The Doppelganger stared suspiciously at the porcelain doll in front of it.
Actually, it should have been a daughter, right?
But its mind…
The Doppelganger raised a hand to scratch its scalp, feeling a fog of confusion, heavy and thick.
Something was wrong.
But it couldn’t help itself—truly, it couldn’t!
Driven by an overwhelming urge, the Doppelganger almost involuntarily confessed to Zhu Yan.
“Ah… Head Chef. The Head Chef is in the room at the end of Corridor 15, but none of us will ever see it.”
Oh?
How interesting.
What do you mean, “none of us will ever see it”?
The Doppelganger blurted out the truth like beans spilling from a bamboo tube.
It wanted to cover its mouth, but that tiny shred of reason was nothing compared to the immense joy of confession.
“Its rank is very high… but we can’t meet it—it’s a procedural rule.”
“Elysium, what’s wrong with you today? You’re being way too careless!”
Zhu Yan understood immediately.
The “porcelain doll” he was playing should have known about this procedure.
But what did it matter?
Zhu Yan played along deftly: “Father.”
The Doppelganger raised a hand and slapped itself across the face with a sharp crack, its head twisting ninety degrees, its neck writhing like a twisted rope.
It straightened its head, its pitch-black eyes like still water, yet its face twisted into a simulated expression of affection—utterly eerie.
“Ahhh, sorry, my good daught… er.”
The Doppelganger’s voice turned syrupy.
It hurried Zhu Yan forward, explaining in detail.
“The procedural rule means: to prevent any [Hunter] from sneaking into the kitchen and reaching the feast stage, no horror creatures or unprocessed ingredients are allowed into the Head Chef’s workspace.”
“After all, the Head Chef is the only horror creature from the [Kitchen] that can enter the banquet. It’s practically the only link between the feast and the outside world.”
Zhu Yan had a general idea now.
In short, the Head Chef’s workspace probably only held sliced human remains and cold menus.
It had no assistants and no contact with other horror creatures—all to guard against Zhu Yan’s [Role-Playing].
Any ingredients that entered had to be sliced first, preventing Zhu Yan from pretending to be an ingredient in human form.
It was airtight.
“So, if I come to deliver a menu, I’d just have to put it on the conveyor belt according to regulations. Same with the ingredients.”
The Doppelganger “fondly” looked at Zhu Yan and summed it up.
“In short, don’t even think about it.”
“Just do your job—gut those ingredients, throw the rough stuff to the next department, and that’s it.”
Just that?
No way.
Zhu Yan quickly grabbed the Doppelganger, pressing while the iron was hot. “Father, does the conveyor belt have any horror creature inspection?”
If there were horror creature inspections, he could exploit an opening.
Because horror creatures were all flaws.
But the Doppelganger shook its head.
“How could the Boss make that mistake and give a [Hunter] a chance?”
“Don’t worry. The conveyor belt uses item inspection. If it finds an unsliced ingredient, the item automatically slices it.”
Zhu Yan wasn’t reassured.
The Doppelganger’s explanation made it sound truly airtight.
But how was Zhu Yan supposed to get in?
Seeing that the “porcelain doll” had no more questions, the Doppelganger fell silent.
It led Zhu Yan to stop outside a sealed door.
“Go on in and work, my good child. I recall you said you have a lot on your plate…”
Its stiff face actually showed a hint of human-like reluctance.
“Ah, I wish I could work with you!”
Zhu Yan’s hand idly brushed his waist.
It felt cool there—the calico cat’s fog had thinned into long, slender wisps, wrapping faintly around his waist.
It gave off a chill from the [Fog] when touched, but barely visible to the naked eye against the porcelain doll’s bright dress.
If he [Role-Played] as a horror creature, [Fog], could he exploit a loophole?
The rank of [Fog] was 0, and its ability level was also 0.
Zhu Yan’s [Cheat] granted him 6% of a horror creature’s abilities, but 0 times anything equals 0—so he could gain all of [Fog]’s abilities, including atomization and dispersal.
If he scattered himself into pieces using the [Fog] state and sent them up the conveyor belt, could the item detect it?
Zhu Yan glanced meaningfully at the calico cat on his waist.
Let the cat go first as a test.
If it could pass unscathed through the conveyor belt’s detection item, then Zhu Yan could follow.
Zhu Yan asked, “Do you know the exact rank of the Head Chef?”
The Doppelganger pondered for a moment.
“Hmm… not sure, at least Rank 10 and up. Oh, honestly, what’s gotten into you?”
Even for its “child,” the porcelain doll’s curiosity was a bit too strong.
Zhu Yan stared at the Doppelganger with its furrowed brows, quickly tallying in his mind.
He probably hadn’t missed too many questions.
The Head Chef’s specific rank, the location of its workspace, the detection items, and some warnings the Doppelganger had volunteered.
“Father, how do the others address you? And how should I refer to the Head Chef and other superiors?”
This was the last bit of detail.
Zhu Yan’s hand turned lightly, hiding the Rank 13 military knife behind his back.
Hearing the word “Father,” the Doppelganger’s face, which had been cooling back to icy indifference, once again melted into an expression of intoxication.
“They call me Logistics Supervisor. My name… oh, I don’t have one.”
“The Head Chef is called Mr. Head Chef. As for other superiors besides the Boss, I haven’t interacted with them.”
Simple enough.
Zhu Yan nodded to it.
“Alright, I’ve got it. Then… farewell?”
The Doppelganger naturally assumed Zhu Yan was heading to work.
“Goodbye,” it said reluctantly. “I need to go too. I—”
The military knife’s sharp blade whistled through the air with a cold gleam, slicing cleanly through the Doppelganger’s body.
Its upper half trembled slightly.
Dazed, it looked down as its torso slowly slid apart from the lower half, a look of confusion spreading across its face.
“What? You?”
The “porcelain doll’s” visage melted like candle wax, then slowly reformed into a new appearance.
A new appearance—the Doppelganger’s own face!
The Doppelganger’s pitch-black eyes widened, its facial muscles frozen stiff.
“Can change forms? Then you’re a hunt—”
Swish—the blade pierced the Doppelganger’s head.
“What a shame.”
In its final moment before melting away, the Doppelganger’s dark eyes reflected a smile of its “own” face.
“Your skin could fetch a good price. I shouldn’t have chopped you like this—how many bone gold coins am I losing?”
Zhu Yan collected the few sticky, wrinkled sheets of human skin from the ground.
He sighed, straightened the bow tie on his suit, and strode off into the distance.
“Corridor 15… where was that again?”
Before finding the corridor, he still needed to log into the [Player Forum] and touch base with Yang Zhanbai.
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…
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 vast world of cultivation, where he becomes the master of the Heavenly Ruins Sacred Hall, a dying old man with barely a tenth of his former cultivation remaining. He is immediately confronted with a deadly crisis: his subordinates have rebelled, and his protectors are forcing him to abdicate. At the critical moment, the system descends from the heavens: [Ding! The host has been detected facing a life-or-death crisis. The system is now officially activated!] [As a gift, you have received the Supreme Beginner’s Pack and awakened the ultimate cheat: ten thousand years of pure cultivation essence every second!] Yin Tianjue: “Wait… ten thousand years of cultivation every second? That’s six hundred thousand years a minute, and in one day… I can’t even calculate it. Either way, I’m already invincible!” You’re a peerless prodigy rarely seen in ten thousand years? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re an undying ancestor who has guarded a sacred land for countless ages? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re the strongest chosen one, blessed with heaven-defying destiny? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. From this day forth, I have only one thing to say: “I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. Now, how exactly are you supposed to deal with that?”
lan, the Luo family, tracked him down - along with the babies in their arms. Mo Xuan stared pensively at the paternity test results from over a dozen top institutions, both domestic and international, showing a 99.99% match between himself and the two baby girls. At 23, Mo Xuan, a doctoral student, had become the father of two three-year-old children. The kicker? The mothers weren't even the same person! He gradually realized he was being lured step by step into an elaborate trap designed by these two yandere sisters. "Be good, little Xuan. Sister's life belongs to you entirely." "Brother, if you try to run away, I'll have no choice but to tie you up." Mo Xuan: "Do whatever you want, ladies. I give up."
