Outside the window, the sky was bright with daylight.
The sunlight, reflected off the snow, was exceptionally brilliant. The rays seemed to jostle and push against each other as they squeezed into the room through the gaps between the walls and the curtains.
They brought specks of light into the otherwise dark room.
Lin Yu lay naked on the bed. Relying on the slivers of light that had snuck into the room, he located his phone by the bed, along with the pack of cigarettes and lighter on the nightstand.
He first reached for his phone to check his unread messages.
Overnight, a multitude of unread notifications had popped up on his phone.
After swiping away the useless spam and group chats, Lin Yu began replying to the few messages that actually needed his attention.
Tang KuaiKuai: Scenery photos xN...
Tang KuaiKuai: So pretty~
Tang KuaiKuai: I want to go.
Tang KuaiKuai: When are you free?
Tang KuaiKuai: Let's go together. (Expectant face sticker)
Looking at Tang Manman's messages, Lin Yu thought about his recent schedule and realized he had absolutely no time.
The relationship between the three of them hadn't even devolved into a total mess yet.
Not to mention, Xia Yueshan was going to wake up soon, and he couldn't afford to be absent for that.
Something like traveling would have to wait until these two matters were resolved.
Long Aotian: I don't have time recently.
Long Aotian: Let's wait a bit.
Long Aotian: I should be free around the time before school starts after the New Year. I'll go with you then.
Tang KuaiKuai: Okay!
Tang KuaiKuai replied quite quickly and seemed relatively satisfied.
As long as she was satisfied, Lin Yu was satisfied.
After all, he was just making empty promises; if she wanted, he could easily make a few more.
With Tang Manman handled, Lin Yu exited their chat and tapped into the next unread message.
Bamboo Meow: The temperature is dropping again soon.
Bamboo Meow: Make sure to stay warm when you're out, don't catch a cold.
Seeing Xia Muzhu's peaceful and fuss-free reminders warmed Lin Yu's heart.
Was this the charm of dating an older woman?
Older girlfriends were the best!
Gentle, considerate, and low-maintenance!
Long Aotian: Don't worry.
Long Aotian: With my physique, I wouldn't catch a cold even if I went streaking outside.
Long Aotian: I believe you have a deep understanding of this, Sister Bamboo?
When it came to the gentle and elegant Xia Muzhu, Lin Yu's words became a bit explicit, mainly just to tease her because she was a soft target.
Bamboo Meow: ...
Bamboo Meow: Still, don't be careless! (Cute sticker of puffing out one cheek in slight dissatisfaction)
Long Aotian: OK.
After responding to Xia Muzhu, Lin Yu's craving for a smoke kicked in. He briefly set down his phone and picked up the cigarettes and lighter from the nearby cabinet.
Taking a cigarette from the pack and placing it in his mouth, he lit it with the lighter, took a drag, and then picked his phone back up to reply to the next person.
Zhao Hu: Brother Long, are you back in H City?
Seeing the text from Zhao Dahu, Lin Yu was slightly surprised.
After all, it had been a long time since the guy last contacted him.
Mmmm...
Well, maybe not a very long time. Sometimes during holidays, he would send over clumsily written greetings.
They didn't really feel like the copy-pasted kind.
What was he suddenly messaging him for?
Did something happen with the gang?
Thinking of this, Lin Yu's fingers flew across the phone screen.
Long Aotian: I'm back.
Long Aotian: What's up?
Long Aotian: Did something happen?
Zhao Hu: Nothing.
Zhao Hu: Just wanted to treat you to a meal (Silly smile)
Long Aotian: Let's do tomorrow then, at the Golden Goblet Tavern.
Zhao Hu: Okay.
Lin Yu didn't know what Zhao Dahu suddenly wanted by contacting him.
But regardless, the guy wouldn't harm him.
So Lin Yu agreed without a second thought.
After chatting with Zhao Dahu, Lin Yu exited the interface and looked at the next message he needed to reply to...
???
What the hell?
Why is it 99+?
Lin Yu looked at the message box displaying the red Arabic numerals 99+ next to it, and tapped into it out of curiosity.
Top Student:
x99
Lin Yu swiped up with his finger, looking at the endless stream of laughing pink dead-rat stickers on the screen. He was completely speechless.
What was Gu Yue trying to do?
A Loopy bombardment?
After scrolling for over ten seconds, Lin Yu finally saw a message that wasn't that pink dead rat.
Top Student: Hahaha!
Top Student: I, Top Student, have returned!
Looking at the text message he had painstakingly dug up, Lin Yu felt both annoyed and amused, and couldn't help but type a reply.
Long Aotian: Are you out of your mind?
Gu Yue's reply speed was incredibly fast; in the blink of an eye, Lin Yu saw the typing indicator next to her ID.
Top Student: I'm back!
Top Student: Haji-Long, do you have any plans for this winter break?
???
Seeing the name Haji-Long, Lin Yu lost his composure and almost dropped his cigarette on the bed.
He hurriedly pinched the cigarette, flicked the ash into the ashtray, and placed it back in his mouth. With a smirk on his face, his fingers rapidly tapped the screen.
Long Aotian: Haji-Yue.
Long Aotian: I think you're really asking for a beating.
Long Aotian: To actually come up with a nickname like Haji-Long.
Long Aotian: Feels like your family needs to hire an exorcist for you.
Top Student: Hehe. (●ˇ∀ˇ●)
Top Student: Do you have any plans for this winter break?
Top Student: Where do you want to go play?
Top Student: Bring me along (★ω★)
Long Aotian: Play my ass.
Long Aotian: I'm busy to death right now.
Long Aotian: I feel like dragging myself to school would be more relaxing than this.
Lin Yu wasn't just brushing her off; he really was incredibly busy lately.
Even after the dust settled on everything else, he still had to carve out time to go on a trip with Tang Manman.
By the time he got back from the trip, school would probably be starting.
Where would he find the time to play?
Top Student: Mmmm...
Top Student: Why are you so busy?
Top Student: What are you busy with?
Long Aotian: Kids shouldn't ask about adult matters.
Top Student: ...
Top Student: Fine.
Top Student: What about around H City then?
Top Student: Do you not have anywhere you want to go hang out?
Top Student: I'm so bored at home right now~
Lin Yu took a drag of his cigarette, his eyes narrowing with envy and jealousy.
Good lord.
You're sitting there bored out of your mind?
I'm so overwhelmed I'm about to be split into three equal parts of Lin Yu!
However, Lin Yu carefully considered Gu Yue's proposal.
It really had been a long time since he last saw this girl; going out for a stroll together wouldn't be a bad idea.
But he absolutely could not bring Tang Manman!
Put those two together, and it would trigger a violent chemical reaction!
Upon further reflection, Lin Yu helplessly realized that he truly didn't have the time to hang out with her.
Between the three of them, he couldn't even manage to keep them all company.
Where would he find an entire day to go goofing around with her?
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!
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.”
ine. During your journey, you save an abandoned baby girl and become her elder brother】 【You rely on each other, becoming each other's support】 【At the end of the simulation, you shield the now-grown girl with your life, sacrificing yourself to block numerous demonic cultivators. You die, and the light in the girl's eyes fades】 …… 【Second Simulation: You are transported to a world where steam and magic coexist】 【You immerse yourself in the study of magic, obsessed with its research. One day, while out, you encounter a half-blooded demon girl wandering the streets. You take her in as your student】 【You teach the demoness what it means to be human, show her the beauty of the world, and nurture her into a miracle that surpasses even the gods】 【At the end of the simulation, you die of old age in front of the nearly immortal demoness due to your mortal lifespan】 …… One simulation after another, one encounter after another. Xu Xi suddenly felt something was off: "Wait, you said you're coming to the real world to find me?"
ose... to cooperate with the protagonist! Shen Yuan: I have a system! Protagonist: What? System: Holy crap, you're just spilling it out like that? Shen Yuan: Let's team up, we'll split the system rewards! Protagonist: Fifty-fifty split? Shen Yuan: No way! Protagonist: What!? I'm the one getting beaten up, and I don't get half? Shen Yuan: Forty-sixty split, I get forty, you get sixty! Protagonist: Deal! Big brother, come on, hit me! As long as it doesn't kill me, beat me like you mean it! Shen Yuan: Don't worry... I will definitely protect all of you! No one but me can lay a finger on you! Guard our Heaven's Chosen Ones! I'm the only one allowed to bully them!
