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.
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?"
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
he colors of other people’s emotions. Light red meant anxiety. Gray meant exhaustion. Orange meant excitement. Yellow... meant repression. At the same time, he could gain unlimited control over one of those colors. Pale cyan: relaxation. Using this ability, he started offering “two-yuan hugs,” spending an afternoon exchanging emotional-color experiences with others. Then came his final female customer of the day— a girl whose emotional color was pure black... —— A week later, Xu Chuan had become skilled at using pale cyan—Relaxation—treating it like a bottle of menthol balm whenever he needed it. That was when he discovered he had unlocked another unlimited emotional color: Purple, the color of fear. So these emotional colors refresh every week? Fine, I take it back—I’ll never call you useless again... —— Much later, after Xu Chuan had accumulated countless emotional abilities, one night, he suddenly found himself inside someone else’s dream. There, he could use the emotional colors he possessed to paint. And in her dream, he painted her a shower of pink shooting stars, spreading across the depths of the night sky...
with countless casualties. As a top-tier gamer, Liu Xuan volunteered to join the fight, intending to dominate with his skills, but instead he obtained the hidden class: [Pacifist]. Unable to attack. Unable to use active skills. Fortunately, with each level gained, he acquired a new passive skill. And so, armed with a body full of passives, Liu Xuan slaughtered his way through the battlefield of ten thousand races! [You attacked Liu Xuan] [You gained the debuffs: 'Poison', 'Fear', 'Burning', 'Bleeding', 'Freeze', 'Silence', etc.] [Your attack speed has been reduced by 99%] [Your armor and magic resistance have been reduced by 99%] Warriors of the Ten Thousand Races: How the hell am I supposed to fight this?!
