Mornings in Xuanjing City were usually awakened by the cries of vendors echoing from every street and alley.
But today, a completely different kind of clamor swept through the entire city—not the hawking of spiritual materials or elixirs, but a sound of nearly terrified, suppressed discussion.
"Extra! Extra! Breaking news! The Azure Cloud Sect has been wiped out!"
"W-wiped out! The Azure Cloud Sect!"
"The sect masters of the Upper Three Sects all died in battle, and three great Mahayana experts were beheaded!"
A peddler wearing a rough tunic and trousers, carrying a stack of brand-new broadsheets, shouted himself hoarse as he weaved through the crowd.
The broadsheet in his hand featured a headline printed in thick black ink that was shocking to the eye:
"A Titan of the Donghua Divine Continent Collapses Overnight! Three Great Mahayana Experts of the Azure Cloud Sect Perish! Centennial Celebration Turns into a Slaughterhouse!"
Beside the text was a slightly scribbled illustration depicting the broken Azure Cloud Mountain Range and black energy soaring into the sky.
This shout was like pouring a ladle of cold water into hot oil, instantly detonating the entire Xuanjing City.
"What?! What did you say? The Azure Cloud Sect is destroyed?"
"Are you crazy?! That's the Azure Cloud Sect, the number one sect in our Donghua Divine Continent!"
"Nonsense! I am a disciple of the Azure Cloud Sect!"
Hearing the peddler's shouts, the eyes of some cultivators were filled with disbelief and horror.
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! The Azure Cloud Sect has three Mahayana Patriarchs keeping watch! How could it be destroyed just like that?"
Many cultivators stopped the peddler.
"Give me a paper!"
"Read it! Read it! It's written clearly right here! Qingyunzi, Ling Qing, and Xuan Sha—all three Patriarchs are dead! Not even their divine souls remained! Also, the sect masters and elders of the Scarlet Cloud Sect, the One Origin Sect, and a dozen others all died at the Azure Cloud Sect's celebration!"
Seeing more and more people gathering around, the peddler simply unfolded a broadsheet and shouted while pointing at the text.
The crowd instantly exploded. Countless cultivators surged forward, fighting to buy the report. For a moment, cries of "Ten low-grade spirit stones a copy!" rose and fell, but even the high price couldn't stop the crowd's fanaticism.
"My god... Qingyunzi was a Mahayana realm old monster! How could he..."
"And Elder Ling Qing, his wood-element Daoist magic was perfection, and he was extremely good at defense... how could he have fallen too?"
"It says here it was done by a mysterious mighty figure named Ye Chuan and the remnant of the Yuxu Sect, Bai Qianshuang!"
"The Yuxu Sect! Weren't they wiped out by the Azure Cloud Sect? How is someone still alive?"
"It's said that mysterious mighty figure used a Ten Thousand Soul Banner to swallow the entire Azure Cloud Sect."
"E-evil cultivator..."
...
Meanwhile, many cultivators headed toward the Azure Cloud Mountain Range.
Among them were curious rogue cultivators, disciples of sects that had grudges against the Azure Cloud Sect, and a few elders from neutral forces.
Everyone wanted to see with their own eyes if that colossal sect had truly become a pile of ruins as the report claimed.
Arriving at the foot of the Azure Cloud Mountain Range, everyone was shocked speechless by the scene before them.
The main peak, once shrouded in clouds and mist and dense with spiritual energy, was now broken in half. The mountain body was covered in pitch-black cracks, and the air was filled with the thick smell of blood and scorching.
The archway at the foot of the mountain had long collapsed. Amidst the shattered wood and stone piles, scattered skeletons of Azure Cloud Sect disciples could still be seen.
"Is... is this really the Azure Cloud Sect?" A young rogue cultivator's voice trembled, his eyes full of disbelief.
He had come to the Azure Cloud Sect three years ago to seek medical help. At that time, the sect was majestic and imposing, and the disciples were all arrogant and overbearing. Now, only broken walls and ruins remained, like a purgatory on earth.
The crowd walked up along the broken mountain path. The deeper they went, the more miserable the scene became.
The jade bricks on the plaza were all shattered. The coiled dragon pillars had fallen to the ground, the reliefs on them hacked beyond recognition.
The Azure Cloud Sword at the top of the sacrificial altar was long gone, leaving only a pitch-black sword pit that still retained the aura of chaotic power.
The tragic state of the scene made everyone present frown.
"Look over there!"
A cultivator suddenly pointed to the depths of the main peak, where a palace hall lay half-buried in rubble.
The crowd walked over quickly and pushed open the collapsed palace doors. A nauseating, sweet, and metallic stench pounced on their faces.
The scene inside the hall made everyone gasp.
Dozens of huge bronze cauldrons were placed on the ground. The cauldrons contained a residue of dark red liquid, and the edges were stuck with bits of torn clothing and bones.
The stone walls beside the cauldrons were carved with dense runes. Upon careful examination, it turned out to be the long-banned Soul-Devouring Spirit-Refining Technique!
"This... they were refining cultivator souls into spiritual liquid!" A white-haired elder's expression changed drastically as he pointed at the residue in the cauldron.
"These dark red liquids are spiritual fluids refined from the essence blood and divine souls of cultivators! The Azure Cloud Sect... they were actually doing this kind of dirty business!"
The crowd was in an uproar and gathered around to check.
On the ground beside the bronze cauldrons lay countless cultivator identity tokens. The largest number bore the words "Yuxu Sect," clearly left behind during the massacre of that sect.
"No wonder the Azure Cloud Sect could rise above so many other sects. It turns out they relied on such evil methods!"
The cultivators found it hard to believe.
"They kept claiming the Yuxu Sect was a demonic sect, yet they themselves were doing things even filthier than a demonic sect!"
"Slaughtering the Yuxu Sect wasn't just for their spirit veins and cultivation techniques; it was to seize the divine souls of the Yuxu Sect disciples to refine this evil liquid!" another cultivator added, his eyes full of disdain.
"No wonder the Azure Cloud Sect always wiped out small sects and claimed they were demonic sects. It turns out..."
"Wait, the Azure Cloud Sect even used their own disciples to refine spiritual liquid?" Another cultivator noticed a Azure Cloud Sect disciple's token with the name Zi Ning'er on it.
"This seems to be a Direct Disciple?"
In the crowd, a few surviving outer sect disciples of the Azure Cloud Sect slumped to the ground, looking at the scene before them, seemingly unable to believe it.
This...
They had always thought their sect was a model of the righteous path, but they never expected such a dirty secret to be hidden behind it.
"So... the Azure Cloud Sect was actually such a heretical and demonic sect..."
"How could this be..."
"Urgh..."
The news quickly spread back to Xuanjing City, shaking the entire Donghua Divine Continent.
Cultivators who originally had complaints about Ye Chuan's act of exterminating the sect now fell silent. Compared to the Azure Cloud Sect's atrocity of refining cultivators, Ye Chuan's revenge had instead become an act of enforcing justice on behalf of Heaven.
The broadsheets in Xuanjing City were updated again. The front-page headline changed to "Secret Demonic Hall Discovered in Azure Cloud Sect Ruins, Soul-Devouring Spirit-Refining Technique Exposed to the World."
The article described the scene in the hall in detail, accompanied by illustrations of the bronze cauldrons and runes. For a time, curses against the Azure Cloud Sect covered the earth, while the names of Ye Chuan and Bai Qianshuang changed from evil cultivators to righteous people clearing away sin.
The news of the Azure Cloud Sect's destruction also reached the ears of certain people.
Inside a certain palace hall, a figure was sitting in a seat, with a newspaper placed before her.
"Yuxu Sect, Bai Qianshuang...?" The figure saw the content on the publication and slowly lifted her face.
That stunningly beautiful face was actually identical to Bai Qianshuang's!
"..."
"Master..."
agon king storylines. At the start, I obtained the "Ultimate Lackey System" - the more I act as a lackey, the stronger I become. What else could I do? I chose to become the personal henchman of the ultimate villain, Su Muwan. I provoke all sorts of chosen ones, snatch away their opportunities, and commit every evil deed imaginable. You ask who's behind me? Hmph! You're not worthy of knowing my lady's name! ...... ....... I am Su Muwan, the eldest daughter of the Su family. Since childhood, I've possessed extraordinary talent in martial arts, which led to my arrogant and domineering personality in my past life. I was even foolish enough to repeatedly challenge those favored by heaven, ultimately resulting in a tragic death. In this life, I must behave and absolutely cannot walk the same path again!! However... SLAP!! "So you're the Dragon King, huh?!" When I saw my little lackey swagger over and viciously slap the Dragon King who was hiding his identity, I felt my heart sink. Su Muwan's suspended heart finally died as she watched Qin Luo, her utterly loyal lackey, standing before her. She fainted on the spot from shock. Heaven is determined to destroy me!! (Pure love 1v1, light-hearted, no angst, single female lead, villain, reincarnation, lackey)
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
