The Ye Family.
After having his fun, Ye Wangchuan swaggered back home.
Upon entering, he saw a middle-aged man sitting in the main hall, practicing calligraphy.
The man wore a dusty straw hat on his head, tattered clothes on his body, and worn-out straw sandals on his feet. Beside him lay a well-aged fishing rod.
He looked rather unkempt and shabby.
However, his physique was well-maintained. Despite his middle-aged appearance, his muscles were as finely sculpted as if carved by knife and chisel.
Yet this shabby-looking man was none other than the patriarch of the entire Ye family, named Ye Zhentian.
He was also Ye Wangchuan's father in this world.
"Well, well, old man, not going fishing today? What's with the calligraphy instead?"
Ye Wangchuan walked in and pulled up a chair next to Ye Zhentian.
"You're back early, little rascal. I thought you'd be out until nightfall."
Ye Zhentian replied casually.
Ye Wangchuan shrugged helplessly and peered at what Ye Zhentian was writing.
[Congratulations to my son Ye Wangchuan for achieving 99th rank talent! Congratulations! Congratulations! Congratulations!]
"Uh..."
Ye Wangchuan's mouth twitched as he spoke incredulously.
"Isn't the Heaven Rank Talent Awakening supposed to start tomorrow? How can you be so sure I'll get 99th rank?"
"Hmph, if you don't achieve 99th rank, don't bother staying in the Ye family."
After speaking, Ye Zhentian pulled out a ring from his pocket and tossed it to Ye Wangchuan.
Ye Wangchuan caught the ring and examined it.
It was a spatial storage ring, capable of storing items in another dimension.
A perfect equipment for villains to drop gold coins.
After checking the contents inside the spatial ring, Ye Wangchuan said cheerfully.
"Wow, old man, you really went all out this time."
"I just don't want you to embarrass me. Now go prepare yourself. If you don't perform well at tomorrow's Heaven Rank Talent Awakening, you'll see how I deal with you!"
Ye Zhentian put away his calligraphy with a stern face and walked back to his bedroom.
Once inside his bedroom, he finally broke into a smug smile.
"Haha! Old Liu, you think your son can outdo mine? Let's see how you compare this time! Hahaha!"
...
...
The next day.
Chang'an City, city center.
At this moment, Chang'an City was extraordinarily lively, with streams of carriages and seas of people.
The reason was simple.
The annual Heaven Rank Talent Awakening was about to begin.
Like in other fantasy worlds, the Heaven Rank Talent Awakening was, naturally, a test of one's innate talent.
In this world, humans weren't born with the ability to cultivate.
Everyone had to wait until they were 18 years old to participate in the Heaven Rank Talent Awakening and awaken their talent before they could begin cultivation.
Forcing cultivation without awakening one's talent would only result in self-destruction of one's meridians.
Ye Wangchuan sat on the highest floor of a wooden building, looking down at the crowd.
"Young Master, here's the list of participants with surnames Su, Lin, Qin, and Xiao."
A guard approached and handed over a list.
Ye Wangchuan took the list and examined it carefully.
"Keep a close eye on these two called Lin Fan and Xiao Fan."
"Also watch Qin Tian and Su Chen."
"Pay attention to anyone with these four surnames who uses a sword as their weapon."
"Oh, and if anyone's named Dragon Proud Heaven, let me know immediately."
After pointing out some names and making arrangements, Ye Wangchuan continued watching the crowd below.
There was only one requirement to participate in the Heaven Rank Talent Awakening.
Being eighteen years old.
As long as you were over eighteen, regardless of gender, wealth, status, or background, you could participate in the Heaven Rank Talent Awakening.
This was done firstly to include some lower-class people to highlight how superior the upper class's talents were.
Although talent wasn't something easily altered.
Upper-class people generally had better talent, and their children naturally inherited good talent.
Secondly, it was to prevent potential geniuses from being overlooked.
But now, Ye Wangchuan didn't think this was such a good thing anymore.
Too many protagonists had risen to prominence through talent testing.
Genius-type protagonists would be recruited by powerful sects.
Even trash-type protagonists would catch the eye of some powerful expert.
"Maybe I should get the old man to change the Heaven Rank Talent Awakening's entry requirements next year, make the registration fee 500 silver coins?"
500 silver coins equaled 50,000 copper coins.
Ye Wangchuan had calculated that 10 copper coins in this world had roughly the same purchasing power as one yuan on Blue Star.
In other words, 500 silver coins were equivalent to 50,000 yuan on Blue Star.
This registration fee would be enough to filter out protagonists from fallen and poor families.
As Ye Wangchuan was thinking, his eyes suddenly focused on something unusual below.
He spotted a small figure darting through the crowd.
"Hey, you, go buy me twenty bundles of the best ox tendon rope."
Ye Wangchuan ordered a guard.
...
...
At the registration area.
Li Luo squeezed through the crowd, clearly displeased.
Not getting the best reward last time had left her in a funk for quite a while.
But regardless, she still had to come for the Heaven Rank Talent Awakening test.
After all, without awakening one's talent, cultivation was impossible.
Missing this year's Heaven Rank Talent Awakening meant waiting another year to awaken her talent.
That would be wasting a whole year of cultivation time.
As she was thinking, it was Li Luo's turn to register.
"What's your name?"
"Li Luo."
"From the Li family?"
"No. I was abandoned under a plum tree, that's why I'm called Li Luo."
The guard nodded and was about to let her through.
But seeing Li Luo's 139cm height and petite frame, he inquired further.
"Are you sure you're eighteen? Don't say I didn't warn you, those under eighteen can't withstand the Heaven Rank's pressure."
"I am eighteen!!!"
Li Luo impatiently replied as she walked into the Heaven Rank Talent Awakening venue.
Though called a venue, it was actually just an extremely vast open space.
The number of participants in the Heaven Rank Talent Awakening was in the millions - no venue could possibly contain them all.
Well, it was a fantasy world after all - you need plenty of people for villains to kill...
As she thought about this, Li Luo remembered that villain Ye Wangchuan who had backed away.
Her mood instantly soured.
How infuriating!
How could there be such a villain?!
Just then.
"Well, well, little kid. What are you doing here?"
Ye Wangchuan reached out and patted Li Luo's head.
Today was the Heaven Rank Talent Awakening, and naturally, Ye Wangchuan's father was present, watching from somewhere.
The fact that this little loli had entered the Heaven Rank Talent Awakening venue meant she hadn't started cultivation yet.
Therefore, even knowing this little loli might be a protagonist, Ye Wangchuan dared to approach and talk to her directly.
Ye Wangchuan had absolute confidence in his father's strength.
If an uncultivated protagonist could harm him under his father's watch, then this world wasn't worth staying in anyway.
"Who are you?! Don't pat my head... uh, Young Master Ye."
Li Luo turned her head, and upon seeing Ye Wangchuan, she was dumbfounded.
Damn!
Among millions of people here, how did this villain manage to find her so precisely?
Just then, a voice rang out in Li Luo's mind.
[System issuing task.]
[Option One]: Climb the Heaven Rank honestly.
Reward: High-quality mountain climbing gear set, convenient for climbing mountains.
[Option Two]: Reach above rank 66 in the Heaven Rank Talent Awakening.
Reward: 5 Low-grade Cultivation Pills + 2 Low-grade Foundation Building Pills.
[Option Three]: Climb to a higher rank than Ye Wangchuan in the Heaven Rank Talent Awakening, giving him a harsh reality check!
Reward: 7 Low-grade Cultivation Pills + 3 Low-grade Foundation Building Pills, Villain Emotion Value +150.
"Three three three three three three."
Must choose three!
Villain Emotion Value - this time she had to get at least some no matter what!
+【Epic Battles!】 "Your Highness, they say Linxi Temple is miraculous. Won’t you make a wish?" "A wish? It should be making wishes to me." "That may be so, but since you’re already here..." "..." "Fine. Then grant this princess a consort to play with." "He must be obedient, devoted, and utterly infatuated with my body—so much so that he’d kneel and kiss my feet." "Your Highness, that’s not a consort. That’s a dog." "Then add clever, witty, heroic, ambitious yet pragmatic..." "Hmm, that’s enough for now. I’ll add more later." After tossing out these words half in jest, Princess Anle departed the temple—only to catch a fleeting glimpse of the Bodhisattva statue smiling at her. Meanwhile, Yang An, fresh out of university, was having a very bad day. Good news: He’d transmigrated into another world with a cheat granting tenfold combat power. Bad news: He’d immediately fallen into the clutches of a certain villainess. Good news: Said villainess possessed peerless beauty and royal status. Bad news: She was absolutely monstrous!!! In the frozen wilderness, Yang An knelt beneath Qin Guo’er’s feet, drenched in sweat despite the cold. Desperately clutching her porcelain-perfect foot—the very one poised to crush his throat—he could only think: How do I survive this?! Need answers NOW!
d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!
Cheng's father told him he was getting remarried—to a wealthy woman. Cao Cheng realized his time had finally come: he was about to become a second-generation rich kid. Sure, it might be a watered-down version, but hey, at least he'd have status now, right? The wealthy woman also had four daughters!! Which meant, starting today, Cao Cheng gained four stunning older sisters?? But that wasn't even the whole story... "My name is Cao Cheng—'Cheng' as in 'honest, smooth-talking gentleman'!"
reezy rom-com) Good news: Jiang Liu is quite the ladies' man. Bad news: He’s lost his memory. Lying in a hospital bed, Jiang Liu listens to a parade of goddesses spouting "absurd claims," feeling like the world is one giant game of Werewolf. "Jiang Liu, I’m your first love." "Jiang Liu, you’re my boyfriend—she’s your ex." "Jiang Liu, we’re close friends who’ve shared a bed, remember?" "Jiang Liu, I want to have your baby." The now-lucid Jiang Liu is convinced this must be some elaborate scam... until someone drops the bombshell: "The day before you lost your memory, you confessed your feelings—and got into a relationship." Jiang Liu is utterly baffled. So... who the hell is his actual girlfriend?! ... Before recovering his memories, Jiang Liu must navigate this minefield of lies and sincerity, fighting to protect himself from these women’s schemes. But things spiral even further out of control as more people show up at his doorstep—each with increasingly unhinged antics. On the bright side, the memories he lost due to overwhelming trauma seem to be resurfacing. Great news, right? So why are they all panicking now?
