The black-clothed man's pupils behind the mask contracted sharply, a tempest of shock surging in his heart.
As a cultivator of the Enlightenment Realm, having dominated a region for many years, he had never encountered anyone who could suppress his spiritual power with just a single sentence!
He tried to mobilize his spiritual power to break through that invisible shackle, but the moment the power circulated to his meridians, it was like crashing into an iron wall, instantly stagnating.
Just what level of strength was this? The Great Ascension Realm? Or a realm even beyond legend? This seemingly lazy and casual young man actually concealed such terrifying depth!
Zhao Hongyuan was even more startled, his whole body going numb, his back instantly soaked with cold sweat.
He had speculated countless times about Ye Chuan's strength, at most thinking the other was a hidden peak Spirit Transformation realm expert. But now, feeling that aura like the might of heaven and earth, he realized how shallow his understanding had been!
That pressure carried not a shred of malice, yet it made even breathing difficult for him, more suffocating than when he had faced his Enlightenment Realm ancestor in the past.
He hurriedly put away his magical treasure, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead. "Master, please calm your anger! It was my momentary recklessness, I should not have acted out in your shop!"
Only one thought remained in his mind—thank goodness he hadn't actually made a move, otherwise his position as City Lord would likely have come to an end.
The black-clothed man also slowly reined in his killing intent, sitting back down in the chair, though his gaze towards Ye Chuan now held several additional points of awe.
The entire shop fell silent. The customers exchanged glances, their reverence for Ye Chuan deepening yet another layer—this was no ordinary forging shop, but clearly the dwelling of a reclusive master!
Just as the atmosphere eased, the forging furnace suddenly emitted a low hum. Amidst the churning black flames, a pitch-black Soul-Devouring Scythe slowly rose.
The scythe was wreathed in faint black mist, the whispers of vengeful spirits on its bone spikes growing clearer, yet not daring to act out under Ye Chuan's invisible pressure.
Then, a beam of light shot into the sky, nearly dimming the heavens and earth!
A top-grade magical treasure was born!
Ye Chuan glanced at it. Indeed, it was a top-grade treasure, already possessing a weapon spirit upon its birth.
A wild joy flashed in the black-clothed man's eyes. He stood up, grasped the Soul-Devouring Scythe, feeling the violent yet docile weapon spirit within, and bowed deeply to Ye Chuan.
"Thank you, Master! This favor will surely be repaid!"
With that, his figure flickered and vanished out the door, not uttering another unnecessary word.
"Master, I'm here for an enhancement!" The moment the black-clothed man left, Zhao Hongyuan immediately scurried to Ye Chuan's side, presenting his Rift-Space Seal like a treasure, his eyes brimming with barely suppressed excitement.
The pain of yesterday's fall from the fourth layer back to the second had long been tossed aside by the desire to break through. Staring at the six layers of white light on the Rift-Space Seal, he thought—since six layers had succeeded, the seventh couldn't be far off!
It could all succeed!
He had a strong feeling!
As long as he broke through, his strength would reach a new level, and then the status of Xuancheng City on the Tianxuan Continent could rise as well!
Forty million spirit stones was a lot, but if it succeeded, everything would be worth it!
He slapped his storage pouch onto the counter, his hand trembling slightly.
"Master, I've walked on thin ice my whole life. Do you think I can make it to the other shore?"
"Who knows."
Ye Chuan glanced at the storage pouch, then at Zhao Hongyuan's anxious appearance. "Go all out. Don't hold back too much."
Zhao Hongyuan hurriedly placed the Rift-Space Seal into the forging furnace, clasping his hands tightly before his chest, his palms sweating with tension.
His eyes were glued to the furnace mouth, not daring to blink even once, his heart pounding as if trying to leap out of his throat.
He prayed incessantly in his mind!
It must succeed! It must succeed! As long as I reach the seventh layer, I'll be the strongest City Lord of Xuancheng City!
I might even be able to contend with Enlightenment Realm cultivators!
I could become the number one person below the Enlightenment Realm!
But the next second, the light from the forging furnace abruptly dimmed. A piercing "zila" sound, like nails scraping on sheet metal, rang out as the silver flames instantly turned an eerie black-purple.
A sense of foreboding instantly seized his heart.
"Not good!" Zhao Hongyuan's heart tightened. Before his words finished, the Rift-Space Seal flew out of the furnace trailing a plume of black smoke.
He frantically caught it. The moment his fingertips touched the seal's body, his face turned deathly pale—the original six layers of white light had dwindled to only three, and the spatial fluctuations had weakened greatly!
"Th-three layers..." Zhao Hongyuan staggered back two steps, collapsing to sit on the floor. The storage pouch slipped from his hand, spirit stones scattering everywhere, but he had no mind to pick them up.
Trembling, he raised the Rift-Space Seal, gazing at the three layers of white light so faint they seemed about to extinguish, muttering to himself,
"Forty million... that was my bottom-line savings... Why was I so greedy! If only I had known when to stop, I'd at least still have six layers now..."
"Six layers is plenty strong too, why did I have to aim for seven? Oh heavens."
He punched his own chest hard, regret flooding over him like a tide, wishing he could turn back time to the moment before deciding to attempt the breakthrough.
He beat his chest and stamped his feet, regretting so much that his intestines almost turned green.
Now, in one fell swoop, he was back to square one. Forget the seventh layer, he hadn't even kept the sixth.
The nearby customers watched his disheveled appearance, wanting to offer comfort but not knowing where to start, could only silently avert their gaze, afraid of inviting bad luck.
Watching Zhao Hongyuan's collapse, Ye Chuan leisurely spoke up: "Why not gather some more? Maybe it'll succeed next time."
"Think about it carefully. Isn't failure something that runs through life?"
Zhao Hongyuan choked on his words at this, jerking his head up to look at Ye Chuan, a flicker of struggle in his eyes—That's right, what if it really succeeded?
But the thought of his empty wallet instantly replaced that bit of struggle with despair.
He hung his head, waving a hand weakly. "No more, no more... If I try again, I'd have to mortgage all of Xuancheng City... I can't gamble away the entire city for one magical treasure..."
He lay on the ground, like a deflated ball, without even the strength to stand up, his heart filled with nothing but endless vexation and regret.
A long time passed before Zhao Hongyuan finally got up, dispirited and broken-hearted, and left the shop, leaving behind only a heartbroken silhouette, completely devoid of the high spirits he had when he entered.
"He seems really sad," Hu Li remarked, seeing this scene, though she had witnessed it several times before. She always felt those people were rather pitiful.
"What gambler loses every day?" Ye Chuan said. "What gambler laughs every day?"
"Having tasted success, he'll still come back." Glancing at the ninety million spirit stones he had just earned, Ye Chuan shook his head.
Faster than robbery.
Even banditry didn't bring in money this fast.
"If I take these to the real world, won't I be the biggest spirit stone wholesaler?" Ye Chuan stroked his chin.
"Then enhancing to +14 would be a piece of cake."
"Going for +15 isn't out of the question either."
Well, that's about enough.
"Hu Li, close up. We're done with business for today." Ye Chuan said. After all, the big fish had been caught; there was no rush to earn from the remaining small fry.
"Okay, boss!" Hu Li immediately got up to close the door.
] This is a dark fantasy-themed dating simulation game. The main gameplay involves containing various monster girls and investigating the truth of a world shrouded in mist alongside your companions. However, due to his love for the dark and bizarre atmosphere, Luo Wei ended up turning a dating game into a detective mystery game. Women? Women only slow down his quickdraw! To Luo Wei, the female leads in the game are more like tools to perfectly clear levels and squeeze out rewards. For Luo Wei, flirting with every girl he meets and then discarding them is standard procedure. Worried about characters losing affection points? No need. With his maxed-out charm stat, Luo Wei is practically a "human incubus." A little psychological manipulation and those points come right back. It's a bit scummy, but the paper cutout heroines in the game won't actually come at him with real cleavers. However... Luo Wei has transmigrated. He's accidentally entered the second playthrough of this game. His past actions have caused all the girls to transform into terrifying yanderes. Due to the game's setting, most of the heroines he once contained are "troubled girls." Obsessive, twisted, mentally unstable, all aggressive yanderes... The type who will kill you if they can't have you... Luo Wei wants to cry but has no tears left. "I really just want to survive..." In short, this is a story of battling wits and engaging in a love-hate relationship with yanderes.
u Chenyuan transmigrated into a female-oriented novel about a real and fake heiress, becoming the CEO elder brother of both. Unfortunately, the entire Lu family—including himself, the CEO—were mere cannon fodder in the story. Determined to save himself, Lu Chenyuan took action. The spoiled, attention-seeking fake heiress? Thrown into the harsh realities of the working class to learn humility. The love-struck real heiress? Pushed toward academic excellence, so lofty goals would blind her to trivial romances. As for the betrayed, vengeful arranged marriage wife… the plot hadn’t even begun yet. There was still time—if he couldn’t handle her, he could at least avoid her. "CEO Lu, are you avoiding me?" Mo Qingli fixed her gaze on Lu Chenyuan. For the first time, the shrewd and calculating Lu Chenyuan felt a flicker of unease.
+【Epic Battles!】 "Your Highness, they say Linxi Temple is miraculous. Won’t you make a wish?" "A wish? It should be making wishes to me." "That may be so, but since you’re already here..." "..." "Fine. Then grant this princess a consort to play with." "He must be obedient, devoted, and utterly infatuated with my body—so much so that he’d kneel and kiss my feet." "Your Highness, that’s not a consort. That’s a dog." "Then add clever, witty, heroic, ambitious yet pragmatic..." "Hmm, that’s enough for now. I’ll add more later." After tossing out these words half in jest, Princess Anle departed the temple—only to catch a fleeting glimpse of the Bodhisattva statue smiling at her. Meanwhile, Yang An, fresh out of university, was having a very bad day. Good news: He’d transmigrated into another world with a cheat granting tenfold combat power. Bad news: He’d immediately fallen into the clutches of a certain villainess. Good news: Said villainess possessed peerless beauty and royal status. Bad news: She was absolutely monstrous!!! In the frozen wilderness, Yang An knelt beneath Qin Guo’er’s feet, drenched in sweat despite the cold. Desperately clutching her porcelain-perfect foot—the very one poised to crush his throat—he could only think: How do I survive this?! Need answers NOW!
reezy rom-com) Good news: Jiang Liu is quite the ladies' man. Bad news: He’s lost his memory. Lying in a hospital bed, Jiang Liu listens to a parade of goddesses spouting "absurd claims," feeling like the world is one giant game of Werewolf. "Jiang Liu, I’m your first love." "Jiang Liu, you’re my boyfriend—she’s your ex." "Jiang Liu, we’re close friends who’ve shared a bed, remember?" "Jiang Liu, I want to have your baby." The now-lucid Jiang Liu is convinced this must be some elaborate scam... until someone drops the bombshell: "The day before you lost your memory, you confessed your feelings—and got into a relationship." Jiang Liu is utterly baffled. So... who the hell is his actual girlfriend?! ... Before recovering his memories, Jiang Liu must navigate this minefield of lies and sincerity, fighting to protect himself from these women’s schemes. But things spiral even further out of control as more people show up at his doorstep—each with increasingly unhinged antics. On the bright side, the memories he lost due to overwhelming trauma seem to be resurfacing. Great news, right? So why are they all panicking now?
