The Hero of a Cool Novel? I, the Villain, Will Kill You!

228: Survival instinct, desperate measures”Hehe, you really do have a short memory for such an important person!”

Wang Qing chuckled softly. His voice wasn’t loud, yet it entered Gu Cangyang’s ears clearly.

He paused intentionally, savoring Gu Cangyang’s expression, which grew more distorted in his eagerness for an answer. Only then did he explain with feigned patience, as if bestowing a favor:

”You sent Chu Daoren, Yi Tianguang, and King Qin the Slaughterer to the Immortal Realm to search the whole world for the so-called Son of the Great Dao...”

”Who did you think you could hide this from?”

”From that moment on—or rather, from the moment they stepped into the Immortal Realm and began executing your ridiculous plan—”

”Every single move they made was already under my watchful eye.”

”So, when do you think I made my move?”

Wang Qing’s words were flat, yet they were like a cold chisel, carving the cruel truth bit by bit into Gu Cangyang’s consciousness.

This kind of omnipresent, pervasive infiltration.

This level of control, treating all of an enemy’s actions as chess pieces, inspired more despair than any display of overwhelming force.

Wang Qing watched with great interest as the color drained from Gu Cangyang’s face and the light completely vanished from those old eyes, leaving only boundless darkness and numbness.

This was exactly what he wanted: to strip away the other’s every reliance and hope, piece by piece.

To make Gu Cangyang clearly realize the insurmountable chasm between them.

To make Gu Cangyang feel utterly powerless from the depths of his heart, until he might eventually harbor the thought of ”seeking death” for release... That was the outcome Wang Qing most desired. Watching an ant choose its own end after realizing its fate was far more interesting than simply crushing it underfoot.

The air on the warship seemed to have frozen into ice, so heavy that it was impossible to breathe.

There was only the sound of Gu Cangyang’s heavy, ragged breathing.

Along with the eternally unchanging, stiff smiles of the five Puppets, it formed a bizarre and hopeless scene.

At this moment, Gu Cangyang’s world had completely overturned.

*Thud.*

He slumped miserably to the ground. His vision went dark, and he muttered to himself:

”So that’s how it is... so that’s how it is...”

”Haha... haha! I have truly been wise all my life only to be a fool for a moment. I actually forgot that searching for the Son of the Great Dao would draw your attention.”

As Gu Cangyang laughed, bloody tears of regret flowed from his eyes. He could not forgive his own stupidity.

For such a glaringly simple mistake to happen to him—it was truly a matter of fate.

Back then, he had used the Sumeru Space Technique to bring the Nine Heavens Divine Domain through the River of Time to the Land of the Other Shore.

He had only subconsciously ordered Chu Daoren and the others to find the Son of the Great Dao, completely overlooking the fact that Wang Qing would learn everything because of it.

Now that Wang Qing had explained it, he wished he could kill himself with a single palm strike.

It was all because his vanity had gotten the better of him, causing him to underestimate Wang Qing, this terrifying opponent.

Of course, Gu Cangyang couldn’t entirely be blamed for overlooking Wang Qing’s dreadfulness.

At the time, Wang Qing only had the strength of the third stage of Transcendence; he wasn’t worth taking seriously.

Furthermore, for someone with the strength of the third stage of Transcendence to enter the end of the River of Time was essentially a suicide mission.

Under those two specific conditions—third-stage Transcendence strength and entering the River of Time—anyone would have believed Wang Qing was certain to die.

Unfortunately, the reality was quite the opposite; Wang Qing always managed to pull off some unpredictable surprises.

”Slit your own throat!”

”I do not wish to say it a second time...”

Seeing Gu Cangyang laughing one moment and crying the next, Wang Qing lost all patience. He casually took out a long sword and threw it onto the deck.

*Shua...*

The long sword cut through the air with a piercing whistle and stabbed straight into the hard deck.

The blade vibrated, emitting a low, continuous hum. Its cold glint reflected Gu Cangyang’s face, which had instantly turned as white as paper.

The sound wasn’t loud, but it was like a needle, precisely piercing through his final line of psychological defense—his last shred of hope.

He sat slumped on the ground, as if control over his body had been stripped away.

He could only watch helplessly as the blade that symbolized his end quivered slightly before his eyes.

Every vibration felt like a hammer blow to his nerves, which were on the verge of collapse.

Cold despair, like deep-sea water, flooded in from all directions, soaking into his very marrow.

However, survival is an instinct.

Especially in someone who held himself in high regard and had once suppressed the ages, this instinct would explode with near-manic energy in a desperate situation.

Unwillingness! An extreme sense of indignation burned through Gu Cangyang’s internal organs like poisonous fire!

He, Gu Cangyang, had plotted for eons and crossed the River of Time. How could he die so pathetically, like an insect crushed at a whim?

Suddenly, his nearly unfocused gaze sharpened.

With incredible willpower, he forcibly reined in and compressed all his leaking panic, regret, and defeat, hiding them deep within his murky eyes.

He couldn’t die—at least, not yet!

As long as there was a sliver of hope, he had to seize it!

Even if he had to beg like a dog, even if he had to offer up everything!

A thought, like a flash of lightning in the dark, illuminated his chaotic mind.

Like a drowning man clutching at a straw, his body even leaned forward slightly due to this urgent ”hope.”

His voice became shrill and hurried from extreme desire and fear, even cracking slightly, as he completely disregarded the dignity and decorum of a Dao Exhaustion Existence:

”Wang Qing! As long as you don’t kill me!”

He practically roared it out, his speech incredibly fast, fearing that if he were a second too slow, the other would impatiently end it all:

”I am willing to submit to you! Sincerely submit! And then... then I will go elsewhere to activate the destiny chessboard!”

As he spoke, he stared intently at Wang Qing’s face, trying to catch even the slightest hint of hesitation on that indifferent expression.

Seeing no reaction from Wang Qing, he added even more urgently, throwing out the ”bargaining chip” that had just formed in his mind:

”Listen to me! As long as the chessboard is activated!”

”I can create a new Realm! A Realm with flaws that is not entirely bound by the Supreme Rules!”

”This... this is definitely a Sharp Weapon to deal with the Hongmeng Empress!”

A near-pathological glint sparkled in Gu Cangyang’s eyes. He seemed to already see the bright future he was describing:

”As long as you spare me, not only can I serve you, but I can even capture the Hongmeng Empress and present her to you with both hands!”

”Wouldn’t a living, submissive Hongmeng Empress be far more valuable than my death?”

The more Gu Cangyang spoke, the more he felt this plan was feasible.

At this moment, even he almost believed this hastily cobbled-together plan, as if it were truly a deal Wang Qing couldn’t refuse.

The sliver of ambition to turn the tables deep in his heart began to quietly sprout again amidst this surge of survival instinct... As long as he lived, as long as he left this place, there might still be a chance to turn things around!

However, the moment he mentioned the ”Hongmeng Empress,” Wang Qing’s expression turned completely cold.

It was a look of coldness and ridicule, as if watching a buffoon perform a clumsy play.

He didn’t even immediately interrupt Gu Cangyang’s sincere-sounding torrent of words, instead waiting for him to finish the entire ridiculous proposal.

Only then did Wang Qing speak slowly. His voice wasn’t loud, but every word was like a shard of ice, smashing into Gu Cangyang’s heart where a small flame of hope had just been lit:

”You really are funny. The Hongmeng Empress has long been my woman.”

He leaned forward slightly, his gaze like two physical ice picks piercing into Gu Cangyang:

”Do you think I’m a fool? That I would let you go and deal with my woman?”

These words were like a giant hammer forged from the profound ice of the Nine Heavens, crashing down with irresistible force!

*Boom!*

Gu Cangyang felt a roar in his head. The fragile fortress of hope he had just built...

...was utterly powerless before this single sentence, collapsing instantly and crumbling into dust!