Maomao's mind instantly went blank.
The ultimate challenge was actually "birthday party host"!
The things Aunt Ruxue mentioned were completely outside her realm of knowledge.
A birthday party... with a host...
It wasn't exactly something unheard of.
But.
Maomao's personality, style, and manner of speaking—where did any of that resemble a host?
She wasn't as socially anxious as Ye Mengfu.
But she wasn't a socially adept extrovert who was talkative in front of people either.
Seeing Maomao frozen in place, Du Ruxue added:
"Maomao, think about how to turn something you're not good at into your professional domain."
"If it's something that can't be judged by emotional intelligence or reading the room..."
"Why not rely on a program?"
Maomao's eyes immediately lit up: "!!!"
Lin Yu, standing to the side: "..."
What are you getting excited about?
That excitement is pointless.
An AI smart host?
You'd work yourself to death writing the program in one night!
Seeing Lin Yu remain silent, Du Ruxue teasingly added some unhelpful remarks:
"Of course, all of this is also contingent on Xiao Yu being willing to give you the opportunity."
"If he's not willing, then the condition for the challenge to be valid isn't met."
Lin Yu's heart sank again.
Great, just great.
Purposely only saying half of it, right?
The condition for validity isn't met... and then what!
Do we switch to a different challenge task, or does it count as a failure directly?
She doesn't even clarify that, just waits for Lin Yu himself to respond.
This is pure moral blackmail!
Facing others, Lin Yu might directly adopt the mindset of "if I have no morals, I can't be blackmailed."
But facing the pitiful little Maomao...
He really couldn't say it!
It seemed the atmosphere of tomorrow's birthday party was going to be unpredictable.
Lin Yu glanced at Aunt Qimeng behind Du Ruxue.
Du Ruxue quickly stepped forward, blocking her from view.
She gave Lin Yu no chance to make eye contact with her.
She had anticipated Lin Yu's move in advance!
So she was dead set on having Maomao host his birthday gathering, right?
At home, with the family happily eating and drinking together...
And they need a host to manage the event!
Is that necessary?
Not at all!
What kind of strange "loving family" is this?
Seeing no hope of refusal, Lin Yu could only try to maintain a calm demeanor and said:
"Aunt Ruxue, of course I have no problem with it."
"Maomao and I are so close, how could I refuse?"
"But as for Maomao's side..."
"Actually, I think this matter has nothing to do with independent living."
"If my agreement would cause trouble for Maomao, I might as well just refuse."
"If I refuse, can you assign Maomao a different challenge?"
While showing magnanimity, Lin Yu also paved the way for refusal.
Everything still depended on Maomao's reaction.
As long as Maomao grasped the meaning in Lin Yu's words and also said something like "it has nothing to do with independent living,"
Basically, Aunt Ruxue would be put on the spot!
However...
Maomao unexpectedly blurted out:
"Yu, I think it is related."
"If the previous challenges were about independent living, this challenge can be seen as integrating into a group!"
Lin Yu: "..."
Heh heh, ho ho, ha ha!
What's left to play then?
So you're the little host!
How can he, alone, compete against the mother-daughter duo?
He's purely being played with like a fool!
Is this a tower or is it gO? (Note: This appears to be a nonsensical/interjection phrase from the original, possibly a typo or internet slang. The translation preserves the original's odd phrasing.)
Du Ruxue looked at the young Lin Yu whose plan had failed, with a thoroughly confident expression.
Her eyes clearly said:
Tsk tsk tsk.
Kid, you're still too green.
Do you understand Maomao better, or do I?
How could a girl whose eyes are only on victory easily refuse a challenge?
Impossible!
"Alright, since Maomao is willing to accept this challenge."
"Tomorrow's birthday party is in your hands!"
"Aunt Qimeng, Aunt Ruxue, you should first..."
Before Lin Yu could finish his sentence about excusing himself to the bathroom,
Maomao suddenly interjected:
"Yu, please think in advance about the 'birthday person's speech' you want to give at the party."
"I'll specifically reserve a time slot for you to say a few words to everyone."
Lin Yu: "..."
Adding insult to injury?
Can't even go cool off for a bit!
She even wants to give him time for a speech?
She's really treating it as a formal event!
Might as well write the groom's speech while we're at it, since it'll come in handy later anyway.
Fine, fine, fine.
I'll temporarily note this mother-daughter pair down in my little black book.
Let's see how long they can keep this up!
The battle will only just begin once Maomao moves in for good.
After a powerful internal rant,
Lin Yu still had to say:
"No problem, just try to keep the time slot short."
"There will be so many people there tomorrow, everyone can say something."
"I suggest..."
"We could actually add some entertainment segments, like performances or something? Right?"
"It could increase the lively atmosphere, so people aren't just eating and drinking dryly."
Since he was already dragged into the water,
Then no one gets out alive!
Let's all go down together!
Isn't the birthday person the biggest deal on their day?
If the birthday person wants to see performances, shouldn't that be properly arranged?
Maomao nodded thoughtfully, seemingly taking mental notes.
Let's just see what kind of human-machine hosting Maomao can pull off once she takes on the host's role!
...
After returning to his room,
By the time Lin Yu finished washing up and getting ready, it was past midnight.
Good thing he had set his phone to vibrate mode earlier.
Otherwise,
He would have definitely been bombarded by a continuous stream of ding-dong notifications.
As soon as the clock struck midnight, messages started coming in one after another.
With only split-second differences, almost all were sent at exactly 00:00.
「Aunt Qimeng: Xiao Yu, happy 21st birthday!」
「Chi Qingshui: Happy birthday, hubby~」
「Ye Mengfu: Happy birthday, always be happy (heart)」
「Mo Shangying: Master, happy birthday, hehe!」
「Shen Buyao: Happy birthday, living Lin Yu, may you live ten thousand years (confetti)(confetti)(confetti)」
「...」
Every single person attending the birthday party sent their wishes without fail.
Looking at the string of red notification dots, Lin Yu almost didn't want to click on them.
In the world before his rebirth, there was no him.
In this world now, it's all him.
If he could have a birthday every day, how awesome would that be!
Lin Yu didn't copy-paste template replies, but responded to each one seriously.
Today, any sect friend who wanted to chat, Lin Yu didn't neglect a single one, accompanying them in conversation earnestly.
They could chat as late as they wanted!
Lin Yu had never been this diligent even during work or study.
Unconsciously, the time approached 2 a.m.
The last one, the antique shop sister who was minding the store, also urged Lin Yu to go to sleep, and they bid each other goodnight.
Lin Yu began another round of dream-entering time.
Only today,
Lin Yu particularly wished the Dream-Entering Technique could select more people.
It would be best if he could bring every sect friend who sent wishes into the dream.
...
(Second update for today, there will be an extra update later tonight, and it won't be too late today!)
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
agon king storylines. At the start, I obtained the "Ultimate Lackey System" - the more I act as a lackey, the stronger I become. What else could I do? I chose to become the personal henchman of the ultimate villain, Su Muwan. I provoke all sorts of chosen ones, snatch away their opportunities, and commit every evil deed imaginable. You ask who's behind me? Hmph! You're not worthy of knowing my lady's name! ...... ....... I am Su Muwan, the eldest daughter of the Su family. Since childhood, I've possessed extraordinary talent in martial arts, which led to my arrogant and domineering personality in my past life. I was even foolish enough to repeatedly challenge those favored by heaven, ultimately resulting in a tragic death. In this life, I must behave and absolutely cannot walk the same path again!! However... SLAP!! "So you're the Dragon King, huh?!" When I saw my little lackey swagger over and viciously slap the Dragon King who was hiding his identity, I felt my heart sink. Su Muwan's suspended heart finally died as she watched Qin Luo, her utterly loyal lackey, standing before her. She fainted on the spot from shock. Heaven is determined to destroy me!! (Pure love 1v1, light-hearted, no angst, single female lead, villain, reincarnation, lackey)
] [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!"
