Chen Chang'an was just about to head to Gu Fenghua's residence when he stood up and saw a disheveled, unkempt man with a wild beard and unkempt hair burst into his courtyard.
The man was dressed like a rural blacksmith, and from his current appearance, it seemed he was a particularly down-on-his-luck one at that.
This was the Hammer Emperor?
This… was certainly a unique personality.
"Are you the Hammer Emperor?"
"That's me. So, you’re the one who knows how to deal with this bead?"
"Exactly. Where’s the bead?"
"How are you going to handle it?"
"Give me the bead first."
"Tell me how you’ll handle it first."
"Damn it, are you insane? Is the bead even yours?"
"I don’t care. Tell me first."
Chen Chang'an hadn’t expected the Hammer Emperor to be so stubborn.
But then again, when he thought about it, a man who had reached the level of an Emperor yet still insisted on living like a blacksmith probably had a few screws loose.
Chen Chang'an glanced at Gu Fenghua, and the moment he opened his mouth, Gu Fenghua felt a shiver run down his spine.
"You handle it."
Seeing that Chen Chang'an didn’t call him "Little Gu," Gu Fenghua let out a sigh of relief.
He was even somewhat grateful—Chen Chang'an wasn’t so bad after all, at least giving him some face in front of outsiders.
But the moment this thought crossed his mind, Gu Fenghua froze.
Why the hell should I be grateful to him?
Damn it, what’s wrong with me?
"Just give him the bead. If you don’t, how will you see how he deals with it?" Gu Fenghua advised from the side.
Hearing this, the Hammer Emperor felt there was some logic to it.
"Fine, kid, here’s the bead."
"Show me what you’ve got!"
"I’m watching."
After tossing the bead to Chen Chang'an, the Hammer Emperor stood motionless, staring at him as if afraid Chen Chang'an might vanish into thin air the next second.
Seeing the Hammer Emperor’s expression, Chen Chang'an was annoyed. I’m not some damn thief—this thing belongs to me in the first place. What’s with the look? Like you’re guarding against a robber?
Chen Chang'an ignored the clearly unhinged Hammer Emperor and focused on the fetal bead in his hand, feeling an inexplicable sense of familiarity.
The sixth one. This was already the sixth fetal bead.
Just three more, and everything would be complete.
Taking a deep breath, the fetal bead in Chen Chang'an’s hand transformed into a surge of energy that rushed straight into his body.
Witnessing this, both Gu Fenghua and the Hammer Emperor’s eyes widened in shock.
What the hell?
Where’s the bead?
Did he just… eat it?
"Hold on a second!"
Gu Fenghua reacted quickly, intercepting the Hammer Emperor before he could act.
"The… the bead’s gone."
"He made the bead disappear!" the Hammer Emperor said anxiously.
"Wait, that thing was his to begin with," Gu Fenghua said helplessly.
"I—"
The Hammer Emperor was itching to smash Chen Chang'an with his hammer right then and there!
You just wiped out the bead I’ve been struggling with for a hundred years?
But what happened next left even the Hammer Emperor dumbfounded.
"What’s going on?"
"This kid…"
"Who absorbs spiritual energy like this?"
It wasn’t just the Hammer Emperor and Gu Fenghua—the entire Gu Family was stunned, especially those in the middle of cultivation.
They could sense the spiritual energy around them vanishing completely. The energy they had just gathered hadn’t even been absorbed into their bodies before it was gone.
Where did it go?
Stolen?
"What’s happening? Where’s the spiritual energy?"
"Damn it, why can’t I sense any spiritual energy? Did… did my body malfunction?"
"Is everyone else unable to sense it too?"
"Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Where did all the spiritual energy go?"
"Wait, something’s off. The energy seems to be…"
"Chen Chang'an?"
The Gu Family members realized that the spiritual energy seemed to be converging toward Chen Chang'an’s residence, making them all wonder—what the hell was happening over there?
Gu Fengyao was the first to rush toward Chen Chang'an’s courtyard. After all, he was her fiancé—how could she just stand by?
Though, deep down, she wasn’t entirely sure how she felt about him.
"Ancestor, you’re here too?"
"What’s going on?" Gu Fengyao asked Gu Fenghua as soon as she saw him.
Seeing her, Gu Fenghua instinctively felt a sense of resistance—yes, resistance.
Two words kept flashing in his mind:
Big Sister.
But he quickly suppressed that horrifying thought.
"Chen Chang'an seems to be… cultivating."
"Except his method is a bit… unusual."
"I’ve never seen anyone absorb spiritual energy this fast or this ruthlessly before."
That’s right—in Gu Fenghua’s eyes, Chen Chang'an was downright brutal.
As a peak-level Emperor, Gu Fenghua’s perception was terrifyingly sharp.
Yet, within the range of his perception, he couldn’t detect even the slightest trace of spiritual energy.
Not a single wisp remained.
What did that mean?
It meant that in just a few short moments, Chen Chang'an had absorbed all the spiritual energy within his perception range directly into his body.
No lingering, no buildup—just straight into his system.
Wasn’t he afraid his body would explode?
"His body… is incredibly strong. And tough!"
"I… want to hammer it."
The Hammer Emperor stared at Chen Chang'an’s physique like it was some kind of treasure, his eyes gleaming with excitement. His hammer twitched in his grip, barely restrained.
"Stay put."
"If you hammer him, do you really think someone won’t hammer you to death?" Gu Fenghua quickly intervened.
The Hammer Emperor paid no attention to Gu Fenghua’s words, completely fixated on Chen Chang'an’s body.
This physique… it’s too damn solid!
One good hammer strike—wouldn’t that feel amazing?
"It’s over!"
"He’s obsessed with Chen Chang'an’s body now!"
Gu Fenghua recognized that look in the Hammer Emperor’s eyes—he had already forgotten about the bead. Now, all he saw was Chen Chang'an.
Headache!
Why did this guy even come here?
Isn’t he just making trouble for me?
The scene was almost comical—the Hammer Emperor stood motionless, staring at Chen Chang'an, while Gu Fenghua stood motionless, staring at the Hammer Emperor.
One wanted to hammer someone, the other was terrified that someone was about to get hammered.
Meanwhile, the rest of the Gu Family had gathered around Chen Chang'an’s courtyard. But seeing Gu Fenghua and the Hammer Emperor present, they didn’t dare enter, instead watching from outside.
Right now, Chen Chang'an was like a terrifying vessel of spiritual energy, his body brimming with an overwhelming concentration of it.
So much so that the Gu Family members felt that if they had that much energy inside them, they’d explode instantly.
"Senior Da Huang, why is Young Master’s breakthrough different this time compared to in Alchemy Emperor City?"
Gu Xian'er remembered clearly—back in Alchemy Emperor City, when Chen Chang'an broke through, there had been a massive surge of spiritual energy, but it hadn’t rushed directly into his body.
Instead, it formed a swirling vortex above him, eventually manifesting into a tangible form.
But this time, the energy didn’t linger at all—it went straight into Chen Chang'an’s body.
"I'm not sure either. This kid's breakthroughs are always a bit different."
"But this time feels strange. Why hasn't he broken through yet?"
"With so much spiritual energy surging into his body, he should have broken through by now, right?"
Da Huang found it odd. Back in Alchemy Emperor City, the delay in breaking through was due to the spiritual energy taking form before finally merging into the body.
But this time, the energy had already flooded into his body—why was there still no breakthrough?
Just as Da Huang finished speaking, Chen Chang'an's cultivation… finally began to rise!
"Did he break through?"
"He… has truly reached the first level of the Divine Transformation Realm?"

tions: attribute allocation, analysis, proficiency, and simulation. Specializing in mechanical alchemy, from crafting sorcerous battle armor to handcrafting mechanical maidens, his mechanical legion conquers endless realms... Relying on his wits, he begins with a student-teacher romance, wins over a female director, enslaves a female assassin and a underworld queen, becoming the husband of a Grand Duchess... He enslaves the Goddess of Magic from the divine realm, developing his power simultaneously in both the Wizard World and the Realm of Gods...

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!

young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."

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.”