Having Played the Villain for Ten Years, I Came Back - Chapter 9

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it. Can you forgive me?”

It was such a familiar sentence. Wu Shujie, pinned to the ground by his hair with his head forced back, felt a sharp pain that made his very soul tremble.

He wanted to curse, but the moment he opened his mouth, blood flooded his throat, making him choke. The sensation of impending death cleared his mind; he frantically blinked at Wen Linyu to show submission, slurring “It’s okay” several times. At this point, he didn’t care about anything else—he just wanted to be released. He felt as if his scalp were about to be torn clean off!

It hurt so damn much! What had Wen Linyu eaten to suddenly become this strong?

Wasn’t Wen Linyu supposed to be a useless waste who never fought back?

Wu Shujie’s head was a mess of pain and confusion, and the scene around them grew chaotic with the sudden turn of events.

“What are you doing? Which class are you from? How dare you fight on campus! Let go of him this instant!” The same teachers who had been ten meters away earlier came running over, their faces as dark as the bottom of a scorched pot.

Wen Linyu let go, wiped his hands with an expression of disgust, and straightened up to stare at the two approaching teachers. “Didn’t you hear? I accidentally hit him. I already apologized, and he said it was okay.”

“Nonsense!” the two teachers snapped, their expressions grim with anger. “You beat him into this state and you claim it was an accident?”

“Why couldn’t it be?” Wen Linyu’s gaze shifted from the teachers to Wu Shujie, who was being helped up. He smiled. “Isn’t that right?”

Wu Shujie shuddered. Before he even had a chance to wipe the blood from his face, he stammered in quick succession, “Yes, yes, it was an accident.  I’ve already forgiven him.”

The teachers were beyond frustrated. “You students are simply. Come with us to the Dean’s office!”

Wen Linyu let out a cold laugh and stood his ground. A large crowd had gathered. He scanned the onlookers and said, “Last Friday, at the same time, in the same place, the same thing happened. Why did no one call it ‘nonsense’ then?”

“Last Friday?” one teacher asked, confused. The other teacher looked closely at Wen Linyu and suddenly wore an embarrassed expression.

Standing at a safe distance, Wen Cheng watched Wen Linyu’s back. He swallowed hard again and hesitantly stepped forward. “Last Friday. the footage from both security cameras here can be retrieved.”

Hearing Wen Cheng’s voice, Wen Linyu turned to glance at him but said nothing.

Wen Cheng shuddered under the gaze. He was truly terrified; the current Wen Linyu was far too brutal. He was afraid that if he saw the truth but stayed silent, Wen Linyu might give him a couple of slaps the next time he was in a bad mood. With his small frame, those two slaps would probably put him to sleep for good.

Yes, Wen Cheng had seen it last Friday too. Wu Shujie had hit Wen Linyu with a smirk on his face, while Wen Linyu had just clutched his face and lowered his head, eventually squeezing out a “It’s okay.” Wen Cheng had felt stifled just watching it. He had wanted to find a teacher for Linyu, but then he thought that if Wen Linyu couldn’t stand up for himself, no amount of help would matter.

Who could have imagined that in just three short days, Wen Linyu would undergo a total “darkening” and go berserk?

In the end, the incident was brushed under the rug. The school’s cameras weren’t broken, and last Friday’s footage was easy to pull up.

There had been teachers nearby back then too, but they had done nothing while Wen Linyu was being beaten. Therefore, they shouldn’t do anything today either otherwise, they would have to explain the double standard. Was it just because last Friday’s Wen Linyu looked easier to bully?

And wasn’t today the same? Because the one who got beaten today was easier to bully, everyone was pressuring him to swallow his anger and let it go.

This infuriated Wu Shujie, who cursed Wen Linyu and the teachers countless times in private.

Regardless, Wen Linyu’s blatant disrespect toward the teachers prompted the school to call his parents. However, the call didn’t yield the results they expected. Instead, they were met with a barrage of verbal abuse from Wen Hongbo; the man was irritated just by the mere mention of Wen Linyu’s name.

Even more terrifyingly, while Wen Hongbo was still shouting, the teachers—who had the call on speaker—heard a loud crash, the screaming of a crowd, and then the line went dead. Every teacher present turned pale.

They were all afraid of the responsibility.

That sounded exactly like a car crash. If Wen Hongbo had been driving and happened to get into an accident because he was in a foul mood after their call, they would be connected to it, even if they weren’t legally liable.

Back in the classroom, Wen Linyu was being watched covertly by his classmates. He twirled a pen in his hand and suddenly let out a mysterious laugh. The gazes scattered like startled fish. They thought to themselves: Holy crap! Why does Wen Linyu radiate such a villainous aura today? He laughs like he just took someone out!

As soon as the first period ended, Wen Cheng ran to find Wen Linyu, his forehead dripping with sweat. “Brother, Dad was in a car accident. You have to come to the hospital with me right now!”

Wen Linyu stopped twirling his pen. He thought for a moment, and the corners of his mouth turned up. “Sure.”

But upon arriving at the hospital, Wen Linyu was a bit disappointed. He looked at Wen Hongbo, who was sitting on the hospital bed, still full of energy and rambling incessantly, with only one leg in a cast. He didn’t look like he had suffered a major disaster at all.

Is that bearded ghost incompetent? Linyu thought. He’d have to visit the cemetery after school to ask about it.

Or perhaps it was because he hadn’t “consumed” any of his luck today?

With that thought, Wen Linyu went to the nearest lottery station and bought a ticket with a hundred-fold multiplier. If he hit the jackpot, it would be 500 million even after taxes, it would be a massive sum.

As for how many years of lifespan such a fortune would cost, what did that have to do with Wen Linyu? It wasn’t his life being spent anyway.

After buying the ticket, Wen Linyu went straight back to school to continue his classes. His classmates were stunned. Wait, your dad is hospitalized from a car crash and you’re still coming to class?

Wen Linyu was very serious about his studies. Over the last ten years, he had grown accustomed to learning, even though this school taught ordinary subjects that he had already mastered back in Gu Chi’s world.

He remembered when he had started doing high school entrance exam papers back then, and his teacher had been speechless for a long time.

The thought of his teacher improved Linyu’s mood significantly. He spent the rest of the day with a faint smile on his face, which made everyone else even more uneasy.

However, his good mood was eventually ruined. As soon as he stepped out of the school gates, he received a phone call.

The caller ID showed the name “Wu Shuhao.” He was the son of the people Wen Linyu’s parents had dumped him with to be raised—the “precious darling” of his foster parents and his “dear brother.”

“Wen Linyu, you’ve got some nerve, actually daring to hit my brother?” Wu Shuhao didn’t attend this private school, but he didn’t need to be in the same school to bully Linyu.

“Eight o’clock tonight, come to XX Street, XX Complex. Come alone. Otherwise, heh, your photos will be enjoyed by every student and teacher in your school tomorrow.” Wu Shuhao was a professional at threats; this leverage was far too useful. Every time he used it, Wen Linyu would show up obediently, trembling with a look of despair in his eyes.

He was like a lamb standing on the edge of a cliff.

The thought made Wu Shuhao excited, and his tone grew urgent. “Get here fast. You know I’ve never had much patience.”

Since Wen Linyu had dared to hit his cousin today, he was definitely going to give him a thorough “lesson.” Otherwise, where would his dignity go?

Wen Linyu remained silent, and Wu Shuhao was already used to Linyu’s quiet resistance. It was a meaningless protest; the boy would show up in the end anyway.

But this time, the reason Linyu was silent was that he was looking up the address.

It was an abandoned, half-finished housing complex near the outskirts. Rumor had it the Feng Shui there was terrible; several workers had died mysteriously during construction. They eventually brought in a Master to perform a ritual, but the Master died too. It was a malevolent place, and the project had been abandoned for years.

A haunted ruin. Wu Shuhao was as unoriginal as ever—he was going to pretend to be a ghost to scare him again.

The call had long since disconnected, but Wen Linyu whispered a reply to the empty air: “Sure, I’ll be there.”

His plan to go straight to the cemetery could be delayed for a bit.

At eight o’clock, Wen Linyu arrived on time.

The abandoned complex was overgrown with weeds. The green safety netting on the buildings was torn and ragged, swaying in the night wind. The early summer breeze held a chill, making the entire building sound as if it were wailing.

In the past, Linyu would have had to give himself a massive pep talk just to step inside. But now.

He looked to his left and saw a fat ghost lounging in a pile of sand, picking its toes. To his right, an old lady ghost was picking up plastic bottles. He looked up and saw a long-haired female ghost practicing her scales; the first note she hit was completely off-key. Below her, other spirits who had come to hear her sing were doubled over laughing at the crack in her voice.

He really couldn’t bring himself to be afraid. Ghosts were much more adorable than some humans.

He even spoke up to a student ghost who was laughing particularly hard: “What are you all doing?”

The student ghost answered without thinking, “Haha! Listening to Sister Hong’s concert. She used to be a big star, but she’s tone-deaf and insists she’s a diva—hahaha!”

“Haha—hiccup! Wait. you’re a living person!” The student ghost suddenly realized something was wrong and let out a shriek. “Someone’s here! Run!”

In the blink of an eye, the entire building was empty of ghosts.

But the wailing sounds continued—those were the little tricks Wu Shuhao had set up. As Wen Linyu climbed the stairs, human-shaped shadows would occasionally drift past.

Wu Shuhao was hiding somewhere, snickering to himself. He was preparing to record a video of Wen Linyu crying in fear to show his brother, Wu Shujie, for some payback.

Of course, he wasn’t just planning something as childish as a scare. He had thought of many fun “games” ways to humiliate and degrade the boy.

“What are you laughing at?” Suddenly, a voice sounded behind his head, accompanied by a gust of cold air.

Wu Shuhao jumped. He turned around to find Wen Linyu. His momentary fear immediately turned into contempt. “Tsk. You actually found me this time.”

“Have you thought about how you’re going to atone for your sins tonight?” He smirked maliciously, his eyes scanning Linyu inch by inch, as if deciding which part of Wen Linyu to “prioritize” today.

But as he looked, Wu Shuhao felt something was off. Why did Wen Linyu look so… thin?

It wasn’t that his clothes were thin, but that his body looked translucent, almost like he was made of glass.

Wu Shuhao instinctively took half a step back, but seeing the smile on Wen Linyu’s face made him angry again. “You dare pretend to be a ghost to scare me? My brother was right—you really need a lesson to remember your place!”

With that, he swung a fist at Wen Linyu.

However, the punch didn’t feel like it hit a human body. Instead, it passed through cold air, and Wu Shuhao stumbled forward several steps from the momentum.

He steadied himself, his expression one of horror. He turned back to see Wen Linyu still standing there.

His feet weren’t touching the ground. He was floating, still looking at him with a smile. The moonlight passed right through his body, and there was no shadow on the floor.

“Impossible!” Wu Shuhao’s skin broke out in goosebumps. Refusing to believe it, he swung another punch, and this time, his fist stayed lodged inside Wen Linyu’s body.

It was hollow.

He wasn’t human!

Wu Shuhao literally wet himself on the spot. His soul was scared out of his body—quite literally.

Wen Linyu moved away with a look of disgust. He reached out and effortlessly caught the piece of Wu Shuhao’s soul that had been knocked loose. He crumpled it into a ball and tucked it away, having no intention of helping put it back.

“I didn’t realize you were so easily scared.” Wen Linyu returned to his own body. In Gu Chi’s world, there was a special Secret Realm where time flowed thirty times slower than the outside world.

He had spent a full year there. Although he hadn’t undergone the lightning tribulation, his teacher had said his cultivation had reached the Nascent Soul stage. Therefore, he was perfectly capable of the “Spirit Out of Body” technique.

Wu Shuhao loved pretending to be a ghost so much, yet he was such a coward himself. Wen Linyu found it almost boring.

He plucked a handful of hair from Wu Shuhao’s head, took a sample of his fingertip blood, and with the unexpected bonus of a soul fragment, he took a taxi back to the cemetery.

“New contract. Who wants it?” Linyu arrived at the right time; the cemetery was holding a party, and the air was thick with festive ghost energy.

Many spirits were preparing to flee when they saw him, until they heard his next sentence.

“Comes with a free midnight snack.”

With that, Linyu tossed out the fragment of Wu Shuhao’s soul. This time, no one ran. Every ghost stared with glowing eyes at the shivering soul fragment.

The bearded ghost arrived quickly, appearing before Wen Linyu before any other spirit could dare to take the job.

He smiled benevolently. “Little friend, you’re back. Look at you—you’re a guest, why do you keep bringing gifts? It’s quite embarrassing.”

Wen Linyu looked at him and said coldly, “You don’t seem very efficient. I need someone high-performance.”

The bearded ghost’s ash-colored face almost turned green with rage. “You… heh. Little friend, speak plainly. How could my efficiency be low?”

Wen Linyu glanced at him and gave a reminder: “The legs.”

The bearded ghost went silent. What a filial son, he thought. Not only had the kid calculated that the ghost wanted his father’s legs, he was actually impatient for it to happen.

He stroked his beard and explained, “Hasn’t it just begun? Everyone needs a bit of time for a gradual process. No other spirit can move faster than me.”

Ghosts had rules too. To take things from the living, they needed the living person’s consent—it didn’t matter how that consent was obtained, but the process couldn’t be skipped. He had only been haunting the man for a day; how could it be that fast?

“Fine.” Wen Linyu wasn’t entirely satisfied but didn’t press the issue. Instead, he pulled out the new hair and blood samples. “Exchange the lifespan for this one as well.”

He added with a hint of regret, “This one isn’t a blood relative, so the wealth probably won’t be as much. But I suppose any profit is still profit.”

The bearded ghost: “…”

Profit? Who could possibly turn a profit better than you!

“May I ask, who are these people to you?”

Wen Linyu was brief: “Enemies.”

The bearded ghost imagined the future: years from now, the grass on the graves of this Living Yama’s enemies would be two meters high, while he became a multi-millionaire…

This was a literal, unadulterated “hell of a joke.”

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