"My first opponent is Ning Que, followed by Jiang Yu, and the third might be that ice block..."
Li Mo stood on the arena, silently calculating his odds.
To enter Tianren City, he needed to win all three matches—or at most lose one. Two losses would practically seal his fate.
Right now, he couldn’t use his hammer treasure.
So he absolutely had to secure the first two victories.
Across from him, Ning Que had finished meditating and stepped onto the platform. A jade flute hung at his waist, though the legendary weapon, the Clear Sea Remnant Tune Qin, was nowhere in sight.
Before the match even began, Ning Que suddenly raised a hand.
"Hold on!"
"What is it?"
Li Mo, poised to strike, was caught off guard.
Ning Que eyed him warily. "Li Mo, I believe you’re a man of honor. So, how about a gentleman’s agreement?"
"Go on."
Li Mo, ever the chivalrous warrior, straightened with solemn dignity.
"Since we’re both gentlemen, our duel should be fair and aboveboard. First rule: no foul language."
After careful observation, Ning Que had pinpointed one of the Divine Hammer Tyrant’s deadliest techniques.
The Art of Verbal Assault!
As a refined flutist and qin player, he had no talent for comebacks—and he suspected Li Mo would out-talk him anyway.
"You misunderstand me, I would never—"
"Master Zang’ai said he learned it from you."
"...Fine. What else?"
"No underhanded tricks either. No poison, no 'monkey steals the peach,' no throwing lime powder, no ambushes from behind..."
"I genuinely don’t do those—"
"Really? I thought Huang Donglai picked it up from you too."
Ning Que’s eyes narrowed with suspicion.
"Him? That’s just... natural talent."
Li Mo sighed and turned away.
"Hehe~"
Murong Xiao rubbed his bald head and grinned, his eyes sparkling with wisdom.
"Snicker..." Huang Donglai’s smile was far more sinister, and he flashed a thumbs-up toward the stage.
Li Mo: "..."
That wasn’t a compliment, idiots!
What’s so funny?!
But soon, Li Mo understood Huang Donglai’s amusement.
Because as Ning Que spoke, his lips and hands suddenly began swelling, turning red and puffy.
"Though I admit you’re handsome—almost as dashing as me—but... mmph... wha’s happenin’? Why’s my tongue so thick?"
...
Below the stage, Murong Xiao blinked and pointed. "Brother Donglai, don’t his lips look like sausages now? And his hands—like pork trotters..."
"Behold, my latest breakthrough!"
Huang Donglai clasped his hands behind his back, radiating serenity.
To ensure Li Mo’s victory, he’d spared no expense, using rare and precious ingredients he’d once only dreamed of affording.
"But the tournament bans lethal poisons, right?"
"Deadly toxins are forbidden, indeed. But this isn’t poison. It’s not even toxic."
Huang Donglai produced a small vial.
"Meet the 'Face-Altering Powder.' Applied areas swell from trapped blood and impurities, but it clears internal injuries. After an hour, everything returns to normal."
"So, it’s just a healing salve... with side effects!"
Murong Xiao leaned back slightly.
Then he noticed Huang Donglai’s own body swelling too—his face now resembled a bear that had raided a beehive.
Wait... had Huang Donglai coated himself in the powder and let Ning Que hit him?
No, the lips... ah, the flute!
Damn. This guy’s ruthless...
"Bastard!"
"So I was already poisoned!"
Ning Que gnashed his teeth, furious, and yanked the jade flute from his waist.
"Humiliating me like this? Don’t expect mercy now!"
"I swear, it wasn’t me!"
Li Mo pleaded for reason.
The entire city was watching. He’d finally gotten a chance to play the elegant swordsman, engaging in a noble duel between gentlemen.
Now this? How was he supposed to explain this mess?
But Ning Que was beyond reasoning. He raised the flute to his swollen lips and blew—
"Pffft—"
Li Mo: "..."
The crowd: "..."
Xiao Qin, who had just returned, looked around in confusion. "Who let out such a loud fart?"
After a stunned silence, stifled laughter rippled through the audience. Ning Que’s sausage lips were nearly as thick as the flute itself, and his pork-trotter fingers couldn’t cover the holes properly.
Pitiful? Yes. But that fart-like noise? Impossible to take seriously.
"I know you’re upset, but maybe I can help neutralize the—"
"Shuddup! Don’ wan’ yer help!"
Ning Que snapped. He hurled the flute to the ground, then clasped his hands and pulled them apart.
Whoosh—
An ethereal qin materialized before him, its body woven from flowing water, its strings rippling like waves, radiant with spiritual energy.
A single pluck—
Ding.
The note resonated, and the air itself seemed to liquefy. Currents swirled, whirlpools churned.
If not for Divine Monk Huaikong’s spatial barrier around the arena, the entire square would’ve been submerged in a tidal wave of sound.
Even if the hands playing it were still... pork trotters.
"Sigh..."
Li Mo exhaled. Why was it so hard to be a dashing swordsman?
But there was no time to lament. The divine weapon’s power demanded focus.
He steadied his mind. The Tianren Divine Sword gleamed in his grip, its edge shimmering like autumn ripples.
This strike fused his mastery of the Nine Swords of Dugu—simplified yet profound. Channeling the sword’s divine might, its power surged layer by layer.
Subtle yet direct. Sharp yet elusive.
The music, once intangible, took shape in Li Mo’s eyes—sketched lines on parchment.
His sword was the eraser.
The Nine Swords of Dugu could dismantle any weapon. Even musical ones.
The Tianren Divine Sword could cut the formless.
He weaved through the sonic tides, severing the interlocking whirlpools, disrupting the melody’s flow.
Until the blade halted just before Ning Que’s throat!
Had his core not achieved perfect circulation, even a fraction of the sword’s true power would’ve been beyond him.
Ning Que finally regained his composure—cold steel had a way of focusing the mind.
His tune shifted from offense to defense, ethereal and distant, as if echoing across miles.
With each layer of sound the Tianren Divine Sword pierced, its glow dimmed slightly.
This melody, played by a divine instrument, didn’t just feel remote—it created actual barriers of space.
The sword slowed.
But it still reached the Clear Sea Remnant Tune Qin.
Snap—
A string broke, vanishing into nothingness.
"Impressive swordsmanship. I underestimated you—thought your blade was mediocre."
Ning Que’s eyes flickered, then hardened.
"But if this is all you’ve got, forget Jiang Yu... you can’t even defeat me."
He, too, had mastered divine techniques.
And though the Clear Sea Remnant Tune Qin ranked below the Tianren Divine Sword on the divine weapon charts...
A weapon’s worth depended on its wielder.
or! A blessing for those who struggle with love, a guidebook for dating novices. Quickly match with your dream goddess! Complete walkthroughs earn rewards, and perfect walkthroughs unlock limited achievements!】 Shen Yi, an ordinary office worker, accidentally downloads a mini-game called Dating Simulator. The mini-game is simple: randomly search for dating targets, simulate dates, and receive rewards upon successful confession. Rewards include but are not limited to money, attributes, and skills. The higher the evaluation, the better the rewards, with perfect ratings unlocking mysterious achievements. Shen Yi plans to use this mysterious mini-game to continuously pursue targets and improve himself, making his life better and better. ...... However, after several successful walkthroughs, Shen Yi suddenly notices something strange - the targets he previously simulated dating seem to be searching for him in real life?
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.
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..."
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)
