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<
To be more specific, <
This year’s hottest stallion novel; there was no other!
The male lead of this novel, Luo Binghe, was neither the heroic, invincible-out-of-the-gate type,[5] nor the loser, without-redeeming-qualities type,[6] yet had managed to trend with tens of thousands of readers on Zhongdian Literature,[7] influencing countless male fantasy novels afterwards to follow in its footsteps.
He was the dark, vicious type.[8]
But before his darkening,[9] he was the miserably-suffering type.[10]
Next, let a veteran reader of this novel, Shen Yuan, omit the countless fanservicey details, and concisely summarize this million-word epic for everyone…
Immediately after his birth, Luo Binghe was abandoned by his parents, swaddled in white cloth and put in a wooden basin, then lowered into the water.
Those were the coldest days of the year, and it was only thanks to the river’s fishermen pulling him out that he hadn’t frozen to death as a baby. Because he’d been drifting along the Luo River, and it was the season when it was filled with thin ice, he was given that name.
Luo Binghe spent his early years wandering the streets, hungry and dressed in rags; it was a dreary childhood. A washerwoman who worked for a wealthy family took pity on him, and since she had no children of her own, adopted and raised him as her own son. Mother and son were poor, and suffered humiliation at the hands of their rich patrons.
Having grown up in such an unhealthy environment, this became the source of Luo Binghe’s future twisted personality post-darkening, including his tendencies to fight over every scrap, to seek revenge for the smallest of grievances, and to hide murderous intent behind a smile.
For a bowl of lukewarm meat congee, he’d withstood the beatings of the family’s young masters; in the end, he was still too late, and failed to give his adopted mother even a single taste before she died.
By complete coincidence, he was selected by one of the cultivation world’s four great sects, Cang Qiong Mountain Sect, and apprenticed under the “Xiu Ya sword” Shen Qingqiu.
He’d thought that he could finally start down the proper path, but he hadn’t expected that Shen Qingqiu was fair without but foul within,[11] trash of the lowest caliber. He was jealous of Luo Binghe’s unparalleled and exceptional talent, and secretly feared this disciple whose cultivation improved by leaps and bounds every day, always finding all sorts of ways to taunt and demean him, even enlisting fellow disciples to belittle him.
Throughout the years of studying, he endured the humiliation; it was another heart-wrenching story filled with blood and tears.
Under much difficulty, Luo Binghe managed to turn seventeen, when he finally encountered the ceremony the cultivation world held once every four years—the Immortal Alliance Conference. Here at the conference, Luo Binghe fell victim to Shen Qingqiu’s scheming, and fell into a crack in the boundary between the demon and human realms—the Endless Abyss.
That’s right, only now did the story truly begin!
Not only did Luo Binghe survive, within the Endless Abyss, he even found the peerless mystical sword meant to be his, “Xin Mo,” and there, learned about his origins.
As it turned out, Luo Binghe had been born to the demon realm’s Saintly Ruler and a human realm woman; within his veins flowed both the blood of ancient, heaven-fallen demons, as well as that of the human race. His birth father, Tianlang-Jun, had been sealed beneath a great mountain, trapped for all eternity. His birth mother was a disciple from a righteous cultivation sect; that year, suspected of having secret ties to demons, she was expelled, and died from postpartum hemorrhage after giving birth to Luo Binghe. Prior to her death, she let her son off the lone ship she’d birthed him on, and only in this way, left Luo Binghe a chance of survival.
Luo Binghe used Xin Mo to release his body’s seal on his demonic blood, and within the dark abyss, cultivated single-mindedly and enlightened himself on otherworldly techniques, before heading back to Cang Qiong Mountain Sect.
From here on, Luo Binghe steadily headed down the path of darkening, never looking back.
Every single one of his old enemies suffered great torment and died horrible deaths by his hand. With his steadily improving acting and scheming skills, Luo Binghe slowly won the trust of many people, feigning compliance while secretly plotting against them. He seized power and rose in position, beginning a reign of terror. As the story unfolded, Luo Binghe darkened further and further. He returned to the demon realm and inherited the position of Saintly Ruler, but still unsatisfied, began to massacre each one of the the human realm’s great righteous sects, bathing them in blood, eradicating all voices of opposition.
In the end, Luo Binghe became a generation-spanning legend among immortals and demons, who talked about his unification of the three realms, the uncountable size of his harem, and his boundless number of descendants!
“Stupid author stupid novel!”
With his dying breath, Shen Yuan spat this final curse.
Who could have imagined that an upstanding young man like him, who’d properly purchased VIP currency and read the official version, who’d managed to persistently follow the work to its end, had ended up finishing a novel so stallion it left him speechless with rage, a money-swindling, overly-padded mess; how could he not curse?
<
Just looking at this ID would assault you with a dirty feeling. Grade-school-level writing, the suspension of disbelief broken everywhere.[13] Shen Yuan couldn’t even bear to call that incoherent mess of a setting a cultivation setting.
Have you seen a cultivation world where people used horses and carriages all day? Have you seen a cultivation world where after achieving inedia, people still needed to eat and sleep? Have you seen a cultivation world where the author occasionally mixed up even the Foundation Establishment and Nascent Soul stages?[14]
Every single person, when in front of the protagonist, would act like his immense douchebag aura[15] had devoured their brain cells. Especially Luo Binghe’s master, that Shen Qingqiu, basically an idiot[16] among idiots, scum[17] among scum! His only purpose was to dig his own grave, and when he didn’t manage to finish, get killed by the protagonist.
Then why did Shen Yuan read this book, and even read to the very end?
Don’t misunderstand, Shen Yuan wasn’t a masochist.[18] The reason, also caused him the most ball-ache.
This novel had an incredible amount of foreshadowing, dangling plotlines[19] everywhere, mystery after mystery, layer upon layer of red herrings. And at the very end—not a single one paid off!
It was enough to make him to puke a fountain of blood.
Why were priceless herbs, spirit elixirs, and peerless beauties everywhere, like they didn’t cost a cent? Why were the villains’ speeches and poses as they dug their own graves and got offed[20] all exactly the same?
The many girls we barely caught a glance of, who’d agreed to enter the harem, what happened to them…alright let’s skip that for the moment—The many atrocities, who were the culprits? The giant list of characters hyped up as being awesome without equal, exactly what was their purpose; why was nothing of them shown, even at the very end?!
Towards-the-Sky bro, Airplane bro, Great God,[21] can we have a discussion, wrap! up! Plotlines! Okay!
Shen Yuan felt like he could come back to life from sheer rage.
In the endless darkness, a mechanical voice sounded by his ear.
[Activation code: “Stupid author stupid novel.” System automatically triggered.]
“Who is this?” The tone was similar to Google Translate.
Shen Yuan looked around: it seemed like he was floating in a virtual void, so dark he couldn’t see his hand before him, the voice coming from all directions.
[Welcome to the System. This System operates in line with the design concept ‘YOU CAN YOU UP, NO CAN NO BB’;[22] we hope to provide you with the best possible experience. It is our sincere wish that during your experience, you can fulfill your desire, and according to your wishes, transform a stupid work into a high-quality, magnificent, first-rate classic. We hope you enjoy.]
In the midst of the vertigo, a man’s voice asked lightly beside his ear, “…Shidi? Shidi, can you hear me?”
Shen Yuan shuddered and settled his mind, forcibly peeling open his eyes, the scene before him a flurried blur; it took awhile for his vision to finally focus and clear.
He lay on a bed.
Looking up: a white, gauzy canopy, with finely-crafted perfume pouches hanging from the four corners.
Looking down: he wore a white robe, ancient in its styling. Next to the pillow lay a paper fan.
Looking to his left: a handsome and elegant young man dressed in traditional black robes[23] sat by his bedside, looking at him with concern.
Shen Yuan closed his eyes, then sharply reached for that folding fan, opening it with a snap; he lightly waved it, fanning away the cold sweat pouring down his face.
The man’s eyes lit up with joy, and he warmly asked, “Shidi finally woke up; is there any discomfort?”
Shen Yuan reservedly said, “Nothing too bad.”
The information overload was a bit much; he dazedly tried to sit up. Seeing this, the man quickly reached out to support his back, letting him lean against the headboard.
Having read many of Zhongdian’s transmigration novels, Shen Yuan had long resolved that, if one day he woke up to find himself lying in a strange place, before he understood what was happening, he definitely wouldn’t giggle carefreely and say, “Are you filming a movie? The props look so real; your crew’s really giving their all!” the words of a person slow-wittedly trying to ground themselves. He concentrated only on acting like he’d just woken up, expression absent-minded: “I…where is this?”
The man startled and said, “Did you sleep yourself into a daze? This is your Qing Jing Peak.”
Internally, Shen Yuan was shocked, but continued to act muddled, “I…why was I asleep for so long?”
The man said, “That’s what I wanted to ask you. You were in perfect health, how did you suddenly come down with a high fever? I know that with the Immortal Alliance Conference approaching, you’ve been training your disciples, and are anxious for results. But with Cang Qiong Mountain Sect’s foundations and renown today, even if someone didn’t attend this time, no one would dare question us; why concern yourself with those empty words.”
The more Shen Yuan listened, the more something felt off. Why did these lines sound so familiar?
No, why did this set-up sound so familiar?
Next, a single earnest sentence from that man confirmed all his suspicions.
“Qingqiu-shidi, are you listening to shixiong?”
At this moment, something dinged, and the mechanical, Google-Translate-like voice from the dreamscape sounded again.
[The System was successfully activated! Role bound: Luo Binghe’s master, Cang Qiong Mountain Sect’s Qing Jing Peak Peak Lord, ‘Shen Qingqiu.’ Weapon: the sword Xiu Ya. Starting B-points:[24] one hundred.]
“F***k f***k f***k what bulls**t is this? How come you’re speaking directly into my brain? Does Airplane Shooting Towards the Sky know you’re plagiarizing <
[You have touched the System’s command execution, and have been bound to the account ‘Shen Qingqiu.’]
[As the plot progresses, many different types of points will gradually become available, please ensure that none of these points fall below 0. Otherwise the System will automatically dole out punishment.]
Stop. Enough. Shen Yuan was sure now. He’d hit the jackpot; he’d transmigrated!
Transmigrated into something he’d just finished, and it was a dark-type stallion novel he’d hated, even came with some kind of s**tty system. As a 21st century veteran VIP reader of Zhongdian Literature, he’d read through various types of do-over and transmigration male fantasy novels year in and year out, so originally, Shen Yuan could have happily and easily accepted this fact. But of all people, the shell he borrowed just happened to be the male lead’s scum villain shizun Shen Qingqiu’s. This…uh, made the situation rather complicated.
The good-natured-looking elder-brotherly type next to him was Cang Qiong Mountain Sect’s current Sect Leader, Shen Qingqiu’s shixiong, the “Xuan Su sword” Yue Qingyuan. F***k.
There was a very important reason Shen Yuan had specially gone “f***k” at Yue Qingyuan—in the original work, Yue Qingyuan’s death had been caused by his good shidi Shen Qingqiu, okay!
And what a horrific death it was.
Tens of thousands of arrows had pierced him, until not even bones remained!
And at this moment, this victim was facing his own “murderer,” showering him with concern; the pressure was immense.
But looking again now, the story hadn’t progressed to that point yet. Yue Qingyuan was still in perfect health, meaning at this time Shen Qingqiu had yet to reveal himself as a hypocrite, and his reputation was still unruined.
Yue Qingyuan was a bleeding heart,[25] nothing to be afraid of. Though this character ended up suffering quite a bit, during his read, Shen Yuan had been rather fond of him. He relaxed a little, when a string of words floated eerily to the forefront of his mind.
“…Within the dark, gloomy room, a metal chain hung from a beam. At the end of the chain dangled a ring. The ring was fastened around a person’s waist. If that could still be considered a ‘person.’ This ‘person’s’ appearance was filthy and disheveled, like that of a madman. The most frightening thing was, all four of his limbs had been severed. His shoulders and thighs were only four bare knobs of flesh. When touched, he would let out a hoarse, ‘ahhh’ sound. His tongue had been torn out too, rendering him unable to form complete words.”
— <
Shen Yuan, ah no, Shen Qingqiu rested his forehead on his hand.
He wasn’t in any position to lament how horrific other people’s deaths were; the most horrific death was his, okay!
Must avoid any serious errors!
Snuff out any sign of a mistake√
From now on, cling madly to the male lead’s thighs√[26]
Be a good teacher and helpful friend who is earnest and gentle in teaching; meticulously shower him with concern√
He’d just had these thoughts, when Shen Qingqiu’s mind suddenly erupted with a long string of alarms, as if one hundred police cars carrying one hundred shrieking beasts were zooming past, so cacophonous he shuddered, clutching his head in pain.
Yue Qingyuan said worriedly, “Shidi, does your head still hurt?”
Teeth clenched, Shen Qingqiu didn’t answer.
The system shrilly alerted, [Warning. Your plan just now was incredibly dangerous, and qualified as an act of violation; please do not attempt, or the system will automatically dole out punishment.]
“How was that a violation?”
[Currently, you’re in the starting stage, and the OOC feature is frozen. You’ll need to complete starting-stage missions to unfreeze. Before unfreezing, doing anything that violates the original ‘Shen Qingqiu’ character’s settings will result in a fixed number of B-points being deducted.]
As a semi-otaku, Shen Qingqiu had occasionally seen several fanwork-related terms, you understand; of course he knew what OOC meant: the abbreviation for ‘out of character,’ defined as breaking character, acting in a way that was inconsistent with the original character’s personality.
“…In other words, before that whatever-feature gets unfrozen, my manner and actions can’t differ from what ‘Shen Qingqiu’ would do?”
[Correct.]
It’d already let him transmigrate into Shen Qingqiu’s shell, replacing him, but still cared about a detail like OOC?
Shen Qingqiu asked again, “You just said, something like…that the points can’t fall below 0, if they do, what happens?”
[You will automatically be deported back to the original world.]
Original world? But in the original world, Shen Yuan’s body was already dead.
In other words, if he lost all his B-or-whatever points, what awaited him was: death.
Then if I just ignore the male lead and avoid doing anything, things should be fine, right?
He raised his head and swept his gaze around, but didn’t see anyone that matched Luo Binghe’s appearance among the disciples waiting on him by his side. Acting unconcerned, he said, “Where is Luo Binghe?”
Yue Qingyuan halted, and gave him a strange look.
Shen Qingqiu remained straight-faced, but was secretly filled with glee. Could it be that time wasn’t ripe, and the male lead had yet to apprentice and enter Cang Qiong Mountain Sect?
Yue Qingyuan said, “Shidi, don’t be angry.”
An ominous premonition stirred in Shen Qingqiu’s heart.
Yue Qingyuan sighed and said, “I know you don’t like him. But that child’s already worked hard enough, and he hasn’t made any large mistakes. Don’t punish him anymore, alright.”
Hearing this, Shen Qingqiu’s lips went dry; he licked them and said, “…Out with it, where is he?”
Yue Qingyuan was silent for a moment, then said, “Whenever you finish stringing him up and beating him, haven’t you always shut him in the woodshed?”
Shen Qingqiu’s vision went dark.
Notes:
This chapter is by Fae of BC Novels and http://faelicy.tumblr.com/ .
The old chapter one at Cnoveluv is a translation of the old version of Scum Villain. Fae is currently translating the newest, edited version of the story which is the same version that BC Novels is using.
**Translator's Note**:
1.YY, stands for 意淫, lit. perverted fantasy
2.种马小说, though these novels feature one guy getting with lots of girls, they are different from harem novels in that there is little\-to\-no relationship development in stallion novels, focusing mainly on the sex
3.爽, lit. feel\-good, or gratifying
4.金手指, a protagonist\-exclusive ability or weapon, often very overpowered
5.龙傲天流, lit. style of the proud heavenly dragon, think traditional Mary Sue
6.废柴流, lit. style of the loser, basically the opposite of a Mary Sue
7.终点文学网, likely a pun on 起点中文网, a CN \*\*\*\*\*\*\*\* site
8.暗黑系, lit. pitch\-black school, refers to works with heavy, “dark” themes, like murder, torture, gore, etc.
9.黑化, refers to someone’s character becoming warped, think moral blackening
10.苦情系, lit. bitter\-feelings school, refers to works where a character suffers heavily, think whump
11.金玉其外, 败絮其中, lit. gilded jade without, cotton rags within
12.向天打飞机, 打飞机, lit. beating the airplane, is also a euphemism for mastur/\*/ion, so his ID could mean “mastur\*/\*/\*ing towards the sky”
13.雷点, lit. landmine, but refers to points in a story that cause the audience to go “wtf,” and not in a good way
14.筑基; 元婴, cultivation stages used in xianxia
15.王八之气, lit. bastard’s aura, the “bastard” is a corruption of 王霸, or tyrant
16.战斗机, lit. fighter jet, but here means top of the top
17.李天一, Li Tianyi, an infamous Chinese wealthy second\-gen who led the gang\\-rape of a woman in a Beijing hotel
18.犯贱, a person who can’t help screwing themselves over
19.大坑, lit. giant holes, while this seems to refer to plot holes, the usage in Chinese is different and really refers unresolved plotlines
20.领便当, lit. get a lunchbox, means to die—idea is when characters die, their actors can leave the filming area early and eat
21.菊苣, affectionate corruption of 巨巨, which is used to refer to someone who is very great and important
22.English for 你行你上,不行别比比, basically, “If you’re capable, then you do it; if you’re not, then stfu”
23.玄端, this was a specific style of dress in Ancient China, often seen on government officials
24.逼格, this is Chinese slang, points that are sarcastically awarded to those who tell lies on the internet in an attempt to invoke superiority
25.老好人, though the wording is something like “very good person,” it suggests someone who is gentle and soft\-hearted to a fault, a pushover with no bottom line
26.抱大腿, to ingratiate yourself with someone
In his previous life, Shen Yuan had been well-off growing up, and could qualify as a modestly wealthy second-gen.[1] He had two older brothers, set to inherit the family business, and a little sister he doted on. The entire family had been very close.
From early on he’d known, that even if he idled the rest of his life away, he’d never want for food. Perhaps it was due to this carefree environment, devoid of competition and pressure, but he’d always believed that as long as a competition had more than ten participants, placing in the top ten was good enough.
Therefore, he never understood what scum villains like Shen Qingqiu were thinking while digging their own graves.
The original Shen Qingqiu, if it was about cultivation, he had that; qualifications, he had that as well; the self-restraint required to put on an act, he also had that. He lacked neither standing nor reputation, and with the world’s largest sect supporting him he’d never want for money, so why, when it came to the poise expected of an immortal, did he have none at all? Why act like one of those bitter, shut-in[2] concubines from the old days, the ones with too much time to spare, picking at the most harmless of things, scheming day in and day out about how to torment the protagonist, and even getting others to do it for him.
Even if Luo Binghe had god-given talent, even if his learning ability was exceptional, to the point it seemed like he was cheating…there was still no need to envy him to this extent, ah?
Still, the blame didn’t really lie with him, but with the author. These types of villains were everywhere in the novel, as numerous as carp in a river; it was just his character had been especially detailed, and especially rotten.
What could you do? The ultimate BOSS in this book was the protagonist himself. How could a firefly outshine the sun and moon?
The cultivation world had called him “Xiu Ya sword,” so naturally he’d had the appearance and bearing to match.
For instance, now, Shen Qingqiu turned his head left and right, finding even his muddied reflection in the bronze mirror quite satisfying.
It was a face with good features: pitch-black eyes and brows, thin nose and lips, very much the air of a scholar. Combined with a slender body and long legs, he could at least be considered beautiful. Though his real age was unclear, this was a cultivation novel: Shen Qingqiu had achieved mid-Core Formation, which meant he’d perfectly preserved a youthful appearance. Certainly many times better-looking than what he’d head-canoned while reading.
Though he still couldn’t compare to Luo Binghe.
Thinking of Luo Binghe, Shen Qingqiu was immediately struck with a pounding headache. He wanted to go see the Luo Binghe who was currently shut in the woodshed, but as soon as he took a single step, that ear-piercing alert rang in his mind again.
[Warning! OOC Warning! “Shen Qingqiu” would not take the initiative to visit Luo Binghe.]
Shen Qingqiu angrily said, “Fine. Then I’ll get someone else to bring him; no problems then, right.”
He thought for a moment, then called, “Ming Fan!”
A youth around sixteen-years old, tall and thin, promptly ran in through the door, saying, “This disciple is here. What is Shifu’s command?”
Shen Qingqiu couldn’t help but send a couple more glances his way: he could be considered respectable-looking, just that his face was a bit unfortunate.[3] Inside his heart, Shen Qingqiu tsked, lamenting: “As expected, a cannon fodder’s appearance.”
This, was the original Shen Qingqiu’s most senior disciple, Luo Binghe’s shixiong Ming Fan.
This, was the legendary, lowest-level cannon fodder!
Needless to say, when it came to things like shutting Luo Binghe out of the dorms late at night, or purposely giving him false cultivation tips, Ming Fan had a hand in all of them. Whenever Shen Qingqiu felt inclined to torment Luo Binghe, he was always his most useful assistant, his most enthusiastic supporter.
Knowing this child’s fate in the original work wasn’t much better than his own, Shen Qingqiu couldn’t help looking at him with the gaze of a fellow victim: “Go bring Binghe here.”
Internally, Ming Fan was unnerved: whenever their master had called for Luo Binghe, it was always “that little beast,” “ungrateful brat,” “this wretch,” “whelp;”[4] he’d hardly ever used his full name, so why the intimate address, all of a sudden.
But this was their master’s command; Ming Fan didn’t dare question it, and immediately jogged to the woodshed, kicking the door twice: “Come out! Shizun’s calling you!”
Shen Qingqiu paced inside the room, vigorously examining the System within his mind.
[B-points, also known as the points given for putting on airs.[5] The higher the B-points, the higher the quality, the more magnificent, the better the rating.]
Then, how can I raise my B-points?
[One, change the nonsensical plot, and raise the villains’ and side cast’s IQs; two, avoid breaking the suspension of belief; three, ensure the protagonist’s gratification levels; four; discover and complete hidden plot points.]
Shen Qingqiu analyzed each one by one.
That is to say, not only did he have to clean up the original Shen Qingqiu’s messes, the Shen Qingqiu who’d amassed a mountain of grudges, he also had to prevent other characters from creating more messes.
He didn’t even know if he could preserve his own sorry life, yet he still needed to ensure that the protagonist’s OPness, spotlight, and number of girls weren’t reduced.
All those unsolved mysteries, those plot lines the author had dropped, now he had to personally sweat away while collecting each, wrapping them up himself.[6]
Ahhh.
Great God Airplane Shooting Towards the Sky had said, < < Proud Immortal Demon Way> >’s purpose was very clear; each word had been written with a single goal in mind, that was, to be gratifying.
Especially the way the darkened, OP male lead would play innocent, a fake pig hunting tigers, exacting revenge schemes against lowlifes, all gratifying enough to overturn the heavens. So the work’s popularity had swelled red-hot, growing longer and longer, until no foot-binding cloth could compare in length.
Shen Qingqiu thought, just keeping a decent track of the plot was already very stressful. Points that had broken the suspension of disbelief were everywhere, he couldn’t guarantee that he’d avoid all of them!
Shen Qingqiu said, “What kind of plot would qualify as not nonsensical?”
[The standard is subjectively determined; it depends on the readers’ reactions.]
“Then how many points do I need to collect, to launch the starting-stage missions?”
[The timing is situationally determined. When the requirements have been met, the System will automatically notify you.]
Subjectively determined, situationally determined; what magic words[7] they were. Shen Qingqiu scoffed a laugh, then hearing the door open, looked back and saw a youth slowly walk in.
Even though his movements were unsteady, he still managed to stand perfectly straight, and respectfully called, “Shizun.”
The small smile that had been forming at the corner of Shen Qingqiu’s mouth froze.
He’d be killed! This was the face that would infatuate everyone in the future, from eighty-year-old women to swaddled infants, the Gary Stu protagonist’s face, and he’d beaten it to this extent; he’d definitely be killed!
But, even though his face bore clear evidence of abuse, and was covered in injuries, the protagonist was, as expected, still the protagonist!
Luo Binghe’s two eyes were as bright as morning stars; the tender beginnings of a handsome young man.
That firm yet humble countenance, demonstrating his noble and unyielding attitude.
That pencil-straight back and stance, a proud core that would rather break than bend!
In that instant, a flood of parallelisms and stylistic devices surged in Shen Qingqiu’s heart, passage after passage jumbling together to form countless phrases of praise that almost spilled forth!
Luckily, Shen Qingqiu managed to rein them in, internally yelling about how close it’d been; the hardware of this protagonist halo was really too excellent; he almost couldn’t hold back!
He watched Luo Binghe limp through the door, then struggle to kneel. Shen Qingqiu’s mouth twitched, thinking, I can’t afford your respects; if you pay me your respects today, I might be kneecapped by you in the future, and immediately stopped him by saying, “No need.”
He flicked his wrist, tossing over a small bottle: “This is medicine.” He stopped, then added in a mocking tone, “Don’t let outsiders see, and think my Qing Jing Peak abuses its disciples.”
Shen Qingqiu had entered his role quickly: even though he’d done something incredibly daring like handing over medicine, he’d also chosen a nasty attitude, and could be considered to be in line with Shen Qingqiu’s trait of hypocrisy, to do evil things yet fear others knowing.
Indeed, the System didn’t send an OOC alert; Shen Qingqiu let out a sigh of relief.
Luo Binghe had expected that his Shizun had called him to continue “teaching,” and could never have thought it’d be to give him medicine; at first he froze, then respectfully used both hands to receive the small bottle, saying with honest gratitude, “Thank you for the medicine, Shizun.”
At this point in time, Luo Binghe’s face was still full of innocence, his smile sincere and gentle, like the warm dawning sun. Shen Qingqiu stared for a while, then turned his head away.
This male lead’s personality pre-darkening, was that of a model and upright youth; shine a bit of sunlight on him and he’d glow, give him a scrap of goodwill and he’d return it tenfold, that type, to say he was a little sheep would not be excessive.
Luo Binghe then happily continued, “This disciple will henceforth redouble his efforts, and not let Shizun be disappointed.”
Eh, no, if you redouble your efforts, I’m guessing your original Shizun would then really be disappointed…
If Shen Qingqiu had not read < < Proud Immortal Demon Way> >, upon seeing this scene, he would have found it heartwrenching, and probably shed a couple of sympathetic tears at Luo Binghe’s plight.
As it was, he’d seen everything from beginning to end as an omniscient reader, and been privy to Luo Binghe’s plentiful and colorful thoughts post-darkening. To summarize, Luo Binghe was pitiful now, but in the future he’d grind his heel into others’ faces, while laughing with reckless malevolence. Though he wore the mask of a kind and humble gentleman, inside all he thought about was how he’d rip out your tendons, pull out your bones, peel off your skin, then hang it all out to dry.
“Luo Binghe smiled and said, ‘The humiliation this disciple suffered in the past, today I’ll return it one hundred-fold. For hurting my hands and feet, I’ll tear off your limbs and grind them to dust.’”
— < < Proud Immortal Demon Way> >, featured paragraph number two
Afterward, he’d really carved Shen Qingqiu into a human stick.[8]
Shen Qingqiu moved to sit in a narra]9] chair, and picking an aloof tone, said, “Binghe, how’s your cultivation progress?”
That single “Binghe” caused frightened goosebumps to rise all over his body. Luo Binghe also obviously shuddered, but he still gave a smile tinged with shyness: “This disciple is stupid, and still…failed to understand.”
That was. An incorrect cultivation manual; that he hadn’t had a qi deviation[10] was thanks to his incredible durability as the protagonist, to actually understand would be a miracle. Shen Qingqiu yelled within his heart: Boy, you come under me! This master will give you the correct methods!
That demonic alert started blaring incessantly. Shen Qingqiu said to the System, “I was just thinking it. Of course I know that’s a violation!”
Next, he casually said, “Today, this master punished you out of impatience; all in all, time waits for no one. Thinking about it, you’ve been under me for a while; how old are you this year?”
Luo Binghe obediently said, “This disciple is fourteen.”
Eh, fourteen, ah.
That is to say, the Shen Qingqiu and Luo Binghe master-disciple pair, by this point, had already gone through the incident at the mountain entrance where he’d been forced to kneel as punishment, the Qing Jing Peak gang beating by his fellow disciples, the “backtalking” Shizun incident where he’d been strung up and beaten, the instrument-breaking incident where he’d been punished with hard labour…such a glorious track record waves goodbye.
Shen Qingqiu rested his forehead on one hand while waving him away with the other: “I wish to be alone.”
~~~~
*Fae’s Notes*:
Hello everyone! Reika asked me to do an explanation on why we’re re\-translating the early chapters. Basically, there are two versions of the Scum Villain novel, the original one serially released in chapters by MXTX \(used by the old translations on cnoveluv\), and the official one hosted on JJWXC and used for all print versions. Basically, MXTX went back over everything after she finished and edited using her complete knowledge of the novel, and that became the official version, which is what we’re using for translations now.
The official version has not been censored, nor has its plot changed, but the quality of writing, in my opinion, is vastly improved. She added quite a few things: foreshadowing, irony, description, dialogue, characterization, and little details that really pay off if you do a close read of the text, and even if you don’t, the official versions are much more professional\-feeling, with a smoother flow. When JJWXC was still up, I always encouraged everyone who could read Chinese to read the official version. So I hope I can bring a little of that to the English fandom as well.
*Reika’s Notes*:
This chapter is by Fae of BC Novels and *http://faelicy.tumblr.com*/.
*cough*\ More importantly, the edited version has more extra chapters. *whispers*\ Does it have more of…. that?  And by that I mean the thing that thirsty fujoshis/fudanshis want.
Thanks for reading!
**Translator's Note**:
1.富二代, word for the children of China’s nouveau riche
2.深宅大院, refers to the complicated courtyard compounds of rich families in old China, generally once a concubine enters the family, they can’t leave the place
3.尖嘴猴腮, lit. a mouth that sticks out and the cheeks of an ape
4.那小畜生, 孽障, 这厮, 竖子, all insults for boys or young men
5.装逼, lit. extreme pretense, internet slang for acting to invoke a sense of superiority, inflating your online ego, etc. The second character 逼 is often written as B \(same sound\); hence B\-points
6.自己扛个铲子吭哧吭哧地填平, lit. personally carry a shovel and huff and puff while flattening the ground, since unresolved plotlines are known as “holes” in Chinese, this metaphor works in the raws but fails in English
7.万金油, Tiger Balm, a popular home remedy for pain used in East Asia
8.人棍, word for a victim who’s had their four limbs removed
9.紫檀, a type of tree found in southern China
10走火入魔, to enter a qi\-imbalanced state when cultivation training has gone wrong, can manifest in many different ways
Shen Qingqiu was an easily satisfied person.
Since he had already transmigrated into “Proud Immortal Demon Way” and in his original world had □□ or died and flipped his braid [1], he might as well muddle along and live here.
He’d come to this cultivation world into a body with fairly good cultivation and sword skills, someone who was even in a well-known Righteous sect. If he wanted to be in the limelight, he could be in the limelight. If he wanted to shrink back he could do as he liked at Cang Qiong Mountain sect’s Qing Jing Peak without anyone asking. There was nothing bad with this kind of situation.
The only difficulty was finding a sister. [2]
This YY stallion novel, as soon as a sister arrived, she became the male lead’s. Everyone knew this.
However, Shen Qingqiu didn’t have any high requirements. He’d be content to just while away his time here and wait to die. At any rate, it wasn’t much different from his previous life. [3]
But so long as Luo Binghe was present, he couldn’t even speak of being in the limelight. As long as he remained in this piece of messy, dog-shit writing’s original path, even if he retired to some idyllic place; after Luo Binghe rose to power he had the ability to pluck him out of hiding and slice him into a human stick.
He could forgive being transmigrated into a stallion novel, but why not as the protagonist?!
He could forgive being transmigrated as cannon fodder, but why must it be as the person who abused the protagonist and for the transmigration to happen after all the abuse had occurred?!
‘It’s not like I don’t want to hug this main character’s thighs, but who let this fucking man be so black. The revenge that needs to be taken is some thousands of deeds!’
Shen Qingqiu cursed the creator of this pitch-black protagonist Luo Binghe, Airplane Towards The Sky: If you’re going to write a stallion novel, then you should write a good one and not spin off some damned unconventional thing!
In short, he could only try to communicate more with the system and figure out how to increase his points, advance through stages, and unfreeze the OOC function.
If the situation didn’t look good, it was still not too late for him to find another way out.
For the first step, he intended to explore and familiarize himself with the surroundings.
The Tian Gong Twelve Peaks [4] were like twelve imposing swords that had sprung up between heaven and earth pointing straight towards the sky, piercing through the clouds.
Shen Qingqiu occupied Qing Jing Peak, which was not the tallest among them but was certainly the most quiet, green, and comfortably shaded; perfect for scholars. Additionally, most all of Shen Qingqiu’s disciples must learn some qin qi shu hua [5] and the like. Often sounds would drift by like someone reading out loud or playing the qin; truly a wonderful place for youths to indulge in the liberal arts. It perfectly matched the original Shen Qingqiu’s characteristics and was a good start for earning points.
Some disciples passed by Shen Qingqiu and respectfully greeted him while he attempted to grasp the original Shen Qingqiu’s mannerisms; his face cold, a slight nod, moving actively but withdrawing his inner self. Like this, he managed to pass even though inside, his head ached at how he was going to reconcile the character in the novel with the person alive right now.
But these matters still weren’t the most urgent for Shen Qingqiu to solve right now. If he wanted to save himself, he first needed to get the original’s martial arts and sword techniques.
If he hadn’t remembered wrong, before Luo Binghe was blackened, Cang Qiong Mountain sect encountered some big events: some attempted demon realm invasion, Immortal Alliance Conference, all these required him to fight in person. If he only wore the appearance without any real ability, he’s doomed! Don’t even speak about proceeding in the plot, the protagonist wouldn’t even have to act for some nobody yao or guai [6] to play him to death!
Shen Qingqiu entered deep into the forest without anyone’s notice. He made sure no one was around before he slowly drew the sword at his side with his right hand, his left hand on the scabbard.
This Xiu Ya Sword was Shen Qingqiu’s proof of fame as both a technique and the sword at his side. The sword light flashed snow-white and clear without being too bright; definitely high-quality goods. Originally it was written that if your own aura [7] was poured into the weapon, it would emit a glowing light.
Shen Qingqiu wanted to figure out how to insert his aura into the sword when the sword in his hand immediately emitted a shimmering white light.
It seemed like the original’s martial abilities and techniques were automatically inherited. He could use his skills without needing to think too much. The sword light was emitted without much direction from him.
Shen Qingqiu wanted to see how strong he was so he carelessly slashed in front of him.
Who knew this careless slash was enough to scare people; the sword light shone dazzlingly and swept out in front of him, forcing him to close his eyes. When he opened them again, the ground looked as though it had been ravaged by lightning, a deep ditch lying before him.
‘Fuck……!!!’
Shen Qingqiu was expressionless, but his heart was about to burst inside.
It’s even more aggressive than he imagined! Worthy of a Peak Lord! With this martial ability and technique, plus some diligent practice, even if he must face off against Luo Binghe in the future he’d have a chance to flee!
Right. To be able to flee is enough to make Shen Qingqiu laugh for three days straight. His needs truly weren’t high, he’d be happy just to keep his life……
He wanted to practice more so he could advance his plans sooner. But then he heard someone stepping on and breaking branches underfoot.
Truthfully that sound was very far away, but his five senses were too keen. It wasn’t difficult at all for him to figure out where. Shen Qingqiu looked at the deep ditch in the ground and slid his sword back into the scabbard, retreating into the deep green of the forest unseen.
The sound of footsteps drew closer before Shen Qingqiu could hear that it was not only one person. Sure enough, after a moment there appeared Luo Binghe’s soft bright face and a fresh delicate girl’s voice in the clearing.
“Ah Luo, Ah Luo [8], look, there’s a very large ditch here in the ground!”
Hearing this method of addressing him, Shen Qingqiu who hid in the darkness almost stumbled.
The system helpfully explained: 【New character: Shen Qingqiu’s youngest female disciple, Ning Yingying】
‘Shut up, don’t need you to introduce. Those who call Luo Binghe like that won’t be just the one, this old man knows.’ Shen Qingqiu’s face was expressionless.
Following behind Luo Binghe was a pretty girl who seemed to be a little younger than him, her braided hair bound with orange ribbons, innocent and lovely. Every standard cultivation novel must have an adorable little apprentice-sister.
And this little apprentice-sister gave Shen Qingqiu some complex feelings.
This is because he had designs on Ning Yingying. No wait, it should be that the original Shen Qingqiu had designs on Ning Yingying.
Shen Qingqiu was a hypocrite. Since outwardly he seemed fair and it appeared to be a pure and selfless love, inside he must be shameless, dirty, and despicable. He was a teacher, but had dirty thoughts towards his lively and well-behaved disciples. Several times he tried to lay hands on them and almost succeeded at that.
To dare lay hands on the male protagonist’s woman, you can imagine the result yourself!
When Shen Qingqiu was reading the novel, he felt it was a bit strange. Why didn’t Luo Binghe castrate him? He even went to the reader comments section and joined the group in writing ‘Please castrate! If you don’t castrate you’ll anger the readers!’ these kinds of comments.
If at that time they had succeeded…… hehe.
He would cut off the hand that had written such things!
Luo Binghe looked at it but wasn’t interested, only smiled warmly. Ning Yingying wanted to keep his attention on her but had no words to say: “Which martial brother do you think it was who cut this sword scar during practice?’
Luo Binghe held an axe and began to cut down a tree, said: “Impossible. Among the cultivators on Qing Jing Peak, there’s only Shizun who’s capable.”
Shen Qingqiu mentally coughed twice: Young boy, you sure know your stuff.
Ning Yingying sat on a slanted slab of limestone, resting her head against a hand: “Oh. Then that crevice was created from being struck by lightning.”
Luo Binghe didn’t pay attention to her anymore, focusing all his attention on his hands and continued to honestly cut down trees.
These tree trunks weren’t weak and thin. The axe was half-rusted. Luo Binghe was only fourteen years old so cutting down the trees was extremely tiring. It wasn’t long before his forehead was covered in sweat. Ning Yingying was bored again and entreated him, spoiled: “Ah Luo, Ah Luo, come play with me!”
Even with a face full of sweat, Luo Binghe didn’t rub it off and continued to chop trees. He said: “It won’t do. Martial brother instructed me. After taking care of today’s firewood I still have to jump in the water [9]. If I finish chopping wood faster, I’ll have time to cultivate some more.”
Ning Yingying said: “The martial brothers are sure bad! It’s always you doing this and that. The way I see it, they’re purposefully bullying you. Humph, I’ll go back and tell Shizun about this; guaranteed to let them not dare to bully you again.”
Shen Qingqiu was frightened and his face changed color. No, no, no, you had better never tell me! What should I do! Which side should I teach a lesson to in the end like this!
At this time, though Luo Binghe’s age was small, he had tasted all kinds of bitterness in life. Still, he managed to preserve a heart as pure as a white lotus. Towards Ning Yingying, he earnestly said: “Please do not. I don’t want Shizun to be troubled over these small things. The martial brothers don’t mean to be malicious and just see that my age is small. They’re just giving me more opportunities to practice hard.”
Shen Qingqiu was truly about to have his heart moved by this child: You say, how good it would be to have a child so sensible!
In the middle of Ning Yingying’s chatter, Luo Binghe finished cutting enough firewood for his task. After putting things in order, he also sat down on the limestone slab, cross-legged, and began to cultivate.
Shen Qingqiu let out a long sigh in his heart.
Truthfully, the protagonist’s lack of cultivation in the earliest, bitterest scenes of the novel was partly for this reason. It was obvious that Ming Fan gave him a false technique to practice with when he joined in the beginning. The more he sought to cultivate, the more dog-shit difference there was between him and the others. It was only because Luo Binghe was such a heavenly talent and had the support of the demonic blood hidden within his body that he managed to feel out and grasp his own cultivation practicing method…… way too unscientific!
Even as he sighed, he heard the chaotic sound of many footsteps.
Shen Qingqiu immediately knew it was nothing good and something bad would happen.
Ming Fan brought some low-level disciples with him. At the sight of Ning Yingying, he immediately went up to take her hand: “Little martial sister! Little martial sister, I’ve been looking for you, you know. How come you never want to drop by our place? The back of the mountains is so large, what’ll you do when night falls and poisonous snakes emerge? This older apprentice-brother has some fun stuff for you to see.”
He naturally saw the mutely cultivating Luo Binghe treating him as though he was air. Luo Binghe is quite mannerly and opened his eyes to greet him as a martial brother.
Ning Yingying laughed: “I’m not afraid of any poisonous snakes. Besides, there’s Ah Luo here to stay with me, right?”
Ming Fan slanted his eyes towards Luo Binghe and let out a humph.
**Translator's Note**:
\[1\] Flipped his braid: A funny saying meaning that someone is dead. Probably comes from around Qing Dynasty times – the hairstyle for men was a long braid down the back and if your braid ‘flips,’ you’re dead. The little emotes are supposed to be two whited eyeballs I think. XD
\[2\] Difficulty is finding a sister: He means it’s hard to pick up girls. LOL
\[3\] Previous life: Bit of a subtle hint that our main character probably had a terminal illness or something that would have taken his life in time.
\[4\] Tian Gong Twelve Peaks \(天宮十二峰\): Roughly, ‘Sky Temple Twelve Peaks.’ Tian Gong is the name of the mountain range where Cang Qiong sect is and an alternate name for the sect. The mountain range is made up of twelve peaks, each with a Peak Lord. Shen Qingqiu’s Qing Jing Peak is one of the twelve.
\[5\] Qin qi shu hua: I left this in the original pinyin for effect. These are the four fundamental classic accomplishments for a Chinese scholar to have – ability to play qin \(a stringed traditional Chinese instrument\), play qi \(or chess; you might be more familiar with Japanese name ‘go’\), write calligraphy and compose poetry \(shu includes both of these\), and the ability to paint \(hua\).
\[6\] Yao and guai: In ancient Chinese culture, the species existing in the world can be divided into shen, mo, xian, yao, ren, and yin \(or Heaven, Demon, Fairy, Spirit, Human, and Yin if you want really want a translation\). Mo, yao, and yin are generally considered ‘evil’ or ‘guai’ \(literally strange/weird\) and therefore unorthodox. Our MC is worried about getting done in by the opposing unorthodox side because he himself belongs to an orthodox \(AKA Righteous\) sect.
\[7\] Aura: The term used in pinyin is ‘ling qi.’
\[8\] Ah Luo: Nickname used for Luo Binghe. Another cutesy way to address a person \(only with people familiar with you, mind\) is to add “Ah” in front. So for instance using Shen Qingqiu’s name, it would be “Ah Shen” if using his last name.
\[9\] Jump in the water: I assume Luo Binghe’s saying he still needs to take a bath after chopping up firewood. Instead of boiling water to the perfect toasty temperature, he’s going to jump straight into freezing mountain water instead. What a hardcore guy, but I guess his method saves time.
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