I’m the Villain, but the Female Leads Didn’t Panic—They Teamed Up with Me to Defy Fate - Chapter 1:

Chapter 1: The Death Row Prisoner and the System

Pain.

An excruciating pain, sharp and bone-deep, burst from his back and spread through every limb.

Chen Mo regained consciousness amid a jarring, suffocating journey. The first thing he felt was this unbearable pain that seemed to tear him apart again. Cold rain mixed with sweat ran down from his forehead into his eyes, bringing a blurry, stinging ache.

He realized he was being dragged roughly. His arms were tied behind him, and the coarse hemp rope had sunk deep into his wrists. All he could see was a muddy dirt road and countless feet, muddied and numb, trudging forward. The clanking of shackles, the impatient scolding of officials, the suppressed moans of prisoners—all blended into a bleak, despairing scene.

Where… was this?

Chaotic fragments of memory flooded in like a broken dam.

A modern city filled with traffic… his mother’s pale face resting in a hospital bed… and then, endless darkness…

Then, memories not his own forcibly rushed in:

The Great Yan Empire. Capital city. The Chen residence. A pampered wastrel also named Chen Mo… indulging in pleasures, ignorant and useless… whose father offended the Crown Prince of the Prince Jing Residence, Ling Chen, in court, was falsely accused, their family exiled…

Exiled 1,500 kilometers away to the bitterly cold northern frontier.

And this entire backdrop matched perfectly with a political intrigue novel he’d just finished reading late at night—Lingyun!

In the novel, the protagonist Ling Chen, Crown Prince of the Prince Jing Residence, was fated by the heavens, unmatched in wisdom, and mercilessly crushed all who stood in his way. The name “Chen Mo” was merely an early cannon fodder—killed by Ling Chen to show he spared not even ants.

No…

An icy terror instantly gripped Chen Mo’s heart. He wasn’t just reading the novel anymore—he had transmigrated into the body of this doomed cannon fodder!

According to the plot, during this journey of exile, Ling Chen’s men would orchestrate an “accident” to erase this eyesore completely. The timing… was likely today!

“Move faster! Why are you dawdling?” A fierce shout came, followed by a whip cracking through the rain and striking his back.

Smack!

His old wounds hadn’t healed, and now fresh ones added to them. Chen Mo stumbled, nearly falling to the ground, the metallic taste of blood rising in his throat. He gritted his teeth hard and swallowed the cry of pain.

He couldn’t die! Not here!

His mother was still lying in a hospital bed in the real world, waiting for him to return. He had collapsed from exhaustion after too many sleepless nights caring for her…

He had to go back!

A desperate will to live blazed in his chest like fire. He forced himself to calm down, clinging to what little rationality he had left to assess the situation. The original body had been tormented and drained to the brink during the family’s downfall and the journey. It was too weak to survive in this environment alone.

Where was hope? Where was the turning point?

Just as he cried out in his heart, nearly in despair—

[Ding! Strong “Defy Fate” will detected… Conditions met…]

[System binding in progress…]

A cold, emotionless mechanical voice echoed deep in his mind.

Chen Mo’s pupils shrank.

Before him, a faint blue translucent screen appeared out of thin air, visible only to him.

[Defy Fate System—Loaded]

[Core User]: Chen Mo (Exiled son of a criminal from the Great Yan Empire)

[Core Mission]: Reverse predetermined fate and acquire “Fate Reversal Points.”

[Ultimate Goal]: Accumulate 1 million Fate Reversal Points to redeem a passage back to reality (with partial memory/items transferable).

[Current Fate Reversal Points]: 0

[Warning]: High-risk fate node [Accident during Exile] about to trigger (Estimated Time Remaining: 02h 17m 33s). Please evade and reverse fate as soon as possible!

The message on the screen was concise and brutal, yet it was like a bolt of lightning that tore through the darkness—illuminating his only path forward.

Fate Reversal Points! Return!

Mother… there was hope again!

The overwhelming shock nearly suffocated him, but years of caring for the sick had forged a resilience in him. He forced down the tidal wave of emotions with impressive speed.

He couldn’t panic. This system was his only lifeline.

“Fate node…” Chen Mo lowered his head as rain slid down his cheeks, and his mind began racing faster than ever. “The system said ‘evade’ and ‘reverse’… which means so-called destiny isn’t unchangeable!”

In the original novel, Chen Mo was muddleheaded at this point, resigned to death. But now he was awake, had a system, and a clear goal—that alone was already the beginning of reversal!

He needed information, a clear idea of what form the “accident” would take, and most importantly, a chance to break free!

He struggled to raise his head. Though the rain blurred his vision, he still tried hard to observe the surroundings. There were four guards in total; the leader was a burly man with a face full of stubble and a thick beard. The other three also looked vicious. Including him, there were about a dozen prisoners—gaunt, pale, and numb.

They were walking along a rugged mountain road. On one side was a steep rock wall, on the other, a mist-covered cliff so deep the bottom couldn’t be seen.

A cliff…

Chen Mo’s heart sank. A staged “accidental fall” would be the perfect way to kill and erase someone without a trace.

Time ticked by. The countdown to death echoed in his mind.

He had to act. Now!

At that moment, a commotion came from ahead. The group stopped.

“Boss, the rain’s getting worse. The road ahead looks like it might’ve had a landslide. Should we find shelter?” a guard called out to the bearded man.

The man wiped the rain off his face and cursed. His vicious gaze swept over the prisoners and locked onto Chen Mo—who looked the weakest and most battered.

That look wasn’t for a human—it was how someone eyed trash about to be disposed of.

Chen Mo’s heart clenched.

It was happening! The plot had begun!

He inhaled deeply, forcing out every ounce of strength left in him. Just as the bearded man was about to speak, Chen Mo suddenly lifted his head and rasped out with a cracked voice, “Officer… I—I know a secret… about the northern barbarians… a major military intelligence leak…”

His voice wasn’t loud, but it pierced through the sound of rain and moans.

The bearded man paused and squinted at him, then sneered, “Heh, facing death and still trying to stall with nonsense?”

“Is it nonsense…” Chen Mo stared at him. The hands behind his back were clenched white with tension, but his eyes were terrifyingly calm. “Officer… send someone to check under that crooked pine tree by the cliff ahead… There might be… a hidden message tube from a barbarian spy…”

That location had been a key detail in a later case in the novel—where Ling Chen exposed an old scandal to take down a general. Chen Mo was gambling that the message tube had already been buried there at this point.

This was his only card—his knowledge of future events!

The bearded man hesitated. Words like “barbarian spy” and “hidden message” were far too sensitive to ignore. He stared at Chen Mo’s pale, youthful face for a long moment, trying to find any sign of deception.

Finally, he nodded toward one of his men. “You. Go check it out.”

The guard acknowledged and carefully walked to the cliff edge.

Time stretched. Every raindrop hitting the ground seemed deafening. Chen Mo could hear his own heartbeat pounding wildly.

Everything hinged on this moment.

He locked eyes on the guard’s back as he knelt beneath the crooked pine and began to dig…

[Ding! Successfully interfered with fate trajectory. Fate Reversal Points +10!]

The system prompt echoed in his mind. Chen Mo’s tense nerves instantly relaxed, and he nearly collapsed in relief.

Success! At the very least, he had avoided immediate death!

But then—

“Boss! There really is something here!” the guard cried from the cliff.

The bearded man’s face changed, and he hurried over.

Chen Mo looked in the same direction. Just as he turned his head, he caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye—a distant, high mountain path. A vague white figure stood there, holding an oil-paper umbrella, quietly overlooking their small group.

That silhouette vanished in the rain and mist in the blink of an eye, as if it had never been there.

But Chen Mo felt a sudden chill.

Who… was that?

At the same time, in the capital, Prince Jing’s Residence, Tranquil Pavilion.

A young man in an embroidered black and gold robe stood by the window, absentmindedly rubbing the jade thumb ring on his finger.

A black-robed figure silently knelt behind him on one knee.

“Your Highness, news from the exile convoy. The target… wasn’t eliminated as planned.”

Ling Chen didn’t stop moving. He only let out a soft, “Oh?” The tail end of his voice carried a faint coldness.

“Reportedly, Chen Mo blurted out some nonsense before death… and actually revealed the location of a barbarian spy’s hidden message, disrupting the guards’ plans.”

His fingers paused.

Ling Chen turned around. His flawless face remained expressionless, but deep within his eyes, a flicker of interest flashed—like a hunter noticing his prey straying off its path.

“A bug trying to survive… how interesting.”

His voice was soft, yet it made the man kneeling before him lower his head even more.

Outside the window, the rain poured harder.