Your face darkened instantly when you heard that someone had betrayed you and the Sun family, leading to your current predicament. At the same time, you already had a pretty good guess about who the traitor was.
Anyone who'd betray their master for glory would naturally curry favor with their new lord by stabbing you in the back and making your life a living hell—using your suffering as their ticket to gain power.
And in your mind, one target stood out like a sore thumb.
「The Gu family?!」
「Precisely!」 Yang Hong nodded, a flicker of approval in his eyes at how quickly you'd pinpointed the traitor who'd turned his back on his master.
The Gu family had once been one of your father's hidden trump cards, too. But clearly, as time wore on, they'd had a change of heart. They'd sold you out to the mastermind behind all this—the Sixth Prince Chen Tai—in exchange for power and profit.
They'd even gone so far as to set you up, luring you to the Demon Capital and walking you straight into a death trap, all to have you killed.
It was almost certain that the Gu family's betrayal had been the knife in the back that sealed the Sun family's doom.
Rage burned in your chest, but at the same time, you couldn't help but realize that among the hidden safeguards your late father had left behind, it was getting harder and harder to tell the friends from the foes.
「Uncle, if my identity's been exposed, why hasn't the Qianyuan Human Sovereign come after me himself? Why is it only Chen Tai, that Sixth Prince, who's scurrying around like a headless chicken trying to kill me?」 You finally put two and two together.
Logically speaking, once your identity was out, the first person who'd want you dead should've been your grandfather—the Qianyuan Human Sovereign.
So why was it Chen Tai instead? And why was he in such a *hurry*?
Unless something unexpected had happened to change the game.
Yang Hong's next words cleared up all your confusion in an instant.
「When the Gu family leaked news of your existence, the entire Qianyuan Empire exploded into an uproar. Countless people waited with bated breath to see the Human Sovereign's reaction, all of them demanding your head.」
「But to everyone's shock, the Qianyuan Human Sovereign seemed to have a sudden surge of parental affection. He wanted to brush off the sins of the past and acknowledge you as his rightful heir—the Crown Prince's son...」
「Rumors even spread from the imperial palace that the Human Sovereign mutters about his beloved grandson day and night, and that he's considering letting *you* inherit the throne...」
「Holy shit! So that's how it is!」
「No wonder Chen Tai's dying to kill me! He originally thought he could curry favor with the old man in the palace by handing over my head. Instead, he's trapped himself in a corner!」
「If the emperor really acknowledges me as his heir, all my uncles will be pushed aside. I'll be the Qianyuan Empire's number one heir apparent!」
「In that case, it's not just Chen Tai—all the other princes would go crazy trying to kill me!」
Sun Qian's mouth twitched as he finally understood the real reason why Chen Tai, the mastermind behind everything, wanted him dead.
Sure, part of it was for the Supreme Imperial Bone—but more than that, it was for the throne.
No wonder Liu Yue had said that heading north to the imperial capital would be a suicide mission with a one-in-ten chance of survival.
That slim chance of survival? It all depended on the mood of the old man in the Qianyuan Imperial Palace.
No wonder Chen Tai—who'd disguised himself as your eldest brother Sun Shou—had been so desperate to stop you from going to the capital. He was terrified of the unexpected.
「But still... my grandfather, the Qianyuan Human Sovereign, doesn't seem like the kind of man who'd be that generous. If he really wanted to acknowledge me, he could've just sent someone to fetch me.」
「But he's done nothing. Not a single move. Instead, he's hiding in the shadows, watching Chen Tai torment me and doing absolutely nothing...」
「He must be trying to raise poison insects to fight each other—a metaphor for pitting rivals against one another. The old man's cold-blooded as hell...」
Sun Qian saw right through the scheme in an instant. He knew that the so-called parental affection was nothing but a joke.
Anyone who believed that would be a complete fool.
Of course it was a trick. After all, the old man had seized the throne through rebellion himself.
The only difference was that he'd succeeded, while your father had failed.
You realized just how sinister the Qianyuan Human Sovereign's intentions were. Trusting him was worse than trusting Qin Shi Huang to rise from the dead.
Cough! Cough! Cough!
A sudden fit of violent coughing wracked your body. Blood sprayed from your lips, and your frame trembled violently as the life force within you ebbed away like a receding tide.
You knew your time was running out. To maximize your gains, you grilled your uncle with questions, demanding answers to everything you wanted to know.
You asked about the mysterious Celestial Realm powerhouse Liu Yue and the forces behind him. Yang Hong let out a cold laugh, his face twisting with disdain as he dismissed them as nothing more than opportunists looking to profit from the chaos...
.....
You grilled him with meticulous questions, laying the groundwork for your return to the real world and preparing for your next simulation.
Then, you suddenly changed the subject, bringing up Xuanfuzi—a master you'd never met. Clearly, you were intensely curious about this figure who struck fear into the hearts of both the Ghost Physician Venerable and Liu Yue.
「Xuanfuzi!」
You noticed that when Yang Hong muttered that name, the contempt and disdain vanished from his face, replaced by a hint of solemnity.
From Yang Hong, you learned that Xuanfuzi had once been your father Chen Xuan's teacher—a being who was barely trustworthy, but who might step in to protect you when the chips were down.
....
Time slipped away quickly as you pried countless secrets from Yang Hong's lips. Perhaps knowing you were on the verge of death, he didn't hold back.
During your conversation, you casually mentioned Chen Tai, and you caught a flicker of disdain in your uncle's eyes—as if he'd never taken the Sixth Prince seriously from the very beginning.
A sense of unease washed over you. If that was the case, why had he bothered making a deal with Chen Tai at all?
Unless there was something else going on behind the scenes. You even suspected that Chen Tai's death might have been related to the uncle standing before you.
But it was clear that your uncle had no intention of talking about that topic any further.
You also asked why your Supreme Imperial Bone was sealed and cursed.
But faced with that question, Yang Hong fell silent once more—unwilling to speak, as if he had some kind of deep-seated fear or scruple.
Seeing his reaction, a decision suddenly formed in your mind.
「Uncle, you've told me so many secrets. I want to tell you one too.」
Your sudden words broke the silence. Under Yang Hong's confused gaze, you slowly walked over to him, leaned in close to his ear, and whispered, 「Uncle, I possess a rare treasure. The moment I die, it will trigger a mechanism to send me back in time and let me be reborn. I'm not really going to die....」
In a way, the Villain Simulator did exactly that.
BOOM!
Yang Hong's eyes narrowed sharply, his face twisting in shock. All the calm and indifference vanished as he stared at you intently, as if trying to pierce through your soul and determine whether you were telling the truth.
But your expression, your demeanor, and the subtle shift in your aura all screamed that your words were genuine.
This was a decision you'd made after careful consideration. By revealing your secret, you'd gain more information—and give your uncle a hell of a shock as a bonus.
But Yang Hong's reaction left you completely dumbfounded.
「You must be having a delusion in your final moments. Alright then—go spend some time with your mother. I'll take my leave now.」 Yang Hong sighed, a look of pity crossing his face as he patted your shoulder, then turned and walked away alone.
Your face froze in disbelief. Because you could clearly feel that the moment your uncle had spoken, something had silently appeared in your palm.
It felt like a slip of paper.