Night fell, dark and windy, with silence all around.
In the firewood shed, a cricket chirped incessantly from somewhere, its calls rising and falling in sync with a snoring sound, as if exchanging signals.
Splash—
A basin of water splashed onto his face. Xu Yi jolted awake with a start, opening his eyes to see three pairs of eyes staring down at him, blocking the light of the candle.
"Boss?"
Xu Yi shivered under their gazes and couldn’t help but ask:
"Are we... running a murder inn here?"
The three stood opposite him.
The woman as cold and ethereal as an immortal showed no expression, but the scrutiny in her eyes pierced straight to the depths of one’s soul, making it impossible to meet her gaze.
Another woman in palace attire twirled a trophy in her hand—a boning knife looted from a clumsy assassin who had botched his dive.
Only the boss seemed normal, still wearing his usual warm smile.
But realizing he was trussed up like a pig, Xu Yi suddenly felt that smile shift from "kind" to "deadly kind."
"He’s awake," Ying Bing said impassively.
"Awake, but not fully," Li Mo mused, narrowing his eyes.
"Hurry up and get it over with. It’s nighttime," Shang Wu urged impatiently.
Xu Yi: "!"
Get it over with?
Imagining the worst, his hair stood on end:
"Boss, don’t turn me into human meat buns! I can join you! I can run a murder inn too!"
"What nonsense are you spouting?" Li Mo didn’t follow.
A wisp of serene light emerged behind him, bathing Xu Yi in its glow.
After much experimentation, Li Mo had discovered that his "Intent Soul" could not only slightly alter the flow of time but also soothe the mind, bringing one back to their true self.
Hmm...
Xu Yi’s head was wrapped like a mummy, making his expression unreadable, but his eyes betrayed a seamless shift into the persona of the "Money-Hungry King of Hell."
"I was indeed planning to send a message to the Drizzle Tower that day, but not for..."
"No need to explain."
"...Then just do it."
Xu Yi’s gaze dimmed. A mere assassin from the Drizzle Tower couldn’t possibly expect trust from others...
Swipe—
A blade flashed toward him.
He closed his eyes, but after a long moment, the expected pain never came.
"I believe you now."
The ropes loosened, and Xu Yi stood frozen, his stone-carved face flickering with emotion.
He wasn’t a curious man by nature, but he couldn’t help asking:
"Why?"
"I admire your greed," Li Mo said, the obscurity in his eyes fading.
"...Thank you."
Xu Yi wasn’t sure if he should be happy.
Li Mo added, "Also, when you killed both Zou Gong and Luo Wubing, it wasn’t because your Intent Soul malfunctioned, was it?"
Xu Yi’s eyelids twitched, and he lowered his head in silence.
"Enough. Everything will proceed as we agreed. You’ll take us to the Black Tower."
Li Mo tossed aside the ropes and clapped his hands.
Xu Yi was a man who’d taken the wrong career path.
He’d have made a decent bounty hunter otherwise.
Xu Yi didn’t dwell on the matter. Turning to gather his tools, he left the trio with his back as he changed into his night attire and armed himself.
"Just having the ‘Swallow of the Hall’ isn’t enough. We’ll need disguises too," he said.
"I’ve got some experience in that. I can help you."
The boss and his wife were too high-profile, too conspicuous.
"No need for that (deep voice)."
"Huh?"
The voice sounded off. Xu Yi turned around.
At some point, Li Mo had changed into a fitted outfit, his face now obscured by a dragon-headed mask, exuding an air of lethal mystery.
Ying Bing had also donned the attire she wore during the Endless Trials.
A limited-edition skin making a comeback, so to speak...
And it wasn’t just them.
The elders and senior disciples of the Qingyuan Sect had also changed outfits, standing silently outside the firewood shed.
A full roster of villains.
Li Mo, masked in the dragon helm, stood at the forefront.
The very picture of a dark overlord.
Xu Yi: "..."
Who’s the professional assassin here?
He suddenly felt severely underqualified.
......
Baili Street in the eastern district of Yunzhou City was part of the old quarter. Like most cities, Yunzhou had its own murky underbelly—a gray zone where factions tangled like roots and shadows thrived.
Where there was light, there was darkness. Suppression was futile.
"Latest volume of ‘The Tyrannical Empress Falls for Me,’ 200 taels of silver per copy."
"Two hundred taels? Is the cover made of gold or the pages?"
"Do you want it or not?"
"If it’s the genuine article, of course I do. But this one’s missing the official watermark."
A blade flashed, red meeting red.
Yet the onlookers remained unfazed, continuing their business without so much as a gasp.
The group stepped onto Baili Street.
Shang Wu’s eyes gleamed as she smiled.
"This place isn’t bad. I like it."
"Focus on the mission," Qian Bufan reminded her.
You like it?
Then this place is doomed.
They dispersed like water poured into the sea, scattering as planned.
Only Li Mo’s trio and Xu Yi proceeded to the Black Tower.
The deeper they ventured into the street, the more hardened and dangerous the people they encountered became.
At the very end stood a building larger than any tavern, its plaque reading "Wind Listening Pavilion."
Despite the late hour, the pavilion buzzed with activity, its doors never still.
"You’re sure no one’s allowed to fight inside the Wind Listening Pavilion?"
"Correct. That’s the rule set by the Tower Master."
"And multiple assassins can take on the same mission together?"
"Yes. Some jobs are too big for one person."
"Perfect."
Li Mo picked up another tidbit about the Drizzle Tower’s operations.
Turns out he hadn’t been a true member before, lacking knowledge of the finer details.
But it didn’t affect his plans.
They stepped inside.
For a moment, Li Mo felt like he’d walked into the Qingyuan Sect’s mission hall—only much larger, and instead of fellow disciples, the crowd was now composed of wary assassins navigating the shadows.
"Ten mystic crystals, 100,000 taels of gold, three bottles of sixth-grade elixirs?"
Li Mo read his own bounty notice.
Xu Yi took a deep breath. "Now you see why assassins are flocking after you..."
Li Mo nodded and sighed. "So assassins really are this poor, huh?"
Xu Yi: "..."
This bounty was equivalent to the wealth of an Inner Realm expert!
"You two also here for Li Mo’s bounty?"
The receptionist was a gaunt old man with a bluish birthmark on his face.
Li Mo didn’t answer, his eyes scanning the mission board.
"Even an Inner Realm expert failed today. That Li Mo must have strong protectors."
"So what if he does? Sooner or later, someone will break through."
"Tch. Nineteenth on the Hidden Dragon Ranking—such a big reputation."
"Remember the one ranked twelfth? Even he fell to the Drizzle Tower’s relentless pursuit."
"That time, the Holy Maiden herself took action."
"Nothing excites me more than killing a genius—I’ll take that mission!"
"Who knows if he’ll go into hiding? If he vanishes, I’ll have to spend extra to track him down..."
More assassins were eager to step forward, ready to claim the bounty.
Clearly, this wasn’t a solo mission.
Li Mo just wanted to settle this quickly. Suddenly, he raised both hands, dispelling the Veil of Formless Radiance.
"Eyes on me, everyone!"
"I am Li Mo!"
] 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.
is also known as: "Sword Flying Under the Desk: My School Life" "Balancing Cultivation and STEM Homework" "The System That Taught Me to Take College Entrance Exams While Surviving Heavenly Tribulations" Good news: I got reincarnated. Even better news: I got reincarnated with a system. So, should I chase wealth? Or pursue immortality? Maybe become a superhero for the motherland? But with regrets weighing on this second life, I’d rather fix what I missed before. System: "Host, the cultivation world is full of dangers. You must form your Golden Core immediately!" Lin Mo glanced at the truck he’d just stopped with one hand. "At my level, it’s not like I’ll piss off ‘Little Boy’ or ‘Fat Man,’ right? Whatever—I still have two math problems left. Go play by yourself." System: "How can you still focus on homework at a time like this?! Host! Don’t throw your life away!" Lin Mo stayed silent, burying himself deeper into his workbook.
ither go to a cultivation world where a single sword strike can defeat ten thousand enemies. Or they travel back to historical dynasties to alter history and wield imperial power. At the very least, they'd go back a few decades to get rich using their future knowledge and build a harem. Who the hell would transmigrate here!
. As long as he maintains the villain image and follows the plot to the grand finale, he can obtain generous rewards and return to the real world. So Gu Chen'an entered the role and began to act as a scumbag villain, but who would have expected that the female leads could hear his inner thoughts. Miss Su from the Su family was shocked: "I originally thought Gu Chen'an was a scumbag, but I didn't expect he turned out to be a gentleman! What? You said I have to call off the engagement? I definitely won't, I'll piss you off!" Bai Yuan Tian was dumbfounded: "Young Master Gu is usually unreasonable and a complete brat, but he actually calls me little sweetie in his heart? What, Young Master Gu even said he likes me?" As the female leads' images collapsed more and more, the plot also collapsed with it. Gu Chen'an looked at all this chaos. "Ladies, don't aggro me, if you keep this up the male lead really will stab me, I still need to survive to the grand finale!"
