The Third Elder of the Gu Family scrutinized Chen Chang'an carefully.
Something was off!
His cultivation was indeed at the first level of the Divine Transformation Realm, but why couldn’t he clearly discern the man’s age?
As a half-step Great Emperor, the Third Elder should have no trouble determining someone’s age.
Yet with Chen Chang'an, he couldn’t see through him at all.
He appeared young, brimming with vitality, yet there was a sense that his age wasn’t as simple as it seemed.
Could it be that this man was blessed with great fortune, shrouded by the will of heaven, making him impossible to read?
If that were truly the case, then he might indeed be the one their ancestor had been waiting for.
But to be certain, they needed to observe his reaction to the news.
“Your name is Chen Chang'an?”
“Is it just a coincidence, or are you the same person who’s been causing an uproar in the Fengtian Imperial Dynasty lately?” the Third Elder asked skeptically.
“Third Elder, how could that be possible?”
“He’s only at the first level of the Divine Transformation Realm—he couldn’t possibly have that kind of power.”
“Didn’t you say the Chen Chang'an who stirred up trouble in the Fengtian Imperial Dynasty must have reached the Great Emperor Realm?”
Gu Fengyao refused to believe that the man before her could have any connection to the Great Emperor Realm.
Hearing her words, the Third Elder also found it strange.
After analyzing the rumors, he had concluded that Chen Chang'an’s strength must have reached the Great Emperor Realm—otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to move so swiftly.
But the Chen Chang'an in front of him was only at the Divine Transformation Realm, and there was no sign of concealed cultivation.
Could they really be two different people?
Was the world truly so full of coincidences?
Though the Third Elder was well-traveled and knowledgeable, he couldn’t immediately decide—after all, coincidences were not uncommon in life.
He had encountered plenty himself.
“Which Chen Chang'an it is doesn’t matter.”
“What matters is the news I’m about to share.”
“Chen Chang'an, why did you spend such a fortune to buy this information?”
The question caught Chen Chang'an off guard. Why did his reason for buying matter?
If they hadn’t been selling, he wouldn’t have bothered!
“The reason is simple—I wanted to know what the news was.”
“Is there a problem with that?” Chen Chang'an replied.
“Well…”
“No, there isn’t.”
“The news concerns a certain pearl.”
Pearl?
At those words, Chen Chang'an’s expression shifted. So it really was about the Embryonic Pearl?
To think that one of them had ended up in the hands of the Gu Family—how unexpected.
A family of their stature shouldn’t have had any ties to the Chen Family of the past. Had they stumbled upon it by chance?
The Third Elder noted Chen Chang'an’s reaction.
It was him after all!
Their ancestor had said that whoever reacted to the mention of the pearl was the one he had been waiting for.
“It really is you!”
“The ancestor once said that whoever showed interest in this news was the person he sought.”
“If someone bought the information but remained indifferent upon hearing it, they would have wasted their spirit stones for nothing.”
“Chen Chang'an, our ancestor wishes to meet you.”
Meet him?
Why would the Gu Family’s ancestor be waiting for him?
And how did he know about Chen Chang'an’s connection to the Embryonic Pearl?
Honestly, Chen Chang'an was now deeply intrigued. Who was this ancestor, and how did he know so much?
“Third Elder, is he really the one the ancestor has been waiting for?” Gu Fengyao asked in surprise.
“Yes, it’s him,” the Third Elder confirmed.
Gu Fengyao gave Chen Chang'an a puzzled look, still unable to understand why the ancestor would be interested in him.
And what was this pearl all about?
“I can go to the Gu Family, but not right now.”
“You have other matters to attend to?” the Third Elder asked.
“Yes. I still have unfinished business with the Fengtian Imperial Dynasty.”
Unfinished business?
The Third Elder and Gu Fengyao both froze.
So he really was that Chen Chang'an?
“The Chen Chang'an causing chaos in the Fengtian Imperial Dynasty—it’s really you?” Gu Fengyao gasped.
“Did I ever say it wasn’t?”
“But your cultivation…”
“It’s a bit low, but it’s fine. Doesn’t affect my performance.”
Chen Chang'an’s words left Gu Fengyao speechless.
A bit low? The gap was enormous!
A Divine Transformation cultivator displaying Great Emperor-level strength?
Was he even human?
“You’re not hiding your cultivation?”
“Why would I? Is my cultivation something to be ashamed of?”
“Monster!”
“You’re the real monster here!”
“Well, thank you for the compliment.”
“Here, take back the spirit stones from earlier.”
“No need. The ancestor said that if it truly was the person he sought, the spirit stones… would be waived.”
Waived?
Well, that was a pleasant surprise.
“Then I’ll take my leave.”
“Once I settle matters with the Fengtian Imperial Dynasty, I’ll come find you.”
“Very well.”
Without lingering, Chen Chang'an left the auction house with Gu Xian'er, now armed with knowledge of the Embryonic Pearl.
“Third Elder, is Chen Chang'an really not concealing his cultivation?”
“But Divine Transformation Realm…”
Gu Fengyao still couldn’t wrap her head around it. This defied all logic.
Even the most prodigious geniuses could only manage limited leaps in power—how could Chen Chang'an make it seem so effortless?
“This man holds many secrets. I can’t see through him.”
“Perhaps that’s why the ancestor values him so much.”
“Fengyao, how is your relationship with them?” the Third Elder asked.
“Huh? Relationship?”
“We only met today—what kind of relationship could there be?”
“I was even planning to snatch Gu Xian'er away from him earlier.”
“But now it seems… being his maidservant isn’t such a disgrace after all.”
Maidservant?
Only then did the Third Elder recall Gu Xian'er—his attention had been entirely on Chen Chang'an before.
The third-ranked prodigy on the Human Ranking was just a maidservant?
If word got out, many would be furious.
Those in the top ten of the Human Ranking were all proud talents—how could their pride endure being outshone by a mere servant?
Meanwhile, outside the auction house, various factions waited. Some were merely curious, while others, like Yin Gongyu, had ulterior motives.
When Chen Chang'an and Gu Xian'er stepped out, many were taken aback.
Two youngsters?
Could it really be them?
“It can’t be these two, can it?”
“There’s hardly anyone left inside—they were the last to come out.”
“No way. They don’t look like they could afford that many top-grade spirit stones.”
“Maybe they were just slow?”
"It's hard to say. Maybe we should wait a bit longer. The person who actually won the auction probably hasn’t come out yet."
Chen Chang'an emerged, but no one paid him any attention. The crowd outright ignored both him and Gu Xian'er.
In their minds, someone so young could never be the one in possession of over two million top-grade spirit stones.
"Young Master, these people… how shallow."
Back at the inn, Gu Xian'er couldn’t hide her disdain for them. Judging by appearances alone—how utterly superficial.
"It’s a matter of perception. Perfectly normal."
"They’re simply making judgments based on their own understanding."
"Honestly, it’s for the best. Saves us from unwanted trouble." Chen Chang'an replied with a faint smile.
"That’s true. I wonder when Senior Huang will arrive."
"Young Master, do you really think the bead you need is in the Gu Family?" Gu Xian'er asked.
"Since the Gu Family’s ancestor mentioned the bead, even if it isn’t in their possession, he must at least know something about it."
"We’ll have to pay the Gu Family a visit, one way or another."
Chen Chang'an had no choice but to go to the Gu Family. But before that, there was still the matter of the Fengtian Imperial Dynasty to settle.
Originally, he hadn’t been in any hurry, but now, with news of the bead surfacing, Chen Chang'an couldn’t help feeling impatient.
Meanwhile, outside the auction house, the crowd waited and waited, yet no one else emerged. Yin Gongyu’s expression grew increasingly grim.
"We’ve been tricked!"
"It must have been those two—those two from earlier!"
"Does anyone remember where they went?"
"Ah… Your Majesty, we didn’t pay attention to those two."
"Find them! In this imperial capital, I refuse to believe a man and a woman can simply vanish!"
"Yes, Your Majesty. I’ll—"
"Your Majesty, why are you still here? Someone from the palace has arrived."
Just as Yin Gongyu was about to order the search, news of the palace messenger made his heart skip a beat.
"Have our reinforcements arrived?"
"Indeed!"
] 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.
ions, keeping it grounded and realistic】 After quitting his job, office worker Su Yang accidentally binds with the "Enjoy Life System." As the name suggests, simply by indulging in life's pleasures, he can earn random rewards from the system—no need to spend money on beautiful women or grovel before anyone. Just enjoy, and the money follows, making it all about effortless fun. The system comes with a scanning feature, allowing him to establish a favorability bond with women rated 85 points or above. Every 20-point increase in favorability unlocks additional rewards. After suffering through over twenty years of hardship, Su Yang trembles with excitement, his dull eyes suddenly gleaming with newfound hope. "Enjoy life? How hard could that be?"
he colors of other people’s emotions. Light red meant anxiety. Gray meant exhaustion. Orange meant excitement. Yellow... meant repression. At the same time, he could gain unlimited control over one of those colors. Pale cyan: relaxation. Using this ability, he started offering “two-yuan hugs,” spending an afternoon exchanging emotional-color experiences with others. Then came his final female customer of the day— a girl whose emotional color was pure black... —— A week later, Xu Chuan had become skilled at using pale cyan—Relaxation—treating it like a bottle of menthol balm whenever he needed it. That was when he discovered he had unlocked another unlimited emotional color: Purple, the color of fear. So these emotional colors refresh every week? Fine, I take it back—I’ll never call you useless again... —— Much later, after Xu Chuan had accumulated countless emotional abilities, one night, he suddenly found himself inside someone else’s dream. There, he could use the emotional colors he possessed to paint. And in her dream, he painted her a shower of pink shooting stars, spreading across the depths of the night sky...
] [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!"
