Villains Aren't Stepping Stones!

The cobblestone street, once a scene of bustling trade and festive joy, had become a stagnant theater of dread.

Ye Feng groaned beneath the iron grip of Shen Haoran, his face pressed against the jade-infused pavement.

Haoran, however, was not listening to the man’s pleas, his mind already acting in a cold, calculating way, and already running simulations of the events to come.

He stared at Ye Feng with a clinical curiosity that would have chilled the blood of a Saint.

’How much damage can he take before the Heavens start to interfere?’ he wondered.

This was a variable he had yet to fully test, and honestly, it is also a great research material.

In his previous encounter with Jian Chen, the heaven was quite adamant on protecting him when Haoran was about to end his life.

However, it also did nothing to prevent Haoran from finding him.

With Huo Yue, the heavens also didn’t step in to prevent her from being in a relationship with him, and with Lin Feng, the heavens did nothing to stop Haoran from basically turning him into servant of the Shen Clan.

With those as examples, Haoran believed that as long as the protagonist didn’t face immediate, soul-extinguishing death, the Heavens wouldn’t care.

After all, the "Protagonist Path" was paved with suffering, suppression, and humiliation.

Getting beaten down only to return later, slap faces, and claim a bloody revenge was the very essence of the narrative they were destined to follow.

To the Heavenly Dao, this was just "character development."

Just as Haoran’s fingers began to tighten, a sharp, whistling sound cut through the air.

"Wait! Wait! Young Master! Please, stop!"

Haoran paused, his eyes shifting upward as he saw a streak of silver light descended from the sky—Shen Xinye, the Fourth Crown, was flying on a slender white sword, her robes fluttering violently in her wake.

She landed with a slight stumble, her breathing heavy and frantic, her face pale.

At this moment, she didn’t look like a warrior at all, and instead, she looked more like a desperate woman. "Young... Young Master, I beg of you... can you spare my husband?"

Haoran turned his head, his golden eyes fixing on her and the silence that followed became oppressive.

"It seems you care a lot about this husband of yours, Shen Xinye," he said, his voice devoid of emotion. "A man everyone else calls a useless mortal."

Shen Xinye nodded, her eyes flickering with a mixture of shame and loyalty. "He... he helped me a lot during my early years. Even if he is just a mortal, I owe him a lot."

"I see." Haoran gave a slow, deliberate nod. "Don’t worry. I am a man of the law. I will simply have the guards throw him into the dungeon for breaking the peace. You know as well as I do that fighting and public disturbances are strictly forbidden within the Main City, especially during the Grand Feast."

Ye Feng was about to scream that they merely argued, and they haven’t even fought, but Haoran tightened his grip so much that he cry out in pain once more.

Shen Xinye stared at Haoran, hesitating . The Underground Grand Prison was a place of legends and nightmares, known to even break the minds of the most iron-willed warriors, but she also knew the rules of the clan.

Thankfully, if it’s just street brawled, then the punishment shouldn’t be that severe, at most, imprisonment on the first layer for around a week or so.

Eventually, she lowered her head, her voice a mere whisper. "Very well. If it is for the law... I understand."

Ye Feng’s eyes widened to the point of tearing as his expression was completely replaced by a raw, naked terror. "No! No! Wife! Xinye! Don’t let him take me away! You don’t understand! He’s going to kill me! He isn’t throwing me in a cell; he’s taking me to a slaughterhouse! Help me, please!"

He had seen how evil the look Shen Haoran gave him, and although he doesn’t know how he offended this young master that deserves death, but that doesn’t matter!

He knew that if Haoran took him away, then he’ll definitely die!

Shen Xinye looked at him, her heart twisting, but then she looked back into the resolute, absolute eyes of Shen Haoran and sighed, shaking her head in a slow, mournful gesture.

"Don’t worry, Ye Feng. With your offense being a mere street scuffle, then you will only be placed in the first layer of the prison. It is just a stone cell, and your life will not be threatened, I promise. I will personally see to your release once the week is over."

"No! No! Xinye! Have you forgotten what I did for you?!" Ye Feng’s voice rose to a shrill, hysterical pitch as his fear began to turn into a toxic, desperate rage. "Because of you, I endured years of humiliation! I took the insults of every branch disciple! I lived like a dog at your side just to keep you away from that curse! And now you’re going to let me be taken away like a criminal?! You ungrateful witch!"

Ye Feng was starting to get truly desperate.

Earlier, when he had tried to activate the Nirvana Rebirth Experience Card, Shen Haoran had reacted with a speed that defied reality, grabbing his wrist and suppressing his meridians before the card could manifest.

If it weren’t for the System’s reacting quickly and immediately pulling the artifact back into the system storage, Haoran would have seen it.

But he knew that Shen Haoran have already gotten suspicious, and this imprisonment was just an excuse.

Shen Xinye looked deeply hurt and a flicker of pain crossed her cold features.

Didn’t he know the risk she had just taken? To confront the Heir of the Main Line, the man who had just crushed the Three Schools of Thought, was an act that could have resulted in her own cultivation being crippled or her family being exiled.

The Shen Clan’s Main Line was a den of tyrants; she was playing with fire just by standing there.

Besides, Shen Haoran had given his word, a rare thing for the Heir, that the man wouldn’t be killed.

Yet, Ye Feng was currently screaming curses and humiliating her in the middle of a public street, in front of the very people she was supposed to lead.

She could already see the spectators whispering, and she was sure that by tomorrow, the entire clan would be gossiping about how the Fourth Crown’s husband was a hysterical coward who turned on his wife, humiliating and cursing her, at the first sign of trouble.

She couldn’t help but wonder if those years of care and the debts she felt she owed were simply a delusion.

Was this the man she had been protecting?

"I’ll personally take him there," Haoran stated, before turning towards the Tai-Shen Descendant, "As for that one. Call the guards and have them throw him into the first layer as well. Let them reflect on the meaning of discipline together."

With a sudden, powerful jerk, Haoran began to drag Ye Feng toward the prison entrance.

Xia Mengyao and Luo Mingye followed behind, their faces masks of shock and silent contemplation.

At that moment, something snapped inside Ye Feng as the System in his mind was blaring a red alert.

[Warning: Soul-Scan imminent upon entry to Prison Facility. Host survival probability: 0.04%.]

’It’s all or nothing,’ Ye Feng gritted his teeth, his eyes turning bloodshot. ’If I do nothing, I’ll become a laboratory rat. If I fight, I might just have a chance.’

’System!’ he screamed in his mind. ’Can you activate the Nirvana Rebirth Experience Card even if my meridians are suppressed and it’s still in the storage space?!’

[Confirmed, Host. Soul-level activation does not require physical Qi circulation. Proceed?]

’Do it! Give me everything!’

[Activating Nirvana Rebirth Experience Card! Duration: 10 Minutes. Level: Peak Nirvana Rebirth.]

*BOOM!*

A terrifying, volcanic surge of aura erupted from Ye Feng’s body.

It wasn’t quite the steady growth of a cultivator breaking through, but a violent, unnatural explosion of power, as if they took a forbidden pill to enhance their strength!

The shockwave was so immense that it shattered the pavement for several kilometres in every direction.

Shen Haoran, who had been holding Ye Feng’s wrist, felt a force like a collapsing star push against his palm and he was flung backward.

But his instincts kicked in, and he flipped in mid-air and landed gracefully on the sloped roof of a nearby mansion, his black robes snapping in the wind.

He stared down, his golden eyes narrowed in a cold, predatory focus.

Xia Mengyao grabbed Luo Mingye, and the two of them landed safely a few meters away from Haoran.

Shen Xinye, who was still recovering from her internal injuries from the tournament, was caught completely off guard.

The blast of energy slammed into her, sending her flying into the stone wall of a nearby building.

She coughed up blood, her eyes wide with a shock that transcended physical pain as she stared at Ye Feng.

’Ye Feng...’ she thought, her mind reeling as she watched the man who had been a "mortal" for years now radiate a power that eclipsed her own. ’How? How did you have this power? Have you been deceiving me, mocking my ’protection’ all this time?!’

For Ye Feng, however, the opinions of his wife were no longer relevant.

He felt the immense, god-like power of a Peak Nirvana Rebirth expert coursing through his veins, but he also felt the countdown clock in his vision.

He had ten minutes, so he didn’t turn to fight Haoran; he knew better, instead, he turned tail and moved with a speed that blurred the air, creating a sonic boom that shattered windows for three blocks.

He was heading for the edge of the Shen Clan Domain, a streak of desperate, stolen light.

Haoran stood on the roof, a dark smirk playing on his lips as he stared at the fleeing Ye Feng.

"Oh, you have something like this too," he whispered. "How very, very interesting."