I Am the Fated Villain
chapter-408

Upon Bai Lian’er’s words, Jun Fan nodded as he began to think of a way to persuade her. Nonetheless, at this moment, he suddenly detected a minor change in the terrain of the mountains around him.

“What is this?” Bai Lian’er furrowed her brows as she also sensed the same disturbance.

“Bufan, is that you?” A vague, hollow voice sounded and entered the ears of Jun Fan and Bai Lian’er.

“T—That’s Ruoxi’s voice!”

“Is that you, Ruoxi?” Hearing the voice, Jun Fan was dazed for a moment before appearing delighted as he asked. He was planning to look for Jun Ruoxi, but the pleasant surprise was that she found him first. He might have not heard the voice for over six thousand years, but it felt ever so familiar to him.

“Ruoxi, it’s me. Where are you right now?” Jun Fan’s voice contained uncontrollable happiness and excitement.

“Follow the voice, and you will find me.” The vague, hollow voice sounded again, also filled with joy and thrill.

“Jun Ruoxi…” Bai Lian’er’s eyes subtly changed. She then followed Jun Fei to track down the voice and followed it to its source.

…

At that moment, in the depths of the Life Forbidden Area, there was a short bluestone ancient well with steam of purple mists gushing deeper into the well. Inside of this well, there was a figure sitting in the air, which seemed to be cultivating and also sealed within at the same time.

The figure belonged to a woman, who was so still that she wasn’t showing any sign of life. Her skin was as fair as snow and her unkempt white hair concealed her face. If any cultivators were here, they would be stunned. The water flowing in the bluestone ancient well was of divine origins, creating vibrant mists and mysterious interlocking Principles with it.

Furthermore, the surrounding aura was immensely chaotic and terrifying. Even a cultivator in the Sacred Realm would be instantaneously blown up into ashes upon laying foot into the well. But, there was a shockingly strong aura of life coming from the ancient well, which resembled the legendary Fountain of Life.

In that instant, the white-haired woman had her eyes shut, remaining very still, though she seemed as though she was about to open her eyes. Finally, a pair of frightening heavenly beams were dazzlingly shot out of her eyes, harbouring the devastating might of the gods.

“Bufan, you’re finally here. I’ve been waiting for you for six thousand years.” The gaze of the woman grew benign. She seemed to have a hard time moving as she remained seated.

“Ruoxi, are you in the well?”

Accordingly, Jun Fan’s surprised voice was heard. He swiftly arrived at the place as he followed the voice, but all he found was an ancient well. Jun Ruoxi was nowhere to be seen. This made him stupefied.

Standing behind him, Bai Lian’er was holding a jade-like photographic stone underneath her sleeves, silently recording the surroundings and etching them into the stone. She noticed that the ancient well was quite unusual, as though it harboured endless lifeforce given even the vapour from it celestial energy, which even caused slight fluctuations in her cultivation level.

As a matter of fact, she had been stuck in the Peak Sacred King Realm for many years without any signs of a breakthrough. Yet, she felt a wondrous sensation upon encountering this well, which left her very startled. [What’s hiding beneath this well? Is Jun Ruoxi really down there?]

“I’m here. But, Bufan, don’t get too close. You can’t do that given your current cultivation level,” Jun Ruoxi, who was deep inside the well, stated in response to Jun Fan’s question. Her eyes were gentle as usual. Though there was only emptiness in the air before her, her gaze seemed to have fallen upon Jun Fan’s face.

“Understood, Ruoxi.” Jun Fan nodded, though his heart remained tense as he could also feel the wondrous sensation rising from the ancient well. Quickly, as he remembered the important purpose he came here for, he was about to warn Jun Ruoxi to keep her guards up.

However, before he could speak a word, Jun Ruoxi shook her head and said, “I know what you wish to tell me. As long as I’m down here, no one will be able to find me. None shall find me unless I desire to see them myself. The contract I made with Yao Xi back then was merely to hold her off.”

“I know you are confused, but it’s not the time for explanations yet. All you need to know is that you can only find father by opening the Gates of Death with a key, and only by then can you ask him for the truth. There is not much I can tell you.”

Hearing that, Jun Fan was absolutely dumbfounded. [Is there some kind of unknown secret behind the incident six thousand years ago? Is there a deeper story to Yao Xi’s assassination of me and my resurrection?]

“What key are you talking about, and where are the Gates of Death you mentioned?’ Extremely perplexed, Jun Fan was overwhelmed by thoughts.

“I believe Father has passed down the key to you. As for the Gates of Death, I, too, am clueless about where it is. Only the holder of the key may find the Gates of Death,” Jun Ruoxi slowly claimed.

“Gates of Life, Gates of Death… Ruoxi, is the well you’re in perhaps the Gates of Life?” Jun Fan subconsciously asked as he suddenly recalled a phrase from his father, ‘In through the Gates of Death; out through the Gates of Life.’

Back then, he even deliberately asked his father about the phrase’s meaning, but the latter merely laughed it off without giving an explanation. And now, these two matters seemed to share a significant correlation.

Upon those words, Jun Ruoxi nodded and replied, “You’re right. As of now, I’m in charge of guarding the Gates of Life, so until it opens, I won’t be able to take one step out of here. There’s not much time for me left. Hurry, look for father, he probably has something important to pass on to you.”

As Bai Lian’er listened to the conversation, the suspicion in her heart grew even deeper. She was aware of the rumours in Demon World regarding the existence of two gates, the Gates of Life and the Gates of Death. They were the set-up by Absolute Beings of the Demon Race in ancient times. They harboured countless arrays that were enigmatic. They also took the lives of countless careless wanderers. In fact, these two gates also carried the greatest secret of Demon World.

Out of nowhere, she grew curious given how Jun Ruoxi obviously knew something, and it seemed the disappearance of the Six Demon Overlords was more than meets the eye.

In other words, her father’s life as a refugee for such a long time, her mother’s death. All of these were related to the Six Demon Overlords. All this time, her father so foolishly saw the Solar Demon Lord as someone akin to his own brother, guarded the brocade bag for over six thousand years, and at last, ordered her to send it to Jun Bufan. He did all that for someone who used him as a pawn.

It made the past six thousand years of hardship, living life in hiding, a cruel joke.

With that in mind, Bai Lian’er’s face grew colder.

Separated by the ancient well, Jun Fan and Jun Ruoxi began to reminisce and catch up about the recent years, while Bai Lian’er icily witnessed their exchange as she grasped the photographic stone in her eyes.

For a minute, Bai Lian’er was worried that Jun Ruoxi might notice something off about her, but fortunately, the jade talisman appeared to have worked its magic as it evidently prevented Jun Ruoxi from detecting her inconspicuous gestures.

Bai Lian’er’s gaze was faint. Just a while ago, Jun Fan was even contemplating whether or not to rescue her father, as if he never considered it before.

To her, compared to Gu Changge and his apathy, Jun Fan was more insufferable.

Followingly, Jun Fan and Jun Ruoxi parted ways as the former was headed to find the Quelling Chaos King.

As he requested, Bai Lian’er hid herself in the void without showing herself. Simultaneously, she summoned out her Dharma Body to transfer the photographic stone to Gu Changge in order to fulfil Gu Changge’s order.

Eventually, the clearing of the Life Forbidden Area came to its end. Despite having led a big army to scour the entire area, the Quelling Chaos King found no traces of Jun Ruoxi and Jun Bufan and could only give up on the search.

Nevertheless, he believes that Jun Ruoxi and Jun Bufan must have received news regarding his arrival before fleeing. Although he was disappointed, he wasn’t at all surprised, given that the two were no fools that would linger around and wait for their enemies to capture them.

However, Jun Fan, instead of returning to the capital with the army, intended to locate the Gates of Death. According to Jun Ruoxi, his father left the key to the Gates of Death for him, and only with the key could he find where the Gates of Death was.

As for the location of the key, he had a good guess. In the meantime, he opened the brocade bag the Solar Demon Overlord left behind for him, only to find himself stunned by the message carried within it. After regaining his senses, he caught himself perturbed by his emotions and his heart overwhelmed by feelings, be it relief, anger, reluctance, or confusion.

He let out a final, long sigh. [If the brocade bag carries the truth, everything so far has been a huge misunderstanding. Then, is there even a point in revenge?]

…

“Your Majesty, a few soldiers and I have been clearing the Life Forbidden Area for a week now, but the tracks of Jun Ruoxi and Jun Bufan remain to be unseen. I suspect that, instead of staying around, they’ve escaped a long time ago. Please forgive my tardiness, Your Majesty.”

In the dazzling, spectacular palace, the Quelling Chaos King, who returned from the Life Forbidden Area, was reporting his findings.

Donning a phoenix dress, Empress Yao Xi was sitting on her throne, and upon the report, her expression became peculiar. It carried a hint of anger veiled in coldness as she remained wordless.

Meanwhile, the faces of the rest in the palace were awfully solemn as their foreheads were wetted by cold sweat. Not daring to make a sound, they could tell that Empress Yao Xi was not in a good mood. Even the Grand Tutor and the Military Commander kept quiet as they silently watched the scene before them unfold.

In that instant, the forehead of the Quelling Chaos King was sweating profusely. In his eyes, it was his incompetence that brought upon the Empress’s fury.

“Men, take the Quelling Chaos King down and put him into prison. Capture all under his command, and kill anyone that dares disobey!”

The next moment, Empress Yao Xi’s stone cold voice suddenly sounded, possessing unrelenting ruthlessness and murderous intent.

Hearing that, everyone in the palace was dumbfounded. As if they were struck by a giant, golden bell, their minds went blank amid violent rings. Widening their eyes in stupefaction, they revealed a dramatic expression of dismay, unable to believe that the Empress had voiced such a command.

As a matter of fact, the Quelling Chaos King was the Empress’s most competent servant, as though he was the sharp blade that won her countless victories and eliminated all obstacles before her. In other words, the Quelling Chaos King’s contributions to Empress Yao Xi’s achievements today was unignorable.

Nonetheless, now, over such a trivial matter, she was punishing not only the Quelling Chaos King himself, but also all of his personnel. Such a punishment only occurred a few times over the past six thousand years, and it was for the most abysmal, treacherous sins committed by the remaining Five Demon Overlords. As such, the rest couldn’t help but think that Empress Yao Xi was trying to eliminate him due to his growing influence.

“Your Majesty, what is this…” The Quelling Chaos King’s face drastically changed, as he even began to doubt her ears, given that it was highly unreasonable of Empress Yao Xi to punish him so severely over such a trivial matter.

“See for yourself.” In that instant, Empress Yao Xi, having composed herself, tossed a delicate photographic stone to the Quelling Chaos King.

Filled with suspicion, the Quelling Chaos King picked it up and concentrated on it. With that, right when he saw the first footage of the stone, he came to his senses as his face instantly paled into a white visage.

*Thump!* His fingers were trembling. As he couldn’t hold the photographic stone steadily, he immediately dropped it to the floor.

“I-Impossible…” His voice shivered as he was unable to believe his eyes. Given his current cultivation level, he could discern whether the footage of the photographic stone was real.

Upon the sight, everyone in the palace grew fearful. Although the footage merely flashed for a split second, they clearly saw what was shown, hence understanding what it indicated. After a moment of shock, they turned to the Quelling Chaos King with sympathetic and sentimental expressions.

“How can this be…” The Grand Tutor let out a sigh. [No one would have thought Jun Fan, the third son of the Quelling Chaos King, would hold such an identity. How terrifying!]

“What do you have to say for yourself?” Empress Yao Xi said with a stone cold face. “You truly disappoint me.”

With a dispirited, disbelieving face, the Quelling Chaos King could only let out a bitter chuckle, sitting on the floor without a care in his mind. It didn’t matter whether the revelation was related to him. All the foundations he had spent millenia building were now brought to ruin.

“I haven’t a single clue about this.” Even now, his mind was still in a blank state as he was overwhelmed by dismay. He never expected the true identity of his third son, Jun Fan, to be Jun Bufan, the heir of the Solar Demon Overlord six thousand years ago. The news thoroughly stunned him.

In the palace, the higher-ups were visibly troubled as they were too taken aback by the relevance of the matter.

[No wonder, Jun Ruoxi would disappear in the Life Forbidden Area. Jun Bufan must have warned her beforehand.]

Everyone was dumbfounded by Jun Fan’s perfectly hidden secret and how he managed to keep it unravelled for so many years. It appeared that it was also Jun Fan who orchestrated Empress Yao Xi’s assassination some time ago. Feeling chills up their spines, the crowd thought that they would still be blind to the truth if Empress Yao Xi did not reveal the evidence.

Accordingly, the Quelling Chaos King was dragged to prison. As someone in the Sacred EKing Realm, he could easily shake the constriction off if he wanted, but doing that would only imply that he was on Jun Bufan’s side, so he didn’t dare to move recklessly as he obediently cooperated with the guards.

“What happened here today stays here. Violators will be executed by solicitation and treachery.” Empress Yao Xi swept the crowd with a stony glare before getting up and leaving the palace.

“Farewell, Your Majesty.” The Grand Tutor and rest could only don bitter grins as they peered at each other, not daring to go against the Empress’s will. If such news were to spread to the outside world, a great turmoil would definitely erupt. Though, the confinement of the Quelling Chaos King and his entire personnel was no small event, and any vigilant one would certainly figure something was up.

Meanwhile, in another palace, Gu Changge was leisurely drinking his tea, seemingly especially unbothered.

At that moment, an ambiguous figure standing before him, bearing semblance no different to that of Bai Lian’er. It was her Dharma Body, who was currently answering Gu Changge’s questions.

“That is all. I can’t convince you any further if you don’t believe me,” Bai Lian’er’s Dharma Body blandly stated. It was also her who brought back the photographic stone.

“Oh, Lady Lian’er. How can I not believe you?” Gu Changge laughed in response. “The Gates of Life, the Gates of Death, and their keys. It seems the biggest secret of Demon World is about to surface.”

“Were Jun Bufan a little smarter, he would have realised that you betrayed him, but I already told Yao Xi to forbid all higher-ups from spreading the word, so we can still contain it for a while. So, Jun Bufan won’t suspect you just yet,” Gu Changge then continued.

“Oh, should I thank you for your consideration?” Bai Lian’er scoffed.

Gu Changge shook his head and replied, “Oh, don’t be courteous, Lady Lian’er. No need for that between the two of us.”

Losing the patience to entertain him, Bai Lian’er rolled her eyes on him.

Suddenly, footsteps could be heard coming from outside the palace. Empress Yao Xi was coming, and she swiftly identified Bai Lian’er, given that they were quite acquainted. In her eyes, Bai Lian’er was once nothing but Jun Bufan’s lapdog. She was nothing more than a fragile, pitiful busybody. None would have assumed that she was the emotionless woman now.

“As you requested, I have imprisoned the Quelling Chaos King as well as his family.” Straight to the point, Empress Yao Xi withdrew her gaze after taking a glance at Bai Lian’er.

On the other hand, Bai Lian’er had no interest in even looking at her, treating her as an unknown stranger. If it weren’t for Gu Changge, she wouldn’t have come to the imperial palace.

“Mm, alright.” Gu Changge nodded without giving any explanation.

Although Empress Yao Xi was somewhat baffled, as tactful as she was, she knew not to question him. In her opinion, the Quelling Chaos King was undoubtedly oblivious to Jun Fan’s true identity. Since he was ignorant, he should be innocent as well. Knowing this, Yao Xi knew that she could not bring herself to really throw her anger at the Quelling Chaos King.

After all, it was the Quelling Chaos King who helped her secure the throne after a great deal of effort. She was also not an ungrateful and unfaithful woman. However, since Gu Changge asked for the confinement of the Quelling Chaos King and his family, she, naturally did as he asked.

“How did you get Bai Lian’er to cooperate with you?” Though, one thing confused Empress Yao Xi. From what she knew, Bai Lian’er’s relationship with Jun Bufan was the same as that of a pair of siblings. Yet, Bai Lian’er was willing to sell Jun Bufan out and become Gu Changge’s spy, handing the photographic stone to her.

“Of course, it’s all thanks to Lady Lian’er’s wisdom and rationalism as well as her sense of justice,” Gu Changge smilingly answered.

“Of course, it’s all thanks to this scum threatening me with my father’s life.” Bai Lian’er sneered and interrupted Gu Changge before turning to Empress Yao Xi and coldly stated. “You’d think I’d be so kind as to help you?”

Hearing that, Empress Yao Xi revealed an expression that insinuated her knowledge regarding the real reason.