Shen Jiuyi looked at the effect of the archer's ring on Lin Yu's hand.
Her expression remained calm as she said:
"Lin Yu, you might not know its origins."
Lin Yu agreed, saying:
"You can skip that kind of obvious nonsense."
"If I knew its origins, why would I even ask you?"
"If I actually knew the history of your family's things, wouldn't that be even stranger?"
Hearing Shen Jiuyi say this, Lin Yu knew his guess was correct.
This jade-inlaid-with-gold archer's ring had more to it.
It most likely had intricate connections to Ghost Market Street or the Shen family.
Shen Jiuyi pointed at the ring and said:
"Lin Yu, do you see it? There's a golden bean on the jade archer's ring."
"This craft is called 'jade inlaid with gold.' It's different from the commonly heard 'gold inlaid with jade'—the techniques are not the same."
Lin Yu responded:
"Understood. The craftsmanship is much more complex. I've heard of that little bit of common knowledge."
Shen Jiuyi: "Oh, so you have heard of it."
Lin Yu: "Mhm. Get to the point."
Shen Jiuyi: "That's it."
Lin Yu: "That's it?"
Shen Jiuyi blinked: "Yes."
Lin Yu blinked back: "Yes... So it's just a plain archer's ring."
Shen Jiuyi fell silent for a moment, then asked in return:
"Does it have some other fancy name in your hometown?"
Lin Yu raised his voice, saying with annoyance:
"In anyone's hometown, it's called an archer's ring! A big ring!"
"No backstory?"
"Then why were you being so mysterious, saying 'you might not know its origins'?"
"You had me thinking this thing was some kind of token."
Shen Jiuyi gave a thumbs-up, gripping it with her other hand, and said:
"It's not a token. The reason I chose to give you this archer's ring is..."
"I thought its size would fit your thumb perfectly."
Lin Yu: "..."
That reason was very much in Shen Jiuyi's style.
Especially paired with her poker face that showed no change in expression no matter what she said.
The effect was instantly maximized!
Lin Yu's temper was also about to max out!
With too many girls around lately, it's really hard to keep the fire in check!
"Xiao Jiu, please stop that unseemly gesture."
"Anyway, thank you for the gift. The size really does fit me perfectly."
"I'll wear it often. Thanks, thanks."
"Now it's my turn to return the favor!"
As he spoke.
Lin Yu squatted down, stacked the two boxes together, and began writing a greeting card for Shen Jiuyi.
...
[Are you a clear spring in the vast world, or that mysterious peacock by the spring?]
[Before meeting your soul, let greed take advantage of the fire.]
Shen Jiuyi looked at the words on the card, wanting to ponder their meaning.
Little did she know.
Years later, this would become a somewhat popular song, though not widely sung.
Back in elementary and middle school, Lin Yu had copied lyrics into his notebooks plenty of times.
Who would have thought.
He'd still be copying lyrics in university!
"Xiao Jiu, where is your companion hiding on the third floor?"
"She's not in a dangerous place like the small balcony, is she?"
Lin Yu pointed towards the direction of the small balcony outside the corridor.
That could be considered one of the apartment's few "forbidden zones"!
Because the space was small and the railing was somewhat loose, it had never been repaired.
So, the door to the small balcony was always closed, and no one ever went up there.
Just because people usually didn't go didn't mean no one would today.
Shen Jiuyi averted her gaze and said:
"Companion? I don't have a companion. I don't know what you're talking about."
Lin Yu couldn't help but complain:
"Xiao Jiu, if you can't lie, just don't lie next time."
"Your lying skills are truly terrible."
"Or do you really think I'm an idiot?"
"You didn't have a companion helping you? Did the two boxes fly up there by themselves?"
Shen Jiuyi knew Lin Yu would bring this up and hung her head in shame.
She just had to make one attempt for the sake of her "teammate."
What if Lin Yu didn't notice?
Seeing Shen Jiuyi's reaction, Lin Yu knew his judgment was correct.
There really was someone bold enough to go to the dangerous small balcony.
Come to think of it.
There weren't many people in the apartment with that kind of courage!
"Technician Xiao Jiu, go wait for me on the first floor."
"I'll take responsibility for bringing the person back safely. I won't let anything happen to her."
Lin Yu pointed towards the staircase and swaggered off.
Leaving Shen Jiuyi alone in a state of disarray.
...
Arriving near the small balcony.
Lin Yu didn't need to search very carefully at all.
The unlocked door... the deliberately drawn curtain... the clearly outlined silhouette of an airport behind the curtain...
Every detail exuded the foolish aura of "protesting one's innocence too much."
This wasn't hide-and-seek; it was an intelligence test!
"Ahem, I'm here. Some people should be careful, try not to get scared."
"It's best to come out right now, and everyone will be happy!"
Lin Yu walked step by step, deliberately raising his voice to make noise.
He was afraid the genius behind the curtain might get a sudden fright and have some kind of extreme reaction.
The third-floor balcony was no joke!
Even if it wouldn't kill someone, the possibility of causing a serious injury was still high.
Lin Yu's "kind reminder" seemed, in the other person's eyes, more like "bluffing."
Because through the shadow, Lin Yu clearly saw the girl covering her mouth, laughing!
She showed no intention of coming out and was still watching the show?
Lin Yu was baffled.
Who should be laughing at whom here?
Why is she laughing?
It seemed the indirect approach wouldn't get her to come out.
So.
Lin Yu switched to another tactic...
He went to the balcony door and took a photo of that large, clear silhouette.
Then, quickly sent it to Shen Buyao.
"Ding!"
The WeChat message notification sounded incredibly clear.
Lin Yu: "..."
Playing this kind of game and not even setting the phone to vibrate.
So unprofessional!
Immediately after.
"Buzz!"
The vibration sound came from the balcony again.
Lin Yu: "..."
What's the use of setting it to vibrate now?
You're already exposed!
Lin Yu didn't do anything extra, just stood there waiting.
Because from the shadow's feedback, Shen Buyao was already looking at her phone.
"Wow! That clear?"
"The sunlight is totally cheating right now, it completely gave me away."
"Lin Yu, I'm telling you, if it weren't for the sunlight betraying me, you absolutely would not have found me."
Shen Buyao said this as she walked back from the balcony.
Lin Yu didn't refute Shen Buyao's words, simply reminding her:
"Can you not go to such dangerous places next time?"
Shen Buyao spread her hands, completely unconcerned, and said:
"Dangerous? Just how big is your courage, Lin Yu?"
"It's just an ordinary balcony. I'm not scared at all."
Lin Yu cut in:
"You're not scared, but I am!"
Shen Buyao was stunned for a moment, then gradually blushed...
...
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!
for mindless slaughter, this isn't for you.] My name is Ye Shu, and I'm a transmigrator. It seems I'm supposed to be the protagonist, but that feels pretty unlikely. This world has been invaded by a system. The antagonists on the other side have suddenly become pure, flawless saints. The female leads have been force-fed the so-called "original plot," making them think they've been reborn. Now, everyone thinks I'm scum. Including the old lady in my ring. And here I am, in the Monster Beast Mountain Range, braising pork. To put my situation in perspective— It's as if, the moment Xiao Yan stepped into the Monster Beast Mountain Range, the Soul Emperor already knew he would become the Flame Emperor, and Yao Lao had been turned to the enemy's side. I have nothing right now. Oh wait, that's not true. I do have a white-haired loli child-bride who's the Heavenly Dao, and her only skill is acting cute. So, tell me guys... what are my chances of making it to the end?
] This is a dark fantasy-themed dating simulation game. The main gameplay involves containing various monster girls and investigating the truth of a world shrouded in mist alongside your companions. However, due to his love for the dark and bizarre atmosphere, Luo Wei ended up turning a dating game into a detective mystery game. Women? Women only slow down his quickdraw! To Luo Wei, the female leads in the game are more like tools to perfectly clear levels and squeeze out rewards. For Luo Wei, flirting with every girl he meets and then discarding them is standard procedure. Worried about characters losing affection points? No need. With his maxed-out charm stat, Luo Wei is practically a "human incubus." A little psychological manipulation and those points come right back. It's a bit scummy, but the paper cutout heroines in the game won't actually come at him with real cleavers. However... Luo Wei has transmigrated. He's accidentally entered the second playthrough of this game. His past actions have caused all the girls to transform into terrifying yanderes. Due to the game's setting, most of the heroines he once contained are "troubled girls." Obsessive, twisted, mentally unstable, all aggressive yanderes... The type who will kill you if they can't have you... Luo Wei wants to cry but has no tears left. "I really just want to survive..." In short, this is a story of battling wits and engaging in a love-hate relationship with 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.”
