When the Villain is Bound to the Female Lead System

Xue Chenjing momentarily lost focus, allowing Xue Xingzhi to pull him into the Xue family residence.

The heavy doors slowly closed behind them, and the corridors and courtyards that came into view felt familiar to him. It seemed as though the layout had not changed at all since he left, except that the people around him had aged significantly.

Most of the servants and attendants who had gathered from the house were strangers to him, except for the head steward, who looked somewhat familiar.

Xue Xingzhi held tightly onto his wrist, as if afraid he might disappear again if he let go. He pointed to the middle-aged man leading the group and said, "This is Liu Hua, the son of Liu Guan. He used to follow you around a lot when you were young. Do you remember him?"

Xue Chenjing studied him carefully. With Xue Xingzhi's reminder, a vague memory surfaced in his mind. However, his recollection of Liu Hua was still stuck in the boy's teenage years, around fourteen or fifteen.

"Young Master?" Liu Hua stepped forward, his eyes wide with surprise as he examined Xue Chenjing. He rubbed his eyes with his sleeve and glanced at the ribbon tying Xue Chenjing's hair.

This was a habit from their youth. Xue Chenjing favored bright and vivid colors, often wearing vibrant hair ribbons, while Xue Mingyuan preferred more subdued and elegant attire.

Every morning, when Liu Hua went to find him, he would first check what kind of hair ribbon the young master was wearing and what he was dressed in. This way, he could tell whether the person in front of him was the eldest son or the youngest son.

It also determined whether he would spend the day quietly in the study or sneak out to catch birds' eggs and crickets.

As a child, Liu Hua didn't enjoy studying either, so he liked to tag along with the youngest son and goof off. However, despite the fun they had, every evening when the master checked their lessons, Liu Hua would end up sharing the punishment with the youngest son. Those days were a mix of pain and joy.

Over time, the youngest son began to wear more subdued clothing less frequently. Even when he dressed in colorful garments, he no longer played with Liu Hua as he once did. Xue Chenjing seemed to change gradually, and the atmosphere throughout the Xue family became strangely subdued and tense. Fewer and fewer people were allowed to enter the youngest son's courtyard.

Liu Hua was among the few who were still permitted to see him. At that time, he was heavily relied upon by the master and mistress, who hoped he could win the young master's favor and find out about the eldest son. They hoped that if Xue Chenjing was happy, perhaps the eldest son would appear.

However, from some point unknown to time, the eldest son had become a taboo topic for the youngest son. Xue Chenjing used to enjoy pretending to be the eldest son and teasing Liu Hua for fun, but now even mentioning the eldest son's name would make him furious.

Gradually, every time Liu Hua was pushed into the young master's courtyard to see him, he felt anxious and resistant. His father's instructions, the master and mistress's expectations, and the disappointed look in Xue Chenjing's eyes whenever he mentioned the eldest son—all these pressures weighed heavily on his shoulders like mountains.

Liu Hua began to avoid visiting him, going to great lengths to injure himself or fall ill, finding every excuse to avoid entering the young master's courtyard and entertaining him.

Not just him, but all the attendants who had once been close to the young master were under similar pressure.

One snowy night, he deliberately crouched outside, hoping to catch a cold and avoid visiting the young master the next day.

As he shivered in the cold, someone asked, "What are you doing squatting here? Aren't you cold?"

Liu Hua turned his head and saw a figure walking toward him under an umbrella, stepping through the snow.

Xue Chenjing's gaze moved slowly up and down, taking in the layer of snow covering Liu Hua's body. The fact that snow had accumulated on his shoulders and head meant he had been standing in the snow for quite some time.

His expression shifted from confusion to understanding, and he frowned slightly, chuckling, "Every time you're supposed to come see me, you either get injured or fall ill. So this is how you do it?"

Liu Hua's teeth chattered, and he wanted to explain, but his frozen, sluggish mind couldn't find the words.

Xue Chenjing didn't say anything more and didn't seem angry. He simply bent down, placed the umbrella over Liu Hua's head, and walked away. Liu Hua got his wish and fell ill, lying in bed with a high fever, unable to entertain the young master.

By the time he fully recovered, the young master was no longer in the Xue family, no longer needing anyone to entertain him.

The mischievous, spoiled, and crybaby young master who would start wailing before the bamboo stick even touched his hand had vanished from the Xue family. No matter how much the master searched and inquired, he could not find him again.

Now, after many years away, the young master had suddenly returned, still looking as young as ever, as if time had not touched him. He wore a crimson-gold hair ribbon, and his robes were stained with a heavy stench of blood, the original color of the fabric barely visible.

Liu Hua observed him cautiously and called out again, "Young Master? Is it really you? You've come back?"

Xue Chenjing looked at his childhood playmate, then glanced at Xue Xingzhi, whose eyes were filled with tears. It was only then that he felt the passage of time, seeing the white hair and wrinkles on their faces.

He had been reborn so many times that, after merging with a demon, time seemed to have slowed down for him. His life had become too long, and he had forgotten how precious time was for mortals.

Xue Chenjing's eyes showed a hint of hesitation, but eventually, under their hopeful gazes, he nodded.

Beyond the Human Thought Boundary, the wind swept across the mountains and fields, and the swaying branches of the dense forest hung with countless wish plaques.

These plaques were scattered across different trees, forming a complex array. The faint light from the writings on the plaques connected, creating a boundary of human thoughts.

A wisp of Lady Lotus's primordial spirit projected a shadowy figure in the air. She sat cross-legged, her hands folded in front of her, holding a lotus flower. The background around her suggested that her true body remained on the solitary peak of the Carefree Sect.

The righteous cultivators who had pursued her to this point gathered around her. Lady Lotus announced, "The demon has been trapped within the Human Thought Boundary. Everyone, follow the plan and enter the boundary to replace the people inside. Find a way to kill the demon within the boundary."

She extended her hand, revealing the faces of an old man and woman. "The thoughts of the Xue couple are the foundation of this Human Thought Boundary. These two have entered the boundary in their true forms, not as illusions of obsession. They cannot be replaced. Everyone else can be swapped."

With her words finished, Lady Lotus's primordial spirit dove into the boundary, followed by several other figures that transformed into streams of light and followed her. The remaining cultivators dispersed into the forest, protecting the wish plaques that formed the Human Thought Boundary.

The night retreated from the sky, and the dawn's first light appeared on the horizon, marking the passing of another night.

A swift shadow streaked across the clouds, gradually slowing down. The shadow revealed a luxurious carriage, drawn by a nine-headed bird. The bird's heads looked around, and instead of flying resolutely in one direction, they began to argue, unsure which way to go.

Inside the carriage, the occupant sensed the decrease in speed and asked, "What's going on? Have you found him?"

The nine-headed bird squawked and chirped, its voices like a group of gossiping old women. One head wanted to fly left, another wanted to fly right, and they began to quarrel, pecking at each other.

Yu Yi pushed open the carriage door from within. The bird's heads immediately fell silent, obediently facing forward and not daring to look back at her.

Her gaze swept over all the bird's heads, stopping on the most conspicuous one. She said, "Baldy, you tell me."

The bird with burned feathers opened its beak angrily. It wasn't "Baldy"! It had a beautiful name—Blue Feather!

Under the mocking gazes of the other bird's heads, the bald bird had no way to express its grievances, no way to vent its anger. It chirped a series of plaintive sounds.

Yu Yi understood the meaning behind its chirps. The birds were connected to Xue Chenjing, and usually, they could sense the location of their master. But just now, they had lost his direction.

Their master was either trapped in some kind of boundary or had entered another space.

Yu Yi stepped onto the front platform of the carriage and looked down at the clouds below. The Imperial House Carriage had been flying for a day and night, leaving the sea behind. Below was a vast land, and not far ahead, a city could be seen faintly.

However, the city wasn't large, and it didn't seem particularly prosperous, likely just a small county.

Previously, the Imperial House Carriage had been heading west, but without an accurate direction, just this one direction wasn't enough to find Xue Chenjing. The western frontier still had a vast expanse of land.

Yu Yi lowered her eyes in thought, recalling the system's voice she had once heard. The final unlocked segment of the plot was in Wangye. Coincidentally, Wangye was also located in the western frontier. Xue Chenjing had worked so hard to unlock the plot; he would definitely go to Wangye.

She commanded the Nine-Headed Bird to fly in the predetermined direction. Since she couldn't sense Xue Chenjing's location, she directed the bird towards Wangye. The Nine-Headed Bird finally stopped resisting and flapped its wings to move forward.

Yu Yi retreated back into the carriage, her gaze drifting aimlessly over the table and decorations inside. She had never imagined that one day she would be so anxious to find him.

In the past, even when they were separated, Yu Yi didn't care much because she knew Xue Chenjing would always come back, just as he had said himself—a dog on a leash wouldn't get lost. She should have just stayed on the island and waited for him to return.

But after witnessing the meticulously planned ambush in the earth's turbid mist, she couldn't bring herself to stay calmly on the island and wait.

The main divine system had tasked her with being the one to wield the sword, so Xue Chenjing shouldn't die anywhere else, right? He must die by her sword, right?

Yu Yi sat on the soft couch, her hand gently stroking her Qingzhu Sword. After merging with the Primordial Sword, the blade had completely shed its wooden appearance, now gleaming like snow. A gentle touch of her fingertip against the blade could elicit a low, resonant hum of metal.

Perhaps influenced by her turbulent emotions, the Qingzhu Sword also seemed restless, with fine arcs of electricity flickering across its surface. The Thunder Realm suddenly unfolded beneath the sword, and the streams of current startled Crane Senior Brother awake from his slumber. He flapped his wings and scrambled to escape out of the carriage.

Outside the carriage was the menacing Nine-Headed Demon Bird, leaving Crane Senior Brother stuck at the carriage door, unsure whether to go in or out.

Yu Yi, however, was too preoccupied to notice him. Inside the carriage, the currents of electricity coalesced into the half-form of the Thunder Dragon Sword Spirit. The dragon lifted its head, opened its mouth, and spat out a perfectly round bead.

"What is this? A dragon pearl?" Yu Yi leaned closer, her breath brushing against the bead, and noticed the ripples it created, realizing it wasn't a pearl but a perfectly round water droplet.

The droplet was incredibly clear, carrying a familiar aura.

Yu Yi exclaimed in surprise, "Is this water from the Chaos Pool? How did you bring it out from the pool?"

The Thunder Dragon tilted its head, its golden eyes, laced with arcs of electricity, looking innocent and confused at the water droplet it had just spat out, as if it too was puzzled about when it had carried such a thing.

But upon seeing the water droplet, the Thunder Dragon's fighting spirit surged. Without hesitation, it opened its mouth and bit down fiercely.

The dragon's sharp teeth pierced into the water droplet, and the arcs of electricity instantly surged into the Chaos Water.