Villain: Gouging Out the Heroine’s Spiritual Eyes at the Beginning

Chapter 1: A Perfect Start, But as a Villain:

Good news: Shen Yuan has transmigrated, giving him a second chance at life despite his supposed death.

Bad news: Shen Yuan transmigrated into the role of a villainous family patriarch in a fantasy world.

Yes, the kind of patriarch who constantly courts death and stirs up trouble. 

In this world, whenever the protagonist and the female lead fall for each other, he appears as the female lead’s family head to disrupt them endlessly. When the protagonist hits a bottleneck in his cultivation, he sends his underlings to harass him—though all that achieves is giving the protagonist more experience points.

Naturally, the story ends with the protagonist’s triumphant revenge. 

After thirty years of growth, he returns to settle the score, wins the female lead, and thoroughly defeats the villain. As for Shen Yuan, the infamous family patriarch? He’s doomed to die. If he’s lucky, only he dies; if not, his entire family, except the female lead, might perish alongside him.

“Master, Qin Yang and I are deeply in love. Please grant us your blessing!”

At this moment, a teary-eyed young woman knelt below Shen Yuan. Beside her stood a tall, sharp-featured young man. Though not classically handsome, his upright demeanor and striking presence instantly identified him as the protagonist.

After over a decade since his transmigration, Shen Yuan had finally reached this pivotal plot point. This was the moment in the original novel when the female lead, Shen Xiao’er, rebelled against her family for the sake of the protagonist.

According to the novel, Shen Xiao’er had been training outside when she got separated from her family guards and encountered danger. Qin Yang rescued her, and with nothing more than a campfire and a roast chicken, won her heart.

Shen Yuan never understood how a mere roast chicken could compare to the lavish feasts of the Shen family. It wasn’t even seasoned or prepared properly, just roasted with firewood in the wilderness. Yet somehow, this simple gesture made Shen Xiao’er fall head over heels. It almost felt like the female lead loved the chicken more than the protagonist.

The Shen family, as the ultimate villain in the original plot, had an aura of unassailable grandeur. Known as the most powerful family in the Northern Qi Empire, their wealth and resources were unparalleled. The family held vast reserves of rare treasures, and their influence extended across the empire’s court, where they wielded immense power.

Shen Yuan, as the Shen family’s patriarch, had a deep foundation. Beyond his connections in the martial world, where he had established countless sects, he served as the empire’s prime minister, second only to the emperor. His faction, the “Shen Clan,” dominated the court.

Yet, despite such an invincible beginning, Shen Yuan’s fate as a villain was sealed. 

Shen Xiao’er and Qin Yang eventually exposed his supposed treason, with the help of the Northern Qi Empire’s Empress Yaochi, leading to his execution.

And the empress? As predictable as such plots go, even she ended up joining the protagonist’s harem.

Damn it. How could a protagonist with no background or resources end up with countless beauties, while a supreme villain like him, who started with everything, was reduced to a stepping stone for the protagonist’s rise?

This was utterly unreasonable.

Shen Yuan still felt bitter. 

When he first transmigrated and took control of the Shen family, resolving their internal strife and succeeding as both patriarch and prime minister, he had planned to deal with Qin Yang immediately. Yet, despite mobilizing the family’s vast resources, he found no trace of Qin Yang.

Thus, all he could do was wait patiently for this pivotal plot moment. And now, it had finally arrived.

Shen Yuan circulated his energy. 

As a cultivator at the half-step Sovereign Realm, there were few in the world who could match him, aside from the Empress Yaochi and a handful of others in the Imperial Guard.

He prepared to act, intending to kill Qin Yang directly, but soon halted. 

His deep blue eyes revealed something extraordinary: Qin Yang’s golden aura of destiny.

It was protection from the heavens.

Shen Yuan’s lips twitched involuntarily. As expected of the protagonist, Qin Yang was shielded by the will of the heavens. Attempting to kill him outright would likely result in a catastrophic backlash. No wonder he had remained untraceable for so many years.

Still, why could he now perceive Qin Yang’s aura?

Shen Yuan quickly understood. 

It was due to the Thousand Illusion Spirit Eyes—a bloodline inheritance of the Shen family. 

In the original plot, Shen Yuan’s spirit eyes had reached the sixth level. Once they reached the ninth, they could perceive destiny and unveil the secrets of the heavens. Now, due to his transmigration, his spirit eyes had inexplicably advanced to the ninth level.

While this was a boon, it was also a pity that only his spiritual abilities had advanced. His cultivation and physical strength remained the same. In the original novel, Shen Yuan, though powerful, was not invincible. The Empress Yaochi and other top experts still posed a threat.

If his cultivation had surpassed theirs, wouldn’t that have been perfect? Unfortunately, for now, he could only work toward eroding the protagonist’s aura bit by bit, waiting for the right moment to strike.

“Master, I truly love Young Master Qin. Please allow us to be together. If I can be with him, I’m willing to leave the Shen family forever,” Shen Xiao’er pleaded.

Qin Yang added, “Master Shen, Xiao’er and I are deeply in love. As the saying goes, it’s better to destroy ten temples than to ruin one marriage. I may not be worthy of her now, but I promise to prove myself and never let her down.”

“Enough!” Before Shen Yuan could speak, his family members could no longer hold back.

“Shen Xiao’er, have you forgotten that you are part of the Shen family? How dare you say such things in front of the master, betraying the family for an outsider? Do you have any regard for the master or the family’s honor?”

Shen Yuan, however, remained silent, tapping his finger rhythmically on the table, as if contemplating his next move.

Shen Xiao’er’s lips curled into a bitter smile. “You won’t let me leave with Qin Yang because you want me to marry Pei Gongzi, right? Why not say so directly instead of pretending otherwise?”

She wasn’t wrong. 

In the original novel, Shen Yuan had planned to marry her off to Pei Duan, the son of Pei Jianghai, the Imperial Guard commander. By allying with Pei Jianghai, he could consolidate power over the Imperial Guard.

At this moment, Qin Yang interjected, “Xiao’er, I didn’t realize your family would stoop to such a level, sacrificing your happiness for their ambitions. Such a family isn’t worth staying in!”

With that, he grabbed Shen Xiao’er, intending to leave.

“Silence!”

A thunderous voice accompanied by a terrifying pressure pinned Qin Yang in place, rendering him immobile. 

Though Shen Yuan couldn’t kill him outright, he could still teach him a lesson.

Leaning on his cane, Shen Yuan rose from his ornate chair and limped toward them.

The limp was part of the original novel’s setting. 

As a big villain, Shen Yuan’s power grew so overwhelming that the protagonist and the empress struggled to defeat him. To balance this, the author gave him a limp, with a fatal weakness hidden in his crippled leg.

Thus, Shen Yuan’s role as a limping villain remained intact, even in this world.