________________________________________________________________
Author's Note:
Welcome, readers! I am a new writer, so there may be a few errors here and there. Constructive feedback and corrections in the comments are always appreciated. Thank you for your support
________________________________________________________________
[The Dream]
High upon the desolate mountain cliffs, a young man stood conversing with a spectral woman. They were Su Changhe and the soul entity, Su Zain.
"So, just because he is the 'Son of Destiny,' you expect me to act as his servant? After everything he has done to me?" Su Changhe demanded, his voice laced with venom.
"No, that's not what I mean," Su Zain replied, her form shimmering in the mist.
"If that's not what you mean, then what is it?" Su Changhe roared, his anger finally boiling over.
"You know exactly what he did! He stole my master, my lover, and my junior sister! And that's not all—every vile act he committed, from peeping on the women of our sect to stealing pills and sacred treasures, he pinned entirely on me!"
"He is chosen by the world," Su Zain cut in coldly, her ethereal form unyielding. "He is the Son of Destiny. If you continue to fight him, you will lose, just like you always have. And this time, you will die."
Su Changhe stared at her for a moment before bursting into a fit of manic, unbroken laughter. The sound echoed across the cliffs like the howling of a madman.
"I will lose like always?" he mocked, wiping a tear of mirth from his eye. "Don't you know the truth? For the past hundred years, he has lost to me at every turn! If it weren't for my lover, my teacher, and my junior sister constantly shielding him with their lives, I would have killed him a thousand times over!"
Su Zain opened her mouth to argue, but Su Changhe waved her off dismissively. "I'm bored of this. It was my own foolish mistake to fall in love with my master and my junior sister. They exploited my affection to pave the way for their true lover. I am going into eternal slumber. But hear this: if I am ever given another chance, I will show you all exactly what happens when a good person is forced to become a villain."
With those final words, he turned his back on her and walked away into the fog. Su Zain stood frozen in silence. Slowly, the figures of his former lover, his master, and his junior sister emerged from the shadows of the cliff, staring silently at the empty space where Su Changhe had just vanished.
[The Dream Ends]
"Young Master! Young Master, please wake up!"
Su Changhe jolted awake at the frantic voice. His eyes snapped open, blazing with residual fury. "Who dares to disturb this Emperor's slumber?!"
The servant instantly lunged forward, clapping a trembling hand over Su Changhe's mouth. "Young Master, please keep your voice down!" the boy pleaded, his eyes wide with terror. "Even if you want to rebel against the Peak Master, you cannot say such things openly!"
Su Changhe shoved the hand away, sitting bolt upright. He stared at the trembling servant.
"Shen Hao Nan? You... you're alive?"
Realization crashed into him like a tidal wave. This wasn't the afterlife. He looked at his own hands, feeling the vibrant pulse of youthful Qi flowing through his meridians.
He threw his head back and laughed. It wasn't a dream. He had actually traveled back to the past!
Shen Hao Nan took a nervous step back, waiting for the fit of laughter to subside before bowing deeply. "Young Master, your master, Ye Sha, has summoned you."
Su Changhe's laughter faded into a cold, calculating smirk. Why was I sent back? Who chose me? It doesn't matter. This time, everything will be different.
"I understand," Su Changhe said aloud, swinging his legs out of bed. "I am leaving now."
As he dressed in his grand sect robes, his mind raced. It doesn't matter how I returned. All I need to do is crush Ye Fan. As for the others who betrayed me... I will take my time playing with them, too.
[Ye Sha Peak]
Su Changhe stood before the massive stone doors of his master's secluded cave. "Disciple Su Changhe requests an audience with Master Ye," he announced.
"Come in," a cold, melodic voice drifted out from the depths.
As he stepped inside, the rich, intoxicating scent of spirit flowers washed over him. The entire cavern had been transformed into a glowing, ethereal garden. These were priceless botanical treasures—and he had planted every single one of them with his own two hands out of pure devotion to her.
A self-deprecating smile touched his lips. In his past life, she had carelessly dug up this entire garden and gifted it to Ye Fan, simply because the 'Son of Destiny' had asked for them.
He walked down the corridor, stopping just outside her inner chamber. He took a slow, grounding breath. I repaid all my debts to you with my death, my dear Master. In this life, we are nothing more than strangers.
Stepping through the bead curtain, he laid eyes on the woman he once loved—and now hated—more than anyone else in the world.
Ye Sha was breathtakingly beautiful. Her expression was famously frosty, her skin as flawless and pale as milk. She wore a fitted light-blue and white Daoist dress that clung perfectly to her elegant curves, accentuating her long legs and alluring figure.
Ye Sha opened her piercing eyes, looking at him with her usual icy detachment. "Tomorrow, the sect will hold its disciple recruitment ceremony. You will attend and represent our peak."
Su Changhe met her gaze without a hint of his former warmth. "As you wish, Master," he replied evenly.
He turned and departed without another word.
However, the moment his back was turned, the icy facade on Ye Sha's face melted away. She watched his retreating figure, her eyes swirling with a sudden, intense complexity.
"In this life, I will protect you," she whispered softly to the empty room. Then, her gaze darkened into something deeply possessive and terrifyingly cold. "And in this lifetime... you will belong only to me, Su Changhe."
Unaware of his master's dark declaration, Su Changhe returned to his own pavilion. At the entrance, he paused and glanced at the door attendants.
"Go to Master's hall and dig up every single spirit flower I planted there. Move them all to my peak," he ordered casually. The disciples quickly bowed to obey. He wasn't going to leave a single petal behind for Ye Fan this time.
Back in his private chambers, he sat on his jade bed and examined his cultivation base. He was currently at the 4th Layer of the Golden Core Realm. However, possessing the legendary Dual Pupils made him practically invincible against anyone in the same realm. He could even exchange blows with early-stage Nascent Soul experts and walk away unscathed.
He was Su Changhe—the undisputed number one genius of the Lower Realm and the Holy Son of the continent's strongest sect. His background was absolutely monstrous. His father was an Emperor and one of the ten strongest cultivators in the world. His mother controlled unimaginable wealth, hailing from one of the Eight Ancient Families.
In terms of talent and backing, he was peerless. Yet, the Heavens had somehow deemed him nothing more than a stepping stone for their precious 'Chosen One.'
If the Heavens want me to play the villain, Su Changhe thought, his Dual Pupils gleaming with a dangerous, chaotic light, then I will become the greatest villain this world has ever seen. I will tear the Heavens down.
[The Next Day]
Su Changhe ended his meditation session. Today was the recruitment ceremony. More importantly, today was the day the Son of Destiny, Ye Fan, would officially join the sect—guided in by none other than Su Changhe's own treacherous fiancée.
"Oh, Ye Fan," Su Changhe murmured, adjusting his golden sleeves. "I have prepared such a wonderful gift for you."
He made his way to the grand sect square. A massive crowd of outer disciples and hopeful recruits had gathered around the martial platforms. Elders stood at the edges, maintaining strict order. High above the arena, seated on the VIP pavilion, were the Sect Master and the Peak Masters.
When Su Changhe stepped onto the pavilion, the Sect Master stroked his beard and chuckled. "It seems our Holy Son has finally decided to emerge from his secluded cultivation!"
The surrounding elders laughed good-naturedly.
"Su Changhe greets the Sect Leader and the honorable Elders," he said smoothly, offering a flawless bow before taking his designated seat.
"So, you are representing the Third Peak today, child?" the First Elder asked warmly.
"Yes, First Grandpa," Su Changhe replied, using his affectionate title for the old man. "My master is at a critical juncture in her breakthrough, so I am here in her stead."
"I thought perhaps you came to see the rumors for yourself," the Second Elder chimed in, his eyes narrowing slightly. "There is a boy entering the trials today who possesses a Supreme Bone. There is an old saying, after all... the owner of a Supreme Bone stands on equal footing with one who bears the Dual Pupils."
Su Changhe's expression turned utterly disdainful. "He is just a thief who stole his own brother's bone. Does a rat who scavenges for scraps truly think he can stand shoulder to shoulder with me as an equal?"
The pavilion fell into a stunned silence.
The First Elder frowned, his protective instincts flaring. "Do you have a grudge against this boy? If he offends you, we simply won't accept him into the sect."
"A grudge?" Su Changhe scoffed lightly, casually sipping his spirit tea. "He is not worthy of my grudge."
He gestured down to the arena below. "Let us just watch the competition, Sect Master, Grandpas."
"Yes, yes, let us watch," the First Elder agreed, waving his hand as the elders turned their attention back to the fights.
Down below, the martial trials had reached their climax.
"The winner of the semifinal round is... Ye Fan!" the outer elder announced, his voice booming across the square through Qi amplification.
"Now... let the finals begin!"
To be continued...