In the evening, Chen Minyue and Shen Shi drove home, and Shen Nian heard the sound of tires rolling over the concrete from the third floor.
After studying all afternoon, his mind was foggy, but he finally finished the third set of monthly exam papers.
Eighty damn test papers—just kill me already.
Shen Nian put down his pen. His parents were back, but he hadn’t even rinsed the rice or started cooking.
The thought of his parents working hard all day at the farm, bustling around the livestock pens, only to come home to no warm meal waiting for them made Shen Nian feel…
But there was nothing he could do about it.
Even though Chen Minyue and Shen Shi probably wouldn’t believe him, he really had been studying all afternoon, so absorbed that he didn’t realize it was already 6 p.m.
What a joke.
Shen Nian went downstairs to cook with his mom while Shen Shi organized tools in the car outside. They didn’t eat until around seven.
"Mom, were you tired today? Any back or leg pain? I can give you a massage later." Shen Nian remembered his mom often complaining about back pain before—perfect chance to test his healing hands.
"Not tired at all. We didn’t go to the farm today."
"Huh? Then where’d you go?"
"Your dad and I went to the neighboring village to watch the lion dance. Oh, what a spectacle!"
"…"
So his parents went out to have fun while he was stuck at home grinding through study sessions.
Betrayed. Only Xia Yanchun’s affection could make up for this.
At night, after dinner and a shower, Shen Nian sat alone in his room. His desk was cluttered with messy test papers, eraser shavings scattered everywhere.
Tackling ten mid-tier monsters wasn’t as formal as the first time—just filling out the papers half-heartedly would do. That was the conclusion Shen Nian drew after finishing the third set.
If every test demanded his absolute best, he’d burn out completely.
Still, he didn’t slack off entirely. For essays, like argumentative writing, he usually had to quote famous sayings or historical events to support his points.
Normally, that meant reading extensively to gather material.
But Shen Nian found a comfortable shortcut:
"I am a slow walker, but I never walk backward." —Mark Twain.
"Success is achieved by those who are deeply passionate." —Mark Twain.
"Ate at Wallace today without getting diarrhea—truly a divine miracle." —Mark Twain.
"If you don’t know who said a quote, just attribute it to Mark Twain." —Mark Twain.
He stuffed his essays with made-up nonsense. No one checked or graded them anyway.
Mark Twain was a lifesaver.
Anyone who badmouthed Mark Twain was Shen Nian’s enemy.
By 2:30 a.m., he finished the fourth set. The endless writing had worn him out.
Leaning back in his chair, Shen Nian exhaled deeply. No matter how hard he worked, the gap between him and Xia Yanchun remained vast—an insurmountable chasm between a mere mortal and a true prodigy.
Last year’s provincial science top scorer got 723. While scores fluctuated with test difficulty, rankings didn’t. If Xia Yanchun kept this up, she’d easily land in the top 50 for the national college entrance exam.
Damn prodigy. Why settle for a local 985 university? Just go straight to Tsinghua or Peking.
Knock knock—
"Hm?"
"Cut some fruit for you. Want some?"
"Sure."
Chen Minyue opened the door, smiling, then froze at the sight of Shen Nian studying. She placed the fruit plate on his desk, eyeing him like he was an imposter.
Is this really my son?
He looked similar—maybe even handsomer. But after not seeing him much lately, he seemed like a different person.
Hah. Growing up.
Shen Nian speared a piece of watermelon with a toothpick, the sweetness lingering in his throat.
"Oh, I found your old toys in the storage room. Want them? They’re dusty. If not, I’ll give them to your cousins or toss them."
"Hey, don’t throw them!" Shen Nian protested. "I paid good money for those. When I’m old, I’ll take them out and reminisce. Sounds fun, right?"
"Reminisce? You never even look at them now."
"That’s why I said when I’m old." Shen Nian waved dismissively. "Mom, you’ll understand when you’re my age."
Ah, there’s the familiar brat. Time to find a clothes hanger.
Chen Minyue fetched a box of toys from storage, wiping off the dust. Inside were Shen Nian’s childhood playthings, untouched for seven or eight years.
If not for his rare visit and her cleaning spree, they might’ve stayed buried forever.
"Handle this yourself."
"Yeah, yeah."
It was late, so Chen Minyue left him to his studying.
Shen Nian glanced at the box, then sat cross-legged on the floor. Opening it revealed a jumble of forgotten toys—Lego minifigures, Transformers, robotic beetles…
At eighteen, he couldn’t yet taste nostalgia. So he closed the box and shoved it under his cabinet.
Let twenty-eight-year-old Shen Nian relive childhood. Right now, eighteen-year-old Shen Nian had a mission: become Xia Yanchun’s best friend in the whole world.
Yeah. Just best friends.
Outside, the wind howled, rustling the curtains. Shen Nian strode over and pushed the half-open window wider, letting the autumn breeze wrap around him.
The temperature had dropped tonight.
Wait—why was Xia Yanchun out here too?
She stood on her balcony in pajamas, leaning against the railing as the wind played with her short, wisteria-like hair.
"What’re you staring at?" Xia Yanchun tugged her collar, annoyed. Who just steps onto a balcony and ogles people?
"Enjoying the breeze?" Shen Nian grinned, edging closer until only two railings separated them. The scent of her freshly showered skin seemed to drift over.
"Yeah, just washed up."
"Want some fruit?" Shen Nian darted back inside and returned with the plate, toothpicks still in it.
"Oho, a pleasant surprise. How filial of you."
Xia Yanchun leaned in, reaching easily across the narrow gap between balconies. The railing stopped just below her chest—like at school, the space was too tight to even fit a leg through.
Only now did she realize how easy it’d be to climb over to Shen Nian’s side. Even she could do it safely…
Not that she would. If anyone was climbing, it’d be him.
Wait—no! That’s not okay either!
"Filial? My mom cut these. That’s disrespectful to her!" Shen Nian pointed accusingly, escalating the situation. "Penalty: show me your legs and send me 200 yuan."
"Here, look." Xia Yanchun lifted her pants slightly. "Lower legs count too. Or do you eat drumsticks but skip the lower part?"
Only people who refuse chicken lower legs deserve to see legs.
Shen Nian cursed inwardly. Next time, he’d specify thighs.
Live and learn.
Watching Xia Yanchun nibble watermelon under the cool breeze, Shen Nian felt an odd contentment.
"Ahhh, Xia Yanchun, you’re like a sweet, soft…"
"Shut up, stop spouting nonsense here."
"Oh..."
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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.”
pression Bureau] Transported to a fantasy world overrun by demons and monsters, Gu Qingfeng becomes a jailer in the Demon Suppression Prison of the Great Yan Dynasty's Demon Suppression Bureau. From this point on, bizarre cases frequently occur in the Demon Suppression Prison, once known as hell on earth and infamous for its gloomy, terrifying atmosphere! Why do the demons and monsters in the prison wail miserably every night? Why has the corpse demon, capable of transforming into various beauties, donned black stockings and switched careers to become a foot massage therapist? Why has the eye demon, expert in soul-snatching and illusions, turned into a VR headset? Why is the fox spirit performing otaku dances? Are all these occurrences a twisted expression of demonic nature, or a descent into moral depravity? After peeling away layer upon layer of mystery, all clues ultimately point to a jailer named Gu Qingfeng. Gu Qingfeng: "Hehehe... My dear demons and monsters, whose card shall we flip today?"
e school belle recognized by the whole school, a genius girl from the kendo club. She also has a hidden identity, the youngest legendary demon hunter. Chen Shuo just transmigrated and found himself turned into a weak, helpless little vampire. He was caught by Su Xiyen and taken home at the very beginning. Since then, Chen Shuo's life creed only had two items. "First, classmate Su Xiyen is always right." "Second, if classmate Su Xiyen is wrong, please refer back to item one." Many years later, Chen Shuo, who had turned back into a human, led a pair of twins to appear in front of all the vampires to share the secret of how he turned back into a human. "It's simple, I tricked a female demon hunter into becoming my wife!"
] [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!"
