Villains Aren't Stepping Stones!

”What happened?!”

A chorus of anxious, booming voices shattered the quiet sanctity of the Supreme Hall.

Within a single second, space violently folded and warped as dozens of imposing figures suddenly appeared before Shen Daiyu.

Every single one of them possessed the distinct, brilliant golden-blonde hair of the Shen Clan, and they were all clad in majestic, flowing ceremonial robes that rippled with immense, ancient spiritual pressure.

These were the true pillars of the Shen Clan, the hidden elders and protectors who rarely walked the mortal plane.

”Why did our Clan’s luck suddenly increase so much in a single moment?!” one of the newly arrived elders demanded, his eyes wide with a mixture of awe and profound panic.

”The ancestral destiny pools are practically overflowing! It’s unprecedented!” Another one added.

Shen Daiyu slowly clicked her tongue, leaning back slightly as a wry, complicated smile played upon her lips. ”It must be Haoran. Although I explicitly told him to get wild and make a name for himself at the academy, I certainly wasn’t expecting that boy to move this fast. This sheer velocity is entirely beyond my wildest expectations.”

She paused, her expression shifting from casual amusement to a sharp, calculating seriousness as she turned her gaze towards the powerful Supremes standing before her.

”How are the concealment arrays holding up after the shockwave?”

The leading Supreme, an ancient man whose face was etched with the lines of countless millennia, let out a heavy, weary sigh.

”It’s holding for now. However, the strain is immense. We urgently need new Supremes to step forward and help pour their cultivation essence into the core nodes to keep it properly active.”

”You should tell those three to finally stop holding back their cultivation and make them ascend immediately,” another elder insisted, his voice sharp with urgency.

”That’s absolutely right,” a third voice added, nodding firmly. ”If this massive influx of destiny keeps up, we simply won’t be able to maintain the structural integrity of the concealment array for much longer on our own. The pressure from the external world is mounting.”

Shen Daiyu’s brows furrowed deeply into a frown as she listened to their frantic deductions.

The concealment arrays.

That was not a standard formation; it was a supreme, conceptual barrier that the very first, primordial Ancestral Immortal of their Clan had personally placed at the foundation of their hidden dimension.

Its sole, monumental purpose was to completely block the Heaven’s prying eyes from ever looking into their clan’s fluctuating luck and destiny.

It acted as a massive cosmic blindfold, but it carried a devastating catch: it could only be actively maintained and kept alive if the clan’s resident Supremes continuously poured their raw, high-level cultivation power directly into its hungry arrays.

It was entirely because of this ancient, hidden array that despite Shen Haoran subduing, plundering, and straight-up killing several chosen ones and children of destiny over the past few years, the blind heavens hadn’t managed to actually see his actions, locate his coordinates, or strike him down with apocalyptic tribulation lightning for blatantly interfering with the preordained script of the world.

That’s right, the Heavens didn’t choose to ignore or tolerate Haoran’s brutal actions despite him murdering several of its most cherished chosen ones.

But it was because this legendary concealment array was actively preventing the Heavens from ever laying its prying eyes upon him in the first place.

It also flawlessly prevented the Heavens from noticing the gradually, stealthily increasing pool of luck within their clan, which accumulated every single time Haoran subdued or eliminated people blessed with great destiny.

In other words, he was like a ghost plundering the celestial vault in absolute darkness.

But earlier, the situation had shifted dangerously.

Their clan’s overall luck had suddenly spiked so dramatically, so unexpectedly, that the sudden shockwave caused the ancient concealment array to violently flicker for a terrifying fraction of an instant.

Thankfully, the disruption was only for a split second, and the array managed to stabilize before their hidden dimension could be fully located by the celestial consciousness.

But even so, a leak was a leak.

The Heavens had probably felt a brief, anomalous ripple in the fabric of fate, realizing that something was deeply amiss on the continent.

As a direct result, the nigh-omnipresent will would undoubtedly become infinitely more active, aggressive, and protective in shielding its remaining chosen ones from any unseen threats.

So from this moment on, this hunting game had just become significantly harder.

”Those three have been incredibly willful for far too long, Shen Daiyu. We need their active help now more than ever,” the old Supreme stated firmly, stepping closer to her.

Another Supreme nodded, ”Shen Daiyu, you must go and talk to them immediately. Have them break their seals, ascend their cultivation, and finally join us here in the upper ranks.”

Shen Daiyu frowned, a wave of internal reluctance washing over her chest.

She knew with absolute clarity that these old fogies were completely right from a logical, tactical standpoint.

However, from a personal standpoint, she also deeply didn’t want to forcefully compel those three specific family members to ascend when they had clearly, explicitly expressed that they didn’t want to leave the outer world just yet.

She let out a long, heavy sigh, waving her hand dismissively toward the crowded hall. ”Go back to your stations. I’ll handle this matter personally.”

One Supreme frowned and tried to reason with her, ”Shen Daiyu, this is not a matter that can endure delay—”

”I said go,” Shen Daiyu glared at them, her golden eyes flashing with a sudden, suffocating coldness that instantly silenced the room. ”Did you all suddenly lose your hearing, or do you simply wish to challenge my word?”

The powerful Supremes stared at her intense expression for a tense, silent moment.

They then looked at each other, engaging in a silent mental conversation, before they finally nodded their heads in a reluctant, formal show of agreement.

”Shen Daiyu, please remember,” the ancient Supreme spoke softly before his figure began to dissolve into the void, ”this is not us wanting to purposefully make things difficult for you, your immediate family, or your direct descendants. This is strictly for the long-term survival of the entire clan.”

”The heavens absolutely cannot discover the existence of Shen Haoran,” the final elder warned as his form faded away. ”If that blind entity ever locks its full gaze onto him before he is ready... he will be placed in grave, existential danger.”

With those parting words echoing through the grand pillars, they completely dispersed, leaving Shen Daiyu entirely alone with her heavy, conflicting thoughts in the empty hall.

”Goddammit.” Shen Daiyu cursed, sighing in annoyance.

Her immediate family, or the collective survival of the entire clan.

It was a classic, brutal dilemma.

She knew the real reason why those three individuals stubbornly refused to break their seals and ascend to the supreme ranks.

It wasn’t because they feared the ascension tribulations, and it wasn’t because they lacked the raw talent.

It was simply because they wanted to wait around in the outer world for Haoran, wishing to watch over him and guide his steps until he was strong enough to stand beside them.

Or maybe even have a few little babies before cutting themselves off in the outside world.

In other words, everything they do, it’s all for Haoran, as if their entire world revolves around him.

So, if she chose to manipulate the situation, if she walked up to them and used Haoran as a psychological lever—telling them bluntly that if they didn’t immediately ascend to fortify the array, Haoran’s very life would be placed in immediate, mortal danger from the Heavens—then those three would undoubtedly abandon everything they cared about, shatter their bonds, and ascend in a heartbeat to protect him.

But if she actually did that... if she used their deep, unconditional love for Haoran as a weapon to force their hands...

She closed her eyes tightly, raising her hand to rub her throbbing temples in sheer exhaustion.

This is why she doesn’t want to deal with all this clan leader mess. The burden of leadership was a heavy, thankless crown.

Finally, after a few long minutes of agonizing internal debate, she opened her golden eyes, her expression settling into a mask of absolute resolve.

She stood up from her seat, smoothed down her majestic robes, and with a single, seamless step that completely bypassed the concepts of distance, her figure disappeared from the hall.

*

*

*

A fraction of a second later, she materialized inside a grand, sweeping hallway located within the inner residential sectors of the clan’s ancestral manor.

The corridor was bustling with activity, with numerous maids working diligently to clean the intricate golden fixtures and hidden shadow guards lurking silently within the deep recesses of the structural pillars.

However, despite her prominent appearance, none of the passing staff or guards seemed to actually see her.

Her presence was perfectly cloaked by her high-level laws; they simply continued to do their own individual things, completely oblivious to the fact that one of the clan’s top leaders was walking right past them.

Shen Daiyu walked slowly along the plush carpet, her eyes calm, unreadable, and completely focused.

Finally, after a few minutes of steady walking, she stopped directly in front of a pair of massive, heavily reinforced double doors made of ancient spirit iron.

She didn’t bother to knock.

Taking a single step forward, her physical body passed cleanly through the solid wood structure as if she were a non-physical ghost, entering the private sanctuary within.

She found herself standing inside a massive, beautifully organized study filled with thousands of ancient scrolls and heavy jade texts.

Directly in front of her, sitting behind a grand mahogany desk, was a woman completely absorbed in doing complex clan paperwork.

Positioned directly behind the desk was a massive, floor-to-ceiling window that offered a stunning, panoramic view of the floating islands outside.

The woman working at the desk was none other than Chu Xueyu.

As if instantly sensing the subtle, familiar shift in the room’s spatial temperature, Chu Xueyu stopped her writing mid-stroke.

She set her fine ink brush down with a soft click and raised her head, staring straight into Shen Daiyu’s eyes with a calm, discerning gaze.

”How rare of you to leave the Supreme Hall, grandmother.”

Shen Daiyu looked at her, the heavy tension in her chest easing just a fraction as a warm, genuine smile spread across her face.

She then grabbed a chair and sat down in front of her.

”Ah, well, it feels stuffy in there. I can’t handle staying there all the time or I’ll end up like those old fogies and smell of rot and earth.”

Chu Xueyu stood up, flicking her wrist as a kettle and a cup appeared on her hands.

She put the cup down in front of Shen Daiyu, and poured the hot tea from the kettle.

The sloshing sound of the tea seems to bring a sense of calmness and peace that Shen Daiyu didn’t know she needed at this moment.

”Ah, what a filial daughter I have.”

”Granddaughter.”

”Tomato, tomato. Same thing.”

Chu Xueyu sighed, but didn’t bother correcting her anymore and sat back down, her face now looking incredibly serious.

Shen Daiyu took a sip of tea and nodded in approval. Indeed, Chu Xueyu makes the best tea amongst the sisters.

Feng Yuyan likes to add some strange things like a grounded corpse’s nails or bones out of curiosities, and Leng Shuang just seems to break reality as she can actually turn liquid into a squishy mash of black goo.

”So, grandmother.” Chu Xueyu tapped her desk, ”Care to tell me why you are here? You wouldn’t come out if it’s not important.”

Shen Daiyu put down her tea and stared her, ”Before that, can you call Feng Yuyan and Leng Shuang here?”

Chu Xueyu tilted her head, however, seeing how serious her expression was, she decided to nod.

It seems, whatever her grandmother came her for, concerns the three of them.