Chapter 33 - 31: The Truth of the Game

Chapter 33: Chapter 31: The Truth of the Game

Nan Jiamu stood in the moonlight, her white dress faintly glowing.

"Are you surprised that I can say the words ’Invasion Game’ to you?"

Sheng Yehan stared at her, saying nothing.

"It’s simple. Because I started this game with my own hands," she continued.

Sheng Yehan frowned.

Nan Jiamu walked to the window. Turning her back to him, her voice was so soft she seemed to be talking to herself. "One day, I suddenly grew tired of my life as Mrs. Guan. Then, a voice in my head asked me if I wanted to break the status quo and experience a more exciting, thrilling story. I chose ’yes’ with almost zero hesitation." She paused. "After that, I found out I was actually the female lead in a novel. I married the mentally ill Guan Heting in place of my stepsister, and accidentally provoked you. Sending you to prison, helping Guan Heting push Guanshan Technology onto the international stage, and becoming the happy Mrs. Guan—that was my entire life."

She shook her head slightly. "No, that wasn’t the life I wanted. Just like you said, I relied on ambition and ruthlessness to get to where I am today, not compassion! So, I sacrificed my male lead and started this Invasion Game."

Sheng Yehan’s eyes darkened.

"In my storyline, only the one I choose is the male lead. Those I discard are nothing but passing travelers and cannon fodder." Nan Jiamu turned around and looked at him. "You don’t understand, do you? You never read those trashy novels, so it’s normal that you wouldn’t get it. Did your system also fail to tell you your true Identity in this story? Did it only tell you that you were heading toward a fatal ending?"

Sheng Yehan’s fingers slowly tightened. In his mind, that Identity Card was a golden card representing the protagonist. But it wasn’t a bright Golden; it was a dark, murky Black Gold. He had always believed he was the one and only protagonist, and the system had never refuted it.

Nan Jiamu chuckled softly. "To some extent, you’re not wrong. You and I are both protagonists—the most important subjects that make up this story. That’s why I came to find you today. I want to cooperate with you."

"Why?" Sheng Yehan’s voice was deep.

"That brings us to the essence of the Invasion Game." Nan Jiamu walked back to the sofa and sat down opposite him. "Our world’s overall strength is much weaker than the Red Corpse World, so in this Invasion Game, we were granted a seven-round head start. Various Characters or bystanders from our story can enter the Red Corpse World first to learn and grow. Before we complete our seventh crossing and return, none of the important Characters from the Red Corpse World can come over. In every round, the people invading our world will only be minor Characters.

"However, the strength and numbers of these Characters will gradually increase with the rounds. After seven rounds, they will launch a full-scale counterattack. Their protagonists will bring their people over to invade our world. Imagine it—when that time comes, humanity on our side won’t have the slightest power to fight back against the starving Blood Clan of the Red Corpse World."

Nan Jiamu’s voice was calm, but every word struck like a nail. "And I, as the protagonist of our world’s story, am the linchpin. Once I die, our world will be completely destroyed. By the same logic, if we kill the protagonist of the Red Corpse World, the Red Corpse World will be destroyed. We will win this game, extend the lifespan of our world, and continue to live."

Sheng Yehan leaned back against the sofa, his lips curling into a mocking smirk. "Since you’re already the world’s protagonist, why would you need to cooperate with me?"

A hint of helplessness surfaced in Nan Jiamu’s eyes. "I can’t kill the protagonist of the Red Corpse World by myself. I already tried in the last round. A long-range snipe, blowing her head off with a high-explosive armor-piercing round. But in the end, she still didn’t die."

"Why?"

"There’s a buff between her and me called ’Kings Must Not Meet.’ Before the seventh round, I cannot come into close contact with her."

Sheng Yehan stared at her, waiting for the rest.

"Protagonists have plot armor. They can always survive desperate situations, and anyone who goes up against a protagonist will ultimately be counter-killed." Nan Jiamu’s voice slowed down. "But in all stories, there is one kind of existence that can push a protagonist to the brink of death. This existence is inherently the exact opposite of the protagonist. They might even constantly overpower the protagonist in strength and grow faster than them."

"The villain." Sheng Yehan spat out the words. His Black Gold Card represented the exact equal to the protagonist—the "ultimate villain."

It was exactly as Nan Jiamu said. His system had never told him this. It only said that he was an important figure in a novel, and if he didn’t join the Invasion Game, his ending would be getting sent to the execution ground and sentenced to death. Overbearing CEO novels, short web dramas—he never consumed any of them, so naturally, he didn’t understand these tropes.

Nan Jiamu continued, "Only if we join forces will we have a chance to shatter her ’plot armor’ and kill the protagonist of the Red Corpse World."

Sheng Yehan suddenly laughed. The sound was particularly grating in the quiet room. "Based on what you’re saying, that means... I can also kill you?"

Nan Jiamu’s fingers tightened slightly, but she maintained a calm smile on her face. "I already told you. If I die, this world will be destroyed along with me—and that includes you!"

Sheng Yehan leaned forward, his eyes as gloomy as two pools of stagnant water. "What makes you think I would cooperate with you? Don’t forget, I’m locked up in here thanks to you! I only ran those people over because I listened to you!"

"What does that have to do with me?!" Nan Jiamu suddenly lost a bit of control, unable to maintain her peaceful expression any longer.

She remembered the mother and daughter who had been hit by Sheng Yehan’s car. At the time, Sheng Yehan had kidnapped her, saying that as long as she was willing to be with him, he would listen to her and do anything for her. In her exasperation, she had blurted out, "If I told you to kill someone, would you do it?" As a result, Sheng Yehan decisively slammed on the gas pedal and crashed right into the mother and daughter on the side of the road.

The image of that mother lying in a pool of blood and the young woman’s broken legs had haunted her like a nightmare ever since. No, none of that had anything to do with her. It was all the story’s setting; she had only been manipulated by the plot into saying those words!

"Nan Jiamu!" Sheng Yehan’s voice pulled her back to reality. "We both know that my ending of getting shot by a firing squad was single-handedly caused by you. If you want me to cooperate with you, you should at least make up for the harm you’ve caused me. And show the sincerity you ought to have!"

Sheng Yehan’s gaze was as venomous as poison.

After a long silence, Nan Jiamu took a deep breath. She stood up and hooked her fingers over the button on her chest. "Fine. You want sincerity, right? I’ll give it to you!"

Sheng Yehan leaned back against the sofa, watching Nan Jiamu with great interest. Moonlight leaked through the gap in the curtains, falling upon the two of them.

Outside the window, a tabby cat crouched on the sill, her amber eyes staring at everything without blinking. Her claws dug fiercely into the window ledge. Sacrificing the male lead... starting the Invasion Game... a seven-round head start... killing the protagonist... Every word she had heard echoed repeatedly in her mind. So, this was what the game was truly about. So the Player who had sniped Zoe from a long distance was Nan Jiamu! And so, this was the real reason Sheng Yehan had crashed into her and her mother—and it was all because of Nan Jiamu!

The moonlight was cold. The wind blew past from behind her, messing up her fur, but she didn’t move an inch.

Inside the room, Nan Jiamu had just undone a single button when she suddenly tore off the Golden button and threw it at Sheng Yehan. In midair, the button transformed into an electrified net. It was so fast and sudden that it would have been impossible for anyone else to dodge.

But Sheng Yehan only smiled. The instant the electrified net touched him, his body dissolved into a cloud of black smoke, scattering into the shadows of the room. The very next second, he re-condensed into form in the corner on the other side, leaning against the wall with perfect composure.

"Nan Jiamu, your sincerity is sending me to my death? You really haven’t changed a bit!"