From that moment on, the so-called number one underground force in the capital was completely consigned to history.
Those smaller factions also began to stir, eager to become the next "Brother Blade."
However, the authorities acted immediately to nip these ambitions in the bud, restoring a measure of light to the capital.
Dongtian Manor.
The young couple listened to the continuous reports from their subordinates, their hearts growing more at ease with each one.
Their rivals had been arrested, and Brother Blade had been "reborn."
"Is Yu Chengcai currently in charge of the Yu family?" Lin Ran inquired.
Uncle Fu nodded. "Yes, it's him. That young man, while not particularly capable, is quite resilient. He and his sister have managed to take control of the Yu family, but I doubt they can hold on for long. The Yu family's internal structure is far too complex."
Lin Ran smiled. "That kid Yu Chengqun should be returning to the Yu family soon, right?"
Yu Chengqun had been found by a search and rescue team. When asked why he was there, he refused to say.
Although it was Lin Ran who had imprisoned him, he had also brought Fang Buxia there to torture him. Telling the truth would be admitting his own guilt.
Considering he was a member of the Yu family, the rescue team didn't give him a hard time and simply let him go.
"That young man is already aware of the Yu family's situation and is rushing back in a hurry," Uncle Fu replied.
"Perfect. Just in time to stir up more chaos within the Yu family." Lin Ran closed his eyes, as if already seeing the Yu family thrown into utter turmoil.
He had intentionally let Yu Chengqun go.
Previously, he had thought of using Yu Chengqun to threaten the Yu family someday. Now that it was unnecessary, he released him to let him fight against his younger brother.
A phone rang. Luo Yao picked it up curiously, then a slight smile touched the corner of her mouth.
After hanging up, Lin Ran asked, puzzled, "Is something wrong?"
A playful smile appeared on Luo Yao's face. "That old bastard from the Chen family is stirring up trouble again."
"Chen Buhui?" Lin Ran immediately guessed who could be called an "old bastard" by Luo Yao.
Luo Yao nodded. "Indeed, but it's all trivial. I only need to lift a finger, and she will be utterly destroyed."
Luo Corporation.
Wang Fang handed a tablet to Liu Meng.
"Who would have thought today's biggest news would be about our Luo Corporation? I thought the Yu family news was explosive enough."
Liu Meng lifted her beautiful eyes to look at Wang Fang. "Don't worry, it won't be for long."
She picked up the tablet, scanned it a few times, and let out a disdainful laugh.
"This old woman's methods are as low-level as ever."
At that moment, Chen Buhui was lying comfortably in the restroom of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, feeling quite pleased with herself.
She had lost face before and had held a grudge against Luo Corporation ever since.
But back then, there was nothing she could do except wait for an opportunity. Now, that opportunity had arrived.
She discovered that Luo Corporation was using a technology invented by her team but had not paid the required patent fees to the Academy.
This was the leverage she needed. However, remembering the lesson from last time, this time she anonymously hired professional trolls to launch the attack.
The moment the incident was exposed, countless people flooded the comment sections.
Chen Buhui smiled confidently, opened her phone to read the comments, and then froze.
[Pointing to the End of Senior Sister]: Luo Corporation using Academy patents without paying? I don't believe it.
[You Who Did the Same Thing]: Who is Luo Yao? The world's number one financial magnate, wouldn't pay patent fees? What kind of joke is the blogger making?
[Pant Until Naturally Straight]: I just checked. This patent belongs to Chen Buhui's team at the Academy. This old woman really has a short memory, huh? Forgot how she was utterly disgraced last time?
[CEO Shen, Please Spare Me]: We shouldn't be so absolute, right? After all, Chen Buhui has contributed to the country. Isn't it a bit harsh to talk about her like this?
[Young People Have Abundant Energy]: Luo Corporation acts lawlessly just because they're rich, it's disgusting. They must apologize...
Chen Buhui was baffled. Why weren't more people criticizing Luo Corporation? Where were the trolls she paid for?
Was Luo Yao's credibility with the public really this high?
And her identity was exposed so easily? This generation of netizens investigates way too fast.
You people aren't quick to make money, find partners, or get married, but you're lightning fast when it comes to digging up gossip about others.
The declining national birth rate is all your fault.
Chen Buhui dialed a number. "I told you to hire trolls to smear Luo Corporation!"
"Have you seen the current scale of this issue? The few trolls you bought were drowned out long ago," came the impatient voice on the other end.
"What do you mean? You took the money but didn't do the job?" Chen Buhui was furious.
The voice on the phone shot back, "You get what you pay for. The effect you got is exactly what that amount of money buys. If you want better results, pay more."
Chen Buhui's face darkened with rage. She felt scammed but had no good way to resolve it.
"How much more do you want?"
A calm voice sounded from the phone. "Another ten million, and I'll ramp up the trolling efforts for you."
"Ten million? Are you out of your mind?"
"No choice. The other side is Luo Corporation. Many people aren't willing to take the job. If you don't want to pay, then I can only apologize."
Chen Buhui roared into the receiver, "Go to hell!"
After cursing, she hung up, fuming alone.
She was angry at the other party's shamelessness, at the netizens' blindness, at every person in Luo Corporation, and even more so at herself for not having ten million.
Suddenly, the door to the restroom was pushed open. The president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences appeared.
"Chen Buhui, you are hereby notified that your status as Chief Expert of the Academy is revoked. All your research projects are suspended pending investigation."
Chen Buhui felt as if struck by lightning. "Why? Investigate me for what?"
The old president looked deeply at Chen Buhui and finally sighed.
"You'd better take care of yourself."
Chen Buhui was stunned. She hurriedly went to find out the reason, and then, her world collapsed.
#Chen Buhui's Team Steals Patents# EXPLODES#
The entity releasing this news wasn't just any ordinary blogger, but the official account of Luo Corporation.
[Luo Corporation: The hard-earned research achievement, painstakingly developed over thirteen years by a leading scholar from our company's scientific research team, was stolen at the final stage by a certain expert with the surname C from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Due to the meticulousness of the other party's actions at the time, the chain of evidence was incomplete. After verification by our company's legal department, the theft by the said expert with surname C from the Academy has now been confirmed. Our company has initiated legal proceedings, vowing to protect the rights and interests of our scholar...]
Following this was the complete chain of evidence for Chen Buhui's theft of the research results.
This post ignited the entire internet.
Chen Buhui's eyes widened in disbelief. She never imagined the things she had done in the past could be exposed so thoroughly.
At the same time, Chen Lin's call came through.
"Brother?"
There was a pause from Chen Lin on the other end. "Sister, did you do this?"
Chen Buhui remained silent, and Chen Lin understood. He sighed helplessly.
"Ah... Don't call me brother. You've disappointed me too much."

] [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!"

young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."

close your eyes and open them again, only to find yourself transmigrated into the role of a villainous male supporting character. Readers familiar with urban wish-fulfillment novels know that it is only through the relentless antics of the villainous male supporting character that the plot between the male and female leads can progress. As the villainous male supporting character, Long Aotian not only has to bully the female lead, harass the second female lead, and flirt with the third female lead, but he also has to go all out to antagonize the male lead. In the end, when his body is discovered, he is still clutching half a moldy fried dough stick in his hand. Fully aware of the plot, Long Aotian is determined to change his fate, starting with the female lead! In the beginning, the female lead lacks confidence: "Big brother, I hope I didn't scare you?" In the middle, the female lead treads carefully: "Brother Long, please don't hit me, okay?" Later on, the female lead becomes coquettishly clingy: "Aotian, it's time to pay the 'public grain' tonight." Long Aotian's legs go weak, and he feels like crying: "I taught you to be thick-skinned, not shameless!"

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.”