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]]
...
. As long as he maintains the villain image and follows the plot to the grand finale, he can obtain generous rewards and return to the real world. So Gu Chen'an entered the role and began to act as a scumbag villain, but who would have expected that the female leads could hear his inner thoughts. Miss Su from the Su family was shocked: "I originally thought Gu Chen'an was a scumbag, but I didn't expect he turned out to be a gentleman! What? You said I have to call off the engagement? I definitely won't, I'll piss you off!" Bai Yuan Tian was dumbfounded: "Young Master Gu is usually unreasonable and a complete brat, but he actually calls me little sweetie in his heart? What, Young Master Gu even said he likes me?" As the female leads' images collapsed more and more, the plot also collapsed with it. Gu Chen'an looked at all this chaos. "Ladies, don't aggro me, if you keep this up the male lead really will stab me, I still need to survive to the grand finale!"
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”
