Ankula's mind was still reeling from the shock of the crimson dragon, unable to snap back to reality.
The next moment, the dragon's head had already tumbled to the ground.
The massive crimson dragon's head continued to stare at Ankula, its vertical pupils unblinking.
"Snap—"
Xia Lun clapped his hands lightly in front of Ankula's eyes, jolting her out of her daze as if waking abruptly from a dream. Her legs gave way, and she collapsed onto the ground.
"Are you alright?" Xia Lun asked with concern.
He had intervened swiftly—the dragon's oppressive aura shouldn't leave any lingering mental scars.
"I... I'm fine." Ankula staggered to her feet, only to slip and fall again.
"Couldn't you lend me a hand?" Covered in dust, she looked up helplessly.
"You said you were fine, Miss Ankula," Xia Lun replied earnestly before reaching out and pulling her up in one swift motion.
What a strange guy, Ankula muttered inwardly.
Any other person her age would jump at the chance to flatter her.
"Just who are you?" she murmured, gazing at the lifeless body of the crimson dragon beside her.
A young adventurer capable of beheading a pure-blooded dragon with a single strike—if she hadn't witnessed it herself, Ankula would never have believed it.
"My name is Xia Lun, leader of the Dawn Wings adventuring party," he introduced himself seriously. "I believe we've already exchanged introductions before."
"That's not what I meant!" Ankula sighed in exasperation. This man was truly unfathomable.
"Anyway... th-thank you, Mr. Xia Lun." Her voice carried a hint of embarrassment—she rarely expressed gratitude.
Xia Lun: "No need for thanks, Miss Ankula. We merely accepted a commission. You’ll be paying us a substantial fee later—this is purely a transactional relationship."
"And... I'm sorry for underestimating your abilities earlier." A faint blush colored her cheeks—apologies were just as rare for her.
Xia Lun: "It’s fine. I didn’t take it to heart, Miss Ankula. And to be fair, your proposed plan was credible—it saved us a great deal of stamina on the way here."
"R-really?"
Xia Lun: "It was a pleasure working with you, Miss Ankula."
Liyana and the others returned from the dragon's lair. Liyana waved a ring triumphantly, clearly thrilled with their haul.
"Whoa, Xia Lun, you actually took down this crimson dragon?"
Her eyes widened at the sight of the corpse. "Holy smokes, this thing’s gotta be worth a fortune, right?"
"Absolutely... It’s a pure-blooded crimson dragon," Moke stammered, jaw nearly hitting the ground. "Xia Lun... how the hell did you pull that off?"
"I cut off its head with my sword," Xia Lun replied flatly.
Moke’s breath hitched, and he wisely chose not to press further.
Aina studied the dragon’s body for a moment, silently calculating how much mana it would take for her to breach its magical resistance in one strike—and whether she could do it more effortlessly than Xia Lun.
Then, her gaze shifted to Ankula.
Aina frowned. Even she wasn’t sure why she’d instinctively looked her way.
"Mission accomplished," Xia Lun declared as their leader. "Let’s head back."
......
Angelie’s heart finally settled when he saw his daughter return unharmed.
Ankula handed him a vial of medicine—she’d prepared the antidote during the journey.
"Father, try it. If it doesn’t work, I’ll remake it." Dark circles hung under her eyes; she hadn’t rested at all after traveling through the night.
Only after the first patient showed signs of recovery did Ankula finally close her eyes in satisfaction.
"This child has caused you trouble... She always pushes herself too hard." Angelie’s gaze at Xia Lun carried an unreadable emotion. He’d already heard from his daughter—it was Xia Lun who slew the dragon and ensured her safe return.
"Miss Ankula was a tremendous help." In front of her father, Xia Lun naturally spoke well of her.
Angelie invited Xia Lun and his party to stay at his estate.
Xia Lun didn’t refuse. The relentless journey had left them exhausted.
"I want a big bed! A soft, fluffy one! No more sleeping in the wild!" Xia Lun knew Liyana would throw a fit if he refused.
"A bath," Aina added, unusually vocal. Though they didn’t reek after days of travel, she’d reached her limit.
Xia Lun’s room was next to Aina’s, with Liyana and the other two across the hall.
A surge of magical energy emanated from the neighboring room—Aina had already woven an impenetrable barrier.
"Uh... Aina?"
"What?" Her cool voice drifted through the wall; she was still aware of her surroundings.
"I get the anti-surveillance barrier, but... the offensive spells seem unnecessary, don’t they?"
Even Xia Lun sensed a hint of danger from the magic arrays she’d laid.
It felt unsettling—like living on the edge of a cliff, or sleeping with a needle pressed to his throat.
"Oh? You noticed." Aina lounged lazily on her bed, clad in a sheer white shift, bare feet dangling as she idly swung her pale legs. Her usual oversized cloak hung on a nearby rack.
She’d concealed the offensive arrays well—no one else had detected them. Yet Xia Lun had.
A faint smile curled her lips. The so-called hero’s strength was worth reevaluating.
"No one here will harm you, Aina," Xia Lun said. "Besides, I’m right here."
"Oh? Aren’t you the biggest threat to me right now?" A mischievous urge to tease the rigid hero surfaced. "What if you lose control and burst through my wall? What then?"
Xia Lun fell silent.
When no reply came, an inexplicable irritation prickled at Aina.
"Sorry... Have I failed to make you feel safe?" Xia Lun finally spoke. "I’d never do such a thing. I hope you can trust me... If you’re uncomfortable, I can sleep elsewhere."
"N-no. That’s not needed."
Xia Lun couldn’t decipher her tone.
"Even if you tried, you’d probably lose to me anyway." Aina dispelled the offensive arrays.
The tension in the air instantly eased.
"Well... goodnight, Aina."
A long pause. Then, barely audible:
"Goodnight."
lities. One day, Qi Yuan was buying groceries when he unfortunately came face-to-face with a monster. Just when he thought he was going to die on the spot, he suddenly heard the monster's thoughts... "This aura, he's definitely not an ordinary master!" "So terrifying, so terrifying." "A fight with my back against the wall, I can't take it anymore." Qi Yuan: Ah, no one told me that my awakened ability isn't telepathy, but rather the stronger my enemies imagine me to be, the stronger I truly become. PS: Zhou Hai in the first chapter is not the protagonist.
ts me of treason?" "Correct. The host must return to the capital and gradually build up influence." "Wait—I have half a million soldiers, and you want me to go back to the capital to 'build influence'?" "Host, you are currently the Northern Garrison General, loyal to the Great Xia Dynasty." "Of course I am loyal to Great Xia! Absolutely loyal!" "But you keep referring to yourself as 'We'..." "Never mind the details! Summon all the regional commanders and military officers! We suspect treacherous officials are manipulating the court! They shall march with Us to the capital and purge the corrupt!" "......"
Heart] Chen Yi traversed the cultivation world for eight hundred years, charging his way to the Tribulation Transcendence stage. Just as he was outwitting his 81st Heavenly Tribulation to ascend to immortality, he was suddenly pulled into a chat group called the "Multiverse Transmigrators Support Group." To his surprise, the group was filled with nothing but fresh-faced newbies who had just transmigrated. [Help! I transmigrated into a disgraced concubine in the cold palace, and the tyrant emperor is about to execute me!] [I ended up as a cannon-fodder villain, and the protagonist is still chasing me—WTF!] [I woke up as the protagonist’s father, but I’m about to be sacrificed in a ritual! What do I do? Urgent!!!] Chen Yi stared at the chaotic flood of desperate pleas in the group and fell into deep thought. "Seriously? You drag me into a newbie transmigrator chat group… only after I’m one step away from becoming an immortal?"
] This is a dark fantasy-themed dating simulation game. The main gameplay involves containing various monster girls and investigating the truth of a world shrouded in mist alongside your companions. However, due to his love for the dark and bizarre atmosphere, Luo Wei ended up turning a dating game into a detective mystery game. Women? Women only slow down his quickdraw! To Luo Wei, the female leads in the game are more like tools to perfectly clear levels and squeeze out rewards. For Luo Wei, flirting with every girl he meets and then discarding them is standard procedure. Worried about characters losing affection points? No need. With his maxed-out charm stat, Luo Wei is practically a "human incubus." A little psychological manipulation and those points come right back. It's a bit scummy, but the paper cutout heroines in the game won't actually come at him with real cleavers. However... Luo Wei has transmigrated. He's accidentally entered the second playthrough of this game. His past actions have caused all the girls to transform into terrifying yanderes. Due to the game's setting, most of the heroines he once contained are "troubled girls." Obsessive, twisted, mentally unstable, all aggressive yanderes... The type who will kill you if they can't have you... Luo Wei wants to cry but has no tears left. "I really just want to survive..." In short, this is a story of battling wits and engaging in a love-hate relationship with yanderes.
