In the Li Manor, within the room of a certain "Divine Hammer Little Tyrant," Li Mo sat on his bed, gazing at an opened chest as he celebrated his birthday.
After awakening from the haze of infancy, those long-sealed memories surged forth, each one vivid as if reliving yesterday.
Exactly seventeen of them—one for every year.
"Ice Block..."
Li Mo stared blankly upward.
The fireworks of a snowy night had once illuminated her crimson dress, the slightly crooked white cat-eared hat, the slender legs wrapped in white silk socks, and the snowflakes clinging to her raven hair tied up with a jade hairpin.
If Christmas had Santa Claus, then the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths had their own New Year Goddess.
And she had suddenly appeared by his side, delivering a birthday surprise.
That was exactly how Little Li felt right now.
"I found this while cleaning the room. It seems... these belong to you."
Ying Bing lowered her eyes, sitting beside him.
"..."
Li Mo glanced at the pacifier inside the chest.
Even if he had been a little troublemaker in his infancy, there was no way he could have gone out to buy this thing right after birth.
"Then it must have been a gift from my New Year Fairy."
Li Mo set the pacifier aside and picked up a jade pendant carved with white bamboo—a symbol of a boy growing into a gentleman, now worthy of wearing fine jade.
Back when he had gone shopping with Ice Block, he had admired its craftsmanship, but despite haggling for half the day and even deploying the "walk away if you won’t sell" tactic, he had failed to secure it.
Yet Ice Block had gone back and bought it for him.
"As long as you like it..."
Watching him happily fasten the jade pendant, Ying Bing quietly removed her shoes and settled onto the bed, her silk-socked feet tucked delicately to the side.
While brewing tea, she stole glances at him from the corner of her eye.
Suddenly, the tea in the cup rippled slightly. Her eyes flickered, and she pursed her lips, withdrawing her foot.
"This wooden sword is so cool. If I’d had one as a kid, all the other children would’ve been green with envy."
Li Mo held the tiny wooden sword in his left hand, his expression solemn.
Yes, ever since he was little, Gentleman Li had dreamed of being a swordsman!
"Do they all suit your tastes?"
Ying Bing feigned nonchalance as she gazed at the fireworks outside, her serene eyes shimmering under their glow.
Li Mo hugged the chest and answered earnestly, "Yes, but each one fits a different age of my heart."
"Then what suits your heart the most now?"
"Of course, it’s the jade..."
Li Mo had been torn between the pendant and the wooden sword.
But his eyes seemed to have a mind of their own, drifting toward the pristine white silk socks and the slender, delicate feet tucked beside him.
"..."
Ice Block’s complexion had always been fair, but now it suddenly contrasted starkly with her white cat-eared hat, the difference in hue becoming glaringly obvious.
As everyone knew—
Jade symbolized purity.
Bamboo stood for unyielding integrity.
When combined, "jade bamboo" represented the unblemished honor of a noble gentleman—something righteous men had always cherished.
And as everyone also knew, Little Li was the epitome of a righteous gentleman.
Gentlemen love jade bamboo √
Li Mo is a righteous gentleman √
Therefore, Li Mo was merely appreciating the refined elegance befitting a gentleman. What was wrong with that?
Besides, Ice Block had taken off her shoes herself, her legs crossed and displayed before him, her jade-like skin bathed in the fiery glow of the fireworks.
Perhaps she didn’t realize—
The budding grace of an orchid in a secluded valley could put even the most celebrated flowers to shame.
In this moment, Li Mo felt that even if he were a peerless Sword Immortal or the reigning Sword God, his grip on the wooden sword would tremble slightly.
And he was only a hair’s breadth away from becoming the "Cloud-Crossing Sword Hero" anyway.
Not to mention, no other swordsman was as skilled in foot massage as he was...
"Ice Block, today’s my birthday. The sixteen gifts you gave me are all the best, but the last one..."
"But... I haven’t washed today."
"How could you doubt yourself? The Frost Fairy is spotless—bathing is just a hobby for you."
"..."
"Fine. I have a bathtub in my room..."
Gentleman Li stroked his chin as if contemplating a matter of grave importance.
The Frost Fairy gave him a quiet look, her pearly teeth biting her lip as she silently shifted her legs toward him.
If she let him continue, the next thing she knew, she’d be bathing in his room.
"Ice Block, this is the happiest birthday I’ve ever had."
"Just this once..."
Truth be told, Ice Block was used to him massaging her feet. But today, Little Li, emboldened by his birthday, had grown a bit too audacious.
He didn’t even spare her calves.
Ying Bing reached into her oversized doll-shaped purse for her coin pouch, intending to count her money to distract herself.
Only to realize—
The pouch was empty.
She had nearly forgotten—in her rush to buy gifts today, she hadn’t haggled at all, paying whatever price was asked.
Unable to distract herself with counting coins, her thoughts burst like the fireworks outside, one after another, rippling across the surface of her heart.
Little Li had been a troublemaker since infancy.
It seemed that growing up hadn’t made him any better.
Did men only grow more wicked with age?
What about next year...?
An hour later, the fireworks outside gradually faded, leaving only a haze of smoke over the night sky. The New Year’s Eve festivities had ended, and so had Li Mo’s birthday.
"Let’s start dual cultivation. I’m close to breaking through."
The seventeen-year-old Li Mo, now slightly more mischievous, decided it was time to get down to business.
After all, he had long mastered the secrets of dual cultivation.
"I’m going back to my room."
Ying Bing gently withdrew her foot, hugging her knees as she eyed him warily.
"No training today?"
"But when I arrived, I ran into your parents outside your door."
Ying Bing stated coolly.
Li Mo: "..."
Given his past misdeeds, his father would undoubtedly make a detour past his room during his nightly trips to the outhouse—keeping a particularly close watch.
Besides, tomorrow was the first day of the new year, and he had to accompany his parents to the Ying family’s ancestral home to pay respects.
After that, they were headed to Rotten Ke Mountain.
"Alright then."
"I’m leaving."
Ying Bing slipped her boots back on and stood to leave.
With her usual icy demeanor, she reached the door—only to trip over her own feet. Whether it was from sitting too long or her legs going numb, no one could say...
The next morning, before relatives and friends arrived, Li Dalong and his wife rose early, gathering the prepared offerings and rousing Li Mo from bed.
After New Year’s Eve, the festive atmosphere in Qinghe County only grew stronger. Perhaps tomorrow would be even livelier.
The front yard of the Li Manor was strewn with firecracker remnants and snow. Once everyone was ready, Li Dalong handed Li Mo some incense sticks.
"In the past, we never took you to pay respects because you were too young. But now you’re a man. From now on, you’ll join us in these rituals. No matter how high you soar in the future, don’t forget to come to the Ying family’s ancestral home and light incense during the New Year."
His father patted his shoulder before walking ahead.
Holding the incense, Li Mo turned to Ying Bing beside him:
"Ice Block, are you coming too?"
"Alright."
Ying Bing gazed toward the old house.
It was no longer the shadow of her childhood.
Now, she felt mostly puzzlement and doubt.
Li Mo and Ice Block shared the same thought—
Why had that black Nian beast targeted the Ying family?
What does this have to do with that block of ice?
A single trip to the old family estate won't be enough to answer these questions—perhaps a journey to Mount Ranke is also necessary to uncover the truth.
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
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."
] [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!"
ts me of treason?" "Correct. The host must return to the capital and gradually build up influence." "Wait—I have half a million soldiers, and you want me to go back to the capital to 'build influence'?" "Host, you are currently the Northern Garrison General, loyal to the Great Xia Dynasty." "Of course I am loyal to Great Xia! Absolutely loyal!" "But you keep referring to yourself as 'We'..." "Never mind the details! Summon all the regional commanders and military officers! We suspect treacherous officials are manipulating the court! They shall march with Us to the capital and purge the corrupt!" "......"
