"Then what happened?"
"I noticed you don’t seem to get along well with your classmates either."
"What’s the conflict between you and them?"
Lin Yu silently memorized the names of those people before asking further.
"A few kids in our class went to the same elementary school as them. Those guys are pretty popular in our class."
Xia Yueshan replied flatly.
He didn’t elaborate, and Lin Yu didn’t press further.
Because the answer was already clear in that one short sentence.
The food at McDonald’s came quickly, and Lin Yu and Xia Yueshan ate just as fast.
After finishing, Lin Yu led Xia Yueshan out of McDonald’s. Standing by his blue-and-white motorcycle, Lin Yu turned to Xia Yueshan and asked:
"Do you know where they’d be around this time?"
"I know a few places."
Xia Yueshan nodded.
"What about the ones you don’t know? Do you know where they live?"
Lin Yu lit a cigarette, his tone calm.
"No."
Xia Yueshan shook his head, his breathing unconsciously growing quicker. He knew exactly what this guy was planning.
But he still couldn’t quite believe it.
Going to their houses?
This… this is insane…
"Then we’ll just have to ask them one by one."
Lin Yu exhaled a puff of smoke, crushed the barely-smoked cigarette under his foot, then swung onto the motorcycle and started the engine.
"Get on."
Lin Yu glanced back at Xia Yueshan.
"Right."
Xia Yueshan nodded and quickly climbed onto the back seat.
...
Soaring Internet Café.
Lin Yu lit another cigarette, eyeing the middle schoolers with swollen faces in front of him before turning to Xia Yueshan.
"Just these guys who messed with you here?"
He then tilted his chin toward a group of troublemakers on the side and asked:
"None of them?"
Xia Yueshan studied them carefully before shaking his head.
"No."
"Then let’s go."
Lin Yu kept the cigarette between his lips and walked off without another word.
Xia Yueshan trotted behind Lin Yu, his expression a mix of vindication and something else—admiration.
All the hostility he’d felt toward Lin Yu when they first met was gone. Now, he stuck close like a loyal shadow.
After the internet café, Lin Yu took Xia Yueshan to several more places—pool halls, basketball courts, bubble tea shops, and the like.
They’d met and dealt with all the key figures, even the loudmouthed fat kid who’d taunted Xia Yueshan on the first day of school.
After turning his pale cheeks purple with a few slaps, Lin Yu and Xia Yueshan left.
"Now there’s just him left."
"What was his name again?"
"The short, dark-skinned one."
Lin Yu recalled the kid who’d backed up the fat kid and threatened to jump Xia Yueshan after school.
"They call him Li Heizi."
Xia Yueshan’s smile vanished at the mention of the name, his face darkening. Clearly, their grudge ran deepest.
"Do you know where he lives?"
Lin Yu asked.
"Yeah."
Xia Yueshan nodded.
"Can you beat him in a fight?"
Lin Yu thought for a moment before asking.
"Easily."
Xia Yueshan answered without hesitation, brimming with confidence.
"Good."
"Let’s go."
They mounted the motorcycle, and with Xia Yueshan directing, Lin Yu headed for Li Heizi’s home.
When they arrived, no one was there.
After waiting half an hour with no sign of him, Lin Yu had no choice but to leave.
On the way back, Lin Yu spotted a lively plaza and pulled over, deciding to stroll with Xia Yueshan and maybe get some answers—why did he hate his sister so much?
Given Xia Muzhu’s personality, she didn’t seem like the kind of sister anyone would dislike.
And while Xia Yueshan had a temper and acted impulsively, he wasn’t a bad kid who went looking for trouble.
So their hostility puzzled Lin Yu.
Stopping at a roasted pork knuckle stall, Lin Yu paid and stood in line, waiting.
"You—"
He turned to Xia Yueshan, about to ask why he despised his sister, when a familiar figure caught his eye.
Not far behind Xia Yueshan stood a short, dark-skinned boy—Li Heizi.
Lin Yu smirked.
What a coincidence.
"Come with me."
He patted Xia Yueshan’s head, cutting off his confused expression, then strode toward the boy known as Li Heizi.
Seeing the middle-aged couple standing close behind him, Lin Yu understood the situation.
He extended a hand to the man and smiled.
"Hello, I’m Lin Yu."
The short, middle-aged man frowned at the punkish-looking teen but shook his hand politely.
"What do you want?"
After the brief handshake, Lin Yu kept his smile.
"Here’s the thing."
He hesitated, then decided to confirm first.
"That’s your son, right?"
The man nodded.
"Yeah."
With confirmation, Lin Yu continued smoothly.
"Good. I have a small matter to settle."
He placed a hand on Xia Yueshan’s shoulder.
"This is my brother. Your son bullied him at school. I’m here to get justice for him."
He tilted his head slightly.
"So, will you hand over that justice willingly?"
"Or do I take it myself?"
The man was momentarily stunned, then glanced at his son. The boy’s nervous expression told him everything.
His face hardened when he looked back at Lin Yu, all pretense of politeness gone.
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
"I’ve made myself clear."
"My brother was bullied."
"I’m here to settle it."
Lin Yu replied calmly.
"So you’re saying you want to hit my son?"
The man scoffed.
"Go ahead. He’s right here. Try laying a finger on him."
] [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!"
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.”
shall grant"] ["Inscribing the glory of our race upon tombstones"] ["All that is threatened, I shall protect"] How his younger sister sees her brother: A brother who only makes eye contact once a day, mostly fading into the background as he tinkers with who-knows-what in his room all day. Their life paths should have remained largely separate. Until one day. Su Qi created an equipment card for his never-met "online girlfriend." His sister fell into silent contemplation upon receiving the "white stockings." [Card can be upgraded] [Upgrade by fulfilling any of the following conditions] [Condition ①: Consume one hundred higher-tier cards] [Condition ②: Complete one 'Heart-Pounding Adventure'] What constitutes a Heart-Pounding Adventure? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Beginner Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to admire it.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Easy Level): Equip the card, invite 'Su Qi' to touch it, and analyze the equipment's texture.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Entry Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to...] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Challenge Level): Freely combine the words 'Brother' 'Out' 'Brother' 'Me' 'Please' into a complete sentence...] "Please help me analyze both teams' mistakes in this match, brother..." His sister exhaled in relief—surely... surely there couldn't be anything more difficult? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Suicide Mission Level): Sneak a peek at the names of the galgames in 'Su Qi's' hidden E-drive folder]
