Inside the apartment.
Chen Qimeng stepped through the door, happily carrying two bags full of groceries.
But she wasn’t the only one who had returned.
Huang Feirong, Mao Ruirui, and Chang Xiaoxiao—everyone who had watched the livestream together at the flower shop earlier—had all come back to the apartment with her.
And that wasn’t all.
Chen Qimeng had also quietly messaged the other women in the apartment, checking their schedules.
If they were free, she invited them to join the "celebration dinner" specially prepared for Lin Yu tonight.
A few days ago,
they might have actually checked whether they had other commitments.
But now?
What girl would want to miss this?
This was Lin Yu’s first time on stage!
A milestone in his life!
As his "close confidantes," who would skip tonight’s gathering?
Lin Yu, who had received a system notification, thought it was just a small get-together with five or six people in the apartment.
Little did he know,
an unprecedented grand gathering was quietly brewing behind the scenes.
People he expected, people he never imagined—
tonight, they would all gather under one roof!
Downstairs.
Two people about to head out ran straight into Chen Qimeng at the door.
"Qimeng, you’re back already?"
"Ruirui, you came with Qimeng too?"
"And these two beauties are…?"
Tang Yimian looked at the group entering, surprised.
She had assumed she was the only one bringing a friend to the apartment’s dinner tonight.
Because of that,
she had been feeling particularly guilty and was about to take Fang Xinran out to buy some snacks and drinks.
She couldn’t let Qimeng handle everything every time.
Within her means, she had to contribute however she could.
Especially since tonight’s "celebration" was specifically for Lin Yu.
"Yimian, heading out with your friend?"
"This must be the ‘Teacher Fang’ you always mention. I’m Chen Qimeng."
Fang Xinran waved in greeting, then slightly bowed and shook Chen Qimeng’s hand.
Polite and composed, she said:
"Hello, Qimeng. I’ve heard so much about you—you’re even more beautiful in person."
"Sorry for intruding… Everyone, I’m Fang Xinran, sort of a colleague of Yimian’s."
"Still in my probation period, so I’m not a full-fledged teacher yet."
Not just composed, but also meticulous about her professional status.
Chen Qimeng’s first impression of the well-mannered girl was quite favorable.
She immediately started introducing everyone, exchanging ages and occupations.
When she learned that Tang Yimian and Fang Xinran were planning another shopping trip,
Mao Ruirui and Chang Xiaoxiao volunteered to join them.
Their thoughts aligned perfectly with Tang Yimian’s.
Huang Feirong had even brought some of her mom’s (Red Sister’s) treasured liquor—they ought to contribute something to the dinner too.
Chen Qimeng couldn’t possibly stop the four polite guests.
In the end, she could only watch as they left.
She and Huang Feirong headed to the kitchen to start prepping the ingredients.
Hearing the commotion downstairs,
Mo Shangying, Ye Mengfu, and Maomao—who had been holed up together on the third floor—came down.
Mo Shangying: "Knew it was you, Qimeng! Hehe, we’ve got tons of snacks ready!"
Maomao: "Enough for over a dozen people, no problem."
Ye Mengfu: "Welcome… back."
Meanwhile.
Underground parking lot, Ghost Market Street.
Shen Jiuyi took a deep breath, gripping the handle above the passenger seat.
She checked the countless "safety talismans" plastered all over her body to make sure none had loosened.
Even though everything seemed secure, she still ventured to ask:
"Buyao, I can go… but can I just take a taxi?"
From the driver’s seat—
BANG!
Shen Buyao slammed the car door shut.
"What’s with you ‘90s kids being such cowards?!"
"Didn’t I tell you? Last time Lin Yu rode with me, nothing happened. You’re the one making a fuss."
"Just sit tight. I’ll get you there in one piece."
Shen Jiuyi: "Leiyin Temple?"
Shen Buyao: "You think you’re worthy of the Western Heaven?"
Starting the engine,
Shen Buyao expertly took a sharp turn.
But before they’d even gone a few meters in the garage, a black cat suddenly darted across their path.
Shen Buyao slammed the brakes.
THUD!
She stayed steady.
Shen Jiuyi’s small head, however, smacked straight into the glove compartment.
Shen Buyao’s eyes widened: "???"
Shen Jiuyi rubbed her head: "Tsk… I knew it…"
Shen Buyao snapped:
"Knew what, huh?!"
"You plaster yourself with talismans but don’t buckle up?!"
"What’s the difference between you and someone who only tracks their ‘safe days’ but skips protection?!"
Shen Jiuyi took a deep breath and fastened her seatbelt.
Shen Buyao wasn’t letting her off, so she wouldn’t let Shen Buyao off either.
Before the car started moving again,
Shen Jiuyi deadpanned:
"Sorry, you’re right. No difference at all. I should reflect."
Shen Buyao: "!!!"
Among the arriving "beloved friends and family," there was one unexpected variable.
Famous Martial Arts School.
BANG! CLANG!
Xia Yiwei struggled for a while before finally forcing the school’s heavy doors open.
The moment she stepped inside, she yelled into the empty space:
"Xia Xiashan, did water get into your brain?!"
"Not answering calls, ignoring texts?!"
"If I hadn’t called your martial arts assistants, I wouldn’t even know you were hiding here!"
"What’s wrong? Did my master beat you so badly you’re scared to show your face?"
"Xia Xiashan! I’m using your nickname now, got it?!"
"Did you even see the texts I sent you?!"
"Tonight’s apartment dinner is to celebrate my little master’s success—are you coming or not?!"
"Maomao and I are both goi—ng…"
Her voice trailed off as she froze mid-sentence.
Because in her line of sight, the first person she saw wasn’t her sister.
Instead, it was a woman in a fiery red dress, gracefully stepping out from the lounge—
Aunt Ruxue!
Xia Yiwei: "!!!"
Damn it!
She’s here already?! Without any warning?!
Is Xia Xiashan a total idiot?!
How could she not give a heads-up about something this big?!
Now I’ve walked right into the trap!
"Hehe… uh, Aunt Ruxue?!"
"Oh my god, when did you get here?"
"Ah, sis, why didn’t you tell me?!"
"I came empty-handed too…"
"Ugh, my brain!"
"Aunt Ruxue, I actually have a meeting with my department head later… I’ll come see you another time, okay?"
With that,
Xia Yiwei turned on her heel, ready to bolt.
"Yiwei, if you’re in too much of a hurry… you might not make it out that door."
BANG!
The moment Du Ruxue spoke,
someone immediately moved to shut the school’s entrance.
Xia Yiwei stood with her back to Du Ruxue, eyes squeezed shut in frustration.
This is bad. Really bad.
What dinner party tonight?
The apartment’s about to be turned upside down!
(Extra chapter delivered—more updates tomorrow!)
ap a wealthy young lady? Or else I'll be eliminated by the system? Ye Feng, who awakened the Kidnapper System, originally wanted to live a peaceful life but never imagined he would become a kidnapper of young women. However, after some time, he discovered that all the girls the system ordered him to kidnap were far from ordinary. "Big brother Ye Feng~ You've kidnapped my heart, and now you're not allowed to leave me ever again~" "Ye Feng~ You kidnapped me back then, now it's my turn to capture you♡" "Little Feng, you're mine! You can only be mine!" "Ye Feng, none of them deserve you. Only I love you the most♡" ... This is madness, they've all gone mad! Wait, what? Why are all the girls I kidnapped yanderes?!
transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
