The Broken-Up Couple's Heroine Doesn't Want a Happy Ending

[Next up: the next wild Mary Sue novel, Beta, But I Awakened the Bloodline of a Merfolk, expected to launch on 11/18]

[Broken Mirror, No Reunion; New Male Lead]

On the day Ji Xing and I were to be married, Wen Xi sent a plea for help.

"Niao Niao, Wen Xi is in grave danger."

After a long silence, Ji Xing said, "I have to go save her."

Wen Xi was not Ji Xing's friend, nor a relative, nor his lover. To be precise, she was someone he despised and hated.

Ten years ago, I was gravely injured while saving someone and fell into a coma, never waking up.

Wen Xi was the person I saved.

If not for that accident, Ji Xing and I would have married long ago.

That was why Ji Xing hated her so much.

*

"Today is our bonding ceremony. Every notable figure from across the Five Provinces and Four Seas is already here. Ji Xing, have you thought about the consequences of leaving? Let someone else save her."

I considered myself a reasonable person.

"Besides, don't you hate her? Why are you going to save her?"

At last, Ji Xing said, "She saved my life. I owe her one. The Land of Chaos is too dangerous, Niao Niao. I have to go."

"Niao Niao, wait for me to come back."

"Niao Niao, don't misunderstand. You're the only one I love."

*

Of course I knew Wen Xi posed no threat to me.

Because Ji Xing and I were the male and female leads of this broken-mirror-and-reunion story.

Wen Xi was a test of our relationship,

a catalyst that brought us closer,

a tool to move the plot forward.

She was only a supporting character.

But as I watched Ji Xing walk away without looking back, I suddenly no longer wanted to be the heroine.

-- I don't want a broken mirror put back together. I want something flawless, perfect and whole.

*

Lin Shuangyi is Ji Xing's master.

Calm and self-possessed, impartial and selfless, he is a flawless immortal lord in the eyes of everyone, as pure and bright as the moon.

But no one knows that long ago, he began coveting his disciple's fiancee, always waiting for the chance to steal her away.

To that end, he put on a false face and plotted carefully.

He was never a humble gentleman,

-- but a vicious, greedy wolf waiting for the chance to snatch food from a tiger's mouth.

Reader's Guide

1. CP: Lin Shuangyi

2. Not a traditional cultivation setting; contains many original worldbuilding details

3. The second male lead gets his comeuppance but never wins her back. Classic melodrama warning

4. Third-person narration

*

Next up: Beta, But I Awakened the Bloodline of a Merfolk

[Expected to launch first on 11/18 for a change of pace]

The ABO world is rigidly stratified.

Alphas represent strength and hope, Omegas represent beauty and vitality, and Betas are the most numerous but also the most useless.

Yan Xing is a worthless Beta.

Her mental strength is F, her physique is F, and she's painfully average in every way. Her only standout feature is a face that bears a passing resemblance to Jiang Yueshen, the Empire's Moon, an Omega.

Thanks to that face, Yan Xing landed a job with no prospects but an astonishing paycheck.

She became a canary kept by the Empire's Moon's top admirers, all sharing custody of her. Among these admirers were the Crown Prince, a general, a billionaire, and a mecha master. Every one of them was a prodigy, and every one of them spent lavishly.

Yan Xing signed a three-year contract with her bosses. Once she completed her tasks, the pay would be enough to land her among the Empire's top 100 richest people!

"He's the most dazzling moon in the Empire. Don't dream of comparing yourself to him."

"You're just his substitute. Remember your place."

"You're only a Beta. You'll never measure up to him."

She was just a substitute, a bit of amusement, a useless toy.

Yan Xing obediently agreed, never crossing the line and diligently completing the tasks assigned by her superiors.

Everything was going smoothly, and she was about to receive the final payment.

But a month before the contract expired, something changed. Yan Xing realized her body was starting to feel a little strange.

Her skin grew fairer and softer, her eyes brighter, her lips redder, and she looked less and less like the man of their dreams... Until one day, Yan Xing woke up to find that her legs had turned into a golden fish tail.

Well, well!

Yan Xing carefully hid her tail, worrying every day that she might lose her job early, never noticing the increasingly dark, intense gazes watching her from the shadows.

-- Dark, damp, infatuated, obsessive... They all wanted to possess her and mark her.

But Betas have no pheromones.

They are completely free.

*

[In ancient times, there were merfolk with human bodies and fish tails. They could soar through the skies and dive into the sea, wielding the power to shake the heavens and stir the seas. Their might surpassed that of all the wondrous beasts and spirits of the world.

But after countless millennia, their strength faded into the past, leaving only their breathtaking beauty to live on in the world.

Their voices ensnared the heart, their beauty moved the soul.

They were the most beautiful beings under heaven.]

#She is the most beautiful being in the world, the ruler of all creation, the Empire's most dazzling sun#

-- She is stronger than an Alpha and more beautiful than an Omega

-- She is a Beta

Reader's Guide

1. A wildly over-the-top, melodramatic Mary Sue story with no limits. The heroine is adored by everyone; her beauty stat maxes out first, and her combat ability gradually rises

2. Almost everyone is into the heroine, regardless of gender or ABO designation. They're all crazy

3. Contains lots of original worldbuilding details

4. CP: the substitute (heroine) vs. the man of his dreams (hero); the hero is a mutated Alpha pretending to be an Omega

Theme: Follow your own path and don't lose your way