eternal Flame Domain? It will never exist. There will only be the Shen Immortal Clan, and under it, my rule."
Chu Xueyu smiled. She was confident that her son would be able to achieve more than that woman.
"But, mother. Do you think there might be more "protagonist" existence in the world?" Shen Haoran asked.
"...Indeed, there may be." Chu Xueyu nodded, "I remember many Supreme Emperors have experiences similar to those protagonist. I never really thought about it, but it seems like those supremes are also protagonists."
Shen Haoran's eyes narrowed, "Then, that makes us the villains right? And those protagonist would use us as stepping stones?"
Chu Xueyu nodded, her eyes showed a terrifying glint. "According to that Shen Ming, protagonist are protected by the heavenly dao. They cannot be killed and would even encounter some fortune, allowing them to gain some inheritance and increase their power."
Shen Haoran chuckled, "Mother, it's not that unreasonable. The only reason those protagonist can escape is because the villains are stupid enough to send an enemy that is just a little bit stronger than the protagonist. If it really comes down to it, I don't believe a Qi Gathering protagonist can escape from a Heavenly Saint expert."
If the protagonist was really that heaven defying, then they might as well lie down and wait for their deaths.
Just then, Shen Haoran remembered something.
"Mother, what happened to that kid whose physique you stole? Isn't he a protagonist template as well?"
Chu Xueyu's eyes widened for a moment, remembering those small family she had crippled and banished to the lower realm.
"...I did not kill them." She cursed, "Why didn't I kill them? I don't know what came over me. Why did I decide to spare them?"
Even if they were crippled and couldn't cause any trouble, even if she was arrogant enough to think that they are nothing but a spec of dust...she still should've killed them.
After all, if the word got out that the divine physique of her son was stolen, it would surely make their clan lose face!
So why did she just banish them to the lower realm?
"It must be the work of the Heavenly Dao." Said Shen Haoran.
Chu Xueyu nodded as well. The heavenly dao was really terrifying. It was able to affect her thoughts without her realising it.
Shen Haoran thought for a moment and added, "And mother...my father might be a protagonist as well."
Chu Xueyu paused, but shook her head. "I killed your father, took his Heavenly Sword Dao Bone and implanted it to you. He can't be a protagonist."
"But mother, there are protagonists who are betrayed by their lover on their first life, only to reincarnate in lower realms."
Chu Xueyu searched the memories again, and indeed, there are protagonists who are betrayed by their lover in their first life, only to reincarnate either back in time, or in the future where his lover already ruled the nine heavens and he was just a nobody from the lower realm.
She sighed. Thinking of the man who was once her husband.
In her youth, she was recognized as the most beautiful and talented woman under the heavens, a daughter of the patriarch of the Shen Clan.
Her husband, Jian Chen, recognized as the most talented man under the heavens, a commoner from a secluded region who rose to prominence.
At that time, the Shen Clan ancestors told them that the Immortal Realm will once again open, and they needed a talent to shoulder the Heaven's Will and bring the clan to the immortal realm.
It was for this reason why the Shen Clan wanted to marry Shen Haoran to the Huo Clan heiress as well.
If Shen Haoran cannot shoulder the Heaven's Will, or if the Heaven's Will wouldn't appear in this generation, then their offspring would be the one to shoulder it.
Chu Xueyu volunteered to marry Jian Chen, saying that their offspring would surely be born blessed by the heavens and would be able to shoulder the Heaven's Will.
She had never really loved her husband, that's why she felt no remorse nor guilt when she killed him and took his Heavenly Sword Dao Bone and implanted it to her son.
With her son's innate gift, along with the Heavenly Sword Dao Bone and the Infinity Dragon God Physique she had later stolen as well.
Her son would surely defy the heavens if he didn't achieve great things.
"I'll take care of it," Chu Xueyu sighed.
Shen Haoran nodded, "Very well. I'll leave it to you, mother. I still have to visit my... fiancée."
With that, he turned his heel and walked out of the hall.
Leaving Chu Xueyu deep in her thoughts.