I Really Am A Villain
Ch. 111 - I Just Want To Stay By Your Side

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“Big Brother, I’ve made my decision,” said Lin Ruhu the moment he saw Xu Zimo.

“No matter what it is, I’ll respect your choice,” Xu Zimo replied with a smile and a nod.

“I started cultivating from the very beginning just so I could stay by your side. You asked me what I truly wanted deep down. My grandpa told me that everyone cultivates for a reason. Some seek strength to control their destiny. Some chase immortality. Others just want to protect their loved ones. I’m not that ambitious. Whether it’s the so-called ‘Heaven’s Will’ or the ultimate goal of the martial path, it doesn’t matter to me. I cultivate because I want to stand beside you, to fight with you. I don’t want to be someone who always needs your protection, or worse, someone who can’t even catch up to your back.”

Looking at Lin Ruhu’s sincere face, Xu Zimo was visibly moved. He slowly said, “Just like that time when we were seven, and we ran into that white tiger.”

Lin Ruhu paused in surprise, then asked in disbelief, “Big Brother… you actually remember that?”

Xu Zimo chuckled. It was as if he’d been transported back to that afternoon.

When that white tiger opened its bloody mouth, Xu Zimo had said: “Big Brother means the older one goes first, the younger one follows, so I have to protect you.”

Lin Ruhu, chubby and stubborn even back then, had shaken his head and said: “I’m not leaving. We run together or we die together.”

Back then, neither of them had even started cultivating. Fortunately, Lin Ruhu had a Heaven-grade dagger on him.

In the end, both of them were covered in injuries, but they still managed to kill the white tiger.

Later, Xu Zimo found out that during that unauthorized trip outside the sect, someone had secretly followed to protect them, and it was that person who had actually taken out the white tiger.

But that event had clearly left a deep mark on Lin Ruhu. It became the root of his vow to always stay by Xu Zimo’s side.

Xu Zimo smiled, looked at him, and said, “I forgot for a while... but heaven gave me another chance to do it all again. Now I remember.”

Lin Ruhu scratched his head and grinned, not really understanding what “another chance” meant, but he was genuinely happy.

“This time, let’s fight side by side and see what lies at the end of the Heaven's Will!” Xu Zimo said, patting his shoulder with a smile.

Lin Ruhu nodded heavily.

…

There were still two days until the Blood Demon Hidden Realm opened. Xu Zimo didn’t spend the time cultivating, instead, he took the rare chance to relax.

Besides, he had just stabilized his True Fate World, so he used this time to better adapt to the new power.

The sunset painted the sky in endless hues. Birds flew across the glowing horizon. A gentle breeze carried warmth across his face.

Xu Zimo lay back in a lounge chair in his courtyard, playing with his pet Darksky Tiger.

Despite its ordinary name, Situ Goudan, this tiger was destined to become a beast that shook the continent.

The little tiger had grown out of its juvenile stage and entered its growth phase. It was now even bigger than Xu Zimo. Its black fur was lush, and the thin, cicada-wing-like wings on its back had grown large and powerful.

Back when it was small, Xu Zimo didn’t dare ride it. But now that it was so big, he figured it might finally come in handy.

Riding an imperial-ranked beast into battle? Definitely impressive.

Off in the herb garden, Goudan was happily chasing butterflies when it suddenly noticed Xu Zimo grinning ominously at it.

Its fur stood on end. For some reason, a cold shiver ran down its spine, and it felt a very bad omen approaching...

…

The origin of the story begins with Grand Emperor Zhen Wu bearing the Heaven's Will.

Back in the Desolate Era, the world was still ruled by infernal beasts.

But at some point, rumors of a “Heaven's Will” began to circulate. Legend had it that whoever bore the Heaven’s Will would become invincible in their time.

After much competition and war, no one expected that the first bearer of Heaven's Will would be a nobody, a young human.

Some say Grand Emperor Zhen Wu ushered in the Imperial Era, but many beasts were still dreaming of reclaiming their dominance.

That is, until that fateful battle, when Grand Emperor Zhen Wu fought ten God Beasts in an earth-shaking war.

Blood stained the land, the heavens roared, and the pained cries of the God Beasts echoed across the entire Primordial Heartlands.

The man fought with blood and blade. His aura surged like a mighty river stretching 90,000 miles. His sword aura carved through the skies for 100,000 years.

Behind him lay the corpses of nine God Beasts.

Only then did the world truly recognize this man.

His name was Zhen Wu.

He bore the Heaven's Will.

He was the first of the human race.

He opened the Imperial Era.

All the remaining beasts cowered in fear.

Their era of glory was over.

The Desolate Era… had ended!

The people rejoiced. Celebrations echoed to the heavens, welcoming this new age.

Of the ten God Beasts, nine died in battle, and one fled in defeat. The beasts’ golden age was over.

But in the places where the nine beasts fell, their blood tainted the land, mutating every living thing nearby.

And thus, a new species was born, the Blood Demons.

Grand Emperor Zhen Wu sealed off that land. But the ferocity of the Blood Demons was so intense that the seal would break every three years.

When that happened, disciples of the True Martial Sacred Sect would enter the sealed area to slay the Blood Demons and suppress the growing malice.

Later, people discovered that these demons were created from the God Beasts' blood. Killing them yielded Blood Demon Crystals.

These crystals contained traces of God Beast blood, which could be absorbed to strengthen a cultivator’s vitality.

And so, what had originally been a dangerous chore, killing demons, transformed into a treasure trove.

Before ascending, Grand Emperor Zhen Wu had wanted to destroy the hidden realm entirely.

After all, having lived through the Desolate Era, he hated demonic beasts.

But in the end, the realm was preserved, for two reasons:

…

A few days later, the Blood Demon Hidden Realm was opened, and disciples eligible to enter lined up at the entrance.

The qualifications to enter weren’t too strict:

That morning, Xu Zimo, Lin Ruhu, and Little Gui set out together for the Blood Demon Hidden Realm.