Heaven and earth are like a great furnace. Yin and Yang are its coals. Humans are the copper, and the Dao is the fire.

Some who spread the Dao are like those carrying firewood to put out a blaze—only to set themselves ablaze in the end.

Wrong. Wrong. Utterly wrong.

It wasn’t until Gu Fangchen opened his eyes and transmigrated into the world of the game Mirror in the Dust that he finally understood the secret behind those words.

…

That year—

The Princess Consort of the Northwatch Prince was still as gentle as water, obsessed with her son to the point of madness.

The Eldest Princess was cold as ice, proud beyond measure, and her smile was worth a fortune.

The Youngest Princess was cute but dim-witted, dreaming only of hero swordsmen and hating vile scoundrels with all her heart.

The Grand Princess led armies like a war god, while the female Imperial Diviner could summon storms with a turn of her palm.

And the notorious son of the Northwatch Prince—universally reviled for being utterly worthless and rotten to the core—had just been revealed to be the illegitimate son of a lowly stablehand from the Demonic Sect, swapped at birth.

The true heir?

A freshly minted imperial scholar, a true disciple of a Saint, filled with righteous qi.

As for player Gu Fangchen? He didn’t care. He decided to speedrun the game.