Zhao Manqi was stunned for a long time; she couldn't understand why Fang Zhiyi had died.
Could there really be ghosts in this world?
She shook her head. No, that couldn't be. It must be that guy's own fault, probably killed by someone.
Yes, that's it.
Zhao Manqi posted an update.
"First, I express my condolences for the deceased, but please get this straight: he went of his own accord. I merely said a few words. Am I supposed to be responsible for a grown man's impulsive actions? Some people should stop with the moral blackmail. Let's be honest, you just can't stand a woman daring to speak the truth! What ghosts are there in this world? I think the ghosts are in your own minds!"
Her comments section exploded.
PeachNoSugar: "I'm a woman too, and I think what you said is really unreasonable. After all, he went because of your provocation..."
MilkTeaFullSugar: "Even if it's not your fault, is it so hard to say you're sorry?"
Zhao Manqi got worked up again: "You women have been tamed by the patriarchal society into having no backbone! You even help count the money when someone steps on your heads! Pathetic!"
She blocked everyone who disagreed with her, turned off her private messages, and cursed the dead Fang Zhiyi resentfully.
But from that day on, she began to frequently dream of the deceased Fang Zhiyi.
Zhao Manqi started to become absent-minded, and her convictions began to waver. Could there really be ghosts in the world?
Finally, she became afraid. In her dreams, Fang Zhiyi would just stare at her, his eyes full of grievance. So one day, she went to the school where Fang Zhiyi had died. She had to resolve this.
After a series of frights, she met a boy in a white shirt, very good-looking. He said his name was Shen Yan. Hearing that Zhao Manqi was there to find a ghost, he frowned.
"Leave it to me."
Sure enough, from that day on, Fang Zhiyi stopped appearing.
And Zhao Manqi completely believed in the existence of ghosts. She began collecting many books on the supernatural to teach herself, and with Shen Yan's help, she could also see things ordinary people couldn't.
Zhao Manqi smelled a business opportunity. She reinvented herself and registered a new account called "Spiritual Medium Qiqi." With her carefully applied makeup and a few tricks, Zhao Manqi quickly became popular.
Even if she made mistakes, she wasn't afraid. Shen Yan had her back, and she also discovered that Shen Yan was actually a ghost himself.
"I had them kill that man," Shen Yan said, flashing a bright smile. "But I heard about you from him. I think you're interesting."
Zhao Manqi only struggled for ten minutes before forgiving Shen Yan for his deception.
"Thank you, heartless big brother, for the sports car," Zhao Manqi smiled at the camera, while Shen Yan behind her looked a bit jealous.
"Brothers, today I'm going to help a girl with her problem. Her dead best friend seems to be haunting her."
Zhao Manqi now showed none of her previous stance. Her persona was that of a powerful yet gentle spiritual medium.
But as her fame grew, some untimely comments also appeared.
PeachNoSugar: "I thought she looked familiar. Isn't this Zhao Manqi, who got someone killed?"
MilkTeaFullSugar: "Didn't notice before. She's really smooth with all that 'thank you, big brother' talk."
Zhao Manqi saw these comments too. She felt awkward but still pretended not to see them, interacting with other netizens. As expected, her fans mercilessly cursed out those who made such remarks.
But it didn't end there. The account PeachNoSugar never logged in again. That very day, she started having nightmares. In her dreams, a man in a blood-stained shirt branded her all over with a red-hot iron. When she woke up, her skin was red, itchy, and painful. In just a few days, the girl was admitted to the hospital—the psychiatric ward.
MilkTeaFullSugar's fate was even worse. She mysteriously drowned in the washbasin at her own home.
Around the same time, several other netizens met with accidents, ranging from injuries to deaths.
In short, there were no more discordant voices in Zhao Manqi's live stream.
"With me here, none of those who hurt you will get away," Shen Yan said dotingly, stroking Zhao Manqi's hair. Zhao Manqi closed her eyes happily.
"Someone claiming to be a Taoist priest wants to challenge me. I'm a bit worried."
Shen Yan's pupils instantly turned pitch black. "Hmph, leave it to me."
The subsequent story was similar to what Fang Zhiyi had seen before. The male lead ultimately dissipated, still longing for the female lead, while the female lead made a fortune, quit the internet, and became a quiet woman waiting for her Prince Charming.
"Streamer, are you still there?" a comment floated by.
Fang Zhiyi snapped out of it. "Heh, yeah, I'm here."
"You scared me. You suddenly stopped moving and talking."
Fang Zhiyi checked the live stream. The original host was really something; there were only about a hundred people in the stream.
"I just thought of something."
"Streamer, look, what's that on the floor?"
Fang Zhiyi looked where indicated. A faint footprint suddenly appeared in the camera frame.
"A footprint," Fang Zhiyi sniffed. Say what you will, but the original host's taste was still commendable. "Quite a small foot."
"I've got goosebumps. Why is there a footprint like that in this abandoned house?"
"Streamer, maybe we should just go home."
Fang Zhiyi pointed the camera at the footprint and looked around himself. He saw nothing. The abandoned house was very eerie, but it didn't have any aura of violent evil. That is to say, even if there was something here, it was the more subtle kind. Otherwise, the original host wouldn't have made it out.
But the stream must go on. Love the job you do.
Fang Zhiyi gestured with his hand. "The footprint isn't big, the sole has no pattern, it's a bit blurry... seems like a woman's foot. Speaking of which, I have a story. Back when I was a Taoist priest, once in a dilapidated temple..." Fang Zhiyi started spinning a tale effortlessly; storytelling was his forte.
The hundred or so people in the stream listened intently.
Suddenly, a connection request notification popped up on Fang Zhiyi's screen, and his phone made a "ding-a-ling" sound.
Fang Zhiyi smiled. So it really came. He was a bit puzzled looking at the user named ZhaoManqi520. Why did the female lead like using her own name as a username?
"Brothers, a netizen wants to connect. Should I take it or not?"
"A connection now? Hang up."
Just as someone typed that, Fang Zhiyi pressed accept. Immediately, a girl appeared on the screen.
"What the heck, you scared me!" a netizen complained.
"Hello, netizen named Zhao Manqi Two-Fifty."
Zhao Manqi was about to interrupt Fang Zhiyi and start venting when his opening line made her roll her eyes in exasperation. "Are you blind? It's ZhaoManqi520!"
"Uh-huh, uh-huh," Fang Zhiyi nodded. "Miss Two-Fifty Zhao Manqi, what can I do for you?"
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.
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."
] [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!"
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."
