Being dragged by the sleeve like this by Niya, Ye Chuan placed one hand on his hip.
"What do you want me to listen to? If it's about the pain of your dysfunctional family, that’s fine, but accompanying you for a chat requires a service fee."
Niya: "..."
"Cheapskate."
"Go on, why do you think you don’t deserve to live?" Ye Chuan sat down on a rock.
Niya sighed. "Never mind, I won’t say it."
"Even if you don’t say it, I’ll still charge you."
"What do you want?!"
"I stayed, didn’t I? You owe me money," Ye Chuan said with a sidelong glance. "Might as well speak up. At least you won’t waste your money."
Niya took a deep breath, crossing her arms in irritation, but soon her expression dimmed as she pulled out a piece of jewelry from her pocket.
Ye Chuan glanced at it—it was the pendant he had retrieved from the giant spider’s labyrinth earlier. Niya had left in distress after seeing it.
"This belonged to my comrade," Niya clenched the pendant tightly before continuing. "We were a team, but we underestimated our enemy’s strength. Almost everyone was wiped out in that labyrinth—only I survived."
"My companions were all so kind… Every time I close my eyes, I can still see their faces," Niya’s voice was hoarse.
"Ever since I survived alone, I’ve felt like living each day is a sin."
"When I went back to that labyrinth with you, I held onto the hope that maybe they weren’t dead, just… but…"
"I…"
Tears as large as beans began to fall, and the girl’s shoulders trembled.
"..." Seeing Niya crying before him, Ye Chuan didn’t know what to say for a moment. "What were your companions’ names?"
"Seba, Elona…" Niya choked out between sobs.
"Ah." Ye Chuan responded casually before waving his hand. A soul banner materialized in his grip, thick violet-black mist swirling around it, exuding an ominous aura.
Niya froze when she saw Ye Chuan summon the sacred artifact again. "Wh-what are you doing?"
"Just trying something." Ye Chuan remembered using the soul banner to collect spirits back at the Spider King’s lair in the Sunset Cavern.
A few seconds later, he spoke. "Oh, got it."
His hand reached into the banner and yanked out the confused soul of a burly man, forcibly pulling it into the open.
Next came a dark elf archer with ample curves, then a dwarven mage, followed by a healer.
"These are them, right?" Ye Chuan pointed at the translucent spirits beside him. The names in the soul banner seemed to match these few.
Sniff Niya wiped her nose, staring dumbfounded at the souls before her.
"Hey, Niya! Long time no see."
"Huh? Didn’t I die?"
"Eh? How’d we get out of the Sunset Cavern?"
"E-everyone?!" Niya finally snapped out of her daze. Seeing her companions all in spectral form, her eyes brimmed with unrestrained excitement and joy before she immediately turned to Ye Chuan.
"Th-they!"
"While I was locked in a fierce battle with the Spider King, I came across these lonely souls and took them in with my sacred artifact of light," Ye Chuan waved the soul banner.
"Amitabha, the soul banner knows no bounds of love."
"Since fate has brought us together, that’ll be thirteen thousand silver coins."
By now, Niya had completely ignored Ye Chuan, throwing herself at her companions—even if her arms just passed through their translucent forms.
"Waaah, everyone! I thought your souls were gone forever! Now we can go to the church for resurrection… waaah…"
Ye Chuan crossed his arms, watching the scene with a faint, crooked smile but said nothing more.
When Niya finally came to her senses and turned to say something to Ye Chuan, he had already vanished.
"Xixi?"
Meanwhile, Ye Chuan had already returned to the adventurer’s guild. To his surprise, his daily quest was marked complete.
"That wraith counted as one, then the cursed sword, and that old pervert? Exactly three. Good enough."
Meh, passable.
"Daily’s done, the princess still needs to gather troops, and I’ve already visited the succubus." With nothing else to do, Ye Chuan simply saved and logged out.
Aiser Continent, logging off!
……
……
His vision blurred for a moment before Ye Chuan felt himself enveloped in warmth. Looking down, he saw Lan Xiaoke still nestled in his arms.
After all, they had been linked in a duel before logging in, so it made sense they’d still be connected after logging out.
"Almost forgot how I logged in." Ye Chuan checked Lan Xiaoke’s pulse, then got up to fetch some spirit liquid to treat her.
"Mmm."
"Don’t turn around. I’ll apply the medicine."
"..."
By dawn, Lan Xiaoke groggily opened her eyes. She couldn’t remember what time she had fallen asleep last night, but her body felt perfectly fine—no discomfort whatsoever.
Thanks to Ye Chuan’s healing magic.
"Eep!" As if suddenly realizing something, Lan Xiaoke yanked the blanket over her head.
"It really happened!"
The bed was empty except for her. Wrapped up like a caterpillar in a cocoon, she wriggled to the edge before rolling around frantically.
"Ah!" Only after bumping her head against the wall did she finally settle down.
The door suddenly opened as Ye Chuan walked in. Spotting Lan Xiaoke hiding under the covers, he seemed to understand and sighed.
"Awake?"
"Mm." Lan Xiaoke avoided his gaze, still buried in the blanket.
"Breakfast is ready."
"I’m not hungry. I’m full." Lan Xiaoke peeked out, her face flushed.
Seeing the white-haired girl staring at him, Ye Chuan raised an eyebrow. "Did you eat that much?"
"Then go back to sleep."
"But carry me out." Lan Xiaoke stretched her arms out from under the blanket.
Ye Chuan didn’t mind, opening his arms. "Come here."
Lan Xiaoke immediately leaped into his embrace, only to freeze a second later. "Actually, I’m too shy. Never mind."
With that, she scrambled out of the room in a fluster.
"Hey, you’re not dressed—" Before Ye Chuan could finish, Lan Xiaoke had already vanished.
"..."
Whatever.
Ye Chuan didn’t bother chasing after her and instead left the room.
At the breakfast table, a long-haired girl with raven-black hair sat quietly eating, her expression neither happy nor sad—just a touch aloof.
After greeting Bai Qianshuang, Ye Chuan took his seat.
"Ye Chuan." Bai Qianshuang suddenly spoke up.
"Yeah?"
"We’re cultivation partners." Bai Qianshuang said softly. "Right?"
"Right." Ye Chuan nodded.
"Is Junior Sister Xiaoke also your cultivation partner?" The question caught Ye Chuan off guard. "Uh…"
Seems Bai Qianshuang had been fully aware of last night’s commotion. Ye Chuan hadn’t bothered to conceal anything, and given Bai Qianshuang’s abilities, it made sense she’d notice.
] [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!"
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.”
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
close your eyes and open them again, only to find yourself transmigrated into the role of a villainous male supporting character. Readers familiar with urban wish-fulfillment novels know that it is only through the relentless antics of the villainous male supporting character that the plot between the male and female leads can progress. As the villainous male supporting character, Long Aotian not only has to bully the female lead, harass the second female lead, and flirt with the third female lead, but he also has to go all out to antagonize the male lead. In the end, when his body is discovered, he is still clutching half a moldy fried dough stick in his hand. Fully aware of the plot, Long Aotian is determined to change his fate, starting with the female lead! In the beginning, the female lead lacks confidence: "Big brother, I hope I didn't scare you?" In the middle, the female lead treads carefully: "Brother Long, please don't hit me, okay?" Later on, the female lead becomes coquettishly clingy: "Aotian, it's time to pay the 'public grain' tonight." Long Aotian's legs go weak, and he feels like crying: "I taught you to be thick-skinned, not shameless!"
