Can a Scholar Be Called a Villain - Book 1: Chapter 132: Murdering Chu Ze

Amidst the dense, ancient forest, Li Wen You bore the weight of Chu Ze upon his back as he sprinted toward their destination not too distantly ahead, the borders of Chu.

Behind them, a relentless sea of fire painted the landscape with its fiery glow.

Li Wen You had channelled every ounce of his spiritual powers into his legs, granting him incredible speed.

He flew through the air with the winds surrounding his feet, moving swiftly through the forest.

Chu Ze’s face was ashen, and despair weighed heavily in his eyes as he rested on Li Wen You’s back. He had just learned of the deaths of Guan Yun Chang, Ma Meng Qi, and the rest through the system, a blow that tore at his heart.

The sea of flames behind them mirrored the turmoil within him.

Chu Ze’s gaze fixed upon Chu’s border in the distance, his thoughts fraught with worry and uncertainty. The bitter realization that their capital had fallen to enemy forces weighed heavily upon him.

“Go…go into Chu’s territory,” he managed to utter.

He knew returning to the capital was an ill-fated venture, as it now lay under the occupation of the three invading nations. Doing so would be akin to walking willingly into the clutches of their enemies.

Chaos had firmly taken root within Chu’s territory. In the south, desolation reigned as the land had been abandoned and decimated by the relentless onslaught of the Blood Bat Locusts. Meanwhile, the northern regions were firmly under the occupation of the soldiers from the three other invading nations.

Regret gnawed at Chu Ze’s conscience, and he loathed himself for his past arrogance.

Why had he poured all his resources into attacking the Demonic Beast Forest!

Why hadn’t he left a portion of his forces to safeguard Chu itself!

He now realised the heavy price of a protagonist’s arrogance and pride.

His self-confidence had stemmed from the knowledge that he was, indeed, a protagonist, destined for greatness.

Suddenly, Li Wen You came to an abrupt halt, freezing in mid-air.

Chu Ze couldn’t fathom the reason for his actions, his face etched with concern as he opened his mouth to speak. However, he fell silent, sensing the tension and trembling coursing through Li Wen You’s body.

Slowly, Chu Ze turned his head, directing his gaze towards something ahead. There, beneath the moonlight, another figure floated effortlessly in the air.

This individual stood suspended in the thin air, wielding a gleaming knife that exuded an eerie, cold brilliance. The blade’s frigid presence was a stark contrast to the fiery sea behind them, yet both elements seemed to represent death itself.

Li Wen You remained suspended in the air, his mouth opening ever so slightly, “Who exactly are you, sir?”

Chu Ze lay helpless on his back, his eyes filled with a mixture of confusion and anger as he focused on the figure before them.

Murong Lin, with his blade in hand, whistled nonchalantly before responding, “Someone much like him.”

The air grew heavy once more.

Li Wen You was unaware of the system’s existence, he assumed Murong Lin meant they were both emperors, and that he had come to forcibly seize Chu Ze’s lands.

However, Chu Ze understood the deeper meaning behind Murong Lin’s words.

He knew precisely what the man was implying.

In that very moment, he finally grasped why this man had managed to outmanoeuvre him, even with Chu Ze’s possession of a system.

He comprehended why, in the span of just a month, nearly all of his forces had been decimated, despite the smooth progress he had enjoyed previously.

He understood, though he struggled to accept it.

“Impossible? How can you be? It was supposed to be just me! Impossible! You’re lying to me!” Chu Ze roared at Murong Lin, his voice strained.

Murong Lin’s next words struck Chu Ze like a blow to the heart, driving him further into despair.

“Then, ask your system if I’m someone like you,”

He didn’t fully comprehend the extent of Chu Ze’s capabilities, so he intended to probe the system.

Chu Ze’s expression froze as the word, ‘system’, entered his ears.

This was his greatest secret, something that no one knew, or should have known about. And yet, the young man before him had somehow mentioned his golden finger.

In a sudden rush of realization, he hurriedly questioned his system, seeking answers to this situation.

But he didn’t receive a response.

The system didn’t reply, as if it never existed.

There wasn’t a hint, nor was there the system window, and there wasn’t the aid of the system.

Chu Ze resembled a madman as he shouted at the empty air, but nothing changed. The system, which had always been at his beck and call, had vanished without a trace.

“It seems like it’s useless?”

Murong Lin smiled.

With the strange disappearance of Chu Ze’s system, Murong Lin was certain that he had run out of tricks.

He slowly raised his blade, and with ruthless determination, he brought down his weapon.

“Everlasting style!”

In a split second, Li Wen You acted decisively, throwing Chu Ze a distance away, “Your Majesty! Run, quickly! Where there is life, there is hope!”

Meanwhile, a voice resonated in Murong Lin’s mind,

“Ding! The protagonist Chu Ze’s ‘little protagonist halo’ is continuing to shatter, and his protagonist value has dropped by 50.”

“Ding! Congratulations to master for obtaining a villain value of 50, you may use it to purchase items in the system shop.”

Murong Lin understood what was happening—Chu Ze was now consumed by self-doubt.

He shifted his blade’s trajectory, directing it toward Li Wen You.

Li Wen You stood his ground with unwavering resolve as he braced himself for the clash with Murong Lin. With a wave of his arm, he conjured a rune that swiftly materialised into a formidable attack, hurtling toward Murong Lin.

Li Wen You knew that, given his current level of cultivation, he stood no chance against Murong Lin. His hope rested solely on stalling Murong Lin, even if only for a brief moment, to give Chu Ze a chance to escape.

However, he had gravely underestimated Murong Lin’s prowess and overestimated Chu Ze’s ability to come to terms with their dire situation.

In the blink of an eye, Murong Lin’s blade sliced through Li Wen You’s neck, swiftly and efficiently beheading the ninth layer Sky Reaching realm cultivator.

This was Murong Lin’s ‘Blade Intent’, and he had aptly named it ‘Emotionless’. It embodied a chilling, unfeeling efficiency, a blade that showed no mercy.

Li Wen You fell without a chance to resist, his life extinguished in an instant.

Meanwhile, his lord, Chu Ze sat at the side in a daze.

His dishevelled hair covered his face as he muttered, “Impossible, impossible, I’m the protagonist! I’m the protagonist. System, come out now! I want to summon! I want to do a lucky draw! Kill him! I want to kill him!”

Li Wen You’s death signified the complete annihilation of every hero Chu Ze had summoned. With the loss of his heroes, Chu Ze’s protagonist destiny had crumbled into nothingness.

“Ding! The protagonist Chu Ze’s ‘little protagonist halo’ has completely shattered, and his protagonist value has dropped by 50.”

“Ding! Congratulations to master for obtaining a villain value of 50, you may use it to purchase items in the system shop.”

Murong Lin wore a smile as he approached Chu Ze. He positioned himself before the fallen protagonist, gazing down at him. His blade pressed gently against Chu Ze’s neck as he spoke, “What a pity, you lacked time.”

In a final act of defiance, Chu Ze reached out and grabbed Murong Lin’s blade, wanting to say something.

But Murong Lin acted swiftly, channelling his spiritual power into the blade. With a swift, blinding flash of blade light, Chu Ze’s body was mercilessly severed in two, his head tumbling to the ground.

Chu Ze was dead.

“Ding! Master has successfully killed a protagonist, the reward is a gift bag.” The system’s voice chimed in Murong Lin’s mind once more. However, he showed no eagerness to claim this reward.

Turning his back to the roaring sea of flames within the Demonic Beast Forest, Murong Lin retrieved a crystal from his ring of holding and crushed it in his hand.

Red beams of light surged from the ground, resembling crimson pillars that bridged the earth and the sky. These luminous beams slowly converged, coalescing into a single radiant pillar that stood at the centre of the battlefield.

Murong Lin’s eyes fixated on the towering pillar of light, his gaze unwavering as he scrutinized the silhouette of an insect that resided within the brilliant light.

It was an insect with a body as red as blood, adorned with intricate crimson patterns on its back. From its very appearance, it exuded an aura of immense power.

This was Murong Lin’s Bloody Poisonous Insect.

Having absorbed the blood and flesh of two experts from the Cognizance realm, as well as the countless corpses scattered across the battlefield, the insect had undergone a transformative evolution within the sea of fire. Its aura continued to surge, reaching a level of power comparable to that of Lu Feng Xian in his prime.

The first layer of the Cognizance realm!

Translator’s note:

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