After entering the water, Su Yang quickly held his breath and spun around with Tang Ziyun in his arms.
The depth where they were was less than three meters. Su Yang hugged Tang Ziyun and kicked off the bottom, surging out of the water.
"Ahh, cough, cough." Tang Ziyun choked on some water and kept coughing.
"Did your leg cramp up?" Su Yang asked hurriedly.
"I think so... my right foot hurts!"
Without another word, Su Yang tucked Tang Ziyun under one arm and swam quickly toward the shore. A few seconds later, they reached the shallow water.
He set Tang Ziyun down, then quickly moved to her feet, grabbed her right leg, and stretched it toward her body.
"Ah! It hurts so much." Tang Ziyun gripped her right leg, trembling from the pain.
"Bear with it."
Su Yang pressed one hand against the sole of her foot while massaging her calf with the other. After about fifteen to twenty seconds, the pain gradually subsided. Tang Ziyun hissed and relaxed slightly.
"How is it now?"
"Much better than before. Thanks, Su Yang."
"No problem. Don't move yet—I'll massage it a bit more." Su Yang continued pressing and kneading her pale calf.
After two more minutes, he said, "That should be enough. Next time you go swimming, remember to warm up first, or you'll easily get cramps."
"Got it."
"Take a break and rest for a while. It's not a big deal."
"Okay."
Just then, Zhuang Mengli swam over quickly from nearby.
Seeing Su Yang and Tang Ziyun sitting in the shallows, she raised her voice as she swam: "Su Yang!"
Hearing her call, Su Yang turned to look. About ten seconds later, Zhuang Mengli reached them.
"Sister Ziyun, what happened?" Zhuang Mengli sat down beside Tang Ziyun and asked.
"My leg cramped up while Su Yang was helping me tread water."
"A cramp? Are you okay now?"
"I'm fine. Su Yang massaged it, and it's back to normal."
"That's good. You're not great in the water, so don't go too deep."
"I know. I won't go past waist-deep if Su Yang isn't around."
"Good." Zhuang Mengli turned to Su Yang with a grin. "Done warming up?"
"I don't need to warm up."
"So cocky. Let's race, then."
"I saw you swimming just now. How about you rest for ten minutes? Otherwise, you'll say I'm taking advantage of you." Su Yang smirked.
"That was my warm-up. No rest needed."
"Fine, if you want to race, let's do it."
"What are you two up to?" Tang Ziyun looked up.
"She insists on racing me in swimming. I'll humor her." Su Yang stood up.
"Mengmeng, you're racing Su Yang?"
"Yeah. What, is he that good?"
"He's really good. I don't think you'll beat him."
"Haha, just sit there and watch me crush him. I've rarely met anyone who can match me in swimming."
"Really?"
"Just watch. Let's go." Zhuang Mengli grabbed Su Yang's arm and pulled him forward.
"Be careful, you two. Don't swim too far out," Tang Ziyun called after them.
"No worries." Zhuang Mengli turned her head to reply, then nudged Su Yang with her shoulder. "How do we race?"
"Simple. Swim straight ahead from where we start to about sixty meters out, then turn back. Whoever reaches Zi Yun first wins."
Zhuang Mengli scanned the sea. "That works, but there's no marker. How do I know where sixty meters is?"
"See that red hot air balloon?" Su Yang pointed to a balloon floating about seventy or eighty meters above the sea.
"Yeah, I see it."
"The spot directly below it is about sixty meters from here. We'll use it as a reference."
"Deal!" Zhuang Mengli pushed her goggles down over her eyes.
Su Yang wore nothing on his head. They moved a few meters apart.
Su Yang turned his head. "Start now?"
"Start now."
"Then count down from three, and we'll go."
"Alright. Ready? Three, two, one!" As Zhuang Mengli finished, they both plunged into the water and swam forward.
Zhuang Mengli was indeed a martial artist—fast. Though not a professional, her speed surpassed most professional swimmers.
But Su Yang didn't feel much pressure, since he was only using thirty to forty percent of his ability and could keep up easily.
After seven or eight seconds, both surfaced and switched to freestyle, gliding forward quickly.
Zhuang Mengli kept an eye on Su Yang to her right. She was giving it her all, but she couldn't shake him.
'No way!'
Sixty meters isn't far—just ten meters longer than a single lap in a standard pool.
For a professional male swimmer, sixty meters takes about twenty-five seconds.
In a fifty-meter pool, Zhuang Mengli could swim a full lap and easily break the current men's 100-meter world record.
But the ocean was different—waves created resistance, slowing things down a bit.
Just as they neared the point directly below the hot air balloon, Su Yang suddenly accelerated. His arm and leg movements quickened drastically.
In an instant, he pulled ahead of Zhuang Mengli.
"What the hell?!" Zhuang Mengli gritted her teeth and chased after him.
In a flash, Su Yang reached the spot under the balloon, spun around, and started heading back.
Zhuang Mengli shouted, "You're cheating!!"
"I'm not cheating! I told you you couldn't beat me. Catch me if you can." Su Yang laughed and swam back.
Zhuang Mengli reached the balloon's mark and turned. By then, Su Yang was already ten meters ahead.
Seeing she couldn't catch up, she suddenly yelled, "Ahhh!! Su Yang, help!"
Hearing her cry, Su Yang stopped and looked back. Zhuang Mengli was flailing wildly on the surface.
He squinted, suspecting she was faking. "Don't mess with me!"
"My leg cramped! Save… save me!" She played it well—just as she finished speaking, she sank underwater before bobbing up again, reaching out desperately.
Su Yang couldn't take the risk. Even if he knew she was acting, what if it were real? Drowning wasn't something a magic card could fix.
He shook his head in resignation and swam quickly toward her.
Seeing him approach, Zhuang Mengli acted even more dramatically. "Hurry! Hurry! I can't hold on!"
With that, she sank underwater and didn't resurface.
"Damn, is it for real?" Su Yang dove in like a fish, speeding toward Zhuang Mengli, who was thrashing underwater.
Whoosh! He grabbed her and was about to push toward the surface.
But then, Zhuang Mengli wrapped her arms around him, locked her legs around his waist, and kissed him.
d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!
to panic—he has a system. As long as an investment target dies, he can claim a reward. And since he is immortal, the one thing he has plenty of is time. ... Countless years later. “Immortal Emperor of Longevity? I invested in him.” “Supreme Celestial Venerable? I invested in him.” “Undying Empress? I invested in her.” “...” “Heh. Once they’ve all died, even the Heavenly Dao will have to kneel and call me Dad.”
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.
his freshman year, Su Bai accidentally bound the "Indulgence Tycoon System." 【Sleeping in? Reward: +$1,000】 【Spent $288 at a street barbecue stall? Cashback: +$2,880】 【Dropped $14,396 on in-game skins? Special reward unlocked: A brand-new Porsche Panamera!】 Luxury cars, penthouses, corporate shares, financial empires… College life was all about living freely and doing whatever he pleased! … When the adorably naive academic genius faced family medical bills and financial struggles, Su Bai waved his hand dismissively: "Your future is on me." "Wuwu~ Big Brother is so good to me! I’ll become a scientist to repay you!" When the genius girl got bullied by a shady professor? Su Bai casually dropped a billion-dollar investment, forcing the university to grovel and beg for her return. A company’s funding chain collapsing? Su Bai smirked—cash was the one thing he’d never run out of. Years later, when people traced the rise of the AI prodigy beauty, who was the man behind her success? Not just that—Su Bai also became the tsundere campus belle’s unattainable dream, the contrast senior’s daily necessity, and the beautiful counselor’s emotional anchor…
