The doorbell rang.
The sudden sound in the dead of the night was like a pebble thrown into a still lake, instantly shattering the stagnant atmosphere in the living room.
Jiang Chengshan and Jiang Chengyue woke up from their drowsy state almost at the same time. They jerked upright, their eyes darting in unison toward the television on the wall.
On the screen, Lin Mo's figure appeared clearly. With one hand in his pocket, his posture was relaxed, as if he were just taking an after-dinner stroll and dropping by for a casual visit.
Ever since he came out of the parking lot, Lin Mo knew that this group of people wouldn't be able to sleep tonight without getting a definitive update.
As for Jiang Yunlu.
That heartless girl had already fallen asleep.
Situ Qiong hurried forward, taking a deep breath before pulling the door open. Her gaze swept up and down Lin Mo, carrying a mix of scrutiny and nervousness.
"Young Master Lin, so... fast?"
Fast?!
Lin Mo's eyebrow twitched almost imperceptibly.
A man could never be called fast!
"Aunt Qiong, speaking is an art."
He turned his head slightly, a trace of helplessness in his tone. "When talking about a man, you can say he is swift or efficient, but you absolutely cannot use the word 'fast'. It's very easy for people to misunderstand."
Situ Qiong stood frozen in place, scratching her head, momentarily at a loss for words.
Lin Mo had already walked straight into the living room.
On the sofa, Jiang Chengshan and Jiang Chengyue were tense. Beside them, Situ Yunshu appeared calm on the surface, but her overly bright eyes had already betrayed the turbulent emotions within her.
As expected of martial artists, they were indeed full of energy and could stay up late.
Lin Mo ignored the three gazes that practically wanted to pierce through him, walking to the bar counter of his own accord and pouring himself a glass of water.
Gulp, gulp.
He drank very slowly, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down.
The living room was dead silent, save for the sound of him swallowing the clear water.
Finally, he set the glass down with a soft clink.
Only then did he slowly sit down.
Lin Mo sighed, then looked at Situ Yunshu.
"Uh, Auntie."
He spoke, his tone carrying a perfectly measured hint of difficulty.
"I have some rather bad news for you. The Situ family is gone."
Situ Yunshu's heart skipped a beat. She couldn't help but look Lin Mo up and down. For some reason, she felt that Lin Mo was indeed very likely to do such a thing, and fully capable of it too.
But Lin Mo shook his head, even squeezing out an "I'm also helpless" expression on his face.
"Don't look at me like that, I didn't do it."
"That old ancestor of your family, Situ Aoshi, activated some thing called the Clan Protection Grand Array."
Lin Mo's tone was casual, as if recounting an insignificant piece of trivia.
"That array is quite interesting. It uses the lifeblood of all the clan members as fuel to pile up power for himself, hoping to reach the heavens in a single bound."
"Clan Protection Grand Array?!" Situ Dingyi was the first to react. This array, which only appeared in the family's most ancient texts, actually existed? "I thought it was just a rumor."
Lin Mo nodded and continued, "Yes, that's the one. It's a pity, though; he miscalculated human nature."
"After the array was activated, Situ Aoshi even wanted to kill the Third Elder as a sacrifice. The Third Elder held something back as well, and in the end, it was a dog-eat-dog fight, leaving a complete mess."
He recounted the final ugly state of the Situ family with an almost mocking tone.
"In the end, that old ancestor sucked the Third Elder dry, turning himself into a half-human, half-ghost monster."
"I just went to help put him out of his misery, casually stepping on him while I was at it."
He said this lightly, but it sent chills down the spines of Jiang Chengshan and Jiang Chengyue.
They had heard from Situ Yunshu that the entire family consisted of at least a thousand people.
Situ Yunshu's face turned deathly pale, her lips trembling. It took her a long time to squeeze out a few words.
"Then... what about the others in the family?"
Hearing this, Lin Mo spread his hands, his expression both innocent and cruel.
"The entire clan was sacrificed. Including those with different surnames, they are all dead."
It sounded as if Lin Mo hadn't committed too many killings himself.
But in reality?
However, Lin Mo didn't care about all these trivialities. Perhaps there were good people in the Situ family, but just like the Little Boy falling on Nagasaki, there was a reason for it.
Not having enough good people was also a reason for destruction.
Furthermore, when the people of the Situ family started killing those of different surnames, they showed no mercy.
Therefore, Lin Mo wouldn't stop Situ Aoshi from using the Clan Protection Grand Array to absorb everyone's lifeblood.
As for those who managed to survive, it was purely out of good luck.
The living room fell into a dead silence once again, the air seeming to freeze into ice.
"That's pretty much the situation. The Yanhuang Awakening organization has already gone to clean up the mess, and the Situ family is no more. Auntie, you can live in peace from now on. Although I also feel it's cruel, I had no way to stop it at the time."
Lin Mo's look of helplessness, for some reason, made Situ Yunshu breathe a sigh of relief.
There were too many factors contributing to her relief.
At the very least, she didn't dislike this child Lin Mo at the moment. If she did, she would be far too ungrateful.
At this moment, she couldn't help but say, "I know you only lent me a helping hand because of Yunlu, but I still want to thank you for reuniting our family."
Saying this, Situ Yunshu stood up and was about to kneel heavily toward Lin Mo.
However, just as she was about to kneel, her knees were held up by a powerful force.
Lin Mo shook his head. "Auntie, don't do this. If Yunlu finds out, she will hate me even more. I'm guessing she's probably still angry right now about why I hid so many things from her. You shouldn't force her to accept all this either. She will handle it on her own."
Hearing all this, Jiang Chengshan felt as if there was no place for him to speak.
But for some reason, he still spoke up, "She... will understand your thoughts. But if she doesn't like you, then what will you..."
Hearing this, Lin Mo nodded with a serious expression.
"It's just as I said before. If she chooses to let go, I will respect her decision and won't pester her."
After saying that, Lin Mo stood up.
"Alright, you all can get a good night's sleep now. Goodnight."
With that, Lin Mo also stood up and walked toward the outside.
Situ Yunshu took the initiative to see Lin Mo out.
When they reached the door, Situ Yunshu took a deep breath and grabbed hold of Lin Mo.
"Lin Mo, is it alright if I call you that?"
Lin Mo nodded. "Auntie, just say whatever is on your mind."
"Ashan has told me a lot about you. If Yunlu decides to be with you, we won't stop her. But I hope that you won't hurt her, and won't force her to accept all of this, okay?"
Lin Mo nodded earnestly.
"I promise you, I won't hurt her, nor will I force her to accept everything about me. The choice will always be in her hands, and I will also protect her from harm."
In fact, Lin Mo truly did accomplish this.
As for what Jiang Yunlu thought, Lin Mo never intended to control her, let alone manipulate her.
Just like how he wouldn't say too much to Xie Yuling.
Sometimes, not explaining was the best way to handle things.

grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)

] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"

uld barely embark on the path to immortality. Just as he was on the verge of death, his golden finger awakened. No matter whether it was poison, drained blood and vital energy, diminished lifespan, or any other physical debuff caused by paying a price—once midnight passed, everything would be refreshed. From then on, whenever someone asked what kind of person Chu Ran was, the answer was simple: Forbidden arts that other cultivators dared not learn? Chu Ran would learn them. Prices that even demonic cultivators dared not pay? Chu Ran would pay them. Lifespan that even righteous cultivators dared not burn? Chu Ran would burn it. All the blood essence in his body? Take it. Want both his hands and feet? He would cut them off and send them to you. You say he’s finished? He wasn’t built to sit idle. You think he’s gone mad? No—he was simply waiting for midnight. From that day onward, Chu Ran would respect neither Heaven nor Earth, bow to neither gods nor ghosts. He had only one wish: For midnight to arrive a little sooner.

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?"