When I Lay Flat, the Female Lead Panicked - Chapter 1
Chapter 1: Transmigration
At 3:00 AM, the main lights were off in a cozy bedroom.
“Woooah! Hehehe…”
Wrapped up in her soft comforter, Luo Xiaoxiao’s eyes were glued to her phone, the only source of light, as she read line after line of a novel.
She giggled to herself, a little creepily, at something she read. She was a tangled mess of excitement, squirming under the covers like a worm. She muffled her voice and whispered excitedly.
“Ahhh… this is so good.”
“Amazing author, I’m dying! Woooah, you write so well!”
“Wow!!! Wen Nanshu!!! So beautiful, so cool, so fierce!!!”
She couldn’t get enough of this masterpiece she’d found before bed. It had completely captivated her for most of the night.
She read all the way to the end, where a “To be continued” message appeared, followed by a stream of comments from readers begging for more. Luo Xiaoxiao’s heart, which had been pounding with excitement, slowly calmed down.
A lovely pink blush appeared on her fair face, illuminated by the phone screen. Her eyes were fixed on the comments, which were full of praise for the author’s writing and vivid discussions about the plot. Luo Xiaoxiao’s fingertip lightly slid across the screen, her doe-like eyes sparkling like stars.
Overlord was a fantasy cultivation novel with a no-romance, big-female-lead theme. It told the story of the heroine, Wen Nanshu, who, on her journey to immortality, remained true to her heart. She punished evil, upheld justice, and eventually ascended to godhood with immense merit. The plot was excellent, the characters were well-developed, and the story was a nonstop thrill. The only problem for Luo Xiaoxiao was that it wasn’t finished yet.
And besides the plot, the heroine Wen Nanshu was her ideal type! A business-minded beauty who cared for all life, was detached from worldly affairs, and was single-minded in her pursuit of the Dao. A beauty who hunted demons and slayed monsters—this was exactly her type! Her allure was irresistible. It was love at first sight, the kind that could make your heart flutter even through text.
Thinking about it, Luo Xiaoxiao felt a surge of inspiration. In a flash, her fingers flew across the screen. In just a moment, a heartfelt, two-hundred-word comment about her love for Wen Nanshu appeared in the text box.
“Hehe, I am a genius. A literary master. Whoosh—sent.”
A silly grin crept onto her face. A flush of pride mixed with embarrassment warmed her cheeks as she looked at her most recent comment. Suddenly, a crazy idea popped into her head.
She wanted to meet Wen Nanshu. She really, really wanted to! Just a quick peek at her in person would be enough!
But this thought was immediately dismissed. After all, such a ridiculous thing was only good for daydreaming. Even if she wanted to, there was no way the heroine could jump out of a book to meet her. And if she did, that would be pretty terrifying.
Sure enough, she was all talk and no action. She should just go to sleep. Maybe she could conjure up a “Wen Nanshu” in her dreams to satisfy her craving.
As she thought this, the fatigue she had been ignoring began to creep in. She let out a big yawn, her eyelids becoming heavier and heavier.
“Ha… I’ll just be a ‘dream girl’ for the beautiful sister. Meeting her in my dreams is good enough. Hehe, you can get anything in your dreams, so I can just do whatever I want…”
As she fell asleep, her hand, still clutching her phone, slid off the pillow. The screen remained on, displaying her slightly incoherent and astonishing comment.
“Oh my God! Oh my grandma! My jacket turned into a padded coat, my winter melon turned into a jujube, hey hey! My wife, don’t run away!
Cough, cough. There is a beauty, and I can’t forget her. I miss her like crazy if I don’t see her for a day…
Woooooah, you know, I’ve never had a wife (sobbing while biting a handkerchief), so Wen Nanshu, my dear wife! I only want to see you, I only want to see you! In the future, in the past, I only want to see you! (Yelling at the top of her lungs)…
A place without water is a desert, a place without a wife is lonely. My wife, hehehe… (Silly grin) (Crawling) (Twisting) (Darkly wriggling) (Wriggling) (Rolling) (Twisting) (Spasming) (Hissing) (Wriggling)…
I want to fly forward, I’m a rose waiting for love. My dear wife, open the door and receive your rose…”
…
As Luo Xiaoxiao drifted off, the silent room suddenly filled with faint crackling sounds.
The next moment, a mysterious, low, and emotionless voice echoed from nothingness.
[Beep, target person Luo Xiaoxiao has been successfully detected. Her wish’s piety index has met the standard. The wish is accepted and will be executed immediately.]
As the mysterious voice ended, Luo Xiaoxiao’s phone screen, which had been dimming, suddenly erupted with a blinding light, enveloping the girl sleeping in the middle of the bed.
“Young Master? Young Master! Young Master…”
An unfamiliar voice, starting as a gentle whisper and growing more urgent, interrupted her peaceful sleep.
“Ugh…”
Her long, dark eyelashes fluttered restlessly. In her dream, a sudden sense of dizziness made her pretty eyebrows furrow.
“Something’s wrong, Young Master! You have to wake up now!”
“Oh, my dear young master, please wake up!”
“Young Master…”
…
In her stupor, the annoying voices multiplied. But Luo Xiaoxiao ignored them, just moaning and instinctively reaching for her blanket to cover her head, manually muffling the sounds.
Seeing that their pleas were going unanswered, the two people anxiously standing by the bed exchanged a look. Steeling themselves, they bit their lips and, muttering apologies, each took one of her arms and lifted her up.
“Ugh… huh?”
In her dream, a strange feeling of weightlessness and suspension came over her. A gust of wind suddenly brushed against her face.
“Huh, am I… flying?”
Her sleepy mind was still muddled. She couldn’t describe what she was experiencing. As if she had finally been woken up, her eyelids slowly fluttered open.
At the same time, the two people carrying Luo Xiaoxiao stopped, having reached their destination.
As Luo Xiaoxiao slowly opened her eyes and her vision came into focus…
“Uh… where is this?”
She stared at her surroundings with confusion. The palace was magnificent and luxurious, but it was also gloomy and foreign to her. Luo Xiaoxiao blinked her big, watery eyes blankly. Her still-dazed mind couldn’t process what was happening. Her first thought was, “Youth has no price, straight to the underworld. Did I stay up too late and die? Am I being escorted to the land of the dead?”
With that thought, Luo Xiaoxiao realized that her arms were being held. She looked to her left and right and saw that two people were holding her. The sleepiness that had been so strong moments before vanished in a flash as a shiver ran down her body.
“Ah, you two grim reapers are so ugly… no, wait! Did I really die? Huh?!”
Her face went blank. She stared at the two “grim reapers” next to her, who embodied the traits of tall, short, fat, and thin, and looked like bad guys. In a daze, she thought, “Even in death, are there no handsome men in the underworld?”
The big, fat one and the skinny one tensed up as their young master’s gaze, filled with disappointment, fell upon them. They exchanged a look, thinking they had offended her. They panicked, quickly and carefully setting Luo Xiaoxiao down, then immediately kneeling in a respectful manner.
“Young Master, we didn’t mean to offend you. But the situation is urgent. The Lord might be… Please hurry over.”
“Huh? What?”
Luo Xiaoxiao looked blankly at the two “grim reapers” who had suddenly knelt before her. She didn’t understand what they were saying. Instinctively, she took two steps back, looking as if she was afraid of shortening her life. She waved her hands and was about to say, “My two brothers, it’s not the new year yet, don’t do this.”
Suddenly, a hoarse, sinister voice echoed from not far behind her.
“My child, you’ve come…”
“!!!” The bizarre, horror movie-like voice gave her goosebumps. Her back went rigid. Luo Xiaoxiao pursed her lips, fighting her fear, and looked in the direction of the voice. Just as she was thinking, “After the grim reapers, is the King of Hell coming out so soon?” her watery eyes fell on a man lying weakly on a bed not far away.
He was dressed in all black, his face was purple, and his hair was bright red, making him look like a turkey.
“This… is this the King of Hell? Why is he half-dead?” Luo Xiaoxiao wondered. Luckily, aside from his strange appearance, this “King of Hell” wasn’t ugly and was even a little handsome. So Luo Xiaoxiao wasn’t scared out of her wits just yet.
“My child, come here… come to your father…”
The man looked at Luo Xiaoxiao from a distance and struggled to raise his arm. His sunken eyes were black, and he looked at Luo Xiaoxiao with a mix of unwillingness, resentment, and a hint of affection. He called out in a raspy, trembling voice.
“My child…”
Huh? My child? Father???
“I don’t think my dad has yellow… or red hair…” she muttered to herself. Still, Luo Xiaoxiao decided to be polite. Seeing that he wanted her to come over, she took two steps forward. As she walked, she hesitantly said in a timid voice, “Uh, Mr. Red, I don’t think I…”
…
“…know you.”
“My child, cough, cough. Your father doesn’t have much time left. After I die, you will be the new commander of the demon realm. Promise me you will avenge me… In the future, you must, you must…”
“No, sir, I really don’t…”
Luo Xiaoxiao listened blankly as the man continued his “chuunibyo” speech, something she hadn’t heard since middle school. She spoke up timidly, trying to interrupt him, but was caught off guard by the last part of his angry and excited yell.
“You must kill that lowlife Wen Nanshu.”
“Huh? Kill… Killing is illegal, I can’t… wait, huh? Kill… kill who?!”
“My child! You must restore the… the demon tribe’s glory… Kill, kill Wen Nanshu!!! Avenge… avenge your father’s bl00d…”
It was as if someone had choked him. He couldn’t breathe. After yelling Wen Nanshu’s name, he couldn’t get a breath back. The man looked at Luo Xiaoxiao with a pained and struggling expression. His raised hand finally fell limp, and he breathed his last.
“…”
What kind of villainous last words are these?
She was still in a daze when the strange man suddenly died. She watched in astonishment as his body turned into a wisp of black smoke and vanished.
Luo Xiaoxiao was dumbfounded and confused.
What in the world was going on? Was she not dreaming? This was so bizarre!
Demon tribe? Wen Nanshu?
Wen Nanshu…
That name sounds so familiar…
Where did she hear it before?
Right!!!
A flash of insight lit up her mind as she seemed to catch the key to the man’s words. Luo Xiaoxiao thought for a moment. Then, her eyes widened, and she froze in place as if struck by lightning.
“What the… Wen… Wen Nanshu! My wife? No, wait, that’s not it… The… the heroine?! Huh?!”