The first light of dawn crept through the heavy curtains, casting a faint glow in the room.
Luo Shuhe slowly opened her eyes, the remnants of drowsiness still lingering in her gaze.
She had that dream again.
The one that had repeated countless times.
But unlike before, last night’s dream felt unusually real.
Staring quietly at the ceiling, her thoughts involuntarily drifted back to yesterday.
Real yet surreal.
From her first encounter with Gu Luo to every moment of their interactions afterward, each detail replayed in her mind like scenes from a movie.
Luo Shuhe reached for her phone on the pillow and turned on the screen.
6:47 AM.
The first class at Guangya Academy started at 8:20. They usually slept until 7:20.
Then, washing up and breakfast would take them until 8:00.
Leaving at 8:00 sharp, it was a ten-minute walk to school.
Her fingers slid across the screen, tapping on a profile picture.
[This is Gu Luo]
[The above is the greeting content]
Luo Shuhe sat up slowly, most of her sleepiness now gone.
Pushing aside the thin blanket, she swung her long legs off the bed, slipped into her slippers, and walked out of the room.
Arriving at the sink, she froze for a moment.
A toothbrush with toothpaste neatly squeezed onto it rested on a panda-patterned cup.
The toothbrush was pink, making it easy to guess it belonged to Gu Ximan.
The toothpaste hadn’t dried yet—clearly, it had just been prepared.
Puzzled, Luo Shuhe finished in the bathroom, washed up briefly, and headed downstairs.
At that moment.
Gu Luo was rummaging through the fridge, pondering what kind of breakfast to make.
Fried rice?
Sandwich?
Porridge?
Honestly, when it came to homemade breakfasts in China, the options weren’t exactly plentiful.
Traditional choices like steamed buns or fried dough sticks were too much hassle to make at home.
As Gu Luo stood lost in thought, the sound of light footsteps reached his ears.
He instinctively turned his head.
A breathtaking sight greeted him.
A flawless face, delicate collarbones, a graceful figure—especially those fair, shapely long legs, glowing enchantingly in the morning light.
"Good morning, Shuning."
Gu Luo greeted her awkwardly.
After all, she had just teased him last night.
For now, he had no dignity left as an older brother.
But the moment he spoke, he sensed something was off.
The "Luo Shuning" before him immediately furrowed her brows, her gaze turning icy, as if frosted over, staring straight at him.
Oh no.
Luo Shuning would never look at him like she wanted to murder him.
Gu Luo quickly corrected himself, coughing lightly. "Ahem... Good morning, Shuhe."
Luo Shuhe’s frosty glare didn’t waver as she slowly stepped closer to him.
"...What would Shuhe like to eat?" Gu Luo forced what he hoped was a 'sunny' smile, trying to break the tense silence.
"You."
"......" Gu Luo was at a loss for words.
How was he supposed to respond to that? Help needed, ASAP.
In a critical moment, Gu Luo activated his "exclusive skill"—the art of topic diversion.
Pretending he hadn’t heard the words "eat you," he plastered on a calm smile and asked, "Would Shuhe prefer a sandwich or fried rice?"
"Would you like your eggs fully cooked or runny?"
Yet, the only reply was silence.
Luo Shuhe simply stood there, unmoving, her eyes fixed on him without blinking.
The air grew thick with suffocating stillness.
Gu Luo felt his skin crawl under her stare. Just as he was about to change the subject again, Luo Shuhe’s cool voice cut through the silence:
"Elder Brother mistaking me for my sister has caused me immense psychological distress."
"Compensation is required."
"It’s not that big of a—" Gu Luo started to argue but immediately shut his mouth when he met her icy gaze.
"Compensation is required." Luo Shuhe repeated, her tone leaving no room for negotiation.
This was just extortion... Gu Luo groaned inwardly.
After a moment’s thought, he decided it was better to avoid trouble and sighed in resignation.
"Fine... What does Shuhe want as compensation?"
Luo Shuhe slowly raised a single finger, her voice still frosty. "Promise me one thing."
"What thing?" Gu Luo eyed her suspiciously.
"Promise first."
"Tell me first."
"Promise first."
"Tell me first."
"Promise first."
"......"
The two were locked in a stalemate, neither backing down.
Gu Luo had no doubt that if this continued, Luo Shuhe would drag it out indefinitely.
"I refuse." He shook his head slightly.
Then he explained, "A promise must be kept. I won’t agree without knowing if it’s something I can actually do."
"Breaking promises is unacceptable."
Hearing this, Luo Shuhe’s lips curled into a cold smirk.
Then, she did something that left Gu Luo utterly stunned—she pulled down the left strap of her nightgown, exposing her fair shoulder to the air.
Just as the fabric was about to slip further, she caught it.
"If Elder Brother doesn’t agree, I’ll scream for help."
"......"
Gu Luo’s fists clenched.
Seriously?
He could explain later, but the fallout would still be messy.
What would his stepmother think of him?
"Fine, I promise." Gu Luo finally surrendered, sighing in defeat before adding, "But only if it doesn’t break any laws or morals, and only if it’s something I can actually do."
"Then make it two things." Luo Shuhe adjusted her strap back into place and held up two fingers, a faint glint of mischief flashing in her eyes.
"You—" Gu Luo was speechless. He shook his head firmly. "No. One thing."
"Two."
"One."
"Two."
"You’re pushing your luck."
"Two."
Luo Shuhe remained unmoved. As she spoke, her hand returned to her left shoulder strap.
Here we go again.
"Alright, alright! Two things. Just two."
Gu Luo was genuinely intimidated.
He couldn’t help but admonish her, "But Shuhe, this isn’t right. A girl should never joke about her own body like this."
"Is Elder Brother worried about me?" A hint of amusement colored Luo Shuhe’s tone.
"...You could say that."
Luo Shuhe crossed her arms, tilting her chin up slightly as she replied coolly, "No need for concern. Aside from Elder Brother, no other man will ever see my body."
?
Gu Luo was baffled.
What did she mean by "aside from him"?
"You..."
"Uh..."
Gu Luo was at a complete loss for words.
After another stretch of silence, he asked seriously, "Shuhe, why all of this?"
"Why what?" Luo Shuhe countered.
"You know what I mean. From our first meeting until now, none of this has felt normal."
"At the time, it was clearly our first meeting. Even if I helped you, you didn’t have to demand all my contact details in such a way, did you?"
"It felt like... you were afraid I’d run away."
"And the way you looked at me..."
Gu Luo paused before continuing, "So, can you tell me why?"
After hearing this, Luo Shuhe stayed silent for a long while, her expression remaining completely blank as she replied calmly, "Because you’re very handsome."
"That’s why I fell in love with you at first sight."
What a perfunctory answer... Gu Luo pressed his lips together.
He wasn’t vain enough to believe such an obvious lie.
Well... whatever.
Just then, Luo Shuhe took a step closer to him and slowly raised a finger. "Now, I’m going to make my first request."
Gu Luo immediately held his breath.
A request from this little demon... the thought alone was terrifying.
What could it be?
Surely she wouldn’t ask him to run around naked, right?
If it were something like that, he’d refuse outright—not to mention it’d be morally wrong.
"Brother..."
"I want you to..."
Huh?
Want him?
Gu Luo was just about to declare that he sold his skills, not his body, when Luo Shuhe finished her sentence.
What she said next left him utterly stunned.
............
............
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
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."
] [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!"
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
