The daylight was just right.
Under the banyan tree at the Autumn Water Pavilion, the crisp clattering sounds of the ruby-red mahjong tiles echoed.
"How much are we playing for?"
"Huh? Are we betting money? The sect rules forbid gambling—last time, Master, you got caught."
Li Mo straightened his expression. As everyone knew, he was a man of virtue, one who stood firmly against gambling and all vices.
Shang Wu curled her lips slightly. "Who comes to the Autumn Water Pavilion for no reason? It's rare to play mahjong with my precious disciple. What's the fun without a little silver? Hehehe..."
"......"
Did the beautiful master's laughter just take a sinister turn?
Qin Yuzhi wore the same wicked smirk as Shang Wu while teaching Ying Bing the rules. Li Mo only knew the basics of mahjong, so he listened along.
This seemed similar to the Sichuan mahjong from his past life.
When one player won, the other three could keep playing until the remaining three also won or the tiles ran out.
So, the first to win wasn’t necessarily the biggest earner.
Ying Bing nodded softly after listening. "I’ve never played before. I’m not very familiar."
"Same here." Li Mo was still trying to wrap his head around the rules, looking slightly dazed.
"No worries. You already know the rules. Mahjong is all about luck, and beginners always have good luck."
"Exactly. Mahjong isn’t something so rigid."
Qin Yuzhi and Shang Wu exchanged glances, both spotting the sly grins in each other’s eyes.
Mahjong wasn’t something so simple.
Drain him dry!
Today, they absolutely had to teach the deep-pocketed Little Li a lesson!
"I think... I won?"
Ying Bing hesitantly pushed her tiles forward, her cool eyes flickering with uncertainty.
Heavenly Win. Pure Suit.
Qin Yuzhi: "!"
A fluke! This had to be a fluke!
Her godly skills hadn’t even had a chance to shine yet!
"?"
Shang Wu stared suspiciously at the ice block—how could someone have even better luck than her at the mahjong table?
Impossible! Absolutely impossible!
"Tsk..."
Li Mo hadn’t won this round and was the biggest contributor to the pot.
Though Shang Wu and Qin Yuzhi had won, their hands weren’t big, so all three had to pay up.
The ice block took it all.
"Pay up, pay up."
Li Mo took out his silver. Despite losing, he was still smiling.
"Just luck." Qin Yuzhi refused to believe it.
Shang Wu reluctantly fished out silver from her purse, her face blank. "Again."
And so—
Five rounds later, the atmosphere grew tense. Every game, the ice block won first, Shang Wu second, Qin Yuzhi third, and Li Mo dead last.
"Tch... This is weird."
Li Mo drew another hand—a chaotic mess of colors, like a home wrecked by a husky.
He clearly wasn’t cut out for winning money at mahjong...
This round, Shang Wu and Qin Yuzhi both looked pleased, clearly starting with good hands. They exchanged glances, forming an unspoken alliance.
The ice block remained expressionless, her gaze cool and detached.
"Hmph."
Qin Yuzhi swiftly arranged her ruby-red tiles. "I’m not here to prove how strong I am. I’m here to take back what’s mine!"
It was obvious she was aiming for a big win.
Shang Wu smirked. "Little Bing, with this hand, you think you can beat me? You think you can take down the Qingyuan Sect’s Mahjong Goddess? If you do, I’ll—"
"Kong!" Little Li finally got a kong, his face lighting up.
A kong meant immediate payment.
Then, a pale, slender hand reached over and took the One Bamboo tile before gently pushing her own tiles forward.
"Seven Pairs of Dragons."
Crack!
The Qingyuan Sect’s Mahjong Goddess and the Demon Summoning Sect’s Mahjong Tyrant were thunderstruck, slumping back in their chairs, faces ashen.
"Do you even know how to play?! She had Seven Pairs of Dragons, and you konged?!" Qin Yuzhi clenched her fists.
"I told you I don’t know how," Li Mo said blankly.
"Little Bing, you said you didn’t know mahjong!"
Shang Wu gritted her teeth as she tossed out her last silver piece.
"I really didn’t." Ying Bing tilted her head slightly.
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
"I just learned. It’s simpler than divine arts or Go, so I picked it up quickly."
"......"
Shang Wu and Qin Yuzhi were speechless, unable to refute.
They turned to see Li Mo grinning like an idiot, his smile harder to suppress than an AK.
"What the hell are you smiling about? You didn’t win a single hand, kept feeding Little Bing winning tiles, lost the most, and you’re still laughing?!" Shang Wu snapped.
Ying Bing glanced at Li Mo and noticed he’d run out of silver.
So she reached over, scooped up all her winnings, and placed them in front of him.
"For you."
"!"
Li Mo froze. His AK-like smile slowly twisted into a minigun spewing blue flames.
"??"
Qin Yuzhi and Shang Wu exchanged glances, jolting upright like patients on their deathbeds.
Something was off. They’d been scammed!
Li Mo had lost the most, but Little Bing had won even more. Combined, they were still up—meaning all the losses came from the two of them.
Were these two running a couples’ scam?!
"No more, no more. I’m broke."
Shang Wu pushed the tiles away.
Li Mo glanced at the ice block. Today’s mahjong session was originally meant to prevent the resurgence of that... unpredictable entity, as Qin Yuzhi had suggested.
They hadn’t played long—who knew if it had worked?
"Master, you’re out of money, but I have some."
"Oh? You’re offering it to your master? How embarrassingly kind of you..." Shang Wu’s eyes sparkled as she sat back down.
"If it’s embarrassing, let’s do it another way."
Li Mo smiled shyly.
"Ever heard of mahjong loans?"
"?"
Before the game could restart, the Autumn Water Pavilion’s doors burst open.
Shang Wu looked over to see Sect Leader Shangguan Wencang, Elder Hanhe, and a few from the Hengyun Sword City standing there.
Shangguan Wencang froze at the sight of the mahjong table.
Elder Hanhe looked bewildered.
The Hengyun Sword City group, meanwhile, stared at the Hammer Tyrant sitting there unharmed, counting silver, as if they’d seen a ghost in broad daylight.
Elder Zeng glanced at the strand of hair in his hand, then back at Li Mo.
"Li Mo, are you... human or ghost?"
"Obviously not a ghost. Ghosts don’t play mahjong."
Touched yet amused, Li Mo chuckled before their confusion could deepen.
"Naturally, I’m a jiangshi. Hehehe..."
"Demon, taste my sword!!"
"Wait, I was joking!"
Luckily, Li Mo explained fast—otherwise, he’d have had to catch a blade bare-handed.
"What in the world happened?"
Elder Hanhe finally relaxed but was still puzzled.
Shangguan Wencang sighed in amusement. "Martial artists should remain composed. What kind of example is it to panic at the slightest thing?"
"Take your time, Little Mo."
Both Li Mo and Ying Bing had repelled the Great Shang remnants in the southern border, slain high-ranking members of the Demon Summoning Sect, and even took turns humiliating the Great Yu Crown Prince.
The sect leader had already done some soul-searching. For prodigies like these two, how could they grow without weathering storms?
As elders, one must remain composed and not be prone to overreacting.
Li Mo glanced at Qin Yuzhi and said:
"Esteemed seniors, I’ve brought the Summoning Demon Sect’s leader out with me. For now, she can be considered... my employee."
"?"
"She’s currently drafting her resume. So, our sect... is there a vacancy for a Grand Elder?"
"????"
.....
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
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)
] 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.
iaobai: "Councilor Dad, front me some funds. I want to hire ten thousand professional miners for a project!" [Five-Star Mission Issued: Capture the leader of the Blood Heaven Pirate Gang, who is on the run in the Radiant Star Sector. It is said the gang has over a hundred members. Proceed with caution.] Lu Xiaobai: "Councilor Dad, lend me the family's hundred-thousand-strong Lu Army!" [Seven-Star Mission Issued: Subdue a juvenile Void Dragon Beast.] Lu Xiaobai: "Councilor Dad, I'm taking your tamed Void Dragon Beast King out for a family reunion!" I said, System, don't you have any slightly more challenging missions? You're just not up to par! [Nine-Star Mission Issued: Become the Human Councilor.] Lu Xiaobai: "Dad, there's a small matter I'd like to discuss with you..."
