When Shen Nian got home, Shen Yue was already asleep. As usual, he took a shower and then locked himself in his room to read.
Around 11:30 p.m., his phone rang.
"Hey, Mom, why are you calling so late?"
His mother's voice came through the phone.
"Haven’t seen you in ages. Why don’t you come back to town with Little Chun during the National Day holiday?"
Shen Nian paused. He hadn’t been home since summer break, and counting the second semester of his sophomore year and now September, it had been almost half a year since he last visited. During that time, he hadn’t even made a single video call.
Even though he lived off-campus, to his parents in town, it made little difference—they still rarely saw him.
"Yeah, I’ll come back for a few days during the holiday," he said with a laugh.
"Good, good."
"Miss me that much, huh? Why don’t you just come visit instead?"
"Who misses you? Come back and help with chores."
"..." Shen Nian’s lips twitched as his mom continued nagging.
"I saw in the parents’ group chat that you guys have midterms coming up soon?"
"Yeah."
"How’s studying going?"
"Not bad."
"Do well on the exams. If you don’t, I’ll treat you to a ‘bamboo shoot roast’ when I get back."
"?"
Now that’s a real mom for you.
...
The next day, Tuesday—exam day.
The classroom, now cleared of textbooks, felt oddly spacious. Some students were diligently reviewing, while those who hadn’t bothered bringing books were napping at their desks. A few, too restless to sleep, stared blankly at math problems, their souls already leaving their bodies.
Shen Nian had only slept for four hours, yet he was bursting with energy—terrifyingly so. He could probably wolf down three big bowls of rice in one go.
He’d never taken midterms seriously before, but this time, he was ready. Intermediate-level monsters, your daddy’s here!
At 9 a.m., the exams began. Students flooded the hallways, crowding the narrow staircases. Shen Nian flipped his seat around, grabbed his pen, and stood in the corridor for a moment—some people really didn’t mind squeezing through like sardines.
Chen Dong shared his sentiment. "I’m so damn tired..."
"Did you stay up late?"
"Nah, just tired for no reason."
"Definitely stayed up late."
"You’re such an idiot. Not everything is about staying up late," Chen Dong scoffed. "Sometimes you just feel exhausted even if you slept normally. Meanwhile, you pull all-nighters and still look fresh as hell the next day. Seriously, you deserve to die."
"Why do I deserve to die now?"
"Dunno, just following procedure."
"..."
Once the crowd thinned, Shen Nian and Chen Dong headed to their respective classrooms.
Some students lingered in the hallway, cramming last-minute notes—mostly ancient poetry for the Chinese exam. Shen Nian even spotted someone scribbling cheat sheets on their palm.
He’d already memorized most of the required poems. Aside from English, he didn’t really have any weak subjects. And now, even that biggest weakness was gone. He was the complete dragon.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Li Shiyan leaning against the railing, letting the breeze ruffle her hair. The airhead girl stood straight, her bangs occasionally blowing into her eyes or mouth. She’d puff her cheeks and swat them away in frustration.
Adorable.
Shen Nian sidled up to her, cleared his throat, and called softly.
"Li Shiyan."
Li Shiyan froze. That familiar voice saying her name—she must’ve misheard. If it were Shen Nian, he’d definitely call her "Loli Girl" or "Loli Chick" instead.
Just thinking about it made her mad. Who was the real loli here? She had curves, damn it!
Ugh, maybe she should ask the proctor for extra scratch paper and force-feed Shen Nian some more "red stones" later.
When she didn’t react, Shen Nian tried again.
"Loli Chick?"
"Ah!"
Li Shiyan nearly jumped out of her skin. Since when did Shen Nian spawn next to her?
Shen Nian stroked his chin. Earlier, she’d hated being called that, yet she only responded to "Loli Chick." Tsundere much?
"You… why are you here?"
"We’re in the same exam room. Didn’t you know?"
"Oh… right."
"What’re you standing around for? Let’s go in."
"Okay…"
"Wait." Shen Nian stopped her again.
Li Shiyan stiffened, caught between fleeing and staying. Whatever Shen Nian wanted, it couldn’t be good.
In their first two years, they hadn’t interacted much—just casual classmates who chatted occasionally. But since senior year, their encounters had increased.
Not that they were pleasant. She kind of wanted to die.
"What… what is it?"
If Shen Nian was about to mess with her, she’d drop to her knees and beg him to stop, then hang herself from his desk the next day.
Shen Nian pondered for a moment before grinning. "Are you usually lucky?"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Like, do you ever step in dog poop or find money on the street?"
The sudden shift in topic made Li Shiyan relax slightly. She had no clue where this was going, but she thought it over.
"I used to find money a lot as a kid, but not so much now. Never stepped in dog poop, though."
"Tch." Shen Nian frowned. So she wasn’t the Goddess of Fortune after all.
"But I often get Meituan coupons that inflate to 15 bucks off. Does that count?"
"?"
Holy crap. This girl’s definitely hacking.
People who won the lottery bragging about luck? Shen Nian would scoff. But someone who regularly got 15-off coupons? He’d kill for that.
That’s the real deal.
Coupons inflating to 15, cashback deals netting 400 bucks—Li Shiyan was capital’s worst nightmare. A few more like her, and corporations would go bankrupt.
If this wasn’t the Goddess of Fortune, Shen Nian would move into a mansion with two silver-haired maids.
"What’s wrong?" Li Shiyan tilted her head, clueless.
Shen Nian straightened up. "Hey, can you wish me luck for the exam? Like, ‘May you soar to new heights, guess all the right answers, and ace every question’?"
"Huh?"
"Come on, the exam’s about to start."
"..." Li Shiyan bit her lip. "May you soar to new heights, guess all the right answers, ace every question, and score higher with each test."
Shen Nian stayed silent, staring at her intently.
Or rather, at his system’s response.
Nothing. Zip. Nada. Either he’d messed up, or Li Shiyan wasn’t the one.
Damn system. If someone who hacks coupons for 15-off and racks up 400 bucks in cashback isn’t lucky enough, what is?
Do the coupons need to inflate to 18?
Do drinks need to ring up for 1 yuan every time?
Does Alipay need to hand out free purchases daily before you’re satisfied?
System, get out here. We need to talk.
"Anything else…?" Li Shiyan whispered, barely daring to breathe.
"Nah, we’re good." Shen Nian waved her off. A week in, and still no leads on the Goddess of Fortune. Might as well focus on the exam.
"I’ll head in, then."
Shen Nian nodded and followed her into the classroom. The warning bell rang, and the clack of the proctor’s heels echoed down the hall.
Yan Xi reminds you: Due to Tomato's request for over 3 million daily visits causing excessive server pressure, we now recommend switching to other top-tier sources.
ver to a world of cultivation and returned invincible. Modern medicine is child's play compared to elixirs; technological might crumbles before true cultivation. My name is Qin Ning, Earth's sole cultivator!
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."
lities. One day, Qi Yuan was buying groceries when he unfortunately came face-to-face with a monster. Just when he thought he was going to die on the spot, he suddenly heard the monster's thoughts... "This aura, he's definitely not an ordinary master!" "So terrifying, so terrifying." "A fight with my back against the wall, I can't take it anymore." Qi Yuan: Ah, no one told me that my awakened ability isn't telepathy, but rather the stronger my enemies imagine me to be, the stronger I truly become. PS: Zhou Hai in the first chapter is not the protagonist.
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
