"Young Master Lin, our Golden Dragon Gang has plenty of ways to torture people—like whipping them, branding them with red-hot iron, pulling out nails..." Wang Ba enthusiastically listed them off.
With each method Wang Ba described, Lin Li's body trembled.
Lin Xuan glanced at Wang Ba. "Been watching too many palace dramas?"
Wang Ba scratched his head sheepishly. "I have been a bit obsessed with palace intrigue novels lately. Those women scheming against each other is really entertaining. When I read them, I imagine myself as the emperor, watching them fight for my favor."
"Let me tell you, there’s this author called 'Xuan Without a Car' who writes amazing palace dramas."
Lin Xuan raised an eyebrow.
Who would’ve thought he had fans everywhere?
Wang Ba gritted his teeth as he continued, "The only problem with this guy’s novels is that he keeps cliffhanging and updates so slowly. Those 4,000 words feel like they’re squeezed out like constipation."
"Too bad I don’t know who he is. If I did, I’d have the Golden Dragon Gang drag him here and force him to write under supervision."
Lin Xuan rubbed his nose.
Yeah…
For the sake of his freedom, it was better Wang Ba never found out he was 'Xuan Without a Car.'
Lin Xuan stroked his chin.
Still, those torture methods from palace dramas were pretty effective—agonizing enough to make someone wish for death, but not actually lethal.
"Lin Li." Lin Xuan stood from his chair and walked over to Lin Li. He smirked. "I won’t use those methods just yet. I’ve been practicing martial arts lately, so I’ll use you as my training dummy."
Slowly, Lin Xuan rolled up his sleeves.
Lin Li knew there was no escaping his torment. He forced himself to stay composed.
The more pain he showed, the more satisfaction Lin Xuan would get.
He couldn’t let Lin Xuan see him suffer.
Thud!
Lin Xuan’s fist slammed into Lin Li’s stomach, forcing a grunt from him.
Thud!
Another punch landed on Lin Li’s left eye, leaving a red, panda-like bruise.
Lin Xuan had a touch of OCD—so for symmetry, he gave Lin Li’s right eye the same treatment.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Fist after fist rained down on Lin Li.
Watching from the side, Wang Ba winced at the brutality. To avoid accidental stray punches, he quietly shuffled further away.
Gotta admit, Lin Li was one tough guy—taking all that without a single cry of pain.
Wang Ba couldn’t help but admire him inwardly.
——
Grandpa Jiang had never forgotten the debt he owed his savior. Once his health improved, he personally went to deliver his thanks.
Unable to locate Lin Xuan’s residence, he only knew the man ran a company called Tianmu Group. So, he headed there with gifts in tow.
"General Manager!" A secretary rushed into Lei Hui’s office. "Grandpa Jiang is here!"
"Grandpa Jiang?" Lei Hui frowned. "Which Grandpa Jiang?"
"The former chairman of Jiang Corporation," the secretary clarified.
Lei Hui was even more confused.
Jiang Corporation’s wealth only ranked sixth in the country, but their collaborations with the government elevated their status—second only to Su Corporation.
Tianmu Group and Jiang Corporation had never crossed paths before.
Why would Grandpa Jiang come in person?
Lei Hui hurried downstairs to greet them.
"Grandpa Jiang," he said respectfully.
This man had served in the military and government before retiring to take over the family business. Given his contributions, even high-ranking officials had to show him respect.
"May I ask what brings you to Tianmu Group?" Lei Hui inquired politely.
Grandpa Jiang smiled warmly. "I’m here to see a young man named Lin Xuan. Is he here?"
"Our chairman isn’t in the office today," Lei Hui replied.
Grandpa Jiang explained, "Due to my condition, my granddaughters have been strict with my diet. That day, I slipped away from my bodyguards to visit a street food stall."
"Unfortunately, I had an episode. If not for Young Master Lin’s help, this old man might’ve passed away that day."
Jiang Manting, Grandpa Jiang’s eldest granddaughter, who was supporting him, added, "Today, my grandfather and I came to personally thank Mr. Lin."
Lei Hui: "!!!"
He knew about his boss saving someone—after all, Lin Qingxiu had been kicked out of the hospital over it.
But he never imagined that person was Grandpa Jiang!
His boss had become the Jiang family’s benefactor!
This was huge!
"These are our gifts to Young Master Lin as thanks," Jiang Manting said, gesturing to the items carried by over a dozen bodyguards behind her.
At her signal, the bodyguards opened the boxes.
Lei Hui was nearly blinded by the contents.
A fist-sized chunk of imperial jade, antique paintings, vases, checks—the total value had to be in the hundreds of millions.
Truly, the Jiang family spared no expense!
"Besides these gifts, our family also offers Young Master Lin one wish."
Jiang Manting pointed to a jade pendant in one of the boxes. "This is our family heirloom. Should Young Master Lin ever have a request, as long as it’s within our power, we’ll fulfill it."
"I’ll call our chairman right away," Lei Hui said. This was too important not to inform him immediately.
——
Lin Xuan was in the middle of thoroughly enjoying beating up Lin Li when Lei Hui’s call came through.
"What is it?" Lin Xuan’s voice was icy.
"Boss," Lei Hui said respectfully, "Grandpa Jiang just paid us a visit."
"Jiang Liangjun? Chairman of Jiang Corporation?"
"Yes, him!" Lei Hui couldn’t hide his excitement. "Boss, do you realize? The person you saved during the Lin Qingxiu incident—it was him!"
"I know," Lin Xuan said flatly.
Lei Hui paused. "You knew?"
"You think I’d do something without benefits?" Lin Xuan countered.
In his past life, Qin Ruoyao had risen to fame in the entertainment industry.
She painted him as worthless, and the public backlash was relentless—people even hurled insults at him on the streets.
That life had hardened his heart.
If someone was useless to him, he wouldn’t lift a finger to help.
Lei Hui fell silent.
Fair enough. After everything his boss endured in the Lin family, it made sense he’d be ruthless.
"Boss," Lei Hui continued, "He came to thank you in person—brought gifts worth hundreds of millions. And he left a jade pendant, promising the Jiang family would grant you one wish if you ever need it."
"Mm." Lin Xuan nodded.
Seemed the Jiang family knew how to repay favors. If Jiang Liangjun ever needed medical help again, he wouldn’t mind assisting.
A favor from the Jiang family wasn’t something easily obtained.
"Boss, should you come to the office to meet Grandpa Jiang?" Lei Hui asked.
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!
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!
transmigrates into the role of a villainous rich second-generation kid in an urban fantasy novel, and gets bound to a god-tier choice system. Right at the start, he catches the female lead stealing exam papers! This triggers the villain's choice options! [Choice 1: Pretend you didn't see anything] [Choice 2: Loudly call her out, drawing everyone's attention] [Choice 3: ...] And thus, a twisted villain is born. To avoid getting killed by the protagonist, he has no choice but to take down all the protagonists first. Jiang Che: Nobody understands being twisted better than me!
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?!
