Entering the cafeteria, Fang Zhiyi glanced around but didn’t spot the female lead anywhere.
"What are you looking for?" Xue Wanning asked.
"A... seat," Fang Zhiyi replied, forcing himself to stay sharp.
But the female lead remained elusive. After all, in the original plot, she dressed plainly and wore no makeup, making her hard to pick out in a crowd.
Staying vigilant, Fang Zhiyi bought some desserts and returned to the table Xue Wanning had claimed.
"Young Mistress, this is—" He barely started speaking when he noticed a girl with her head down walking straight toward them. As she passed behind Xue Wanning, her tray suddenly tilted!
Fang Zhiyi yanked Xue Wanning toward him, twisting his body to shield her. Half the spilled food landed on the floor, while the other half splattered across his back.
"Close call," Fang Zhiyi muttered, relieved. He looked down and locked eyes with Xue Wanning, who was still in his arms.
Xue Wanning blinked up at him. "What are you—"
Fang Zhiyi quickly let go. "That girl’s food almost spilled on you, Young Mistress..."
Xue Wanning turned and saw the mess. The girl was murmuring, "My food..."
Xue Wanning frowned. "Hey, you just dumped food on someone, and your first concern is your meal? No apology?"
Fang Zhiyi tugged her sleeve. "Young Mistress, let it go. Look at her."
Xue Wanning was confused.
Fang Zhiyi leaned closer and whispered, "Look at her clothes—how thin she is. Probably a struggling student, too hungry to think straight. Just leave it."
Xue Wanning studied Qin Xiaocao for a moment, then sighed. "Are you okay? Did it burn you?"
Fang Zhiyi waved it off. "I’m fine. Seeing her just reminded me of my childhood."
The words sparked a memory in Xue Wanning. She smiled. "Back then, I was always curious about what snacks you were sneaking around with." A flicker of nostalgia crossed her eyes before she shook her head. "Come on, let’s get you a new set of clothes."
Fang Zhiyi nodded, finally relaxing.
But the girl still hadn’t left. Instead, she crouched and began gathering the spilled food from the floor.
Both of them stared. Fang Zhiyi was speechless. Seriously? Just ask, and I’ll buy you another meal.
Just then, someone strode over, slightly out of breath. He glared at Fang Zhiyi and Xue Wanning before speaking gently to Qin Xiaocao. "Xiaocao, forget it. Let’s go eat outside."
The glare reignited Xue Wanning’s temper. "What’s with the look? She dropped the tray and spilled food on my—my friend! I didn’t even demand an apology, and you have the nerve to glare at us?"
Fu Jingxuan scowled. "Xiaocao just made a mistake. Why are you making such a big deal out of it?"
"What the—" Xue Wanning was fuming. What kind of logic is this? Handsome but utterly unreasonable!
Suddenly, Fang Zhiyi tugged her arm.
"Don’t stop me! I’ve never backed down from a fight, and I’m not starting now!"
Fang Zhiyi thought, Give it up. If you engage with him, you’ll never hear the end of it.
"Young Mistress, I just remembered something."
Xue Wanning eyed Fang Zhiyi’s mysterious expression, then glanced back at Fu Jingxuan, who was still glaring defiantly. Reluctantly, she leaned in to listen.
"I think I know who they are," Fang Zhiyi whispered, pulling her aside.
Xue Wanning looked baffled. "So what? We’re in the right here!"
"No, listen. I’ve heard about this girl, Qin Xiaocao. Three guys are chasing her. That one just now is Fu Jingxuan, the third suitor. But apparently, she’s closer to another guy, so Fu Jingxuan’s basically just orbiting her."
Xue Wanning’s confusion melted into shock—then excitement.
"And then?" Her voice brimmed with anticipation.
Fang Zhiyi grinned. Some things never change. Gossip always wins.
As the two whispered, Qin Xiaocao occasionally cast pitying glances at Fu Jingxuan, leaving him unsettled and oddly heartbroken.
"Xiaocao, let’s go." He took her hand. Qin Xiaocao looked up and smiled faintly, sending his heart aflutter. So pure, so unlike those gaudy girls—like that overdressed rich girl over there.
He shot another glare at Xue Wanning, only to find her staring at their clasped hands, eyes practically sparkling with gossipy delight.
A shiver ran down Fu Jingxuan’s spine. He pulled out a wad of cash and tossed it at them.
"Here’s your compensation! Hmph. Xiaocao, let’s go."
"Ah, Jingxuan..." Qin Xiaocao stumbled slightly, struggling to keep up.
"Oh, Zhiyi, look! They’re really leaving!" Xue Wanning watched their retreating figures, clicking her tongue. "How did I never notice such drama at school before? What are you doing?"
She spotted Fang Zhiyi picking up the money.
"Collecting compensation. No reason to leave free money."
Xue Wanning opened her mouth to protest but couldn’t find a flaw in his logic.
That afternoon, Fang Zhiyi and Xue Wanning reappeared—this time in the library.
"See that guy? That’s the male lead I mentioned earlier. Uh, what was his name again?" Fang Zhiyi murmured.
Xue Wanning frowned in thought. "Gu Mingyu, right? I’ve heard of him. Top student. Never thought I’d get to witness his love life drama."
She paused. "You dragged me here just to watch him? Shopping would’ve been better."
Fang Zhiyi waved a hand. "If there wasn’t drama, why would I bother?"
Sure enough, Qin Xiaocao soon arrived. Gu Mingyu’s eyes lit up the moment he saw her.
Just as Qin Xiaocao was about to sit, a girl blocked her. "This seat’s taken."
Qin Xiaocao frowned. "There’s nothing here."
The girl sneered. "I said it’s taken. Get lost, ugly." She even shoved Qin Xiaocao.
"Wow, what’s her problem?" Xue Wanning muttered. Fang Zhiyi pulled out a handful of sunflower seeds, and the two began snacking discreetly.
Qin Xiaocao glared at the girl. "Liu Yue, I’ve already applied to switch dorms. What more do you want?"
Liu Yue scoffed. "Nothing. I just can’t stand your fake innocence act!"
Xue Wanning dropped her seeds. "Okay, that’s just bullying."
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."
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.
uld barely embark on the path to immortality. Just as he was on the verge of death, his golden finger awakened. No matter whether it was poison, drained blood and vital energy, diminished lifespan, or any other physical debuff caused by paying a price—once midnight passed, everything would be refreshed. From then on, whenever someone asked what kind of person Chu Ran was, the answer was simple: Forbidden arts that other cultivators dared not learn? Chu Ran would learn them. Prices that even demonic cultivators dared not pay? Chu Ran would pay them. Lifespan that even righteous cultivators dared not burn? Chu Ran would burn it. All the blood essence in his body? Take it. Want both his hands and feet? He would cut them off and send them to you. You say he’s finished? He wasn’t built to sit idle. You think he’s gone mad? No—he was simply waiting for midnight. From that day onward, Chu Ran would respect neither Heaven nor Earth, bow to neither gods nor ghosts. He had only one wish: For midnight to arrive a little sooner.
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."
