T/N: You can view the original illustration on JJWXC here: https://www.jjwxc.net/onebook.php?novelid=4941970. Use Ctrl+ Scroll to zoom if needed.)
(In order)
-
主角: Main Character/Protagonist
——
-
离玉: Li Yu (The Protagonist)
-
慕陶: Mu Tao
——
-
配角: Supporting Characters
——
-
司青岚: Si Qinglan (Supporting Character)
-
墨夷初: Mo Yichu (Supporting Character)
-
微生玄烛: Weisheng Xuanzhu (Supporting Character)
-
秦鸢: Qin Yuan (Supporting Character)
-
向寒玉: Xiang Hanyu (Supporting Character)
-
言不秋: Yan Buqiu (Supporting Character)
-
青女: Qing Nü (Supporting Character)
Chapter 1: This Is Hardcore Mode!
Li Yu had a strange dream.
In the dream, she sat on her bed, laptop burning her thighs, revising a proposal that had been rejected just before she left work. She finally finished the revisions, but before she could submit them, she was told it was no longer needed.
The project she had fought so hard for was taken away, no handover, no explanation.
Before she even had a chance to discuss her resignation date, her department head had kicked her out of every work chat group.
She was locked out of the company building.
Her former colleagues looked at her with indifference, like strangers on the street, as if they had never shared a moment of camaraderie.
Well, she thought, consider it a mini-vacation.
She wandered into a bookstore, tucked herself into a corner, and started reading a novel by the dim light of her phone screen.
The bookstore’s sound system seemed to be malfunctioning, emitting strange noises.
It sounded like someone talking, but the voice was distorted by a metallic, electronic buzz, like something coming from the sewers, fragmented and unintelligible.
She didn’t know what the sound meant, why the bookstore was so dark, or why she was using her phone’s screen light when she had a perfectly good flashlight function.
The novel in her hands had reached its climax.
In a daze, she saw the woman from the book, dressed in fiery red, yet with a heart as cold as ice.
The once magnificent scenery of Mount Chao Yao was no more.
The woman in red snapped her sword in two and walked towards her, step by step.
“Master always told me to endure, to yield, to break every bone in my body rather than lose my good heart.”
“You said that was my true nature, that no matter what happened, as long as my true nature remained, there would always be a place for me on Chao Yao…”
“I once believed that wholeheartedly.”
“But Master, you never truly intended to save me.”
Her words were laced with resentment, filled with the ashes of a heart that could no longer be rekindled.
“There are some things I understood too late…”
“Those born as demons, their true nature is evil. The kindness and compassion you speak of, Master, were taught to me word by word by you – now that you no longer acknowledge me, I can no longer hold onto them.”
Everything before her seemed shrouded in mist.
She couldn’t see the woman’s face clearly, but she felt connected to the woman’s thoughts.
This woman, who had endured countless hardships to be reborn, finally let go of her unrealistic fantasies and pointed her broken sword at the righteous master she had respected most in her life, the one who had always been indifferent to her suffering.
At the moment of the matricide, the senior brother who had promised to always trust and protect her looked at her with eyes like frozen blood.
Filled with hatred, bone-chillingly cold.
—As if he wished he had never had anything to do with her.
Her senior brother was no longer her senior brother, but someone who would forever walk a different path.
This is it, then, she thought.
I no longer need to expect anyone to protect me.
From now on, I am the unrivaled demon of this world.
All living beings who loathe me, as long as they still breathe, will be subservient to me.
I can fight for anything I want.
And those I can’t let go of, I can keep them by my side, to toy with, to cherish, for as long as I please.
How wonderful.
As long as I’m the villain, I won’t lose anything anymore.
All the images froze at this moment.
Stabbed inexplicably, she looked down at her chest, pierced through by the broken sword, and felt an indescribable, dull ache slowly welling up in her heart.
…
Li Yu gasped as she woke up.
She hadn’t even seen the woman’s face clearly, but she still felt the sting of that sword, stealing her breath. Even though she was conscious, her chest still ached faintly.
It was just a novel she had skimmed through a few days ago, and yet it had invaded her dreams and stabbed her while she was half-dead from exhaustion.
How outrageous!
She had every right to suspect this was a premonition of sudden death from overwork!
Yes, unemployment was the dream, working overtime was the reality.
The thought of submitting the proposal she had slaved over all weekend, only to likely be criticized again, made her deeply regret that today wasn’t the end of the world.
Regret aside, she still had to go to her wretched job.
Li Yu’s eyelashes fluttered, and she slowly opened her eyes.
Everything before her seemed… a little bit off.
She was in an unfamiliar room, dressed in flowing, ethereal ancient robes, sitting cross-legged on an antique bed.
Snow was falling outside the window, but the room was warm.
She lowered her gaze to see a pair of delicate hands, whiter than her own, forming an unfamiliar hand gesture, resting lightly on her knees.
A soft, misty blue aura swirled around her, clinging to her like silk.
“How are you feeling? Any better?”
An impatient, unfamiliar voice came from beside her. Li Yu flinched, quickly supporting herself with her left hand on the bed as she turned to look towards the source of the sound. The moment she shifted, the gentle blue aura dissipated.
But that was unimportant. What mattered was that she saw the owner of the voice.
The woman wore a flowing, layered water-green robe. Her long black hair was braided and trailed to the ground, adorned only with flowers and leaves. Her features were delicate, her face small. She looked no older than twenty, as beautiful and unreal as a mountain spirit from the Chu Ci poems [T/N: Chu Ci is an anthology of ancient Chinese poems, known for its romantic and fantastical imagery].
Li Yu stared, mesmerized, a single thought echoing in her mind—Who are you, beautiful stranger?!
“What’s with that look?” The mountain spirit walked to the bedside, hands on her hips. “Let me make this clear, I’m not concerned about you! I’m just worried that if your injuries don’t heal soon, Weisheng will go into hibernation, and I can’t possibly hold Chao Yao up on my own, can I?”
Huh?
What is this mountain spirit talking about?
Li Yu’s mind went blank. She glanced around the room, then back at the mountain spirit, asking in bewilderment, “Hibernation…Weisheng? Weisheng Xuanzhu?”
“Who else?” the mountain spirit retorted.
Li Yu paused, tentatively asking, “Si Qinglan?”
“What?” The beautiful mountain spirit responded, surprise in her voice. “Why are you calling me that so formally? You’re acting very strange today.”
Mount Chao Yao, Si Qinglan, Weisheng Xuanzhu—these names were all from a novel called Demon Bone.
Mount Chao Yao was where the female protagonist grew up.
Si Qinglan and Weisheng Xuanzhu were the immortal guardians of this sacred mountain. Together with the protagonist’s master, Li Yu, they were known as the Three Revered Ones of Chao Yao.
They sounded cool and powerful, but they all ended up dead!
The dream she just had was a climactic scene from the novel.
—The protagonist killing her master, shattering the heart of Chao Yao.
So, hadn’t she just dreamed this?
Why was it happening again, with even clearer visuals, as soon as she opened her eyes?
Li Yu muttered, “The weird dream is still chasing me…”
Si Qinglan: “What dream? Who’s chasing you?”
Li Yu opened her mouth, but didn’t answer.
Because a mechanical voice rang out in her head.
【Ding——】
【System connecting to data.】
Li Yu: ?
【Data connection complete!】
【Welcome to the world of the novel Demon Bone.】
This…this wasn’t right!
Had something gone wrong?
【Host has successfully bound to the optimal character: Jiao of the West Sea, Head of the Three Revered Ones of Chao Yao, Master of the Divine Artifact, and Master of the female protagonist Mu Tao—Cangming Revered One, Li Yu, the Exalted Immortal!】
Li Yu: …
Wow, how impressive! Such a grand title, yet still destined to be stabbed to death by the protagonist?
【Mission: Replace Li Yu, the Exalted Immortal, and experience the main storyline of Demon Bone. Strive to survive until the end and successfully rewrite the final ending.】
Wait a minute! Wasn’t this novel a happy ending?
The female protagonist got everything she wanted in the end. The entire Three Realms were her plaything. Why was there a need to rewrite the ending?
【The system detected that although Mu Tao, the protagonist of Demon Bone, achieved everything after her descent into darkness, she was not happy at all, and therefore, in the unwritten parts of the story, she destroyed the entire world—The host’s mission is to prevent this outcome!】
Li Yu: …?
A rather abstract mission. A simple reading comprehension exercise suggests the goal is to prevent the protagonist’s blackening and make her happy.
In the original text, because she possessed the Demon Bone, the protagonist suffered immensely in the early stages. Her originally innocent heart slowly blackened until she finally became a Demon God, personally tormenting those who had hurt or ignored her.
The power of the demon allowed her to reclaim everything, even the male protagonist, whom she had only dared to yearn for secretly. She crippled his cultivation and kept him imprisoned by her side, indulging in a twisted game of forced love, ruthlessly trampling on his pride and self-respect.
Many readers found this act of revenge satisfying, but the protagonist wasn’t happy enough, to the point of destroying the world.
In summary, it wasn’t difficult to see that although the protagonist possessed everything, she had lost true love!
One must understand, this “loooovveee” is something a thousand times, ten thousand times more important than the common people in Xianxia novels! [T/N: Xianxia is a genre of Chinese fantasy literature, often featuring immortal cultivation and romance.]
What in this world could be more painful than losing love?
Even a worker toiling away all night, only to wake up inexplicably transported into a novel and forced into the high-risk occupation of “Master,” essentially working for free – compared to the loss of love, it was but a trifle, right? Right?!
【Host…】
This is kidnapping!
This is utterly kidnapping!!!
【Host, please don’t get excited. This is not unpaid work!】
【The system has prepared generous rewards for the host. As long as the host successfully completes all missions, you can bring them all back to the real world!】
Li Yu: …How generous?
【Absolutely enough to guarantee the host a car, a house, money to burn, endless food, drink, fun, and security for sickness and old age—a comfortable life of leisure!】
Li Yu: !!!
Oh dear, I’m shamefully tempted!
The easily manipulated life of a worthless worker often begins with their easily discernible “poverty.”
【Next, the system will issue the novice mission——】
Wait a minute!
She had just finished a proposal after working all night! She wasn’t mentally prepared for a new task!
Li Yu: “Quiet down for a moment. Let me catch my breath!”
Si Qinglan: “Huh?”
Li Yu: “Not talking to you!”
Si Qinglan: “…”
There were only two people in the room. Si Qinglan was certain she had been snubbed.
Considering that this perpetually icy-faced woman was notoriously difficult to get along with, Si Qinglan took a deep breath and chose to endure, rolling her eyes dramatically.
However, this eye-roll didn’t make Li Yu…
More accurately, it didn’t make “Li Yu” feel any remorse.
That’s right, that was her name now.
But she was still in a daze, her just-awakened mind still booting up, struggling to process everything.
Although it felt surreal, she had transmigrated into a book.
Without ever criticizing the novel’s values, insulting the author, or even leaving a single comment, she had transmigrated—and into the doomed master who was destined to be stabbed to death by the protagonist.
The protagonist of this novel was named Mu Tao. She possessed a Demon Bone but grew up on a sacred mountain, a place that couldn’t tolerate her, a demon wolf forced to have her teeth and claws filed down, trained into a docile puppy.
There were only two people she trusted and loved in her life.
The first was her master, who had taken her in as a disciple despite the gossip.
The second was her senior brother, who, though not from the same sect, had always silently watched over her.
The former cared for all living beings and never truly considered protecting her wholeheartedly.
The latter, though biased towards her, was bound by the ancient iron law of unreliable male protagonists in tragic novels—he couldn’t protect her, even if he tried his best.
Thus, the early stages of the novel were filled with all the classic, time-tested tropes of Xianxia tragedy.
The common good, righteousness, destiny—in short, a tangled web of love and hate, duty and affection, impossible choices.
By the latter half, the protagonist, having seen through the hearts of men, decided to break free from her shackles, shatter the rules, overturn heaven and earth, and live unbound by the world’s judgment, indulging in actions most wouldn’t dare dream of.
Li Yu, this character, happened to be the bridge that led the protagonist from innocence to darkness.
The matricide in the novel was just a necessary step in the protagonist’s descent.
In other words, this not-entirely-evil master was destined to be cannon fodder.
She had transmigrated into cannon fodder.
At this thought, Li Yu couldn’t help but sigh.
Si Qinglan, who had been “quiet” for a while, couldn’t resist speaking again: “What are you sighing about?”
“Huh?” Li Yu snapped back to reality, blinking at Si Qinglan blankly.
Si Qinglan met her gaze, looking as if she’d seen a ghost. “Have you lost your mind?”
“…Maybe,” Li Yu responded perfunctorily.
The beauty before her eyes was a feast for the senses, but she was in no mood to appreciate it.
If possible, it was best to find a reason to get this person out of the room.
So, she asked, “What are you doing here?”
Si Qinglan looked at her incredulously. “What do you mean? Didn’t you send for me?”
What? There was such a prior arrangement?
This was somewhat awkward…
【Warning! Warning!】
【The host’s character compatibility is decreasing!】
As soon as the system finished speaking, Li Yu saw a line of white numbers with shadowy outlines brazenly intrude into her vision. Completely ignoring whether she understood them, they began to change on their own.
【Character Compatibility: 99%】
【Character Compatibility: 98%】
【Character Compatibility: 97%】
96%, 95%, 94%…
Still dropping, still dropping.
She didn’t know what would happen if this thing kept decreasing.
【Since the host has been bound to the character, any action or speech that does not conform to the character setting will decrease the host’s compatibility with the character!】
【The host’s current mission completion rate is “0”! System restriction level is “High”!】
【Therefore, when the host’s character compatibility drops below 70%, the system will directly erase the host’s existence!】
What does that mean? I’ll die?
【Yes!】
Yes my foot! Why didn’t you say so earlier!
It had already dropped to 88%!
【The host told me to be quiet!】
I!％@％&……
How did it drop to 85% in the blink of an eye!
Help! This was dropping too fast!
Such a beautiful little fairy, couldn’t she be a little less suspicious!
Could someone please tell her how to stop this?!
As the percentage plummeted to 82%, Li Yu felt the sky falling. After a brief moment of panic, she simply rolled her eyes and fainted, falling sideways.
“Hey!”
Si Qinglan quickly reached out to support her, panic creeping into her voice. “What, what’s wrong with you?!”
The continuously decreasing numbers froze at 79%.
That was close… I survived…
How could anyone drop a crucial stat to the danger zone right from the start?
This was hardcore mode!