"Little Xuan, could you step outside for a moment? I'd like to talk to Ling'er alone," Chen Hong asked.
"Alright."
Lin Xuan left the hospital room, giving Chen Hong and his daughter Chen Ling some privacy.
"Dad, what did you want to say?" Chen Ling held Chen Hong's hand.
Chen Hong spoke weakly, "Ling'er, I know you like Little Xuan."
Chen Ling pressed her lips together.
Of course she liked Lin Xuan. He was outstanding and handsome—it was only natural for her to have feelings for him.
Besides, they had grown up together. As children, they'd even promised to marry each other someday.
In this lifetime, she would marry no one but Lin Xuan.
Sure, another woman had gotten to him first, but that didn’t matter. Lin Xuan would eventually break up with her.
And then, he would be hers.
"But Ling'er," Chen Hong said weakly, "Lin Xuan and his girlfriend are deeply in love. They won’t separate, and there’s no future for you and him."
"Ling'er, listen to your father. Let go of Lin Xuan and live your own life."
"My daughter is so talented and beautiful—plenty of men will adore you. You don’t need to cling to Lin Xuan alone."
With Lin Xuan looking after her, as long as Ling'er didn’t cross his boundaries, she would live a very comfortable life.
"Dad," Chen Ling said, pressing her lips together, "I can agree to anything else, but not this."
"Ling'er, listen to me!" Chen Hong suddenly grew agitated.
"Dad!" Chen Ling’s emotions flared as well. "Why are you so against me being with Lin Xuan? He’s such a good, amazing person. If I marry him, I’ll be happy. Do you really not want to see me happy?"
"Chen Ling!" Chen Hong’s chest heaved violently. "He already has someone he loves! The two of you can never be together!"
An image of Su Hua flashed in Chen Ling’s mind.
That vixen!
A surge of intense jealousy burned in her eyes.
Gritting her teeth, she said, "So what if he has a girlfriend? They’ll break up eventually, and I’ll be the one to take her place!"
"If she refuses to leave, I’ll make sure Lin Xuan dumps her."
"You—you—!"
Chen Hong pointed a trembling finger at Chen Ling, his anger making him shake uncontrollably.
Then, with one last gasp, he stopped breathing.
His eyes remained wide open, as if he had died with unresolved regrets.
"Dad?" Chen Ling froze.
She stared at Chen Hong in disbelief for a long moment before hesitantly reaching out to check his breath.
Nothing.
Not a single trace of life.
Dad… was gone.
The realization hit her like a tidal wave. Panicked, she bolted out of the room.
Lin Xuan was waiting nearby.
Chen Ling rushed up to him, her eyes red and voice trembling.
"Lin Xuan… Dad, he…"
"What happened to Director Chen?" Lin Xuan asked urgently. "Take your time."
"Dad… he’s dead," Chen Ling sobbed.
Lin Xuan immediately ran into the room and saw Chen Hong’s lifeless body, his cloudy eyes still open.
Hands shaking, Lin Xuan checked his pulse.
His face paled.
He was really gone.
Gently, Lin Xuan closed Chen Hong’s eyes.
"Lin Xuan, what do I do now?" Chen Ling cried. "I don’t have a dad anymore."
Lin Xuan spoke solemnly, "Chen Ling, don’t torment yourself. Your father wouldn’t want to see you in so much pain. You need to grieve properly."
Tears continued to stream down Chen Ling’s face.
"Lin Xuan, I’m in so much pain right now… Can I just lean on your shoulder for a bit?" she pleaded between sobs.
Lin Xuan frowned and refused coldly, "No."
If Su Hua found out another woman had cried on his shoulder, he’d be locked in the "dark room" again.
He couldn’t afford even a hint of ambiguity with anyone else.
But seeing how devastated Chen Ling was, he softened his tone slightly.
"If you really need to cry, you can…"
Chen Ling’s eyes lit up.
Was Lin Xuan actually going to let her lean on him?
If so, that meant he still had some affection for her.
Maybe there was still hope for them after all.
Lin Xuan paused, scanning the room before finishing his sentence.
"You can cry at the table."
Chen Ling stiffened.
Lin Xuan added, "I’ll go take care of the arrangements for Director Chen. You should stay here and spend some time with him."
Chen Ling’s heart sank, and fresh tears spilled over.
She had thought Lin Xuan would comfort her—but no, he’d told her to cry alone at a table.
Did he really despise her that much?
Lin Xuan left the room and quickly sent a message to Su Hua.
Hua Bao, Director Chen has passed away. I need to stay and handle the funeral arrangements. I’ll be home late.
Once Lin Xuan was gone, Chen Ling stood frozen in the room, staring at her father’s cold body.
The memory of his wide, unseeing eyes sent a chill down her spine.
Too afraid to stay alone, she hurried out of the room.
---
Su Corporation
Su Hua read Lin Xuan’s message, her eyes narrowing dangerously.
Director Chen—the head of the orphanage.
She remembered him well. The last time she and Lin Xuan had visited, his daughter had shamelessly flirted with him.
She’d even confronted Su Hua, demanding she leave Lin Xuan.
And now, was Lin Xuan alone with that Chen Ling?
She wanted nothing more than to drag him back home.
Su Hua lowered her gaze.
But… she couldn’t.
The orphanage director had been important to Lin Xuan. If she forced him to return, it would only create a rift between them.
A dark, seething rage simmered in her eyes.
Another executive approached to report on his department’s monthly performance.
There had been a few minor slip-ups, but nothing major.
These past few days—today included—Lin Xuan had been by Su Hua’s side constantly, keeping her in a good mood.
With such trivial issues, surely she wouldn’t punish him.
"President Su," the executive said confidently, handing her the report. "Here’s this month’s summary. Please take a look."
Su Hua accepted the file and began flipping through it.
Her brows suddenly furrowed.
The executive remained unfazed.
President Su was in high spirits—she wouldn’t make a big deal out of this.
Then—
A cold, mocking laugh escaped her lips.
Yan Xi reminds you: Due to Tomato’s request for 3 million+ daily updates, server pressure has skyrocketed. We now recommend switching to other sources.
iemie, male, Race: Moon. Hobby: Collecting anomalies. At first, he thought he possessed two systems: the Crimson Rainbow Moon and the Clear Cold Frost Moon. One day, he discovered that he himself could also become a system for others, holding the chessboard of fate. The Eighth Epoch, also known as the Eternal Moon Epoch. Humans, witches, elves, bloodline descendants, specters, demons, and spirits together compose a new history. Walking the path on behalf of the moon, before he knew it, Chen Miemie's footsteps were followed by all manner of strange and wondrous anomalies. As time passed, many titles circulated about him—The King in Yellow, Lord of Anomalies, Heart of the Eternal Moon, and more. "Me? I'm just a traveler who enjoys collecting interesting creatures," Chen Miemie said.
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.”
] 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.
pression Bureau] Transported to a fantasy world overrun by demons and monsters, Gu Qingfeng becomes a jailer in the Demon Suppression Prison of the Great Yan Dynasty's Demon Suppression Bureau. From this point on, bizarre cases frequently occur in the Demon Suppression Prison, once known as hell on earth and infamous for its gloomy, terrifying atmosphere! Why do the demons and monsters in the prison wail miserably every night? Why has the corpse demon, capable of transforming into various beauties, donned black stockings and switched careers to become a foot massage therapist? Why has the eye demon, expert in soul-snatching and illusions, turned into a VR headset? Why is the fox spirit performing otaku dances? Are all these occurrences a twisted expression of demonic nature, or a descent into moral depravity? After peeling away layer upon layer of mystery, all clues ultimately point to a jailer named Gu Qingfeng. Gu Qingfeng: "Hehehe... My dear demons and monsters, whose card shall we flip today?"
