The back mountain, the woods.
"Click!"
"Nice, this one is pretty good!" A boy held up the camera in his hand to review the photos, nodding from time to time with a relaxed brow, looking very satisfied.
Today was a sketching and photography activity organized by the school. The locations were decided by drawing lots. It was randomized across the entire Dragon Country, but their class ended up drawing the school's back mountain.
Their luck wasn't just ordinary bad. But in a sense, it could be considered hitting the jackpot.
A couple of girls stood under a tree striking pretty poses, while the boys were responsible for snapping photos. There were also people drawing; everyone was busy.
Although their luck was bad and they were confined to the school, the campus scenery was not inferior to tourist attractions at all. This was the benefit of having money. The ecology was quite good, preserving biodiversity to a certain extent.
For example, the snake that bit Dongfang Zhixia earlier was also a member of this biodiversity...
Now, this boy who had separated from the group was also a member of today's activity. It was just that he had no interest in photographing girls. With such good equipment, he naturally wanted to photograph birds!
He reviewed the bird perched on the branch, zooming in again and again, his eyes revealing pleasure and satisfaction.
Hmm... as expected of him, but it felt like something was missing?
As expected, candid shots are the way to go!
Step, step, step... The boy holding the camera headed towards the other side of the back mountain.
A few minutes later, the boy successfully appeared behind the hospital.
"Eh, how did I end up here? Whatever, it's the same..." The boy glanced at the hospital, withdrew his gaze, and began to search for his candid target in the trees. He quickly locked onto a bright green bird.
Then... he started climbing the tree.
"Click, click, click!"
The boy grabbed the bright green bird from the tree with his hand, held his camera, and just snapped away. A candid shot, naturally, meant grabbing it and taking a picture!
The resulting photos were top-notch!
After taking the photos, he admired his work. Once satisfied, he finally released the bird in his hand. The bird flew away chirping, but kept circling above the boy's head, cursing incessantly. It was probably displaying some colorful vocabulary.
The boy got down from the tree, patted the leaves off his body, and started looking for his next target.
"This spot is not bad!"
The boy quickly found a good location. There was a cuckoo in the tree. This time, he didn't do a candid shot, but changed to a timer. After setting up the camera, the boy lowered his footsteps, ran under the tree, and gave a thumbs up.
"Click, click, click, click..."
The camera on the timer shot at a terrifying speed of hundreds of frames per second. In just a few short seconds, thousands of photos appeared. The boy also constantly changed poses during those few seconds.
Timer ended!
The boy couldn't wait to run back and check his photos. He nodded in great satisfaction: "Hmm, as expected of me, it's just... hmm?"
The boy suddenly noticed a small black dot in the background behind him?
Is it dirty?
The boy sighed, took out a special lens cloth to wipe it, and prepared to find another place to shoot. It was a bit unlucky that the lens had gotten dirty at some unknown time, wasting this great opportunity.
After inspecting it, the boy suddenly realized that the small black dot that had just appeared behind him didn't seem to be dirt. It seemed... to be a person?
A person?
How is that possible?
The boy frowned and zoomed in on the photo again and again. This was where the advantage of a high-value, ultra-high-speed camera became apparent. Even when magnified dozens or hundreds of times, it was still incredibly clear!
As he kept zooming in, the boy finally saw clearly what the "dirt" behind him actually was. It was a person, a... person jumping off a building!
"Holy crap!"
The boy shuddered in fright, almost dropping the camera in his hand to the ground. He didn't care about the photos anymore and hurriedly rushed towards the location shown in the photo. This was a human life!
The boy ran panting to the spot where someone was "jumping off the building" in the photo, but found no one. Let alone a corpse, he didn't even see a ghost.
"How is that possible?" The boy gasped, seemingly thinking of some bad urban legend.
He had read many ghost stories and such, like how the dead in hospitals would repeat what they did when they were alive, like jumping off buildings, hanging themselves...
The more the boy thought about it, the more scared he became. A lot of cold sweat had already appeared on his forehead: "No offense intended, Amitabha, Amen..."
He chanted a messy mix of prayers, and after he was done, he bolted away.
The back mountain.
"Why are we still missing one?" The teacher frowned and recounted, but the numbers still didn't match up. One person was missing.
"Help!!!"
Not far away, a dusty and somewhat dirty boy came stumbling and crawling down from the back mountain. Tears and snot were flying everywhere. His legs were spinning like wheels, pedaling furiously, terrified of running too slow.
The group of people who had already gathered looked at him with strange expressions.
"What's wrong?" The teacher's expression was a bit strange, but he kept patting the boy's back to comfort him and calm his emotions.
"There's..." The boy seemed to think of something and hurriedly stopped himself.
According to the plot development of horror movies, if he spoke nonsense now, wouldn't a vengeful spirit come claiming his life later?
He couldn't speak carelessly, otherwise...
Gulp.
The boy swallowed hard, gave the teacher a tight hug, and took the opportunity to wipe his snot and tears clean: "I'm fine, I just thought I saw a snake just now."
Teacher: "..."
If you're fine, you're fine, why are you wiping yourself on me?
The teacher was slightly silent. Some girls in the group had already started discussing, saying that snakes were very dangerous, and a few of them huddled together.
"Alright, today's sketching activity ends here. Let's go back first. Next time, I will talk to the school about the safety issues of the back mountain. Class monitor, organize everyone..."
After a few words, the line was organized, and the group left. Only the boy who had been holding the camera at the beginning looked back every two steps, glancing towards the hospital from time to time, as if he was afraid of something.
The activity ended, and the group returned to the classroom.
Upon returning to the classroom, they found the hallway packed with people. It was exceptionally lively, almost identical to the scene when the eldest miss chased someone upstairs to demand a person last time.
"What's going on? Why did everyone run to our floor?"
"What are they looking at up ahead?"
"That's not right. Isn't it class time now? Why are there still so many people outside?"
"Make way, let me see what's going on."
"Holy crap, why is it these two immortals again? Quickly, let me out!"
The boy who had just looked "very brave" shuddered in fright when he saw the two people in the center of the vortex. He didn't care about watching the fun anymore and desperately squirmed outward, wishing he could jump up and rush out.
Outside the crowd, a boy stood on his tiptoes, held up his camera, and snapped a picture of the inside.
This way, he could figure out exactly what was happening inside. Let's take a look...
"Holy crap!" The boy shuddered in fright and hurriedly deleted the photo he had just taken, terrified that the people around him might see it.
The person in the photo was none other than Dongfang Zhixia, who had come looking for someone. And the person she was looking for was none other than the Rabbit Spirit who had "broken out of prison" from the villa, running away without even saying a word...
Wait, didn't he leave a letter?
It would have been better if he hadn't left it. Dongfang Zhixia wouldn't have overthought it and would have just treated it as "business as usual." It wasn't the first or second time Ye Cheng had sneaked away like this. If he ran, he ran; she would just catch him and bring him back later.
But the problem was that Ye Cheng had left behind a "perfect college entrance exam essay template." One read and she could tell it was a "true revelation of his feelings," leaving a bitter taste in Dongfang Zhixia's mouth.
She sent Ye Cheng messages, but he didn't reply. His phone was turned off when she called, and she had no idea what he was up to.
The more this happened, the more anxious Dongfang Zhixia became. She felt very uncomfortable, an indescribable sense that something was wrong.
To prevent unnecessary misunderstandings and troubles from deepening, Dongfang Zhixia, possessing incredible execution skills, left the villa straight away and came to the classroom to find him.
In Dongfang Zhixia's eyes, since Ye Cheng had run away, the only place he could return to was Shen Qinghan's side. That led to the current scene: Dongfang Zhixia coming to the classroom where Ye Cheng and Shen Qinghan were to find him.
The two girls had already "clashed" once before. Now that they were at it again, the peanut gallery immediately rushed to the battlefield, wanting to see exactly how Ye Cheng would die this time!
That's right, this is it, this is it, this is exactly what I want to see!
As a result... the Male Protagonist who was supposed to die a miserable death was nowhere to be found. A large crowd of onlookers looked disappointed, and many even bitterly denounced Ye Cheng's "irresponsible" behavior.
Bastard, if you're going to be a scumbag, then just obediently go to hell! Refund our tickets, we want to see rivers of blood!!!
Dongfang Zhixia had been standing at the door for almost half an hour, but Shen Qinghan showed no intention of going out. Let alone going out, she didn't even bother to acknowledge her.
It was as if they had returned to the scene of their first meeting as children, where she was "left on read."
If it were in the past, Dongfang Zhixia would have just thrown her hands up and left. If she ignores me, fine, does she think I care that much?
She wouldn't have bothered either. But that was before. Before, Dongfang Zhixia needed nothing from Shen Qinghan. Now it was different. Now, Dongfang Zhixia wanted to find out Ye Cheng's whereabouts from Shen Qinghan, and she was very anxious.
When you need something from someone, you naturally have to lower your posture. So... she stood there for half an hour.
Neither of them spoke. Arrogance met coldness, and the result was a thirty-minute stand-off.
Finally.
A change occurred. Shen Qinghan, sitting in the back row of the classroom, stood up. She had finished reading her book and could now conveniently acknowledge the untrustworthy, despicable, and shameless woman at the door.
Shen Qinghan's foot had healed. When she came over today, the bandages had already been removed, and she no longer needed aids like crutches. After getting up, she walked straight toward Dongfang Zhixia at the door.
The crowd began to boil with excitement. At the same time, everyone started to back away subconsciously. A battle between powerhouses was not something "small fries" like them could interfere with.
"Speak. You've been standing here like an idiot for so long; what do you want with me? Although I have no obligation to tell you, seeing how pitiful you are, I can make an exception."
Shen Qinghan looked at Dongfang Zhixia calmly. Her cold voice echoed in the classroom and the corridor, delivering the most "scummy" words with the calmest attitude.
The attack power was extremely high!
The surrounding onlookers were already seething with excitement!
Yes, yes, this is it, this is exactly what they wanted to see!!!
Where is the male lead?
Where's the scumbag? Hurry up and bring him out to die! Damn it, I want to see rivers of blood!!!
Dongfang Zhixia narrowed her eyes. "I advise you to watch your tone."
Not losing her temper was already giving the young lady a lot of face. If anyone else had spoken to her like that, she would have slapped them long ago.
Shen Qinghan spoke with a calm face, "Have you regressed to the point where you can't even understand human speech?"
Everyone: "..."
Hiss...
The crowd took a step back in unison, once again expanding the battlefield for the two "deities" by a circle. Getting caught in the crossfire of such mighty figures' battle by even a slight misstep would mean eternal damnation... How terrifying!
Meanwhile, in the crowd, because he couldn't squeeze his way to the front, a boy took advantage of the dense gathering to squat on the ground and look through the "jumping off a building" photos he had just accidentally taken.
Emboldened by the large number of people, he continuously zoomed in on the picture until he could clearly see the person's face...
This person... why does he look somewhat familiar?
The boy holding the camera suddenly widened his eyes. He remembered; he had seen him somewhere before!
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!
lity and could only live as an ordinary mortal. He only wished to live a peaceful life. Yet he didn't know— The dog he adopted, because it ate his food, became a legendary demon king. The kitchen knife he casually forged became a peerless divine weapon, causing numerous experts to fight desperately for it. The young disciple he took in became an immortal lord that led an era, due to cultivating the techniques Ye Feng taught him. Even the skeletons he looked down on the most were ominous demon kings that suppressed countless worlds. Many years later, looking at the void shattered with a punch, Ye Feng murmured to himself: It turns out the peerless kings were myself all along...
ine. During your journey, you save an abandoned baby girl and become her elder brother】 【You rely on each other, becoming each other's support】 【At the end of the simulation, you shield the now-grown girl with your life, sacrificing yourself to block numerous demonic cultivators. You die, and the light in the girl's eyes fades】 …… 【Second Simulation: You are transported to a world where steam and magic coexist】 【You immerse yourself in the study of magic, obsessed with its research. One day, while out, you encounter a half-blooded demon girl wandering the streets. You take her in as your student】 【You teach the demoness what it means to be human, show her the beauty of the world, and nurture her into a miracle that surpasses even the gods】 【At the end of the simulation, you die of old age in front of the nearly immortal demoness due to your mortal lifespan】 …… One simulation after another, one encounter after another. Xu Xi suddenly felt something was off: "Wait, you said you're coming to the real world to find me?"
] [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!"
