It's Actually Not Easy Wanting to be a Supporting Male Lead

Translated by Eve

Edited by Wuxian

I know I’m late but thank you all again for the ko-fis! Thank you Figaro31, Jwel, Reall, enryia and everyone who bought me a kofi in the last 2 months anonymously~

Since they’ve confirmed their suspicions on An Qi, Sui Yuan and Zhao Xihe naturally sent back information to the Original World via 5237 and 0007. Without delay, they received the notice that their mission had changed: they were now permitted to eliminate the Destroyer’s consciousness.

Sui Yuan perceived the all-new, completely foreign power transfer through 5237 and into himself. He didn’t know why but he felt a kind of sympathy arise unbidden within him, as he had been in this kind of situation before. This was the power that could destroy someone’s consciousness and the only way to thoroughly kill them off.

Do we have to return this power after eliminating the Destroyer?" Sui Yuan turned to look at Zhao Xihe.

"Of course. If we don’t, then we’ll be blacklisted and be considered a potential, or even official Destroyer," Zhao Xihe nodded and absentmindedly fiddled with the orb of power in his hand, "Where did you think a Destroyer’s power to collapse worlds and eliminate Actors’ consciousness came from? They had refused to return this power and took it for their own, so that they could utilize it for their own purposes."

Sui Yuan furrowed his brows and felt that this was an unsolvable predicament. Without this power, Actors could only sit with their hands tied and wait for death. But once they’ve used this power, Actors may be enticed and choose to become new Destroyers.

Anyway, Sui Yuan was disinclined to delve too deeply into this kind of deeply profound matter. He only sighed before tossing it to the back of his head. Right now, the pressing matter they had to settle was the Destroyer of this world.

The best method to go about it would be for Sui Yuan and Zhao Xihe to directly battle An Qi. However, An Qi was slippery. Everyday, he hid within the House of Profound Theory and never moved on his own. Thus, they could only temporarily shelve this idea. Or rather, this was the final goal of Zhao Xihe’s preparations.

Although the An Qi of the original plot by no means had a low rank, he was still but an assassin. If he provoked the Lord of the House, he could completely be exterminated—turned to cannon fodder. But now, the An Qi they had to deal with at present had long since killed off the original Lord of the House and truly became the one who controlled the entirety of the House of Profound Theory. Although the House of Profound Theory was more hidden and discrete, in reality, it was not at all inferior to the Demonic Cult that was under Zhao Xihe’s control.

Moreover, An Qi’s goal was to kill more people. Meanwhile, Sui Yuan and Zhao Xihe needed try their best to limit the number of casualties so that it didn’t exceed the range that was stipulated by the original plot. Thus, the benefits gained from using the Demonic Cult in dealing with the House of Profound Theory would not be worth the losses incurred.

What Zhao Xihe needed to do was to mobilize the entirety of the Wulin, like how it was done in the original struggle between the righteous and demonic factions, pulling into the water those fellows who claim to be on the ’righteous path’.

Very soon, when the Demonic Cult began to relentlessly destroy all of the House of Profound Theory strongholds, a rumour circulated amongst the Jianghu: The box of ashes that the Demonic Cult Leader has are fake and the real ashes are in the hands of the House of Profound Theory’s leader, An Qi. When the Demonic Cult Leader found out, he was extremely outraged and decided to seek justice for himself while giving the House of Profound Theory a profound lesson. Otherwise, why would the Demonic Cult, who had always minded their own business with regard to the House of Profound Theory, be this fierce towards them?

It is better to be safe than sorry. Seeing how the Demonic Cult spared no expense in either manpower or resources, exterminating every last member of the House of Profound Theory, the majority of people began to believe in the rumour to some degree. Therefore, the position of being the common enemy of society that the Demonic Cult originally held was taken by the House of Profound Theory.

Not only was it because they had the ashes that incurred jealousy from others, but the House of Profound Theory’s style of work was denounced by many within the Wulin’s Righteous faction. The existence of an assassin organization that took commissions was a sort of an open secret within the Jianghu. Although it was necessary, it was never popular with the people. After all, no one wanted to die because someone had commissioned a kill on them—to be sitting at home, only for misfortune to suddenly befall them.

The House of Profound Theory was well-established and was growing strongly. Those with mediocre strength did not dare to touch them. However, when a wall is about to fall, everyone will come to push it down. If someone took the initiative to crusade against the House of Profound Theory, many people will naturally respond, coming to help with all sorts of different goals. Moreover, recently, the House of Profound Theory’s actions had become increasingly insolent. More and more people died at their hands. It was almost to the level of inciting the wrath of the public.

Some came for the sake of reputation, some for the benefits, and some came to take revenge for loved ones. Under Zhao Xihe’s incitement, the House of Profound Theory quickly came under attack on all sides. One after another, their strongholds were felled, and their strength dwindled greatly.

"If he doesn’t have the House of Profound Theory to take shelter in, then that Destroyer will have nowhere to hide, right?" Sui Yuan looked at the report in his hand, feeling that victory was imminent.

"Right now, the circumstances are in our favour. Furthermore, as time elapses, it will become more and more advantageous to us. If the Destroyer isn’t stupid, he will not allow things to progress in this manner," Zhao Xihe seized the Crystal Beast that wanted to drill itself into Sui Yuan’s embrace and dementedly pulled at its long ears.

The Crystal Beast："..................QAQ"

"Then what will he do?" Sui Yuan coughed lightly, ignoring the Crystal Beast’s imploring gaze though he did feel pity for it. He impatiently gazed at Zhao Xihe who seemed to have a card up his sleeve.

"Although the House of Profound Theory is not that impressive, it has helped him end quite a number of lives. Right now, the number of casualties is constantly increasing. As long as he is able to kill several important characters of this world in time, we can catch him. However, it is also possible he’ll have already collapsed the world," Zhao Xihe had decided that he had bullied the Crystal Beast enough and flicked its forehead in warning. Then, he threw it to the corner.

The Crystal Beast nestled there pitifully but did not dare get close to Sui Yuan. It could only lower its head and lick its own disheveled fur.

"The important characters of this world..."Sui Yuan tilted his head, "You’re referring to Ning Ze and Nan Gongyi?"

"The protagonists are the pillars of the world. To be more precise, they are the pillars of the plot," Zhao Xihe nodded, "To kill the protagonists is equivalent to killing several hundreds of regular characters. If he succeeds, the ones who fall into the disadvantageous position will be us."

"So, that’s why you put Ning Ze and Nan Gongyi into protective custody," Sui Yuan nodded in understanding. Soon after, he frowned, "Could it be that you want to use them as bait to lure the Destroyer out?"

"Even if we don’t try to lure him, for the sake of victory, he will come out on his own. This is just us beating him at his own game," Zhao Xihe smiled a false smile and rubbed Sui Yuan’s head, "What? Are you reluctant to use them as bait?"

Sui Yuan shivered and then forced a smile as he shook his head, "How could that be! I’m just afraid of any mishaps that would allow the Destroyer to achieve his wishes...."

——Sui Yuan was truly a bit reluctant. Of course, this reluctance only came about due to Nan Gongyi, in particular. After all, this child was obedient and lovable. He trusted Sui Yuan so much. No matter the reason, Sui Yuan didn’t want him to be in danger. Without a doubt, he absolutely should not say such thoughts to that huge vinegar jar, Zhao Xihe.

Zhao Xihe shot Sui Yuan a glance. He knew exactly what he was thinking in his heart but only nodded, expressing his satisfaction on Sui Yuan’s answer which showed that he saw the situation clearly. "Did you forget about the Crystal Beast’s and Nightmare Beast’s transformation skills? They can turn into anything. They can be a normal cat or rabbit, or impersonate anyone’s appearance. Only, it wastes a lot of spiritual energy and thus cannot be maintained for a long period of time."

"What you’re saying is to let them transform into Ning Ze and Nan Gongyi to make the Destroyer come out and try to assassinate them?" Sui Yuan’s eyes shone, "Could he really be that stupid? He clearly knows that we have the protagonists in our hands, but he’d still make his way into our trap?"

"He has no choice but to enter. If he does not enter the tiger’s den and get the tiger’s cub, he can only sit and wait for defeat—for us to exterminate the House of Profound Theory and then kill him without delay," Zhao Xihe snorted, "If it’s a one-on-one battle, an Actor is weaker than a Destroyer. After all, a Destroyer can receive the energy from the worlds they’ve collapsed and utilize it themselves. However, Actors hold an advantage over Destroyers in that we have our systems’ help. We can use our points to exchange for all kinds of props. As long as we have enough points and the appropriate arrangements, we will not be inferior to Destroyers. As for who is stronger, that depends on each individual’s skill."

"So, right now we have to take a gamble and see whether the Destroyer is more powerful or our trap is firmer?" Sui Yuan’s eyes sparkled. He raised the corner of his lips with a bit of mischievousness, "If the Destroyer is able to kill the protagonists while they’re under our protection, we lose. However, if he doesn’t realize that the bait we placed within the trap is fake, does that mean our victory is ascertained?"

Zhao Xihe nodded with a smile, expressing his agreement.

Sui Yuan looked at the Crystal Beast that had been listening to their discussion in the corner, just as it raised its head. It was swaying its tail and proudly increasing its sense of existence. Sui Yuan couldn’t help but bring it into his arms for a hug, rubbing its furry little head. He sighed, "I never expected that these guys are so useful I thought that you had wasted such a large amount of points just to bring along two decorative pets!"

The Crystal Beast："........................"

——What happened to being each other’s most important person, ne? Is it really alright to jab at other people’s black history?! The Crystal Beast that was ’made into a decorative pet’ for so many worlds had tears streaming down its face.

Since they had come to a decision with their discussion, what they needed to do next was recall the Nightmare Beast and secretly have the Beasts transform into Ning Ze and Nan Gongyi. Thus, while the outside world had already been ravaged by a foul wind and a rain of blood for quite a long time, Sui Yuan and Zhao Xihe, who were constantly bustling and thus away for several months, finally stepped into Ning Ze and Nan Gongyi’s courtyard.

When Ning Ze saw Zhao Xihe, his expression was extremely complicated.

Although he had not taken a step outside, Zhao Xihe had not prohibited people from telling him news of the outside world. Thus, Ning Ze already knew about the large matter regarding the Demonic Cult’s cooperation with the other sects in besieging the House of Profound Theory. However, he did not understand Zhao Xihe’s purpose for making such a fuss over this.

"Is your aim to seize the ashes? Regardless of whether the ashes are in that An Qi’s hands or not, even if you did get your hands on the ashes, the Demonic Cult’s casualties will still be heavy. The gains do not outweigh the losses," After having some time to settle, Ning Ze’s temperament evidently became much more serene. The look in his eyes when he stared at Zhao Xihe was no longer as bitter and hateful as before, "What do you want to do? I don’t believe you’re that foolish a person."

"There are some things you don’t need to know. Even if I told you, you would not understand," Zhao Xihe stood high and mighty over Ning Ze without any trace of politeness, sneering at the protagonist gong whose world vision was too narrow (?), "Moreover, what use is it for me to tell you? You’re powerless to stop me."

"I really wonder whether you’re actually Yu Hao," Ning Ze laughed bitterly. Zhao Xihe’s every movement was different from the Yu Hao he knew. Ning Ze saw Yu Hao’s every move and behaviour clearly, yet towards Zhao Xihe’s, his vision was blurry, like looking at the moon from the water’s surface—he completely did not know what the other person was playing at. If Ning Ze didn’t see for himself, if it weren’t for the fact that the ’Yu Hao’ before him had as face, bone structure, skin and even voice completely identical to the Yu Hao of before, he would really believe that Yu Hao had been secretly substituted, switched out with another person, "Or perhaps...I’ve never seen through you, or realized that you had been acting since day one and only revealed your true face now? And everything you’ve done, was for this unknown goal?"

Zhao Xihe faced Ning Ze with a smile. Then, he directly knocked him unconscious.

Ning Ze："........................"

——Can’t you use your words?! Why must you use violence! QAQ

On one side, the protagonist gong began to have doubts about his life. On another, the protagonist shou held Sui Yuan’s hand and was just as fretful, "Shixiong, let us leave together, ne! It couldn’t be that you don’t know what Yu Hao has done?! He provoked the entire Wulin into this conflict. More and more people are dying. He is truly a monster that views people’s lives as grass! Just so he can get some ashes... how many people does he have to kill before he’s satisfied?!"

Although Sui Yuan did not like other people speaking ill of Zhao Xihe, he could not speak of this matter clearly with the world’s inhabitants. If they were talking about viewing people’s lives as grass, then Sui Yuan was no exception. Only, before Nan Gongyi, he diligently wore his Da Shixiong mask out of habit, "It’s already late, Xiao Yi, it’s too late."

"Shixiong..." Nan Gongyi watched as Sui Yuan shook his head with a forced smile. His heart hurt so much it couldn’t possibly hurt any more. He was itching to bite off that wretched Yu Hao’s flesh while alive.

"I’ll make up for my past mistakes. But before that, there is an even more important matter," Sui Yuan flipped their hands and held onto Nan Gongyi’s instead, his expression solemn as he looked at him, "We’ve received news that the House of Profound Theory plans on harming you and Ning Ze. They want to use Ning Ze to intimidate the Demonic Cult, and use you to threaten me. So, you must leave immediately and go to a safe place!"

"I won’t go! I want to stay with Shixiong!" Nan Gongyi almost cried. Every time they faced danger, it was he who always escaped first. Meanwhile, Shixiong kept off the danger from behind. He could no longer bear this sort of life.

"Xiao Yi, I’m sorry. Please forgive Shixiong..." Sui Yuan’s lips slightly trembled and tears filled his eyes. His actions were direct and he did not hold back, however, "You must live well...."

Nan Gongyi looked at his Shixiong with great reluctance, but ultimately he had no choice but to fall into his arms albeit with great unwillingness.

Sui Yuan: "...This sudden ’we’ll be parting forever’ kind of feeling is really strange. Did I overdo it?"

5237: "The protagonist shou will soon be abused to death by you. 【candle】"

After cajoling and secretly manipulating everything in the back, Sui Yuan and Zhao Xihe finally took away the protagonist gong and shou without a hitch. Then, the Crystal Beast and Nightmare Beast transformed into the two people and stayed in their original courtyard. Zhao Xihe believed that the Destroyer had presumably been eyeing Ning Ze and Nan Gongyi for a long time and had just decided to take their lives.

All that was left was to wait for the Destroyer to arrive.

The author has something to say:

This silly single-dog author did not celebrate Valentine’s Day today. This silly author’s period arrived...and spent the day tossing from side to side holding onto her stomach. Who was more miserable than me this Valentine’s Day?!

Wuxian: Irrelevant to the plot but Valentine’s Day is Singles’ Awareness Day to me.

Eve: [lights candle for herself and Wuxian]

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