The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System | Ren Zha Fanpai Zijiu Xitong Vol. 3
If you're interested in my liveblog for this series, you can read it here (beware spoilers).
This is the 3rd book in the series, but it's actually the last book of the main plot, since Volume 4 is side stories and "falling action", I presume.
In the last book, Shen Qingqiu gave himself up to Luo Binghe in order to prevent the attack on the sect. He basically enters house arrest under Binghe's control, but that doesn't last for long, as he is called back to his real body, which was stolen from it's resting place at the sect.
When this happened, I couldn't believe that these two had been separated so quickly after barely coming together. However, although Shen Qingqiu is stolen away or kidnapped multiple times, the main story-line is advanced thoroughly and we learn a great deal about the side characters and the "villain" of the story. It felt much less frustrating because there's so much plot instead. Also, although Shen Qingqiu is "separated" from Binghe several times, in reality he follows soon after, so their separation doesn't feel as frustrating as the previous book.
Shen Qingqiu is tasked by the System to "fill plotholes" from the original Proud Immortal Demon Way novel, and plotholes were definitely filled. It was an emotional roller coaster, learning about Shen Jiu's true origins, as well as the true backstory behind Binghe's parents, and the circumstances that led to Tianlang-Jun's current villainy. This book wasn't that much longer than the other ones, but it was consistently paced and constantly moving forward.
For a series where the two main characters can barely have a proper, honest conversation for 2 minutes, the plot stresses the tragedy of being unable to communicate your true feelings to your loved ones. In this way, I feel like Bing/qiu finally beat the odds,
Multiple characters show hidden depths, even Master Airplane who Shen Qingqiu attempts to strangle at every opportunity they meet.
I also appreciated that although the buildup to the final battle was quite drawn out, the actual "climax" was less about the fighting and more about trying to save Luo Binghe from himself. No longer is this a "stallion" novel, so it makes sense that the climax isn't about that either. The development of the Bingqiu relationship was hard fought, and they finally manage to stay together, with the support of their peers (begrudgingly).
Overall, I've truly enjoyed what I've read so far. It's been a relatively breezy and engaging read, though it could have been frustrating since there wasn't much "resolution" after the conclusion to the story. However, knowing that there's at least one more book is comforting. I'm not ready to part with these characters yet.