One faction firmly believed Lin Ran was being kept as a sugar baby.
Another faction, led by the stubbornly optimistic "Warmth," opposed this view.
Of course, the vast majority were just spectators, siding with whoever seemed stronger at the moment and pitying the underdog.
Just as the three sides were locked in heated debate, the school administration stepped in.
[School Announcement: Discussions about Lin Ran are prohibited on the forum.]
The main issue was that many had crossed the line from discussion to outright vulgar insults—so many that deletions couldn’t keep up.
The system’s profanity filter was about as effective as a stroke patient, completely failing to catch the coded slurs.
Soon after, Principal Tang called Lin Ran directly.
After listening for a moment, Lin Ran finally understood.
"Oh, you mean the stuff about me and Luo Yao? Don’t worry, I’m not bothered. Besides, it’s all true… What? They’re insulting me? Tell them to bring it on. I’ll shut them down hard."
"Relax, my comebacks aren’t that crude, but they’ll hit harder than theirs… No, no, I won’t get banned."
With Lin Ran’s reassurances, Principal Tang felt at ease.
His real concern wasn’t Lin Ran being insulted—it was the possibility of angering the powerful figure backing Lin Ran.
That woman was fiercely protective, something Principal Tang knew all too well.
After hanging up, Lin Ran logged into the forum and became a virtuoso of online verbal combat.
But as he fired off retorts, he suddenly frowned.
"Warmth"? Who the hell was this?
Why was this random person suddenly speaking up for him? Did he even need their defense?
Damn well-intentioned troublemaker. If he ever found out who this was, he’d shove their head into a sewer drain and let them play staring contests with rats.
[@Warmth, who asked you to speak for me? Drop your address—I’ll mail you some "local specialties"...]
After Lin Ran posted that, "Warmth" vanished from the forum, never to return.
Lin Ran quickly grew bored.
The forum was full of amateurs—no challenge at all.
Three days flew by, and by Friday, Wu Zhishang and the team finally wrapped up filming, conveniently avoiding intruding on Lin Ran and Luo Yao’s weekend getaway.
Lin Ran was pleased with their work, and someone suggested he treat the crew to dinner as thanks for their considerate timing.
After a moment’s thought—Luo Yao had mentioned eating out tonight anyway—Lin Ran agreed without hesitation.
The venue? The Pangu Hotel.
Beijing’s only seven-star establishment.
The announcement sparked excited gasps. Lin Ran arranged things with Ye Lingling and led the group there.
Little did he know just how explosive the evening would turn out to be.
Upon arrival, Lin Ran had Ye Lingling take everyone inside while he and Wu Zhishang parked.
Returning to the entrance, they encountered a walking cliché of a man blocking their path.
Both froze. This guy looked familiar.
Their high school classmate—Shi Nanci.
Not just a classmate, but Lin Ran’s "rival," having also been a devoted lapdog to Liu Ruxue.
Liu Ruxue’s greatest talent? Stringing along admirers like a pro.
"Well, well, if it isn’t our school heartthrob. What, working a side gig here?"
Lin Ran and Wu Zhishang exchanged glances.
Yep. Definitely him.
Shi Nanci deliberately flashed the three-pointed star key fob on his belt.
After high school, he’d dropped out to start a business. Against all odds, this academic failure had actually scraped together some success, becoming a "small-time" entrepreneur.
This year, he’d even managed to finance an eighth-hand flood-damaged Mercedes and planned to impress his former crush here tonight.
Said crush? Liu Ruxue, naturally.
"Shi Nanci? What are you doing here?" Wu Zhishang asked, puzzled.
"Surprised? Back then, you all looked down on me. Now you’re here to serve me."
Taking in Wu Zhishang’s plain clothes and Lin Ran’s no-brand outfit, Shi Nanci concluded they’d fallen on hard times.
"You two work here, right? Go fetch your manager. Is this how you treat guests? No greetings, nothing."
He still thought they were part-time staff.
Lin Ran rubbed his temples.
This was too clichéd, too low-stakes. Such crude bravado didn’t even warrant his attention.
He wasn’t about to stoop to this eye-rollingly bad drama.
"Your turn to handle this," Lin Ran muttered, walking past.
Wu Zhishang was torn between laughter and facepalming.
"Shi Nanci, Shi Nanci… what even is there to say? Do you have any idea who Lin Ran is? He owns this hotel."
No beating around the bush—straight to the point.
Shi Nanci blinked, then burst out laughing.
"Hah! What nonsense is this? Do you even know where we are? This is the Pangu Hotel!"
Wu Zhishang waved over a security guard—one who immediately approached, recognizing him as the boss’s associate.
"Tell him. Who owns this place?"
The guard hesitated but answered, "That would be Mr. Lin Ran, who just walked in."
Wu Zhishang gave Shi Nanci a pitying look and clapped him on the shoulder.
"Some say Heath Ledger’s Joker was the best. Others say Joaquin Phoenix’s. But we all know the truth, my friend—you’re the real clown here."
With that, he walked off, leaving Shi Nanci gaping.
Lin Ran would’ve scolded him for wasting a perfect chance to humiliate the guy properly—maybe even have him thrown out. But Wu Zhishang just… let it go.
Meanwhile, Shi Nanci’s mind reeled.
"No way…"
Lin Ran was just the Lin family’s unwanted outcast. How could he own a place like this?
This had to be fake.
After struggling for years to achieve his modest success, was he really just a joke compared to Lin Ran?
Before he could process this, Liu Ruxue arrived.
"Nanci, sorry to keep you waiting. Why are you just standing there?"
Liu Ruxue gazed at the Pangu Hotel, memories flooding back—of the time Lin Ran had utterly crushed her pride here.
"Oh! R-Ruxue! Let’s head in. Did you know? This is the finest hotel in Beijing."
lities. One day, Qi Yuan was buying groceries when he unfortunately came face-to-face with a monster. Just when he thought he was going to die on the spot, he suddenly heard the monster's thoughts... "This aura, he's definitely not an ordinary master!" "So terrifying, so terrifying." "A fight with my back against the wall, I can't take it anymore." Qi Yuan: Ah, no one told me that my awakened ability isn't telepathy, but rather the stronger my enemies imagine me to be, the stronger I truly become. PS: Zhou Hai in the first chapter is not the protagonist.
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.
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?
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
