The Author Is Speechless - Chapter 39: The Origin Of Guardians.

Buried alive. Forgotten by the world. Cursed to refine death itself.Rin Xie clawed his way out of his own grave with nothing but broken nails, shattered bones, and a core pulsing with rot. In a world where the heavens punish the wicked with celestial fire, where death cultivators are hunted like beasts, Rin awakens with a forbidden path—one that feeds on pain, suffering, and the ashes of the dead.He cannot heal. He cannot forget. But every wound, every betrayal, every death he witnesses becomes fuel for his ascension.Under a crimson eclipse, he walks through battlefields where spirits still scream. In deserts of bone, he consumes lotus flowers blooming from despair. He learns techniques the heavens sealed away in fear—Soul Wither Pulse, Requiem Bloom, Grief Reclamation.But the deeper he dives into death, the less human he becomes.He no longer cries for the fallen.He no longer prays for peace.He begins to wonder—what kind of death should he become?In a world where power devours morality, Rin Xie will either become the end of all things...Or something worse.

Chen Sha came to a world of immortal martial arts and was ordered to take charge of the world’s first sect.

Before his death, the previous chief told him:

“If you don’t become the best in the world for one day, you are not allowed to go down the mountain for one day.”

So he closed himself in painstakingly, crossed the heaven gate in his body, and faced off against the ancient and modern powerhouses…

…

Many years later, Chen Sha recalled the day he went down the mountain,

From the moment he descended the mountain, he was number one in the world.

In the next ten epochs, any gods and demons have returned, immortals and Buddhas have lived in the world, ancient powers and ancient gods have appeared one after another.

No matter how the times change, he has always been No. 1 in the world and has never changed.

- Description from novelbuddy

Villain System: Activated> Alignment: Chaotic EvilObjective: Obey the plot, serve the empire, die like a good villain.Yeah, no thanks.I woke up as Dorian Valen—sadistic noble, arsonist, war criminal, mid-tier villain with a face everyone wants to stab. The story wants me to beg for my life, cough up secrets, and die at sunrise so the hero can get a shiny new power-up. Been there, read that.But I'm not here to follow the script. I'm here to flip the table.I’ll expose the cracks in the empire, dismantle the hero’s halo, weaponize every trope, and corrupt the system that tried to cage me. And if I have to burn the world down to do it?Well… I’ve got the villain system. Might as well make it earn its name.

Lin Ran was transmigrated to a fantasy world and was the top scorer during the martial arts exam.

He was assigned to protect the empress, but because he did not give presents to the general director in charge of the palace affairs, he was demoted to a guard at Mount Sword.

His only job was to clean the swords stored on the mountain.

[You have cleaned the broken sword, Fire Stream. You have been rewarded with 50% proficiency of the Heaven Fire Sword Will.]

[You have cleaned the heavy sword, Dragon Elephant. You have been rewarded with the inner energy of the Dragon and Elephant Divine Art.]

[You have cleaned the demon sword, Dark Wind. You have been rewarded with the Grade 9 method, Phantom Step.]

[You have cleaned the spirit sword, Heaven’s Chance. You have been rewarded with the Eyes that Peek into Heaven.]

“Isn’t this way better than working as the empress’s guard?” Lin Ran quickly decided to remain on the mountain until he had become invincible.

He spent the next 100 years without leaving Mount Sword until the day the barbaric knights from the north invaded the central plains and started to mercilessly slaughter citizens, hoping to break the peace that was obtained through a lot of sacrifices over 100 years ago.

Lin Ran had no choice but to descend from the mountain.