There were still people complaining about Fang Zhiyi, but ever since news of his recent brutal actions spread, they no longer dared to say such things to his face. Some also believed that if Mo Xuan had not been covering for him, Fang Zhiyi would never have been so arrogant.
Just as the people making these remarks walked away, several burly figures turned their gaze toward Fang Zhiyi's direction.
"Is that the kid? The one with the good fighting skills?"
"Yeah, I heard he took down four guys all by himself."
"Could he be another follower of the Martial God Atlas?"
"Boss, don't overthink it. You're definitely going to be the top candidate in the Divine Selection."
"Yeah, absolutely."
Wang He stood up, his massive frame causing the people around him to avert their eyes.
"Those factions of the God of Fire and the God of Light look down on us followers of the Martial God. They think we're just a bunch of meatheads. That's exactly why we need to unite everyone we can—like Fang Zhiyi!" He pointed toward the spot, but Fang Zhiyi had already disappeared.
"Understood, Boss!"
Fang Zhiyi had pretty much figured out one thing. Now, he only needed to wait for the day of the Divine Selection to verify a rather interesting fact. Right now, however, he just wanted to kick away this clingy protagonist. Truth be told, if the kid had been rebellious and untamed from the very beginning, Fang Zhiyi would have had plenty of ways to beat him into submission. But this current Mo Xuan would neither fight back when hit nor talk back when scolded, making Fang Zhiyi feel almost too embarrassed to actually hit him.
"Move aside, you're blocking my way!"
It was a clear, cold female voice.
Fang Zhiyi turned around to see a gray-haired girl glaring at him with an unfriendly expression. He had to admit, the girl was quite stunning, with delicate and perfectly proportioned features.
When the girl caught sight of Mo Xuan, her initial look of disgust gradually shifted. "Young Master Mo, I want to give you this. Take it!"
It was a letter, tied with a silk ribbon folded into the shape of a heart. Given the level of productivity in this world, a silk ribbon was considered a minor luxury. After all, it was mostly used for decoration and served no practical purpose.
Even though Mo Xuan's path had changed, the school beauty still liked him. Fang Zhiyi felt inexplicably envious; as expected, the protagonist could get everything without having to do anything at all.
However, Mo Xuan, who had just been looking around at beautiful girls while reading earlier today, shoved Fang Zhiyi the moment he saw the school beauty, Li Yana. "Big bro, let's get out of here, okay?"
Fang Zhiyi was a bit bewildered. Did the male lead really enjoy this kind of cheap, cat-and-mouse romance?
Hearing his form of address for Fang Zhiyi, Li Yana frowned. "Young Master Mo, you're calling him big bro? He's..."
Mo Xuan blurted out, "None of your damn business!"
With that, he grabbed Fang Zhiyi and ran. Fang Zhiyi had no intention of sticking around anyway, so he simply followed along. He could only hear Li Yana shouting behind them, which amounted to nothing more than a cringey, dramatic declaration of love.
In response to Fang Zhiyi's questioning look, Mo Xuan revealed something he had never told the original owner of Fang Zhiyi's body.
"She looks exactly like my older sister from my previous world." Afraid that Fang Zhiyi wouldn't believe him, he immediately raised his hand in a swearing gesture. "Except for the hair. My sister's hair is black."
Fang Zhiyi didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but then he suddenly remembered that Mo Xuan actually ended up getting together with the school beauty later on. Instantly, he began to size Mo Xuan up with a strange look in his eyes.
Feeling uncomfortable under his stare, Mo Xuan muttered, "Even though my sister beat me up every day, to be honest, I kind of miss her."
Fang Zhiyi returned to the original owner's home. Faced with the care of his parents, Fang Zhiyi's heart relaxed. It had been a long time since he had experienced the warmth of a family. The original owner's parents were just like any other parents—nagging, yet deeply caring about his every need.
The thick-skinned male protagonist also received the same level of care.
Eating the less-than-appetizing meal, Mo Xuan almost burst into tears.
Seeing his parents' surprise, Fang Zhiyi explained, "He often goes hungry."
Father Fang immediately stood up and brought over the wooden bucket of steamed rice. "Child, don't cry, eat! From now on, whenever Zhiyi comes home, you just come along with him. Your aunt and I might not have much else here, but we have more than enough food for you!"
Mother Fang also placed more food into his bowl.
Fang Zhiyi buried his head in his meal, acting exactly as the original owner would have.
Parents were the most perceptive when it came to changes in their children. If he showed even the slightest abnormality, they might figure it out. He didn't want this couple to face the cruel reality that their real child was already gone, but since he wasn't completely confident in his acting, he could only minimize the time he spent with the original owner's parents.
"I used to worry that Zhiyi was too quiet and wouldn't be able to make any friends. Having you as his friend makes me feel so much more at ease," Mother Fang said with a cheerful smile.
With tears in his eyes, Mo Xuan stuffed large mouthfuls of rice into his mouth, making his words completely incomprehensible to everyone else.
It wasn't until he was about to leave that he finally said to Fang Zhiyi, "Bro, I... I..."
Fang Zhiyi rolled his eyes at him. "It tasted awful, right? You'll be fine once you get used to it."
Surprisingly, Mo Xuan shook his head. "It tasted just as awful as my mom's cooking. I used to make excuses to secretly throw it away..." Seeing that he was about to start crying again, Fang Zhiyi kicked him. "Get the hell out of here!"
"I'm going, I'm going. Why did you have to kick me..." Mo Xuan muttered as he left.
Fang Zhiyi watched his retreating back. "This doesn't make sense. The original owner should have become great friends with him... whether in terms of personality or details." He slowly looked up. "Could it be because of the Heavenly Dao that's already dead?"
Little Hei said, "Without the influence of the Heavenly Dao, the story can easily change. There are many variables in this kind of world. I think you've already guessed it; those gods might just have their own agendas."
"Can he go back?" Fang Zhiyi asked suddenly.
Little Hei froze for a moment, then shook its head. "I don't know. Don't look at me, I don't even know where he came from."
"True. You don't know how to do anything except eat."
"Hey! Watch what you're saying!"
When he went to school again, Fang Zhiyi first ran into Mo Xuan, who had been waiting to ambush him. After getting stuck with this human leech, Fang Zhiyi had barely entered the campus when a few burly men—no, they were just strongly built students—blocked his path.
"Fang Zhiyi, my name is Wang He." The leader extended his hand in an attempt to show friendliness.
Fang Zhiyi looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "Can I help you?"
Wang He gave a good-natured smile, but a glint of shrewdness flashed in his eyes. "I heard your physical combat skills are quite impressive. I'd like to invite you to join our fellowship of the Martial God." He glanced at Mo Xuan. "Even if you don't earn the Martial God's favor, you'll still be under the protection of the Martial God's faction."
Fang Zhiyi looked at him. So this world had such a side to it. Aside from the ordinary lower-class citizens, there were also respective factions and groups, much like joining school clubs.
"Thanks, but no thanks." Fang Zhiyi walked straight past them, heading further into the school.
A hint of displeasure appeared on Wang He's face. "Fang Zhiyi, there are plenty of people who want to join us. As far as I know, your family is from the lower class, and you don't have any factional leanings yet. Don't you want to change your life?"
] [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!"
transmigrates into the role of a villainous rich second-generation kid in an urban fantasy novel, and gets bound to a god-tier choice system. Right at the start, he catches the female lead stealing exam papers! This triggers the villain's choice options! [Choice 1: Pretend you didn't see anything] [Choice 2: Loudly call her out, drawing everyone's attention] [Choice 3: ...] And thus, a twisted villain is born. To avoid getting killed by the protagonist, he has no choice but to take down all the protagonists first. Jiang Che: Nobody understands being twisted better than me!
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."
