The World After the Bad Ending - Chapter 1: And So I Criticised the Protagonist

A life filled with regrets.Once he realized his faults and decided to lead a new life, it was too late.His family was already gone.He had borne through each day with pure rage.Finally at the end of his misery, his wish reached the heavens—an unforgiven one.He goes against fate to raise his sword.

“I, Tang Li, will only marry the most powerful and influential man in the world!”The powerful man, Song Boyan, was the man she was clinging onto now. The man was holding a cigarette between his fingers. He touched her chin softly.“Do you know what you are talking about?”“I want to be Mrs. Song.”Mr. Song laughed aloud.“You do like to brag. Aren’t you afraid of its consequences?”He received a kiss just as he was done talking.Her previous life was awful because she had loved the wrong man. After her rebirth, she had made a vow that she wanted to set things straight for herself. However, she had clung onto a powerful man in the end. Their marriage was rather chaotic too.“Sir, Madam has ruined the eastern wall of the manor.”“Protect her well. Don’t let her hurt herself.”“Sir, Madam said that she wants to run away from home with the young master.”Mr. Song sighed and put down the documents in his hands.“Send them to wherever they want to go. Don’t let them get lost on the way,” Mr. Song ordered.

Upon awakening, Su Changkong found himself transmigrated to a world thrown into chaos by war and rampaged by demon monsters, where his martial arts talent was mediocre. However, Su Changkong discovered that as long as his own “life span” increased, his talents and potential could also be “limitlessly” enhanced!Cultivating the Health-preserving Fist technique and practicing the qi of longevity! The path to immortality is littered with corpses, and Su Changkong embarked on a Martial Arts path where he would not perish, even if heaven and earth were to be annihilated!

For as long as he could remember, life had always been cruel.A young man in his early twenties—his name now lost to the past—was dealt a life filled with misfortunes.A cold, empty apartment, a soul-crushing job, and, finally, a terminal diagnosis.With nothing left to live for, his only comfort had been escaping into the fictional world of Path of the Elemental Sage, a story of heroes, magic, and survival.But fate had other plans.When death finally came for him, he didn’t fade into nothingness.Instead, he awoke in the world he had only read about—a world of chaos and danger where death lurked around every corner.The air smelled of magic, the sky was filled with possibilities.{«[Status Window]»}[Name: Lyrium Blackwood][Age: 16][Rank: D-][Skills: None][Elements: None}At first, confusion filled his mind.Who was Lyrium Blackwood?Why was he here?And why did this body feel so different?But as his memories returned, so did the realization: this wasn’t some blessing or second chance.He wasn’t reincarnated as the protagonist.No destined savior.No cheat abilities.No grand fate.He was just another mob, a face in the crowd meant to exist and die without leaving a mark.But this young man—the one who had left his old name and life behind—wasn’t the kind of person to roll over and accept his fate.“This world is dangerous. The protagonist isn’t the only one fighting for survival here,”he muttered, his red eyes deep and sharp.Unlike the naïve characters in the story, he knew the stakes.He’d read the web novel.He’d seen the carnage, the betrayals, the disasters that wiped out entire cities.And if there was one thing he refused to be, it was a pawn in someone else’s game.“I don’t care about glory. I don’t care about saving the world. All I care about is surviving—no matter what it takes.”Lyrium Blackwood wasn’t planning to live quietly or avoid danger.The only way to survive in this brutal world was to rise to the top.To be strong enough to stand above both heroes and villains.Using his knowledge of the story’s events and his iron will, Lyrium sets out on a relentless path to surpass the protagonist.Whether through clever manipulation, brutal training, or sheer desperation, he’ll climb higher and higher, leaving nothing to chance.But the deeper he gets, the more he realizes that this isn’t just the story he once read.As fate pushes him closer to the heart of the narrative, Lyrium begins to suspect that his reincarnation wasn’t an accident—and the world itself might be watching him.“I don’t care who or what stands in my way. If the story wants to kill me, I’ll rewrite the ending myself.”----------------------------------I apologize for any mistakes in this story, as it’s my first attempt at writing a novel.