[Douluo Dalu] What Should I Do About Being Forced to Take on Villain Missions?

As a young flower of the motherland who had gone through nine years of compulsory education in the twenty-first century, Zhan Xingqi had thought that the next chapter of his life would be spent at university, becoming a happy, sociable person with a fulfilling life.

Instead, after staying up all night reading a novel, he was selected and bound by a System. The moment he opened his eyes, he had transmigrated to an unfamiliar otherworld, where he found himself staring at the Thousand Mechanisms Umbrella in his hands.

Zhan Xingqi: ...Isn't this the ■■ Master he just finished reading about?

He accepted transmigration. It just meant starting a new life in a different world.

He accepted being shrunk, too. It just meant starting over from scratch.

But why was he bound to a villain System? Didn't that practically spell doom?

Why did everyone else transmigrate with Azure Dragon on the left, White Tiger on the right, and beauties and underlings at their side, while he had no choice but to become a cannon-fodder stepping stone on the protagonist's path to growth?

He was going to destroy this stepping-stone ending with his own hands!

But as he carried on, things started to get a little strange.

Weren't villains and protagonists supposed to be sworn enemies? So why was that brat of a protagonist getting closer and closer to him...

And besides... it seemed he didn't really hate that closeness?

Things to know before reading this novel (an ultra-defensive disclaimer):

1. The protagonist's Martial Soul is the Thousand Mechanisms Umbrella. A few characters from The King's Avatar make cameo appearances, but they shouldn't affect the overall reading experience. If you're here for the Thousand Mechanisms Umbrella or The King's Avatar elements, feel free to turn back; there isn't much related content in this novel.

2. The pairing is Tang San, with the younger man as the pursuer. The protagonist is older than Tang San. They fall in love first and deal with his villain identity later. The author isn't good at writing romance, and the novel was written over a long span of time, so the earlier and later sections may feel disconnected. The ending will do its best to tie up all the loose ends.

The author's early writing style and thoughts about the characters are quite subjective, and later on things get even more freewheeling. Readers, please be patient and understanding!

3. This is not a wish-fulfillment power fantasy! It's half plot, half romance, with the protagonist as the love interest! The tone is fairly lighthearted at first, but after the competition ends, the story gets to its main premise: being forced to accept villain missions. The protagonist changes sides. The System will wear down his initially chuunibyou and carefree personality, and he'll become assimilated by the world. He only truly lets loose and lives freely in the extras (probably), so if you're here for an invincible, insanely cool protagonist, feel free to turn back!

Of course, the novel isn't really all that oppressive. The author just likes melodramatic stories where two people love each other but have no choice but to stand opposed. That doesn't stop him from slipping in sweet moments between the angst.

4. Although the blurb mentions a System, the System takes up very little of the story. It's a plot-driving System that takes the blame for the bad stuff. This isn't a traditional System novel, so if you're here for the System, please feel free to turn back as well!

5. Many supporting and villain characters have heavily altered personalities and backstories. If you can't accept that, run now!

Characterizations draw on both the manga and the original work. The author uses whichever version seems more appealing (hey!).

6. This is an outline-free, idea-driven novel. If something in the early part doesn't line up with something later, it's because the author forgot while writing! Just ignore it as a plot hole, please!

This novel really is nearing the end and will be finished soon! If you're interested, come take a look!

Meeting here is fate! I hope everyone will be gentle when leaving comments and suggestions. I'm really fragile and genuinely tend to overthink things, so please treat me kindly. I'd be extremely grateful!

Theme: Life becomes brilliant after weathering all kinds of hardships.