Chapter 172
"Beep—!!!"
A harsh prompt sounded in the exam site.
Ye Zhenzhen's small face instantly turned pale. Her palms gripping the steering wheel were covered in sweat, and her mind buzzed.
Is it over?
Outside the course, Qin Zhaoyang's mouth was grinning from ear to ear, his face full of schadenfreude.
"Hahahaha! I told you showing off gets you struck by lightning. She's completely done for now!"
Gu Ran stood under the shade of a tree, his hands in his pockets, not even batting an eyelid, as steady as an old monk.
The next second, the mechanical voice from the broadcast fell like a heavy hammer, smashing fiercely onto Qin Zhaoyang's smiling face:
"Candidate No. 043, crossed the line during the curve driving test. Score: Fail!"
For a moment, even the sound of the wind seemed a bit comical.
Qin Zhaoyang's smile froze right on his face, his features twisted like a flattened palette.
No. 043?
He whipped his head around, only to see his Blondie cousin standing next to the car.
Looking at the exam car that had driven up onto the curb of the S-curve, his eyes revealed a kind of clear stupidity.
"What the fuck? I failed?"
Blondie scratched his messy hair, looking completely bewildered.
Immediately after, the voice broadcast for Car No. 3 slowly sounded. To Ye Zhenzhen, it was simply heavenly music.
"Curve driving passed. Please proceed to the next item."
A twist!
Going from hell to heaven, Ye Zhenzhen's eyes turned red, keeping Gu Ran's instructions firmly in her mind.
Steady the clutch, aim at the points, and ignore the mad dogs outside!
"Heh."
Gu Ran chuckled lightly, glancing sideways at Qin Zhaoyang.
Giving him a taste of his own medicine.
Returning the same cold sneer, the damage was immense, and the insult was maxed out.
Qin Zhaoyang's face turned as black as the bottom of a pot. Watching Blondie walk up to him dejectedly, he delivered a backhand slap right to his face.
"Trash! I told you to watch the points, why were you staring at the back of the girl's car? Haven't you embarrassed us enough!"
Less than two minutes later, Car No. 3 steadily crossed the finish line.
[Exam finished. Score: Pass.]
As soon as the car door opened, Ye Zhenzhen ran straight to Gu Ran like a swallow returning to its nest, headbutting right into his arms.
A warm and soft body filled his embrace, and the faint scent of osmanthus on the girl drifted straight into his nose.
"Gu Ran! I passed! I really passed!"
Gu Ran naturally wrapped his arm around her slender waist, feeling its astonishing elasticity.
His large hand comfortingly rubbed the back of the girl's head, but his tone carried a hint of mischief.
"I told you, trust your master, and you won't fail. Look how scared you were. We must have some 'extra practice' tonight to compensate for your master's psychological damage."
Ye Zhenzhen's pretty face instantly turned completely red, and she softly punched him.
"Hooligan, so many people are watching..."
Qin Zhaoyang watched this "dog couple" showing off their affection in public, almost crushing his back molars from gritting them so hard.
His driving skills were instantly beaten, his face was completely lost, and even the girl he had his eyes on threw herself into someone else's arms for comfort.
Truly fucking unlucky!
"Let's go!"
He growled lowly, not even staying to watch his cousin's second makeup exam. He took his female companion, slipped dejectedly into his BMW, and fled with a stomp on the gas pedal.
...
In the taxi on the way back, Ye Zhenzhen was sleeping soundly leaning on Gu Ran's shoulder, her eyelashes fluttering slightly.
The phone in Gu Ran's pocket vibrated. The moment he saw the caller ID, his mouth twitched immediately.
Damn it, Li Sinan, every time you call it's to report bad news. I'm getting PTSD!
"Boss, Fruit Ninja has blown up! Concurrent online users have broken two million!"
Li Sinan's voice carried a hint of excitement, but it was quickly replaced by anxiety.
"But Penguin has made a move. A special task force is disassembling our installation package. The knock-off version, 'Everyday Fruit Slicing', is expected to launch within a week."
"..."
Gu Ran was speechless. As expected, you could always trust Penguin's copying speed.
He narrowed his eyes and snorted coldly.
"Expected. Their DNA is Ctrl+C. It'd be weird if they didn't steal."
"Should we send a lawyer's letter to warn them?"
"A lawyer's letter?"
Gu Ran scoffed, lowering his voice as he glanced at the slightly frowning girl.
"Do you think the title 'Nanshan Pizza Hut' is for nothing? They can drag us to death in lawsuits. By the time the lawsuit is over, everything will be too late."
"Then what should we do?"
The young man's voice carried a steady and convincing power.
"The 'Challenge System' originally scheduled for next week will be launched the day after tomorrow. Also, throw out the 'Slice Fruit to Win Phone Credit' plan. Before the knock-off comes out, I want to completely lock in user stickiness."
"Understood!"
"Also."
Gu Ran paused, a hint of playfulness flashing in his eyes.
"Contact big influencers to set the narrative. The title will be: 'Leave a Way Out for Independent Developers'."
"Understood, boss. I'll arrange it right away!"
Hanging up the phone, Gu Ran took a deep breath.
Copy again, and I'll directly hire someone to pull your main power switch!
Business warfare?
It's just that unpretentious.
...
Just after finishing the exam, with a few days off before practicing for Subject Three, Ye Zhenzhen was dragged by Pei Susu to go shopping.
Evening, Wanda Plaza.
"Zhenzhen, this dress is absolutely beautiful!"
Pei Susu let out a squeal at the door of the fitting room.
It was a goose-yellow waist-cinching short dress. The lace neckline was half-concealing, and the hem just covered the base of her thighs. It was incredibly pure yet extremely alluring.
Simply a walking "lethal weapon."
When the girl walked out blushing, even Pei Susu, a fellow girl, stared blankly.
"Hiss—these legs, this waist... If I were a guy, I'd die on you too."
"Pei Susu! What nonsense are you talking about..."
Despite saying that, the image of Gu Ran seeing her in this outfit uncontrollably surfaced in Ye Zhenzhen's mind.
The image in her mind became clearer and clearer, and the girl's cheeks grew even rosier.
"Yo yo yo! What are you thinking about, blushing like a monkey's butt."
Pei Susu's teasing words drilled straight into the girl's eardrums.
"No ivory comes from a dog's mouth..." Ye Zhenzhen's cheeks were flushed with embarrassment, and she made a move to pull at that nonsense-spouting mouth.
Before she could succeed, Pei Susu moved with lightning speed. With a click, she took a candid shot, her face full of excitement.
"Sending this to a certain someone, to let him know what kind of peerless treasure he's picked up."
...
Binjiang Gardens.
Gu Ran was at home studying how to surpass... counter-copy Penguin's instant messaging software.
"Ding."
A message popped up on his Penguin account.
Pei Susu?
Hiss, why does it feel like nothing good?
Gu Ran opened the latest message in the chat box, and a photo caught his eye.
The girl on the screen stood gracefully, her long white legs dazzling the eyes, and her shy gaze was simply soul-captivating.
Gu Ran stared at the screen, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down unconsciously.
He was too narrow-minded.
This... what's bad about this! This is simply wonderful!
Before he could finish admiring it, Pei Susu's message followed closely.
[Keep the photo well, no need to thank me. Come to my place to play board games at 7:30 PM. The loser gets a punishment. [Smirk]]
...
u Chenyuan transmigrated into a female-oriented novel about a real and fake heiress, becoming the CEO elder brother of both. Unfortunately, the entire Lu family—including himself, the CEO—were mere cannon fodder in the story. Determined to save himself, Lu Chenyuan took action. The spoiled, attention-seeking fake heiress? Thrown into the harsh realities of the working class to learn humility. The love-struck real heiress? Pushed toward academic excellence, so lofty goals would blind her to trivial romances. As for the betrayed, vengeful arranged marriage wife… the plot hadn’t even begun yet. There was still time—if he couldn’t handle her, he could at least avoid her. "CEO Lu, are you avoiding me?" Mo Qingli fixed her gaze on Lu Chenyuan. For the first time, the shrewd and calculating Lu Chenyuan felt a flicker of unease.
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
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?!”
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
