[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-villain-s-pov":3,"chapter-the-villain-s-pov-the-villain-s-pov-chapter-368":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","THE VILLAIN'S POV",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},336914,598,"Chapter 368: Role reversal (1)","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-368",368,"\u003Cp>The Puppet City\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A land claimed by the Hollow known as Simon Manus ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A city he made his lair by transforming its people and all who lived there into puppets, mechanical and lifeless, mere \"masterpieces\" in his eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unlike the rest of the Lower Bloodlands, the city retained all the essentials for human life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But there were no humans left to benefit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only hollow puppets wandered its streets aimlessly, stripped of everything that once made them human...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet on this day in particular—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A turning point unfolded that would forever mark the long history of this city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>BOOM!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Explosions and clashes rang out nonstop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey Starlight now stood alone, battling an entire army of puppets led by none other than the former Lord—Val.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both fighters wielded dual swords, focusing entirely on speed, which turned the clash into utter chaos.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locked in a swirling storm of blades, not even the other puppets could interfere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sparks flew wildly from the repeated collisions of solid metal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In just a few seconds, Frey and the puppet of the old Lord exchanged a terrifying number of slashes with their swords.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It looked like an evenly matched struggle .. But that couldn’t have been further from the truth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Val’s body had taken dozens of dark slashes that pierced through his defenses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meanwhile, Frey hadn’t been touched even once—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dodging and parrying every strike from the former Ultras Lord with refined precision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His body was cloaked in a strange black glow, almost like a living shadow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Using precise counters, Frey neutralized Val’s fighting style and took full control of the battle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His black swords carved dark trails through the air every time they cut into the thick skin of Val’s puppet body, even while fending off attacks from other puppets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was fully immersed in the battle thanks to Ascension, giving him overwhelming focus.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Val’s puppet couldn’t speak, but the fury in his red eyes and the twisted rage on his face showed how much he resented the way the fight was going.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Desperate to shift the momentum, Val’s swords lit up with blazing crimson flames—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And without warning, he unleashed a massive beam of fire, vaporizing every building in front of him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Val continued releasing blast after blast of explosive fire aura, determined to burn Frey alive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The vengeful puppet cared for nothing else ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His attacks even incinerated many of the other puppets in his path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Is that all you’ve got? Former Lord of the Ultras?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From within the inferno—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey emerged, cloaked in his dark shadow aura, leaping across rooftops at blinding speed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No wonder my father killed you so easily.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Furious at the insult...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Val’s puppet launched more flames, trying to chase Frey as he darted around at full speed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The inferno spread across the battlefield, engulfing half the city and reducing the surrounding puppets to ash.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gripping his flaming swords again, Val let out a mechanical roar—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A scream of rage—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And in the blink of an eye, the enraged puppet was in front of Frey again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their blades clashed in a blazing collision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey with his shadow aura—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Val with searing flames—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They exchanged blows at breakneck speed, sprinting through the battlefield as wildfires raged around them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The other puppets swarmed in from all directions, their bodies burning and breaking down as they charged, uncaring of their fates.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet despite the overwhelming chaos—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey dodged and deflected every attack flawlessly, shadow tendrils dancing around him as his dark glow intensified.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Val, however, only grew more furious—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially when Frey slashed one of his eyes with Balerion, then followed up with a swift kick that sent him crashing through a building.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that exact moment ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The clown puppet and the massive enforcer appeared, aiming to rip Frey apart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Frey had seen them coming—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And they struck nothing but the phantom afterimage he left behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ten Thousand Steps of Shadow: Black Meteor.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a single slash, a massive wave of black aura erupted—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Reducing both of them to dust.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That should be enough for the enforcer... and that damn Zombozo.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Descending slowly from the sky, Frey landed, his feet touching the ground as his Hawk Eyes scanned the area for new threats.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And it only took moments—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For those eyes to widen in shock at the number of enemies surrounding him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From within the flames—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dozens of clown puppets and giant enforcers emerged, cackling like lunatics as they closed in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A nearby building exploded as Val detonated his aura and returned to the battlefield—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His arms now extended into flaming blades of their own.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey glanced at the overwhelming number of enemies closing in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He let out a quiet sigh, his face expressionless—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Until his eyes lit up with violet light once more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So be it... Come at me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if waiting for that command ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The clown puppets, their bellies split open into massive maws, charged in alongside the enforcers, who leapt forward with thunder-charged fists.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And leading the charge—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Val, the vengeful Lord who wanted nothing more than to kill Frey.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There, amid the blaze ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Puppet City turned into a blood-drenched hellscape ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But instead of red, it was blue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Blue from the puppet blood, and the severed limbs that now littered the battlefield.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Surrounded by countless enemies...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey’s skin began to crack, releasing a violent surge of violet light that blasted every puppet around him away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ignition!!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without warning—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey detonated his aura, releasing it as a towering pillar of darkness that swallowed the battlefield, obliterating every puppet it touched.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Ignition caused a quake that shook the entire city..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And even tore open the skies above with the sheer scale of its destructive force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From afar—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clana Starlight, still fleeing the city, stopped in her tracks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her eyes widened in terror as she gazed at the colossal explosion swallowing a huge portion of the city—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An explosion that left it more devastated than before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Frey...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She whispered his name unconsciously ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man who had stayed behind, facing an entire city alone...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just to protect her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The blast had engulfed Val ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it didn’t kill him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The puppet of the former Lord barely managed to escape the explosion’s core, struggling to suppress the dark aura that was corroding his body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So preoccupied was he with resisting the Ignition’s aftermath—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t notice Frey descending from above, his twin swords ablaze with furious violet fire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ten Thousand Steps of Shadow: Infinite Darkness!!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a roar, Frey unleashed a beam of dark aura directly into Val’s face, launching him backward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The impact sent Val crashing through buildings, his body grinding against the shattered ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a result—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Val’s outer shell was completely torn apart, exposing what lay beneath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Panting heavily, fatigue finally beginning to set in, Frey felt a deep disgust as he laid eyes on Val’s internal structure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The former Lord’s veins looked like tangled wires, his organs a grotesque fusion—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Half human flesh, half translucent sacs pulsing with glowing energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The previous attack had destroyed Val’s right arm ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he replaced it immediately with a two-meter-long blade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old Lord of the Ultras let out another scream before launching himself forward again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey met him head-on, and the two collided violently inside a massive crater—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Surrounded by rubble, fire, and unrelenting devastation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their afterimages blurred as they clashed, destroying each other with reckless abandon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Val’s burning aura turned the battlefield into a furnace ...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So intense, in fact, that nearby puppets melted under the rising heat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The inferno drew every breath of oxygen from the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey had to hold his breath to avoid suffocating in the hellish storm created by the vengeful puppet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Despite the heat, the exhaustion from Ignition, and the mounting tension—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey still held the upper hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shadow adaptation allowed him to deflect every one of Val’s attacks flawlessly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ten Thousand Steps of Shadow: Mirage!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he activated the Mirage technique, a thousand copies of Frey materialized, surrounding Val in a bewildering illusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Val couldn’t tell which was real—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And before he could react, all the clones slashed simultaneously, unleashing a torrent of black strikes that engulfed the entire battlefield and tore him apart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This... isn’t good.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching the battle from afar—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Simon Manus smiled, yet beads of sweat formed across his back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All of this... because of one boy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This kid’s a real monster...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stunned by the overwhelming power Frey displayed at such a young age, Simon Manus finally began to grasp the true danger of the Victoriad’s hero that had fallen into their hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If we let him grow unchecked, he might surpass even Abraham Starlight...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A boy just eighteen years old, yet already fighting on par with Lords and Hollows—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Compared to the sheer potential of that child, Simon realized they were nothing but small fish swimming beside a shark that could devour them at any moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This isn’t funny at all... kihihihi.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Adjusting his hat, Simon turned his attention back to the battle displayed on the screens.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But I wonder, Frey Starlight... how much longer can you endure?\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1519,"2026-05-30T03:41:22.347Z","2026-06-01T04:30:13.202Z",1,"novelbin.me","01a98747a97ee56b6033e526846a1837734c287ad73329cf4d2fef9e72e840de","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-60","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-59",866,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-villain-s-pov-cover.jpg"]