Liu Yuan narrowed her eyes as she studied Su Qi, her gaze tinged with skepticism.
"Do you need to go full-screen just to read the rules? And must you also watch those sisters dancing?"
Her small hand remained firmly pressed over the phone screen, leaving Su Qi no opening to exploit.
Su Qi sighed in resignation.
This silly little sister—when jealousy took over, even her usual sharp wit was overthrown.
He attempted a weak defense: "I was just... checking out the atmosphere of the venue..."
But his voice faltered under Liu Yuan’s slightly wounded stare, betraying his lack of conviction.
"Atmosphere?"
Liu Yuan’s tone lifted slightly.
"Does Brother feel the lounge’s atmosphere isn’t good enough? Need something else to spice it up?"
She leaned in closer, her face nearly touching Su Qi’s, her warm breath carrying the faint sweetness of milk tea.
Su Qi surrendered.
"Alright, alright. I won’t look anymore."
He tucked the phone back into his pocket.
"That’s more like it."
Only then did Liu Yuan seem satisfied, her face practically glowing with triumph.
"Actually... it’s not like I can’t wear those clothes... or dance..."
She murmured under her breath, staking her claim.
Su Qi couldn’t help but laugh, reaching out to ruffle her hair. "Got it."
Liu Yuan closed her eyes, enjoying the touch, though her words remained defiant. "I’m doing this for your own good. I heard there have been some scary cases lately—Brother should be careful not to end up in jail."
Su Qi decided not to engage further.
Some topics were better left unaddressed.
He deftly shifted the conversation back to business. "What was your exam number again?"
At the mention of the exam, Liu Yuan’s expression turned serious.
"A-55."
Su Qi pondered for a moment.
This year’s rules divided the arena tests into five major zones, each with ten arenas.
That meant a hundred examinees could be tested per round, totaling forty rounds.
If luck was on their side, they might be home by 1 PM.
But if they were stuck in the last group, waiting until 5 or 6 PM wouldn’t be unusual.
It all depended on how long each match took.
Incidentally, this year’s arena tests weren’t scored purely on victory or defeat.
Instead, professional evaluators would assess performance across all aspects of combat.
There might even be cases where the "glorious loser" scored higher than the winner.
"We might have to wait a while."
"Mhm."
Liu Yuan gave a small nod, her fingers tightening slightly around her milk tea cup.
Waiting was sometimes more nerve-wracking than stepping onto the stage immediately.
"Don’t stress."
Su Qi noticed her tension and softened his voice.
"Just don’t kill anyone, and you’ve already won."
Liu Yuan: "..."
Though Su Qi’s words sounded absurd, they somehow carried an odd sense of reassurance.
Her nervousness vanished in an instant, replaced by serious contemplation on how to restrain her strength enough to avoid fatalities.
"Understood, Brother."
Time slipped by unnoticed as they waited.
...
Back at the venue.
A rabbit-eared hostess, dressed more formally than the others, stepped onto the stage and picked up a microphone. Her sweet voice, amplified by the speakers, filled the arena with deliberate excitement.
"I’m sure everyone is eager to find out your child’s opponent and match order, right?"
A chorus of agreement rose from the crowd.
"Then, without further ado!" The hostess gestured to the massive screen behind her. "Let’s turn our attention to the big screen!"
The screen flickered before settling, rows of names and corresponding ID numbers rapidly scrolling into view.
Starting from "001," the list continued endlessly.
"For this tournament, opponents will be randomly matched based on assigned numbers!"
"All examinees must memorize your unique ID—this will be your key identifier for the competition!"
"Match results and the battle order will now be announced!"
Many in the audience fixed their eyes on the scrolling screen, searching for their child’s name.
The atmosphere grew tense.
The hostess’s voice rang out again: "Alright, the assignments are complete!"
The screen flashed once more before displaying the matchups line by line.
[Zone A-1, Match 1: A-03 vs. A-128]
[Zone A-1, Match 2: A-56 vs. A-319]
[Zone A-2, Match 1: A-11 vs. A-274]
...
The pairings continued to populate swiftly.
Soon, Liu Yuan found her own match details.
[Zone A-1, Match 13: A-55 vs. A-102]
"Examinees for the first match, please proceed to Arena One immediately! The match begins in three minutes! All other examinees, prepare for your turn."
On either side of the stage, several square arenas enclosed by special energy barriers had risen into position.
The second phase of the martial exam had officially begun.
Cheng's father told him he was getting remarried—to a wealthy woman. Cao Cheng realized his time had finally come: he was about to become a second-generation rich kid. Sure, it might be a watered-down version, but hey, at least he'd have status now, right? The wealthy woman also had four daughters!! Which meant, starting today, Cao Cheng gained four stunning older sisters?? But that wasn't even the whole story... "My name is Cao Cheng—'Cheng' as in 'honest, smooth-talking gentleman'!"
reezy rom-com) Good news: Jiang Liu is quite the ladies' man. Bad news: He’s lost his memory. Lying in a hospital bed, Jiang Liu listens to a parade of goddesses spouting "absurd claims," feeling like the world is one giant game of Werewolf. "Jiang Liu, I’m your first love." "Jiang Liu, you’re my boyfriend—she’s your ex." "Jiang Liu, we’re close friends who’ve shared a bed, remember?" "Jiang Liu, I want to have your baby." The now-lucid Jiang Liu is convinced this must be some elaborate scam... until someone drops the bombshell: "The day before you lost your memory, you confessed your feelings—and got into a relationship." Jiang Liu is utterly baffled. So... who the hell is his actual girlfriend?! ... Before recovering his memories, Jiang Liu must navigate this minefield of lies and sincerity, fighting to protect himself from these women’s schemes. But things spiral even further out of control as more people show up at his doorstep—each with increasingly unhinged antics. On the bright side, the memories he lost due to overwhelming trauma seem to be resurfacing. Great news, right? So why are they all panicking now?
world slacker. But a genius female disciple just had to get clingy, insisting that he take her as a disciple. Not only that, she was always making advances on him, thoroughly disrupting his peaceful slacker life...
u serious?" Chen Feng watched helplessly as his painstakingly trained disciple, fresh off a championship victory, publicly abandoned him. "You had your chance, but you didn’t appreciate it. Now, face the consequences of your choice!" Chen Feng possessed the "Master System," a treasure trove of supreme martial arts techniques, capable of molding ordinary individuals into peerless prodigies. "Legs like yours? A shame not to train in the Crippling Kick." "Ever heard of a palm strike that descends from the heavens?" "Auntie! I see extraordinary bone structure in you—a martial arts prodigy, one in ten thousand." The once-defiant senior disciple, now watching her juniors rise to fame one after another, dominating the internet, was consumed by endless regret.
