I Really Am A Villain

“Please, go ahead,” Xiao Anshan said.

The Fire Maiden and the other two hesitated for a moment before entering the cave.

The entrance was narrow. Strictly speaking, it had once been much wider, but time had eroded and collapsed it, leaving only a small passage. To enter, everyone had to stoop low.

No one dared to destroy the surrounding rock either, fearing they might disturb the fire poison beasts above and bring ruin to this ancient site.

Though the place was reinforced by some mysterious power, if the fire poison beasts forced their way through, the ancient ground probably wouldn’t last long.

“I wonder which Fire God Race predecessor left this behind?” Xiao Anshan asked curiously.

In the Ancestral Lands, there were quite a few such ancient sites. Many Fire God Race elders left their residences behind.

Generally, they weren’t particularly dangerous, but one could never be sure. Some predecessors were notoriously eccentric.

So everyone moved with caution, not daring to take the situation lightly.

After some time, the collapsed section above disappeared, and they could finally walk upright again.

The surroundings were dim, and the air was thick and stale from centuries without circulation.

“Look, there’s a mural here!” the Fire Maiden suddenly called out.

Everyone turned their eyes toward her. In the faint light, a wall painting stood out vividly.

It was similar to the mural at the entrance, depicting the Four Symbols sacred beasts.

Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise.

The only difference was that here, the figures were far more lifelike and majestic.

The Azure Dragon’s body shimmered with blue energy that flowed like a mighty river, surging and crashing.

The White Tiger exuded a ferocious, murderous aura, intertwining with the dragon’s azure light, blue and white currents swirling together.

The Vermilion Bird and the Black Tortoise stood opposite each other, one embodying fire, the other water.

Water and fire were opposites.

The Vermilion Bird gazed down upon the world, its blazing flames encircling its form.

The Black Tortoise roared toward the heavens, torrents gathering into a vast ocean that surged across the shell on its back, waves crashing and roaring.

Seeing this mural, everyone fell deep into thought.

The Fire God Race elder who had lived here must have been closely connected to the Four Symbols beasts.

“Let’s go deeper,” Xu Zimo said.

They continued forward until, before long, they arrived at a massive gate.

It was made of iron, tightly sealed and thick with dust. Clearly, no one had been here for countless years.

“Let me try opening it,” the Fire Maiden said.

Flames surged from her right hand as the power of a Grand Emperor radiated outward. She struck the gate with a heavy palm.

A deep humming echoed through the silent chamber, reverberating endlessly.

The others looked up, only to see the iron gate remain completely unmoved.

“It’s so heavy,” the Fire Maiden said in surprise, lowering her hand.

With her Grand Emperor’s strength, she couldn’t even budge it. When her palms touched it, it felt less like a door and more like an entire world pressing back.

“I can’t open it,” she admitted.

“I’ll give it a try,” Shangguan Xian said, stepping forward.

Saintly power surged around her, threads of Primal Dao coiling about her body.

When her palms struck the gate, a thunderous boom filled the air, and she was blasted backward by a rebound force.

But the gate itself shuddered violently, nearly pushed open.

“It attacked me?” Shangguan Xian said uncertainly.

When she struck it, she had distinctly felt a power strike back.

“Does this gate have sentience?” Xu Zimo frowned.

He stepped closer and said calmly, “We’re speaking to you. Can you understand us?”

The gate remained motionless, silent.

“How could a mere door have intelligence?” Xiao Anshan chuckled.

Xu Zimo glanced at him but said nothing. Instead, he drew his weapon, Shadow Tyrant, and slashed down.

With a deafening explosion, the blade’s energy rebounded instantly.

“Then let’s see about that,” Xu Zimo said coldly.

The blade hummed in his hand as countless Power Vortexes roared within his body. The force of Heaven-Shattering gathered around the weapon, trembling violently.

He slashed again, this time, the door clearly shifted backward several inches but still reflected the strike.

“Continue,” Xu Zimo ordered.

The power of Heaven-Earth Dharma Codex activated, while within his mind, the God-Devil Creation Atlas spun rapidly.

External strength from the Heaven-Shattering Force, internal power from the Creation Atlas, his momentum soared to indescribable levels.

Still unsatisfied, Xu Zimo summoned the Three Gates.

With the Gates of Life, Death, and Eternity empowering him, his blade now radiated a killing intent that screamed, “If gods block me, I’ll slay gods; if buddhas stand in my way, I’ll destroy buddhas.”

“Too fierce! I’m done playing!” a voice suddenly cried out.

To everyone’s astonishment, the iron gate sprouted a face, along with arms and legs, and shouted, “Stop! Stop!”

“What… what is that thing?” Xiao Anshan exclaimed.

“So this is the ‘gate without intelligence’ you mentioned?” Xu Zimo smirked.

“You people are too violent! The moment you show up, you start hitting me. Can’t we just talk?” the iron gate complained.

“Who are you?” Xu Zimo asked.

“Listen well! I am the one and only, peerless across heaven and earth, the strongest of all time, the Four Symbols Fire Progenitor!” the gate declared proudly.

“You’re the Four Symbols Fire Progenitor?” the group asked in disbelief.

“How could the Fire Progenitor look like you?”

“And who even is the Four Symbols Fire Progenitor? Never heard of such a thing,” several muttered.

The iron gate’s face turned red with fury. “You little brats don’t even know your own ancestor? The Four Symbols Fire Progenitor is one of your tribe’s oldest progenitors!”

“Even if that’s true, you’re no ancestor, you’re just a rusty old door,” Xu Zimo replied calmly.

The gate fell silent for a moment before saying, “If you wish to enter, you must meet my conditions.”

“Why should we? What if we just force our way in?” Xu Zimo asked.

“If you try, you’ll gain nothing,” the gate warned.

“Then I’ll just tear you down,” Xu Zimo said coldly.

“You… you’re unreasonable!” the gate cried.

“Fine, I’ll tell you the truth. I am the Divine Gate that the Four Symbols Fire Progenitor once used to seal the heavens and earth. If you want to pass, you must earn our recognition.”

Upon hearing this, Xu Zimo raised his blade again.

“Easy, easy! No need for violence!” the gate yelped, stumbling backward in fear.

“Can we go in?” Xu Zimo asked.

“You can talk, but could you please put the knife down first?” the gate pleaded.

Finished infusion treatment. Wrote while getting the IV. Finally caught up.