"Is that so? That's just... wonderful!"
Hearing Ye Feng's words, Xie Yuyan didn't feel fear—instead, her voice grew even more excited. Toying with the dagger in her hand, she eagerly continued,
"Then let's... begin, shall we? My dear... Ye Feng~"
Before her words fully faded, Xie Yuyan's gaze sharpened in an instant. Her movements were swift and agile, closing the distance between them almost immediately.
So fast!
Fortunately, Ye Feng's reflexes were sharp. The moment Xie Yuyan moved, he lowered his center of gravity, bracing himself for her attack. He knew Xie Yuyan's strikes disregarded defense entirely. To exploit her openings, he’d have to abandon defense as well. It would come down to who collapsed first in this brutal clash.
Xie Yuyan’s relentless assault came at him without pause, but this time, Ye Feng didn’t retreat. If she refused to talk, force was his only option.
In one exchange, the tip of Xie Yuyan’s blade grazed Ye Feng’s abdomen. Gritting through the pain, he seized the dagger, his palm sliced open but refusing to let go.
With sheer strength, Ye Feng finally wrested the weapon from her grip. Just as he thought it was over, Xie Yuyan’s free hand darted to her waist—she’d come prepared.
Ye Feng couldn’t let her draw another blade. Pinning her wrist, he slammed her against the wall, pressing the stolen knife to her throat.
"Don’t move! You’ve lost! Xie Yuyan, can you calm down now?"
"Hehe~"
Xie Yuyan didn’t resent her defeat. Instead, she giggled, her gaze drifting to Ye Feng’s bleeding hand. Ignoring the blade at her neck, she licked the blood from her lips, savoring it under his stunned glare.
"Xie Yuyan, you’re insane!"
Ye Feng recoiled, horrified by her ecstatic expression. He’d never imagined this monstrous side of her.
After relishing his blood, her murky eyes gleamed as she purred, "What a shame... such delicious nourishment wasted~"
"Congrats on winning, Ye Feng. Will you kill me now? Then you can frolic with your little sweetheart all night~"
"Xie Yuyan, what nonsense are you spouting? Let me finish!"
"Finish? Did you wait for me? You broke our promise! Only I... only I kept waiting..."
"I was just keeping my vow. I told you... if Ye Feng betrayed our pact... I’d kill you myself! Hehehe~"
Her chilling laughter held no remorse—no desire to reason. Ye Feng was at a loss.
"Kill me, Ye Feng~ If you don’t, I’ll kill you~ Want to be with that thieving fox? Then you have to kill me~"
"Xie Yuyan, you—"
His distraction was her opening. She seized his arm, guiding the blade toward her own heart.
"Kill me! Do it!"
Her dark eyes flashed, her tone no longer furious but pleading, desperate for release. As the dagger neared her chest, Ye Feng twisted free, redirecting it—only for the blade to plunge into his own.
Thud.
[Ding. Host in critical condition. Auto-use of substitute puppet activated to negate fatal damage.]
The system’s voice barely registered as his vision blurred.
......
As consciousness faded, the system chimed again—unheard this time.
[Unlocked Exploration Character: Crimson Rose]
[Exploration Progress: 10%]
[Congratulations on evading a story mission. Rewards sent to task log.]
......
"Wh...what? Why?"
Xie Yuyan’s haze shattered. Seeing Ye Feng’s bloodied chest, her mind reeled as if struck.
"Xie Yuyan... next time... don’t do this..."
Ye Feng’s weak voice snapped her back.
"Didn’t I promise? I’d stay with you. I didn’t forget... We still have cake to eat..."
His strength failed, and he collapsed into her arms. At his final words, Xie Yuyan froze, thunderstruck.
"Cake...? You... remembered?"
"NO!!!!"
......
"Xiao Feng..."
At the orphanage, Shen Mengli leaned against a pavilion pillar, rehabilitating her legs. Yet her mind wandered to Ye Feng, her gaze drifting homeward.
"Why... why does my heart ache so much...?"
......
"Ugh..."
Time blurred before Ye Feng’s eyes fluttered open. His body felt shattered, immobile. Bandages wrapped his chest—he was in his own bed.
"What happened...?"
Memories flooded back. He’d passed out in Xie Yuyan’s arms. Yet he’d survived?
As he pieced it together, a rustling sound came from the corner. Turning, he spotted Xie Yuyan curled against the wall, only her guilty eyes visible, locked onto him.
"Xie Yuyan?"
"......"
At his call, she trembled, burying her face in her knees.
"Xie Yu—"
"Don’t... don’t say my name... I don’t deserve it..."
Ye Feng was baffled. Was this the same terrifying Xie Yuyan from before?
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!
] [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!"
m back to his original world. In the end, he realized he had overthought things. [Hey, why is Shen Manni, the female lead, acting strange? Shouldn't she be fawning over the male lead at this point?] [Zhou Qiaoqiao, are you sick? Weren't you supposed to break off your engagement today?] [Damn it! An Youyi, please do your job as an undercover agent and sell my information to the protagonist, you idiot!] ... At this moment, Xu Mo himself didn't know that these female leads had already heard his inner thoughts. Then they decided not to play by the rules. Xu Mo: Please respect my profession as the big villain!
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."
