"Nothing of any value."
Aina waved her hand casually, and the dense fragments of memories before her—like startled fireflies—streamed back into Ruiwen's body.
The light that had faded from Ruiwen's eyes flickered back to life, the emptiness gradually replaced by confusion. He blinked, as if struggling to focus his vision.
"Who are you…?" Ruiwen's voice still carried a hint of hoarseness from the memory scramble.
Before Ruiwen could even gather his thoughts and finish his first question, Liyana chopped him on the back of the neck. His eyelids rolled up, and he crumpled to the floor once more.
It would have been some pointless question anyway—Aina wouldn't have answered him regardless. Liyana had no patience for his rambling.
"What do we do with this guy?"
Liyana looked at Xia Lun and Aina.
"Let him go," Aina said offhandedly.
"Let him go?" Liyana blinked, surprised. She hadn't expected Aina's answer to be so normal—so normal that it actually caught her off guard.
"This guy's just a small pawn under someone else's thumb. He hasn't done anything truly wicked, just scraping by quietly in the shadows." Aina shrugged, looking utterly unconcerned. "Of course, killing him wouldn't be a tragedy either—he's hardly a saint, and he did follow orders to move against La Di."
"Then what?" Liyana stared down at the unconscious Ruiwen, caught in a dilemma.
He wasn't some irredeemable villain—just a tool, forced by circumstance to carry out someone else's work.
"How about… we flip a coin?" Mo Lini suddenly perked up, bright-eyed.
"Flip a coin?"
"Yeah! Heads, we let him go. Tails, we burn him to death… Pretty fair, right?" Mo Lini flashed a naive smile, as though she genuinely believed her idea was brilliant.
A flash of alarm crossed Liyana's face.
She'd always known Mo Lini was innocent, but she hadn't realized the girl could be innocent to the point of being terrifying. If Mo Lini ever fell to darkness, she'd become an absolutely fearsome demon lord…
Liyana turned her gaze to Xia Lun, who had been silent all along.
Xia Lun sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
Sometimes he felt like there wasn't a single normal person in this group.
"Look… why does it have to be 'let him go' or 'kill him'?" Xia Lun shook his head helplessly. "Why not hand him over to the Tribunal? This is a civilized city, not the middle of nowhere. And we've already got him secured."
Aina stuck out her tongue, as if the obvious solution had only just occurred to her.
Liyana froze for a moment.
Mo Lini wore an expression of sudden realization: "That's a good idea."
On the ground, Ruiwen's body twitched—as if, even in his unconscious state, he approved of the decision. If they'd been out in the wild, he wouldn't have been so lucky.
Liyana, never one to shy away from work, briskly hauled Ruiwen out of there, delivering him to the Tribunal as Xia Lun had suggested. Worried about trouble on the way, Luo Lun and Mo Lini tagged along as escorts.
After the girls left, Aina busied herself in the room once more.
A thread of blood seeped out from her robes. With a flick of her finger, it spread across the floor, rapidly forming an intricate crimson magic circle.
"What are you doing?" Xia Lun stepped closer, watching the formation with interest.
"Something's been bothering me," Aina said, pausing briefly. "Might have something to do with those missing young people in the West District."
"Oh? What is it?" Xia Lun wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder.
"You saw it earlier in that guy's memories… A low-rank half-blood like him, and yet he gets a monthly blood supply…"
"Is that unusual?"
"Of course it is. Where did their blood even come from?" Aina snorted. "For lower-ranking vampires, blood is still an absolutely essential food. Inferior half-bloods even develop bloodlust sickness—that's why vampires never expand carelessly. Dealing with their kind is too much of a hassle. If, at night, some half-blood lost control and attacked humans on a whim, it would ruin the reputation of all vampires."
Xia Lun nodded thoughtfully. "So what do you plan to do?"
"So… let go of me first! My summoning circle's about to activate!" Aina squirmed uncomfortably under Xia Lun's grip, signaling him to keep his hands to himself.
She managed to struggle free from his embrace, slipped over to the sofa across the room, and straightened her somewhat rumpled robes.
Then she let out a light cough, shot Xia Lun a glare to remind him to behave, and her expression slowly turned solemn.
The summoning circle that had been laid down earlier erupted in dazzling red light, flooding the entire room like a tide.
As the light faded, a petite figure clutching a plush bear appeared at the center of the formation.
"Lady Aina," Niya, dressed in a gothic gown, lifted her skirt in a curtsey. Though her small face remained cold as a carved statue, the faint glimmer in her eyes betrayed her inner delight. She seemed to be in a good mood. "What business do you have summoning me?"
Aina had summoned only her, not Lady Feina… hee hee.
"Mm." Aina responded with a simple, innate aloofness. "There's something I want to ask you."
Niya's delight vanished instantly. Her heart gave a jolt, and a trace of barely perceptible tension crept into her voice: "Please, ask away, Lady Aina."
"The Yuelai family… they fall under your jurisdiction, don't they?" Aina's tone was flat and even, without any pressure or intimidation—but Niya felt an immense weight pressing down on her nonetheless.
"Y-yes, Lady Aina… Have any of them offended your authority?"
Niya clutched the bear tightly. She dropped to one knee, lowering her head, not daring to look at Aina's face—her expression turning fearful.
She frantically scanned through the Yuelai family's recent activities in her mind, trying to find any trace that might have provoked this lord. The room was so silent she could hear only her own heartbeat.
After a pause, Aina finally spoke: "Relax, Niya. Get up first."
Niya rose shakily to her feet.
"Please go to the Yuelai family and have them bring a man named Aolei to me," Aina said slowly. "He's done something wrong."
"Yes, Lady Aina!" Having received her orders, Niya's form dissolved into a crimson shadow and vanished without a trace.
The room once again held only Xia Lun and Aina.
Aina stood up from the sofa and stretched lazily, revealing a strikingly graceful silhouette.
"What's with that look, Xia Lun?"
"Nothing." Xia Lun stared at his wife. "Just don't scare the kid next time."
ions, keeping it grounded and realistic】 After quitting his job, office worker Su Yang accidentally binds with the "Enjoy Life System." As the name suggests, simply by indulging in life's pleasures, he can earn random rewards from the system—no need to spend money on beautiful women or grovel before anyone. Just enjoy, and the money follows, making it all about effortless fun. The system comes with a scanning feature, allowing him to establish a favorability bond with women rated 85 points or above. Every 20-point increase in favorability unlocks additional rewards. After suffering through over twenty years of hardship, Su Yang trembles with excitement, his dull eyes suddenly gleaming with newfound hope. "Enjoy life? How hard could that be?"
ive and Ruthless] Before his transmigration, Ye Xuan was playing a game called "Severing Emotions to Attain the Dao." The game's core wasn't about leveling up by fighting monsters, but about conquering various "bad women" with wicked personalities and cold, fickle natures. There was only one method to conquer them: stay unwaveringly by their side, then die at a critical moment, driving them to madness after losing the protagonist. The higher their level of regret, the higher the player's score. To dominate the server, Ye Xuan conquered all the bad women. In the early stages, he showered them with boundless tenderness, only to choose to sacrifice himself for them later, making them weep bitterly and drown in regret. Among them were: Xia Lengyue, the unfaithful immortal wife who chased after powerful men and discarded her husband like trash. Ye Qingcheng, the Demonic Venerable of the Joyous Union Sect, who appeared pure and innocent but was, in reality, promiscuous. Wu Lingxiao, the Empress of the Great Xia Dynasty, who lusted after men and loved maintaining a harem. Bai Qiangu of the Endless Demonic Sect: a bloodthirsty mass murderer. However, when the protagonist transmigrated into the game world, he made a horrifying discovery. Eight hundred years had already passed. The bad women he had conquered had now each become deities and revered ancestors. Faced with the endless stream of toxic women coming for him, Ye Xuan could only rely on his god-tier acting skills to carve a path of survival through this world of treacherous women.
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!" "......"
y came from. The chests contained supplies, currency, class-change scrolls, skills, talents… and even godhood! The laws of the world were completely rewritten. This became a world where everyone gambled with their fate! Some people, despite having nothing, opened a divine artifact and rose to the top, eventually ruling the world. Others went bankrupt, opened nothing but worthless junk, and leaped from skyscrapers in despair. Lin Ye arrived in this world from another reality, utterly bewildered. “What is going on? Why is everyone a gambling addict?!” “Opening chests? No way. I refuse to gamble. I’ll start with myself!” Until— On his first chest, he obtained a Mythic Talent: Void Incarnation! He could become completely intangible, pass through all things, and reduce everything to nothingness! … On his fiftieth chest, he obtained a Mythic Weapon: Blade of Karma! With a single slash, karma shattered, twisting the universe and overturning the myriad phenomena of creation! … On his ninety-ninth chest, he obtained a Mythic Divine Treasure: Primordial Purple Energy! It could split open the heavens and earth, create all things, and evolve countless worlds with a single thought! Lin Ye: “Now that I think about it… shouldn’t someone have told me that every chest is guaranteed to contain something Mythic?!”
