"Master, truth be told, you’re a bit late. I’ve been back for a few days already."
"You... you ate it?!"
Shang Wu froze in place, staring at her precious disciple as he nodded with a melancholic expression, then clasped his hands behind his back and sighed softly at the sky.
The Qiushui Pavilion fell silent.
Neither spoke.
Today’s wind seemed unusually boisterous.
Seeing his beautiful master cover her mouth, her almond-shaped eyes trembling intensely, Li Mo didn’t feel particularly great about the situation.
Her gaze felt downright disrespectful.
He remembered when he was a child, bragging with other kids and blurting out, "My brother dares to eat poop!"—the other kid had looked at him the exact same way.
"Master, to be fair, if Ying Bing’s cooking wasn’t terrible, it would’ve been somewhat..."
"I get it, no need to say more. The fact that you’re back and alive is already a double blessing. Let’s toast to that—it’s all in the wine."
Shang Wu uncorked her small gourd and took a celebratory sip.
Then she casually handed it to Li Mo, patting his shoulder heavily:
"Well done."
"......"
How did things escalate to us sharing a drink?
With the crisis averted, Shang Wu happily reclined back into her rocking chair, almond eyes narrowing.
The sun was blazing today, and as she lay down, the light outlined a picturesque scene.
As the poem goes: "Viewed head-on, a mountain range; viewed sideways, a towering peak..."
Noticing Li Mo heading out, she turned her head and asked drowsily:
"Oh, by the way, my dear disciple, what’s for dinner tonight?"
Meaning: Since you’re going out anyway, I might as well place my order.
Li Mo couldn’t help but grin:
"Leftovers. As you know, the Nine Peaks Tournament is coming up, and I’ve been busy training."
"Hmm?"
"I didn’t finish last time. There’s still some Braised Intestines, spicy stir-fried pork..."
"!"
Seeing his master’s drowsiness vanish instantly, Li Mo suppressed a laugh and slipped away like greased lightning.
As his footsteps faded, Shang Wu glanced at the spot by the water vat where the vegetable basket usually sat—now empty—and muttered softly:
"Hmph, rebellious disciple..."
Meanwhile.
Outer Affairs Hall.
"Verification complete."
"Inner disciple Xiao Qin, successfully hunted down a Qi-Blood Realm peak criminal. Reward: 1,000 contribution points!"
The Outer Affairs Hall steward carefully examined the proof before smiling and nodding at the young man across from him.
For an inner disciple who had just entered the sect to kill a peak Qi-Blood Realm criminal in actual combat—this lad was clearly promising.
Many of the other disciples submitting tasks also cast curious glances his way.
Bounty missions offered rich rewards but came with high failure rates and significant danger.
Thus, few disciples took them on.
Most who did were seeking to temper themselves.
"1,000 contribution points..."
"May I ask, steward, how many contribution points are needed for rare treasures beneficial to the soul?"
Xiao Qin showed little joy on his face.
"Soul-nourishing treasures?"
The steward paused, then shook his head.
"I don’t even need to check for this. Nothing costs less than 30,000 contribution points."
"Those are items meant for the Observation Divine Realm. It’s too early for you to be concerning yourself with them. Don’t aim too high too soon."
"I’d advise you to exchange for some healing items first, lest you leave hidden injuries."
The steward had taken a liking to him and thus offered extra advice.
"My thanks!"
Xiao Qin cupped his hands in gratitude but couldn’t help sighing.
Just as he’d expected.
When he’d gone down the mountain for missions, he’d also inquired about similar items—but they were either unavailable or priced beyond imagination.
Using contribution points in the sect was indeed cheaper, yet still far beyond his means...
"Don’t fret, lad. This old man is just a bit weakened, not on the verge of dissipating yet."
The voice of Thousand Forms Martial Venerable sounded, though far feebler than before.
"It’s my fault for being careless."
Xiao Qin’s face darkened with guilt.
While capturing that criminal, he’d failed to uncover the man’s connections and ended up ambushed.
His master had expended much of his soul energy to save him.
"Everyone makes mistakes in their youth. For your first life-and-death battle, you did remarkably well."
"You’ve reached the peak of the Qi-Blood Realm, but alas, I lack the strength to refine the Tiger Tendon Qi-Condensing Pill for you now."
Though weak, Thousand Forms Martial Venerable’s tone carried pride.
With the Nine Peaks Tournament approaching,
Xiao Qin had hoped to break through to the Inner Breath Realm beforehand and secure a decent ranking.
But now, this setback...
"Senior Brother Xiao? You’re here too."
Just as he stepped outside, someone called out to him. Xiao Qin turned instinctively.
It was Li Mo, who had arrived unnoticed, smiling at him.
"Junior Brother Li, here to submit a mission too?"
"Mn. I also took a bounty."
Li Mo nodded, noticing Xiao Qin’s injuries—clearly fresh from battle.
"Three days apart, a whole new appraisal."
Xiao Qin couldn’t help but marvel.
Judging by Li Mo’s demeanor, he’d completed the mission with ease.
Bounty targets were, at minimum, peak Qi-Blood Realm—anything weaker was handled by local authorities, never reaching Qingyuan Sect.
Back when they’d first met, Li Mo had only just opened his meridians. Now, he could casually slay peak Qi-Blood Realm foes.
"I got lucky. The criminal was injured, fighting at maybe 60-70% strength."
"I see."
Hearing this, Xiao Qin relaxed slightly.
"By the way, Senior Brother Xiao, I looked for you yesterday."
"What’s the matter, Junior Brother Li? If it’s within my power..."
"I came across something by chance but don’t know its exact use. Given your reputation for vast knowledge, I hoped you could identify it."
As he spoke, Li Mo reached into his sleeve.
He pulled out a small block—neither quite wood nor stone—and handed it to Xiao Qin.
"I’m afraid I might not..."
Xiao Qin smiled wryly.
Normally, he’d consult his master for such things.
But after their earlier exchange, his master had fallen into deep slumber...
"It’s Soul-Nourishing Ebony!"
A hoarse voice suddenly rang in his mind, unusually agitated.
Wasn’t master supposed to be resting?
Why did he sound like he’d just bolted upright?
Then, Thousand Forms Martial Venerable continued rapidly:
"This is a rare treasure for nurturing the soul. It forms when a rare spirit wood is struck by lightning, sinks into an aquatic vein, and undergoes years of refinement—wood turning to stone, stone to jade."
"Many experts, finding no path to further breakthroughs, use this wood to craft coffins, sealing their bodies to nourish their souls until they awaken in another era."
"This piece has reached the wood-to-stone stage."
Xiao Qin understood.
His master meant this item was precious—and immensely useful to him.
He wanted it.
But it belonged to Junior Brother Li...
Xiao Qin took a deep breath and spoke solemnly:
"Junior Brother, this is Soul-Nourishing Ebony, a treasure for nurturing the soul. It’s extremely valuable."
"Keep it safe. When you reach the Observation Divine Realm, it’ll be of great use."
Sigh.
"Old Xiao, if you'd just said this thing was worthless, I would've tossed it to you without a second thought."
"But then again, that wouldn’t be like him..."
Li Mo could only ask again:
"If this is meant for the Observation Divine Realm, something to nurture the Intent Soul, why do I sense some interest from Senior Brother Xiao Qin?"
"To be honest, I do indeed need something like this."
Xiao Qin scratched his head awkwardly.
Right now, his master was probably cursing him inwardly as a rebellious disciple.
After a moment of contemplation, Li Mo said:
"How about this—I’ll lend it to you for now?"
pression Bureau] Transported to a fantasy world overrun by demons and monsters, Gu Qingfeng becomes a jailer in the Demon Suppression Prison of the Great Yan Dynasty's Demon Suppression Bureau. From this point on, bizarre cases frequently occur in the Demon Suppression Prison, once known as hell on earth and infamous for its gloomy, terrifying atmosphere! Why do the demons and monsters in the prison wail miserably every night? Why has the corpse demon, capable of transforming into various beauties, donned black stockings and switched careers to become a foot massage therapist? Why has the eye demon, expert in soul-snatching and illusions, turned into a VR headset? Why is the fox spirit performing otaku dances? Are all these occurrences a twisted expression of demonic nature, or a descent into moral depravity? After peeling away layer upon layer of mystery, all clues ultimately point to a jailer named Gu Qingfeng. Gu Qingfeng: "Hehehe... My dear demons and monsters, whose card shall we flip today?"
ap a wealthy young lady? Or else I'll be eliminated by the system? Ye Feng, who awakened the Kidnapper System, originally wanted to live a peaceful life but never imagined he would become a kidnapper of young women. However, after some time, he discovered that all the girls the system ordered him to kidnap were far from ordinary. "Big brother Ye Feng~ You've kidnapped my heart, and now you're not allowed to leave me ever again~" "Ye Feng~ You kidnapped me back then, now it's my turn to capture you♡" "Little Feng, you're mine! You can only be mine!" "Ye Feng, none of them deserve you. Only I love you the most♡" ... This is madness, they've all gone mad! Wait, what? Why are all the girls I kidnapped yanderes?!
transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”
e, Immortal Body, Transmigration, System, Progression Fantasy, Academy Setting, Third-Person Perspective. Alternate Title: Transmigrating into a High Martial World and Reading Live Comments. Bad news: I transmigrated. This is a terrifying high-martial world, and my original, pathetically weak body fell into a coma and never woke up. Good news: I got a Popularity Points system upon arrival. I can see live comments and even create an unkillable alternate identity. Starting out, the alternate identity has all stats at 1. The system tells me that to grow stronger, I must participate in the plot, gain popularity points to allocate stats and grow stronger, and ultimately awaken my original body. And so, carrying my original body on my back, I officially entered Huaqing Academy, where the story's protagonist resides. From that moment on, Chen Guan kicked the original plot to pieces. Live Comments: [Doesn't anyone find this mysterious coffin guy creepy? He can summon indescribable grey misty hands.] [Is this guy a hero or a villain? What kind of onion became a spirit?] [By the way, does anyone know who's in the coffin? Shouldn't the debt for saving his life be repaid by now?] [According to unofficial histories, the person in the coffin was Chen Guan's first love. Their love was once passionate and earth-shattering, but they were separated by life and death due to worldly circumstances. What a star-crossed pair.] ... Years later, the world knew of a demon god born from a coffin, shrouded in grey mist, impossible to gaze upon directly. His foremost divine emissary often wielded a scythe, reaping lives like the god of death. As war approached, facing former friends and a boundless sea of enemies, Chen Guan merely raised his scythe. "Would you like to dance as well?"
