The moonlight was cool as water.
Shadows of trees swayed, rustling softly in the night breeze.
Li Mo turned at the sound, only to see a figure with hands clasped behind their back casting a long shadow on the pristine floor of the Buddhist hall.
She stood silently in the ancient temple under the cold moon, her eyes lowered, lending an ethereal air to the tranquil sanctuary—so much so that even the statue of the Bodhisattva nearby seemed to pale in comparison.
"The prayer pouch fell. I wanted to hang it back up."
Li Mo quickly tied a knot in the pouch, ensuring it wouldn’t come loose, then jumped down.
"What’s inside the pouch?"
"If I say it, won’t it lose its power?"
The Heavenly Serpent Li Mo, who had never been superstitious, landed on the ground and pondered for a moment before asking with utmost seriousness.
"......"
Ying Bing’s lips parted slightly as she gazed at the swaying pouch on the branch, as if trying to see through it.
She had meant to say how a mere tree could decide a person’s fate.
But then she remembered the Qingluan Clan woman’s repeated warnings before she left their territory—never let anyone know what was inside the pouch...
"Fine."
Ying Bing didn’t press further. Her figure rose with the wind, alighting gracefully on the treetop, where she also hung a pouch of her own.
Her movements were swift, and she soon returned to the ground.
There, she found the young man staring intently at the pouch, his eyes practically boring holes into it.
"The one you hung—"
"If I say it, it won’t work anymore."
Ying Bing spoke softly, her tone laced with amusement even without needing to see the curve of her lips.
"......Alright." Li Mo sat down.
"......" Ying Bing sat beside him.
The two sat together, gazing at the moon, just as they had on countless nights before.
Any passing demon would have been shocked out of their wits.
The Qingluan Divine Maiden and the peerless Heavenly Serpent—who were known to draw blood at the slightest provocation—were sitting together so naturally, admiring the moon?
"Ice Block, you’ve gotten even stronger."
Li Mo looked at the girl, the haze in his eyes clearing into clarity.
His Heavenly Fate Divine Eye told him so.
Ice Block’s progress in divine observation was even faster than his.
"Mn."
"What have you been doing in the Southern Border?"
And so,
Ying Bing began recounting her experiences since arriving in the Southern Border, starting with the time she scalped a Roc demon.
To summarize:
Observing divine intent. Slaying demons.
"That’s all you did?"
Li Mo clicked his tongue. Ice Block was as relentless as Princess Little Jiang—no surprise there.
Though at least Princess Little Jiang had a hobby of collecting junk.
"Mn..."
Ying Bing absentmindedly rubbed the big-headed doll in her hands.
Did spacing out count as doing something?
"By the way, what about you?"
She lifted her gaze, her moonlit eyes seeming to pierce straight through to his heart.
"Peerless Heavenly Serpent?"
"......"
Young Li suddenly felt a bit warm.
Strange—summer had already passed, hadn’t it?
"Well, you know how aquatic clans are... they’re pretty open about courtship."
"Mn."
"Back then, there was a selection among the aquatic clans. I figured I had to make an impression to earn a spot at the Hanging Temple."
"And then?"
"Some demon started spreading nonsense, saying I had True Dragon bloodline. The rumors snowballed, and soon, a bunch of aquatic women were sending me gifts."
Ying Bing’s delicate brows furrowed slightly.
She couldn’t quite describe the feeling.
But the image of Li Mo surrounded by female demons made her fingers itch for her sword...
"The demon tradition is weird—accepting a gift counts as consent."
"So I didn’t accept a single one."
The only gift Li Mo had accepted in person was the pearl from Zhen Bang—and even that, he’d paid for, including the unusually large one. The rest, he’d found ways to return.
He was about to continue when—
Crack—
"!"
A chill ran down Li Mo’s neck as he watched the big-headed doll’s head being twisted off by slender, jade-like fingers.
And then...
A jade feather whistle was pulled out from inside.
"The Qingluan Clan crafts instruments that mimic birdsong, tailored to their own voices."
The whistle lay in the girl’s palm, gleaming with a watery sheen.
"I’d planned to bring back some souvenirs from the Southern Border for you. I didn’t expect you’d come to the Hanging Temple. You—"
"I love it."
Li Mo’s expression was solemn, his eyes clear, his tone resolute.
"But you haven’t even heard its sound yet."
"No need. Just looking at it, I can tell it’s beautiful."
"......"
Young Li swiftly undid the red string on his wrist, threaded the jade whistle onto it, and tied it back on.
Ying Bing glanced away nonchalantly, her lips pressed together lightly.
"Oh, I got you something too. Made from pearl-white lotus silk. Took a lot of effort."
"What is it?"
"Stockings."
"?"
"Not sure if they’ll fit. You should try them on now."
Li Mo figured the avian clans of the Qingluan territory probably didn’t produce stockings.
When giving gifts, one should choose something practical yet hard to come by.
—Lu Xun.
Young Li had always been good at understanding the wisdom of his elders.
And not just understanding—he put it into practice!
What use was knowledge without action?
How else could one achieve unity of knowledge and action?
"You—"
"No need for words."
Under the shade of the tree, Li Mo reached out and removed the Qingluan Divine Maiden’s shoe, revealing a pair of delicate, jade-like feet.
Li Mo wore an expression of utmost righteousness: "See? I told you the Southern Border doesn’t sell good stockings. Must be uncomfortable going barefoot."
"I haven’t even—"
The small foot in his palm, warm as fine jade, curled slightly.
"They’re fragrant! So fragrant!"
Li Mo was convinced that if someone soaked these in water, people would drink it for years.
Who could deny their allure?
Without stockings, what if her feet got chafed? Who’d take responsibility?
What if the texture worsened? Who’d answer for that?
He gave them a gentle squeeze, confirming they were just as soft and fragrant as before, then sighed in relief and slipped the stockings on.
"Done."
"I know. I’m the one wearing them."
"Then your hand..." Ying Bing’s gaze was inscrutable.
"Occupational hazard."
Li Mo rubbed his nose.
Indeed, while pearl-white lotus silk felt nice, it still couldn’t compare to... well, certain things.
He handed Ice Block a few more pairs.
Of course, he hadn’t made just these.
But Li—a man of virtue—Mo felt some designs weren’t appropriate to bring out just yet.
"Boss Li! Boss Li! Where are you?"
Wu Meng’s grating voice tore through the night, searching for him for some reason.
"Probably about the divine jade contest. I’d better head back."
"Mn."
She watched the young man’s figure disappear into the darkness, her gaze lingering long after he’d gone.
Plop—
Suddenly, something landed in her palm.
Ying Bing looked down to find a prayer pouch—the very one Li Mo had just tied to the yinyuan tree. Somehow, it had fallen again.
It fell on its own.
If it fell, could she look inside?
She untied it gently. When she saw what was inside, her silver-white lashes, tinged by moonlight, trembled slightly.
Half a mooncake—red bean paste wrapped in icy skin.
Why half? Because aside from the imprint of "Ice Block," the other half had been bitten off, teeth marks still visible.
After a long silence,
she retrieved another pouch from her sleeve and opened it.
Inside was another half—this one, lotus seed paste.
Two halves.
Together, they made a whole.
He raised his hand just enough to block out the moon in the sky.
A perfect moment of reunion.
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
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."
ive and Ruthless] Before his transmigration, Ye Xuan was playing a game called "Severing Emotions to Attain the Dao." The game's core wasn't about leveling up by fighting monsters, but about conquering various "bad women" with wicked personalities and cold, fickle natures. There was only one method to conquer them: stay unwaveringly by their side, then die at a critical moment, driving them to madness after losing the protagonist. The higher their level of regret, the higher the player's score. To dominate the server, Ye Xuan conquered all the bad women. In the early stages, he showered them with boundless tenderness, only to choose to sacrifice himself for them later, making them weep bitterly and drown in regret. Among them were: Xia Lengyue, the unfaithful immortal wife who chased after powerful men and discarded her husband like trash. Ye Qingcheng, the Demonic Venerable of the Joyous Union Sect, who appeared pure and innocent but was, in reality, promiscuous. Wu Lingxiao, the Empress of the Great Xia Dynasty, who lusted after men and loved maintaining a harem. Bai Qiangu of the Endless Demonic Sect: a bloodthirsty mass murderer. However, when the protagonist transmigrated into the game world, he made a horrifying discovery. Eight hundred years had already passed. The bad women he had conquered had now each become deities and revered ancestors. Faced with the endless stream of toxic women coming for him, Ye Xuan could only rely on his god-tier acting skills to carve a path of survival through this world of treacherous women.
