The frost in the room wasn't metaphorical. Tiny, jagged crystals began to bloom on the mahogany bedposts, crawling toward Hansraj like frozen spiders. Mu Ningxue had regressed five days ago, and while she was currently just a woman in a silk robe with no internal energy, her soul was that of a monarch who had commanded frost and blood.
Hansraj looked at her, his vision swimming. The "Villain System" was a cold, pulsing presence in his mind, its one-year mission timer ticking with indifferent cruelty. [Mission: Dominate the Empress. Time Remaining: 364 Days, 23 Hours, 59 Minutes.]
Dominate her? Hansraj thought, watching a frost-crystal nearly nip his nose. System, I can't even dominate a bowl of soup right now. If I try to 'show her her place,' my place is going to be a coffin.
"Ningxue," he rasped, the name feeling foreign and far too expensive for his current pay grade. He forced himself to ignore the "Under me" mission.
"I told you... don't say my name," she hissed, her fingers white-knuckled against the table.
"I have to," Hansraj wheezed, a thin trail of blood leaking from the corner of his mouth. "Because the man who dragged your name through the mud... he's dead. Well, technically his soul was eaten. I'm the one who finished the leftovers. I'm a transmigrator."
The silence that followed was absolute.
Mu Ningxue didn't gasp. She didn't scream. She simply stared at him like he was a bug that had suddenly started reciting Shakespeare. She had spent five days planning how to dismantle the Lin family, anticipating every move the "Prodigy" Lin Feng would make. She had prepared for a snake, but she hadn't prepared for a man who claimed to be a ghost with an identity crisis.
"A transmigrator?" she repeated, the word sounding like she was tasting something spoiled. "You think... after five days of my silence, I will fall for such a pathetic, delusional lie? You've finally lost your mind, Lin Feng. Did the syphilis finally reach your brain?"
"I know about the Nine Shadows," Hansraj whispered, ignoring the insult. "The cultivation manual you hid under the floorboards of the Cold Palace... in a life that hasn't happened yet. And I know your Uncle didn't just swap his son for yours—he sold your biological brother to a Research Lab in the Northern Wastelands. Also, you have a crescent moon birthmark behind your left ear. I'd show you mine to build trust, but I don't think I have one."
Mu Ningxue froze. The color drained from her face, leaving her looking like a marble statue of grief. That secret was her deepest scar—a truth she hadn't uncovered until she was already standing on a mountain of corpses in her previous life.
[Warning! Taboo Information Leaked!]
[The Heavens are angry , host be ready]
Hansraj didn't even have time to say "Wait."
CRACK-BOOM!
A pillar of divine, violet lightning tore through the ceiling, incinerating the luxury purple canopy and slamming directly into Hansraj's chest. The sound was like the world itself stubbing its toe and screaming in rage.
[Deep Within the System Logic]
[Alert! Logic Error!]
[Host Hansraj has revealed 'The Script' to a Regressor.]
[Processing...]
The System's internal processor, a vast web of golden code, began to spark and hiss. In its long history of serving "Villain Hosts," it had seen everything. It had seen hosts who pillaged, and hosts who tried to be heroes. But it had never seen a host look at a Regressor and say: "Hi, I'm a soul-stealing ghost, here is your private medical history and a list of your family's trauma."
[Error: Does not compute. Analyzing Host Motivation...]
[Logic Found: The 'Absolute Scum' Strategy.]
[Conclusion: Host is pretending to be 'Honest' to bypass the Empress's 'Killing Intent'. By claiming to be a 'Transmigrator', he creates a mystery she cannot kill until she solves. This is a Level 99 Manipulation Technique. Truly the most 'Black-Bellied' move in history. To save himself, he even invited God to strike him! What dedication to the craft! Very Villainous. Very Scum.]
[Resuming System Functions. Approval Rating: Increasing! Host is a genius of deception!]
[New Function Unlocked: Plot Divergence Ledger.]
[Back in the Hospital Room]
Hansraj's eyes snapped open. He was still in the bed, but he felt like he'd been licked by the sun. Smoke was rising from his chest, and his silk pajamas were now just a collection of charred holes held together by luck.
He looked at Mu Ningxue. She was trembling, leaning against the wall for support. To her, a strike of Heavenly Thunder was the ultimate judgment. To survive it meant the Heavens were either having a technical difficulty... or they were terrified of him.
"Six years," Hansraj wheezed, wiping a trail of blood from his chin with a sleeve that was currently on fire. He patted the fire out lazily. "As I said... it was an arranged marriage. Stay my wife for six years. I'll provide the money, the resources, and the 'Meta-knowledge' you need to reclaim your throne. I'll even help you find your brother."
He forced a grin that made him look like a very charismatic charcoal briquette.
"After six years, do whatever you want. Kill me, leave me, or give me a divorce settlement. But for now... I'm the best investment you'll ever make. Even God tried to delete me just now, and I'm still talking. Doesn't that prove my customer service is top-tier?"
Mu Ningxue looked at the smoking hole in the ceiling, then back at the man who should have been a pile of ash. For the first time in two lifetimes, the "Ice Empress" felt like the world had gone completely mad.
"Six years," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "If you are lying to me... I will make sure the lightning finishes what it started."
"Fair enough," Hansraj sighed, his eyes growing heavy. "Now, if you'll excuse me... getting struck by God is exhausting. I'm going to go pass out now. Try not to stab me while I'm snoring."