"Then... who actually won?"
"You still haven’t realized? The ones who lost are us!"
"Seriously, man, I’m outta here. I’m jumping ship."
"Alright, alright, you little..."
"Damn bastard! Get your hands off her!"
Amidst a cacophony of voices filled with jealousy, bitterness, and sheer disbelief, Little Li finally regained his mobility.
He lifted his head, only to meet a pair of icy eyes that shimmered with an inscrutable darkness. From his vantage point below, her delicate face resembled frost-kissed snow.
Yet, amidst the clamor, Li Mo found an odd sense of tranquility.
He could hear a heartbeat—one that seemed to race faster than usual.
"Ahem!"
An untimely cough interrupted the moment. It was Shangguan Wencang.
Good times never last.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Li Mo awkwardly rose to his feet, his mind still in disarray.
What the hell just happened?
Oh, right. He’d lost control and ended up crashing into Ying Bing’s arms.
But could he really be blamed? The chilling aura hidden within her sword energy had been too overwhelming.
Lost in thought, Li Mo stole a glance at Ying Bing.
The girl wasn’t looking at him. If not for the faint lingering fragrance at his nose, it would have seemed as though nothing had happened.
But Little Li was certain of one thing—
That suddenly racing heartbeat hadn’t been his own.
"As long as neither of you is injured, all is well."
"As for the outcome..."
Shangguan Wencang’s gaze swept over the young man and woman, a hint of amusement flickering in his eyes. This was truly a dilemma.
"She/He won."
They spoke in unison.
Ying Bing was referring to their bet.
Li Mo, on the other hand, felt it wouldn’t be right to push his luck after already gaining an advantage.
Honestly, he had lost—technically. But after tumbling into her arms, the "ice block" hadn’t finished him off.
There was indeed a gap in their strength.
Unless he tapped into the power of the World Seed and wielded the Meteor Hammer of Tribulation—but that was a force even he couldn’t fully control yet. It wasn’t truly his to command.
After a moment’s thought, Li Mo added,
"Our private wager concerns only the two of us."
Shangguan Wencang, noting the sincerity in his tone and his apparent indifference toward the title of top disciple, nodded in approval.
"In that case, Ying Bing shall be declared the champion of this tournament and the Qingyuan Sect’s current chief disciple."
As his words echoed, cheers erupted from the spectators below the stage. Even the elders on the high platform rose to their feet, offering their congratulations in unison.
The chief disciple of their generation—the future leader of the Qingyuan Sect—deserved their acknowledgment.
Among the crowd,
A white-robed young master from the Blazing Jade Pavilion gazed with fervent admiration, though his eyes flickered with a trace of resentment when they landed on Li Mo.
Meanwhile, the crimson-robed young master remained seated, his usual carefree demeanor replaced by an unreadable, dangerous intensity.
On the stage,
"Understood."
Ying Bing showed little concern for the title.
Both she and Li Mo had secured spots in the top three—that was enough.
Being the Qingyuan Sect’s chief disciple meant little. It wouldn’t affect the system’s rankings anyway.
The system evaluated prodigies based on merit, not fame.
Shangguan Wencang sighed inwardly.
He knew Ying Bing’s temperament well—she was utterly detached from worldly matters. Perhaps that was why she had reached heights her peers could only dream of.
The two most qualified candidates for chief disciple both lacked interest in the position. Frustrating, but there was nothing to be done.
Clasping his hands behind his back, he announced in a clear voice,
"All top performers in this tournament shall receive rewards."
"The top three may enter the Scripture Pavilion and select a supreme martial art. The rest shall also be duly rewarded."
"Your talents are exceptional, and you are all pillars of our sect’s future. As the tides of the world shift, I hope you will continue to strive for greatness."
......
At the mention of supreme martial arts,
Countless eyes once again turned to the two who wielded Frost’s End and Scarlet Sky.
Rumors about these two legendary swords had persisted within the sect for years.
Would the truth finally be revealed?
If these two chose the corresponding sword manuals, the mystery might at last be solved.
......
The Nine Peaks Tournament came to a close.
That day, the sect underwent many changes, and countless new rumors began to circulate.
Yet, life in the Autumn Water Pavilion remained as peaceful as ever.
Li Mo hummed a tune as he clattered pots and pans in the kitchen, cooking up a storm.
The babbling brook running through the courtyard seemed livelier than usual, its waters brimming with spiritual energy, causing the peach blossoms along its banks to bloom with unparalleled vibrancy.
A single petal drifted down, landing gracefully on the pages of a book—a makeshift bookmark for the young girl.
The title on the cover read:
"Moonlight Sword Canon"
Not far away, another tome, "Solar Wheel Sword Canon," lay quietly.
"Food’s ready!"
Li Mo poked his head out from the kitchen.
Ying Bing set her book aside and went to help carry the dishes.
"Master? Master?"
Li Mo gently shook the woman reclining on the rocking chair, but she remained motionless, her back turned in a pose that defied all reason.
Assuming she was asleep, he circled around to face her—
Only to find her staring blankly into space, her soul seemingly departed, muttering under her breath.
Leaning closer, he caught the words:
"My money... my money..."
Li Mo: "..."
His master had gone bankrupt—again—and was now heartbroken.
But it wasn’t his fault this time.
Little Li knew exactly how to handle this. He placed two jars of fine wine beside her. Once she drank herself into a stupor and woke up, she’d be back to her usual self.
With that taken care of, he returned to the table.
Between bites of food, he flipped through the sword manual.
This was his first time studying a supreme-grade sword art, even if it was only a lower-tier one.
But after a while, he exhaled deeply.
Supreme sword arts were... ridiculously difficult.
It felt like a middle-schooler trying to solve university-level problems.
Meanwhile, the ice block over there—
"I’ve finished."
A copy of "Moonlight Sword Canon" was suddenly pushed toward him.
She wanted to swap.
Li Mo chuckled wryly. Since he wasn’t making much progress anyway, he handed over his manual.
A while later, Ying Bing’s cool voice broke the silence:
"Have you noticed anything?"
"Uh... I’ll take another look in my room later."
Li Mo buried his face in his bowl.
He could read every word in both manuals, but when strung together, they might as well have been written in another language.
After dinner, Li Mo gathered the two sword canons and prepared to retreat to his room.
But just then, Ying Bing’s voice drifted from behind:
"Tonight, it’s best if you keep some distance from me."
"Otherwise, you might get hurt."
Huh?
Li Mo didn’t understand, but he nodded anyway.
"Then I’ll sleep in the side chamber."
Ying Bing lifted her gaze to the moon, which had yet to fully rise.
Today was the day the system would announce its rankings.
It was also the day of the Yin Moon—the annual peak of lunar energy.
Her constitution would be especially volatile tonight, to the point where even she couldn’t fully control it. The best she could do was minimize the area of effect.
Thud—
The sound of footsteps echoed as the young man ascended the stairs.
Her eyes unconsciously followed his retreating figure.
"That final move he used..."
"Was that also obtained through serendipity?"
"His talent doesn’t seem limited to just the sword path."
Shaking off her wandering thoughts, Ying Bing returned to her room to await the slow passage of time.
Right now, nothing else mattered.
This life was slightly different from her past experiences, and many unforeseen events had occurred.
However.
Her position as first would not change.
The only question was... could Li Mo make it into the top twenty?
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?"
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!
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."
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)
