"Qingqing, are you saying that capturing a city—the way to scare off the enemy is to slaughter the whole town?" Wei An asked as he watched his own soldiers drilling, his tone casual.
"Of course. Since ancient times, sacking a city has always been the most effective tactic," He Yinqing said, the words rolling off her tongue as if they weighed nothing. "That Fang Zhiyi is a worthless man. If he had any backbone, he'd have butchered every last one of those steppe barbarian tribes—a few good massacres and they'd have learned to fear him. Why is he still dancing around like this?"
Wei An looked at the side of He Yinqing's face and nodded eagerly. "Right. You're right. It's just that Fang Zhiyi has too much power right now—the emperor can't touch him. Otherwise I'd have already gone to the border and claimed the seat of Grand General."
"Of course. Naturally." He Yinqing smiled and turned to meet his gaze.
The air seemed to freeze.
It took a long moment before Wei An looked away, flustered. "Speaking of which—you said someone's been copying your beauty shop?"
At that, He Yinqing huffed in frustration. "Right there on the next street over—suddenly three or four cosmetic shops opened up. I sent someone to check, and their products are almost identical to mine!"
"Who could it be... aren't those formulas only known to you?" Wei An asked.
He Yinqing's face twisted with anger. "Only one person could have done it! Only her—she saw me making my products once. I never thought she'd stoop to this."
"You mean—the princess?"
Wei An's expression darkened.
No matter who it was, anyone who upset his Qingqing was not acceptable.
"Has the emperor done anything about it?"
"He's spending all his time with those ministers now—he hasn't come around in ages. And you know what the worst part is? They're selling at a lower price than me! Half the customers have gone over to them!"
Wei An's heart secretly leapt at the news that the emperor hadn't visited Qingqing in a long time, though he quickly suppressed the feeling. "Since..."
Suddenly, a man came rushing up, breaking their conversation.
"Marquis of Ding'an—urgent summons from the emperor!"
"What is it?"
"They say the Border General, Fang Zhiyi, has returned to the capital!"
"What?" Wei An was stunned—Fang Zhiyi dared to leave the border troops and come back on his own? Excitement surged through him. "Qingqing, I must go. Wait for me."
He ran a few steps, then turned back. "Qingqing—if I go to the border, would you come with me?"
He Yinqing looked at his face—ah, he really was more handsome with that makeup on.
"Of course!"
"Good! Wait for me!" Wei An felt his moment had come. As long as Fang Zhiyi came back, the emperor would surely seize the chance to take him down!
But reality didn't unfold as he'd imagined.
Fang Zhiyi did return—his stated reason being that he'd come back to report on his duties, and he'd volunteered to do so. He'd brought fewer than a hundred soldiers with him.
However, he'd just won a major victory. On his way back, he'd made sure to spread the word everywhere, so that almost every town along the route heard how Border General Fang Zhiyi had thoroughly trounced those steppe savages!
In reality, Fang Zhiyi had merely clashed with a few hundred steppe tribesmen, "captured" their horses and other goods, and then reported to the court that he had crushed a steppe coalition of tens of thousands and seized countless spoils.
It was a safe bet.
"Zhiyi! My Grand General—you're back at last!" In the great hall, the emperor put on a display of respect for his meritorious minister, though he was quietly irritated by the way the generals standing beside Fang Zhiyi stared straight ahead, paying him no deference.
"Your servant greets the emperor. Wearing armor, I cannot perform the full formal bow—I beg your pardon."
"No fault, no fault!" the emperor said magnanimously. "Take a seat!"
A stool was brought, and Fang Zhiyi sat down with a thump—while the generals behind him remained standing.
"Sit, all of you sit. You who guard my borders have worked hard." The emperor gestured to them.
But the generals didn't move an inch.
"Sit." Only when Fang Zhiyi spoke did the generals sit, then all chimed in unison, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
A knot formed in the emperor's chest.
The atmosphere in the court grew tense.
It was Fang Zhiyi who finally broke the silence. "Your Majesty, the reason for my return is to personally report on the recent situation at the border."
The emperor mustered his composure. "Go on, go on."
"After several engagements, the border troops have captured a number of steppe cavalrymen. Through persuasion, they have been incorporated into the imperial defenses of our Jin state. Additionally, several of my officers have distinguished themselves repeatedly... In this great rout of the steppe coalition..."
The ministers listened with growing unease. Previously, he had been submitting memorials lamenting that the border troops were understaffed and the steppe cavalry were ferocious—so why was he now boasting of commanding a well-equipped, powerful army? Moreover, the names Fang Zhiyi mentioned were completely unfamiliar to them, yet with military merits and battle records laid out so plainly, no one could argue.
"A formidable roster of generals indeed!" The emperor nodded repeatedly, but his mind was racing—what position could he give Fang Zhiyi to keep him in the capital, so he could deal with him later?
"Of course. When they heard I was returning to report, they were loath to let me go. You should know—though I've brought back only a few dozen men, when I set out, tens of thousands of soldiers wanted to follow me, to come pay respects to Your Majesty and offer thanks for your grace."
A sharp intake of breath rippled through the hall.
If the earlier talk was just bragging about strength, this line carried a hint of threat.
Bringing tens of thousands to the capital for a report? What are you planning—a rebellion?
The emperor caught the implication too, and his brows knitted in a frown.
"General—I forgot to send word back that we've arrived safely..." one of the generals muttered.
The emperor looked at that general.
Fang Zhiyi scolded him loudly, "Idiot! In front of His Majesty—why are you muttering under your breath?"
"Yes—sir! It's time to send the signal! If we don't, the brothers at the border will worry!" that blockhead shouted at full volume.
"I beg Your Majesty's forgiveness. These men truly worry too much—they're always afraid I'll run into bandits on the road... If Your Majesty would permit them to send the message?"
"Go." The emperor gritted his teeth, forcing the word out after a long pause.
No wonder Fang Zhiyi had dared to come back! He'd clearly taken the entire border army under his own command by now!
Wei An suddenly stepped forward. "Fang Zhiyi! You are insubordinate to the extreme! Are you threatening the emperor with those words?!"
The entire court gasped.
Are you an idiot? Everyone can hear what he's implying—but you had to say it out loud? Now you've backed the emperor into a corner. And besides—Fang Zhiyi just returned from a famous victory known across the land. Does anyone think the emperor could possibly execute him over this?
Fang Zhiyi turned to look at the pretty-faced young courtier. After a long moment, he asked, "Ah... miss, your voice is a bit gruff, isn't it?"
His utterly serious expression was enough to make some officials snicker.
"Fang Zhiyi! You dare insult me—the House of Marquis of Ding'an has greater merits than your Fang family! How dare you humiliate me like this!" Wei An was livid.
Fang Zhiyi gazed at him steadily for a while. "House of Ding'an?" He turned to the emperor. "Your Majesty—even the House of Ding'an cannot send a lady to attend court."
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
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."
y came from. The chests contained supplies, currency, class-change scrolls, skills, talents… and even godhood! The laws of the world were completely rewritten. This became a world where everyone gambled with their fate! Some people, despite having nothing, opened a divine artifact and rose to the top, eventually ruling the world. Others went bankrupt, opened nothing but worthless junk, and leaped from skyscrapers in despair. Lin Ye arrived in this world from another reality, utterly bewildered. “What is going on? Why is everyone a gambling addict?!” “Opening chests? No way. I refuse to gamble. I’ll start with myself!” Until— On his first chest, he obtained a Mythic Talent: Void Incarnation! He could become completely intangible, pass through all things, and reduce everything to nothingness! … On his fiftieth chest, he obtained a Mythic Weapon: Blade of Karma! With a single slash, karma shattered, twisting the universe and overturning the myriad phenomena of creation! … On his ninety-ninth chest, he obtained a Mythic Divine Treasure: Primordial Purple Energy! It could split open the heavens and earth, create all things, and evolve countless worlds with a single thought! Lin Ye: “Now that I think about it… shouldn’t someone have told me that every chest is guaranteed to contain something Mythic?!”
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
