Island.
An island in the sea.
Dark blue waves surged all around, crashing against the reefs and splashing water several meters high, accompanied by an endless, deafening roar.
There was little vegetation on the island, only a few clumps of withered, yellowing weeds. Looking toward the center of the island, a towering structure stood majestically, appearing even more shocking than the pictures on the news.
It was pitch-black all over, covered with dark golden patterns that extended from the bottom all the way to the top. There was not the slightest trace of splicing; it seemed as if it had been formed naturally.
The tower was exceptionally high, piercing straight into the clouds. Looking up, one would have to crane their neck until it ached just to see the part near the top.
The higher it went, the more transparent the tower became, gradually turning illusory as if covered by a thin mist. At the very end, it almost blended into the sky, making it impossible to see what the top actually looked like, as if it connected to another unknown world.
Previously, various countries had sent drones up to investigate, but the top was nothing but emptiness. Looking from afar, or even up close, one could only see shadows.
Even launching attacks left no impact whatsoever.
At the base of the tower was a massive arched stone door, easily a hundred meters tall, from which a soft blue halo continuously poured out.
The open space around the stone door was packed with super martial artists from various countries. They were densely packed, stretching as far as the eye could see, and as noisy as a wet market.
"Do you guys think that team from Sakura Country really made it to the third floor yesterday?"
"Who knows. I think they were just bragging. With those few weakling super martial artists from Sakura Country, you might as well believe they have Ultraman at home."
"Hey, did you guys see that top-tier team from the United States? I heard they brought heavy weapons and plan to force their way through the checkpoints."
"Heavy weapons are useless. Thermal weapons do absolutely no damage to those monsters."
"Tell me about it. Yesterday I saw a super martial artist from the Bear Country whose physical strength was already at the peak of level thirty. In the end, he got entangled by some monster vine and turned into a dried corpse in a matter of minutes."
Super martial artists from various countries gathered in small groups of three or five. Some were chatting and gathering intelligence, some were checking their weapons and equipment, and others were forming teams.
Boom!
Just then, a slight fluctuation of air currents suddenly came from the sky. The originally noisy crowd gradually quieted down, and everyone's eyes invariably turned upward.
Two figures were seen slowly descending from the clouds, hovering out of thin air in mid-flight, slowly approaching the direction of the tall tower.
It was Ye Chuan and Lan Xiaoke.
Ye Chuan stepped through the void as steadily as if walking on flat ground, his expression remaining placid.
Beside him, Lan Xiaoke clung tightly to Ye Chuan's arm, looking incredibly dizzy.
"Holy crap! They can actually fly?!"
"No way! Aren't flying super martial artists extremely rare? Only those who have awakened a special flight-type ability and reached a level above thirty can manage to fly out of thin air!"
"That guy doesn't look very old, yet he can fly out of thin air. How high must his level be? It has to be at least level thirty, right?"
The surrounding foreign super martial artists instantly erupted in an uproar. One by one, they pulled out their phones to take pictures and record videos, their eyes full of disbelief and wariness.
Ye Chuan paid absolutely no attention to the surrounding gazes. He slowly descended, his feet landing firmly on the reef.
As soon as they landed, Lan Xiaoke immediately let go of his arm, squatted on the ground, rested her hands on her knees, and dry-heaved a few times.
"Ye Chuan... you flew too fast... boohoo... I'm dying of dizziness..."
Ye Chuan looked down at her and said expressionlessly, "You have the strength of the Golden Core realm anyway. Is it really necessary to act like this over such a short distance?"
"How is it not necessary!" Lan Xiaoke pouted. "You flew way too fast. If I had known, I would have just taken a plane here..."
Ye Chuan ignored her complaints and raised his hand to release his spiritual sense.
An invisible power instantly spread out, covering the entire island. Everything on the island was clearly presented in his mind.
The super martial artists around the tall tower and the various temporary camps were all seen clearly.
After sweeping his spiritual sense around, Ye Chuan quickly locked onto the location of the Alliance's temporary camp and jutted his chin toward Lan Xiaoke.
"Let's go. We'll head over to the Alliance camp first."
Although Lan Xiaoke was still dizzy, she didn't dare to argue. She could only slowly stand up and follow behind Ye Chuan, swaying with every step.
"Ye Chuan, carry me."
"How can you be so weak." Ye Chuan ultimately picked Lan Xiaoke up with one hand, holding her just like he was carrying a pillow.
"Ugh." Lan Xiaoke rested her chin on Ye Chuan's shoulder, looking as if she were about to pass out.
Originally, Ye Chuan had planned to bring Ye Yue along too, but unexpectedly, Ye Yue stated that she was just an ordinary girl and didn't want to get involved in all this fighting and killing.
Ye Chuan didn't make things difficult for her, so he brought Lan Xiaoke out instead.
As the two walked toward the camp, the super martial artists along the way instinctively cleared a path for them. No one dared to easily step forward and provoke them.
After all, powerhouses who could fly out of thin air were simply not people they could afford to offend.
It didn't take long before they saw a temporary camp built from alloy plates, surrounded by tall wire fencing.
Warning devices were tangled in the wire mesh, and several Alliance super martial artists stood guard at the camp entrance, vigilantly observing their surroundings.
A flag of the Super Martial Artist Alliance hung at the camp entrance, flapping loudly in the sea breeze.
Ye Chuan led Lan Xiaoke to the camp entrance. The super martial artists on guard immediately grew alert. Just as they were about to speak and inquire, they saw a middle-aged man quickly walk out from inside the camp.
The middle-aged man wore a black Alliance uniform. He had a tall, straight posture and a resolute face. Though there was a hint of fatigue on his face, he still looked full of energy.
With sharp eyes, he walked up to Ye Chuan, looked him up and down first, then extended his hand with a gentle smile on his face.
"Hello there, brother. My name is Mo Mo, and I am the person in charge of the Super Martial Artist Alliance's temporary camp on this island."
Ye Chuan raised his hand and shook hands with him lightly. "I'm Ye Chuan, and this is my partner, Lan Xiaoke."
He almost introduced her as his Pokemon, Lan Xiaoke. After all, Lan Xiaoke was always talking about pets, and Ye Chuan was practically brainwashed by it.
Mo Mo asked with a smile, "Brother Ye Chuan, looking at you, you should be a super martial artist too, right? I wonder if you are a member of our Alliance?"
"Yes, I belong to the Jianghai Alliance branch." Ye Chuan nodded. "I came here to challenge that tall tower."
Hearing this, the surprise in Mo Mo's eyes grew even stronger, and he quickly said, "So you're from the Jianghai branch. But Brother Ye Chuan, the monsters inside that tall tower are truly too strong. Do you want to find some teammates in the camp?"

uld barely embark on the path to immortality. Just as he was on the verge of death, his golden finger awakened. No matter whether it was poison, drained blood and vital energy, diminished lifespan, or any other physical debuff caused by paying a price—once midnight passed, everything would be refreshed. From then on, whenever someone asked what kind of person Chu Ran was, the answer was simple: Forbidden arts that other cultivators dared not learn? Chu Ran would learn them. Prices that even demonic cultivators dared not pay? Chu Ran would pay them. Lifespan that even righteous cultivators dared not burn? Chu Ran would burn it. All the blood essence in his body? Take it. Want both his hands and feet? He would cut them off and send them to you. You say he’s finished? He wasn’t built to sit idle. You think he’s gone mad? No—he was simply waiting for midnight. From that day onward, Chu Ran would respect neither Heaven nor Earth, bow to neither gods nor ghosts. He had only one wish: For midnight to arrive a little sooner.

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.”

s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."

transmigrates into the role of a villainous rich second-generation kid in an urban fantasy novel, and gets bound to a god-tier choice system. Right at the start, he catches the female lead stealing exam papers! This triggers the villain's choice options! [Choice 1: Pretend you didn't see anything] [Choice 2: Loudly call her out, drawing everyone's attention] [Choice 3: ...] And thus, a twisted villain is born. To avoid getting killed by the protagonist, he has no choice but to take down all the protagonists first. Jiang Che: Nobody understands being twisted better than me!